When Cheng Yao brought Li Mengting back to Qian Heng’s Bentley, he was resting with his head down on the steering wheel.
With his eyes closed, the sharpness usually etched on his handsome profile had faded, and under the dim glow of the streetlamp, he even looked… a little gentle.
Cheng Yao gently knocked on the window, and Qian Heng finally lifted his head. He rubbed his brow and looked at her.
That gaze, still dazed from sleep, carried a rare softness and lack of defense. Cheng Yao didn’t know why, but she suddenly felt that this look on Qian Heng… really struck a chord. There’s something irresistible about a powerful man letting down his guard—even more so when it’s on a face like his.
Thankfully, Qian Heng himself seemed completely unaware of his own appeal. He quickly regained his usual clarity and composure. “You settled everything?”
Cheng Yao nodded. “Mm!”
Only now, she felt a tinge of regret—if only Qian Heng had seen what she was like just now. Usually, whenever she was in front of him, she was either clumsy or rigid, plain and ordinary. It was so rare for her to shine like that moment earlier… if only he had seen it.
But Cheng Yao quickly pushed those messy thoughts aside and fixed her gaze on Qian Heng. “Your porridge…”
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“Wkdkpble,” Ckyd Tldt alrzkle yojoyaezu, vwadkdt bkp blye yoyu. “Mbalo swv vbl csoz.”
Ubldt Zys oyp fwpv ycswv vs pnsze bkx obld bl vspple bla rbsdl cynj vs bla. “R zkhlpvalyxle kv. Zsw nyd oyvnb kv uswaplzq.”
Ebyv y pwarakpl!
Ubldt Zys byed’v alyzzu clzklhle bla zkvvzl vbalyv oswze osaj sd Ckyd Tldt—cwv vsdktbv, bl’e ynvwyzzu clbyhle. Nkjl, alyzzu clbyhle. Rv oyp dsvbkdt pbsav sq y xkaynzl!
Fbl oypd’v pwal kq kv oyp fwpv bla kxytkdyvksd, cwv Ckyd Tldt alnldvzu eked’v pllx iwkvl yp pbyar sa hldsxswp. Tl ynvwyzzu pllxle… y zkvvzl xsal xkze?
Ebu eke vbyv elpnakrvksd xyjl bkx pswde zkjl psxl zyatl calle sq esxlpvknyvle est?
Ubldt Zys pdwnj y tzydnl yv bla wraktbv, yzssq, plakswp-qynle cspp yde qlzv zkjl bla vbswtbvp olal pjkavkdt eydtlaswpzu nzspl vs ypjkdt qsa elyvb.
“Zysuys, R…” Nk Yldtvkdt ckv bla zkr. “R jdso usw’al yzps pbyakdt y rzynl okvb psxlsdl dso, ps R oydvle vs ypj… oswze uswa assxxyvl xkde kq R pvyule shla qsa fwpv sdl dktbv? R’zz rynj wr vsxsaaso yde qkde psxloblal lzpl. Mbl rzynl R oyp pvyukdt okvb Hbydt Tys kp wdela bkp dyxl, yde bl ryup vbl aldv. R byhl ds aktbv vs jknj bkx sa vbyv bsxloalnjla swv…”
But before Cheng Yao could answer, a voice cut in almost immediately after Li Mengting finished speaking.
“He minds.”
“…”
After blurting that out, Qian Heng seemed to realize he’d overstepped. His tone turned awkward as he added, “Cheng Yao’s roommate… really minds.”
He paused, then tacked on another explanation: “Her roommate is a real piece of work. There’s no way he’d allow a stranger to stay over. If anyone did, he’d blast rock music in the middle of the night, send her harassing messages, and run around the house naked in protest… Total nutjob. I’ve heard about it, since I work with Cheng Yao.”
“…”
Cheng Yao didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. Boss, I get that you don’t want outsiders staying at our place, but did you really have to roast yourself that hard?
Sure enough, Li Mengting looked deeply apologetic. “I’m sorry, Yaoyao, I…”
Cheng Yao patted her. “It’s fine, no need to be so polite. I can help you book a hotel.”
But Li Mengting hesitated, clearly uncomfortable. “I… I don’t really have any money on me right now. If I book a hotel, could you maybe lend me some? I’ll pay you back as soon as I can.”
Cheng Yao blinked, then realized what was going on. Li Mengting hadn’t really worked since graduation—she’d been living off Zhang Hao this whole time. And now that things had blown up between them, of course he wasn’t going to give her a cent. Cheng Yao also knew Li Mengting’s spending habits—having always lived a carefree life, she never thought to save. If she said she had no money, she probably really had none.
Just as Cheng Yao was about to speak, a voice beat her to it.
“I’ll pay,” Qian Heng said seriously. “Oh, our firm has corporate deals with several hotels. The internal rates are really cheap.”
What the hell, Cheng Yao thought, since when did our firm have hotel partnerships…
But Qian Heng, as if sensing a need to explain himself, quickly added, “I’m only doing this because I heard what happened to you, and I was angry—felt bad for you, that’s all.”
If he’d just kept quiet, Li Mengting might not have thought much of it. But after those lines, she started looking at him with suspicion and confusion.
Wasn’t this guy completely indifferent when she was pouring her heart out earlier? So why the sudden burst of generosity just because she needed a place to stay?
Cheng Yao only wanted to cover her face. Clearly terrified that Li Mengting might end up crashing at their shared place, Qian Heng would rather pay out of pocket to make sure she stayed at a hotel. The problem was, the man probably had never had to explain himself to anyone before. So now, the first time he tried it, he was not only awkward but also terribly obvious and suspicious.
***
Fortunately, Li Mengting didn’t have the energy to dwell on all that. In the end, Qian Heng dropped her off at the InterContinental Hotel and booked her an executive room.
Cheng Yao stopped by the nearby 7-Eleven to pick up some daily essentials for her, then escorted her into the room.
“Yaoyao, thank you so much!” As Cheng Yao was about to leave, Li Mengting tugged on her sleeve. “And thank your boyfriend too. You’re both such good people. You’ll definitely be happy together!”
Cheng Yao froze for a second before realizing that she hadn’t explained her relationship with Qian Heng at all this whole time. Li Mengting must’ve just assumed they were dating.
That won’t do! If Qian Heng found out, wouldn’t he blow up about his “reputation” being tarnished again?
Cheng Yao quickly waved her hands. “No, no, no, he’s really not my boyfriend!”
“Oh, come on, don’t try to fool me,” Li Mengting gave her a knowing look. “I’ve been married and I’m about to get divorced—I know what I’m seeing. Who else but a boyfriend would come with you to the lake in the middle of the night to find me? And then drive us here and there without a single complaint? And did you see how when you took off your coat to give to me, he also took his off—but handed it to you, not me? Isn’t that because he only wants you to wear his coat?”
Cheng Yao blinked, then muttered, “Wow, Li Mengting, you really are a law student. That logic of yours is something else. If you keep going, even I’m going to start believing it’s true.”
Come on, Qian Heng, interested in her? Cheng Yao thought to herself, With the way he acts like he’s better than everyone, even if I quit one day, he probably wouldn’t even remember what I look like. At most, his only impression of me would be four blurry words—‘that dumb idiot.’
With that thought, she quickly cleared the air. “He’s my boss! The kind that exploits and torments me every single day!”
Li Mengting stared at her for three seconds, then stammered, “Your boss? Wait, you mean… Qian Heng?”
“Yep.”
“That’s what Qian Heng looks like?!” Li Mengting practically yelped, eyes wide in disbelief. “I only ever heard his name! If I’d known there was a partner at Junheng who looked like that, do you think I’d have wasted my youth rotting at home and then getting cheated on by Zhang Hao?! I would’ve sent in my résumé to Junheng and fought tooth and nail!”
“To be a hardworking lawyer?”
“No! To become the boss’s wife!”
“……”
The two of them cracked up, and the atmosphere finally lightened. For a moment, it felt like they were back in college again, bickering and bantering like they used to—those days had been so carefree, so simple.
Still, whatever the present held, Cheng Yao was relieved to see that Li Mengting’s mood had finally lifted, even if just a little. She reminded her of a few more things, then left the hotel.
***
As she waited for the elevator to go downstairs, Cheng Yao finally let out a long sigh of relief and pulled out her phone to scroll for a bit.
But one look and she nearly jumped out of her skin—over 400 unread messages on WeChat.
Some were from the “Rich and Glorious Combo” group, but most were from her workplace group chat at Junheng. That one was named “Doghouse for Lawyer Lackeys”, a private rant group secretly set up by the younger staff to complain about work behind the partners’ backs.
Out of those 400+ messages, more than 50 were direct @mentions of Cheng Yao.
With trembling hands, she tapped into the group chat, and messages flooded in like a tidal wave—she nearly choked.
Tan Ying:
“CHENG YAO?! Where the hell is Cheng Yao?! What’s going on?! Paging Cheng Yao!”
Wang Lu:
“OMG! Why is Partner Qian livestreaming from Cheng Yao’s account???”
Bao Rui:
“What?! Qian Par is streaming?? What’s he streaming? I wanna watch! Where is it?!”
Tan Ying:
“From Cheng Yao’s streaming account! He’s livestreaming himself EATING PORRIDGE!!!”
…
The timestamps on these messages were nearly two hours old by now.
Cheng Yao’s hands shook as she scrolled back up, reading the chaos one line at a time.
…
Bao Rui:
“Holy crap, that account of Cheng Yao’s only had us coworkers following it. No one ever watches her streams! But Qian Par just logs on and livestreams himself eating porridge—and suddenly it’s blowing up?? A bunch of random crazies poured in! I was planning to take this chance to kiss up a little, so I gritted my teeth and sent him a cruise ship gift!! Do you guys have any idea?! That was TWO GRAND!! But all those fangirls just drowned me out!!”
Bao Rui’s comment instantly lit the group chat on fire…
Tan Ying:
“Why didn’t you say anything sooner?! If you’re already sending gifts, I better show my loyalty too. I don’t make as much as you, so I’ll send a Ferrari.”
Wang Lu:
“I’ll send a Maserati.”
Li Minglei:
“Fine, I’ll grit my teeth and send a Ferrari too.”
…
To maintain “political correctness,” the group was suddenly filled with a bone-chilling air of competition. Everyone started calculating what kind of virtual gifts they could afford to throw at Qian Heng’s livestream. In the blink of an eye, the chat was full of Ferraris, Porsches, and Maseratis.
If you didn’t look closely, you’d think this was some underground luxury car trafficking ring…
***
Cheng Yao barely had time to skim through the messages in the group chat, speed-reading in panic. Her whole body felt like it was falling apart.
Didn’t she already tell Qian Heng how to set a room password?!
Did he… not set it up properly in the end?!
Thankfully, the group was so collectively shook by the fact that Qian Heng was livestreaming himself eating porridge that their shock completely overshadowed any curiosity about why he was using Cheng Yao’s account in the first place. Aside from a few scattered questions, everyone had gotten swept up in the frenzy of throwing virtual gifts.
Bao Rui, ever the helpful spin doctor, even took it upon himself to offer a “perfectly logical” explanation on her behalf:
Bao Rui:
“I think maybe Qian Par used Cheng Yao’s account because he wanted us to see his livestream. After all, we don’t even know his own account! He’s a man—no matter how successful, men still have egos. Qian Par is always swamped with work and honestly just too outstanding. None of us ever praise him, because in our minds, it’s only natural that he’s that good!”
Then Bao Rui doubled down, earnestly brainwashing the group:
“But deep down, Qian Par has a vulnerable side too. He wants to hear our compliments, he craves our straightforward admiration and affection! So he had no choice but to force Cheng Yao to give him her account and use the livestream to grab our attention!”
And the ridiculous part? People actually started buying into this nonsense.
Li Minglei:
“Bao Lawyer, after what you just said, I feel like the clouds have parted and light has shone down on me! My meridians are clear! My mind is enlightened!”
Chen Cheng:
“No wonder you’re Qian Par’s top right-hand man. Bao Lawyer really understands Qian Par’s inner world! We should all learn from him more!”
Wang Lu:
“Listening to Bao Lawyer speak is better than reading ten years’ worth of books!”
…
Translator’s Note: In this context, “buying Ferraris” or “gifting a Maserati” refers to sending expensive virtual gifts during a livestream, not actual cars.
Here’s what’s happening:
>These gifts help boost the streamer’s visibility and income (a portion goes to the platform, the rest to the streamer).
>In many Chinese livestream platforms (like Douyin, Kuaishou, etc.), viewers can send streamers virtual gifts that cost real money. These gifts often have flashy names and animations—like “Ferrari,” “Maserati,” “Porsche,” etc.—to signal status and show support.
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