My Straight Girlfriend with Skin Hunger Syndrome - Chapter 111

Chapter 111

The meal was exceptionally pleasant.

Wen Can far exceeded everyone’s expectations for a new client.

When she called Qi Hongyue “Little Yue,” Ying Yuan’s index finger nearly snapped under Yi Shanshan’s grip.

Yi Shanshan’s eyes sparkled with excitement, darting between Qi Hongyue and Wen Can, desperate to abandon all serious conversation and focus solely on their relationship and backstory.

Wen Can didn’t seem to mind. She answered Yi Shanshan’s personal questions openly and generously, including her age, daily work habits, and even the percentage of company shares she owned.

“There’s nothing to hide, after all,” she said with a smile. “You can find all this information online anyway.” She turned to tease Qi Hongyue, “Like Little Yue here—she’s definitely already looked up all the details, hasn’t she?”

Qi Hongyue: “……”

She had indeed researched everything thoroughly.

Know your enemy, know yourself, and victory will never be in doubt. For such a crucial collaboration, she had naturally gathered every scrap of information she could find.

Before the dishes arrived, Qi Hongyue had already taken out her prepared documents.

The freshly printed document, a moderately thick stack, was still warm and smelled of fresh ink.

Wen Can took the document, flipped through a couple of pages, then set it down near her hand, her palm pressing down on it. “Let’s eat first, babes,” she said. “I’ve been running around all day and I’m counting on this dinner to be a real feast. We can talk work after we’ve eaten—it’ll take the edge off.”

Yi Shanshan wholeheartedly agreed.

Qi Hongyue and Ying Yuan exchanged uneasy glances.

They couldn’t tell if Wen Can was being genuine or just trying to soften the blow. Was she truly unimpressed with their proposal?

Still, they had to follow her lead and eat first.

The dishes arrived, their fragrant aromas filling the air. With the “no work talk” rule in place, everyone could focus on enjoying the meal.

Occasional comments about the flavors, interspersed with Yi Shanshan’s lively banter on everyday topics, made the dinner feel like a casual gathering among friends—relaxed, natural, and even a little cozy.

Once they were full and had rested for a while, Wen Can leaned back languidly in her chair, propping her head up with one hand, and finally began to read the proposal.

This time, she flipped through the pages very slowly, her thick, dark eyelashes casting dense shadows when she looked down.

Qi Hongyue kept his gaze fixed on her, while Ying Yuan, feeling a bit nervous, glanced at her from time to time.

Yi Shanshan, having completed her task, no longer avoided the others. Leaning against Ying Yuan, she took her hand and idly squeezed it.

Wen Can finished reviewing the proposal and asked two questions—neither simple nor deliberately challenging.

After a moment’s thought, Qi Hongyue answered smoothly. This was the most she had spoken at one time, delivering a lengthy explanation with clear logic and sharp points.

Wen Can’s striking features settled on her, her eyes blinking slowly, a faint smile curving her lips.

“Excellent,” she praised after Qi Hongyue finished.

Yi Shanshan chimed in, “Big Sister Wen, were you admiring Senior Qi just now?”

Wen Can laughed, openly admitting, “Indeed I was.”

Yi Shanshan turned to Ying Yuan. “See? I told you—robots like you are absolutely captivating when you’re focused on your work!”

Ying Yuan blushed slightly, turning her palm upward to grasp Yi Shanshan’s hand and squeeze it gently.

Yi Shanshan continued to Wen Can, “They were like this at school too. Once they set their minds on something, they’d throw themselves into it day and night. While everyone else is skipping class to party or date, they’d be holed up in the Activity Room, working until the wee hours.”

“Even in a real company, a project of this scale and progress might not have reached this stage. That’s probably the advantage of university students—they dedicate themselves wholeheartedly to their dreams, willing to burn themselves out like expendable resources.”

“But not all college students are as brilliant as Senior Qi and Ying Yuan. I, for example, am like you, Big Sister Wen—just an admirer.”

Yi Shanshan blinked, her smile blooming like a delicate flower. “We really have an eye for talent, don’t we? If we’re going to pick something, we pick the best. If we want to claim something, we claim it early!”

Wen Can set down the contract, returning Yi Shanshan’s gaze with a smile that hinted at mutual admiration.

“What I love most about this project is definitely Xiao Yue herself. She gives me the feeling that whatever I entrust to her, she’ll take it to its absolute limit.”

Wen Can turned to Qi Hongyue. “Now that we’ve come this far, let’s discuss any remaining conditions you have. Be specific, so I can get the legal team to review the contract.”

At this stage, the collaboration was essentially finalized.

The process had been smoother and quicker than Qi Hongyue could have imagined. Wen Can was direct, her terms generous, and she embodied Qi Hongyue’s ideal partner.

This is like manna from heaven, Qi Hongyue thought.

Or perhaps after enduring so much bad luck, I’ve finally reached the turning point where fortune favors me.

By the time they left the restaurant, it was ten o’clock at night.

The all-female dinner party had been entirely sober. They had eaten their fill, and the business discussions had gone perfectly.

The humid summer breeze on their faces didn’t feel stifling; instead, it induced a mild, dreamy weariness, a desire for a good night’s sleep.

Qi Hongyue called a car for Wen Can. Before getting in, Wen Can looked at her and asked, “You’ve solved such a huge problem. Aren’t you happy?”

“I am,” Qi Hongyue replied.

Wen Can: “Then show me a smile.”

Qi Hongyue froze, unaccustomed to wearing her emotions on her sleeve, let alone forcing a smile on demand.

Wen Can, however, laughed after her words, radiant as a flower in full bloom.

Qi Hongyue’s mind drifted. Wen Can settled into the car and waved. “I had a wonderful evening. See you next time.”

Yi Shanshan waved enthusiastically. “Bye, Big Sister Wen! Come visit us anytime!”

Ying Yuan added, “Thank you for your hard work, President Wen. Get some rest.”

Wen Can gazed at Qi Hongyue through the half-open car window.

Qi Hongyue tugged at the corners of her lips. “…See you next time.”

The car pulled away, quickly reaching the intersection and disappearing around the corner.

Yi Shanshan bounced over to Qi Hongyue, tilting her head. “Senior Qi, stop staring! If you miss her so much, just chase after her to the hotel!”

Qi Hongyue: “…”

“I’m just thinking,” Qi Hongyue finally said.

“Thinking about what?” Yi Shanshan pressed.

Qi Hongyue glanced at Ying Yuan. “It went too smoothly.”

Ying Yuan nodded. “Indeed, it was remarkably smooth. We didn’t even need to use our backup plans.”

“That just proves this collaboration was destined!” Yi Shanshan exclaimed. “Success doesn’t always require endless hurdles. When luck strikes, even the heavens conspire in our favor.”

Yi Shanshan darted back to Ying Yuan, leaning close to her ear to whisper, “That’s why businesspeople are so superstitious!”

“Ohhh~” Ying Yuan replied.

“But Senior Qi, you and Wen Can… really? You met at work, exchanged contact info, and just started chatting until you reached this point?” Yi Shanshan frowned. “There’s no other story behind it?”

There is.

But Qi Hongyue wasn’t about to tell Yi Shanshan. Especially since Ying Yuan would soon be with Yi Shanshan, Qi Hongyue had no intention of telling Ying Yuan either.

Their first meeting had been anything but peaceful, far from strictly professional.

It had involved her messy, half-dead ex—a woman so toxic she barely qualified as an ex—and the scene had descended into utter chaos.

At first, Qi Hongyue had assumed Wen Can was just drawn to the drama.

Now, she wondered if Wen Can’s excessive compassion was simply pity masquerading as generosity.

Qi Hongyue turned away, refusing to answer Yi Shanshan’s question. “Weren’t you dying to take Ying Yuan home?”

Yi Shanshan grinned sheepishly. “That’s true~”

“Better make the most of your time together,” Qi Hongyue called out, hailing another car. “Once the contract’s finalized, Ying Yuan won’t have any free time to play around with you.”

Yi Shanshan: “!!!!”

Yi Shanshan glared fiercely. “People need rest! Employees deserve a personal life too! Qi Hongyue, you’re a born capitalist! You’re already exploiting the working class even before you have any money! Ugh!”

Qi Hongyue chuckled coldly from inside the car.

With a whirr, another car sped away.

Only Yi Shanshan and Ying Yuan remained at the restaurant entrance.

Yi Shanshan whirled around and buried herself in Ying Yuan’s arms, whining and pouting. “Waaah! Qi Hongyue is bullying me! You didn’t even stick up for me! How much suffering will we have to endure working for a boss like that? Waaah! Yuan-dear, my heart aches for you…”

Ying Yuan wrapped her arms around Yi Shanshan and gently patted her back with a smile. “Senior didn’t mean it that way. She was just reminding us to cherish the time we have together. And like you said, even busy people have personal lives.”

Yi Shanshan: “But your personal life is for eating, sleeping, and making friends. What about me…?”

Ying Yuan: “No, my personal life is you.”

Yi Shanshan lifted her head from Ying Yuan’s arms, her bright, glossy lips pouting.

Seeing no one around, Ying Yuan lowered her gaze and pressed a kiss to those lips. “Eating, sleeping, making friends—we’ll do it all together.”

Yi Shanshan brightened instantly, her face breaking into a wide grin.

It had barely been twenty-four hours since they officially became a couple, yet Yi Shanshan already felt like she had molded Ying Yuan into the perfect girlfriend.

“Then let’s go to my place tonight~” she suggested impulsively.

Ying Yuan hesitated. Given the extent of surveillance at Yi Shanshan’s home, visiting one of her family’s properties in B City always made her uneasy.

Yi Shanshan observed her expression, her brow furrowing. “Qi Hongyue said we should cherish every moment… Do you not want to be with me? Or is your stamina not up to par? You couldn’t handle even last night’s level of… intensity?”

Ying Yuan: “……”

Ying Yuan desperately wanted to shut Yi Shanshan’s jabbering mouth.

Arguing with her was futile; listening only eroded Ying Yuan’s resistance and dissolved her reservations.

Worse, Yi Shanshan kept pushing the boundaries of Ying Yuan’s sense of propriety, lowering her threshold for both daring and shame.

“Come to my place,” Ying Yuan said. “No one’s home.”

Yi Shanshan’s eyes lit up, fixed on Ying Yuan with the eager gleam of a wolf pup. “Are Auntie and Uncle away on business again?”

“Yeah. They’re hardly ever home,” Ying Yuan replied, pulling out her phone to check their chat history, confirming her parents were indeed in another city and wouldn’t be rushing back unexpectedly. “They’ve been gone for the past couple of days.”

“Woo-hoo!” Yi Shanshan exclaimed.

She pressed herself against Ying Yuan. “You don’t have to sleep in another room this time. We can share your bed~”

“Okay,” Ying Yuan murmured.

A watery gleam shimmered in Yi Shanshan’s eyes. “I have a secret to tell you. Do you know what I did in your bed that night?”

Ying Yuan froze, her cheeks flushing crimson.

She didn’t know what Yi Shanshan had done. She only remembered the bedroom door being ajar that night. She only remembered the lingering, sweet scent that filled her room the next morning after Yi Shanshan had left.

The scent was even stronger in the bed.

So she had hugged the quilt, burying her face in it, inhaling secretly, shamefully, greedily.

Ying Yuan shook her head. Yi Shanshan stood on tiptoe, her lips brushing against Ying Yuan’s ear.

“Silly girl, your memory isn’t so great after all~

“I told you, didn’t I? That night, I secretly looked up a bunch of stuff in your bed…”

Even Yi Shanshan, usually so bold and passionate, blushed faintly at this confession.

Her lips brushed lightly against Ying Yuan’s skin, whispering her deepest desires against her cheek.

“It was originally just to test myself… and I was in your bed…

“Your bed is filled with your scent.

“I love your scent, so I couldn’t resist trying it out for myself…”

“Mmm…” Yi Shanshan paused, a momentary sound of thought. But to Ying Yuan’s ears, it sounded so much like the noises she sometimes let slip…

Ying Yuan’s face was already flushed crimson, and a familiar warmth surged through her body. Her arms around Yi Shanshan’s waist tightened involuntarily as Yi Shanshan pressed closer to her ear and continued:

“It was so wet back then… and it felt so good.

“But after you actually touched me, I realized that was nothing compared to what you make me feel…”

At that moment, Ying Yuan could only think: I need to get home, now.