Chapter 22
Arriving at the West City Traffic Police Squad just before lunchtime, Qi Baizi spotted a familiar figure. A closer look revealed it was her university classmate and roommate, Li Yi.
Li Yi was also stunned to see her, but after a moment, she reacted. “The car my uncle hit was Gu Yuetong’s?”
“Uh-huh,” Qi Baizi pursed her lips. “I was driving it.”
“Gosh, I thought…” Li Yi scratched her cheek. “My uncle specifically asked me to take leave and come over, said he was afraid of being scammed.”
Qi Baizi asked, “Is he your real uncle?”
“Not exactly… just a relative.” Li Yi coughed. “He just arrived in Jingzhou City not long ago and was borrowing my car. He probably wasn’t familiar with the traffic in a big city, so he ended up in a fender bender.”
After speaking, she turned to the traffic police officer behind the desk. “It’s a misunderstanding. We can just sign the original liability determination letter.”
The officer was exasperated. “The primary responsibility wasn’t theirs in the first place.” He beckoned Qi Baizi and Li Yi over to look at the surveillance footage. “See? It was your uncle who didn’t check the distance between cars and insisted on changing lanes. It’s not like they forced him to turn the steering wheel.”
After being lectured by the police officer, Li Yi looked a bit dejected.
After signing the papers, the two decided to have lunch together.
Li Yi was still hung up on what had just happened. Before seeing Qi Baizi, she had planned to argue her case with the other driver. It was a new car her parents had just bought for her. Not only did the rear end get smashed, but she also had to go through insurance to pay for the damages, which meant her premium would definitely go up next year.
But the moment she saw Qi Baizi, her fighting spirit instantly deflated.
The car belonged to Gu Yuetong. If she tried to act shamelessly, she might very well lose her job.
Li Yi sighed, sitting opposite Qi Baizi and staring blankly at the menu.
Qi Baizi waved a hand in front of her eyes and consoled her, “Alright, alright, it’s all in the past.”
“I’ve really had to suffer in silence this time,” Li Yi complained. “None of my relatives ever give me a moment’s peace. My parents are the same, they foolishly lend out money as soon as they have some. They said they bought the car for me, but they just lend it out to anyone.”
“Have your parents come to Jingzhou City?”
“No,” Li Yi sighed. “They’re still planning for me to go back in a couple of years.”
Qi Baizi studied Li Yi’s face seriously. “Have you been under a lot of stress lately?”
“You can tell?” Li Yi gave a bitter smile and touched her chin. “Do I look very haggard?”
“Not really, you’ve just lost weight.” Qi Baizi checked the time and called a waiter over to order.
The two of them didn’t eat much, just ordering two dishes and a main course. Li Yi was listless even while eating, frequently staring out the window in a daze.
Qi Baizi finished eating quickly, wiped her mouth, and asked, “How’s work?”
“Not great. My boss is a piece of shit, so unethical.” Li Yi came back to her senses and forced a smile that was uglier than a grimace. “A bit better than yours, of course.”
Qi Baizi choked for a moment and picked up her cup to drink some water.
Li Yi suddenly perked up. “How about you? Have you figured out that she-devil’s temperament yet?”
“Don’t talk about her like that.” Qi Baizi paused and frowned slightly. “Once you get to know her, she’s actually quite easy to get along with.”
“You’re not afraid of her anymore?”
“…” That wasn’t quite it.
Qi Baizi examined herself. She was definitely afraid, but… she also had a bit of a good impression of her.
It was hard to say whether it was like or love, or perhaps a sense of dependence on a superior?
It was hard to say. She denied the first two options, only knowing that she wasn’t as resistant to Gu Yuetong as she was at the beginning. And from their interactions, Gu Yuetong was more like a big sister who would guide her and was also protecting her…
“I saw her for a moment on Friday. Wow, ‘swift and decisive’ is an understatement. Her presence is just too powerful.” Li Yi chewed on her chopsticks, gossiping. “I remember she’s not much older than us, right? Five years? Do you think she’s always been like this? Does she have a social life, friends?”
“She does have them.” Qi Baizi recalled how Gu Yuetong looked when she was talking with Huo Bu in his reception room. Not tense at all.
Qi Baizi suddenly felt a little puzzled. Why was she the only one who felt nervous among the people she was with?
“She interacts with others… very normally.”
“Alright, don’t overthink it, I was just asking.” Seeing Qi Baizi lost in thought, Li Yi knew she must be pondering something again. “How’s your family?”
Qi Baizi took a sip of water and said, “Not great.”
It really wasn’t great.
Just now, while ordering, she received a message from Qi Wu, asking when they could go look at apartments.
Qi Wu had picked out a few listings on a rental app and sent them to her. The rent was all over three thousand yuan. In a city like Jingzhou, such apartments weren’t considered expensive, one might even say they were cheap. It was clear that Qi Wu had been as considerate of her as possible.
She had arranged to meet Qi Wu after work tomorrow. It seemed the next few days would be spent dealing with real estate agents.
“Are you going back to the company?”
After paying the bill, Li Yi asked, “Can you give me a ride?”
Qi Baizi shook her head. “I’m doing fieldwork today.”
Li Yi chuckled and remarked, “You’re so free.”
“Although you’ve been through a lot with Gu Yuetong, I heard she rescued you from the outsourcing company under her personal name. Is that true?”
Qi Baizi was startled. “How did you know?”
Li Yi shrugged. “Everyone at Gu Corporation knows. It’s big gossip.”
Qi Baizi frowned. “What’s there to gossip about?”
Li Yi pointed a finger at her from across the table. “You, you. You’ve been by Gu Yuetong’s side for so long, you’ve probably lost touch with the hardships of the common folk, haven’t you?”
Qi Baizi was curious.
“We low-level employees are cooped up in our cubicles like pigeons all day, either drawing blueprints or writing reports. Our only entertainment is gossiping about the leadership.” Li Yi smiled. “I not only know about this, I also know that Chairman Gu, Gu Hezhu, also looked for you, right?”
“How do you know everything?” Qi Baizi narrowed her eyes and took half a step back. “What else do you know?”
Li Yi rubbed her head. “I’m not sure about the rest… Oh, I heard that Gu Yuetong and Chairman Gu don’t get along, and they even argued over you in the break room… I really don’t know anything else.”
Qi Baizi didn’t say anything.
Li Yi hailed a ride-sharing car. After seeing her off, Qi Baizi drove back to find Pei Ran.
The price from earlier had been negotiated down a little, with the rent reduced by ten thousand yuan. But it was still much higher than their expectations.
Pei Ran simply gave up, no longer dwelling on it, and texted Qi Baizi the address of another storefront.
This location was quite remote, an urban village right next to the outer ring road. They hadn’t held out much hope, but when they arrived, Pei Ran fell in love with it again.
“Little Bai, this place is so big. Do you think I’d make more money if I set up a barbecue stand here?”
Qi Baizi looked around but couldn’t give a definite answer.
She didn’t know much about the restaurant business either, only that good quality and low prices would naturally attract customers.
Coincidentally, that was exactly Pei Ran’s business style. She would rather lose money than run a dishonest business. The ingredients for the fried chicken shop were all fresh goods purchased early in the morning.
So as long as the price was right and there was a stable customer base, she wouldn’t interfere whether Pei Ran wanted to open a barbecue joint or a Western restaurant.
Seeing Qi Baizi’s indifference, Pei Ran was a little displeased. “Why aren’t you being more enthusiastic?”
Qi Baizi felt a bit awkward. What was there for her to be enthusiastic about? This shop didn’t have much to do with her. She was just trying her best to pick a good location so Gu Yuetong wouldn’t lose money.
Seeing her clueless look, Pei Ran understood and lowered her voice to ask, “Little Bai, didn’t your President Gu tell you? You’re the store manager of this shop.”
“Huh?” Qi Baizi was so shocked she nearly lost her footing. “Don’t joke around!”
“Who’s joking?” Pei Ran rolled her eyes at her. “Your President Gu told me this morning. Want to see the chat history?”
As she spoke, she held her phone up to Qi Baizi’s face. Qi Baizi took a closer look, and it was true. Gu Yuetong had said: I have a request, the person in charge of this store will be Qi Baizi. She needs the experience. Of course, it would be best if you assist her.
…Quite the domineering CEO, huh.
Qi Baizi was mortified. “But I don’t know the first thing about the restaurant business.” The most she could do was coat chicken in flour.
“Your President Gu said you need the experience,” Pei Ran repeated Gu Yuetong’s words and comforted her, “It’s not like you have to start immediately. What are you afraid of?”
Pei Ran followed the agent around for a bit more, leaving a stunned Qi Baizi behind. When she came back, she was beaming. “I’ve decided, this is the place. There’s a school nearby, and an urban village. Although the target audience is a bit lower than a fried chicken shop in a mall, we definitely won’t have to worry about sales!”
Qi Baizi forced herself to snap out of her shock, confirmed the price one more time, and nodded in agreement.
After work, she dropped Gu Yuetong off at her apartment and took the subway home alone.
Gu Yuetong had offered to let her take the car, but parking was inconvenient where she lived, and the fees at the mall were expensive, so she refused.
She didn’t ask Gu Yuetong about making her the store manager. Since Gu Yuetong hadn’t mentioned it, asking about it would make it seem like she was demanding it.
Gu Yuetong wasn’t in high spirits, so she felt she shouldn’t bother her. After a quick farewell, Qi Baizi took the subway home.
However, just as she was about to reach her stop, Qi Wu suddenly called her, sobbing, saying she had been beaten.
“Where are you?” The hair on Qi Baizi’s entire body stood on end. She quickly asked what happened, but Qi Wu just sobbed, “It was my dad. He found out you were paying for the rent and hospitalization, so he got angry and kicked me out… I’m going back to school now.”
Qi Baizi calmed down. “Are you already on your way?”
“No, I just left home.”
“Find a well-lit place and wait for me there.”
Her uncle’s home and her low-rent housing were in opposite directions. After hanging up, Qi Baizi got off the subway and hurried to the other side to take a train back.
Qi Baizi didn’t know how Qi Wu had let it slip to her uncle and aunt, but she knew she had to get there quickly to calm them down.
Her aunt’s illness couldn’t be delayed any longer; the sooner she was hospitalized, the better. The matter of renting an apartment also needed to be put on the agenda as soon as possible.
When she arrived, Qi Baizi met up with Qi Wu. As soon as the two of them entered the house, Qi Hai, who hadn’t yet calmed down, immediately flew into a rage upon seeing his disappointing daughter and picked up a broom to hit her.
Qi Baizi quickly shielded Qi Wu behind her, while also trying to comfort Wu Yanfang, who was sitting on the floor crying softly after her attempts to stop him had failed.