Dating My Ex After Breaking Up - Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Xiao Qing was one of the managers at AFN Group, in charge of the company’s finances. She could be said to hold the financial power of the company, second only to the president. Every department needed her approval for funding.

Moreover, she was not only strict about project budgets but also reviewed the attendance of each department at the end of the month. People in the company privately called her the Great Demon Xiao.

Shen Zhirou and Zhao Tongtong had, of course, heard of her reputation. However, neither of them had much interaction with Manager Xiao. Still, they felt it was not appropriate to chat casually in the presence of a company leader.

With a “ding” from the elevator, it stopped on the 11th floor. Shen Zhirou and Zhao Tongtong politely said goodbye to Xiao Qing before stepping out of the elevator.

After stepping out, Zhao Tongtong let out a heavy sigh of relief. “My goodness, no wonder she’s called the Great Demon Xiao. Her presence is so strong, I didn’t even dare to speak just now.”

Zhao Tongtong supported Shen Zhirou as they walked out, grumbling and complaining to her.

Shen Zhirou pursed her lips and smiled. Her clear eyes blinked, as if she thought her friend was exaggerating. She spoke up to defend Xiao Qing: “It’s not as exaggerated as you say. I think Manager Xiao is pretty nice, dignified, and imposing. She’s someone I look up to.”

“You, always like this, thinking everyone is pretty nice.” Zhao Tongtong shook her head with a laugh. Her friend had too good a temper, always showing a friendly smile to everyone. She had never heard Shen Zhirou speak ill of anyone.

They arrived early, and there were hardly any people at the workstations on the 11th floor. Their department was an office one, usually handling corporate culture or some less important documents. The work was easy, and the atmosphere was good. In the mornings, people usually browsed the work WeChat group, then slacked off with pay. Only in the afternoon did they slowly start working. This was also why their department had the lowest base salary in the group.

It wasn’t a core department and didn’t involve the market, just producing materials. So, there were no opportunities to earn bonuses. However, the staff in the department were much friendlier than in other departments because there was no competition for core interests. Most people were basically just coasting along.

Shen Zhirou logged into her work WeChat on her computer, went to the break room to make herself a cup of black tea, and returned to her desk. After thinking for a moment, she opened her personal WeChat, where the pinned contact was none other than Lu Yao’s name.

Shen Zhirou’s red lips pursed slightly, and the tips of her ears gradually flushed pink. Her slender fingers lightly tapped a few times, changing Lu Yao’s contact name to “Yao Yao.” After some thought, Shen Zhirou also changed the name in her phone’s contacts to Yao Yao and set Lu Yao as her emergency contact.

After doing this, Shen Zhirou opened her chat with Lu Yao and typed a few lines.

“I drove to the company. Are you busy? Remember to eat breakfast.”

When Shen Zhirou finished typing, her heart felt warm. Thinking about how close they were last night, she figured Lu Yao would find time to reply to her message.

She didn’t have much to do these days, just two brief reports to complete. So, she spent almost the entire morning staring at her phone. Unfortunately, as time ticked by, Shen Zhirou didn’t receive a reply from Lu Yao.

At one point, her phone lit up, and Shen Zhirou quickly opened WeChat to check the message. It wasn’t from Lu Yao but from her mother, Ning Jianfang.

“Zhirou, Mom found someone to introduce you to another match. This time it’s a guy, a returnee from abroad, working in finance with an annual salary of over 700,000. He has a house and a car in Jiangbei City, and his parents are both employed. Though his conditions aren’t as good as Lu Yao’s, they’re not bad. When are you free this week? You two should meet.”

Shen Zhirou sighed and typed a reply on her phone.

“Mom, I’m already with Lu Yao. We’re still getting used to each other, so I didn’t tell you. Tell them there’s no need to introduce anyone to me.”

Shen Zhirou hit send. She didn’t like the blind dates her mother arranged, but the hardships of her childhood made her crave family ties. So, even though she knew her mother’s arrangements had ulterior motives, she still accepted them willingly.

Thankfully, what made her happy was that she had met Lu Yao.

On the other side, Ning Jianfang was nagging to Kang Yunheng: “What are we going to do with Zhirou? She’s 28 and still not in a rush to get married. How will she find a good family later? How will we get a bride price?”

Kang Yunheng was stunned for a moment and looked at his wife. “Wait, isn’t Jiangbei City not big on bride prices? Just find a good person for Zhirou. This child has had it tough.”

As her stepfather, Kang Yunheng actually felt quite guilty about Shen Zhirou and Shen Yumian. After all, they had left the two children with their biological grandmother, only sending tuition and living expenses each year. They barely took care of them. It was only now that the two girls had grown up and could take care of themselves that his wife started reconnecting with them.

Who would’ve thought this comment would set Ning Jianfang off? She slammed her phone on the coffee table, her face full of displeasure. Her freshly permed short curls bounced with her movements as she pointed at Kang Yunheng and scolded: “Now you’re acting like the good guy? Let me ask you, when the kids were young, why didn’t you say anything about bringing them to live with us? Now you’re washing your hands of it? Have you earned enough money for our son to buy a house in Jiangbei City? He’s already in college. He’ll need money for work and marriage later. Can you earn that much money?”

Seeing her husband lower his head in silence, Ning Jianfang’s anger flared even more. She continued to scold: “If I don’t get a bride price, your son will starve! Everything I do is for this family. When Zhirou gets married, the bride price will be an income. When Yumian gets married, that’s another income. If we save up, we can get enough for a down payment for our son. Plus, the two sisters can help their brother later. What’s wrong with that? And here you are, playing the good guy. If you’re so great, don’t touch a single cent of the bride price!”

Kang Yunheng, thoroughly scolded, slunk back to his room.

The reason Ning Jianfang divorced Shen Zhirou’s father, Shen Hongxing, was because their tempers clashed. Both were explosive, arguing at the slightest disagreement, neither willing to back down. In the end, they divorced. Ning Jianfang chose Kang Yunheng because he was soft-spoken, didn’t argue with her, and turned a blind eye to her favoritism toward her family. So, she stayed with him.

As expected, Kang Yunheng couldn’t win this argument either. Ning Jianfang smugly picked up her phone, ready to persuade her daughter again, since the overseas returnee’s family was willing to offer a 200,000 bride price.

She grabbed the phone from the coffee table, her eyes gleaming with excitement, and quickly replied.

“Zhirou, you’re amazing! When did this happen? Why didn’t you tell Mom? You must bring Lu Yao home sometime so Mom can meet her.”

Shen Zhirou saw her phone light up a while later. Though she was prepared that it probably wasn’t Lu Yao, her heart still raced. As expected, it was her mother’s reply. She glanced at it, sighed, and responded.

“Lu Yao is busy with work and doesn’t have time for this. Maybe later. I have work to do, so I’ll stop here.”

Ning Jianfang didn’t care about her daughter’s distant tone and immediately replied: “Alright, alright, Mom won’t bother you. Get along well with Lu Yao and try to get married this year.”

After sending this, Ning Jianfang’s joy was uncontainable. She went to the bedroom to boast to Kang Yunheng: “No need to find more matches for Zhirou. Our Zhirou is capable—she’s got Lu Yao! I settled it with the matchmaker back then: a 300,000 bride price, not a cent less. This is great! Who cares about that returnee? He’s only offering 200,000—stingy as hell. Lu Yao’s family knows what’s up.”

“Hmph, I bet whoever offers more is the one who ‘knows what’s up,’” Kang Yunheng muttered under his breath, not daring to say it loudly.

Ning Jianfang glared at him, eyebrows raised. “What did you say? Muttering like that—what’s wrong? If you’ve got something to say, say it out loud. Don’t mumble and make people annoyed.”

“Nothing. I’ve got to drive this afternoon. It’s about time, so I’m heading out.” Kang Yunheng didn’t want to get dragged into it further. He quickly grabbed his taxi keys and left, leaving Ning Jianfang smugly at home. Lu Yao seemed to be some kind of executive, and Ning Jianfang thought that once they were family, Lu Yao could help her brother’s kid find a good job.

Meanwhile, Shen Zhirou had no idea about her mother’s series of plans. It was already past 11, and Lu Yao still hadn’t replied to her morning message. Shen Zhirou’s fingers lightly tapped on her desk, and she typed another message in her chat with Lu Yao.

“Still busy? Remember to eat lunch.”

The message was sent, but it sank without a response.

Zhao Tongtong came over to invite her to the cafeteria for lunch, teasing: “You’ve been staring at your phone all morning. What’s going on? A woman in love?”

A fleeting look of loneliness passed through Shen Zhirou’s eyes, but only for a moment. She smiled and explained for Lu Yao, who hadn’t replied: “She’s very busy with work. She probably didn’t see my message. Let’s go eat.”

“Is Xinqu Construction Group that busy? Alright, let’s not talk about her. Let’s go eat.” Zhao Tongtong energetically pulled Shen Zhirou toward the elevator.

The people at the workstations gradually finished their morning slacking and headed to the cafeteria one by one.