1990s: Spring Water Family

Chapter 287 Have you two met before, or not?

The Western restaurant was playing melodious music, which sounded like classic old songs from the 1990s in Europe and America.

As Gu Bin listened to the familiar melody, he sat down in front of the plaintiff. He exchanged pleasantries in a seemingly polite manner, but his mind was actually occupied by the music, and he couldn't help but recall the warm memories of when he first entered university.

At that time, Lin Xiyu was studying English at East China Normal University. After buying a Walkman, she became obsessed with English songs. She used the lyrics to write him letters, conveying her love while also showing off her rapid improvement in English.

He also doted on her, went along with her, and wrote back to her in English song lyrics.

The two of them went back and forth, which made many people envious.

His roommates in the law department at Fudan University, in particular, harbored deep resentment towards him. Every time they saw a reply, they would use various pretexts to ridicule him, which was both funny and exasperating.

-

"Mr. Gu, it seems like you're not listening to me?"

A slightly displeased voice rang in her ears. The woman sitting opposite her, unwilling to be ignored, stood up from her chair with some embarrassment and annoyance: "Since you have no sincerity, there is no need to continue the discussion. See you in court."

"Hey, don't go!"

Chen Xiaoyi panicked and, disregarding the difference between men and women, grabbed her.

"Let go!"

The woman rebuked her coldly.

There's no need to be in such a hurry.

Chen Xiaoyi didn't let go, forcing a smile: "We can talk this over. My brother-in-law is here. Name your price; we can afford any amount of compensation."

"Brother-in-law?"

The woman's expression changed drastically, her face filled with disbelief: "He's your brother-in-law?"

"Yes."

Chen Xiaoyi said matter-of-factly, "You wanted to meet the person who makes the decisions, right? My brother-in-law is the president of Xingyao Games, the top executive. No one has more say than him."

What I care about is not what his relationship with you is.

He's already married!

The woman's feelings were complicated, and a hint of disappointment flashed in her eyes.

"Zhu Luoxuan, is that right?"

Only now did Gu Bin truly examine the woman before him: "The name Luo Xuan suits you perfectly. You are as beautiful as the goddess Luo, and as carefree as the daylily. You and your paintings are both imbued with spirit."

Do you still remember my name?

Zhu Luoxuan's eyes lit up, revealing surprise.

Gu Bin's reaction was completely opposite to hers; he raised an eyebrow in slight surprise.

"Have you two met before?"

Now it was Chen Xiaoyi's turn to be shocked, his wary eyes darting back and forth between the two of them.

It must be said that Zhu Luoxuan is indeed as Gu Bin described—very beautiful, pure, and sweet, the kind of girl who can win someone's heart at first sight.
"I've seen it."

"Have it?"

The two completely contradictory answers confused him once again.

"Have you two met before, or not?"

-

Six years ago, when Gu Bin first started his business, his game company was once plunged into a crisis of confidence due to Liu Rushi's slander.

When pressed by reporters, he publicly promised to provide free legal advice to those in need.

This matter, after being reprinted by major newspapers, once attracted considerable attention.

When people come to him for advice, he does his best to help many people out of their predicament.

Zhu Luoxuan's father worked in a watch factory, but the factory was not doing well. After being laid off, he tried to do business, but due to his lack of experience, he was tricked into investing in a shell company. All the money he had saved up his whole life was swindled away, making his already poor family even worse off.

In his despair, he saw the news in the newspaper and, with nothing to lose, sought out Gu Bin for help.

On the day she came to the company for consultation, Zhu Luoxuan accompanied her father.

Prior to this, she was skeptical of Gu Bin's promises, believing that he was just trying to gain favor and promote his company.

After getting to know him, I realized that he wasn't just all talk; he was genuinely capable. He helped them recover part of the debt while cooperating with relevant departments to bring the swindler to justice.

This incident not only changed her opinion of him, but also planted a seed of budding youth in her heart.

She was 17 years old that year and was still in high school.

On the day I received the payment, I came to the company with my parents to thank him in person.

As she was leaving, she suddenly mustered up her courage, went up to him, and said something to him.

"My name is Zhu Luoxuan. I am as beautiful as the goddess Luo and as carefree as the daylily. Thank you for your help. I will repay you. I hope we will have the opportunity to meet again in the future."

-

Gu Bin wasn't forgetting her; he deliberately mentioned the meaning behind Luo Xuan's name to remind her that he had once said he would repay her.

As for pretending not to know her afterward, it was done intentionally when he saw the fleeting look of disappointment in her eyes.

He could understand the meaning behind that expression, and the more he understood it, the more he wanted to avoid it.

Beautiful girls are like roses with thorns; once you get involved, you're likely to get pricked and hurt all over.

-

"Can you two stop playing games?"

Seeing that the two remained silent, Chen Xiaoyi became anxious and scratched his head.

"I've met your brother-in-law."

Zhu Luoxuan was a sensible person. She could tell that Gu Bin clearly wanted to distance himself from her, so she didn't press the matter further and changed her address to "your brother-in-law": "He helped me before; he's my benefactor."

"Hey."

Chen Xiaoyi was no longer calm. She looked at Gu Bin with a resentful gaze: "Brother-in-law, that's not fair of you. You've clearly met him, but you still lied to me and tried to fool me like I'm a fool."

"You're not smart to begin with."

Gu Bin gave him a look as if he were an idiot, and before he could argue, he delivered another blow: "Would a smart person use someone else's picture without permission?"

"Uh."

Chen Xiaoyi was embarrassed, rubbed his nose with his hand, and then said nothing more.

"Pfft."

Zhu Luoxuan was amused and covered her mouth, laughing out loud.

"You're laughing now?"

Chen Xiaoyi couldn't help but tease her: "With such a low threshold for laughter, you don't seem very smart either."

"I just laughed, what can you do to me?"

Zhu Luoxuan glared at her and retorted in Shanghainese.

I suspect you're insulting me.

Chen Xiaoyi didn't understand and deliberately picked a fight.

"So what if I insulted you? What can you do about it?"

Zhu Luoxuan is a native Shanghainese girl with a very feisty personality.

She didn't say it in Shanghainese, but Chen Xiaoyi understood.

Zhu Luoxuan thought he would continue to pick a fight, deliberately go against her, and retaliate with insults.

To my surprise, he chickened out, his eyelids drooping as he said, "Go ahead and curse, I'll let you curse."

Zhu Luoxuan: "."

This guy admitted defeat a little too quickly, didn't he?

She didn't know how to continue.

"Xiaoyi used your picture without permission, which is indeed wrong of him."

Gu Bin spoke up at the right moment to express his position: "You can name whatever conditions you want. If you want to hit or scold me to vent your anger, you can do that too. I'll just pretend I didn't see it."

Chen Xiaoyi: "."

I recognized him by his eyes; it was my brother-in-law.

"Is it really possible to meet any conditions?"

Zhu Luoxuan paid no attention to someone's little grudge, her eager gaze remaining fixed on Gu Bin.

"can."

Gu Bin nodded, averting his gaze. Zhu Luoxuan then made a startling statement: "I want to join Xingyao, in the R&D department."

"You want to work for our company?"

Chen Xiaoyi was taken aback, picked at his ears, and seemed to be hallucinating.

"Can't you?"

Zhu Luoxuan retorted, "Your brother-in-law just said that my paintings have a lot of inspiration, and they're at least no worse than yours, right?"

Developing games is not as simple as just drawing.

Chen Xiaoyi choked for a moment, feeling the need to defend himself: "It takes a lot of skills to master. I studied for three years in university before I even got a little bit of a grasp of the ropes. Even so, I wouldn't dare say that I'm competent for this job."

"I also studied fine arts in college."

Zhu Luoxuan retorted, "After graduation, I worked as an illustrator at an advertising company for a year, so I also have some understanding of the game industry."

Chen Xiaoyi countered, "If you're doing so well at the advertising company, why would you want to switch jobs and come to our company?"

Because he wasn't there!

I want to go where he is.

Even though he was already married, the burning passion in her heart still drove her to want to be as close to him as possible.

-

"Tsk tsk, that woman, she's got a real mistress vibe."

"It's obvious she has ulterior motives; she wants to be a mistress."

"Your friend is in danger! What man could resist a woman like that?"

"If her husband doesn't refuse, he's probably got his eye on her. With such a vixen by his side, it's only a matter of time before he cheats on her."

Not far from where the three of them were sitting, several wealthy women who knew Li Qing were also whispering and gossiping among themselves.

"Based on my understanding of Gu Bin, he won't agree."

Li Qing, who considered herself to have some connection with Gu Bin, spoke up for him from his perspective: "Even if he agreed, there must be other reasons."

"Do you even believe what you're saying?"

"I do not believe."

"I don't believe it either."

"Would a man with no ulterior motives be so kind and gentle to a woman who's looking for trouble?"

"That's right, especially since that woman wants to sue him."

The wealthy women, who considered themselves accustomed to the sordid affairs of elite families, scoffed at her words.

"If you don't believe me, just wait and see."

Li Qing was very certain: "Let's make a bet. I bet he won't agree."

"Fine, I'll make a bet. I refuse to believe there's any man as devoted as you describe."

"Such men have disappeared from the world."

"I don't like beautiful women unless there's a hidden reason."

"What are we betting on? Count me in."

"Let's bet on that limited edition LV bag we saw while shopping earlier. The loser will buy one for each of us."

"Okay, that's settled."

The wealthy women spoke unilaterally and made the decision for Li Qing without waiting for her consent.

Li Qing, swayed by their encouragement, also turned her head and waited with them for the final result.

-

"Miss Zhu thinks highly of Xingyao, and as the president of Xingyao, I am very pleased."

In the Western restaurant, next to the floor-to-ceiling window, Gu Bin's handsome eyebrows furrowed slightly. He remained silent for a long time before speaking again.

"My work at the advertising agency wasn't as smooth as you might imagine."

Zhu Luoxuan was a smart person, and she could tell from his tone that he wanted to politely decline.

If she missed this opportunity, she would never have any contact with him again.

Therefore, she took a desperate gamble and decisively played the victim to gain the other party's sympathy.

The word "but" lingered in Gu Bin's throat, but she abruptly swallowed it back down.

"As you all know, it's incredibly difficult for women to succeed in today's society."

Zhu Luoxuan initially only wanted to gain sympathy, but when she got to the sad parts, tears welled up in her eyes: "Especially for a young and beautiful woman like me, without status or background, and without the ability to protect herself, it is even more difficult."

"Many times, I wish I could look less attractive so that I wouldn't be bothered by so many people."

"Before working at the advertising company, I had worked in several different places. Each time, I couldn't stay for long because someone would try to take advantage of me. I didn't want to be harassed, so I had to leave."

"The most dangerous time was when a married manager, in a public gathering of colleagues, kicked everyone out and tried to rape me. If I hadn't fought back desperately and smashed a bottle over his head..."

-

"brute!"

"Worse than pigs and dogs!"

"This kind of person should be castrated and thrown out to feed the dogs."

Chen Xiaoyi was young and hot-blooded, and couldn't stand these sordid things. He was so angry that his lungs felt like they were about to explode.

"Ugh."

Gu Bin sighed with some regret, realizing that with his angry brother-in-law around, he had already lost the initiative and it would be difficult to refuse again.

"Brother-in-law, look how pitiful she is."

Sure enough, Chen Xiaoyi's reaction the next second confirmed his guess: "Why don't you just agree to her request? Anyway, the R&D department is such a big department, it won't make a difference if there are one or two more people. She can draw, which is a good match for her major. Let her come to the company for an internship for a while, and if she performs well, she can stay on?"

"Beautiful women with no connections or background, and no ability to protect themselves, are everywhere; unspoken rules happen every day."

Gu Bin gave him a cool look and retorted coldly, "Do you think you have the ability to help a few people? Or do you want to treat the company like a shelter, helping one person after another?"

"Uh."

Chen Xiaoyi was embarrassed and his face turned bright red.

"You are like this"

Gu Bin sighed and rubbed his forehead in exasperation: "How can I entrust the company to you with peace of mind?"

"Brother-in-law, I...I..."

Chen Xiaoyi was extremely ashamed and stuttered spectacularly again.

"It was my fault. I shouldn't have been so presumptuous as to make such a request."

Zhu Luoxuan looked on in despair, choked back tears as she stood up, making a move to leave.

"Hey, don't go!"

Chen Xiaoyi panicked and grabbed her.

What else do you want?

Zhu Luoxuan shook off his hand, her eyes filled with shame and anger: "Haven't I been humiliated enough by you? You plagiarized my painting and think you can just settle things with a little money?"

"I'm trying to find a solution, aren't I?"

Chen Xiaoyi was eager to explain, unaware that he had been led by the nose: "Brother-in-law, I'm begging you, please let her join the company. It was wrong of me to plagiarize her painting, consider it compensation. I'll pay for her salary during her internship."

"You'll pay?"

Gu Bin raised an eyebrow and asked, "Do you have money?"

"Me, me, me."

Chen Xiaoyi was embarrassed again. After holding it in for a long time, he finally managed to say, "I don't have any money. I'll borrow some from you first and pay you back when I make some money."

"can."

Gu Bin knew perfectly well that there was no turning back now. Rather than embarrassing him in public, he might as well go with the flow and treat it as a test for him.

"Brother-in-law, you agree?"

Chen Xiaoyi's eyes lit up with surprise, and he was about to say a few flattering words when he heard Gu Bin casually add another sentence.

"Don't get too excited yet. Words are no guarantee. Let's draw up a written agreement. If you can't keep it, just wait. Your sister will beat you up without me even lifting a finger."

Chen Xiaoyi: "."

(End of this chapter)