Chapter 77: Candy for Her

Hearing Yao Bingkun’s question, Meng Xingzhe almost buckled at the knees, ready to kneel on the ground.

He was utterly terrified.

Just as he was about to explain, his thoughts drifted, and another emotion surged up, making him so excited that he forgot to explain.

“Are you saying Yao Jia likes me?” He deliberately lowered his voice, trying to appear calm, but the tremor in his tone betrayed his overwhelming joy.

When Tang Xin told him over the phone that the person Yao Jia liked was him, he felt as if he were dreaming. Even after pulling at his hair to confirm it wasn’t a dream, he still couldn’t fully believe it.

Now that even Yao Bingkun had said it, it seemed certain that she truly liked him.

Looking at Yao Bingkun, he couldn’t wait for an answer to his first question before eagerly asking the next: “Did she tell you herself that she likes me?” He almost blurted out “Dad” at the end of the question.

Yao Bingkun, holding a cigarette, looked at him. The rising smoke formed a vague barrier, concealing his expression.

He remained silent for a long time.

Meng Xingzhe gradually lost his composure, discarding all pretense of being a domineering CEO or a king of cool.

When he spoke, he realized he was almost pleading, “Please, tell me!”

Yao Bingkun glanced at him again, his previously inscrutable expression softening slightly.

Before speaking, he seemed to sigh lightly.

“This child made a bet with me before. If she could endure working in the Customer Service Department for three months, I would grant her one request.”

Meng Xingzhe recalled that night at the hotpot, after that searing kiss, when Yao Jia mentioned this bet to him while drinking. At the time, he didn’t know that the father she referred to was the esteemed Chairman. Now, he was a witness to both sides of the bet.

“She didn’t like the job in customer service at all, but she endured it for three months to win the bet with me. This was a hard-won opportunity for her to make a wish for herself. But at the last moment, she willingly used it on you. The night before you were notified of your dismissal, she came to my study and said her wish was to keep you from being fired.”

Meng Xingzhe was deeply moved. So, when she walked confidently into Li Wangli’s office and decisively saved him, it was because she used such an important wish, one she had worked so hard for, on him.

And he had carelessly pushed her away, adding hurtful words to the mix.

Meng Xingzhe wanted to slap himself hard.

“Moreover, when she talked about you, she was full of praise. Someone told her you were a spy, but she refused to believe it without seeing it for herself. Wouldn’t you say that’s love? Or maybe I’m just old, and you young people call this sworn friendship?”

“…” Meng Xingzhe almost wanted to wipe his brow. This man seemed to know everything.

But hearing Yao Bingkun’s words, Meng Xingzhe’s heart softened. He never dared to hope that the young girl would like him so much. Yet, now he felt a pang of heartache. He had hurt the girl who liked him so dearly.

He watched as Yao Bingkun extinguished his cigarette and looked back at him.

“Alright, I’ve answered your questions. Now, it’s your turn to talk about this ‘pua’ business.”

Meng Xingzhe immediately straightened up, answering solemnly, “I didn’t ‘pua’ her. Chairman, to be honest, when it comes to affection, I’m confident that my feelings for her are stronger than hers for me! So,” his voice took on a serious tone, “if I hurt her, then I must be hurting even more.”

Others might hurt their enemies at a cost to themselves, but he felt like he had hurt her a thousand times and himself a hundred thousand.

“I did say some harsh words to her. But those words were more for myself than for her. At the time, I thought she had a boyfriend, and I didn’t want to be a third party, so I said harsh things to make myself give up.”

Meng Xingzhe paused and asked Yao Bingkun, “Do you remember when we met here last time, you mentioned introducing your younger daughter to me? I told you then that I liked someone else, but she had a boyfriend, and you praised me for having principles and not wanting to be a third party.”

Who would have thought they were talking about the same person?!

Now he shamelessly wanted to kneel and ask if his previous words still held true.

“So, I really didn’t mean to hurt her. It was her little trick, saying she had a boyfriend! Without that premise, there wouldn’t have been so many misunderstandings and complications between us. You see, it can’t all be my fault, right?”

Meng Xingzhe looked at Yao Bingkun with hopeful eyes.

Yao Bingkun met his gaze, a slight smile appearing on his face. He felt like he was caught between two kids, forced to mediate and judge.

“She lied about having a boyfriend? What was she thinking?” He paused, nodding slightly to Meng Xingzhe, “In that case, she was in the wrong.”

Meng Xingzhe exhaled a long breath, feeling like a condemned man granted a reprieve.

His heart had been pounding. Never had the self-proclaimed king of cool felt so humbled, his dignity almost buried in the mud. He felt as insignificant as an ant.

No, he couldn’t use that metaphor. After all, he was afraid of those creatures.

“It seems you really care about Yao Jia,” Yao Bingkun’s voice carried a hint of satisfaction.

“I’ve always worried that her rebellious nature would clash with others. I didn’t know what kind of good temper could handle her.”

Hearing this, Meng Xingzhe immediately defended her, “Yao Jia isn’t truly rebellious.” He recalled the night of the power outage when the young girl confided in him, and his heart softened completely. “President Yao, Yao Jia once told me about her family. To be honest, have you been too strict with her since she was young?”

Yao Bingkun replied, “She was rebellious from a young age, so I was stricter with her.”

Meng Xingzhe said, “But she said her rebellion was because her father always compared her to her sister, using criticism instead of encouragement.”

Yao Bingkun paused, then said, “I thought she was rebellious and wouldn’t respond to encouragement, so I criticized her, hoping she’d learn from her sister.”

“You see, it’s a vicious cycle. You think she’s rebellious, so you constantly criticize her. She, receiving no encouragement, only criticism and comparisons, becomes even more rebellious.”

Meng Xingzhe noticed Yao Bingkun’s furrowed brow and the shock on his face, realizing he might not have been the best father.

This elder was a competent businessman but not necessarily a qualified father.

“What else did she tell you?” Yao Bingkun asked Meng Xingzhe, almost urgently.

“…She mentioned your temper isn’t great. But I think… it’s manageable?”

Yao Bingkun was silent for a moment, then sighed.

“Reflecting on it, I seem to communicate calmly with everyone, but I always lose my temper with her, thinking she’s disobedient and immature, too rebellious.” His voice carried a hint of remorse. “I haven’t done well. Besides these, is there anything else?” he continued to ask.

“Well, she didn’t say it directly, but I can tell she hopes for more encouragement from you and not to be compared to her sister,” Meng Xingzhe said.

Yao Bingkun turned to look into the distance, fiddling with a lighter in his hand, his thumb unconsciously rubbing it.

After a while, his deep voice resonated.

“Thank you for telling me this.” It was as if he spoke to both Meng Xingzhe and himself. “These two points, indeed, I haven’t done well. I’ll strive to learn how to be a good father.”

Hearing this, Meng Xingzhe was almost moved. He thought if Yao Xiaojia were here, she might cry.

In that moment, he suddenly understood who Yao Jia meant when she said she only cried for one man in her life.

He was still caught up in his emotions—realizing the only people who could make her cry were her father and himself—when suddenly, he heard Yao Bingkun speak again.

“However,” Yao Bingkun said, using just two words to hint at a shift in the conversation, once again putting Meng Xingzhe on edge, “let’s return to the issue between you and my daughter. What Yao Jia mainly holds against you is why you hid your identity to go undercover.”

Meng Xingzhe was truly anxious.

“Chairman, President Yao,” he nearly called him ‘Dad’, “honestly, even now, I’m not entirely sure why I came to Kunyu. I have my flaws, but my moral baseline isn’t low. I couldn’t possibly steal any critical technology or important information. But thinking about it, aside from those, I could have obtained other information through different channels. So why did I come here under the suspicion of being a corporate spy?”

Meng Xingzhe was genuinely bewildered by his own words.

“Did I just waste three months here?” he asked Yao Bingkun, a hint of confusion in his eyes.

“It seems you can’t say that,” Yao Bingkun mused. “In these three months at Kunyu, you’ve changed and grown, haven’t you?” He helped the bewildered young man find an answer.

“Yes,” Meng Xingzhe thought seriously, “you’re right, I’ve changed a lot. I used to be a complete egoist, but now I’ve gradually regained the ability to help others. I used to care about quality and style, but now I can sleep on the floor. I wouldn’t even pick up a fallen bottle before, but now, do you know? I can wash dozens of dishes without breaking a sweat! I used to…”

As he listed his changes, he noticed Yao Bingkun’s smile becoming more pronounced.

When he finished, Yao Bingkun nodded and said, “Indeed, you’ve changed quite a bit, so it wasn’t a wasted trip.”

Meng Xingzhe was taken aback.

“You’re not angry with me?”

“Why should I be?” Yao Bingkun’s voice was deep. “In today’s competitive society, who doesn’t have someone in their competitor’s company? Jiangfeng Electric, Heyi.com, I have people there too. If you can’t keep secrets, it’s your own lack of ability, not having enough security measures in place.”

Meng Xingzhe was stunned again. Talking with Yao Bingkun was truly enlightening.

He suddenly asked, “What about you? Do you have people in your competitors’ companies?”

Yao Bingkun looked at him and asked back, “What do you think?” After a pause, he said, “If you think I do, then I do. If you think I don’t, then I don’t.”

Meng Xingzhe found the elder before him to be profoundly enigmatic.

“I don’t think you do,” he said seriously, looking at Yao Bingkun. “I don’t think you’re the type to use such methods.”

This time, Yao Bingkun genuinely laughed, a clear and unmistakable smile, not just a faint trace.

“You’re right, I don’t,” he nodded. “I prefer to do things openly and honestly.”

At that moment, Meng Xingzhe felt a sincere admiration for this elder, seeing him as a forthright and magnanimous entrepreneur.

“No matter what,” Meng Xingzhe said earnestly to Yao Bingkun, “this whole situation is quite absurd, and it’s all my fault. Whatever punishment you have for me, I’ll accept! Whatever request you have, just say it, as long as it can offset my mistake!”

Yao Bingkun asked him, “Any request?”

Meng Xingzhe nodded, “Anything.”

He thought someone as upright as Yao Bingkun wouldn’t make any unreasonable demands. Agreeing to this seemed like a sure way to earn forgiveness.

“Alright,” Yao Bingkun said, “I can’t think of anything at the moment, so I’ll keep this opportunity to make a request. As for your matter, consider it settled with me for today.”

Meng Xingzhe quickly took the chance to ask, “Then could you help explain things to Yao Jia as well?” He felt that those two words, “could you,” made him seem quite pitiable.

Yao Bingkun looked at him sternly, “Matters between young people should be resolved by themselves.”

“…” Meng Xingzhe felt a bit stifled and frustrated.

He suddenly saw Yao Bingkun give him a faint smile, “I still remember how you rejected my daughter.”

“…………” Meng Xingzhe thought, is that why he won’t help plead my case?

“Chairman, I didn’t know we were talking about the same person back then. If I had known, I wouldn’t have refused even under torture!” He dropped all pretense, sincerely pleading, “So could you please explain to Yao Jia…”

Before he could finish, Yao Bingkun waved him off, “From now on, I need to learn how to be a good father and try to give my daughter a new impression. I have my own hands full, so I can’t help you. Young people’s matters should be resolved by young people.”

Meng Xingzhe lamented, “She’s blocked me on all platforms. I can’t contact her at all!”

“That’s something you’ll have to figure out yourself.”

After saying this, Yao Bingkun stood up, gathered his mat, and with a glance at Meng Xingzhe, seemed to ask: Are you still staying here? If not, shouldn’t you return the mat?

Meng Xingzhe: “…”

He stood up and returned the mat to Yao Bingkun, who took it by the corners and left without leaving or taking a trace of dust.

Meng Xingzhe felt like banging his head against the ancient tree.

His visit wasn’t entirely in vain, as he had gained Yao Bingkun’s understanding. But it wasn’t entirely fruitful either—he couldn’t even see Yao Jia, let alone find a way to hear her voice.

He loosened his tie again, frustratedly thinking that to earn her forgiveness, he first needed to find a way to contact her.

After going upstairs, Yao Bingkun went directly to Yao Jia’s office.

Yao Jia was at her desk, intensely reviewing the company’s financial situation and other documents from the past three years.

Seeing her father enter, she stood up to offer him her seat, but he humbly sat in the guest chair opposite her desk.

He gestured for her to sit down and said, “I just met with Meng Xingzhe.”

Hearing the name, Yao Jia was first angry, then surprised, “You know him?”

A faint smile appeared at the corners of Yao Bingkun’s mouth, “It was a rather unexpected encounter.” After a pause, he added, “We’ll talk about that later. Today, he came to see me to explain some things. I think you should hear it.”

He recounted Meng Xingzhe’s explanation from behind the ancient tree downstairs to his daughter. To ensure that the apology retained its original flavor, he recounted it in detail, fearing that a concise summary would lose its essence.

Yao Jia listened in astonishment to her father’s words. He had never been so detailed when relaying someone else’s words before. She wondered what kind of spell Meng Xingzhe had cast on her father.

She thought indignantly that it wasn’t enough for him to charm her; now he was charming her father too. It was simply over the top!

After hearing her father’s recount, she even heard his additional commentary: “Meng Xingzhe said the reason he spoke harshly to you was because you first lied about having a boyfriend. He was afraid he couldn’t help but become a third party between you and your boyfriend, so he said harsh words to sever your connection. Xiao Jia, how could you lie?”

“…”

Yao Jia lowered her head. Why had she lied to him again? Oh right, it was because he teased her about being perpetually single, and in a fit of pique, she…

“Meng Xingzhe said he wants to explain to you in person and ask for your forgiveness, but he can’t reach you.”

Yao Jia looked up at her father. She thought how this dignified Chairman today seemed like a warm-hearted neighborhood elder.

“He said so many harsh words. I don’t want to let him contact me right away!” Yao Jia said angrily, looking at Yao Bingkun.

She didn’t even realize that she looked like a little girl who had been wronged outside, coming home to her parents to sulk.

Yao Bingkun felt a softness in his heart.

This was his youngest daughter, whom he owed so much. He had never spoiled her before, so he might as well make up for it now.

“Alright, then don’t let him contact you just yet,” he smiled slightly. “I’m just here to convey his thoughts, not to mediate. Matters between young people should be resolved by young people.”

With that, he got up and left.

Yao Jia watched her father’s back, feeling that he seemed different today.

She thought it was truly amazing; despite the chilly early winter weather outside, she felt as if she had just been bathed in… a gentle breeze of fatherly love.

After work, Yao Jia didn’t head straight home; instead, she made her way to the Employee Dormitory.

Since she had shed her disguise as a customer service representative and returned to her true identity, she hadn’t been back to the dormitory. She owed her close companions an explanation.

Inside the dormitory, Tian Huasheng and Tong Yumo were there. Not just them, Hao Lidan was present too. It seemed she and Tian Huasheng were now sharing meals together.

When Tian Huasheng saw her, he was almost at a loss, unsure of how to face her. Should he treat her as the lively Yao Jia he knew, or as the future heir of the company, Little General Manager Yao?

Hao Lidan was equally awkward in her reaction.

Tong Yumo, on the other hand, didn’t put on a delicate act. She rolled her eyes at Yao Jia and said, “Is it fun pretending to be poor and deceiving people? What is this, a rich heiress going incognito?”

With that, she turned and went back to her room.

Yao Jia found herself liking Tong Yumo a bit more for not becoming sycophantic after her true identity was revealed.

She chatted with Tian Huasheng and Hao Lidan, helping them pick vegetables.

At first, they were hesitant, stopping her from helping. But after some joking around, all three relaxed completely, as if they had returned to the old days, chatting easily.

Tian Huasheng praised himself, “What did I say before? I knew you weren’t an ordinary person. I should hurry and become your sworn brother! Hahaha, was I a Gold Saint in my past life? My sixth sense is spot on! So, tell me, does our brotherhood still count?”

Hao Lidan gave him a playful slap.

Yao Jia laughed and said, “Second Brother, don’t worry, you’ll always be my Second Brother!”

Tian Huasheng was as happy as if he had been drinking. He said to Hao Lidan, “What did I tell you? I knew Jia would recognize our brotherhood!”

Hao Lidan smiled at Yao Jia, “Yao Jia, who would’ve thought you’re the Chairman’s daughter? You’re really down-to-earth. Not only that, you’re always so helpful and never hold grudges.” She suddenly looked a bit sheepish, “Honestly, if I had known you were the Chairman’s daughter, I wouldn’t have dared to tease you even with a million guts. I’d be trying hard to curry favor with you!”

Yao Jia chuckled.

“You wouldn’t believe it, but Hou Wenwen keeps asking me every day if she’ll still have a job after all the times she teased you. She’s worried you’ll fire her.”

Yao Jia said, “Of course not.”

Hao Lidan laughed, “Tong Yumo told her the same thing, saying: If she wanted to fire us, she would’ve done it when we didn’t know Yao Jia’s identity and were teasing her. She won’t fire you now.”

Yao Jia laughed, “Did Tong Yumo also say: It makes her look all the more magnanimous?”

She mimicked the tone perfectly.

Hao Lidan and Tian Huasheng burst into laughter. Hao Lidan said, “You got it right. She even said it would be better if you did fire us, so she could have a justified reason to scold you!”

Yao Jia wondered since when did Tong Yumo need a reason to scold someone. That was indeed progress. It seemed that working in the Customer Service Department had taught not just her but others as well.

She found Tong Yumo to be an odd character, someone you might want to strangle at times. But beneath her eccentric surface, there seemed to be another person entirely.

Suddenly, Tian Huasheng remembered something, “Our big brother resigned out of the blue. He told me everything in his room is mine now, except for a pile of candy. He said those candies were bought for you and I wasn’t allowed to touch them. He emphasized, not a single piece, because if even one was missing, they wouldn’t be the same candies anymore!”

Yao Jia thought that was odd. But she remembered, Meng Xingzhe had bought her candy to cheer her up and even took a photo.

It felt like these events had just happened.

Her heart felt a pang of sourness. So much had changed in these few days, it felt like her entire life had transformed.

She got up and followed Tian Huasheng to the bedroom with a private bathroom.

As she pushed the door open, everything inside was exactly as before. The owner’s presence lingered, and there wasn’t a speck of dust on the desk. It was as if Meng Xingzhe might suddenly appear, raising an eyebrow and saying with mock arrogance, “Did you knock? Go out and knock again!”

Yao Jia shook her head to dispel the image of that annoying guy.

She heard Tian Huasheng’s voice, “Look, these are the candies!”

She followed the sound and was a bit taken aback.

On Meng Xingzhe’s large bed lay a whole bed’s worth of candy.

It turned out that the photo he took of the candies was just a part of what he had bought.

She wondered why he wouldn’t let Tian Huasheng sneak even a single piece.

Curiosity got the better of her, and she sat on the edge of the bed, counting them one by one.

The sun set as she counted, and the moon rose. Outside the window, the gentle night lights of countless homes appeared.

Finally, she finished counting.

There were 520 pieces of candy.

— Translator’s Notes —

• pua: PUA is Chinese internet slang derived from ‘Pick-Up Artist,’ referring to manipulative psychological tactics used to control or emotionally abuse someone in a relationship, often involving gaslighting or undermining their confidence.

• Gold Saint: A ‘Gold Saint’ refers to one of the powerful golden-armored warriors from the Japanese manga and anime series Saint Seiya (Knights of the Zodiac), known for their exceptional strength, intuition, and protective abilities.

• 520: In Chinese culture and internet slang, the number ‘520’ (pronounced ‘wǔ èr líng’) phonetically resembles ‘wǒ ài nǐ’ (I love you), making it a popular romantic symbol or code for expressing affection.