After Becoming Financially Free, They Offered Their Loyalty - Chapter 121

Chapter 121: A Story After the Rain

TL: YYang

“Shen Yuan, I’m sorry. I really didn’t expect things to be like this.”

Li Xiao’s anger had completely dissipated. As she was blaming herself, Shen Yuan noticed that Li Xiao’s Favorability toward him was changing.

60… 61… 62… The final Favorability settled at 72, which was even 3 points higher than the original 69.

“It’s okay, as long as it’s cleared up.”

Shen Yuan was in a good mood now. He waved his hand magnanimously, then immediately revealed his wolfish ambitions, pointing inside. “I’m a bit thirsty. Let me come in for a glass of water first.”

“Shen Yuan, you’re at it again.”

Li Xiao no longer believed Shen Yuan’s words at all. His misdeeds from the previous two times were still fresh in her mind.

“I’m really thirsty. I rushed over here right after lunch, and my throat is parched. Just a glass of water, and I’ll leave right after I drink it.”

Shen Yuan continued to spin lies, trying to win Li Xiao’s sympathy. He had used this trick on Chen Na once before, and it had been successful, so he had a certain degree of confidence.

“Really?”

Li Xiao looked at him suspiciously.

Shen Yuan thought to himself that there was indeed a chance. He straightened his expression and said, “Of course it’s true.”

“Then wait a moment.”

With that, Li Xiao closed the door directly. After about ten seconds, she returned with a paper cup full of water and handed it to Shen Yuan. “Here, drink up.”

Shen Yuan’s eyelid twitched. He thought, ‘Why is she so defensive, as if I’m a wolf? Has my image in the counselor’s mind really become like this?’

However, with the counselor being so vigilant, there was definitely no way to get inside today. After drinking the water and saying goodbye to Li Xiao, Shen Yuan prepared to take the elevator downstairs.

There was a middle-aged aunt at the elevator entrance. She was carrying a bag of trash, seemingly on her way to throw it out. She had just witnessed the whole scene and looked at Shen Yuan with a smile. “Young man, don’t be too hasty. You can’t rush good things.”

Shen Yuan turned his head and glanced at her. “Auntie, you have to be hasty to get it while it’s hot. If you’re slow, you’ll only get someone else’s leftovers.”

“But you still have to get her to let you have it.”

Shen Yuan smiled upon hearing this. “How do you know I haven’t had it? I just didn’t get any today.”

The middle-aged aunt smiled without saying a word, thinking to herself that young people these days were really stubborn. But this young man was quite good-looking and had a good build. She just wondered if he was willing to struggle for twenty years less.

Thinking of her deceased husband, who had left her with only five houses and eight storefronts, she felt it was a bit of a waste.

Downstairs, the middle-aged aunt saw the young man walk straight to a G-Wagen and instantly dismissed her previous thought, secretly glad that she hadn’t spoken up.

‘Sigh, a high-quality young stud like this is hard to come by. It seems I’ll have to go to the club with my old sisters and order a male model.’

‘That Jack from last time was pretty good, but unfortunately, my sister ordered him. It should be my turn this time, right?’

Shen Yuan had no idea that the middle-aged aunt’s inner monologue was so rich. If he had known, he would have been both angry and amused. ‘That steel wool thing is better left for those who need it.’

Just as Shen Yuan got into the driver’s seat, he received a WeChat message from Li Xiao: “Shen Yuan, let’s go out this weekend.”

Shen Yuan smiled knowingly, thinking that this trip had not been in vain after all. Not only had her Favorability increased, but the counselor had also completely opened up her heart.

After arranging a specific time with the counselor, Shen Yuan called his little secretary, Fu Yingzi, to give her some work instructions.

He told her to issue a notice today that the deadline for entrepreneurship applications was this Wednesday at 5:00 PM, with no exceptions. The list of those who passed the preliminary review would be announced on Friday, and those who passed would be scheduled for a second-round examination on the following Monday or Tuesday.

The schedule was a bit tight, so Fu Yingzi would have to work overtime. After all, it was already early June, and the Foreign Economics College would be on summer break in a month. He definitely had to get the senior and junior girls settled before then.

After the call, Shen Yuan noticed several videos sent by Su Xuewei.

They were all videos of the construction site, one for each of the three floors, each over a minute long. The plumbing and electrical work was complete, and now the tilers and painters were at work.

Shen Yuan didn’t know if she had filmed them herself or if the construction workers had, so he sent a WeChat message asking, “Did you go to the construction site alone again?”

Su Xuewei: “Yes.”

Shen Yuan: “You could have just asked the construction workers to film a few. Why do you go so often?”

Su Xuewei: “The workers don’t film in such detail, and I also want to see our company’s construction team’s craftsmanship and construction details.”

‘This silly girl, why is she so serious?’

Shen Yuan complained inwardly, then sent another message: “It’s not easy to get a ride from the villa area. How are you getting back?”

Su Xuewei: “There’s a bus stop. I just have to transfer a couple of times.”

Shen Yuan: “How long will it take you to get back?”

Su Xuewei: “About two and a half hours.”

Shen Yuan thought to himself that he had nothing to do in the afternoon anyway, so he replied, “I’ll come pick you up. Wait for me there.”

Su Xuewei quickly replied, “No, no, you don’t have to.”

Shen Yuan didn’t care whether she was willing or not and just stepped on the gas and drove over.

In fact, meeting Su Xuewei was also an accident. It was mainly because Old Wan from Guanting was a scoundrel and had deliberately paired a beautiful intern with him.

The sky over Star City was gray and hazy today, and there weren’t many cars. When he arrived at Green Town Qingzhu Lake, Shen Yuan opened the car window and took a few breaths of fresh air. Looking at the lush greenery of Qingzhu Lake, he thought it wouldn’t be bad to live here in the future.

During this time, Shen Yuan called the community’s property manager, Guan Shufang, and asked her to register his G-Wagen’s license plate to avoid not being able to get into the community later.

It was already 4 o’clock when he arrived at the villa. Su Xuewei was sitting obediently on the steps at the entrance, staring into space like a little cat.

She was wearing a pure white T-shirt and a pair of faded, straight-leg jeans.

Although her outfit was simple and even a bit conservative, her prominent nose, rosy thin lips, and fair face still revealed that she was a beauty in the making.

As she sat there, she looked particularly serene. It wasn’t until Shen Yuan appeared in her line of sight that she stood up with a slight sense of unease.

“Have you been waiting long?” Shen Yuan asked as he looked at her.

Su Xuewei shook her head nervously. “No, not at all.”

Shen Yuan found it a bit amusing. “Why are you so flustered? It’s not like I’m going to eat you.”

Su Xuewei lowered her head without responding. Shen Yuan couldn’t bear to tease her anymore and pointed inside. “Take me in for a look.”

“Mhm.”

When it came to her area of expertise, Su Xuewei’s eyes finally lit up a little. She led Shen Yuan into the villa and introduced the construction progress and her company’s special techniques one by one.

She was very patient and explained everything in great detail, but she didn’t notice if Shen Yuan was listening. In fact, Shen Yuan’s ears were starting to hurt from listening; he hadn’t come here today to hear about this stuff at all.

Shen Yuan took advantage of a pause in Su Xuewei’s speech and said, “It’s getting late. Have dinner with me later.”

Su Xuewei was stunned for a moment, then lowered her head and refused, “I’m sorry, I have something to do at home tonight.”

“What is it?”

“I have to go home and cook for my mom and my younger brother,” Su Xuewei replied in a low voice.

Shen Yuan didn’t ask any more questions, because she didn’t seem to be lying, nor did she seem like the type to lie. Su Xuewei was still in her internship phase, and from her simple clothes and manner of speaking, one could tell her family’s financial situation.

As for why Su Xuewei didn’t mention her father, Shen Yuan already had a good idea.

“Then let’s go for a walk. I’ll take you home after the walk,” Shen Yuan suggested again.

This time, Su Xuewei didn’t refuse. She nodded and followed Shen Yuan cautiously.

Beside the lakeside road was a small path paved with green bricks, exclusively for pedestrians. Walking along this path, one could see not only the clear, greenish lake water but also the dense mountains in the distance.

A breeze blew, lifting Su Xuewei’s smooth ponytail. Shen Yuan couldn’t help but turn to look at her. The young girl was staring intently at the distant scenery.

“Is it beautiful?”

“Mhm,” Su Xuewei replied softly.

Shen Yuan came to a sudden stop. Su Xuewei didn’t react in time and bumped into his back unexpectedly.

The corners of Shen Yuan’s mouth lifted slightly. Even though Su Xuewei was wearing a loose T-shirt, Shen Yuan could still feel the girl’s impressive assets.

‘She really has something.’

Su Xuewei quickly took a step back and looked at Shen Yuan warily, her eyes filled with a mix of shame and anger.

Shen Yuan smiled without saying a word and continued walking forward. He wanted to try the same trick again, but unfortunately, Su Xuewei was on her guard this time and increased the distance between them.

After walking for about ten minutes, Shen Yuan checked the time. It was almost 5 o’clock, and he didn’t want to delay Su Xuewei from going home to cook, so he suggested they head back.

Unfortunately, the heavens were not cooperating. The originally gray and hazy sky suddenly started to rain. The raindrops fell like beans, pattering down on the two of them.

Shen Yuan wiped the rain from his face and looked around. The only shelter was a notice board a hundred meters away. He suggested, “Let’s go over there to take shelter for a while.”

“Okay.”

Su Xuewei held her hands over her head, trying to block the rain, but a girl’s palms were too small to block this kind of downpour. To avoid getting completely soaked, she had no choice but to run with Shen Yuan.

As Shen Yuan ran, he couldn’t help but turn to look. Su Xuewei’s white T-shirt was now completely soaked by the rain, faintly revealing the milky-white bra underneath.

As she ran, her soft headlights bounced up and down, like an exquisite dance, providing Shen Yuan with a feast for the eyes.

In a short while, the two of them reached the notice board. Looking at the rain falling incessantly from the sky, it probably wouldn’t stop anytime soon.

Su Xuewei had just finished running, and her face was flushed, her full chest heaving violently. She then noticed her exposure and shyly crossed her arms in front of her chest, trying to cover the beautiful scenery within.

Shen Yuan had originally wanted to be a gentleman and stare straight ahead, but an inadvertent glance caught sight of the semi-transparent T-shirt and the wonderful charm within. He completely abandoned the idea of being a modern-day Liu Xiahui.

“You… don’t look!” Su Xuewei buried her head and said in shame and anger.

“I’m not looking, I’m peeking,” Shen Yuan defended himself.

Hearing Shen Yuan’s unreasonable explanation, Su Xuewei was at a loss. Her neck instantly turned red all the way to her ears.

‘What a hooligan!’

Shen Yuan took two deep breaths, trying to calm himself down.

However, it seemed as if the heavens knew what Shen Yuan was thinking. Gusts of wind blew, slanting the rain by several degrees. Su Xuewei’s lower body got wet again, and she had to move closer to Shen Yuan.

Feeling the soft body approach, Shen Yuan couldn’t help but put his right hand on her soft shoulder.

Su Xuewei immediately squirmed uncomfortably, trying to break free. But with such heavy rain and such a narrow space, she had nowhere to hide.

Shen Yuan pushed his luck, holding her even tighter. “You shouldn’t be cold now, right?”

Su Xuewei bit her lip. In fact, she wasn’t cold at all and hadn’t said she was cold from the beginning.

It was the first time Su Xuewei had been held by a boy like this. A tingling sensation spread from her shoulder throughout her body, like ants crawling on her skin. She lifted her beautiful eyes and glanced at Shen Yuan.

‘This person is truly shameless!’