"What do you know? Young Master Huo is recently infatuated with a cleaner and is busy starting a housekeeping company."
"A cleaner? His tastes have really gotten extreme."
"She's quite good-looking. I wonder why she'd work as a cleaner with such a face?"
"A woman who can captivate Young Master Huo must have some looks. But thinking about it, wouldn't a woman cleaning in such a place be covered in dirt? How could Young Master Huo go for that?"
"You don't know this, but Young Master Huo hasn't gotten his hands on her yet. She ran away. So, what you don't have is always the most enticing."
"You say that as if you saw the woman yourself. Do you have a photo? Let me see what kind of cleaner could make the ever-popular Young Master Huo fall head over heels."
The first person took out his phone and flipped through a photo to show the other.
Qin Tianyi found these two young men incredibly boring. Unable to listen further, he pulled out a tissue, wiped his hands, and walked past them. He inadvertently glanced at the not-so-clear photograph.
In the dimly lit private room, a woman in a cleaner's uniform, holding a broom, was pointing at someone and speaking.
He froze as if turned to stone. Even with the slightly blurry photo, he recognized Gu Susu.
Even if she turned to ash or smoke, he could still identify her.
The person who saw the photo laughed, "She looks so fierce, like a shrew. What does Young Master Huo like about this kind of woman?"
"It seems Young Master Huo has a masochistic tendency." With that, the two let out a suggestive laugh.
Qin Tianyi found their laughter particularly grating. Unexpectedly, he snatched the phone from the man and zoomed in on the photo to examine it closely.
The man whose phone was snatched immediately became anxious and wanted his phone back. But upon seeing it was Qin Tianyi who had taken it, he dared not make any drastic moves to retrieve it. He only said, "Mr. Qin, why are you taking my phone? Don't you have one? Are you trying to borrow my phone to make a call?"
Qin Tianyi stared at the photo with a chillingly stern expression. He suddenly looked at the man and asked, "Which club's private room was this? What's the woman's name in the photo?"
"Mr. Qin, do you know this woman..."
"I'm asking you, answer me quickly!" Qin Tianyi's gaze was sharp, like a blade piercing his throat.
The two were so frightened they almost fell to the ground. One of them stammered, "Mr. Qin, I came with my father. If you continue like this, my father..."
"I didn't ask who your father is!" Qin Tianyi's sharp gaze pressed, "Where is the woman in this photo?"
"The photo was taken at the Wan Jing Club."
Qin Tianyi threw the phone back to the man and strode out of the restroom.
The man, looking at his retreating back, said very softly, "But she's not there anymore."
Qin Tianyi didn't hear his added remark. He rushed out of the charity gala and drove to the club himself.
Xiao Anjing was chatting with several socialites and saw Qin Tianyi leave like that. She didn't understand what had happened but couldn't disengage herself immediately, so she let him go.
When Qin Tianyi arrived at the club, he asked almost everyone there. They all said Susu had resigned long ago and left, but no one knew where she had gone.
He was extremely frustrated, realizing he was always a step too late. However, he recalled the two young men mentioning that Huo Zheng was interested in Susu. Perhaps Huo Zheng knew more about Susu. He desperately wished he could go find Huo Zheng right now.
But going to the Huo family unannounced might not guarantee a meeting with Huo Zheng. He forced himself to calm down and investigate Huo Zheng's recent whereabouts.
Huo Zheng was notoriously a playboy in their circle. After returning from studying abroad, he had no proper occupation, associating with a group of similar young men, chasing after women and causing trouble everywhere.
It was said that even someone with the iron-willed demeanor of Huo Liangcheng couldn't control this only son, letting Huo Zheng do as he pleased.
Rumor had it that the heir to the Huo Group didn't even consider Huo Zheng as a candidate, which showed how disappointed Huo Liangcheng was in his son.
It was surprising that Huo Zheng was now willing to start his own company; that was truly peculiar.
Perhaps Gu Susu had been hidden away by this Huo Zheng after she resigned. Although this woman had left Yang Sijie, her ability to charm men hadn't diminished at all. Thinking of this, he gritted his teeth.
...
At dusk, Susu and Ya Nan returned from the market after closing their stall.
Susu took a bath and, feeling refreshed, walked out of the bathroom and sat on a chair, turning on the television.
Ya Nan was still calculating accounts and counting money, recording entries in the ledger. Suddenly, she let out a loud cry, startling Susu, whose heart almost leaped out of her chest. "What's wrong?"
Holding the ledger, she ran to Susu and exclaimed, "Susu, we made a profit today! Look, look, after deducting costs, we earned several hundred yuan today!"
Susu took the ledger from Ya Nan's hand and glanced at it, but the numbers still gave her a headache. She had always been bad at math since childhood and was naturally uninterested in accounting.
However, Susu had recently discovered that Ya Nan had a knack for numbers, meticulously accounting for every cent.
She suggested, "Ya Nan, why don't you enroll in an accounting class and learn about cashiering and bookkeeping? If you can get a certificate, you'll have no trouble finding a job in the future."
"Ah, you want me to go to class and study now? I'm afraid I won't be able to focus," Ya Nan said unconfidently.
Susu encouraged her, "I think you have a talent in this area. If you go back to night school to study, you'll have a skill for the future. What if, what if one day I can't do clothing with you anymore, you can still support yourself and not have to go to those shady places..."
Before Wei Ya Nan could finish, she hugged Susu tightly, afraid something might happen to her. "Susu, what are you talking about? As long as I'm by your side, I'll never let that Yang Sijie take you away again!"
"Okay, okay, you're suffocating me," Susu said with a smile.
Ya Nan released her and said, "Okay, then you watch TV. I'll go cook noodles. Let's get an early night tonight, and we'll go to the stall early tomorrow. If we keep this up, we'll recoup our initial investment in no time. It feels so good to make money!"
"Ooh yeah!" Susu echoed her excited shout.
Susu hadn't felt this way in a long time. She felt she had a goal to strive for again. Only by becoming strong enough could she overcome any hardship.
At that moment, a financial talk show was playing on the television, and the guest interviewee was Qin Tianyi, discussing how to give children in the mountains wings of dreams and the cause of educational poverty alleviation.
Gu Susu was unaware that Qin Tianyi was involved in charity. He spoke eloquently on television, his eyebrows clear and his eyes bright. His expression was as serene as ever, his facial contours a little thinner, making his features even more defined.
The support plans he spoke of were innovative and feasible, unlike those of previous charitable individuals.