After the Cannon Fodder Awakens, They Marry the Heroine! - Chapter 9

“President Li, won’t this blow things up too much?” Wen Runan asked with worry after leaving the restaurant. “News of leaders being at odds will probably affect the company’s image, right?”

“Enn?” Li Mo raised an eyebrow. “What did you call me?”

“Cough, Li Mo,” Wen Runan immediately said, a slight blush on her face, but fireworks were going off in her heart.

Li Mo smiled and shook her head. “No, we were never on good terms to begin with; this isn’t a recent development. At most, it will just make those people choose sides faster.”

Farsighted individuals should know how to choose. The only two types of people who still firmly supported Li Beichen were those who were too deeply tied to him to break free, and those whose thinking was feudal, believing that the successor must be male.

In Li Mo’s view, neither of these groups was a threat. She was confident she could suppress Li Beichen and these people entirely.

“Li Mo, do you have time this weekend?” Wen Runan nervously pinched her fingers, acting a little awkward and shy, like a girl proposing a date for the first time.

“I saw the weather forecast say it’s going to get cold next week, and I want to go to the mall to buy clothes for the change of season,” Wen Runan looked up slightly, her eyes hiding anticipation. “If you have time, can we go together?”

“Of course,” Li Mo reached out, caught a strand of hair that had playfully escaped, and gently tucked it behind Wen Runan’s ear. “Saturday morning at ten, is that alright?”

“Yes, yes, that works!” Wen Runan pursed her lips. She felt her heart rate increasing slightly.

The distance between them was very close now—so close that Wen Runan could clearly see her own reflection in Li Mo’s eyes. The distinct, elegant fragrance that belonged only to Li Mo also drifted toward her.

Right now, Li Mo’s eyes must only hold me, right?

She had never felt this sense of being treasured when she was around Li Beichen.

After seeing Wen Runan’s happy departing figure, Li Mo’s mouth unconsciously curved upward. The arc was so small that even she didn’t notice it.

The news of Li Mo and Li Beichen’s clash in the company restaurant and their public falling out spread with extreme speed.

Jiaheng’s internal forum began using code names for secret discussions, while unmanaged employee group chats within departments became places for employees to speak freely.

Wen Runan also joined a few of these small groups. When she picked up her phone after work, the messages in them had reached 99+, and quite a few people had tagged her, asking for her opinion.

Wen Runan wasn’t so free as to reply to them. She just briefly scrolled through the important messages and, satisfied that everyone in the Administrative Department favored Li Mo, she put her phone away.

On Saturday, without an alarm’s reminder, Li Mo opened her eyes precisely at eight o’clock.

Pulling back the curtains, the gentle sunlight quickly streamed through the floor-to-ceiling window, spilling onto Li Mo and stretching her shadow across the white bed sheet.

It’s a nice day.

Li Mo walked closer, looking down at the noisy city district in the distance. Even though today was a holiday, the city center still had a morning rush hour, with people rushing through the streets, working hard for their lives.

Breakfast was a simple sandwich. After eating, and seeing that it was still early, Li Mo went into the study and didn’t put down her documents until nearly nine-thirty, when she went to the garage to drive and pick Wen Runan up.

“Li Mo, good morning!” Wen Runan, carrying a small cross-body bag, waved her hands happily when she saw Li Mo’s car approaching.

“Good morning,” Li Mo very gentlemanly got out of her seat, walked halfway around, and opened the passenger door. “You look very beautiful today.”

Wen Runan’s smile couldn’t be contained. “Really? Then do you like it?”

“I like it. I like it very much,” Li Mo repeated with a smile, closing the car door again once Wen Runan was seated securely.

The destination was chosen by Wen Runan—a mall not far from her residence, which catered to office workers and whose prices were not outrageously high, allowing ordinary people to buy desirable clothing if they were willing to spend a bit extra.

“Is this one pretty, or is this one pretty?” Wen Runan was seriously selecting clothes and simultaneously asking Li Mo’s opinion.

Li Mo observed them and gave her a serious answer. “Both of them suit you well. Although the feeling when they’re worn is slightly different, both are very beautiful.”

“Really?” Wen Runan, praised, was very happy and asked with a pleasant dilemma, “I like both of them, but they’re a bit similar in style, so I want to choose just one.”

“Since you like them, buy both,” Li Mo said easily, handing her bank card directly to the store assistant. “Checkout. I’ll take both of these.”

“Certainly, ma’am, please wait a moment,” the store assistant immediately snapped out of her admiration for the customer’s beauty and skillfully took the bank card.

“Wait a minute!” Wen Runan spoke up to stop them. Seeing that the assistant had already printed the receipt, she looked a little helpless, taking out her phone to transfer the money. “I’ll transfer the money to you. I have money; I can buy it myself.”

“I’m pursuing you. Is it not normal for me to pay when you buy clothes?” Li Mo immediately reversed the transfer, speaking with great sincerity.

“I have seriously reflected during this time, and my actions at the beginning were a bit extreme. As compensation, I’ll pay for all your purchases today.”

Li Mo gazed at Wen Runan, the warmth in her eyes undeniable. “Are you willing to forgive my previous impolite behavior?”

If she refused now, wouldn’t that mean she wasn’t forgiving her?

“This… Actually, I don’t mind anymore. You don’t need to do this deliberately,” Wen Runan was a little overwhelmed. The great beauty’s gaze was too gentle and too devoted, as if it wanted her to drown in it and never crawl out.

Li Mo smiled and shook her head. “I do need to. If I make a mistake, I must apologize, and an apology naturally needs compensation. Otherwise, a verbal apology is too superficial.”

While the two of them were talking, the store assistant had already completed the purchase procedures and politely handed over the bank card and the packaged clothes.

“I’ll carry them myself,” Wen Runan’s reaction was quick this time. She was already embarrassed about letting Li Mo pay; how could she let her carry the clothes too!

Just as Wen Runan’s hands were full with four shopping bags, 066’s voice appeared in her consciousness.

“Detection complete: supporting female character is approaching. Key plot point triggered. Host, please complete the plot,” 066’s voice carried no extra emotion.

066’s voice had just faded when Liu Lu appeared around a corner, holding the arm of a well-dressed woman. She was talking to the woman with a face full of smiles.

Liu Lu turned her head and, seeing Wen Runan, a clear look of disgust appeared in her eyes. “Why are you here?”

“Lulu, who is this?” The woman frowned slightly, looking at Wen Runan with the assessing gaze of one inspecting merchandise, scanning her from head to toe quite rudely.

“Auntie, this is the person I mentioned to you before, the one who keeps pestering Brother Beichen,” Liu Lu looked at her with clear disdain. “She doesn’t even look at her own status and still dreams of Brother Beichen.”

“Lulu, don’t you worry. We only acknowledge you as our daughter-in-law,” the woman reassured her, and her gaze toward Wen Runan also turned hostile. “You must be an employee of Jiaheng, right? If you want to keep your job, be sensible and stop scheming for Beichen!”

Wen Runan felt speechless. Did these two even understand the situation? They just kept talking to themselves!

“You two must be mistaken. I’m not scheming for… President Li. We are just ordinary colleagues now,” Wen Runan patiently explained.

She didn’t even need to bother creating a conflict. Just her standing here, being seen by Liu Lu, was the biggest conflict of all.

“You better be telling the truth,” Liu Lu sneered. Seeing the bags in Wen Runan’s hands, her hostility flared up again. “I remember you’re just an intern, aren’t you? How do you have money to buy so many clothes? Did Brother Beichen give you the money?”

“I gave it to her. Do you have an objection?” Li Mo emerged from behind Wen Runan, her brows lowered, wearing a look of displeasure. She had only gone to the restroom; how had Wen Runan managed to get bullied already?

Seeing Li Mo, Liu Lu’s arrogant demeanor instantly deflated. Even the woman beside her, Li Mo’s stepmother, Luo Yalan, lost her previous haughtiness and disdain. “Oh, Sister Li Mo…”

“It’s Momo! What a coincidence, you’re here too,” Luo Yalan said awkwardly. If one looked closely, one could even see a hint of flattery hidden in her eyes.

Li Mo looked at her with a detached expression, nodding slightly as a reply.

“Have you chosen a restaurant you like?” Li Mo turned her head to ask Wen Runan, her expression and tone clearly softening.

“En, we’ll go to the sixth floor. The grilled meat restaurant there has very high ratings,” Wen Runan said with a smile, completely ignoring the people blocking her path.

“Okay, let’s go,” Li Mo very naturally took one of the shopping bags and then held Wen Runan’s hand.

“Please move aside,” Li Mo’s flat gaze fell on Liu Lu, without a trace of personal emotion.

Liu Lu awkwardly shuffled two steps inward. She then saw Wen Runan looking at her with a slight, mocking smile, opening her mouth and silently mouthing two words.

“Wen Runan!” Liu Lu immediately read the meaning of the lip movement, and her fury flared up. “You dare to call me trash?”

“Huh?” Wen Runan, who had been named, looked genuinely bewildered. “I didn’t say anything just now?”

Liu Lu was extremely angry. She felt that she had been tricked by Wen Runan, and she extended her finger to point at Wen Runan’s nose. “How could you not say anything! Don’t think that just because you didn’t make a sound, I can’t tell what you were saying!”

“Put your hand down,” Li Mo pulled Wen Runan behind her, her brows lowered, clearly displeased. “Pointing at people is very rude.”

Liu Lu looked up, meeting Li Mo’s gaze. After locking eyes with the emotionless, ink-black pupils for three seconds, she sheepishly withdrew her hand. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to. I was just…”

Li Mo: “I don’t need your apology. I didn’t hear her say anything. If you are experiencing auditory hallucinations, I suggest you go to the hospital.”

“If you’re ill, it’s better to seek treatment early.”