Chapter 21
Throughout the rest of their shopping trip, Li Qinyue couldn’t get Zhuo Zhi to hold her hand again.
If it was just a casual swing at their sides, it was fine, but as soon as Li Qinyue tried to lift their joined hands, Zhuo Zhi’s hand became as heavy as a thousand pounds, completely immobile.
Miss Li tried several times before finally giving up.
The playful Zhuo Zhi had transformed into a stiff plaster statue, only responding to questions with “uh-huh” and “mm-hmm.” Li Qinyue watched couples passing by, laughing and happy, and felt a pang of frustration.
Before they even finished exploring the first floor of the mall, Li Qinyue let go of Zhuo Zhi’s hand and said, “This is boring, let’s go back.”
Zhuo Zhi followed behind her, half a step to the side, looking dutiful.
When the car arrived, Zhuo Zhi jumped into the passenger seat before Li Qinyue could even gesture, quickly fastening her seatbelt.
Li Qinyue bent down to get into the back seat, feeling incredibly frustrated.
Neither of them spoke during the ride back.
Back at the villa, as soon as the door closed, Li Qinyue blocked Zhuo Zhi at the entrance, slowly changing her shoes.
Zhuo Zhi stood a meter away, staring at her toes.
“I want to sing you a song,” Li Qinyue said suddenly.
“Huh?” Zhuo Zhi was surprised and finally looked up at her.
“The little monk goes down the mountain for alms, the old monk instructs, women in the city are tigers, avoid them at all costs~~~” Li Qinyue finished singing and tilted her head.
This kind of expression was rare on Li Qinyue’s face, a helpless yet cute pout.
Zhuo Zhi paused and said, “You’re not a tiger.”
“Then what am I?”
Zhuo Zhi’s eyes flickered, “A fox.”
“A fox spirit?” Li Qinyue raised an eyebrow.
Zhuo Zhi pursed her lips and didn’t answer.
“Tsk…” Li Qinyue shook her head, “You see what’s in your heart.”
Zhuo Zhi lowered her head again, fiddling with her clothes.
Li Qinyue finally finished changing her shoes and stepped aside, “Alright, go do whatever you need to do.”
Zhuo Zhi nodded at her and hurried inside.
It was still early for Li Qinyue to go to bed.
After taking a bath and applying lotion, Li Qinyue lay on the sofa, playing two rounds of games.
To her surprise, as she was about to start the third round, someone knocked on her door.
“Zhuo Zhi?” Li Qinyue called out.
“Yes, it’s me,” Zhuo Zhi’s voice came from behind the door.
Li Qinyue’s heart skipped a beat. She threw down her phone and sat up, then paused, lay down again, adjusted her clothes, and picked up her phone.
This time, however, her posture was more alluring, her hips and waist accentuated, her robe slightly open, casual yet subtly seductive.
Li Qinyue stared at her phone screen, exiting the noisy battle game and opening a cute pet puzzle game.
“Come in,” she said flatly.
Zhuo Zhi pushed open the door and stopped three to four meters away from Li Qinyue.
Li Qinyue’s fingers were busy swiping on her phone. She glanced at Zhuo Zhi and asked, “What’s up?”
Zhuo Zhi was holding a piece of paper, half a page filled with writing, “President Li, there are some things I want to discuss with you.”
“Okay, go ahead,” Li Qinyue continued to focus on her game.
Zhuo Zhi waited for half a minute. Seeing that Li Qinyue had no intention of stopping, she moved a little closer, “It’s about work.”
“I’m listening,” Li Qinyue’s voice was light.
“It’s really about work,” Zhuo Zhi emphasized.
Li Qinyue turned her head and shouted at her, “I said I’m listening!”
Zhuo Zhi took half a step back, her heart pounding. It had been a while since Li Qinyue had yelled at her like this, she had almost forgotten.
“Speak!” Li Qinyue threw her phone aside, pushed herself up, and sat up straight on the sofa, “Speak! What national affairs do you have to discuss with me?! I, Li Qinyue, am sitting here, all ears!”
“It’s… not that big of a deal…” Zhuo Zhi mumbled.
Li Qinyue looked at her, her eyes full of threat.
Zhuo Zhi quickly took a step forward and slapped the paper on the table, “I, I’ve listed everything.”
After slapping the paper down, she took a step back and stood further away. Li Qinyue glanced at the paper but didn’t actually read it. She glared at Zhuo Zhi and said, “Am I going to eat you alive?”
“No,” Zhuo Zhi fidgeted with her fingers.
Li Qinyue’s gaze fell on her hands, and she suddenly laughed, “You know, I actually could eat you alive.”
Zhuo Zhi quickly hid her hands behind her back, clenching them together tightly.
“Just say it, I’m too lazy to read,” Li Qinyue leaned back on the sofa, raising her chin, her tone brooking no argument.
“Okay,” Zhuo Zhi organized her thoughts, “The first thing is, Lingzi transferred the bonus from today’s match to my bank account. Could you give me your account number so I can transfer it to you?”
“Hmm?” Li Qinyue frowned, “Are we rigging the game?”
“No, no, no, I just feel that I shouldn’t take this money, it’s not appropriate.”
“What’s not appropriate? The rules were set, no matter who wins, the money isn’t mine anymore,” Li Qinyue reached for a cigarette and lit it, “You won it fair and square, keep it without any worries.”
“It’s too much,” Zhuo Zhi said.
“Didn’t you tell Lingzi that you were competing for the bonus? What? Now you think it’s too much?”
“I wasn’t competing for the bonus,” Zhuo Zhi paused, wanting to look away, but she forced herself to meet Li Qinyue’s gaze to show her sincerity.
Li Qinyue raised an eyebrow. As usual, she would get to the bottom of this, “Then what were you competing for?”
Zhuo Zhi, as always, tried to avoid saying those words, “You know.”
“I don’t know,” Li Qinyue exhaled a puff of smoke, her eyes hidden behind the smoke, like a true fox.
Zhuo Zhi sighed inwardly. She couldn’t avoid it, so she had to say it directly, “To stop you from ruining yourself.”
The air fell silent for a moment, and then Li Qinyue choked on the smoke, the spicy taste filling her nose, and she started coughing violently.
Zhuo Zhi finally rushed to her side, looking at her helplessly, “What’s wrong, what’s wrong? Do you need water? Do you need me to pat your back? Did you choke? How can you choke on smoke? I told you smoking is bad for your health, stop smoking…”
As she spoke, she took the cigarette from Li Qinyue’s hand and put it out in the ashtray. With her other hand, she patted Li Qinyue’s back, just like she was dealing with a toothless old lady who was choking.
Li Qinyue’s throat and nose were burning, and her back felt like it was on fire from Zhuo Zhi’s vigorous patting. Unable to speak, she could only pinch Zhuo Zhi’s arm hard.
“Ah!” Zhuo Zhi cried out.
Li Qinyue glared at her. Zhuo Zhi looked at her fierce eyes, which were now watery, her heart softening. She stretched out her arm in front of Li Qinyue.
“If you’re really uncomfortable, you can bite me!” Zhuo Zhi declared, sounding like a hero sacrificing herself.
Li Qinyue’s coughing subsided, and she was amused by Zhuo Zhi’s words again.
Her body was shaking from the coughing fit, feeling like she was having a seizure.
Zhuo Zhi was truly worried. She took out her phone, ready to call for help, but Li Qinyue swatted her brick phone away, “I’m fine.”
Her voice was a little hoarse.
“Oh, okay, okay,” Zhuo Zhi let go of her, “I’ll get you a glass of water.”
She dashed to the water dispenser and quickly brought a glass of water to Li Qinyue, who finished it in one gulp, finally calming down.
Zhuo Zhi squatted beside her, looking up at her worriedly, “Are you alright now?”
Li Qinyue looked into her bright, innocent eyes and sighed, “I’m fine.”
“Don’t…”
“Don’t tell me to stop smoking!” Li Qinyue interjected, “Was that because of the cigarette?! What ancient dictionary did you dig that phrase ‘ruining yourself’ out of? Hmm?? Am I the kind of person who ruins herself?! No! … Am I acting in some Republican-era melodrama?!”
Zhuo Zhi’s lips moved, “Oh.”
Li Qinyue poked her forehead, “You’re truly a hopeless, stubborn, ancient relic of feudalism…”
“Oh,” Zhuo Zhi smiled.
“You’re still smiling?” Li Qinyue pinched her cheek, “Little monk, listen carefully, as long as it’s consensual, it’s my freedom who I sleep with.”
“Not with married people,” Zhuo Zhi immediately said, “And not with people who are already in a relationship.”
“Damn it,” Li Qinyue let go of her cheek and slapped her head, “When have I ever been a mistress?! Are you married? Are you in a relationship?!”
Zhuo Zhi’s cheeks flushed, unsure if it was from the pinching or from embarrassment at talking about such a topic, “That’s the third thing I wanted to talk about today.”
Li Qinyue was so exasperated that she didn’t even have the energy to tease anymore. She grabbed a pillow, hugged it, and leaned back on the sofa, “Okay, okay, okay, tell me your one, two, three, let’s get this over with, quickly!”
“Okay,” Zhuo Zhi remained in the same position, squatting beside the sofa and looking up at her, “The second thing is about my salary, how often it’s paid, when it’s paid, whether there are attendance and performance requirements, how to handle leave and absence, and the compensation standards for accidents…”
Li Qinyue raised her hand to stop her from rambling on, “As far as your work as a bodyguard is concerned, I’m satisfied. So, the salary stated in the contract your master signed won’t be shortchanged. The company will process it, I’ll give you a number later, you can discuss the details with HR(human resources).”
“Great!” Zhuo Zhi was happy.
“Also,” Li Qinyue looked at her, “I’ll pay you an extra salary.”
“Huh?” Zhuo Zhi’s eyes widened.
Li Qinyue patted the pillow in her arms, “For being my girlfriend.”
“Fake girlfriend,” Zhuo Zhi emphasized.
“Fake girlfriend!” Li Qinyue threw the pillow at Zhuo Zhi’s head with a “thump”.
Zhuo Zhi rubbed her head and chuckled, “The third thing is about this. How long will this fake girlfriend relationship last, in what situations will we need to act like a couple, what level of intimacy is acceptable, can we make requests of each other as a couple during this fake relationship, can we reject each other’s requests, are our rights in this regard equal…”
The pillow flew towards Zhuo Zhi’s head again. Li Qinyue said as she hit her, “I didn’t realize you were so shrewd. I thought you were innocent, naive, and pure…”
“Sister, Sister,” Zhuo Zhi raised her hand to catch the pillow, her face still flushed, “Sometimes I’m just inexperienced and a little slow to react, but when it comes to serious matters, I’m quite clear-headed. We’re not blood-related, so we need to be clear about money matters. I’m not some innocent flower.”
“Okay, “brother”,” Li Qinyue stopped, “I demand that during this fake relationship, intimate acts like holding hands, which are no big deal, are allowed, freely allowed!”
“It’s… not no big deal…” Zhuo Zhi’s blush deepened, and her eyes were teary, “This is… quite serious…”
“The extra salary will be double your bodyguard salary,” Li Qinyue said.
“This is really… quite serious…”
“Triple.”
“Sister Qinyue, this isn’t about money…”
“Quadruple.”
“…it’s about…”
“Ten times!” Li Qinyue shouted.
“Still no!” Zhuo Zhi’s face was so red it could bleed, “No amount of money is enough!”
“What kind of stone did you crawl out from?!” Li Qinyue couldn’t help but want to knock her head again.
Zhuo Zhi held her head high, not dodging or flinching, looking like she was willing to take the hit.
Li Qinyue’s outstretched hand paused. A light bulb went off in her head, “Didn’t you just say that both parties have equal rights in this fake relationship?”
“Yes, but I won’t ask to kiss…”
Li Qinyue leaned forward, her finger landing on Zhuo Zhi’s lips. She smiled and said, “Kissed.”
“You’re cheating,” Zhuo Zhi mumbled, feeling pressured.
Li Qinyue moved her finger away and tilted her head, “Okay, I won’t cheat. If you let me kiss your finger, I won’t smoke. If you let me kiss your lips, I won’t swear. How about that?”
Zhuo Zhi froze, her face as red as a cooked shrimp, “What if I ask you not to do anything dangerous?”
“Then the price will be high,” Li Qinyue blinked, “You’ll have to let me do intimate things with you.”
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