Chapter 29 (1/2): Processing

“Come out here for a moment.” Bai Xia waved at him.

Upon hearing this, Qi Mo almost couldn’t suppress the curve at the corner of his mouth.

Just as he suspected, they were truly mutually fond of each other.

It was only because of strict family rules and her being under eighteen that Bai Xia had always politely declined him.

Now, they finally didn’t have to care about those external restrictions anymore.

Amidst the cheers and teasing from everyone around, he took out his phone to check his hairstyle, then quickly followed her out.

There were hardly any waiters passing by in the corridor.

Bai Xia looked at the bright and sunny boy before handing him a box.

“This is too valuable. You should give it to someone more suitable.”

The smile on Qi Mo’s face froze.

“You don’t like it? I can buy you another one!”

He had specifically asked He Yuehua before buying it; she said Bai Xia would definitely like it.

Could she have lied to him?!

“No, the watch is very beautiful, but I don’t like you. We’re just friends. It’s not that you’re not good enough, we’re just not compatible.”

Bai Xia spoke each word clearly.

Although she had said it many times before, she still had to make sure there was no room for misunderstanding.

Qi Mo was a good person, but she wasn’t going to like someone just because he was good.

She certainly wasn’t that desperate for affection.

“You…”

Qi Mo was like he had been struck by lightning, his facial muscles twitching slightly.

“We’ve played together since we were kids, childhood sweethearts. How could we be incompatible? If you didn’t like me, why would you still hang out with me? Is there something you’re hiding?”

He felt like he was falling into an ice cave.

“I have no secrets. Just because I hang out with you doesn’t mean I like you. I don’t like Lin Yan either, but I hang out with him. What does that prove?”

Bai Xia helplessly patted his shoulder.

“We’re good friends. Friendship is just as precious.”

Hearing this, Qi Mo’s heart stirred.

Bai Xia valued their friendship so much?

“You should give this watch to the girl you like then.”

After saying that, Bai Xia turned and left.

Her words about incompatibility were not made up.

Qi Mo was too clingy—he probably wanted to revolve around her twenty-four hours a day.

She had too much going on to have time for a relationship.

Watching the girl’s retreating figure, Qi Mo leaned against the corridor wall to steady himself.

He still couldn’t accept it, but he knew he couldn’t cling on either; that would be unmanly and they wouldn’t even be friends anymore.

“Cramping?”

A voice suddenly sounded beside him.

He looked up to see Lin Yan arriving late.

His face immediately darkened. “I’m heartbroken.”

“Oh.”

Lin Yan glanced at the time.

Traffic was bad, so he was ten minutes late.

“She said she doesn’t like me.”

The corners of Qi Mo’s eyes reddened.

“She said she doesn’t like you either. She values our friendship a lot. She thinks friendship is more important than love. That means she still cares about me.”

Lin Yan glanced at the box in his hand.

“Is this what you gave her?”

Qi Mo’s usually bright face was now full of sadness as he handed the box to Lin Yan.

“Sell it for me, remember to give me the cash.”

He wasn’t going to give it to any other girl anyway.

“It’s not the first time she’s rejected you. Haven’t you gotten used to it yet?”

Lin Yan pulled him inside the room.

The once noisy private room suddenly fell silent.

Everyone turned to look at the dejected Qi Mo.

No need to ask; they all knew what had happened.

Sure enough, a white-collar beauty like Bai Xia wouldn’t let anyone win her heart easily.

She could only be admired from afar.

Qi Mo sat on the sofa, twisted open a bottle of liquor, and took a few swallows.

His heart felt unbearably heavy.

He had studied hard day and night for Bai Xia, only wanting to grow together with her.

But when you try too hard, things often don’t end well.

Forget it, who says friendship is inferior to love?

Though he didn’t want to admit it, he was clearly no match for Bai Xia in many ways.

There was no need to force compatibility.

“I’m leaving. Just a breakup. What’s the big deal?”

He Yuehua reminded Lin Yan, then picked up her bag and left.

The people around were still shouting and singing loudly.

Qi Mo hugged Lin Yan tightly.

“My heart hurts so much!”

Lin Yan glanced sideways.

“That’s your stomach.”

“My stomach can hurt too, can’t it?”

Qi Mo frowned.

***

Back at the villa, Bai Xia immediately smelled a strong fishy odor coming from the kitchen.

It was clear that Lu Jin Nian had returned with a full catch today.

That was great—at his age, still going fishing.

Unlike the male lead who always came back empty-handed, never catching a single fish in the entire pond.

No complaints.

As evening fell, sure enough, the table was covered with either braised fish or steamed fish.

Lu Shuo ate heartily.

As long as it was meat, he was happy.

“Did those old guys give you a hard time today?”

Lu Jin Nian sat at the head of the table, looking at the girl with tender eyes.

Though his face was full of wrinkles, his gaze was still sharp.

Bai Xia sipped her pork rib soup and shook her head.

“No, they couldn’t argue with me.”

“She’s got the mouth of ten people. No one could talk back to her. If she didn’t almost choke on her anger, that would be surprising.”

Lu Shuo shouted.

Yao Yun immediately shot him a glare.

The old man loved family harmony.

Even if it was just for show, they had to act affectionate on the surface.

This kid deliberately went against that and had zero sense of the bigger picture.

“You talk too much. If you have nothing to do, go find a girlfriend and have a kid. Settle down early.”

Lu Jin Nian stared straight at his grandson.

Lu Shuo shoved his food around and pouted.

“I just graduated. I want to build my career. I want to build my own business empire like Grandpa. Marriage can wait until after thirty.”

Seeing him getting more and more ridiculous, Lu Qi Hui tapped his head.

“Always dreaming.”

Bai Xia glanced across the table.

“Where do you come up with all that nonsense? Great-grandpa’s ears must be deafened by your noise.”

Lu Shuo wanted to retort but ultimately lowered his head and ate.

He didn’t understand why a chairman should be afraid of the president.

Shouldn’t the chairman be the top dog?

Forget it, this company was run by Bai Xia anyway.

Once the game launched, the whole family would see how powerful she was.

“Kids need to eat well. This is the critical stage for your bone development. Ignore all those trivial matters if you can. We don’t need anything from the Song family; there’s no need to look at their faces.”

Lu Jin Nian looked at his great-granddaughter’s slender arms with heartfelt concern.

His granddaughter didn’t need to endure anyone’s bullying.

Those old-timers who relied on their age had been picking on the Lu family for far too long.

“It’s okay, Great-grandpa. Song Grandfather is getting old and needs help anyway. This is a good opportunity for me to gain some experience.”

Bai Xia ladled a bowl of soup for the elder.

“You should eat more, too. I saw you hardly touched your food just now and you’ve lost weight recently. Lu Shuo ate all your fish, so you haven’t even tasted the soup.”

“The fish is caught to be eaten. If Grandpa doesn’t eat it, then I have to.”

“All right, all right.”

Lu Jin Nian smiled and took the spoon.

The butler called the doctor to check his blood pressure.

The chairman’s health had been declining over the years.

Whenever he was on the brink, thinking of Bai Xia would somehow make him feel better.

That was the power of family affection.

However, seeing the president’s father always made the chairman’s blood pressure rise—forming a vicious cycle.

The next day, Bai Xia got up early, finished her morning routine, and set an alarm for eight.

Although Lu Jin Nian wanted her to join the family business, she wasn’t in a hurry.

After all, the male lead was still young.

Letting him rest early was better.

If he had nothing to do, who knew what trouble he might cause?

It was better to keep him busy so everyone could relax.

After breakfast, she drove herself to the company.

Though Lu Lin had long wanted to assign her a driver, she didn’t trust chauffeurs.

The world of the wealthy was dangerous.

Only by holding the steering wheel herself could she feel safe.

The spacious conference room had two rows of people seated, all discussing company appointments.

It was rumored that a manager would be parachuted into a department today.

No one knew who it would be.

Until the conference room door opened, and a young girl appeared in everyone’s view.

Seeing her delicate features, everyone’s expressions changed slightly.

They had never seen someone so young. Could the rumors really be true?

“Hello, President Bai. I’m Fang Yue, the person responsible for this incident. Just call me Fang Yue.”

A middle-aged man immediately extended his hand, his face full of enthusiasm.

The others didn’t understand, but of course he knew who she was—Lu family’s great-granddaughter and Song Grandfather and Madame’s daughter.

Although the relationship was complicated, no one dared offend this young lady easily.

“Hello.”

Bai Xia shook his hand briefly, then sat at the head of the long table. Her eyes calm as she looked around.

“I’m very pleased to work with you all. Let me introduce myself: I’m Bai Xia. The PR department is the company’s shield. If that shield is broken, the company will become the target of criticism and face unpredictable losses. Our responsibility is heavy, and I hope we can work together to advance hand in hand.”

The moment she finished speaking, the conference room erupted in warm applause.

No one dared show any dissatisfaction.

The water behind any parachuted management was deep and unfathomable.

Only a fool would volunteer to be a target.

“I’ve already understood the recent events. What’s the current status of those people involved?” she asked Fang Yue.

Fang Yue frowned, hesitating.

“Well… one has large area burns on the leg, and the other two have varying degrees of injuries to their arms and head. They’re all still within controllable range and treatable.”

“How much compensation was paid?” she asked.

Fang Yue cleared his throat.

“The first time was 100,000 yuan, but they didn’t agree and have been maliciously defaming our products online. So the previous Director Liu already contacted the legal department to sue them.”

Bai Xia was speechless.

Their product had caused injuries, and then they wanted to sue the victims?

100,000 yuan probably didn’t even cover the medical fees.

How could these people be so shameless, even trying to turn the tables and demand black money?

“Where’s the injury assessment report?”

Hearing this, Fang Yue immediately handed over a file folder, eyes fixed on her expression, feeling somewhat unsettled.

Song Chairman had instructed him to keep an eye on Bai Xia, but he didn’t know how powerful this young president really was.

People had to be prudent—better to observe before choosing sides.