Cinderella Innocent and Boss Charming - Chapter 308
Chapter 308 Afraid of the Loneliness That Followed
In fact, many things could not be avoided, such as cooking a small bowl of noodles.
At first, she could not bear to think of everything that was related to him. But as the days went by, she found that sadness could not sustain life. For her, having something to eat and to wear was the most important thing. So when the money in her hand was not enough to buy basic necessities and she could only afford to make a bowl of noodles, the sorrow she had once thought to be overwhelming was gone, replaced by helplessness as her heart got harder.
The dish “Scrambled Eggs with Tomato” was also taught by Gu Nianbin to her. Now, she often made it for Du Niannian and she did not feel bad about it. The hardships of life were the vivid memory in her heart now. The past was like a lifetime ago.
She quickly boiled the water, cut the beef into small slices, chopped green onions into pieces, and trimmed the green vegetables. When the noodles were cooked, she scooped them into the bowl and put green vegetables and tender beef on the top. Then a bowl of beef noodles was made, which was hot and delicious.
Seeing that she was about to reach out to pick up the bowl, Lu Haochen rushed forward and said, “I’ll do it. It’s hot.”
Du Xiaoxian asked him to carry one bowl, then carried a bowl herself and slowly followed behind him.
They sat down to eat. Lu Haochen hastily picked up the noodles with chopsticks, blew to cool them down, and then tasted them. He gave her a thumb-up. “Very good!”
Du Xiaoxian was the least able to handle praises and she smiled embarrassedly. “It’s not that good, just edible.”
Lu Haochen said, “Since you cook so well, you are responsible for cooking dinner in the future.”
“Really?” Du Xiaoxian grinned happily. “That’s great.”
“Also,” Lu Haochen said, “He seems to have said that a meal is covered, which means that after you cook the dinner, you can eat it and then leave.”
“I can eat before leaving when the owner is not here?” Du Xiaoxian blinked her eyes. Such conditions were too strange.
“Yes, that’s what he told me.” Lu Haochen mumbled as he chewed on the noodles.
“Then he is so kind.” Du Xiaoxian had a good impression of the owner, although they hadn’t met. “When can I meet him? I think maybe he has some rules to tell me.”
“I know that.” Lu Haochen thought for a moment and said, “He will sign a contract with you and clearly list out the rights and duties of both sides so that there is a guarantee for both of you. What do you think?”
“That’s good. I also signed a labor contract with our company.” Du Xiaoxian nodded in agreement. “When will we sign the contract?”
“Tomorrow,” Lu Haochen put down his chopsticks, picked up the bowl and drank a mouthful of noodle soup. He then said slowly, “He will come back late today. I’ll ask him to leave the contract at home. You can come and sign it tomorrow.”
“Alright.” She would feel secure if the contract was signed. She would have an additional 3,500 yuan per month, which was not a small amount of income. Du Xiaoxian began to calculate in her heart: With this money, she could buy an air conditioner, and the monthly electricity fee would also be covered.
They had chosen to rent the fifth floor because the rent was cheaper than the ones downstairs. However, they only found out after they moved in that there was a reason why it was cheaper. Living on the top floor was really a torture. The sun in Yawan was in the sky from morning to night. Although there was a heat-insulating layer on the rooftop, it had no effect at all. The room was as hot as a steamer, and once they made some movements, they would sweat a lot. When sleeping at night, they had to keep the fan blowing all night, but the wind it blew out was also hot. Du Niannian usually felt hot and kept tossing and turning. Du Xiaoxian often reached out in a daze to touch her daughter and found that the child was covered in sticky sweat. Thinking about it, she felt very sorry. She could tolerate the heat, but she didn’t want her daughter to suffer. With this money, their lives could be greatly improved.
After dinner, Du Xiaoxian was cleaning upstairs while Lu Haochen sat in the living room watching TV. He lay lazily on the sofa, putting his feet on the coffee table. He held the remote control and pressed it randomly until he switched to the financial channel. He stared at the boring financial news, but he was overjoyed. In fact, his mind was not on the TV at all. He felt happy that he was staying in his house and watching TV downstairs while she was cleaning the room upstairs. They were like an ordinary couple.
Today was like a dream for him. She helped him wash his clothes, cooked for him, and even cleaned up the house for him. Yesterday, he had only been vaguely dreaming about them, and today, the dreams came true one by one. He had not deliberately arranged this, but they just happened together. If she could spend the night here, Lu Haochen thought, it would be perfect.
He had never brought a woman home. This was his private territory where he could be unrestrained, so he was not willing to let outsiders step in. But now, he desperately hoped that she could stay. She didn’t necessarily need to do something. He just wanted her to be in the same room with him. This feeling made him feel at ease and satisfied.
But once she went home, he would be left alone. He had been independent since a long time ago and was used to being alone. He did not feel lonely at all. Even when he needed women for physical reasons, he would part ways with them after he was done and would not spend the night with them. But now, although she was still here, he was already worried about being separated and afraid of the loneliness that followed.
Then what he was afraid of exactly came. Du Xiaoxian’s footsteps came from the stairs. He looked up and saw her walking down the stairs quickly. “I’m done cleaning upstairs. I’m going to do the cleaning downstairs. You can go upstairs. There’s a TV there too.”
“No need,” He sat still. “I won’t get in your way, will I?”
Du Xiaoxian smiled and said, “Actually, I’m afraid I’ll get in your way!” She looked around and said, “The house is very clean and there is no dust. It seems that your friend is a person who pays much attention to hygiene. In fact, cleaning this house twice a week is enough.”
“Yes, he cares about cleanliness very much. It can be said that he has mysophobia, so he needs the house to be cleaned every day.” Lu Haochen told her, “The floor needs to be cleaned with a vacuum cleaner first and then with a mop, in order to make it as bright as new. Even if someone walks on the floor barefooted, his feet should not be stained with a speck of dust. The table and cabinets need to be wiped with a damp cloth first and then with a piece of dry cloth. If one touches it with a white towel, he should not see a speck of dust on the towel. Isn’t it a bit too strict?”
“It is indeed a bit strict, but since he can pay such a high salary, the high requirements are understandable. I can handle this.”
“Won’t it be too tiring?”
“No, because it is already very clean. It just needs some more time.”
Lu Haochen raised his eyebrows and secretly laughed in his heart. It was good that she didn’t find it tiring. This was what he wanted.
Du Xiaoxian pushed the vacuum cleaner out from the storage room, plugged it in, and pressed the switch. The whole room was instantly filled with the noise of the vacuum cleaner, but Lu Haochen was not annoyed. He put his long legs on the coffee table and shook twice.
He looked at her for a while and suddenly said, “Wait a minute.”
Du Xiaoxian was doing cleaning with her back to him and did not hear him. So he got up and went to the kitchen to take off the apron hanging on the wall. He quietly walked in front of her and suddenly put the apron on her. Du Xiaoxian was shocked and looked up. He smiled, put his hands behind her and held her in his arms. Du Xiaoxian wanted to struggle.
He said, “Don’t move. It’s better to wear this so that you won’t dirty your clothes.”
Du Xiaoxian had no choice but to stay still, but her face turned red immediately. Fortunately, Lu Haochen did not do anything else. He tied the belt of the apron for her and then went to sit down on the sofa.
Du Xiaoxian did things very carefully. Even with Lu Haochen’s picky eyes, he couldn’t find anything wrong with her work, so there was no excuse to keep her for a while longer. He watched as Du Xiaoxian put away all the tools, took off her apron, washed her hands in the kitchen, and went to the living room to pick up her little bag, as if she didn’t want to stay here for one more minute.
Lu Haochen was a little disappointed, but there was nothing he could do. He could only stand up and say, “Let me send you home!”
“No, thank you.” Du Xiaoxian declined, “I can take the bus.”
Lu Haochen said. “It’s nothing. I happen to be leaving as well. I can give you a ride. Moreover, it’s quite far from the community gate, and very far from the bus stop.”
Du Xiaoxian hesitated for a moment and said, “Alright then!” In the past, she was extremely unaccustomed to accepting favors from others. Later, as she slowly got along with her neighbors, she found out that sometimes refusing was also a kind of harm. So as long as the favor was not too big, she would gladly accept it and try to find an opportunity to return it. In the process of reciprocity, their relationship got better.
This time, Du Xiaoxian did not make a mistake when choosing the seat. She opened the front door of the car and got in. She asked Lu Haochen, “Mr. Lu, where do you live?”
Lu Haochen said, “I live in Guangfu Community.”
Du Xiaoxian exclaimed happily, “Alas, our homes are quite close! I live in Guangshali Community.”
Lu Haochen replied, “Alright. Then I’ll send you home.”
Of course, he knew where she lived. It was written on her resume! However, he did not expect Du Xiaoxian to be so easy to fool. How could he, the president of a listed company, live in Guangfu Community, a low-priced community? He laughed in his heart, but his expression was serious.
The night was the liveliest hour in a day. There were colorful lights hanging on the tall coconut trees on both sides, in the color of bright red, green, yellow, and blue. As the car drove forward, the scenery on both sides in their eyes quickly went backward. The flashing lights extended into bright streams of light, which looked very beautiful.
Yawan was a tourist city. Because it was near the sea, there were a lot of tourists from home and abroad. On the streets, there were groups of people chatting and laughing. There were also people holding a bottle of beer and drinking all the way. Young girls and boys were wearing vests with short pants or casual T-shirts with beach shorts, looking so young and lively as they walked past.
Du Xiaoxian looked at them in jealousy. Perhaps she would never become like them in this lifetime, but looking at them in this way, she also felt satisfied.
It was so hot during the day, but it was very cool at night. There was the smell of the sea in the wind and a faint fishy smell. When she first came, she was a little unaccustomed to it. But after living here for a long time, she became used to it.
Suddenly, Lu Haochen stopped the car by the roadside and said, “I’m going to buy something.”
Du Xiaoxian said “okay” and leaned against the window to look at him. It turned out that Lu Haochen was going to buy Ching Bo Leung.
Ching Bo Leung was a local dessert in Yawan. It had green beans, pearl barley, Tapioca pearl, mango, and watermelon added to iced coconut milk. It was cold and sweet, considered to be the best dessert for cooling down in hot summer.
Lu Haochen bought two bowls of it and handed one to Du Xiaoxian. He stood next to the car, holding the bowl and eating slowly. There was a handsome man standing on the side of the street, making the girls passing by keep peeping at him. Of course, Lu Haochen turned a blind eye to them, but Du Xiaoxian found it interesting. She smiled so happily that her eyes were curved, like the crescent moon in the sky.
Lu Haochen said, “What are you laughing at?”
Du Xiaoxian smiled but did not say anything. She only shook her head.
Lu Haochen ate a few more and suddenly asked in all seriousness, “Du Xiaoxian, what do you think of me?”
Du Xiaoxian also said seriously as she looked him up and down, “I think you are not bad.”
Lu Haochen looked a little disappointed. “Only not bad?”
Du Xiaoxian smiled. “Well, you are good.”
As they got along, Du Xiaoxian found that although Lu Haochen looked very serious, he was actually a little childish and very kind. She cut her finger, and he helped her put on the Band-Aid. Seeing that she did not have much to eat, he shared his own dishes with her. He introduced her to a part-time job, sent her home, and now, he even treated her to dessert. He was a president, yet he was so approachable to such a small potato as her. Therefore, he was good!
