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Huo Yingjie listened to the little tortoise's words with skepticism.

"Are you telling the truth?" Huo Yingjie asked. "I'll write to Tian Tian later and ask her. If you're lying, no matter how capable you are, I won't let you stay by my side."

The little tortoise nodded repeatedly and said, "Master, what I said is true. I'm not afraid of you writing to ask about Sweetie!"

Once they arrived at the dormitory, Huo Yingjie placed the little tortoise on the table and asked, "What do you want to eat? What do you want to drink?"

"I can cultivate without eating or drinking while I'm by my master's side," the little tortoise said, which was the main reason why it was willing to lie to come along.

Since we're here, let's make the best of it!

Huo Yingjie couldn't ignore the little tortoise, so he said, "Alright, let's make three rules. First, your activity area is this room, don't go out; second, I have a roommate in my dormitory, and you can't appear or speak in front of him; third, you can't use magic, especially magic that hurts people. You can ask me first before you use it."

The little tortoise thought it was a bit troublesome and said, "Master, it doesn't have to be so complicated. You can just carry me with you. With me by your side, I can protect you and keep you entertained."

Huo Yingjie thought about it and realized that if he left the little tortoise in the dormitory, given its restless nature, it definitely wouldn't stay there peacefully. Rather than waiting for the little creature to cause trouble, it would be better to keep it by his side and watch over it.

"Alright then, but you can't disturb me or talk while I'm working. If you absolutely have to speak, speak from your heart, not from your mouth," Huo Yingjie instructed, afraid that the little tortoise might suddenly speak and frighten others.

After washing up, Huo Yingjie took his lunchbox to the cafeteria to get his food.

Just then, Huo Yingjie ran into Zhou Yuanchao, who was returning from playing basketball. He said, "I took your lunchbox. I'll get my food back after you've finished washing up."

"Boss, you're back?" Zhou Yuanchao said. "What good food did you bring?"

"All you ever think about is eating," Huo Yingjie said with a laugh. "We're all in the dorm. If you can eat, then go ahead and eat."

After Huo Yingjie finished speaking, he went to get his food.

As Huo Yingjie entered the cafeteria, many people stared at him.

Huo Yingjie has always been handsome and academically outstanding, making him the center of attention wherever he goes. Especially after the Zhou Yuanyuan incident, which became common knowledge within the research institute, his public image was severely damaged, even though it wasn't entirely his fault.

However, Huo Yingjie didn't care. He just wanted to work hard and achieve results. He didn't have time to explain to so many people.

When Qian Miaomiao saw Huo Yingjie coming over, she quickly waved and said, "Boss, over here!"

Huo Yingjie walked over and asked with a smile, "You still have three days left, why are you back so early?"

Huo Yingjie's smile was so bright that it made the female colleagues around him swoon.

But Qian Miaomiao, who was standing closest to Huo Yingjie, couldn't feel any affection for him. In her eyes, Huo Yingjie was just a handsome tyrant.

"I had nothing to do at home, so I came back," Qian Miaomiao said. "Boss, you must be tired from the car ride, you should make the call first."

"Thank you." Huo Yingjie didn't stand on ceremony with Qian Miaomiao and stood directly in front of her.

Huo Yingjie got two meals, nodded to Qian Miaomiao, and quickly left the cafeteria.

The women who knew Qian Miaomiao quickly called out, "Miaomiao, come and eat with us after you've gotten your food!"

"Okay." Seeing that it was someone she knew, Qian Miaomiao agreed, got the food, and took it directly to the table where four or five women were sitting.

A round-faced girl asked curiously, "Miaomiao, seeing such handsome people all day must make your heart race and your heart flutter, right?"

Seeing her female colleagues looking at her with great interest, Qian Miaomiao smiled wryly and said, "To be honest, before I started working under the boss, seeing what he looked like made my heart flutter a little. After all, we're young girls too, so it's understandable. But once I started working under him, even if he were as handsome as Pan An or Song Yu, I wouldn't feel a single romantic attraction!"

“Oh, Miaomiao, capable people are often quite eccentric,” another woman said. “And they’re quite strict; I bet they’ve scolded you quite a bit.”

Qian Miaomiao quickly shook her head and said, "The boss doesn't scold people. If you make the same mistake once, he won't say anything; the second time, he'll say a few words; the third time, he won't say anything, he'll just stare at you with those beautiful eyes, as if he can see right through you, it makes my scalp tingle. I'd rather be scolded by him than be stared at. This isn't just my feeling, Zhou Yuanchao and Tang Xinliang feel the same way."

"What a pity. She's good-looking, but has a bad temper. She's not suitable to be a revolutionary partner," the round-faced female comrade lamented.

“You all know he already has a boyfriend,” Qian Miaomiao said. “That Zhou Yuanyuan from last time, with such a powerful background and such a beautiful face, our boss doesn’t even care about her. Our boss only has one girl in his heart, and he cherishes her very much!”

"The Huo family has an even better background," a voice said sourly.

"Look, our boss is on vacation, so he went straight to see his future sister-in-law," Qian Miaomiao said. "A woman who can win his heart must be an absolute beauty..."

Several women chattered amongst themselves, discussing Huo Yingjie's private life.

Unbeknownst to them, a man was eating nearby, listening intently to their conversation and gathering the information and intelligence he desired.

When Huo Yingjie returned to his dormitory, he saw a large salted fish on the table, which he guessed Zhou Yuanchao had found. On the other side was a plate of beef jerky, and next to it was a bottle of baijiu (Chinese liquor).

"Boss, let's have a good drink today." Zhou Yuanchao said with a grin while drying his hair. "Our cattle and sheep are doing well this year, and we got quite a lot of things. My parents asked me to bring a lot back with me this time."

"You've got a conscience, kid," Huo Yingjie said. "Don't eat it all; leave some for Chief Engineer Sun. Tomorrow when we visit Aunt Li, you bring her beef jerky, and I'll bring her salted fish."

Zhou Yuanchao swallowed hard and said, "Hey, this salted fish smells different from what I've smelled before, it must be delicious. You should give it all to Aunt Li, so we can eat it whenever we want. We can't eat it if it stays in our dorm, and if we take it to the cafeteria, everyone gets a share, but we won't get many pieces."

“Okay!” Huo Yingjie said. He brought four, giving one to Li Yunzhong and one to Zhang Aijun, and he had two left.

"Hey boss, this fish weighs over ten pounds, where did you catch it?" Zhou Yuanchao asked while pouring wine.

"Hehe, of course it's from the river!" Huo Yingjie said. "The taste is indeed quite good. This is salted fish made by Grandma Qi herself. I've had it once." (To be continued.)