After eating such a delicious meal that morning, their hunger was replaced with contentment. Lu Xinyi held the bicycle steady before letting Wang Zhuyi get on, and she thought about the next place for them to go.
“Hey, I should have asked this earlier. Do you have any allergies in food?” Lu Xinyi asked while pedaling slowly toward their next destination.
“Hmm… Brother Fei doesn’t need to worry. I don’t have any allergies.”
“That’s great, Miss Wang, because we aren’t done yet!” Lu Xinyi said with a grin.
The next hour was filled with stopovers as Lu Xinyi pulled over their bike to stop to buy some treats for Wang Zhuyi. From steamed buns to rice cakes to kebabs, Lu Xinyi let Wang Zhuyi experience the commoner’s snack. She even let the woman watched how the vendor makes a jianbing on the spot.
From other people’s perspective, they looked like a young couple having a date. Their clothes should make them look out of place, but it didn’t. The handsome young man’s smile was enchanting while the innocence of the woman made the passersby ship them together.
Wang Zhuyi was struck in awe. She hadn’t known that there were such delicious snacks that didn’t cost her a fortune. She especially loved the jianbing that her Brother Fei bought for her. She loved its crispy nature, bold flavor, and texture. It was made of a batter of wheat and grain flour, savory, umami flavors, eggs, and other crisp textures. Truly, a wonderful food experience in her life!
They decided to stop in a local park to take a rest while sipping some juice. Lu Xinyi put a hanky on the swing and let Wang Zhuyi sit on it. She stood still and didn’t dare to sit at the other swing beside the woman. Seeing a swing brought Lu Xinyi an embarrassing memory.
“Miss Wang, I’m curious. How come you’ve never tried those things before?” Lu Xinyi asked. She had been thinking that it wouldn’t be impossible for Wang Zhuyi not to know some snacks she offered earlier even though she came from a wealthy family.
“I… I didn’t grow up here. My father sent me and my brother abroad to study. We just came back and haven’t really tried to seek our roots.”
“Oh…” Lu Xinyi thought it was reasonable on Wang Zhuyi’s part. “So how did you know President Shen then?”
At that question, Lu Xinyi noticed that sadness clouded Wang Zhuyi’s features.
“Did I say something wrong?”
Whatever did her stupid husband do to this woman?
“Matriarch Shen arranged a blind date between us.” Wang Zhuyi admitted, but she didn’t want to give her Brother Fei an impression that she was interested in him. While her father would very much approve President Shen as her husband, Brother Fei had successfully sneaked in and pulled out her infatuation from Shen Yi.
She watched how Lu Feiran’s reaction closely. Was he jealous of President Shen?
“Then? What happened?”
“President Shen stood me up and never showed himself.”
Lu Xinyi bit the side of her cheek in an attempt to stop herself from laughing. That was her husband, alright. Even with Matriarch Shen’s persistence, Shen Yi would always find a way to stand up most dates she and his father set for him.
“Do you like him?” she asked.
Wang Zhuyi held her breath, afraid that she would say the wrong words. If she said she was interested in President Shen, what was it to Brother Fei?
“Brother Fei…”
Seeing the conflicting emotions on her face, Lu Xinyi shook her head and dropped her question. She didn’t have the heart to tell Wang Zhuyi that she didn’t have a chance for Shen Yi because he was already her man.
“You don’t have to answer it, Miss Wang. I was just curious. Anyway, let’s return this bicycle and go back to Shen Group. I wouldn’t want your father to worry about your whereabouts.”
The two silently went back to the bike shop and returned the bicycle. Before they drive back at Shen Group, Lu Xinyi stopped in a nearby cafe to let Wang Zhuyi buy her coffee. While she was left alone in Shen Xue’s car, she checked her phone only to see her husband’s missed calls.
Oh, crap. She forgot to send him a message where she was!
[Hi, darling. How’s your day? Missing you. ~mwuah]
The moment she sent her message, his response was automatic. ρꪖꪕᦔꪖꪕꪫꪣꫀꪶ
[Where are you?]
Lu Xinyi sweatdropped. Sure, her husband didn’t waste time to ask her whereabouts.
[Out with a friend. I’ll see you this afternoon.]
[With who?]
Lu Xinyi stopped midway on typing her reply when something caught her attention. Wang Zhuyi had been inside the cafe and hadn’t left. What took her so long?
She decided to follow the woman to see what the problem was. As soon as she opened the door, she already found who she was looking for. Wang Zhuyi was in the corner of the cafe being trapped by four women. From the look of it, it seemed someone had stained Wang Zhuyi’s pristine dress.
“I already said I’m sorry. I wasn’t really paying attention to where I’m going,” Wan Zhuyin cried, tears streaming down her pretty face. Her eyes were tinged with redness.
Lu Xinyi groaned inwardly. What was in these women that they found enjoyment bullying another?
“You bitch! You were just looking at my boyfriend just now! If you weren’t ogling at him, you won’t trip and hurt my arm.” One of the four women yelled at Wang Zhuyi who was already cowering in fear.
“Ah, just look at her. Shivering and trembling with fear.” Another one laughed at Wang Zhuyi’s situation. “She’s so stupid she’d poured her coffee on herself.”
Another round of laughter.
“Hey, stupid. You are supposed to drink it not bathe with it.”
All the girls started talking to one another, casually throwing insults at Wang Zhuyi’s way. She lowered her head and sniffed. She was in a hurry after getting her coffee and Brother Fei’s when one of the girls tripped her, making her fall on the cold floor with a loud thud.
None of the patrons at the cafe dared to step forward and help her. Of course, they knew who she was. Wang Zhuyi was a beauty and a real socialite, but her meek personality was also known within the circle.
“Then, what do you want so you can leave me alone?” Wang Zhuyi muttered under her breath.
The first woman who taunted her earlier stepped forward and pushed Wang Zhuyi’s face.
“Look, the pretty girl is trying to buy us, ah? Just who do you think you are? You think with just one look, you can have any woman’s boyfriend?”
“I’m not interested in your boyfriend. I don’t even know who he is.” Wang Zhuyi defended.
“Bitch, you don’t need to know his name to flirt with him.” The other woman hissed back.
Lu Xinyi didn’t dare to show herself and move from where she was. She wanted to see how Wang Zhuyi protected herself in such situations. If she stepped forward and helped her now—in the future, Wang Zhuyi wouldn’t learn to stand up for herself.
A deep frown was etched in her handsome face. These women were only up for trouble.
“You may wear beautiful clothes and cover your face with makeup, but your filth reeked. We can smell a bitch from afar. How nice would it be to use the money to buy men just to sleep with them.” The woman stared at Wang Zhuyi in disgust.
“You’re only jealous because you are poor as a rat.” Wang Zhuyi spat back and glared back at the woman as if she was looking at an idiot. She suppressed her tears.
She already had received enough insults for this day. She was worried that Brother Fei would find her like this and make him worry for her stalling.
Lu Xinyi, hearing what the woman said, rejoiced, and praised all gods for giving Wang Zhuyi such courage. She really needed to learn how to defend herself, or else women from different status would dare to trample her.
“You, bitch! Just because you have money, you think you can look down on us!” The woman scolded Wang Zhuyi and was clearly infuriated from what this rich socialite said.
“I never look down on you. Weren’t you the one who keeps calling me names, Miss? And why would I seduce your boyfriend? He is nothing compared to my man.”
As she said ‘my man’, a figure was formed in her mind. If this had happened before, she would have thought of President Shen, but now… her heart and mind were invaded by a certain ash-blonde-hair prince.
