Name: My father is Zhao Dehan, and I hope he will become a dragon!

Zhao Chongming woke up just as dawn was breaking.

The curtains were drawn, and the room was dimly lit.

He glanced to the side and saw that Zhao Xiaoya was still asleep, the blanket wrapped up to her chin, only her face showing.

She had long eyelashes, a slender nose, and slightly pursed lips; she was sleeping soundly.

Last night she was so nervous that her whole body stiffened. Later she gradually relaxed, but in the end she couldn't even speak and could only gasp for breath.

The experience was quite good.

It's still the original!

Zhao Chongming was very satisfied!

Zhao Chongming gently lifted the blanket, sat up, put on his clothes, and glanced at his phone.

6:40.

When he pushed open the door, the lights in the living room were already on.

Zhou Xiaoyu sat cross-legged on the sofa, a glass of hot milk in front of her, scrolling through her phone.

Hearing the door open, she looked up, her eyes sparkling with a mischievous smile.

"Good morning, Mr. Zhao."

Zhao Chongming grunted in agreement and headed towards the restroom.

Zhou Xiaoyu followed behind, asking, "How are you feeling?"

Zhao Chongming stopped and looked back at her.

Zhou Xiaoyu tilted her head, holding a milk cup, her face full of gossip.

She made no attempt to hide it; she was clearly looking to see what the commotion was about.

Zhao Chongming smiled as he looked at her.

"Very good. I'm very satisfied."

Zhou Xiaoyu's eyes crinkled into a smile, and just as she was about to say something, her phone rang.

She glanced down and saw it was a transfer notification.

Two hundred thousand, credited to account. Note: Reward.

Zhou Xiaoyu stared at the string of numbers for two seconds, then looked up, her mouth agape, unable to close for a long time.

"Mr. Zhao, this..."

"Take Xiaoya shopping for some things." Zhao Chongming picked up his coat, his tone casual. "Clothes, bags, skincare products—let her choose whatever she wants. Keep yours for yourself."

Zhou Xiaoyu jumped up from the sofa, walked a few steps to him, and almost knocked over the milk glass.

"Mr. Zhao, you are too generous."

She really enjoys being a mistress.

Zhao Chongming put on his coat, glanced at her, and said, "You introduced the person, so you deserve credit."

Zhou Xiaoyu smiled broadly and repeatedly said, "Of course, of course."

Zhao Chongming went to the entryway to change his shoes, and she followed behind, chattering, "Take care, Mr. Zhao," and "Come again next time, Mr. Zhao." Zhao Chongming didn't turn around, waved his hand, and pushed open the door to leave.

The door closed very quietly.

Zhou Xiaoyu stood in the entryway and glanced down at the transfer record on her phone again. Two hundred thousand yuan, the number was still there.

She jumped up and down, then covered her mouth and laughed, before turning and running back to her bedroom.

When the door was opened, Zhao Xiaoya was still huddled under the covers. Only the back of her head was visible, her hair spread messily on the pillow.

Zhou Xiaoyu jumped to the edge of the bed and slapped the blanket: "Xiaoya! Get up!"

The person under the covers stirred, then shrank back.

"President Zhao is gone." Zhou Xiaoyu leaned over the bed, close to the gap in the blanket, her voice tinged with laughter: "How are you feeling?"

Zhao Xiaoya wrapped the blanket even tighter.

Several seconds passed before a muffled sound came from inside, indistinct and unintelligible.

"What did you say?" Zhou Xiaoyu pulled the blanket down a little.

Zhao Xiaoya's face was exposed, her ears were bright red, and her whole face was buried in the pillow.

She refused to look at Zhou Xiaoyu, her voice very low: "Can...do the things that President Zhao promised still stand?"

Zhou Xiaoyu paused for a moment, then smiled.

She sat on the edge of the bed and patted Zhao Xiaoya's back: "Don't worry. He's a man of his word. Look at this house of mine, look at that car downstairs. He said he'd give me 50,000 a month, and it's always arrived on time, not a day late. He said he'd buy you clothes and asked me to take you, so he definitely won't renege on his promise."

Zhao Xiaoya slowly lifted half of her face from under the pillow and looked at Zhou Xiaoyu.

"He transferred 200,000 yuan to me." Zhou Xiaoyu held up her phone and waved it in front of her. "He said it was a reward for introducing you. Think about it, if the referral fee is 200,000 yuan, how could he give you less?"

Zhao Xiaoya stared at the transfer records on her phone screen, her eyes slowly widening.

"Two hundred thousand..."

"Mmm." Zhou Xiaoyu put away her phone, grinned, and leaned closer to her. "From now on, we're best friends for life. You're with me, I'm with you, and neither of us loses out."

Looking at Zhou Xiaoyu's smiling face, Zhao Xiaoya's lips slowly curved into a smile as well.

She buried her face back in the pillow, but this time not out of shyness, but out of laughter.

Zhou Xiaoyu stood up and drew back the curtains. Sunlight flooded in, bathing the entire bed in its glow. Zhao Xiaoya squinted and pulled the blanket over her head. Zhou Xiaoyu glanced back at her, laughing uncontrollably.

"Alright, alright, get up. Mr. Zhao said he wants me to take you shopping. Clothes, bags, skincare products, pick whatever you like."

Zhao Xiaoya peeked out from under the covers: "Really?"

"Really." Zhou Xiaoyu walked to the wardrobe, opened the door, and said, "You can wear mine for now. We'll go shopping this afternoon and you can change into this outfit."

Zhao Xiaoya sat up, rubbed her hair, and watched Zhou Xiaoyu rummaging through the closet. The sunlight shone on her, warm and comforting. She remembered Zhao Chongming's hand on her shoulder last night, the words "Don't be nervous" he whispered in her ear, and the envelope he left on her bedside table when he left this morning.

She suddenly felt as if she had really taken a step forward.

Can not go back.

But she didn't want to go back.

1 p.m., Jingzhou, Hang Lung Plaza.

Zhou Xiaoyu parked the car in the underground garage, turned off the engine, and glanced at Zhao Xiaoya.

Zhao Xiaoya was wearing a light gray cashmere coat that Zhou Xiaoyu had lent her, with a black turtleneck underneath, paired with dark jeans, her hair down, and light makeup on her face.

It looks much better than yesterday, but standing in front of the most expensive shopping mall in Jingzhou, I still feel a bit reserved, like someone from a small town.

"Let's go." Zhou Xiaoyu pushed open the car door.

Zhao Xiaoya followed her up the escalator. She had been severely ravaged yesterday, and her body was not able to take it anymore. She was walking unsteadily.

The first floor sells cosmetics and jewelry.

Zhou Xiaoyu didn't stop and pulled her upstairs to the second floor.

The second floor is full of women's clothing, one international brand after another.

The mannequins in the shop window are wearing the latest season's styles, the lights are bright, and each piece is marked with a price that makes your heart race.

Zhou Xiaoyu led her into a store first. The sales assistant, seeing Zhou Xiaoyu, immediately greeted her with a warm smile: "Ms. Zhou, you've arrived!"

"Yeah, I'll take my friend to see. Do you have any new styles?"

"Yes, yes, we just received a few coats and dresses. Let me get them for you."

The sales assistant turned to get the clothes, while Zhao Xiaoya stood in the store, looking around.

She picked up a cardigan hanging on the rack, flipped through the tag, and paused when she saw the number.

A five-figure price.

She silently put the tag back, pretending she hadn't seen anything.

Zhou Xiaoyu walked over and glanced at the cardigan in the direction of her gaze: "Try it if you like it."

"Too expensive."

"It won't cost you anything to try it on." Zhou Xiaoyu took the cardigan off the rack and shoved it into her arms. "Go try it on."

Zhao Xiaoya carried the clothes into the fitting room. She took off her coat and put on the knitted sweater. The material was very soft, almost weightless against her skin, and the light camel color made her skin look very fair. She turned around in front of the mirror, a little reluctant to take it off.

When she came out, Zhou Xiaoyu was sitting on the sofa flipping through magazines. She looked up at her, nodded, and said, "It looks good. Wrap it up."

"You want this one too?"

"And that coat, try it on." Zhou Xiaoyu pointed to the black cashmere coat that the sales assistant had just taken out.

Zhao Xiaoya tried on the coat again, and it fit her even better. The waistline was perfectly cinched, and the length reached her knees, making her look tall and neat. Zhou Xiaoyu stood up, looked her over, and then said to the sales assistant, "I'll take both of these. And that dress she was looking at earlier, take that too."

Zhao Xiaoya stood in front of the mirror, looking at herself in the cashmere coat, and could hardly recognize herself.

She had never worn such nice clothes before. She used to work in a clothing store in the county town, handling items worth a few hundred yuan every day, rarely anything over a thousand. This one piece she was wearing now would be enough for her to work at the counter in the county town for six months.

Next up is the bag.

Zhou Xiaoyu led her into a store where rows of handbags in various colors were displayed on the counter. Zhao Xiaoya was already numb to the prices. Zhou Xiaoyu picked out a black one and handed it to her: "This one goes with everything, use this for now. You can buy more if you like something later."

Zhao Xiaoya took it, her hands trembling slightly.

When they came out of the mall, Zhao Xiaoya was carrying bags full of clothes, bags, cosmetics, and shoes. Zhou Xiaoyu helped her carry two bags and walked beside her, looking at her phone as they went.

"Are you hungry? Let's go eat."

"Xiaoyu," Zhao Xiaoya suddenly called out to her.

"Um?"

Zhao Xiaoya stood at the mall entrance, her hands full of bags, gazing at the street scene of Jingzhou before her. High-rises, traffic, neon lights—everything was bright, almost blindingly so. She opened her mouth, her voice slightly hoarse: "I never imagined I'd be able to buy these things one day."

Zhou Xiaoyu glanced at her, smiled, and patted her shoulder: "You'll get used to it."

The two went to a Japanese restaurant upstairs in the mall. The private room was quiet, and the skyline of Jingzhou could be seen from the window. Zhao Xiaoya sat on the tatami mat, neatly stacking the bags to one side, glancing down at them every now and then, as if to confirm that they were genuine.

Zhou Xiaoyu picked up a piece of sashimi, dipped it in soy sauce and wasabi, put it in her mouth, chewed it a couple of times, and said, "Xiaoya, do you know what your biggest problem is?"

Zhao Xiaoya raised her head.

You used to feel unworthy.

Zhou Xiaoyu put down her chopsticks and looked at her: "You're beautiful, you're young, why don't you deserve him? A man like Chen Qiang can't give you the life you want. You waste two years on him, use the dowry to help your brother get married, and then what? You still have nothing. Now you're with Boss Zhao, the money is yours, the things are yours, what you hold in your hands is real."

Zhao Xiaoya held her teacup without saying a word.

After a while, she whispered, "I know."

After dinner, Zhou Xiaoyu drove her back to her apartment. Zhao Xiaoya sat in the passenger seat, holding the black bag, watching the street scene recede outside the window. She remembered Chen Qiang's voice on the phone yesterday, her mother saying, "Your brother's affairs depend on you," and the dowry her brother hadn't yet collected.

Then she looked down at the bag in her arms.

These belong to her. No one can take them away.

Back in the apartment, Zhao Xiaoya took out her purchases one by one and laid them out on the bed. Coats, sweaters, skirts, shoes, bags, skincare products—the bed was completely covered. Zhou Xiaoyu leaned against the doorframe, watching her, and chuckled, "Alright, stop looking. There'll be plenty more later."

Zhao Xiaoya sat on the edge of the bed, looking at all the things on it, and suddenly looked up.

"Light rain."

"Um?"

"Thank you."

Zhou Xiaoyu walked over, sat down next to her, put her arm around her shoulder, and said with a smile, "What are you thanking me for? We're best friends for life."