Chapter 34: Make Him Feel Guilty, and Make Sure He Never Forgets
What an amazing girl.
With just a few simple words, she was able to clear away all the awkwardness between them.
Xia Changyu didn’t dare talk to her the whole afternoon. He felt too guilty, he didn’t even have the courage to look at her. His face had been completely embarrassed by his girlfriend Gu Xiaoxue and her roommates.
But now!!
There was a girl who picked up his pride from the ground, handed it back to him, and said,
“About what happened this morning, I really didn’t take it to heart.”
“But they gave you such a hard time…”
“I already almost forgot it!”
“Forgot… what?”
“I don’t have a very good memory,” Lin Yibai shrugged and said casually. “If you don’t bring it up, I’ll probably forget it ever happened.”
“Thank you,” Xia Changyu said.
Lin Yibai shook her head and replied calmly.
“I may not have wanted to do it, but promoting your booth was just part of my job. So there’s no need to thank me.”
Xia Changyu continued, “Then… I’m sorry. Really, I apologize.”
Lin Yibai finally looked at him directly and asked, “Are you apologizing, or are you saying sorry for your girlfriend? Anyway, I accept your apology.”
“That’s a relief,” Xia Changyu said.
“But I don’t accept the apology from your girlfriend or her roommates,” Lin Yibai added.
She wasn’t feeling great either right now. She had always known those girls like Yang Yueping were a bit much. But she never thought her ex-girlfriend Gu Xiaoxue was just like them too?
She was starting to notice more and more bad sides of Gu Xiaoxue lately.
Sigh!
“Ah—well!”
Taking a deep breath, Lin Yibai ran a few steps forward, then put her hands behind her back, fingers twisted together.
She said, “Let’s just leave it at that. Also, from someone who’s been through this kind of thing, let me give you some advice. Be careful around your girlfriend’s roommates.”
“I don’t really get what you mean. And… what do you mean by ‘someone who’s been through it’?”
“Ah! Oops, I let it slip!” she said with a playful smile.
“???”
“I just mean, as a girl, I have a feeling. Your girlfriend’s roommates give off really bad vibes. I have a bad feeling they might hurt you somehow.”
“I… still don’t quite understand what you’re saying.”
Suddenly remembering something, Lin Yibai said, “Well, if you don’t get it, that’s fine. Some things are better learned through experience. I actually think that might be good for you.”
“Huh?” Xia Changyu was confused.
Lin Yibai gave him a mysterious smile, and said one last thing.
“Time’s almost up. When you get back, maybe try sweet-talking your girlfriend a little, if you want some peace and quiet?”
Xia Changyu scratched his head. “I still don’t get what you’re trying to say. Are you speaking in riddles?”
Lin Yibai just smiled and said, “Good. That means you shouldn’t understand.”
Sigh… That’s all she could say.
She had only come to talk out of empathy, hoping that her love rival would suffer a little less later. After all, just like she said, she’d been through this before.
As for her ex-girlfriend Gu Xiaoxue...
Over the past two days, Lin Yibai had learned too much.
From an outsider’s point of view, she had seen many dark sides of Gu Xiaoxue that she had never noticed before.
Maybe Lin Yibai was just a hopeless simp who can't see her clearly before. And through the cracks, she had seen the darkness hidden beneath.
Waving goodbye behind her, Lin Yibai quickly disappeared into the golden sunset. But she had only just left when the department manager came running out in a hurry and shouted.
“Xiao Bai, wait a second! I just submitted a request to reduce the penalty from the complaint against you, and I also explained the reason to the higher-ups!”
Unfortunately, Lin Yibai was already too far away to hear.
This made Xia Changyu frown.
He had seen with his own eyes how hard Lin Yibai worked. How could such a responsible and dedicated person be complained about?
Feeling confused, Xia Changyu directly asked, “Um… I want to ask about Xiao Bai… I mean, about the complaint against Lin Baiyi. What happened exactly?”
“Huh? And you are…?”
The manager from Area E paused and took a moment before recognizing who Xia Changyu was.
He looked like he was about to scold him, hands on hips, taking a deep breath.
But then he remembered that he was a full-time employee, so he calmed himself down and said, “It’s all because of your Booth 39. Everyone here thinks Xiao Bai is great. Lots of people want her help to promote their booths. But your booth? It gave her nothing but trouble!”
“Huh? What?”
“We got four complaint letters, all from your Booth 39. I really don’t understand, Xiao Bai worked so hard to help you guys, and in return, she got four complaints that caused her pay being deducted. She’s a good girl... she really didn’t deserve such unfair treatment.”
“......”
For some reason, Xia Changyu’s face turned completely red.
Maybe it was high blood pressure, or maybe the sunset just made his face look red too.
He suddenly remembered the deal he made with a foreign client. The very first order he signed, which had been made possible thanks to Lin Yibai’s suggestion.
He remembered how she helped promote his booth, how she helped him find a path to grow his business in the local market.
Other booths were jealous of him.
But in the end, he still hadn't thanked the girl who helped him the most.
And she ended up being the one who got complained about.
Four complaints from his booth, and got her pay being deducted.
Was he… repaying kindness with cruelty?
“I…” Xia Changyu took a deep breath. “Can I take a look at the complaint letters?”
“Sorry,” the manager shook his head and replied helplessly. “According to the rules, and to protect the people who made the complaints, we’re not allowed to show them or reveal who wrote them.”
“But what about Lin Baiyi?”
“I feel bad for Xiao Bai too.”
“So… that’s it? It’s just going to end like this?”
“Mr. Xia, you really know how to joke,” the manager said, clearly annoyed. “The complaints came from inside your own booth. Every word was criticizing Xiao Bai, saying she kept interfering with your booth’s plans, claiming she was ‘looking down on Chinese styles,’ and accusing her of being too Western-minded. They strongly demanded that we punish her harshly.”
With this hint, Xia Changyu suddenly understood everything.
Who would hate Lin Yibai’s suggestions so much?
Who would claim to love traditional culture while using that as a reason to attack others?
Besides his girlfriend Gu Xiaoxue and her roommates, who else could it be?
“If you don’t have anything else, Mr. Xia, I’ll be going now,” said the manager. He gave a short goodbye and quickly left.
And so, Xia Changyu was left standing there alone. His face going red, then pale with anger and shame.
Lin Yibai had just helped him regain a bit of his pride, out of kindness.
And then, his girlfriend had thrown it back on the ground again.
And her roommates? They had practically stomped his face into the cement.
“Xiao Bai!”
“Lin Bai…yi!”
Xia Changyu ran out of Area E’s entrance, calling her name.
He felt like his earlier apology wasn’t enough. It couldn’t possibly deserve forgiveness.
He thought maybe if he said sorry a hundred more times, his guilt might hurt a little less.
But it was too late.
Lin Yibai’s figure had long disappeared into the huge convention hall.
All that remained for Xia Changyu was the sunset slowly fading from the sky, the darkness that was about to fall…
And a heart full of endless guilt.