Chapter 14

Gu Yuetong had been taught etiquette since she was a child, but today was the first time she had been “impolite” in front of outsiders. Huo Bu’s words were flippant, completely inconsistent with the gentlemanly demeanor he had feigned in the reception hall. Once he started, the entire private room’s disgusting conversation revolved around Qi Baizi. Gu Yuetong endured it once, then a second time. The third time, she remembered the saying that three strikes and you’re out, and she left the table on the spot.

Before leaving, she didn’t forget to splash the rest of her tea onto Huo Bu’s face. Before the door slammed shut, a middle-aged woman in her forties followed Gu Yuetong out. Gu Yuetong thought she was coming to persuade her to go back; after all, Huo Bu’s moods were quite valuable in their eyes. Her public display of disrespect might have angered the crowd.

But after the woman came out, she silently walked around to face Gu Yuetong and gave her a thumbs-up.

Gu Yuetong snorted through her nose and closed her eyes, not wanting to bother with her. No matter what happened in private, fawning over him in public undoubtedly fueled Huo Bu’s arrogance.

The hallway was utterly silent. She looked around but didn’t see Qi Baizi, so she took out her phone to call her. The woman, however, stopped her and whispered, “I know where she is.”

Gu Yuetong was skeptical. “Where?”

“Over there.” The middle-aged woman pointed to a corner of the hallway. There was another private room there.

“Before the meal started, I saw Chairman Gu take someone inside. Huo Bu passed by and greeted her, so…”

Gu Yuetong stared at her. The middle-aged woman pursed her lips, her simple black shirt reflecting some light. She lowered her voice and said, “My company is about to go under, Young President Gu. I’m sorry…”

Gu Yuetong grunted to cut her off and said nothing more. She could understand. People were forced to do many things in this world; sometimes there was no choice. She thanked the middle-aged woman and then strode toward the distant private room.

Before entering, she raised her hand to knock but then thought better of it and lowered it, listening carefully for any sounds from inside. It was surprisingly quiet. After a moment’s thought, Gu Yuetong retreated to the elevator and called Qi Baizi.

When the call connected, Qi Baizi’s voice came through. “President Gu…”

Gu Yuetong cut her off curtly. “Where did you go?”

Qi Baizi, sitting in the private room, glanced at Gu Hezhu opposite her. Gu Hezhu shook her head at her. Qi Baizi lowered her eyes and said into the phone, “I’m coming to find you now.”

After hanging up, she stood up to open the door, but Gu Hezhu called out to her. “I told you these things because I consider you a good child. I just hope you understand that everything I do is to prevent Yuetong from following my old path.”

“That ex-girlfriend of hers, and Han Zhiyu, neither of them are people she can entrust herself to… I can’t bear to see her involved with people like them anymore.”

“It’s not that I… don’t love her.”

The word “love” seemed difficult to say; Gu Hezhu paused before finally getting it out.

Qi Baizi grunted in acknowledgment and pulled the door open. She found Gu Yuetong in front of the elevator doors. Gu Yuetong’s face was grim. Qi Baizi forced a smile. “President Gu, I’m sorry, I…”

Gu Yuetong turned her back and pressed the elevator button, cutting Qi Baizi off. All the way until they got in the car, Gu Yuetong showed no intention of listening to her explanation.

Qi Baizi’s heart was pounding. Did Gu Yuetong know something? Or… was she angry that she had wandered off without telling her? Qi Baizi’s mind was in a turmoil. She had thought Gu Yuetong would be at that meal for a long time. After all, Gu Yuetong had told her to go eat before the meal started. Gu Hezhu was such a troublemaker.

Qi Baizi’s thoughts were a mess, but she tried her best to calm down. After starting the car, she asked Gu Yuetong if she wanted to go back to the company. Gu Yuetong remained silent for a long moment. Qi Baizi cautiously looked back and saw Gu Yuetong staring at her.

“Gu…”

“Do you still want to stay?”

A cold sweat instantly broke out on Qi Baizi. She paused, then said, “Of course, President Gu, I…”

Gu Yuetong’s tone was flat. “I have a friend who’s opening a studio and needs an assistant. The salary might not be as much as I’m giving you, but it will definitely be at least half. Do you want to consider it?”

Qi Baizi was stunned. A question popped into her mind. Why? Hadn’t they only known each other for a week? Or was Gu Yuetong tired of her making mistakes and looking for an excuse to get rid of her?

After a few seconds of silence, Gu Yuetong, as if seeing through her thoughts, spoke again, her voice still calm. “Gu Hezhu won’t give up easily. No matter how kind and charitable she appears, her control over me is relentless.”

“Xiao Bai, staying by my side might bring you a lot of trouble.”

Gu Yuetong smiled. “I regret it. I shouldn’t have kept you.”

Whether it was Gu Hezhu or Huo Bu, the moment these people saw a new woman by her side, they would rub their hands in glee and act recklessly, as if trying to drive her to her death. Huo Bu was even more disgusting. He was clearly hostile toward Qi Baizi, yet he resorted to such low-brow tactics, teasing and insulting her at the dinner party as if to force Gu Yuetong to fire her. Maybe he had talked to Gu Hezhu, or maybe Gu Hezhu had taken the initiative to say something to him, but the result was very bad.

Gu Yuetong felt sick just thinking about them and wanted even less to drag Qi Baizi into it.

“You should go. I’ll give you a compensation package.”

Qi Baizi was dumbfounded. What was all this?!

“But we’ve already signed a contract,” Qi Baizi said seriously. “And… the Chairman has already investigated me. I have nothing to be afraid of.”

Gu Yuetong’s emotions finally wavered. She frowned, a flash of disbelief in her eyes that was quickly replaced by resignation. She shouldn’t be surprised by anything Gu Hezhu did.

“What did she investigate about you?”

“My family, or other things…” Qi Baizi deflated a little, then managed a smile. “But it’s okay. My record is clean, so she couldn’t find anything.”

Gu Yuetong’s expression changed. “Did she… investigate your past relationships?”

Qi Baizi immediately shook her head. “I don’t have any.”

“With men or women.”

She added the last sentence to reassure Gu Yuetong. But she also knew that once those words were out, Gu Yuetong’s privacy was exposed between them. However, Gu Yuetong seemed to have already considered this; otherwise, she wouldn’t have changed her mind so easily.

“You’re besieged on all sides and can’t escape. Although I can’t be of much help, I want to stay and accompany you.” Qi Baizi was incredibly earnest. “I’m not afraid of misunderstandings, as long as they can be cleared up. Just consider it…”

“Consider it my gratitude for the kindness you’ve shown by keeping me.”

Gu Yuetong was silent for a long time, then turned her face away and let out a soft laugh, though it was unclear whether it expressed relief or some other emotion. She had a canine tooth on her left side, sharp and cute. Seen together with her dimple, she looked like a devilishly innocent doll. Her features and Gu Hezhu’s were truly identical, Qi Baizi thought.

The next day was a normal workday. After dropping Gu Yuetong off at her apartment in the evening, Qi Baizi called her uncle. She was actually already near her uncle’s house when she called, but she didn’t know if her younger cousin was home, so she decided to ask beforehand. Her cousin, Qi Wu, was a freshman at a local university in Jingzhou. She had a cheerful personality and good grades, but certain past events had led to many misunderstandings about her older cousin, Qi Baizi.

When her mother was sick before, her uncle had given Qi Baizi money, and Qi Wu had shown her dissatisfaction. Now that her aunt, Wu Yanfang, was also sick, Qi Wu was egging her uncle on to get the money back from Qi Baizi. When she had accepted the money, it was agreed that it was a loan. Repaying a debt was only right and proper. Qi Baizi couldn’t say anything against it. Repaying the money was her duty, but she didn’t want to sever ties with her uncle’s family over it. So, besides agreeing to repay ten thousand yuan a month, she would also buy many daily necessities for her uncle’s family.

Right now, she was carrying the medicine for bruises and sprains she had bought yesterday with the motion sickness medicine, along with a few kilograms of beef, fruits, vegetables, and two cartons of eggs. She also had a newly bought phone in her pocket—a mid-range model, not expensive at just over three thousand yuan, but better than the one her cousin Qi Wu was currently using. She had bought it with her credit card. She wondered if she could use it to ease the tension with Qi Wu. After all, they were family.

The call connected quickly, and her uncle’s voice came through. “Xiao Bai?”

“It’s me, Uncle.” Qi Baizi paused and asked in a low voice, “Is my cousin home?”

“She’s not home, but she’ll be back soon.” Her uncle sounded like he was doing some heavy work; the sound of a table and chairs being moved came through the receiver. “It’s Friday, you coming over?”

“Yeah… okay, I’m almost there.”

It was better that Qi Wu wasn’t there, to avoid another unpleasant encounter and her sarcastic remarks. Qi Baizi hesitated for a moment, then turned into the alley. Her uncle’s family lived in a rented house in a small building tucked away in an urban village. The rent was very low, but the surrounding environment was terrible. The sewers of the nearby buildings were often clogged, and the landlord couldn’t be bothered to fix them, so sewage flowed freely year-round.

Qi Baizi tiptoed but still stepped into foul-smelling black puddles several times. It was already getting dark, and there were no streetlights in the alley, so she had to use her phone’s flashlight to navigate carefully. Just as she was about to reach her uncle’s door, a dark figure suddenly appeared in front of her. Qi Baizi nearly dropped her phone, startled. She composed herself, raised her flashlight, and saw that it was her cousin, Qi Wu. She was carrying a faded black denim backpack and hesitating at the door.

Qi Baizi paused for a moment, then walked over and asked her, “Why don’t you go in?”

She had expected a cold reply from Qi Wu, but to her surprise, Qi Wu’s eyes reddened the moment she saw her.

Qi Baizi was astonished. “Why are you crying?”

Qi Wu said, “Cousin… I’m about to lose my mom.”

Qi Baizi was stunned. What did that mean? Didn’t her uncle say her aunt’s condition was improving? And the last time she visited her aunt, she seemed much more energetic than before.

“Don’t cry, tell me slowly.”

Qi Baizi held her phone with her chin and pulled a pack of tissues from her pocket to give to Qi Wu. “Wipe your tears.”

Qi Wu sniffled, wiped the tears from her face, and then pulled a folded examination report from her sleeve, handing it to Qi Baizi.

“This is my mom’s follow-up result. I just picked it up from the hospital on my way back…” Qi Wu choked up again as she spoke. “I couldn’t get an appointment, but I consulted an online doctor… The doctor said the situation is very bad.”

Qi Baizi shone her flashlight on the two reports. To be honest, she only half-understood them. Although she had seen plenty of these reports when her mother was hospitalized, her aunt had a brain tumor, and the tests were different. There were many terms she had never even seen before. However, the up and down arrows on the blood test report and the doctor’s interpretation on the MRI scan suggested that her cousin’s worries were not unfounded.

“The doctor recommends hospitalization for stable treatment…” Qi Baizi frowned and asked Qi Wu, “Do Uncle and Aunt know?”

Qi Wu shook her head with a mournful face. “I haven’t dared to tell them yet.”

After speaking, she tugged on Qi Baizi’s sleeve and asked in a low voice, “Sis, can I drop out of school?”

She saw the black mud on Qi Baizi’s shoes and sobbed, “I want to go work. I want my parents to have a better life. I want them to move to a better place… I want my mom to be hospitalized for treatment. I don’t want to lose my mom…”

Qi Wu’s words made Qi Baizi’s nose tingle. She grabbed Qi Wu’s hand and pulled her closer.

“I’ve already agreed with Uncle to repay the money on time,” Qi Baizi said, patting her on the back comfortingly. “You just focus on your studies and don’t worry about these things.”

Qi Wu shook her head. “It’s not enough. I’ve looked into it. My mom’s hospitalization fees can only be paid out-of-pocket. Even if you paid back all the money at once, it wouldn’t last long.”

Qi Wu looked up at Qi Baizi. “Cousin, please persuade my parents to let me drop out. I…”

“Do you think that’s a viable option?” Qi Baizi’s gaze was sharp as she cut her off sternly.

Qi Wu froze. Qi Baizi rarely spoke so seriously. She admitted that she used to have issues with her aunt and cousin, and she had been reluctant when her father lent them money. But no matter how harsh her words were, Qi Baizi had always just lowered her head in silence, never fighting back, and would even kindly ask about Qi Wu’s studies. Now, Qi Baizi’s face was dark, looking even more solemn in the dim light.

Qi Wu was frightened and took half a step back, not daring to say another word.

After a while, she heard Qi Baizi’s voice. “Moving, hospitalization, whatever it is, I’ll pay for it.”