**54***

“Welcome, I’ll be teaching a new course next semester. Looking forward to working together.” Teacher Jiang smiled as she took a sip of her iced Americano.

Zhu Jia hadn’t expected Teacher Jiang to accept so easily. It seemed that Mo Yichen’s persistent urging to perfect her business plan had really paid off. The business plan was practically a business card for the early stages of entrepreneurship!

At 10 PM, Xiao Wen had already fallen deeply asleep in bed. Zhu Jia quietly made her way downstairs to the living room.

She applied a face mask, reclining on the lazy chair, and closed her eyes, thinking about the next steps in her plan.

Just then, her WeChat pinged. Zhu Jia picked up her phone to find a message from Chen Tingyan, whom she hadn’t heard from in a while.

Y.: “I’m back from Hangzhou and brought you some delicious treats.”

Chen Tingyan sent two pictures of exquisite Chinese pastries in flower shapes.

Jia Jia: “Thanks~”

Y.: “My birthday is the day after tomorrow, starting at 6 PM. You must come!”

Zhu Jia raised her eyebrows. She had been so busy lately that she’d almost forgotten about it and hadn’t prepared a gift. She quickly replied: “No problem, see you the day after tomorrow!”

Chen Tingyan sent her the location of his home. Zhu Jia glanced at it before turning off the phone screen.

Footsteps echoed up the stairs. Zhu Jia looked up to see Mo Yichen walking toward her, holding a cup of iced sparkling water in his left hand and a cup of milk in his right.

He handed her the warm milk. “Busy today? What did you do?”

Zhu Jia took off the face mask and lazily replied, “I met with Teacher Jiang, discussed some ideas with the designer about the renovation, and then had a meeting with a few team members.”

Mo Yichen sat down beside her. “So, Madam Zhu is quite the busy person.”

Hearing Mo Yichen’s teasing tone, Zhu Jia kicked his thigh with her foot, but his leg was so firm and solid that it hurt her foot.

Mo Yichen paused for a moment before gently catching her slender ankle.

In retaliation for her earlier kick, Mo Yichen lightly scratched the bottom of her foot.

“Stop… that tickles!” Zhu Jia tried to pull her foot away, but he held it tightly. Her foot was so sensitive that even the lightest touch felt unbearable!

She laughed so hard that tears almost came out, squirming on her foot. She tried to get up and forcefully pull his fingers off, planning to punch him at the same time.

But unexpectedly, Mo Yichen let go at that moment, and Zhu Jia lost her balance, falling forward and landing on his lap in a face-to-face position.

Both of them froze. Zhu Jia panicked and tried to stand up, but her waist was caught by his strong arm.

The position they were in was too intimate! Zhu Jia’s face turned bright red.

She turned her eyes away, trying to push him away, but her hands felt weak, as if pushing against a wall.

Mo Yichen’s deep eyes locked onto hers, and their breaths were only inches apart.

His arm around her waist tightened, causing her to lean forward, with her chest almost touching his.

Her legs were wedged between his, and Zhu Jia could now truly feel how narrow and firm his waist was, radiating a power that seemed ready to burst.

“Let me go,” Zhu Jia muttered, gently hitting his shoulder. Her voice was soft as a whisper, and her refusal seemed almost like an invitation.

Mo Yichen raised his hand and gently pinched her chin, turning her face to meet his. His breath was heavy as he whispered, “Close your eyes.”

Zhu Jia’s heart raced. His breath sounded heavier than usual, and his eyes burned with an unmistakable desire that made her unable to resist closing her eyes.

Her fingers, which were resting on his shoulder, curled up, tightly gripping his shirt. She could feel his face inching closer, his warm breath already grazing her nose.

Just when everything seemed perfectly set up, Zhu Jia suddenly opened her eyes.

Her face was flushed bright red, and she pushed Mo Yichen away forcefully, jumping up and escaping.

She stood in front of him, her heart racing, her face as red as a tomato. “You… you… you’re such a pervert!” She turned and ran out without looking back.

Zhu Jia hurried back to her room, slammed the door shut, and leaned against it, her heart pounding in her chest.

Because of their position, she had clearly felt a certain change in his body, and it was even more intense than she had imagined.

Zhu Jia sank down to the floor, angrily pounding her leg. She only thought he was a good person, and she was trying to get along with him, but she wasn’t ready to give in yet.

And yet, he kept trying to seduce her with his appearance, making her feel dizzy and weak, as if he wanted to take everything from her.

Damn man! If it weren’t for this, she wouldn’t have known how much badness he had hidden inside. He was just a fox in disguise!

Zhu Jia stood up again, hands on her hips, swearing that next time she had to be extra careful with him to avoid falling into his trap.

Downstairs, Mo Yichen sat alone in the living room, staring blankly ahead. He could still smell the sweet milk scent in the air, and the warmth of her lingered on his lap.

He was frustrated with himself. He shouldn’t have rushed things today.

The little bunny had already been scared by his inadvertent display and was now hiding back in her fortress.

Mo Yichen picked up the iced sparkling water on the coffee table and took a sip, his throat bobbing.

He reminded himself again to be patient with her. He had to slowly dismantle her defenses—this was the right approach for now.

Over the next few days, Zhu Jia tried to avoid Mo Yichen, feeling incredibly awkward about what had happened.

Luckily, both of them were busy, and without trying to avoid each other, they didn’t cross paths for the next two days.

On Wednesday afternoon, Zhu Jia borrowed a conference room from Mo’s Group and had a long meeting with her small team, discussing the early education center’s organizational structure, staffing, and course pricing.

,………..**********

“Let’s post the job recruitment information online in the next few days. Jack, you are responsible for screening resumes, send me the ones for the early childhood teacher positions.”

“We still need to discuss course pricing and sales models. Linda, please prepare the initial cost budget.”

“Assistant Lin, please communicate with the designer again. We need a dedicated children’s restroom on every floor.”

Zhu Jia glanced at her watch and remembered she had another task, “Let’s call it a day here, if there’s anything, we can talk in the WeChat group.”

At 5:50 p.m., Zhu Jia arrived on time at the apartment building near City University. After waiting for a while, she saw Chen Tingyan open the door on the first floor of the apartment.

It had been a holiday since they last met, his hair had been cut short, but it seemed like he had grown taller, “Did you wait long?”

Zhu Jia smiled at him, “No, you came pretty quickly.”

She had just called him to say she was downstairs, and he had come down to meet her.

“Happy Birthday!” Zhu Jia handed him a white gift bag, which contained an expensive pen.

She didn’t have much experience buying birthday gifts for boys, but she had bought this pen because she had once seen Mo Yichen use it to write, and it seemed very elegant.

Seeing the logo on the gift bag, Chen Tingyan was somewhat flattered. He knew this brand’s pens were made with top-notch craftsmanship and were pricey. He hadn’t expected Zhu Jia to give him such a thoughtful birthday gift.

His joy was almost impossible to hide, and he immediately turned around, trying to look cool, “Hmm, thanks. Come on in.”

Zhu Jia followed him into the elevator, and pressed the button for the 27th floor, curiously observing the surroundings.

“I thought you lived in the school dorm.”

“There’s a single apartment near the school, so I just moved here.”

“Hmm, so your cat is here?” Zhu Jia asked with a smile.

“Of course, I’ll let you meet Ah Dai in a bit.”

“What! You call it Ah Dai? It doesn’t look dumb at all in the pictures.”

“It was very silly when it was younger.”

The elevator dinged, reaching the 27th floor. Chen Tingyan led her out of the elevator and to a dark brown door, where he pressed his fingerprint on the door.

“Come on in, Wang Zheng and the others are here.”

Once inside, Zhu Jia saw a square living room, with a row of dark-colored sofas where several young men and women were chatting. When they saw Chen Tingyan and Zhu Jia, they all turned to look.

“Zhu Jia, you’re here!” Wang Zheng walked over, looking surprised.

“Hey, Wang Zheng, long time no see.”

She nodded at the others sitting on the sofa, “Hi, I’m Zhu Jia.”

The group on the sofa exchanged knowing glances.

Chen Tingyan walked over, pulled one of the guys up, and pushed him to an adjacent chair. He pointed at the empty spot on the sofa and said, “Jia Jia, sit here.”

Zhu Jia smiled wryly, walking over to sit down.

Chen Tingyan sat beside her and gestured to the others on the sofa, “These are my classmates and friends from the basketball team.”

Zhu Jia looked around. They were all young, around twenty years old, full of vitality and energy.

Zhu Jia thought back to a few years ago when she was just like them, freely enjoying her youth in the ivory tower of school.

Youth is not permanent, but a limited concept, only existing on a specific timeline.

She overheard them enthusiastically discussing which elective courses to take next semester, arguing with their parents during the holidays and running away to travel, and the embarrassing incident where the previous captain of the basketball team was caught dating three girlfriends at the same time.

Zhu Jia smiled along, but she didn’t feel overly nostalgic or envious of that life.

On the contrary, she felt that the past year, when she had become a mother, had given her more experience. Life had forced her to grow from a simple, bright girl into a strong, fearless, and empathetic woman who her child could rely on completely.

Although she had fewer common topics with the people in front of her, she had gained beautiful experiences that they could not yet understand.

Just then, a beautiful cat walked elegantly out of the room.

“Ah Dai, come here!” Chen Tingyan called out to the ragdoll cat. To his surprise, Ah Dai glanced at him, then arrogantly turned its head away and continued walking.

Chen Tingyan’s face turned awkward, and he walked over to pick up Ah Dai, gently stroking its beautiful fur. Ah Dai let out a soft “meow” as if still a bit sleepy.

“See? Isn’t Ah Dai cute?” Chen Tingyan walked over and placed the cat in Zhu Jia’s arms. She mimicked his earlier actions, gently petting it.

Although Ah Dai appeared aloof, it actually enjoyed being petted. When you didn’t touch it, it would even come over and nudge you.

Zhu Jia really liked it, thinking she would also keep a cat at home. Xiao Wen would definitely be thrilled.

They had pizza and Chinese pastries brought back from Hangzhou for dinner.

Afterward, they played games in front of the TV, and before they knew it, it was already 10 p.m.

Zhu Jia glanced at her watch, wondering if Xiao Wen had already gone to bed. She also had a meeting with Teacher Jiang the next morning to discuss the establishment of the teaching department and course design, so she said goodbye to Chen Tingyan.

“Where do you live? Let me give you a ride home,” Chen Tingyan said, grabbing his car keys.

“No need, someone is coming to pick me up,” Zhu Jia prepared to call Lao Xu.

“I’m just heading out to buy some drinks for them, so I’ll drop you off on the way. You don’t have to trouble your family to come.”

Zhu Jia thought for a moment and agreed. She had asked Lao Xu not to wait for her, and she would call him when she was done. He was probably home by now, so it would be better not to bother him.

Zhu Jia nodded, “Thanks, I appreciate it.”