Tao Zhizhi ate until she was stuffed before Fu Jue stopped feeding her. While Fu Jue was still eating, she ran over to Lan Xin and snuggled up to her. Lan Xin gave her an ambiguous look and teased her:
"Last night was pretty intense!"
Confused, she watched as Lan Xin opened the camera and showed her her neck from the side. A few red plum blossoms had fallen from above, standing out starkly against her fair skin. She muttered to herself, "..."
"Don't talk nonsense, it was just normal kissing and hugging."
"Tsk tsk, he's so cunning. You wouldn't even notice this place if you weren't specifically looking for it."
Lan Xin gently pinched her smooth, radiant face, making her envious.
"Women who are nourished by love have such beautiful skin."
Lan Xin had important business to attend to at the moment, so she mysteriously covered the screen, leaving her to guess, and said in a coquettish tone:
"I just gave it a small recommendation, ta-da—"
The screen showed the live stream of Nuanshi Xiaopu (a food stall), and the shared bikes were sold out. The staff inside could only chat with fans. She had barely checked her phone yesterday when Shi Lang sent her a message:
[Shi Lang: Boss! Good news, we're in high demand and short supply!]
Lan Xin then pulled up her live stream data, showing that she had proactively approached the food factory to advertise their shared bikes. She boasted, "It's all thanks to me!"
"Zhizhi, can I get into your publicity department with these grades?"
Tao Zhizhi was overjoyed. Shi Lang had given her almost a third of the goods, which sold out almost instantly. She exclaimed in surprise:
"Aren't you still here—"
"I should have quit long ago. I'm just working for someone else anyway, I might as well work for our dear Zhizhi!"
She gave Lan Xin a big hug. With such a skilled saleswoman like her, Tao Zhizhi welcomed her arrival with open arms and feet!
[Accelerated Task 3 completed ahead of schedule! Rewards are being distributed to the host!]
"Hooray! Host! Host! Who is the most beautiful and hardworking host?! One hundred million!"
Yi Yi twisted her round waist and danced wildly, turning Tao Zhizhi's mind into a karaoke room for singing and dancing.
"Stop flashing! I can't see anything!"
Tao Zhizhi promptly stopped its disco-like behavior. The little figure sat on the throne prepared for her by the system, looking down at the 100 million, and said coquettishly:
"What's the reward? Tell me about it."
"Reporting to Your Majesty, one billion has been deposited into the national treasury. Enclosed is the tenth floor of the office building in the central district of Qingshui City. Congratulations, Your Majesty!"
One hundred million bowed to the host with delight, and a joyful child's voice read aloud to Tao Zhizhi.
"Huh? How dare you seamlessly connect the missions!"
"Hehe, this is for the sake of our Zhizhi Wealth Kingdom's grand plan."
Knowing in advance that the next task was related to starting a company, and that the system reward would be given to Tao Zhizhi as a prize, she would have to go to the prize redemption center in a few days and then sign a transfer agreement with the building owner. The series of tasks instantly pulled her away from the sweet two days!
After this unexpected sweet surprise, the two began their journey home. Tao Zhizhi discussed her idea of starting a company with Fu Jue. Although Fu Jue supported it, he had some reservations:
"Zhizhi, although your small shop has stabilized, your factory is still at a relatively small scale. Isn't it a bit too hasty to open such a large company now?"
Tao Zhizhi pondered for a while, realizing that she was indeed a little anxious since she knew nothing about company affairs.
[Accelerated Task Four: Establish a company with over a thousand employees in the building, for a period of five years.]
[This is taking so long! I'll try to learn it first; judging from the current situation, it seems quite difficult.]
"Hey, why don't you teach me? Okay?"
Tao Zhizhi fiddled with her fingers, remembering that the person beside her was an outstanding finance student. Fu Jue didn't miss her conflicted yet determined gaze and earnestly reminded her:
"Being my student isn't easy, what should Zhizhi do?"
The sound of brakes followed, and the car had already stopped in the garage of Yutianjing. Fu Jue stared intently at her.
"Then, how about I give you some shares?"
Seeing that he seemed dissatisfied with her answer, she licked her lips, pulled her tie towards herself, and shoved it at him:
Is this enough?
Fu Jue's voice was hoarse, but the corners of his mouth curved up, clearly satisfied: "Not enough, but I'm willing to be your teacher."
Tao Zhizhi was taken aback by this sudden declaration of love, and chuckled softly.
"Haha, Consort Fu, do you know that your sweet talk is a bit awkward?"
He pressed his forehead together and said, "Hmph, you just know how to ruin the mood."
Now that the decision to study had been made, Fu Jue led her to residence number eight, and she was puzzled:
"Are you visiting my uncle and aunt? I haven't bought them a gift yet!"
"Don't worry, they're not here. Didn't you want to study? Come and get your books."
Compared to number nine, where Tao Zhizhi had only recently moved in, number eight was much more cozy. Upon entering, one could see the gardener tending the lawn and flowers. Fu Jue led her into the study.
Surprisingly, the study wasn't the black, white, and gray-themed, minimalist style that Tao Zhizhi had imagined. One section of the desk was dark brown, which was more subdued compared to the rest of the room, but the racing car models and airplane models on the shelf broke the tranquility.
Fu Jue let Tao Zhizhi wander around the bedroom, his heart filled with her image, a scene that had played out countless times in his mind at night.
"Racing, guqin, violin, calligraphy... Fu Fu, you have such a wide range of interests!"
Tao Zhizhi pointed to the painting he had specially framed and exclaimed in surprise, "Is this a painting you painted? This—is mine!"
The painting depicts the scene of his first meeting with Tao Zhizhi. He meticulously portrayed her expression while painting, and the bold, intensified colors highlight his attraction to her.
On the shelf were photos of him from his middle school days, as well as mementos of his awards from various competitions. She picked up a photo from Qingshui No. 1 Middle School to identify it:
"What a coincidence! I also took a photo here, from the exact same spot!"
She was referring to the background of the photo, where the wisteria was in full bloom. It was a relatively secluded corner of the campus where the wisteria, planted outside the wall, had climbed into the campus and was loved by many students, so the school did not remove it.
However, these wisteria vines only lasted for five years before being pulled up by people from outside the school. At that time, Tao Zhizhi was in her second year of high school and thought it was a pity.
Later, the school found a more suitable place to plant wisteria and rebuilt a flower wall, but it was still different. Tao Zhizhi always felt that it lacked some of the tenacious vitality of growth.
"But, Senior Fu, would you like to introduce who she is?"
Tao Zhizhi noticed the girl standing very close to Fu Jue in the photo and couldn't help but feel curious. Fu Jue, with one hand in his pocket, raised an eyebrow and pulled her onto the shelf: "Jealous?"
After a pause, as if recalling something, she said uncertainly, "I think she was my co-star in a promotional video shoot. We've done it so many times that I don't remember her exactly."
Tao Zhizhi could hear the obvious pride in his tone, and said coquettishly, "Senior Fu is so amazing! I've never taken a picture like this before."
"Yeah, thank goodness I didn't take any pictures."
His tone carried a hint of relief; he couldn't imagine how jealous he would feel if he saw Zhizhi standing with another man.
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