The company's annual gala announced a new rule: employees are allowed to bring a plus-one. I blurted out without thinking, "Can I bring someone else's husband?" My colleagues stared at me, eyes wide as saucers. Our boss snapped the fountain pen in his hand, sneering, "Sure, go ahead and try." I immediately, joyfully, texted my dad. "Dad! Tell Mom not to cook tonight! Hurry up and come get some free food!" 1 With the end of the year approaching, we had finally wrapped up a notoriously difficult case. Our boss, the modern-day Scrooge, showed unexpected mercy and announced that we could bring a plus-one to tonight's annual gala. "Holy crap, why didn't you say so earlier?!" My colleagues cheered, springing into action, calling and texting their significant others. As the only single person in the department... I weakly raised my hand: "Excuse me, can I bring someone else's husband?" The moment the words left my mouth, the room fell dead silent. My colleagues looked like meerkats popping out of their holes, their eyes perfectly round. "Holy crap, is she really saying that out loud?" "Chloe, you're usually so quiet, I would have never guessed..." They exchanged shocked glances, then quickly lowered their heads and started typing furiously on their keyboards, completely ignoring my question. The department manager wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead, leaned in close to me, and lowered his voice. "Chloe, theoretically, you can bring whoever you want. But if you actually bring him, it's not going to look good..." ? I scratched my head. Why wouldn't it look good? I'm just bringing my dad to dinner, what's the big deal? Sure, my dad can eat a lot, but it's not like he's going to eat the company into bankruptcy. I was just about to press the issue. When a sinister voice sounded from behind me. "Chloe Davis, you're really something. You've hidden it better than anyone." 2 The man standing in the doorway, dressed in a sharp suit, held a fountain pen snapped cleanly in two. Ink dripped steadily onto the floor, making his handsome face look even darker. "M-Mr. Sterling, what brings you here..." "Good thing you came, otherwise we wouldn't have known we had such a wild card in the company..." The manager smiled obsequiously, "Please, don't say that. Chloe is definitely just confused right now. I've already talked to her, she absolutely won't bring him to the gala..." "Bring him! Why shouldn't she?" "Bring him out and let us see what he's made of. Let's see what you're really capable of." "Am I right, Chloe Davis?" After all these years, Arthur Sterling's meanness had only increased, not decreased. But that was fine. I had also evolved into a thorny black rose. I forced a smile and shot back without missing a beat. "Of course, I will definitely bring him." "I need to show some ignorant people who the true father figure in my heart is!" The manager's face went from white to green, green to red, and red to purple, looking as spectacular as a spilled palette. My colleagues remained deathly quiet, looking at me as if I were a valiant warrior. It wasn't anything special, really. The reason I dared to publicly sass the boss wasn't because I was crazy, but because I planned to quit right after the New Year. And the reason for my resignation was the newly parachuted second-in-command of the conglomerate— Arthur Sterling. My lifelong nemesis. 3 Arthur and I were college classmates. He pursued me. After graduation, he went abroad, and we broke up. The last time I saw him was at a class reunion. Our old class president, his face flushed from drinking, emboldened himself and asked: "Arthur, what exactly happened between you and Chloe? You broke up so quietly, there were no warning signs at all..." "Yeah, exactly! You went through so much trouble, giving everyone in the class red envelopes, and you must have spent a fortune transferring to our department. Why did you break up? We were getting ready to attend your wedding!" "What really happened? Tell us the story!" The man put down his glass, scanned the crowd, and said coldly: "She's dead. Didn't you know?" The next second, I pushed the door open and walked in. Under the horrified gazes of everyone present, I nodded: "Pay attention, this woman's name is Xiaomei. Reborn from the ashes, she will take back everything that belongs to her." I will never, ever forget the expression on Arthur's face at that moment. I was so speechless I could have died. I had never seen such a petty man. We broke up, so what? He actually started a rumor that his ex was dead! When the gathering ended, I avoided his burning gaze, turned around, and left without a word. Ridiculous. Does he think I'm still the poor girl who let people push her around? I am this year's poor girl. Poor, but with a spine! When Arthur parachuted into our company, I knew the poor girl's good days were over. And coincidentally, I had hit a bottleneck in my career at this company anyway. So I immediately decided that as soon as I got my year-end bonus, I was jumping ship. As the saying goes, when you want nothing, you fear nothing. He told me not to bring him, so I was definitely going to bring him. I immediately ran outside to make a call. "Dad! You are forbidden from eating lunch today! Keep your stomach empty and come eat my corporate-slave-tears' worth of food tonight!" 4 Because of my heroic deed this morning, no one dared to talk to me all afternoon. I was happy to have the peace and quiet. While slacking off, I scrolled past a forum post. 【URGENT! My first love is degrading herself, becoming the mistress of an old man... and she's planning to bring him to the company gala to show off to me! What should I do?!】 ? Interesting. I rubbed my chin and clicked on it. 【Here's the situation. My first love is a beautiful, kind-hearted girl. Although there's a certain gap in our family backgrounds, I truly loved her. I always thought she left me back then to make a name for herself so she could be with me with peace of mind. But today I found out she's actually degraded herself, becoming the mistress of a married old man... Tonight she's bringing that old geezer to show off to me. Save me, guys, I've been crying non-stop!】 So tragic! The kind-hearted netizens were filled with righteous indignation and flooded the comment section with ideas. 【OP! Do you have a dog at home?】 【You mean I should let the dog bite him?!】 【Don't talk nonsense. We live in a civilized society, biting people is not encouraged. I mean, if you have a Border Collie at home, it might be able to come up with some ideas for you. At least you wouldn't be so lost.】 【OP, do you have toothpaste at home?】 【You mean I should bring it to humiliate him, tell him to brush his stinky old teeth?!】 【No, I'm almost out, I wanted to ask if I could use yours.】 【OP, do you have canola oil at home? Remember, it MUST be canola oil!】 【You mean I should bring it to mock him for being a middle-aged greaseball?!】 【No, canola oil is healthier. I can't get used to other oils.】 ... 【Hahahaha, I'm back. Thank you everyone for the comments, I've read them all! However, I am not the girl in the post, nor the guy in the post. I am myself, and I comment when I want to.】 【I'm a psychology major. In my professional opinion, you must be very anxious in this situation, but please don't be anxious.】 【Don't be sad, OP. Let me comfort you: the youth has the madness of youth, standing tall like mountains and rivers.】 【OP, I know what this is. This is the 'groveling to win her back' trope. First, make an appointment at the hospital for an abortion and put down his phone number. Then, buy a high-speed train ticket and run away. He will then use all his connections in City A to frantically search for you... That's how it's written in novels.】 The comment section was truly a case of "trouble in one place, chaos from all directions." The original poster remained silent for a long time, then replied with a single question mark, looking even more pitiful. I had a moment of weakness. I thought about it and left a comment. 【It's obvious that guy is bad news. He has a family and still comes out to seduce young girls. Even if OP's first love sees reality and leaves this time, who's to say other girls won't be victimized in the future? OP, you seem pretty capable. I suggest you deal with that old man ruthlessly and solve the problem at its root!】 Perhaps because I appeared too normal amidst a sea of abnormal answers. Not long after, the OP added my account and sent me a large private red envelope. 【A true soulmate is hard to find!】 【Tell me, how should I deal with him?】 I clicked open the red envelope. One, two, three, four, five, six... The zeros were dazzling. I gasped and unilaterally declared— From now on, I will become the most loyal strategist for this "Why didn't you tell me earlier" gentleman! 5 Regarding how to "deal" with the old geezer, I offered many constructive suggestions. Including but not limited to— Dropping a diaper and pretending it fell out of his pant leg; loudly asking whose dentures fell into the food; singing "Don't Pick the Wildflowers by the Roadside" or "Perfume is Poison" during the gala performance. The OP was silent for a while. 【...A bit childish. Do you have anything more high-end? I want the kind that kills the heart without shedding blood.】 Yes, boss, I do. I deployed the knowledge I had accumulated over an entire summer. 【Did you know, there's a secret technique to eliminate a romantic rival, and that is—make your rival fall in love with your fierce self!】 【When you and your first love become fans of the same thing, you'll form the deepest bond! You'll have a common language, a common goal, walking hand-in-hand on the path of love, no longer alone. Plus, you can endure the old geezer's bad breath in place of your first love.】 【Once the old geezer falls for you, you hit him with a backhand report and send him behind bars. Not only will it make your first love give up on him, but it will also expose his true colors to his legal wife, and even ruin his descendants' chances of getting government jobs. Three birds with one stone, how about that?】 【That's so wicked... I mean, brilliant.】 【But Master, what if the old guy doesn't like me?】 【Then you prepare a few more attacks, eventually something will hit the spot.】 【Thank you Master, I have reached enlightenment.】 The OP was a quick study and sent another massive red envelope. Playing the strategist for the first time, I stroked my non-existent little goatee, feeling quite satisfied. I clicked to collect the money. And realized that in just one short hour, I had already earned a year's salary. I don't need this crappy job anymore! I finally made it to the end of the workday, went home, and picked up my dad to head to the venue. As soon as he opened the door, I almost didn't recognize him. The little old man had somehow produced a suit, even arranged a wig for himself, wore my mom's thick gold chain around his neck, and pretentiously tucked a briefcase under his arm. "Dad?" "You've been retired for so many years, are you planning a comeback?" When my dad was young, he was a real estate agent (the unsuccessful version). He was clumsy with words, bad at selling, couldn't bring himself to rip people off, and even often paid out of pocket to help poor people who couldn't afford food. This led our family to struggle on the poverty line for years. Used to seeing my parents fight over money, once I got into college, I stopped asking for an allowance and started working part-time as a tutor for kids. Our university was in the suburbs, the environment was nice, and there were many villas nearby. While looking for work, I stumbled upon the biggest one. The first trial lesson. I took a deep breath and opened the door. An oversized child sat at the desk, his peach-blossom eyes curving, shooting me a charming wink. The door I had just opened, I closed again. I turned to leave, but his butler rushed out and stopped me. Crying bitterly, he said his young master was graduating and going abroad, but his English was terrible. They had brought in a bunch of teachers, but only I was left. He begged me to teach him. I shook my head. I am a person of principle. He pulled out a thick stack of cash. My eyes curved into a smile: "You've found the right person." 6 Even though I lived a secluded life, I had still heard of this guy's notorious reputation. Arthur Sterling, the little tyrant of A University. Arrogant, rebellious, with a terrible temper. He had once used his power to bully and bring over a dozen girls to tears. But I wasn't afraid. Because I've heard a saying: a man's psychology is the same as a child's psychology. I was patient, gentle, and spoke nicely. Surprisingly, he behaved himself. During class, he stared at me unblinkingly, very focused. Although his homework assignments always made my vision go dark with errors, at least when I guided him hand-by-hand, he caught on. He was somewhat teachable. I thought to myself quietly, maybe... he wasn't as terrifying as the rumors said. As they say, rumors are fiercer than tigers; maybe he was just slandered. I gradually let my guard down. Until one day, Arthur propped up his chin and asked lazily: "Teacher, do you mind student-teacher relationships?" ... As the saying goes, there's no smoke without fire. Rumors do have some truth to them. He wasn't not messing with me, he just wanted to mess with me in a different way. If I said I didn't mind. My teaching certificate would look at me in disappointment from heaven. If I said I did mind. This high-paying job would melt away like butter. Don't do that, I still needed to save up to buy my mom a thick gold chain! After rapid brainstorming. I sat up straight, looking deeply pained. "Although I am undeniably a peerless beauty who makes fish sink and birds fall, eclipsing the moon and shaming flowers... before you speak, you should consider your status, right? The grand Young Master of the Sterling family, how could you possibly stoop to be with me? Do I deserve it? Can I reach that high? How can a toad like me hope to eat swan meat?!" I spoke with righteous indignation, just short of slapping myself twice. "Ah?" Arthur was stunned. "Sister, why would you talk about yourself like that? I just wanted to..." "Thinking about it is not allowed either! Thinking about it is a crime!" "Alright, considering this is your first offense, I'll let it slide this time. Next time, you are not allowed to take me so seriously, got it?" "Come, look at the problem." After much talking, I finally managed to fool him. I kept this lucrative, low-effort job, silently sticking my tongue out in my mind, celebrating my brilliance. Actually, after spending time with him, I realized Arthur was really good to me. When he saw me gnawing on plain steamed buns at noon, he would pinch his nose and toss me the bird's nest and peach gum stewed with milk that his nanny made. The peach gum was soft and sticky, the bird's nest sweet. After guzzling it for a month, my period cramps disappeared. When he saw static sparks flying from my polyester clothes, he threw me clothes he bought in the wrong size. That pink Hello Kitty collab sweater got me through the entire winter. It was the first time I knew clothes could be both warm and lightweight. Even so, I knew clearly in my heart that Arthur and I belonged to two different worlds. His confession to me. Was probably just a rich boy's fleeting whim. I might as well take it as validation of my charm, smile, and move on. 7 Winter break passed, and my tutoring career finally came to an end. For the last class, Arthur was well-behaved and very calmly said goodbye to me. The heart that had been hanging in suspense finally settled down. The moment I stepped out of the villa, I waved to the man by the terrace, my steps light. Probably. I would never see him again for the rest of my life. The next day in Advanced Calculus, the young master smiled and waved at me: "Sister, what a coincidence." Things got complicated. "Turns out we go to the same university. Looks like we have plenty of time ahead of us." "If you don't agree, it's fine. I brought my tools." ? Was this some trope where the wealthy heir aggressively throws money to pursue love? I was a bit excited, swallowed hard, ready to put up a token resistance before accepting that cold, heavy bank card. But who knew he'd pull out a hemp rope and wrap it around his neck circle by circle. "Sister, if you don't agree, I'll give you my life." ? I always thought "giving your life for liberal arts" was a legend! How did I actually run into it? Who wants a useless thing like that?! That year, a mysterious legend appeared on the campus forum— A handsome guy, suffering too much from studying Advanced Calculus, openly used a swing in the classroom. From then on, the probability of humans being killed by Advanced Calculus was no longer zero. That year, for that class, the professor didn't assign a single homework problem until finals. I guess that was the one good thing Arthur ever did.
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