Chapter 17 The Domineering CEO
In a small town, at sunset, lovers gaze lovingly at each other.
What a harmonious and heartwarming scene.
The more the system looked at it, the more confused it became.
The plot does hint that Zhou Qingran and the male lead were developing feelings for each other during this time, and there was a small accident when the plot was handed over to its host.
But isn't there something wrong with the current trend?
In the original storyline, Zhou Qingran wasn't part of the male lead's plan to earn money and return to Beijing! He only intended to leave some money behind before departing.
Then things changed. Her childhood sweetheart, Su Yu, came looking for her, and the male lead's identity as a domineering CEO was revealed. Zhou Qingran was blinded by the wealth represented by the male lead's net worth, and she begged and pleaded, wanting to repay his kindness, and did everything she could to go to Beijing with him...
When it's the host's turn, there's no need to go through any procedures; the male protagonist just says he wants to bring the host along.
After agonizing over it for a long time, it finally couldn't help but suggest: "[Host, do you think we could be a little more perfunctory during this relationship-building phase?]"
Alas, it's all because it has such good taste and the host it's bound to is too outstanding. The host only needs to use a little trick to manipulate the male protagonist.
Qingran: [Hmm?]
System: [It seems like the male lead is really interested in you. He even kissed you this morning. This won't do.]
Qingran pondered: [That really won't work.]
This made him suspect that the other person might have sustained other injuries in the car accident.
The system was very pleased that it and its host were on the same page on this point, and quickly said: [Right, right, if the male lead falls in love, how can he develop a romantic relationship with his official love interest later on?]
[Therefore, to reduce the difficulty of your subsequent tasks, it's best to be a little perfunctory in your attitude towards the male lead.]
Qingran hesitated: [Wouldn't this seem irresponsible? And what if the male lead misunderstands and refuses to take me with him, making the mission completely impossible?]
Whether they are responsible or not is irrelevant, but their concerns are valid.
The system fell into deep thought.
Then it heard its host's resolute voice, tinged with worry: "[However, I believe Zero wouldn't harm me. This suggestion must be for my own good. I will do my best.]"
As expected, its request put the host in a difficult position.
The system said guiltily, "[Don't worry, host. Yan Chen isn't the kind of male lead in a melodramatic soap opera. His character and values can withstand scrutiny, so he shouldn't abandon you.]"
That was in the original storyline.
Now that he has fabricated a false relationship for Yan Chen, can Yan Chen still remain calm?
*
That day, Qingran and Zhou Sizhu parted on bad terms.
Just two days later, Qingran overheard some mushroom vendors at the market talking about how the Niu family was going to celebrate their 70th birthday on Tuesday, and that they were going to do a big celebration.
Perhaps fearing he would cause trouble at the birthday banquet again, the Zhou family, having learned from past mistakes, did not send anyone to inform him this time, finally giving up on trying to squeeze money out of him.
Qingran sighed, "What a small world!" and then put the matter behind her. "Wouldn't it be better if everyone just kept to themselves?"
He's been picking mushrooms with Yan Chen and Wang Lei these past two days.
Needless to say, Wang Lei, having experienced the difference between the two kinds of gains, is now very satisfied with Qingran's constitution, which is like a fungus scanner, and no longer thinks about showing off his skills.
What a joke! He can tell the difference between spending time picking mushrooms and spending time finding mushrooms.
Yan Chen, on the other hand, wanted to save money.
Three people picking up items is more efficient than two. The daily earnings from selling them are usually around 1200, and if you're lucky enough to find something particularly valuable, you can earn 1500.
This number is definitely not small.
After they went to sell their mushrooms a few times, not only did the mushroom buyers jokingly ask if they had any secret, treasured spots, but many of their peers also came to inquire, whether out of sincerity or speculation.
Wang Lei refused to reveal his money-making methods, always giving vague and evasive answers.
Yan Chen, well aware of human nature, didn't speak too definitively, only saying, "We've gone deep into the mountains."
This is not a lie; sometimes they can pick mushrooms all the way over the mountain and onto the other side of Butterfly Mountain.
On the other side is the Lanxian Ring Road, the place where Yan Chen had his car accident.
When Yan Chen stared blankly at the road opposite, the system was quite nervous, afraid that something in the plot might be wrong and cause the male lead to suddenly remember something.
Fortunately, Yan Chen didn't say anything or show any unusual behavior.
That said, upon hearing the answer that they had gone deep into the mountains, some people worried about something happening and gave up immediately.
Some people didn't believe it, or rather, they didn't believe in superstitions, and secretly followed Qingran and Yanchen home.
They planned to wait outside the two people's house before dawn after figuring out where they lived. They figured the two of them would be out picking mushrooms eventually, so they would follow them from a distance, confident they wouldn't miss their secret hideout.
It was almost completely dark, and they were still heading into the mountains, and they still weren't home?!
Later... let's not talk about it!
Those who learned of this strange incident later couldn't help but laugh. Zhou the Fool's son grew up in the mountains. Comparing yourself to him is just asking for trouble.
Some members of the Zhou family were extremely disappointed, wondering why they hadn't taken away that little bastard's job.
In short, the matter passed with much fanfare but little substance, and the next day Qingran and the other two went to the market to sell mushrooms again.
This time, some of them looked on with envy, some with jealousy, but none dared to boldly imitate them, which made things much quieter for the three of them.
Yan Chen picked mushrooms during the day and worked as a translator at night.
A week passed like this, and one morning Wang Lei suddenly brought good news, telling them that the house issue had been resolved.
His girlfriend, Meimei, selected three houses based on the given criteria and asked the two of them to take some time to see which one they wanted.
So Qingran and Yan Chen came to the county town to look at houses the next day.
After considering factors such as location, size, community environment, and infrastructure, the two decided on Anle Community near the North Gate.
The house is a brand new house that has been renovated but has never been lived in. It has two bedrooms, one living room, one kitchen, one bathroom, and a small balcony where you can grow flowers and dry clothes. The area is about 80 square meters.
The landlord is asking for 700 per month, with a deposit of one month's rent and three months' rent paid in advance.
Li Yanmei, who was traveling with us, helped us get the price down to 660, saying it would bring good luck, and the landlord happily agreed.
At this time, there is no such thing as a rental contract. Whether the rent increases or not, and whether the tenant can pay the rent on time, all depend on the good faith of both parties.
Yan Chen insisted on signing a contract to clarify the responsibilities of both parties and following proper procedures.
System comment: [The CEO's occupational hazard.]
This incident reminded Qingran that he should put his plan to study legal provisions on his agenda.
Then, when the boss handed everything over to Yan Chen, all he had to do was wait for the final signature.
After completing all the formalities and receiving the keys, the group walked out of the residential area.
Yan Chen first thanked Li Yanmei for helping him find a house and spending the whole day with her: "Thank you for your help. This is a small token of our appreciation from Qingran and me."
The sentiment is a red envelope prepared in advance.
Seeing this, Wang Lei, who had been idle, awkwardly turned his back and touched his nose.
Li Yanmei, who was next to him, was stunned for a moment.
Li Yanmei is only twenty years old this year. With her round face and round eyes, she has a rather well-behaved and quiet appearance, but she is very thoughtful and considerate when it comes to handling matters.
Without even glancing to the side, she accepted the red envelope generously and said, "I won't stand on ceremony with you. Besides, I'll be very proud to be able to help two handsome gentlemen like you."
“It’s our business that’s taking up your time,” Yan Chen said.
Although he was usually a man of few words, he was adept at social interactions and calmly invited, "Do you have time tonight? I'd like to invite you and Wang Lei to dinner."
Li Yanmei smiled and said, "I won't stand on ceremony with you, and you shouldn't stand on ceremony with me either. Save the meal for the housewarming party, and Wang Lei and I will come to help with the luggage then."
Seeing that she was indeed not just being polite, Yan Chen nodded.
At the same time, Wang Lei, who had been pretending to be dead, suddenly came back to life and chimed in: "That's right, we two can help! Old Zhou, when are you planning to move?"
Qingran had already discussed with Yan Chen that if the rental went smoothly, they would move in the next day. Upon hearing this, she replied, "Tomorrow."
Wang Lei: "Okay, I'll definitely come to move my luggage first thing tomorrow morning."
With their luggage still packed, Qingran and Yan Chen didn't linger for a long chat and quickly said goodbye to the two of them before leaving.
After the two figures walked away, Li Yanmei looked down and counted the amount of money in the red envelope, glancing sideways at someone: "Your friend is much more generous than you."
My boyfriend gave me 200 yuan, but there was a full 500 yuan in the red envelope.
Wang Lei said softly, "Cough, I didn't expect this either..."
Little did he know that Lao Zhou would pull this stunt on him, causing him to be exposed in front of his girlfriend.
No, it was all that man named Yan Chen who bewitched Lao Zhou. Lao Zhou would never have thought of these things before!
"Here you go." Li Yanmei took out two hundred and gave it to him.
Wang Lei waved his hand: "You keep it."
Li Yanmei: "Okay, I'll buy you a gift for your birthday."
Wang Lei chuckled to himself, thinking, "Girls are definitely better than boyfriends!"
At this point, Li Yanmei said again, "Your two friends are quite nice." They're much better than those street thugs who always ask Wang Lei to play games.
Wang Lei corrected, "Old Zhou is my brother, Yan Chen is just an afterthought!"
Li Yanmei, failing to grasp the deeper meaning, only thought her boyfriend was childish.
Aside from their boyfriend relationship, she wasn't really close to Zhou Qingran. She had heard of him when they went to the same junior high school, but didn't remember him.
Therefore, she didn't feel the changes in Qingran deeply, and only thought that Qingran and Yan Chen were quite suitable to be friends based on that red envelope.
Moreover, both of them are handsome and pleasing to the eye.
The move was almost finished by the morning of the second day.
First, Qingran and her companion carefully selected their luggage, and since summer luggage doesn't take up much space, they also had the help of the young couple Wang Lei and Li Yanmei.
I had a quick lunch, then bought various household items in the afternoon, and finally unpacked my luggage and cleaned the room.
The new house is indeed more beautiful than the old house in the mountains, with wooden floors, white walls, bright windows, and plenty of natural light.
The two finished cleaning around 4 a.m., which was neither too early nor too late, so they took a shower and went to bed for a nap.
Qingran was woken up by Wang Lei's phone call around six o'clock.
Yan Chen wasn't in bed, so he lazily answered his phone.
"Hey? Lao Zhou, are you guys done tidying up? If not, Meimei and I will lend a hand. Many hands make light work."
"Moreover, after we buy the ingredients and prepare them, we can have a dinner party at your house tonight."
"Today?" Qingran lay on her pillow, her gaze sweeping over the ornaments on the bedside table.
It's the amber he gave to Yan Chen last time.
I don't know when the man did it, but he not only cleaned the amber thoroughly, removing all the sand, but also bought a wooden stand of the right size to serve as a base.
“There’s no time like the present, I’ll cook!” Wang Lei said on the other end of the phone.
Qingran: "How's your cooking?"
Wang Lei: "...Everyone who has tried it says it's good."
Qingran then had no objections: "Then you guys do it."
I then heard the sound of a door opening outside the room, so I hung up the phone, got up, and went out.
Seeing the man changing his shoes at the door carrying a plastic bag, he casually asked, "What did you buy?"
Yan Chen paused slightly before saying, "Daily necessities, just in case."
Commonly used medications?
Qingran didn't think much of it.
Those who scanned the system and knew that "daily necessities" was a literal term fell silent, locked themselves in a dark room, and went crazy.
Is this appropriate? Is it reasonable? Is it right?
The host is the villain, Yan Chen, you're the male lead!
The villain and the male lead absolutely cannot, should not... Help!
A note from the author:
Thank you for the nutrient solution! *kissing sounds*
The readers' "outburst" of comments watered the plant with nutrient solution +5
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