149. You Interfere Too Much

“Hello!” Xia Yuwei answered her work call, smiling politely.

“Yuwei.” Lu Yichen’s voice came from the other end. Unlike yesterday’s silence, there was a hint of cheerfulness in it.

The smile faded from Yuwei’s face. “What is it?”

“Didn’t you want to see me? Then let’s meet tonight!” Lu Yichen said. The fact that she had asked to see him was great encouragement to him. He decided to be a little more patient with her. Whether or not she chose to forgive him, he would tell her how he truly felt. At the thought of seeing her that evening, he could hardly wait.

“Tonight? So soon...” Hadn’t he gone to Europe? It had only been two days. How had he returned so quickly?

“Where are you? I’ll pick you up at five-thirty.”

“No need. I can go there myself.” Xia Yuwei did not want him to know that she worked at a shopping mall under the Baili Group.

“Oldland Bar. See you at seven.” Lu Yichen assumed she was still working at the bar.

“Oh. All right.” Xia Yuwei hung up.

Liang Baili approached from behind her.

“Private calls are forbidden during working hours. Don’t you know that?” Liang Baili said sternly.

“Manager Liang, it was a customer calling...”

“Then that makes it even worse! I’ve never seen a sales clerk be so rude to a customer! Where’s your smile? You look so sullen and listless, and you speak in such a feeble voice, as though someone owes you ten million! You’re completely damaging the image of G.P.!”

Liang Baili launched into a furious reprimand. Xia Yuwei had actually dared to argue with her over the criticism, so she was all the more determined to show the girl who was in charge.

Knowing that further explanations would be useless, Xia Yuwei lowered her eyes and listened to Liang Baili’s lecture.

“...All right. Aren’t you meeting a customer today? Remember to try to close a sale. Don’t get so caught up in chatting that you forget the purpose of the meeting!”

With that, Liang Baili turned and walked away.

Xia Yuwei raised her head, annoyed. Close a sale? She might as well have admitted that it had been a private call...

* * *

Oldland Bar

Xia Yuwei arrived on time. On her first day of work, Liang Baili had criticized her for not wearing makeup and accused her of disrespecting customers, so today she had put on a light layer. Her long, curled lashes framed her eyes, and she had applied a little lip gloss, natural-toned powder, and a touch of blush. Her complexion looked radiant, and her face appeared even slimmer.

Lu Yichen was already waiting for her.

“Yuwei. You’re here.” He stood and pulled out the chair opposite him.

He noticed that she was wearing her usual clothes rather than the short-skirted uniform he had seen her in that day. He assumed she had taken his advice and stopped working as a sales clerk. She had also applied a little makeup, which made her look exceptionally beautiful.

Xia Yuwei sat down across from him.

They had quarreled fiercely a few days earlier, and both knew they had said many hurtful things. For a moment, neither of them spoke.

“Yuwei, let’s have something light to eat first,” Lu Yichen said, breaking the silence.

Yuwei nodded.

Lu Yichen called over a waiter, and they each ordered a light meal. He also ordered a glass of milk for Xia Yuwei.

“I don’t want milk. I’ll have orange juice, thank you,” Xia Yuwei told the waiter.

She glanced at Lu Yichen’s awkward expression, and a strange feeling of delight rose in her heart.

“Yuwei, thank you,” Lu Yichen said after the waiter left.

She froze. “Thank me for what?” What was he trying to pull? She had just made a fool of him, and he was thanking her?

“Thank you for letting me take care of you. Thank you for not selling alcohol here. Thank you for still being willing to see me...” His eyes were filled with hope, as though he had glimpsed the dawn. A man as proud as him had not taken offense at her refusal to accept his kindness.

“...I think you’ve misunderstood.” Unable to bear watching him rejoice for no apparent reason, Xia Yuwei interrupted him.

“I asked you here today because I wanted to tell you that I don’t need you to take care of me.”

“So that means the ten million was your doing.”

“Are you being ridiculous? Am I without hands and feet? Can I not survive without you? How can someone be as self-important as you?”

Lu Yichen seemed to have grown accustomed to her accusations. “I just didn’t want you to suffer. I meant nothing else.”

“You didn’t want me to suffer...” Xia Yuwei repeated his words. He had not wanted her to suffer, yet he had caused her more pain than anyone. “Why do you care so much about me? I told you before—we have nothing to do with each other anymore. Could you please stop bothering me? What, are you planning to give me ten million every month? Are you planning to support me for the rest of my life?”

“Do you really think I’m bothering you? So what if it is ten million a month? So what if I support you for the rest of your life?” There was a trace of hurt in Lu Yichen’s eyes.

The waiter brought over the orange juice Xia Yuwei had ordered and placed it in front of her.

“Thank you,” she said, then lifted the glass and took a sip.

The light meals arrived soon afterward, and the two of them fell silent for the time being.

Lu Yichen still wanted to say something.

“Don’t talk while you eat,” Xia Yuwei said.

She began eating without another word. What on earth was this man’s mind made of? How had he ever managed to become a company president? she wondered.

After finishing her meal, Xia Yuwei took out the bank card containing the enormous sum of money, tossed it onto the table, and rose to leave.

“Yuwei!” Lu Yichen called after her.

At last, he understood how stubborn she was. Compared with him, her stubbornness was even greater.

“If there’s nothing else, I should go. I have work tomorrow.” Xia Yuwei blinked at him, looking completely innocent. She had completed her task, hadn’t she?

“There is something.” Lu Yichen stood as well. “Something very important.”