After Breaking Up with the Stoic CEO - Chapter 23

Chapter 23: What’s Wrong? Nowhere To Go?

“The market trends have shifted recently, so I’ve been working overtime until ten at night quite often.” Liu Yuhuan interjected abruptly.

While outsiders praised her for being smooth and adaptable, someone who possessed the art of conversation, her flirting techniques in front of Li Jin were arguably amateurish. Huo Jing couldn’t help but call her out: “It’s hard on you, President Liu, to be so busy and yet still find time to come and join the fun at the soft opening of my little bar.”

“As friends of so many years, it’s only right that I come to show my support. It’s just… I didn’t expect it to be such a coincidence to run into President Li here.”

As a socialite well-versed in the ways of the elite, Liu Yuhuan felt no awkwardness at being called out for her uninvited appearance; instead, she unabashedly steered the conversation toward her own agenda. Huo Jing muttered, “It certainly is a coincidence, though I hope it’s not this coincidental next time.”

Qu Wan didn’t speak, sitting quietly on the side—a perfectly qualified bystander. Li Jin, the person involved, also showed little reaction, bringing her juice to her lips with a detached expression. Seeing the atmosphere grow tense, Liu Yuhuan instead raised her glass toward her. “I wonder what kind of woman President Li likes nowadays?”

Huo Jing cursed her internally for picking the most sensitive topic, yet her ears perked up, waiting. After all, for so many years, Li Jin had maintained this cold, ascetic image; aside from business trips and work, she spent almost all her time with family. Huo Jing was somewhat curious about what Li Jin would look like if she ever fell for someone.

The air went quiet. Liu Yuhuan acted as if she didn’t notice, continuing, “Is it still the same as back then?”

Huo Jing, the audience of this drama, gasped audibly on the spot. Li Jin paused, a rare trace of impatience flashing in her eyes. Huo Jing scrambled to smooth things over, but Liu Yuhuan was faster.

“What? Is President Li afraid to answer my question?”

Adding fuel to the fire again. Li Jin finally looked up, her voice icy. “I prefer… younger ones. Is Vice President Liu satisfied with that answer?”

Liu Yuhuan froze. Li Jin’s gaze swept over her face, a faint, mocking curve playing on her lips. When she turned to look at Huo Jing, her expression had returned to calm. “I’m heading back.”

Huo Jing forced a laugh: “…Alright.”

Once they were gone, Huo Jing dragged Liu Yuhuan to the side by her collar. “What exactly are you trying to do?” Liu Yuhuan stumbled, but her expression remained serious: “I don’t want to do anything. I want to pursue her again.”

When the Liu family was mired in a tax scandal, Liu Yuhuan was still with Li Jin. On the surface, she played the devoted lover; behind the scenes, she collaborated with internal moles, triggering the nationwide Li Corporation financial fraud scandal just to divert public attention. Later, when she saw the Liu family was beyond saving, she abandoned both sides without hesitation, left behind a mountain of wreckage, and vanished. Liu Yuhuan was the epitome of a person who discarded affection for the sake of her own ends. The fact that she had the gall to say she wanted to pursue Li Jin again after a few years nearly made Huo Jing laugh in anger. “Are you sick in the head?”

Liu Yuhuan’s voice was hoarse, offering no defense: “I am sick.” Huo Jing had nothing more to say to a madwoman. Coldly, she said, “I’ll only say this once: there might be some lingering social graces between us, but don’t you dare use that as an excuse to get close to Li Jin.”

Huo Jing left to see Li Jin off. Liu Yuhuan stood there for a while before finally organizing her sleeves. Qu Wan walked out from the side and handed her a glass of wine. Liu Yuhuan took it: “Thank you, Miss Qu.”

“You’re welcome.” Qu Wan wore a gentle, shallow smile, as natural as if she were facing a friend she’d known for a long time. “Have President Liu and President Li known each other for many years?”

Lu Wu didn’t know when she had fallen asleep. When she opened her eyes, the air was still filled with the chaotic, thumping music, noisy enough to make one’s heart feel restless. Seeing her wake up, Xuegao, who was sitting next to her, asked with concern: “You’re awake? How do you feel?”

Lu Wu felt thirsty, grabbed a bottle of mineral water, twisted it open, and gulped it down. The cold hit her throat, and she let out a long sigh. “What time is it?”

“A little past ten.”

Her head was still throbbing. Lu Wu pressed her temples. “It’s getting late, I’ll head back first.”

Xuegao smiled and tried to hold her back: “Stay and play a while longer.”

Lu Wu shook her head: “I need to go home and sleep. You guys keep playing.”

Seeing her clear intent to leave, Xuegao stood up too. “…It’s raining outside. Wait a second, we can just grab a taxi together.”

Lu Wu’s brain was still muddled, yet she suddenly sensed something unusual. “What about Ji Youyan and Tan Hangxue?”

Before Xuegao could speak, another friend helpfully interjected: “They had some urgent work matters and left already, leaving you in our care.”

Lu Wu repeated: “Work matters?”

Xuegao packed her things, her tone natural: “Yeah, plus it’s been forever since we’ve gossiped. Come to my place tonight—we won’t go to sleep until dawn. Dare you?”

Lu Wu fell silent, scanning the room—her phone was nowhere in sight. “Can I see my phone?”

Several people exchanged glances, looking troubled. Lu Wu looked up, her expression relaxed. “I just wanted to call Tan Hangxue and tell her I put the small cake I bought yesterday in the fridge. If she doesn’t eat it, it’ll go bad.”

“You can just have us pass the message along.” Xuegao sounded relieved.

Lu Wu: “I want to go to the restroom.”

Xuegao’s relief vanished immediately: “No!”

Lu Wu tilted her head, her eyes filled with a hazy, wet light—looking every bit like a drunkard. Xuegao couldn’t bear to be too harsh, softening her stance: “Then… I’ll go with you.”

Ten minutes passed. “Lu Wu, are you done yet?”

“No.”

Twenty minutes passed. “Lu Wu, are you done yet?”

“Wait a minute, I feel a bit like vomiting.”

Thirty minutes passed. “Lu Wu, aren’t you done yet?”

“Just a little longer.”

Someone had ruined the stomach; there was a foul stench in the restroom. Xuegao couldn’t stand it, covering her nose and saying: “I’ll wait for you outside, call me if anything happens.”

“Mhm.”

Hearing the footsteps fade away, Lu Wu opened the door and walked out. She splashed cold water on her face; the drunken haze faded significantly, at least enough to maintain basic rationality. Xuegao was still standing not far away, back turned to her, speaking into her phone in a very low voice.

Lu Wu focused her attention, struggling to distinguish fragmented segments of the conversation.

“…The dead rat sent over has been handled. There are too many paparazzi camping outside now; it’s crowded and messy, and it’s difficult for the police to investigate.”

“…Does the harassment incident incited by the gossip posts have to wait until we identify the courier to draw conclusions?”

Hearing Ji Youyan’s words, Xuegao felt her head spin. Everyone said paparazzi had no bottom line when it came to digging up gossip, but that profession usually felt far removed from the lives of ordinary people. This was the first time she had genuinely encountered such a thing in reality.

“At least Lu Wu isn’t home alone.” Tan Hangxue’s voice squeezed in from the other end: “You didn’t let her check her phone, right?”

Xuegao’s tone was helpless: “No, but I can’t hide it for long once she sobers up.”

Ji Youyan remained calm: “We are already contacting the people who posted to have them deleted.”

“Alright, let’s leave it at that. Notify me if there’s any news.”

Hanging up, Xuegao sighed and turned to walk back. “Lu Wu, are you done?”

“Lu…”

The voice stopped abruptly. That small door was swinging open—there was no sign of Lu Wu inside.

Once the state of mind changes, the music in the venue seemed to take on a more grating quality. It felt like whispers that couldn’t quite be heard, or gazes laden with malice and speculation. Lu Wu ignored them, walking outward on her own.

Suddenly, someone from the crowd sidled up. “Hey, I wanted to ask, are you the famous big writer, Lu Wu? If you are, can you sign an autograph for me?”

Lu Wu didn’t react, and a notebook and pen were already thrust into her hand. Her subconscious movements were mistaken for consent, and others surged forward.

“Lu Wu? The one who wrote Two Sides? I just saw her on Weibo.”

“Who?”

“You don’t know her? She’s that Lu Wu who’s on the trending topics every other day, the one who loves leeching off fame!”

“And it’s not just leeching fame; the latest rumor is that she’s planning to kick her former agency, Feiyan Literature Network, to the curb and go solo.”

“I saw that too. I heard Feiyan scouted her and signed her when she hadn’t even graduated, putting so much effort into using all sorts of platforms to promote her work. Now that she’s famous, she’s turning her back on them.”

“There are insiders saying Lu Wu doesn’t care about the breach penalty at all. Who knows how much money she’s siphoned off…”

Each sentence was spoken with such conviction that the bystanders who didn’t know the truth formed a negative first impression of this young woman who looked so intoxicated.

“There’s really a case like this?”

“That’s just how the world is. The money is all earned by the heartless.”

The onlookers were still some distance away, but the overwhelming waves of condemnation pressed down on her. Lu Wu felt as if the oxygen in her chest was being squeezed out; her face turned ashen, and it was hard to breathe. She offered no defense, burying her head as she pushed forward, trying to break through the crowd.

“Sorry, please move aside.”

“Please move aside.”

Lu Wu couldn’t maintain her smile, yet she kept up basic politeness, apologizing incessantly as she was shoved. Still, many people used the opportunity to crowd in. In the end, her white shoes were stepped on until they were black, and her hair was a tangled mess.

She ran out of the bar in a daze, and only when she had left the place far behind did she feel her entire being drenched and shaken. Summer weather is unpredictable; a moment ago it had been cloudless, with cars and pedestrians streaming by. Now, the wind was whistling, and a drizzling rain had begun to fall by the roadside.

What Xuegao said wasn’t entirely a lie—at least the part about it raining was true. Lu Wu stopped on her feet, fumbling around her body, only to remember that her phone wasn’t with her.

I can take a taxi with cash. But… take a taxi to where?

Lu Wu stood frozen in place, unable to think of a single place she could go. Her rain-drenched clothes clung to her, a stark contrast to her brain, which was bloated and hot. Between the cold and the heat, too much strength had been drained away. Lu Wu squatted down in a daze.

If it were Li Jin, how would she handle this? She definitely wouldn’t be weak enough to squat in the rain. Did she see what was on Weibo? Would she propose to end our partnership? Because of this, would she just…

Without knowing when it happened, the rain seemed to stop.

Replacing it, a faint, cold scent approached—one that was somewhat familiar.

“Didn’t you say you were sleeping?”

“What? Nowhere to go?”

The cool, crisp voice was dampened by the mist, seemingly carrying a hint of tenderness. Yet, it was undeniably Li Jin’s voice.

Li Jin? Here?

Lu Wu was incredulous. She lifted her head, and the dim, yellow light of the streetlamp reflected right into the eyes beneath the umbrella—eyes that were calm. It was like sunlight parting the clouds, revealing a small, blurry sliver of affection hidden in the unknown.

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