This was the first time Ni Xia had ever hated her typing speed so much.
If only she had typed one second slower, this wouldn’t have happened…
Now, staring at You Jue’s message, her face was burning, while her expression looked as if she were a condemned prisoner awaiting execution.
Could anyone blame Ni Xia for overthinking?
Who would contact a client about work at eleven o’clock at night?
He was obviously the one secretly crushing on her, yet now it somehow looked as though she was the one imagining things.
Ni Xia turned to look at Master Gu, the supposedly all-knowing fortune teller.
How could Gu Yusheng have predicted this?
She stared blankly for a moment before silently walking to the balcony with her phone to make a call, leaving Ni Xia alone to deal with the awkward situation.
Things had already come to this point.
Whether You Jue believed her or not, Ni Xia could only try her best to explain herself.
[Ni Xia]: Sorry, I sent that to the wrong person.
As expected, You Jue didn’t reply.
Ni Xia didn’t want to continue the topic either, so she answered his three work-related questions as plainly as possible—
You Jue remained silent for a long time.
She couldn’t tell whether he was speechless or helpless.
Ni Xia sent him all the electronic documents she had organized on her phone and then asked—
[Ni Xia]: Are you free to meet tomorrow and discuss this in person?
After sending the message, Ni Xia got up and went to the study to organize the hard copies of the documents, planning to bring them with her the next day.
When she finally came out, she discovered that You Jue still hadn’t replied.
Was he really that busy?
Ni Xia folded her arms and quietly stared at her phone.
More than ten minutes later, it vibrated.
[J]: Tomorrow, 4 p.m.
Along with the message came a location pin—
Murmur Coffee.
Ni Xia stared at the address and froze.
A few years ago, her grandfather, Ni Jianguo, had built a garden-style tea house on Zhenyue Mountain.
Right across from its parking lot was this coffee shop.
Ni Xia had never been inside, but she had passed by several times and remembered the roses covering the entire courtyard.
No wonder he had taken so long to choose a place.
This seemed…
Like a date, didn’t it?
The next afternoon.
After eating a quick sandwich, Ni Xia went back to her dressing room and changed out of her pajamas.
Her dressing table was right behind her.
She casually picked up a lipstick in an everyday shade and leaned toward the mirror.
Just as she was about to apply it, she suddenly froze.
Why was she putting on lipstick?
Was she really going on a date?
Ni Xia put the lipstick down, straightened her collar, grabbed the documents, and hurried out.
The temperature had suddenly dropped that day, and the wind already carried a chill.
The address You Jue had given her was halfway up the mountain, where it was even colder than in the city.
The moment she got out of the car, Ni Xia regretted not wearing more clothes.
But there was nothing else in the car, so she could only grab her bag and head inside.
As soon as she entered, she spotted You Jue sitting by the window.
The café had a stylish Nordic, Instagram-inspired interior, with fresh and beautiful colors.
Even the air carried a faint scent of roses.
You Jue was dressed in a formal suit, sitting lazily against the back of his chair.
The soft light falling across his face made his features look slightly gentler.
The atmosphere.
The way he was dressed.
The whole setup.
Fortunately, Ni Xia hadn’t put on any makeup.
Otherwise, she really would have fallen straight into his trap.
You Jue was staring at the computer screen in front of him and didn’t notice her approaching.
It wasn’t until Ni Xia sat down across from him that he finally looked up.
As she moved, a faint fragrance drifted from her hair.
You Jue’s eyes lightly swept over her face before he tapped the QR code on the table.
“Order whatever you want.”
“Oh.”
Ni Xia picked up her phone and ordered a latte.
Then she looked away and casually asked, “Why did you choose this place?”
You Jue’s attention had already returned to his computer.
“Work.”
Ni Xia glanced around.
Everywhere she looked, there were couples sitting close together.
“You come to a place like this to work?”
“…”
You Jue was silent for a moment.
Instead of answering, he asked, “Where are the documents?”
“Oh…”
Ni Xia didn’t press him.
She lowered her head and took all the files out of her bag.
“I didn’t know which ones you’d need, so I brought everything.”
You Jue said nothing.
He simply reached out and took them.
It was a thick stack of documents.
He went through them in an orderly manner, moving slowly and calmly, yet reading remarkably fast.
Ni Xia sat there for quite a while without seeing any sign that You Jue wanted to talk to her.
She gradually relaxed and took out her phone to deal with her own work.
Not long after, a gust of wind blew in.
Ni Xia suddenly sneezed.
She turned toward the window and saw a fine drizzle outside, spreading like mist.
Autumn had truly arrived.
Ni Xia quickly called a staff member over and asked them to close the window.
Unfortunately, the café had been around for quite some time, and the windows were the kind that didn’t seal very well.
Even after they were closed, cold air still managed to seep through.
Within ten minutes, Ni Xia sneezed five more times.
You Jue didn’t even look up once.
He was so focused that someone could probably collapse beside him and he wouldn’t notice.
There was nothing Ni Xia could do.
She covered her nose with a tissue and called the server over again.
“Excuse me, do you have any blankets?”
“I’m really sorry.”
The server looked apologetic about leaving a customer cold.
“We don’t have any here. Would you like me to bring you some hot water instead?”
“That would be great. Thank you.”
After the server left, Ni Xia rubbed her arms repeatedly, shivering from the cold.
She turned her head—
And unexpectedly met You Jue’s gaze.
Thinking about how she must look right now, with watery eyes and a red nose, Ni Xia awkwardly looked away.
“You can continue. I—”
Before she could finish, she sneezed again.
Ni Xia wiped her nose miserably.
When she looked up again, she saw You Jue taking off his suit jacket and handing it to her with a completely expressionless face.
It was clearly a considerate gesture, but there wasn’t the slightest hint of concern on his face.
He didn’t even say a word.
Ni Xia hesitated before saying, “It’s okay. I can manage.”
“But you’re noisy.”
“…”
If she hadn’t known about the painting in his office, Ni Xia might really have believed that he simply found her annoying.
He certainly had a sharp tongue.
“Thank you.”
After putting on his jacket, Ni Xia began to warm up.
But being surrounded by his faint masculine scent made her even more uncomfortable.
Everything today seemed to be part of You Jue’s plan.
She was completely being led around by him.
In a little while, would he use work as an excuse to ask her to have dinner with him?
And if that happened, should she accept or refuse?
If she refused, would You Jue still help her with the lawsuit?
“What is your main objective?”
You Jue’s voice suddenly broke into her thoughts.
Ni Xia was still lost in her own imagination.
She blinked at him.
“Huh?”
You Jue lifted his eyes slightly.
“Didn’t understand?”
“Oh… Money!”
Ni Xia gathered herself and answered carefully.
“As long as I can get the money, I’ll do whatever it takes.”
Hearing this, You Jue slightly lowered his chin and glanced at her with a meaningful look.
It was no secret that Ni Xia came from a wealthy family.
Everyone in their class knew it.
In fact, the largest tea house on this mountain was one of her family’s businesses.
Behind the mountain was Jiangcheng’s industrial district.
One of the factories there occupied more than six hundred mu of land and belonged to her family’s automotive holding company.
So hearing this particular demand from the eldest daughter of such a wealthy family was indeed surprising.
Even Ni Xia herself had never imagined that she would one day become so obsessed with finding money.
Lately, all she could think about was where she could get enough cash to solve her problems.
“Don’t worry. My family isn’t bankrupt.”
Ni Xia gave a self-mocking smile.
“It’s just that my grandfather and my parents all oppose me working in this industry. They won’t give me any financial support. In fact, they’d be happy if my project failed as soon as possible so I’d have time to get married.”
You Jue raised an eyebrow slightly before returning to the matter at hand.
“There is more than one way to get the money. Do you want them to continue fulfilling the contract and making the payments, or do you want to pursue their breach of contract, terminate the agreement, and seek compensation?”
“Obviously, continuing the contract would be best.”
Ni Xia paused before continuing.
“If that’s not possible, then we’ll pursue them for breach of contract.”
Seeing how uncertain she looked, You Jue closed the documents in front of him.
He calmly explained the situation to her.
His voice remained steady and almost completely emotionless.
But the more Ni Xia listened, the more discouraged she became.
The situation was apparently worse than she had imagined.
She had originally thought that Zhongyue Huitou had simply changed its mind halfway through and no longer wanted to continue working with her.
She had planned to use legal means to see if she could force the project to continue.
But based on You Jue’s experience, the real reason was most likely that they had run out of money.
If that was the case, Zhongyue Huitou was basically incapable of continuing to fulfill the contract.
The only option was to pursue them for breach of contract and terminate the agreement.
Technically, she could still “get money” that way.
But the amount would definitely be much less than the original investment.
“If we sue for compensation, can I get the money quickly?” Ni Xia asked.
Even a small amount would help if it could solve her immediate financial problems.
“How quickly?” You Jue asked. “What do you mean by quickly?”
Ni Xia thought for a moment.
“Within three months?”
“Impossible.”
You Jue rejected the idea without hesitation.
“Getting a court judgment within six months would already be considered fast. And after that, the enforcement process is still uncertain.”
“Six months isn’t even enough?!”
Ni Xia immediately shook her head like a rattle.
“That won’t work. By then, everything will be too late. What’s the point of winning the lawsuit then?”
You Jue calmly looked at her despite her agitation.
“Do you still want to proceed?”
Ni Xia suddenly froze.
If she didn’t sue, she couldn’t swallow this humiliation.
But if she did, it wouldn’t solve her immediate financial problem and would consume a huge amount of her time and energy.
No matter how she looked at it, she would be losing more than she gained.
Ni Xia deflated like a balloon and stared sadly at the cup on the table.
“I’ll think about it.”
The sun disappeared almost instantly as evening came in autumn.
The café’s drinks and meals gradually gave way to dinner service, while the neon signs of the restaurants scattered across the mountain lit up one after another.
You Jue had no intention of interfering with Ni Xia’s decision.
He simply glanced at his watch.
“Then, shall we—”
“Another time.”
The moment had finally arrived.
Ni Xia closed her eyes and rubbed her forehead.
“I don’t feel like having dinner with you right now.”
You Jue: “…”
After waiting for a response and hearing nothing, Ni Xia opened her eyes.
The seat across from her was already empty.
She blinked.
Then she suddenly turned her head and saw You Jue already walking out of the café with his laptop.
“…”
No matter what, she was still his client.
She had only refused to have dinner with him.
Did he really have to get that angry?
When Ni Xia walked out of the café, the rain still hadn’t stopped.
She had already taken off You Jue’s jacket, but the moment the cold night wind hit her, she quickly wrapped it around herself again before getting back into her car.
Thinking about You Jue’s attitude, Ni Xia was still furious.
She angrily cursed him for a while before finally calming down.
Just as she started the engine, her grandfather, Ni Jianguo, suddenly called.
“Come to the tea house.”
Ni Xia was confused.
“Ah?”
There was no way her grandfather would suddenly ask her to come to the tea house without a reason.
Unless…
“Grandpa, did you see me?”
“Yes.”
Ni Jianguo had never liked talking on the phone.
He simply ordered, “Come over now.”
Although they were separated by a generation, Ni Xia had lived with her grandfather’s presence for more than twenty years.
She could clearly sense that he wanted to talk to her about something.
A nervous feeling slowly rose in her chest as she drove slowly into the tea house parking lot.
The tea house had cost a fortune to build.
Guests could come there for tea or meals, but it didn’t make much profit.
It was essentially her grandfather’s personal hobby.
He usually came there to entertain important clients or simply have tea when he had nothing else to do.
There happened to be a private banquet that night.
Since it was also dinner time, the tea house was filled with noise and activity.
Ni Jianguo could only eat in a small private room.
When Ni Xia entered, he was already eating.
He hadn’t waited for her.
“Grandpa, why did you ask me to come?”
Ni Jianguo had always been a quiet man around the younger generation.
He rarely smiled and didn’t talk much.
He pointed to the chair across from him, telling Ni Xia to sit.
But before she could actually sit down, he got straight to the point.
“You were with Lawyer You today?”
Ni Xia had just bent down when she immediately straightened again.
Sure enough, there was a reason.
But she hadn’t expected this.
“Grandpa, you know him?!”
“He’s our company’s legal adviser. He just left here this afternoon.”
Ni Xia: “…?”
No wonder You Jue had chosen this place.
Ni Xia slowly sat down.
Before she could fully process this new connection, the old man asked,
“You’re dating him?”
“No!”
Ni Xia immediately denied it.
“Then what were you two doing today?”
Should she tell her grandfather that her investor had backed out and she had been forced to seek legal help?
No.
Her grandfather wouldn’t pity her.
He would only mock her and tell her to give up.
“We’re high school classmates. We were just catching up—”
Ni Xia suddenly stopped when she noticed her grandfather staring at the jacket she was wearing.
“…Just catching up.”
The evidence was right there.
Her explanation sounded completely unconvincing.
Naturally, Ni Jianguo didn’t believe her.
He chewed the vegetables in his mouth and swallowed before slowly saying,
“You’re old enough now. If you’re dating Lawyer You, I fully approve.”
“Really, we’re not.”
Ni Xia muttered, “I don’t feel that way about him…”
There was a reason Ni Jianguo was still the sole person in control of the company even though he was nearly eighty.
His hearing and eyesight were both excellent.
The moment he heard what Ni Xia said, his temper flared again.
“You’re still unmarried because you’re always so picky. What’s wrong with Lawyer You? What else could you possibly want?”
His voice grew stern.
Ni Xia immediately straightened her back and sat upright like a student being disciplined by a teacher.
Seeing how obedient she suddenly looked, Ni Jianguo’s expression softened.
Then he began his familiar lecture.
“All the men I introduced to you before were outstanding in every way, but you rejected every one of them. Are you planning to keep doing this and never get married?”
“You’re twenty-six now. You’ll be twenty-seven after the New Year. Before you know it, you’ll be thirty!”
“Your mother had already given birth to you when she was your age! Build your family first, then your career. Once you have a stable family supporting you, Grandpa won’t stop you from doing whatever you want.”
Ni Jianguo liked natural ventilation, so the private room door remained open the entire time.
Even with all the noise outside, Ni Xia became so sleepy that she could barely keep her eyes open.
She kept responding with sleepy little “Mm, mm, mm”s.
“Pay more attention to him. Lawyer You has the looks, ability, and character. You can’t assume there will always be someone this good waiting for you.”
“Mm-hmm. I know.”
“You and Lawyer You should get along well. That would put Grandpa’s mind at ease. If you two really end up together, I’ll give you fifty million yuan as a fund to start your new family.”
“Mm-hmm, I understand…”
Ni Xia suddenly opened her eyes wide.
She nearly jumped to her feet.
“How much?!”
When Ni Jianguo left, he forgot to close the door.
Children were running around and playing noisily outside, making a terrible racket.
But there was only one sentence left in Ni Xia’s mind—
Grandpa will give you fifty million yuan to start your own family.
Grandpa will give you fifty million yuan to start your own family.
Grandpa will give you fifty million yuan to start your own family.
Her grandfather had already been gone for quite some time, but his scent still lingered in the room.
Ever since Ni Xia was little, she had always liked the smell of her grandfather.
She had never been able to describe exactly what it smelled like.
But now she knew.
It smelled like money.
The scent seemed to grow stronger and stronger, making Ni Xia’s heartbeat grow louder and louder until it felt as if it might burst through her eardrums.
She touched her chest, then reached into her bag and pulled out her phone.
She found You Jue’s WeChat.
Her fingertips trembled slightly as she sent him a series of messages.
[Ni Xia]: What are you doing?
[Ni Xia]: Want to have dinner together?
[Ni Xia]: I suddenly feel like it