Chapter 16: She Forgot That Man

Page (1/3)

Chu Ming gave a quiet little “Oh” and said nothing more.

She did not understand, but she respected it.

Yu Ling had never expected anyone to understand her. Everyone in this world had a heart of their own, and people were never meant to understand one another completely. It was only that emotions could skew one’s thoughts, nudging a person into trying to read someone else in silence.

The elevator descended slowly. Yu Ling glanced at the flowers in her arms and began to laugh to herself.

There was nothing frightening about getting her clothes wet. Her life had always been drenched in torrential rain. All she hoped for was that this downpour, which had lasted more than twenty years, would finally stop.

“Miss Yu, we’ll be on the first floor soon. You should put your mask back on,” Xiao Zhang reminded her with great attentiveness.

Only then did Yu Ling realize that she had forgotten to wear one. She had been in such a hurry when she rushed out that it had completely slipped her mind.

Seeing that Yu Ling’s hands were occupied with the flowers, Chu Ming was about to help her put it on, but Yu Ling waved her off.

She held the flowers in one arm and used her free hand to take a mask from her pocket and put it on.

Once she stepped out of the elevator and breathed in the fresh air outside, Yu Ling’s mood improved considerably.

She even began joking with them. “Xiao Ming, do you think the internet has exploded by now?”

“It already has, sis.” Chu Ming had opened Weibo first thing that morning. The current situation was this: Yu Ling occupied the top four trending searches in succession, firmly holding every spot from first to fourth. The glorious spectacle was exactly what Yu Ling had wished for.

“Really?” Yu Ling grew interested. “What titles did they come up with?”

Chu Ming listed them with a blank expression. “Yu Ling’s livestream, Yu Ling catches him cheating, Yu Ling’s relationship, and Yu Ling and Lin Mianmian.”

Yu Ling nodded in satisfaction. The netizens had not let her down.

“It’s a shame Mu Chenbei smashed my phone. Otherwise, I could have gone on Weibo to enjoy the drama.”

“Sis, if that happened, you’d better not enjoy the drama just yet. I’m afraid Sister Li’s bombardment would blow up your phone first,” Chu Ming added weakly.

At those words, Yu Ling’s delicate face instantly fell.

Right. How could she have forgotten Sister Li? For all she knew, Sister Li was already seething with fury and dialing her number over and over.

As if summoned by the thought, Chu Ming’s phone began to ring.

The sound sent Yu Ling’s heart straight into her throat.

Yu Ling: “…”

Clinging to a shred of hope, she asked cautiously, “Whose call is it?”

Chu Ming closed her eyes and forced out a smile more tragic than a sob. “Sister Li.”

Well then. Under Chu Ming’s accusing gaze, Yu Ling took half a step back and quietly distanced herself from her.

Chu Ming stared at her with profound resentment. Seriously? That half-step backward?

Page (1/3)

The murderous ringtone continued. The phone in Chu Ming’s hand had suddenly become a red-hot potato.

She closed her eyes and, resigned to her fate, swiped to answer.

Thinking of her five-figure monthly salary, she endured it.

The instant the call connected, Sister Li’s furious roar thundered through the phone. Her very first words were, “Put Yu Ling on.”

Her voice was stern and utterly imperious, leaving no room for refusal.

Chu Ming shrank her neck and held the phone out toward Yu Ling, practically saying, Take it. She wants you.

Yu Ling shook her head frantically, her refusal painfully obvious.

She silently mouthed to Chu Ming, “I don’t want to. Say something nice for me.”

Understanding her lips, Chu Ming rolled her eyes. Nevertheless, despite her reluctance, she softened her tone ingratiatingly. “Sister Li, Sis Yu’s phone broke…”

Before she could finish, she pursed her lips, retreated two steps with lightning speed, shoved the phone into Yu Ling’s hand, then stepped forward twice, turned around, and stared straight at Yu Ling.

The entire sequence was astonishingly smooth, without the slightest hesitation. Yu Ling could only stare at her in bewilderment.

But the time bomb had already been placed in her hand. She could hardly throw it away. In a small, ingratiating voice, she said, “Sister Li…”

Not only that, but her trembling voice was impossible to miss.

Sister Li did not waste a single word. She went straight to the point. “What’s going on with the trending searches?”

Yu Ling groaned inwardly and tried to explain vaguely. “It’s just… it’s just…”

The more she spoke, the quieter her voice became. “It’s just like that.”

Yu Ling silently lit a candle for herself. Sister Li’s fury was not something anyone could withstand.

Unexpectedly, Sister Li merely told her to go home early and said nothing else.

She even hung up first.

Chu Ming, who had been waiting nearby, stared wide-eyed.

No one had told her Sister Li could be this easygoing. Was this really the same Sister Li who exploded at the slightest provocation, like a firecracker? Had she been possessed by someone else too?

Chu Ming wore an expression of utter disillusionment. She felt as though something had gone wrong with the world.

The consequence was that her body tilted and she collapsed directly against Xiao Zhang.

Quick on the draw, Xiao Zhang caught her before she could fall. With a grin, he asked, “In broad daylight, are you trying to fake an injury for compensation?”

Chu Ming immediately steadied herself and shot him a withering look. Then she pointed at the sky. “Zhang Yue, shouldn’t I be saying that to you? In broad daylight, stop dreaming.”

“So your name is Zhang Yue?” Yu Ling asked.

Page (2/3)

Yu Ling walked over and returned the phone to Chu Ming, wearing the delighted expression of someone who had just gotten the latest gossip.

“Yes, my name is Zhang Yue.”

“Sis, you didn’t know his name was Zhang Yue?”

The two of them spoke at the same time again. Zhang Yue was explaining himself, while Chu Ming was questioning Yu Ling.

“He told me his name was Xiao Zhang.” Yu Ling blinked innocently.

“And you never asked for his full name?”

Yu Ling gave an embarrassed smile. “No, I didn’t.”

After all, Xiao Zhang—no, Zhang Yue—had been assigned to her by Sister Li, and he had only joined the company a few days ago. Today was his third day.

When they first met, he had introduced himself as Xiao Zhang, so Yu Ling had simply continued calling him that.

Chu Ming fell silent again. It was strange, but she could not find a reasonable counterargument.

Xiao Zhang scratched his head with an honest, simplehearted expression. “It’s fine. None of that matters.”

Yu Ling smiled at him. “Zhang Yue, I know now.”

“But we should hurry home. Sister Li is waiting there to demand an explanation.”

Just thinking about it gave Yu Ling a headache. Only she knew that Li Wan would never let the matter pass after asking a few simple questions. She was waiting to discuss it with Yu Ling face-to-face.

“All right. I’ll drive a little faster later.”

Once they got into the car, Chu Ming held her phone and stared at it nonstop.

The longer she looked, the angrier she became.

She slapped at the phone in frustration, muttering and cursing under her breath.

Yu Ling’s attention was drawn to her. “What happened?”

Without even looking up, Chu Ming replied, “Weibo crashed and kicked me out automatically.”

Yu Ling said nothing more. At last, she found a chance to focus on the livestream comments.

After everything she had done, the comments were now refreshing at lightning speed. Messages in the chat box were pushed upward before Yu Ling could even finish reading them.

She could barely make out three characters that appeared again and again:

Gu Tingchuan.

Yu Ling smacked her forehead.

Damn it. She had forgotten about that man.

Page (3/3)