CH 23

After she recognized the person in front of her as Li Yifan, Xiao Yu's attitude took a complete 180-degree turn, and even her usual professional smile disappeared: "Looking for someone? Please go to the police station to report."

Li Yifan didn't expect the receptionist to be so rude. He stiffened for a moment, then looked visibly annoyed, "What's with your attitude? Is this how you treat guests at the front desk?"

Xiao Yu replied, "Of course, we don't treat guests like this. The problem is, are you really a guest? No, you're just a fraudster."

Li Yifan's face became even more unsightly. He realized that the front desk might have learned about his situation from Liang Huihui and didn't bother arguing further. He turned away and went to find the restaurant.

He knew Liang Huihui worked as a waitress at the hotel's restaurant. Although it was his first time here, hotels usually had signs, so finding the restaurant wasn't difficult.

Xiao Yu had wanted to stop him, but another guest came down to check out, so she had to handle that first.

When Li Yifan entered the restaurant, he spotted Liang Huihui tidying up a table. She was wearing the uniform of the restaurant staff, with her hair tied up in a bun and light makeup on her face. Li Yifan hesitated for a moment when he saw her. It had been a long time since he last saw Liang Huihui, and she seemed more beautiful than he remembered.

"Huihui," he approached her and called her name. Liang Huihui froze for a moment upon hearing his voice, then turned to look in his direction.

It was indeed Li Yifan, she didn't mishear.

Li Yifan looked happy to see her and wanted to hold her hand, but Liang Huihui dodged his attempt. He hesitated for a moment, knowing that she was still angry with him. He adopted a humble posture, trying to coax her, hoping that he could be forgiven, "Huihui, I know I was wrong this time. I've reflected on my actions. Can you stop being angry, please?"

Liang Huihui pursed her lips and avoided him impatiently, "I'm working; don't disturb me here."

Li Yifan still followed her, insisting, "Huihui, I really know I was wrong. I've broken up with Chen Danni, can you forgive me this time?"

Liang Huihui didn't want to pay him any attention, but his words were so laughable. She stopped and looked at Li Yifan with a mocking expression, "You broke up? I think she dumped you, didn't she?"

"..."

Li Yifan bit his lips, wanting to reach out for Liang Huihui again. However, she shook off his hand and, for once, got angry, "Li Yifan, have some self-respect! She dumped you, and now you come back to find me. What do you take me for? A garbage dump?"

Li Yifan's face stiffened once again. He didn't expect Liang Huihui to speak so harshly. They had known each other for so many years, and Liang Huihui had always cared for him, never speaking to him so loudly.

Before he could react, three foreigners entered the restaurant. Liang Huihui saw the guests coming in. She didn't bother with Li Yifan anymore and went to greet the customers. Li Yifan stood aside, watching her fluently communicate with the foreign guests in English, leading them to a table by the window. Her smile was so radiant.

Li Yifan felt a bit dazed. When did Liang Huihui's English become so good? Back in high school, she struggled with reading textbooks and pronunciation. She used to be a shy and reserved girl with few friends in high school, and even in their small town, she was not that noticeable.

But the Liang Huihui before him was no longer the same person he used to know. She had become smarter, more beautiful, and more confident.

Li Yifan couldn't describe the feeling in his heart. Unconsciously, he walked up to her and called her name. Liang Huihui's smile faded when she saw him. Seeing that she still didn't intend to acknowledge him, Li Yifan tried a different approach, "Can I have a meal here?"

Liang Huihui replied, "The window seats are all reserved. Did you make a reservation?"

"Huihui, do you have to be like this?" Li Yifan took two steps toward Liang Huihui, who instinctively stepped back. As she took a step back, she accidentally bumped into someone. Liang Huihui quickly turned to apologize to the person, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry."

"Little sister, it's hot today," Qi Sheng's voice descended from above. Liang Huihui was stunned for a moment and then raised her head.

Sure enough, it was Dr. Qi Sheng standing there.

Liang Huihui felt really unlucky.

Qi Sheng pulled Liang Huihui behind him and looked at Li Yifan across from them, "Are you bothering our waitress?"

The commotion at the restaurant had already attracted some guests' attention, some were even pointing at Li Yifan. Li Yifan was still a university student, so he was embarrassed, "No, I am Huihui's boyfriend."

Liang Huihui loudly denied it from behind Qi Sheng, "He's not!"

Qi Sheng looked at Li Yifan and said, "She said you're not, and if you keep causing a scene, I'll get the security to throw you out."

Before he finished speaking, Zheng Baozhu arrived with the hotel security. The dining guests rarely encountered such a situation and looked on with interest.

After Zheng Baozhu arrived, she didn't waste any words with Li Yifan, immediately instructing the security to lift him up and take him out of the restaurant - the same way she was carried out by the two maids on set that day.

"I apologize for disturbing everyone's meal." Zheng Baozhu smiled at the customers in the restaurant and said, "Everything is fine now, you can continue dining. As an apology, we will offer a complimentary snack to each table later. I wish you all a pleasant meal."

She repeated the message in English as there were foreigners present in the restaurant.

The diners naturally appreciated the gesture. They not only got to witness a scene but also received a free snack.

After speaking with everyone, Zheng Baozhu left the restaurant. The two security guards didn't immediately Li Yifan out; instead, they escorted him to the lounge. Zheng Baozhu followed and sat down on the sofa, looking at Li Yifan with a smile, "Since you're here, let's have a chat. How do you plan to repay the money you owe to Huihui?"

Li Yifan furrowed his brows, asking, "Who are you? What's it to you?"

Zheng Baozhu replied, "I'm the owner of this hotel. You caused trouble here, so it's related to me, isn't it?"

Li Yifan's frown deepened, and he said, "Did Huihui tell you all of this? It's our private matter; there's no need to make it public!"

This remark amused Zheng Baozhu, "You have the nerve to say that, yet you're afraid of others knowing? What's so public about it? It wouldn't even make to trending news."

Li Yifan clenched his jaw and finally managed to say something unoriginal, "It's our private matter and none of your business."

"Get the facts straight. You and Liang Huihui have nothing to do with each other now, and there's no private matter to discuss," Zheng Baozhu said, feeling like he needed a reality check, "If you come here to cause trouble again, I'll call the police."

"...I get it. It's you trying to sow discord between us!" Li Yifan suddenly stood up aggressively, and the nearby security guards immediately stepped forward to stop him.

"Don't come back here; we have surveillance," Zheng Baozhu glanced at him and stood up as well, "What you've done is enough; you don't need anyone to sow discord. Your only connection with Huihui now is the debt you owe her. The next time you appear in front of us, it better be to repay the money."

After saying that, she gestured to the security guards, saying, "Get him out of here; he's a nuisance."

"Yes, Miss Baozhu!"

The security guards escorted Li Yifan out, but he remained persistent. If the hotel didn't let him in, he waited outside, seemingly determined not to leave until he saw Liang Huihui.

When Qi Sheng came out of the hotel, Li Yifan was still standing there. Qi Sheng had bought the meal that Qu Zhi ordered, and after taking a glance at Li Yifan, he walked towards the company.

"Old Qu, your fried rice is here," Lately, Qu Zhi had been so busy that he didn't even have time to eat, staying in the laboratory even during lunchtime. Qi Sheng brought the food back for him and took the opportunity to chat with him while he ate, "When I went to have lunch just now, I saw a young man, who looked like a university student, come to find Liang Huihui. The security guards had to escort him out."

Qu Zhi paused with the spoon in his hand and asked Qi Sheng, "Who is he?"

Qi Sheng replied, "He claims to be Liang Huihui's boyfriend, but she denies it. He's shameless; when I left, he was still lingering outside the hotel."

Qu Zhi snorted coldly, "Of course, he has to be shameless. How else could he have the audacity to use Liang Huihui's money to pursue the campus beauty?"

Qi Sheng had heard that something happened to Liang Huihui before, which led to the police being involved, but he never expected it to be about this, "What? In this day and age, there are still such naive girls? It really proves the saying that being with men leads to misfortune!"

Qu Zhi remained silent for a moment before speaking, "In a society governed by the rule of law, be careful not to leave any evidence."

Qi Sheng: "..."

Qu Zhi was right.

As a typical scumbag, Li Yifan's shamelessness knew no bounds. He waited outside the hotel for two hours until Liang Huihui finally came out. Seeing her, Li Yifan's face lit up, and he immediately approached her.

"Huihui..."

Slap!

Liang Huihui walked out of the hotel angrily and, upon seeing Li Yifan, gave him a resounding slap.

This slap left Li Yifan stunned. In his expectations, Liang Huihui should have felt sorry for him, considering he had been freezing here for two hours, and then should've forgiven him.

"Li Yifan, although you have no face, I still have! Look at what you've done! Do you want to grab a megaphone and broadcast it to everyone? How dare you come to find me?" Liang Huihui had been holding in her anger and grievances for two hours, and now she finally let it all out.

Li Yifan snapped back, covering his stinging face and getting angry as well, "Do you think I want to be like this? If I don't act this way, will you come out? You think you're the only one who feels wronged? Your friends have been talking about me at the university, now even my grade counselor knows about it! I'm about to take an exam, yet you still have to cause trouble for me at this time?"

"What do you mean cause trouble? Are you feeling wronged now? Who used my hard-earned money to pursue the campus beauty? Was it someone else?" Liang Huihui shouted back even louder, "Do you want to calculate how much money you've taken from me in these two years? Not to mention the monthly allowances I gave you. Just during your postgraduate entrance exam year, I spent thousands of yuan ordering takeout for you at night! Will you ever repay that money, you despicable creature!"

Watching from the hotel entrance, Xiao Yu and others were left speechless.

Liang Huihui was truly impressive.

Li Yifan felt powerless against her barrage of accusations. Under the scrutiny of the onlookers, he reluctantly looked at Liang Huihui, "I really don't have money right now, but I'll pay you back when I start working! Having money doesn't give you the right to humiliate others; don't look down on the poor!"

"Huh, do you think you're some male lead from a drama series?" Liang Huihui couldn't help but chuckle in exasperation. Li Yifan's arguments were absurd, and she was almost amused to death, "Even those male leads from drama series would curse you after hearing your reasoning!"

"You!" Li Yifan found himself unable to argue with Liang Huihui any further and had to leave in embarrassment. After the heated exchange, Liang Huihui suddenly felt much better. She walked back to the hotel entrance and asked her colleagues who were gathered there, "How did I do just now?"

Xiao Yu gave her a thumbs up, "Absolutely perfect."

"That's good to hear," Liang Huihui sighed with relief, "It's all thanks to Miss Baozhu's excellent teachings."

Zheng Baozhu: "..."

That's too much praise.

Coughing lightly, Zheng Baozhu walked up to Liang Huihui with her phone and said, "I recorded the part where Li Yifan promised to repay you. If he ever tries to default, you can use the video as evidence against him."

"Thank you, Miss Baozhu," Liang Huihui's eyes welled up again as she wiped away her tears. She turned to the people at the entrance and said, "Alright, everyone, let's get back to work. I'm fine now."

"Yes, everyone, don't stay here. Let's get back to work," Manager Wei habitually pushed his glasses up and sent everyone back to their positions.

After spending the entire day testing in the lab, Qu Zhi finally let out a sigh of relief. Thinking about what Qi Sheng had said to him at noon, he picked up his phone and opened Zheng Baozhu's WeChat.

They had added each other on WeChat for quite a while, but apart from the day he was asked to deliver sanitary pads to her, they hadn't spoken to each other. Qu Zhi thought for a moment, then sent her a message.

Qu Zhi: I heard Li Yifan came to the hotel?

Zheng Baozhu: Did you hear it from Qi Sheng? He was scolded and chased away.

Qu Zhi: Scolded by you?

Zheng Baozhu: I played a part, but mainly it was all thanks to Huihui's efforts.

Zheng Baozhu: [Video]

The video she sent was the footage of Liang Huihui and Li Yifan quarreling. After watching it, Qu Zhi silently sent a thumbs-up emoji.

Qu Zhi: Is Liang Huihui okay now?

Zheng Baozhu: She's definitely still feeling a bit upset, but there's no major problem.

Qu Zhi's fingers paused on the phone screen as he thought about what to send next. Qi Sheng then approached him and teased, "Old Qu, were you watching some silly short videos just now? I could hear it from here! I didn't know you also like watching this kind of stuff!"

"..."

Qu Zhi glanced at him and played the video for him. Qi Sheng watched with amazement, "Wow! This little sister has quite the combat power; she was able to hold her own against the other person's insults. I'll be relieved if my future daughter has this kind of strength."

"..."

Qu Zhi curiously looked at him, "Since when did you start thinking about having a daughter?"

"I've always thought about it," Qi Sheng said, "I just don't know where the mother of my child is, sigh."

Qu Zhi ignored his musings. After Qi Sheng sighed, he glanced at Qu Zhi's phone again and said, "Hey, wait a minute. Were you really that concerned about Liang Huihui? Or were you deliberately finding a topic to talk to Miss Baozhu?"

"...You're overthinking it," Qu Zhi denied.

Qi Sheng leaned in, using his keen, curious gaze, scrutinizing Qu Zhi, "Old Qu, there's something not quite right with you lately."

Thinking about Zheng Baozhu saying something similar to him last night, Qu Zhi pursed his lips and asked Qi Sheng, "Is it that obvious?"

"Well, by saying that, you're admitting it, right?" Qi Sheng gossiped, getting closer to him, "What's going on?"

Qu Zhi pushed him away a bit and turned slightly, "It's nothing. I just realized recently that I did have some misunderstandings about Zheng Baozhu. She's not as thoughtless and soulless as I used to think. She has her own thoughts."

"Oh..." Qi Sheng nodded as he looked at Qu Zhi, "And then you realized you've developed feelings for her?"

"Of course not," Qu Zhi furrowed his brows and quickly denied Qi Sheng's suggestion, "I just feel a bit guilty..."

"Really? What do you feel guilty about?" Qi Sheng looked at him in surprise, "I have never seen you feel guilty about me!"

Qu Zhi gave him a glance and walked back to the lab.