Chapter 167: Dating Is Your Own Business
SMACK—
In the boxing ring, Ye Fuli unleashed a powerful punch at Zhao Mengde.
Having sparred with him before, she knew his movements inside out. Now, in this exchange, Zhao Mengde stood to gain nothing.
"Is this how you handle things?"
The violent emotions Ye Fuli had painstakingly suppressed found their rightful release in that moment.
Zhao Mengde, reeling from the blow, inwardly cursed his misfortune.
What kind of nonsense was this!
Why was he getting beaten up while others were dating?
"Enough! Ye Fuli, enough! I'm doing my best here!"
"Hey, stop hitting me!"
"If you hurt me, just wait till I tell Ye Zhen!"
That threat proved effective.
Ye Fuli did indeed stop landing lethal blows, but the look in her eyes grew even more sinister: "You dare threaten me?"
Zhao Mengde snorted. "Don't think I'm stupid! Don't you think I know who you're working so hard to play the good girl for?"
This hit Ye Fuli right where it hurt.
A flicker of emotion finally flickered across Ye Fuli's cold, emotionless face.
"Truth be told, I do admire you, Ye Fuli."
Seizing the opening, Zhao Mengde swiftly rolled off the platform, panting heavily.
"Suppressing one's true nature is an incredibly difficult and painful endeavor! I admit, I could never change my bloodthirsty, murderous nature for love the way you have…"
Standing atop the platform, Ye Fuli fell silent and slowly crouched down.
She knew it was difficult. She knew it was painful.
But she had proven to herself countless times that giving up Ye Zhen was harder and more painful than suppressing her own nature.
She could not abandon Ye Zhen.
That was the sole meaning of her existence.
"Give this to Ye Zhen."
After stepping down from the stage, Ye Fuli opened the backpack she carried with her, took out the neatly folded stars and origami cranes, and handed them to Zhao Mengde.
"Don't tell her I came, but you must tell her I made these with my own hands."
Before she could finish, Zhao Mengde shoved the items back into her hands.
Facing Ye Fuli's murderous glare, Zhao Mengde declared earnestly, "Your love life is your own business. It's nobody else's concern. I'm not your messenger pigeon!"
"I'll pay you."
Zhao Mengde: "…How much?"
"Five thousand for this trip."
Zhao Mengde sucked in a sharp breath.
She glared at him with a look of bitter resentment, watching this emotionless man pull out money to buy her off.
Damn capitalist!
"Ye Fuli! You…"
"Add another thousand."
"Ye Fuli! You…"
"Add another five hundred."
As Yefuri raised her bid, she counted out the money and placed it in Zhao Mengde's hand.
Along with the money, she handed over the stars and origami cranes she'd stayed up all night folding.
"Do your best." Ye Fuli twisted her lips into a sinister smile. "Miss Zhao Mengde."
……
……
At that moment.
Ye Zhen had just secured the company premises with Senior Liu and her game development team.
"Whatever you need, just give me a call. Whether it's personnel or equipment, I'll do my best to accommodate you."
Ye Zhen looked at Senior Liu, whose eyes were brimming with tears.
"Do your best. I believe your dreams will shine brightly."
Her affirmation moved the team members, who had worked tirelessly for four years, to tears of gratitude.
During their partnership discussions with Ye Zhen, none of them had imagined she would offer such unwavering support—investing tens of millions without hesitation!
"We'll work hard to make sure Loli Boss doesn't lose money."
The nickname "Loli Boss" made Ye Zhen clear her throat twice. "Call me Boss Ye."
"Yes, Boss Ye!"
After bidding them a temporary farewell, Ye Zhen promptly posted job advertisements. She needed everything from front desk staff to technical talent.
With money no object, Ye Zhen naturally aimed for the best in every aspect.
"Sis Liu, you handle interviewing the technical positions. As for me? I'll just take care of interviewing the front desk ladies."
[Dog Host, your thoughts… even this cute little me is embarrassed to expose you!]
"Hmph! What did you say?"
Ye Zhen looked thoroughly indignant.
"The receptionist is crucial—she's the face of the company! We need someone who's a beauty among beauties, sweet-talking and kind-hearted, right? I'm not doing this just to feast my eyes… Come on, do I look that unscrupulous?"
[You're clearly just doing it for your own visual pleasure.]
"Shut up, dog system."
The process of establishing the company proceeded in a tense yet orderly manner.
Next up was taking over the zoo.
The system offered several options for the zoo.
The closest to South City was naturally Redwood Zoo.
"Cheap admission, lots of animals, yet huge expenses on the animals themselves… It really is tough."
"A thirty-million-yuan loss, leaving only fifty thousand in the account… Sigh."
"A zoo like this—just a little investment, and they could probably survive another year, right?"
Investing a few million could complete a task worth 100 million—Ye Zhen couldn't help but exclaim how easy it was to make money.
Of course, such tasks weren't common—they only randomly appeared, and she just happened to stumble upon this one.
After selecting her targets, Ye Zhen prepared to take action.
To complete these two tasks, she had already hired a professional team at a high cost to handle all the tedious matters like transactions and disputes. Everything would be managed by them.
After a full day of hustle, she finally hailed a cab back to campus past eight in the evening.
Walking into the dormitory building, she kept her head down, lost in thought.
It wasn't until she'd climbed several steps that she noticed a familiar figure standing at the staircase turn on the second floor.
Ye Zhen froze momentarily when she met Ye Fuli's deep, intense gaze.
"I just wanted to see you."
Ye Fuli said, raising the milk tea bucket in her hand and carefully placing it on the staircase between them.
"I'm going home."
Without another word, she turned and descended the stairs.
Ye Zhen stared blankly at her retreating figure, feeling a momentary sense of disorientation.
The milk tea cup bore the familiar logo of the silly bird from "Take a Chestnut."
This flavor was the latest campus sensation, widely praised for its taste but also heavily criticized for its steep price tag.
Still, the quality of its ingredients justified the cost.
Ye Zhen sighed.
After a moment's thought, she descended the stairs and picked up the cup of milk tea.
"Seriously, how long did I stand here just to deliver one cup of milk tea?"
The milk tea was served at room temperature, with a rich peach aroma that was sweet yet not cloying.
Ye Zhen downed it in one gulp and let out a satisfied burp.
Suddenly, she felt a pang of nostalgia for those nights when the two of them drank together, each playing their part in a charade.
That night, she had genuinely wanted to start a sweet romance with her.
Only after finishing the milk tea did Ye Zhen notice a sticky note beneath the cup.
She lifted the cup and peeled off the note.
It bore Ye Fuli's handwriting:
"Present this note tomorrow at the library to claim another new mulberry-themed item. Valid for 24 hours. Expires…"
She flipped the note over.
Three more words were written there.
"I'll be waiting for you too."