Chapter 93 "If you wish, you can..."
Lin Chaoyue had been standing by the window answering phone calls ever since she returned.
She didn't move after she hung up the phone.
She just stood quietly by the window the whole time.
"What are you looking at? Are you worried about your shipment?"
"Don't worry, the weather forecast has been predicting light rain lately, and you've already found a new warehouse to store all your goods."
Lin Chaoyue gave Mu Qiao a forced, mocking laugh.
"It's alright, let's go back."
When Lin Chaoyue returned to her seat, the waiter brought out a new set of tableware.
Everyone knows that Tang Ruxue was invited up by Lin Chaoyue.
The seat was arranged next to her.
Lin Chaoyue sat outside. When the tableware was served, she casually took some and handed it to Tang Ruxue, then asked absentmindedly.
"Want a drink? Here's another glass for you."
Tang Ruxue sat there somewhat awkwardly: "Are you really going to take me with you to dinner? Don't you guys dislike me?"
Seeing Tang Ruxue's swollen eyes that she couldn't cover up from crying, Lin Chaoyue said, "Get a drink cup."
"Okay, just a moment."
After Lin Chaoyue finished speaking, she looked at Tang Ruxue seriously and asked, "If I remember correctly, out of ten arguments we've had, eight times you were the one who started it with sarcastic remarks, right?"
"No, that's not it! That's it! Okay... I admit I was being sarcastic, but you were the one who called me a nouveau riche first."
Lin Chaoyue was full of questions, clearly having no recollection of this matter.
"when."
Tang Ruxue counted on her fingers: "In fourth grade, oh no, fifth grade, the time you went to the toilet with Liu Fei, she told you not to play with me, saying I was a nouveau riche and that you were the real rich kids."
"You didn't argue back then!"
Lin Chaoyue: "..."
She knew that her quarrel with Tang Ruxue stemmed from a fight they had over chickens when they were in elementary school.
But I never expected that this would be the trigger.
She was truly wronged.
She didn't refuse to argue at the time; she was just speechless. Of course, what was even more speechless was Tang Ruxue's constant targeting of her afterward.
Bring the cup up.
Lin Chaoyue poured a glass of passion fruit juice into it: "Here you go. I just helped you out, so we're even now, right?"
"Okay, sure, fine."
Tang Ruxue accepted the juice honestly, drinking as much as Lin Chaoyue poured for her.
Everyone at the table was amused.
"Tang Ruxue, why are you so honest? You don't have to drink it all."
"And you hold grudges too much. You've held onto such a small thing for so many years. Did you label us as a 'wealthy family' all those years when you didn't like us?"
Tang Ruxue nodded awkwardly.
That's exactly what she thought at the time.
Lin Chaoyue found it both amusing and exasperating, and teased, "Then why did you date Mo Er? His family isn't much better off either."
"He's handsome, but he's a bit eccentric. I can't go along with his hobbies."
Tang Ruxue muttered aggrievedly.
"Anyway, we've broken up now, so you're not allowed to talk about me anymore."
"I'm hungry, can I eat?"
Everyone found it strange, but they all nodded.
Tang Ruxue noticed that everyone seemed quite 'friendly'.
No need to be polite.
I picked up a big chicken leg with my chopsticks.
Seeing that she was handling things well on her own, Lin Chaoyue didn't interfere anymore.
The people at the table started complaining again in a lively atmosphere.
The hottest news recently has to be the heavy rain that fell in Ningcheng.
After all, several blocks were flooded unexpectedly, and almost everyone at the table suffered losses.
Those who have already been trained at the grassroots level in their own companies are especially complaining.
Lin Chaoyue raised her glass: "Let's toast! Luckily, Li Wei helped us this time, otherwise my goods would have been flooded too."
Li Wei waved his hand: "It's nothing. But I reacted quickly this time, and my old man is happy. He gave me an extra 20,000 yuan in salary this month."
"Twenty thousand?" Tang Ruxue looked up in surprise: "Is this all the pocket money you rich kids get?"
Li Wei smiled wryly: "You think there are many? Back then, it was just a number. Nowadays, 'nouveau riche' is a compliment."
None of us are living as well as you are right now.
Tang Ruxue, used to comparing herself to Lin Chaoyue, subconsciously looked at her and asked, "You don't have any either?"
Mu Qiao chimed in: "Of course not, her house was taken away and her bank account was frozen, now she can't even go home."
"Home? Where?" Tang Ruxue slowed her chewing. "Tang Bay?"
"yes!"
Tang Ruxue swallowed hard and looked at Lin Chaoyue seriously: "It's good that we can't go back. Don't go back anytime soon."
"Well... anyway, big houses aren't good either, your glass conservatory isn't that nice, the swing is too childish, and the chef's cooking isn't very good either. Anyway, don't go back."
Lin Chaoyue: "..."
Everyone: "..." This kid must have had his head caught in a door when he was a child.
--
Pei Shuwen's business trip this time was exceptionally long.
Lin Chaoyue has been working in Feng Xiao's project team for a week now, and he hasn't mentioned coming back yet.
So much so that while waiting for the meeting to start...
Lin Chaoyue stared blankly at her phone the whole time.
"Ha, anyone can get into the project team now. It's impressive to be able to get in through connections."
"Still at the law firm, spreading rumors like this, as if you're afraid everyone won't know you're a gossip?"
"If I were spreading rumors, why wouldn't she say anything, and why would you have to step in?"
Seeing Nie Jingjing's finger pointing towards her.
Lin Chaoyue then realized that the person being mocked was herself.
Nie Shanshan was speaking up for herself and her unlucky cousin.
Lin Chaoyue snapped out of her daze: "What do you want to hear? I'll tell you."
Nie Jingjing: "You know perfectly well what I want to hear."
Upon hearing this, Lin Chaoyue couldn't help but laugh: "Whether I understand or not, you still need to explain things clearly to everyone, otherwise how will anyone know what we're talking about?"
Nie Jingjing certainly wouldn't dare do it in front of so many people.
The relationship between Lin Chaoyue and her law firm partner was ambiguous and unclear in private.
So he just stared wide-eyed at the other side.
Lin Chaoyue didn't care.
Nie Shanshan glared back and muttered under her breath, "Troublemaker."
The person opposite them stood up, pointing at them, about to retort.
Feng Xiao happened to be carrying a pile of materials when he came in and casually tossed them onto the table.
With a 'click', everyone fell silent.
"What are you talking about? It's so lively!"
Feng Xiao's work habit is that she doesn't discuss anything unrelated to work during work hours, so even though she asked, no one said anything more.
With Feng Xiao around, the people in the group behaved themselves, but Lin Chaoyue still overheard other people's discussions when she went to the restroom.
It's simply because she got into the production team through Pei Shuwen's connections.
Pei Shuwen has been away on a business trip recently, so the two of them haven't seen each other much, but they have a habit of video chatting occasionally.
When Lin Chaoyue brought up the matter during a video call that evening, she seemed a little downcast: "I feel like we're practically in the same boat now. Our friends in private all know, and I think the people in the institute know too."
“I stayed in your law firm’s lounge that night, without trying to avoid anyone.”
Pei Shuwen: "Do you care a lot about whether we go public or not?"
"It's not that I care about this matter."
Lin Chaoyue thought for a moment, then rested her chin on her hand and sighed, "It's just that I finally managed to work hard on my own, but I was still treated as someone with connections. It's a little upsetting."
Pei Shuwen: "You can't make everyone change their opinion of you immediately, but you can strive to do better and be better than them, and then everyone will naturally recognize you."
It sounds just like a motivational quote.
But hearing it from Pei Shuwen's mouth, Lin Chaoyue was particularly pleased.
He looked at Pei Shuwen on the screen.
Lin Chaoyue had to admit—she missed him a little.
Pei Shuwen has been away on a business trip for a long time.
It went on for so long that she didn't want to come back after work, and didn't want to live alone in a house filled with his scent.
Lin Chaoyue: "Brother Shuwen, when are you coming back?"
Normally, she would rarely call him that unless she needed something from him.
Pei Shuwen looked at her intently for a moment, concealing his emotions.
"Soon."
"Let's wait a little longer, Yueyue."
But this wait lasted for almost another month.
When the weather in Ningcheng turned completely cold.
The day Pei Shuwen said she would come back.
Lin Chaoyue is giving a report at the law firm that the acquisition of Simei has progressed to the stage of exclusive negotiation.
Because Lin Chaoyue had a thorough understanding of Simei and knew Simei's acquisition needs, she was the one who reported the due diligence report of the acquired company to the client.
Some people in the group protested about this, but the solution was very simple.
In response to Si Mei's current situation, Feng Xiao posed several tricky questions.
Lin Chaoyue has been studying her own company day and night lately, so she naturally knows much more about it than others.
So she knows what others know, and she can also answer questions that others don't know.
As a result, the dissenting voices within the group diminished considerably.
The report was successfully completed.
Lin Chaoyue got off work much earlier than usual.
Pei Shuwen did not go to the law firm.
Instead, she was waiting for him in the underground parking garage of Tianhe City.
Lin Chaoyue didn't care about being in a public place or whether there were other people around.
Longing made her throw herself into Pei Shuwen's arms.
He lowered his head and rubbed against it.
"Why did it take you so long to come back?"
Pei Shuwen: "Yes, things are a bit tricky."
"Go upstairs and tell me? I made your favorite dinner."
Lin Chaoyue has been very busy lately, so busy that she has been eating all her meals at the law firm. She can't wait to have a meal cooked by Pei Shuwen.
The aroma of food wafts out as soon as you open the door.
But compared to the delicious food laid out on the table.
Lin Chaoyue noticed the new suitcase next to her first.
Lin Chaoyue looked it over a few times and asked curiously, "Did you change your suitcase? This wasn't the one you took last time."
"That suitcase is still in Yulin City."
Lin Chaoyue was already getting ready to wash her hands and eat when Pei Shuwen's words made her ask uncertainly.
"Are you going back? When?"
"Two hours later."
An unexpected answer.
Lin Chaoyue suddenly felt a tightness in her chest, even tighter than when she had been too busy to rest lately.
Her voice became somewhat disappointed: "Ah, why are you leaving so soon again? Next time, will it be a long time before you come back again?"
Pei Shuwen looked at Lin Chaoyue with a cautious and expectant expression.
I really want to give her a clear answer.
But he really didn't know.
Pei Shuwen: "It's not certain yet..."
In an instant, feelings of grievance, no wonder, and displeasure welled up in my heart.
But the limited time she had forced her to briefly abandon her thoughts and give up those bad ideas.
She instinctively embraced, clung to, and kissed the man in front of her.
The longing fueled their physical contact, and Lin Chaoyue greedily inhaled the pleasant woody scent.
The two of them walked from the entryway to the sofa and then landed on the carpet.
A passionate, silent kiss filled the air with long-lost love.
Hers and his.
After the embrace ended, there was a brief moment of catching one's breath.
But that's far from enough.
"Pei Shuwen, let's do it now."
"Now?"
"Now."
"If you want, you can."
"I think."
The sumptuous dinner was thus set aside, and the man carried the woman horizontally into the bedroom.
It was still early, and night had not yet completely fallen; a blue hue still lingered somewhere on the horizon.
The interior, however, was filled with the enchanting colors of spring.
Exhausted from the past few days and the intense sexual encounter just now, Lin Chaoyue leaned against Pei Shuwen and became drowsy.
Half-asleep, half-awake.
She felt Pei Shuwen stroking the scar on her back.
Why didn't you ask me anything?
"I know."
Lin Chaoyue's consciousness was insufficient to support her understanding of the phrase "I know".
Before falling into a deep sleep.
She only had time to say, "The watch in the drawer, your gift."
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