Liang Rou felt a chill well up from her heart, spreading upward, crawling along her spine, making every hair stand on end.
But fortunately, Wen Xiaoliang quickly sent another message:
[Wen Xiaoliang: But I have something to do today, so I won’t come into the restaurant to greet you~ When I’m done, would you like to have a meal with me? It’s on me~]
Another invitation.
Liang Rou fell silent.
Watching Liang Rou’s face turn from red to pale, then back to red again, Xia Rui really wanted to crane her neck to peek at her Senior’s phone, but Liang Rou just glanced at it before shutting it off, leaving Xia Rui with nothing to see.
“Senior, did something happen?” Xia Rui couldn’t help but ask.
“Nothing.”
Liang Rou shook her head.
She still didn’t want to face Wen Xiaoliang.
Whether it was the fear of being recognized by Wen Xiaoliang and having her current peaceful life disrupted, or the way seeing Wen Xiaoliang made her recall those terrifying, guilty memories from the past… Fine, mainly, she simply didn’t want Wen Xiaoliang to be the only person on her mind.
She was an independent person, she wanted to live her own life, but just seeing Wen Xiaoliang—even thinking of her—made her unable to stop longing and reminiscing.
The reason, aside from Wen Xiaoliang having played such an important role in her life, was that Wen Xiaoliang had brainwashed her, pua’d her so badly, far too badly. It had been so hard to regain her independence; she truly didn’t want to return to the past.
Meanwhile, Wen Xiaoliang, upon not receiving a reply from Liang Rou, wasn’t angry. Instead, she curled her lips into a smile and edited another message to send over.
[Wen Xiaoliang: Liang Rou, we will definitely meet again.]
Just this one line utterly shattered the defenses in Liang Rou’s heart.
Yes, it was that simple.
After adding Wen Xiaoliang’s contact, Liang Rou didn’t even dare look at her Moments, afraid that seeing something would stir up feelings and memories.
It felt like after becoming a girl, she’d grown even more sentimental than before.
So, she hurriedly shoveled the last mouthful of rice into her mouth, quickly stood up, and without caring whether Xia Rui had finished eating, said, “I’m just too anxious about the Project, I’m full, you eat slowly, Xia Rui, I need to get back to work.”
With that, she didn’t wait for Xia Rui’s response and rushed out.
Xia Rui wasn’t actually full, but seeing Liang Rou’s strange reaction, she put down her bowl and quickly followed after her.
“Senior, you—” The words caught in her throat, and Xia Rui didn’t continue.
She was a clever and emotionally intelligent person.
She knew that Liang Rou was in a terrible mood, and pressing her for answers now would only make her more irritable.
So she quietly stayed by Liang Rou’s side without saying another word.
What Liang Rou didn’t notice was that far away, Wen Xiaoliang stood in the shadows, watching her reaction and murmuring, “That response… is just too strange. What is she afraid of? What exactly is she anxious about?”
“Liang Rou, Liang Rou… Tell me, is it possible in this world for a boy to really turn into a girl?”
If Liang Rou knew Wen Xiaoliang hadn’t left yet, she definitely wouldn’t have lost control like this; she would have held herself together and waited until Wen Xiaoliang was gone before letting her emotions explode.
Liang Rou walked quickly, with Xia Rui following closely. The two of them were back at the Company in under five minutes.
The moment they entered the elevator, the world fell quiet.
Liang Rou finally felt her restless heart calm a bit and only then realized she might have shown Xia Rui a sour face just now.
She felt a little guilty but didn’t know how to apologize, especially since she’d just kept a cold face and ignored Xia Rui’s concern, while Xia Rui had only looked obedient yet aggrieved the whole time.
“Sorry… about earlier.”
When they reached the floor where their Office was, Liang Rou finally spoke softly, looking apologetically at Xia Rui. “I just heard some bad news and couldn’t control my mood for a moment, and I accidentally dragged you into it.”
At the sudden apology, Xia Rui quickly waved her hand and gave Liang Rou a sweet smile.
“It’s nothing, Senior, everyone has their bad days, right? I totally get it… Even if you lose your temper at me, it’s fine~ Because… we’re good friends, aren’t we~?”
Playing the friendship card.
Liang Rou looked gratefully at Xia Rui and finally smiled.
“I’ll buy you Milk Tea later.”
Once the two of them returned to their workstations, Xia Rui turned on her computer and casually said:
“Senior, after this Project ends, how about we go out and relax on the weekend? Hmm… At the latest, this Project should wrap up in about two weeks~”
Afraid Liang Rou would refuse, she quickly added, “My relatives said that if we complete this Project successfully, the Bonus will be pretty generous~ Hehe~ And if I get the Bonus, it’s definitely thanks to you, Senior! When the time comes, I’ll treat you… to dinner!”
She looked at Liang Rou with eager anticipation.
Liang Rou hadn’t planned to refuse. She thought it was nice to relax with friends, so she readily agreed.
“Aiya, I can’t always let you treat me, can I? Fine, if you treat me to dinner, then I’ll take you out for some fun. Where would you like to go?”
“Uh…”
Honestly, Xia Rui couldn’t really think of anywhere to “go on a date” with Liang Rou—her ultimate goal wasn’t actually that. Her true goal was to drug Liang Rou and carry her home.
“Anywhere’s fine~ I like doing anything, or we could go to the Movie Theater~”
She just blurted something out.
It didn’t really matter where they went, since in the end, their destination would be Xia Rui’s home anyway.
Faced with Xia Rui’s indifference, Liang Rou fell into deep thought.
She wondered if going to the Movie Theater with someone of the opposite sex was too ambiguous, especially since she now had a girlfriend.
But then she remembered that now she was a girl too, and going to the movies with a close female friend didn’t seem to matter…
Aiya! So conflicted!
While she was troubled about where to go, Xia Rui sat at the side with her chin propped on her hand, gazing pensively at her computer screen, pondering how she could drug Liang Rou without her noticing and without arousing suspicion.
She wondered if that trick with the drinks from last time would still work, and if Liang Rou would accept a drink from her on their next outing.