Lu Yuning Felt Unprecedentedly Valued

For a girl, spending the night out with a guy she likes is an act laden with heavy symbolism.

A man and a woman, alone in a room together—something is bound to happen, right?

Of course, some girls who preach "freedom" might claim it’s no big deal, but that’s often just a front. If a guy actually slept with them and then refused to take responsibility, they’d probably be posting a long, tearful exposé on social media before the sheets were even cold.

Xia Lin was more of a traditional girl. Asking a guy to spend the night with her was incredibly difficult for her to do.

But she simply couldn't help herself. Ever since her relationship with Su Bai had progressed, even though they hadn't broken through that final barrier yet, she had gotten a taste of intimacy and was craving more.

So, Xia Lin came up with this plan... To be fair, her father had actually recommended the old Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioner to her. The elderly woman was apparently very skilled and frequently attended to the health of the Xia family elders. She happened to be in Jiang City on business tonight and had some free time, so the appointment was set.

The wellness industry is, after all, a service industry. It’s hard to say how effective the treatments actually are; the key is making the user feel like they’re working.

Service attitude is paramount. In this day and age, playing the mysterious mystic to manipulate the rich is tough. The "kindly grandmother" approach—scientific yet approachable—is the current winning meta.

[Lin of Summer: Remember to tell the girls at home in advance, just so they don't worry.]

[Crispy Big White Goose: Okay, meow.]

[Crispy Big White Goose: Director Xia is so considerate...]

[Crispy Big White Goose: But I need to go see the designer first and chat about some ideas. She's a new hire, so I need to show some humanistic care.]

[Lin of Summer: Oh my, our brother Su Bai understands the human heart so well. Alright then, you go do that first. I'll wait in the dorm. Give me a call when you're done and almost here.]

[Crispy Big White Goose: Deal.]

Today, he had an appointment with Lu Yuning. Even though his schedule was a bit tight, Su Bai needed to chat with her.

It was best not to flake on a girl with such low self-confidence.

According to Zhou Jialu, Ningning had been obediently staying at the Ascott all day, reading her professional materials and not going out to play.

...

Inside the single apartment at the Ascott.

Lu Yuning looked at herself in the mirror, tugging at the hem of her clothes, an unnatural blush rising on her cheeks.

"Is this dress appropriate for seeing Su Bai? ...Ugh, this doesn't count as a formal date, right?"

A black gauze long skirt...

The upper body was a pale blue chiffon garment in a classical lady style. Paired with Lu Yuning's naturally curly hair, she gave off the air of a medieval European court noblewoman.

The only thing missing from her face was the confidence that usually comes with a pampered life.

Lu Yuning had been on edge all day.

She was frantically wondering: Had Su Bai guessed it?

Her strange physical constitution really wasn't something she wanted her boss to know about; she felt he would be disgusted.

...

After spending the whole day in a daze, Lu Yuning finally snapped out of it when Su Bai messaged her to meet up, and she started getting ready.

Truthfully, she didn't have much to work with. She didn't know how to do makeup; applying some foundation and lipstick was the limit of Lu Yuning's complexity in that department.

However, she had a lot of clever ideas when it came to clothing.

This chiffon lady-style outfit, combining elegance and sweetness, was Lu Yuning's favorite set.

Since she suspected her boss had a preference for that kind of thing, she might as well dress herself up beautifully.

She timed it so Su Bai would be arriving soon, but then she started obsessing again, wondering if the vertical stripes on the black gauze skirt made her calves look thick.

Beneath the black gauze material, her calves were faintly visible, the skin lustrous and smooth. But Lu Yuning couldn't shake the feeling that her legs were perhaps a little too thick.

Girls, judging by the prevailing female aesthetic, tend to think thin, straight "manga legs" are the best.

From that perspective, the girls at Jiang City University tended to envy Chen Yusheng, wanting to be that kind of tall, slender, intellectual goddess.

But Lu Yuning didn't realize that in the eyes of guys, her shapely, curvy legs were...

Just right.

Coupled with the translucent quality of the gauze skirt...

It perfectly displayed the charm of an S-Class Goddess.

Therefore, when Su Bai walked into the apartment, he was unexpectedly stunned by Lu Yuning's appearance.

*Hiss~*

As expected of you. You dress up just a little, and the effect is like a complete transformation.

The corners of Su Bai's mouth curled into a subtle arc. Come to think of it, Lu Yuning always maintained a very plain image at the company. When he first saw her at the bar, she was there to do logistics work for her roommate, so she had been very plain then, too.

Now, however, she looked radiant. Without a doubt, she had spruced up her image specifically for Su Bai.

It seemed Ningning really knew what she was doing.

"Boss..." Lu Yuning greeted him softly, her eyes darting away, afraid to look directly at Su Bai.

Her murmuring voice was exceptionally cute. It fell into the category of a "cutesy baby voice," but it wasn't annoying.

Why do people usually hate that kind of voice? Because it feels forced and unnatural. But when someone is born with a voice that is naturally soft and sweet, it’s actually a rare treasure.

"Don't just stand there, come in... I brought you a bubble tea."

"Oh, thank you! Thank you, Boss!"

Lu Yuning took the tea, feeling somewhat overwhelmed by the favor. She glanced at it and her eyes immediately lit up with surprise.

It was actually her favorite flavor.

How magical. Did Su Bai specifically investigate her preferences, or was it... a telepathic connection?

Regardless of the truth, it made Lu Yuning feel valued in a way she never had before.

In the past, some guys she encountered in life would covet her body, but that kind of gaze had nothing to do with valuing her as a person.

As for her talent, Lu Yuning's ideas had always been bold and avant-garde. Perhaps because they were too avant-garde, she was frequently criticized by teachers and mocked by classmates...

But Su Bai seemed to really like them.

Actually, Su Bai didn't think he had particularly high artistic attainment.

S-Class Goddesses were for farming money, after all. Besides, the clothes Lu Yuning designed were genuinely top-tier.

It was basically a case of two closet perverts finding themselves on the same wavelength.

Lu Yuning carefully inserted the straw and took a small, tentative sip. The sweet milk tea moistened her mouth, which had gone slightly dry from nervousness, and the sugary sensation soaked into her heart.

*The Boss is really good to me.*

[Detected increase in S-Class Goddess Lu Yuning's favorability: 82 -> 85. Triggered random reward. Reward Skill: TCM Basics (Expert Level)]

Oh ho?

The favorability increase was within Su Bai's expectations.

But the reward was a bit intriguing. No matter how he looked at it, this didn't seem like content from Lu Yuning's storyline; it looked more related to Director Xia's side.

Could it be that Bro System was hinting at something, encouraging him to expand his territory and flirt with more girls?

Hmm, that makes sense!