The room fell silent, and everyone was left in a stunned daze, staring at the girl in a miniskirt who had burst in and clung to Chen Xin.
Chen Xin froze for a moment before regaining his composure. He quickly stood up and addressed the others, "I'm sorry, I need to step out for a moment." Then, he hurriedly pulled Lin Xiaowan out of the room, closing the door behind them.
"What are you doing? Didn't you promise me you wouldn't make a scene?" Chen Xin whispered urgently. "And what happened to your skirt? Aren't you cold?"
Lin Xiaowan casually rested one hand on his shoulder, playing with her nails with the other. "I didn't want to make a fuss either, but your subordinate, Mr. Harold, decided I was a gold digger and gave me a lecture. Since he already labeled me as such, I figured I should act the part properly. Otherwise, how would I live up to being called 'trash'?"
Chen Xin frowned. "He really said that to you?"
Lin Xiaowan rolled her eyes impatiently. "I don't feel like arguing with you. Where's your wallet? Hand it over—I want to buy a car!"
Chen Xin sighed and took out his wallet. Just as he was about to hand her a card, Lin Xiaowan snatched the entire wallet, waved at him, and said, "See you tonight."
"Wait a second!" Chen Xin grabbed her wrist, and Lin Xiaowan immediately clutched the wallet defensively, shouting, "You stingy trust-fund kid, what do you want? The wallet is mine now that I've got it!"
Chen Xin, exasperated, glanced at her, then took off his jacket and tied it around her waist. "I can't leave right now. Buy yourself a thicker skirt and change out of this one. Don't catch a cold, okay?"
Lin Xiaowan pouted. "Fine, fine, I got it. See you."
As she turned to leave, she ran into Harold, who had just come after her. Lin Xiaowan immediately brought the wallet to her nose, exaggeratedly sniffed it, and loudly declared, "Ah, the smell of easy money is the best!"
Harold froze in place. "You—"
Lin Xiaowan flipped him off without looking back and walked away.
Harold sighed deeply and turned back to Chen Xin. Just as he was about to explain, Chen Xin, with a cold expression, said, "I'm busy right now. Let's talk after the meeting."
"…Alright."
An hour later, Chen Xin returned to his office after the meeting to find Harold already waiting. As soon as Chen Xin walked in, Harold began, "Bro, I know I overstepped by talking to Miss Lin today. It wasn't appropriate, but please believe me—I was only trying to help."
Chen Xin took a deep breath, sat down in his chair, and said, "I believe you meant well, Harold, but I've told you before—I don't need your guidance on this matter."
Harold sighed. "I understand, but I just can't stand by and watch my good friend make the same mistake I did. You've probably heard from others—I was scammed by a gold digger when I was in college. To satisfy her material desires, I borrowed money left and right. But what did she do? She left me as soon as she found a rich man! It was a devastating experience for me. If it weren't for my wife, I don't think I'd have ever believed in love again. So I just wanted to warn you—"
"I know what you're trying to do, Harold. But first of all, Xiaowan isn't the kind of person you're describing. Secondly, you shouldn't call her trash without knowing her."
"I know my words were harsh, but this girl spent over 700,000 yuan of yours in a single day and just walked off with your wallet. Doesn't that scream 'gold digger' to you?"
Chen Xin stared at him coldly. "I have my own standards of judgment. I appreciate your concern, but I want to remind you that while I haven't been in a relationship before, I know what I'm doing."
Harold looked at Chen Xin, whose expression clearly said, This conversation is over. Reluctantly, Harold nodded and stood up. "Alright, I overstepped today. Please apologize to Miss Lin for me. I got carried away and shouldn't have said what I did."
"I will."
After Harold left, Chen Xin turned to the fish tank on his desk. The plump red koi swam leisurely, its round belly swaying as it moved. Chen Xin chuckled softly, then sighed. He pulled out his phone and sent a message to Lin Xiaowan: "What are you up to?"
Lin Xiaowan quickly replied: "Listening to little Chen's advice and buying a new skirt. Do you think it looks good?"
She attached a selfie. In the photo, Lin Xiaowan was in a fitting room wearing a leopard-print, tight-fitting V-neck dress that highlighted her ample curves in a tantalizing way.
Chen Xin responded helplessly, "I told you to buy a thicker skirt, not one with even less fabric than the last."
Lin Xiaowan: "I want this one! I'll wear it while driving the Ferrari to attract some hot guys. Bye!"
Chen Xin was gradually beginning to understand what Maggie meant when she said, "Xiao Wan likes to lie." Perhaps it was because she felt mocked and attacked by Harold, so she was using this twisted way to protect herself.
It was as if she chose to hurt herself first before anyone else could, so she could get used to the pain.
Thinking of this, he couldn't help but reply, "I'm sorry. Don't be upset. I already talked to Harold. What happened today was his fault. I promise I won't let him talk about you like that again. How about I buy you pizza tonight?"
Xiao Wan replied, "Cheese cheese cheese cheese cheese!"
Chen Xin chuckled lightly, "Alright, I'll get lots and lots of cheese."
Xiao Wan sent him another selfie—a photo of her pouting her lips and blowing a kiss toward the camera.
Chen Xin couldn't help but touch her face on the screen, then set the photo as his phone's wallpaper.
That noon, at the VIP lounge of N City Airport.
A tall man with long legs, dressed in casual denim, walked out of the terminal with a curvy woman dressed in a sexy outfit by his side. As they reached the exit, the man took off his sunglasses, revealing a pair of sharp, hawk-like eyes, and dismissed the woman.
"Go. I've got things to do."
The woman looked at him reluctantly. "Mr. Gu, didn't we have a great time together? Can't you spend a little more time with me?"
Ye Chen looked at her impatiently. "Tch, you've been in this circle for so long, and you still don't know me? I hate women dragging things out when I'm breaking it off. If you keep clinging to me, I'll make sure no man in N City's rich second-generation circle will ever date you again."
The woman could only pull her luggage—a suitcase filled with the spoils of her gold-digging—away quickly.
Feeling unburdened, Ye Chen walked out of the airport hall, eager to light a cigarette. He took a deep drag, finally relieved after the smoke-free hours on the plane.
As he blew out a smoke ring, a familiar voice called out beside him, "Hey, Gu! Long time no see!"
Ye Chen turned his head, showing a delighted expression, and gave the man a friendly hug. "Harold! Why are you here? Where's my buddy Chen Xin?"
Harold smiled. "Things at the company are hectic. He couldn't get away, so he asked me to pick you up."
"Damn, that guy's giving me less and less face. He'd better treat us to dinner tonight. Watch how I bleed him dry." Ye Chen said this with a grin.
Harold laughed as he opened the door of the Bentley nearby. "Come on, I'll take you to meet him at the office."
On the way, Harold, sitting in the passenger seat, asked, "Did you finish dealing with the L City branch's issues?"
"Yeah, the HR there hired a bunch of idiots in accounting, and they turned the finances into a mess," Ye Chen said, running a hand through his freshly cut hair with a frown. "Took me three months to sort it out and explain everything to the shareholders. Nearly worked me to death."
"That's exactly why it has to be someone capable like you to handle it," Harold praised. "What's that saying in Chinese? 'The capable bear the burden,' right?"
Ye Chen laughed heartily. "You're getting better at talking, huh? Chen Xin hasn't given you a promotion yet?"
Harold sighed. "Promotion? He gave me a dressing-down this morning."
"What? Why? Tell me about it," Ye Chen asked curiously, leaning closer. "He's got such a good temper—I rarely see him lose it."
Harold glanced at Ye Chen, hesitated for a moment, and then cautiously asked, "You're Chen's best friend, so before I tell you what happened this morning, I need to ask—do you know that Chen is… sort of in a relationship recently?"
Ye Chen froze for a second before shouting, "Are you kidding me? With who? That Lorraine I introduced to him? But he told me he dumped her!"
Harold explained, "Not Lorraine. The whole thing started that afternoon when we saw him escorting a girl to her car in the parking lot…"
On the way to Chen Xin's office, Harold recounted everything he knew about Lin Xiaowan to Ye Chen.
When he finished, Ye Chen blew out a smoke ring and sneered, "Isn't this exactly a gold digger? Has Chen Xin lost his mind? And he's even arguing with you to defend her?"
"Exactly. I've tried everything to make him see the truth, but it seems he's completely smitten. He won't listen to anything," Harold said helplessly. "He even scolded me again this morning. I'm at my wit's end, so I thought of asking for your help. You're his best friend—you can't just sit by and watch him be deceived by that woman, right?"
"Of course not," Ye Chen replied, puffing on his cigarette. His tone was mocking. "Don't worry. I've dealt with women like this dozens of times. I know exactly how to handle them. But…"
"But what?"
Ye Chen frowned, pondering. "Lin Xiaowan… Tch, why does that name sound so damn familiar?"