Chapter 17

Shen Mi raised her head, meeting his eyes, and shot him a glare in frustration before turning her head away. “If you dare to give it, I dare to take it.”

Xie Rongzhuo did not look away: “Can I take that as you throwing a tantrum?”

“Are you trying to dock my pay?”

Shen Mi finally showed her emotions in front of him.

Xie Rongzhuo didn’t seem to mind her attitude, instead, he chuckled.

Shen Mi glanced at him sideways. Xie Rongzhuo’s eyes were deep and his smile softened the coldness around his brows.

His eyes were beautiful, but it didn’t erase the deception he had committed.

He was a liar, and he seemed to be in a good mood?

Meeting her probing gaze, Xie Rongzhuo tilted his head slightly, a smile in his eyes behind his glasses. “I’ll give you your master back outside of work hours.”

Shen Mi knew he was laughing at her childishness.

But she couldn’t help but be bothered by it, stubbornly wanting to separate him into two people.

Only by “separating” him could she dare to show her true self in front of him.

“So you’re my master now?”

Xie Rongzhuo lowered his gaze to meet hers. “Yes, would you want me to hug you?”

Shen Mi thought her emotions would be more intense, at least she wouldn’t be sitting in the car with him now, calmly chatting.

However, when Xie Rongzhuo calmly asked this question, she was taken aback for a moment, suddenly unsure how to react.

She steadied herself, “No.”

“It seems I have disappointed you,” Xie Rongzhuo lowered his eyes, “It was my fault for deceiving you. You can feel free to express your emotions.”

“Can I just ignore you?” Shen Mi had imagined many scenarios of meeting her master. No matter what the scenario, just thinking about it made her heart race.

Unexpectedly, when this day actually arrived, she almost had a heart attack.

She had initially wanted to express more emotions, but Xie Rongzhuo’s calm demeanor made her feel that any further commotion would be inappropriate.

Over the years, she had exposed too much, and Xie Rongzhuo was completely aware of her temperament, able to easily manipulate her.

Meanwhile, he remained shrouded in mystery, and Shen Mi had no idea of his weaknesses.

But she was unwilling to just let it go.

Xie Rongzhuo did not force her, “Then wait until you want to acknowledge me.”

The pent-up frustration remained unreleased. Back home, Shen Mi rolled onto the bed, clutching her pillow and pounding it with a few frustrated punches.

She turned her head, sat up, and spitefully turned off the air conditioner, then unplugged the refrigerator.

She would resist anything related to that Xie surname user!

After lying in bed for a while, she began to shiver from the cold. Shen Mi conceded to the “evil forces” and turned the air conditioner back on.

Just for a little while, she would turn it off in the morning!

Suddenly, she remembered the dozens of pounds of cured ham that Zhang Zhiqing had sent. Her family’s housekeeper had painstakingly prepared it and sent it by courier over a long distance. It would be a shame if it spoiled.

She got up again and plugged the refrigerator back in.

She opened WeChat and saw the top contact on her list, which made her throw her phone in anger.

Shen Mi couldn’t sleep.

Since the beginning of the year, she and Xie Rongzhuo had been talking on voice chat every day. Although neither of them spoke, listening to his breathing while sleeping had become a habit.

Shen Mi hadn’t eaten dinner, and her stomach was rumbling. The noodles at home were gone, and the refrigerator only had raw cured ham. It would take all night to soak and cook it. There was a barbecue stand on the street downstairs, so Shen Mi put on her coat, slipped on her slippers, and went downstairs.

For the first time in her life, Shen Mi was so generous. She ordered a chicken leg, a skewer of lamb, and a piece of eggplant to commemorate the end of her “one-sided online romance.”

She had already showered, and her pajamas were underneath her coat. She didn’t want to get greasy, so she stood far away after ordering.

The night wind was cold, and she wrapped her coat tightly around her. Half of her long hair was tucked under the collar, pressed against her white neck, while the other half flowed softly down to her waist. The loose coat couldn’t hide her graceful figure.

Shen Mi had expressive eyes, fair skin, a small, slightly upturned nose, and lips that were naturally red. Even without makeup, she was stunning.

The tattooed man sitting next to her raised his glass and tried to strike up a conversation, “Beautiful lady, come join us?”

Shen Mi’s expression was natural. She pointed to the car across the street and smiled, “Thank you, but my husband is waiting for me.”

“So you’re taken.”

“Someone this beautiful can’t be single, can they?” Several of them chuckled and lowered their voices, but continued to steal glances at her.

After paying, Shen Mi carried her bag home. The drunk men followed her. Shen Mi glanced at the road ahead. That short stretch was a blind spot for surveillance cameras, and it was the only way back to her place. She stopped and looked back.

The tattooed man laughed frivolously, “Beautiful lady, where’s your husband? Why didn’t he come to pick you up? Maybe we could—”

Suddenly, a beam of headlights shone towards them.

It was too dark, and the car was using high beams. Shen Mi raised her hand to shield her eyes but didn’t see the license plate clearly.

The drunk companion standing nearby recognized it as a luxury car with consecutive license plate numbers and didn’t dare to provoke it.

Taking advantage of the distraction, Shen Mi quickly ran forward.

There were always lights under her feet, and she ran fast.

Meanwhile, the car behind her moved slowly, illuminating the road, and once she entered the community, it sped away.

Shen Mi stood panting at the entrance of the community, looked back, and the car that had shone its lights on her had disappeared without a trace.

•  

The next day, Xie Rongzhuo went on a business trip to Beijing, leaving Shen Mi behind. Old Zhou placed a bouquet of flowers in the car, saying it was a gift from the boss.

What did it mean to not take her on the trip but leave her a bouquet of flowers?

Old Zhou said, “The boss cares about you a lot. He knows you’re unhappy and even went to the flower shop himself to pick out the flowers for you.”

“Xie Rongzhuo went to buy the flowers himself???”

Old Zhou advised, “It’s common for couples to argue and bicker. As long as it’s not a matter of principle, there’s no need to hold a grudge. It’s not good for your relationship if you let it fester.”

Shen Mi knew Old Zhou misunderstood her relationship with Xie Rongzhuo, but the best time to clarify had passed. Now, no matter what she said, Old Zhou wouldn’t believe her.

She didn’t explain, but hugged the flowers and asked, “He bought them himself?”

Old Zhou said, “Absolutely.”

Shen Mi remembered the time Xie Rongzhuo asked her if she liked fresh flowers, and she said she did.

There was some sincerity, but not much.

He had hidden his true feelings from her for four years, played her for four years. Most importantly, knowing she liked him, he let her fall deeper and deeper, enjoying her admiration without any guilt, making her lose face.

A bouquet of flowers couldn’t make up for her hurt feelings!

These flowers were from the same shop she bought them for Bi Jinglin last time. At that time, Xie Rongzhuo refused to reimburse her, but this time he was so generous to buy them for her.

That day, Bi Jinglin asked her if Xie Rongzhuo was dating someone, saying he seemed to be avoiding her. Bi Jinglin had known Xie Rongzhuo for many years, so there must be a reason for her to say that.

Thinking about this, Shen Mi suddenly felt the flowers in her hand were no longer fragrant.

This was the first time Old Zhou had seen Shen Mi act so insecure and uncertain. She always kept herself so tightly wrapped up, never opening up to anyone. She was a very strong and self-sufficient girl, always keeping a tight lid on her emotions, making her seem difficult to pursue.

He decided to give Xie Rongzhuo a little boost, “Secretary Shen, the boss told me to be mainly responsible for picking you up and dropping you off.”

Shen Mi said, “Oh right, Old Zhou, I almost forgot to ask. The boss went on a business trip, why didn’t you take him to the airport?”

“Your area is undergoing demolition, and the boss was worried about your commute. He was just being considerate.”

The demolition notice had indeed been posted for a long time.

After work, Shen Mi saw the notice at the entrance of the community, indicating that the property management had been replaced. She overheard the elderly people chatting nearby, saying that the street next door would also be included in the reconstruction area. The streetlights had been repaired overnight, and several new electronic surveillance cameras had been installed.

“The greasy smoke, the smelly ditches, and the group of drunkards yelling every night, I’ve had enough! They said they wouldn’t demolish that street before, it made me so miserable.”

“It was approved a long time ago, it should have been demolished. Oh, I feel like life is completely new!”

“What do you think the big boss is building the square for?”

“You guys don’t understand, right? My son said it was donated to us by Ruixing Bank. Those bankers don’t need to make money, they just print their own money to spend, right?”

“Nonsense! Don’t listen to this old man, he’s uneducated and talking nonsense.”

…

Shen Mi looked in the direction where the car disappeared last night, a little lost in thought.

•  

It was Saturday, and Xie Rongzhuo was not around, so Shen Mi could have a double weekend. She had slept late last night and had a dream all night. In the dream, Xie Rongzhuo became the big boss, and Shen Mi beat him up all night, but couldn’t kill him. Just as his health bar was about to run out, he suddenly grabbed her and made her his captive, which scared Shen Mi awake.

There was an unread message on her phone.

It was from “dsm”, sent half an hour ago, asking if she was awake.

Shen Mi had just been awakened by a nightmare, and she was still dazed, her reaction a bit slow. Her voice was muffled and a little confused: “I just woke up, I had a nightmare last night.”

She stayed in bed, her chin resting on the blanket. Like the past few mornings, she lazily whined: “I’m so sleepy, I need Master to kiss me before I can get up.”

Two minutes passed, and she didn’t receive a reply. Shen Mi turned over, preparing to lie in bed for a while longer. Halfway through turning, she suddenly woke up –

Xie Rongzhuo, this was Xie Rongzhuo!

All her sleepiness was gone, Shen Mi frantically grabbed her phone, ready to retract those two messages.

At the top of the screen, it displayed “The other party is typing.”

Shen Mi: “…………”

He heard it!

The typing status at the top paused for two seconds. Xie Rongzhuo was probably also caught off guard by her sudden, exaggerated, and flirty behavior.