Hints at GL - Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Today is Tuesday. For the employees at UBS, it’s an utterly ordinary day, but Ruan Mu is in an exceptionally good mood.

Currently, Ruan Mu is standing in the pantry for the third time today brewing tea, almost as if her heart is hoping to run into someone. She lifts a slender arm, casually pulls out a Twinings tea bag, pours half a cup of hot water, and leans against the counter, her fingertips tapping a rhythmic beat against the wooden edge of the table.

Just then, the door is pushed open.

A tall, brown-haired man enters. Seeing Ruan Mu, he breaks into a grin and teases, “Look what day it is—our very own brewing her own tea?”

Ruan Mu rests her hand on the round table, her eyes narrowing slightly. “Machal, is your work finished again?”

Machal tugs at his slightly tight collar. “Work? I handed it off to the new analyst.” He places his coffee cup on the table she’s leaning against. “They finished it and gave it back in a single morning. Are the new analysts all this aggressive now? Looks like the current economic climate is truly grim.”

Ruan Mu let out a low laugh. “When you first started, you handed me the benchmarking in an hour.”

Machal spread his hands in mock sorrow. “Hey, are you saying I’ve regressed?” He clutched his chest exaggeratedly, then suddenly seemed to remember something. “No way. The moment I see Suet today, I’m going to tell her I’m applying for a group transfer.”

Ruan Mu reached for the milk. Hearing that, she gave him a meaningful glance but didn’t seem angry.

Seeing her expression, Machal clicked his tongue. “Speaking of which, when Su Yuan brought people over to greet Suet yesterday, I was already nervous. I thought, thank God you said you were busy… and yet, you showed up anyway.”

With a soft glug, the milk was poured into the teacup.

Seeing that she remained silent, Machal continued, “Lin, that blockhead, really stunned me too. He actually asked Su Yuan if she’d rent the villa to Suet… I saw Su Yuan’s face turn green in an instant. Does she really not know you and Su Yuan used to live there?”

Ruan Mu curled her thin lips. “Do you straight men always love gossiping about us this much?”

Machal immediately denied it. “For God’s sake, I’m just concerned about you.” He widened his eyes, adding in disbelief, “What’s wrong? I’ve gone to great lengths to act clueless in front of Suet, and you’re going to mock my sexual orientation? Tsk.”

Ruan Mu picked up a stirring spoon and chuckled. “What are you hiding for me? Even when I was dating Su Yuan, I wasn’t afraid of people knowing.”

Machal knew she never cared, so he pouted as if wounded. “Fine, please stop breaking my heart. There will come a time when you’ll need me to do some ‘reconnaissance’ for you.”

He picked up his coffee cup, suddenly recalling something. “By the way, I heard the Royal Mail personnel list is out. You’re co-leading it with Suet?”

Ruan Mu stirred her tea nonchalantly. “Sort of, though there’s another VP involved.”

A thought flashed through his mind, and Machal couldn’t help asking more. “I’m surprised. Didn’t R say earlier that since Suet just got back and was recently promoted to VP, she should handle smaller projects first? So… did you recommend her?”

Ruan Mu took a sip of tea and gave a seductive smile. “Those are your words, not mine.”

“Oh my, I’m genuinely moved by your devotion,” Machal said, mouth agape in exaggeration.

“She’ll do well. I believe she has the capability,” Ruan Mu added with a smile, glancing at him.

Knock, knock.

Two crisp, concise raps on the door.

Ruan Mu looked up from her screen, and that familiar, elegant figure came into view. Jing Han was wearing a white sleeveless blouse and a deep blue skirt. Her exquisite features met Ruan Mu’s gaze, looking somewhat cold. “Why didn’t you reply to my online message?”

Ruan Mu acted as if she had just realized. “Oh, did you send one?” She pretended to check, then looked up with a smile. “Didn’t see it. Perhaps subconsciously, I hoped you would come tell me in person.”

Looking at the woman’s alluring demeanor, Jing Han suppressed the slight irritability in her heart. “R said the meeting is at 14:30. Be prepared.” She adopted a professional tone, her voice flat. “Also, I heard you did some related research over the last two weeks. If possible, please send it to me.”

Ruan Mu leaned back in her chair, watching her with a smile. “Finished?”

Jing Han frowned. “Finished.”

Ruan Mu looked at her deeply, then pulled open a drawer, grabbed something, and walked over to her. “Here, hold out your hand.” There was the faint metallic jingle of keys in Ruan Mu’s palm.

Seeing a set of keys dangling before her, Jing Han asked in confusion, “What are you doing?”

Ruan Mu’s red lips curled. “Didn’t you just arrive and haven’t had time to buy one? You can borrow my car.”

Jing Han didn’t look appreciative; she frowned slightly. “No need, thank you.”

Her rejection didn’t deter Ruan Mu. She took Jing Han’s cool hand, looking at her meaningfully. “It’s better to take them. Otherwise, how are you going to drive that young girl home later?”

The warmth of Ruan Mu’s fingertips traced Jing Han’s palm. Jing Han took a deep breath. “Ruan Mu, what exactly do you mean?”

Ruan Mu caught her hand and leaned forward slightly. “I mean…” Her soft, seductive voice dropped lower, circling Jing Han’s ear like a spell. “I’m jealous that you’re being so thoughtful toward her.”

What does your jealousy have to do with me?

Jing Han’s brow furrowed. She wanted to say something but felt that explaining anything to this woman was a waste of breath. After all, who was the one making out with an ex in the restroom, only to now complain about her looking after Zhong Ning?

“Ruan Mu…”

She could clearly feel the other woman’s fingertips tracing her palm. She tried to pull her hand away, but Ruan Mu held it firmly.

“Take the keys back. I don’t need you worrying about my transportation,” Jing Han took a few breaths and finally spoke. “Furthermore, I didn’t come back to London to watch you play these push-and-pull games.”

Ruan Mu’s eyes curved at that, a deep glint flashing within them. “How did you feel last night when you saw me kiss Su Yuan?”

Jing Han looked at her steadily, her voice growing cold. “I felt you were being very childish.”

Ruan Mu’s eyes narrowed slightly, and her smile deepened. Seeing her nonchalant attitude, Jing Han’s frown intensified. “Su Yuan has already broken up with you. Who she wants to be with has nothing to do with you. When are you ever going to grow up?”

Ruan Mu listened quietly, as if the person being criticized wasn’t herself. “Is that so? So after all these years, you’re still using this reason to reject me.”

“Although I don’t expect you to listen to my explanation, I’m going to give it anyway.” She stared at Jing Han, her lips curling into a smile. “That little kid seems to be able to foresee the future. The first time I met her eyes, I tried to read her mind, and I discovered she was having a hallucination—for a split second, she thought she saw me kissing Anna.”

“Since she expected it so much, I simply turned what she foresaw into reality. Is there anything wrong with that?”

These words made Jing Han pause for a moment; she hadn’t expected such a reason behind it. But then she felt Ruan Mu’s credibility was extremely low, so she looked away with an indifferent expression, seemingly unwilling to hear any more explanations. “Don’t look for excuses I can’t verify. I’m not interested.”

“Let me say this first: I wouldn’t dream of bullying you. But if you insist on calling me childish, why not just ask her if she saw it? Verify if what I said is true or not, hmm?”

Only the woman in front of her would suggest something as direct as asking the person involved. Jing Han didn’t want to deal with her.

“What’s more,” Ruan Mu seemed to recall something, her smile deepening, “I haven’t even caught you yet. How could Su Yuan move on to her next relationship before me?”

That sentence completely shattered the last of Jing Han’s positive impressions of Ruan Mu. What on earth was this woman thinking?

Jing Han looked at her alluring eyes, feeling uncomfortable all over.

However, the deliberate mention of “catching her” caused Jing Han’s indifferent facade to waver slightly. Ruan Mu’s eyes narrowed, her gaze sliding over Jing Han’s exquisite face and beautiful lips. Her eyes became glued to those tempting lips, and she suddenly felt a loss of control.

Finally, Ruan Mu couldn’t help but lean in, her lips almost touching Jing Han’s as she whispered, “Jing Han, I still want you…” Her voice sounded slightly hoarse. “If you let me kiss you just once, I can promise not to mess around for at least half a year.”

Not mess around for at least half a year…

The chaotic scenes from last night flashed before Jing Han’s eyes again. Suppressing her rising emotions, she pushed Ruan Mu away with moderate force. “You’re insane.”