“Why are you asking? My private affairs have nothing to do with you all,” Shen Lingqing said.

“Alright. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have asked such a private question, Director Shen.” Yang Fangjin laughed awkwardly before adding. “I was merely curious because so many rumors are going around about you.”

“Oh, that.” The Shen princess scoffed and touched the rim of her glass. “People always have something to say about me regardless of what I do.” She had learned this the hard way, but she was glad that she had known it during her younger days.

All of them fell silent upon hearing that. What she said was true. Even before they were able to meet and spoke to her personally, some of them thought they had already known Shen Lingqing based on the rumors surrounding her.

“It’s fine. No need to feel flustered about it. I’ve already gotten used to the rumors about me, regardless of whether they are true or not,” Shen Lingqing said once she noticed the awkward atmosphere around her. She didn’t mean to ruin this celebration by talking about her difficulties in life.

“It’s not fine, Director Shen,” Liu Jinfei suddenly said with an annoyed expression on his face. “It doesn’t matter whether they know you or not; they have no right to slander your name in public.”

“Chef Liu is right.” Qiao Lian slammed her hand over the table. “Those low-life people kept on talking behind our Qingqing’s back without knowing the truth.”

“Don’t worry, Director Shen. We’ll work hard to help you teach them a lesson!” Liu Jinfei agreed with her.

Shen Lingqing chuckled and rested her chin on her one hand. Truly, she had long ignored the talks about her; neither did she care about what people think of her now. What mattered to her were her family and her future. People could sully her name all they wanted, but the actions and results she yielded would prove them wrong nonetheless.

“Enough of that. I don’t want the night to end like this,” she told them, hoping it would dispel the unwanted tension around them.

“Then, let’s continue with our celebration!” Lin Xiao raised his cup, although he was hoping he was holding beer in his hand instead of drinking a cup of juice. Ah, but how could he forget that they still needed to work hard the following days to help Shen Lingqing pass her assessment? Drinking alcohol could wait until they were free.

Finally, the topic had shifted to another, leaving Shen Lingqing pleased with it. They didn’t need to get bothered by trivial matters in her life, but that couldn’t be said to Liu Jinfei. He fell quiet after his outburst earlier, oblivious of the way Yang Fangjin was looking at him.

When the celebration was done, all of them were ready to retire for the night. Before that, however, they made sure to clean up before closing the restaurant. Shen Lingqing and Qiao Lian left before them and went to the dormitory to rest. ρꪖꪕᦔꪖꪕꪫꪣꫀ​ꪶ​

Yang Fangjin hooked his arm around Liu Jinfei’s shoulder as they walked towards their designated room. The others were behind them, and they were safe from the eavesdroppers.

“Hey, you looked upset. Did something happen?” He asked the older man curiously.

Liu Jinfei huffed, but he didn’t dare to push Yang Fangjin away from him. He didn’t want to start a misunderstanding between them, but he wanted to remind Yang Fangjin to respect their boss.

“You better pay attention to your words whenever you talk to Director Shen,” he told Yang Fangjin.

“Oh? What did I do wrong? I was merely curious. Don’t tell me you are interested in Director Shen.” The younger man asked with a teasing grin on his face. This would be the perfect time for him to fish out some confession from Liu Jinfei.

“Don’t be ridiculous.” Liu Jinfei turned his face away, trying to hide his annoyance. What the hell was Yang Fangjin talking about? Why was this guy talking like it was about him now?

“Oh? You don’t?” Yang Fangjin replied. “It’s okay to admit that you are attracted to her. I’m pretty sure many men covet after her. Director Shen is pretty and smart, after all. Many men would fight for her heart.”

It only made the frown on Liu Jinfei’s face deepen. Was Yang Fangjin really this insensitive about his boundaries? He was lucky that Shen Lingqing didn’t take offense in his questioning.

“Director Shen isn’t a kind of prize to be won. She’s not like that.” This time, Liu Jinfei removed Yang Fangjin’s arm off of him and pulled away.

Wasn’t this the same reason why Shen Lingqing decided to keep everyone at arm’s length? Because people never dared to look at her as a person, but someone who needed to meet their expectations and someone to be conquered.

Liu Jinfei gritted his teeth. He didn’t like to think that Shen Lingqing had suffered the same thing he had in the past, just because he was the heir apparent of his family. However, he had to admit that Shen Lingqing was doing well on her own. Despite the rumors and pressure around her, she was able to have an identity of her own.

Yang Fangjin was taken aback by Liu Jinfei’s words. It wasn’t his intention to mock Shen Lingqing, but why was Liu Jinfei reacting this way?

“Alright. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.” He knew now that he had gone overboard in teasing Liu Jinfei. “But are you sure you aren’t interested?”

At his question, Liu Jinfei remained silent and didn’t respond. Instead, he walked past Yang Fangjin and opened the door to his room.

“Don’t poke your nose in someone else’s business. No wonder troubles won’t leave you,” he told Yang Fangjin before closing the door behind him.

Yang Fangjin blinked twice and wondered what had just happened. What was that supposed to mean? Liu Jinfei could have just said ‘no’ without making such a fuss about his questioning.

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