Seducing and Flirting with Boss O While Stockpiling in the Apocalypse (GL) - Chapter 20

The dinner party finally came to an end. Nan Shuwan felt this was the most relaxed project negotiation she had ever experienced because she barely had to do anything—it was Luo Sheng who did all the talking with Liu Xue.

Everything went smoothly; the collaboration was basically secured, and they were just waiting to sign the contract. The date was set for next Sunday, and once she took Luo Sheng there one more time, the mission would be accomplished.

She was relaxed, but Luo Sheng’s headaches were far from over. She hadn’t signed in today yet, and then there was the matter of stockpiling…

Actually, the basic supplies were mostly taken care of—at least enough to ensure no shortage of food or water for several years—but she was still lacking in medical supplies and weapons. She had to find a way to keep hoarding.

On the way back, Nan Shuwan played cheerful music in the car. Her beaming face formed a sharp contrast with the brooding, gloomy Luo Sheng sitting in the back.

Nan Shuwan didn’t know what the woman was worrying about now, but after all these days, she had grown somewhat accustomed to her “sour face.” Perhaps some people were just born looking that way; when expressionless, they looked a bit fierce, not necessarily unhappy.

Back at the apartment, it was only a bit past 1:00 PM. Luo Sheng thought for a moment and decided she should take this time to buy more changes of clothes.

She changed into light leisure wear and washed the makeup off her face. Without the sticky powder clinging to her skin, she felt much more refreshed. She then headed to a nearby large department store.

The clothes inside were basically on sale year-round at affordable prices. Luo Sheng bought a lot of underwear. Although she had already bought quite a bit, she couldn’t resist adding more warm clothing.

Passing another shelf, she saw anti-slip, waterproof cotton-lined boots, so she grabbed a few pairs. These were consumables, and in the apocalypse, the more the better.

However, while paying, Luo Sheng thought of Nan Shuwan again. Should I buy some daily necessities for her too? After all, the woman had no idea what was coming; by the time she wanted to buy things, it would certainly be too late.

With that thought, she actually doubled back and bought more mid-sized underwear, various cotton clothes, and boots, even adding quite a few toiletries. This round of shopping cost her another ten thousand yuan or so.

Every time she bought these out-of-season items, the people in the supermarket and the cashiers would give her a look as if she were a lunatic. But Luo Sheng had become used to it over this period; she just pulled her mask tight and acted like nothing was happening.

She was busy calculating her money, completely unaware that this behavior was already planning Nan Shuwan into her future.

She had bought a lot, and everything was packed into hemp sacks. Luo Sheng left them in the supermarket’s storage area for a while, deciding to go home, get the car, and come back to move them.

It was easy enough to fit a few hemp sacks into the sufficiently large trunk—at least they took up less space than the previous boxes.

After driving the car back to the parking garage, Luo Sheng left it be. However, as she passed a jewelry and gift shop, she thought for a moment and bought a music box shaped like a crystal ball before returning to the apartment building.

It wasn’t expensive, just a small trinket.

Luo Sheng put it in a small pink gift bag, clutching it tightly in her hand. While she was pondering what excuse to use to give it to Nan Shuwan, two strangers entered the elevator.

A grim-faced man and a timid-looking woman standing behind him.

Luo Sheng stepped aside to avoid them and noticed the man pressed the button for the 14th floor. They live right below me?

She couldn’t help but observe them. The man had a buzz cut, a hawk nose, and “sanpaku” eyes (whites showing below the iris); his face looked very uncomfortable and malicious.

The woman standing behind him kept her head lowered, her face hidden by long hair. She looked terrified of the man. Luo Sheng noticed several bruises of varying sizes scattered across her arms.

Piecing these signs together, Luo Sheng guessed they were husband and wife, and the man was likely a habitual domestic abuser. She sighed softly, a faint sense of sympathy rising in her heart.

But it was all for naught. Luo Sheng couldn’t offer any help now, because being a “Good Samaritan” or calling the police would be meaningless in ten days. Everyone would face the massive crisis of death equally.

Soon, they reached the 14th floor. The two stepped out one after the other, the woman’s pace somewhat dragging. Luo Sheng watched for a moment, and then the elevator reached the 15th floor.

---

When the knock came, Nan Shuwan was organizing today’s report. Her boss was waiting for her to send over the relevant details of today’s project.

She stopped typing and opened the door to see Luo Sheng.

This time, Nan Shuwan wasn’t surprised at all. After all, they had to collaborate for the next week. Luo Sheng had been in charge of the early stages of this project, and many technical details had to be handed over to her and Manager Li.

“Come in.”

After opening the door, Nan Shuwan sat back down at her computer desk. Luo Sheng changed into those azure-blue slippers. Every time she had entered 1502 over the last few days, she wore this pair; they had almost become her exclusive shoes.

Once inside, Luo Sheng swung the small gift bag in her hand in front of Nan Shuwan. She didn’t bother with any fancy excuses and went straight to the point: “This is for you.”

Nan Shuwan looked up from the computer screen and saw the pink bag in Luo Sheng’s hand. She raised an eyebrow, slightly confused. “You… why so sudden?”

“Just consider it a celebration for successfully securing that project you were so worried about today.” Luo Sheng felt this was a very convincing reason.

“Well, you’re quite thoughtful.” Nan Shuwan smiled, reaching out to take it. “What’s inside?”

Luo Sheng held her hand high, out of reach. “Close your eyes first.”

This trick again?

This time Nan Shuwan wasn’t as cooperative as the first time. Instead, she looked at Luo Sheng with a slightly reproachful look. “I reasonably suspect you have some kind of weird fetish…”

“How could I? I promise this is the last time, okay?”

As if.

Luo Sheng found that this trick truly never failed. Using the simplest method to complete the most difficult task—how was that not a stroke of genius?

After Luo Sheng indulged in a little internal narcissism, Nan Shuwan indeed followed instructions and closed her eyes again. She wondered if she was becoming too soft-hearted. Was I like this at the company? I’m practically granting this person’s every request!

Taking advantage of the moment, Luo Sheng successfully touched Nan Shuwan again. This time, she only lightly brushed the other’s fingertips before triggering her intent to enter the space.

It was that strange feeling again—the sensation of the space in front of her becoming empty.

Actually, Nan Shuwan only needed to open her eyes to know what the woman was up to, but this time she didn’t even have time to hesitate. Within a few breaths, she heard Luo Sheng’s soft chuckle, followed by a cool sensation on the bridge of her nose.

Nan Shuwan opened her eyes to see a small crystal ball, which Luo Sheng was pressing against the tip of her nose.

“Heh… do you take me for a three-year-old?” Nan Shuwan said it, but she accepted it. “Going through such a grand performance just to give me this… you didn’t buy it just to make me close my eyes, did you?”

She hit the nail right on the head.

Luo Sheng had indeed “made a whole batch of dumplings just for a dip of vinegar.”

She rubbed her nose awkwardly. “What are you talking about? Making me out to be some kind of pervert…”

When Luo Sheng entered the space just now, she had practically put in the speed of a final 800-meter sprint to sign in. After successfully checking in, she rushed back out. She felt that if she practiced more, she could shave off a few more seconds.

After giving the gift, the two sat before the computer. Luo Sheng helped Nan Shuwan organize the documents, and another two hours passed in a flash.

Afterward, she said goodbye and returned to her own rental across the hall.

This time, Luo Sheng re-entered the space properly to observe the expanded area of the villa. The second floor and the living room had doubled in size again, appearing exceptionally spacious.

However, the barrier on the balcony still hadn’t disappeared.

She used her mind to re-categorize the items, planning to move some things from the abandoned factory inside. No sooner said than done; Luo Sheng immediately drove over there.

The sun at 5:00 PM was still fierce. Luo Sheng wore sunglasses, thinking about the state of the ring while driving. She remembered that it had glowed the first time she wore it; at that time, it had likely “recognized” her as the master after absorbing part of her Alpha pheromones.

Then, the first time it touched blood, it was Nan Shuwan’s, which created this situation where contact between the two of them was required to enter the space. It seemed the woman and the ring had formed some kind of connection, causing her to become the “medium” for Luo Sheng’s entry.

She didn’t know if Nan Shuwan could enter the space with her. Perhaps it required both of them to trigger the intent at the same time while touching? It wasn’t impossible. With these thoughts, Luo Sheng arrived at the abandoned factory before she knew it.

There were still boxes of instant noodles stored here. Now that there was plenty of room, Luo Sheng moved all the food into the space, even moving several water storage tanks.

The villa was now Level 3, and the time she could stay inside had increased to three hours. After finishing all this, the round trip had taken nearly another two hours.

By the time she got home, it was past 7:00 PM. Luo Sheng was starving and wanted to make some dinner, but then she thought of Nan Shuwan across the hall. She wondered if the woman had finished work and had dinner.

For some reason, over the last two days, Luo Sheng had been particularly concerned about every aspect of Nan Shuwan. However, in her heart, she justified it as indirectly caring for her “villa.” After all, this person was critical to her successful entry into the space, so she naturally had to look after her. The days they would spend together were going to be long.

So, having just taken a carrot from the fridge, Luo Sheng hurried over to knock on the door of 1502.

In the next instant, Nan Shuwan, with her makeup removed and wearing rimless glasses, appeared behind Luo Sheng. She was returning from the supermarket with a bag. Seeing the weird silhouette of this person standing at her door holding a carrot, she couldn’t help but joke, “What, are you going to use that thing to assassinate me?”

---

The pot was bubbling with heat; carrots and pork ribs were stewing together, tender and fragrant. Luo Sheng covered the pot and then went to chop a handful of garlic scapes, stir-frying them with pork over high heat. Once the sauce reduced, she served it.

Nan Shuwan helped bring the bowls. When the rib soup was ready, Luo Sheng used a towel to cover the scorching pot to avoid burning her hands, though she still pinched her earlobes after putting it on the table.

Earlier, Luo Sheng had happened to run into Nan Shuwan returning from buying groceries, so she naturally followed her into her home to help her cook.

Over these few days, she had truly become like Nan Shuwan’s private chef, but Luo Sheng didn’t mind. Since she had been cold to her before, it was only natural to make up for it now—especially since she still had to persuade her to travel with her in the apocalypse later.

But Luo Sheng truly hadn’t expected to spend a week so leisurely with her superior. Living right across from each other and seeing each other almost every day, Luo Sheng had gradually erased her bad impression of Nan Shuwan.

Instead, she actually found her… quite cute…?

As soon as that adjective popped into her head, Luo Sheng couldn’t help but shudder. It was a bit cheesy. She couldn’t imagine a day when she would describe her boss that way.

Back at the company, Luo Sheng rarely saw Nan Shuwan. On the few occasions she did, it was during general meetings. She always felt the woman acted with swift decisiveness and had a somewhat lofty personality.

But through this contact, she realized it wasn’t what she had imagined. In daily life, whether talking or doing things, Nan Shuwan didn’t put on airs; her tone was very warm, and being around her was comfortable.

Moreover, in private, Nan Shuwan was quite casual. Compared to that constant professional tension in the workplace, she became exceptionally relaxed at home. Even in front of someone she wasn’t very familiar with, like Luo Sheng, she didn’t hide much.

For instance, when Luo Sheng went to Nan Shuwan’s home to shower yesterday, the woman had a bare face and was wearing an oversized jacket, which removed the aggression of her exquisite makeup. Her skin was fair, and she looked quite young.

Mhm, like a snow fox that has had its fur smoothed.

After the two sat down, Nan Shuwan immediately went to get the bowls and chopsticks, giving Luo Sheng the same bowl with the blue pattern on the bottom.

Luo Sheng noticed that this woman had a bit of obsessive-compulsive disorder… or maybe not, but whether it was slippers or bowls, whichever one she fixed for Luo Sheng remained the one she used.

This detail was also strangely interesting.

“Have some soup first.”

Luo Sheng served a bowl of soup and handed it to Nan Shuwan, specifically putting two large ribs inside.

“I feel like you’re actually quite interested in cooking.” Nan Shuwan took a sip of the hot soup with a porcelain spoon, blowing on it. “Someone like me is too lazy; I rarely do it myself.”

Luo Sheng drizzled the garlic scape stir-fry and sauce over her rice. “You’re probably just too busy. But I do have some interest. When I lived near the company, I wanted to save as much as possible, so I cooked for myself every day. It’s pretty much become a habit.”

This was the truth. Luo Sheng had few close friends at the company. Her solitary nature had led her to focus on cooking for a while; she always found the process of preparing delicious food exceptionally healing.

Buying groceries, chopping vegetables, stewing… finally sitting at the table alone and silently enjoying the fruits of her labor brought a strange sense of accomplishment.

But now, because of Nan Shuwan’s presence, that sense of accomplishment was even more pronounced.

She would sincerely praise the food Luo Sheng made; you could tell the tone was from the heart, and even her expressions were vivid. Luo Sheng couldn’t help but steal a glance at her bulging cheeks as she ate, a strange feeling rising in her heart.

Warm, and a bit sweet.

“What are you secretly smiling about again?” Nan Shuwan saw the corner of the woman’s mouth quirk up slightly as she slowed down her eating. “I always feel like you’re a very strange person…”

How could I not be strange?

Giving up her job to rent this remote apartment, constantly buying things in large quantities, that inexplicable change in attitude, and especially that eerie sense of emptiness after making her close her eyes these past two days…

It was too bizarre; words could hardly describe it.

Nan Shuwan saw Luo Sheng regain her composure and lower her head without speaking. She felt there was no point in hiding things anymore, so she spoke plainly: “Actually, I’ve always been curious why you resigned. Do you really not plan on returning to the company?”

If Nan Shuwan had asked this a few days ago, Luo Sheng would have been quite impatient. But now, because of the ring… she would have to confess everything sooner or later. Should she take this chance to reveal a little, lest the other person find it too hard to accept when the time comes?

Luo Sheng stopped her chopsticks, hesitating. “If I said a major event will happen in the future, would you believe me?” She began to inquire tentatively. “For example, an unstoppable catastrophe—what would you do?”

Nan Shuwan was a bit stunned by the question, not quite understanding the connection to her own question. She bit her chopsticks thoughtfully, actually considering the situation Luo Sheng described. “Then I’d obviously find a way to find a safe place to hide, stockpile a bunch of food and clothes to ride it out, and the rest would be up to fate…”

After answering, she noticed Luo Sheng didn’t speak but instead looked at her with a very certain gaze—a gaze that faintly contained urgency and expectation, as if saying, Do you understand now?

Nan Shuwan suddenly felt a bit of trepidation; the look made her skin crawl as if something really were going to happen. But the feeling was fleeting, quickly replaced by another emotion: amusement.

“Don’t tell me you resigned because of that.” Nan Shuwan couldn’t help but chuckle. “At least give me a reason that sounds logical.”

“Since you’re not willing to say, then forget it.”

Nan Shuwan still believed there was something going on in Luo Sheng’s family—likely something embarrassing. She didn’t want to pry; there was no need to go digging into someone’s scars.

As expected, she doesn’t believe it. Luo Sheng rubbed her nose and switched to a lighter approach. “Actually, I’m planning to go to the Amazon jungle next month to join a professional adventure team. I’ll be there for a long time, following Bear Grylls’ lead—sleeping on the ground and living like a primitive.”

Luo Sheng was a natural at talking nonsense once she got started, without even blushing.

Nan Shuwan didn’t take it seriously but played along. “Then wouldn’t you get injured easily? You’d need to buy a lot of medical kits.”

“Exactly. Do you have a way?”

“Of course I do. I have a wide network.” Nan Shuwan took a bite of food and replied instinctively.

Capturing a piece of key information, Luo Sheng’s eyes flickered, and she grew somewhat excited.

That’s right—Nan Shuwan was a Director at a large company. She must know countless bosses and have a very wide network. Could she ask her to help solve the medical supply problem?

Luo Sheng’s expression deliberately turned serious. “Actually, I do have some difficulties…” She paused there, then said in a pleading tone, “How about this, Director Nan: you help me with this, and in ten days, I promise to tell you the real reason I resigned. How about that?”

Nan Shuwan wasn’t surprised by this. After all, she had always thought this way—this person’s resignation definitely had a hidden motive, likely something she didn’t want to tell people directly.

And hearing the other’s tone, she wanted help buying… medicine?

“I don’t necessarily need to know other people’s secrets,” Nan Shuwan said while eating. “But what’s the benefit for me if I help you?”

There’s a chance.

Luo Sheng’s eyes lit up, and she immediately put a piece of food into Nan Shuwan’s bowl. “I can pay double the price, and during this time, I’ll be at your beck and call, Director Nan. How’s that?”

It was rare to see so much expression on this person’s face, and an air of flattery at that. Nan Shuwan tilted her chin slightly, the corners of her lips curling up. “Sounds decent. I’ll consider it.”

Luo Sheng nodded, not giving the other person any breathing room. “It would be even better if you could finish considering within three minutes.”

So urgent… Nan Shuwan shot her a look, then her expression suddenly went cold, as if she had thought of something difficult.

Helping Luo Sheng with this wasn’t impossible. She did know a very strong pharmaceutical agent who collaborated with many large manufacturers. But the only bad thing was that she had a mediocre relationship with this person; they rarely contacted each other and hadn’t met in a long time.

That person was her younger sister—Nan Chu.

At the thought, Nan Shuwan crossed her arms and laid her chopsticks on the table, looking as if she had lost her appetite.

“What’s wrong?” Luo Sheng asked cautiously, observing Nan Shuwan’s face, afraid of touching a nerve.

In the few years since returning to the country, Nan Chu hadn’t even given her a single greeting. As her only living relative in this world, Nan Shuwan didn’t actually want the relationship to be this strained.

She had tried contacting her, but Nan Chu remained cold—not proactive, but not specifically hostile either, simply treating her like thin air and completely ignoring her as an older sister.

After several cold receptions, Nan Shuwan’s patience wore thin, and she stopped bothering her. Later, being busy with work, she set this family bond aside even more.

Nan Shuwan looked at Luo Sheng again. If she used this high-sounding reason of buying medicine for her to contact Nan Chu, would she be able to openly ask for a meeting?

To say she didn’t miss her at all was impossible. No matter what, Nan Chu was her sister, and she didn’t know how she had been doing lately…

At the thought, Nan Shuwan let out another heavy sigh.

Luo Sheng watched the other’s face shifting between various shades, wondering if she had said something wrong. Was she being too pushy and making her angry?

She cleared her throat, about to say something apologetic, when she heard Nan Shuwan speak slowly and solemnly: “Alright. I agree to help you with this, but please remember your promise, Miss Luo, to be at my beck and call.”

Luo Sheng was delighted and immediately held up four fingers to the sky. “Deal! It’s a promise!”

---

Two days later, Nan Shuwan said she was going to take Luo Sheng to meet someone.

Over these two days, Luo Sheng continued her old sign-in method. To avoid making the other person feel too strange, she had been opportunistic—for instance, touching her lightly while Nan Shuwan was napping. The sign-in could be finished in seconds, practically without being noticed.

In any case, she still had to help with the follow-up work for the project this week, so staying at Nan Shuwan’s house all day was considered reasonable.

But Nan Shuwan had become busy these two days, going out back and forth in the intense heat, napping for a bit at noon, and then having to run to the company. The air outside was suffocatingly hot; it felt like breathing became difficult just walking a short distance.

Today was the same. The two were fully geared up, wrapping themselves tightly. The UV rays were too powerful; Luo Sheng applied no less than three layers of sunscreen to any exposed skin.

“So, where are we going now?” Sitting in the car, Luo Sheng took off her hat and mask, asking as she breathed.

Nan Shuwan didn’t say much. “You’ll know when we get there.”

The car drove steadily, turning through countless traffic lights. They were stuck in traffic for a while midway. The road gradually turned from concrete to dirt and gravel.

Luo Sheng truly hadn’t expected the place to be this remote. It could hardly even be called the suburbs anymore; it was like some mountain hollow. The sun was dazzlingly bright, and dust rose behind the car from the parched ground.

After getting out, Luo Sheng quickly put her mask back on to keep the dust out of her nose and mouth. Nan Shuwan parked the car randomly in a small lane.

For some reason, Luo Sheng could clearly feel Nan Shuwan’s expression becoming solemn. She didn’t ask questions; hearing her say “It’s just ahead,” she followed.

After crossing another small path, the gravel on the roadside grew sparse. The further they went, the more trees appeared on both sides, and even the air became fresher. Luo Sheng followed behind, observing the surroundings, and nearly tripped over a broken tree branch.

“Be careful.” Nan Shuwan voiced a reminder.

Luo Sheng wiped the sweat from her forehead. “It’s fine. But this place really is remote.”

After passing through a road flanked by two rows of trees, their field of vision finally opened up. Luo Sheng saw something that surprised her even more: she hadn’t expected a white villa to be in this place?

They had only seen a few small red-brick tile houses along the way, so this villa looked exceptionally abrupt. The style was completely out of place, like a drop of ink on rice paper.

Luo Sheng let out a soft “Wow” and looked from a distance. It was two stories high and surrounded by a fence. Regardless of anything else, you could tell from the outside that the renovation was quite exquisite.

Nan Shuwan remained silent and walked a few steps to the iron fence gate. There was an electronic doorbell; pressing it would call the house and activate facial recognition—it also served as a surveillance monitor.

She pressed it lightly, and a “beep” sounded. The small display screen reflected Nan Shuwan’s face, but after only a few seconds, the call was immediately cut off, leaving only the dial tone behind.

What’s going on? Luo Sheng stood silently behind, not understanding what it meant.

Nan Shuwan, however, breathed a secret sigh of relief. Since she hadn’t made an appointment with Nan Chu in advance and had headed straight to her home after a long absence, it was a bit of a gamble. If Nan Chu weren’t home, it would have been a wasted trip.

But now that the doorbell call was cut off, it proved Nan Chu was indeed home. And that she still didn’t really want to see her.

“The person you’re looking for has a pretty weird temper.” Luo Sheng, who had witnessed it all, came to this conclusion.

Nan Shuwan gave a self-deprecating smile. “Only weird toward me.”

Luo Sheng didn’t have time to savor the meaning behind that before she saw her dial the door again. This time, the other person didn’t even give her a chance to connect, hanging up immediately. Nan Shuwan took a deep breath, suddenly lost for ideas.

Although she had Nan Chu’s number in her phone, it had long since become a dead number. Nan Shuwan had no way of knowing the other’s new contact information.

Just as she was hesitating, the iron gate opened automatically with a heavy sound, scraping against the ground with a bit of a piercing screech.

The slowly opening gate was now an invitation.

It seemed the owner of the house had controlled the gate to open. Then, a voice spoke from the small screen: “Come in.”

---

Entering the villa, Luo Sheng looked around. It was a very old-fashioned renovation style—bright on the outside, but the interior felt much more somber.

Nan Shuwan walked ahead, looking very familiar with the place. Although the owner hadn’t communicated with her, she seemed to already know where the other person was staying.

The reddish-brown wooden spiral staircase made a thud-thud sound as they stepped on it. On the second floor, the light was much more abundant. Luo Sheng saw an open bedroom door.

Nan Shuwan gave her a look, and Luo Sheng immediately understood and followed. At the door, she saw the person sitting inside.

She had crisp, medium-length hair tied low behind her head, tanned skin, and wore rimless glasses. A black sleeveless top revealed thin muscles on her arms—she looked like she had training.

The other person leaned back in her chair, teasing a golden hamster in a cage with a vegetable leaf, making a few clicking sounds. She had an air of casual indifference and didn’t even give them a glance.

Nan Shuwan seemed fixed in place, her gaze complex as she stared at Nan Chu. She felt that after not seeing her for so long, her sister looked much more mature.

She knit her brows in hesitation for a moment, then plucked up her courage to speak. “Nan Chu, I…”

“Heh. I didn’t expect that after so long, you’d be in a relationship. Did you bring your partner here to show off to me?” Nan Chu interrupted abruptly. She took an hourglass from a drawer and set it upside down on the table. “I’ll give you three minutes.”

Luo Sheng and Nan Shuwan looked at each other, somewhat stunned. Then Luo Sheng explained, “You’ve misunderstood. I’m here to buy medicine from you.”

“Nan Chu, help us out… just treat her as a client.” Nan Shuwan immediately followed up, her voice growing thinner as she spoke.

Once she spoke, the atmosphere fell back into silence.

Nan Chu tossed the leaf aside and pulled a slender cigarette from her pocket. For a moment, a spark ignited, and she began to blow out clouds of smoke.

She exhaled a puff of smoke and suddenly sneered. “Help? Coming from your mouth, that’s a rare word. What, have you fallen on hard times and come to seek refuge with me?”

As soon as she opened her mouth, her words were thorns. It was easy to see that she was very targeted toward Nan Shuwan.

Luo Sheng was left bewildered by the strange atmosphere between the two. She felt a sense of awkwardness, as if caught in the middle and not knowing what to say. She even let her imagination run wild—could these two be ex-girlfriends? That would explain the friction.

So she observed silently while filling in the blanks, waiting to see what the situation was.

Nan Shuwan didn’t seem to care at all, instead asking in a concerned tone, “How have you been… these years?”

Although the other had matured, her face looked a bit haggard. Fortunately, her body looked solid. Nan Shuwan hadn’t known when Nan Chu had taken up fitness, or when she had picked up the habit of smoking…

Over these three years, she knew almost nothing about Nan Chu’s life. Her few sources of information were the Moments on Nan Chu’s old WeChat account, which she had added long ago. The other would only occasionally “come back to life” and update a few posts showing her status, and Nan Shuwan would diligently “like” every single one.

Several times Nan Shuwan had tried sending messages to her on WeChat, but every time she sent one, a red exclamation mark would appear. She thought she had been blocked, but then a few months later, she would see Nan Chu update her Moments again.

At that time, Nan Shuwan guessed that Nan Chu must have a new account, and this old one was just kept to show off how well she was doing. She would repeatedly block and unblock her, unwilling to interact.

Nan Chu took another puff of her cigarette calmly, finding it amusing. “Don’t you think you’re being extremely hypocritical? Asking me how I’m doing now—why didn’t you ask when you left me behind and ran off abroad?” She rubbed her temples and crushed the cigarette in the ashtray. “In the three years since you came back, you knew I was living here. Why didn’t I see you visit personally? Don’t you think you’re being especially fake and hilarious saying this now?”

Every word cut to the bone.

Nan Shuwan’s breathing quickened under the accusation.

Memories flooded back. When their parents died in a car accident abroad, the two sisters, barely over ten years old, had relied on each other from then on. Their parents left behind an inheritance and this house so they could continue their schooling and have a place to live.

Later, the two were always in the same school through middle and high school. Upon graduation, Nan Shuwan promised Nan Chu she would stay in the country with her to develop together, because her sister had always been traumatized by their parents’ death and didn’t want her relatives to go abroad again.

It was a settled matter, but a single admission letter broke the original peace. Nan Shuwan hadn’t expected to be proactively recruited by the most famous elite university in Country A. Faced with such a temptation, she wavered completely.

And so the conflict began. Nan Chu forced her to give it up, demanding she go to the same university as her. But Nan Shuwan had her own ideas; her high career ambitions drove her to want a better future.

Nan Shuwan wanted to invite Nan Chu to go abroad with her, but the stubborn girl wouldn’t agree for anything. Then they had a huge fight. Nan Shuwan resolutely went abroad to study, while Nan Chu went to university domestically.

After graduating, Nan Shuwan worked as an executive at a foreign company for two years, and it had been three years since she returned home.

Nan Shuwan knew in her heart that everything the other said was true. She knew she lived in the house their parents left behind, yet she had never proactively visited. Nan Shuwan had actually come a few times, but she only stood outside and watched from afar, not disturbing Nan Chu.

Because fundamentally, she wanted to escape—to avoid being aggressively accused by her sister. And also, Nan Shuwan didn’t think she had done a great wrong. Everyone has their own ambitions; she just wanted to control her own life. What was wrong with that?

That streak of pride in Nan Shuwan’s bones made her unwilling to bow her head and admit she was wrong.

But in the end, she was guilty. She hadn’t kept her promise, hadn’t stayed by her sister’s side. She was not a qualified older sister.