“Of course I have no right to control you. I was just giving you a friendly reminder,” Song Ruannin muttered.
She had never tried to control Zhai Yu, or perhaps it was more accurate to say that Zhai Yu never allowed her to control him.
Back when they were together, he would never tell her where he went, what he did, or who he met.
During the year they lived together, there were times when he wouldn’t come home at night without even letting her know, leaving her waiting alone until late.
The two of them stood facing each other, locked in a stalemate, until Song Ruannin broke free and tried to leave.
Just then, a few children ran past—mostly children of Yunmeng employees.
One little girl holding a lollipop stopped in front of them, staring at Zhai Yu’s face.
“Big brother, my mom says boys shouldn’t bully their girlfriends.”
Zhai Yu looked down at her, raising an eyebrow. “Which eye of yours saw me bullying her?”
The little girl then turned her gaze to Song Ruannin’s face. “But the big sister looks like she’s about to cry.”
Song Ruannin: “…”
She wasn’t crying—it was just the smoke from Zhai Yu’s cigarette earlier that had irritated her eyes.
The little girl still showed no sign of leaving. “Big brother, the big sister is so pretty. You should pamper her a little. If you pamper her, she’ll feel better.”
“Every time my dad makes my mom angry, he always goes to pamper her.”
“Dad says only men who know how to pamper their wives deserve to have wives.”
An awkward silence fell between them. Song Ruannin wanted to explain but had no idea what to say to a child.
Just then, her phone rang, and she immediately answered it.
“Ruan Ning, where did you run off to? I couldn’t find you anywhere,” Zhou Ying’s voice came through.
Song Ruannin replied, “I thought the scenery over here was nice, so I took a walk. I’ll be right back.”
With that, Song Ruannin picked up the basket of firewood she had gathered earlier and hurried away.
Zhai Yu stood with his hands in his pockets, watching her slender figure in the white cotton coat disappear into the distance.
“Uh-oh, big brother, you made your pretty girlfriend leave.”
Zhai Yu looked down at the little girl, who couldn’t have been more than five or six years old.
He crouched down, pinched her cheek, took off the wristwatch he was wearing, and handed it to her. “Here, it’s yours. Go play with it.”
Back at the campsite, Zhou Ying had already set up the barbecue grill.
As dusk settled and the flames began to rise, the group gathered around two grills.
Ruan Ning naturally joined the employees’ group. After setting down the firewood, she helped Zhou Ying grill a few skewers.
Not far away, Shen Yi waved at her, signaling for her to come over.
As soon as she left, the women among the employees began chattering.
“Song Ruannin really went from a country bumpkin to a phoenix. Who knows where she got the money to invest in the company, but she suddenly became a shareholder.”
“Exactly. She’s a single mom, and her husband is abroad. Who knows where the money came from?”
“Don’t you know? She’s actually our boss’s mistress. Look at how they’re always together—if you think nothing’s going on, I don’t believe it.”
Zhou Ying slammed a plate of freshly grilled chicken wings onto the table. “Shut up! Can’t even this delicious barbecue keep your mouths busy?”
“Don’t make wild guesses. Ruan Ning isn’t that kind of person,” Li Qimeng chimed in from the side.
Zhou Ying was surprised. She had thought Li Qimeng was Bai Yuwei’s good friend.
After seeing Ruan Ning and Bai Yuwei argue earlier, she hadn’t expected Li Qimeng to speak up for Ruan Ning.
The female employee continued, “Qimeng, we’re speaking up for you. She follows Shen Yi around all day, and everyone in the company knows you like him. Why are you defending her?”
Li Qimeng smiled and continued grilling the food in her hand.
The employees’ table was quite far from Ruan Ning’s, so she didn’t hear their conversation.
Lin Qianyu and Bai Yuwei sat on either side of Zhai Yu, both holding skewers to grill.
Lin Qianyu finished grilling a fish skewer and placed it on the plate in front of Zhai Yu.
“I don’t like fish,” Zhai Yu said bluntly.
Seeing this, Bai Yuwei placed the grilled beef skewer she had prepared onto Zhai Yu’s plate. “Brother Yu, try this.”
Zhai Yu looked at her coldly. “I don’t like this either.”
Song Ruannin and Shen Yi wisely chose not to get involved in the dynamic between the three of them.
“Ruannin, you still like the same flavor, right? Chicken wings with honey and chili sauce?” Shen Yi asked Ruan Ning.
Song Ruannin and Shen Yi had grown up together since they were toddlers.
Their families had been close friends, often gathering for events.
As a child, Ruan Ning had a bossy personality and frequently ordered Shen Yi to grill food for her.
Ruan Ning reached for the skewer in his hand. “I’ll do it myself.”
Shen Yi didn’t hand it over. “Forget it. You’re the worst at cooking—everyone knows you’re a kitchen disaster. I’m afraid you’ll turn it into a charred mess and won’t even be able to eat it yourself.”
Then he put on a proud expression. “Don’t worry, I’m the Grill King of Yancheng.”
Song Ruanning: “…”
She really couldn’t cook and didn’t enjoy it either.
Back when she lived with Zhai Yu, he handled all the meals at home. She only helped out in the kitchen, at most cracking an egg.
Now she had learned a little, but only how to make simple breakfasts and steamed egg custard—skills she picked up for Song Ziyan.
As Ruan Ning stared at the grill, a pair of pale, delicate hands with slightly reddened fingertips suddenly caught her eye.
Zhai Yu picked up a chicken wing skewer from beside him and placed it on the grill.
As he grilled, Zhai Yu’s skewer somehow ended up pressed against Shen Yi’s chicken wing.
“President Zhai, there’s space over there. Could you move a bit? Otherwise, it’ll burn,” Shen Yi said politely.
Zhai Yu remained silent, so Shen Yi shifted to the side.
But the chicken wing seemed to have eyes—wherever Shen Yi moved, the skewer followed.
In the end, Shen Yi’s chicken wing inevitably burned.
“It’s burnt, it’s burnt!” Shen Yi quickly removed the skewer.
Zhai Yu smirked. “Who told you to add so much honey?”
“It’s fine, grill this one instead.” Song Ruannin handed Shen Yi a new skewer and took the burnt one from him, placing it on her plate.
Using her chopsticks, she gently broke through the skin, revealing the juicy, fragrant chicken meat—it was fully cooked.
Ruan Ning peeled off the burnt skin, picked out a tender piece of chicken, and placed it in her mouth.
“It’s burnt, don’t eat it,” Shen Yi said.
Ruan Ning’s expression remained unchanged. “Aren’t you the Grill King of Yancheng? Even burnt, it shouldn’t taste too bad.”
As she spoke, she took another bite.
With a clang, Zhai Yu tossed the metal skewer in his hand onto the grill, ignoring it completely and letting it char.
Ruan Ning acted as if she hadn’t seen anything.
Lin Qianyu, who had been quiet for a while, finally spoke up. “Miss Song and President Shen have such a good relationship.”
Ruan Ning looked at her, a flicker of surprise crossing her face. “You know me?”
After Lin Qianyu confessed her feelings to Zhai Yu back then, she had gone abroad for further studies.
Logically speaking, she shouldn’t have known her.
Lin Qianyu smiled gently, leaning her whole body toward Zhai Yu and lightly taking hold of his arm.
“Yes, when A-Yu was abroad, we met, and he mentioned you to me.”
Song Ruannin remained silent, not even glancing at Zhai Yu.
Lin Qianyu continued, “A-Yu and I lived in the same apartment at the time.”