Wait, I Got in the Wrong Car (GL) - Chapter 11

Hearing Yu Xuan’s firm tone, Lou Anran instead grew curious. Since the bracelet had been hanging on her wrist, she had fiddled with it countless times, examining each bead one by one. Setting aside professional judgments of the tridacna’s quality and flaws, she had never seen anything special about any of them.

And Yu Xuan identified it from just one bead?

Could one of them bear some unique mark from a child?

The thought excited Lou Anran. She quietly noted which bead Yu Xuan had touched and planned to study it later. “Miss Yu, you are still so young, yet your memory seems not so reliable.”

Yu Xuan hated it when others questioned her memory, yet she needed to extract information from Lou Anran. Anger simmered as she forced a smile. “It seems I share the same interests as your little one. How about arranging a time for tea and a chat about jade and stones? I happen to have several bracelets of tridacna similar to the one you own. We could exchange insights together. Surely President Lou would not begrudge me that?”

Lou Anran looked troubled. “Apologies. Unfortunately, the little one recently developed a skin allergy.”

Yu Xuan ground her teeth. This Lou Anran was far from easy to deal with. She neither refused nor agreed, merely tossed out an excuse about illness to brush her off. How shameless.

She lifted her glass and took a slow sip of champagne, her brows knitting together in thought. “A skin allergy? Is it serious? If President Lou does not mind, you could let me see her. What you do not know is that my family has an ancestral ointment passed down for generations, specifically for skin allergies. Just apply it gently, and the cure is guaranteed.”

Lou Anran accepted a glass of champagne and toasted her lightly. “Miss Yu, worthy of your title as a queen of music. The way you speak is unlike ordinary people. Anyone else could not have turned such a blatant advertisement into such moving and lyrical words.”

Pfft.

Chu Shu choked violently on her sip of champagne, coughing as her eyes watered. She glanced up and met Yu Xuan’s furious gaze, then quickly turned aside, her shoulders trembling as she tried to stifle her reaction. She could not afford to provoke her.

Did her boss just call her a crosstalk comedian?

Yu Xuan snapped a nail in half, her forced smile twisting into something grotesque. “President Lou certainly has a sense of humor. Since it is inconvenient, then we must leave it to fate. I believe I will soon meet your little one.”

Damn humans.

Lou Anran’s smile carried a trace of smugness. She had already secured the little one within her grasp. Even she herself had not enjoyed much time alone with her yet, and now Yu Xuan dared to fight her for her?

Absolutely not.

“President Lou.”

“Miss Yu, is there more?”

Yu Xuan’s gaze lingered on the bl00d-red tridacna as her lips curled in a sly smile, no longer the terrifying, predatory look from before. “President Lou, do you know what tridacna represents to us?”

Lou Anran instinctively asked, “What?”

Yu Xuan smirked. “For many, such a bracelet may seem a priceless treasure. But in our family, these little beads are everywhere. I have a youngest sister who has always loved colorful things. Every year, she brings many home. By the way, did President Lou ever play marbles as a child?”

Lou Anran’s face remained cold. “No.”

Yu Xuan sighed in mock pity. “What a shame. My Xiao Wu loves tossing little stones. When she grows tired of them, she discards them carelessly. To her, even a bracelet like the one you own is nothing more than a toy, just for play.”

Chu Shu sucked in a breath.

So there were beads of every color?

Thrown around like pebbles?

Then could someone please send her a truckload of these toys?

Lou Anran’s smile vanished completely. “To her, this is nothing more than a toy?”

Yu Xuan gave a cunning grin. “Yes. She discards them whenever she loses interest. It is nothing unusual. Oh dear, listen to me rambling. Seeing these stones reminded me of my Xiao Wu. Please forgive me, President Lou. Until next time.”

Chu Shu watched the foxy Yu Xuan strut away proudly, her hips swaying with triumph. When she turned, she saw her own boss radiating a deadly chill as cold as the arctic. She rubbed her nose helplessly. Her peaceful days were over again.

As expected, once they returned home, the sound of shattering echoed from Lou Anran’s study. Chu Shu waited outside until the timing felt safe before bringing in tea, only to see a familiar string of beads roll to a stop at her feet.

Chu Shu: …

Was this a case of love turning to hate?

Lou Anran had torn off the bracelet in a rage and flung it away, but the instant it left her hand, she regretted it. She stood abruptly and came face to face with Chu Shu, frozen like a post.

“Get out.”

Chu Shu glanced at the tridacna lying quietly on the rug, then carefully at her boss’s thunderous expression. She reasoned that aside from family squabbles, only the little beauty could stir such turmoil in her boss’s heart.

She circled the desk, placed the fresh tea on it, and said, “The little beauty is right next door. As neighbors, should we not show some friendliness? Boss, why not invite her over for a cup of tea?”

Lou Anran’s red lips parted. “Get out.”

Chu Shu quickly rolled away to the spot where the bl00d-red tridacna had landed. She paused. “Boss, may I take this with me?”

Lou Anran hurled a bookend at her. “Get far away from me!”

…

Days later, Ni Xinyu nearly kicked Chu Shu when she suddenly appeared sneakily from a corner. “What are you doing creeping about at midnight? Have you switched to being a thief?”

Chu Shu pleaded, “Sister Ni, save me.”

After hearing her string of complaints, Ni Xinyu sneered. “So your boss is in a bad mood and now wants to vent on my Xiao Yu’er? What a joke.”

She ignored her and opened her car door to leave.

Chu Shu clung to the door desperately. “Do not, Sister Ni. Think about it. If that fox Yu Xuan finds out her sister was taken into Anchen Entertainment, she will come storming in. And she is only a step away from finding out.”

In gossip, Yu Xuan had seemed soft and harmless. Reality delivered a hard slap. Chu Shu’s eyes shone like stars as she almost bowed in worship. “Only someone powerful like you, Sister Ni, can fight that fox spirit three times over.”

Ni Xinyu crossed her arms, amused by the performance. “It is a pity you never went to drama school. Studying business was a waste. I was almost moved by your performance. Keep going.”

Chu Shu faltered, pouted, and glared at her resentfully. “If you will not help, at least do not mock me.”

Ni Xinyu leaned on her car window with a laugh. “Little one, you were right about one thing. That green-tea fox can only be handled by me. For the sake of our united front, I suppose I can let my Xiao Yu’er comfort your idiotic boss.”

Chu Shu nearly wept in gratitude, close to kneeling in thanks. “Wonderful. The boss is saved.”

…

With her own fish tank at last, Mo Ying lost herself in it daily, waking and dozing in the bathtub. A week slipped by in this dull routine until the nourishment from the concert was finally consumed. Only then did she remember her “work.”

Ni Xinyu laughed at her request. “Sweetheart, do not worry. For half a month, I must build your momentum. You need only wait.”

Mo Ying tilted her head. “What does build momentum mean?”

Meanwhile, Miao Jin had assumed that by cutting off Mo Ying’s livestreams, she could pressure her into submission. She never expected that while she was away, Mo Ying would simply vanish without a trace.

Just like how she had arrived.

If not for the livestream equipment and that golden pearl left behind, she might have thought their ten days together had been nothing more than a dream. A dream without a trace once she woke.

Yet the audience did not see it that way. As Mo Ying’s livestream absence lengthened, speculation grew rampant. Conspiracies stacked high and remained pinned in the hottest threads.

Ni Xinyu worked tirelessly each day, not only handling Mo Ying’s affairs but also reclaiming her rightful livestream earnings from Miao Jin, along with social media accounts that had been run under Mo Ying’s name.

Through this, Ni Xinyu realized just how naive Mo Ying was. She was a complete blank slate. She did not even possess the most basic tool of modern life, a phone.

Ni Xinyu could not decide whether to admire Miao Jin’s cunning or pity Mo Ying’s foolishness. The Xiao Yu’er had been completely under someone else’s control, with no freedom at all.

Fortunately, Xiao Ai provided great help. She taught Mo Ying daily, hand over hand, how to use her uncoordinated fingers to tap on a phone. Luckily, the little mermaid was clever and learned quickly.

One day, Mo Ying suddenly received a new contact on WeChat. The name card displayed a single character in black and white. After puzzling over it, she realized it was the word Lou.

She did not dwell on it long, because Ni Xinyu soon sent her a voice message. Mo Ying held the phone carefully to her ear, listening intently. “This is the boss’s contact. Add it. Do not ask Xiao Ai for help.”

Eager to practice her new skills, Mo Ying replied with her own voice message. “I can do it.”

She followed Xiao Ai’s steps and added the contact, even introducing herself, “Your good employee, Xiao Yu’er.”

Lou Anran was attending a video conference overseas, her hands resting calmly across her stomach, when her phone began to buzz again and again. She reached for it to silence the notifications, but the screen filled with requests.

• Your good employee, Xiao Yu’er.
• Your cute and beautiful employee, Xiao Yu’er.
• Sings so well, cute and beautiful Xiao Yu’er.

…

Scrolling upward, every single message was from Xiao Yu’er, each one more extravagant than the last. Lou Anran’s lips curved despite herself, until the last one stopped her heart for a beat.

It read: Boss, please marry me.