Chapter 69: The Pitiful Female Supporting Character from a Patriarchal Family in the 2000s (16)

Ai Xiaoling did not even know how they eventually separated.

Ye Zhou bought her some snacks. After a simple bite, they started heading back.

Once in the car, Ai Xiaoling felt the atmosphere was too awkward, so she pretended to sleep. After a while, she actually started to feel drowsy. She vaguely remembered Ye Zhou lowering the music volume and slowing down the car.

By the time she woke up, they were already back in Shan’an County.

“Do you want to eat? A new Hunan restaurant just opened nearby—”

Before Ye Zhou finished, Ai Xiaoling held her forehead and said, “No need. I’m so tired. Sitting in the car was exhausting. I want to go home and sleep.”

She no longer believed that Ye Zhou invited her out to eat just because of work.

Something was definitely off.

Definitely not right!

“Does your head hurt?” Ye Zhou turned to look at her, frowning with concern.

“No,” Ai Xiaoling silently cursed in her heart and avoided his gaze. “Just a bit sleepy. I don’t sleep well in hotel beds. I want to go back and sleep.”

She was saved.

She had always worked diligently and seriously.

She only wanted to become Ye Zhou’s right-hand person and rise to the top. She did not want to fall into romance and get kicked out of the game.

Since Ai Xiaoling insisted, Ye Zhou did not push it. He drove them back to the building materials store.

As they got out of the car, they ran into Mother Ye.

Mother Ye smiled at Ai Xiaoling, but when she looked at Ye Zhou, her face immediately turned cold. She snorted and glared at him.

Then she looked at Ai Xiaoling’s tired face.

Heaven help her.

Ai Xiaoling was dragged to construction sites every day.

Ye Zhou clearly saw how capable Ai Xiaoling was and snatched her away, making her work like an ox at construction sites every day. This kind of resentment could not be tolerated.

Back then, the grocery store across the street and the breakfast shop next door also wanted to recruit Ai Xiaoling. Once Mother Ye found out, she cut ties with their bosses.

If not for the fact that Ye Zhou was her son, she would have cut ties with him too.

“Aunt Ye, I’ll go upstairs and rest first.” Ai Xiaoling was truly exhausted. Even sleeping in the car had been filled with anxiety. She just wanted to calm down.

Mother Ye said, “Alright, alright. You’ve been working hard the past two days. You must be tired. Go rest.”

As soon as Ai Xiaoling left, Ye Zhou followed after her.

He wanted to say something to her. As soon as he got to the stairs, she was nowhere to be seen.

When Ye Zhou reached the second floor, he only heard a “bang—” as the door slammed shut.

“Ye Zhou!” Mother Ye’s voice rang out from downstairs. “Come down and move goods!”

You snatched away her best helper, so now do the work yourself.

“Hurry up!” Mother Ye continued urging him.

Ye Zhou expressionlessly went downstairs to help.

In her room, Ai Xiaoling rolled around on the bed with her blanket covering her. How did things turn out like this?

Ye Zhou held her.

And he did not immediately let go.

This was not the attitude a normal boss should have toward an employee, sob sob—

The two of them absolutely could not develop an improper relationship. Otherwise, they would not even be able to remain friends in the future. How could she still rely on his support to reach the peak of her life?

Ye Zhou did not see Ai Xiaoling the whole night.

He was afraid she would wake up hungry and wanted to take her out for dinner. But he also did not want to disturb her sleep. He went to her door several times but never raised his hand to knock. He walked back and forth, and in the end, returned to his own room.

The next morning.

Ye Zhou waited downstairs for a long time but still did not see Ai Xiaoling, so he went upstairs to knock on her door.

She had already left.

Ye Zhou’s expression changed. He quickly drove to the company and saw Ai Xiaoling downstairs. She was wearing a tracksuit and running shoes.

“Good morning.” She greeted him with a smile and said first, “I got up to exercise. From now on, I’ll run to the company every day, so I won’t hitch a ride with you anymore, Little Boss.”

Ye Zhou’s burning gaze stayed fixed on her, as if trying to read some other emotion from her face.

Was she avoiding him?

Ai Xiaoling had spent the entire night mentally preparing herself. Now she was frighteningly strong and continued to maintain her smile.

“What are you two doing downstairs?” Wang Dazhou walked over and saw Ai Xiaoling. “Yo, you got up this early to exercise?”

Ai Xiaoling nodded. “I ran here.”

“You need to lose weight?” Wang Dazhou laughed.

“Even if I’m not losing weight, I can still exercise to stay healthy.” Ai Xiaoling walked off with Wang Dazhou. The two of them chatted as they went upstairs.

She did not ignore Ye Zhou and even made way for him to walk ahead, giving the boss full respect.

Her actions were flawless.

She seemed like the same old Ai Xiaoling, and yet somehow not.

As Ye Zhou walked past, Wang Dazhou stopped and made way for Ai Xiaoling, joking, “You’re Mr. Ye’s little tail. You better catch up.”

“What do you mean I’m Mr. Ye’s little tail?” Ai Xiaoling glared at him. “Aren’t you also Mr. Ye’s little tail? We all follow Mr. Ye to earn a living, okay?”

Wang Dazhou was slightly stunned. What she said did kind of make sense.

“Aren’t you going up? How else are you going to earn a living?” Ai Xiaoling urged him.

“Yes, yes, yes.” Wang Dazhou also hurriedly followed.

Hearing this, Ye Zhou’s gaze deepened, and his thin lips pressed tightly together.

She was not only avoiding him. She was taking the chance to draw a clear line between them.

At the company, Ai Xiaoling forced herself to clear her mind of distractions and threw herself completely into work.

During lunch break, He Wenlei from the neighboring design institute came.

Ai Xiaoling immediately got up and walked over with a smile.

The two of them chatted and laughed.

Lately, He Wenlei had come to find Ai Xiaoling more than once. She had also gone to the design institute before. And it was never about company business.

People in the office could not help but gossip.

“Is there something going on between He Wenlei and Ai Xiaoling?”

“Are they already dating?”

“Didn’t Ai Xiaoling like——”

……

Ye Zhou walked out holding a water cup. The sounds of gossip outside instantly stopped.

He did not see Ai Xiaoling in the office and asked, “Where’s Ai Xiaoling?”

“She went to the design institute next door.” Wang Dazhou pointed to the office next door.

Wang Dazhou was not sure if it was just his imagination, but Ye Zhou’s expression suddenly darkened, looking extremely scary. He ended up swallowing the rest of his words.

“When she gets back, tell her to bring the finalized contract to me.” After speaking, Ye Zhou turned and went back inside.

As soon as the office door closed, everyone started gossiping again. “What’s wrong with Mr. Ye?”

“Did the project fall through again?”

“Don’t know. Could it be the money still hasn’t been recovered?”

“Maybe. Recently it’s been hard to get payments.”

……

They discussed back and forth, but no one suspected Ai Xiaoling. After all, it had always been her clinging to Ye Zhou.

When had a boss ever clung to an employee? It was always the employee who admired the boss and hoped to marry up.

Ye Zhou stood inside his office, his face dark as night. He stared at the clock.

Five minutes had passed, and she still had not returned.

Eight minutes.

Ten minutes.

……

Ye Zhou’s fists clenched tightly on the table. His jaw was clenched as well.

Too much.

Ai Xiaoling returned from the design institute, her face full of joy.

Because He Wenlei told her that he wanted to give her a small project to practice with and see how she performed.

If it worked out, he would even give her a cut.

For He Wenlei, he had too much work on hand. If Ai Xiaoling could learn something and help him make money, all the better.

Ai Xiaoling thought that design was an easier path than cost estimation. The return was higher and there were fewer constraints. It would not affect her work. She could learn both. If she mastered both, her advantage would be even greater.

And she was more interested in it.

“Xiaoling.” Wang Dazhou called her softly.

“What is it?” Ai Xiaoling walked over.

Wang Dazhou glanced at the office. “Mr. Ye asked you to bring the finalized contract over.” After speaking, he paused. “Maybe the payment still hasn’t come in. He’s in a bad mood. Be prepared.”

Ai Xiaoling: “……”

She really was not prepared.

Ai Xiaoling dawdled at her desk for a while, giving herself a long round of mental prep. Then she picked up the contract and quickly walked to Ye Zhou’s office.

Upon hearing the sound at the door, Ye Zhou, who had remained motionless, suddenly shifted his posture and stared straight at the entrance.

The door slowly pushed open.

Before Ai Xiaoling entered, her crisp and cheerful voice rang out first. “Mr. Ye, the contract you requested.”

Her slim figure appeared before his eyes. Her delicate little face was full of smiles as she quickly and respectfully placed the contract on his desk.

Ye Zhou had been seething with anger just moments ago. But the instant he heard her voice, it was as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over him, extinguishing every last spark.

“Mm.”

“I’ll go back to work then.”

While Ye Zhou was happy, Ai Xiaoling ran away.

Ye Zhou: “…”