Chapter 17
She had known rich people were extravagant, but this was truly beyond her imagination. After getting out of the car, Qi Baizi’s eyes fell upon a vast expanse of green, with what looked like a forest in the distance. The driveway curved around to a large, gray-white, fortress-style building, which she presumed was the Gu Residence. In front of the building was a central garden, and from the outside, she could see a European-style marble fountain from which water seemed to flow endlessly.
It was truly… Qi Baizi stood still, quietly admiring the view. She was finally getting to see with her own eyes the kind of mansions she had only ever seen on social media. Gu Yuetong had already walked a few steps ahead. Seeing that Qi Baizi hadn’t followed, she turned and waved at her.
Qi Baizi hadn’t wanted to go in with Gu Yuetong. The moment she heard this was the Gu Residence, she remembered what Gu Hezhu had said to her that day and felt a little scared. But since Gu Yuetong didn’t know the specifics of their conversation, it seemed she genuinely wanted to show her around. What reason did a personal assistant have to visit the Gu Residence? She was afraid Gu Hezhu would misunderstand something and have her thrown out. Oh, of course, she wouldn’t do it herself; it would definitely be a bodyguard or a housekeeper who threw her out.
At this thought, Qi Baizi couldn’t help but shiver. She hurried over, stopped in front of Gu Yuetong, and asked in a low voice, “Can I not go in?”
Gu Yuetong found this strange and pondered for a moment before asking, “Why?”
Qi Baizi wrung her fingers and said, “I’m worried about running into someone… difficult to deal with. For example, Chairman Gu.”
Her voice grew quieter and quieter, and she looked anxious and uneasy. In Gu Yuetong’s eyes, this was another good thing about Qi Baizi. When she was nervous, she showed it directly, without making people guess or bringing up old grievances after feeling wronged. If she were in a relationship with her, getting along would probably be very easy… Gu Yuetong paused, coughed lightly, and dared not think further. It must be the hot weather; she was getting a little restless too.
“I was inconsiderate for not telling you beforehand,” Gu Yuetong said. “Although this is the Gu family’s territory, Gu Hezhu doesn’t live here.”
Huh? But Gu Yuetong didn’t live here either, did she? A question arose in Qi Baizi’s mind. Such a big house, and no one lived in it? “You can think of this as my childhood playroom.”
Gu Yuetong saw through her thoughts, dropped that line, and turned to walk inside. Qi Baizi was shocked for a second, then followed her steps. They crossed the central garden, avoided the sprinkling fountain, and walked straight into the old fortress.
The entrance door of the fortress was tightly shut. Gu Yuetong gave it a gentle push, and the three-meter-high solid wood door slowly opened a crack, making a sound. The person inside seemed to have been startled; Qi Baizi heard the sound of hurried footsteps. About half a minute later, the footsteps approached, and a plainly dressed middle-aged woman appeared. Seeing Gu Yuetong, she quickly took out a key to unlock the door.
Only then did Qi Baizi see that there was a glass door inside the solid wood one, which was probably an automatic door. “Yuetong… President Gu.” The middle-aged woman unlocked the door and let them in, her eyes glancing at Qi Baizi.
“This is…”
Gu Yuetong said, “My guest.”
The middle-aged woman immediately put on a smile and led them to sit in the first-floor living room. Gu Yuetong sat down on her own, picked up the tea on the coffee table, and started drinking. After a while, seeing Qi Baizi’s restraint, she put down her teacup and asked, “Would you like another drink?”
Qi Baizi indeed wasn’t used to tea; she preferred sweeter drinks. But she couldn’t bring herself to make requests of the homeowner, so she could only give a dry laugh and shake her head. Seeing this, Gu Yuetong said nothing but called over the middle-aged woman. “Auntie Qin, please bring some fresh juice.”
“No…” …need. Before Qi Baizi could finish, Auntie Qin had already left.
“Don’t worry, she won’t tell Gu Hezhu I brought you here.”
Qi Baizi paused. “Really?”
Gu Yuetong picked up her teacup again, took a small sip, and said, “Auntie Qin raised me since I was little. Our relationship is closer than hers with Gu Hezhu.”
After speaking, she turned her head and looked at Qi Baizi. “Will you paint with me this afternoon?”
“No problem.” Qi Baizi smiled. After all, she was getting double pay. As long as it wasn’t illegal, she would do anything.
When Auntie Qin brought the juice, she also brought a plate of pastries. The sight of them reminded Qi Baizi of the embarrassing incident in Donglin where she got drunk after eating pastries with Zheng Xiaoxiao, and she couldn’t help but scratch her ear.
Auntie Qin served her warmly. “Ma’am, please have some pastries.”
Qi Baizi quickly glanced at Gu Yuetong. “You don’t have to be so formal… You can just call me Xiao Bai.”
Auntie Qin was respectful. “Yes, Xiao Bai.”
Qi Baizi was at a loss. Gu Yuetong silently drank her tea and said nothing. She could only take the juice and pastries from Auntie Qin’s hands, but Auntie Qin still showed no sign of leaving, holding the tray motionless with both hands. Qi Baizi was completely flustered. Only then did Gu Yuetong let out a soft laugh. “Auntie Qin, she’s timid. Don’t tease her.”
Auntie Qin smiled and placed the tray on the coffee table. “Alright, it seems Miss Xiao Bai isn’t quite used to it yet. Shall I take my leave then?”
A playful expression that didn’t match her age appeared on her face. Gu Yuetong nodded her chin, and Auntie Qin said, “Then if you two need anything, just let me know.” With that, she disappeared around the corner of the stairs.
Gu Yuetong looked at Qi Baizi helplessly. “Were you scared? She’s just like that, young at heart and loves to play pranks.”
Qi Baizi shrank her neck. It was a little scary. The feeling of being waited on was strange. Gu Yuetong added, “But she’s not usually like this with guests. Maybe she thought you were cute and wanted to tease you.”
Qi Baizi was surprised. Cute? Was Gu Yuetong complimenting her? She felt her ears burn at the speed of light, and her speech became a bit hesitant. “Auntie Qin is just like you, President Gu… easy to get along with.”
Gu Yuetong burst out laughing, then immediately became serious again. “Are you being sarcastic?”
Qi Baizi quickly put down her juice and waved her hands. “I absolutely didn’t mean that!”
Seeing her get nervous at the drop of a hat, Gu Yuetong smiled again, stared at her for a few seconds, and then let out a long sigh. What was with this kid? She was like a mouse seeing a cat whenever she was around. “Let’s go upstairs.”
Gu Yuetong sighed again and stood up. She walked ahead, leaving her phone and wallet on the coffee table. Just as Qi Baizi was about to get up and follow, she saw her phone screen light up. Qi Baizi didn’t mean to look, but the last few digits of the unknown number calling were very familiar. A closer look confirmed it was the fried chicken store manager’s phone number.
She actually called?
Qi Baizi frowned and stood by the coffee table. Gu Yuetong noticed she hadn’t followed, thought she hadn’t kept up, and went back to get her, only to see her staring blankly at her phone. Gu Yuetong suddenly became a little curious and wanted to know what Qi Baizi was planning to do. She quietly took half a step back and hid behind the living room wall.
The next second, Qi Baizi put the phone to her ear. This fortress-style villa was very spacious. Besides Auntie Qin, it was just the two of them, and it was utterly quiet. Gu Yuetong could hear everything Qi Baizi said clearly.
The person on the other end seemed to have said something, and Qi Baizi sounded a little unhappy. “Is it really okay to do this?”
The other person said something else, and Qi Baizi interrupted, “I don’t understand, but I think you’re using President Gu. You said just a while ago that sales were low and you were planning to close the fried chicken shop and open a trendy internet-famous one instead.”
Qi Baizi’s tone was sharp, completely unlike the meekness she showed in front of Gu Yuetong. “Opening a branch, what if you lose money?”
The store manager on the phone argued back, “Investing always has risks. She should have considered that when she made the decision!”
Qi Baizi fell silent. The store manager had a point. Although she was still unwilling to let Gu Yuetong take this risk—investing so casually, wasn’t that just throwing money away?
Hearing no rebuttal, the store manager pushed further. “Gu Yuetong still owes me a favor. She’s thanking me for not spilling her secret.”
Qi Baizi was stunned, then said angrily, “Are you threatening me or President Gu?”
“I’m just stating the facts,” the store manager snorted. “This is how it works. Society revolves around these rules! You just graduated, what do you know?”
“Hurry up and give the phone back to the grown-up, Classmate Xiao Bai!”
The store manager emphasized the last few words heavily. Qi Baizi gripped the phone tightly, wanting to say more. Just then, Gu Yuetong walked over gracefully, her arms crossed, quietly watching Qi Baizi.
Qi Baizi froze, shakily covering the phone’s microphone. “President Gu, I…”
Gu Yuetong didn’t want to hear her explanation and gestured for her to hand over the phone. Taking the phone, Gu Yuetong turned her back. “Sorry, I left my phone behind just now.”
The store manager continued the previous conversation. Gu Yuetong responded a few times and finally said, “I’ll have someone draw up a contract. Wait for my news.”
The moment she hung up, a clap of thunder echoed from the clear sky outside, and rain began to fall almost simultaneously. A roar filled Qi Baizi’s ears. The living room window behind the sofa was blown open by the wind. She looked at Gu Yuetong, her lips trembling.
Gu Yuetong wanted to comfort her, but Auntie Qin suddenly ran over from somewhere to close the window. “Oh my, why did it suddenly start raining?”
The wind and rain inside stopped. Auntie Qin asked if they were scared. Gu Yuetong shook her head and said, “Auntie Qin, you can leave us for now.”
With that, she took a step forward and, before Qi Baizi could react, took her hand.
“Come on, let’s go upstairs and talk.”
Qi Baizi’s gaze was vacant. By the time she came to her senses, they were already on the second floor. She was led by Gu Yuetong into an art studio. This place was different from Gu Yuetong’s private apartment; it was large and spacious, with canvases piled on the walls and floor, as well as rolled-up scrolls of rice paper with ink marks showing through from the back. Perhaps they were traditional Chinese paintings? Qi Baizi didn’t know and was in no mood to guess. She rubbed the hand that Gu Yuetong had just held. One shock hadn’t subsided before another one took its place.
Staring at her feet, Qi Baizi slowly came back to her senses and suddenly realized that Gu Yuetong had… intertwined their fingers. Gu Yuetong had no idea what Qi Baizi was thinking. Her subconscious action had been born out of a maternal instinct to protect a young one. Now, seeing that her eyes were a little clearer, she took the initiative to move a chair and sit down in front of her, asking seriously, “Are you that afraid I’ll be taken advantage of?”
Qi Baizi didn’t speak. Gu Yuetong let out a soft laugh. “You’ve stood up for me twice today already.”
“I’m your personal assistant…”
“That’s not within an assistant’s scope of work,” Gu Yuetong interrupted her. “Especially when it comes to business collaborations. You know very well that you have no right to interfere.”