When she got off work that afternoon, Luo Qi went back home first and picked a few cucumbers to bring to Chu Lin. Luo Yu was getting off work late today, so when it was time, Luo Qi went to her company to pick her up.

When she was almost there, she sent a voice message to her cousin: [“Yubao, you can come down now.”]

[Going down!]

Luo Yu stuffed the tablet in her bag, and as soon as she left the office door, she came face to face with the great Daddy of Party A¹.

Ever since her cousin announced on her Wechat Moments that she already had a boyfriend, Luo Yu has had no face to face this ancestor. Since her cousin went to this extent to show she truly didn’t want to fall in love, she couldn’t possibly disregard her cousin’s feelings and force her to meet someone.

Originally, she had been very active in finding a suitable boyfriend for her cousin, and she specifically targeted this great Daddy of Party A. But he hasn’t even met her cousin and has already been rejected!

“Mr. He, what can I do for you?”

He Xu responded, “Do you not remember what you can do for me?”

Luo Yu laughed, “That’s right. What nonsense am I saying? What else can I do for you outside of the project, right?”

He Xu also smiled. “Go on. Keep pretending.”

“…”

“You pestered me every day, saying you want to introduce a girlfriend to me. Where is this girlfriend now?” He Xu asked, wanting to settle the score once and for all.

But your ‘girlfriend’ has already refused ah!

Luo Yu was quick to think on her feet and pointed a finger at herself, “Your girlfriend is here. I have a secret crush on you but didn’t dare to say it, so I could only use some tricks to get closer to you.”

He Xu: “…”

Luo Yu thought to herself, Let’s see if that doesn’t scare you to death.

He Xu did not expect this move from her. He saw through the trick and decided to push the boat along with the current². “So, you say you have a secret crush on me? Alright, then I’ll satisfy you. How about you be with me?”

Luo Yu’s tongue got all tied up and she barely came up with, “I’ve got to ask my older sister first.”

“Then ask your sister. If she says it’s okay, then it’s okay.”

She leaned over and said, “Mr. He, my sister is here to pick me up. See you tomorrow.”

Oh no.

She was really in trouble now!

When He Xu turned around, Luo Yu had already disappeared, slippery as an eel.

Luo Yu ran all the way and was out of breath when she reached  Luo Qi’s car.

Luo Qi rubbed her back to soothe her. “Why did you run? We aren’t in a rush. If I didn’t know any better, I’d have thought there was a dog chasing you behind you.”

Luo Yu: “…”

No… He Xu was much scarier than a dog.

She waved her hand, “It’s okay, it’s okay. Older sister, just drive.”

Her chest was still heaving from exertion when Luo Yu pulled on her seat belt and fastened it.

It seemed that He Xu was a tough guy who refused to back down. This was unexpected. She might really not live a good life in the future.

Luo Yu suddenly remembered that they would meet Chu Lin tonight. She slapped her forehead and said, “I prepared a book and planned to ask Chu Lin to sign it for me, but I forgot to bring it down with me.”

Luo Qi hadn’t stepped on the accelerator yet, “Then go back upstairs and get it.”

“No! I mean, no need. There must be some paper in the tavern, it’s enough as long as it can be signed.” Luo Yu didn’t dare to go back, worried about bumping into He Xu again. She really didn’t want to face him for the time being.

… …

As soon as they arrived at the door of the tavern, Luo Qi felt that something was wrong with her cousin. She would ordinarily be chatting happily by now, but she was noticeably quiet today.

“Things not going well at work?”

“How could that be?” Luo Yu said. “With my eloquent tongue, I can handle any difficult job.”

She held her cousin’s arm and talked about Chu Lin to change the subject.

There were several tables on the first floor that were already occupied; Chu Lin was waiting for them on the second floor.

Wine and food were prepared in advance. Chu Lin didn’t drink and only poured herself a glass of juice.

Luo Qi rubbed Luo Yu’s head and introduced her to Chu Lin.

Chu Lin smiled and said, “We shouldn’t stand around. Please, sit down.”

Luo Qi put down her bag and went to wash the cucumbers.

Chu Lin thought that Luo Qi was trying to lose weight and so only ate cucumbers for dinner. 

She didn’t ask any questions and chatted with Luo Yu who was sitting across from her, “You two cousin-sisters look a bit alike.”

Luo Yu said, “All of us, my older brothers and sister, have similar eyes and brows. We all favor our fathers.”

Chu Lin seemed to say casually, “You still have an older brother?”

Luo Yu nodded, “My cousin.”

“Then he must be very handsome.”

Speaking of her older cousin, Luo Yu looked quite happy and proud. “If you ask me, I don’t think many men are as handsome as my older brother.”

Chu Lin smiled silently and took a sip of the juice.

Luo Qi came back from washing the cucumbers and gave one to Chu Lin. “I grew it myself.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, otherwise I wouldn’t have brought it for you.”

Chu Lin put down the juice and tasted the cucumber.

Perhaps it was only in her head, but Chu Lin felt that the cucumber was indeed a bit sweet.

The three chatted about the cucumber shed on the balcony of Luo Qi’s rental house. 

Chu Lin usually didn’t take the initiative to meet up with friends, but she made an exception for Luo Qi and Luo Yu tonight. She also never liked to be a guest at other people’s homes, but today she made another exception.

“If it’s convenient, can I go see your balcony?”

“It’s no inconvenience.” But Luo Qi warned her so she could be mentally prepared, “It’s an old house and the place is small. Just don’t dislike it.”

Chu Lin smiled. “My tavern is not big either.”

During the chat, the topic of Luo Yuli came up again. It was Chu Lin who casually herded the conversation that way.

Luo Yu muttered, “I have to start saving money to buy a wedding gift. I don’t know if he will get married at the end of this year or next year. I want to give him a big gift.”

Chu Lin suddenly held her chin up and bit the tip of her tongue, not daring to speak.

Luo Qi saw this. “What’s wrong?”

Chulin blinked fast, her eyes red.

She pointed to her closed mouth, paused for a while, forced out a smile, and said, “I bit my tongue when I bit the cucumber. It hurt a lot.”

But in fact, it wasn’t painful enough to make her eyes wet, after all, she wasn’t a child anymore.

Luo Qi symphatized—she also knew the pain of mistakenly biting her tongue. She was also in this tavern when it happened. She bit her tongue while eating a lamb chop because she saw the boss using her chopsticks to pick up the vegetables.

With this, the memory of that evening was awakened again.

Chu Lin thought about Suzhou City and that man who was about to marry someone else.

Luo Qi thought about how the boss kept lowering the penalty rules that night for her, how the boss deliberately didn’t pour wine for her, and in the end she was the only one he gave a toast to.

Luo Yu frowned as she thought about how the great Daddy of Party A would surely embarrass her tomorrow.

The three of them all had their own private thoughts, but somehow they could miraculously keep chatting away as if nothing was occupying their minds.

Seventh Year of My Secret Love for You translated by Maela @ whitemoonlighttranslations.com

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FOOTNOTES:

¹In case you forgot, Party A is the client. Luo Yu works for the service provider. This ‘great Daddy’ is not her boss; he’s the boss that Luo Yu’s company is working with in this Beijing project. ↩︎

²Push the boat along with the current; it’s an idiom that means to take advantage of the situation for one’s own benefit. ↩︎

T/N: The title is a phrase that comes from ‘Romance of the Three Kingdoms’, considered a Chinese literary classic. When an army advances in war, it immediately establishes a camp and fortifications so as to secure its new territory. They do this step-by-step, repeatedly and cautiously, until they win the war.

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A list of all advance chapters is HERE.