Fighting For My Wife With Myself After Being Reborn - Chapter 6

“Ah—I feel like my waist is about to snap.” Gu Yinghuai let out a long stretch at her workstation. “I really want my vacation to start soon—”

Sitting next to her, Jian Yulan was also stretching, turning her sore and aching neck. Pressing down on a strained muscle in her shoulder, she grumbled, “This damned project; little pay but so much trouble. Once we’re finished, I’m definitely telling the boss never to take a project from this company again. It’s too exhausting.”

“Look on the bright side—at least we have a week of paid leave,” Gu Yinghuai said, unscrewing the lid of her thermos and pouring a cup of warm water to soothe her parched throat.

“Tch, we only got that because we worked ourselves to the bone night and day! A mere week of paid leave is exactly what we deserve. Yinghuai, we can’t let ourselves be bought off by the capitalist’s small favors!” Recalling the recent “007” schedule (working 24/7), Jian Yulan shuddered violently. “It was terrifying. My hair has been falling out in clumps lately. Any more of this and I’ll be prematurely bald.”

Hearing this, Gu Yinghuai grabbed a handful of her own hair, fearing she might be balding too. Fortunately, the hair felt thick and heavy in her hand, which put her mind at ease.

“Yinghuai, when do you plan to take your leave?” Jian Yulan opened a pack of biscuits and shared a few with Gu Yinghuai. She nibbled on a biscuit while occasionally tapping away at her computer. “Mmm, these biscuits are pretty good. I should buy some more next time.”

Gu Yinghuai opened the packaging. The crisp biscuits smelled fragrant and tasted quite good as she chewed. “I’m off next week.”

Jian Yulan wiped the crumbs from the corner of her mouth. “Going on a date?”

Gu Yinghuai nodded.

“That’s so nice. I plan to take two days off after we finish and worry about the rest later. Honestly, I’m so jealous of you—your partner can take leave at the same time as you. I try to ask my friends to go out, but we can never coordinate our schedules.” Thinking of her friends who were all stuck in 996 work schedules, Jian Yulan couldn’t help but sigh.

“You’ll manage to get together eventually, don’t worry.”

“I hope so.”

The two chatted idly, moving from vacation plans to the age-old question: what to eat for lunch?

Deciding what to eat for lunch had once again become a major dilemma for these “office slaves.”

Jian Yulan was a veteran employee, and she had ordered from almost every takeout place near the company. She knew exactly which ones gave large portions and tasted good, and which ones were overpriced and terrible.

Because of this, ordering takeout was a painful experience for her.

Everywhere she looked, there were “old acquaintances”! How was this any different from lifting the bridal veil on your wedding night only to find the bride is a friend you’ve known for over ten years? You just can’t muster any interest. Or so Jian Yulan claimed.

“Ahhh, every time I order takeout, I’m so jealous of you. Someone brings you lunch personally every day, and it’s so delicious.” Jian Yulan had shamelessly mooched a few times; the food was excellent, and the dishes changed daily with almost no repeats. You could never get tired of it.

Jian Yulan stopped munching on her biscuit and slumped onto the desk with a sigh. “I really want a partner who orders takeout for me every day too… unfortunately, I only have the cold, heartless delivery rider, who always extends the delivery time anyway, boohoo.”

“I—” Gu Yinghuai wanted to comfort her, but someone was faster.

Chen Miao, passing by on her way to the pantry to brew coffee, overheard Jian Yulan and teased her, “Lan, not everyone’s partner is as good as Yinghuai’s. Most of them are just stingy scumbags.”

Jian Yulan looked disgusted. “Don’t jinx me! I don’t want to get involved with men anyway.”

“Great, I thought you were beyond saving.” Chen Miao patted Jian Yulan’s head. “I’m going to brew coffee, talk later.”

“Wait, what does she mean by that?” Jian Yulan, who had been lying face down, sat up and rubbed the spot where she’d been patted. She turned to look at Gu Yinghuai, feeling completely baffled.

“Probably—”

Ring ring—

The internal phone on the desk interrupted Gu Yinghuai. She told Jian Yulan to wait a moment and picked up. “Hello, it’s me. Mmm, okay, I’ll be right there.”

Jian Yulan: “Takeout?”

Gu Yinghuai nodded: “Mmm, I’ll go grab it.”

Jian Yulan: “Okay.”

Gu Yinghuai pushed back her chair and walked out.

Xiao Li was hiding behind the front desk computer screen, observing the motionless Shen Huai-xu.

She found this person extremely suspicious. First of all, the weather wasn’t exactly cool; even standing outside in short sleeves felt stifling, yet Shen Huaixu was fully “armored.” No matter how you looked at it, it was strange.

Another thing was that previously, the people delivering food were usually restaurant staff. Xiao Li had even become familiar with a few of them and would occasionally chat.

Only today was different.

The person was tall and thin, and though she was dressed entirely in black with her face almost completely obscured by a baseball cap and a mask, you could tell just from her silhouette and the fair skin exposed that she was good-looking and had excellent posture.

Xiao Li secretly opened her camera, snapped a photo of her profile, and sent it to her group chat. As expected, it triggered a wave of screams from her work buddies.

Slacker No. 1: [I want all the info on this person within one minute.]

Slacker No. 2: [This is my long-lost girlfriend. Quick, give her my WeChat.]

Slacker No. 3: [If you give her your WeChat, what will you use?]

Slacker No. 1: [Forget that for now, just tell me if her fingers are long. If not, I can make them longer.]

Slacker No. 3: [?]

Slacker No. 2: [?]

Xiao Li almost burst out laughing at the chat. She replied with a “long” and put down her phone. Looking up, she realized the girl at the front desk was looking at her phone thoughtfully, seemingly aware that she had just been photographed.

Oh crap, this is so awkward.

Good thing I’m thick-skinned. Xiao Li gave Shen Huaixu an awkward but polite smile and managed to ask her if she wanted to sit down without changing her expression.

Shen Huaixu shook her head and continued to lean against the front desk like a quiet mascot.

Yinghuai, come quickly, I need you—

Perhaps Gu Yinghuai really did hear her call. Just as Xiao Li finished her prayer, Gu Yinghuai made her grand entrance.

“Xiao Li, thank—” Gu Yinghuai began to thank her with her usual smile, but halfway through, she saw the person leaning against the counter. Her eyes widened. Without time to explain, she hurriedly told Xiao Li, “I’ll write the visitor log after my lunch break,” and pulled Shen Huaixu away quickly.

Xiao Li watched their tightly clasped hands and silently opened the slacker group.

Slacker No. 1: [Bad news: The flower already has a gardener.]

The group was instantly filled with wails of despair.

Shen Huaixu carried the lunch boxes behind Gu Yinghuai. She heard someone ask her Gu Yinghuai if she was a friend, and Gu Yinghuai simply hummed an “Mmm” in response without explaining. Instead, she led Shen Huaixu straight into an empty meeting room and hung a “Meeting in Progress, Do Not Disturb” sign on the door.

Shen Huaixu set down the lunch boxes, took off her mask, and gave Gu Yinghuai a hug and a kiss. “Surprise~”

“More like a shock,” Gu Yinghuai laughed, giving her a playful swat. “Why are you here?”

“I missed you. Don’t you miss me?” Shen Huaixu teased.

“I do, of course I do.” Gu Yinghuai stood on her tiptoes and lightly pecked Shen Huaixu’s lips. “Although this might be a bit of a buzzkill, does Jiang Rui know you came to see me?”

Shen Huaixu said nothing.

Gu Yinghuai raised an eyebrow. “You skipped work?”

Shen Huaixu remained silent.

“Well, I hope Jiang Rui doesn’t come charging in. I probably couldn’t stop an enraged Jiang Rui.” Gu Yinghuai pinched Shen Huaixu’s cheek.

“It was just an unimportant interview; it doesn’t matter if I go or not.” Shen Huaixu pouted. “Right now, you should just enjoy your girlfriend’s warm and reliable embrace.”

Gu Yinghuai laughed and tapped her shoulder, then leaned into Shen Huaixu’s arms.

She really did miss this.

Because of work lately, she had been leaving early and returning late. The time she could spend with Shen Huaixu was minimal. Gu Yinghuai could barely remember the last time they were intimate.

Gu Yinghuai had even fantasized about Shen Huaixu forcing her to go to sleep after her late-night shifts, the two of them huddled under the covers, feeling each other’s presence.

Unfortunately, Shen Huaixu cherished Gu Yinghuai too much. Every time Gu Yinghuai returned home exhausted, Shen Huaixu would only look at her with innocent, puppy-like eyes and leave a kiss as light as a feather on her forehead—a kiss so faint the tired Gu Yinghuai almost didn’t notice it.

I really want to be intimate. Both of them, lacking “girlfriend energy,” thought the same thing simultaneously.

After hugging for several more minutes, Shen Huaixu reluctantly ended the embrace.

“Let’s eat. After eating, you should nap; you still have to work this afternoon.” With that, Shen Huaixu opened the lids of the lunch boxes and spread some tissues on the meeting table. Gu Yinghuai followed by placing the containers of food onto the tissues.

“What about you?” Gu Yinghuai took out the chopsticks and handed them to Shen Huai-xu. “Are you going home or…?”

Shen Huaixu took the chopsticks and said, “I’ll go back to the company after eating. I have another schedule to catch later.”

“You’re working so hard and still ran over to see me.” Gu Yinghuai smiled sweetly. She picked up a cola chicken wing and put it in Shen Huaixu’s bowl. “Eat more, you’ve lost weight lately.”

Shen Huaixu affectionately scraped Gu Yinghuai’s nose. “Don’t think I didn’t see you secretively smiling.”

Gu Yinghuai’s eyes curved into crescents, smiling sillily.

“Eat.” Shen Huaixu rapped her knuckles on the table, reminding Gu Yinghuai not to just sit there being happy without moving her chopsticks.

Gu Yinghuai stuck out her tongue and picked up a piece of sour and spicy cabbage.

Today’s lunch featured sour-spicy and sweet-sour flavors, which were very appetizing—perfect for the tail end of a hot summer.

While Gu Yinghuai was busy battling a chicken wing, Shen Huaixu tried to sneakily push the broccoli to the side. Gu Yinghuai caught the movement and blocked the “crime-committing” chopsticks with her own.

“No being a picky eater,” she said.

“I hate broccoli.” Shen Huaixu frowned, contemplating how to inconspicuously eliminate the sinful broccoli in her bowl. Suddenly, her eyes darted around, and she turned to look at Gu Yinghuai pitifully. “Huai, help me out~ I really don’t like this.”

Heavens, who could refuse a sulking puppy?

Especially a puppy that only acted cute for you and was cold to everyone else.

Certainly not Gu Yinghuai. She couldn’t say “no” to Shen Huaixu’s puppy eyes. She could only sigh and say, “Just this once.”

But Gu Yinghuai knew that the next time Shen Huaixu acted cute, she still wouldn’t be able to refuse.

“Axu, there’s something I should tell you in advance.” Gu Yinghuai finished her last bite and wiped a stray drop of oil from her lip. “This Friday night, our team is having a dinner to celebrate finishing the project. I might be home a bit late.”

Shen Huaixu gave a small “hmpf.” “Well, one more day won’t make a difference.”

Gu Yinghuai tugged at her sleeve coaxingly. “I’m sorry, it won’t be like this after that.”

“Have they decided on the location and time? I’ll pick you up and drop you off.” Shen Huaixu wasn’t actually angry. She started packing the finished containers back into the bag while wiping away any sauce that had leaked onto the tissues. “Once you’re done with being busy, shall we decide where to go for a trip?”

“Sure! Thank you, my dear Axu.” Gu Yinghuai quickly kissed Shen Huaixu’s chin. Ignoring the fact that Shen Huaixu’s hands might be greasy, she interlaced her fingers with hers. “As long as I’m with you, I’ll go anywhere.”

“Oh? Then how about staying home for seven days?” Shen Huaixu teased her on purpose.

Gu Yinghuai let out a long “Eh?!” “No way, I definitely wouldn’t be able to get out of bed!”

“Wow, Huai, you’re so naughty. I didn’t even think of that.”

“Ahhh, I hate you! I’m ignoring you!”

“I was wrong, it’s my fault, hahaha.”

Shen Huaixu turned and pressed Gu Yinghuai against the meeting table. She took Gu Yinghuai’s hand and kissed the back of it. “Forgive me, okay?”

Meeting Shen Huaixu’s eyes, which were full of love and laughter, Gu Yinghuai blushed and whispered, “Just this once.”

“Good girl.” Shen Huaixu lifted Gu Yinghuai up to sit on the meeting table and shared a deep, lingering kiss with her.

Gu Yinghuai reached out to wrap her arms around her shoulders, enjoying her girlfriend’s kiss.