Chapter 253: Chapter 253: Paying Out of Pocket for Love
Sang Ning agreed to Li Juezhou’s request; spending time together is the prerequisite for developing feelings.
So far, when it comes to matters between men and women, she has always been overly rational.
She also wants to experience whether she can develop the ability to truly fall in love someday in the future.
The online controversy grew increasingly intense, yet strangely enough, by the next day, the matter mysteriously calmed down.
Sang Ning initially thought it was Li Juezhou’s doing, but after repeatedly questioning him, he denied it vehemently, almost offering to bare his heart to prove his innocence.
Just as Sang Ning remained bewildered, Shen Yi personally gave her a call.
"Sang Ning, I’m sorry. It’s my fault that you and Wen Jiu were dragged into this. But rest assured, I’ve already resolved the issue. I deeply apologize for the trouble caused to you both."
At that moment, Sang Ning was having breakfast with Li Juezhou.
Upon hearing the male voice on the phone, Li Juezhou immediately became alert, his eyes narrowing as he sized up Sang Ning.
Even though it was just a normal conversation with a friend, under Li Juezhou’s interrogative glance—which resembled catching someone in the act—Sang Ning unexpectedly felt a pang of guilt. She consciously lowered her voice while speaking to Shen Yi.
"It’s fine, we’re good friends, so it’s not about blame. I’ve gotten used to the frequent online backlash. It’s you and Wen Jiu I’m worried about—you might not be able to withstand it with your fragile little hearts."
Sang Ning wasn’t wrong; compared to her, Shen Yi and Wen Jiu were practically the golden children of fate.
Apparently, since their debuts, neither of them had encountered large-scale internet attacks; their career paths had been fairly smooth.
Unlike her, who had been subjected to constant abuse ever since her initial debut.
"Thank you for your comforting words. If you’re free, I’d like to treat you to a meal," Shen Yi relaxed as he spoke; he had been worried Sang Ning would hold him accountable for this incident.
Just as Sang Ning was about to casually respond, "Sure, sounds good," Li Juezhou suddenly began coughing intensely on the other side of the table.
"Sang Ning, so early in the morning, why do I hear a man next to you?" Shen Yi’s sharp instincts picked up on the noise around her.
Without missing a beat, Sang Ning casually lied: "You heard wrong. It’s my dog who choked on its water. Let’s talk about lunch another time—I need to go take care of the dog now."
Shen Yi couldn’t help but feel uneasy; he was certain she was lying to him.
Could it be that Sang Ning was secretly dating someone behind everybody’s back?
But then, upon second thought, Sang Ning—the kind of person who seemed ready to retreat to a monastery at any moment—how could she be involved in a romantic relationship?
If any man tried to cross the line of friendship with her, he’d probably get categorically blocked.
After hanging up the phone, Sang Ning kicked Li Juezhou under the table: "Li Juezhou, you did that on purpose, didn’t you?"
Li Juezhou calmly finished his glass of milk and responded innocently, "Sangsang, I was already feeling uncomfortable from choking, and now you’re accusing me—it’s truly heartbreaking."
Tears shimmered in his eyes, likely from the effort of coughing earlier.
Sang Ning didn’t pursue it further. Instead, she stood up and moved behind Li Juezhou to pat his back and help him catch his breath. "Be more careful next time. You’re an adult—don’t act like a child."
Li Juezhou instantly felt revitalized. Showing weakness in front of Sang Ning was proving to be a constantly effective strategy.
"Sangsang, in the future, can you promise not to dine with other men one-on-one? I’ll get jealous." Li Juezhou turned his head, grasped Sang Ning’s wrist, and said earnestly.
"Okay." Sang Ning nodded in agreement.
She felt that she was generally easygoing. With someone like Li Juezhou, who directly voiced his needs without holding back, she often complied.
What she feared most were men who had requests but wouldn’t articulate them, preferring to make her guess endlessly—utterly pretentious.
If Li Juezhou were that type of man, she would’ve booted him out without hesitation.
After breakfast, Sang Ning took Li Juezhou to her company for his onboarding.
What she previously told Li Juezhou wasn’t a lie—her company was indeed in desperate need of reliable bodyguards.
Thus, when Sang Ning mentioned this to her boss, Chen Ming, he agreed almost without hesitation.
However, the job responsibilities turned out to differ from what Li Juezhou had envisioned. Boss Chen Ming’s idea was for him to manage the security of all the company’s artists.
There wasn’t much trouble during artists’ everyday appearances; the real challenge lay in ensuring strict security during public events.
But not all company artists had events every day, so only being Sang Ning’s personal bodyguard would seem like a waste of resources.
Sang Ning accompanied Li Juezhou to the office to meet with HR, and HR relayed all of Chen Ming’s expectations to him.
Li Juezhou sat across from HR, crossed one leg over the other, and exuded an air of authority—as if he were conducting the interview rather than being the interviewee.
"I’m not satisfied with your proposal. Can you come up with a new plan for me?"
Sang Ning sat beside Li Juezhou, coughing repeatedly to signal him.
This guy seemed not to realize his current position—he was an applicant, yet he dared to make such unreasonable demands.
The HR manager’s expression froze; clearly, she had never encountered such a difficult candidate. If not for this person being recommended by Sang Ning, she might have thrown him out long ago.
Sure, he was handsome, but his brain didn’t seem to work well.
"Mr. Li, if you disagree with these conditions, then I’m sorry—we might not be able to establish a cooperative relationship." The HR manager responded politely and diplomatically.
"If you can’t offer me a better plan, why not hear my proposal instead?" Li Juezhou finally sat up straight.
The HR manager gestured for him to continue: "Go ahead."
"I don’t lack money. I only want the position of Sang Ning’s full-time bodyguard. You simply need to give me this role; as for the salary, I don’t need a single penny. Furthermore, for the personal bodyguards you still need for other artists, I’ll find a suitable candidate for you, and I’ll cover their salaries. How about this proposal?" Li Juezhou stated his terms leisurely.
The HR manager was completely stunned, her eyes widening in disbelief as she studied him—what kind of saint was this?
Sang Ning was equally speechless. Leaning toward his ear, she whispered harshly: "Seriously, are you just looking for ways to waste your surplus money?"
In the HR manager’s mind, there was no such thing as a free lunch.
So after taking a deep breath to compose herself, she asked Li Juezhou, "Mr. Li, smart people don’t make unprofitable deals. May I ask the reason behind this?"
"Reason?" Li Juezhou tilted his head toward Sang Ning, his lips curling into a faint smile. "What reason is needed to protect my girlfriend at all times?"
The HR manager’s pupils dilated in shock as her head tilted slightly backward, looking at Sang Ning with absolute astonishment.
Wow, Sang Ning wasn’t even trying to hide it anymore—blatantly bringing her boyfriend into the company?
"Sangsang, I’ve already agreed to your request from yesterday. To be fair, you should agree to mine as well." Li Juezhou, worried that Sang Ning might refuse, took the initiative to press her for an answer.