Chased by My Heartless Ex - Chapter 24

Li Rui, having been put in her place, didn’t dare vent her frustration at Team Leader Qian. Instead, she forced a smile and admitted she hadn’t thought things through.

Team Leader Qian waved a hand dismissively, indicating it was no big deal, and told the two to return to their workstations to await the afternoon work assignments. As Li Rui and Xu You turned away, Li Rui shot Xu You a vicious glare in Team Leader Qian’s blind spot, her expression full of menace.

Xu You didn’t respond. Instead, she raised her coffee cup, arched an eyebrow, and took a deliberate sip while facing Li Rui’s gloomy expression. By the time she set the cup down, Li Rui had already hidden behind her monitor. Xu leisurely returned to her own workstation, booted up her computer, and began studying.

At 3 p.m., a celebratory announcement from Zheng Ran of the CEO’s office flooded the company’s main group chat. Xu You’s screen was instantly bombarded with so many congratulatory messages that she couldn’t scroll to the bottom.

Otherworld: Mountains and Seas had surpassed one million downloads within just one hour of its launch. The data across all metrics was astonishingly impressive. In less than 24 hours, the game had already secured a spot in the top ten of the annual PC game revenue rankings. This was a major victory for YUYOO and a new legend in gaming history.

As a result, their department’s welcome party was replaced by the company’s victory celebration.

When the department head posted a notice in the department group chat canceling the gathering, the WeChat icon on Xu You’s computer instantly lit up with a notification.

Opening it, she found a well-meaning reminder, or perhaps a complaint, from Team Leader Qian.

[Qian Doudou: Our department head is pretty frugal. The victory banquet will be organized by department sections. He’ll definitely say it’s doubling as a welcome party. Be smart about it. Li Rui has already started cozying up to the others. Tonight, make sure to stand out a bit, toast the boss, say something flattering.]

Xu You stared at those few lines, momentarily lost in thought.

The unwritten rules of the workplace were more numerous than she’d imagined. A single meal or treating others could shape people’s perceptions of her. Team Leader Qian was advising her to cater to the superiors and curry favor, but she vividly remembered her grandfather’s words from long ago: “No matter what you do, follow your heart. Don’t fawn over the powerful or engage in empty flattery. Your job is to grow up; I’ll protect you.”

These two conflicting philosophies wrestled in her mind, neither gaining the upper hand.

[Qian Doudou: Take this seriously. They’re all old foxes. Getting rid of you would be as easy as lifting a finger.]

As the computer screen flickered with Team Leader Qian’s latest message, Xu You thought back to her interview the previous Friday, sighed in resignation to reality, and replied with a sticker of a little rabbit nodding.

With little work to do, the rest of the day passed easily. At exactly 5 p.m., the office began to buzz with excitement.

The victory banquet organizers, considering that many employees didn’t have their own cars, had arranged three shuttle buses. Parked in front of the YUYOO building, unobstructed by trees, the three black buses looked imposing through the large glass windows. Once one person noticed, soon everyone did, the commotion could be heard even through the floors. On the top floor, Zhou Siyu made the call: early dismissal to avoid the evening rush hour.

Considering her own driving skills, Xu You decided to leave her Mini Cooper behind and sat in the same row as Team Leader Qian. Across the aisle, Li Rui sat with an unfamiliar colleague, and Xu You could faintly hear Li Rui fawningly addressing her as “Sister Ouyang,” over and over, sickly sweet and irritating.

The half-drawn fabric curtain blocked some of the warm light, leaving the rest to fall on Xu You’s profile, casting a clear division of light and shadow across her face. Team Leader Qian, catching a glimpse, began studying her features carefully.

Smooth facial contours, a full forehead, clear eyes…

“Lots of people must be chasing after you at school, so why did you settle down so early?” Team Leader Qian blurted out what was on her mind.

Xu You tilted her head to look out the window. The banquet hall was located in the suburbs, about ten kilometers from the company. On the way, they passed a long bridge that served both road and rail traffic. A gentle breeze stirred ripples on the water, scattering fragmented golden light across the surface.

Before she could retract her gaze upon hearing Team Leader Qian’s words, a black Porsche sped past in the parallel lane heading the same direction. In that fleeting moment, she quickly locked onto a few digits from the license plate, 9591, Zhou Siyu’s birthday.

A small pebble seemed to drop into the calm of her eyes, sending ripples outward from the center. Team Leader Qian noticed the girl beside her visibly perking up with energy. She nudged Xu You with her elbow, the fabric rustling softly. Xu You turned to look at her, a small, shallow dimple appearing at the corner of her upturned lips.

“What did you say? I didn’t catch that,” Xu You said, feigning innocence.

Team Leader Qian scratched her itchy nose. “I asked what you’re smiling about.”

“Just happy to get off work early.”

And even happier that she would get to see Zhou Siyu soon.

Team Leader Qian thought to herself that she was still a child, easily satisfied. “Actually, I wanted to ask you, what’s your girlfriend like? You’re so beautiful and outstanding, so she can’t be lacking in any way, right?”

“Her?” Xu You thought of that car, Zhou Siyu’s face, and the days they had spent tangled up together, then licked her lips. “She’s great, much more outstanding than me. Independent, beautiful, sharp, she’s the most impressive person I know among our peers.”

Team Leader Qian watched her light up while talking about her partner and shook her head inwardly. When you’re head over heels in love, you can’t see any of their flaws, and that’s not a good thing.

Xu You was so engrossed in her praise that she didn’t hear the gossip circulating about her next door. Rumors that she had a sugar daddy and questionable morals had almost spread throughout the entire department. People would restrain their glances, but when they looked at her, their eyes often held a mix of prying and disdain. They didn’t want to associate with her, yet they longed to dissect her and uncover every detail about her.

“Sounds good,” Xu You finished. Team Leader Qian looked at the innocent young girl, opening her mouth but unable to say anything discouraging.

The traffic was smooth, and in less than forty minutes, all the attending employees had taken their seats according to the signs, waiting for the banquet to begin.

Zhou Siyu sat at a table with the company executives. Those around her urged her to say a few words. Hundreds of eyes in the room converged on her. Her brown hair cascaded over her shoulders, and her coat was draped over the back of her chair. The pure black high-neck top she wore underneath outlined her delicate curves clearly. Leaning back in the cushioned chair, she spun a lighter in her hand a few times before taking the microphone passed to her under the collective gaze of the room.

“Keep up the good work.”

Her cool, emotionless voice echoed through the hall. Li Rui, seeing Zhou Siyu for the first time, let out a soft gasp after she spoke.

Zhou Siyu’s gaze swept across the room and settled on one spot.

“Eat and drink well.”

After just those two sentences, she set down the microphone. Applause broke out. Xu You met Zhou Siyu’s gaze, thinking she could openly look and cheer while blending into the crowd, but Zhou Siyu lowered her head.

The phone on the table lit up, displaying a message on the screen.

[Zhou Zhou Jiejie: No drinking allowed.]

The sensor scanned her face and unlocked automatically. Xu You, smiling, was about to reply when, amid the applause, an unpleasant, mocking voice suddenly mixed in.

“How shameless.”

“Are you even worthy of thinking about President Zhou? You should know your place, filthy and still dreaming of climbing high. How pathetic.”

Xu You turned to see who had spoken.

The woman was smiling seductively at Zhou Siyu, yet the words that came out of her mouth were venomous.