After finishing their meal, Lin Yue and Qin Yan strolled around the area. Qin Yan bought a potted plant, and Lin Yue had initially wanted to buy one too.
But the moment she thought of Qing Jing, she wasn’t even sure how much longer she could stay here, so she gave up the idea.
Qin Yan noticed her disappointment and nudged her gently. “What’s wrong?”
Lin Yue: “It’s all because of Qing Jing. If this goes on, I’m going to move out.”
Qin Yue: “Move if you want to. Don’t worry about me.”
Lin Yue pouted, wrapped her arms around Qin Yan’s, and whined, “Wuwu… You’re too good to me, but I can’t do that. I was the one who dragged you here in the first place—how could I just abandon you? Besides, I’m afraid you’re too nice and always end up accommodating her.”
Qin Yan said indifferently, “We’re not at the age where we have to hold hands to go to the bathroom anymore. We’re close because we were college roommates, but adults are busy with work. Coming home to face unhappiness isn’t necessary. I’m at school all day anyway—I just come back to sleep at night.”
Lin Yue hummed in agreement. “Let’s talk about it later. Renting here is so expensive. I’ve only saved up fifty thousand yuan since freshman year.”
Qin Yan: “Doesn’t your company have employee apartments? Why not apply?”
Lin Yue frowned uncomfortably. “They do, but they’re all double rooms or even quadruple rooms. Single rooms are only for A-level designated personnel or management. After what I’ve been through with Qing Jing, how could I possibly share a place with someone else? That’s why I didn’t apply.”
“Take it slow.”
Lin Yue hummed again, linking arms with Qin Yan as they entered the subway station. The two chatted and laughed all the way back to their residence, but from a distance, they could already hear bursts of laughter and noisy commotion.
They exchanged a look, and Qin Yan used her key to open the front door.
Inside, three or four men and women were holding glasses, cursing and laughing boisterously. When they saw Lin Yue, they waved at her, inviting her to join the fun.
Lin Yue recognized them—they were all Qing Jing’s friends.
She turned her gaze to Qing Jing, her eyes blazing with anger. They had agreed not to bring friends back after 10 p.m. to avoid disturbing others, and it was almost 11 p.m. now. How could they be so noisy without worrying about the neighbors complaining?
The kitchen floor was covered in dirty water and rotten vegetable leaves, the living room floor was littered with liquor bottles, and there was even a piece of clothing draped over the potted plant in the living room. Everyone’s faces were flushed from drinking, and the whole room reeked of an unpleasant odor.
What’s more, a man and a woman were smoking right there.
Just then, the front door was pounded loudly several times.
“Are you young people insane? I have a child at home who’s been woken up by your noise. Sleeping by day and acting like ghosts at night—if this happens again, I’m calling the police!”
Qin Yan hurriedly opened the door, embarrassed, and repeatedly bowed in apology.
Lin Yue’s temple throbbed with irritation. She couldn’t stand seeing Qin Yan cleaning up Qing Jing’s mess.
She strode directly up to Qing Jing, suppressing the urge to hit her, and said through gritted teeth, “It’s almost 11 p.m. Can you wrap this up?”
Qing Jing glanced at her indifferently. “Who are you to tell me what to do?”
“Don’t go too far, Qing Jing. Did all your education go to waste? You’re not just bothering your roommates—you’re disturbing the neighbors. Do you really want the police to show up?”
Qing Jing sneered and suddenly raised her voice. “If you have the means, go live in a luxury house! Living in this dump and still complaining about noise?”
Hearing this, the neighbor flew into a rage, shouting that they were going to call the police.
Qin Yan quickly intercepted her. Being a teacher, she was quite skilled at calming people down. She repeatedly assured the woman that the matter would be resolved within ten minutes, and only then did the woman leave, grumbling curses under her breath.
“What kind of manners are those? And she calls herself a white-collar professional from a big company? She’s nothing but a shameless hooligan—no better than an illiterate housewife like me.”
Qing Jing, who had already been criticized by her supervisor at work earlier that day, couldn’t hold back upon hearing this. She immediately stood up to confront the woman.
“What did you just say? Who do you think you are? How dare you compare yourself to me? All you do is stay home and look after kids all day—ugh… Let go of me!”
Lin Yue grabbed her from behind, covering her mouth. “Shut up! Haven’t you caused enough trouble already?”
Qing Jing, standing at 172 cm and slightly intoxicated, struggled fiercely. Lin Yue was no match for her and was shaken off within seconds. At the same time, a small object fell from Qing Jing’s person with a clatter onto the floor.
Lin Yue’s gaze sharpened. Recognizing the silver USB drive on the ground, she picked it up in disbelief and stared at Qing Jing. “So, it was you who took my USB drive during this morning’s meeting?”
Qing Jing guiltily retreated to her dining chair. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
Seeing that Qing Jing was still playing dumb, Lin Yue coldly fetched a basin of water from the kitchen and splashed it directly over Qing Jing, drenching her from head to toe.
The other women nearby, caught in the crossfire, shrieked and backed away. Qing Jing seemed stunned by Lin Yue’s actions, sobering up slightly from the shock.
Lin Yue threw the vegetable-washing basin aside and slammed her hand on the table, shouting sharply, “All of you, get out!”
The room fell silent instantly. The women exchanged glances, then stood up and left with disdainful smirks.
Lin Yue looked down at Qing Jing. “Why would you do this?”
Qing Jing sneered, “You’ve already drenched me. We’re even now.”
“Who the hell said we’re even, Qing Jing? Why have you become like this? Did it ever occur to you that your actions could have cost me my job?”
Qing Jing didn’t even lift her eyelids. “So what? You’re still perfectly fine here, aren’t you?”
“So that makes your despicable behavior acceptable? If I killed you, would a simple apology suffice? And you haven’t even apologized!”
Qing Jing pressed her lips tightly together. Apologizing to Lin Yue was out of the question.
She raised her head and met Lin Yue’s gaze. “What are you being so dramatic about? Hasn’t President He always favored you? Everyone knows Director Zhao from Dachuang tried to poach you, but President He protected you and turned him down.”
Lin Yue frowned. Why did Qing Jing know about this? And from her tone, it sounded like many people were aware?
In reality, Lin Yue had misunderstood. Qing Jing was the only one who knew about it. Director Zhao had mentioned it jokingly to Wei Jia, who later teased about it in a casual chat with Zheng Yu—which was how Qing Jing overheard the conversation.
Lin Yue gave up on reasoning with her. She felt deeply disappointed that a job had stirred such jealousy and suspicion in a friend.
Qin Yan finally grasped the situation and turned to Qing Jing. “Don’t you know about Lin Yue’s circumstances? Sabotaging her work hurts her more than taking anything else from her. Don’t you think you’ve gone too far?”
Qing Jing remained silent.
“Forget it, Yanzi.” Lin Yue looked at Qing Jing and said, “Qing Jing, listen carefully. This is the last time I’ll let something slide with you. If this happens again, don’t blame me for not holding back. I’ll go look for a house right now. From now on, we won’t interfere with each other.”
After saying these words, Lin Yue calmly returned to her room.
Qin Yan sighed and also went back to her room.