Qian Wei sat at a table by the cafeteria entrance, vegetarian shumai and crystal soup dumplings in hand, craning her neck as she waited for Lu Xun. Liu Shiyun stood beside her sporting two dark circles under her eyes. By the time the two of them had yawned about ten times combined, Lu Xun finally sauntered over, unhurried. He wore a beige casual top and khaki pants—ordinary enough college attire, really—but his face was anything but ordinary, standing out wherever he went. At the table next to Qian Wei’s, two girls were murmuring quietly about him.
“Look, that’s Lu Xun, our school’s poster boy, the law school’s living billboard. Our law school’s official site used his photo and a video for promotional material once, and suddenly this major—which has, like, the worst employment rate in the country—had applications flooding in from girls. Lucky you, coming to visit me at school today—you don’t get to see him often.”
“He’s so handsome! Seriously gorgeous! Compared to him, our school’s campus heartthrob doesn’t even register. Total also-ran.”
Listening to their conversation, Qian Wei couldn’t help but roll her eyes internally. Clearly a couple of lovestruck girls who had no idea what they were talking about. If they knew about twenty-eight-year-old Lu Xun’s ruthless tactics and reputation in legal circles, they’d understand what “beautiful but venomous” really meant.
“Hey, he’s looking this way—wait, he’s coming toward us…”
Under the two girls’ furtive glances, Lu Xun walked straight over and sat down across from Qian Wei and Liu Shiyun. He glanced at Liu Shiyun, then looked up at Qian Wei. “Eating with you comes with a buy-one-get-one-free deal now? Did I agree to her joining?”
Qian Wei chuckled. “It’s for your own good, really. Think about it—the cafeteria’s crowded, lots of eyes around. If people saw us eating alone together, in ten minutes there’d probably be rumors about you and me having something going on, and in twenty minutes the school forum would probably have thirty different eyewitnesses offering up forty different versions of our supposed love story.” She tugged Liu Shiyun closer. “Bringing my friend along like this means it’s not just the two of us alone, so it won’t hurt your reputation as much.”
“Do you know who’s been the subject of rumors with me before?”
“I know, I know!” Liu Shiyun jumped in eagerly. “The ones who’ve been linked to you before are: broadcasting department’s campus belle Cai Xinxin; the journalism college’s goddess Chen Jiameng; that famous freshman from civil engineering, the ‘oolong tea girl’—though rumor has it the one you actually like is our own law school beauty, Mo Zixin…”
Lu Xun glanced at Qian Wei and just smiled, saying nothing.
“…” Qian Wei’s teeth itched with irritation. So what you’re really saying is that even if people saw us eating alone together, there’s no chance they’d link you to me romantically? Mocking me wasn’t enough—now you’ve got to do the silent-but-devastating thing too? Fine, since you’re my future boss, I’ll let it slide!
Gritting her teeth, she pushed the vegetarian shumai and crystal soup dumplings she’d been holding onto toward him. “Well, enjoy, I’ve got things to do, I’ll head out first!”
But Lu Xun wasn’t about to let her off that easy—he raised an eyebrow. “Is this enough food?”
Qian Wei was a little exasperated. She’d bought plenty, honestly—having worked with him, she knew Lu Xun’s eating habits well, that he typically only ate to about seventy or eighty percent full, especially light and minimal for breakfast, so she’d bought accordingly. Who knew that at nineteen, he’d somehow developed a bottomless pit of an appetite…
“Get three more cups of soy milk.”
Real connoisseur of the good life… ordering food and drinks both, and three cups no less. Are you some kind of bottomless-appetite mythical beast, Lu Xun?
Fine, couldn’t let her future boss go hungry. Grumbling internally, Qian Wei got back in line to buy more breakfast.
Unfortunately, by then the vegetarian shumai and crystal soup dumplings were completely sold out. She had no choice but to grudgingly buy two large meat buns instead, though she did manage to get the soy milk.
Just as she dumped everything in front of Lu Xun and was about to leave, he stopped her again.
“Sit.”
“Hmm?”
Lu Xun glanced at her, then at Liu Shiyun, who was clearly thrilled. “Eat with me, both of you.” He smiled at Qian Wei. “After all, I owe you thanks for last night. Don’t get too excited just because you get to eat with me.”
Qian Wei stared at that gorgeous, infuriating face of his and felt a lump of frustration rise in her chest. This counted as treating them?? She’d spent her own money and her own time standing in line to buy this stuff! Why would she be excited?? What was there to be excited about??
Too bad it was still September 2009—Sina Weibo had only just entered beta testing, and there were no viral influencer accounts yet stirring things up. Otherwise, if she could submit a post to some “my boss is the worst” campaign, Qian Wei was certain Lu Xun could easily make the year’s top ten worst-boss list—maybe not first place, but definitely a strong runner-up.
They say the way someone eats reveals their upbringing. Lu Xun ate breakfast like he was dining at a Michelin-starred French restaurant, carrying an air of aristocratic arrogance and languid ease. Qian Wei polished off her bun in two or three bites; Liu Shiyun was so busy staring at Lu Xun’s face she forgot to eat. Lu Xun was still elegantly taking small bites of his shumai. Qian Wei, remembering all the ways he’d order her around at work in the future, couldn’t help rolling her eyes hugely.
Unfortunately, Lu Xun, who’d had his head down eating, chose that exact moment to glance up—and caught the unmistakable eye-roll head-on.
Lu Xun let out a cold laugh. “Qian Wei, do you have some kind of problem with me?”
“No, no, absolutely no problem with you at all.”
“Then what was that eye-roll just now? Weren’t you the one who wanted to be friends? Since when do friends roll their eyes at each other?”
Qian Wei pointed at her own eyes. “I’ve been staying up late studying under your inspiration the past couple of days, my eyes are a little strained.” To back up her story, she forced herself to roll her eyes a few more times in a row, nearly straining them for real this time…
Lu Xun clearly wasn’t buying it. His dark eyes rolled slightly, his sharp jawline set, lips pressed thin. He said nothing, but based on how well Qian Wei knew him, this was the prelude to him picking a fight.
She absolutely could not let him find fault with her!
Quick thinking saved her. “Actually, I do have one complaint about you!”
Lu Xun raised an eyebrow. “Oh?”
Solemnly, Qian Wei pulled a plastic container out of her bag and, with the reverence of a tributary state presenting an offering to the emperor, set it neatly in front of Lu Xun. Inside, neatly arranged, were sliced pieces of pineapple—prepared in advance specifically to flatter him.
“My only complaint about you is that you’re way too diligent about your studies and don’t take care of your health at all!” Qian Wei said with a fawning smile. “Fruit two hours after a meal is good for you. I brought pineapple. You should balance work and rest more…”
Lu Xun glanced at her. “Unfortunately, I’m not particularly fond of pineapple.”
“…”
Would Qian Wei just give up because of that? Absolutely not! Flattery required flexibility too!
Having, after working with him, mastered the art of speaking utter nonsense with a straight face, she looked at Lu Xun calmly. “Pineapple grows from a sprout, matures, blooms brilliantly, and bears fruit, all with unwavering focus, walking a path without limits—even in the smallest patch of soil, it digs deep to the very essence, holding onto a belief in pursuing perfection. That’s why pineapple symbolizes flawlessness—just like you! I really do think, among all fruits, only pineapple is worthy of you! You should try to like pineapple, it really suits your vibe! Give it a try, this time!”
Though this whole speech was pure flattery, at least it kept Lu Xun from getting upset any further—he finally let go of the stormy expression that had been building, gave Qian Wei a meaningful look, but ultimately accepted the container of pineapple.
Having grown used to being treated harshly by Lu Xun at work, Qian Wei instinctively felt grateful whenever he didn’t push back. Eager to please, she added, “Oh, and one more thing—I started my library job today, in the East Wing, second floor.” She gave him a wink. “As long as I’m working there, there’ll be a reserved seat with your name on it in East Two every single day. You know how rare that is—think about it, it’s hot in September now, you can go enjoy the AC, and once it gets colder in late October, the library’s got heating too, much warmer.”
In 2009, A University’s dorms still didn’t have air conditioning, and September temperatures in A City remained high, making the air-conditioned library prime real estate everyone competed for. The library opened at seven in the morning, but people were already lining up to grab seats by five thirty; within ten minutes of opening, all the study rooms across the six floors would be completely claimed. At A University, a library seat was serious currency—chasing a girl by giving her flowers for months might not work, but claiming a library seat for her every day for months straight was practically guaranteed effective. If even that didn’t work, try claiming seats for her whole dorm too, uniting the whole squad. And if that still didn’t work, then it truly wasn’t meant to be.
The library’s work-study jobs ran on a full-year contract basis, so Qian Wei figured this offer was quite the tempting olive branch—essentially guaranteeing Lu Xun a library seat for an entire year.
But Lu Xun, as always, refused to play by expectation. His face stayed perfectly calm, not a hint of excitement. “I don’t really go to the library.” He smiled faintly. “With my grades, I don’t really need to. Besides, every time I go, I can never actually focus and study.”
“Why can’t you focus?”
“There are always girls slipping me notes.” Lu Xun looked genuinely troubled. “One time it was even a guy.”
“…”
Fine, fine, we get it, you’re a heartthrob to the masses. Moving on!