Chapter Nine: Last Night, You Were Drunk

That night, Lu Yu tossed and turned, unable to sleep.

As for Jiang Mengnan, she enjoyed a sound sleep thanks to the alcohol. She even indulged in sleeping in, not waking until noon. She rubbed her head wearily; her eyelids felt as heavy as lead, refusing to open. After struggling for a while, she rolled over and grabbed her phone from the side. To her surprise, over a dozen missed calls greeted her. A closer look revealed they were all from Meng Jing at the bookstore. Could something have happened at the shop?

Drowsily, she sat up and called Meng Jing back. Before a few seconds had passed, Meng Jing’s voice came through: "Sister Mengnan, you finally answered!"

Feeling a twinge of guilt, Jiang Mengnan rubbed the back of her neck and said, "I'm so sorry, I overslept. Is everything okay at the shop?"

Meng Jing looked at the bookstore, which was only halfway through its setup, and shook her head. "There was something, but not anymore."

Jiang Mengnan was confused. "What do you mean?"

Meng Jing scratched her head. "Today is the day the production crew arrives for filming. When I saw you weren't here, I called you. But it turns out Lu Yu ran into some issues and was going to be late, too. To apologize, he booked a nearby cinema and took everyone to see a movie. So, there was no rush for you to get here."

After hanging up, Jiang Mengnan rubbed her eyes and checked the time. Right, today was the day of the variety show recording. Ignoring her lingering dizziness, she dashed into the bathroom and quickly "freshened up." While brushing her teeth, she looked at herself in the mirror and suddenly felt something was off. How did she get back to her room last night? And who changed her into these pajamas? She lifted her arm to sniff; the faint scent of body wash lingered. Pulling back her collar to check, she realized even her undergarments had been changed.

Jiang Mengnan had absolutely no memory of this. The only thing she recalled was tasting red wine in the restaurant downstairs. Red wine? Could she have been drunk? That was ridiculous—how could someone get wasted on just three glasses of wine? The wine must have been tainted! Then, realizing her clothes had been completely changed, she was struck by a sense of foreboding. Did Lu Yu do something to her...?

She finished washing her face, changed into her clothes, and rushed to Lu Yu’s room.

She knocked a few times, but there was no answer. Jiang Mengnan headed downstairs and happened to run into Lu Yu, who was about to leave. For some reason, the moment she saw him, the questions filling her mind vanished, and she couldn't utter a single word. She felt she might have been overthinking things.

"Awake?" Lu Yu cast a casual glance at her as he bent down to put on his shoes.

"Yes," Jiang Mengnan replied, clutching the hem of her shirt and standing there foolishly.

Lu Yu put on his baseball cap and noticed her standing still, looking like she had something to say. Guessing she wanted to ask about last night, he replied briefly, "You were drunk last night. The housekeeper changed your clothes."

So that meant nothing had happened between them? Jiang Mengnan let out a long sigh of relief.

That look of relief seemed to sting his eyes. Lu Yu pressed his lips together, looked away, and turned to push the door open. "I'm heading out. See you later."

Lu Yu left with an air of nonchalance, not giving her a chance to speak, leaving behind only the sound of a closing door.

"Why is he acting grumpy?" Jiang Mengnan shook her head and walked back into the living room.

She wandered into the dining area to look for food when she received a message from Meng Jing: "Sister Mengnan, have you left yet? The crew says filming starts in half an hour."

Jiang Mengnan was startled. She had almost forgotten about the recording. Grabbing a sandwich, she hurried downstairs. Since she wasn't familiar with the local transport, she had to hail a taxi to the bookstore. As she waited on the roadside, she watched helplessly as Lu Yu’s van slowly passed by without any intention of stopping.

"Tsk." She watched the van pull away and couldn't help but call him stingy. They were both headed to the same place; he could have at least been kind enough to offer her a ride. Behind her, the taxi driver honked, and Jiang Mengnan snapped back to reality and hopped into the car.

Soon, she arrived at the bookstore. Lu Yu was still getting his hair and makeup done, so Jiang Mengnan put down her bag and quietly returned to the counter. Meng Jing leaned over to whisper, "Sister Mengnan, Lu Yu just arrived, too. You have time to rest for a bit."

Jiang Mengnan played along. "Is that so? I thought I was late."

Fifteen minutes later, the recording officially began. Today’s shoot was crucial. If Lu Yu didn't reach his quota of points by the end of the day, he would not only fail to advance but would also trigger a competitive mechanism, introducing a new guest to fight for points in the next round.

Today, Lu Yu's task was to sell thirty books. If he succeeded, he would advance. Jiang Mengnan, for the first time ever, ordered a 40-yuan latte and prepared to enjoy the show. She thought, *As if! The bookstore just opened; there’s no way to sell that many books in a day. Lu Yu is destined to fail this round.* With that in mind, she felt much better, a gloating smile curling her lips.

Her joy lasted less than three seconds before she saw Lu Yu, dressed in his work uniform, walking toward her with a stack of books and a confident, model-like stride. Several cameras followed him. Jiang Mengnan wiped the smile off her face and quickly looked down, pretending not to see him. She nimbly grabbed a ledger and began flipping through pages, furrowing her brows in feigned deep thought. In Lu Yu’s eyes, her acting skills were a waste of talent if she didn't join the entertainment industry.

"Manager Jiang," Lu Yu called out solemnly as he reached her.

Jiang Mengnan looked up, playing dumb. "Yes?"

Lu Yu leaned in closer and asked in a very low voice, "Do you remember our cooperation?"

Jiang Mengnan nodded. "Yes."

Hope flickered in Lu Yu’s eyes. "Then, are you interested in purchasing the novels I have here?"

Jiang Mengnan let out an "ah" and, lowering her voice, boldly refused, "That wasn't in our agreement."

Lu Yu rubbed his forehead. Though he didn't know the exact reason, he knew she was doing this on purpose. He glanced back at the cameramen, covered his microphone, and asked, "Are you misunderstanding something?"

Jiang Mengnan looked at him with a frank expression. "No. It’s just that I got motion sickness from the ride-hailing car earlier, and I have no energy for anything else."

*So, she was blaming him for not giving her a ride to the store.* Lu Yu was speechless. He nodded and awkwardly headed back the way he came.

Just then, a customer walked in. Lu Yu quickly composed himself and began enthusiastically promoting the novels. Jiang Mengnan watched him with a sense of schadenfreude, but before long, she couldn't laugh anymore. Watching him struggle to sell the books with no success, she began to feel a twinge of guilt. Her sinking mood seemed to remind her that she should have just bought the books. If he didn't sell a single one today, wouldn't that be a bit pathetic?

As she hesitated over whether to offer some token support, Lu Yu walked up to the counter with a customer. "Manager Jiang, check them out."

Meeting Lu Yu’s gaze, she caught a hint of defiance in his eyes.