Chapter 37

Chapter 37

He Wei had drunk quite a bit today, so her brain went hot, and under the stimulation of the female voice on the other end of the phone, that question just blurted out without thinking.

The moment she said it, He Wei couldn’t help but frown, practically wishing she could bite her own tongue off.

Like ordinary girls, she also dated, got together with someone she liked, and broke up when feelings faded later on.

But He Wei couldn’t be that simple. When other girls were betrayed by their boyfriends, at most they would feel down for a while, and after getting through that difficult period, they would bounce back to life again. He Wei was different—if she was cheated on, it would be a dead end for her.

Not to mention the existence of Yan Chen.

He Wei couldn’t afford not to be cautious.

After gathering her courage and asking that half-serious, impulsive question, there was no response from the other end for a long time.

The alcohol was hitting her harder now, her brows furrowing even tighter. She lifted one hand to rub her forehead, and with the other, she took the phone away from her ear to look at it.

The next moment, she didn’t know if she accidentally touched the hang-up button or if the other side had ended the call—after a “beep,” the call disconnected.

The phone went completely silent. Only the faint sound of running water remained on He Wei’s side.

Her heart went empty. The heat in her head slowly faded, and she gradually calmed down.

She probably shouldn’t have made that call in the first place.

Maybe Yan Huai was very satisfied with his blind date partner right now, and the two were having a pleasant conversation. That call was nothing more than an annoying disturbance.

He Wei let out a breath, her drunkenness fading slightly. She turned on the faucet and splashed cold water on her face.

After washing, she didn’t even wipe it off. She looked up at herself in the mirror.

Her expression was flat, but the corners of her eyes were red.

Just as He Wei pulled out a tissue to wipe her face, Feng Ning’s careful voice came from the restroom entrance: “Sister Wei Wei, are you okay?”

She had been gone for more than five minutes. Worried she might have passed out drunk in the bathroom, Feng Ning couldn’t hold back and hurried over.

He Wei forced a small smile. “My stomach feels a bit uncomfortable.”

She had just vomited earlier, and even now her mouth was filled with that sour, bitter taste of nausea.

Feng Ning very considerately handed her a bottle of mineral water. “Rinse your mouth first… Sister Wei Wei, are you hungry? After we finish later, I can go buy you something to eat.”

He Wei shook her head and took the water to rinse her mouth.

In a few minutes, she finished the entire bottle. Her mouth finally felt much cleaner.

He Wei covered her mouth, swallowing hard. Once she confirmed that sour bitterness wouldn’t rise up her throat again, she threw the empty bottle into the trash.

As the two of them walked out of the restroom, He Wei asked Feng Ning, “Is it about to end?”

“They’re all pretty drunk… it probably won’t go on much longer.”

Feng Ning paused, as if remembering something, and turned to look at her. “Oh right, Sister Wei Wei, Moco just called me and asked if you’re interested in endorsing their spring-summer cosmetics line.”

He Wei touched her neck and thought for several seconds before finally remembering that this was the brand owned by Mu Sheng’s wealthy ex-boyfriend.

Their relationship clearly hadn’t been that deep either. That nouveau riche had distanced himself from Mu Sheng not long after her drug scandal broke.

Stand together through hardship?

That didn’t exist. People like that only fled when trouble came.

At the time, the matter had already passed for so long that He Wei had thought they had forgotten about offering her that endorsement deal.

Today, when Feng Ning brought it up, she remembered it again.

Feng Ning really seemed suited to being an assistant. Seeing that she wasn’t speaking, she had already begun analyzing the pros and cons on her own.

“Moco is positioned as a luxury, high-end brand, and its price range also represents the ambassador’s status… but—”

“But Moco’s young heir is Mu Sheng’s ex-boyfriend.”

Feng Ning immediately nodded like pounding garlic.

“Let it be for now. If there are other suitable ones, don’t take it.”

If she accepted it directly, it might give people with ulterior motives something else to wildly speculate about.

Some might even go so far as to say she slept her way into hooking up with Moco’s rich young heir, which was why he had so ruthlessly dumped Mu Sheng.

Being a celebrity was hard.

Being a female celebrity was especially hard.

He Wei sighed. “If only they could just transfer money directly to me.”

Feng Ning was amused and laughed a little. “Sister Wei Wei, once you get famous in the future, you won’t even need to do anything and you’ll still make money!”

She was quite ambitious.

He Wei’s lips curved slightly. In the corridor, other guests passed by, waves of cigarette smoke drifting over. She suddenly stopped.

“Ning Ning.”

“Yeah? What is it?”

“Got any cigarettes?”

She had already been trying her best not to think about Yan Huai.

But the more she tried, the more that person seemed to permeate everywhere without escape.

The breath in her chest couldn’t be released. Just now, smelling the cigarette smoke, she suddenly wanted to try it.

Feng Ning froze for a moment. “No…”

She didn’t think He Wei looked like someone who would smoke, and her scent was very faint—aside from fragrance, there was nothing else.

Feng Ning couldn’t even imagine what someone so gentle and soft would look like smoking, but she still asked very professionally, “Sister Wei Wei, do you want cigarettes?”

He Wei narrowed her eyes slightly and gave a small nod.

Feng Ning didn’t bother with useless advice like “smoking is bad for your health.” She had already noticed that something was off with He Wei today. In the private room earlier, He Wei hadn’t spoken much, but she had drunk quite a lot.

The drinks she couldn’t refuse, she drank. The ones she could have pushed away with one or two words, she still drank.

Feng Ning nodded. “Then wait a few minutes, I’ll go ask the staff.”

He Wei stood there with a faint smile as she watched her quickly disappear around the corridor corner.

The overhead lights were bright as daylight. He Wei raised a hand to shield her eyes, standing quietly there.

Not long after, Feng Ning ran back. She handed over a pack of cigarettes and a lighter. “The staff even gave me a lighter.”

“Thanks.” He Wei smiled at her. “I’ll transfer you the money.”

Feng Ning quickly refused. “No need…”

A pack of cigarettes only cost a little over ten yuan.

He Wei waved her off, interrupting her. “I’m going to try smoking one.”

The call was hung up by Yan Huai.

He Wei’s voice was very light and thin, as if she had been drinking. The end of her words still carried a slight tremble, completely different from the woman on the other end.

At the same time he ended the call, Yan Huai said to the pretentious woman, “Alright, stop acting.”

Song Ying immediately let go of the hand pinching her throat and pouted. “You asked me to act as your blind date and you’re still loathing me?”

Yan Huai picked up his suit jacket and stood up. “I’m leaving.”

Song Ying also stood up immediately. “Brother, that call was from He Wei, right?”

“You’re going to find her now, aren’t you?” She grabbed her own coat as well. “I’ll go with you.”

Yan Huai glanced at her arm still in a cast and said coldly, “No.”

“I won’t cause trouble.”

Yan Huai didn’t budge. “Still no.”

“If you don’t let me go, I’ll tell He Wei you lied to her about the blind date!”

That threat had no effect at all. Yan Huai didn’t even look at her. “I’ll have the driver pick you up.”

“…”

Song Ying rolled her eyes in frustration.

She gave up completely, picked up the menu, and while ticking off the most expensive dishes, she deliberately said, “Poor little white rabbit.”

Yan Ruojing wasn’t actually on a blind date arranged by him today.

He had never arranged one for him in the first place.

He trusted him too much and didn’t worry at all about his marriage. Moreover, after recently finding out he had a girlfriend, he only wanted him to bring the girl home to meet the family—there was no way he would arrange a blind date at this time.

Yan Huai had been carefully controlling things and moving step by step. It was just that at the last critical step, He Wei clearly had feelings, yet still refused to take a step closer.

Since she wouldn’t take the initiative, then he would find a way to make her take it.

It was just that He Wei didn’t know any of this.

She thought Yan Huai had really gone to meet another woman today.

Around nine in the evening, He Wei sat alone on a chair in the smoking area on the balcony, letting the wind blow for a few minutes.

A few minutes later, she began opening the cigarette box.

Outside there were only two dim lights. The lighting was sparse, and it took her quite a while just to open the box.

She wasn’t wearing much today—just a blouse and a short skirt, with thin stockings underneath.

Tancheng had warmed up, so this outfit wasn’t too cold at night.

After finally managing to pull out a cigarette, she put it in her mouth and lit it with a lighter.

Afraid of coughing, she didn’t dare inhale deeply. She only took a shallow breath and immediately started coughing from the smoke.

The smoke was too strong. He Wei covered her chest and coughed several times in a row.

Just as she was recovering a few seconds later, the system “beeped,” and said, “Congratulations, Host! I’ve leveled up to level three today!”

“…”

After a pause, she asked again, “What benefits are there after reaching level three?”

The system: “Every time Yan Chen’s jealousy value increases by ten points, he will suffer one round of abuse. Correspondingly, the host’s luck value will increase by one point. Increasing luck value can reduce the probability of being abused.”

…That actually sounded somewhat useful.

He Wei finally felt that tonight wasn’t entirely bad news. After catching her breath, she put the cigarette back into her mouth.

Although cigarettes didn’t taste very good, they really did seem to relieve stress.

Not sure if it was psychological, but He Wei intended to finish the cigarette. Just as she took a small puff—

someone walked into the smoking area.

He Wei glanced at the neatly pressed trouser legs of the man and didn’t pay much attention.

The next second, he walked closer and stopped right in front of her.

He Wei had no choice but to look up.

The man stood against the light, looking down at her from above.

“What are you smoking?”

Before she could respond, the cigarette in her mouth was taken away. Yan Huai’s fingers turned lightly, and he placed the filter end into his own mouth.

Compared to He Wei, his movements were practiced and almost seductive. After a few puffs, he turned his head and pressed the cigarette out in the nearby ashtray.

He Wei swallowed.

The next instant, almost without thinking, she stood up, hooked her arms around Yan Huai’s neck, and rose on her toes to kiss him.