“You can cry, but I can’t stop, or you’ll say no.”
Three hours later, Chen Qinglin leaned against the headboard and picked up a lighter.
Seeing this, Xu Lu endured the soreness and pulled out two boxes of Zhonghua cigarettes from her bag on the headboard.
“Smoke these,” she said.
Chen Qinglin smiled and patted Xu Lu’s smooth back.
“Smart girl, aren’t you?”
“Hmph, you’re so full of yourself.”
Xu Lu glared at Chen Qinglin and also pulled a Huazi cigarette from the box.
Suddenly, a large hand snatched the cigarette from her mouth.
“Don’t smoke, I don’t like the smell of smoke on your breath.”
“Hey? You… you bastard…”
Chen Qinglin’s slight frown made Xu Lu’s heart tremble, and the curse on her lips was swallowed back.
Why did this man’s eyes suddenly become… so mature?
It made her feel like she was facing an old father.
Xu Lu pouted, adjusted her posture, and moved closer to Chen Qinglin.
“Hmph, if I don’t smoke, I don’t smoke. What’s the big deal?”
“Heh heh, good girl.”
Chen Qinglin stroked Xu Lu’s hair like he was petting a cat.
“I need to tell you something.”
Xu Lu narrowed her eyes, clearly enjoying the moment.
“What is it?”
“Lend me some money.”
“How much?”
“Five thousand.”
“How much?”
Xu Lu, not caring about her exposed body, sat up abruptly, looking at Chen Qinglin with an incredulous expression.
“Five thousand? No, not a single cent.”
Chen Qinglin poked his ear and pinched Xu Lu hard.
“Lower your voice, look at how pathetic you are.”
Xu Lu’s face turned red with anger.
Was this man serious?
Her family owned a printing factory, not a money-printing factory.
Five thousand yuan? That was two months of her living expenses!
“You… you f*cking… boo hoo…”
The other party’s reaction was well within Chen Qinglin’s expectations.
Before Xu Lu could finish speaking, he sealed her mouth.
There was nothing that one “old bi” couldn’t solve.
If there was, then add another… An hour later, Chen Qinglin lit another Huazi.
“Five thousand.”
“No…”
“Hmm?”
Seeing Chen Qinglin look at the nightstand again, Xu Lu’s face turned pale with fright.
One more time… she would die, wouldn’t she?
“I do have it… but you have to tell me what you’re going to do with it, you bastard!”
Chen Qinglin hesitated for a moment but decided to tell her the truth.
Five thousand yuan was not a small amount, and he shouldn’t keep it from Xu Lu.
“It’s for the graduate placement arrangements.”
“Hmm? Graduate placement?”
Privileges, they existed everywhere, and Xu Lu knew some of the inside stories.
She only cared about where Chen Qinglin planned to go.
“Which remote mountain village are you planning to go to?”
“Back to my hometown county.”
Xu Lu bit her lip, looking at Chen Qinglin with a conflicted expression.
Even though she knew there would be no future with this man, she was still a little reluctant to let go.
“Can’t you…”
“No.”
“You… hmph…”
Chen Qinglin extinguished the cigarette butt, pulled Xu Lu into his arms, and wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes.
“It’s not that I can’t let go of my pride, I just don’t like city life.”
“Always busy, always groveling, it’s too tiring.”
“‘Picking chrysanthemums by the eastern hedge, leisurely seeing the southern mountains,’ how wonderful is that?”
“Hmph, you’re crazy.”
Xu Lu heard the weariness in the man’s voice.
She couldn’t bring herself to say anything to make him stay.
She turned around, pulled a bank card from her bag, and handed it to Chen Qinglin.
“You know the password, go withdraw it yourself at the bank.”
Chen Qinglin wasn’t pretentious either.
He had been busy all afternoon for this, hadn’t he?
“Alright, I’ll return the card to you later.”
After speaking, Chen Qinglin kissed Xu Lu and prepared to get up and get dressed.
“No need, all the money inside is yours, and I don’t want the card anymore.”
“Just… keep it as a memento.”
Chen Qinglin paused in his movements of getting dressed.
Half a second later, his expression returned to his usual cynical one.
“Alright, I understand. Remember to notify me when you get married.”
“You bastard, get out of here…”
Xu Lu, her voice hoarse, threw a pillow at Chen Qinglin.
“Get out…”
Chen Qinglin placed the pillow back on the bed, leaned down, and gently kissed the corner of Xu Lu’s eye.
“Don’t cry. Keep these two ‘old bis’ safe, and call me if you need them.”
“Get out… boo hoo…”
Before leaving the room, Chen Qinglin gritted his teeth and stopped.
In his previous life, Xu Lu’s marriage was not happy.
Her husband’s name was Yang Feng.
He was a little handsome and very eloquent.
Xu Lu’s nature wasn’t bad; in fact, she was a bit naive.
After marriage, under Yang Feng’s sweet-talk offensive, she muddle-headedly handed over her family’s business to Yang Feng to manage, focusing solely on being a wife and mother at home.
After Yang Feng got his hands on the business, his true nature began to show.
Not only did he keep a mistress outside, but he also verbally and physically abused Xu Lu.
Xu Lu endured for several years for the sake of her children, but eventually, she chose to divorce.
Up until Chen Qinglin’s rebirth, she was still living a lonely life, raising her child alone.
Touching the bank card in his pocket, Chen Qinglin still decided to warn Xu Lu.
After all, this silly girl was truly good to him.
“In the future, when you meet someone who is eloquent and handsome, be a bit more careful.”
After saying this, Chen Qinglin no longer hesitated, pushed the door open, and left.
Do your best, and leave the rest to fate.
The remaining path, let Xu Lu walk it herself.
The sound of the door closing interrupted Xu Lu’s crying.
She wiped away her tears, looking utterly confused.
“What do you mean? Are you talking about yourself?”
“You dog of a man, you better explain yourself!”
…Outside the hotel, Chen Qinglin rubbed his sore waist and let out a soft sigh.
“Chen Qinglin, you really need to be more careful.”
After admonishing himself to keep the secret, Chen Qinglin turned and walked towards the nearby bank.
Insert card, enter password.
Oh, don’t ask him why he knew the password.
If you ask, it’s because practice makes perfect.
Looking at the balance displayed on the ATM, Chen Qinglin’s depressed mood improved significantly.
Alright, now he had the starting capital… I wonder if everyone has noticed that the gift bags provided by Maotai manufacturers have a specific design.
If you put two bottles of Maotai, the bag is a bit too big; if you put three, they won’t fit.
But observant friends will surely notice.
If you put two cartons of Zhonghua cigarettes next to the Maotai, the bag fits just right.
It even leaves space for an envelope.
Two bottles of Maotai, two cartons of Huazi, plus 3000 yuan—that was the “knocking brick” Chen Qinglin had prepared.
At four in the afternoon, Chen Qinglin, carrying the gift bag, leisurely arrived at the school’s administration building.
He listened carefully to the sounds from the office, and seeing that there was no conversation inside, he raised his hand and knocked on the door.
“Come in.”
Chen Qinglin adjusted his expression before gently turning the doorknob.
Seeing only a middle-aged man in his 40s inside, Chen Qinglin secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Choosing this time was indeed the right decision.
“Are you Teacher Wang?”
The middle-aged man looked up, sizing Chen Qinglin up and down.
Seeing the bag in his hand, a hint of something unreadable flashed in his eyes.
“I am Wang Hai, and you are?”
“Hello, Teacher. I’m Chen Qinglin from the School of Finance.”
“Oh, it’s you. I was just about to look for you.”