Reborn to outshine My Ex and His White Moonlight
Chapter 224: Being Someone Else’s Female Companion

Chapter 224: Chapter 224: Being Someone Else’s Female Companion

The table fell silent for a long while.

Lin Zhiyi stared blankly at the man, trying to determine whether he was joking.

But the next second, the manager hurried over.

"Sorry, the waiter put the wrong table number here, this is table 26."

Lin Zhiyi immediately turned to look at the man waiting at table 27 behind her.

She pursed her lips, embarrassed, and looked at the man opposite her, "Sir, sorry for the mix-up, I hope you...have a pleasant blind date."

Just by looking at the man’s attire, she knew he was either rich or noble, someone she couldn’t afford to provoke.

Having said that, Lin Zhiyi quickly got up and switched tables.

She apologized to the client and sat down at once.

Just then, a woman wearing the current season’s designer outfit took a seat at table 26.

As soon as the woman sat down, she spoke bluntly, "You’re not bad-looking, but there are many rich men chasing me; it all depends on how much dowry you offer. I won’t agree for less than ten million."

Lin Zhiyi couldn’t help but smile with pursed lips upon hearing this.

The watch that man was wearing was worth tens of millions; it seemed this woman didn’t know the value of things.

While she was thinking, a faint glance came from the opposite side, and she quickly collected her smile and started introducing her designs to the client.

On the other side, at table 26.

After listening to the woman’s marriage demands, the man looked at her indifferently, then waved his hand in front of her head.

The woman immediately touched her face, "What are you doing? I know I look good, but I’m not the kind of woman who’s all about the looks..."

The man interrupted impatiently, "You’re in my way."

"You... No wonder you’re on a blind date. How boring."

The woman, acting petulantly, got up in a huff and left without looking back.

At this time, Lin Zhiyi was deeply engrossed in presenting her work and was no longer paying attention to the man at the other table.

The man, listening to her voice, which sounded so ethereal and clear, ordered another cup of coffee from the waiter.

A short while later.

Lin Zhiyi and her client finalized the last draft, and then she watched him leave.

As she was preparing to leave after packing up her things, the man opposite raised his coffee cup to her.

"Care to join me for breakfast?"

"No thanks, I don’t eat with people I don’t like," Lin Zhiyi said deliberately.

The man raised an eyebrow, "As an apology."

Lin Zhiyi’s stomach inconveniently growled then, and refusing would’ve made her seem pretentious.

"Thank you."

After sharing the table, they each ordered a breakfast.

The man set down his coffee cup and introduced himself, "Sang Li."

Hearing the surname, Lin Zhiyi paused for a second; she seemed to be at odds with people named Sang recently.

She smiled faintly, "Lin Zhiyi."

Sang Li looked at her smile, silent for a long while.

"Miss Lin, are you a jewelry designer?"

"Yes."

"Could I make a somewhat impertinent request as your client?" Sang Li crossed his hands and propped them against his chin, his phoenix eyes aflame.

Lin Zhiyi choked a little, hurriedly smoothing her chest.

Sang Li passed her some milk, his voice gentle, "Take it slow."

Lin Zhiyi took a couple of sips of milk before speaking up, "I don’t do blind dates."

He chuckled softly, "I’m not into coercion, either. I have a social engagement tomorrow, and I just managed to offend the lady my relative introduced me to; I’d like you to accompany me to deal with it."

"That’s all?"

Lin Zhiyi considered that, with Sang Li’s generous manner, she could earn a hefty bonus at the end of the year. Who wouldn’t want that?

"That’s all. If you’re feeling uneasy, we could sign a contract right away."

"Okay, then what’s your budget? My design fee is not cheap," Lin Zhiyi said in a matter-of-fact manner.

Sang Li raised a finger, "Ten million."

It was exactly the dowry the woman earlier had demanded.

Lin Zhiyi immediately understood that the man knew she had overheard.

But who would say no to a bonus?

She feigned ignorance and had her studio send over an electronic contract to sign.

Additionally, she recorded the conversation.

What she didn’t know was that Sang Li had noticed all her little maneuvers.

He was originally only interested in Lin Zhiyi’s appearance—taking her out wouldn’t be embarrassing.

And it would prevent his relatives from going to all the trouble of introducing women to him.

At the very least, they should be better looking than Lin Zhiyi, right?

That should be quite difficult to find.

Lin Zhiyi and Sang Li exchanged phone numbers before she stood up to leave.

Sang Li, the gentleman that he was, asked, "Do you need a ride?"

Lin Zhiyi replied politely with a smile, "You are my client, it wouldn’t be proper for you to drive me. I’ll take a cab. Goodbye."

Watching her retreating figure, Sang Li couldn’t help but smile; she was quite interesting.

At that moment, his phone rang.

"Brother, how was your date?"

"Which one are you referring to?" Sang Li thought of Lin Zhiyi and smiled even more.

"Bro, you’re smiling, aren’t you? It sounds like it went well."

"You’ll find out tomorrow."

"Alright, but when you see her tomorrow, don’t give her a hard time, alright? I don’t want to leverage any sort of favors."

Hearing this, Sang Li’s expression turned colder, but to avoid upsetting his sister, he agreed.

"I understand."

...

Early the next morning, Lin Zhiyi got up, washed up, and dressed with particular care.

She had calculated her savings the night before and realized that with Sang Li’s bonus, she was one step closer to financial freedom.

This would also mean Liu He could hold her head higher in the Gong Family.

After spending a long time picking through her wardrobe, she finally chose a suit that Gong Chen had given her.

No other reason; it was simply the most expensive, and at least it seemed appropriate for Sang Li’s status.

As she applied lipstick with her fingertips in front of the mirror, Sang Li’s call came in.

"I’m downstairs at your place."

"I’m coming."

In her haste, Lin Zhiyi forgot to wipe the lipstick off her fingertips, grabbed her bag, and went downstairs.

Sang Li’s assistant, Zhou Zhao, stood by the car ready to open the door, eyes widening as he saw the woman approaching.

At that moment, the car window next to Zhou Zhao slowly rolled down.

"Want to take a closer look?"

Zhou Zhao snapped back to reality, regaining his professional demeanor as an assistant, and hurried to open the door, "Young Master, please."

Sang Li got out of the car, observing the approaching figure.

Her light purple coat, casually tied at the waist, accentuated her impressive figure.

A glimpse of slender, fair calves became particularly enticing.

Her thick, dark curls flew freely in the wind, her slightly reddened lips added charm in their innocence, and those eyes, when slightly lifted, were captivating.

"Cough," Zhou Zhao reminded, "Young Master, it’s cold outside, shouldn’t you invite her into the car?"

Sang Li then realized he had been distracted.

He held the door open, offering Lin Zhiyi a light smile, "Please, get in the car."

Lin Zhiyi nodded and got into the car.

On the way, she felt a bit awkward; would she give herself away during a casual conversation?

After some thought, Lin Zhiyi spoke seriously, "How should I address you? Mr. Sang? Mr. Sang? Young Master? Or perhaps..."

Sang Li was slightly stumped by the question; apart from strong-willed women, he rarely dealt with girls like Lin Zhiyi.

The only one was his sister.

"I am quite a bit older than you, just call me ’Brother’," he blurted out.

"..."

What sort of woman refers to a companion like that?

Lin Zhiyi pursed her lips in thought and ventured, "Sang Li?"

Upon hearing this, something stirred in Sang Li’s chest, and he covered his lips with a fist ungracefully, responding with a muffled, "Mhm."

They soon arrived at the hotel.

As she was about to get out of the car, Lin Zhiyi noticed something furry on Sang Li’s shirt collar.

"One moment, there’s something on your collar."

Sang Li remained still, feeling a woman’s soft fingertips brush his neck, causing his body to tense up involuntarily.

Lin Zhiyi removed the fur, "Looks like cat hair."

Sang Li leaned in for a closer look, "My sister’s rescued stray cat."

Just as Lin Zhiyi was about to praise his sister’s compassion, she realized they were too close and quickly stepped back.

"We’re here, I, I’ll get out first."

"Mhm."

...

Outside the hotel.

Gong Chen walked slowly in step with Sang Ran.

Chen Jin suddenly gave a strange look towards another car that had just stopped.

Following her gaze, Gong Chen saw Lin Zhiyi kiss the man in the car.