Have You Considered Being My Girlfriend in Beijing As Well?
Wei Lai had just finished showering, and before she could blow dry her hair, Zhou Sujin’s call came in. His crisp, clear voice came through from the other end of the call, “I’m downstairs. Can you come down for a bit?”
As they parted ways in front of the siheyuan, she had thought it would be difficult to see him again.
“Sure, but President Zhou, you’ll have to wait a few minutes.”
“No rush.”
He then hung up.
Wei Lai draped a towel over her shoulders and began blow-drying her hair in front of the mirror.
He couldn’t possibly be calling her about work; the only thing they could discuss was her identity as his “girlfriend”, which might be causing him some trouble.
With her hair dried but no time for makeup, she grabbed her room key and headed downstairs.
That Bentayga EWB was parked in front of the hotel’s main entrance, and she got in as Uncle Yan got off.
“There were only the two of them in the car. She took a deep breath to compose herself before asking, “President Zhou, what’s the matter?”
Zhou Sujin didn’t like beating around the bush. “You’re just my girlfriend in Jiang City. Have you considered being one in Beijing as well?”
It was too sudden, and Wei Lai didn’t know how to respond momentarily.
Zhou Sujin: “You don’t have to date me. Just occasionally accompany me home to deal with my family.” It would spare him the trouble of blind dates. He continued, “I won’t let you help for nothing. You can freely use the title of my girlfriend to your advantage, leverage connections and resources, whatever you like.”
He didn’t need an immediate answer, giving her a night to consider.
However, there were additional conditions to pretending to be his girlfriend. Once she agreed, she couldn’t back out halfway, and during their “relationship,” she couldn’t go on any other blind dates. Any excuses for unavoidable blind dates were not acceptable.
Wei Lai felt a bit overwhelmed, but after composing herself, she looked at him and said, “If I agree to pretend to be your girlfriend, of course, I can refrain from going on blind dates. My parents never pressure me to marry.”
Her concern was, “What about you? What if your family doesn’t care at all about me being your girlfriend and continues to pressure you into blind dates; what then?”
Zhou Sujin: “As long as you’re my girlfriend for even a day, blind dates would be of no concern to me.”
It was strange; she had only known him for a few weeks, and she didn’t know him that well, yet she believed every promise he made.
Perhaps it was because she viewed him through rose-colored glasses.
She still had many more questions. “How long do you plan to ‘date’?”
Just at this moment, Zhou Sujin’s phone buzzed. His aunt had shared the WeChat contact of his blind date, which he ignored. Turning back to her, he said, “At least two years.”
That long?
Wei Lai negotiated with him, “Can’t it be just one year? Or we could pretend for a year first, then decide whether to renew the contract based on the actual situation?”
Zhou Sujin didn’t allow for negotiations. “I don’t have time to change girlfriends often.”
Two years, no room for negotiation. He disliked people negotiating with him the most.
Seeing her hesitation, he gave her time. “Take your time to think about it.” Then he asked, “Do you have plans tomorrow?”
Wei Lai nodded. “En, dinner at 8.”
Zhou Sujin: “You can use the car.”
Wei Lai declined without hesitation. “Thank you, President Zhou, but it’s fine. I’ll take a taxi; it’s more convenient.”
Zhou Sujin looked at her, seeing through her thoughts. “Whether you agree to my proposal or not doesn’t affect me lending you the car. They’re two separate matters.” He wasn’t so unchivalrous. “Even if you refuse me on the spot now, if you invite me to dinner another day, I’ll still go.”
With that, he ended the conversation. “Go upstairs and rest.”
Wei Lai wanted to say something but hesitated.
She hadn’t noticed it when she got into the car, but now she saw that the bag was still in the car.
She was puzzled. “You asked me to pretend to be your girlfriend, but whose bracelets are these…”
It took Zhou Sujin a moment to understand what she meant. Rarely, he explained, “It’s a friend’s gift for his sister.”
Wei Lai felt apologetic. It turned out she had misunderstood; it wasn’t a gift he bought for someone he liked.
Back in her room, she was no longer sleepy.
Having pulled an all-nighter to finish the sales report last night, Wei Lai felt like she could barely keep her eyes open while showering just a while ago. Yet, she was now wide awake, as if she had slept for a dozen hours.
Regarding Zhou Sujin’s proposed contract, she found it difficult to decide at the moment.
Who dared to guarantee that they could spend two years with a man like him, who not only had business acumen but was also charismatic, without developing feelings? Once the two-year contract ended, he would either marry someone suitable or continue finding a contract girlfriend to appease his family.
Two years were a bit long. She was worried that she might develop feelings for him over time. If she harbored feelings she shouldn’t have, she would be the one suffering when they parted ways someday.
However, the conditions he offered were incredibly tempting, especially for someone as pragmatic and worldly as her.
—
Until noon the next day, Zhou Sujin hadn’t received a response from Wei Lai.
Silence implied rejection.
Contracts like these were all about mutual agreement; there was no need to force someone into it.
He found the WeChat contact his aunt shared with him last night and added them as a friend.
In just a few minutes, the request was accepted.
Zhou Sujin sent the address of the restaurant his aunt had booked and said, “Anytime you’d like.”
Blind Date: “I don’t feel like having Italian cuisine tonight.” Seeking his opinion, she asked, “How about going somewhere more lively? How about hotpot?“
Zhou Sujin: “I’m fine with that.“
Blind Date: “Let’s go eat hotpot then. I’ll make a reservation.“
Shortly after, she sent the confirmation of the reservation to him.
Zhou Sujin glanced at the address of the hotpot restaurant; it was near the Kunchen office, only a five-minute drive away.
His aunt was very distrustful of him. Fearing that he might back out of the blind date at the last minute, she called him once at noon and again in the afternoon.
“Try to arrive a few minutes early; don’t let the girl wait.”
“Regardless of the outcome, be respectful.”
“Looks like Auntie is getting old, starting to nag.”
Just at this moment, there were two knocks on his office door. Before he could even say “Come in,” the door opened and Lu An walked in, holding a file folder.
Lu An had been on a business trip abroad recently and had just landed in Beijing two hours ago. Instead of going home from the airport, he came straight to the Kunchen office to discuss a few remaining issues with Zhou Sujin regarding a project.
“Auntie, someone’s here.”
“Alright.” Ning Rujiang said “alright” but didn’t intend to hang up just yet. “Hey, wait, Sujin, why did I receive a message on my phone saying you canceled the reservation?”
“Not in the mood for Western food, so we’re having hotpot.” Zhou Sujin rarely revealed his inner thoughts. “Auntie, I’m not a child anymore. If I added their contact information, I wouldn’t cancel on them at the last minute.”
“Of course, I know you wouldn’t do something like that.”
He should’ve said so earlier, causing her to be needlessly worried.
Seeing the cancellation message, blood rushed to her head, and she almost couldn’t resist swearing.
Upon hearing that her nephew was going to eat hotpot, Ning Rujiang had a gut feeling that this blind date might be successful.
Zhou Sujin bid goodbye to his aunt and hung up.
Lu An was very curious. Who could make Zhou Sujin accompany them to eat hotpot?
“What kind of social obligation requires you to go eat hotpot?”
“Blind date.” Zhou Sujin locked his screen and tossed his phone aside before grabbing his tablet to continue reading.
Lu An stared at him as if he were observing a rare species. “Are you interested in your blind date?”
Without even looking up, Zhou Sujin replied flatly, “I didn’t even know who she was before we got in touch. Where would the interest come from?”
That didn’t make sense.
Normally, Zhou Sujin avoided hotpot like it was his enemy, never touching it. How could he agree to go eat hotpot on a blind date? If he didn’t know who she was before, he knew after getting in touch.
The focal point was that he was willing to accompany someone to eat something he didn’t like after finding out who she was.
Lu An: “Are you… sure you’re not just trying to cater to her preferences?”
Zhou Sujin couldn’t be bothered to respond to him.
Despite being afraid of him, Lu An was also the most gossipy about his affairs. “Didn’t you admit to having a girlfriend in Jiang City? Does she know you’re going on a blind date?”
Zhou Sujin was currently reviewing work reports from various teams on his tablet, looked up, and scoffed, “Even going abroad hasn’t stopped you from being nosy.”
Lu An: “…”
How did this end up being his fault?
He thought to himself, If you had a better reputation and were a good person, Zhao Yihan wouldn’t have asked me so much about you.
Due to his business trip, he missed the dinner with He Wancheng and the rare occasion of witnessing Zhou Sujin going public with his girlfriend. He was dying of curiosity. What kind of extraordinary charm did this Wei Lai possess to make Zhou Sujin be a good person for once?
As for why he was abroad but knew about the events that happened in Jiang City so clearly, Lu An explained, “My university classmate, Zhao Yihan, is Wei Lai’s stepsister. She asked me for your number that night, saying Wei Lai wanted to give you a watch but didn’t have your contact information. I was confused and had to clarify the situation. I wouldn’t just give out your personal number without knowing what was going on, would I?”
“By the way, remember how I was eyeing a villa in Jiang City before? The previous owner was Wei Lai, but I was too late; someone else bought it.”
Lu An took out all the project documents from the file folder and started flipping through them. “Later, I heard that the villa was given to her as compensation from her ex after they broke up. She doesn’t seem to be short of money; her dad has a law firm, and her mom runs a supermarket. Selling it off in such a hurry must be due to a ….” heartbreak.
Zhou Sujin looked up, silently looking at him.
Immediately, Lu An shut his mouth. This kind of expression from Zhou Sujin often meant his patience had run out.
Lu An stayed until 4:50 p.m. before taking his leave.
He couldn’t stay any longer even if he wished to since Zhou Sujin had to go meet his blind date.
—
Meanwhile, in the hotel, Wei Lai had just woken up.
She hadn’t slept at all last night due to thinking about the contract. Staying up all night was exhausting, and even though she slept the whole day today, she still hadn’t fully recovered her energy.
She had plans to meet Qi Linsheng tonight. After getting up, she took a shower, applied a face mask, and spent a long time doing her makeup to conceal her dark circles.
After applying lipstick, she picked up her phone and called Zhao Yihan to tell her about the decision she had thought about all night with her so-called sister.
She could hide it from her parents, but the one person she didn’t want to keep it from was Zhao Yihan.
After listening to all the details of the contract, Zhao Yihan stopped what she was doing and remained silent for half a minute.
“As long as you don’t regret it.”
There was a brief pause.
“Worst case scenario, if you get dumped, I’ll come to Beijing and bring you back.”
Wei Lai laughed, feeling a pang in her heart. She had thought Zhao Yihan would scold her for being crazy and irrational.
She reassured Zhao Yihan, “It’s not like I’m really dating him. Even if it comes to the ‘breakup’ day, it won’t be as painful as last time. Besides, I’m not going to Beijing; I’m staying in Jiang City.”
The feelings of sadness were often beyond one’s control. Zhao Yihan: “Two years isn’t two days. As people spend more and more time with each other, it’s hard to distinguish between what’s genuine or acting.”
After a pause, she continued, “Anyway, since you’ve already made up your mind, enjoy yourself while you can.”
Wei Lai: “….”
“I heard from my mom that you’re working at the supermarket now?” Zhao Yihan changed the subject.
“En. If you have time, come visit me.” It wasn’t just polite words. Wei Lai genuinely hoped Zhao Yihan would come over to visit someday.
They chatted about this and that for a few more minutes before hanging up.
She pulled open the curtains in the room, and dusk had already fallen. It was almost 7 p.m. Zhou Sujin should be done with work by now.
“President Zhou, I’ve decided to accept your contract.“
Shortly after, Zhou Sujin called. “Why didn’t you say so earlier? I just finished my blind date.”
Through the phone, Wei Lai could hear the server saying, “Please take care, come again.” It felt like something pricked her heart.
“You didn’t tell me you had a blind date today.”
“En.” Zhou Sujin got into the car and absentmindedly rolled down the window. “Whether I told you or not didn’t matter. If I did, it might seem like I was trying to provoke a reaction.”
Wei Lai was silent for a moment. “Is it too late now?”
Zhou Sujin: “Not too late. If you had replied to me earlier, I wouldn’t have had to go on this date.” It was just an extra meal to deal with; it didn’t matter.
He added, “Are you sure about being with me for two years?”
Wei Lai: “I’m sure.”
