Chapter 8: Qingshan

The next day, Chu Susu received a notification from the company that a new project would start in two weeks, and she should do some background research in her free time.

She worked at a consulting firm that operated on a project basis. When there was a client, a dedicated project team would be formed to serve them, and once it ended, they could take a short break before joining the next one.

The superior-subordinate relationships weren’t that fixed either. In theory, as long as someone performed well, anyone had a chance to be the project lead on the next one.

After quickly scanning the company email, Chu Susu frowned. The lead for the next project wasn’t her, but another colleague she wasn’t close with—one who wasn’t easy to talk to at the best of times.

But that wasn’t something to worry about right now.

That video from the pet restaurant had spread much farther than she’d imagined, even getting reposted to short-video platforms with the tag #ImperialCapitalLesbianCatchesMistressInPublic#, racking up over 100,000 likes.

Although the footage and audio had light mosaics added, and the three people’s faces and names were blurred, anyone who knew them could still recognize their figures.

The restaurant manager called Chu Susu several times, insisting that he’d personally watched everyone delete their videos, with no idea how it had leaked out. Between the lines, he was politely saying the restaurant had done all it could.

No need to guess whose handiwork this was—Chu Susu knew full well, so she didn’t make things hard for him.

She knew a few people working at the short-video platforms and pulled some strings through friends. The next day, those top-liked videos were taken down, but she couldn’t stop them from circulating privately between users.

Chu Susu had pretty much guessed what Xia Zilu was aiming for, so when Fang Chen called her anxiously, she didn’t panic.

“I’m at your place right now. Your dad watched that video and lost his mind in rage,” Fang Chen said in a lowered voice. “And with that old bastard and his two little bastards stirring the pot with their snide remarks, you should probably make time to come back and explain things to your dad face-to-face.”

“Does my sister know?” Chu Susu was more concerned about that.

“No, you know how busy Qingyang is.”

“Grandpa and Grandma don’t know yet either?”

“Yeah.”

“That’s fine then.” Chu Susu let out a breath of relief. “I’ll head home this weekend.”

Her family situation was a bit complicated.

Chu Susu had an older sister named Chu Qingyang, who was now a police officer. Around the time Chu Susu was in elementary school, their mother had passed away unexpectedly.

A few years later, their father remarried a stepmom, who gave birth to two half-siblings.

Ever since Chu Susu was little, her father had been traveling all over for business, but he’d always kept the stepmom and those two siblings by his side, which meant she wasn’t close to any of them.

That was also why she didn’t like going home. During family meals, watching that happy little family of four made her feel like an unrelated outsider.

On top of that, she’d never hidden her sexual orientation. A few years back, her father had somehow heard about it and flew into a rage, ordering her to reform immediately, stop messing around outside, and not tarnish the family name.

The stepmom chimed in with a few half-hearted words of comfort on the side, but her face was full of schadenfreude. The younger siblings were still kids and didn’t understand what “lesbian” meant; they just whispered among themselves, looking at her with complicated eyes.

So after that, Chu Susu had moved out. Otherwise, it was just asking for trouble.

Fang Chen didn’t like her stepmom or those siblings either, which was why he called them “little bastards.”

“Chenchen, are you on the phone with Chu Susu?” Her father’s voice boomed from the other end of the line, clearly pissed off. “Tell her if she doesn’t drag her ass back here, I’ll disown this daughter of mine!”

Hearing how worked up he was, Chu Susu couldn’t care less. “Whatever, disown me if you want.”

“You?!”

Fang Chen hurriedly said, “What are you saying, Susu? You can’t talk to Uncle like that. And don’t mind his angry words—he still cares about you a lot… Alright, gotta go. Talk later.”

Chu Susu set her phone aside, not giving it another thought.

Back in the day, words like that would bum her out for a long time, but since her father trotted out the same lines every time they met, she’d long since gone numb to it.

“Disown me if you want”—those were her honest feelings.

Still, she would go home over the weekend, mainly to see Grandpa and Grandma, and catch up with Chu Qingyang and Fang Chen along the way.

Chu Susu pulled out her phone and messaged Li Le’er: “Got time this weekend to watch Pipi for a couple days?”

Her stepmom was allergic to cat hair, and she didn’t want Pipi anywhere near them, so she wasn’t bringing it home. The hardest part of pet ownership was not being able to leave the house—you always had to find someone to look after them.

Li Le’er: “No can do, I’m not home this weekend. Ask Zhou Xiaoying.”

“Got it.”

She checked with a few other trusted friends, but they were all busy. While scrolling through her contacts, Chu Susu spotted Han Xuan, whom she hadn’t talked to in days. She paused, remembering how tenderly Han Xuan had held Pipi, and a thought flickered through her mind—only for her to shoot it down immediately.

With Xia Zilu as a cautionary tale, she absolutely wouldn’t hand Pipi over to anyone else. Besides, she and Han Xuan weren’t that close.

After that incident, Han Xuan hadn’t reached out once. Maybe it was because she’d learned Chu Susu was a lesbian and wanted to keep her distance.

Plus, after a few days apart, that initial “high” seemed to have worn off for her, so Chu Susu wasn’t bothered to test the waters.

Looks like she’d have to board Pipi at a pet shop after all.

Just then, Li Le’er messaged back: “Then wanna grab dinner Friday night? Word is you broke up, and Xu Jiao’s been bringing you up a bunch, kinda wants to see you.”

“Who?”

“…” Li Le’er sent a string of eye-roll emojis, patiently explaining, “The makeup artist who wouldn’t shut up about you after you bought her that drink. Forgot already?”

“No clue.”

“Pink highlights, big eyes.”

“Still no clue.”

“Whatever, she’s pretty hot. You in or not?”

“Sure.”

That Friday dinner was pretty fun. Li Le’er brought a big crowd—guys and girls, mostly from wealthy, influential families. Chu Susu figured it couldn’t hurt to network; more friends meant more paths.

Xu Jiao was there too, as mentioned.

Xu Jiao worked as a makeup artist on film crews, and probably from all the entertainment industry exposure, she knew how to dress to impress. Her face wasn’t drop-dead gorgeous, but she stood out in a crowd with her shoulder-length hair styled with real personality.

She didn’t hide her interest in getting close to Chu Susu at all, working hard to find conversation topics. Everyone at the table could tell, and they kept ribbing the two of them, so naturally, they ended up exchanging WeChat.

After a few rounds of drinks, everyone’s faces were flushed. Chu Susu had to drive, so she skipped the booze. The place reeked of alcohol, so she stepped out for a puff on her vape.

She’d barely gotten a lungful when footsteps approached from behind—no need to turn; she knew who it was.

As Xu Jiao brushed past, whether on purpose or not, she leaned in tipsy-style and gently rested her head on Chu Susu’s shoulder.

“Drunk?” Chu Susu glanced sideways at her, steadying her without pushing away, and asked softly.

She wasn’t her type, but Chu Susu didn’t mind showing a touch of perfectly measured gentleness.

Xu Jiao nodded in fits and starts, her pink-streaked hair draping over Chu Susu’s arm. “Accompany me to the bathroom?”

“Sure.”

Even with the AC on, July in the Imperial Capital was sweltering. Xu Jiao’s fingertips clutched Chu Susu’s forearm, sliding down to her palm for an ambiguous little scratch.

“Thanks,” she said, then headed into a stall.

When the two came back from the bathroom together, everyone shot them knowing looks. Li Le’er pretended to be mad and teased, “Hey, we’re out here drinking, and you two sneak off for some romance?”

Xu Jiao laughed openly. “Come on, don’t say that.”

Then she turned to Chu Susu. “Want some iced smoothie? Their red bean one’s delicious.”

Chu Susu had been here plenty of times—when did they have red bean smoothies? Li Le’er looked baffled, not getting it at all, while a few experienced guys at the table instantly grinned slyly.

Of course Chu Susu got it.

She was wearing a strapless dress that day, her long legs bare. Under the table, Xu Jiao’s foot had already inched over, brushing her skin where no one could see.

Unexpectedly, Chu Susu shifted back in her seat without a fuss, abruptly ending the flirtatious vibe.

“Thanks, but sadly, I only do homemade smoothies,” she said with a smile, smoothing down Xu Jiao’s messy pink streak. “Want one? I can order for you.”

Xu Jiao’s expression stiffened, a puzzled look crossing her face. She dropped the topic.

Even after everyone split, Li Le’er still didn’t get what the riddle was about. Once most had left, Zhou Xiaoying couldn’t stand it anymore and explained to the clueless girl with a facepalm: “Xu Jiao was asking if she was on her period, got it? If yes, no ice-cold stuff.”

“Oh.” Li Le’er still couldn’t wrap her head around it. “But why is Xu Jiao suddenly asking about my big auntie? What, is she moonlighting as a gynecologist?”

Zhou Xiaoying was exasperated with her. “If she’s on her period, you can’t do it, you blockhead!”

Li Le’er’s eyes went wide as saucers. She clapped a hand over her mouth in disbelief. “Ah?”

This car swerved out of nowhere—she couldn’t keep up.

“You’ve hit up nightclubs with us so many times, and you don’t even know this line? If you wanna hook up with a girl, offer her an iced drink first. That lets you check the situation. If she’s not down, no time wasted.”

Li Le’er wore the expression of an old grandpa staring blankly at his phone on the subway, utterly baffled by this complicated world. She took a gulp of water to steady her shock.

“So Xu Jiao wants to… hook up with Susu?”

“That’s not the point.”

“Then what is?”

“Xu Jiao taking the initiative to ask Susu means she wants to top her.”

“Pfft—” Li Le’er sprayed her mouthful of water everywhere, her little face scrunching up. “Do you have to be that direct? I’m still a kid—this is stuff I can hear?”

Zhou Xiaoying shot her a look of disdain but still grabbed some tissues to wipe her mouth. “But from what I know, Susu’s a pure top. She’s not willing to bottom. So her expression changed in an instant, and she even fired back at Xu Jiao.”

Li Le’er’s face grew complicated. “I don’t really get you lesbians. What’s a pure top mean—only tops, never bottoms?”

Her knowledge on this front was pathetically sparse, and Zhou Xiaoying had no intention of giving her a lecture. “Pretty much.”

“Why?” Li Le’er, the quintessential straight girl, found it impossible to comprehend.

“No why to it. Everyone has their preferences.” Zhou Xiaoying said. “She’s tight-lipped though—won’t spill private stuff to friends. It came out during a drinking game one time. You were wasted, probably didn’t catch it. I just know she’s never bottomed before.”

Li Le’er fell into thought.

She didn’t understand this stuff well, so she kept some ideas to herself, silently repeating them in her mind. For some inexplicable reason, she had a gut feeling.

Sure, Susu was strong-willed, and plenty of girls who liked her found that reliability reassuring… but being dominant didn’t necessarily make her a top, right?

Li Le’er mused that maybe Susu just hadn’t met the person who could make her willing to bottom yet.