Duoyao watched television programs for a while. She coughed from being choked by the smoke and turned back to look at the man sitting beside her who had been smoking silently. She sighed inside. It seemed like she was too straightforward earlier. However, she really didn’t like the kind of person who badmouthed their friends behind their backs. But this man was her boyfriend, after all, and she should still comfort him. “Don’t let your thoughts run wild. You can just kick this bad habit of yours. It’s not a very bad problem.”
Yan Molun: “…”
“I’m going to take a shower.” After a while, he stood up. He didn’t want to talk to her anymore.
Around 10 pm at night, Duoyao climbed into bed while yawning after her shower. When she saw Yan Molun lying coldly at the side, ignoring her uncharacteristically, she tugged at his pajamas. “I’m really thankful for what you did today.”
This way… he won’t be that angry, right?
Yan Molun turned his back towards her and continued to ignore her in case she were to drive him to his grave again.
Duoyao pouted glumly. She had already tried to make herself sound touched but he was still ignoring her. How petty. Since he was ignoring her, she turned her back to him too. Whatever.
She had been feeling exhausted lately and the moment she lay down, her eyelids began to feel heavy. With the eye mask on, she fell asleep within a minute.
Yan Molun sulked for a while. When he turned his head back and saw half her face covered by the eye mask with only her nose and lips exposed, he could tell she was already sound asleep. Once again, he felt sulky. The two of them were in a conflict, yet this woman could fall asleep so quickly.
…
After 9 in the morning, Yan Molun was already up and had breakfast ready. When he returned upstairs, the woman lying in bed was still asleep. The only change was that she had flipped to the other side after he got up.
He took off her eye mask coldly and the glaring sun came shining in. Duoyao murmured as she opened her eyes. When she saw Yan Molun standing by the bed, she complained with a pout, “What’s wrong with you?”
“It’s almost 10 am.” Yan Molun threw her phone and eye mask at her angrily. “Xiling’s been calling you since 8 am. Look at how many missed calls you have.”
Duoyao looked at her phone. It was very late indeed. Every time she had her eye mask on, she would sleep especially soundly.
With the eye mask on, Duoyao couldn’t tell what time it was. She rubbed her eyes and called Xiling back. Xiling said angrily, “You slept in again. What time are you coming to the company to collect your things?”
“Oh, I’ll head over after breakfast.” Duoyao put her phone down and lay back down. She stretched lazily, revealing her thin waist and her belly button.
Yan Molun picked her straight up at the waist to make her sit up. “Go and wash up. I already made breakfast for you.”
Duoyao lifted her long eyelashes and looked up at the gloomy man in front of her. He was unhappy but still made breakfast for her.
She reached her hand out to hook his neck. “You’re not angry anymore?”
Yan Molun sighed silently. If he were to be angry at her, he would be driven to his grave. “I’m a man; I can’t be too petty.”
“You’ll make a fine student.” Duoyao gave his thin lips a peck and patted his chest. “A man should be more open-minded.”
The corners of Yan Molun’s lips twitched. However, on account of this kiss, he wouldn’t hold it against her. “Open-mindedness depends on the situation. If you get too close to a man, I can’t be open-minded.”
“Who am I close to? Didn’t I just chat a little more with Li Shaobin yesterday?” Duoyao went to look for her clothes angrily. She thought that only women were petty; she didn’t think men were like that too.
Yan Molun made noodles for breakfast today. He added some sesame oil to make it more aromatic. Duoyao finished it cleanly and when she stood up, Yan Molun said lightly, “Are you going to the company today? I’ll go with you as your bodyguard.”
Duoyao was stunned for a short while. If she were to go alone, she might run into some trouble. If Kang Jin were to kidnap her, that would be bad. Hence, she nodded. “But Kang Jin already knows you’re not my bodyguard.”
“What’s important isn’t whether I’m your bodyguard or not,” Yan Molun said lightly. “What’s important is that they know I’m with you.”
Duoyao was dumbfounded. That seemed to make sense. It was said that if a man was too tall, his IQ wouldn’t be able to catch up with his height. She didn’t think that her boyfriend would be so smart. “Then give me a moment; I’ll get changed.”
Yan Molun waited for her downstairs for half an hour. Just as he was about to get impatient, he heard footsteps coming from upstairs. He looked up and saw Jiang Duoyao walking down, dressed in a floral printed qipao (1. traditional Chinese dress). This qipao looked pretty old-fashioned to him and it was in a color that was very difficult to pull off. However, she looked like a completely different person wearing it. It made her very charismatic, beautiful, and assertive. Her hair hung down straight even though it was all over the place when she went upstairs.
Yan Molun was stunned for quite a while. He felt as though she didn’t even look like his girlfriend.
“Why?” Duoyao swept him a glance. “Am I so pretty that you’re stunned?”
“It’s nothing; let’s go.” Yan Molun turned around quietly to change his shoes.
He was hallucinating. This person was still his girlfriend.
——————-
When they arrived at the Kang Corporation around 11 am, Jiang Duoyao walked into the hall proudly. There were many people watching her as though she was a freak, but Duoyao acted as though she didn’t see them. She raised her head and stuck out her chest. She only knew that after today, she would no longer be an employee of this company and she wouldn’t need to put up with anybody anymore.
When she was waiting for the elevator, Liu Ruoni, who was also handled by Ge Shuang, came out. When she saw Duoyao, she was stunned for a few seconds before she greeted her. “Duoyao, didn’t you terminate your contract? What are you doing back at the company?”
“I missed you so I came to take a look.” Duoyao was in an exceptional mood, so her smile was sweeter than ever. “You don’t sound like you’re welcoming me at all.”
Liu Ruoni put on a smile. “No, of course I’m happy to see you, but I don’t own the company so it’s not for me to say whether you’re welcome or not. I heard you terminated your contract yesterday and I was disappointed for such a long time. But I think you’ll have a bright future wherever you go. I’m pretty happy for you. Congratulations, I bet there are many companies that are thinking of poaching you over.”
“Can’t be helped. After all, I’m too popular.” Duoyao smiled proudly.
Yan Molun glanced at this woman, dumbfounded. Who was the one who almost couldn’t make it in the industry just a few months ago? It had only been such a short while, yet she was beginning to get cocky. No wonder people disliked her. She totally didn’t know how to keep a low-profile.
Liu Ruoni nodded with a smile. “True. Duoyao, you’ve always been so lucky. Every drama you’ve shot has been popular. How enviable. I hope you can carry on like this. Don’t forget me in the future.”
“No problem, no problem. The elevator door is closing, so I’ll get going first.” Duoyao went in with Yan Molun.
When the door closed, Yan Molun said lightly, “Are you always so shameless at work? Aren’t you a little too cocky?”
“I’m not.” Duoyao pouted. “It’s just because you’re with me today. I usually keep a very low-profile.”
Yan Molun kept his gaze forward. As if.
…
When the elevator arrived at their floor, the door opened and Xiling appeared in front, waiting outside with two of her disciples. When she saw them, her eyes almost popped out. “You…”
“Xiling, let me introduce you. This is my new bodyguard,” Duoyao interrupted her.
“Oh.” Xiling reacted quickly. When she saw Yan Molun’s expressionless face, she said, “Your bodyguard isn’t bad at all. He must be able to take on 10 people alone.”
“He’s alright,” Duoyao said softly. “Have you handed in your resignation letter?”
“I did. My pay for this month and my year-end bonus is gone.” Xiling sighed. “I’ve bet my entire future on you.”
“Don’t worry. I will work hard from now on.” Duoyao nodded seriously.
When they arrived at her lounge, she saw it was largely occupied with clothes and shoes. Xiling had already helped her roughly pack up. Duoyao re-packed for a while and handed her things to Yan Molun. After that, she went to look for Ge Shuang. After all, Ge Shuang was her manager for five years. She had to bid Ge Shuang farewell.
Ge Shuang was in the dance practice room with Xiao Xiao. When Duoyao went over, she saw Ge Shuang leaning by the door, watching Xiao Xiao’s every dance step.
The sight of this made Duoyao sigh a little inside. She also went through this period with Ge Shuang.
“Wait for me here.” Duoyao looked at Yan Molun.
He nodded and stood at the side with his arms crossed.
“Sister Shuang…” Duoyao walked towards Ge Shuang alone.
When Ge Shuang saw the person behind her, her face changed. She said coldly, “Your contract has been terminated, so why are you still coming to me? Are you here to show-off? I heard that you have the Li Family as your backing. You actually kept that from me despite being with me for so long. I really belittled you.”
Duoyao frowned and felt a little upset. “Sister Shuang, I just came to bid you farewell. No matter what you did to me lately, I wouldn’t have gotten to where I am today without you.”
“Glad you know that…”
Duoyao’s frown deepened. She interrupted Ge Shuang and said, “Actually, I don’t have to thank you. A manager is tied to her artiste. The more I earn, the more you earn. All these years, I’ve earned enough for you and the company. I’m here to thank you now because I value our relationship. I’m not a callous person, but please don’t take my gratitude towards you for granted. Don’t think that just because you made me popular, I’m at your disposal.”
Hearing her say that, Ge Shuang mocked her. “Yet you said you’re not here to show-off?”