Chapter 45: To Watch or Not to Watch

Mi Cai bit her lip, looking at me as if she could no longer communicate with me in words. After a long silence, she finally said gloomily, “Why does someone as uncultured as you exist in this world?”

I loosened my grip on Mi Cai and replied nonchalantly, “Can’t you look at things from two perspectives? Using your toiletries shows that I’m not overly concerned with trivialities!”

“Did you get my permission before using them?”

“That’s exactly what I mean by not caring about trifles! Was it really necessary to make a big deal out of something so minor and ask for your permission?”

“But I unknowingly used the toothbrush you had already used!” Mi Cai said, her expression turning disgusted again.

“What’s done is done. Should I go find the Moonlight Treasure Box to reverse time and remind you not to use it? That would be so impractical. So you should just take this matter lightly. You must understand, in this world nothing truly exists; you’re fake, I’m fake, and even the toothbrush is fake…”

Finally calming down slightly, Mi Cai said, “Who knows what kind of infectious diseases you might have.”

“If you catch something, it’s just your bad luck. Think about how slim the chances were for us to meet in this vast sea of people. Isn’t it even more unlikely that I would use your toothbrush and other toiletries after meeting you?”

Just when Mi Cai had started to calm down a bit, she flared up again, saying angrily, “According to your logic, does that mean it’s always my fault and my bad luck no matter what happens in the future?”

“You could say that.” I said, then smiled at Mi Cai and added, “You still understand me pretty well. You don’t even have to guess to know what I’m thinking!”

Mi Cai, furious, laughed sarcastically, “That’s exactly how bastards think. No one needs to guess; anyone can see through the ugly faces of people like you.”

“You swore again. Even if I am a bastard, as a graceful woman like you, you shouldn’t say such things. It really damages your image!”

“Zhaoyang, are you determined to anger me to death today?”

“If you’re afraid of dying from anger, then leave! Give me this apartment and we’ll both be comfortable and have peace.”

Mi Cai suddenly calmed down and said indifferently, “You wish! I won’t let you have your way, you scumbag.”

“Anyway, I’m not leaving tonight. If you don’t mind, I definitely won’t mind living together again.”

Unexpectedly, Mi Cai didn’t argue. She turned around and went back to the bathroom, closing the door heavily, and no one knew what she was doing inside.

I sat on the sofa, turned on the TV, and watched it absentmindedly, frequently glancing toward the bathroom, feeling something suspicious was going on. Suddenly I remembered the time she tricked me to go to the outskirts late at night, and I felt a chill of fear.

“I’m such a wise person. Could I possibly fall for the same trick twice from the same person? Obviously not!” I comforted myself in my mind and felt somewhat relieved.

After calming down, my mood inexplicably improved. So while Mi Cai was still in the bathroom, I went downstairs to a convenience store to buy some toiletries. Of course, I took the key with me to prevent Mi Cai from locking me out.

I felt a little guilty, so despite the expense, I bought the most expensive toiletries available in the store for Mi Cai, while getting some cheap ones for myself. After all, I’m not someone who cares much about such things.

I took a short walk around the neighborhood and smoked a few cigarettes, releasing the pressure inside me before returning home. At that moment, Mi Cai had just come out of the bathroom, her hair wet, as if she had just taken a shower.

I asked suspiciously, “Didn’t you throw away all your toiletries? How did you manage to shower then?”

“Don’t I have spares?”

I immediately became flustered, “You… why didn’t you say so earlier? I just went to the convenience store and bought you a new set. It cost more than 50 yuan!”

“Really?” Mi Cai used a brand new towel to wipe her wet hair, speaking calmly, as if the unpleasantness from just now had never happened.

“Yeah, look.” I said, lifting the bag to show her.

“Then just put it in the cabinet in the bathroom. You can use it later.” Mi Cai remained calm.

I nodded and walked toward the bathroom. Inside, it was full of steam and the scent of body wash. I cautiously looked around, fearing that Mi Cai might have set a trap for me. Based on my understanding of her, the calmer she seemed, the worse she might make things for me.

Except for the clothes Mi Cai had changed out of, the bathroom was almost empty. After confirming it was safe, I opened the cabinet under the sink. Sure enough, there were many spare toiletries inside. If I had known this earlier, I wouldn’t have used hers. After all, I’m really not someone who enjoys arguing or squabbling.

Then I washed up in the bathroom. After finishing, I walked out of the bathroom just like Mi Cai had done moments ago, using a dry towel to wipe my wet hair.

To my surprise, Mi Cai hadn’t gone to bed yet. She was sitting on the sofa in the living room, eating cherries while reading some documents.

“Why aren’t you sleeping yet?” I asked Mi Cai.

“Waiting for my hair to dry.”

I sat down beside Mi Cai without hesitation and started eating cherries as well, then asked again, “Do you really like cherries that much?”

Mi Cai patiently replied, “Yes, I’ve liked them since I was very young.”

I looked at Mi Cai, feeling something was off. Given my recent bad behavior, she had already been very generous by just saying “yes.” Unexpectedly, she even told me she had liked cherries since childhood.

I tried to reassure myself: What could she, a woman, possibly do to me? I just needed to stay here calmly and not imagine things too much.

Out of boredom, I glanced at the documents Mi Cai was holding in her hands. Sure enough, I saw the logo of Zhuo Mei Shopping Center on the document. So it was confirmed beyond any doubt that Mi Cai was indeed the CEO of Zhuo Mei.

I nudged Mi Cai, who was deeply engrossed in reading, and asked, “Hey, do you know what I do for a living?”

“Who cares about you.” Mi Cai responded impatiently this time.

I smiled awkwardly, but my heart felt even more at ease. She should respond to me with this kind of impatience. It wasn’t surprising that Mi Cai didn’t know about my work situation. Although I believed Zhuo Mei had personnel files from Baoli, Mi Cai definitely wouldn’t look at them. Even if she did, she would only look at the senior management of Baoli, not someone as insignificant as me. Therefore, she had no idea I worked in the planning department at Baoli.

Of course, I wouldn’t voluntarily tell Mi Cai that I worked at Baoli either. This was entirely due to my pride. I didn’t want to feel so much lower than her. At least in this room, I was her equal—if not more so. Actually, in this house, I was definitely more dominant than her. This wasn’t just my wild imagination; there was logic behind it. She was afraid of cockroaches, and cockroaches were afraid of me. Therefore, I was two levels above her.

In my self-delusional thoughts, I became even more pleased with myself. I threw a couple more cherries into my mouth and started humming Faye Wong’s song “New Tenant” in front of Mi Cai.

Mi Cai was clearly annoyed but unwilling to argue with me again. She slammed the documents onto the table and got up from the sofa.

“Where are you going?” I asked shamelessly.

“To do laundry.” Mi Cai replied without turning her head.

“So you’re not going to kick me out tonight?”

“You can stay as long as you want.” Mi Cai said bitterly.

“And you’ll stay with me too?”

“Of course, I’ll stay with you.”

Mi Cai’s answer made me feel very pleased. I had effortlessly won over a woman. I already began imagining moving my luggage back here tomorrow night. In this city, this old house was exactly the place I had always dreamed of.

I continued humming the annoying tune of “New Tenant” while my eyes accidentally caught sight of the document Mi Cai had left behind. My heart suddenly started pounding. This document was exactly Zhuo Mei Shopping Center’s November business plan. It must contain strategic suppression plans against our Baoli and upcoming promotional activity proposals. If I read this plan, Zhuo Mei’s strategic intentions would become crystal clear, which would be extremely beneficial for our upcoming counter-marketing plans against Zhuo Mei.

To read or not to read, I was instantly torn.