【Yu Wan: I like watching My Younger Brother Always Accidentally Sits Facial Cleanser into His Butt.】
【Li Yi: ????】
Li Yi had probably gone to search for it.
Staring at the message, the little version of Yu Wan inside her head cackled with evil laughter.
According to the setting, the male lead had refined tastes.
He drank fine wine, ate steak, watched French plays, and listened to symphonies.
After being immersed in such high culture, something this vulgar would probably leave him completely dumbfounded.
Twenty minutes later, another message popped up.
【Li Yi: …】
【Li Yi: That’s a little too intense for me.】
【Li Yi: But you really are one of a kind.】
【Li Yi: That’s wonderful.】
Just those two short words carried endless appreciation and satisfaction.
Yu Wan froze.
No way! That filter was way too thick!
She stared at the messages on her screen, finding them both amusing and bewildering, unsure how to respond.
To Yu Wan, Li Yi was like a poor student who had secretly copied the teacher’s answer during an exam.
Even if his final answer was completely different, he would only assume he had done the calculations wrong.
It never crossed his mind that he might have copied the wrong answer in the first place.
“What are you looking at?” Uncle Gu’s voice drifted over from the tea table. “Xiao Wan, who are you chatting with that’s making you so happy?”
Yu Wan looked up and met Gu Chiyuan’s deep gaze head on.
Her heart skipped a beat, and she hurriedly came up with an excuse.
“A classmate,” she said. “They were asking me about my thesis.”
Uncle Gu nodded without asking further and lowered his head to continue making tea.
But Gu Chiyuan’s gaze remained fixed on her.
Feeling that lingering stare, Yu Wan instinctively flipped her phone face down onto her lap.
“It’s getting late,” she said as she stood up and yawned. “I’m going to take a shower and get some sleep.”
At the tea table, Gu Chiyuan’s grip on his teacup tightened ever so slightly.
It was a rare weekend without work, and Yu Wan spent it comfortably relaxing at the Gu family mansion.
To her surprise, Gu Chiyuan also seemed unusually free and stayed at the mansion the entire weekend.
He even said that on Monday morning, he would personally drive her to work.
Early Monday morning, Mother Yu held Yu Wan’s hand, reluctant to let go.
“Xiao Wan, are you coming home again next weekend?”
“Well… I’ll probably have to work next weekend…” Yu Wan answered vaguely.
“What kind of awful job doesn’t even give weekends off?” Uncle Gu complained from the side. “Chiyuan, arrange an easy position for Xiao Wan at Hongtai. She’s a girl. Why should she work so hard?”
Go to Hongtai?
Yu Wan was dumbfounded.
The heroine was already interning at Hongtai.
If she went there too, wouldn’t she run straight into the heroine?!
Gu Chiyuan nodded. “Alright, I’ll…”
“No need!”
Yu Wan practically shrieked.
The outburst stunned everyone standing by the door.
Mother Yu’s hand shook so badly she nearly dropped the thermos she had prepared for Yu Wan.
Uncle Gu stared at her in confusion.
Gu Chiyuan’s gaze settled on her face, his eyes growing noticeably darker.
“Well…” Yu Wan forced an awkward laugh, trying to recover from the situation. “What I mean is, there’s no need to trouble Brother. My current job is really good. It really is.”
“Good?” Uncle Gu frowned. “How much can you possibly earn working in a coffee shop? You’re a senior in university, and you’re still washing cups. What will people think if word gets out?”
Yu Wan silently argued to herself.
What’s wrong with washing cups?
It pays fifty thousand a month.
But she couldn’t say that.
She could only smile and reply, “Uncle Gu, I really do like this job. Working at a coffee shop can also help me gain experience…”
“You may like it, but you can’t do it forever,” Uncle Gu said earnestly. “After graduation, you still need a proper job. If you like coffee so much, just open a café instead. Chiyuan, see if there are any coffee shops for sale near home.”
Gu Chiyuan nodded.
“Alright.”
Yu Wan: “…”
Could you father and son please stop being so perfectly in sync?
She took a deep breath and decided to change tactics.
“Uncle Gu, haven’t you always taught me to be independent?” She blinked innocently. “I want to try relying on myself first. If I really can’t manage, then I’ll ask Brother for help. Is that okay?”
That answer was beautifully delivered.
Uncle Gu paused for a moment before smiling.
“Alright, alright. Xiao Wan has really grown up.” He turned to Mother Yu. “See? What a sensible child.”
Mother Yu smiled as well, though there was a trace of heartache in her expression.
“She is sensible, but she’s a little too sensible.” She took Yu Wan’s hand. “Xiao Wan, if anything happens, tell the family. Don’t carry everything on your own.”
Yu Wan nodded. “I know, Mom.”
From the corner of her eye, she noticed Gu Chiyuan watching her.
His gaze was deep, as though trying to see through her.
Yu Wan lowered her eyes and pretended not to notice.
Ten minutes later, Yu Wan was sitting in the passenger seat of Gu Chiyuan’s car.
Soft, soothing music filled the interior.
The entire drive, Gu Chiyuan remained silent.
Since he wasn’t talking, Yu Wan felt perfectly at ease.
She looked out the window, pretending to admire the scenery.
Just before they reached their destination, Gu Chiyuan suddenly asked,
“Your school is quite far from here. Why did you choose to work here?”
Yu Wan froze, her mind racing.
“Because… I didn’t want my classmates to know I was working part time…” she answered haltingly. “If everyone found out I had a part time job, where would my pride go?”
The truth was that when she had first worked near the university entrance, someone had secretly taken her photo and posted it on the campus forum. The entire school had been asking who she was.
To avoid something like that happening again and drawing Su Nanzhi’s attention, Yu Wan had deliberately chosen a new job in the southern part of the city.
“And even though it looks far away, there’s actually a direct subway line,” Yu Wan added, doing her best to explain. “Don’t worry, Brother. I can handle it.”
Gu Chiyuan gave her a long, searching look.
Whether he believed her or not was impossible to tell.
The car stopped in front of the coffee shop.
Yu Wan pushed open the door and got out.
“Thanks, Brother,” she said.
Gu Chiyuan looked at her.
“I’ll pick you up Friday evening and take you home.”
Yu Wan blinked.
“That’s not necessary. I…”
“I’ll pick you up,” Gu Chiyuan interrupted firmly. “I’ll be coming to the office over the weekend anyway. It’s on the way.”
Yu Wan opened her mouth, but in the end, she simply nodded.
“Alright.”
She closed the car door and walked into the coffee shop.
Behind her, the silver gray Bentley didn’t leave immediately.
Gu Chiyuan remained seated inside, watching Yu Wan walk into the café.
Behind the counter stood a tall young man. Instead of holding a coffee cup, he was holding a little robot.
The sunlight reflected off the glass, perfectly obscuring his face.
For some reason, Gu Chiyuan found the man strangely familiar.
But noticing the nearby no parking sign, he frowned slightly and started the car.
After merging into the morning rush hour traffic, he called his secretary.
“President Gu? Is something the matter?” the secretary asked.
Gu Chiyuan lightly tapped the steering wheel with his fingers.
“Set the location of the new office in the southern part of the city. Tell the interns to report directly to the new office tomorrow,” he instructed.
“And one more thing. Go find out how Yu Wan has been living these past few years at university.”