"Fine, whatever. If you want to follow me, then come on. It’s a good chance to get things cleared up," Chu Feng said with a hint of resignation.
And so, Su Miaoke followed Chu Feng into his rented apartment.
The stairwell was dim and cluttered with junk, and it gave off a strange smell.
"You don’t even have an elevator here?" Su Miaoke asked, frowning.
"No. It’s only seven floors. Why would it need an elevator?" Chu Feng replied.
"What? The seventh floor? You expect me to walk up to the seventh floor?" Su Miaoke asked, shocked.
Chu Feng glanced at her and said flatly, "Did I invite you up here? If you think it’s too tiring, you don’t have to come."
With that, he headed straight upstairs.
Su Miaoke watched his back as he went upstairs and gritted her teeth in anger.
「Five minutes later, on the seventh floor.」
Su Miaoke was already standing at the door, panting for breath.
Meanwhile, Chu Feng had already opened the door and was lying on his bed.
"This is where you live? You eat, sleep, and do everything in a single room? Even the window is tiny. It’s like a prison cell," Su Miaoke said, sizing up the place from the doorway with a disgusted look on her face.
"My dog’s house is bigger and nicer than this place."
Hearing this, Chu Feng almost choked with anger.
’So she’s saying I’m worse than a dog.’
Chu Feng’s room wasn’t large. It was a small, single room of just a few square meters.
Besides the bed, there was barely enough room for a small table and a small wardrobe.
But its main advantage was the cheap rent—only three hundred yuan a month—which allowed him to save a lot of money.
After all, in a big city like Beihai, just having a steady place to live was pretty good.
Chu Feng’s face was cold as he said, "Of course. You’re a big, rich boss, after all. I bet your dog wears a thick gold chain. How could a working stiff like me ever compare?"
He got up and closed the door.
"What are you trying to do! Why are you closing the door!" Su Miaoke exclaimed, hastily backing away toward the bed.
"Are you crazy? Are we supposed to discuss this with the door wide open for everyone to hear?" Chu Feng shot back, rolling his eyes.
Su Miaoke’s expression turned slightly awkward. ’Was I overthinking things?’
"What did you want to talk to me about? What happened last night?" Su Miaoke asked.
"What else? Why do you think I asked you to come up?" Chu Feng said.
Su Miaoke glanced at Chu Feng, then said, "We’ve already slept together. What else can be done? You have to take responsibility."
"Me? Take responsibility? Are you kidding me? You can see my situation. I rent a place for three hundred yuan a month, I’m from the countryside, I have no money, no connections—nothing. What’s the difference between me and a total loser?"
Chu Feng said loudly, mocking himself.
"Do you really have to have money and power?" Su Miaoke asked.
In fact, Su Miaoke used to think the same way.
But from the moment she found out she had a terminal illness, she understood that when faced with life, old age, sickness, and death, what good was having all the money in the world? To buy a slightly nicer urn?
Or perhaps, throw a grand, luxurious funeral?
"Of course! Without money and power, you’re worse off than a dog!" Chu Feng said with conviction.
"Fine. Let’s talk things over. First, add my contact information. Later, you’ll come home with me," Su Miaoke said.
"What? Go home with you? Isn’t this moving a little too fast? And with me like this... aren’t you afraid I’ll embarrass you?" Chu Feng was stunned.
"You talk too much. I’ll contact you when the time comes."
After adding Chu Feng’s contact information, Su Miaoke prepared to leave.
She stopped at the door, turning her head to ask Chu Feng, "The New Year is almost here. Are you going home this year?"
"I want to, but I don’t have the money. I’ll have to see. It depends on how much I get paid."
The two of them chatted as they walked down the stairs.
Downstairs, when Su Miaoke’s driver saw the two of them, a flicker of shock appeared in her eyes.
Su Miaoke and Chu Feng were walking so close, and she had even been the one to insist on going to the man’s home.
It was certainly an intriguing development.
She had been Su Miaoke’s driver for several years, but she had never seen anything like this.
"Where are you headed?" Su Miaoke asked.
"I’m going back to the office," Chu Feng replied.
"Get in. I’ll give you a ride."
They chatted a little more in the car, getting a general sense of each other.
"This is your stop. I have to get back to the office, there’s still work to do. Wait for my call," Su Miaoke said as Chu Feng got out of the car.
Chu Feng didn’t say anything, just gave a slight nod.
He had complicated feelings. The whole situation felt too surreal.
’How could a miserable wage slave like me get involved with a beautiful CEO overnight?’
’Even if I told someone, they’d never believe me. They’d just think I was making it all up.’
In the car, Su Miaoke was also conflicted.
She barely knew Chu Feng, and in her eyes, he wasn’t particularly outstanding. He had no education to speak of, no social status.
He was a guy from the countryside who barely earned any money each month.
But to her, none of that was important.
’What mattered to her was that her terminal illness was cured, and on top of that, Chu Feng seemed like a decent person.’
At that thought, Su Miaoke’s mood suddenly lifted.
"Chairman Su, are you... in love?" Xiao Lin asked tentatively.
Although she was Su Miaoke’s driver, the two had a good private relationship, and Su Miaoke never put on airs.
"Can’t I fall in love?" Su Miaoke said, looking out the car window.
"No, no, no, Chairman Su, that’s not what I meant! I’m just curious how this man managed to win your favor. After all, the line of suitors chasing you could probably stretch across all of Nanhai City."
Xiao Lin explained. That was what she couldn’t figure out. No matter how you looked at him, Chu Feng didn’t seem like a rich man.
"He really isn’t rich, but I am," Su Miaoke said. "Money isn’t a factor for me. As long as I’m satisfied with him as a person, that’s enough."
The driver, Xiao Lin, glanced in the rearview mirror and nodded.
"Chairman Su is right. Those rich playboys and corporate bosses who chase you... they may have money and power, but few of them are decent men."
As Su Miaoke’s personal driver, she’d naturally accompanied her to countless events and had seen more than her fair share of such things.
Rich men carousing, keeping mistresses on the side... they were capable of anything.
"Remember, I don’t want a fourth person to know about this," Su Miaoke said.
"Don’t worry, Chairman Su. I understand," Xiao Lin nodded.
"Once we’re done for the day, I’ll give you time off too. Go on back to your hometown," Su Miaoke said softly, her eyes closed.
Images from that night kept floating unbidden through her mind.
"Thank you, Chairman Su," Xiao Lin said with a happy grin.
After getting out of the car, Chu Feng bolted toward the office in a frantic rush.
As he ran into the sales department and reached his desk, everyone looked up at him.
"Chu Feng, you’re just getting in? Manager Liu has been in a foul mood all morning," someone whispered, giving him a heads-up.