Chapter 3: She Knew This Would Happen

“You…”

Ye Aihua nearly lost her temper with Wei An, but remembering her own goal was not yet achieved, she quietly took a breath and cursed Wei An silently in her heart:

“What are you talking about? Wei An, I’m really doing this for your own good—you can’t just be ungrateful.”

Feigning anger, she took two steps back with Wei An’s momentum, though inwardly she worried she might lose control and slap her twice.

Wei An laughed and coaxed her:

“Oh, why are you so worked up? I know you’re not the kind of shameless, flashy harlot who steals her best friend’s man. Don’t be mad!”

She glanced at the time:

“Look at you, it’s all your fault—I’m late again now.”

With a spoiled push, Wei An shoved Ye Aihua aside and hurried off to the factory.

“You really are something—knowing full well I have to stand my last shift before going to the countryside, and you make me late. I’m telling you, Ye Aihua, if I get scolded, you owe me roast duck from Lao Wang’s.”

With that said, she was already several steps ahead, leaving Ye Aihua staring at her retreating, anxious back.

Ye Aihua: “…”

Suddenly pushed against her chest by Wei An again, she gasped in pain, her face turning pale.

Clenching her teeth, she glared at Wei An’s back with hatred, finally unable to hold back, muttering, “Wretch, just wait and see.”

…

Wei An had no idea Ye Aihua had cursed her behind her back, but she guessed her mood must be sour.

That was just as it should be: Ye Aihua’s bad mood made her own all the brighter.

Only, her good mood turned cautious the moment she saw her direct superior, Section Chief Li:

“Good morning, Chief.”

“Two days off without so much as a greeting—how can I be well?”

Section Chief Li Kunshan was a man in his forties.

He gave Wei An a disapproving snort:

“Don’t just stand there; you think I’m going to invite you in?”

Wei An smiled ingratiatingly:

“Thank you, cousin.”

Her voice was low, audible only to Li Kunshan standing nearby.

Li Kunshan was her mother Qu Xiurong’s cousin, and it was he who had arranged her job.

Of course, nobody in the entire machinery factory besides the human resources section chief knew about their relationship.

That was something her parents had drilled into her repeatedly.

But they hadn’t expected the original occupant to secretly enlist the help of deputy section chiefs from both the personnel and publicity departments to handle her job handover; by the time they found out, all the formalities were already done.

Wei An brushed past Li Kunshan into the office without showing it, but inwardly she cursed the original occupant bitterly.

With such connections, as long as she behaved herself in the publicity department, even if she didn’t take the college entrance exam after its reinstatement but instead waited for a chance to transfer to the education or health system, it would still be far better than spending her whole life stuck in the countryside.

She didn’t even want to think further, fearing that recalling the original’s antics might rile her up again.

“小 Su, are you feeling better?”

It was Officer Liu, an older woman with a particularly talkative nature.

Wei An blinked twice, guessing that Li Kunshan had told the office that her absence was due to illness.

“I’m fine now, thank you Aunt Liu for your concern.”

Blushing, she smiled shyly.

Since Wei An arrived at the publicity department, Aunt Liu’s favorite pastime was teasing her when there was nothing else to do:

“I thought you’d taken leave to see your boyfriend.”

She shifted slightly in her chair and leaned over the desk closer to Wei An.

“Why are you blushing, girl? It’s perfectly normal for young folks to be inseparable from their partners. Look at young Li; doesn’t he dash over to his girlfriend’s workplace every day right after work?”

Her voice was loud enough to draw the attention of the other officers in the room.

Wei An: “…”

She had known it would come to this.

In a future era, she might have spoken even more bluntly than Aunt Liu, but these days were different—whether young or middle-aged couples, everyone was very reserved.

So she flushed and feigned shyness with a light reproach:

“Aunt Liu!”

Honestly, the original occupant’s personality had been very pleasant—delicate and soft-spoken, with a petite, exquisite frame about 1.57 meters tall, and fair, flawless skin. Her gentle, slightly coquettish voice made her especially endearing.

At least Wei An herself preferred this voice to the huskier one she had in her original world.

This was why she had adopted the original’s gentle yet not overly introverted demeanor when interacting with others.

After all, imagine a petite, pretty girl, barely five foot two, with flawless skin, speaking in a loud, deep, magnetic voice—

Ugh, better not think about it.

Therefore, Wei An willingly suppressed her more lively nature and continued to present the original’s warm but outgoing personality.

After all, acting was second nature to her, having once been a minor internet celebrity.

Aunt Liu laughed heartily, and the others in the office joined in, leaving another colleague, Officer Li, blushing from being inadvertently drawn into the conversation.

He stammered:

“I—I was at her workplace on business.”

“Oh, come on, if you want to see your partner, just say so. What’s wrong with that? Besides, you’re the guy here—you should take the initiative, not expect the lady to make all the moves. By the way,”

Aunt Liu suddenly paused, glanced around to see the others had returned to their work, then lowered her voice to Wei An:

“Xiao Su, could you ask your boyfriend if there are any suitable candidates for marriage over there? Sister Chunmei is about your age, and I’m worried about her finding a match.”

Wei An nodded quickly, like a little chick pecking:

“I’ll remember. I’ll ask our matchmaker—Aunt Liu, you’ve met her before—Deputy Director Guo from the neighborhood committee. My mom says she knows a lot of young men.”

She didn’t like Aunt Liu’s lack of boundaries.

They were merely colleagues, with more than twenty years between them. And Aunt Liu had a boyfriend who was an officer in the army—this was the second time she’d brought up introducing a match for her daughter.

In truth, if her family’s situation were decent, there would be nothing wrong with suggesting a match.

But Aunt Liu was very picky.

Either she found fault with the man’s family background or criticized the young man himself.

She didn’t consider that the Liu family’s own situation was less than ideal, and her daughter Wu Chunmei was only a temporary worker at a textile factory. Plus, Aunt Liu had a habit of wanting the whole world to know even the smallest matter.

Wei An shook her head inwardly, paying no heed to her words.

But her response pleased Aunt Liu greatly, and her voice rose again:

“You say old Guo? I know her, but not well. Sigh, when you ask her, I want to come along, too.”

The thought of connecting with a deputy director of the neighborhood committee thrilled Aunt Liu.

After all, anyone who managed to become an officer in the publicity department was considered the most successful in their family.

Wei An didn’t quite understand Aunt Liu’s sudden excitement; she was just trying to shift the topic along. As for when she would meet Guo Biqiong—who could say?

Li Kunshan, waiting nearby to copy documents, had overheard all of Wei An’s conversation with Aunt Liu. The occasional glances he cast at Wei An gradually became more approving.