Chapter 27: There’s still a calm before the storm

The conflict with Lu Weiyu had temporarily eased.

But Lu Weizhu couldn’t exactly say she was happy.

At this moment, she felt as if she stood at the intersection of two railways, her feet tangled in barbed wire, unable to run away, and powerless to stop or delay the approaching trains.

“If something happens—if I get hurt—would they at least let me off temporarily?”

Lu Weizhu contemplated a somewhat dangerous solution.

“D…”

She stood up and left the hospital.

Strolling the nighttime streets, the evening breeze fluttered her clothes, the skirt clinging coldly to her legs in waves.

“BoJo…”

She sneezed again.

Putting aside the self-harm idea for the time being, Lu Weizhu returned to the apartment she was renting nearby.

Entering the bathroom, she undressed.

The apartment’s water heater still worked, so she turned on the shower, steam billowing up.

In the bathroom, through the vanity mirror fogged with steam, she looked at her body, blurred yet visible.

“Is this body really that seductive?”

Her fingertips brushed over her skin as she closed her eyes.

Emptying her mind, she took a hot shower.

After changing clothes, Lu Weizhu washed the Maid Uniform and thigh-high socks clean, then hung them on the balcony to dry.

After finishing, she went back to the hospital.

The rented apartment wasn’t furnished yet, so she couldn’t rest there.

“Good morning, I’m off to work.”

A night without dreams, Lu Weizhu woke early the next morning.

She said a proper goodbye to Lu Weiyu, then picked up the Maid Uniform from the rental and headed straight to the café.

“Good morning, Yun Jie.”

Her mind was full of the troubles awaiting that afternoon; Lu Weizhu was listless, and even her greeting sounded faint.

“Is your little sister calmed down?”

Bai Yun glanced at Lu Weizhu and wiped the counter with a rag.

“Yeah, she’s calmed down. Thank you again, Yun Jie.”

After thanking her, Lu Weizhu went to the back kitchen to change.

That’s when she noticed the Cat Ear Hair Clip was missing.

After searching for a while with no sign of it, she had no choice but to leave the back kitchen empty-handed.

Fortunately, Bai Yun didn’t say much about it.

In the quiet atmosphere, the café began its day’s business.

“Welcome! What would you like to drink?”

“Your mousse will be ready soon, please wait a moment…”

Compared to the day before yesterday, Lu Weizhu’s tone was much more serious and less sweet.

The customers didn’t say much, but the tips were far fewer, clearly reflecting which version of Lu Weizhu was more popular.

“……………… What on earth should I do?”

Muttering to herself, Lu Weizhu pondered how to get hurt in a way that seemed simple and reasonable while delivering the mousse to a customer’s table.

A severe injury would be hard to manage, and a light one might be ineffective.

She didn’t expect to fool both of her sponsors anyway.

Avoiding just one would be enough.

Who should it be?

Someone else.

“Customer, here’s your mousse.”

Turning away, Lu Weizhu’s footsteps faltered a little.

“If it’s Ning Wan, even if I broke my leg, she wouldn’t let it go…Seems like Bai Lu is the easier one to deal with.”

Comparing Ning Wan and Bai Lu in her mind, Lu Weizhu felt Bai Lu was more approachable.

Lost in thought, she walked until she bumped into the counter.

“Weizhu, what are you doing?”

Bai Yun, having noticed Lu Weizhu’s odd behavior, finally couldn’t hold back and scolded her.

“Ah? Sorry, Yun Jie, I was a little distracted.”

Snapping back to reality, Lu Weizhu hurriedly bowed in apology.

Bai Yun frowned.

Lately, Lu Weizhu seemed to be causing trouble.

Frankly, she was a little displeased.

No matter how much sympathy she had for Lu Weizhu, this girl was still an employee here, and if she couldn’t handle her responsibilities, what was the point?

“Weizhu, this is work time. Please focus on your job, okay?”

Bai Yun patted Lu Weizhu’s shoulder.

“Yeah, I know, Yun Jie, sorry.”

Softly apologizing, Lu Weizhu patted her head.

She realized she shouldn’t have brought personal feelings into work.

After apologizing, she pushed away those troublesome thoughts and tried to focus on her job as much as possible.

As the day neared closing time, she still hadn’t found a good chance to injure herself, nor had she come up with a good plan.

Choosing a time when the café was empty, Lu Weizhu slipped into the restroom.

She looked at herself in the mirror.

Her face was a little haggard, her eyes slightly swollen.

Because of her looks, these signs only made her seem more pitiable.

This face was both her blessing and her curse.

“Where should I get hurt?”

Having made up her mind to use injury to avoid Bai Lu, Lu Weizhu began considering the best place to hurt herself.

“Forehead?”

Without a doubt, the forehead was the easiest place to get hurt.

A small cut there wouldn’t be unusual.

But a forehead injury would affect her looks, which would most likely impact her work.

Besides, forehead injuries tended to be either too minor or too serious—difficult to control.

“Arm?”

Lu Weizhu touched her wrist.

Honestly, injuring both hands would interfere too much with daily life—it would be more trouble than it’s worth.

After thinking for a long time, she still hadn’t decided.

It was either too deliberate or ineffective.

Her head hurt.

“D…”

With a deep sigh, Lu Weizhu leaned on the washbasin, lowering her head.

Just as she was about to resolutely bash her forehead against the basin, Bai Yun’s voice came through.

“Weizhu, someone’s looking for you.”

“Ah!? Okay…ugh!”

Startled, her hand slipped.

A dull pain radiated from her forehead, and her vision blurred.

When she came to, Lu Weizhu was leaning on the washbasin, holding her head.

She stood up.

In her sight was a small bruise forming on her forehead.

It was conspicuous but clearly not serious.

Biting her lip, Lu Weizhu’s face paled.

“What happened? Why was there such a loud noise just now?”

Bai Yun pushed open the restroom door.

“Yun Jie, I accidentally tripped.”

Turning around, Lu Weizhu looked at Bai Yun.

“Hm? You need to be more careful. By the way, someone’s here to see you—probably your friend. Come on out.”

Bai Yun frowned, pulling Lu Weizhu out of the restroom and back kitchen.

At the front of the café, Bai Lu came into view, sitting at a table.

She was dressed in a suit, carefully examining the Mechanical Watch on her wrist.

Lu Weizhu fell silent, her face growing even paler, palms sweating.

She was done for.

“Weizhu, I’ve come to pick you up after work.”

On the other side, Bai Lu noticed Lu Weizhu, a smile curling at her lips as she nodded toward her.

“It’s just about closing time, so you can head home now.”

Seeing Bai Lu’s smile, Bai Yun looked a little displeased.

Were they really that close?

“Uh ah ah…”

Feeling choked, Lu Weizhu froze in place.

After a long moment, she forced herself to take a few steps forward.

“Let’s go.”

Bai Lu took the initiative to approach Lu Weizhu.

“I—I’m going to change clothes first.”

Lu Weizhu took two steps back and walked toward the café’s back kitchen.