Chapter 14: Hairy Crab Feast

With the scumbag Bai assisting him, Qin Hao quickly prepared a table full of dishes.

The crabs were also taken out of the steamer. As everyone sat down at the table, Andy took the liberty of opening a bottle of red wine and pouring it for everyone.

At the table, Qu Xiaoxiao showered the scumbag Bai with sugary, high-pitched praise. As Bai sized up the designer labels on Qu Xiaoxiao's clothes, he felt a secret surge of joy, though he maintained a humble facade.

"I was just helping out. Brother Qiu is the real chef; this food is even better than what you get in restaurants. I've learned a lot," he said.

Qiu Yingying gave a silly, beaming laugh. "Mm, my brother's cooking is the best! You guys should try it. This braised pork rib is absolutely divine, right Guan Guan?"

"Ah, um, it is quite delicious," Guan Ju'er replied, appearing somewhat distracted.

Qin Hao pretended not to notice and invited everyone to start eating.

By the end of the meal, Bai had more or less figured out the backgrounds of the girls in the room: Guan Ju'er was an intern at an investment bank, Andy was an executive at a large corporation, Fan Shengmei was an ordinary white-collar worker, and Qu Xiaoxiao was a "rich second generation"—a textbook definition of a wealthy, beautiful socialite.

Coupled with the fact that Qu Xiaoxiao was intentionally or unintentionally striking up conversations with him at the table, Bai convinced himself that she was attracted to his handsome looks, feeling inwardly smug.

After the gathering ended, Qiu Yingying walked Bai to the subway station.

Andy recounted their analysis of Bai to Qin Hao.

Qin Hao feigned a frown. "Thank you for caring so much about Yingying. I understand, and I'll remind her. However, she is an adult now, and it's her freedom to choose who she stays with; it's not easy for me to interfere too much. Besides, it's hard to judge Manager Bai as a scumbag based solely on a first impression."

Seeing this, Qu Xiaoxiao said triumphantly, "As expected, only women truly understand men. Some people just don't have an eye for character."

"Xiao Qu, did you do something we don't know about?" Andy keenly captured Qu Xiaoxiao's mood.

Qu Xiaoxiao chuckled and said, "Andy, you know me best. Just now, I slipped a note into Manager Bai's pocket. I bet he'll call me tonight."

"Xiao Qu, how could you do that? Manager Bai is Yingying's boyfriend!" Guan Ju'er glared at Qu Xiaoxiao in indignation.

Qu Xiaoxiao said disdainfully, "That guy surnamed Bai is clearly a scumbag. What's wrong with me helping Qiu Yingying test him? She should be thanking me."

"You're just doing this to prove your own charm," Qin Hao exposed her bluntly.

"Hmph, think whatever you want," Qu Xiaoxiao snapped irritably.

With that, she strode out of Room 2201.

The atmosphere in the room became somewhat heavy. Guan Ju'er asked worriedly, "Do you think Manager Bai will actually call Qu Xiaoxiao?"

Fan Shengmei said with a sense of dread, "On one side, you have a little earthworm with no degree, no money, and an ordinary face; on the other, you have a pure, wealthy socialite—the mischievous little demon Qu Xiaoxiao. If it were you, what would you choose? Men are very practical. They're fine for casual flings or dating, but when it comes to marriage, they'll go for a wealthy socialite like Qu Xiaoxiao."

"It's not necessarily as mercenary as you say. There are people who use marriage as a stepping stone, but that doesn't mean Manager Bai is one of them. We can't pass judgment on him after just one meeting," Andy said, shaking her head.

Guan Ju'er chimed in, "Yeah, what if he really loves Yingying? And I saw that Yingying really likes him too. I don't think Manager Bai will call Qu Xiaoxiao."

After a brief silence, all three turned their gaze toward Qin Hao, who had remained silent.

After feigning deep thought, Qin Hao said, "Qu Xiaoxiao's words gave me a thought. If he can be swayed by just a phone number from her, how sleazy must this man be? It seems I'll have to have someone look into Manager Bai."

***

The next day, Fan Shengmei came out of her room, preparing to head to a training session at her company, only to see Qiu Yingying sitting alone in the living room, clutching a large bag of potato chips and eating them with a face full of resentment.

Curious, Fan Shengmei asked, "What's wrong, Yingying? Why are you still sitting here? Didn't you have plans to go to the amusement park with Manager Bai yesterday?"

"Manager Bai had something come up and couldn't go. He said he was helping a friend move. That friend of his is unbelievable—if they had something going on, they should have said so in advance. I wasn't prepared at all," Qiu Yingying complained.

Just then, Guan Ju'er returned from a run. Fan Shengmei smiled and said, "Guan Guan, you actually went for a morning run with Andy?"

"Yes, Sister Andy was right; exercise makes your mind more active," Guan Ju'er smiled.

"Guan Guan, you're practically becoming Sister Andy's shadow now," Qiu Yingying teased.

"Sigh, Yingying, I didn't do anything to you. What's wrong with you today?"

Fan Shengmei pulled Guan Ju'er into the room and whispered, "Manager Bai stood her up saying he was helping a friend move. This girl is full of resentment right now."

"No wonder. Wait..." Guan Ju'er suddenly remembered something. "Qu Xiaoxiao mentioned something about moving to a new company today. Could it be...?"

"No way. Has Qu Xiaoxiao enslaved Manager Bai in just one night? How sleazy must he be?" Fan Shengmei was also stunned.

"Should we tell Yingying?"

"Better not. If she's this angry just because he stood her up, if we tell her the truth, she might tear the house down."

Fan Shengmei went to work, while Qiu Yingying continued to sigh in the living room. Guan Ju'er took the opportunity to step out for some fresh air while taking out the trash and happened to run into Andy, so she shared her suspicion.

Andy was greatly surprised upon hearing this. "Is Qu Xiaoxiao a reincarnated vixen or something? How did she do it in just one night?"

That afternoon, while casually flipping through photos of the company taken today, Qu Xiaoxiao suddenly spotted a group photo. Her heart skipped a beat, and she sent the photo to the group chat that had just been created yesterday.

"Qu Xiaoxiao! Qu Xiaoxiao!" The moment Qiu Yingying saw the photo, she exploded in rage.

Guan Ju'er also rushed out of her room.

"Manager Bai really contacted Qu Xiaoxiao."

For once, Qiu Yingying's intelligence seemed to kick in. "Guan Guan, what do you mean by 'really'?"

Guan Ju'er had no choice but to tell Qiu Yingying about Qu Xiaoxiao slipping the note into the scumbag Bai's pocket yesterday.

"You all knew? Why didn't you tell me? You kept it from me alone?" Qiu Yingying wailed.

Guan Ju'er wanted to comfort her but didn't know how to start. Just as she was about to call Qin Hao, there was a knock at the door.

Opening it, she saw Qiu Yan and was instantly delighted. "Brother Qiu, you're here! Yingying, she..."

"I know. Leave it to me. Thank you, Guan Guan," Qin Hao said softly to Guan Ju'er.

However, Qiu Yingying started making a scene again. "Brother, why are you thanking her? She clearly knew and didn't tell me! I treated her as my best friend, how could she do this—"

"Shut up!" Qin Hao roared, and with a swift motion, he slapped Qiu Yingying across the face.

Qiu Yingying froze, clutching her face, while Guan Ju'er stared at Qin Hao in utter disbelief.

(End of Chapter)