"If this were a normal time, the way you're treating me would get you tossed in jail!"
Despite the lingering flush on her delicate features, the woman's icy tone served as a reminder to Lin Fei that she was not joking.
Lin Fei shrugged his shoulders, his gaze sliding inadvertently over the woman's rounded belly, "Apparently, you're the one who asked for my help."
"You..." The woman's annoyance with Lin Fei's attitude caused her to falter mid-sentence and she shot Lin Fei a displeased glance, "It's true that I asked for your help, but I didn't allow you to take advantage of me. Besides, I paid you."
"When you buy something, of course you have to pay. I'll pack up the goods for you."
Lin Fei had no intention of prolonging the issue with the woman and quickly began collecting his things from the stall.
"Stop packing. Keep the stuff; I don't need it."
Having said that, the woman turned to leave, but Lin Fei's action made her pause, "What do you mean?"
"I mean no offense. We street vendors have our principles too. Since you don't need my goods, I have no reason to take your money. Keep the cash and take care. I won't see you out."
Lin Fei pulled out the stack of hundred-yuan bills he'd earlier snatched from the woman's hand and stuffed them back into her hand, then turned and sat back down on his little stool.
Lin Fei had his own code to live by; he did in fact need money for rent and food, but he was a vendor through and through. If he couldn't sell his goods, he wouldn't take the money. If he truly wanted cash, there were far too many ways he could get it.
During his years abroad, Lin Fei himself had lost track of how much money he'd amassed.
The woman's lovely brows knitted together, the memory of Lin Fei's brazen act of snatching the money mixed with the present image of him promptly returning it. In her mind, those memories overlapped in a cycle of reincarnation.
At that moment, the woman couldn't determine which side was the real Lin Fei.
"Integrity is key in business. Since I previously agreed to buy these things, I have no reason to back out now. Please pack them for me, I'll take them, but you'll be responsible for delivering them to my home."
Lin Fei, without so much as glancing at the woman, declined with his head still down, "Sorry, I've changed my mind, I'm not selling anymore."
"See it through when you help someone, you wouldn't want me to get caught by those people, would you? I'm buying your stuff, deliver it to my home, consider it compensation for earlier when you took advantage of me."
The woman approached Lin Fei, lowered her stance, squatted down, and stuffed the money into Lin Fei's pocket.
The woman had said her piece, leaving Lin Fei with no excuses to refuse. He haphazardly packed up and followed the woman down from the overpass.
"Why were those people chasing you?" Lin Fei inquired after getting down from the overpass. Sensing the woman's mood plummet, he added, "It's okay if you don't want to talk about it; I'm just curious."
"Do men need a reason to pursue women?"
"With a face like yours, certainly not."
The rest of the journey was silent. Lin Fei was not one to overstep boundaries; if the woman didn't wish to speak further, he wouldn't press. After all, they were mere strangers who had met by chance—at most customer and vendor.
"I'm here."
The woman stopped at the steps of a grand hotel.
Lin Fei raised an eyebrow. The woman had said she was going home, but now she had stopped at a hotel. Lin Fei wasn't naive enough to think the hotel was her home, which clearly made no sense.
"Aren't you going to invite me up for a drink?"
They say a heartbroken woman is easily swayed, Lin Fei had only heard such sayings, but now a living example stood before him. The woman was being so forward that Lin Fei felt it was only right to offer solace to her wounded heart.
...
Inside the hotel bedroom, the woman swirled her glass of red wine, watching Lin Fei with an inscrutable gaze, "Having a drink at your customer's house doesn't seem proper for a seller. The goods have been delivered, shouldn't you be going now?"
"Easing a customer's mood falls within my responsibilities."
Lin Fei took the wine glass from the woman's hand and downed the red wine in one gulp.
...
Lin Fei showed no sign of waking, until his poor-quality phone ringtone finally roused him.
"Hello, who is this?"
"It's Mu Shanshan."
Her voice was cold, devoid of sentiment, like a bucket of ice water that completely sobered Lin Fei.
Mu Shanshan, the legitimate daughter and president of Mu Group in Zhonghai, Director Mu Hong's daughter, the only female among the top ten outstanding young entrepreneurs in the Azure Dragon district.
With a master's degree in business administration from an overseas university, she returned home to take over the Mu Group at just twenty-three years old.
Now at twenty-six, Mu Shanshan had created a legend in just three short years. In Zhonghai's business world, she expanded the business and assets of Mu Group fivefold and boosted its market value by over forty billion yuan, making it one of Zhonghai's leading conglomerates.
Even within the entirety of the White Tiger Region, Mu Group held considerable renown.
God had bestowed upon Mu Shanshan not only terrifying business acumen but also a face so exquisite it seemed dream-like. Dubbed "Zhonghai's business beauty," she was the unattainable dream woman for countless men.
A woman like Mu Shanshan could be described as a masterpiece of creation—noblemen chased after her like carps crossing a river.
Her formidable business acumen, stunning beauty, and cool demeanor were the common descriptors used by the media for Mu Shanshan.
And it was this exceptional woman who was calling Lin Fei—a mere street vendor.
The reason was simple: Mu Shanshan was Lin Fei's wife.