Somehow, she suddenly thought of the guy who’d played pranks on her multiple times. Could it be Wan Donglin? A chill ran down her spine. Could he really be that bored? Impossible! Knowing his personality, he didn’t seem like the type to do such a thing. Then she carefully recalled the handwriting on the card—and realized she’d never actually seen his handwriting, so she couldn’t tell if he’d written it or not. If it really was him, she definitely couldn’t touch the money; he was probably watching her every move.
She thought for a moment. "Let’s do this, Xiaoya. Don’t use the money in the account just yet. Wait until we’ve earned back the complete initial cost of setting up the shop. Once we can return the cost to Wan Donglin, we’ll then start splitting the remaining profit."
Xu Xiaoya quickly agreed, "That’ll work. Xixi, you’re always so thoughtful. Leaving a way out in everything is a good strategy."
Xu Xiaoya went to the VIP room to handle business, while Yan Xixi sat in the waiting area. Suddenly, she noticed a strikingly beautiful and affluent young woman at a nearby counter withdrawing 700,000!
As the woman sat beside her sorting out the paperwork, Yan Xixi impulsively asked, "Buying a house, huh?"
The woman snorted. "It’s a breakup fee for a jerk."
Yan Xixi was dumbstruck. After a moment, she suddenly thought, Being a jerk seems to have its perks.
She rushed to the company, arriving just in time to clock in. This was the latest she had ever been.
She had just turned when she saw Huang Xiaojue walk into the lobby. He seemed to be wearing a new outfit today: a wool coat and a white scarf. Tall and with an upright posture, he looked particularly dashing.
Terrified he might see her, she panicked and spun around to flee. She dashed to the elevators, but they were stubbornly stuck on the tenth floor, showing no sign of descending anytime soon. Anxious, she made a snap decision and headed for the stairs. Heedless of the sixteen flights to her office, she bolted upwards, her footsteps pounding on the steps.
Only after reaching the seventh floor in one go did she finally slow down a little.
Huang Xiaojue definitely didn’t see me, she thought. Maybe he doesn’t even suspect I’ve been right under his nose all this time. The company has hundreds of employees; there’s no reason for him to personally pay attention to every rank-and-file worker.
Although she tried to reassure herself with this, she still felt deeply uneasy.
Then she recalled the person who had repeatedly pranked her. Could it be Huang Xiaojue?
But she immediately dismissed the idea. Absolutely not Huang Xiaojue! I might not understand Wan Donglin very well, but I know Huang Xiaojue perfectly. He wouldn’t do something so pointless. ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ novel•fire.net
Breaking her usual work routine, she began to scour the internet for information on Zhou Ting. Because she had "climbed the wall" (bypassed internet filters) this time, she found a bit more information. The earliest piece of news was about Zhou Ting attending a women’s federation conference in Thailand. The conference’s main agenda was to discuss how to improve the physical and mental health of women in impoverished regions. Immediately after that, there was a report about Zhou Ting investigating women’s issues in Africa. Could Wan Donglin have gone to Africa with her during that half-month? she wondered.
When she searched for news specifically about Wan Donglin, she couldn’t find a single relevant piece of information. There were plenty of people with the same name, but they were all strangers.
At noon, she went to the cafeteria for lunch. From a distance, she spotted two familiar figures—it was Huang Xiaojue’s mother and girlfriend! Startled, Yan Xixi quickly backed away. Partway back, she ran into Huang Ying, who asked with a puzzled look, "Finished eating already?"
Yan Xixi forced a smile, mumbled a few evasive words, and scurried back to the office.
This situation was becoming untenable. Huang Xiaojue’s mother and his girlfriend kept popping up at the company unpredictably, making their presence felt. Who knew when she might bump into them? It was no joking matter. She found herself unconsciously flipping through her employment contract, trying to figure out what trouble, if any, quitting now would entail.
I really can’t stay here any longer, she thought. Even if the company has a great work atmosphere, it’s no use.