Chapter 4

Chapter 4

“I know what gift to get him.”

Early the next morning, while Zhou Chi was at work, I slipped out of the house.

The System kept pestering me about what I was going to buy, but I refused to say a word.

As I neared the mall, someone spilled coffee all over me at the entrance.

[The plot is here. Driven by vanity, you’ve snuck out to hook up with a rich man, using your beauty to lead men on.]

Sure enough, the man who bumped into me was staring at me, completely dazed.

The System identified him as Jiang Yuan-the rich second-generation heir I was supposed to latch onto after divorcing the male lead in the original plot.

Jiang Yuan feigned an apology and invited me to lunch, even taking me to buy a new outfit.

Before leaving, he generously transferred five thousand yuan to me as compensation for the “fright.”

I loathed Jiang Yuan’s greasy, predatory gaze; it was flippant, as if I were already something he owned.

The System was buzzing with excitement:

[Finally, things are back on track! Your lover has appeared, and the divorce plot isn’t far off. Hurry up and have an affair, seduce him properly-the mission can finally be completed!]

“You have a foul mouth.”

The System didn’t care in the slightest:

[Just the truth. By the way, weren’t you going to buy a gift? Look, here’s the money. And you have the nerve to complain about my tone? I haven’t even complained about you doing all this useless nonsense. Spending time humiliating the male lead would be much more productive than some stupid gift.]

Useless nonsense. How was buying a gift useless nonsense?

I hated the System’s tone, and I hated the casual dismissal in its words.

It always referred to Zhou Chi as the “male lead,” and it always rigidly forced me to follow the plot.

It didn’t see the layers of fresh bruises on Zhou Chi’s arms and shoulders,

And it never cared how piercing and hurtful the lines it forced me to say were.

That evening, when Zhou Chi returned, I had already fallen asleep after waiting too long on the sofa.

When I was dizzily picked up, I called out Zhou Chi’s name.

“I bought you a gift.”

I tore open the exquisite packaging and handed over the gift I’d been waiting all night to give.

“I don’t know if you’ll like it. I spent a long time picking it out.”

Zhou Chi’s gaze moved slowly from my face to my palm.

It was a down jacket, a standard style in a standard color.

I had thought about buying a white one because Zhou Chi had handsome features and would look great in white.

But the places he frequented were construction sites, warehouses, and docks.

A person in financial distress doesn’t have light-colored clothes in their wardrobe; they don’t dare buy them and can’t afford to maintain them.

His jacket, covered in dust and engine oil, was still by the door. Zhou Chi must have been repairing cars today.

I came up with a clumsy excuse to cover my tracks:

“Don’t think buying you a jacket means anything. I’m just afraid you’ll catch a cold when you’re out.”

“Medicine is so expensive nowadays. If you end up in the hospital, think of how much it’ll cost. I’m not lending money to a loser like you to see a doctor…”

The jacket fit perfectly; after all, I had secretly measured him while cuddling up to him at night.

Zhou Chi tried it on and then immediately took it off.

I thought something was wrong and was about to ask when I heard his voice:

“Where did the money come from?”

I could never read Zhou Chi’s eyes. It felt as if his heart held many secrets,

Hidden beneath a cold, sharp shell that seemed to soften slightly toward me-and then again, perhaps it didn’t.

I was caught off guard by the question and didn’t know how to answer for a moment.

[While you were flirting with that rich guy, the male lead was moving freight across the street.]

The System laughed gloatingly:

[Taking money from a lover and running back to buy him a gift… Well, isn’t that just robbing the rich to help the poor?]

Across the street?

That meant Zhou Chi saw someone transferring money to me.

While he was working hard to earn money for me, he saw me flirting with a rich heir behind his back with his own eyes?

“Where did the money come from?”

Zhou Chi asked again.

He rarely spoke with such force. I was startled by him, my expression panicked, and I remained silent for a long time.

Zhou Chi noticed my fear. He closed his eyes, and the defensive thorns he’d put up settled back down.

“I didn’t mean to snap at you. It’s just that this jacket is too expensive. Did you spend all your savings?”

What savings?

Every time Zhou Chi handed over his wages, I would squander them the next day according to the plot.

I had no savings, no nest egg, yet I could suddenly buy him a two-thousand-yuan down jacket.

“I went to fix cars today and met a big client. He gave me a two-hundred-yuan tip.”

Zhou Chi gave me all the money he had earned during this period.

He didn’t ask me again where the money came from, nor did he ask why I was wearing a set of designer clothes.

He just looked at me for a long time before slowly averting his gaze.

“Don’t be stingy with the money. If you run out, just ask me.”

He paused, then said:

“I’m sorry.”

An apology out of nowhere.