A love rival?
Faced with Lin Youqi's question, Guan Qingtong's eyes widened in disbelief.
She did indeed want to get closer to Su Yirao, but...
Sensing Guan Qingtong's hesitation and taking her silence as confirmation, Lin Youqi immediately added, "Then let's compete fairly!"
"Compete fairly?" Guan Qingtong snapped back to reality, quickly waving her hands. "Sister Su is not an object; she's a person with her own independent thoughts. Whether she likes you or not is her decision. There's no competition between us, so let's not mention this again."
Lin Youqi studied her for a long moment, unable to discern Guan Qingtong's true feelings.
"So, you're saying… you're not my rival?" If there's no competition, wouldn't that mean they weren't rivals?
"No," Guan Qingtong shook her head, then added, "Sister Su said she doesn't like workplace romances. It's probably best if you keep your feelings to yourself to avoid unnecessary heartbreak."
Hearing this, Lin Youqi suddenly looked as though she understood.
"You're backing down just because of that?" she asked. "Fine, whatever. But I won't give up! Our lives aren't just about work. After hours, I can still like her..."
Guan Qingtong furrowed her brows, reluctant to crush Lin Youqi's hopes.
"Qingtong, stop whispering with Xiao Lin and come here."
Su Yirao's voice interrupted their conversation, leaving Guan Qingtong no time to clear up any misunderstandings. She quickly responded before heading towards the workroom.
"Close the door."
The workroom, unlike the café's luxurious style, was simply decorated with clean white walls, a few chairs, a desk, and a computer.
Su Yirao pulled over a wheeled chair and placed it next to her, gesturing for Guan Qingtong to sit down.
"Sister Su, I've already compiled the payroll summary you needed based on the attendance records at the hospital." Guan Qingtong skillfully logged into her account and forwarded the spreadsheet to Su Yirao's WeChat.
Su Yirao was slightly surprised and opened the document to review it.
After a brief glance, she chuckled and playfully slung an arm around Guan Qingtong's shoulder, pulling her closer.
"Not bad. Your work efficiency is starting to resemble mine."
Being so close to Su Yirao for the first time, Guan Qingtong stiffened, caught off guard by the sudden familiarity.
"Relax, I'm not going to eat you," Su Yirao teased, patting her shoulder before leaning in to whisper, "What were you and Xiao Lin talking about earlier? I think I heard my name."
Guan Qingtong absentmindedly replied, "Nothing much, just about her liking you. She even misunderstood and thought I was her love rival."
Upon hearing this, Su Yirao's playful smile faded slightly.
But when she noticed the calm expression on Guan Qingtong's face, she shook her head and smiled again.
"Then let her keep misunderstanding."
"What?" Guan Qingtong, startled, momentarily forgot the discomfort of their proximity and turned to look at Su Yirao, her voice rising in surprise.
"Shh..." Su Yirao raised a finger to her lips. "The workroom isn't soundproof, so keep your voice down."
Su Yirao explained, "Xiao Lin is a diligent and reliable worker, and as her boss, I don't want to lose her. But I also don't want to take advantage of her feelings."
"So, I'm going to act a little closer to you. You can act as confident as you want. If it helps her move on and not get too attached, then that's for the best."
Guan Qingtong hesitated, then asked, "But what if the misunderstanding becomes real?"
"That's the point, silly!" Su Yirao gently tapped her on the temple. "Wait a minute, you're not agreeing because you're worried about the gossip, are you?"
Su Yirao raised an eyebrow and asked, "Guan Qingtong, if I'm not worried, what are you worried about?"
Guan Qingtong sincerely replied, "I'm not worried. I'm just concerned… What if Xiao Lin takes it seriously? People might think you like women, and those rumors could spread to you."
"Oh, so you're worried about rumors?" Su Yirao mused. "If you're that concerned about gossip affecting you, maybe I'll just ask Zhou Huiying instead. Or better yet, maybe I should just find a real relationship. After all, I've been single for so long, it might be nice to experience some sweet romance."
"I'm not worried about the gossip…" Guan Qingtong felt a sudden urge to clarify, "Sister Su, if you could turn down someone as outstanding as Yu Xingye, finding someone you truly like and starting a relationship might take a while."
Su Yirao, amused, patted her on the shoulder. Little did Guan Qingtong know, Su Yirao had broken off her engagement with Yu Xingye precisely because of her.
"Alright, alright, don't stress yourself out. We'll talk about this later." Su Yirao withdrew her arm from around Guan Qingtong and turned her attention back to her laptop, resuming her work.
We'll talk about it later…
Guan Qingtong watched Su Yirao's focused profile, feeling an inexplicable sense of regret and frustration.
She resolutely said, "Sister Su, I can do it."
"Do what?" Su Yirao paused her typing and turned to her, puzzled.
Guan Qingtong opened her mouth to speak, but her emotions, once soaring high, plummeted into a confused mess she couldn't quite grasp or express.
"What's the matter? Why do you look like I just bullied you?"
Su Yirao pointed at Guan Qingtong's downturned lips. "Your mouth is so pouty, you could hang a soy sauce bottle on it."
Hearing this, Guan Qingtong quickly straightened her lips.
"Good girl." Su Yirao chuckled and shook her head. "By the way, what was your major?"
Guan Qingtong, feeling she had missed her chance, reluctantly responded, "Chinese Language and Literature."
"Oh, that's versatile." Su Yirao nodded in understanding. "You should have no problem writing copy and promotional material. You wanted to learn from me before, right? I'll start gradually handing over some of my tasks to you."
Hearing this, Guan Qingtong's mood brightened, and she eagerly nodded, her eyes sparkling with excitement.
"Not everything is rigid or fixed, so how much you learn depends on your ability to grasp it," Su Yirao said. "Recently, I've been thinking of turning your sister Ying's signature drinks into viral products for our café..."
Guan Qingtong listened intently, taking out her phone to open a note-taking app.
"Use this." Su Yirao handed her a brand-new notebook, wrapped in a soft leather cover. "Consider this a gift from me. I hope you'll study hard and take good notes."
Guan Qingtong, touched, carefully accepted the notebook with both hands.
"Sister, thank you!"
Su Yirao smiled, then opened her own PowerPoint presentation to begin explaining. "Besides leveraging external trends, we also need to conduct some regular promotional activities ourselves. I've already registered accounts on several video platforms, and we need to keep them updated…"
Suddenly, Su Yirao collapsed onto the desk.
"Sister Su?" Guan Qingtong frantically shook her, "Sister, what's wrong? Wake up!"
No response.
But she was still breathing.
Not daring to hesitate, Guan Qingtong rushed out of the workroom and called out to Zhou Huiying, who was preparing desserts in the back.
"Sister Ying, something's wrong! Sister Su fainted!"
"What?"
Zhou Huiying immediately dropped what she was doing and contacted the hospital...