Hu Jiasheng finished speaking and went to the bathroom. He emerged after a long time.
Tang Nannan waited to help him apply medicine, but he refused with a blank expression. He lay down on the makeshift bed Tang Nannan had prepared, refusing further communication.
Tang Nannan returned to the bedroom, feeling very unhappy.
It was as if she had gone through a breakup, feeling increasingly stifled.
She tossed and turned on the bed, thinking about what Hu Jiasheng had said and his attitude. Finally, she reached a conclusion.
Hu Jiasheng was mocking her.
Hu Jiasheng was mocking her for seeing through the Wang father and son's intentions yet pretending ignorance while dealing with them.
Wanting to enjoy the convenience of being appreciated by others while not yielding to their wishes – what was the difference between that and wanting to have it both ways?
Realizing this, Tang Nannan also looked down on herself.
Had she only been poor for two years and become so afraid of poverty that she would stop at nothing to achieve her goals?
Tang Nannan, oh Tang Nannan, all those years of your parents' education were in vain!
With the answer in her heart, the burden was finally lifted, and Tang Nannan slept soundly.
At six in the morning, the alarm rang, and she got up as usual, quietly.
She prepared breakfast, ate it with Hu Jiasheng, and then they left together.
Hu Jiasheng went to the service area, and she went to the company. They left without speaking, parting ways at the entrance of the residential area.
Tang Nannan grabbed a shared electric bike and rode to the company entrance, heading directly to Wang Rongfa's office to wait for him.
To her surprise, he was already in his office.
Upon seeing Tang Nannan, he was also pleased.
"Nannan, you're here so early? You're dressed so beautifully today, come, come quickly. Did you have breakfast?"
Tang Nannan said she had. Wang Rongfa wanted to pour her tea, and they sat down to chat.
Tang Nannan spoke to him directly, "Uncle Wang, I'm sorry, but I'm actually here today to apologize to you."
"Oh?" Wang Rongfa asked, confused. "What's wrong? Why are you suddenly apologizing to me?"
Tang Nannan explained her interaction with Wang Tengfei yesterday, stating that she only saw Wang Tengfei as a younger brother. If she had caused any misunderstanding or wasted his time, it would be bad.
Therefore, after much thought, she decided not to come to the Wang family's company.
Wang Rongfa's smile gradually faded, and he advised her meaningfully.
"Nannan, normally, young people like you are much more open-minded than us old folks. You're only a year older than Tengfei, and I can accept it. What's there for you not to accept?"
"Or is it not about age at all, and you simply don't like him in your heart?"
Tang Nannan looked at him neither subserviently nor arrogantly.
"Uncle Wang, we haven't seen each other for so many years. We only met yesterday. If we can talk about liking or disliking someone based on that, it would be too superficial."
"I've always seen Tengfei as my younger brother in my heart since I was a child, so I truly can't change that. I'm sorry, I've let your good intentions down."
Wang Rongfa continued to persuade her.
He said that feelings could develop over time. You are alone now, with no one to care for you, and joining the Wang family is the best way out, and so on.
The more he spoke, the less Tang Nannan wanted to listen.
Yesterday, she thought the Wang father and son genuinely liked some quality in her and wanted to treat her well.
Now, it seemed to be nothing more than an exchange of benefits.
They fancied her attractive features and her genes that were good at learning, all to satisfy the seed of admiration planted in Wang Tengfei since childhood.
Their family believed that when she was desperate, they were offering her charity, and she would surely accept it with gratitude.
Thank heavens for Hu Jiasheng's reminder, otherwise, Tang Nannan might have truly fallen into this trap.
After a long time, when she realized the other party's attitude, it might have been too late for anything.
Therefore, no matter how much Wang Rongfa persuaded her, she would not stay.
After some back and forth, Wang Rongfa unhappily saw her out, just as Wang Tengfei arrived for work.
Upon hearing that she was not coming to the company, Wang Tengfei was furious on the spot and gave his father a cold shoulder.
"You promised me a good person and now you're saying it's not possible?"
"I don't care! If she comes, I'll come. If she doesn't, I won't come either. You figure it out yourself!"
With that, he turned and went back into the elevator.
Regardless, Tang Nannan did not fall into the Wang family's trap.
Returning to their small apartment with Hu Jiasheng, Tang Nannan began making her resume online and applying to various high-end educational institutions in Nancheng.
Then she cleaned the house, did laundry, and cooked, waiting for Hu Jiasheng to return.
Hu Jiasheng had gone to the service area early. When the time came, only one person showed up – the technician who had worked with him yesterday.
He asked why Young Master Wang hadn't come with him. The technician amusingly gossiped.
"Didn't that female taxi driver who brought you yesterday promise Young Master Wang she'd come to work with us today? For some reason, she's not coming anymore."
"She was arguing with Young Master Wang at the company entrance early this morning. Young Master Wang found it embarrassing, so he got angry and left the company without even working today. It's hilarious."
"I don't know who that woman is, but the whole company is discussing this matter now."
Hu Jiasheng hadn't expected Tang Nannan to have such backbone.
Just because of his analysis of the situation yesterday, telling her to marry for security, she wouldn't go to the Wang family's company today?
Then what would she do?
However, he wouldn't ask.
Because their progress was very slow, the technician left on time. To avoid delaying the progress, Hu Jiasheng had to stay and work overtime.
Tang Nannan started making dinner at five o'clock.
She thought Hu Jiasheng would be back by six at the latest.
Unexpectedly, he didn't return even by seven.
The food had gone cold. The house didn't have a microwave or insulated containers, so she could only reheat it for him.
After another hour, the food was cold again, and he still hadn't returned.
Thinking about Wang Tengfei's reaction today and looking at the time, she suddenly had a belated pang of unease.
Could it be that because of her, Hu Jiasheng was being made difficult by Wang Tengfei?
He had an injury on his hand. If Wang Tengfei deliberately made things difficult, didn't assign people to help him, or withheld materials, then...
Tang Nannan could no longer care about anything else. She locked the door and rushed to take a taxi to the service area.
The service area was a place of comings and goings, with people constantly moving in and out twenty-four hours a day. It was brightly lit even at night.
As soon as she got out of the taxi, she saw it. Near the charging station, there was a tall, white figure, bent over and busy alone.
Hu Jiasheng, disregarding the injury on his hand, had rolled up his shirt sleeves to his elbows.
He had placed the heavy distribution box and various cables in their positions, whether someone helped him or he moved them himself, she didn't know. Now he was connecting various wires.
Sweat had soaked his shirt, clinging wetly to his back. There were also soybean-sized beads of sweat in his hair, dripping down his cheeks to his chin.
His hands were dirty, possibly from wiping sweat, smearing oil all over his face, making him look like a calico cat.
Although he was somewhat messy and disheveled, in Tang Nannan's eyes, he possessed a special charm.