Chapter 211: Getting More and More Involved

Chapter 211: Chapter 211: Getting More and More InvolvedChu Xiaoyao finally returned to her bedroom, satisfied at heart, while Li Yifei continued to sleep deeply, having painted a big pie for Chu Xiaoyao. Li Yifei believed that Chu Xiaoyao would settle down for a while now.

Indeed, Chu Xiaoyao did not come out again that night. The next morning, Li Yifei still had to enter the bedroom and call her before she rubbed her eyes and got up.

After having some breakfast outside, Li Yifei dropped Chu Xiaoyao off at school. Getting out of the car, she was the envy of many, as there were not many people in Mile City who could be dropped off at school in a Porsche.

A little girl’s vanity isn’t really that detestable, and Li Yifei understood it deeply. So even after Chu Xiaoyao got out of the car, she exaggeratedly told him to pick her up in the evening, and he didn’t refuse, then headed straight to the company.

Today was a busy day. Besides the affairs of the Human Resources Department, Xu Yingying had called a meeting with the mid-level and above leaders of the company, which lasted half a day. There were many issues, but most importantly, they discussed opening a factory in the countryside.

All young people, each with agile minds, offered many constructive suggestions, which pleased Xu Yingying greatly.

Though Li Yifei was usually lax, seeing everyone else’s full enthusiasm also stimulated him somewhat, making such work seem to enrich life.

After the meeting, Xu Yingying called Li Yifei and He Fangqing into her office.

This made some people in the company a bit puzzled. He Fangqing was the finance director, holding the economic power of the company, considered the second person in charge after Xu Yingying. As for Li Yifei, the HR Manager should be similar to other managers. Moreover, the company’s personnel were already recruited, so the role of the Human Resources Manager seemed not as significant as others. However, he still often received Xu Yingying’s attention along with He Fangqing, which felt somewhat odd.

But with many affairs within the company and most relationships not well established, and without clear internal cliques, no one dared to gossip, so no rumors were spread.

"Yifei, have you heard any latest news from your old classmate?" Xu Yingying squinted and asked Li Yifei, seemingly implying something else.

Li Yifei shook his head, "We haven’t been in touch since I sent her home that day. She’s a very dedicated worker. For such a big partnership, how could she casually reveal any inside information to me?"

Xu Yingying’s lips curved slightly, "Is that so? Others might not be able to, but I think she has a rather deep relationship with you. If you were to employ some kind of ’handsome guy trick,’ perhaps she would make quite a few concessions."

He Fangqing listened with great interest, "Could it be that your township chief classmate is a woman?"

Xu Yingying immediately joined in, "Yes, not only is she a woman, but she is also a great beauty."

He Fangqing gave Li Yifei a sideways glance, "You, my friend, are indeed blessed with peaches." This remark had a slightly sour tone; He Fangqing was increasingly reliant on Li Yifei after he had once again stayed over at her house. Her feelings for Li Yifei involuntarily grew, and it began to show in her tone and demeanor.

Li Yifei quickly said, "You’ve got it wrong, she’s just my classmate now."

Xu Yingying immediately added, "You see, she’s your classmate now, which means you two had something before. No wonder that day, as soon as you were mentioned, she got a bit confrontational with me."

Hearing this, He Fangqing felt even more uncomfortable, "I must say, CEO Li, you really are something."

Li Yifei shrugged, "That’s all in the past. Ladies, tomorrow we’re going to talk to her about setting up the factory; shouldn’t we prioritize official business?" Although he wanted to say that his dealings with Ye Yunzhu were none of their business, considering Xu Yingying and He Fangqing’s expressions, if he really said that, he’d surely get a thrashing from them both. So it was wiser not to provoke them further.

Xu Yingying and He Fangqing both rolled their eyes at Li Yifei but didn’t say much else. After all, both Xu Yingying and He Fangqing were extremely serious about their work; it was only because Ye Yunzhu was mentioned that they felt displeased.

It was already the end of the workday, Xu Yingying and He Fangqing were both still engaged in conversation, showing no sign of leaving. However, Li Yifei’s phone had started to ring. Seeing that it was Chu Xiaoyao’s call reminded him it was time for school to be out, and that the girl had asked him to pick her up.

Answering the call in front of Xu Yingying and He Fangqing clearly wasn’t wise. Just as he thought about stepping out to answer, Xu Yingying immediately said, "Just take it here."

Li Yifei said at once, "I won’t disturb you any longer. I’ll take this call outside."

Xu Yingying crossed her arms, "No need. We’ll wait for you to finish your call; otherwise, I’m afraid you’ll slip away."

Rolling his eyes, Li Yifei said, "You don’t have to keep such a close watch on me. I work here, but it’s not like you own me."

Xu Yingying spoke leisurely, "I’m talking to you now not because of work, but because of personal reasons. Doesn’t this justification work?"

"Even less so. You’re not my girlfriend. Besides, even if you were my girlfriend, you can’t interfere with my freedom, can you?" With that, Li Yifei left the office without looking back.

"This jerk!" Xu Yingying slammed the table with a huff.

He Fangqing comforted her with a smile, "Yingying, you’re just being a bit too anxious. He hasn’t accepted you yet. If you’re too controlling now, you’ll scare him off before anything even happens."

Xu Yingying was still feeling disgruntled and said, "Just look at him, that was clearly another girl’s call."

"Let him be with whoever he wants. If you really want to capture Yifei’s heart, you need to showcase your own charm, not just prevent him from appreciating the charm of other women. Men are like that, they always like pretty girls—it’s natural, a characteristic given by nature, and no one can stop it. What you need to do is make him truly fall for you, and then he will follow whatever you say."

Xu Yingying exhaled and said, "I understand."

He Fangqing winked at Xu Yingying and said with a grin, "Hehe, I feel like you’re really getting into this."

Xu Yingying wasn’t embarrassed. Instead, she said proudly, "I just can’t swallow this pride. I’ve been so proactive, and yet he’s not giving me a chance. I, Xu Yingying, never admit defeat. I’ll make sure he knows that the man I like can’t escape, even if he tries."

He Fangqing chuckled, but didn’t say much. Of course, she hoped Xu Yingying could end up with Li Yifei... If that happened... she might really have a chance to maintain a relationship with Li Yifei.

Just then, Li Yifei walked in. Xu Yingying gave him a cold glance and said, "Are you done?"

Li Yifei, with a cheeky smile, replied, "All done, let’s continue." Knowing that Xu Yingying wouldn’t let him go, he simply let Chu Xiaoyao go home first.

"Then shut off your phone. I don’t want personal matters affecting our work."

Li Yifei swiftly took out his phone, turned it off, and then laid it on the table. It wasn’t that he was afraid of Xu Yingying, but they were discussing work, and it wouldn’t be appropriate to keep causing distractions.

After about two hours of discussion, they wrapped up. Then, the three of them went out for a quick bite before heading home.

When Li Yifei got out of the elevator, Chu Xiaoyao was sitting at his doorstep, looking up at him with her lips pursed high in a pout.

Li Yifei instantly realized that Chu Xiaoyao didn’t have a key, which explained why she couldn’t get inside. The neighbors on either side were also apparently out; otherwise, Su Mengxin or Meng Xiaoku would have surely let Chu Xiaoyao into their place.

"I’m sorry, the boss said not to turn on our phones, I forgot you didn’t have the key," Li Yifei said apologetically, helping Chu Xiaoyao to her feet.

"Mean uncle, stinky uncle!" Chu Xiaoyao, feeling wronged, threw herself into Li Yifei’s arms, thumped his chest a few times, and then clung to his waist, beginning to cry with muffled sobs.

This time, Li Yifei didn’t push Chu Xiaoyao away but instead gently patted her shoulder and said, "Alright, alright, it’s my fault. Uncle will make you something to eat now."

"Mhm!" Charmed by his response, Chu Xiaoyao nodded obediently and, like a koala, clung to Li Yifei as they entered the apartment.

Chu Xiaoyao didn’t complain as much as Li Yifei had expected. Once inside, she quickly cheered up, which pleased Li Yifei. It seemed Chu Xiaoyao had a likeable nature; most girls would have been furious if he had stood them up like he did.

While Li Yifei was making noodles for Chu Xiaoyao, she chattered non-stop about her school, focusing particularly on how envious her classmates were when they saw her in the Porsche. Li Yifei interrupted her, saying, "Xiaoyao, talking like that, aren’t you encouraging your classmates to look for an uncle like me?"

Chu Xiaoyao chuckled and said, "I’m not that silly. I told them you’re a relative of mine. I only tell a few close friends, otherwise, if the school found out I’ve found an uncle, they would expel me."

"Even with close friends, it’s best not to tell. The primary thing is, just because I’m letting you stay doesn’t mean I’m your evil uncle."

Chu Xiaoyao playfully stuck out her tongue, saying, "I know, I know, I won’t talk about it anymore. If you don’t want to be, I won’t force you."

"Really? Is that so?" Li Yifei looked at Chu Xiaoyao in surprise.

"Hehe, when I grow up a bit more, I won’t have to call you uncle; at that time, you won’t be the evil uncle anymore."

Li Yifei was suddenly at a loss for words as the girl’s intentions hadn’t changed one bit.