Chapter 2: Running into the Unknown

Shen Yan was so furious that she threw the Bluetooth speaker into the trash can.

What kind of world-class scumbag was this?

He was dumping her just to live off another woman.

Growing up, the only time she had been insulted about money was in middle school, when someone called her family “nouveau riche” and said she was just a rich man’s daughter, worthless except for having money.

This was the first time she had ever heard someone say she was poor.

He was breaking up with her because she couldn’t afford a house in S City.

Because the clothes she wore were too cheap.

She was livid.

She wore cheap clothes?

She was a college student!

Wasn’t it normal to wear clothes that cost a few dozen yuan?!

What was the problem?!

With Zhong Cheng’s judgment, he thought he could live off a rich woman?

Did he even look the part?!

He had a perfectly good opportunity right in front of him, yet he insisted on chasing the moon in the sky.

She didn’t know Yang Ming personally, but as the beauty of the economics department, she had heard of her.

She was stunning, always dressed in luxury brands, and had been the subject of much gossip when school started.

At first, people speculated that she was the heiress of Huaxin Group.

The whole campus was abuzz, and no one could believe that the daughter of a business tycoon was really in their school.

Later, Yang Ming clarified herself.

She admitted she had some connection to Huaxin Group but emphasized that it wasn’t a close one she was just a distant relative of the chairman’s wife.

But to college students, being a relative of Huaxin Group was like being royalty.

On top of that, Yang Ming was beautiful, had a good personality, and had hosted and performed a dance at the freshman welcome party.

She instantly became one of A University’s most talked-about figures and the dream girl of many male students.

Although she and Zhong Cheng were in the same class, Shen Yan had never heard him mention Yang Ming while they were dating.

She never expected him to break up with her because of her.

Had he been secretly in love with Yang Ming for the past four years?

Thinking about this possibility, she felt relieved that he had broken up with her.

If they had continued dating, gotten engaged, married, and had kids, only for her to later find out that he had always harbored feelings for someone else, wouldn’t that have been even more disgusting?

After tossing the Bluetooth speaker into the trash, she felt a sense of relief.

If Zhong Cheng didn’t want her and preferred to chase after Yang Ming for a free ride, that was his loss.

The next morning, Shen Wei and Xu Yue were already urging Shen Yan to get up.

They were taking her to S City.

Still half-asleep, Shen Yan was suddenly yanked out of bed by Xu Yue.

“Is there an earthquake?!”

Shen Yan jolted awake at her mother’s urgent calls.

Xu Yue: “…Our house isn’t on a fault line.

What earthquake?”

Luckily, Shen Yan wasn’t the type to get grumpy when woken up.

She glanced at her phone and looked at Xu Yue with resentment.

“Mom, why so early?”

Xu Yue replied matter-of-factly, “It’s not early.

Your dad scheduled a meeting with a real estate agent.

We need to look at houses.”

Shen Yan thought she had misheard.

“Look at houses?”

Xu Yue answered as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

“Of course.

You’re about to start working at Lu Corporation.

We need to buy you an apartment nearby.

The traffic in S City is a nightmare, especially during rush hour.

If you don’t live close to the office, you’ll definitely be late every morning.”

Shen Yan was stunned.

The house that she had refrained from mentioning during her breakup with Zhong Cheng was suddenly becoming a reality.

If she ever ran into him again, she would make sure he found out.

S City was one of the most expensive places in the country, and Lu Corporation was located right in the city center.

It was practically the most expensive area for real estate.

But expensive places had their perks.

Every apartment the real estate agent showed them was fully furnished and ready to move in.

And Shen Yan was tempted by all of them.

One was a luxurious river-view penthouse with high-end finishes.

The kitchen alone had two built-in refrigerators.

The bathroom mirror even had a small built-in fridge for storing cosmetics.

Another option was a quiet villa hidden within the bustling city.

It had a beautifully maintained garden where, according to the agent, flowers bloomed year-round.

The two properties were on opposite sides of the city but both conveniently close to Lu Corporation.

The real estate agent, Xiao Wang, looked at Shen Yan with admiration when he heard she was starting at Lu Corporation next week.

“Miss Shen, you must be very talented.

I’ve heard that Lu Corporation only hires graduates from top-tier universities these days.”

Shen Yan was about to downplay it when Xu Yue quickly jumped in.

“Of course!

Our Yan Yan graduated from A University.”

Xiao Wang’s admiration clearly pleased Xu Yue.

This was one of the reasons she had gone to such lengths to get her daughter a job.

Shen Yan: …

What now?

Why did she feel so embarrassed?

If she had gotten into Lu Corporation through official channels, she might have felt a little better.

But her mom knew exactly how she got the offer.

How could she still brag so shamelessly?

Desperately, she tried to change the subject.

“Dad, Mom, don’t you think these houses are too big for just me?

I’d have a hard time keeping them clean.”

As tempting as luxury was, Shen Yan had to be practical.

Xu Yue calculated for a moment.

“I have eight years until retirement, and your dad has thirteen.

Once we retire, we’ll move to S City to be with you.”

Shen Yan still wasn’t convinced.

“But wouldn’t it be unsafe for me to live here alone in the meantime?”

Xiao Wang quickly reassured her.

“Miss Shen, don’t worry.

As you saw when we entered, the security procedures here are very strict.

Both of these communities have the best security in all of S City.

The property management fee is 10 yuan per square meter.

All deliveries, including food and packages, are handled directly by security and brought to your door.”

Shen Yan: “What about cleaning?”

Xu Yue gave her a disapproving look.

“If you choose the penthouse, I’ll buy you two robot vacuums.

If you pick the villa, I’ll hire a housekeeper for you.

Is that okay?”

Shen Yan hesitated.

“Can I invite my friends to live with me?”

Xu Yue: “Huh?”

Shen Yan: “I mean the kind where I charge rent.”

“Your roommate, Feng Shanshan?”

Xu Yue could only think of Feng Shanshan.

She and Shen Yan were high school classmates and had both gotten into S City from A City.

“You said she got into a state-owned enterprise?”

Shen Yan nodded.

“Yes, she’s also in S City.”

“And you still want to charge her rent?”

Shen Yan nodded seriously.

“Of course.”

Xu Yue: …

Shen Yan chose the large river-view apartment.

The townhouse, though charming, was a bit old and didn’t have an elevator.

Climbing up and down every day would be exhausting.

But Xu Yue loved the little garden.

In the end, Shen Wei made the final decision he bought both.

The river-view apartment was for Shen Yan to live in, and the townhouse would be for them when they moved to S City later.

Shen Yan was stunned by how casually her father made such a big purchase.

“Dad, did you rob a bank?”

“…Can you watch your words?”

Shen Wei explained, “You should buy when the market is rising, not when it’s falling.

Housing prices are skyrocketing, and soon, S City might implement new purchasing restrictions.

If we don’t buy now, we’ll regret it later.”

Shen Yan felt like she needed to reassess her family’s wealth.

How was her father buying property in S City like he was buying vegetables?

With the house settled, they helped Shen Yan move in.

Just like that, her last weekend before starting work was gone.

After her parents left, Shen Yan stood by the floor-to-ceiling windows in the living room, staring at the calm river.

She felt a strange, indescribable emotion.

She was really about to start working.

She had no idea what it would be like at Lu Corporation.

Since she majored in Chinese Language and Literature, she was assigned to the President’s Office just the name of the department sounded like it wouldn’t be a pleasant place.

In novels, the President’s Office was either full of undercover rich wives, ambitious secretaries trying to climb the ranks, or overworked employees forced to work late because of the boss’s bad mood.

On top of that, Lu Corporation had rejected even the top economics student from her school.

If even he couldn’t get in, wouldn’t her colleagues be the most competitive of the competitive?

The king of all workaholics?

It was terrifying.

No matter how she looked at it, this place sounded like a nightmare.

For the first time, Shen Yan felt uncertain about her future.

Like the water in the river, she was drifting, not knowing where she would end up.

But the sun always rises, and so did her alarm the next morning.

Shen Yan got up quickly, washed up, and rushed out before she even had time for breakfast.

As soon as she stepped outside, she suddenly realized she didn’t know where Lu Corporation was.

Oh no.

She only knew it was nearby, but she had no idea exactly where or how to get there.

She quickly opened her navigation app and was immediately faced with a very awkward situation.

Lu Corporation was about 1.5 kilometers from her home.

Not too close, but not too far either.

Walking would take around 30 minutes.

Biking, 15 minutes.

Riding an electric scooter, about 7 or 8 minutes.

The problem was none of them had thought about this yesterday.

She didn’t buy a bike or an electric scooter.

It was rush hour in S City, and there were already 100 people in line for taxis.

By the time she got to the entrance of her apartment complex and found the shared bike station, she spotted a single lonely bike.

Excited, she ran toward it.

Just as she was about to scan the code to unlock it, she noticed the chain was broken.

Now she understood why no one had taken it.

Time was ticking, and she was running out of options.

She hesitated for a moment but decided that being late on her first day was a bad look.

So, she tied her hair up and started running.

Fortunately, she hadn’t put on makeup, wasn’t wearing formal business attire, and definitely wasn’t in high heels.

This was brutal.

Even in college, she had never run this hard for an 800-meter sprint.

But thinking about it 1.5 kilometers was just two 800-meter sprints.

She could run 800 meters in about 3.5 minutes.

That meant she should be able to make it in around 10 minutes.

Following the navigation, she sprinted toward Lu Corporation.

Just as she was nearing her destination, a guy on a shared bike rode past her.

Seeing her running, he called out,

“Hey, why are you running with a backpack?”

Shen Yan: ?

She was panting too hard to respond.

But the guy kept pace with her on his bike and kept talking.

“Are you seriously running to work?

That’s way too healthy!”

Shen Yan: …

She glanced at him.

He looked decent enough, but clearly, his brain wasn’t working properly.

Shaking her head, she ignored him and kept running.

The guy seemed to want to continue chatting, but his bike’s designated drop-off point had arrived.

He had no choice but to stop and return the bike.

By the time he was done, Shen Yan had long disappeared.

When she finally reached the entrance of Lu Corporation, she felt like she was about to cough up blood.

Checking the time 8:53 AM.

She had made it.

Only then did she finally take a deep breath and relax.