My Youth Began With Him

“Not really. He’s a doctor, and I work in the finance department. Why do you ask, President Qin?”

“Because you always seem to know what’s going on with him. That’s why I thought you guys were friends.” Qin Chu looked at Zhang Manlin meaningfully.

She immediately got what Qin Chu was hinting at and shook her head in denial. “I really don’t! Dr. Liu is from a rich family and studied abroad. He even drives a limited edition Ferrari, so how could someone like me be his friend? Wait though, I heard you guys were high school classmates, don’t you know him?”

“I don’t recall.” Qin Chu really didn’t remember who Liu Ze was. Apparently, they were classmates for almost an entire semester. The fact that Qin Chu didn’t remember him just meant that he never cared.

“President Qin, you’re really one of those cool icy CEOs… did you walk out of a romantic comedy?” Zhang Manlin looked shyly at Qin Chu.

“Let me tell you a story,” Qin Chu suddenly said.

“A story? Yes, please, how lucky am I! I bet your fans will be super jealous if they ever find out that President Qin told me a story,” Zhang Manlin exclaimed.

Ignoring her excitement, Qin Chu continued, “A long time ago, two armies were in battle. The first army found a chess piece they could manipulate to destroy their enemy. However, their enemy was too strong and after some thought, the chess piece decided to join the enemy camp, turn on his original commander, and ultimately defeat the first army.”

“Haha, what do you mean by army and chess piece? I’m not sure I’m following.” Zhang Manlin played dumb.

“Don’t worry. All I want to say is… if you’re going to be used as a chess piece, you should be a smart one and feel the air. If you realize that the enemy might win, you might as well choose the winning side sooner rather than later, right? After all, it may save your life.”

“Oh really? Honestly though, I feel like the chess piece will die an ugly death for betraying his original commander,” Zhang Manlin responded meaningfully.

“But the thing is, she knows that even if she helped her commander kill the enemy, afterward, her commander will kill her without blinking. What if her commander was someone who murdered without remorse? What if his favorite hobby was to burn his bridges? In that case, shouldn’t the chess piece gamble for her life?”

“But what if her new commander does the same thing to her?” Zhang Manlin asked.

“Of course he won’t. After all, the chess piece looks like his wife, so he won’t hurt her. Am I right?” Qin Chu then smiled faintly.

His gentle smile left Zhang Manlin fazed. After a few seconds, she was pulled back into reality. “This is a hard decision to make, the chess piece needs to think about it.”

“I think the chess piece will come to her senses…” Qin Chu tilted his head and looked out the window.

Zhang Manlin wasn’t sure how she left the café. All she knew was that Qin Chu found out who she was; her show had ended. Now, she had two choices in front of her. One, tell Huo Siqian that she was exposed so he can devise another plan. Two, take Qin Chu’s side and destroy Huo Siqian with him.

What a quick change of events! Zhang Manlin wasn’t sure what to do.

South Hill Manor – “Sis, why are you all dressed up? Are you going somewhere?” Little Bean asked Pudding.

“Mhm, I’m going to South Side. I want to visit Dr. Liu,” Pudding said with a grave expression on her face.