I'm Interested In Your Friend - Chapter 45
45
Several days had passed since the Yu family banquet.
Yu Lili propped her chin on her hand, recalling the scene from that day, still feeling a bit embarrassed. But she couldn’t help kicking her feet in joy, humming a little tune under her breath.
Before leaving that day, Tan Suran had taken the initiative to invite her out for a meal. Unfortunately, she had to go abroad for work again, with no definite return date.
But just thinking about Tan Suran’s calm and faintly uttered words—“Wait for me, I’ll come find you as soon as I’m back”—Yu Lili felt as if she had been injected with chicken bl00d, full of energy.
“Lili, stop being so happy,” Li Mi, sitting across from her workstation, walked over with a magazine in her arms, her face downcast.
Yu Lili looked up. “We just dealt with such a difficult person yesterday. Can’t I be happy today?”
Yesterday was the shoot for the December cover, featuring an international supermodel who had closed shows for Burberry.
Truly a super model—
Super tall, super thin, super tormenting…
Rumor had it that Olivia had pulled strings to get her.
The model had zero faith in Yu Lili, a young photographer, making communication extremely difficult. She demanded endless changes, nitpicking every little detail.
But the most infuriating part was—after Yu Lili had revised the photos five, six, seven, eight times according to her demands—
The supermodel squinted slightly, resting her elbow on her hand. “I think… the first version was better after all.”
What the hell? After all that, she still wanted the original version?!
Did the life of a small-time photographer not matter?!
Yu Lili, bleeding internally, finished the edits and sent them for review today, barely meeting the deadline. Only then did she get a bit of rest.
Li Mi sighed. “I just came out of Olivia’s office. She said… the set from yesterday can’t be used…”
“What?!” Yu Lili exclaimed.
“It’s because of the model…”
Yu Lili exhaled sharply. “If there’s something she’s not satisfied with, I’ll revise it, okay?”
“No, no…” Li Mi said. “It’s because that model took the opening cover for Fashion’s New Year issue. Due to exclusivity agreements, she can’t appear in another magazine for three months, so…”
“Huh?” Yu Lili was speechless. “This is just pure torture.”
“Lili, come here for a second,” Olivia’s voice came from behind.
Li Mi gave her a look. Olivia was definitely going to talk about the cover issue.
After leaving Olivia’s office, Yu Lili received two pieces of news:
The good news—she was granted an impromptu vacation.
The bad news—once a replacement model or celebrity was found for the December issue reshoot, she’d have to rush back to work.
With this hard-won break, Yu Lili invited Jian Sijia out to hang.
She didn’t even change her clothes, heading straight to where Jian Sijia was—a themed club with escape rooms, script murder games, and karaoke, right next to a nightclub.
Yu Lili walked in bare-faced. The girls sitting near the entrance frowned and asked, “Who are you?”
Their tone carried a hint of disdain.
In their circle, people weren’t judged by their faces first—it was clothes, watches, and bags.
Yu Lili’s entire outfit cost less than one of the girl’s earrings.
Yu Lili’s gaze swept past the girl and landed on Jian Sijia, sitting prominently in the center.
Before she could call out, Jian Sijia spotted her and excitedly jumped up, pulling her inside and offering her own seat.
That single action made the girl who had spoken earlier pale.
“Who is that?” she whispered to the person next to her.
“You don’t know? That’s Miss Yu from the Yu family. Her dad is the chairman of Taiwei Group.”
The girl’s face turned ashen as she went over to toast Yu Lili.
Yu Lili glanced at her lazily, grabbed a soda, and clinked it against the girl’s glass—signaling that the matter was over.
After playing for a while, someone suddenly leaned in. “Lili, I saw Yu Mu a while ago.”
Yu Lili didn’t respond.
Jian Sijia spoke up. “Where? She still dares to show her face?”
The person said, “Not in the country. My cousin works as a producer in Hollywood. I went to visit her and saw Yu Mu having dinner with a few people nearby. My cousin said one of them was a promising director. Is she trying to make it abroad now?”
Yu Lili’s expression remained indifferent. “I’m going to the restroom.”
Jian Sijia said, “Stop talking. Lili doesn’t like hearing this stuff.”
Yu Lili washed her hands at the sink, her thoughts briefly drifting to Yu Mu before she dismissed them.
What did it matter to her?
If Yu Mu wanted to struggle abroad, let her.
They wouldn’t have any connection in the future anyway.
The sound of water next to her snapped her out of her thoughts.
She looked up abruptly and froze slightly at the reflection in the mirror.
The person beside her was none other than the model who had given her endless trouble a few days ago—Du Qiang.
“Really? You followed me here?” Du Qiang sneered, reapplying her lipstick.
In her heart, she was certain this little photographer wasn’t part of the crowd that came here to have fun.
With a haughty tone, she said, “Consider this a lesson for you. The workplace is unpredictable—you need to be prepared for crises and unknowns. Now that we’ve met and talked, hurry back to work. Work hard to find a replacement, and everyone will be happy.”
Yu Lili shook the water off her hands, her eyelids half-lowered, not bothering to respond.
Du Qiang glanced at her and walked out on her high heels.
“Young Master Jian, have you been waiting long?” Du Qiang’s demeanor did a complete 180 as she smiled sweetly at a man in black not far away.
“Brother Siming.”
Before she could take two steps, a clear, soft voice called out from behind.
Du Qiang turned in surprise, seeing the little photographer from earlier address Young Master Jian so intimately.
“Lili, what are you doing here?” Jian Siming brushed past her, quickly walking toward the little photographer.
Du Qiang’s face paled.
Was this little photographer involved with Jian Siming?
“Just hanging out with Sijia.”
“You finally have time? Sijia’s always complaining at home that you’re too busy with work to even eat together.”
“Yeah, well, work had some issues, so my boss sent me home.”
Du Qiang’s heart pounded harder the more she listened.
Her initial assumption was overturned—these two seemed like old friends from influential families.
Someone who could be friends with Jian Siming definitely came from a powerful background. How could she just be an ordinary photographer at a small magazine?
“Sounds like you’ve been bullied. Tell me what happened.”
Du Qiang swallowed nervously, her eyes darting to Yu Lili.
This girl looked harmless, innocent.
Surely she wouldn’t expose her right here, right…?
Yu Lili smiled just as innocently. “Then I’ll have to trouble Brother Siming to ask… why that lady next to you is making things so difficult for me?”
Jian Siming’s gaze turned questioning as he looked at Du Qiang.
Du Qiang closed her eyes in despair, stumbling over her words as she tried to explain.
That same night, Du Qiang called Olivia to apologize.
“Olivia, I’ve already turned down Fashion. This was my agent’s fault—how could she do this? I had no idea.”
“No need,” Olivia said.
Du Qiang was stunned. “Huh?”
“We’ve already found someone to reshoot the December issue.”
—
The next day, Yu Lili arrived at the outdoor shoot location and said to the crew, “Olivia works fast. I thought I’d get a few more days off.”
“Yeah, and this team is super cooperative. They didn’t change a single thing from the last plan.”
“Who is it?”
“There she is.”
Yu Lili looked up.
“Hi, Lili!” Jiang Ruofu walked over with a sunny smile.
“Sister Ruofu? Why you?”
“Olivia mentioned you, so I came right away.”
“Don’t tease me. Weren’t you shooting for Pictorial?”
“Compared to Pictorial, of course you’re more important,” Jiang Ruofu said with a laugh, seeing Yu Lili’s disbelief. “Okay, okay, the truth is Pictorial reserved their opening cover for next year for me.”
“But I really came because of you. I’ve always liked your photos,” Jiang Ruofu added.
After the shoot, Jiang Ruofu walked up to Yu Lili. “Last time, I said I’d treat you to a meal but didn’t get the chance. Are you free tonight?”
Perfect—Yu Lili could subtly ask about “Little F.”
She pursed her lips and nodded. “I am.”
Jiang Ruofu naturally looped her arm through Yu Lili’s. “Honestly, after all these years abroad, what I miss most is the food back home.”
Yu Lili felt a bit awkward and tried to pull her arm away, but in the end, she let it be.
To an outsider, the two looked intimate as they walked out of the magazine office.
On the other side of the road, inside a silver Bentley, sat Tan Suran, who had just rushed back from abroad.
Her luggage was still in the trunk.
Assistant Lin, sitting in the passenger seat, hesitantly glanced at President Tan.
The moment they landed, Tan Suran hadn’t even gone home—she came straight to the magazine office to pick Yu Lili up after work.
But… Assistant Lin looked at the two people across the street.
A while ago, during a meal with Jiang Ruofu, Assistant Lin had been present.
When everyone jokingly brought up old times, mentioning that President Tan and Teacher Jiang were classmates, someone naturally asked if there had been anyone they liked back then.
Jiang Ruofu shook her head, but with a hint of regret in her voice, said, “If only I’d realized it sooner, that little photographer I met today might’ve been my wife by now.”
Everyone’s eyes widened. The deputy editor raised a glass, saying her timing had been terrible, ruining a potential match.
Jiang Ruofu sighed. “Yeah, what a shame.”
Assistant Lin had been stunned, immediately looking at President Tan’s expression.
She knew how President Tan felt about Miss Yu.
To outsiders, it might not seem like much, but to her—someone who had worked closely with President Tan for years—it was clear that President Tan cared deeply about Miss Yu.
Who would’ve thought Jiang Ruofu and Miss Yu had such history?
From Jiang Ruofu’s tone, it sounded like she was the “white moonlight.”
And the power of a white moonlight was undeniable.
Now, seeing the two arm-in-arm, leaving work for a date…
Assistant Lin didn’t even dare imagine President Tan’s mood.
To make matters worse, the CFO was spamming her on DingTalk, demanding to report to President Tan.
The atmosphere in the car was icy.
Gritting her teeth, Assistant Lin spoke up. “President Tan?”
Tan Suran didn’t respond, only shifting her gaze over.
One look, and Assistant Lin felt like she was about to ascend to the heavens.
“Should I go call Miss Yu?”
“No.”
Tan Suran lowered her eyes. “Back to the office.”
Halfway there, Assistant Lin finally recovered enough to reply to the CFO: President Tan will be at the office in ten minutes.
The CFO: Thank you, thank you.
After a pause, Assistant Lin added:
Pray for yourself.
—
At Huanyu Tech, the entire company was enveloped in a low-pressure atmosphere.
The CFO slammed reports on the table, berating the accounting team for their mistakes.
How could such a simple task go wrong?
Now, thanks to them, she had been ruthlessly criticized by President Tan.
Even now, remembering President Tan’s icy glare sent chills down her spine.
Colder than the heart of her cousin, who had been killing fish at Darunfa for ten years.
In the top-floor office, Tan Suran wore silver-framed glasses as she meticulously reviewed the user data analysis report for the new product.
Her expression was unreadable.
As if everything was normal.
Two minutes later, the screen went dark.
She leaned back in her chair, massaging her temples with a frown.
Opening WeChat, a long-dormant group chat with her classmates had a new notification.
Against her better judgment, she clicked in.
Wang Xu: @Jiang Ruofu, are you back in the country? Just saw someone who looked exactly like you on the second floor of IFC.
Jiang Ruofu: Not just looks like—it’s me.
A flood of requests for photos and autos followed.
Wang Xu: Haha, if I post this in your fan group, how much do you think I can make?
Jiang Ruofu: Red packet
Jiang Ruofu: Hush money [smirk][smirk]
Wang Xu: Wow, big red packet. Is that your little admirer from high school sitting across from you? So tender and cute—looks like her cheeks could be squeezed for water.
Oho, something’s going on.
Oho, something’s going on.
Wang Xu’s message stirred up the group, with everyone joining in the teasing.
Tan Suran’s finger hovered over the exit button but didn’t press it.
Silently waiting for Jiang Ruofu’s response.
Jiang Ruofu: ……
Jiang Ruofu: Guys, don’t joke around…
Jing Taotao: Such a formal response.
Wang Xu: No need to ask—clearly something’s up, but she won’t tell us…
Jiang Ruofu: ……
Jing Taotao: Got it. So this is a silent admission.
Yoohoo.
One teasing message after another flashed before Tan Suran’s eyes.
Her temples throbbed.
Without thinking, she pushed open the office door and strode out.
By the time she regained her senses, she was already at the entrance of IFC.
Staring at her reflection in the glass doors, Tan Suran took a deep breath and stepped inside.
At the same time, she dialed Yu Lili’s number.
It rang about five times before being picked up.
Yu Lili’s voice came through the receiver: “Hmm? Tan Suran!”
Her tone was as lively and sweet as ever.
As if nothing had changed.
Their relationship had indeed grown closer.
They could be considered intimate friends.
Tan Suran’s mood lifted slightly. “Where are you now?”
“I’m at IFC.”
“Are you free? Let’s have dinner together.”
Yu Lili hesitated. “Ah…”
Tan Suran: “Is it inconvenient?”
Yu Lili: “No, no… it’s just, I’ve already eaten and was about to head home. How about tomorrow?”
“Then keep me company for a bit?” Tan Suran’s fingers traced the matte surface of her phone case. “…If you’re with another friend and it’s awkward, forget it.”
Yu Lili instinctively glanced at Jiang Ruofu across the table. “No… no, no, I’m alone. But, well, I still have some work to finish, so I need to rush back…”
Her words trailed off as she locked eyes with Tan Suran, who was standing outside the glass wall, phone in hand.
……
……
The high-performance car sped into the night.
Tan Suran floored the accelerator, heading straight for the racing club.
Lap after lap around the mountain track.
By the last round, even her opponent was leaning against the car door, legs weak. “I can’t do this anymore, Sister Tan. My heart’s about to jump out of my throat.”
The door of the fiery red sports car opened, revealing long legs, followed by a frosty expression.
Tan Suran removed her helmet and tossed it aside carelessly.
“Bad mood today?” the club owner asked.
“Got any alcohol?” Tan Suran looked up.
—
“What about the girl you brought last time? Did you break up?” The club owner grinned, ready for gossip.
Tan Suran leaned back on the sofa, lighting a cigarette coldly. She didn’t respond.
“Heartbroken?” the owner pressed.
Tan Suran took a drag and exhaled slowly. “I just… like to dream the impossible.”
The owner chuckled.
From behind the counter, he pulled out Tan Suran’s vibrating phone and tossed it to her. “Up to you whether you answer.”
The caller ID read Lili.
Tan Suran’s thumb hovered over the screen.
Hesitating.
Two or three seconds later.
The vibration stopped.
The battery died, and the phone shut off automatically.
The owner: “What a coincidence.”
“Dreams are just that—dreams. We’re adults. In this world, no one gets their happily ever after.”
The bitter liquor burned her throat.
Tan Suran rested her slender wrist against her forehead.
Dreams…
Would they never come true?
—
For the next few days, Tan Suran and Yu Lili maintained an unspoken truce.
Neither reached out to the other.
The entire Huanyu office operated under the oppressive mood of its top executive.
Walking on thin ice, terrified of the slightest misstep.
The once-bustling break room only occasionally regained half its former liveliness—usually when some major gossip broke.
Like today.
“Yu Mu actually made a comeback…”
“Holy crap, have you seen her new movie? Produced by a Hollywood producer, directed by rising Chinese talent Li Yan—it’s getting rave reviews at film festivals.”
“Seriously? It’s just a 20-minute short. Is it really that good? Weren’t her scandals everywhere a while ago? I thought she’d been blacklisted.”
“Twenty minutes? Great films aren’t measured by runtime. I cried watching it yesterday. Yu Mu’s story is tragic.”
“Yeah, this is the first time I’ve been impressed by her acting. Those 20 minutes put her miles ahead of her peers.”
“But what I’m more curious about is—was that interview real? Is the movie based on her real life? Adopted, then abandoned? Evil adoptive parents and an evil sister?”
“Yes! After watching it, I felt so bad for Yu Mu. Her adoptive parents are monsters. And that wicked sister…”
“It’s true! Netizens are terrifying—they’ve already dug it up. The family runs a major company in our city. Tai… Tai-something Group. The sister’s kinda interesting—half in the entertainment industry, working as a photographer. Before her identity was exposed, she’d already been subtly bullying Yu Mu…”
“But if the adoptive family’s so powerful, what can us ordinary netizens do?”
“Who says we can’t do anything? Their company’s stock already hit the limit down today. Billions evaporated. Some brave souls have already protested outside their offices, throwing eggs… Rumor has it the chairman was ambushed on his way out and had to take emergency leave.”
“Hey, which magazine does Yu Mu’s sister work at aga—Pre… President Tan?!” The gossiping employee’s face drained of color as she fled with her cup.
The others looked up and saw the big boss in the corner.
Instantly, the break room emptied.
Assistant Lin followed Tan Suran, stealing a glance at her expression.
Ever since that day when they’d gone to pick up Yu Lili only to find her gone, she’d had no idea what President Tan was thinking.
Now, she didn’t dare speak recklessly.
“Have PR control the narrative. Sue anyone leaking personal information.”
Without waiting for Assistant Lin’s response, Tan Suran hurried toward her office.
It took Assistant Lin a few seconds to realize President Tan was talking about the Yu Mu situation. “Understood.”
Tan Suran pulled out her phone and skimmed the online chatter.
The employees’ gossip was true.
Seven trending hashtags were about Yu Mu, the movie, and the Yu family.
Closing the browser, Tan Suran dialed another number.
“Olivia, is Yu Lili in the office?”
“She’s not doing well. She took leave. Is something wrong, President Tan?”
“Nothing.” Tan Suran hung up.
“Assistant Lin, reschedule the meeting to… No, have Philip lead it. Email me the minutes later.” Tan Suran grabbed her keys and left the office.
She drove straight to Yu Lili’s apartment.
When she reached the elevator, it was already ascending.
A three-minute wait.
Tan Suran couldn’t even wait that long.
She pushed open the stairwell door and climbed up.
At the same time, she tried calling Yu Lili.
Perhaps because netizens had doxxed Yu Lili’s number, her phone was off.
Knock, knock, knock.
“It’s me.”
After a pause, footsteps approached from inside. A cautious voice asked, “Tan Suran?”
“Yes, it’s me.”
The door creaked open a crack, revealing Yu Lili’s flustered face.
“Are you okay?”
“I—I’m fine.” Yu Lili’s eyes darted away.
She stood blocking the doorway, as if unwilling to let her in.
“Good. Then I’ll…”
A scraping sound came from inside—a chair being moved.
Yu Lili tensed further, her hands twisting together.
Tan Suran glanced past her into the room, but Yu Lili blocked her view.
As if someone was inside.
As if she didn’t want her to see.
Tan Suran’s lips curled into a self-deprecating smile.
“It’s fine. I’ll go.”
Yu Lili waved from the doorway. “Yeah, yeah. Bye, bye.”
The door slammed shut.
The sound seemed to shatter Tan Suran’s heart.
The urgency she’d felt upon hearing Yu Lili was in trouble—dropping everything to rush over—
Had turned into a blade.
It wasn’t that Yu Lili didn’t need comfort.
She just didn’t need her comfort.
Tan Suran rubbed her fingers together, her expression bleak.
She turned to leave.
“Tan Suran!”
Yu Lili’s voice called out from behind the door.
Tan Suran froze.
Her mood was low, her eyelids half-lowered.
Her voice was cold. “What?”
The moment she asked, she hated herself.
Tan Suran, why haven’t you left yet?
Behind the door, Yu Lili took a deep breath—so loud it could be heard through the wood.
Her fingers knotted, her legs trembled.
“Um, um!”
“Tan Suran.”
“Will you…”
“Marry me?”