The Green Tea Supporting Girl Is Still Playing Her Role Today (GL) - Chapter 10

Chapter 10

As the elevator doors started to close, a hand reached out, stopping them. Wen Pinghan stepped out slowly, standing in front of her, silently gazing at her.

Xie Zhifei’s eyes curved with a smile. “Hey, what a coincidence, sis! Who’re you looking for?”

Wen Pinghan stared at her, unmoving. “Looking for Ms. Xie.”

“Oh, what a coincidence.” Xie Zhifei fidgeted with her fingers. “I’m probably the Ms. Xie you’re looking for, right?”

Wen Pinghan’s expression shifted slightly. She had a thousand questions she wanted to ask, but seeing Xie Zhifei’s tired face, the words caught in her throat. All she managed was a dry, “Have you eaten dinner?”

“Hm?” Xie Zhifei blinked, surprised, then admitted honestly, “Not yet. Just had some snacks to tide me over.”

“Would Ms. Xie do me the honor of joining me for dinner?” Wen Pinghan asked.

“Oh, spare me! Stop with the ‘Ms. Xie’ stuff. Just call me by my name—or ‘sister’ works too. Aren’t I your sworn sister or something?” Xie Zhifei said, trailing behind Wen Pinghan like a kid who’d done something wrong as they entered the elevator together.

The elevator descended. Wen Pinghan stood near the door, silence hanging between them like a quiet night on Cambridge’s bridge.

As it went down, people from other floors got on. Strangers, but they couldn’t help stealing glances at the two stunning women before casually looking away, their eyes glinting with curious excitement.

The elevator grew crowded, forcing Xie Zhifei to retreat to the corner.

Then a familiar face stepped in.

“Big Sis Han! Didn’t you leave ages ago? Why’re you still here?” Lin Zhimin spotted Wen Pinghan immediately and sidled up to chat.

Wen Pinghan didn’t respond. Lin Zhimin pressed on, “Didn’t find Ms. Xie? Makes sense—she’s probably super busy. You might not get to see her, and even if you did, she might not have time to waste on you.”

Wen Pinghan shot her a sideways glance. Lin Zhimin, oblivious to the hint, kept going. “Did you give her the chocolate?”

“What chocolate?”

A voice came from behind as someone squeezed through. Lin Zhimin turned, her face paling. “M-Ms. Xie-Xie-Xie…”

“You’re welcome.” Xie Zhifei gave her a small smile, then turned to Wen Pinghan’s profile. “What chocolate? I didn’t get any.”

Wen Pinghan turned her head, her nose nearly brushing Xie Zhifei’s cheek. Before she could speak, the elevator dinged. She grabbed Xie Zhifei’s arm and pulled her out.

Lin Zhimin, left behind, was dumbfounded, screaming internally: Big Sis Han, you grabbed the wrong person! That’s Ms. Xie! I’m right here!

At the restaurant, Xie Zhifei finished ordering and eyed the bag next to Wen Pinghan, eagerly asking, “Where’s the chocolate?”

Wen Pinghan opened her bag, took out a box of Godiva chocolate, and placed it in front of her.

She’d worried whether the mysterious Ms. Xie would like it, but it was the best small gift she could think of—grateful without being ingratiating. Now, knowing it was Xie Zhifei, she was sure she’d love it. At the convenience store, Xie Zhifei had bought chocolate multiple times.

“Wow, I love it. Thank you!” Xie Zhifei beamed, accepting the gift.

“When did you know I was your employee?” Wen Pinghan asked suddenly.

“Uh… probably the day I started,” Xie Zhifei said, a bit guilty.

“So you got my number from my employee file?”

“Yeah.” Xie Zhifei nodded, her head dipping lower.

“Then why didn’t you ever mention it? Did you think it was fun to keep it from me?”

“No, I was just too busy and didn’t know how to bring it up. If I suddenly told you I’m your boss, wouldn’t that feel like I was showing off?”

Wen Pinghan pictured it. It did seem a bit like gloating.

“And I was worried if you knew I was your boss, you’d feel pressured and stop hanging out with me.”

Wen Pinghan thought about it again. That was possible too. They weren’t that close, and if she’d known Xie Zhifei was her big boss, she probably wouldn’t have casually eaten instant noodles with her at a convenience store.

…Oh no, she’d actually invited her boss to eat instant noodles at a convenience store!

Wen Pinghan quietly sucked in a breath.

Xie Zhifei cautiously glanced at her, not mentioning the real reason: in the story, Wen Pinghan was supposed to leave Qisheng for Gu Zhizhang’s company. If it was for career growth, Xie Zhifei didn’t want to interfere with her choice.

They’d still see each other often anyway. Not being boss and employee didn’t matter—being friends or sisters was nice, even more relaxed.

“So, did you know I sent the anonymous email from the start?” Wen Pinghan asked.

“I only found out after you used your real name.”

Wen Pinghan went quiet for a moment, then asked, “So even if the email came from some unknown person who might’ve been pranking, you still prepared for what came next?”

“I was just doing what I should,” Xie Zhifei said, sipping her lemonade, her face scrunching up. “So sour.”

Wen Pinghan couldn’t help but laugh at her sudden expression, urging the waiter to bring their drinks.

During dinner, Xie Zhifei ate quickly. After finishing, she set down her chopsticks and asked, “Did you stay late just to thank me?”

“Yeah.”

“Waiting this long?”

Wen Pinghan paused, meeting her gaze for a few seconds before saying, “Not exactly waiting for you. Just working late.”

“Working late? You’d have a hard time catching me then, since you didn’t know when I’d leave,” Xie Zhifei said with a sly smile. “Unless you were camped out by the elevator—or riding it up and down the whole time. Which one? The former or the latter?”

“…” Wen Pinghan gave her an embarrassed glance, lowered her head to eat, and mumbled, “The latter.”

Xie Zhifei’s smile grew wider, her mood brightening. “Next time, don’t wait. Just send me a WeChat, and I’ll come find you.”

“No way I’d trouble Ms. Xie like that.”

“Don’t be so formal.” Xie Zhifei laughed, locking eyes with her. “Give me your hand.”

“For what?”

Wen Pinghan held out her hand, puzzled. Xie Zhifei took a bracelet from her bag and fastened it on her wrist.

“Like it?” Xie Zhifei asked with a grin.

Wen Pinghan looked at the white crystal bracelet.

“Why give me this?”

“It’s for warding off bad vibes. May you never run into creeps again,” Xie Zhifei said, clasping Wen Pinghan’s hand in both of hers and rubbing it gently. “There, I’ve passed my good luck to you. Whenever you see this hand, you’ll know it carries the luck from me, Xie Zhifei, a filthy rich woman.”

Wen Pinghan slowly curled her fingers, amused. “Are you worried I’ll be traumatized?”

Xie Zhifei’s smile faltered. She studied Wen Pinghan’s expression, then chuckled. “Guess I was overthinking.”

“No…” Wen Pinghan pulled her hand back, placing it under the table, touching the bracelet with a faint smile. “Thank you. I really like it.”

“Good, as long as you like it.”

Wen Pinghan looked up at her bright, clear smile, pushing down a flicker of doubt.

Ever since learning about Xie Zhifei’s connection to Gu Zhizhang, she’d put them both on her “up to no good” list, just behind Wu Fangda. But compared to him, she was less wary of Xie Zhifei. Even if Xie Zhifei was deliberately getting close or using her, it was likely just for that guy, Gu Zhizhang.

She didn’t know much about Gu Zhizhang and had no plans to date, so as long as it didn’t hurt her, their romantic entanglements were none of her business.

Her feelings toward Xie Zhifei were complicated.

Sometimes, she thought Xie Zhifei was pretending to be naive to get close. Other times, her carefree nature seemed too genuine to be an act. And sometimes, she felt like someone she could casually chat with over instant noodles at a convenience store…

But now, she decided to let go of all her suspicions and defenses, asking sincerely, “Ms. Xie, are we friends?”

Xie Zhifei looked at her, at a loss for words.

Wen Pinghan gazed back, waiting for her answer, a hint of nervousness beneath her calm demeanor—an odd feeling.

“Aren’t we already?!” Xie Zhifei said, exasperated. “I thought we were friends from the first time we met! I drank from your water bottle, you know my measurements.”

“…?” Wen Pinghan’s eyes widened slowly. “When did I ever know your measurements?”

“The T-shirt you lent me fit perfectly!”

“It was a standard size!”

“Oh.” Xie Zhifei blinked, sipped her orange juice, and said elegantly, “34, 24, 34. Now you know.”

“…”

Who asked for your measurements?!

“Seriously, don’t just tell me that,” Wen Pinghan said.

“Why not?” Xie Zhifei blinked, confused.

“Because I’ll get jealous,” Wen Pinghan said through gritted teeth.