When the Heartthrob Meets the Cold-Hearted Ex - Chapter 20.2

Noticing Su Yang’s darkening expression, she added consolingly, “Don’t worry, Senior Gu won’t go around telling people how you nearly peed your pants.”

“By heaven and my conscience,” Tang Yeran truly only meant to ease Su Yang’s worries and lessen her inner turmoil when she said those words.

But instead of comforting her, it only made Su Yang even more displeased.

“You know her that well?” Su Yang’s eyes locked onto Tang Yeran as she spoke.

Tang Yeran: Huh?

Isn’t this just basic human trust? You don’t need to know someone that well for this.

When Su Yang saw Tang Yeran staying silent for a long time, she took it as tacit agreement. The more she thought about it, the more wronged she felt.

So she stood up, brushed past Tang Yeran, and left early!

Watching Su Yang’s retreating figure, Tang Yeran realized she had somehow offended one of her clients without even knowing why.

So she decided…

To go maintain contact with the other client.

She found Xu You and Xue Ling by the river, preparing to take a yacht out, along with two other girls from the art team.

Everyone welcomed her warmly.

Tang Yeran beloved by all had a great time playing with the group while also gathering material for her camera.

The employees of Qianhe Company were young and energetic, and nearly everyone from top to bottom was friendly and enthusiastic.

Well except for a certain President Su.

The afternoon passed quickly, and by evening, it was time for the group bonfire party.

After the day’s activities, everyone gathered in an open space not far from the hotel, where the admin team had already set up the barbecue equipment.

Tang Yeran’s group arrived just in time to help with the final preparations.

By nightfall, the firewood was neatly stacked in the center of the site.

Su Yang, who had been missing for hours, finally made a quiet appearance.

A sharp-eyed and bold employee spotted her and asked her to give a speech.

The bonfire in the center had already been lit, heating up the atmosphere, and many employees joined in urging her on.

Su Yang took the microphone, paused for a second, and said:

“Have a good time at this team-building event. Eat well, play well. Later, President Xu has some red envelopes to hand out.”

Seven seconds including the pause and the speech was over.

Compared to leaders who loved long-winded speeches, President Su had always been a breath of fresh air, and everyone was used to it by now.

Luckily, the head of the admin department was cheerful and smoothly took over the mic.

The surrounding barbecue grills were fully loaded, and many people even started dancing hand-in-hand around the bonfire.

It was clear everyone was genuinely enjoying the event.

Only Su Yang sat alone at the edge, detached from the world.

Tang Yeran, busy grilling in the crowd, glanced over unintentionally.

For a moment, she was struck by the lonely, moonlit aura around Su Yang.

Honestly, like this, Su Yang really had a pitiful air about her.

Tang Yeran almost laughed, but remembering how inexplicably cold Su Yang had been toward her earlier, the amusement faded.

What kind of person was this, swinging between moods all the time?

Shaking the seasoning bottle in her hand, Tang Yeran vented all her unnamed frustrations onto the barbecue.

“Tangtang! Tangtang!”

“Hm? What?”

“Did you put way too much seasoning on these?” Xue Ling pointed at the skewers on the grill some of them were practically coated in a layer of pepper.

“Oh, it’s fine. Barbecue only tastes good when it’s loaded with flavor.”

Tang Yeran quickly set down the seasoning bottle that was still leaking pepper powder and handed the heavily seasoned skewers to Xue Ling on a plate.

“President Su doesn’t seem to have eaten much tonight.”

Xue Ling glanced at the overwhelmingly seasoned skewers on the plate, her small head filled with big confusion.

You don’t actually expect me to take this to President Su, do you?

She looked up at Tang Yeran’s earnest gaze, hesitated for just a second in her heart, then convinced herself.

President Su rarely shows any food preferences at the company maybe she actually likes this kind of thing. After all, what bad intentions could Tangtang possibly have?

Xue Ling took the plate, nodded solemnly at Tang Yeran, and turned to walk toward Su Yang.

When Su Yang saw the plate of pitch-black skewers, she was just as confused as Xue Ling had been initially.

But when she heard the words, “These were specially grilled by Tangtang,” she pressed her lips together and accepted them with a cold expression.

“Thank you.”

Xue Ling breathed a sigh of relief at the sight. As expected, Tangtang knows best. So President Su really does like this kind of thing.

After delivering the skewers, she turned and left missing the moment Su Yang took a bite, tears streaming down her face in utter despair.

Xu You and Xue Ling, having accepted their loss in the day’s competition, were now on a makeshift stage performing a comedic duo act for everyone.

One delivered the punchlines, the other played the straight man, and their back-and-forth was surprisingly well-coordinated.

Seeing that even the company’s second-in-command had no reservations about entertaining, others eagerly volunteered to showcase their talents.

Meanwhile, Tang Yeran was pulled by Xue Ling to dance around the bonfire.

“Dancing” was a generous term, it was really just people holding hands and jumping around the fire haphazardly.

But the atmosphere was lively, and the mood was high.

Everyone’s faces were filled with smiles except for Su Yang, who silently wiped her tears while downing one cocktail after another.

This pepper powder is just too strong!

The bonfire party lasted two and a half hours before winding down. The hotel was nearby, and the head of the admin department handed out room keys as people gradually dispersed.

Su Yang, who preferred peace and quiet, was assigned a room at the very top.

As the only “outsider” present, Tang Yeran was so popular that several employees wanted to “pull strings” with the admin department to room near her.

The admin head was overwhelmed until Xu You stepped in with a solution.

“Let Editor Tang stay in the single room next to President Su.”

That settled it, no one else could argue.

Tang Yeran, deferring to her hosts, glanced at Su Yang, who by now had seven or eight empty cocktail bottles scattered around her. Anyone who saw it would have to praise, “President Su has an impressive tolerance.”

The admin head had initially worried she might be drunk when handing her the key, but seeing her clear gaze, he relaxed slightly.

“Then Editor Tang can head back with President Su.”

Somehow, that phrasing sounds a bit ambiguous.

But since they were now temporary neighbors, Tang Yeran couldn’t just leave Su Yang behind.

She nodded at Xu You and waited for Su Yang to follow.

She had assumed they’d just walk a short distance together, but Su Yang immediately reached out and subtly grabbed her sleeve.

Holding sleeves between girls was perfectly normal but for Su Yang, even five years ago, this would have been rare behavior.

With everyone else gone, Tang Yeran turned to Su Yang.

“Are you drunk?”

“No,” Su Yang slowly shook her head, her eyes shining brightly like a puppy’s.

She seemed quite sober, yet there was something different about her compared to usual.

In the past, Su Yang had always been disciplined and rarely touched alcohol, so Tang Yeran had no idea what she was like when drunk.

Tang Yeran lifted the hand whose sleeve Su Yang was clutching and tentatively asked, “If you’re not drunk, can you let go?”

“No.” This time, Su Yang shook her head much faster, her gaze innocent and guileless.

Tang Yeran met those eyes and felt her heartbeat quicken for a moment, as if she were some shady auntie trying to abduct a young girl.

Wait, no she was the one being clung to here.

A breeze swept by, carrying the fruity scent of alcohol as it dispersed through the air.

Tang Yeran shook her head, deciding not to dwell on the details. She had to get Su Yang back to her room before she completely passed out.

The two of them entered the hotel elevator like conjoined twins, accompanied by several other employees from Qianhe.

Everyone greeted Tang Yeran and Su Yang warmly, and Su Yang responded with a solemn nod, dignified yet approachable.

Tang Yeran’s sleeves were long, and from an outsider’s perspective, it looked as though she and Su Yang were holding hands.

The onlookers found it both surprising and unsurprising that the universally adored Miss Tang had somehow managed to “tame” Qianhe’s most notorious ice queen.

Though no one said anything aloud, curiosity got the better of them, and multiple glances repeatedly swept over the two seemingly intertwined hands.

Even if Tang Yeran noticed, she could only pretend she didn’t.

She was used to being the center of attention, but being scrutinized alongside Su Yang in such a confined space was…

Ugh.

Whatever. She was only here for a few days of interviews anyway. Any fallout could be dealt with after Su Yang sobered up.

Fortunately, the elevator ride wasn’t long, and everyone gradually exited to find their rooms.

Tang Yeran and Su Yang were the last to arrive. Her room was 1307, while Su Yang’s was 1308 just a wall apart.

Tang Yeran led Su Yang to the door of 1308, but the other woman still showed no intention of letting go. She had no choice but to speak up.

“Open the door and go inside.”

Su Yang turned her head, her sparkling eyes staring at Tang Yeran innocently. After processing the words for a few seconds, she suddenly assumed the opening stance of the Emei martial arts style and began pushing the door.

Tang Yeran: !

What the weren’t you acting normal just a second ago?!

She quickly intercepted Su Yang before she could damage hotel property and reluctantly reached into her pocket for the keycard.

But the moment her fingers brushed Su Yang’s waist, the woman instantly crossed her arms over her chest like a bashful young bride being harassed.

After a moment of hesitation, once she clearly recognized who was in front of her, she shyly lowered her arms, her jade-like cheeks visibly flushing pink.

Tang Yeran: …

I just wanted to get the keycard. Must you act like I’ve done something indecent to you?!

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