Heartthrob, Your Image is Crumbling!

Chapter 541: It's Not That I Don't Like You, It's That I Like You Too Much

Zhou Yuwen could actually tell that Jiang Xinyi still had lingering feelings for him. It was unobjectionable for her to try various methods to attract his attention, but to his surprise, this time she claimed she had business to do with him.This took Zhou Yuwen somewhat by surprise.

He was genuinely curious to see what kind of business it was.

Seeing Zhou Yuwen's rare expression of interest, Jiang Xinyi felt quite pleased with herself. "I heard what you said to that man just now," she stated. "You want to construct an office building near the Olympic Sports Center, right?"

Zhou Yuwen nodded, confirming that it was true.

"What, does your family happen to own a piece of land near the Olympic Sports Center?"

Saying this, Zhou Yuwen actually felt a hint of expectation. After all, everyone knew the Jiang Family Estate was an established, old-money household in Jinling. If they really had a plot of land there, things would be much easier for him.

Unfortunately, Jiang Xinyi merely shook her head and smiled. "Of course not."

"..."

"If you don't, then what business do you want to do with me?" Zhou Yuwen asked, feeling somewhat disappointed.

Jiang Xinyi explained that if he wanted to construct an office building, he would definitely need to partner with a construction company. Heartjoy Real Estate had its own engineering team and possessed multiple construction qualifications. Furthermore, their real estate company had been established for twenty-five years and held a solid reputation throughout Jinling City.

"Since you have to find a construction team anyway, why not choose one you are familiar with?"

As she spoke, Jiang Xinyi handed over her business card.

The business card read: General Manager of Heartjoy Real Estate — Jiang Xinyi.

Looking at her again, Zhou Yuwen saw her in high spirits, flashing him a confident smile.

'I sought him out this time not because I still have feelings for him, but strictly for business,' Jiang Xinyi thought to herself.

As a professional woman, she reminded herself that she shouldn't dwell on past romance and should prioritize her business instead.

Zhou Yuwen stared at the offered business card for a long moment before replying, "But I'm not familiar with your engineering team at all. In fact, I've never even heard of them."

"You might not have heard of the team's name, but surely you can trust me!" Jiang Xinyi said with a smile. 'Everything I am doing right now is for the sake of business,' she thought. 'Otherwise, I wouldn't waste so much breath talking to him.'

However, Zhou Yuwen made no move to take the business card for quite some time. His expression seemed less than friendly, even giving off a sense of disdain.

This caused the muscles in Jiang Xinyi's perpetually smiling face to stiffen. Yet, in order to maintain her persona as a strong woman entirely focused on business, she couldn't bring herself to change the subject.

Feeling her facial muscles growing increasingly sore, Jiang Xinyi was on the verge of dropping her facade.

The person accompanying Zhou Yuwen on this outing was Li Shiqi, who had only recently become his secretary. She had been in the back with the organizers collecting Zhou Yuwen's medal. After finally finishing up those trivial tasks, she walked over only to discover that Zhou Yuwen was actually with Jiang Xinyi.

Li Shiqi didn't say much. She simply walked up to Zhou Yuwen in silence and announced that she was done with her tasks.

Jiang Xinyi was somewhat surprised to see Li Shiqi following by Zhou Yuwen's side. Her gaze toward Zhou Yuwen instantly took on a hint of resentment, as if asking, 'Are you really dating her?'

Zhou Yuwen, however, turned a blind eye to the resentment, ultimately sighing as he accepted Jiang Xinyi's business card. "I haven't introduced you yet," he said.

"This is your fellow alumna, Li Shiqi. Come to think of it, you two have met before. She is now my executive secretary. The office building project will definitely be open for public bidding. If your company is interested, you can send me an information packet first. Go ahead and add Shiqi's contact information."

As he spoke, Zhou Yuwen gave Li Shiqi a signaling look. Li Shiqi was the type of girl who clearly separated personal matters from professional duties, so even if she and Jiang Xinyi had some unpleasant interactions in the past, she didn't let it show.

Right now, she obediently followed Zhou Yuwen's instructions, simply replying, "Understood."

She then took out her phone and said, "President Jiang, let's add each other on WeChat."

Jiang Xinyi cast a doubtful look at Zhou Yuwen, then glanced at Li Shiqi. Ultimately, she added Li Shiqi's WeChat, but couldn't resist asking, "Are you President Zhou's executive secretary now?"

Li Shiqi nodded. "Yes. If you have any questions, President Jiang, you can contact me."

"Are you just President Zhou's executive secretary?" Jiang Xinyi quickly pressed.

"..." That single question caught Li Shiqi off guard. She looked up at Zhou Yuwen.

Jiang Xinyi also looked toward Zhou Yuwen, her eyes full of expectation. Unfortunately for her, Zhou Yuwen didn't leave any room for ambiguity on this matter. He stated plainly, "Shiqi is also my girlfriend."

In an instant, Jiang Xinyi's eyes reddened again, and her gaze toward Zhou Yuwen turned even more resentful.

Zhou Yuwen acted as if he didn't see it. He simply gave Jiang Xinyi a curt nod and led Li Shiqi away.

Because he was attending a formal event today, Zhou Yuwen had come fully prepared, bringing both his driver and secretary. Li Shiqi was even dressed in professional attire. Although she was a sophomore year student, wearing a black suit skirt set made her look a bit youthful, yet it also gave her an alluringly mature, slightly vulnerable vibe that made one want to tease her.

After getting into the car, both Zhou Yuwen and Li Shiqi sat in the back seat.

The driver drove them away from the venue.

Zhou Yuwen told Li Shiqi that once Jiang Xinyi sent the information over, she should review it carefully, then find a third-party company to verify their qualifications. If there were no issues, she was to contact them and finalize the collaboration details.

"Don't we need to find a few more companies to compare?" Li Shiqi asked.

Zhou Yuwen replied that it wasn't necessary.

"If she really wants to achieve something, it's only right that I help her out."

After all, she was his ex-girlfriend. Zhou Yuwen wasn't as insensitive as he appeared on the surface. He and Jiang Xinyi hadn't been suitable for each other in the past, and now that there were more and more women around him, they were definitely even less suited for one another.

When it came down to it, his past relationship with Jiang Xinyi was ultimately his own fault.

If there was an opportunity to make it up to her, that would naturally be for the best.

Zhou Yuwen shifted his position in the back seat, simply resting his head on Li Shiqi's lap and closing his eyes to rest for a while. When he lay down, Li Shiqi's thighs tensed up, afraid that if she moved even slightly, it would make him uncomfortable.

Zhou Yuwen told her there was no need to be so nervous.

"I'm just going to lie here for a bit."

Li Shiqi thought for a moment, then reached out and began massaging Zhou Yuwen's temples of the head. "Are you very tired?" she asked gently.

"I'm alright."

"How about I give you a proper massage later?"

Li Shiqi said this with a probing, tentative tone.

Zhou Yuwen opened his eyes and looked at her testing gaze.

"Let's save it for another day," Zhou Yuwen said. "Don't you have classes tomorrow morning?"

Hearing this, Li Shiqi felt a bit disappointed. Zhou Yuwen patted her calf and teased with a smile, "Are you that eager for me to devour you?"

"No..." Li Shiqi replied weakly.

Zhou Yuwen said, "There's no rush. If love between two people is meant to last forever, why do they need to be together every single moment?"

Li Shiqi remained silent.

At this point, Zhou Yuwen and Li Shiqi had been together for almost two months. However, aside from the night of the confession when they shared a bit of intimacy, there hadn't been a single breakthrough during the rest of their time together.

It wasn't that Li Shiqi was unwilling, but rather that Zhou Yuwen had never brought it up once. No matter what, Li Shiqi was still a young girl and was bound to be somewhat shy. She actually really wanted to take that step with Zhou Yuwen. After all, Shen Yu, who had started around the same time as her, had probably slept with him countless times already.

She had always been entirely on her own. After joining the company, she realized she was surrounded by formidable rivals, and everyone had their own little cliques. There was Shen Yu, not to mention Lu Lin and Zheng Yanyan, and even Tao Tian and her group.

Yet here she was, not even considered someone who shared Zhou Yuwen's bed.

It was only natural that she lacked a sense of security.

Mainly, she just couldn't quite understand it.

After the car arrived at Jinling University, Zhou Yuwen mentioned that he was still hungry. He told the driver to wait by the roadside while he took Li Shiqi to the snack street to get some food.

Although the street food on the snack street wasn't the most hygienic, the spicy and numbing flavors were truly appetizing. Things like teppanyaki squid and spicy stinky tofu could make anyone's mouth water with just one bite. In the past, Li Shiqi rarely ate these street-side delicacies to save money. But ever since getting together with Zhou Yuwen, they almost always grabbed a bite here after returning from work.

Today, however, Li Shiqi seemed to have no appetite at all.

Seeing that Li Shiqi was absent-minded, Zhou Yuwen asked her what was wrong.

"Are you feeling unwell?"

Li Shiqi shook her head, looking rather lethargic.

Seeing her like this, Zhou Yuwen didn't press the issue. He bought two cups of milk tea, held her hand, and the two of them strolled through the Jinling University campus like any ordinary couple.

Time flies quickly. In the blink of an eye, it was almost Christmas. The Jinling University campus was filled with a festive atmosphere. Whether on the main roads or small pathways, one could always spot couples in twos and threes chatting and laughing.

Even when they arrived downstairs at the girls' dormitory, they could still see quite a few couples pressed against the walls, wrapped up in sweet romance.

Li Shiqi's mood remained low, making it obvious that something was weighing heavily on her mind.

When Zhou Yuwen walked Li Shiqi downstairs to the girls' dormitory, he noticed many boys whispering sweet nothings to their girlfriends. Zhou Yuwen reached over and helped Li Shiqi fasten two unbuttoned buttons on her clothes, then told her, "The weather got colder, remember to wear more clothes from now on."

Gazing at the gentle Zhou Yuwen before her, Li Shiqi showed a moment of hesitation before asking, "Can I... ask you a question?"

"Go ahead," Zhou Yuwen replied, slightly puzzled.

Li Shiqi still hesitated, but eventually, she asked, "Do you like me?"

Zhou Yuwen found the question somewhat amusing. "What kind of question is that? Of course I like you."

Li Shiqi replied, "But then why don't you have any..."

At this point, she felt deeply embarrassed. However, these questions had been bottled up in her heart for a very long time. If she didn't clear the air, she felt she wouldn't even be capable of sleeping.

It was that she felt Zhou Yuwen lacked the kind of desire for her that other boys had for girls...

Other girls' boyfriends wished they could spend twenty-five hours a day with their girlfriends. They were always looking for excuses to kiss them and constantly trying to get into their pants.

Yet every time Zhou Yuwen was with her, he acted like a perfect gentleman.

Li Shiqi didn't understand it at all.

She voiced her doubts to Zhou Yuwen, which made him chuckle. "Is not touching you really a sign that I don't like you?" he asked.

Li Shiqi lowered her head and remained silent. She simply couldn't comprehend it.

Zhou Yuwen took her hand in his. He explained that refraining from touching her wasn't an indication of dislike, but rather proof that he cared about her too much.

"Ultimately, I'm different from other boys. I'm a terrible guy, so I'm terrified that one day you'll regret it. Just like right now..."

"I won't regret it," Li Shiqi stated firmly before he could even finish his sentence.

Zhou Yuwen saw the unwavering resolve in her eyes and replied, "I know you won't. What I mean is, we shouldn't rush. Let's take it slowly and let our feelings flow like a long, steady stream. Haven't we been too busy lately? When we have more time in the future, everything will unfold naturally."

Obviously, his explanation lacked any real persuasive power.

As a simple young girl who had never dated before, Li Shiqi merely concluded that she lacked charm, or that Zhou Yuwen simply didn't like her.

Watching her look as if she were about to cry, Zhou Yuwen pondered for a moment before suggesting, "How about this."

"Isn't the New Year coming up soon? How about you come to my house to celebrate it this year?"

"?" Li Shiqi froze, staring at Zhou Yuwen in disbelief.

Zhou Yuwen nodded with a smile. "I should be able to stay home a bit longer this year. When the time comes, I'll drive you to the city to hang out for a couple of days. That should make up for it, right?"

"Hang out for a couple of days?" Li Shiqi asked.

"Yeah."

Li Shiqi thought about it and suddenly grew a bit embarrassed. Smiling shyly, she murmured, "Doesn't that mean we'll have to spend the night outside?"

"That's right. Are you unwilling?" Zhou Yuwen teased.

"No..." Li Shiqi chuckled softly, keeping her head lowered.

Seeing her adorable reaction, Zhou Yuwen couldn't help but laugh as well. Without hesitating, he leaned down and planted a kiss on her cheek.

"Then it's a promise," he declared. "Go on inside."

Having just been kissed by Zhou Yuwen, Li Shiqi was overwhelmingly bashful, terrified that someone she knew might have seen them. But upon realizing there were no familiar faces around, she ironically felt a slight pang of disappointment. She gazed at Zhou Yuwen's doting smile and, despite her reluctance to leave, eventually nodded. "I'll go in then."

"Mm."

As one of Jinling City's Top Ten Outstanding Young Entrepreneurs, and the one whose hands had incubated an incredibly popular project like the Shared Bicycle Project, wanting a piece of land near the Olympic Sports Center to build an office building was no difficult task. Furthermore, Jinling City genuinely wanted to retain a talent like Zhou Yuwen.

And so, in early December, the front-page news of the Jinling Commercial Daily announced that business prodigy Zhou Yuwen had successfully bid an astronomical 1.32 billion yuan for the Hexi South G13 plot near the Olympic Sports Center.

When the news broke, the entire Jinling business circle was shaken.

There were many companies that bid on land, but linking a land auction to Zhou Yuwen's name took everyone by surprise.

Wasn't Zhou Yuwen just that kid who went to America to trade stocks before he was even twenty years old?

How long had it been? How was he suddenly getting involved in the land bidding business?

And to think he even claimed he was going to build a commercial building that would serve as a landmark in Jinling!

Seriously, everyone recognized all the words in this news report, so why did stringing them together feel so entirely unfathomable?