Chapter 42: Friends with Contrasting Personalities

On the other side, Gu Zehuai sat in his office, staring at Wen Jiu’s reply, lost in thought.

Having dinner with someone?

With whom?

A man or a woman?

His mind was in a tangle. Should he just ask her directly? Yet he had neither the right nor the standing to do so.

After half an hour of restless speculation, Gu Zehuai finally couldn’t resist and picked up his phone, sending Wen Jiu a message.

“Is it a man?”

Meanwhile, Wen Jiu glanced at her phone to check the time. Seeing that it was almost time to leave, she began tidying her desk to get ready for the end of the workday.

Just then, another message from Gu Zehuai popped up.

The moment she saw it, Wen Jiu’s lips curled into a smile.

As expected.

Her mood soared, and her reply carried a hint of playful delight.

“Yes.”

Gu Zehuai assumed Wen Jiu’s happiness was because she was dining with that man, and his mood instantly soured.

With a curt “Oh,” he left work and went home in gloom.

Wen Jiu arrived at the restaurant ahead of time, only to find Huo Yeran already seated.

He handed her the tablet menu. “Miss Wen, why don’t you order? I’m not picky.”

Hearing this, Wen Jiu felt at ease and selected a few signature dishes. She also asked about Huo Yeran’s preferences and chose a few more based on his tastes.

The restaurant served the food quickly, and the two chatted now and then.

Since they weren’t well acquainted, Wen Jiu remained a bit reserved.

Sensing her restraint, Huo Yeran took the initiative to keep the conversation flowing. He had a knack for finding topics—nothing intrusive, nothing awkward.

As the meal was drawing to a close, Wen Jiu excused herself to the restroom, intending to settle the bill, only to find it had already been paid.

She then remembered Huo Yeran had left the table for a moment earlier—she’d assumed he was just using the restroom.

A little exasperated, Wen Jiu realized her plan to treat had been foiled by Huo Yeran’s quiet gesture.

Returning to the table, she said to him, “I told you it was my treat, but you ended up paying.”

Her tone was tinged with helplessness.

Huo Yeran smiled. “You’re treating, but I paid. It doesn’t have to be a contradiction.”

Wen Jiu sighed, “Alright then.”

After dinner, Huo Yeran offered to drive Wen Jiu home.

She politely declined.

But Huo Yeran looked at her with eyes both innocent and plaintively hopeful. “We’ve had dinner together. Doesn’t that make us friends, at least?”

Wen Jiu’s heart skipped at this unexpected shift in demeanor. Who could tell her who this person was—he hadn’t been like this at all in the afternoon.

She was caught off guard.

Huo Yeran’s gentle, puppyish looks, paired with that pitiful expression, made it impossible for her to refuse.

In the end, Wen Jiu nodded.

Huo Yeran’s eyes lit up, and his usually calm voice lifted with excitement. “I’ll get the car—just wait here a moment.”

He hurried toward the parking lot.

Soon, the car pulled up in front of Wen Jiu. Huo Yeran got out and opened the passenger door for her. She took the seat and, when asked for her address, gave her apartment address instead of her family home.

The car drove off into the night.

Meanwhile, across the street outside the club, Pei Yi stared in disbelief at the photos on his phone, checking again and again to see if it was really Wen Jiu.

When he finally confirmed it was her, dining with an unfamiliar man, all the fight drained from him as if he’d just suffered a heartbreak.