After walking for half an hour, Huo Junxian drove back, and Teddy was lying on the back seat, getting farther and farther away from the old shabby house.
Gu Siyu returned home with some things and received several messages on her phone. Duan Jiayang sent her an apology, saying she was sorry for losing her temper with her in the car.
Gu Siyu didn't reply to her. Duan Jiayang made a few more calls, but Gu Siyu was in the shower and didn't want to answer the phone.
Their experiences were different. Duan Jiayang had lived a privileged life from childhood, and even if her father treated her poorly, he would never shortchange her. The only time she suffered was when she ran away from home.
She ran away from home with a million dollars in her account, couldn't stand living in He Xiao's small house, and went to stay at a five-star hotel. She couldn't tolerate plain vegetarian food and went to restaurants for five-star meals. In a month, she spent all her money.
On the other hand, He Xiao doted on her, but she wouldn't even spare a glance at Gu Siyu and kicked her out of her house after she stayed for a week.
Gu Siyu felt unhappy, but she didn't say it out loud. She knew Duan Jiayang was a second-generation rich, different from her as a commoner. Duan Jiayang had the right to enjoy life, and she wasn't a good person either; after all, she had made three billion.
After spending an hour on her phone, Gu Siyu finally replied to Duan Jiayang's message.
The conversation was mostly about apologies from Duan Jiayang, and Gu Siyu's response was straightforward, "I've always been like this when I speak. I won't treat you like He Xiao. If you can bear with it, then continue; if we keep arguing and can't get along, it's better to part ways."
Duan Jiayang responded with an "Okay" in a hesitant tone, saying she still wanted to be friends with Gu Siyu and apologized once more.
Gu Siyu wasn't one to apologize easily; it hurt her pride. After a moment of silence, she spoke, "If you can't control your emotions when dealing with money and can't communicate well with others, then don't bother with anything else. Focus on making money."
Gu Siyu herself never actively contacted her friends when she was making money. It wouldn't help, and meeting up would only be for fun, which could burden others and affect her mood.
Duan Jiayang agreed with a subdued voice.
Gu Siyu's personality wasn't great; she was dominant and did things her way, expecting others to listen to her. If they didn't, she would become upset. Duan Jiayang, on the other hand, had been treated like a little princess for too long, so she was used to having others put her first.
They could get along when He Xiao was around, but when she wasn't, they would quarrel endlessly and find everything about each other displeasing.
"I dare you to get a strand of your dad's hair, then get one from your stepsister, and take them for a DNA test. After that, deliberately let your dad find out," Gu Siyu said but then mocked herself in her mind, thinking it was none of her business and she shouldn't interfere in family matters.
Duan Jiayang didn't quite understand, "But I'm sure I'm his biological daughter, and my stepsister definitely isn't."
Gu Siyu coldly snorted, "Since it's something everyone knows, why does your dad treat you like that? Hm, your biological daughter doubting her own parentage because of her father's favoritism, and going for a DNA test. Is that story too far-fetched?"
"Definitely far-fetched," Duan Jiayang suddenly realized, "I understand now. Thank you, Siyu."
Gu Siyu added, "But don't let your dad know when you do the test. If it turns out your stepsister is your dad's biological child, you'll be in trouble."
"I know."
After the conversation, Duan Jiayang sighed and realized many things, admitting that she was too impatient and lost herself in making money.
Gu Siyu reminded her one last time, "Tone down your superiority complex. If your stepsister can achieve that level, she probably has no shame. When shamelessness reaches a certain point, it becomes a skill, and others will praise you for it."
With that, she hung up the phone.
Whether Duan Jiayang listened or not, Gu Siyu said all she had to say.
It was still early, and Gu Siyu couldn't sleep. She sat on the bed with the air conditioning on, playing with her phone, and thinking back to the time she made money. At first, she was quite humble and eager to please Huo Junxian. She even jumped down from the balcony to please that woman. The only thing she didn't do was send a message saying, "Darling, have you eaten? Have you slept? I can't sleep because I miss you so much."
If it weren't for You Wanyue's appearance in the middle, Gu Siyu could have easily earned three billion. She couldn't figure out how it happened that she got entangled with Huo Junxian and felt like she was being led around.
It felt like she was too greedy.
Failing to sort this out, Gu Siyu couldn't sleep all night, and she was still excited around three or four in the morning. She scrolled through her phone, and when she tried to exit, she saw a recommendation for selling dog puppies called "Bichon Frise," which looked quite similar to Huo Junxian's silly dog.
Gu Siyu checked Huo Junxian's moments on social media and carefully compared the photos. She noticed a difference: the Bichon Frise had a rounder and slightly plumper head compared to Teddy.
Hmm, why did that silly dog still look quite cute?
·
The next day, Gu Siyu was awakened by the ringing of her phone.
The ringing sound pulled her from her sleep, and maybe it was the aftermath of chatting with Huo Junxian yesterday, she had a strange dream.
In the dream, she was lying on the bed, and people came one after another to her side. She was bound and couldn't struggle, while these people watched her, shaking their heads and making various comments.
The bedside was covered in dim red light, reminiscent of the scenes from old-fashioned movies.
This phone call disturbed Gu Siyu from her dream, and she didn't feel grateful; instead, she felt annoyed and had a headache.
"Do you want to...?" the voice on the other end of the phone was gentle and pleasant, like feathers brushing against her ears, giving her a ticklish feeling.
Then there was a pause, and Huo Junxian asked, "Did I... disturb you?"
Gu Siyu sighed, feeling irritable and not fully awake, "No."
"Then where are you right now..."
Gu Siyu propped herself up on the bed, "What do you think?"
Gu Siyu didn't intend to flirt with her intentionally; she just couldn't control her thoughts after being awakened. She looked at the time and found it was already half past ten. No wonder time felt like it passed quickly; she had an irregular sleep schedule, and when she woke up, half of the day had already gone.
There was no sound from the other end. Gu Siyu looked back and realized that the call hadn't been hung up. Honestly, Huo Junxian's behavior was irritating when she was not in a clear state of mind.
Gu Siyu said, "What's the matter? Why are you calling me so early?"
"Hmm?" Huo Junxian responded a bit slowly and asked, "Did I offend you again?"
The use of "again" was quite clever, and Gu Siyu was taken aback. Did she give her such a bad impression?
Thinking about it made her headache even worse.
Gu Siyu closed her eyes and took a moment to calm down before saying, "Can't it be that I wanted to check your moments, saw some nice pictures you posted, thought you were great, and gave you a like?"
"Ah... I see," Huo Junxian realized, her voice carrying a hint of amusement.
Gu Siyu hung up the phone, got out of bed, and found clean clothes to take a shower.
She had just lied to Huo Junxian; she hadn't done anything to herself.
Propping her hand against the wall, Gu Siyu squeezed shower gel into her hand, starting from her neck and rubbing it in. The foam covered her in white bubbles, and she saw her reflection in the mirror.
Ah.
Her gloomy appearance made her look at herself in shock.
After putting on her clothes and returning to the room, Gu Siyu lay down for a while. The dream she had was slowly emerging in her mind, and she thought about calling Huo Junxian to do something intense with her, to dispel that dream.
She picked up her phone, ready to make a call, but then hesitated and put it back down.
Gu Siyu slept for forty minutes, finally suppressing her mixed feelings. She hadn't stayed here for a long time, and the house had only two packets of instant noodles left. Gu Siyu casually made some by pouring hot water over them and waited for the noodles to soften before eating. Holding her phone, she checked Huo Junxian's moments. Yesterday, she saw Huo Junxian's post of a LEGO set, forming a rose, and while she was looking at it, she paused for a while before giving it a like.
Huo Junxian sent a message: "Are you okay?"
Gu Siyu hesitated for a moment whether to reply or not. When she was enjoying herself in the bathroom earlier, she remembered something. It seemed like she had done something many times with Huo Junxian, and each time she ended up exhausted but still unsatisfied.
Were they too close?
Gu Siyu felt that she needed to break away and keep some distance from her. They couldn't continue like this every day.
After finishing the instant noodles and washing the bowl, just when she was about to reply to Huo Junxian's message, she received a message from a friend at the racetrack.
Dai Shuyi: "Siyu, do you have time? There's a car here that I can't handle. Can you come and help? The boss said if we can fix it, we'll get a thousand bucks. Can you come over and take a look?"
With the three billion she had, the interest alone for a day was more than a thousand bucks. In truth, Gu Siyu wasn't interested, but with nothing else to do at home, she replied with a "Sure."
Dai Shuyi called Gu Siyu, who put the phone on speaker and searched through boxes and cupboards to find the car keys. It then occurred to her that when Huo Junxian took her to the hospital, she couldn't drive, so she had given the motorcycle and car keys to Chen Tao.
The problem was, she didn't have Chen Tao's phone number. If she wanted to get her car back, she had to call Huo Junxian. She clicked her tongue in annoyance.
Dai Shuyi asked, "Do you know the place? Should I send someone to pick you up?"
"I'll take a taxi over, and the boss can reimburse the fare."
"Ok, take care."
Gu Siyu closed the nearby drawer, took out the gold and silver from the bottom drawer, and inspected them. They were all stacked together and quite heavy; she estimated it was worth several hundred thousand yuan.
The place wasn't far from here, and she could get a taxi in about ten minutes. When she arrived, she saw Dai Shuyi standing at the door.
"The client is waiting here," Dai Shuyi waved her hand and whispered, "It's a new car that the big boss just got a few days ago. I don't know what happened, but it got totaled. Still, the boss insists on having it fixed today."
Gu Siyu checked the car, and it was indeed in a terrible state, with the handlebars completely destroyed, and the front of the car dented in. She asked, "Was it in an accident?"
"Who knows? There hasn't been any news of an accident recently. Most likely some rich person playing around, treating it like a toy."
"Give me the toolbox."
Dai Shuyi brought over the toolbox and handed her a set of work clothes. Gu Siyu wasn't boasting; she had to repair and modify cars frequently when she was racing, and the prices were high. She couldn't afford it, so she learned on her own. She suffered many losses at the beginning, but later, she read some books and became a top expert in the field.
After a thorough inspection, Gu Siyu asked, "With it in this state, why not just buy a new one? It's not a limited edition or anything."
"Who knows? Can you fix it?"
Gu Siyu nodded, "You go and order a new one. I'll replace the front part of the new car."
"Really?"
"Why not? It's beyond repair like this. After fixing it multiple times, it will cost more than a motorcycle. What's the point? If you really like it, then why did you put so much effort into crashing it?"
Dai Shuyi went to talk to the boss, and Gu Siyu took off the front part of the motorcycle and held the tire in her arms, but she was met with a scrutinizing gaze.
The other person wore a gray suit, with sharp eyebrows and a face not quite like the current trend of masculine looks, but more like the internet-famous fresh meat. With one hand in his pocket, he looked at Gu Siyu with a cold expression.
Gu Siyu felt like she had seen him somewhere before, "Is this your car?"
The man nodded, and she suggested, "Either don't repair it or replace the front part. If you don't mind, I can make it look old."
"Fine," the man replied, his voice cold and slightly hoarse, with a magnetic quality, like a smoky voice.
Gu Siyu said, "It will cost extra."
"Add as much as you want."
"Do we know each other from somewhere?"
The man didn't answer. Dai Shuyi pushed a new motorcycle over, and seeing a new bike being used to fix an old one was painful to watch. Gu Siyu didn't like working in the shop, where the lights strained her eyes. She called the workers over to move the car to the door where they could work under the sunlight.
Rich people's tricks were to casually waste things. If Gu Siyu had known it would be like this, she wouldn't have come.
While working, Gu Siyu noticed the man had been looking at her. Holding a wrench, she sat on a small stool and looked back at him. He said, "My wife crashed the car."
"Your wife is quite reckless," Gu Siyu remarked.
He hummed, "She doesn't understand cars, but she imitates others and drives recklessly."
Midway through the repair, Dai Shuyi came to give Gu Siyu some water. Unable to stay idle, Dai Shuyi whispered in Gu Siyu's ear, "A beautiful woman just arrived."
Gu Siyu wasn't interested in the beautiful woman, as she herself was beautiful. While drinking water, she glanced outside and asked, "Was that man's wife?"
"No, his wife came when they picked up the car. She's quite beautiful but has a temper, and I don't like her at all," Dai Shuyi complained softly, "She orders people around and speaks loudly."
With the hot summer weather, Gu Siyu sweated while working on the technical job. She was about to take out a tissue to wipe her hands when she saw they were all black, so she directly wiped them on her sleeve.
At that moment, she heard a bark.
"Damn," Gu Siyu quickly stopped her movements, not even raising her head, and asked, "How did you come here?"
"Wang."
The sunlight outside was dazzling, and Huo Junxian's dog was squatting at the door, the handsome and silly white dog.
The silly dog stuck out its tongue and wore a sun hat on its head, appearing both foolish and cute.
"Where's your mom?" Gu Siyu asked the dog.
The dog barked twice and turned to look to the left, indicating that its mom was there. Gu Siyu followed the direction but didn't see anyone.
Gu Siyu put the tools aside, took off her gloves, and opened the glass door. Huo Junxian wore a yellow fisherman's hat, which covered most of her face. She was talking to the man they met earlier.
Did the two of them know each other?
No wonder he seemed so familiar.
Damn it.
Wasn't this man You Wanyue's husband?
"Go call your mom," Gu Siyu instructed the Teddy.
The Teddy obediently ran over and bit Huo Junxian's leg. Huo Junxian wore a white warm dress. When Teddy bit her leg, she squatted down to pick it up, then stood up and continued talking to the man.
It wasn't until Teddy barked again that she turned her head, looking surprised, and asked, "You... what are you doing here?"
"Working."
Huo Junxian was momentarily stunned. It was unusual to hear such words coming from Gu Siyu's mouth, "Are you planning to work here?"
Gu Siyu smiled, "Of course not."
Huo Junxian looked puzzled.
"I plan to modify motorcycles. I used to modify my own cars before. I'm thinking of opening a customization shop. I'll try my hand here first, and then we can discuss a partnership to open a shop together."
"Who will you partner with?"
Gu Siyu had someone in mind and twiddled her fingers, looking at Huo Junxian, "You're talking a lot today. Why are you so concerned about me?"
"He Xiao?"
"?" Gu Siyu said, "It's You."
That day at the restaurant, after having dinner, He Xiao chatted with Gu Siyu for a while, discussing their life ideals and what she planned to do in the future. Life was long, and she was only twenty-three years old. In the next twenty or thirty years, she might find it boring to do nothing every day. Maybe she could find a light job to pass the time, something she liked, and if she didn't, she could just quit and find another boss.
At the time, Gu Siyu thought He Xiao was talking too much and didn't pay much attention. However, after spending two weeks in the hospital, she suddenly felt that there was some truth to it. The future days seemed as boring as being in the hospital all the time. It would be torture not to find something to do.
"And you, what are you doing here?" Gu Siyu asked.
Huo Junxian replied, "Repairing cars."
Gu Siyu looked towards the back and saw a car driving further inside. She remembered this car; she and Huo Junxian had been in there together before.
"What's wrong with it?" she asked.
Teddy barked, "Wang!"
Huo Junxian said, "I'm not sure. It's still under inspection."
As they chatted, a shop employee came out, smiling, and invited Huo Junxian into the store. They also asked Gu Siyu if she wanted some water.
Huo Junxian was about to enter the store when she turned her head and said to Gu Siyu, "You keep working; I'll go inside."
Gu Siyu continued to repair the car, but she was in a bad mood and couldn't focus on her work. She glanced at the car, feeling even more annoyed.
Teddy sneaked in and crouched beside the motorcycle, watching it, and then looked at Gu Siyu.
Gu Siyu scolded it, "What are you looking at?"
Teddy stuck out its tongue, looking somewhat cute. Seeing no one outside, Gu Siyu reached out and patted its face. Unfortunately, her hands were oily and accidentally smeared Teddy's fur.
The once-white fur turned black in an instant. Teddy didn't understand what had happened, but it tilted its head and smiled at Gu Siyu.
Gu Siyu grabbed a tissue and dampened it to clean Teddy's fur, but it stuck together and got even dirtier. Gu Siyu wondered how to clean it properly.
"Such a fool," Gu Siyu grumbled. There were no tools around to clean it properly. Helpless, she held her palm and wondered what to do next. Teddy rested its chin on her palm in a cute manner, which was quite endearing.
Then, Gu Siyu rubbed its head.
In an instant, its head and chin became unrecognizable.
"Damn it."
This time, she didn't know whom to blame.
Both she and the dog completely fell into a reflexive mode. When Huo Junxian always opened her palm, Teddy would rush over and put its chin on it, and Huo Junxian would pat its head, calling it a good dog.
Looking at it, Gu Siyu did the same. She complained, "Why are you so silly, resting your head there as if your mom won't scold me..."
Repair the car? Bullshit!
Gu Siyu threw the wrench aside.
She didn't want to admit it, but she really wanted to say that this feeling, after careful consideration, was just like a wife going out to cheat and getting caught by the other woman, then the wife herself driving there to catch the cheater.
Afterward, the wife didn't secure the child properly, so she got hit and came back to be beaten by the other woman.
As she was thinking, footsteps approached, and Teddy's ears moved. It rolled around, making its back all dirty, and then crawled behind Gu Siyu, hiding securely.
This was too fast; she didn't even have time to react. Gu Siyu looked up and met Huo Junxian's anxious gaze. Huo Junxian asked, "Have you seen my dog?"
Although, Gu Siyu felt it was suspicious, like a setup...
"I didn't see it."
--------------------------
Translator's note: Hahaha... Liar.
TO BE CONTINUE...