“Shen Qing! How thrilling!”
Zhao Fei’er’s thundering exclamation instantly shattered Bai Lu’s romantic urge to confide. She glared fiercely at her.
Bai Lu was the type who couldn’t keep things bottled up. She’d been single for over twenty years, and after finally crossing that threshold and nearly losing her virtue, waiting until Monday to spill the beans to her best friend had nearly suffocated her.
They were sitting in the corner of the very last row of a tiered lecture hall, empty seats all around them. The large classroom was packed with nearly a hundred students. On the podium, the teacher, wearing a microphone, was slowly flipping through PPT slides on the projector. The buzz of various voices hummed below, so no one really noticed their whispered conversation.
Zhao Fei’er had been eating, drinking, and having fun with Bai Lu for over a decade. They were equally unreliable. Having seen so many messy entanglements between men and women in their circle, she quickly accepted her best friend’s sudden new sexual orientation. Her gossipy heart blazed to life.
“She kissed you? She took you to bed? Since when have you two been together? Incredible, you! What about Zhou Ying then? Ah! Forget Zhou Ying, that dog of a man! Tell me quickly, how did Shen Qing kiss you, how did she take you to bed?”
Zhao Fei’er fired questions at her like a string of firecrackers, her fingers gripping Bai Lu’s arm and shaking it, clearly very curious.
Bai Lu was a little angry at first, but slowly, as Zhao Fei’er’s questions bubbled up one by one, her heart grew sweet again, and the corners of her lips curved up, unable to be suppressed.
“Well, well, she kissed me like this and that… and we didn’t sleep together. She just touched… a little. She stopped when I said stop.” Bai Lu spoke quietly and shyly, her eyes and brows full of spring.
“What do you mean ‘like this and that’?” Zhao Fei’er’s eyes sparkled as she looked Bai Lu up and down, even eagerly reaching out a hand. “And touched you? Where?”
Bai Lu hurriedly dodged and forcefully slapped her hand away, crying out in a low voice, “You pervert!”
Zhao Fei’er immediately saw the back of her hand had turned red from the slap and hissed.
Bai Lu glanced at it quickly and felt a bit embarrassed herself.
After all, they had grown up together, so close they were like sisters. They had touched and seen everything about each other before and never thought anything of it. But after that weekend, she suddenly felt a little less comfortable with such intimate roughhousing with her best friend.
Zhao Fei’er was a bit unhappy and scolded her, “Unbelievable. You’re already saving your virtue for Shen Qing?”
Bai Lu snorted but somehow found the phrase “saving your virtue” gave her a sense of accomplishment.
Zhao Fei’er pouted, feeling she was getting the short end of the stick. “Lulu, you’re so unfair. Back when I went through my thing, I told you everything, and now you can’t even tell me about a little touching? I think Shen Qing must have put a love potion on you, right?”
Bai Lu felt a little guilty too and squirmed before laying her head down on the desk.
Zhao Fei’er wasn’t really angry for long. After a while, she leaned in again, this time with a curious tone. “How could it be Shen Qing? What’s her deal? Isn’t she… with your brother? How come she likes women now? Is she looking for a fake marriage?”
“Of course not!” Bai Lu shot upright, glaring at Zhao Fei’er angrily. Her voice couldn’t help but rise. “She’s just like me. She used to like men, and now she likes women! What do you mean ‘fake marriage’? Can you even watch your mouth!”
Zhao Fei’er saw that she was truly upset and quickly waved her hands. “Alright, alright, I was wrong, okay?”
Bai Lu glared fiercely at her. “Anyway, she’s not looking for a fake marriage! She hasn’t done anything bad. She doesn’t just like any woman; she just likes me!”
Zhao Fei’er clicked her tongue and said, “You’re really full of yourself.”
Bai Lu was so annoyed with Zhao Fei’er she didn’t even want to talk to her anymore. She put her head back down on the desk, turning away. Zhao Fei’er kept tugging at her and apologizing, but it was no use.
After a while, the phone hidden under her arm vibrated. She opened it and saw a message from Lu Zhi saying she had already set off.
Zhao Fei’er eyed her and probed, “Shen Qing?”
Bai Lu froze for a moment and then, guiltily, flipped her phone face-down on the desk.
“What are you hiding? Why don’t you try getting that besotted look off your face first?” Zhao Fei’er looked down on her expression, giving her a disdainful look.
Bai Lu quickly pulled down the corner of her lips, which she hadn’t realized were curving up. No longer angry, she reached out and pushed Zhao Fei’er, scolding her rather coquettishly, “Get lost.”
Zhao Fei’er immediately gave her a “you’re beyond help” look.
Bai Lu coughed and began tidying the books on the desk. “Just head straight off later. She’s coming to pick me up after class.”
Upon hearing this, Zhao Fei’er immediately got angry and pressed down on her hand. “You’re burning the bridge too quickly, aren’t you!”
Bai Lu grinned at her. “Fei’er, you know me. I always put romance before friendship. Hehehe. Just go straight off later, don’t let her see you. I’ll treat you to a meal tomorrow if I have time. And keep it a secret, got it? Or else I’ll kill you.”
Zhao Fei’er was almost amused to anger by her shamelessness. She leaned back in her chair, watching as Bai Lu carefully reapplied her lipstick using a small mirror.
“You’re done for, Lulu,” Zhao Fei’er said, watching her with an ominous and exaggerated tone. “Shen Qing isn’t just anyone. She’s got you wrapped around her finger.”
Instead of any negative reaction, Bai Lu thought about it and then strongly agreed with her assessment. “I also think she’s not just anyone.”
When the time came, the teacher on the podium packed up the lesson plans and left. Bai Lu quickly blew Zhao Fei’er a flying kiss, leaving her best friend hopping mad, before flying out the door herself like a little white dove.
On a university campus, after classes ended, plenty of people headed back to the dorms or the cafeteria, but not many went out the gate. At this hour, the sun was already about to set, and the last rays of the sunset painted rich, vibrant colors across the distant horizon.
Lu Zhi’s car was parked across the street. Bai Lu had been jogging over, but as she got closer, she gradually slowed to a stop. Then she heard a short honk from ahead. The dark car window rolled down, revealing Lu Zhi sitting in the driver’s seat. With a gentle expression, she waved Bai Lu over.
Bai Lu’s heart raced. She quickly hurried forward and opened the passenger door.
“Bai Lu.” A voice full of warmth.
Bai Lu mumbled a low “Mm,” not even daring to lift her eyes as she reached for the seatbelt.
Lu Zhi saw right through her shyness and let out a soft laugh, very clear in the enclosed space.
Bai Lu’s hand, in the middle of pulling the seatbelt, paused. She felt the other person lean over. Two fingers lifted her chin, gently raising her face. Bai Lu met a pair of dark eyes filled with amusement as Lu Zhi leaned in toward her, softly sucking on her lips for a moment before releasing her.
A riot of bliss in her heart.
After kissing her, Lu Zhi naturally fastened the seatbelt Bai Lu had only managed to pull halfway, then settled back into her own seat. She gently started the car and said, “Let’s go. We’ll eat first.”
They went to a private restaurant in the city center—a secluded alley carved out within the bustling district. Turning in was like being severed from the steel jungle. There was a small arched bridge at the entrance, and behind it was a courtyard made up of three main buildings. The white Western-style house complemented the lush bamboo groves around it beautifully.
Lu Zhi had already reserved a spot, so a staff member led them upstairs the moment they arrived.
Their private room was on the second floor. Bai Lu was wearing stiletto heels today, so Lu Zhi took her hand to give her a bit of support.
Bai Lu pursed her lips. Even after they finished climbing this short flight of stairs, they still hadn’t let go.
Unexpectedly, they ran into Xu Zirui just as they reached the top. He seemed to have just finished eating, accompanied by a woman with a refined, elegant appearance. After spotting them from a distance, he first said a few words to the woman beside him, then walked over.
Bai Lu found him annoying and stood behind Lu Zhi, turning her head away.
Lu Zhi’s expression remained unchanged, though. She spoke, “Zirui, what a coincidence.”
In truth, it wasn’t really that much of a coincidence. There were only so many high-end, good-tasting restaurants in the entire city, and particularly in the city center, so meeting an acquaintance wasn’t that rare.
Xu Zirui was still in a sharp black suit, looking handsome and dignified. He wore a shallow smile. “Yeah, what a coincidence.”
After saying this, his gaze naturally fell on their clasped hands. It wasn’t that he saw anything amiss; he was just a little surprised. After all, Lu Zhi’s personality didn’t seem like the type who would be so close to a female friend as to hold hands while going to a meal.
Xu Zirui raised an eyebrow, almost imperceptibly. “Shen Qing, I didn’t expect you and Lulu to be getting along so well now.”
Lu Zhi didn’t avoid the topic. She even lightly swung their clasped hands and smiled. “We’ve always gotten along well.”
Bai Lu, listening beside them, felt a surge of happiness. She wiggled her fingers, the tips brushing against Lu Zhi’s palm.
Xu Zirui had clearly just been asking casually and didn’t delve deeper into the nature of their relationship. After exchanging a few brief pleasantries, he brought up another matter. “I heard that the company secured a loan this time through a new channel you found. That President Chen is a rising star in the industry. Maintaining a good relationship with them would be very beneficial for us. If you have time, how about we find a place and make introductions for each other?”
“Sounds good,” Lu Zhi replied noncommittally, then added, “As it happens, President Chen will be coming to the company for a follow-up visit next Monday. I won’t be at the company, but Bai Lu has a good personal relationship with him. You can use her as an intermediary.”
“Bai Lu?” Xu Zirui was stunned for a moment.
Bai Lu stepped forward, humming an affirmative “Mm,” as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
Even though Lu Zhi had said she had a good personal relationship, they had actually only met twice. But Bai Lu wasn’t intimidated at all. She lifted her chin and looked at Xu Zirui proudly.
Even after they had said goodbye to Xu Zirui and walked to their private room, the smug expression was still plastered on Bai Lu’s face.
“He always looked down on me. Now he’s come begging for my help. Hmph.”
Lu Zhi found her air of petty triumph amusing and asked, “You just can’t get along with him?”
Bai Lu nodded emphatically, then wrinkled her nose and complained to her, “He’s so petty. He always used to bully me for being short when we were kids. Really annoying.”
As Lu Zhi flipped open the menu, she nodded, saying, “That is pretty mean.”
The corners of Bai Lu’s lips began to curve up uncontrollably again. Clearly, Lu Zhi choosing to be her ally made her even happier than being able to get one over on Xu Zirui.
“Then let’s punish him by making him a wage slave for Yifang Group for the rest of his life,” Lu Zhi said with a smile.
Bai Lu giggled, clenched her little fist, her face radiating determination. “Okay! I’ll work hard at it.”
