Chapter 71 Meeting Shengli

"Theoretically speaking, how long does it take to arrest the crowd outside the apartment?" Xue Ning asked, staring at the dashboard clock with dead eyes. She had a feeling this Shengli person had deliberately delayed updating them as revenge for making him come all the way to her home to sue people.

"Usually, not this long. Do you want to grab a bite?" Jingwei asked obliviously.

"We just had breakfast two hours ago," She had to point out as she slumped on the carseat in boredom. "Are you hungry already?"

"You'll find that I always have an appetite," he smiled at her, but there was a sudden heat in his eyes as he stared at her face, before roving to the rest of her. "For more things than one."

"Greedy," she retorted, crossing her arms in front of her, but she can't help the faint smile that crosses her face. He was such a pervert - but it was slowly becoming endearing to her. She must be suffering from brain damage.

"You should beware of indigestion, idiot." She scolded.

"What doesn't kill you makes you stronger."

"In that case, you must be bloody indestructible," she replied. "First the drugging, then the crazy fans."

"You know, when I think about it, the crazy fans aren't so bad." Xue Ning stared at him as though he confessed to secretly being a vampire-werewolf love child that survived on sunlight.

"I mean, they are like the cicadas returning every year. They make a lot of noise and try to follow me, and then my people drive them to the ground until they get some incentive to return."

"And your fake relationship with me is certainly incentive enough." She then casually asked. "Am I allowed to use force to defend myself from them if they do try anything?"

"Xue Ning, I'd support you even if you killed one of them," Jingwei said frankly, holding onto one of her hands, the other still on the wheel.

"WIth me, you'll never end up going to jail."

"That's reassuring," Xue Ning said, staring at their joint hands, because she had nothing else to reply to such a powerful declaration. "Now focus on driving before we both end up dead."

"As my wife commands," he said indulgently, squeezing her hand before continuing to make the same loop. He could probably do this in his sleep, but thankfully he didn't need to demonstrate it, because Shengli called with timely news.

"It's all taken care off."

"Oh finally!" Xue Ning exclaimed, jolting awake from her languid state where she felt like she was melting into the carseat.

With this statement from Shengli, Jingwei wasted no time in turning the car around, driving quickly back to Xue Ning's apartment, the excitement infectious. He was so close to seeing Xue Ning's cockroach-infested apartment, and it must be love's power that he is actually delighted about it!

"Make sure to lock your car," Xue Ning reminded as he parked the car. "I don't want anyone stealing our ride home."

"Yes Madam," Jingwei said, cheering at her words. She said 'our' and 'home'! The word 'ride' was in the middle, but that's not important.

The courtyard was empty of fans when they got out, but there was no shortage of curious eyes that stared at them from every floor of the apartment complex. They weren't even hiding it!

Just from a quick glance, she could spot Aunty Wen from the fifth floor, Uncle Ping on the third, and Granny Cao loitering on the first floor still holding her bag of vegetables, doing her very best to seem that she wasn't gawking at their arrival.

Jingwei eagerly led her by the hand to a man wearing a suit, looking remarkably put together in the hot afternoon sun. There was no sweat beading on his temples or on his upper lip, and his wire-framed glasses seemed glued to his face. His eyes were sharp as he took in their linked hands, his lips curling into a smirk.

Xue Ning somehow wanted to deck him.

"Shengli! This is Xue Ning. Xue Ning, meet Shengli."

"Nice to meet you," she replied curtly.

"Likewise, Miss Li," His glasses flashed as he replied. "You are not what I expected."

"I could say the same for you." She had expected a frazzled paper-pusher, but Shengli was sharply dressed and well put-together, and he seemed well-built under his suit. "And what did you expect from me?" Xue Ning asked challengingly.

Shengli drawled, "I thought you'd be taller. Dressed more provocatively. Jingwei always had a type -"

"OKAY MOVING ON - Thanks so much for your help Shengli," Jingwei hurriedly pats him on the shoulder, "go back to the office and take a long break, Xue Ning and I have a lot of packing to do!"

Shengli let out a little, evil laugh, before bowing politely and driving off.

"That was Shengli?" Xue Ning asked. "I'm not sure if I like him."

"It's okay! You will eventually! Even Shengli's current girlfriend didn't like him initially either." He confessed, as they made their way to the lift lobby. Jingwei stared at the grimy buttons, then at the floor littered with trash, along with the pamphlets hastily stuck to the wall, half-falling apart.

A cockroach scuttered from the dustbin, into the cardboard haphazardly in the corner of the lift lobby.

The entire area smelled faintly of mildew.

"This place seems… nice," Jingwei said.

Xue Ning barked out a disbelieving laugh. "If you think this is nice, my house is definitely going to impress you."

"Do you want to take the lift or stairs?" She continued. "I cannot guarantee that there is no pee in the lift."

"Are you joking?" Jingwei asked, but Xue Ning was deadly serious. "Okay, maybe the stairs. What floor do you live on?"

"Fourth floor, apartment number 44."

"Wow. How auspicious." Jingwei commented. "Wait - really? You aren't pulling my leg?"

"Of course not, do you know how much cheaper the rent is for this one apartment compared to the rest?" Xue Ning pointed out. "It's just a silly superstition anyway, but if it saves me money, why not?"

Sun Jingwei only gave her a heartbroken look in response.