Luo Jia found a hotel nearby on her phone with good ratings. She held up the screen to Zhan Jingrui and said,
"Why don't we go here? The environment looks pretty good, and the price is fair. The most important thing is that it's close to our dorm, less than a kilometer away."
"Tiancheng Hotel, please take us there."
The name alone suggested it wouldn't be a good place, and being in such a poor location near their dorm only cemented the fact that it wouldn't be anything good.
As expected, after a few minutes, Zhan Jingrui glanced at the roadside and quickly dismissed the idea.
It was just a small hotel converted from a private house, extremely ordinary, with no exterior decoration. The only thing on the wall were four bright red characters: Tiancheng Hotel.
Judging by its appearance, the hygiene conditions inside were questionable. Zhan Jingrui drove straight past.
"Hey, hey, we're here! This is what I was talking about, stop the car, stop the car!"
Seeing that he had no intention of stopping, Luo Jia frantically patted the seat.
Zhan Jingrui thought for a moment and then drove the car back towards the hotel.
By this time, the rain had lessened, but it still drizzled onto their faces.
The car stopped at the hotel entrance. Luo Jia pushed the door open and beckoned to He Yao.
"I'll get one suitcase, you help me with one. Hurry, hurry, it's raining so hard, my clothes will be soaked soon."
With that, she grabbed the suitcase from the seat and got out.
He Yao's phone was broken, and she had no money, so she had to stay with Luo Jia that night.
Hearing this, she prepared to go to the trunk to get another suitcase for Luo Jia. As her hand reached for the handle, Zhan Jingrui opened the door before her.
"Don't move, I'll get it for her."
He opened the trunk, pulled out the suitcase, and pushed it to the hotel entrance, all in one smooth motion.
He Yao had only taken two steps out when Zhan Jingrui turned back from the entrance, grabbed her hand, and pulled her back.
Before He Yao could ask him what he was doing, he opened the car door and pushed her into the passenger seat.
By the time Luo Jia had pushed her suitcase inside and came out to get the other one, Zhan Jingrui had already driven the car back onto the main road.
He Yao and Luo Jia made eye contact through the car windows. Luo Jia was alone and furious.
"Why didn't you get out? Where are you guys going? He Yao, what's going on? You're not planning to come in, you should have told me! Hey, where are you going!"
Similarly, He Yao in the car was asking Zhan Jingrui the same question.
"What are you doing? Where are you taking me?"
Zhan Jingrui drove forward, his expressionless face saying,
"Your roommate is so annoying, she talks too much. Isn't it tiresome to live with her?"
It was quite something. If he found her tiresome, they wouldn't live together? Did he think He Yao was some kind of spoiled rich girl?
He Yao didn't engage with his comment and repeated, "So, where are you taking me?"
"Don't you need a place to stay? I'll find you a place."
"My phone is broken, I can't pay."
"I didn't say you had to pay."
That was an interesting statement. If he didn't want her to pay, did he intend to pay himself?
Just because she visited his company today, was he afraid of an industrial accident and felt obligated to take responsibility?
He Yao wasn't his company's employee. If he wanted to use their past relationship to do something, he should just say so. Was there a need to beat around the bush with excuses?
He Yao wasn't afraid of men having intentions towards her; she was afraid of those who had them but wouldn't admit it.
Their hypocrisy was disgusting.
"What are you doing, Zhan Jingrui? If I recall correctly, Chu Xi called you just ten minutes ago. She's your girlfriend now, isn't she?"
"Helping your ex-girlfriend behind your current girlfriend's back, aren't you afraid she'll get angry if she finds out?"
That provocative and casual tone successfully reminded Zhan Jingrui of the He Yao of the past.
She was still the same, relying on her youth and beauty, with many admirers, and no heart.
His kindness, his lingering feelings, his inability to refuse her – it was all the same as back then. In her eyes, he was clearly a sucker, a joke, and a pawn for her to brag about!
She didn't deserve him to treat her like this. Why was he making the same mistake again?
She was right; his girlfriend was Chu Xi.
Chu Xi, who was better than her in every way. To ignore such a good girlfriend and get entangled with someone heartless like this – wasn't he sick?
Zhan Jingrui felt a pang of pain in his heart, and his tone turned cold.
"We only dated for about three or two months. You can't really count as my ex-girlfriend."
"I said, if something happens to you, and the last person to see you alive is me, I'll have the trouble of being summoned and cooperating with the investigation."
"I'm very busy, I don't have time to deal with that, nor do I want to appear in the social news, nor do I want to go to such an unlucky place because of you. I'm simply solving my own trouble, so don't overthink it."
Very good.
The explanation was perfectly clear.
Public matters are public, private matters are private. He always kept them separate. You're just a toad wanting to eat swan meat, He Yao!
He Yao's heart ached at his words, but she had to maintain her dignity.
"Since you put it that way, I'm relieved. I dislike people who keep pestering after a breakup."
"No need to go further. Just nearby is fine. Find any hotel for me. I don't have high expectations. Hurry up and find one, then leave. I'm very tired and don't want to be stuck in your car."
Zhan Jingrui was so angered by her that his hands trembled.
He was like a dog biting Lu Dongbin, unappreciative of good intentions – that's what He Yao was like!
He could see the sign of a chain hotel in the distance and sped up the car.
"Get out."
This time, He Yao clung to the seat and refused to leave.
"You're not getting out? Since you brought me here for official reasons, you'll have to pay for the room, won't you?"
Besides, I already told you my phone is broken and I have no money, no money! Don't you understand what that means?
Zhan Jingrui didn't mind paying for her, but he really didn't want to leave the car.
He felt too dirty and probably smelled bad.
Walking into the lobby in such a state required too much courage for him.
But he didn't have any cash on him.
The two confronted each other in the car for a few seconds. Zhan Jingrui gritted his teeth and got out of the car.
He Yao followed him. Both of them, looking rather disheveled, walked step by step to the luxurious hotel reception.
Fortunately, the front desk staff were professional and maintained a polite smile.
"Hello, are you here to check in?"
"That's right. Give me a king-sized room."
A man and a woman checking into a king-sized room – anyone could guess what that meant. The receptionist continued to smile.
"Certainly, sir. We have special offer king rooms, boutique king rooms, deluxe king rooms, and standard king rooms. Which type would you prefer?"
In Zhan Jingrui's dictionary, there was no concept of special offers or bargain hunting. He directly asked for the most expensive one.
"Deluxe king room. Alright. The price is one thousand three hundred and eighty-eight per night. Are you sure?"
"Sure."
"Alright, sir. Please present your identification, and I'll process it for you now."
Zhan Jingrui had a habit of carrying his wallet. He took it out from his chest and pushed his ID card over.
The receptionist took it and politely looked at He Yao.