Chapter 9: We're Even Now

After work that evening, Chen Ye went to Wen Yu’s rented apartment as agreed. It was small, attractively decorated, and clean.

Wen Yu wore a long beige dress with thin straps, her hair tied in a bun at the back of her head. She looked fresh and neat.

“Have a seat.” She took a bottle of cold water from the fridge and handed it to him. “It’s hot. Cool yourself down.”

Wen Yu had changed a great deal over the years, not so much in appearance as in manner. In high school she’d been innocent and vulnerable. Now even the sway of her hips as she walked seemed impossible to miss.

Watching her from behind, Chen Ye drank several gulps of water and felt the chill spread through him. He put the bottle down. “What did you want to tell me?”

“Shh! Let me make a call first.”

Standing by the window, she called Xie Dong. “Dong, where are you?”

“Having dinner with some friends. I’ll come over later.”

“It’s not convenient tonight. Don’t come.”

“We haven’t been intimate in over a month. Why not tonight?”

“A relative’s visiting.”

“A relative from the countryside?”

“My aunt,” she said, meaning her period.

“All right, all right. Get some rest. By the way, did you get the outfit I ordered for you?”

“Yes.”

“Pretty sexy, isn’t it?” he laughed.

“It fits quite well.”

“It’s a very sexy outfit. Once your aunt leaves, you’ll have to wear it for me.”

“Okay.” She hung up and turned to Chen Ye. “Xie Dong won’t be coming tonight. You can stay here without worrying.”

She sat beside him on the sofa.

“I came because you said you had something to discuss. What is it?”

Instead of answering, Wen Yu smiled faintly and raised an eyebrow. “I didn’t expect you to find yourself a wealthy woman after only a month in Shanghai. How did you manage that?”

Chen Ye stared at her. “What wealthy woman? Don’t talk nonsense.”

“Still pretending?” she sneered. “You moved on quickly enough.”

“If that’s what you want to talk about, I’m leaving.”

“Then what do you want to talk about? Our feelings?” She turned toward him, gazing at him with a seductive tenderness. As if by design, one strap slipped down her smooth arm, revealing a glimpse of black lace beneath her dress.

Chen Ye frowned. “You were the one who wanted to talk to me.”

Wen Yu took a breath, paused, and said, “Do you know I’ve always had feelings for you?”

He stiffened, then his expression hardened. “Don’t give me that.”

“It’s true. I often thought of you these past six years. But love can’t last without money, and given where you are now, we were never going to be together. You did so much for me back then, though. I still want to make it up to you.”

“What do you mean?”

She stood and unfastened her dress, letting it slide down to reveal a black lace outfit underneath. “Xie Dong bought this for me. Do you like it? He hasn’t even seen me wear it yet.”

His heart raced, and for a moment he didn’t know what to do. “What are you doing? Put your clothes on.”

“I told you, I want to make it up to you.” She came close and looped her arms around his neck. “Do you want it or not?”

“I’m not interested,” he said through clenched teeth.

His refusal only stirred her competitive streak. She pushed him down onto the sofa. “You were my first love. Even a breakup deserves a proper farewell. Chen Ye, just this once…” She kissed him.

…

Meanwhile, Xie Dong sat in a car outside Chen Ye’s building with several idle young men, all smoking. In the dark, a blond man fiddled with a baseball bat.

“Dong, it’s almost eight. Isn’t he off work yet? I’m falling asleep waiting.”

“It’s only eight. How can you be sleepy?” Xie Dong took a long drag and blew out smoke. “He’s probably eating somewhere. Wait a little longer.”

“How about another day? I’ve got plans with a girl I met playing Honor of Kings later,” another man said.

“Quit whining. It’s happening tonight.” Xie Dong ground his teeth. “That bastard dared get close to my mother. I’m going to cripple him.”

Seeing how determined he was, the others fell silent.

At Wen Yu’s apartment, the bed was disheveled and clothes lay scattered around the room. Her lace outfit had been pulled out of shape and discarded to one side. Hair tousled, she sat on the edge of the bed.

“Now that I’m not your girlfriend, you don’t care about being gentle at all, do you? You were so rough, you even stood up…”

Chen Ye didn’t know what to say. He said nothing, picked up his clothes, and put them on.

“Actually, I wanted to ask you a favor,” she said suddenly.

“What could you possibly want from me?”

She sighed. “It hasn’t been easy to get where I am. If I marry Xie Dong, I’ll be marrying into a wealthy family. For the sake of what we once had, could you let me go?”

“What do you mean, let you go?” he asked, frowning.

She looked at him pleadingly. “Could you leave my circle completely and let me live the rest of my life in peace?”

“How am I getting in your way?”

“You’re caught up in a feud with Xie Dong, and now you’ve become involved with his mother. How could that have nothing to do with me?”

“I’m just working at Shanghai Beauty.”

“I know. But I can see his mother is protective of you. You saw today that she doesn’t have a very good impression of me. And if you… Xie Dong and I won’t be able to stay together.”

Chen Ye finally understood. She feared he would speak against her to Bai Xueyan and break up her relationship with Xie Dong.

His feelings churned. Wen Yu had invited him here to bargain with her body, hoping he would stay away from Bai Xueyan and out of her circle so she could be with Xie Dong. To marry into money, she’d gone to such lengths. She had become someone he no longer recognized.

“You’re overthinking it, Wen Yu. You were a passerby in my life. You’re in the past. Whatever happens to you has nothing to do with me, and I’m not interested. I have my own job and my own life. Please don’t interfere with mine again. Thank you.”

He stood and left without hesitation.

Downstairs, he paused by the street, his thoughts in turmoil. His phone rang. It was Han Qiuya.

“Hello, Qiuya.”

“How was your first half-day at work?” Her voice was languid, touched with drink.

“Good. Thanks for asking.”

“Why so formal? What, now you’ve met another wealthy woman, you’re going to dump me?” She laughed freely.

“You’re joking. Have you been drinking again?”

“Drinking is part of my daily routine. Why the surprise? I haven’t had enough yet. I’ll pick a place, and you can come drink with me.”

“What about your husband?”

“Dead! Don’t mention him.” She cursed irritably. “I’ll send you my location. Come keep me company—hurry!”