CHAPTER 344: CHAPTER 178: COME ON, LET’S HURT EACH OTHER!_2

You could clearly feel that she was well-protected, yet she hadn’t lost her sensitivity to the outside world, nor her lucid awareness of reality. That was the core reason Han Lie couldn’t get her out of his mind; she was just too special. But then again, being special also meant she was especially difficult to handle.

Pan Ge could tolerate Xi Luting or anyone else for that matter because she treated everything as a game, not caring at all. Xi Luting, on the other hand, was helpless; she couldn’t defy the overbearing president Han Lieye she had created herself. Her skills and ruthlessness were only directed at those less capable than her or at herself.

Chen Yanfei was different. If she took something seriously, not even a grain of sand could find refuge in her eyes.

Anyway, Han Lie hadn’t come up with any good solutions.

Sigh, such worries...

Just as Han Lie’s head felt like it was about to burst from concern, Chen Yanfei and Ding Xiang finally appeared.

"Wow! Tough Guy, have you grown taller and become more handsome lately?!" Chen Yanfei immediately showed off her two rows of big, white teeth to Han Lie upon arriving. Not only were they white and perfectly aligned, but they were also notably larger than average. As a result, her smile was much more radiant than that of the average girl.

As soon as Han Lie saw her smile, all his previous worries instantly flew away, and his mood improved tremendously.

"Really?" he asked.

Pleased, the man grinned and then shifted his attention to Ding Xiang. "Goddess, what do you think? Do I meet your standards?"

Ding Xiang was stunned by the question. Her face flushed red, and she didn’t dare look at Han Lie, quickly tugging at Chen Yanfei’s finger.

"You’re such a dog..." Chen Yanfei grumbled, but she had no way of dealing with the unpredictable Han Lie, so she just pulled Ding Xiang down to sit.

Then, looking at him suspiciously, she said, "Tough Guy, whenever I give you a radiant smile, you immediately use Xiangxiang to rile me up, don’t you?"

Han Lie’s heart skipped a beat, and he immediately put on a particularly innocent expression. "Not at all! I genuinely think Ding Xiang is better looking than you..."

What a guy! With just one sentence, he completely broke through Chen Yanfei’s defenses.

She gave Han Lie a thumbs-up with a smile that didn’t reach her eyes. "You win! Alright, I’m on mute today. Go ahead and shine for Xiangxiang!"

Han Lie didn’t believe a word of it and laughed heartily, swiftly changing the subject. "Alright, no more teasing. What would you like to eat? I’ll arrange it."

Chen Yanfei pouted but didn’t press the issue, easily letting Han Lie off the hook. "I want a bowl of sweet soy milk. You can decide on the rest."

Ding Xiang added softly, "I... I’ll have a bowl of sweet tofu pudding, please."

Han Lie didn’t get up. Instead, he turned his head and said, "Did you hear that? Go on, then."

The two girls were still confused when a strikingly beautiful young woman suddenly stood up from a diagonally opposite table. "Please wait a moment," she said softly, then walked briskly towards the ordering counter.

"Wha-what’s going on?" Chen Yanfei was so baffled she stammered, a rare occurrence for her.

Han Lie explained with a smile, "She’s a senior from my school and also my personal assistant, Liang Wu."

Chen Yanfei frowned slightly. "Is that necessary?"

Ding Xiang also bit her lower lip lightly, looking a little uncomfortable.

"See? You’re overthinking things, aren’t you?" Han Lie had intentionally been vague earlier, wanting to subtly stir their emotions. Now, it was time to clarify. "I’ve started a private equity firm, and things are going to get very busy soon. Liang Wu has to meet with some partners on my behalf today to go over procedures and prepare some materials. She was waiting for me at the cafeteria entrance early this morning. I didn’t expect you two to suddenly show up. I can’t just send her off to work without any instructions, can I? You two enjoy your meal. I’ll just have a quick word with her, and it’ll be sorted out quickly."

"Oh..." Chen Yanfei felt a bit embarrassed, as if she had interrupted Han Lie’s important work.

Ding Xiang felt even more guilty and hastily apologized, "I’m so sorry! Please, go ahead with your work. Yanfei and I will be fine..."

Actually, it wasn’t a big deal. Apologizing like that made things seem too formal and affected the atmosphere. Clearly, Ding Xiang didn’t have much experience interacting with boys; she was still quite naive.

Chen Yanfei, however, was better at handling unusual situations. She casually joked, "Yo, Tough Guy, living the good life now, huh? Quick interview: how does it feel to be taken care of by a beautiful assistant?"

As expected of the ’house-guarding beast,’ her question was loaded with pitfalls... But who am I? A professional pitfall-navigator!

Han Lie smiled, perfectly calm, and then began to expound on some grand principles. "Actually, I’m quite capable of taking care of myself and can handle most things on my own. But since I’ve hired her, I need to give her the opportunity to do her job. Otherwise, she wouldn’t feel secure, and it would be hard for me to stay focused. Management is a profound subject, and I’m just a beginner. There’s no other way but to stumble forward as I learn!"

His reasoning was truly sound.

Ding Xiang blinked her wide eyes, looking at Han Lie with obvious admiration; she clearly believed every word. Chen Yanfei wasn’t so easily fooled, but she couldn’t find any fault with his logic either. She could only marvel at how much the man before her had changed.

"You’re learning well. Sigh, seeing you now and then recalling those ’Tough Guy’ moments when you were beaten black and blue, my mind gets a bit muddled... But it’s normal. You already showed your knack for being a little rascal back when you were busy ripping people off. And to think I always considered you a good guy!"

"Give me a break!" Han Lie rolled his eyes dramatically. "After taking such a vicious beating for you, you still won’t even give me a ’good guy card’?"

His words successfully made both girls laugh. Moreover, the term "good guy card" carried a subtle, deeper meaning, teasingly suggestive, which made Chen Yanfei ponder it a little more.