World 1: Gloomy Retired Third-Gen x Original Female Lead’s Pitiful Coworker – Chapter 13

As morning light spilled into the conference room through the floor-to-ceiling windows, a faint reddish bite mark was visible on Huo Hanting’s neck.

He tapped the financial report.

“Cash flow shortfall in Q3 expanded to 12.7%…”

“I want a reasonable explanation.”

The senior executives below held their breath, not daring to speak, while the internal chat group was going wild.

[“There are scratch marks below President Huo’s collarbone! I bet 50 cents it was a wild night!”]
[“His wife looks so gentle, turns out she’s a wolf-tamer!”]
[“So President Huo is the silent and deadly type—pretending to be abstinent, but actually a beast!”]

Huo Hanting swept a glance at the phones half-hidden under the table. His lips curled into a barely noticeable smirk.

He deliberately undid two buttons on his shirt.

He wanted everyone in the company to clearly see the marks bestowed by Fu Yu.

To tell the whole world—he belonged to Fu Yu.

After the meeting, he returned to his office.

Xiao Jinghui was sitting on his desk, twirling a lighter between his fingers. “Yo, isn’t this our newlywed President Huo?”

“Still coming to work right after getting married? Not afraid of leaving your bride alone in bed?”

“Spit it out or get out.”

Xiao Jinghui scratched his head.

“Huo-ge, is a small family like the Chen’s really worth your time?”

“You going against me now?”

Huo Hanting tapped his fingers on the desk. “I heard your grandmother is acquiring land in the south of the city?”

Xiao Jinghui instantly raised his hands in surrender.

“It’s just that Old Man Chen hugged my grandma’s cane and cried last night. I left him standing in the rain for three hours outside the prayer hall. You know how soft-hearted the elderly are… But don’t worry—anyone in Deep City who dares to touch Chen’s assets, I’ll cut their hand off.”

“That’s more like it.”

Huo Hanting tossed a file onto the desk. “Let’s go. It’s been a while since we’ve gone hunting.”

---

Every month, Deep City’s elite would gather at the hunting grounds. It was a social event and a place for capitalists to trade insider information.

As soon as Huo Hanting arrived, he was greeted with loud, teasing cheers.

“Yo! Isn’t this our President Huo?”

Several heirs from prestigious families, who had served and retired from the military with him, whistled and surrounded him.

They were like brothers who had faced life and death together.

“I never thought I’d live to see the day Huo Hanting got married and had kids.”

“Yeah, I thought Huo-ge was above mortal desires!”

“Man, I still remember someone staring at that love letter in the mailbox every day…”

Huo Hanting’s jaw tensed. “Quit talking nonsense.”

“Right, right. Not a love letter—just a proper pen pal.”

Back in the military, Huo Hanting had participated in a pen pal program. Though others didn’t take it seriously, he used those handwritten letters to pour out his inner turmoil to a stranger.

His pen pal had gently encouraged him not to give up on life because of past pain.

To him, she was a ray of light in his dark world.

Unfortunately, after his discharge, when he visited the orphanage that had sent the letters, it had already shut down.

In the original plot, once the system detected Huo Hanting’s obsession, it arranged for Chen Manzi to deliver a proposal to him—with handwriting identical to the pen pal’s.

That was when he developed a protective instinct for her.

But her repeated rejection warped that instinct into obsession… eventually leading to his self-destruction.

“What are you all talking about?”

Fu Yu walked over in hunting gear, looking striking and confident.

“Sister-in-law’s here! Sister-in-law!”

“Relax, President Huo. She won’t get jealous.”

“Shut it.”

Huo Hanting gave Xiao Jinghui a meaningful glance. “You invited Ayu?”

Xiao Jinghui casually stuck his hands in his pockets.

“I just called her over to show some PDA. As for the letters? That’s your own mess.”

“You created that romantic debt—don’t blame me. Better think about how to explain it to your wife.”

Fu Yu smiled. “Love letters?”

“It’s nothing like what they said.”

“Miss Fu, someone’s looking for you.”

Before the sentence finished, a little girl came bouncing over. “Sis!”

“Call her sister-in-law.”

Huo Hanting sternly looked at Huo Tailing.

She made a face at him and waved at Fu Yu. “Sis, I need a favor.”

“What is it?”

“Can you sign my test paper?”

Huo Tailing sneakily pulled out a 20-point test and pointed. “Right here.”

“Out of how many points?”

“100.”

“Try harder next time. If you need help, I can tutor you.”

Fu Yu smiled and signed the paper.

Huo Hanting suddenly snatched the test. “Huo Tailing, what did you mess up again—”

But as he saw Fu Yu’s handwriting, his pupils contracted sharply.

It was the exact same as the pen pal’s.

In the previous life, Chen Manzi’s work had always been done by Fu Yu. That proposal with the pen pal’s handwriting? Fu Yu wrote it—only for Chen Manzi to sign her name on top.

In this life, Fu Yu avoided Chen Manzi early because of Huo Hanting, so that storyline never occurred.

“Wow. Talk about fate tying people together.”

“Turns out your white moonlight was by your side all along.”

Huo Hanting held the paper, stunned. Huo Tailing thought he was mad about her low score.

She pouted. “Gege, I’ll do better next time—I won’t embarrass you again.”

Before she could finish, Huo Hanting shoved the test back at her. “Go home first.”

“Ayu.”

His memory drifted far away…

In a dim barracks cubicle, he once gently traced the tear-stained letter under the yellow lamp light.

“Let me tell you a secret—every mom becomes the moon in the sky. If you ever feel lonely, just look up and find the moon.”

This was a small scene from the original plot, meant to show Huo Hanting’s hidden tenderness.

The original female lead was just a narrative tool to complete the plot—then the system erased her memory of it.

But Huo Hanting remembered it for a lifetime.

---

Meanwhile, Chen Manzi stood outside the hunting grounds, trembling in the cold wind in last season’s heels.

The Chen family was now completely isolated, their company facing the same disastrous crisis as in the previous life.

Gu Huai said he’d do everything to help her—even use up his own assets.

But with the size of the Chen family’s debt, Gu Huai’s money wasn’t nearly enough.

Only Huo Hanting could save them.

The Chen family was now on the dishonesty list. They had to sell their luxury home and move into a small apartment.

Chen’s father, after years navigating Deep City’s business world, was crushed by this downfall and had been hospitalized.

Chen’s mother moved in with Chen Manzi—once a high-society lady, she couldn’t stand the cramped kitchen or smelly bathroom.

And Chen Manzi was no better.

After a whole day of moving, she didn’t want to clean, so she hired a maid.

At checkout, she reflexively tipped 50,000 yuan.

Which maxed out her credit card.

The bank canceled it—and even repossessed her car.

She now drove one that Gu Huai gave her.

He used to run around trying to help, but lately he’d started probing:

“The Chen family’s been in business for years—do they really have no secret funds to patch things up?”

Gu Huai had gone from selfless support to suspicion.

Chen Manzi, feeling his doubt, forced a confident smile. “Don’t worry. I’ll make sure the Chen family survives. Trust me.”

Yes, the Chen family would survive—

As long as Huo Hanting saved her, they could make it through.