Chapter 67 Love Rival

Chapter 67: Love Rival

By the end of the month, Lu Yun went over the books again, and her monthly earnings were absolutely insane!

Lu Yun had Lu Cheng tag along with her and Chen Qiao on another restocking run. This time they stocked up big, and the three store employees could handle it all without Lu Yun lifting a finger.

This time Lu Yun also brought back gifts, including one for Zhou Yanze.

Lu Yun had rejected Zhou Yanze's marriage proposal but accepted the money he gave her. It was wild how Lu Yun felt like her earnings were chump change next to Zhou Yanze's.

This time, Lu Yun got Zhou Yanze a tie.

After Zhou Yanze put it on, his eyes lit up. "I really like it!"

Since last time, Zhou Yanze had remained a very sensible man, but he'd started getting a little clingy.

Jiang Xiangqian came looking for Lu Yun on his own, and he looked pretty worn out.

Lu Yun, her dad, and her mom all figured Jiang Xiangqian would come looking for her on his own. He hadn't shown up for a while, and Lu Yun was starting to wonder why. When she saw him come to find her, she figured it had been almost two weeks since the whole thing at the store went down. So it had taken Chen Shu and Jiang Xiangqian over two weeks to finally call it quits.

Jiang Xiangqian: "I broke up with Chen Shu."

Jiang Xiangqian: "Lu Yun, I'm truly sorry. If I'd met you back then and fallen for you, there's no way I would've gotten with Chen Shu."

Lu Yun: "So you're saying if you'd met me and didn't like me, it would've been fine to be with Chen Shu?"

Jiang Xiangqian: "I'm sorry. Back then, Chen Shu told me you didn't want to go through with the engagement, and she went after me herself. I figured since you weren't interested, and I had some feelings for Chen Shu, I might as well get with her and pay you off. Later, when I met you, every time I thought about what I'd done, I hated myself. I wanted to break up with Chen Shu but didn't know how to say it to her. I think once I met you, there was no way I could ever marry Chen Shu. I'm not saying this to dodge blame—this isn't just on Chen Shu, it's on me too."

"I came to see you for three reasons: one, to tell you I broke up with Chen Shu; two, to say I'm sorry; and three, to tell you I really like you—that flutter in my chest. I just had to say it!"

Zhou Yanze: "What right do you have to get butterflies over another man's girlfriend?"

This was Jiang Xiangqian's first time meeting Zhou Yanze. He knew who Zhou Yanze was—he'd heard Lu Yun had a blind date setup, and later that they were dating. He'd heard the guy was good-looking and seemed loaded. That was also what drove Jiang Xiangqian to work hard—he wanted to be better than Lu Yun's boyfriend.

Zhou Yanze stood in front of Lu Yun, glaring at Jiang Xiangqian.

Jiang Xiangqian, flustered and guilty, said, "Don't get the wrong idea—I don't mean anything by it."

Zhou Yanze: "You confess to my girlfriend and then tell me you don't mean anything by it?"

Jiang Xiangqian: "I won't do anything, and I won't chase after her."

If Jiang Xiangqian went after Lu Yun and she was willing to be with him, he'd absolutely be down—even if he had to chase her till the end of time. If he went after her and she didn't want him, he'd still be okay with it. But doing that would only make Lu Yun hate him, and Jiang Xiangqian didn't want that.

Zhou Yanze's face went dark. "You still want to chase her?"

Jiang Xiangqian: "Please don't get the wrong idea about us!"

Zhou Yanze: "Get the wrong idea? How could I get the wrong idea? Isn't this all your fault?"

Just for that one line from Zhou Yanze, Lu Yun's opinion of him shot way up. Yes, exactly—it was all Jiang Xiangqian's fault. If Zhou Yanze had dared to blame Lu Yun for this, even with his looks, she might've had to rethink things with him.

Jiang Xiangqian: "I'm sorry. I won't bother you two anymore."

Zhou Yanze warned, "You'd better not bother us."

Lu Yun suddenly realized who Zhou Yanze reminded her of—Lu Cheng, her little brother. That's exactly how he got when he was lovestruck.

Lu Yun: "Have I ever told you about my little brother?"

Zhou Yanze had completely dropped the intimidating act from a second ago and looked a little nervous. "Are you gonna introduce me to your brother?"

Lu Yun: "I was gonna say you're a lot like my brother."

Zhou Yanze: "How am I like your brother?"

Lu Yun: "Lovestruck."

Zhou Yanze: "Yeah, if that's the case, then I'm very much like your brother."

Lu Yun suddenly remembered she hadn't gotten the tea yet. Because Zhou Yanze showed up, she'd forgotten to ask Jiang Xiangqian how he broke up with Chen Shu and how much he'd paid her off. Looked like she couldn't go home and dish about it either—she'd promised to share the tea last time.

Lu Yun's store was doing great. One day, Lu Yun stopped by the store and looked around for a bit. Li Cai was running the store by herself and still needed Lu Yun to come help after work. They'd hired two more people, and now when Lu Yun came by after work to help, there was nothing for her to do.

Lu Yun quietly asked Li Cai how the two new hires were doing.

Li Cai: "They both work hard."

As long as they worked hard, that was enough. Lu Yun nodded.

The weather was warming up, and Lu Yun wasn't in a rush to get home, so she wandered around outside for a bit.

A bunch of clothing stores had opened recently, but Lu Yun didn't go in. She just peeked from outside as she walked by. After strolling around, she went to find Chen Qiao and helped her set up her stall for a while.

Chen Qiao: "I was hoping to open my store before it gets hot, but it looks like it'll have to wait until winter. There's nothing I can do—I've found the location, but it needs renovation, and I still have a lot of inventory to clear out. Setting up the stall is really tiring. I'm not complaining—being tired but making money is still better than not making any at all, right?"

In the evening, Lu Yun treated Chen Qiao to dinner, and the two went to a barbecue restaurant.

Also eating at the same barbecue restaurant were Sun Chun and Chen Shu. Chen Qiao spotted them first, and the two of them had clearly seen Lu Yun and Chen Qiao as well.

Chen Qiao: "Should we find another place?"

Lu Yun: "No need."

It wasn't like she had done something wrong to Chen Shu, so why should she have to find another restaurant just because she ran into Chen Shu? If anyone should leave and find another place, it should be Chen Shu.

Chen Shu was determined to build a good relationship with Sun Chun and become friends. Sun Chun had even taken the initiative to treat her to dinner after work.

Sun Chun hadn't really wanted to come, but lately she was truly suffering—working, doing housework, and handing her wages over to Zhou Jun. Thinking about it, Sun Chun wanted to curse out the Zhou family. So what if she was from the countryside? That was still better than being as stupid as Zhou Jun, wasn't it?

Since coming to the city to work, Sun Chun's life hadn't been comfortable either. The work at the store was busy, and she got scolded by her boss. She worked at a garment factory, and even Sister Lü had to watch her temper—it was already generous of Sun Chun not to yell at Sister Lü! As for finances, without the Zhou family's support, Zhou Jun's meager salary had to cover his own expenses and rent, while Sun Chun's wages were used for both of them—and Zhou Jun still used more.

Sun Chun didn't know what Chen Shu was after. She wasn't some naive fool. But if Chen Shu wanted to treat her to dinner, Sun Chun was willing to go. Lately, Chen Shu had been giving Sun Chun gifts frequently, and Sun Chun accepted them all.

If Chen Shu wanted her to do something, she definitely wouldn't help!

Sun Chun also enjoyed Chen Shu's flattery.

When Chen Shu went quiet, Sun Chun felt a bit disappointed—why stop? Why stop complimenting?

Chen Shu certainly didn't want to show any sign of fawning over Sun Chun in front of Lu Yun. She said, "I just remembered a store with really nice clothes. Let's go check it out together."

Sun Chun: "Sure."

This sucker was going to buy her gifts again.

Chen Qiao's eyes darted around. "They look like they're both full of schemes."

Lu Yun: "Exactly, they're both full of schemes."

Chen Qiao: "They went out on their own, so we can enjoy our meal even more!"

Sun Chun returned home and saw Zhou Jun. She thought to herself, why not just get pregnant and lock things down? The more she thought about it, the more feasible it seemed. Sun Chun never let Zhou Jun get close to her before, but why not just fake being drunk?

Sun Chun had been drinking out of frustration, so she deliberately pretended to be drunk and fell into Zhou Jun's arms.

Zhou Jun: "Why did you drink? Who were you drinking with?"

Sun Chun: "Chen Shu. You haven't met her—she's a friend of mine."

Zhou Jun should have been thrilled that Sun Chun was drunk and throwing herself at him, but when she mentioned Chen Shu, he gritted his teeth.

Not her again! Not her again!

Zhou Jun: "Go get some rest. I'll go get you some hangover soup."

Sun Chun wasn't the least bit drunk anymore. Hearing the door close, she started doubting herself and even checked herself in the mirror. That's right—this was exactly what Zhou Jun liked!

Zhou Jun found Chen Shu and asked her, "So this is how you love me?"

Chen Shu: "I haven't even been around you lately, so how could I still love you? Don't worry, I've moved on! I won't disturb you and Sun Chun. I'll just wish you both the best!"

Zhou Jun: "So your way of blessing us is to become friends with Sun Chun? You still say you don't love me, but just to watch Sun Chun and me live happily ever after, you're willing to be friends with her. Are you planning to be the maid of honor at our wedding too?"

That wouldn't be a problem at all. If Sun Chun was willing, she hadn't even gotten Sun Chun into stocks yet, so being a bridesmaid was totally doable!

Sun Chun had a feeling Zhou Jun had followed her out. Seeing the two of them standing together and hearing what they said, she understood everything. She had wondered why Chen Shu was willing to be friends with her—Chen Shu had such intentions all along. She was still coveting Zhou Jun!

Sun Chun: "So this is the reason you wanted to be friends with me?"

Chen Shu was truly panicked. "No, it's not like that. Fine, I admit I did like Zhou Jun before, but after meeting you, I stopped liking him. I even think Zhou Jun isn't good enough for you!"

Wow, she's a real pro—still able to spin things like that?

Sun Chun didn't back down. "Zhou Jun, think it over yourself. If you want to be with her, I'll get out of your way."

This was exactly the kind of tone Zhou Jun liked!

Chen Shu was about to break down. At this rate, how could she follow Sun Chun into buying stocks?

Chen Shu: "No need to think it over. You like him, and I truly wish you both well!"

Sun Chun: "You don't have to imitate me. I'm sincere."

Chen Shu: "I'm sincere too. I really don't like Zhou Jun!"

In her desperation, Chen Shu thought of a reason. "I used to think I liked Zhou Jun, but after getting to know you, I realized what love really is. I like you!"

Author's note:

None