Chapter 23: To Charge or Not to Charge

Before his words could even fully escape his lips, Chu Linchen, who had remained silent for some time, suddenly raised his voice. "That’s enough, President Wang. We’ve finished our contract for today, and I imagine you have nothing else to attend to. Perhaps you should be heading back."

President Wang’s expression soured. He hadn't expected Chu Linchen to step in and defend Lu Qiqi. However, he was not a man who lacked social awareness; he relied on Chu Linchen for his business dealings and certainly couldn't afford to offend him here. With a resentful glare at Lu Qiqi, he quickly offered a sheepish smile to Chu Linchen and began gathering his things.

"Since you’ve spoken, I shall take my leave."

With that, he hurriedly called his associates to depart. As he reached the door, he made sure to shoulder-check Lu Qiqi heavily. Lu Qiqi, quick on her feet, darted to the side to avoid the contact, then cursed, "Green-haired turtle," at his retreating back. She was seething with rage, itching to land a punch on him.

President Wang’s figure stiffened. Lu Qiqi slammed the door shut and made a face at his back. Stunned by her audacity, President Wang looked livid, but he had no words to retort.

When she turned back, Lu Qiqi found Chu Linchen watching her with a cold, detached gaze. The vast conference room was now empty, save for the two of them.

"You arrived at quite an opportune moment," Chu Linchen said, crossing his legs and resting his hands on his knees. A hint of mockery played in his eyes.

Lu Qiqi bit her lower lip, walking toward him with a pitiful, martyr-like expression. "I’m telling you the truth—I really took a wrong turn. If you don't believe me, look at my chat history. I was honestly here to find a friend, and I have no idea how I ended up here. This place is just so confusing; I didn't mean to disturb your meeting..."

She unlocked her phone and displayed her chat history with Bai Yu. Chu Linchen looked down at her. Her eyes were wide and innocent, like a young deer in the forest, and the messy strands of hair across her forehead only made her delicate face appear more fragile and endearing.

Suddenly, Chu Linchen noticed a familiar profile picture in her contacts—it was himself. His heart skipped a beat, and as he looked up, he saw that Lu Qiqi had saved his name as "Handsome Oppa."

She meant him?

A strange, tingling sensation washed over Chu Linchen, and a sudden, searing warmth flared in his chest. He cleared his throat to suppress the odd feeling and said, "Fine. Since it was a misunderstanding, be more careful next time. You won’t be this lucky every day."

Feeling as though she had been granted a pardon, Lu Qiqi nodded repeatedly. "I know! Thank you for clearing the air today. You’re such a good person! May your wealth flow like a river!"

Leaving those words behind, she fled as if escaping a crime scene. Watching her skip away, Chu Linchen couldn't help but let a smile tug at the corners of his mouth—a look of indulgence he didn't even realize he was showing.

As soon as Lu Qiqi left the conference room, she called Bai Yu. "You wouldn't believe it—I walked into the wrong room, and it turned out to be Chu Linchen’s meeting! It scared the life out of me!"

"And there was this perverted old man who accused me of seducing people. I’m speechless—do I look like I need to seduce anyone? And that pig-headed fool? His only true purpose in life is to be turned into a side dish of cabbage and vermicelli!"

Lu Qiqi ranted on the phone, "But luckily, Chu Linchen is a decent human being. He put in a word for me and chased that fatty away."

Bai Yu hadn't expected so much to happen in such a short time. She came to pick Lu Qiqi up and poured her a glass of brandy. "Haha, well, it was worth it! Chu Linchen is of much higher quality than those little pretty boys I brought. Plus, didn't you profit from this? You got your bracelet back."

"Profit? What profit? It’s all coming from the same source. Every dollar Si Qinyu spends, fifty cents of it is mine. Now that he’s spending it on some other hussy, I’m just annoyed." Lu Qiqi downed the brandy in one gulp, the sharp burn of the alcohol sliding down her throat, which finally made her feel a little better.

"Fine, fine. I’ll do my best to get you more money during the divorce so he suffers a major loss and you get your revenge," Bai Yu chuckled. "That dog of a man isn't worth a dime anyway. When the time is right, just kick him to the curb. But honestly, if you manage to snag Chu Linchen, you’ll have won the jackpot."

Lu Qiqi looked up, her expression filled with shock. "You aren't joking? You’re sure you aren't talking nonsense from being drunk?"

Bai Yu had said this before, and Lu Qiqi had always assumed she was kidding. But she kept bringing it up, and Lu Qiqi started to realize something was off—she knew her friend well enough to know she wouldn't keep saying it if she didn't mean it.

Bai Yu blinked, her eyes twinkling with mischief. "Whether I’m sober or drunk, I support you with both hands and feet to take down that high-mountain flower! Go for it, Lu Qiqi! You can do it! Don't be afraid to show your wild side!"

She reached out to playfully touch Lu Qiqi’s face and legs with a lecherous grin. "Hehehe, with your looks and that figure, even I’m tempted. I don't believe for a second that Chu Linchen could resist you!"

"Stop, don't set me up..." Lu Qiqi gave a bitter smile. To be honest, she *was* a little tempted—facing someone as perfect as Chu Linchen and not being tempted would be unnatural—but her reason told her not to approach him. He was a mountain harder to climb than Mount Everest; there was no need to ask for trouble.

Just as Lu Qiqi understood Bai Yu, Bai Yu saw right through her. She knew Lu Qiqi was tempted, but she was the type to have the heart for mischief but not the courage to act on it. Her friend was just a little coward. Bai Yu giggled inwardly, opened another bottle of wine, and said boldly, "Forget about that for now, let's toast!"

After several more glasses, Lu Qiqi’s cheeks were flushed, and her eyes were shining like bright bulbs. She seemed full of energy, and her speech and behavior appeared perfectly normal—to a stranger, she wouldn't look drunk at all. But Bai Yu knew this was when she was truly intoxicated.

The key was that Lu Qiqi had a peculiar way of handling her liquor: whenever she was drunk, she would do things she secretly wanted to do but never dared to when sober. For instance, back in college, when her counselor had given her a hard time, she had endured it in silence. But after getting drunk, she had cursed the counselor out in front of the entire class.

Knowing this trait, Bai Yu had intentionally gotten her drunk, leading her back to the very room where she had said Chu Linchen was.

"Babe, are you drunk? Do you dare to go for it? Are you a coward?" Bai Yu egged her on.

"Who says I’m drunk? I’m not! I dare to go for it—I absolutely must! Chu Linchen is a top-tier prize; winning him would be a huge profit!" Lu Qiqi’s eyes sparkled as she waved her fists, full of excitement.