Cohabitation With The Maniacally Gorgeous CEO - Chapter 21
Chapter 21
Five or six days passed in the blink of an eye, and another weekend arrived.
An Yiqing finished several hours of dance practice and returned to the living room.
It was empty and as cold as an ice cellar; aside from her, there was no sign of anyone else.
After that chaotic Sunday, Xu Lingyin hadn’t returned here.
She hadn’t seen her at the company either.
Calls and messages went through, but each time she contacted her, the reply she received was only a few words.
She seemed to be exceptionally busy.
An Yiqing was a little worried.
They had, after all, “fought side by side” and established a revolutionary friendship.
Xu Lingyin had even protected her in front of Hu Bingjie.
Their relationship should have deepened.
Temporarily forgetting the request not to pry into privacy, An Yiqing uncharacteristically asked Xu Lingyin where she was.
The person on the other end of the line was silent for a moment, then surprisingly chuckled: “An Yiqing, you didn’t agree to the last invitation, so on what grounds are you asking this question?”
Friends?
Xu Lingyin clearly didn’t acknowledge that.
Roommates?
No grounds to ask.
An Yiqing was lost in thought.
Her silence interpreted her self-deception.
The call ended with a busy signal, and the awkward conversation was over.
However, a feeling of confusion lingered in her heart, unable to dissipate for a long time.
She thought that after everything that had happened these past few days, they could establish a relationship that went beyond just roommates.
A relationship completely different from one built on money.
She thought—but it was only her thinking.
No wonder, when she promised to take care of Xu Lingyin, the other person acted as if she hadn’t heard it.
An Yiqing looked at the cold and empty living room, lowered her eyes, and let out a silent sigh.
After changing her clothes in her room, she went out to meet Ye Shan’ge for dinner.
Upon arriving at the destination, Ye Shan’ge stared at her face: “What’s wrong with you these past few days? You look spiritless every day.”
“I didn’t sleep well last night,” An Yiqing offered an excuse.
An Yiqing was someone who couldn’t be woken up by thunder, and her temperament was stable; she rarely had trouble sleeping.
Ye Shan’ge frowned: “You have days when you don’t sleep well? Did something happen at home?”
An Yiqing shook her head.
“If there’s anything, you must tell me, and we can figure it out together,” Ye Shan’ge said.
An Yiqing: “Mhm.”
They ordered their food and sat down.
Ye Shan’ge didn’t say much more or ask again, but concern was hidden in her eyes.
An Yiqing pondered for a moment and then spoke: “Xiao Shan, are you a member of the upper class?”
“Huh?” Ye Shan’ge was momentarily stunned and immediately shook her head. “I’m only at the level of being able to buy a house in Ningcheng, nothing more.”
Ye Shan’ge tentatively asked: “A-Qing, have you really encountered something major?”
“No, I just noticed your cousin’s attire and style; she doesn’t seem like an ordinary person,” An Yiqing managed a smile.
Ye Shan’ge laughed: “She is indeed not ordinary. Zaihua Garden is a property development of her family.”
The Ziyuan Group of the Yu family; An Yiqing knew of its existence.
A friend of Yu Sirou shouldn’t be too far off in status.
So, the person Xu Lingyin didn’t even dare to report to the police was probably no ordinary individual.
To protect her, was it necessary for her not to stay by her side?
An Yiqing sighed silently.
“A-Qing, did you offend someone?” Ye Shan’ge asked nervously.
An Yiqing picked up her cup, took a sip of tea, raised her eyes, and looked at her friend’s face full of worry, hesitating to speak.
Ye Shan’ge was a tour guide; if she couldn’t tell that something was wrong after interacting with so many people, she’d be useless.
“Hurry up and tell me, let me help you think of a solution,” Ye Shan’ge said in agitation.
An Yiqing said, “Promise me first, don’t scream.”
Ye Shan’ge nodded but suddenly held her breath.
“A high-society lady, someone with a status similar to your cousin’s, wants me to follow her, offering fifty thousand a month.”
As soon as the words left her mouth, Ye Shan’ge opened her mouth as if to scream. An Yiqing was quick-witted, leaned over, and pressed a hand over it.
A pair of wide-open eyes was exposed.
An Yiqing only released her hand after Ye Shan’ge had calmed down a bit.
Ye Shan’ge immediately stood up, sat down beside her, and lowered her voice: “Isn’t that patronage? Who is it?”
“Let’s not mention the name,” An Yiqing didn’t want Xu Lingyin to be discussed.
Her gaze swept over An Yiqing’s face, and Ye Shan’ge let out a long sigh, drank a few more cups of water, and patted her chest.
She looked as if she needed oxygen.
Seeing her reaction, An Yiqing asked in a small voice: “If I agree, do I absolutely have to do ‘that kind of thing’?”
“It’s certainly not to pay you to be a figure and display you on a shelf,” Ye Shan’ge remarked sharply.
After saying that, she looked at An Yiqing in shock: “No way, A-Qing, are you seriously considering this? Are you short on money or do you like her? I’ll say this first, regardless of which it is, I don’t recommend you go for it.”
If she needed money, Ye Shan’ge would lend it to her.
If she liked the person, it was best not to start with this kind of relationship; it would make her very passive.
An Yiqing knew this.
She shook her head: “Neither.”
“Then what are you hesitating for? Just refuse,” Ye Shan’ge sighed lightly. “Don’t be afraid of offending people. They are all passersby, so what if you offend them? If she really comes looking for trouble, I’ll ask my cousin to help you smooth things over.”
An Yiqing nodded: “Xiao Shan, thank you.”
After dinner, Ye Shan’ge left for a distant trip again, dragging her suitcase, and An Yiqing drove her to the airport.
Before parting, Ye Shan’ge quietly cautioned: “A-Qing, if you want to give it a try with that person, you can, as long as you don’t hurt yourself.”
For a moment, An Yiqing really wanted to tell her friend everything.
But rationality told her not to speak.
She hadn’t been with Xu Lingyin for long, and the danger hadn’t stopped.
Ye Shan’ge was easily worried; wouldn’t she worry about her every day?
Smiling at her, An Yiqing agreed.
…
An Yiqing returned to the shopping mall where they had eaten, bought an architectural series Lego set, and drove back to Yunling Town.
Yunling Town was three hundred kilometers from Ningcheng, a four-hour drive.
An Yiqing only arrived home during dinner time.
Driving into the courtyard, as An Yiqing got out of the car, a round figure rushed over.
“Mommy, you’re finally home,” An Tingyu hugged An Yiqing’s leg.
She rubbed against her.
An Yiqing bent down and picked her up, presenting the Lego set.
The child’s attention was immediately captured; she kissed her passionately and excitedly dragged her aunt inside.
An Wan was cooking in the kitchen; hearing her voice, she peered out and criticized her for not saying anything before coming home, as she hadn’t prepared any special dishes.
Being able to eat her mother’s cooking, even a fully vegetarian meal was the most delicious.
While An Yiqing ate, all her worries vanished.
The three of them chatted about their recent lives while eating, for nearly an hour.
After tidying up, An Tingyu went back to her room to do homework, and An Wan turned on the TV and sat next to her daughter.
“Didn’t you say you’d come back for Qingming Festival last time?” An Wan asked.
An Yiqing smiled: “I missed eating Ms. An’s cooking, so I came back.”
“I’ll prepare something more extravagant tomorrow,” An Wan said.
After a moment of silence, An Wan continued: “Is living in the new place uncomfortable?”
“No,” An Yiqing immediately denied.
“Is the new roommate difficult to get along with?”
“No.”
“Are you in debt?”
An Yiqing couldn’t help but sigh: “Ms. An, please have a little more faith in your daughter.”
An Wan took a mirror and placed it in front of her.
The person in the mirror had her eyebrows furrowed, and the curve of her mouth was also quite unsightly.
An Yiqing rubbed her face.
“What problem has our little teacher An encountered? Tell me about it, and I’ll help you analyze it,” An Wan’s voice was gentle.
An Yiqing nervously pinched the hem of her clothes, looked at her mother, and quietly asked: “Mom, if I do something that reflects badly, will you be angry?”
An Wan’s eyebrows jumped, then she calmly uttered three words: “Tell me more.”
An Yiqing tried to keep her tone level: “A rich young lady wants to keep me.”