The office fell silent for a while, and Xi Xianya feigned boredom as she stretched.
Ai Yifeng looked at her and asked, "Are you hungry?"
Xi Xianya shook her head and walked over to him, placing a hand on his shoulder. "I'm just so bored."
She noticed the document in his hand was the bid for the online platform, and her eyes lit up.
"Why don't you go downstairs and find a place to eat or drink something? I'll come find you later," Ai Yifeng said with a smile, turning his head to look at her.
"No need," Xi Xianya stood up straight and asked casually, "What kind of major bid is it that's so troublesome? Have you decided on the bid price?"
Ai Yifeng replied nonchalantly, "The bid price was set long ago. Please wait for me a moment, I'll be done soon."
Xi Xianya said "oh" and sat back on the sofa, continuing to play with her phone, but she couldn't think of a way to see the bottom price.
After a while, Ai Yifeng closed the bid document and said, "I'm done. Did I keep you waiting too long? Let's go eat."
Xi Xianya looked at him affectionately and said, "I'm not annoyed. How could I be annoyed with you?"
Ai Yifeng walked over to her, hugged her, and asked, "What do you want to eat?"
"Anything," Xi Xianya actually had no appetite and still couldn't see the bottom price.
"Then I'll decide, but you'll have to wait a bit longer. I need to go to the restroom."
Xi Xianya hummed. After Ai Yifeng left the office, she couldn't believe the opportunity had just presented itself.
Without a moment's hesitation, she quickly flipped open the bid document, but couldn't find any prices.
She looked around the desk again and found a separate envelope labeled "Bid Submission Document."
She quickly opened the unsealed envelope and took out the paper inside, finally seeing the bottom price for the Aoxiang newspaper. She then put the paper back into the envelope.
Her heart was pounding in her chest. She quickly restored everything on Ai Yifeng's desk.
As soon as she sat back on the sofa, Ai Yifeng returned to the office, turned off the computer, tidied up the things on the desk, and said, "We can go."
Xi Xianya pretended to be engrossed in her game, but she was terrified inside. "Wait a moment, I'll finish this round."
Ai Yifeng forcibly took her phone away. "No more playing. You're not hungry, but I am."
After leaving the group and eating at a small eatery, Ai Yifeng suggested going to his place.
However, Xi Xianya used the excuse of needing to take care of her mother and had Ai Yifeng drop her off at the entrance of the hospital's inpatient department.
After watching Ai Yifeng drive away, she didn't go to her mother's ward but took a taxi directly back to her rented apartment.
Sitting on the folding bed in the taxi, she held her phone and typed in the bottom price she had seen, intending to text it to Zhao Jianhua.
But she hesitated to press the send button and sat there all night.
It wasn't until dawn that she pressed the send button. Watching the message successfully send, she felt completely drained and collapsed onto the folding bed, weeping.
Zhao Jianhua replied to her message, asking, "Is this really the bottom price?"
"I saw the bid document, there's no mistake. What did you promise me?"
"If the bottom price is correct, I will give you what you want after the bid is successful."
When she returned to work at Aoxiang, she was in a state of extreme anxiety, afraid to face Ai Yifeng, yet she couldn't bear to leave him.
She knew that as long as the project hadn't been bid on, Ai Yifeng wouldn't discover her actions, and perhaps she could spend a few more days with him.
After cleaning the top floor once, she sat in a corner, lost in thought. She felt her phone vibrate in her pocket.
She took it out and saw a message from Ai Yifeng: "Are you free tonight? Let's have dinner and watch a movie. I've already booked the tickets."
"Okay," she couldn't bring herself to refuse him.
As they ate dinner and watched the movie, the better Ai Yifeng treated her, the more distressed she felt, wishing he wouldn't be so kind to her.
After leaving the cinema, Ai Yifeng bought her a milk tea. Seeing that she wasn't in good spirits tonight, he asked, "What's wrong? Are you tired from taking care of your mother last night?"
Xi Xianya bit the straw of the milk tea and hummed, "I didn't sleep well last night, I'm a bit tired."
"Are you going to take care of your mother again tonight?" Ai Yifeng said with concern, "I can accompany you."
She felt an indescribable guilt. She smiled at him and said, "No need, I'm going home to rest today. My mother has a caregiver."
"Don't you want to introduce me to your mother?" Ai Yifeng asked, embracing her.
Xi Xianya said, "Let's wait until she's feeling a bit better. She'll definitely be happy to know I have a boyfriend."
"But you're working during the day and taking care of your mother at the hospital at night. Can you handle it?" Ai Yifeng asked worriedly.
"It's fine, I'm used to it. I used to perform at bars every night. I've taken leave from the bar now..."
"You used to perform?" Ai Yifeng felt even more sympathetic, a sense of shared experience.
He had also driven ride-sharing cars day and night in the past and could understand the feeling of a life falling apart.
Xi Xianya quickly explained, "I just sang, and I sing quite well. If you have a chance, come to the bar to hear me sing."
Ai Yifeng wanted to take her to sing right away, but seeing how tired she was, with obvious dark circles and under-eye bags, he said, "Okay, but for now, I'll take you home to rest."
Xi Xianya nodded, her mind in turmoil, and she wanted to go home.
Ai Yifeng drove to the location she had mentioned and was surprised to see where she lived. He said with concern, "Is it safe for you, a girl, to live here? This neighborhood looks so old, and there are no security guards or access control..."
"It's fine. My mother and I have lived here for over a year. Don't worry."
"But your mother is in the hospital, and you're all alone. Why don't you come stay at my place?" Ai Yifeng suggested.
"Really, no need. I'm fine living here by myself." Xi Xianya just wanted to be alone tonight.
The better Ai Yifeng treated her and the more he cared about her, the more her conscience bothered her, and the less she wanted to face him.
"Are you sure you're not afraid living alone?" Ai Yifeng asked again.
Xi Xianya found him bothersome and said, "Alright, I'm fine. Hurry back. Drive safely on the road tonight."
With that, she quickly kissed him on the cheek, opened the car door, and got out herself.
She waved goodbye to him again and resolutely turned to walk towards her residence.
Ai Yifeng didn't drive away immediately. He sat in the car, watching her figure disappear into the dimly lit neighborhood.
His gaze became wistful, hoping she would understand that all he had done for her was to help her start a new life, free from the control of that despicable Zhao Jianhua.
...
On the day of the bid submission for the Huangfu Group's project, Xiao Anjing and Ai Yifeng attended the bid together.
They had made thorough preparations, and Xiao Anjing was full of confidence. When the final bidding results were announced, he couldn't believe that the winning bid was from Zhao Jianhua's small online company.