No matter what happened, the lights in the Practice Room remained bright.
The dance itself would not become any simpler just because it disregarded the dancer’s own feelings.
When the evening training session ended, An Zhi took off her dance shoes.
The fabric at the tip had worn through into a small hole from the friction; this was already the last pair she had brought from the studio.
*Gurgle—*
Her stomach let out a cute sound that echoed through the empty room.
Jiang Lulan, who had been sitting on the bench for a long time, took one last look at her phone.
She bit her lower lip as if she were going crazy, then acted as though nothing was wrong as she looked toward the approaching An Zhi.
“Zhi, even your stomach is being more honest than your voice right now. You haven’t eaten anything in over two days. Sigh, even if you go on a hunger strike to protest, it’s very difficult for me to meet your demands. Wanting to meet ‘him’… do you realize you’re a celebrity now?”
“He found out I was the one helping him… he even tried desperately to find me before, and he almost got caught… I was thinking I had to see him at least once, otherwise I won’t be able to eat anything.”
An Zhi shook her head.
After she removed her hair tie, her long hair flowed like a waterfall from her shoulders down to her waist.
“If I had known you were this stubborn, I wouldn’t have told you that he ‘finally understood’ everything. Besides that, I also mentioned there are other women around him. Why did you only listen to the first half of the sentence?”
“…… That won’t happen,” An Zhi said, her voice full of certainty.
In her eyes, Li Mingshan was a very patient and gentle person.
He would support her unconditionally regardless of what she did, and even if they didn’t see each other for a long time, he would quietly support her until they reunited.
“But that’s what that serious Mo said. Even back before she graduated, she was stubborn and serious, as steady as a rock… she definitely wouldn’t lie. Besides, a man’s words are as fleeting as ghosts. A man like him who hasn’t had much contact with women will get hooked the moment someone brushes against him. If you don’t believe me—”
“……! I’m going back to the dressing room.”
An Zhi stomped her foot and stood up to walk toward the door, her slender legs appearing somewhat weak.
Regarding anything involving Li Mingshan, she was more stubborn than anyone.
She wouldn’t listen to anyone’s words, as if Li Mingshan was her entire world.
“Silly child. If you keep stalling and can’t make it to the end-of-year events, it’ll be a breach of contract. If you end up owing that penalty fee, you’ll have nothing left—to go this far for a scumbag like that, it’s just too foolish.”
Jiang Lulan cursed softly and slapped her knee as if making a decision.
“I can’t do anything about you. Fine, one meeting! You can only meet once! But you have to promise me that as soon as it’s over, you’ll come straight back to the company! Do you understand?!”
“…… Huh? Yes!”
An Zhi turned around suddenly.
It was as if stars were twinkling in her eyes, and her long, glossy eyelashes danced like black feathers.
Who could see that and not be moved?
Jiang Lulan stepped forward to hug her and urged her to go eat quickly before heading into the hallway alone to take out her phone.
Seeing the other party pick up the phone instantly, she immediately called out in a flattering voice that could make someone’s skin crawl.
“Zhenzhen~”
*Click—*
The call was hung up instantly.
She seemed accustomed to this.
She dialed again, and again it was picked up instantly.
She then used the same tone to call out:
“Youyou~~”
*Click—*
After repeating this four or five times, she finally said respectfully, “Mo You, I really have something to ask of you. It’s about Li Mingshan!”
“You, if you really have business, don’t use that tone every time. I really admire you; even after starting work, you haven’t changed a bit. Grow up already.”
A serious female voice came from the other end of the line.
“Don’t be so serious. This time, it’s still about Li Mingshan…”
Jiang Lulan spoke flippantly, but her heart was aching with anxiety.
It would be more accurate to say that it was precisely because she was anxious that she couldn’t help using that tone.
She felt that with Mo You’s personality, she would surely hate a scumbag like Li Mingshan enough to want to kill him, let alone help him again.
“…… It’s just that simple, okay? Pretty please?”
She held one hand up, moving it back and forth as if praying.
“This is the last time, right?”
“Yes! Is that a yes?”
“Fine.”
“Oh??”
But this time, Mo You actually agreed without much hesitation.
“There’s nothing to be surprised about. Solving the problem early will avoid future trouble.”
“Youyou~ have you fallen in love with Li Mingshan?”
“I’m hanging up. Talking to you makes me feel stupid.”
“Why? Isn’t he just a big scumbag!?”
*Click—*
A long dial tone came through the speaker.
Jiang Lulan’s prying only led to the conclusion that Li Mingshan didn’t seem quite that bad.
This only deepened her curiosity.
What kind of merits did this Li Mingshan have to possess such charm?
From their brief chat before, he did seem quite smart and decent…
***
After the Cold Wave arrived, the howling cold wind never ceased.
The moment I opened my front door, puffs of white breath escaped my mouth.
“Take care~ It’s cold today, remember to wear the scarf I gave you!”
Su Xixia’s voice drifted from behind me.
I was wearing an old low-collar padded jacket, and my neck was shrinking from the cold, gradually losing sensation.
Yet I still gripped the scarf Su Xixia had given me yesterday tightly in my hand, preferring to let it hang in the cold wind.
It was as if putting it on would mean admitting defeat to her.
When I arrived at the company and turned on my computer, the dialogue box showed several modification suggestions.
Jiang Lulan hadn’t lied.
In this promotional work, she was only responsible for a very small part.
Three days had passed since the day she teased me with the official account.
When I sent over the first drafts of several copy versions, the people who replied to me were all professionals—employees from the other party’s promotion department.
Despite all of them using the name “Wing Star Realm – An Zhi Project,” there were several different people sending messages…
I wasn’t sure how the other company handled this official account.
Perhaps they took turns logging in?
Judging from Jiang Lulan’s previous bold actions, if that wasn’t the case, those chat records would have already spread throughout their company.
An Zhi would definitely be affected.
After all, their company was so opposed to me being her boyfriend.
However, the undeleted cloud chat history should be synchronized.
If Jiang Lulan logged into the account on a day she was in a good mood, she would be able to flip through the messages I sent.
With that thought in mind, over the past three days, I had been constantly slipping “hidden requests” into the messages I sent.
“Hello, before the ‘please look forward to it’ part in this section, could we add another line? Something like ‘do you want to see An Zhi?'”
“Regarding the point about ‘being able to communicate with An Zhi to your heart’s content at that time,’ can I confirm the actual details?”
“After all, I have to take the actual situation into account to write it.”
By passing these “hidden requests” through work negotiations, I would be satisfied as long as Jiang Lulan saw even one of them.
No matter how capable Su Xixia was, she couldn’t check my account at the company.
Maintain the status quo?
What a joke.
How could I just give up like this?
If I could just talk to An Zhi, even if it was indirect…
I would give any amount of effort.
When it was time to get off work that day, I stayed in the office as usual and took a Commemorative Photo of myself with the date on the computer to send to Su Xixia.
This was a requirement she had made after I said I would be “working overtime for the next few days.”
She said things like, “I need to confirm your safety, otherwise I’ll worry!” but in reality, ‘She’s probably just afraid I’ll run away.’
In fact, I really did want to slip away…
I kept watch in front of the computer, waiting for the other party to get off work and for their avatar to turn gray, then watching to see if it would light up again.
After all, Jiang Lulan was most likely to log in after work and see my “hidden requests.”
I held onto that expectation, listening to the office clock *tick-tock* away.
“Not off yet?”
“Yeah. Good evening, Mo You.”
Mo You’s voice appeared right on time.
She had noticed two days ago that I was still staring blankly at the other party’s gray avatar after work, but she didn’t ask many questions.
She just sat quietly nearby, drinking some hot tea and sighing occasionally.
“Don’t stay too late. Here are the office door keys. Remember to turn off the lights and close the windows when you leave.”
When the clock struck 7:00 PM, she gave her usual instructions and stood up to leave, leaving the keys for me.
A dozen minutes later, I also stood up to pack my things as usual, complying with my agreement with Su Xixia to “be back before 8:00 PM.”
I picked up the keys before leaving, preparing to lock the door…
Hmm?
Why was there a piece of paper wrapped around the keys this time!?
I quickly unfolded it.
“Next Monday, 8:00 PM, wait for me alone in my office.”
That was what was written on the note.
At this moment, my heart was filled with a thousand emotions, and tears of excitement welled up in my eyes.
The efforts of these past few days had not been in vain.
Premium Chapter
Login to buy access to this Chapter.