Wen Yu was awakened by the chirping of birds outside the window. She slowly opened her eyes, her consciousness gradually returning.
A dull discomfort somewhere in her body made her hiss softly. Memories of last night’s embarrassing, heated moments came rushing back, along with the fact that Gu Huaizhi had, for the first time, actually called her by her name afterward.
That voice…
Her cheeks instantly burned red. She quickly pulled her thoughts back and dragged the blanket over her face.
The sheets beside her were already cold. She had no idea when Gu Huaizhi had left.
Supporting her sore, aching body, she sat up. On the carpet beside the bed lay her swimsuit and bathrobe from the night before.
The swimsuit had already been torn and was no longer wearable.
She lowered her feet to the floor, stepped onto the carpet, and picked up the bathrobe, wrapping it around her completely bare body.
Her eyes landed on the trash can beside her. Inside were several used condoms.
The tips of her ears began to burn.
Had they really used an entire box last night?
She couldn’t remember.
Whatever. The man had always known his limits. If they hadn’t used protection, he would have reminded her to take emergency contraception.
She walked to the window and pulled open the curtains. The dazzling sunlight streamed in, making her squint uncomfortably.
The mountain resort looked beautiful in the early morning, but she had no interest in appreciating the scenery.
She turned and walked into the bathroom.
Looking at the woman in the mirror, she saw that her face was somewhat pale, with faint dark circles beneath her eyes.
Her lips were swollen, and her neck was covered in countless hickeys that continued downward. There were even bluish-purple marks around her waist where he had gripped her too hard.
There wasn’t a single patch of unmarked skin.
She couldn’t help cursing him inwardly.
What a damn beast.
After washing up, she still had no idea where Gu Huaizhi had gone. She picked up her phone and checked it. There was a message from Gu Huaizhi’s driver sent an hour ago.
“Secretary Wen, President Gu asked me to drive you home. The car is waiting at the entrance of the private villa.”
She replied, Okay, thank you.
Putting down her phone, she quickly gathered her belongings and headed to the entrance of the villa. Sure enough, the driver was leaning against the car waiting for her.
Meanwhile, the man she had just cursed as a beast, Gu Huaizhi, was sitting in a private room with several of his friends.
Qin Yu leaned over with a mischievous grin.
“So, Huaizhi, how was your rest last night? Your buddy did you a solid, didn’t I?”
Gu Huaizhi leaned back against the sofa and lazily raised his eyes.
“Not bad.”
“Tut, that’s all? Not bad? Your secretary, seriously… What exactly do you think of her?”
Qin Yu had heard quite a bit of noise from next door last night. His friend had always been cold and indifferent toward women.
Gu Huaizhi answered calmly, “She’s just my secretary.”
“Secretary? Give me a break. You’re still putting on an act for me. The way you look at her—do you really look at anyone else like that? Huaizhi, don’t tell me you’re actually serious about her?”
“Serious?”
It sounded like the biggest joke in the world to him. He let out a mocking laugh.
“Qin Yu, when have you ever seen me get serious about a woman? We each get what we want, that’s all.”
Seeing his friend acting like this, Qin Yu shrugged.
“Fine. Keep denying it.”
You can’t reason with someone determined to walk into trouble. One day, he’ll be the one crying.
Gu Huaizhi said nothing more. A trace of irritation stirred inside him as he picked up his glass and downed the drink in one go.
The burning liquor slid down his throat, yet it failed to extinguish the faint restlessness in his heart.
He reached up and tugged at his tie, staring at the shifting lights and silhouettes on the dance floor. Everything suddenly seemed unbearably noisy.
Without warning, Wen Yu’s face flashed through his mind.
The way she worked meticulously at the office.
The way she quietly sat against the headboard at home in her pajamas, reading a book.
And the way she had looked beneath him last night, surrendering to him and pleading for mercy…
“Hey, Huaizhi, what are you thinking about? You’re completely lost in thought. Don’t tell me you’re still thinking about work?”
One of his friends nudged him with an elbow.
Lu Chen leaned over.
“I think he’s not thinking about work. He’s thinking about a certain someone who’s ‘just a secretary.’”
Gu Huaizhi’s gaze instantly turned cold. He shot Lu Chen a sharp look but said nothing, simply lifting his glass and taking another drink.
Another friend who didn’t know the full story laughed and joined in.
“Which secretary? She must be something special if she can leave our President Gu so distracted. Is she pretty? Introduce her to us sometime.”
Bang!
Gu Huaizhi slammed his glass down on the table.
The loud sound immediately drew everyone’s attention.
His expression had turned so dark it seemed capable of freezing the room. His gaze swept across the men who had just spoken, and each word came out as a warning:
“She. Is. Not. Someone. You. Can. Talk. About.”
The atmosphere in the booth instantly froze.
Lu Chen and the others felt their scalps go numb under his icy stare. Realizing they had probably said something they shouldn’t have, they quickly fell silent.
Qin Yu was stunned for a moment as well. Then a knowing look flashed across his eyes, and he hurriedly tried to smooth things over.
“Hey, hey, we’re just joking! Come on, come on, let’s drink.”
The air around Gu Huaizhi remained cold.
He leaned back against the sofa, closed his eyes, and rubbed his brow.
A hint of regret crept into his heart over how strongly he had reacted just now.
When Monday came, Wen Yu returned to the office wearing high heels and a sharp, professional suit.
As she walked through the office, her colleagues greeted her warmly.
“Good morning, Secretary Wen.”
“Good morning, Secretary Wen.”
Wen Yu smiled faintly and nodded at them.
“Good morning.”
In the break room, several people were making tea. Two or three girls had their heads together, whispering among themselves.
“I just saw a hickey on Secretary Wen’s neck,” one of the girls said.
“Really? How did you notice that? I didn’t see anything.”
“Really. On the left side of her neck. Her clothes were covering it, but I happened to see it when she raised her hand.”
“Ahem, stop talking. Secretary Wen is here…”
The girls immediately scattered, pretending to focus on making tea or getting water.
However, their eyes kept stealing glances at Wen Yu.
Although they tried to be discreet, Wen Yu’s sharp instincts still picked up on it.
She expertly made two cups of coffee—one for herself and, naturally, one for Gu Huaizhi.
After she left with the coffee, the girls immediately began exchanging knowing looks and nudging one another.
Wen Yu carried her coffee back to her desk and set her cup down. Then she opened a drawer and took out a document folder.
Inside were her resignation letter and a detailed financial statement she had prepared.
It listed every payment Gu Huaizhi had made over the past five years, including the money he had used to pay off all of her father’s debts, as well as the monthly payments deposited into her account as compensation for being his mistress.
Even she had been shocked by the enormous amount when she totaled everything up.
The figure was huge—enough to crush an ordinary person under its weight.
So, in a certain sense, she was still quite grateful to Gu Huaizhi.
After all, without him, she might never have been able to repay such an enormous debt in her lifetime.
Since she had decided to leave, she wanted to leave completely and cleanly, without owing him anything.
She picked up the coffee beside her, took the documents, and drew a deep breath before walking toward Gu Huaizhi’s office.
She pushed open the door.
Gu Huaizhi was dressed in an impeccably tailored suit, his hair combed neatly into place. He was sitting behind his desk, reading financial news on his tablet.
He had already returned to being the aloof, powerful, handsome, and cold President of the Gu Corporation.
Looking at him like this, it was hard to imagine that he was the same man who had lost control at the hot spring resort—holding her tightly as he demanded more from her, asking whether she was really willing to let him go.
Wen Yu placed the coffee on his desk before handing him the documents.
“President Gu, this is my resignation letter, along with a complete financial statement of everything over the past five years. Please take a look.”
Her voice was slightly hoarse.
Gu Huaizhi raised his head, his gaze falling on the document folder she had handed him.