Chapter 79: The Pitiful Female Supporting Character from a Patriarchal Family in the 2000s (26)

Thanks to sufficient mental preparation, Ai Xiaoling was not surprised to see Su Yue. She still maintained a polite smile on her face.

What’s meant to come will always come. Just let things unfold naturally.

She would go as far as she could. She had no regrets.

Su Yue had already lost control of her emotions when she saw Ai Xiaoling from outside the hardware store. The worst-case scenario she had feared had come true.

After entering the store, Su Yue’s gaze fell on the diamond ring on her finger. She could no longer suppress her emotions.

Ai Xiaoling hadn’t gotten married yet. She was working at the hardware store and was even together with Ye Zhou. Where had everything gone wrong?

Thinking of the two’s intimacy in City A, Su Yue clenched her fists tightly and could not hide the jealousy in her eyes.

“Hello?” Ai Xiaoling called out again, “May I ask what you want to buy?”

Su Yue came back to her senses and looked away. She casually pointed at a lightbulb on the side, “Give me one of those.”

Ai Xiaoling handed it over and said, “Seven yuan.”

Su Yue handed over ten yuan. While Ai Xiaoling was giving her change, she suddenly asked, “You look really familiar. Have we met before?”

She was testing her.

Otherwise, why had Ai Xiaoling not followed the original path?

“Really?” Ai Xiaoling gave her the change and not only looked her in the eye but also examined her closely, “You do look a bit familiar, but I just can’t remember. Lately, my memory’s not so good.”

Upon hearing this, Su Yue felt disappointed. That was just the polite phrase used by salespeople. Ai Xiaoling didn’t seem to know anything.

Su Yue forced a smile, said nothing more, and turned to leave.

Ai Xiaoling watched her back, deep in thought. Su Yue knew her?

But she had never seen her before.

The only possibility was that Ye Zhou did not meet Su Yue after starting a business in City A but that they had a prior connection.

Ai Xiaoling lowered her eyes, her hand once again gently covering her diamond ring, her gaze complicated.

So she was actually the third party who got involved in their relationship. Su Yue was unwilling to break up with Ye Zhou, and when she saw him with her, she came chasing after him to reconcile.

Then Ye Zhou would get back together with Su Yue and break up with her.

That would align with the plot development.

Ai Xiaoling was in the hardware store when Ye Zhou returned after finishing his tasks.

He brought her lunch and a fruit platter.

The pork knuckle rice was something Ai Xiaoling specifically asked for, but after Ye Zhou brought it back, she only ate a few bites. Seeing her in a bad mood, he thought she was tired and took her upstairs to rest.

The house Ye Zhou used to live in had also been renovated. The walls were repainted white, and the bed and cabinets were replaced.

The bed was changed from 1.5 meters wide to 1.8 meters.

Ye’s mother thoughtfully prepared a few sets of pajamas for Ai Xiaoling. She changed into one and got into bed.

Ye Zhou also got into bed and immediately hugged her. “In a few days, let’s find time to look at furniture. The new house will be finished soon, and we need to pick out some pieces you like.”

“We also need to choose curtains. I’ve looked at several options. I’ll take you to decide on one.”

“Also, for the lighting, do you have any preferences?”

…

Ye Zhou talked about many things and occasionally asked for Ai Xiaoling’s opinion.

These past few days, he had been busy with all this. Not wanting her to run around needlessly, he only brought her in to decide after narrowing things down.

Seeing that Ai Xiaoling remained silent, Ye Zhou lowered his head to look at her.

Her clear eyes were fixed on him, carrying a scrutinizing look.

“What’s wrong?” Ye Zhou smiled and kissed her forehead.

Normally, Ai Xiaoling would have smiled. Lately, she had been very clingy toward him. To be exact, Ye Zhou felt she was craving his body. Even during nap time, she would snuggle into his arms and hint that they should seize the moment.

And he, to be honest, also craved her.

They were currently in the passionate phase, wishing they could be together every moment.

He dreamed of marrying her as soon as possible.

But now, after Ye Zhou kissed Ai Xiaoling, she remained unmoved and kept looking at him with a heavy heart.

Ye Zhou raised an eyebrow.

She asked, “Tell me seriously, have you ever slept with your ex-girlfriends? How far did it go?”

Ai Xiaoling mainly wanted to know how far Ye Zhou and Su Yue had gone.

To be honest, she was a little jealous.

Ye Zhou was stunned by the question. “What ex-girlfriends?”

“Your girlfriends from when you were in another province,” she reminded him.

She had never asked about this before. She always thought she was his first woman. After all, that day, he had been a bit clumsy, and his body trembled slightly.

But she never expected that Su Yue and Ye Zhou had known each other long before.

Ye Zhou was confused. “I never had a girlfriend.”

Ai Xiaoling said seriously, “Your ex-girlfriend came to find you.”

The implication was that he should not lie anymore.

“What ex-girlfriend? Who told you that?” Ye Zhou did not want any misunderstandings right before their wedding. His expression turned serious as he emphasized, “Other than you, I’ve never dated anyone, and I’ve never had anyone else.”

Ai Xiaoling was puzzled and said directly, “Su Yue, don’t you know her?”

Ye Zhou shook his head.

“Think carefully again.”

“Even if I think it over ten thousand times, I still have no ex-girlfriend. There’s only you.”

Ai Xiaoling was doubtful. “But she came looking for you.”

She was very certain that Su Yue had come all the way from City A just because she saw the two of them together and could not accept it, so she specifically came to find Ye Zhou.

“Maybe she found the wrong person.”

Ye Zhou had always been honest in front of her. Ai Xiaoling could also tell that he was not lying.

Could it be that Su Yue had a secret crush on Ye Zhou?

But he did not know her.

As Ai Xiaoling was thinking, Ye Zhou hugged her tighter and sighed. “Don’t let your imagination run wild. Also, don’t randomly accuse me, understand?”

She nodded. “Got it.”

“From beginning to end, there’s only been you,” Ye Zhou looked into her eyes and said each word seriously. He added, “I really don’t know the person you mentioned.”

After he finished speaking, he leaned over to kiss Ai Xiaoling.

As he kissed her, Ye Zhou’s hand began to move over her body. Wherever it touched, a tingling sensation followed. Ai Xiaoling was tickled and started laughing, trying to dodge.

He hugged her tightly, leaving her with no escape.

“What are you doing? I want to sleep,” Ai Xiaoling pushed against his chest with her hand.

“Sleep later.”

She protested, “That’ll take a long time.”

“Don’t you miss me?” Ye Zhou kissed her brow and eyes, his tone seductive. When Ai Xiaoling started to feel cold, she instinctively burrowed into his arms.

Ye Zhou held her tightly and began kissing her all over. He knew all her sensitive spots.

In no time, Ai Xiaoling’s eyes grew hazy, lost in the moment, even taking the initiative to respond. With her last bit of pride, she demanded, “Just once.”

Ye Zhou did not reply.

So of course, it would not be just once.

As emotions deepened, Ye Zhou leaned into her ear and called softly, “Xiaoling.”

Ai Xiaoling, dazed and breathless, clung tightly to him.

Ye Zhou’s warm breath tickled her ear, accompanied by a hoarse voice. “I only love you.”

“Ah Zhou—”

Her voice trembled slightly. The next second, her lips were sealed by him. The words she was about to say were completely replaced by more intense actions.

*

Ai Xiaoling was a realist. She never assumed what the future would bring and allowed anything to happen.

Moreover, she had now officially entered the design field. Without He Wenlei, she could handle everything on her own and had become very busy with no time to let her thoughts wander.

Her income also increased significantly. She no longer had to do clerical work or organize contracts.

All the designs in the company were now handed over to Ai Xiaoling to draw. They no longer outsourced to the neighboring design institute.

She could both draw designs and handle cost estimation. She was equivalent to two people, and her value and status rose immediately. Wang Dazhou and the others admired her immensely.

They also saw the diamond ring on Ai Xiaoling’s finger. Who else could have given it to her?

It was likely she would soon become their boss’s wife.

Ye Zhou was a man of few words, making it hard to flatter or curry favor with him. Ai Xiaoling was different. How cheerful and lively she was.

They praised her in different ways every day, almost to the point of praising her into a flower.

Ai Xiaoling had a good personality. When complimented, she would smile cheerfully and get along well with them. Every time Ye Zhou came out of his office, his eyes would first fall on her.

When he saw that Ai Xiaoling was in a good mood, the corners of Ye Zhou’s mouth would lift continuously.

As a result, the employees at the company became even more enthusiastic in their praise of Ai Xiaoling.

Since Ai Xiaoling had new work to handle, someone else had to take over the tasks of managing documents and printing contracts.

Ai Xiaoling made a recruitment notice and posted it downstairs at the company.

After putting it up, she walked to a nearby print shop because the company could not print large color drawings, so she had to use the print shop instead.

As soon as she brought the drawings back, Wang Dazhou informed her, “Someone came to apply for the job.”

“So soon?” Ai Xiaoling was surprised.

Wang Dazhou grinned, “Yes. A pretty girl too. Mr. Li is interviewing her now.”

Li Zhao was another partner in the company, in charge of the technical side.

Ye Zhou was responsible for external business.

“Then seize the opportunity,” Ai Xiaoling said with a smile as she sat back at her workstation.

Before long, the door to Li Zhao’s office opened, and Su Yue walked out behind him.

“That’s about it. I’ve already told you the salary. Can you start work tomorrow?” Li Zhao asked her.

“Yes. No problem.” Su Yue nodded, her eyes subtly scanning the office. Suddenly, her gaze met Ai Xiaoling, who had just looked up.

Su Yue: “……”

Wasn’t she working at the building materials store?