After Breaking Up with the Stoic CEO - Chapter 7
Chapter 7: Hello, I am Li Jin
Li Jin arrived home in the evening, just before dinner.
The first to greet her at the door was Li Xinrui.
“Why are you just getting back?”
“I’ve been waiting here for a long time.”
The little girl’s mouth was like a machine gun, rattling on and on.
Li Jin looked down at her, taking stock of how she had changed over the past few months. Li Xinrui was thirteen this year, just the age for junior high in China, but abroad, she was already considered an independent, mature older child. It was obvious she had been learning to apply makeup recently; her technique with foundation and mascara was quite amateurish. Her eyebrows had accidentally been drawn on like Crayon Shin-chan, making her originally adorable face look like it had been swiped by a cat.
But even so, it couldn’t hide the girl’s beautiful features. She wore a trendy camisole sundress, her hair reached just to her collarbones, and a single strand of eye-catching yet subtle blue highlight peeked from behind her ear. She carried a vibrant, overflowing vitality, along with the specific desire for self-expression and the slight rebellion characteristic of adolescence.
Li Jin smiled involuntarily and brought out the book from behind her back, handing it over.
“Your gift.”
An unabashed look of surprise flooded Li Xinrui’s face: “Li Jin, I love you the most!”
While the girl said she loved her, her eyes never left the book; she turned it back and forth under the sunlight, staring at the signature on the title page several times.
Li Jin tapped the space between her brows: “I doubt that. Your whole heart is wrapped up in your ‘Lu Lu’.”
Li Xinrui pulled her hand, acting spoiled: “Lu Lu is a wonderful person. You’ll definitely fall in love with her too~”
The previous remark was just casual teasing. But at this moment, the girl’s words caused images to flash uncontrollably through Li Jin’s mind.
“You’re so beautiful… have we met somewhere before?”
“Can I?”
The pick-up line during their first meeting, the drunken nonsense, the unexpected “kiss,” and—the mess on the car body.
…A wonderful person?
She couldn’t help but curl the corners of her mouth, as if she had heard something very amusing.
A set of footsteps approached, and Li Chunhua walked out from inside, her expression stern: “What book? Let me see it too.”
Li Xinrui was like a mouse seeing a cat. She immediately hid the book behind her back, guiltily winking at Li Jin: “Nothing, just a reference book. Xiao Jin bought it for me specifically because she was worried I wouldn’t be able to keep up with the school’s progress.”
Li Jin chuckled. She had briefly checked the content of the book; the general value orientation was fine, and there was nothing wrong with the girl reading it. However, it was foreseeable that this was definitely not a subject matter Li Chunhua would find acceptable.
Facing Li Chunhua’s confirming gaze, she nodded: “Mhm.”
Having received a positive answer, Li Chunhua relaxed and didn’t press further. She turned to educate the girl with earnest gravity: “Rui Rui, what kind of behavior is it to call your aunt by her name directly?”
As the only junior in the family, no one ever spoke harshly to Li Xinrui. The only one who would strictly catch her by her “little tail” was Li Chunhua.
Li Xinrui looked down and kicked a pebble at her feet, whispering a defense for herself: “Mommy calls her that too.”
Li Chunhua glared at her: “Is that the same?”
Li Xinrui stuck out her tongue, then peeked at Li Jin again, showing two curved dimples as she smiled: “Xiao Jin, can I stay at your place this weekend?”
Li Jin never refused her requests: “You can.”
Li Chunhua’s brow furrowed, her tone growing a bit more severe: “Li Xinrui! Do you remember what I told you?”
Seeing things taking a turn for the worse, Li Xinrui changed her tune: “I’m a bit hungry, I’ll head in first to see if there’s anything to eat~ Grandma, Auntie, take your time talking.”
The girl slipped away quickly. Li Chunhua turned back to glare at Li Jin: “You’re just like your sister, agreeing to everything she asks. You’re spoiling the child.”
Li Jin kept her head down, listening dutifully. Although Li Chunhua’s words were a bit heavy, there wasn’t much genuine blame in them. They all knew that Li Xinrui did not have a “perfect” family in the conventional sense. Therefore, everyone in the family was doing their best to make up for that missing piece of love—including Li Jin, and including Li Chunhua herself.
Seeing that Li Jin didn’t argue and just took the lecture, Li Chunhua couldn’t go on. She gave her a helpless look and after a long while said, “You, oh you.”
Li Jin took this opportunity to hand the keys to the driver who had been waiting for a long time, supporting her mother as they walked forward: “Don’t be angry. I see Rui Rui as a daughter; it’s only natural for me to be good to her.”
Li Chunhua naturally wasn’t truly angry, but spoke from the standpoint of an elder offering advice. “You will meet the right person in the future, you’ll form a family, and have your own daughter. I know you’re good to Rui Rui, but at your age, you should have your own life too.”
The ends of Li Jin’s brows lowered slightly, her smile faint: “If I don’t meet the right person, wouldn’t it be fine to live like this for the rest of my life?”
Li Chunhua couldn’t stand such talk; her mind already conjured a scene of Li Jin being left all alone and miserable a hundred years from now. She patted her chest to soothe herself: “Quickly, pei pei pei! What kind of unlucky talk is that?”
Li Jin didn’t do it, she just laughed.
Li Chunhua was a bit worried and wanted to say more. Li Jin didn’t give her the chance, pulling an exquisite gift bag from the trunk and handing it over. “I went to Country F on a business trip last week and brought two bottles of red wine for you and Father.”
Upon taking the wine, Li Chunhua predictably forgot the previous matter, her mouth curling into a smile: “You child, didn’t I tell you that you don’t need to keep bringing us gifts?”
Li Jin said nonchalantly: “It’s just a small gesture, it doesn’t count as a gift.”
Although the value of the two bottles was nearly five hundred thousand, they truly didn’t count as much of a gift. After all, the Li family had their own winery; they lacked no wine, whether it was fruity and sweet or aged and priceless. But for any mother, the fact that her daughter remembers her wherever she goes is always a source of happiness.
Li Chunhua habitually asked about Li Jin’s work: “Was the business trip successful? No hiccups at the branch office?”
Li Jin shook her head: “Everything is fine, don’t worry.”
Looking at the sensible and obedient Li Jin before her, Li Chunhua suddenly remembered her troublesome eldest daughter: “You’re the sensible one, unlike your sister…” The topic stopped abruptly, and she sighed: “Come in and eat.”
Guessing that Li Yan had likely not come home again, Li Jin asked nothing: “Okay.”
It had been a week since they drank at La Point.
During this time, Lu Wu had huddled at home, staying in for a record amount of time without meeting friends; she hadn’t even replied much to messages in the group chat. Her mood wasn’t great, but even she couldn’t figure out exactly what was wrong. In short, Lu Wu hadn’t called the number on the card again, and Li Jin hadn’t contacted her either.
Today, she stayed home as usual, reading a book to pass the time.
Ring ring ring—
A ringtone sounded. Lu Wu glanced at the phone screen, which displayed “Qin Xu.” The small ripple in her heart returned to stillness. She answered lazily: “What is it?”
The other side didn’t state their purpose, but asked instead: “What are you doing right now?”
Lu Wu replied casually: “Nothing much.”
On the other end, Qin Xu hesitated, finally asking cautiously: “You aren’t secretly shedding tears all by yourself, are you?”
Lu Wu moved the phone a bit further away. The caller was indeed Qin Xu. She confirmed: “Are you talking about me?”
Qin Xu said earnestly: “I know your mood must be very bad given how things have developed. We are friends; you don’t have to force yourself. You can tell me anything.”
Lu Wu found it bizarre: “What things?”
A brief silence followed.
“…It’s nothing. Do you want to come out for a drink tonight?”
Qin Xu’s transition was so blunt it lacked any lead-in, but no matter how much Lu Wu pressed her later, the other woman refused to explain the reason behind those words.
Lu Wu eventually accepted Qin Xu’s invitation. Since she was about to grow mushrooms staying at home anyway, she decided to go meet her tonight and see what she was up to.
The appointment was for six o’clock. At 5:40, Lu Wu had already finished getting ready and headed out. While waiting for Qin Xu at the entrance of the residential complex, another unfamiliar number called.
Lu Wu didn’t think much of it. After answering, she said casually: “Hello?”
The moment the call connected, a sharp female voice came from the other side.
“You’re the one named Lu, right? Who the hell gave you permission to ride He Qing’s coattails? Don’t you know how little you matter? If you really can’t figure it out, go piss and look at your reflection in it!”
Lu Wu’s expression froze for a second before she realized this was a harassment call. She instinctively wanted to hang up, but her movements were a step too slow. Before she could, even more vicious words poured out of the receiver.
“I heard your parents are divorced? A thing who grew up without a mother’s love or a father’s care—no wonder you grew up with such a distorted and hypocritical personality. If you put these crooked thoughts into your writing, you wouldn’t go a whole year without finishing a single book…”
Beep—
Lu Wu hung up the phone.
Her gaze passed through the flow of people and vehicles. The faces of strangers and the silhouettes of cars became blurred and white; all the noisy sounds were isolated. Only that phrase remained in her ears: “A thing who grew up without a mother’s love or a father’s care.”
She was still standing there, but she seemed to have suddenly entered another world. An unknown amount of time passed…
Ring ring ring.
Another phone call. An unfamiliar number.
Had someone dug up her private information and posted it online? Lu Wu’s heart tightened, but her fingers still mechanically pressed the answer button. She was prepared to be met with malicious words, but unexpectedly—
A gentle, mature voice came through the receiver.
“Hello, I am Li Jin.”
“Is this Lu Wu?”
It was as if an invisible hand had pushed her back out from that other world. The faces before her became clear instantly; the light trails of the cars returned to their striking red.
Lu Wu opened her mouth, feeling oxygen flowing through her limbs once again.
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