Wait, I Got in the Wrong Car (GL) - Chapter 12

Lou Anran’s fingers slid lightly over the screen. She hesitated for a long time between agreeing and refusing. At last, in a fit of irritation, she threw her phone heavily onto the table. The loud thud drew the attention of the overseas shareholders on the computer. She rubbed her temples, revealing a glimpse of her fair and decisive wrist line. “Apologies. Please continue.”

The young foreigner delivering the market report had equally clear, greenish eyes. Their shade was lighter than Mo Ying’s and far less pure.

As Lou Anran listened, her mind wandered. It was filled entirely with the playful remark Yu Xuan had made a few days ago…

The phone on the table buzzed again and again. She stared at it with a cold expression as if she were watching a child throwing a tantrum. After a while, the buzzing stopped. Whether the other side had run out of patience or found the game unamusing and abandoned it early, the phone went completely quiet.

The room was silent, save for the report from the computer. For a long time, this had been Lou Anran’s preferred working atmosphere. Yet now, with not even the faintest sound, a fire inexplicably rose in her chest.

On the other side, Mo Ying crouched on the sofa in distress, tugging at her hair. She poked and poked until she suspected the phone was broken. Otherwise, why would the boss not approve her request?

She sent a voice message to Ni Xinyu, who quickly replied. “If you are tired, rest a while. Send another message an hour later. Whether she approves or not is up to her.”

Mo Ying obediently answered, “Oh.”

When the meeting ended, Lou Anran snatched up her phone at once. After a few seconds, she picked it up again… Within half an hour she repeated this action over and over, lifting the phone and slamming it back on the desk.

At last she opened WeChat, entered the friend request page, tapped the bright selfie avatar, and stared at Mo Ying’s radiant smile, sweet as a summer blossom. Grinding her teeth, she muttered, “You cannot even persist in such a small matter.”

She exited the profile and noticed that the girl had not even set a signature. Most likely it was a newly registered account.

Glaring at the phone in frustration, she cursed under her breath. “If you send one more message, then I will consider—”

Ding!

The angelic sound of salvation arrived.

Lou Anran, with little expectation, exited and then returned. She saw that Mo Ying had finally lost patience and sent a hasty message.

“Marry marry marry marry marry, hurry and marry me. Boss, hurry and marry me.”

All her dissatisfaction, anger, and even the urge to drag the girl over for a beating vanished completely because of those words.

Her lips curved uncontrollably. She took a screenshot to preserve it, as if afraid of regretting it later, and approved the request with seamless efficiency. “Little one, you said it yourself. Do not regret it in the future.”

When Mo Ying saw the boss’s business card lying firmly among her WeChat contacts, she leapt about with joy. Xiao Ai and Xiao Qiu glanced over curiously.

Mo Ying preferred voice chats over typing. She pressed the microphone icon and babbled, “Boss, boss, congratulations, and prosperity. Hand over the red envelope.”

Pff—

Xiao Ai could not hold it in. She sprayed a mouthful of water. She rushed to snatch Mo Ying’s phone, hoping to destroy the evidence before the boss could hear. Yet when she looked, beneath Mo Ying’s voice message was a blinding transfer figure, seamlessly connected. She was instantly envious. “Xiao Yu’er, the boss transferred you five thousand two hundred. That is true love.”

Mo Ying was confused at first, then delighted. She had money now!

…

When Chu Shu came with the documents, she discreetly checked the inside of the boss’s wrist. It was empty. Evidently, the anger still lingered.

Lou Anran cast her a sidelong glance. “What are you staring at? Did you bring the documents?”

Seeing her boss’s mood improved compared to the past few days, Chu Shu guessed Ni Xinyu must have taken some action. Otherwise, the boss would never be so accommodating. As she handed over the documents, she hesitated for once. “Boss, are you truly father and daughter?”

Lou Anran’s grip on the papers tightened. With a mocking smile, she said, “I remember the bond of father and daughter, yet Lou Siyuan has never shown me the slightest kindness.”

In her panic, Chu Shu blurted out, “But boss, after all, your mother is still—” Seeing her boss’s expression turn from sunny to stormy, she tactfully stopped. “Boss, I will leave.”

She hurried down the stairs and slapped her mouth hard. “Truly bringing up the worst subject. This mouth of mine should be sewn shut.”

In the dim light, Lou Anran’s eyes glittered with obscure emotion. She idly flipped through the documents. After only two pages, she grew impatient. Staring at the name of the shell company, she sneered. “Xinshu, what a rotten name. One glance shows it is a paper company. Only Lou Annie, that fool, would fall for it.”

At the same time, Lou Annie held her own copy of the ‘Xinshu’ company profile. She happily knocked on the study door. “Father, I found a foreign investment company. Their domestic representative is willing to invest in our new technology. I want to hear your opinion.”

Lou Siyuan was peering at a dusty stone through a magnifying glass. Hearing Annie speak of investment, he only grunted without raising his head, fully absorbed in the sea stone. “Ah, this pattern cannot break here. Such a pity. Such a pity.”

Lou Annie had not inherited even a trace of talent in appraisal. Perhaps in secret competition with Lou Anran, after learning her half-sister studied business abroad, Annie resolutely chose finance. Unfortunately, the two projects her father had appointed, despite the old master’s objections, were about to fail. Now Annie pinned all her hopes on this foreign company to turn her fortunes around.

Lou Siyuan clicked his tongue in regret for a long time before finally looking at her. “In this report, the past ten years show gains and losses. The data appears normal enough. But to be safe, you should conduct a field investigation.”

Annie said, “Father, I thought the same.”

Lou Siyuan mused a while. “Your sister lived abroad for years. She is more familiar with this area than you. If you do not understand something, you should consult her.”

Annie’s smile stiffened, especially as she recalled being humiliated publicly by Lou Anran. “Sister is probably too busy. I heard she is chasing after some internet celebrity.”

“An internet celebrity? What celebrity?”

“Oh, Father, you truly did not know.”

Annie wore an expression of regret for misspeaking, yet inside, she secretly rejoiced.

Meanwhile, the little influencer Mo Ying had no idea her matters had stirred waves in the Lou family. She was happily blowing bubbles in the bathtub. Blub blub. She discovered that whenever she submerged entirely and blew bubbles, a golden bud on her abdomen quietly unfurled its tiniest petals, as if peeking at her play.

But as the night deepened, a familiar, unbearable hunger attacked. Rolling back and forth in the water, she found no relief. The hunger grew stronger, and her stomach even growled.

She had to sneak to the refrigerator. Xiao Qiu, hearing noises, thought a thief had come. The vast villa held only the two of them. Relieved to see Mo Ying, she let out a sigh. “Xiao Yu’er, whatever you need, just tell me.”

Mo Ying hastily stuffed a frozen fish back inside. “I am hungry.”

Xiao Qiu set down the electric baton and went past her to check the food supplies. Thankfully, Ni Xinyu had also been eating with them recently, so the fridge was well stocked. “What do you want? I will cook it for you.”

Mo Ying licked her lips, almost drooling from hunger. “My appetite is big. I want everything. Is that fine?”

Xiao Qiu was stunned. “???”

After watching Mo Ying devour a large bowl of ramen with rich toppings and a plate of fried rice, and still gazing pitifully at her, Xiao Qiu instinctively reached for her phone several times. She wondered if eating so much could truly be safe.

Sensing the turmoil in the girl’s emotions, Mo Ying slyly sucked away the colorful strands in the air. Reluctantly, she declared, “I am full!”

Xiao Qiu breathed out in relief and gave up on calling Ni Xinyu. “Will you be too stuffed?”

In truth, Mo Ying felt worse. That deep hunger from within could not be satisfied with food. She shook her head in bitter frustration.

Seeing her weakened, Xiao Qiu tried to act like a big sister. After all this time together, she knew Mo Ying was an optimistic girl who never looked sad unless something serious was wrong. “Xiao Yu’er, you seem unhappy. Is there something on your mind?”

Of course, she was unhappy. She was starving. Too weak to sing. Without singing, without performing, she could not feed on the emotions of people. Which meant she would only grow hungrier.

This time, the hunger was merciless, offering no room for delay.

Thinking of this vicious cycle, Mo Ying almost burst into tears. She waved feebly. “Go to sleep, Xiao Qiu. I need sleep too.”

She forced herself into rest, her usual last resort when hunger grew unbearable. Yet this time it failed. Her golden tail slapped hard against the bathtub edge, so loud that Xiao Qiu knocked on her door three times.

Mo Ying had no choice but to tiptoe across the floor. Pressing her ear against the door, she confirmed Xiao Qiu had gone to bed. Then she silently moved to the window, ready to sneak out for food. Suddenly, strands of purplish red filled the room.

She puckered her lips and sucked toward them, only to bump into a wall. “Why are you running away?”

She fumbled along the wall and accidentally pushed open a narrow gap. With a forceful shove, her whole mermaid body tumbled unprepared into another room, almost crashing to the floor.

The room’s layout mirrored hers, with two beds back to back against the wall. The air brimmed with purple strands, making Mo Ying overjoyed. She had no time for anything else.

Delicious food!

She failed to notice the woman on the bed, trapped in a nightmare. Mo Ying feasted contentedly, sucking up all the purplish red strands.

No, one still remained.

Lou Anran’s sleep was always shallow. When the bed sank, her dark eyes snapped open. She met a pair of wide, frightened green eyes.

Those emerald eyes had appeared in her dreams many times. Instinctively, Lou Anran reached out, drew the girl into her arms, and breathed in her unique scent. “Little one, you came in here on your own.”