Chapter 30: Enemy starts seduction

Lin Huaixu’s words were astonishing enough to shock someone to death.

Xin Rui was dumbfounded, looking at Tong An’yu, then at Lin Huaixu, nearly squeezing the words out from her throat: “A… a child?”

Although she hadn’t been with PetParty for long, she still had some understanding of the company’s founder.

In her eyes, Lin Huaixu was a workaholic, a representative of dedication and hard work.
There was even a period when Lin Huaixu practically lived on airplanes.

She never imagined that he actually already had a child!

“A cat! It’s a cat! A cat we rescued!” Tong An’yu explained frantically.

But this at best turned a thunderclap into a small rumble.

After all, Lin Huaixu was in Shenzhen-Hong Kong year-round.

How could he possibly have a cat with a junior employee from Hexin Technology in Jing City?

It could only have been in the past.
This also meant that Tong An’yu and Lin Huaixu had once called each other cat-mom and cat-dad.

Generally, such a relationship most likely meant they were… a couple.

Xin Rui felt a wave of dizziness.

The elevator doors had already opened.
There were people standing at the entrance, both employees from PetParty and Hexin Technology.

The work badges they wore were white and blue, respectively, making them very easy to distinguish.

Because their bosses were rumored to be mortal enemies, the two groups tacitly maintained a safe distance from each other, rarely striking up a conversation.

Then they saw Lin Huaixu and Tong An’yu in the same elevator.

Tong An’yu was flushed red from the heat, while Lin Huaixu appeared calm and composed.

“CEO Lin.”

“Hello, CEO Lin.”

The people from PetParty didn’t know that the junior employee from Hexin in the elevator was the legendary daughter of Si Zhan, so their reactions were quite normal.

But it was different on Hexin’s side.

Song Huai winked and made faces at Tong An’yu, both shocked and sympathetic.
‘Is her luck that bad?’

‘She runs into the big boss from next door in the elevator right after stepping out?’

“Team Leader?”

Tong An’yu quickly squeezed out of the elevator, hastily leaving Sun Han with a “See you tomorrow.”

She had already stepped out, but then she paused, afraid of causing a misunderstanding, so she deliberately added a name: “Sun Han.”

Sun Han said, “Okay.”

Sun Han grabbed the stunned Xin Rui and pulled her out as well, whispering hastily, “I’ll explain to you. It’s not that complicated.”

Lin Huaixu was the last to leave the elevator.

He glanced at Tong An’yu’s almost fleeing back.

The fact that she wanted to stay away from him had been obvious from the very beginning.

The person who used to be so talkative and lively, like a stove that could never be extinguished even in the coldest winter, now had nothing to say to him.

He rubbed the palm of his right hand.

The wound from the cigarette burn had healed completely, but the scar from the wine bottle was still there, turning into a slightly raised white mark.

The past was unrelenting.

About an hour after returning to the office, after he had finished a cup of black Americano to wash away the cloying sweetness of the caramel latte, he unsurprisingly received Tong An’yu’s excuse for refusal—

[The cat is very big now. It’s not convenient to bring him out. Let’s just forget it.]

As expected, that warm, lively atmosphere that he hadn’t dared to easily disrupt was, in the end, broken by her own hand.

[I can send a driver to pick him up.]

Tong An’yu stared at his prompt reply and rubbed her face hard.

Sigh, it was her own fault.
Of all the excuses to find, she had to blame it on the cat.

Now look what happened.

She let her nemesis latch onto the cat.

It seemed Lin Huaixu really loved small animals.

Back then, despite being so broke, he was willing to spend over a thousand to treat Cooper.

Now, he had founded a company related to pets and even donated a large sum of money every year to sponsor stray animal rescue stations all over the country.

[Cooper might not remember you,] Tong An’yu said tactfully.

When Lin Huaixu visited him at the pet hospital every day, held him to sleep, fed him, and played with him, he was just a little baby.

How could he have any deep memories?

[It’s enough that I remember.]

Seeing this sentence, Tong An’yu admitted that she felt a slight flutter in her heart for a moment, even though the words were meant for the cat.But then, an inexplicable anger welled up, and on impulse, she sent him—

[But you didn’t ask about him for seven years either.]

She regretted it as soon as she sent it, frantically tapping “unsend,” praying her nemesis hadn’t seen it.

What on earth was she saying?

Cooper was just one of the many small cats he had rescued.

Who knew how many he had rescued over the years?

Did he have to think about every single one all the time, asking about them year after year?

Her demands of him were too harsh.

It was already very good that he could remember and want to see him after coming to Jing City.

[This weekend then. At the Starbucks downstairs from the Jingjin Tower.]

Tong An’yu put down her phone after sending the message.

That Starbucks was a pet-friendly store and even offered free “puppuccinos.”

Actually, it wasn’t appropriate for her and Lin Huaixu to meet privately, since he already had a girlfriend.

But the Starbucks in the CBD had become another kind of workplace.

People who came for coffee were either talking business or busy with their laptops.
Few were truly at leisure.

That made it much more acceptable.

Tong An’yu had almost successfully rejected him.

Seven years was indeed a long time.
But he had already tried his best.

But he was still a step too late.

“CEO Lin, Lin—”

“Go on,” Lin Huaixu said without looking up, replying to Tong An’yu with an [Okay].

“Your work hours last week have already severely exceeded the limit. Are you still planning to meet with the investment bankers this weekend?”

“Cancel it,” Lin Huaixu said decisively.

The secretary was a bit surprised that the boss could relax, but she was happy about it.

So she said, “That’s great. You should have relaxed a long time ago. Miss Yuan said if you’re free this weekend—”

“I have personal matters. Reschedule the meeting with the investment bank for next week.”

PetParty was planning to go public on the A-share market and had recently been intensely meeting with investment banks, hoping to finalize the prospectus soon.

If the A-share listing was successful, Lin Huaixu would be completely financially free.

The secretary was stunned.

What personal matter was so important that he would even postpone a meeting with an investment bank?

And this personal matter was clearly unrelated to Miss Yuan.

It seemed successful men were indeed untamable.

She quickly recovered her professional smile.

“Okay, I’ll schedule a time with them for you.”

Before leaving, the secretary asked again, “By the way, CEO Lin, do you still need me to keep an eye on when Sun Han leaves? Are you cracking down on tardiness and leaving early recently?”

Lin Huaixu thought for a moment and said, “No need.”

“Okay.”

The secretary nodded and went out.

Sun Han returned to her desk and furiously sent messages to Tong An’yu.

[Are you okay, sis? Lin Huaixu is too unpredictable. I didn’t even know how to help you.]

[I’m fine. It’s my fault. As for Xin Rui…]

[I told Xin Rui that we were schoolmates before and were quite close. You two adopted a cat together, but later had a falling out, and the cat was awarded to you.]

[Awarded to me…]

That sounds like a divorce.

[She probably guessed your relationship with Lin Huaixu, but don’t worry, she’s very tight-lipped.]

[Sigh, as long as I didn’t scare her. I didn’t mean to hide it.]

[I know. It’s all Lin Huaixu’s fault.]

For the next few days, Tong An’yu was cautious and stealthy, successfully avoiding another encounter with Lin Huaixu.

Her mood calmed down considerably.

Weekend.

At the appointed time, she brought Cooper out from home, and the driver took her to the Starbucks downstairs from the company building.

Don’t be fooled by Cooper’s majestic appearance and large size.

This cat was actually extremely timid.
When he went out, he didn’t dare to run around freely on the ground and had to cling tightly to a person he was familiar with.

If a passing Chihuahua barked at him, he would be scared half to death.

This cat also had another bad habit: he was soft on the outside but tough on the inside.
Outside, he was as timid as a quail, but at home, he was arrogant, patrolling his territory like an emperor every day.
No little friend was allowed to touch his little toys or scratching board.

If anyone in the family had held another little cat friend outside and he smelled it, he would sulk for the whole day.

His possessiveness was extremely strong.

To put it nicely, he was a spoiled darling.
To put it harshly, he was petty.

The car arrived.

Tong An’yu put on Cooper’s collar and carried him out of the carrier.

A long strip of a cat lay on her body, completely covering her upper half.

But Cooper was completely oblivious, still thinking he was very petite and delicate, rubbing against Tong An’yu and shedding a pile of cat hair.

“Miss, shall I?”

Tong An’yu said, “It’s fine, I can carry him. Please wait here for a while. I should be back soon.”

‘It’s just to see the cat. My nemesis will take half an hour at most.’

‘After all, he works like his life depends on it. He’s obviously working overtime on the weekend too.’

When she arrived at Starbucks, Lin Huaixu was indeed already waiting there.

As expected, his laptop was on his lap.

As expected, he was working non-stop.

Tong An’yu couldn’t help but stand still at the entrance.

This scene was really, really familiar, like the evening self-study sessions in the library every day, like the late-night overtime in that small, shabby rented apartment.

He seemed not to have changed at all.

She wanted to admire her nemesis’s work state for a little longer, but Cooper’s weight was truly a burden.

After holding him for a while, Tong An’yu started to pant heavily, and then all her interest in admiring him vanished.

She hoisted the cat up and walked towards Lin Huaixu.

“Here, the child has arrived,” she said.

As soon as she placed the cat on the table in front of Lin Huaixu, the cat meowed and quickly jumped back onto her.

He hissed at her, angry that she had abandoned him, then hooked his claws tightly into her clothes, his tail curled timidly.

‘You coward, that’s your dad who’s been missing for seven years,’ Tong An’yu thought secretly.

Then, she was too tired to stand and plopped down opposite Lin Huaixu.
“He’s timid. He probably thinks you’re a stranger.”

‘It’s not that he thinks you’re a stranger; in Cooper’s eyes, you are a stranger.’

Lin Huaixu closed his laptop and glanced at the giant baby.

“He’s grown up.”

Tong An’yu said, “Mm…”

She thought, ‘What is this? Divorced parents with a broken relationship, putting aside their differences for their daughter’s sake years later and coexisting peacefully?’

Lin Huaixu said, “So timid. Not like you.”

‘The tone is getting weirder and weirder.’
‘Of course Cooper isn’t like me. Why does it sound like I gave birth to him?’

“Aow…” Cooper meowed at Tong An’yu.

Tong An’yu covered the child’s ears protectively.

“He can understand. Don’t pick on him.”

Lin Huaixu extended his hand.

“Let me hold him.”

Tong An’yu made a move to hand him over.
Cooper hooked his arms around her neck, and she immediately pulled him back.
“He’s not willing.”

Lin Huaixu nodded, not disappointed, and then asked her, “What would you like to drink?”

“A Frappuccino.”

Lin Huaixu said, “Watch my laptop for me.”
He got up to order coffee.

‘Sure enough, the mother is valued because of the child. If it weren’t for the cat, my nemesis would never serve me.’

Tong An’yu watched from afar as he took out his wallet, pulled out a card, and handed it to the barista.

It was a perfect illusion of their first meeting.

Lin Huaixu was also buying coffee then, the light from outside the glass window falling on him, illuminating his handsome side profile.

But this time wasn’t as dramatic as the first.
Before long, Lin Huaixu returned with a Frappuccino and a cup of whipped cream.

He didn’t order anything for himself.

“Th…”

Tong An’yu was about to take the coffee, but Lin Huaixu placed it directly on the table for her.

She was taken aback.

Then she realized that Lin Huaixu had no intention of sitting back down.

Instead, he stood beside her, leaned over, and held the paper cup of whipped cream in front of Cooper’s nose.

He was suddenly extremely close, making it difficult for Tong An’yu to breathe.

She tensed and straightened her back, her gaze lifting to meet Lin Huaixu’s collar.

His black shirt was unbuttoned by one button.

The rolling Adam’s apple and the well-trained lean muscles flashed before her eyes, almost making her dizzy.

Lin Huaixu used the cream to lure Cooper’s attention, then very naturally reached out to stroke his soft fur, his long fingers almost brushing against Tong An’yu’s neck.

His unique scent, carried by this intimate gesture, invaded her senses from all directions.

“He won’t let me hold him, so this is the only way,” he said.

Tong An’yu felt in a daze that he had also offered her a tempting ‘cream,’ and that he wanted to stroke more than just the cat.