Chapter 34

After Wen Tang entered the company, she argued with Liu Meifen in the general manager’s office in front of General Manager Qi Xiuyuan about how to handle the Wen Anle issue.

Liu Meifen advocated paying money to silence the victims, a decision that was almost unanimous within the company. Wen Tang, on the other hand, insisted on resolving the matter through legal channels.

The situation had escalated, affecting Wen Tang’s career. By this morning, she had already lost several endorsements. Liu Meifen was overwhelmed by the negative impact, far worse than she had anticipated, and was eager to quickly quell the matter and regain the lost endorsements and contracts.

The two women argue fiercely.

Both had short tempers and were unyielding, creating a commotion in the general manager’s office that could be heard outside the meeting room. General Manager Qi Xiuyuan stood by, unable to interject.

Under these circumstances, no resolution was reached.

Wen Tang stormed out.

Ke Xin and Yang Yang hurriedly followed her.

However, upon reaching the elevator, they faced another problem while looking at the floor buttons.

Which floor should they press? How should they go?

They didn’t have a car!

But asking Wen Tang to go back and have the company send a car was out of the question.

At this critical moment, Kexin pulled out a business card from her pocket.

“Luckily, I had the foresight. Hehe!”

That morning, when they got out of the car, Ke Xin had walked at the back. Having worked for Wen Tang for several years, she had compiled a thick record of contacts for just such situations. That morning, she had suddenly thought of the possibility of Wen Tang and Zhou Jingyu’s CP and had specifically asked Zhou Jingyu for his business card when getting out of the car.

“He’s not only handsome but also the president of the Shengling Group. I never would have thought!”

Talking about Zhou Jingyu, Ke Xin was full of excitement. Holding the business card, she said, “The Shengling Group is very close. Tang Tang, why don’t we call our handsome neighbor and ask him to pick us up?”

Wen Tang, who had been frowning after the argument, was momentarily stunned by Ke Xin’s whimsical idea.

“You know he’s the president of Shengling?” Wen Tang chuckled and said, “What are you thinking? Just because we rode in his car once this morning doesn’t mean he’s our chauffeur!”

In the end, the call was never made.

Liu Meifen, who was so agitated that her blood pressure soared, didn’t pay much attention to such details. However, Qi Xiuyuan, the general manager, called Wen Tang before their elevator even reached the basement, informing her that the company car had been arranged to take Wen Tang back to her apartment.

This was to prevent Wen Tang from suddenly deciding to run around at this time.

It was safer to be at home.

The apartment was surrounded by reporters, and since reporters recognized Ke Xin and Yang Yang, Wen Tang simply let them take a break. Before Ke Xin and Yang Yang got out of the car, they were still very concerned.

“Tang Tang, are you sure you’ll be okay alone at home? You don’t know how to cook, and it’s hard to order takeout,” Ke Xin said, worried that Wen Tang would have trouble getting food.

Wen Tang wasn’t hungry at all, having eaten too much in the morning. It was nearly noon, and she felt quite confident.

“I just want to be alone.”

Wen Tang waved her hand, sending the two worried assistants away.

She skipped lunch.

By around three or four in the afternoon, she started to feel a little hungry. Wen Tang opened her refrigerator and found it nearly empty, except for a box of milk Ke Xin had brought that morning and a few eggs.

Wen Tang drank the milk.

By six or seven in the evening, lying on the sofa and watching TV shows and variety shows, the feeling of emptiness in her stomach was impossible to ignore.

Her mind began to think of various foods: dry pot, barbecue, hotpot, skewers.

The less she ate usually, the more she craved.

As an entertainer, she was often required to diet and sometimes went an entire day without eating due to her busy schedule. Being hungry was a common occurrence, but it was never as torturous as it was now.

So, one should never be idle; once idle, thoughts turn to food, and even funny variety shows can’t help!

She endured until eight in the evening.

Why torture herself when she had a rare day off?

Realizing this, Wen Tang, with her growling stomach, got up from the sofa. Although she couldn’t prepare food herself and ordering takeout was difficult, she had a neighbor!

In times of trouble, neighbors should help each other.

So, after a brief hesitation, Wen Tang rang the doorbell.

However, after the doorbell rang for a while, no one came to open it.

She regretted not accepting Ke Xin’s suggestion to take Zhou Jingyu’s business card earlier. Otherwise, she could have called him directly instead of waiting at the door, not knowing if he was home or if anyone was there!

Wen Tang didn’t have much patience. As Zhou Jingyu didn’t come to open the door, she was about to turn back. There were still a few eggs in the fridge, and if worse came to worst, she could just boil two eggs. After all, Kexin would come by tomorrow morning!

As she turned, Wen Tang’s back was marked by desolation and despair.

Just then, Zhou Jingyu’s door suddenly opened. Zhou Jingyu appeared in a bathrobe at the door, his skin fair and glistening, his hair still dripping wet.

It was clear he had just taken a shower.

Wen Tang was momentarily stunned by the sight.

Zhou Jingyu spoke first, “Ms. Wen, is there something you need?”

Had she interrupted his shower?

But her stomach was indeed very hungry.

Wen Tang pondered for two seconds and said, “You cooked me dinner yesterday, bought breakfast today, and even helped me get to the company. So, I’d like to invite you to dinner?”

Invite him to dinner?

Zhou Jingyu was silent for a moment and asked, “When?”

He didn’t show much enthusiasm.

In fact, no matter what clothes he wore or his current state, he always exuded a sense of distance. Wen Tang never felt that her neighbor was easy to approach.

Even though he had helped her and had cooked a meal for her himself.

But she was extremely hungry now.

Hunger made her forget all past grievances and sparked her boundless potential.

With an eager look, Wen Tang said, “… Now?”

Zhou Jingyu: “…”

It was not the answer he had expected.

Knowing this timing was unusual, Wen Tang pretended not to see the confusion in Zhou Jingyu’s eyes and pressed on, “I know a hotpot place that’s really good! It just opened a few years ago, and you haven’t had a chance to try it since you returned from France, right? How about we go for a hotpot?”

Zhou Jingyu had indeed not had a hotpot since returning.

He wasn’t particular about food and preferred a light diet, not liking heavy or spicy foods.

Zhou Jingyu didn’t agree immediately, so Wen Tang continued, “Have you had dinner? If you have, it’s fine. Sometimes it’s okay to have a late-night snack!”

In any case, the meal had to be eaten.

Zhou Jingyu sighed helplessly.

Knowing that Wen Tang was the same person he had talked to for so long, he couldn’t refuse her.

“Then shall we go out now?” Zhou Jingyu said. After a moment, he frowned, recalling the reporters downstairs and the negative comments about Wen Tang online. “It might not be suitable to go out now.”

As long as Zhou Jingyu agreed, that was enough!

As for how to eat, Wen Tang was well-prepared!

She held up her phone and shook it in the air.

“No need to go out, we can order takeout!” Wen Tang said, then added naturally, “But later, you might need to go downstairs to pick up the delivery. There are too many people outside, and it’s not convenient for me to go out.”

Zhou Jingyu, being as smart as he was, could tell that inviting him to dinner was just an excuse; she probably wanted him to run an errand for the takeout.

He didn’t expose her pretense.

He just gave her a meaningful look and nodded lightly. “Okay.”

The dishes were already ordered while she was lying on the sofa, starving. Wen Tang placed the order and cheerfully said, “It should take about half an hour. Why don’t we add each other on WeChat? When the delivery arrives, I’ll notify you on WeChat.”

Zhou Jingyu paused slightly and then said, “I don’t have my phone with me right now. We can add each other later.”

He added, “When the delivery arrives, just knock on the door.”

Immersed in the happiness of having a hotpot soon, Wen Tang didn’t doubt him. She didn’t mind walking a few more steps; it was just about knocking on the door.

Wen Tang responded with an “oh,” took her phone, and happily went home.

Half an hour later, Wen Tang indeed came to knock on the door.

Zhou Jingyu appeared in home clothes.

It only took a few minutes to get the takeout. After a few minutes, Wen Tang was enjoying the hotpot she had been craving all evening at home.

Lying on the sofa, she had ordered according to her taste, without considering Zhou Jingyu’s preferences. The dishes were all her favorites, and the hotpot base was just a spicy one. However, since she was so hungry, everything looked appetizing, and the table was filled with a lot of food, which looked quite sincere for hosting.

All her favorite foods were laid out. Wen Tang said, “Feel free to eat, don’t be polite.”

Then she began to eat with grease all over her mouth.

She devoured the food, stuffing her face with meatballs, chewing rapidly, without any trace of a star’s image.

Anyway, since she had made a fool of herself in front of Zhou Jingyu so many times, she had given up on maintaining her image and preferred to be completely relaxed.

Being extremely hungry, Wen Tang only felt somewhat full after eating, which gave her the energy to pay attention to Zhou Jingyu.

Zhou Jingyu hadn’t eaten much.

Just like the night before.

“Don’t you like it?” Wen Tang asked, puzzled. “Or is the taste not to your liking?”

The taste was actually quite good, but Zhou Jingyu had already had dinner and didn’t have the habit of eating extra meals.

Zhou Jingyu shook his head, noticing Wen Tang’s fondness for beef. He used his chopsticks to put some beef into her bowl.

“You like it, so eat more,” Zhou Jingyu said to Wen Tang.

He didn’t want to eat, so Wen Tang didn’t push him.

To each their own.

Not eating such delicious hotpot was his loss!

Wen Tang continued eating, and with some food in her stomach, she felt like chatting.

Eating and chatting was the true essence of enjoying hotpot!

“Zhou—”

But just as she was about to start, she encountered a problem.

What should she call him?

She had just called him Mr. Zhou smoothly, but now, sitting face-to-face while eating, it felt awkward and difficult.

Zhou Jingyu looked up, seeing through Wen Tang’s current awkwardness.

Zhou Jingyu said, “Zhou Jingyu.”

Wen Tang was taken aback, “Huh?”

Zhou Jingyu replied calmly, “I mentioned not long ago that you can call me Zhou Jingyu.”

Wen Tang remembered the incident at the clubhouse when Zhou Jingyu had helped her and driven her home.

She nodded and smiled, “Yes, Zhou Jingyu.”

“From now on, I’ll call you Zhou Jingyu, and you can call me Wen Tang.”

Zhou Jingyu responded with an “mm.”

“Zhou Jingyu, when you were studying in France, were you alone?”

“I had a cat.”

“You mentioned it before. So why didn’t you bring your cat back with you?”

“It’s too old and in poor health. It can’t handle a long journey, so I left it with a friend in France to take care of it.”

“Oh.”

…

They chatted casually.

Surprisingly, the conversation went quite well.

Zhou Jingyu was witty and well-informed, and as they chatted, Wen Tang felt an irresistible sense of wanting to continue.

Wen Tang thought Zhou Jingyu was a friend worth having!

After the hotpot, Zhou Jingyu took care of the cleanup.

Wen Tang, the young lady, just sat on the sofa and played with the cat.

After tidying up, it was quite late. Zhou Jingyu said goodbye and left Wen Tang’s place with a garbage bag.

After Zhou Jingyu left, Wen Tang noticed the smell of hotpot on herself and went to take a shower.

After her shower, she realized she had forgotten to add Zhou Jingyu on WeChat.

Not having WeChat made it inconvenient. If she wanted to contact him, she’d have to knock on his door, just like today.

It was troublesome.

But now it was so late, and asking Zhou Jingyu for his WeChat wasn’t appropriate. She was too lazy to go out, especially since she had just showered and was dressed lightly.

Sitting on her bed, Wen Tang remembered that Ke Xin had asked for Zhou Jingyu’s business card earlier today, so she must have his phone number.

Since she couldn’t sleep right away, Wen Tang decided to text Ke Xin.

Wen Tang: [What’s Zhou Jingyu’s phone number? Send it to me.]

Ke Xin, being a night owl, responded very quickly.

Ke Xin: [1385066xxxx]

Then, another message came through: 【Tang Tang, why do you need his phone number!!!!!!!】

The five exclamation marks indicated Kexin’s excitement and trembling emotions.

Wen Tang ignored her.

After adding a note to the phone number, she noticed another message from Ke Xin.

【The phone number is also the WeChat ID. I’ve added it! I Added it!! Tang Tang, go for it! You can do it!!!!】

Seeing this, Wen Tang: “…”

Usually, when she asked Ke Xin for a man’s phone number, it only meant one thing.

It was obvious Ke Xin had let her imagination run wild.

How could she and Zhou Jingyu be a thing?

Zhou Jingyu was several years older than her; she only likes younger men!

Boring!