Chapter 44 I don't want to be cuckolded...
As soon as the alarm rang at 7:30, Wen Chu sat up in bed, wide awake. In fact, she had woken up automatically half an hour earlier and had been waiting for the alarm to ring.
"Alright, let's go all out today, and our favorability rating will definitely skyrocket!" Wen Chu opened the dressing room interface with great enthusiasm, and a bunch of beautiful clothes, jewelry, and shoes floated in front of her.
She took a shower first, made herself smell nice, and tried on several outfits—formal, simple, sweet, and innocent—but in the end, the temperature won out over style, and she chose to travel light.
It's summer, and it must be very hot outside, so it's best not to wear anything too complicated.
A light pink, short, sleeveless, fitted tank top paired with white graffiti shorts and white sneakers creates a playful, youthful, and comfortable look, perfect for outings.
Clothes were easy to take care of, but hair and makeup were something she'd have to do herself. Lu Ming didn't have any cosmetics or skincare products at home, so she secretly opened the door and peeked next door. She found the door was still closed, so it seemed they hadn't gotten up yet, but it was still early. She tiptoed out, closed the door, and then stealthily went downstairs.
Just as Aunt Sun saw that she was about to say something, Wen Chu put her index finger to her lips, signaling her not to speak, and said softly, "I'm going home for a bit, don't tell him."
Aunt Sun looked like she understood, but Wen Chu had already slipped out the door.
She returned home and busily began getting ready.
After becoming a corporate slave, she spends all her time in the office, and her hair is basically just grabbed with a hair clip. Her hair-tying skills have greatly decreased. As for makeup skills, she has almost none, but she can still apply a simple foundation, put on some blush, and draw her eyebrows.
So she spent forty minutes on these few steps, until her hands and eyes ached, but she finally finished.
Wen Chu stood in front of the full-length mirror for a while, admiring her own beauty. She thought it was perfect. Then she glanced at the time and saw that it was already past 8:40 before skipping out of the house.
Wen Chu rang Lu Ming's doorbell, and the door was quickly opened by Xiao Yuan. They were cleaning the house as usual. Wen Chu greeted them with a smile: "Good morning!"
Xiao Yuan looked at her with bright eyes, "Sister, you look so beautiful today."
"Thank you!" Wen Chu walked into the house and looked around. Not seeing any familiar figures, she asked, "Your young master hasn't gotten up yet? What time is it? Breakfast hasn't been served."
Holding a feather duster, Xiao Yuan said, without understanding the situation, "Young Master left early this morning. It seems there was something urgent at the company, so he got up late and left without even having breakfast."
Wen Chu's smile froze on her face instantly.
She stood there, stiffly turning her head, and asked, "When did you leave?"
Seeing that Wen Chu's expression was a bit off, Xiao Yuan's tone became somewhat hesitant: "Around 7:30, I guess..."
With things having come to this, Wen Chu could only squeeze out a "Damn it" through gritted teeth.
She stood at the door of Lu Ming's house, hands on her hips, quietly watching the black SUV that should have been parked in the parking space disappear. The morning sun shone on her face, but it couldn't dispel the resentment on her face in the slightest. She finally realized why she felt something was missing when she left home.
Damn it! This guy actually forgot about that?!
Breathe...take a deep breath...Wen Chu closed her eyes and spent several minutes calming herself down, then tried to call that damn man, but his phone was off.
She squatted by the door, patiently calling every five minutes, only to find the phone was still switched off.
Okay, very good...
She now seriously suspected the system was sabotaging her, and snapped, "Your forgetting speed is almost catching up to before! Tell me honestly, did you secretly change the probability? You haven't forgotten anything for so many days, but you forgot today?? Are you okay?"
The system simply says: "The path follows the pattern of probability."
Wen Chu didn't know what to say. All she knew was that she wanted to destroy the world. Why work overtime on a perfectly good Saturday? Couldn't they have talked about it on Monday?!
She tossed the small bits of grass she had casually plucked from the flowerbed back into the soil, then went home in a huff, deflated like a punctured balloon, and lay back down on her bed.
If I can't play anymore, I might as well go back to sleep. I'm so sleepy, I don't even know if I slept for five hours last night.
She lay on the headboard, buried her head in the pillow, and tried to fall asleep, but she was so uncomfortable from the gas in her stomach that she couldn't sleep at all.
The sun was already high in the sky, and the weather was clear and sunny – perfect weather for going out.
Wen Chu was still trying to calm herself down with her eyes closed when she heard her phone chime—a text message notification from a social media app. She immediately opened her eyes and checked, but the little red circle on the pinned post wasn't there.
Her heart, which had been pounding, calmed down. Wen Chu scrolled down with a somber expression and found the person who sent the text message.
Shane: The weather is nice today, and I happen to be near your house. If you don't mind, would you like to have a coffee with me?
Wen Chu stared at the message Qi Siyan sent, her dislike for Lu Ming intensifying. Even an NPC was better than that Lu Ming guy!
She hesitated for a moment, thinking that she couldn't let all the time she spent on makeup and styling go to waste. That deadbeat man didn't know how to appreciate it, and that was his loss. Rather than staying at home unable to sleep and feeling sullen, she should go out for a walk to clear her head and distract herself.
She replied with an "okay," and Qi Siyan immediately sent her his location, saying he would come pick her up.
Wen Chu said no need, and drove to the coffee shop where the other person was. Through the transparent curtain wall, she immediately saw Qi Siyan sitting at a long table facing the curtain wall. The other person was wearing a casual short-sleeved shirt and trousers, resting his chin on his hand, with his head down, absentmindedly stirring the coffee in his cup with a coffee spoon.
Sunlight streamed through the glass, creating irregular patches of light on his profile, making his skin appear even whiter, as if he were bathed in a gentle halo.
Wen Chu sighed once again, "She's so beautiful, she's a sight to behold just by sitting there."
Coincidentally, the man also looked up the next second, met her gaze, his eyes lit up slightly, and he smiled and waved at her. Wen Chu walked into the store and sat down next to someone. Just then, the waiter brought her an iced latte and placed it in front of her, as if he had timed her arrival perfectly.
"Thank you." Wen Chu picked up her cup and took a sip.
"You look beautiful today, are you going out to play?" Qi Siyan asked, looking at her.
Wen Chu thought to herself, "Look at them, they're both promising young men, but this guy is so perceptive and sweet-talking, much better than someone else." She forced a smile that was no different from usual, not wanting the other person to see that she was in a bad mood: "No, I don't have any plans."
Qi Siyan's eyes crinkled into a smile: "I thought you would reject me because of that guy."
The moment the image of that person, who seemed to be busy with something, popped into Wen Chu's mind, she got angry. She scoffed and said nonchalantly, "It's not like we're really together, and besides, he doesn't care who I'm with. Moreover, I'm not so love-struck that I'd cut off all my male friends for him."
"That's good." Qi Siyan said, suddenly reaching out and gently touching her eyelid with his thumb.
Wen Chu was startled and was about to dodge when the man warned her, "Don't move."
"W-what's wrong?" Wen Chu's face flushed, and she quickly realized what was wrong. She thought to herself, "Oh no, did my makeup smudge?"
Qi Siyan smiled and used her thumb to wipe away a dark spot under her eye. "It's nothing, you've just become a little more beautiful. You're perfectly fine now."
Wen Chu quickly leaned over and looked at her face through the glass, finding that everything was normal.
She breathed a heavy sigh of relief; thankfully, she hadn't embarrassed herself.
Qi Siyan naturally placed the dessert menu in front of her. "What would you like to eat? I wasn't sure what you liked, so I didn't order anything. Eating something sweet will make you feel better."
Wen Chu took it and glanced at it, then casually said with her head down, "You're paying?"
Qi Siyan smiled even more, as if she was charmed by her cuteness: "Of course, I don't have the habit of letting ladies pay the bill."
"Then I won't be polite. I haven't had breakfast yet." Wen Chu said, and just as she was about to pick up her coffee to take another sip, the cup was taken away from her hand.
"Drinking coffee on an empty stomach isn't good. Why haven't you had breakfast yet at this hour? Shall I take you now?" Qi Siyan put the coffee aside and asked gently.
Wen Chu glanced at the time on her phone, her eyes dimming for a moment. She shook her head listlessly, "Forget it, it's almost ten o'clock. It'll be lunchtime soon." She called the waiter and ordered two small cakes.
Qi Siyan raised an eyebrow slightly: "That's perfect. I wonder if I would have the honor of inviting this beautiful lady to lunch?"
Wen Chu gave an awkward laugh and declined, saying, "Thank you, but I'll pass. I don't have much of an appetite today; a couple of snacks will be enough. You know, the rumors about my secret rendezvous with Lu Ming at night have been circulating all over the place lately. If the paparazzi were to photograph me having dinner with you again, it would be even more of a headache. Let's wait until things calm down before talking about it again; there will always be an opportunity."
"Okay." Qi Siyan gave a slightly disappointed smile, and said understandingly, "It was my oversight, I'm sorry."
Wen Chu's heart softened; she really couldn't bear to see a handsome guy so down. She quickly changed the subject: "What brings you to Xian'an District today? It's quite far from Xie Rui."
"I met with an important partner to discuss some things. It's a quiet place with a nice environment, perfect for chatting." Qi Siyan paused, then added, "Actually, it was just discussing the competition in two weeks, something we've mentioned before."
Wen Chu chuckled dryly, "You bosses really all work very hard, huh? You have to work on weekends."
"You guys? It seems I'm not the only one busy with this." Qi Siyan pushed the dessert brought by the waiter in front of Wen Chu, implying something.
Wen Chu tossed away the mint leaves used for decorating the cake, scooped up a piece with her fork and put it in her mouth, saying absentmindedly, "I have no idea what he's busy with."
“I didn’t say who it was.”
Wen Chu paused, then came to her senses. "Sigh, there's no one else we both know besides him."
“That’s really unfortunate and bad luck,” Qi Siyan said in a humorous tone. “It seems I need to find an opportunity to introduce you to my other friends and break this status quo.”
Wen Chu laughed. "You really hate him."
Qi Siyan: "Excuse me for being blunt, but Lu Ming really doesn't know how to cherish women. I can't find a more ungentlemanly man than him. If I had a girlfriend, I wouldn't let her stay home alone on the weekend."
Wen Chu nodded repeatedly: "That's right, you're right. He's just that bad."
Has he selected the participants for the competition?
"Hmm." At this point, Wen Chu felt a little guilty, and she answered vaguely, "He should... have made his choice, right?"
“This match is probably quite important for him. However, I won’t hold back because of that.” Qi Siyan looked at Wen Chu’s expression with a worried look: “You won’t blame me, will you?”
"Of course not, even brothers keep clear accounts."
"That's good." Qi Siyan's brows relaxed again. "Did he hire outside help? Or someone from within the company? From what I understand, Baiyue's core technical staff left three years ago after being suppressed by Lu Mingxiao, taking several capable subordinates with them. Since then, Baiyue has always had a weakness in terms of core talent. Lu Mingxiao is a very suspicious person, so he probably won't choose outside help. Although I really hope he loses, he is, after all, your boyfriend in name only. Out of good intentions, I still advise him not to be so stubborn when necessary, or he will miss many opportunities."
“I think so too,” Wen Chu agreed, “but that’s his business, I can’t control it.”
"Let's not talk about this boring work anymore." Qi Siyan deliberately steered the conversation back to Wen Chu: "What have you been up to lately? You don't look well. Are you very busy? If you need any help, feel free to ask me anytime."
Wen Chu shook her head again: "I'm fine. I eat and drink as usual, and I rest when I'm tired. I don't have much pressure."
"That would be great." Qi Siyan propped her head up and looked at her: "A new amusement park has opened on Fanxing Street. If nothing unexpected happens, it will be very lively in the next month or two. I haven't been to an amusement park like this in a long time. When you and him are no longer tied together, let's go take a look?"
Wen Chuxin trembled, feeling that the world was full of coincidences. She tugged at the corner of her mouth and said, "We'll talk about it later."
She lowered her eyes, feeling an even heavier tightness in her chest. Suddenly, her phone, lying to the side, vibrated. Both of them looked up and saw the contact name on the phone: Boyfriend.
Wen Chu's face flushed, feeling incredibly embarrassed. She felt a sense of foolishness, knowing full well that Lu Ming didn't like her and was just putting on an act, yet still stubbornly treating him as her boyfriend.
She quickly hung up the phone.
"Why didn't you answer?" Qi Siyan asked, glancing at her phone.
"I don't want to take it for now."
Qi Siyan chuckled: "Could it be because of me? Is it inconvenient?"
"No..." Before she could finish speaking, her phone vibrated again, "If you want to cry, cry..."
Wen Chu clicked her tongue inwardly. The other party had probably finally finished their work and saw the missed calls she had made, so they called to ask why. But she didn't want to argue with this damn man in front of outsiders, and she really didn't want to hear him speak for the time being.
I'm afraid it's like a powder keg that could explode at the slightest touch.
So once again, she hung up.
This time things calmed down. Wen Chu figured Lu Ming's patience would only last a couple of times, and sure enough, he did. She sneered inwardly, only to hear Qi Siyan ask, "You two didn't have a fight, did you?"
Wen Chu's heart skipped a beat again, then she denied it, saying, "No, I don't think so..." It was just her being unhappy on her own.
"What did he do unilaterally that made you unhappy?"
"Heh." Wen Chu smirked. "Isn't this basic stuff? You'd be surprised if he did something to make me happy."
Qi Siyan frowned slightly: "If that's the case, why are you still so insistent on liking him?"
"I don't know, maybe it's just bad luck. I've only met him once in all these years." Wen Chu sensed the doubt and confusion in Qi Siyan's eyes as he looked at her, but that was the truth.
She must have had the worst luck in her life to be forgotten and played with in this wretched world, with no right or qualification to be angry or willful.
Qi Siyan sighed, "Wen Chu, I still want to say that you deserve better. You've just graduated, and you have plenty of opportunities to meet other men."
Wen Chu: "I—"
“Buzz—if you want to cry, cry…” Wen Chu swallowed her words again. She frowned, a bad feeling creeping into her heart. This guy was calling her so persistently, as if something terrible had happened. Could it be that he was going to tell her or disagree with her representing Baiyue in the competition?
“Go ahead and answer. I also want to know what he wants from you. I’ll just stay silent,” Qi Siyan said with a smile, displaying the magnanimity of an empress.
Wen Chu coughed awkwardly, looking apologetic. "Well... I'll answer it." She swiped right to answer, put the phone to her ear, and said a casual "hello."
On the other end of the phone, the man asked in a deep voice, "Where are you?"
The voice she had initially found pleasant now only fueled her anger. She suppressed her rage, knowing she couldn't lash out in front of Qi Siyan, and could only speak rapidly in a very calm tone: "Why should I tell you where I am or what I'm doing? If you called to ask why I called you this morning, then I can tell you, it's all over now, you can hang up."
There was a moment of silence on the other end, then the voice became even more somber: "Wen Chu, I don't want to be in the news for being cheated on."
Wen Chu's heart skipped a beat. Hearing this, she abruptly looked up and finally caught a glimpse of a familiar figure emanating a chilling aura in her peripheral vision. Lu Ming, wearing a black shirt, stood under a large tree two or three meters to her right, holding a phone in his hand, his dark eyes fixed on her.
She was clearly the one who should be angry, but those eyes made her feel guilty, as if she had done something wrong.
Qi Siyan followed her gaze, her brows slightly raised, but there was no surprise or panic in her eyes. The corners of her lips were still slightly curved as she said, "His face is really sour, it's disgusting to look at."
Wen Chu subconsciously swallowed, wanting to cover the microphone, but it was too late. She heard the person on the other end of the line give a cold snort, and felt that they were on the verge of exploding with rage.
Adhering to the principle of not airing family dirty laundry in public, Wen Chu decisively hung up the phone. She stood up and said shyly, "Siyan, thank you for treating me to food. Let's call it a day. We can talk again sometime." Her gaze fell on the coffee, the ice in it almost melted, and she picked it up and downed it in one gulp. "It would be a waste not to drink it. I ate cake, so I'm not on an empty stomach, right?"
Seeing this, Qi Siyan's smile widened, and he looked at her with his blue eyes, saying sincerely, "Wen Chu, you are really cute."
Wen Chu smiled sheepishly and waved to the person, "I'm leaving now, bye-bye."
"I hope I haven't caused you any trouble, or perhaps I could go out and explain?"
"No need, no need, it's alright."
"Well then, bye-bye."
Wen Chu nodded, pushed open the door of the coffee shop, but instead of walking towards Lu Ming, she ignored him and walked towards where she had parked her car.
Seeing this, Lu Ming frowned even more deeply, standing still and staring at the girl's "carefree" back as she didn't intend to explain a word, his hands clenching slightly.
Qi Siyan then came out as well, smiling as she greeted Lu Ming: "What a coincidence, Mr. Lu, what brings you here at this hour?"
"I should be asking you this. Xie Rui doesn't seem to be on the way from here. What brings you here for coffee, Mr. Qi?"
"It's quiet here, the scenery is beautiful, and the people are nice, so I just like to come here for a stroll whenever I have free time."
Lu Ming glanced at him with unfriendly eyes, "That young CEO Qi really has a lot of leisure time."
"Don't misunderstand, Wen Chu and I are completely open and honest with each other, just chatting like friends. But Mr. Lu, do you have some kind of penchant for peeping at other people's conversations? If you want to chat too, I'm all welcome to join in. You don't need to look at me like that, I haven't done anything."
Lu Ming scoffed. The white car in the distance had already started turning around and sped away. He didn't want to waste any more time talking to people. "I have something to do. I'm leaving now."
Qi Siyan nodded slightly to the man: "Take care, and don't bother seeing me off."
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