"Why are you here?" Luo Bingbing asked back, surprised.
"I work here."
Luo Bingbing felt wary. Was makeup her side job?
"Don't you know who I'm looking for?"
"If you're looking for Mr. Ye, you need to make an appointment," Tang Yu said with an all-business attitude.
The look of scorn on Luo Bingbing's face deepened, as if she had heard some century's biggest joke, "Do you think I need an appointment? You must be aware of my relationship with Ye Sihan, right?"
Tang Yu hesitated for a moment. She certainly knew about the relationship between Luo Bingbing and Ye Sihan. If the outside world was making baseless guesses, then she had seen it with her own eyes, hadn't she?
But... who asked you not to pay me?
"Step aside." Luo Bingbing commanded arrogantly.
"Sorry, without an appointment, no one is allowed to disturb Mr. Ye."
Luo Bingbing's face immediately turned ugly. "Do you believe I can get Ye Sihan to fire you?"
Why would Tang Yu be scared of her threat? She was forced to come here anyway. It would be best to have her kicked out immediately!
"I'm sorry, this is my job. Please understand."
"Rules are dead, people are alive. How can Crown Group have someone as inflexible as you?"
Luo Bingbing was so furious she almost lost her breath.
Yes, this was her first time at Crown Group, and she had come over without any prior agreement, hoping to breeze through. But she didn't expect to run into the foolish Tang Yu.
Luo Bingbing stepped forward in her high heels, stopping right in front of Tang Yu, their toes just inches apart, filled with hostility. "Don't think I don't know what you're thinking. People like you will never be able to climb into Ye Sihan's bed in your lifetime."
After speaking scornfully, she turned and walked away.
Tang Yu thought to herself, sorry, I've already been there.
Inside the highest authority's office, Ye Sihan sat behind his black office chair, staring at the computer screen, which showed the monitoring footage from the front desk.
He had seen every move that took place at the front desk.
Just as he was about to turn off the screen, the girl in the image stealthily slipped her foot out of her high heel, revealing a foot that seemed young, fair, and soft even through the camera lens.
Another employee going to the restroom passed by, and she quickly tucked her foot back into her shoe.
Xiao Yu knocked and entered, saying, "The front desk just called, saying Luo Bingbing came looking for you, but Tang Yu stopped and persuaded her to leave."
Ye Sihan withdrew his gaze from the computer, unsentimentally, "Let her leave when her contract expires."
"Understood," Xiao Yu knew that 'she' referred to Tang Yu.
In the evening, Tang Yu was spending time with the children, always trying to learn about their lives at school from what they shared.
Xibao asked, "Mommy, what if someone bullies me?"
"Hit them back with a shovel."
"But I'm a little girl, right?"
"Hmm... then use a pink shovel," Tang Yu considered, then asked, "Has someone bullied you?"
Junjun, "Mommy, no!"
Zhengzheng, "Who dares to bully Xibao, I'll be the first to not let them off!"
Haohao, "Three gege are not just for decoration!"
"Alright then."
The phone beside her rang. Tang Yu glanced at the caller ID, stood up and said, "Mommy will answer a call." She walked to the other side to pick up, "Sister Xue, what's up?"
Li Xue knew about the previous incident where Luo Bingbing did not pay the makeup fee, and she wanted to compensate Tang Yu, but she had declined.
In such situations, one can only keep their grievances to themselves; after all, everyone is a worker, and it's not easy.
Li Xue, who did Luo Bingbing's makeup, also had to constantly watch her mood, which was no easy task either.
"Luo Bingbing asked me to call you over to the bar. It's her birthday today, and she wants to take this opportunity to apologize to you."
Tang Yu wanted to refuse, but in order not to make things difficult for Li Xue, she agreed.
After getting the four kids washed up and into bed, "It's nine o'clock, time to sleep! Mommy will sleep with you."
Once Tang Yu had coaxed the kids to sleep and locked the door securely, she left the house.
After boarding the subway, she turned on her phone to check the monitoring software, the four little bundles on the bed were sound asleep.
The house was rented when she returned to China, and the first thing she did was install a monitor inside.
After all, the kids couldn't stay at school every day, and when she had to go out for work with nobody to watch them, this was the only way she could check on them.
She could even talk to them, letting the kids know that mom was always there, so they wouldn't feel scared.
Arriving at the bar, Crown Entertainment City; the exterior was imposing, and naturally, the interior was spacious as well.
Lights and shadows of all sorts, dazzling and colorful.
Men and women flirted ambiguously, indulging themselves, releasing their pent-up desires.
Three years ago, after the incident that had happened at a bar, Tang Yu had never frequented one since.
"Over here!" Li Xue found her, their spot was right at the center of the hall, the best location, with several large sofas gathered around, five people in total; aside from Luo Bingbing and Li Xue, she didn't recognize the other men and women.
"Miss Luo, happy birthday," Tang Yu knew it was her birthday, and naturally, couldn't come empty-handed.
She also knew that a person like Luo Bingbing wouldn't lack the sort of petty cash she could offer, anything she bought as a gift wouldn't be presentable, so she simply bought a cake for the occasion.
Luo Bingbing glanced at the cake on the coffee table, "So formal, huh? But this cake looks quite cheap; is it made with vegetable cream?"
As the words came out, the people beside them couldn't help but laugh—
"Looking at her outfit, she doesn't seem like she can afford anything nice."
"Sister Luo, she's not trying to butter you up to curry favor, is she?"
Tang Yu pressed her lips tightly together, their malice made her feel especially ashamed.
"Sister Luo that's Tang Yu's thoughtfulness, since the thought is there… that should be enough, right?" Li Xue hadn't expected Luo Bingbing to be so blunt in targeting someone.
"What thought? Are you sure this isn't an insult to Sister Luo?" someone beside her remarked.
Luo Bingbing said, "Kneel down and apologize, and let's consider that as my birthday gift."
"What?" Tang Yu couldn't believe the demand she made.
A cake over a hundred bucks wasn't cheap, was there really a need to be so hurtful?
"I'm afraid you can't afford it," Tang Yu was angry.
Wouldn't the expensive cake be good enough for her children to eat?
"Yo, what's this talk? Could she be a lost young miss from a wealthy family, living discreetly among the commoners?"
"Hahahaha."
Tang Yu looked expressionlessly at Luo Bingbing and asked, "Don't you know about my relationship with Ye Sihan?"
Luo Bingbing's expression changed.
The laughing people quieted down, and even Li Xue looked at her oddly; those who were close to her knew that Luo Bingbing's backer was Ye Sihan.
Because she herself couldn't wait to let the entire world know.
Ignoring the surprise of others, Tang Yu bluntly stated, "You should have noticed the way he and I made eye contact that day in the makeup room, right? Afterwards, Ye Sihan personally found me and arranged for me to work at KING Group because he heard I was jobless."
"Impossible!" Luo Bingbing stood up, anger distorting her meticulously made-up face.
She wanted to be Ye Sihan's girlfriend as well, but she was acutely aware that she was nothing of the sort.
She was so close to that final step; how could she let Tang Yu get there first!
"Ye Sihan also said he wanted me to be his girlfriend. So, is it appropriate for his girlfriend to kneel to you?" Tang Yu's mind was focused only on defeating Luo Bingbing.
Why should she kneel to her? Who did she think she was?
Anyway, with Ye Sihan not around, she could fashion the narrative any way she liked.
Just as her words left those few people speechless yet resentful, a sizeable disturbance permeated the air, a commotion that the noise of the bar couldn't suppress.
"Isn't that Mr. Ye?"
"Why is he here?"
"He must have heard about Sister Luo's birthday and rushed over."
"But I'm more curious, is it really as the 'phony rich girl' said, that she's Mr. Ye's girlfriend?"
"I think it's time for a face-slapping moment."