This was Cen Xiu’s shortest employee tenure ever.
From clocking in to clocking out—less than an hour.
Looking at the message Bo Jingmo sent saying that Yu Li wanted to quit, he clicked his tongue silently. “This Bo Jingmo… he’s got a thing for Yu Li, doesn’t he?”
No way this is just some ‘helping a classmate’ situation, right?
That’d be way too far-fetched.
“Senior, won’t this waste your time? I can go by myself.”
Yu Li sat in the passenger seat, fingers gripping the seatbelt, eyes darting uneasily toward the man in the driver’s seat. Her gaze dropped, the corners of her eyes still tinged with a lovely red hue as she said nervously, “I can really go back on my own.”
The man buckled his seatbelt, a soft smile on his face. “You already called me ‘senior.’ When we’re out and about, it’s normal for classmates to look out for each other.”
Yu Li was stunned for a second, then her eyes curved in a smile, her pretty fox-like eyes sparkling. “Thank you, Senior,” she said softly.
The man’s hand paused. His brows furrowed ever so slightly. The words “No need” lingered on the tip of his tongue, but in the end, he swallowed them and gave a low, emotionless “Mm. That’s not urgent.”
He tapped his fingertips lightly on the steering wheel and casually said, “It’s lunchtime—want to grab a bite? There’s a really good place nearby.”
But Yu Li immediately declined. “No need, Senior. I’ll just eat back at school. You’re busy, no need to waste your time.”
The air fell into sudden silence.
She hadn’t even hesitated—just outright rejected him.
Even when he offered to help find her another job, she’d turned him down the first time too. It was only because of the whole outfit compensation thing that she reluctantly agreed to come along.
Was she that determined to avoid being associated with him?
Bo Jingmo’s gaze darkened. His tapping on the steering wheel quickened unconsciously, matching the frustration simmering in his chest. His brows knitted tightly, breath growing heavier. A wave of bottled-up irritation surged, and he didn’t even know how to release it.
Unlike the manic frustration that came with his episodes, this was more like powerless exasperation. An unfamiliar sense of helplessness and grievance welled up inside.
This was something Bo Jingmo had never felt before.
He took a deep breath, trying to suppress this strange emotion. Forcing a slight smile, he kept his voice light and warm. “It’s fine. I was going to eat anyway. You helped me open wine earlier—consider this part of your pay. I can’t let you work for free, right?”
Seeing she was about to refuse again, he quickly added, “And I can also explain the new job to you.”
As they waited at a red light, he turned to look at her anxious profile and asked softly, “Do you think I’m a bad person? Is that why you keep avoiding being around me?”
Yu Li’s eyes widened in surprise. She quickly turned her head. “Of course not…”
Their eyes met. His gaze was deep and unreadable, impossible to tell what he was really thinking.
But his cool features held a hint of helpless gentleness, lips pressed in a faint line, and he actually looked a bit… hurt.
“If you really want to go back to school, I’ll take you,” he said.
She glanced at the secretly running navigation on her phone. The location was getting farther and farther from school. From the very start, this guy had never planned to take her back.
Yu Li’s eyes glinted.
Tch, Bo Jingmo, you’re really leaning into this “gentle senior” act, huh.
The girl sat quietly in her seat. Hearing the senior who just helped her say that, a shy flush crept up her cheeks. Her dark hair fell softly by her ear as she hurriedly said, “It’s not like that! I just didn’t want to trouble you, Senior.”
Faced with those warm eyes, she lowered her head in embarrassment and mumbled, “If you don’t mind… then I guess I shouldn’t keep refusing.”
The little system watched them both putting on an Oscar-worthy show in the car, and a confused question mark slowly floated above its head: ?
Is this what they call… old married couple vibes?
When it came time to pick a restaurant, Bo Jingmo instinctively chose the Western place he had in mind all along.
But just as he was about to confirm it, his hand froze—
He suddenly remembered he hadn’t asked her opinion yet.
Deep down, he had just assumed she’d like it.
He frowned slightly and asked casually, “What do you like to eat? Western? Home-style? Or something else?”
At that moment, Yu Li was leaning lazily back in the seat, eyes half-closed. She always got drowsy in Bo Jingmo’s car—it was the same during the accident.
For a split second, the current moment felt just like back then.
She replied almost out of habit with “Western food,” but then realized she was supposed to be playing the thoughtful little white flower schoolgirl.
Snapping out of it, she turned to him, eyes curving sweetly, and said in a gentle tone, “You can decide, Senior. I’m fine with anything.”
The man’s movements paused. He looked at her sleepy expression and his gaze softened. His voice lowered instinctively. “Go ahead and nap. I’ll wake you when we get there.”
“I’m fine, Senior. I’m not sleepy.”
Yu Li actually didn’t really want to sleep—she was still traumatized by the thought of suddenly switching worlds mid-nap again.
Curled up in the soft leather seat, she lowered her gaze, playing idly with her phone, and asked in a seemingly innocent tone, “Senior, did you and Boss Cen meet through gaming? I heard you mention things like instances and NPCs earlier.”
Bo Jingmo’s eyes narrowed slightly. After a moment, he gave a soft “Mm.” “Something like that.”
“I see…” The girl’s voice trailed off, fingers tracing her phone idly as her long lashes veiled her expression.
“So… is the game fun? Guys seem to really enjoy games. I kind of want to try it too.”
The man went silent for a few beats, then said slowly,
To his surprise, the girl looked at him with wide, curious eyes. Her pretty fox-like gaze lifted slightly. “Really? But even you’re playing it.”
The girl let out a quiet sigh, like she was reminiscing. “It just made me think… back in school, there were guys who fell in love online in games. Like, found virtual girlfriends and all. Some of them were so into it—they’d be crying their eyes out after a breakup.”
She lifted her gaze to peek at the man beside her, the corners of her lips curving up subtly. Her tone was laced with meaning:
“Senior, would you ever fall in love in a game? Or… like someone in there?”