Chapter 42: That Fool Shang Beiming

He would even tell her that he disliked drawing too much attention, as it would make the two of them topics of idle chatter among others, which would reflect poorly on her and also affect his work...

After that, Shang Feifei rarely disturbed him in public, choosing instead to hand things over to him privately out of sight.

Away from the public eye, he was even gentler with her.

He would gently stroke her head and praise her:
"Feifei's cooking is wonderful, Senior Brother loves it!"
"Will I get to eat Feifei's homemade dishes again tomorrow?"

He was always so gentle, leaving Shang Feifei deeply encouraged. The next day, she would meticulously prepare food all over again. Sometimes, to ensure she delivered the meal to him on time, Shang Feifei would even skip her last two classes, skipping meals herself just to focus on cooking for Yang Haoyu.

Even though he clearly knew that she had made it herself, and that many of the dishes required a great deal of time and effort, Yang Haoyu seemed to...
Never once ask whether she had skipped classes...

Didn't he...
Always attend every single class without fail, and lecture others about how skipping class was wrong?

Why was he so gentle with her, letting her fulfill the duties of a girlfriend, yet never once caring whether she skipped her classes or not?

Upon closer reflection, Yang Haoyu truly had never cared about her.

All this time, it was always she who cared for Yang Haoyu.
Sensing the weather turn cold while Yang Haoyu was still wearing a thin shirt, she would hurriedly buy him expensive down coats and various windbreakers, obsessed with dressing him in the image of her ideal lover.

Whenever she acted coquettishly and claimed the price tags had already been removed so they couldn't be returned, he would always take them with a helpless sigh, telling her in an indulgent tone:
"Don't let it happen again!"

Yet she would be overjoyed, secretly thrilled, especially every time she saw him wearing the clothes she had bought him.

She had bought them; since he wore the clothes she gifted him, he belonged to her!

Shang Feifei would always revel in this secret delight.

But thinking about it now, apart from herself, who else knew about this?
Everyone else merely showered him with praise:
"President Yang is simply a walking clothes hanger!"
"This coat makes President Yang's legs look like they're two meters long!"
"Yang Haoyu has such wonderful taste!"

Amidst everyone's compliments, Shang Feifei would stand nearby, basking in his reflected glory.

Without ever noticing that the perpetually modest Yang Haoyu had never once mentioned that those clothes were actually gifts from her...

Whenever she used to reminisce about these things, Shang Feifei only felt an overwhelming sweetness, believing them to be little secrets shared exclusively between her and Yang Haoyu.

But thinking back on it now...
Yang Haoyu never seemed to have any intention of giving her a formal title, nor did he ever consider how terrible her situation was—being regarded by outsiders as someone who constantly harassed him simply because of him.

Throughout the entire school, she and Lin Xianxian were renowned as hopelessly lovesick fools. Whenever people mentioned the two of them, they would exchange knowing glances filled with mockery...

Lin Xianxian was only acting according to some so-called plot, but she had truly, genuinely loved Yang Haoyu for this long!

Looking back now, countless more details provided proof to Shang Feifei:
Yang Haoyu... truly did not care about her!

Then why?!
Just to exact revenge on her for disliking Qin Xinxia, could Yang Haoyu really go to such lengths?!

Shang Feifei's fingernails had already dug deep into her flesh.

Lin Xianxian provided her with the answer:
[They haven't graduated yet, but Yang Haoyu is about to graduate soon. Let me think, what happens next...]

[Yang Haoyu finally graduates and begins job hunting. Shang Feifei is overjoyed, believing that she and Yang Haoyu can finally be together.]

[In her eyes, Yang Haoyu is unaware of her true background, which is why he applies for a job at the Shang Corporation. Graduating from a prestigious university is merely a stepping stone to enter the Shang Corporation; moreover, had Yang Haoyu not performed exceptionally well during his university years, won awards, maintained top grades throughout, served as the student union president, organized numerous events, and excelled during every internship, his academic credentials alone wouldn't have been enough to get him into the Shang Corporation.]

[After all, at the headquarters of the Shang Corporation, the minimum educational requirement is a master's degree.]

[Upon entering the Shang Corporation, Yang Haoyu relies on his habitual pretense to win widespread popularity and deliver outstanding performance.]

[However, to secure a promotion, he would normally have to wait two or three years. Shang Feifei simply cannot wait that long.]

[Therefore, she continually and intentionally leaks future development plans and confidential information of the Shang Corporation, while also pulling strings behind the scenes to have Yang Haoyu's superiors look after him. Sure enough, in less than half a year, Yang Haoyu accumulates achievement after achievement, gaining a reputation so prominent that even the CEO, Shang Beiming, hears of him.]

Hearing this, the old master and Shang Yang immediately furrowed their brows, turning to stare at Shang Feifei.

She actually leaked confidential information of the Shang Corporation to Yang Haoyu, solely to help him achieve success?!

Shang Feifei felt extremely guilty, knowing full well that this was entirely something she would do.

Furthermore...
Yesterday, upon learning that Yang Haoyu had entered the Shang Corporation, she truly had entertained thoughts along those lines.

So, she really would end up doing that in the future...
Then, did Yang Haoyu end up together with her?

After all, she had chased after Yang Haoyu for nearly three years, keeping him in her thoughts every single day. Even knowing that Yang Haoyu's initial motives in approaching her were impure, he had remained consistently gentle and good to her throughout these three years...

For a moment, Shang Feifei found herself unable to instantly sever her emotions.

She still couldn't help but...
Want to know if they would end up together in the future.

Perhaps...
Because of her three-year pursuit, Yang Haoyu had long since cast aside his initial impure motives and started to genuinely love her?

After all, if his approach was purely driven by a desire for revenge, Yang Haoyu hadn't done a single thing to harm her over the past three years!

Shang Feifei couldn't help harboring a shred of wishful thinking.
Or rather, she was still unwilling to believe that the brilliant young man she had loved for so long could harbor ulterior motives and wish to harm her...

Yet Lin Xianxian's ensuing inner monologue shattered her illusions entirely:

[That foolish male protagonist Shang Beiming learns of Yang Haoyu's existence and feels a twinge of jealousy at first. However, upon discovering that Qin Xinxia had absolutely no connection with this Yang Haoyu prior to university—not even counting as friends—and that by their freshman year, Shang Beiming himself was already romantically entangled with Qin Xinxia while failing to notice any prior history between Yang Haoyu and Qin Xinxia...]

[Their interactions were nothing more than those of slightly close friends, sharing a sense of warmth born from being from the same hometown and former schoolmates.]

Hearing this, Shang Feifei grew somewhat agitated again.

That's right, the two of them never had—

[Moreover, Shang Beiming later discovers that Yang Haoyu has become his younger sister's boyfriend, and that his sister and Yang Haoyu, much like himself and Qin Xinxia, face fierce opposition from the old master and Madam Shang...]

[That fool Shang Beiming completely convinces himself that there could never be anything between Yang Haoyu and Qin Xinxia, otherwise Yang Haoyu wouldn't be dating his sister. Instead, because Yang Haoyu is facing similar opposition, he develops a sense of sympathetic solidarity toward him. Seeing Yang Haoyu being humiliated by Madam Shang even reminds him of Qin Xinxia being humiliated by his own mother...]

[Consequently, that fool Shang Beiming turns around and starts helping Yang Haoyu.]