Chapter 65 Graduation

"Moreover, a secret office romance puts you at a disadvantage no matter how you look at it."

Yu Yuchu instinctively asked back, "How am I at a disadvantage?"

Pei Jiayin was amused by her reaction. "You clearly have a boyfriend in upper management, yet you can't enjoy any special privileges. Isn't that a disadvantage?"

"I refuse to become someone who relies on connections!"

Yu Yuchu puffed out her cheeks in frustration.

Had Pei Jiayin completely failed to understand everything she had just said?

"I know." Pei Jiayin let out a soft sigh, brushing against Yu Yuchu's heart like a feather. "I just want to make sure that, to the best of my ability, you aren't wronged and you receive fair treatment."

"After all, in this world, there are plenty of people who enjoy special privileges."

In an environment like this, receiving fair treatment—isn't that a privilege in itself?

An indescribable feeling welled up in Yu Yuchu's heart.

"One day, I will stand proudly by your side."

Yu Yuchu pulled back her sleeve and silently stroked the four-leaf clover bracelet on her wrist.

The previous discussion with Pei Jiayin about keeping their distance had been rushed, but bringing it up again this time made her even firmer in her convictions.

After that week, Yu Yuchu accompanied Cui Jing to the new perfume launch event.

God knows what Mu Chuan had said to Cui Jing, but he ended up tagging along with the two of them as well.

The launch went smoothly, and Yu Yuchu even received a gift box sent by the opposing company.

Two months later, Yu Yuchu successfully completed her graduation thesis and defense, obtained her diploma, and secured her full-time position right away.

Having worked as an office worker for these past few months, Yu Yuchu felt completely devoid of any realistic sense of graduation.

Combined with the thin ties she had with her dormmates, any sorrow over graduation was completely wiped away, leaving only the pure joy of becoming a full-time employee.

Yu Yuchu strolled through the campus, holding a stack of paperwork in her hand.

She snapped a casual photo and posted it on her Moments.

[Happy graduation.]

Looking at the bustling students rushing around to their classes, Yu Yuchu felt a brief pang of nostalgia for how things had changed.

Cui Jing messaged her shortly after.

[The company isn't busy these few days. It's totally fine if you come in to report a few days later.]

[I'll give you a break. From now on, you're a true corporate worker.]

Yu Yuchu found a spot to sit down.

[Cui, you're the best!]

Even if Cui Jing hadn't said that, she would have had to ask for leave anyway.

Over the past two months, she had consistently sent money home after receiving her salary. Although it wasn't much, it could at least make things a little easier for her mother.

It would become much harder to visit home in the future, so she needed to take a trip back to her hometown in Hebei Province.

Her ticket was already booked; all that remained was to let Pei Jiayin know.

Lingering no longer, Yu Yuchu hurried onto the subway to go home and pack her luggage.

Pei Jiayin seemed very busy these past two days, presumably because he had borrowed time from the previous weekend and needed to catch up on the backlog of work.

She simply sent Pei Jiayin a WeChat message, grabbed her luggage, and boarded the train back to Hebei.

"Passengers, this train is about to depart. Please take your seats and hold on, and do not walk around casually..."

Yu Yuchu pulled out her student ID card.

This would probably be the last time she could enjoy a student discount on a train ticket.

Students hadn't started their summer break yet, and since it was the middle of the week, the carriage was relatively empty and quiet.

Her phone rang; it was a call from Ms. Li Guifang.

"Hello, Mom?"

"Hey, Chuchu? Have you gotten on the train?"

Pulling down the small tray table in front of her, Yu Yuchu replied, "I'm on the train. I'll be home soon."

Her mother sounded delighted on the other end. "As long as you're on your way back. Did you bring enough clothes?"

"I did. I'm coming back to stay for a few more days."

"Good, good, good. We have to go attend a banquet tonight."

Hearing that her daughter was coming home, Li Guifang beamed, the wrinkles on her face deepening into a smile.

She couldn't remember which relative was celebrating a birthday, but their family placed great importance on blood ties and attendance was virtually mandatory.

Thinking of the sharp eyes of her aunts and cousins at home, Yu Yuchu unclasped the bracelet from her wrist and tucked it away safely into her bag.

Yu Yuchu exchanged a few more pleasantries with Li Guifang.

Before long, the other end of the line began to hesitate, the tone turning awkward.

"What's wrong, Mom?"

"There's a faculty meeting after school lets out later, so I probably won't be able to pick you up."

Yu Yuchu didn't mind at all. "I'm not a child anymore, Mom. I can just transfer to a long-distance bus to get back."

"Transferring to a bus and taking that old route is pure torture. How miserable will you be if you get motion sick with no one to look after you?"

Yu Yuchu's face paled as a few unpleasant memories resurfaced.

In the past, she always returned home during standard holidays and would hitch a ride with relatives, only ever taking the bus when their schedules didn't align.

Yet even on those rare occasions, it was enough to make Yu Yuchu utterly dread the bus.

Yu Yuchu could almost imagine the smell of the bus lingering around her.

She swallowed hard. "It's fine, Mom."

Her mother continued on her own accord, "Do you remember that young man Huo from last time? He's also heading back to his hometown today on business, so you can just catch a ride back with him when you get off the train."

The mild physical discomfort Yu Yuchu had felt moments earlier instantly vanished.

So that was what her mother was really getting at.

However, her mother didn't know she was already in a relationship, which was why she was trying to play matchmaker.

Yet Pei Jiayin's background was awkward, and her mother was traditional—she certainly wouldn't accept the fact that Pei Jiayin and Yu Yuchu were currently living together.

When Li Guifang had previously accepted her cohabitating with Shen Wang, it was purely because her mother believed their marriage was a done deal.

A headache began to form just thinking about it.

The best way to handle her mother was to take it step by step, like a frog being boiled in warm water.

Yet under the current circumstances, what on earth should she do?

Within seconds, a thousand thoughts raced through Yu Yuchu's mind.

Besides, Huo Fuzhu probably hadn't mentioned this matter to his own family yet, otherwise her mother wouldn't have asked him to pick her up today.

Now the situation was just getting tangled.

Yu Yuchu tugged at her hair, preparing to use her classic "lost signal" trick.

"Ah, what? Mom, what did you just say? I'm going through a tunnel right now, the signal is terrible, I'll talk to you when I get home."

No one knew a daughter better than her mother.

Li Guifang immediately saw through Yu Yuchu's tactic and ignored the excuse. "I've already contacted young Huo, and he's agreed. Don't leave someone waiting around for nothing."

Not knowing how to respond, Yu Yuchu simply hung up the phone and sent Huo Fuzhu a message instead.

[Mr. Huo, I'm so sorry. I've caused you trouble.]

From her countless unhinged sticker packs, Yu Yuchu picked a relatively normal one and sent it to him.

He replied after a short while, presumably because he was busy.

[It's fine. Speaking of which, I actually owe you an apology too.]

[It's a long story. I'm about to get on the highway, is it alright if we talk more about it in the car later?]

[Okay. I'll contact you after I get off the train. I'm truly sorry for delaying your time.]

Her signal really was about to drop now; Yu Yuchu's final outgoing message began spinning in circles.

She simply switched off her phone and closed her eyes to rest.