Honey, Open The Door. I Want To Give You The Room Key - Chapter 18

Joy Liu Yu raised an eyebrow as she looked at Lou Qingshuang’s “done with life” expression and smiled faintly; the dejection that had clung to Lou Qingshuang vanished. Sitting in the Bentley, Lou Qingshuang could only sigh, hoping that when she got out of the car, she wouldn’t run into any acquaintances. Especially Bai Wan!

But Lou Qingshuang’s fears came true; the moment she stepped out of the car, she bumped right into Bai Wan. Bai Wan looked at the familiar license plate and a certain familiar mogul, her eyes nearly popping out of her head. What was going on?! Her bestie had bagged Liu Yu after just one night!

After thanking Liu Yu, Lou Qingshuang headed toward the company building. Liu Yu watched Lou Qingshuang’s retreating figure with a smile on her face. Today, Lou Qingshuang was wearing a classic, slim-fit overcoat over a thin turtleneck sweater, her long hair tied up, her wavy curls swaying in the air.

“Let’s go,” Liu Yu instructed the driver, withdrawing her gaze.

The moment Lou Qingshuang stepped through the company doors; she was cornered by the waiting Bai Wan. Bai Wan crossed her arms and walked a circle around Lou Qingshuang, nodding as she inspected her—as expected of her best friend. Seeing her expression and movements, Lou Qingshuang looked down at her clothes. There was nothing wrong. She looked back up at Bai Wan. “What is it?”

“Nothing much, I just have something to talk to you about.” Bai Wan grabbed Lou Qingshuang’s hand and pulled her toward the office. The receptionist breathed a sigh of relief as the two bosses left; she could finally eat her breakfast.

“Shuangshuang, why did you get out of Liu Yu’s car?” Bai Wan asked in a low voice once she had closed the office door. Hearing Bai Wan ask this made Lou Qingshuang want to facepalm. It really was a case of “speak of the devil.”

“I went out for a drink last night and ran into her,” Lou Qingshuang said.

“You went out drinking?” Bai Wan pulled out a chair and stared with wide eyes at Lou Qingshuang, whose gaze was flickering guiltily.

“I only drank a little bit.” Lou Qingshuang used her fingers to gesture a tiny amount.

“Was it worth it for that kind of person?” Bai Wan’s attention was briefly diverted. Lou Qingshuang was about to breathe a sigh of relief when— “Wait, what does you drinking have to do with Liu Yu driving you to work today? Did you go home with her last night?” Shock was written all over Bai Wan’s small, delicate face.

“No, she moved into the apartment across from mine.” Lou Qingshuang rubbed her forehead, knowing there was no escaping the interrogation. This was all Liu Yu’s fault.

“Huh?” Bai Wan blinked in shock, staring at Lou Qingshuang. “Hiss… She couldn’t slip you a room card, so she decided to deliver herself to your doorstep?” Bai Wan said, her imagination running wild.

“Not necessarily, she’s probably just bored,” Lou Qingshuang said with some uncertainty.

“She’s definitely set her sights on you,” Bai Wan guessed. “With Liu Yu’s status, power, and methods, if she wasn’t serious, she wouldn’t need to use these kinds of tactics.” A hint of joy appeared on Bai Wan’s face. If Liu Yu was a good catch, Shuangshuang could use this opportunity to move on from Shen Yue. After the wounds were healed, she could just kick Liu Yu to the curb.

Bai Wan was thinking entirely for her best friend’s sake. A woman with Liu Yu’s status, beauty, and figure was essentially at the pinnacle. Shuangshuang wouldn’t lose out at all by dating her.

“Why not… give it a try?” Bai Wan nudged her friend with her elbow, trying to pique her interest.

Lou Qingshuang looked helplessly at the eager Bai Wan. “Stop messing around. In a fit of anger last night, I even told her to withdraw her investment.”

“AHHH!!! Shuangshuang, don’t pick a fight with money!” Bai Wan wailed.

“Am I more important, or is money more important?” Lou Qingshuang shot her a look.

Bai Wan’s mouth twitched several times before she managed to squeeze out the words, “You are.”

“But money is also important,” Bai Wan added under her breath, her eyes brimming with (fake) tears. Watching her performance, Lou Qingshuang’s eyebrows arched, and her mood brightened slightly. “I’m done playing with you. I need to go back and check today’s work.”

“Then you should give it some serious thought, Shuangshuang!” Bai Wan waved at her. Lou Qingshuang gave her an elegant eye-roll and walked out.

Back in her office, Lou Qingshuang finally had a moment to sit down and rub her throbbing temples. She opened her phone to find an apology sent by Shen Yue: Shuangshuang, I’m sorry. I just had some difficulties.

No matter what difficulties you had, you shouldn’t have betrayed me and used my hard work to claim credit. Shen Yue, what exactly did you take me for? Lou Qingshuang quickly typed the message and immediately blocked Shen Yue. Keeping her there was just nauseating.

“Never seeing each other again is for the best.” Lou Qingshuang’s previously relaxed expression slowly turned somber as she whispered to herself, “When you do something wrong, there are consequences.”

Seeing Lou Qingshuang’s message, Shen Yue’s face darkened. She closed her phone, sent no further messages, and focused on her work.

After consulting with Qin Nan and Bai Wan, Lou Qingshuang posted a new announcement on the official blog: We have caught the mole. Lan Dai, we will see you in court.

Once this announcement went out, the public outcry that had finally begun to simmer down was reignited. The people at Lan Dai Group saw it too. Now, everyone was waiting to see what Zhu Rui would do.

Seeing this small company, Wanshuang, slap her in the face so publicly, Zhu Rui was so furious she grabbed a file and hurled it away. “What a piece of trash!”

If it weren’t for Xinyu Group backing Wanshuang, Lan Dai would have started slinging mud long ago instead of just making snide, passive-aggressive remarks. Zhu Rui looked at the photos of Lou Qingshuang and Bai Wan, and an idea formed in her mind.

“Go find out exactly who is behind Xinyu Group.” Zhu Rui looked at this “daughter-in-law” with a sinister gaze. Shen Yue was useless too. If she had just brought Lou Qingshuang to work at Lan Dai in the first place, none of this would be happening.

Since things had reached this point, Zhu Rui no longer cared about keeping up appearances. If Xinyu Group was siding with Wanshuang, she would drag both Wanshuang and Xinyu through the mud while keeping Shen Yue out of it.

Once this matter blew over, she would prop up Shen Yue and Zhu Jie, let the two of them manage the company and compete against each other, while she retired. If all else failed, she could simply discard Shen Yue.

Many thoughts flashed through Zhu Rui’s mind, but she didn’t realize that her daughter shared her personality—if she couldn’t have it, she would destroy it.

Lou Qingshuang knew Shen Yue; Shen Yue would apologize but would still insist on her own way. This relationship was over. For some reason, although Lou Qingshuang was sad, she also felt a sense of relief. She no longer had to tolerate Shen Yue; she could focus entirely on her own career.

While opening her handbag, Lou Qingshuang happened to see the talisman she and Bai Wan had prayed for to “sever ill-fated connections.” She took it out and held it in her palm, suddenly laughing out loud. How could this not be considered severing an ill-fated connection?

She had thought the “ill-fated connection” was Liu Yu, but it turned out to be Shen Yue. Lou Qingshuang put the talisman back in her bag. There was still one more ill-fated connection left, and this one had followed her all the way to her front door. Thinking about it made her want to sigh.

“I hope I can sever this connection soon, too,” Lou Qingshuang whispered to the talisman.

Meanwhile, the “ill-fated connection” Liu Yu suddenly sneezed during a meeting. She took out a handkerchief and gently dabbed her nose. Seeing her sneeze, the others paused their reports.

“Continue,” Liu Yu waved her hand, signaling them to proceed. The CEO of the department nodded and continued reporting on his work. Liu Yu’s secretary quietly placed a cup of hot water nearby to help her recover and avoid getting sick.

Liu Yu wiped her nose with the handkerchief, feeling as though someone was talking about her. She drifted off in thought for a moment before returning her attention to the reports.

By evening, Lou Qingshuang took a taxi home early, determined not to run into Liu Yu. Standing in the empty elevator, Lou Qingshuang breathed a sigh of relief. Thankfully, she hadn’t encountered Liu Yu.

Ding. Both elevator doors opened simultaneously. Before Lou Qingshuang could even step out, she saw Liu Yu, dressed in black suit trousers, walking out from the adjacent elevator.

Lou Qingshuang: “…”

“Good evening,” Liu Yu said, looking at Lou Qingshuang with a smile.

Lou Qingshuang forced a smile. “Good evening.”

Seeing Lou Qingshuang’s “wretched fate” expression, Liu Yu couldn’t help but laugh. She intentionally added, “Would you like to come over to my place? I’ve hired a chef to prepare some food.”

“No need, thank you for the invitation, Chairman Liu.” Lou Qingshuang turned and left, her coat fluttering behind her. It was clear she was desperate to get away.

Liu Yu raised an eyebrow and returned to her home followed by her bodyguards and assistant. The bodyguards performed their usual security sweep and checked the security system logs. A few minutes later, the chef arrived.

Liu Yu changed into soft loungewear—a long pajama top and loose trousers. She looked relaxed and comfortable as she held a glass of red wine, sipping slowly.

“Chairman Liu, everything is normal. Do you have any other arrangements?” Zhu Yan asked, standing behind Liu Yu.

“No. You should head back and rest early,” Liu Yu said, turning to look at Zhu Yan with a smile.

“Alright, then I wish you a wonderful evening, Chairman,” Zhu Yan replied with a smile.

Four bodyguards remained to protect her. Once the chef finished, the bodyguards would return to the apartment downstairs to stay on standby.

Half an hour later, just as Lou Qingshuang was about to eat dinner, she heard the doorbell ring. Lou Qingshuang’s hand holding the chopsticks paused. It couldn’t be Liu Yu, could it?

When she opened the door, she saw a beaming Liu Yu, her eyes filled with a deep, indulgent warmth. “Is something the matter, Chairman Liu?” Lou Qingshuang averted her gaze from Liu Yu’s eyes.

“To celebrate my housewarming, I brought you some food.” Liu Yu placed a dish of exquisite food in front of Lou Qingshuang.

Looking at the fragrant, slightly spicy stir-fried tender beef, Lou Qingshuang suddenly understood Liu Yu’s purpose in sending this dish—she wanted to win over her mother. Her mother loved this specific stir-fried beef, but very few people knew the authentic way to cook it anymore. Liu Yu even knew her mother’s tastes; Lou Qingshuang felt as if the plate of beef was burning her hands.

Liu Yu placed the dish in Lou Qingshuang’s hands and turned to leave gracefully. Lou Qingshuang watched Liu Yu’s raised arm wave in the air. The sleeve slid down from her wrist, revealing a beautiful wrist bone and slender fingers. It was an exceptionally striking sight.