Shen Ying's audacious follow-through not only caught Gao Yingli off guard but also caused the system to flicker and nearly short-circuit.
The system exclaimed in frustration: 【Host, you do know the final task evaluation is based on successfully romancing the eligible characters, right?】
Shen Ying replied nonchalantly, "Of course I know."
The system pressed: 【Then what are you doing? Are you trying to ruin any chance of winning Gao Yingli over?】
【I’ve never seen a player make a target’s favorability drop into the negatives after just a few encounters.】
Unfazed, Shen Ying even sounded smug: "Perfect. Now I’m the woman he can’t stop thinking about."
The system: 【…Right. He’s currently fantasizing about strangling you.】
What an honor. Due to his troubled childhood, Gao Yingli had always been cold toward women—even his stepmother had been dealt with over a decade ago.
But this shameless woman had managed to provoke him like no one else in years.
However, Gao Yingli wasn’t one to take things lightly. While Lu Linwei might be reckless, he at least played fair. Gao Yingli, on the other hand, was ruthless and held grudges.
As the system predicted, Gao Yingli wasn’t just furious—he was utterly blindsided.
He never expected a single remark from a woman to send his emotions into such turmoil.
His serpent-like gaze fixed on Shen Ying, who had exploited her position to the fullest.
Lu Linwei and he had been rivals since childhood, hurling every insult imaginable at each other.
He knew Lu Linwei was now wrapped around this woman’s finger, foolishly believing even her most absurd words—enough to make anyone question his intelligence.
Yet the smug, self-satisfied look on Shen Ying’s face made Gao Yingli’s blood pressure skyrocket.
The satisfaction he gained from provoking Lu Linwei had not only vanished but had been handed over, with interest, for his rival to revel in.
Gritting his teeth, Gao Yingli said coldly, "Well done, Miss Shen. Quite the bold move."
"I won’t forget this."
Shen Ying, however, waved him off dismissively: "Please don’t. I don’t like being remembered by stingy bosses who expect free labor."
"It’s an insult to my professional worth. Let’s not speak again, Young Master Gao."
Her indifference was blatant—if there was no profit to be made, she couldn’t be bothered.
Gao Yingli choked back his anger but refused to stay and endure Lu Linwei’s triumphant smirk.
He left in a huff.
Meanwhile, Lu Linwei was in high spirits. Though he hadn’t heard their exchange, Shen Ying’s willingness to attack Gao Yingli’s sore spot meant she had no intention of entertaining him further.
Pleased, Lu Linwei splurged during the auction, purchasing several of the late Madam Zhou’s prized possessions for Shen Ying, becoming the night’s top donor at the charity gala.
Shen Ying returned home with a hefty haul and a satisfied mood.
She was even generous enough not to demand overtime pay for working over three hours that evening.
Shen Yao had returned to school the previous night, happily carting away bags of snacks and 800 yuan.
With nothing else to do, Shen Ying headed upstairs to remove her makeup, wash up, and rest.
But Lu Linwei received a call.
Glancing at the caller ID, he answered, only to hear:
"You brought a woman to Old Zhou’s banquet?"
Loosening his suit jacket, Lu Linwei replied indifferently, "Yes."
The caller remained calm. "You’ve never shown interest in women before. It’s fine to indulge now, but be mindful of the setting—at least keep her away when Miss Qiao is around."
Lu Linwei didn’t even blink. "Why?"
"Because the woman you marry must be Miss Qiao."
"I won’t interfere with whatever you do outside, and if you’re really fond of the one living in your house now, you can keep her as a mistress later."
"But when it comes to marriage, Qiao Mingyue is the best choice—for you and the family."
Lu Linwei smirked. "No wonder Qiao Mingyue has been acting so presumptuous. So you’ve been making promises on my behalf."
"Dad, since you’re retired, focus on raising your turtles. If you’re bored, start thinking about how you’ll explain your illegitimate child to Mom when you meet her in the afterlife."
"Instead of being goaded by outsiders into meddling in your son’s love life in the middle of the night."
"Hey, you—!" Before Lu’s father could finish, his unfilial son hung up.
Fuming, the old man cursed at his pet turtles.
Lu Linwei initially intended to shower but grew increasingly irritated.
He had just defied his father for Shen Ying—she needed to understand the sacrifices he was making for her.
Changing course, he strode to her door and knocked.
Shen Ying had just finished washing up, clad in soft white cotton pajamas.
Fresh and dewy, she carried a faint, clean fragrance that was utterly tantalizing.
Lu Linwei’s words caught in his throat.
Shen Ying spoke first: "What is it, President Lu?"
Snapping back to reality, Lu Linwei refused to look like an inexperienced fool.
Composing himself, he said sternly, "My father just called."
Shen Ying nodded. "Great topic."
Then she smoothly moved to shut the door.
Lu Linwei barely managed to stop it, stunned and furious—
"Why are you closing the door? I was speaking! How can you claim to agree while shutting me out?"
Shen Ying showed no remorse: "As you can see, I verbally acknowledge your late-night need to vent, but physically, I reject overtime work."
Lu Linwei was livid. Not backing down, he blurted, "It’s work-related."
Fine. Given the night’s profits, she’d hear him out.
Lu Linwei continued, displeased: "My father wants us to break up."
"He tried guilting me with family responsibility and legacy."
His tone shifted, oozing thinly veiled pride: "But don’t worry. I refused."
"Not even my father can dictate who I’m with. I choose who I want."
Whatever Lu’s father would think of his son using him as leverage for brownie points was irrelevant.
But after hearing him out, Shen Ying exhaled deeply under Lu Linwei’s expectant gaze.
She said, "So, President Lu, you’re saying I still have to pretend to be your girlfriend in front of your family?"
"Tch. Fine, fine. I get it. Even a boss like you can’t resist squeezing every ounce of work out of employees. This doesn’t benefit you at all."
"Not enough acting in social settings—now I have to perform for your family too? Going out of your way to make more work for me, afraid of losing out."
Grumbling, she slammed the door, her disdain for unpaid overtime unmistakable.
Standing before the closed door, Lu Linwei felt a cold, lonely breeze sweep through his heart.
The next morning, Shen Ying noticed that the bastard was giving her the cold shoulder, looking at her with obvious disdain.
But as a top-tier salary thief, remaining unfazed in the face of her boss's icy glares was a basic skill. So it didn’t affect her appetite in the slightest.
Seeing this, Lu Linwei grew even angrier, leaving the house with a storm cloud practically hanging over his head.
Shen Ying pondered for a moment. She had dug plenty of traps at last night’s banquet, and the little lambs would likely be stumbling into them frequently from now on.
With a long stretch of wool-shearing ahead that would leave her hands sore, it wasn’t a bad idea to rest and recharge while they hadn’t come knocking yet.
So after breakfast, she prepared to head upstairs for a nap—only to be stopped by the butler.
The butler had just come in from outside, followed by two unfamiliar faces. They weren’t Lu Linwei’s usual trusted aides, nor were they staff from the estate.
The butler introduced them: "Miss Shen, Mr. Lu’s father wishes to see you."
"These two are here to escort you."
Shen Ying glanced at them and answered without hesitation, "No."
The butler stiffened, clearly not expecting such a blunt refusal. "This… surely that’s inappropriate? It’s an invitation from an elder, after all."
Shen Ying sighed. "I work under Mr. Lu, but that doesn’t mean I have to run errands for his family too."
"Sure, society’s cutthroat these days, and many people grit their teeth and bear extra tasks just to survive—but I’m definitely not one of them."
"Old Mr. Lu hasn’t paid me a single cent. Expecting me to jump at his command right off the bat? That seems a bit much."
The butler looked awkward. "It’s just a trip to the old estate. It’s not as if you’ll be ordered around."
Shen Ying waved him off. "Demanding I go out during non-working hours is unpaid labor in itself."
With that, she ignored the two waiting men and sauntered upstairs without a care.
Over at the Lu family estate, Lu's father received the report that the girl had refused to come and nearly choked on his rage—
"That unfilial son is one thing, but a little nobody from a factory worker’s family dares to look down on us too?"
He turned to the butler beside him. "Move this month’s family gathering up."
"I want to see just what kind of extraordinary person we’re dealing with."
Old Mr. Lu worked fast. Having failed to summon her that morning, by the time Lu Linwei returned that evening, he told Shen Ying, "Come with me to the old estate in a couple of days."
"I heard about what happened today. A visit might be good—save those people from making presumptuous moves behind my back."
Shen Ying nodded. In the original novel, the female lead didn’t face too much direct harassment from the male lead’s family. Most of their opposition manifested in quietly allowing outsiders to bully her.
So they weren’t exactly fat sheep, but better than nothing.
On the day of the family gathering, after being meticulously styled by a makeup artist, Shen Ying followed Lu Linwei to the Lu family’s ancestral home.
The estate was grand and refined, designed in pure classical Chinese style. The garden was exquisitely elegant, every brick and tile radiating deep heritage.
Shen Ying’s face lit up with appreciation, and noticing her interest, Lu Linwei slowed his steps—
"If you like it, we can stay here for a few days."
This scene seemed familiar from the original plot—the female lead admiring the estate, prompting the male lead to extend their stay.
Except in the story, instead of enjoying the mansion’s charm, the female lead was dragged around daily by the elders to be lectured on "proper manners" the moment he left the house.
Shen Ying nodded. "Sure. But does this count as a business trip?"
Lu Linwei choked, itching to curse her for being ungrateful—
But he was interrupted by a voice—
"Brother, you’re finally here!"
A young man dressed in trendy clothes rushed toward them, bearing some resemblance to Lu Linwei but with a completely different aura.
He stopped in front of them, eyeing Shen Ying with undisguised scrutiny before turning back to Lu Linwei.
"Brother, Uncle mentioned you had a girlfriend now—so it’s her?"
Lu Linwei nodded and introduced, "This is my cousin, Lu Linqi. His brain works about as well as your brother’s. Just remember he exists."
Lu Linqi, oblivious to the insult, blurted out, "She’s nowhere near as good as Mingyue-jie!"
The spoiled young master, raised in wealth and privilege, had never learned to filter his words.
He didn’t care that the subject of his criticism was standing right there. "Looks, figure, family background—no comparison. And didn’t you say there’s a crucial project competing with the Qiao family?"
"If you just got together with Mingyue-jie, wouldn’t that solve everything? Brother, think about the family for once!"
Lu Linwei had expected his father’s stubbornness, but he hadn’t anticipated that the first mouthpiece would be this idiot who could be manipulated by anyone.
He was considering how to beat some sense into the fool to keep him from being used as a pawn in the future—
When Shen Ying suddenly spoke up, hesitating, "Mr. Lu~"
Lu Linwei understood immediately. "Got it. The money will be in your account soon."
An insult delivered in his presence meant the so-called "emotional distress compensation clause" kicked in at once.
Satisfied, Shen Ying smiled. "Honestly, the money isn’t the point."
"What really hurts is seeing you suffer, Mr. Lu."
Lu Linwei frowned, puzzled, while Lu Linqi scowled at her interruption.
Then the woman continued, "Mr. Lu works himself to the bone for the family, bearing all the stress alone, making money for everyone to spend."
"And even after all that hardship, some people who do nothing but laze around collecting dividends still aren’t satisfied—now they want to sacrifice your marriage for their own benefit."
"Meanwhile, these freeloaders get to chase true love without a care in the world. What’s happening to decency these days?"
"The Lu family has such profound traditions—surely this wasn’t the rule in the past? I’ve heard that in ancient families, the useless offspring were the ones sent off for arranged marriages."
"If there’s a major project causing trouble, shouldn’t those living off the family’s wealth step up and contribute?"
Lu Linqi wore an expression that screamed, *What kind of nonsense are you spouting?*
Then his brother nodded in agreement. "True. For that project, as long as we secure Madam Huang’s support, we’ll pull far ahead of the Qiao family."
He turned to his cousin. "Pack your bags. Tomorrow, I’ll take you to meet Madam Huang for a matchmaking session."
Lu Linqi shuddered. "Brother… you don’t mean *that* Madam Huang, do you? The fifty-year-old, 200-pound, four-times-divorced Madam Huang?"
Lu Linwei smiled. "Don’t worry. She has a thing for your type."
"With your help, that project will definitely belong to the Lu family."
