The gossip didn’t last long before it fizzled out because the little assistant had vanished. The theory everyone agreed upon was that she had resigned to go home and focus on being a wealthy socialite.
Monday
The “wealthy socialite” herself was currently nodding off during her 8:00 AM class. It wasn’t until the dismissal bell rang that she lifted her head and rubbed her eyes.
“Is class over?”
“Yeah. Didn’t you sleep last night? And why didn’t you come back to the dorm?” Cheng Luo’s roommate, Xu You, asked.
“Ah, I probably won’t be sleeping at the dorm anymore. I rented a place outside.”
“I see. Are you living alone?”
“No, I am living with a friend.”
Xu You didn’t ask further, and Cheng Luo breathed a sigh of relief.
Speaking of sleep, she found it strange. Zhai Qing seemed like such a normal person, yet at night, she insisted on holding onto something to fall asleep. Last night, Cheng Luo had been jolted awake several times by the weight on her body and hadn’t slept well all night.
In the morning, the culprit had looked at her dark circles and actually asked if she was having trouble adjusting to a new bed again, making Cheng Luo so angry she wanted to punch the mattress.
While carrying her backpack to another classroom, she unexpectedly ran head-on into Zhai Wen.
“Hello, Professor.”
Cheng Luo wasn’t sure if Zhai Qing had told him about the marriage, so seeing him now made her feel a bit apprehensive. Back then, the professor had been kind enough to set her up with an internship, yet she had ended up embroiling his daughter into a marriage with her.
“Oh, it is Cheng Luo! You have finally put on some weight after the winter break.”
“Really? Then I need to hurry up and eat less.”
“Eat less? Don’t you dare!” Zhai Wen feigned anger and gestured as if to swat her. “You were thin as a telephone pole before. You look a bit better now, but you still need to eat more.”
After Zhai Wen left, Cheng Luo looked at her reflection in the glossy tiles. She did seem a bit rounder. But she also seemed to have grown taller; her pants felt a bit short.
Mainly, the nanny kept the fridge stocked to the brim every day with expensive vegetables and meats, and they were replaced every three days. Cheng Luo couldn’t stand seeing such good food go to waste, so she ended up cooking five or six dishes every day.
But Zhai Qing ate the same things as her; how come she didn’t look any heavier?
Noon
Qingfeng Technology Employee Gym
A woman was running at a steady pace on a treadmill, a towel draped around her neck. From time to time, she wiped the sweat trickling down from her forehead.
The phone rang. Zhai Qing paused the treadmill and looked at the screen. A flicker of surprise crossed her eyes.
“Hello. I am back in the country. I am downstairs at your company. Come pick me up.”
“What, am I not welcome?”
In the office, Zhai Qing looked at the arrogant woman in front of her.
“When did you get back?”
“Last week. I was cooped up at home for a week, and the moment I came out, I came looking for you. Why are you so cold!”
Shang Ya curled two fingers, her exquisite long nails unceremoniously poking Zhai Qing’s cheek.
“I have not seen you in years, and you are even more boring than before. My dad said you have turned into a complete workaholic and uses you to lecture me all day.”
Shang Ya was just like her name, an exquisite and elegant woman. Zhai Qing’s grandfather and Shang Ya’s grandfather were friends, and the two families remained very close to this day. However, Shang Ya was much luckier.
She was the only child of her generation. From the moment she was born, she was the center of her family’s affection. Throughout her life, there was almost nothing she could not get.
The story of how they met was also quite interesting. They attended the same university, though Zhai Qing was two years ahead of her. During freshman orientation, Zhai Qing happened to be the one welcoming Shang Ya. After that, for some reason, Shang Ya stuck to her, and they gradually became friends.
It was not until Zhai Qing returned to the Ji family for Lunar New Year that they crossed paths again. After a conversation, they realized they had this family connection. Later, when Zhai Qing graduated and started her business, and Shang Ya graduated two years later to study abroad, their contact became more distant.
“Everyone knows your father dotes on you the most. He travels across the ocean to see you every month for fear you might lose an ounce of weight,” Zhai Qing teased.
“Pfft, he only goes for work and visits me on the side. You, on the other hand, you have not visited me once in the past few years, and you do not even send messages. I thought you had forgotten me.”
“How could I? I have liked every single one of your posts on my feed. I will not forget.”
Shang Ya: “…”
“Stop working. It was not easy for me to get out. In a few days, I will have to start working at my family’s company, and you will not be able to find me even if you want to.”
Zhai Qing could not win the argument and was forced to leave work early to accompany the high-spirited heiress into the mall.
“What are you looking at?”
When Shang Ya came out from trying on clothes, she saw Zhai Qing taking two items from the sales assistant. She craned her neck to see. They were two sweaters in very lively colors, which were definitely not Zhai Qing’s style. Shang Ya took them naturally.
“Did you pick these for me? The style is a bit plain, but the colors are not bad.” With that, she headed back into the fitting room.
Zhai Qing stood there empty-handed. Those colors would have actually suited someone else quite well.
Shang Ya ended up buying both sweaters, adding them to her carefully selected haul. It was not until their hands could not carry anything else that Shang Ya finally invited Zhai Qing for dinner, still wanting more.
Zhai Qing glanced at her watch. It was already 6:00 PM. Cheng Luo should be home by now, preparing tonight’s dinner.
Shang Ya watched as Zhai Qing inexplicably smiled at her watch.
“What’s so funny?”
Zhai Qing tucked her watch away. “Nothing. I will not be joining you tonight. Dinner is being prepared at home.”
“Just make a call and tell the housekeeper not to cook. I just got back and you are already ditching me? What’s so great about home? That cold villa of yours does not have a lick of life in it.”
Shang Ya did not believe she would refuse and tried to link arms with her to head toward the parking lot. However, the moment she touched her, Zhai Qing pulled away. She heard her say:
“Let’s do lunch next time. I really have to go home tonight.”
“I’ll drive you home then.”
When getting out of the car, Shang Ya slammed the door and walked away without looking back. Zhai Qing knew she was angry and decided to treat her to a meal next time. Right now, she had more important things to do.
“Why are you back so early today? Dinner will be ready in a bit!”
Cheng Luo, wearing an apron and holding a spatula, shouted toward the living room.
The moment Zhai Qing entered, she smelled the aroma of food. Stepping into this space, she felt herself relax, enveloped by a sense of warmth. Once upon a time, she had only fantasized about this, but now it had become a reality.
“Why are you eating so little today?”
Zhai Qing looked at Cheng Luo’s bowl, which was barely a third full of rice.
“I’m not hungry…”
But at that moment, her stomach failed to cooperate, letting out a loud grumble.
Zhai Qing raised an eyebrow, waiting to see how she would explain.
“I’ve gained weight lately. It’s better if I eat less.”
“Where are you fat?”
Zhai Qing scanned her and could not see any fat. If anything, her skin was fair with a healthy flush, making her look even cuter.
“I’m fat everywhere!” Cheng Luo pinched the flesh on her belly hard to prove she was telling the truth.
“Let me feel.”
Zhai Qing reached out and placed her hand over Cheng Luo’s lower abdomen. The skin beneath was thin; it was not nearly as exaggerated as she claimed.
Cheng Luo tried to shrink back, but the chair restricted her space. She had to endure the touch, but perhaps because she was nervous, her stomach growled even louder.
“See? It knows better than you. You are not fat at all. Be good and eat more; otherwise, it will all go to waste.”
Cheng Luo’s first weight-loss plan failed before it even started. She ate two large bowls of rice through her tears.
If I had known, I would have cooked something that tasted worse.
After dinner, Zhai Qing washed the dishes while Cheng Luo went to put the clothes in the washing machine. As she picked up the clothes Zhai Qing had worn during the day, a long strand of red hair slid down before her eyes.
Zhai Qing’s hair was black and shiny, the kind that had never been dyed, and it was not this long.
Probably someone from the company, Cheng Luo thought as she picked the hair off the carpet and threw it in the trash.
The Next Day
Just as Zhai Qing reached the company entrance, the receptionist stopped her and pointed toward the woman on the sofa.
“Boss, she’s here for you.”
Zhai Qing had thought she would be sulking for a few more days, but she had not expected her to return so soon.
“Aren’t you happy to see me? You’re not even smiling.” Shang Ya sat perfectly upright. Though her position was slightly lower, her presence was commanding.
“Aren’t you supposed to start work today? Why are you here?”
“I got into another fight with my dad. He actually wants me to go on a blind date with someone I do not even know! He does not care about my feelings at all! If I had known, I would not have come back!”
“Your father only wants what is best for you.”
“Whose friend are you anyway?”
Shang Ya looked at her angrily, then softened. “I am going to stay at your place for a while. Once my dad realizes his mistake, I will go back home.”
“That is not very appropriate. I have moved recently, and there are no spare rooms.”
“Where did you move to?”
Zhai Qing told her the address honestly.
“Why move there? It’s crowded and noisy. It is nothing like the quiet of the villa.”
Seeing there was no room, Shang Ya did not push it. She still had money; it was not like she could not find a place to stay.
“Oh, right, is your company hiring? I can’t go to my family’s company anymore, otherwise, I would be seeing my dad constantly. What’s the difference between that and being at home?”
“That works,” Zhai Qing agreed readily. She was afraid that if she refused one more thing, the young lady would explode from anger.
Zhai Qing arranged for someone to get Shang Ya settled before finally feeling relieved enough to start working.
The receptionist watched the whole scene from a distance and sighed. Rich people are all the same. The old one just left, and a new one is brought in. And looking at the treatment, the newcomer is clearly being treated better.
Things really change in the blink of an eye!
Cheng Luo was now a sophomore, and her coursework was at its peak. For convenience, she ate at the cafeteria during lunch and rested in her original dorm room.
At noon, she deliberately ate very little and returned to the dorm early, lying on her bed scrolling through her phone.
The more she scrolled, the more bored she became. She suddenly wanted to know what Zhai Qing was doing. Cheng Luo sent her a WeChat message but did not receive a reply for a long time.
Suddenly, she remembered that she was still in a large group chat with the company employees. Zhai Qing was probably the most discussed person there. Out of some hidden curiosity, she had not left the group even after she resigned.
She opened the group with a feeling akin to conducting an investigation. She smiled at the novelty of it, but soon, a photo made her smile vanish.
In the picture, set in the company cafeteria, a strange woman was sitting opposite Zhai Qing, smiling as she placed food into Zhai Qing’s bowl.