Chapter 73: Surrounded by Beauties—Whom Should I Choose?

In the early morning, as the first rays of sunlight rose, the surface of the canal shimmered with pale blue light, all of it spilling into Li Xin’s room.

He opened his eyes, his legs and feet tingling with numbness. Glancing at the bedside, he saw it was empty—Wang Xiaoqian had left at some point. Thinking back on the events of last night, Li Xin felt helpless, lost for words.

He was about to get dressed when the phone rang.

It was Doctor Chu from the herbal medicine shop.

“Hello, Doctor Chu? What’s the matter?”

“Li Xin, when are you coming back? There’s a lot going on at the shop lately. When it’s just a few things, we can handle it, but now it’s getting to be too much…”

“And by the way, you’ve had several letters these past few days. I’ve put them in your room. Come back and check them when you can.”

Doctor Chu explained in detail, giving plenty of reasons. After thinking for a moment, Li Xin replied, “I’ll head back today.”

“All right, travel safe,” Doctor Chu said, hanging up right away.

Li Xin sat for a moment on the edge of the bed, deciding not to disturb Wang Xiaoqian. He packed his things quietly, left a note on the table, and slipped out unnoticed. Aunt Zhang had gone home last night and hadn’t returned yet—she was probably at the market, so he didn’t have to worry about running into her.

He drove off, set the navigation, and started the journey home.

Just as he hit the highway, Wang Xiaoqian burst into the bedroom, excited, only to find it empty. The only sign of him was a slip of paper fluttering on the desk.

After reading the note, Wang Xiaoqian’s face darkened instantly. She gritted her teeth and muttered, “Li Xin, how dare you just take what you want and walk away without a word? You’re not getting away with this!”

Gathering her things, Wang Xiaoqian grabbed her gaming headset, jumped into her flashy red Ferrari F458, and sped off in pursuit.

A day on the road passed uneventfully. At 6 p.m., Li Xin arrived back at the medicine shop. Doctor Chu and the others were just finishing up for the day. After exchanging greetings, they left, and the spacious courtyard was left quiet, with only Li Xin and Wang Huiyan remaining.

Wang Huiyan was twenty-four, two years younger than Li Xin. In her days at Mingran Herbal Shop, she had transformed completely, both in appearance and in spirit. Previously, survival had forced her to dress up and demean herself; now, she lived with dignity, returning to her most natural, ordinary self.

Neither the boss nor the staff said anything; she was accepted with ease and had taken on the role of “housekeeper.”

Laundry, cooking, bookkeeping—she handled everything skillfully, with practiced ease.

Only then did they learn that Wang Huiyan was actually a graduate in accounting, simply born with less luck than most.

“Huiyan, you’ve worked all day. Go rest. I’ll make something for myself,” Li Xin said with a smile, treating her like a younger sister. Her pay and benefits matched everyone else’s.

Wang Huiyan laughed, wiped the fine sweat from her brow, and swiftly began washing and chopping vegetables.

“No need. You’ve been driving all day. Go rest, I’ll be done soon.”

Seeing her insist, Li Xin didn’t argue further and returned to the rocking chair in the courtyard to wait.

During dinner, Wang Huiyan suddenly looked up with a smile. “Brother Li, I’ve been wanting to thank you.”

“It’s nothing, as it should be. You shouldn’t be overlooked.”

“I…”

“No need to say more. Eat. Do your best—this is your home now.”

Wang Huiyan hesitated briefly, then nodded in agreement.

Knock, knock, knock! The ring on the east gate sounded. The Mingran Herbal Shop was built as a small courtyard: the shop faced the street to the south, rooms lined the west and north sides, and the eastern side held a few small storerooms, all connected by a classical wooden gate.

In a city center, such a courtyard would be worth a fortune in a big city, but in a fourth-tier place like Wujiang, it held little value. Looking along the street, most houses followed this layout. Local developers couldn’t afford to tear them down, and outsiders weren’t interested, so they remained as they were.

“Who could be knocking at this hour?” Wang Huiyan muttered, running over to open the gate.

Standing outside was a young woman, fashionable and radiant, her ponytail pinned with a pair of sunglasses.

“Who are you looking for?” Wang Huiyan asked.

“Is this Li Xin’s house? I’m looking for Li Xin,” replied Wang Xiaoqian.

“Li Xin?” Wang Huiyan paused, her brows arching slightly in a flash of vigilance. She didn’t love Li Xin—her feelings were gratitude and respect—but she still disliked other women showing up at his door.

Especially someone like this: dressed in designer brands, arriving in a luxury car, the very picture of a rich, beautiful woman.

She glanced at the license plate—out of town. Wang Huiyan felt a little relieved.

“You’ve got the wrong place.”

“The wrong place? That can’t be. Isn’t this 317 Taoyuan Road?” Wang Xiaoqian frowned, instantly seeing through the beautiful woman’s intentions—after all, she was no ordinary woman herself.

Wang Huiyan was speechless. This woman knew a lot.

“It is 317, but you picked the wrong time. He’s not home. Come back tomorrow.”

With that, she tried to shut the door, only to have Wang Xiaoqian stop her. Being no match for Wang Xiaoqian’s strength, Wang Huiyan found herself at a disadvantage.

“Come on, at least come up with a better excuse if you’re going to lie. His car’s right there, and you’re telling me he’s not home? Honestly, you look like a flower, but why do you love to lie so much?” Wang Xiaoqian pressed, aggressive.

Annoyed, Wang Huiyan was about to retort, but at that moment, Li Xin himself appeared.

“Huiyan, what’s going on? You’ve been at the door for so—”

Li Xin’s words cut off as he saw Wang Xiaoqian. He stood there, awkward, rubbing his nose, both flustered and surprised.

“What are you doing here?”

“What, not happy to see me? You injured me, and you said yourself you wouldn’t leave until I was fully recovered. Now you sneak off? And last night you held me all night—now you want to pretend it didn’t happen?” Wang Xiaoqian huffed, pushing past Wang Huiyan and striding confidently inside.

She tossed her backpack onto the stone table and flopped into the rocking chair.

“Who’s that?” Wang Huiyan asked quietly, her expression sour.

“A creditor,” Li Xin replied with a wry smile.

“A creditor? And you spent the night holding her? You’re really something. I’d say she’s more like your master.” Wang Huiyan pouted and stalked back to the dining room, her appetite gone. Giving up on dinner, she left for her room, slamming the door behind her.

Li Xin was speechless, smacking his lips as he walked under the grape arbor.

“I told you, there’s urgent business at the shop. You came all this way—aren’t you tired?”

“Not at all,” Wang Xiaoqian snorted, turning her head away. “Urgent business? Dining with a beautiful woman—so that’s your idea of urgent?”

“It’s not what you think.”

“Oh? Then what is it? Well, well, I didn’t realize you were such a flirt,” Wang Xiaoqian retorted, her brows straight and fierce, practically bristling like a cat.

Faced with such unreasonable accusations, Li Xin could only sigh and light a cigarette.

After a long silence, as tension hung in the air, Wang Huiyan suddenly opened her door and called out, “Are you eating or not? If not, your food’s getting cold. Otherwise, I’ll throw it out!”