Chapter 55

Xu Shijia was probably really drunk. He said these things with such calmness, looking at the handsome man in front of him, his face not flushing and his heart not skipping a beat as he tried to persuade Lin Shu, saying, “Although I’m not eighteen anymore, I’m definitely still useful. You can try it for free, and then we can date. After that, you can use me however you want, you can control me, and I’ll listen to you in everything.”

Lin Shu was stunned: “Xu Shijia, what are you saying?”

Xu Shijia stared directly at Lin Shu’s face: “You’ve used me before.”

What the hell is this nonsense?!

Lin Shu almost instinctively stood up: “Are you crazy? Do you know who I am?”

Xu Shijia had completely mistaken her for someone else.

This kind of private talk was clearly meant for his first love, who was now pregnant and on his mind constantly.

He had completely lost his rationality after drinking and didn’t even know how he dared to drink in front of his boss.

Everything was falling apart.

Xu Shijia didn’t have to be accountable for this moment since he wasn’t sober, but Lin Shu was clear-headed, and she had no idea how to handle this situation.

It was too much.

He was drunk and had mistaken her for someone else, and it could be brushed off later, but Lin Shu couldn’t do that.

It was too embarrassing.

Lin Shu felt she couldn’t stay any longer. She grabbed her bag and was about to leave. This was Xinho’s territory, and she could always find someone to take care of Xu Shijia, but as she turned to leave, Xu Shijia grabbed her hand.

Xu Shijia’s voice was low and a little hoarse:

“Don’t go.”

Lin Shu just wanted to run away.

She pushed Xu Shijia a little, her hand slipped free, but Xu Shijia lost his balance and fell to the ground because she had pushed him.

Lin Shu pressed her lips together, not intending to look at him, but she couldn’t block out the sound.

Xu Shijia’s pitiful voice came through—

“I’m hurt, I can’t get up.”

Lin Shu hadn’t used much force when she pushed him, but the coccyx bone is very fragile in adults, and sometimes a small fall can cause a fracture. She couldn’t help but wonder—was Xu Shijia really hurt from just that push?

Xu Shijia was still sitting on the ground, looking in pain: “Can you pull me up?”

Lin Shu frowned, biting her lip, and reluctantly turned back to offer her hand.

Once she helped him up, if he wasn’t actually hurt, she would just leave him to it.

However, as soon as Xu Shijia grabbed Lin Shu’s hand, she realized she had been tricked.

He wasn’t hurt at all.

But since Lin Shu had extended her hand, he used that as leverage to pull her toward him with force, causing her to lose her balance and fall onto him.

What awaited Lin Shu was Xu Shijia’s strong arms.

He pulled Lin Shu into his arms, holding her tightly.

“I was lying.” Xu Shijia said smugly, leaning closer to Lin Shu’s ear. “Gotcha, Lin Shu.”

Despite the loud noise in the hall of the wine party, Lin Shu could clearly hear Xu Shijia’s deep voice entering her ears.

He called out her name.

For a moment, Lin Shu was so shocked by this fact that she forgot to struggle. She stared at Xu Shijia as if seeing a ghost: “Do you know who I am?”

“Of course I do.” Xu Shijia’s voice was lazy and slightly tipsy, as if it were the most natural thing in the world. “You’re Lin Shu.”

At first, Lin Shu thought this man was just drunk and had confused her with someone else, but now he was clearly able to call her name.

So what was all that nonsense he had said earlier?!

Xu Shijia was truly out of his mind.

Lin Shu was about to explode with anger: “I’m your boss! Let go of me!”

“I won’t let go.” Xu Shijia said confidently, “I caught you with my own skills. Why should I let go?”

“Xu Shijia, do you want to die? What are you trying to do?!”

Xu Shijia flashed a grin: “What do I want to do? Don’t you know?”

He said no more, but his eyes locked onto Lin Shu, his rationality and disguise dulled by alcohol. The meaning in his gaze was so obvious that it couldn’t be more clear.

Lin Shu had no idea when Xu Shijia started thinking like this about her, but she was horrified and panicked.

He already had a pregnant fiancée and was about to start a family—how could he develop such thoughts toward Lin Shu?

Did this man have any basic moral sense at all?

But Xu Shijia didn’t sober up; instead, he became even more reckless. He held onto Lin Shu tightly and, still holding her in his arms, lowered his head to kiss her lips, capturing the warmth of her lips and tongue.

After a brief moment of being stunned, Lin Shu quickly started to struggle, but Xu Shijia didn’t let her succeed. It almost seemed as if, to take revenge for her resistance, his kiss deepened, becoming more aggressive.

It wasn’t until Lin Shu bit Xu Shijia’s lip hard, causing him to loosen his grip in pain, that she finally managed to grab her bag. Without giving him a moment to recover, she swung it at him, hitting him relentlessly.

Trash, scum!

He had a “white moonlight” and she was pregnant with his child!

And yet, drunk, he came to harass her! He even dared to disrespect his boss and make advances on her! Did he think Lin Shu was an easy target?

Lin Shu’s lips were swollen, but she suppressed her emotions and, filled with rage and fear, continued to beat Xu Shijia with her bag.

She had been blind!

How could she have once thought highly of Xu Shijia? She had believed that despite his entitled attitude, his character was at least decent.

Did this man have any character or morals at all?

Xu Shijia could go to hell!

Lin Shu angrily wiped her lips: “Xu Shijia, I don’t ever want to see you again! Stop following me!”

The weather was hot and humid, and Lin Shu’s mood seemed to mirror the weather, brewing a storm.

In her rush to escape Xu Shijia, Lin Shu dashed out from the garden corridor, not even caring about giving Wang Yannan a proper farewell. She didn’t go back to the hall, but headed straight for the back door connected to the garden.

Almost at the same time, as if sensing Lin Shu’s emotions, the long-awaited thunderstorm suddenly broke out, with no warning. The thunder seemed like an unspoken warning.

The small garden was already in a low-lying area, and the downpour hit hard. In an instant, the roads were covered with water.

Lin Shu didn’t have an umbrella, but she was beyond caring. She ran straight into the rain.

She didn’t want anything now. She just wanted to leave this place and get far away from Xu Shijia.

However, Xu Shijia obviously didn’t listen to Lin Shu’s words. Instead, he seemed to deliberately follow her, and when she told him not to follow, he stood up and followed her even faster.

This man was following her, and yet had the nerve to act aggrieved.

Lin Shu could hear Xu Shijia’s voice from behind her:

“Why are you upset again?”

“Always angry at me? What did I do? I’ve been listening to you all along.”

“Others are slaves to their bosses, but I’ve been your dog.”

…

It wasn’t over yet! What did he mean by “being a dog”? Was this a distorted and insulting version of the truth?

Lin Shu couldn’t take it anymore:

“I never asked you to be my dog!”

Yet, Xu Shijia, unbelievably, got angry:

“No, I want to be your dog.”

“…” This was completely unreasonable!

Lin Shu didn’t want to hear any more of Xu Shijia’s nonsense!

To match her dress for the wine party, Lin Shu was wearing a pair of high heels. She couldn’t walk fast in the rain, and Xu Shijia, with his longer legs, was quickly closing the distance. She had just rushed out of the garden’s back door when she was stopped by a puddle.

The back door of the small garden, which hardly anyone used anymore, had not been maintained. The neglected drainage system completely failed during the storm. Water from the ornamental pond flooded out and formed a large puddle at the back door.

Because of this puddle, Lin Shu hesitated for just a second, losing her chance to escape.

Xu Shijia had already caught up.

“Lin Shu, why are you like this? You didn’t wait for me and ran off so fast!”

Does he have any idea why I’m running so fast?!

And he still had the nerve to argue!

At this point, Lin Shu didn’t hesitate anymore. Even if she had to ruin her shoes, she was determined to get away.

She didn’t want to see Xu Shijia’s face for another second.

Just as she was about to lift her skirt to step through the water, a pair of arms reached out and lifted her up entirely.

Xu Shijia didn’t care about Lin Shu’s shock. He picked her up in a princess carry, not even considering his own shoes or suit pants, and walked through the water, carrying Lin Shu across the puddle to the other side before setting her down.

Perhaps because his clothes were soaked, Xu Shijia started to take off his expensive suit jacket.

But just moments later, the clothing covered Lin Shu’s entire field of vision—Xu Shijia draped his jacket over her, and the faint scent of men’s cologne filled the space around her.

She wanted to pull the jacket off and throw it back at Xu Shijia, but he immediately stopped her movements. Before she could retaliate, Xu Shijia, without hesitation, climbed into the small space the jacket had created around them.

Lin Shu didn’t expect this at all—Xu Shijia kissed her.

The jacket blocked the light, and the dim, stuffy atmosphere made Xu Shijia even more forceful. His kiss became wet and laden with suggestiveness. The ambiguous, enclosed space created by the jacket made the atmosphere subtle, as if it could ignite at any moment.

However, Lin Shu’s emotions were completely at odds with the atmosphere. Her heart felt like it was burning with intense anger.

Her fury overshadowed everything else.

Xu Shijia had truly lost his mind from drinking!

This scum!

Xu Shijia was too drunk to communicate normally, but Lin Shu knew one thing for certain—she would never keep him on her team.

With almost uncontrollable rage, she pushed him away, grabbed his jacket, and threw it back at him.

No longer hesitating, Lin Shu had already passed the puddle and knew there was nothing left to discuss. She started walking forward, taking a route around the back door toward the parking lot. All she wanted was to drive home immediately.

However, as she walked forward, Xu Shijia suddenly seemed to remember something.

“Why did I carry you across just now? I didn’t want you to leave.”

Lin Shu heard him speak with a spoiled tone: “I should have carried you back, so you couldn’t get across the puddle, couldn’t walk.”

As he spoke, he actually tried to repeat his previous action, attempting to pick her up and carry her back across the puddle.

Unfortunately, Lin Shu was prepared this time.

She fiercely resisted being picked up again and swung her bag at Xu Shijia’s head. But Xu Shijia, shameless as ever, was stronger than usual due to the alcohol. Not only did he not retreat, but he grew even more relentless, pressing his body closer to Lin Shu, using his height and long legs to firmly wrap his arms around her, trying to pull her into an embrace.

This scum!

In her fury, Lin Shu almost used all her strength.

Fortunately, because Xu Shijia was still somewhat drunk, her push made him instinctively loosen his grip. He stumbled backward, losing his balance and fell right into the muddy puddle.

In the rain, Xu Shijia lay on his back, his tone as if it was the most natural thing: “Help me up.”

He even sounded a little coquettish: “Lin Shu, you made me fall and hurt myself.”

Even in this situation, Xu Shijia shamelessly said, “And I didn’t finish kissing you.”

Didn’t finish kissing her?

Lin Shu’s anger flared: “Why don’t you just die in the puddle!”

She threw that out as she turned to leave. No longer caring about appearances, she walked toward the parking lot, biting her lip with a stern face.

Although she said Xu Shijia should die in the puddle, her sense of morality still wouldn’t allow her to leave a drunken Xu Shijia alone in the garden.

Though Xu Shijia had no morals, Lin Shu still had her standards.

Luckily, on her way to the parking lot, she ran into Pan Yu, who seemed to have come out for a smoke. Not bothering with Pan Yu’s surprised look, Lin Shu quickly said, “Xu Shijia’s in the back garden, drunk. I have to leave. Can you go check on him?” She then turned and got into her car.

…

Lin Shu wasn’t sure how she found her car or how she started the engine.

By the time she regained her senses, she had already driven out of the parking lot.

The venue for the Xinhui wine party was in the suburbs. At that moment, there were no pedestrians or cars on the road.

Lin Shu forgot to turn on the navigation and aimlessly drove down the street, focusing on the street signs until a red light forced her to stop.

When a person gets busy, it’s like a tightly wound string—under pressure, it’s hard even to breathe, with no time to process emotions. But once there’s a moment of calm, those repressed emotions will seize the opportunity to come back with a vengeance.

At that moment, waiting for the red light, Lin Shu couldn’t distract herself by focusing on the route anymore. She had no choice but to face herself.

Anger, indignation, embarrassment, humiliation, and frustration hit her like aftershocks of an earthquake, growing stronger after a brief calm, almost as if they would destroy her.

How could Xu Shijia do this?!

He already had a first love, a “white moonlight,” and the other person was even pregnant. They were about to start a family—how dared he come and provoke her like this?

Did he think she was some casual person?

Casual enough to intervene in someone else’s relationship and potential marriage without any hesitation or morality?

Lin Shu remembered the smug and self-righteous smile Xu Shijia had earlier, and her heart boiled with an intense, burning anger.

He treated her like this because he never feared the consequences.

He showed no respect for his boss and gave her, as a young woman, no courtesy whatsoever.

Was he so sure she wouldn’t retaliate that he could act so recklessly?

Did he think she wouldn’t fight back?

Even if he was drunk, Xu Shijia had clearly recognized her, so he couldn’t have lost all rational thought. Yet he treated her as if she were just a toy.

Did he think Lin Shu didn’t know about his relationship with his “white moonlight”?

How trashy and blindly confident was this man to think he could get away with it?

Lin Shu could have confronted Xu Shijia and exposed him right there, but doing so would have made her appear weak, as if she cared deeply about his personal life and actions.

She was a partner, not a panicked little girl. No matter the occasion, even if Xu Shijia had lost all decency, she should maintain her own dignity.

There was no need to argue with Xu Shijia.

The best response was to ignore him.

But while she understood this logically, sometimes it’s hard to control emotions.

Lin Shu tried to comfort herself, but her heart was filled with immense anger, and at the same time, a sense of humiliation washed over her entire body.

How dared Xu Shijia treat her like this!

Lin Shu fixed her gaze on the red light in front of her, but even as she gritted her teeth, the red glow slowly began to blur in her vision.

Lin Shu silently cursed herself—she hadn’t been looking at the computer much today, so why were her eyes still so blurry? Just as she was about to raise her hand to rub them, she felt the water on her face.

It took her a few seconds to realize that she was crying.

The floodgates of emotion opened in an instant, and she hadn’t expected herself to care this much. More tears poured out uncontrollably.

At first, she cried silently, but soon, Lin Shu had no choice but to pull over to the side of the road.

She never knew that so many tears could flow from her eyes.

When her father abandoned her, Lin Shu didn’t cry. When she was scolded by clients after entering the workforce, Lin Shu didn’t cry. When she encountered injustice, she didn’t cry.

She gritted her teeth and pushed through all the hardships, never once breaking down in tears. Over time, it felt like she had even convinced herself that she was unbreakable and couldn’t be hurt.

But at this moment, Lin Shu realized she wasn’t as strong as she thought.

She had never felt this miserable before.

Emotions couldn’t be deceived.

Others could treat her this way, but Xu Shijia couldn’t.

She liked Xu Shijia.

Lin Shu didn’t even know how this feeling came about, but by the time she realized it, everything was already too late and completely out of place.

It wasn’t sad to like someone unilaterally. What was sad was when you tried to retreat to a safe position, but because of this feeling, the other person had the power to manipulate you, treating you rudely, disrespectfully, and carelessly.

Liking him was a mistake.

But liking someone wasn’t a gift that could be taken back at will.

Even now, as Lin Shu saw Xu Shijia’s trashy and immoral side clearly, she couldn’t just easily withdraw her feelings as if she were retracting a physical possession.

She had liked her first love, Tao Lei.

Now, she had liked Xu Shijia.

But how could Xu Shijia take advantage of knowing this and treat her this way?

There was no respect, no love, only drunken flirtation magnified.

How could a man, who was almost about to get married, do something like this?

Lin Shu mocked herself—she seemed to have the worst taste, always falling for men with poor character.

She felt wronged, humiliated, and furious, but all she could do was sit in the car and cry, choking on her sobs.

It felt like, from the beginning to the end, no one had been there to accompany her or help her.

She would always have to fight alone.

In this rainy night, Lin Shu felt like all the burdens of her life had surged up at once.

She felt sad, painful, heartbroken, for her terrible judgment, her wasted feelings, her pitiful pretenses, and the hardships and loneliness she had endured.

It was okay to be vulnerable once.

It was okay to feel heartbroken.

But Lin Shu wouldn’t let herself wallow in her emotions.

After letting her tears pour out and release the negative feelings, Lin Shu wiped her tears dry again.

She took out her phone and dialed the number of Tianhao’s head of Xinhui business, Chen Par.

“Chen Par, I need to discuss something with you. Xu Shijia and I are really at odds and have irreconcilable differences. We can no longer work together. Since you’re in charge of the Xinhui business, could you transfer Xu Shijia to your department? As for the projects he’s currently negotiating, I won’t keep them in my team. I’ll let him take them to your team.”

…

She cut the issue quickly.

Mistakes are not scary. What’s scary is knowing something is a mistake but still stubbornly continuing.

Lin Shu had gotten to where she was today because of her refusal to accept defeat and her ability to admit when she was wrong.

She would cut off this mistake herself.

Since Xu Shijia was a detour on her path to the thorns and the glory of her achievements, Lin Shu would block it.

It didn’t matter if she had failed in love. Without Xu Shijia, Lin Shu was still a partner, and she would definitely become a senior partner at Tianhao.

As for that damned Xu Shijia, he could go die wherever he wanted.

Lin Shu had forgotten Tao Lei before; she would surely forget Xu Shijia too.

She was young—there was plenty of time.