After sending the ssage, Liu Shuo still didn’t respond.
Despite harboring so feelings for Lu Hui, Liu Shuo wasn’t a fool. Though his rough looks and deanor might suggest otherwise, he was the second-in-command of the Xu Huai Association. Plenty of girls, particularly those struggling in school and looking for shortcuts, sought to cozy up to him.
But Liu Shuo found them unattractive—too skinny, lacking any charm.
In contrast, Lu Hui stood out as one of the few won he knew with real femininity. However, that didn’t an Liu Shuo was willing to endlessly pursue her. After all, she had threatened to call the police on him. Continuing to push his luck after that would make him look desperate, so Liu Shuo decisively chose to let her go.
His withdrawal, however, left Lu Hui in a state of panic.
She had never taken Liu Shuo’s pursuit seriously, dismissing him as an uncouth, brutish man who blindly followed Zhou Yuwen around like a lackey. His crude behavior and domineering attitude only disgusted her further.
The mory of that night still made her skin crawl. Even though she had managed to avoid the worst, she still rembered the unpleasant fishy sll left on his hand, making her shudder with revulsion.
After that, Lu Hui avoided Liu Shuo at all costs. She accepted his gifts and red envelopes without hesitation but flatly rejected any invitations to the movies or outings.
If it were Zhou Yuwen, she might have considered it. But Liu Shuo? Going out with a man who looked like a wild boar? She’d never hear the end of it from others.
To Lu Hui, a man buying gifts for a woman was simply expected. Accepting his gifts didn’t an she owed him anything—he would’ve spent the money on another girl if not on her.
What she didn’t anticipate was that Liu Shuo would so readily give up.
Without him around, Lu Hui realized she missed his generosity. She had grown accustod to his lavish spending.
What’s worse, she suddenly felt her position at work becoming unstable. Zhou Yuwen’s indifference toward her seed to grow, especially after Jiang Xinyi’s return. Lu Hui felt marginalized.
To make matters worse, Zhou Yuwen had entrusted the entrepreneurial subsidy application—a task Lu Hui had once tried to take on to impress him—to Jiang Xinyi instead. When Lu Hui had volunteered, Zhou Yuwen had casually dismissed her with, “Just focus on organizing the company’s accounts.”
That one sentence hit her hard.
It seed as though Zhou Yuwen was deliberately keeping his distance. Lu Hui suspected that Liu Shuo had told Zhou Yuwen about their incident and might have even exaggerated the story, painting her as his “woman.”
Her anger at Liu Shuo flared. She blad him for ruining her chances with Zhou Yuwen.
With no clear allies left in the office, Lu Hui began to panic. She watched Jiang Xinyi flit between her desk and Zhou Yuwen’s office, seemingly engrossed in her work. Through the small window on Zhou Yuwen’s office door, Lu Hui could see Jiang Xinyi standing close to him, discussing the subsidy application and pointing to various sections of the form.
They laughed occasionally, and their easy camaraderie stoked Lu Hui’s jealousy.
Her sour mood deepened when Jiang Xinyi suddenly glanced in her direction. Startled, Lu Hui quickly lowered her head, pretending to focus on her work. Monts later, Jiang Xinyi opened the office door and called out, “Sister Hui, could you co in for a mont?”
Lu Hui bristled at Jiang Xinyi’s tone. Who does she think she is, acting like my boss?
But despite her irritation, Lu Hui plastered on a polite smile and followed Jiang Xinyi into the office.
Zhou Yuwen held the application form Jiang Xinyi had prepared. Without looking up, he said, “Sister Hui manages the company’s accounts. Just ask her for whatever information you need. Sister Hui, please assist Xinyi with this subsidy application.”
His words were polite but carried a clear expectation. Lu Hui forced herself to smile and nodded. “Of course, no problem.”
Jiang Xinyi began explaining the specifics of what she needed, and Lu Hui played the part of the cooperative team mber while Zhou Yuwen checked his watch.
“It’s already four o’clock. You two carry on. I have dinner plans with my girlfriend,” he said casually, excusing himself.
“Leaving us with all the work again, I see,” Jiang Xinyi teased.
“What else am I supposed to do?” Zhou Yuwen laughed as he left.
---
With Zhou Yuwen gone, Lu Hui’s facade crumbled. She barely listened as Jiang Xinyi explained the details of the application, occasionally responding with vague acknowledgnts.
“Sister Hui, did you get all that?” Jiang Xinyi asked after a lengthy explanation.
“Hmm? Oh, sorry, I missed so of it,” Lu Hui admitted distractedly.
Jiang Xinyi sighed and started over, but halfway through, Lu Hui interrupted. “Look, it’s nearly the end of the day. This is going to take a while. Why don’t we finish it tomorrow?”
Jiang Xinyi frowned. “But there’s still half an hour left.”
“Even if we work on it now, it won’t get done today. Let’s just tackle it in the morning,” Lu Hui insisted with a smile.
Caught off guard, Jiang Xinyi hesitated but eventually relented. “Alright, Sister Hui, just tell
where the files are, and I’ll work on it myself tonight.”
Lu Hui handed over the files and made a quick exit, muttering sothing about having important plans.
---
Lu Hui wasn’t lying—she did have plans.
After leaving the office, she boarded a bus to Liu Shuo’s billiards hall. Inside, Liu Shuo was playing mahjong with a group of friends.
“Ha! Won again! Pay up!” Liu Shuo crowed.
“Co on, Liu Shuo, leave us with so money to date with!” one of his friends complained.
“Date? What for? I’m not dating anyone, so why should you?” Liu Shuo retorted, laughing.
Just then, the door swung open, and Lu Hui entered, her expression unreadable. She stood silently in the doorway, her gaze fixed on Liu Shuo.
“Uh... Sister Hui!” Liu Shuo stamred, clearly uncomfortable.
His friends quickly excused themselves, leaving the two alone in the room.
“Why haven’t you responded to my ssages?” Lu Hui asked, her tone sharp.
Caught off guard, Liu Shuo scratched his head. “Uh, my phone must’ve been off...”
“Don’t lie to ,” Lu Hui said, her voice tinged with frustration.
“I thought you were serious about calling the police!” Liu Shuo protested.
“That was a joke! How could you take it seriously?”
After a brief silence, Liu Shuo grinned sheepishly and moved closer to her. “So... you ca to see . Does that an—”
“Don’t push your luck,” Lu Hui snapped, rolling her eyes.
But as Liu Shuo watched her, a thought crossed her mind: What’s the difference who it’s for?
After a long pause, she sighed. “Co to my place tonight. We’ll talk then.”
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