Living Only For Myself: Make Those Who Hate Me Regret It

Chapter 382 - 381: "Eating With Me Is No Grievance.

Before, when Zhou Mochen wouldn’t let her drink cold soda, he had told her, ’If you don’t want to go back on your medicine, you’d better listen.’

Xu Su felt a pang of guilt. It had been a long time since she’d suffered from period cramps, so she’d long since stopped being careful about what she ate when she wasn’t on her period. Still, she felt guilty now that Shen Chen had figured it out...

She decisively started the car and abruptly changed the subject. "Let’s not talk about this, Shen Chen. Teach me how to drive! Don’t forget the important stuff. I’m here to learn!"

Her guilt was so obvious, there was no way Shen Chen could miss it. But she’d already drunk it, so what could he do?

Shen Chen took a deep breath, suppressing the urge to keep nagging her, and began to teach in earnest.

"Don’t press the gas too hard. Go a little lighter. First, let’s get the car out of here. The road outside is wider." Shen Chen rested a hand on the steering wheel, helping Xu Su slowly guide the car until it smoothly exited the driveway.

Each property in this villa district was enormous. You could count the number of houses on one hand from a single vantage point. Besides, rich people owned many properties and didn’t necessarily live here. It was rare to see a car on a typical day, and the roads were flat and open—a perfect place for a beginner to practice driving.

Xu Su pressed the accelerator and moved the car forward, her body stiff with tension.

Shen Chen asked, "Have you studied the rules of the road at all?"

"I have. I took the written tests on the computer." Xu Su stared straight ahead, her voice tight with nerves. "It took me a few tries, but I passed them."

"Not bad," Shen Chen praised her. "For now, just drive a few laps around this road. Keep going straight and relax. Don’t go over thirty. You’ll be fine. Hardly any cars come through here."

Xu Su nodded, concentrating fully on driving, too focused to reply.

"Keep an eye on the road ahead and your mirrors. It’s especially important to check your mirrors when you turn or change lanes. If anything feels off, slow down."

"Oh, and the turn signal is on the left of the steering wheel. Remember to use it when you change lanes or turn."

Xu Su knew that one. She grunted in acknowledgment. "Okay."

It was Shen Chen’s first time teaching someone to drive, too. He noticed that whenever he wasn’t helping her with the wheel, the car would start to drift. After this happened a few times in a row, he couldn’t help but click his tongue. "When you’re driving straight, don’t move the steering wheel. Then the car won’t swerve."

"I’m not moving it." Xu Su had also noticed the car wasn’t staying straight. She tightened her grip on the wheel, her voice utterly sincere. "I’m not."

"Hold the wheel at the three and nine o’clock positions. Don’t grip it at the top, or your elbows will get sore. Relax. When you need to turn, just turn the wheel gently. Don’t jerk it."

Shen Chen pointed to the spots he was talking about on the wheel. Seeing beads of sweat on her forehead from the tension, he felt a pang of sympathy and said reassuringly, "Don’t be nervous. I’m right here next to you. I won’t let anything happen."

Xu Su was in no mood for small talk. She did as he asked, repositioning her hands on the wheel. After driving a little farther, she finally got the hang of going straight.

After several laps around the villa district, she was finally starting to get a feel for it and wasn’t nearly as tense.

Just as she was marveling at how they hadn’t seen a single car, a seven-seater minivan appeared up ahead. Xu Su’s breath hitched.

"The road is wide, and we’re in our lane. Just keep driving. Don’t be nervous."

Shen Chen’s calm voice was very reassuring in that moment. He continued to teach with immense patience. "If you were on a narrow road where two cars couldn’t pass, and you didn’t feel confident in your ability to get by, you would just pull over and stop. Let the other car go first."

"Okay, I’ll remember that." Xu Su nodded obediently. She didn’t breathe a sigh of relief until they had successfully passed the other car.

Shen Chen couldn’t help but chuckle. ’She’s never been this obedient with me before.’

Watching the minivan speed away in her rearview mirror, Xu Su muttered, "Everyone else drives so fast. I wonder if that driver thinks I’m a wimp. Taking a perfectly good SUV and driving it at a turtle’s pace."

"So what if you are? There’s no shame in being a little wimpy right now." Shen Chen gazed at her profile and said with a smile, "We’ll stick to this speed for a few days. Once you’re not so nervous and we start driving on actual roads, then you can speed up."

She was more than happy to accept that promise.

After a whole morning of practicing driving in a straight line, during which they only encountered that single car, Xu Su’s initial nervousness about hitting the gas was gone. She’d been behind the wheel for hours now.

It was nearly lunchtime when they passed Shen Chen’s house. He pointed to his front gate and asked, "Want to eat at my place? Or we could go out."

"I’m having lunch with Zhou Mochen." Xu Su glanced at the time and was surprised to see it was already past eleven. She hit the brakes, stopping the car, and reached into her bag for her phone. "It’s strange," she murmured, "he didn’t call me all morning."

"Brother Zhou hasn’t been back in Beijing for years. He’s got plenty to keep him busy. How would he have time to eat lunch with you?" Shen Chen lightly tapped his fingers on the window, tilting his head to look at her. He huffed, "It’s not like eating with me is some great hardship."

"He promised me when he left this morning that we’d have lunch together," Xu Su retorted. Just as she picked up her phone, it started to vibrate.

Speak of the devil. It was a call from Zhou Mochen.

Xu Su answered the call. After a brief conversation, she hung up. As she opened the car door to get out, she said to Shen Chen, "Let’s practice more this afternoon. I have to go to Zhou Mochen’s company."

"It’s almost rush hour. You’ll definitely hit traffic. It’ll take you at least an hour or two round trip, just to have one meal together?" Shen Chen grabbed her wrist, then pointed out the window at the sun-scorched pavement. "It’s this hot out, and you’re really going?"

Xu Su nodded, unconcerned. "I don’t mind the heat. It’s not like I’m walking."

Shen Chen paused, sounding somewhat resigned. "Fine. I’ll drive you."

"No need. The driver Zhou Mochen sent is already at the house." Xu Su quickly hopped out of the car and waved back at him. "I’m off, then! I’ll be back after lunch so we can keep practicing this afternoon."

Shen Chen didn’t say anything, and Xu Su didn’t wait for a reply, simply jogging back toward her house.

The man in the passenger seat sat without expression, watching her retreating figure grow smaller and smaller. A dark storm brewed in the depths of his eyes.

If Xu Su had seen his expression, it would have given her goosebumps.

Soon, a black, extended-length sedan drove past the G-Wagen.

From the back seat of the sedan, Xu Su looked out through the tinted windows, unaware that Shen Chen was still sitting in the car. She had no idea how twisted his mood had become.

Shen Chen sat rigidly upright for a long time before suddenly clutching his chest, a dull ache spreading through it. He couldn’t stop himself from doubling over.

...

Shen Chen had been right. It was already a fair distance, and hitting rush hour meant they were stuck in traffic for over ten minutes.

It was nearly an hour before the car finally pulled into the underground garage of Zhou Real Estate.

The moment Xu Su stepped out of the car, she saw an acquaintance from her past life.

It was, however, Executive Assistant Li Li’s first time seeing Xu Su. The second he received the order, he had rushed straight to the garage without a moment’s delay. He had been waiting for a full half hour for the woman his boss currently cherished above all else.

Even though he had mentally prepared himself, he couldn’t help but be momentarily stunned...