Lu Sui's аnswеr wаs thаt he had nо timе.
If thе mоuntаin won't comе tо me, then I'll gо to the mоuntаin.
Wu Маngmаng bоoked а return ticket overnight. Sitting on thе рlanе, she соuldn't hеlр biting her fingеrs аnd smiling tо hеrsеlf. Lu Sui would рrobably bе рleаsantly surprisеd, right?
She just hoрed therе wоuldn't bе аnу mеlоdramatiс sсenеs likе rеturning eаrly аnd сatching sоmеonе in bed—that would bе a shock instеаd.
Wоuld Lu Sui think she wаs disturbing his work?
After а whilе оf eхсitеmеnt, Wu Маngmang's rаtiоnalitу graduаlly returnеd. But thеrе wаs no роint wоrrуing about it now. If hе dared show even а hint of displeаsure, she сould simрlу turn arоund and leave.
By the time Wu Mangmang arrived at the Lu Corporation building, it was already 1 p.m. She quietly looked up at the city's tallest skyscraper.
If City A was the political and cultural center, then the city where Wu Mangmang was born was the economic crown of the nation. And the Lu Corporation, surrounded by buildings like stars encircling the moon, was undoubtedly the most dazzling gem on that crown.
Wu Mangmang had heard people gossip about the feng shui of the Lu Corporation building—talked about in such mystical terms, backed by mountains and facing the sea, harmonizing yin and yang, matching the eight trigrams. It was said to be the most classic architectural case in feng shui studies, where even the placement of a potted plant was extremely particular, and not a single withered leaf could be seen.
Wu Mangmang had never come to admire the Lu Corporation building before—today was her first time.
Entering the lobby, Wu Mangmang glanced at the floor directory. The Lu Corporation didn't occupy all the floors; the floors below the 55th were leased to other companies. The rent here was probably the most expensive in the entire country, but businesspeople were superstitious. With the Lu Corporation's feng shui reputation, space here was incredibly hard to come by. For nearly a decade, the companies in this building had hardly changed.
Above the 55th floor was the headquarters of the Lu Corporation.
When Wu Mangmang reached the 55th floor, she discovered that this level was like an indoor garden, designed by a globally renowned landscape architecture team. Lu Corporation employees jokingly called it the "Central Garden."
Standing in front of the reception desk, Wu Mangmang hesitated about whether to give it a try. But after scanning the security guards and cameras around her, she felt it was a bit unrealistic to expect to see Lu Sui upstairs without an appointment.
So Wu Mangmang walked over, then retreated, pulling out her phone to call Lu Sui.
It was really a bit boring—trying to surprise someone like Lu Sui was difficult. Now she could only notify him in advance. Catching someone in the act was probably out of the question.
"How rare—you actually took the initiative to call me," Lu Sui's voice came through the receiver.
"I missed you," Wu Mangmang said, leaning against a giant tropical tree in the Central Garden. "I wanted to see you."
Her voice was so sappy it gave even her goosebumps.
"I missed you too. Come down," Lu Sui said.
"Come down where?" Wu Mangmang straightened up, a bad feeling creeping in.
"I'm downstairs at your dorm," Lu Sui said.
Wu Mangmang felt the frustration of "Heaven, are you playing with me?" and raised her voice. "Didn't you say you had a meeting at 2 p.m.?"
"I wanted to see you, so I changed the time," Lu Sui said. "Come down quickly."
Wu Mangmang sullenly leaned back against the tree trunk, listlessly saying, "I'm at the Central Garden in the Lu Corporation building."
A sigh came through the receiver. "Stay right where you are. I'll have Peng Ze come get you. I'll be back right away.""Oh." Wu Mangmang puffed out her cheeks, truly arriving with high hopes only to leave in disappointment.
With her elbows propped on her knees and her chin resting in her hands, Wu Mangmang pondered where to pass the next few hours. Returning to the villa halfway up the mountain was definitely not an option, and she didn’t want to linger in the city either—if Ms. Liu caught her, it would mean another endless round of blind dates. Given the current circumstances, she absolutely couldn’t go on any more dates.
Lost in thought, Wu Mangmang didn’t even notice her phone ringing in her bag.
"You are my old, oh old apple, loving you never feels too much, your dark, old face shatters my heart, lighting the fire in my soul, fire fire fire fire…"
The song was nearly over before Wu Mangmang snapped back to reality. She was just about to answer when the caller hung up.
And in her momentary distraction, the phone was easily snatched from behind her. Wu Mangmang’s first instinct was to punch the thief, but her delicate fist was caught mid-swing by the person who had taken it.
"Old Apple?!" Lu Sui’s expression, to be honest, was rather unpleasant.
The original song "Little Apple," though not to Lu Sui’s taste, was undeniably catchy. Ning Zheng had sung it several times at the club with the public relations staff, so even Lu Sui had heard it a few times.
Now, for "Little Apple" to be abruptly changed to "Old Apple" by Wu Mangmang was already unbearable, but what made it even more insulting was that the name saved for his number in her phone was glaringly displayed as "Old Apple."
"Surprise!" Wu Mangmang guiltily wrapped her arms around Lu Sui’s waist. "Didn’t you say you were at A University? You lied to me."
"You knew I’d come looking for you today, didn’t you? How sneaky!" "I haven’t had lunch yet, I’m so hungry."
Wu Mangmang fired off words in rapid succession, afraid to give Lu Sui a chance to interject.
"Is that so? Come on, let’s go get you an apple," Lu Sui said coolly.
Wu Mangmang knew she had brought this on herself, but she had grown so accustomed to Lu Sui’s ringtone that she hadn’t even realized it was an issue—until today, when Lu Sui caught her red-handed.
"This was recorded a long time ago, before we were even together. I just forgot to change it later," Wu Mangmang explained meekly.
"I think you’d be very willing to re-record a new ringtone, wouldn’t you?" Lu Sui’s voice suddenly softened, which Wu Mangmang feared the most. When he held back his anger, it usually meant something severe was coming.
With an ingratiating smile, Wu Mangmang gave Lu Sui an "OK" sign.
Though there weren’t many people in the central garden, a few still came and went. Even though many employees had never spoken to Lu Sui, everyone recognized the boss from the annual year-end banquet. Besides, his face was so strikingly handsome, it was impossible to miss.
But a big company was different. Those who made it into Lu Corporation, even the ordinary employees, were the cream of the crop. As they passed by Wu Mangmang and Lu Sui, each one maintained an air of "see no evil," though it would have been perfect if they could have controlled their wandering peripheral glances.
"Come to my office," Lu Sui said, his expression still far from pleasant, radiating an intimidating aura that warned others to stay at least ten yards away.
Wu Mangmang coughed lightly but remained rooted to the spot.Her keen observation told her that although everyone pretended to be busy, deep down they were craning their necks, eagerly waiting to witness Boss Lu's romantic gossip.
After all, Lu Sui's private life was rather uneventful, and presumably, not many women came to Lu Corporation to see him for personal reasons.
If it were anyone else, they would surely want to keep a low profile, but Wu Mangmang had a bit of a troublemaker streak. As an "actress," she loved having an audience.
Lu Sui stopped and glanced back at Wu Mangmang. She paid no attention to his domineering aura, tilting her chin slightly as if she couldn't see anything.
Lu Sui reached out his hand to Wu Mangmang.
Holding hands wasn’t entirely unacceptable, but this gesture wasn’t grand enough.
Wu Mangmang shook her head and remained still.
Lu Sui walked back with a headache and wrapped his arm around Wu Mangmang’s slender waist. "Satisfied, my queen?"
Even a thousand-pound weight probably couldn’t suppress the upward curve of Wu Mangmang’s lips now. She nodded smugly. "Can you tell your receptionist that from now on, I don’t need an appointment to go upstairs? Otherwise, it’s impossible to give you any surprises. So boring."
Lu Sui looked at Wu Mangmang, her proud and haughty expression practically radiating arrogance.
"I’ll give the order," Lu Sui said.
Only then did Wu Mangmang nod in satisfaction again. Under the stunned gazes of everyone whose jaws had practically hit the floor, she was escorted by Lu Sui into the executive elevator reserved for the board.
But as the saying goes, extreme joy begets sorrow; prosperity gives way to decline.
Wu Mangmang, being utterly thoughtless, had forgotten the definition she herself had given Lu Sui.
Mr. Lu, in public, was truly a super warm-hearted man—a master of all five virtues: charm, prowess, wealth, attentiveness, and leisure. The receptionist was still marveling at how incredibly warm Mr. Lu could be.
But behind closed doors, this man was all kinds of authoritarian, domineering, and utterly inhuman.
Wu Mangmang weakly curled up on the sofa, gasping for breath like a fish thrown into the desert, barely able to flail anymore.
Since there wasn’t much time left before two o’clock, Lu Sui had prioritized intensity over endurance. The electric motor’s power was too overwhelming. Wu Mangmang’s pleas were ignored, and throwing a tantrum only led to more torment. She could only pitifully submit to his whims.
Lu Sui leaned down and gently pecked her lips. "Rest for a while. There’s my changing room inside. You can take a shower later. I’m off to the meeting."
After resting for half an hour, Wu Mangmang trembled as she stood up on her long legs, kicked aside the torn dress on the floor, and headed to the changing room to shower.
She hadn’t brought anything back to the city this time except her laptop. After all, she had everything she needed at the villa on the mountainside, so there was no point lugging luggage back and forth.
Now, Wu Mangmang had to face the awkwardness of having no underwear to wear. Fortunately, Lu Sui’s waist was lean and trim. Although his boxer briefs were loose on her, they didn’t fall off.
Wu Mangmang casually grabbed one of Lu Sui’s shirts to put on, then sat barefoot in his executive chair, propping her legs on the nearby low cabinet. She opened her laptop, ready to review some materials.
Professor Cheng was recently participating in an archaeological excavation, and she wanted to go along as an assistant.
But as the saying goes, food is the fuel of life. Wu Mangmang clutched her growling stomach, picked up her phone, and started ordering fast food through a delivery app.
Half an hour later, the delivery person arrived downstairs but couldn’t get in no matter what.Wu Mangmang picked up her wallet and prepared to go downstairs, only remembering at the door that she was only wearing one of Lu Sui’s shirts—her skirt had already met its end.
With a frustrated sigh, she thought of calling Lu Sui, but he was in a meeting. She didn’t know anyone at Lu Corporation, so she had no one to turn to for help. As for the secretaries outside the office, she felt too embarrassed to ask them for favors.
Without the title of Mrs. Lu, it really wasn’t easy to get things done.
Wu Mangmang had no choice but to send Lu Sui a message: “I’m hungry. The delivery is downstairs and can’t come up. Urgent, waiting online. (ㄒoㄒ)~~”
The screen of Lu Sui’s phone on the desk lit up. He glanced at it, then turned to look at Peng Ze beside him.
Peng Ze quickly leaned over, thinking his boss had some important instruction. After hearing it, Peng Ze was momentarily stunned.
Knock, knock, knock.
Wu Mangmang heard the knocking and casually responded, “Come in.”
Peng Ze walked into the spacious office carrying the takeout box but didn’t see anyone. He tentatively called out, “Miss Wu.”
Wu Mangmang had been completely absorbed in the materials. This burial site was ancient, practically filling a gap in the historical record of that period, but it was also severely damaged. She was already rubbing her hands together in anticipation.
Hearing Peng Ze’s voice, Wu Mangmang snapped back to reality. She quickly pulled her legs back, swiveled the executive chair to face Peng Ze.
When Peng Ze saw Wu Mangmang, he felt a sudden, eye-cleansing clarity.
Although Peng Ze had seen Wu Mangmang a few times and knew Miss Wu was a great beauty, everyone has their own preferences. He had always appreciated fuller, more mature and sensual women, so his impression of Wu Mangmang, who looked as beautiful as a Barbie doll, had only ever been “quite pretty.”
But this time was different.
A woman in a man’s shirt naturally exuded an extra layer of sexiness. Even though Wu Mangmang was wearing the Boss’s shirt, Peng Ze couldn’t help but find her overwhelmingly alluring.
What was most striking was that while Wu Mangmang’s appearance was undeniably seductive and glamorous—with several “love bites” visible on her neck—she was deliberately sitting primly in the executive chair, hands folded on the desk, nodding seriously at Peng Ze. “Just put it over there.”
Peng Ze inwardly laughed at Wu Mangmang’s obvious attempt to hide the truth.
But her skin was too fair and smooth, glowing with a soft, rosy radiance from within. Her face was flushed with a delicate pink, and even the collarbones exposed outside the shirt bore a cherry-blossom hue.
For no reason, Peng Ze was reminded of the phrase “exquisite to the touch.”
Peng Ze practically fled from Lu Sui’s office as if a vampire were chasing him, his heart pounding wildly.
Now he was beginning to understand why the usually aloof Boss Lu would go back to an old flame. It was simply a case of being captivated by beauty at first sight, and utterly smitten by the second.
Meanwhile, Wu Mangmang, sitting behind the desk, let out a sigh of relief after Peng Ze left. She stood up from behind the desk and, barefoot, walked over to the sofa, her long, smooth legs swaying, to sit down and eat her takeout.
When Lu Sui entered after the meeting, he called out, “Mangmang,” and saw her swivel the chair and glide over.The white shirt hung loosely on her body, with the top two buttons undone, always at risk of exposure. The sleeves were rolled up high, revealing her elbows, while her legs dangled from the armrests, swaying in mid-air as her fingers busied themselves with a mobile game.
"Wait, I’ll be done soon," Wu Mangmang said, still focused on the battle.
Lu Sui narrowed his eyes and asked, "Were you dressed like this when Peng Ze came in earlier?"
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