Chapter 52: Love and Not Loving, It’s Really Obvious…

A day later, Bai Yuanzhi received a pager message from Miss Sui of the Bilanting Human Resources Department, inviting her to the manager’s office at Bilanting Hotel to discuss Zhou Sier’s compensation issue.

Bai Yuanzhi immediately rushed to the hospital and asked Dr. Huang whether Zhou Sier’s physical condition allowed for a temporary discharge.

After receiving an affirmative answer,

Bai Yuanzhi and Sister Cai took Zhou Sier to Bilanting Hotel and found Manager Fu.

Manager Fu had not expected Zhou Sier herself to come and was greatly shaken.

After a chaotic flurry of activity,

Manager Fu finally began negotiations with Zhou Sier.

During the negotiation process, Bai Yuanzhi and Zhou Sier clearly sensed—Manager Fu was not the real decision-maker.

Because he would take notes very seriously, recording the conditions Zhou Sier proposed, and after collecting them, he would temporarily leave, returning to the office half an hour later to bargain with Zhou Sier.

When Manager Fu left the office again with a grave expression,

Bai Yuanzhi and Zhou Sier exchanged a glance.

—It seemed that the real decision-maker was either in the next office, or Manager Fu was going to the next office to call the person who truly had the final say.

Bai Yuanzhi quickly adjusted her strategy.

She signaled Zhou Sier to stop negotiating with Manager Fu and let her take over.

Although Zhou Sier didn’t understand why, she agreed.

Next, when Manager Fu returned to the office again, Bai Yuanzhi overturned half of what Zhou Sier and Manager Fu had previously agreed upon and raised the stakes across the board.

Manager Fu was furious. “Miss Bai, you can’t do this. Many things were already settled with Miss Zhou just now… Now you want to change everything, making it very difficult for me.”

Bai Yuanzhi smiled and said, “Manager Fu, you’re mistaken. I’m doing this precisely because I don’t want to make things difficult for you.”

“Either trust me once and convey the conditions I just proposed again, preferably truthfully… Say that this was proposed by Miss Bai Yuanzhi, Miss Zhou’s cousin.”

“Or continue to drag things out slowly like you are now, grinding away for a year or more, without necessarily reaching a consensus…”

“But I assure you, if you listen to me, things will go much more smoothly afterward.” Bai Yuanzhi said with a smile.

Manager Fu looked Bai Yuanzhi up and down.

He didn’t believe what Bai Yuanzhi said.

After all, the real decision-maker behind Zhou Sier’s incident was a big shot who could make Hong Kong City tremble with a single stomp;

But Bai Yuanzhi looked like a very young girl,

That big shot might not even know Bai Yuanzhi.

However, Bai Yuanzhi’s demands were simply too outrageous…

Manager Fu thought, maybe he should just report them truthfully. If that big shot got angry, he could assign someone else to handle it or change the approach!

That way, it wouldn’t be his problem anymore.

Thinking this, Manager Fu simply left the office once more and, via a phone call, conveyed Bai Yuanzhi’s words to the big shot’s assistant.

Especially,

After finishing the report, Manager Fu, as Bai Yuanzhi had instructed, said very solemnly: “…This is the intention of Miss Bai Yuanzhi, Miss Zhou Sier’s cousin.”

About half an hour later, Manager Fu received a callback from the big boss’s assistant, with only three words: “Agree to it.”

Manager Fu was dumbfounded.

This was truly,

a whirlwind of confusion.

Thus, Manager Fu returned to the office and scrutinized Bai Yuanzhi up and down once more, finally managing to squeeze out a sentence after a long pause, “They agreed.”

Zhou Sier was stunned.

Bai Yuanzhi also revealed a smile as if she had expected this and said to Manager Fu, “Thank you, Manager Fu! Then I’ll trouble you to convey one more thing—tomorrow at nine in the morning, I’ll come to collect the check. Goodbye!”

Before leaving, Manager Fu asked Bai Yuanzhi for her contact information.

After leaving the Bilanting Hotel,

Zhou Sier asked Bai Yuanzhi in surprise, “I thought I made a very reasonable request, but they nitpicked over it. Yet you proposed such an outrageous condition… How did they agree so readily?”

Bai Yuanzhi sighed and pointed to the front seat.

—At the moment, the two sisters were sitting in Ah Bin’s car, with Sister Cai in the passenger seat.

Zhou Sier understood: her sister meant that it wasn’t because Bai Yuanzhi was particularly capable, but because the real decision-maker, out of consideration for Chen Shuojie, didn’t want to pursue the matter further.

Zhou Sier lowered her head, her brows tightly furrowed.

Bai Yuanzhi comforted her sister, “Actually, this is the right way! Whether you were a guest at Bilanting or not, as long as you had an accident in a room at the Bilanting Hotel,”

“whether it was because the hotel room window was too low and left open, or because the floor in front of the window happened to be slippery…”

“In short, Bilanting can’t avoid responsibility!”

“Now that we’re the ones proactively proposing a settlement, they’re already secretly celebrating.”

Zhou Sier felt uneasy, “But—”

But her sister had demanded five hundred thousand Hong Kong dollars in compensation!

Not only was Manager Fu shocked at the time, but Zhou Sier was also taken aback.

After all, the one hundred twenty thousand in compensation Zhou Sier had previously requested was already enough to cover her post-recovery treatment costs and lost wages.

Who would have thought Bai Yuanzhi would ask for five hundred thousand right off the bat…

And even more unexpectedly, the other party agreed without hesitation!

Bai Yuanzhi said with a smile, “Sister, why not think first about how to spend this money once it’s in hand.”

As she spoke, Bai Yuanzhi glanced at Ah Bin and Sister Cai.

Zhou Sier understood the implication and could only hold back for now.

Back at the hospital, Bai Yuanzhi went to ask Dr. Huang if Zhou Sier could be discharged,

and after receiving an affirmative answer, Bai Yuanzhi went through the discharge procedures for her.

And so,

that evening, accompanied and escorted by Qiao Yusheng and Jiang Yiming, the two sisters completed Zhou Sier’s discharge formalities and moved into Bai Yuanzhi’s new home.

Qiao Yusheng and Jiang Yiming looked around Bai Yuanzhi’s new home, seeing that all the furniture and appliances were complete—including a Japanese-made twenty-inch color television and refrigerator, as well as a window-unit air conditioner.

Not only was the furniture brand new, but the styles were also quite attractive, prompting both of them to exclaim in admiration.

“Wow, what a luxurious home!” Qiao Yusheng said with a smile.

Jiang Yiming, on the other hand, instinctively asked, “Ah Zhi, where did you get so much money to buy an apartment?”

As he spoke, Jiang Yiming suddenly remembered that when he visited Zhou Sier at the hospital, he had seen the young master of Wanmei Film Industry, Chen Shuojie, indulging Bai Yuanzhi’s every whim and doting on her to the core. His gaze toward Bai Yuanzhi then took on a scrutinizing tone.

Bai Yuanzhi tilted her head and looked at Jiang Yiming with a half-smile.

Qiao Yusheng quietly nudged Jiang Yiming with his elbow, half-jokingly and half-seriously saying to him:

“Ming-ge, do you think Ah Zhi is too young and you’re too old? You’re so old, yet you haven’t earned enough for a house, but Ah Zhi already has, so you want to trick her into revealing her money-making secrets?”

Jiang Yiming had already realized he had spoken out of turn and quickly took the opportunity to back down, “Ah… yes! Right, right, right, Ah Zhi, I’m not very good with words, please don’t mind me.”

Bai Yuanzhi said with a smile, “I don’t mind at all! Because I haven’t even started trying yet!”

Jiang Yiming: ???

Qiao Yusheng: ???

Zhou Sier: ???

Bai Yuanzhi laughed, “I’m really good at stocks, Brother Jiang, Brother Qiao, you can follow my lead. I guarantee you’ll earn back a house in three years!”

Everyone: …

Jiang Yiming didn’t say a word.

Qiao Yusheng laughed, “Alright!”

Zhou Sier was the most enthusiastic, “My house is all up to you! Best if my house is right next to yours, so we can be neighbors!”

Bai Yuanzhi giggled, “Sure, sure!”

Although no one took Bai Yuanzhi’s words seriously, the atmosphere had lightened up.

Just like that, a potential conflict vanished without a trace.

Bai Yuanzhi had made a windfall yesterday, receiving thirty thousand yuan as a “Lucky Star Award” from Bilanting for nothing,

so today, to celebrate Zhou Sier’s discharge from the hospital,

and to warm up the new house,

Bai Yuanzhi spent money on Roast Goose, fried rice noodles, and other ready-made food, and also bought beer and cola. Everyone gathered around the coffee table in the living room, eating and drinking.

Qiao Yusheng and Jiang Yiming were considered Zhou Sier’s friends.

They chatted about old times.

Although Bai Yuanzhi found it quite interesting,

she still instinctively picked up her CALL and glanced at it.

—The CALL was silent, without any activity.

After a moment’s thought, Bai Yuanzhi picked up the phone and left a message for A Yao, asking him to call back when he had time.

Then—

Before she even put down the phone, the CALL beeped.

Bai Yuanzhi casually checked it.

The CALL operator told Bai Yuanzhi, “Mr. Chen left you a message saying he will call you in five minutes. The phone number is XXXXX…”

—The phone number the CALL operator mentioned was Bai Yuanzhi’s new home number.

Which meant that just this morning, she had used Chen Shuojie’s name to help Zhou Sier swindle five hundred thousand yuan;

and Chen Shuojie already knew her phone number?

At that time, Ah Bin and Sister Cai weren’t even in Manager Fu’s office!

Bai Yuanzhi let out a long sigh.

She thought to herself,

Could the person in charge be… Chen Shen?

Bai Yuanzhi felt a bit of a headache.

Just then, the phone started ringing again.

Bai Yuanzhi stared at the phone for a moment before answering, “Hello?”

After a brief silence on the other end, a clear and deep male voice spoke, “Sister, what’s wrong? Are you unhappy?”

Bai Yuanzhi was stunned for a moment, then said happily, “A Yao?”

Oh, how could she have forgotten?

Before receiving Chen Shuojie’s CALL message, she had also paged A Yao!

“I’m fine,” Bai Yuanzhi said, “Um… I just wanted to ask, would you like to come over to my place?”

A Yao on the other end of the line was stunned for a moment, asking in disbelief, “I… can I?”

Bai Yuanzhi blushed, “I, I… because I just moved in, so I… if you have time, come over and hang out, just, just think of it as a housewarming!”

A Yao asked again, “…together?”

Bai Yuanzhi replied, “Mm! My sister has been discharged from the hospital and is staying with me for now! And a few of her friends.”

A Yao said cheerfully, “Alright, sis, wait for me. I’ll cook some fresh shrimp and crab roe wonton noodles and bring them over for you and your friends to eat!”

Bai Yuanzhi was delighted, “Okay, I’ll wait for you!”

After hanging up the phone, Bai Yuanzhi’s heart was still pounding wildly.

Zhou Sier asked, “Ah Zhi, do you have a friend coming over?”

Jiang Yiming and Qiao Yusheng also looked at Bai Yuanzhi with intense curiosity.

Bai Yuanzhi grinned from ear to ear, “Mm!”

Zhou Sier asked again, “Is it a boy or a girl?”

Bai Yuanzhi pursed her lips and smiled, “You’ll know when he gets here!”

Zhou Sier laughed, “…Ah Zhi is smiling so happily, it must be a handsome young man!”

A faint blush appeared on Bai Yuanzhi’s face, “Mm! The fresh shrimp and crab roe wonton noodles he makes are really delicious. He said he’ll bring some over later.”

“Ding ding ding—”

The phone rang again.

Before Bai Yuanzhi could wipe the smile off her face, she picked up the phone, “Hello?”

This time, a sigh of relief came from the other end of the line before Chen Shuojie’s voice sounded, “…Little ancestor, I finally managed to get in touch with you.”

The smile on Bai Yuanzhi’s face slowly faded.

“Didn’t you promise me you’d call me every day?” Chen Shuojie questioned.

Bai Yuanzhi retorted, “Aren’t we talking right now?”

Chen Shuojie: …

“Why did you suddenly resign?” Chen Shuojie asked again.

Bai Yuanzhi replied, “Didn’t you tell me to resign?”

Chen Shuojie fell silent for a moment, “Ah Zhi, can you talk to me properly?” His tone was gentle yet helpless.

Bai Yuanzhi blurted out, “I don’t like you controlling me so much.”

Chen Shuojie smiled bitterly, “You’re young. If I don’t look after you, you could easily be taken advantage of.”

Bai Yuanzhi scoffed coldly, “As if you haven’t taken advantage of me yourself!”

At this, Chen Shuojie genuinely laughed, “Then tell me, how have I taken advantage of you?”

Bai Yuanzhi was suddenly speechless.

Chen Shuojie lowered his voice again, “Unless you want to bring up the past.”

“I didn’t say anything, you brought it up,” Bai Yuanzhi stubbornly insisted.

Chen Shuojie continued, “Alright, then let’s not talk about that… By the way, I’ve already had Ah Bin rent a place near your house. He and Sister Cai will live there. Even though your sister has been discharged from the hospital, she still needs to go to the hospital regularly for rehabilitation, right? And you have to attend night school every day, right? Ah Bin can take you both there when the time comes.”

“Also, I’ll have Sister Cai prepare your three meals a day. Your sister’s body hasn’t fully recovered yet, so let her eat well with you.”

Bai Yuanzhi: …

This was exactly the feeling—utterly suffocating!

And yet, he added the suffix “your sister needs it too” after every sentence, making it feel both suffocating and impossible to refuse.

“By the way, Ah Zhi, is there anything you want as a gift?” Chen Shuojie asked again, “I’ll have some free time in a few days. I’ll buy you whatever you want…”

Bai Yuanzhi said weakly, “No need, thank you.”

“What’s wrong, why are you unhappy again?” Chen Shuojie asked, puzzled.

Bai Yuanzhi grew increasingly irritable. “My sister and I just got home. We’re celebrating her discharge from the hospital, and she and her friends are also warming up my new place. I don’t have time right now, okay?”

Chen Shuojie quickly replied, “Alright, alright, I won’t bother you then. Go have fun!”

After a pause, he cautiously added, “Which friend of your sister’s is it? Is it that Brother Qiao and Brother Jiang?”

“Goodbye!” Bai Yuanzhi slammed the phone down and finally let out a long sigh of relief.

Then—

Bai Yuanzhi noticed that Zhou Sier, Jiang Yiming, and Qiao Yusheng were staring intently at her.

“What’s wrong?” Bai Yuanzhi asked, looking at them in confusion.

Jiang Yiming frowned at Bai Yuanzhi and murmured, “Loving or not loving… it’s really so obvious!”

Bai Yuanzhi: ???

“Brother Jiang, what are you talking about?” Bai Yuanzhi asked.

Jiang Yiming forced a smile. “Nothing.”

Even so, he couldn’t help but glance at Zhou Sier and Qiao Yusheng.

Qiao Yusheng was carefully picking out the bean sprouts and beef from the stir-fried rice noodles—Zhou Sier loved stir-fried rice noodles, especially the bean sprouts mixed in with the noodles, but she didn’t like stir-fried beef.

The reason Qiao Yusheng was doing this was because Zhou Sier’s fingers couldn’t yet handle more delicate movements. She couldn’t use chopsticks and could only use a spoon for now.

Jiang Yiming glanced at Zhou Sier again.

Zhou Sier was interrogating Bai Yuanzhi about how far her relationship with Chen Shuojie had progressed.

Bai Yuanzhi didn’t want to answer.

Zhou Sier seemed a bit anxious, her voice growing louder.

Then Qiao Yusheng smiled and mediated, “Sier, don’t rush. Ah Zhi is still young, talk to her gently. Besides, even if you sisters want to discuss personal matters, you should wait until us older brothers aren’t around…”

Bai Yuanzhi immediately chimed in, “Exactly, exactly!”

Zhou Sier had no choice but to give up her questioning and turned to Qiao Yusheng, saying, “You know how it is—this world is always especially harsh on girls. I’m strict with her for her own good.”

Qiao Yusheng continued smiling. “You’re the older sister, you call the shots!”

“But I listen to Ah Zhi… after all, Ah Zhi is now our family’s benefactor! With nearly three hundred thousand yuan in hair tie orders, once the Chen Group settles the final payment, I’m taking Ah Zhi to Disneyland. You can tag along and share in Ah Zhi’s good fortune!”

Then, Qiao Yusheng said to Bai Yuanzhi, “Ah Zhi, once your sister benefits more from you, she won’t nag you anymore!”

Bai Yuanzhi clapped her hands together. “Brother Qiao is the best!” Then she smugly winked at Zhou Sier.

Zhou Sier glared at Qiao Yusheng. “You’re just spoiling her!”

At that moment, Jiang Yiming suddenly felt a bit out of place.

After a moment’s thought, he used a bamboo skewer to pick up a piece of cut mango and placed it on Zhou Sier’s plate. “Sier, have some mango! I tried it earlier, it’s very sweet.”

As soon as he said this—

Bai Yuanzhi and Qiao Yusheng said in unison:

“Brother Jiang, that won’t do. My sister can’t eat mango.”

“Brother Ming, Sier is allergic to mango.”

Zhou Sier also said politely, “Thank you, Brother Ming. I can eat other fruits.”

Jiang Yiming smiled awkwardly and nodded. “Oh.”

—When Zhou Sier spoke to Qiao Yusheng, her tone carried a natural intimacy and complaint. But when she spoke to him, her tone was polite and distant.

Jiang Yiming let out a long sigh.

Everyone chatted for a while,

Then the phone at Bai Yuanzhi’s home rang again.

She ran to answer it, “Hello?”

Ah Yao’s voice came through the phone, “Sis, I’m really sorry, I might not be able to make it… We suddenly have to unload a shipment at the dock, and no one can leave. So I asked someone to deliver the wonton noodles to your doorstep. You and your friends can have them. I’ll come find you next time I’m free.”

Ming Jiayao was upset.

Of course, he really wanted to see Bai Yuanzhi’s new home.

He had even asked Ah Wu to rent an apartment on the same floor…

But Chen Shuojie’s people had also rented a place nearby.

So Ming Jiayao couldn’t go.

If he were recognized…

It would be troublesome.

Bai Yuanzhi felt a bit disappointed upon hearing this, but she still said okay and gently hung up the phone.

She ran to the door and, sure enough, saw a large bag on the ground.

Carrying the bag inside and opening it, she found five bowls of fresh shrimp and crab roe wonton noodles, along with a large pack of various skewers like beef, lamb, grilled chicken wings, and snacks like butter peach shortbread.

Seeing so much delicious food,

Bai Yuanzhi’s mood brightened a little. She smiled and took out the food to share with everyone.

Then—

Everyone was won over by the deliciousness of the fresh shrimp and crab roe wonton noodles.

Qiao Yusheng praised, “Wow, Ah Zhi, did your friend make these fresh shrimp and crab roe wonton noodles himself?”

Bai Yuanzhi nodded.

Qiao Yusheng pointed to the other food Ah Yao had sent and asked, “What about these? Did he make them too?”

Bai Yuanzhi laughed, “How could that be!”

“The fresh shrimp and crab roe wonton noodles were made by him. The rest were probably bought by him, right?” Bai Yuanzhi explained.

“This is so delicious!” Qiao Yusheng couldn’t stop praising, “Your friend’s cooking skills are good enough to open a shop!”

Bai Yuanzhi chuckled, “He already sells fresh shrimp and crab roe wonton noodles! He has a noodle stall.”

Everyone was stunned again.

“Ah Zhi, your friend runs a shop selling fresh shrimp and crab roe wonton noodles?” Zhou Sier asked.

Bai Yuanzhi shook her head, “Not a shop, he can’t afford one yet. He only has a small cart…”

Jiang Yiming widened his eyes, “You mean, this friend of yours… is a street vendor?”

Bai Yuanzhi nodded.

For a moment, Zhou Sier and her two friends were stunned once again.

Jiang Yiming murmured to himself again, “Love and not loving… are really obvious.”

One of Bai Yuanzhi’s suitors

was a handsome, wealthy tycoon from a prominent family, yet Bai Yuanzhi didn’t give him the slightest bit of favor;

The other was a wonton noodle vendor, yet Bai Yuanzhi’s eyes lit up whenever she talked about him…

It really was obvious.

By now, Jiang Yiming’s mood had soured.

He forced a smile and ate a bit more. Seeing that it was about time, he stood up and prepared to leave.

Qiao Yusheng also said he was leaving.

After Bai Yuanzhi and Zhou Sier saw them off, they returned home to clean up.

But Zhou Sier couldn’t wait to ask Bai Yuanzhi, “Ah Zhi, be honest with me, what’s really going on between you and Chen Shuojie? And also, who exactly is that Ah Yao?”

Bai Yuanzhi took Zhou Sier’s hand and sat down on the sofa. “Don’t worry, sister.”