Chapter 10: This fruit is quite expensive, right?
Li Qiao bit into a slice of toast and replied indifferently, "Tomorrow."
Li Yan nodded solemnly, his tone fierce, "That damn Shang Lu, wait till big brother and the mistress come back, we'll see how we take care of him."
...
After finishing breakfast, Li Qiao returned to her room, picked up her phone, and discovered she had forgotten to turn it back on after shutting it down last night.
The moment the screen lit up, Li Qiao felt her phone was about to explode.
Over twenty WeChat messages were all from Tang Yiting.
Tang Family's Xiaoting: Did I dial the wrong number? [Puzzled]
Tang Family's Xiaoting: Impossible! I know your number by heart!
Tang Family's Xiaoting: Li Xiaoqiao, you're heartless, the security guy said you left with someone really important.
Tang Family's Xiaoting: Am I still the person you care about the most?
Tang Family's Xiaoting: Why aren't you speaking...
Tang Family's Xiaoting: [Heartache.jpg] You actually turned off your phone, it hurts so much, I feel like I'm suffocating.
After going through all the messages, Li Qiao's mouth twitched twice.
She could almost visualize Tang Yiting standing at the finance office door, angrily texting her.
Knowing she was at fault, Li Qiao tapped on the screen and replied with a few words: There really was something.
Then, she logged onto the Chanel official website, found the latest handbag release, took a screenshot, and sent it to Tang Yiting with a note: I'll give it to you tomorrow.
Tang Family's Xiaoting replied instantly: Thank you, boss. Carry on with your work, boss. [Eager hands rubbing.jpg]
...
That afternoon, Li Qiao went back to Entertainment City to collect her car and then made a trip to the Chanel boutique.
After tossing the gift box into the trunk, she got into the driver's seat, tapping her fingertips on the steering wheel, deep in thought.
After a while, Li Qiao started the engine and drove directly to the River View Haoting Apartment.
This is where her cousin, Li Shaoquan, lived.
As she approached the intersection, Li Qiao caught sight of a roadside fruit stall and stopped. She bought a bunch of bananas on a whim.
One shouldn't visit a cousin empty-handed.
The apartment featured a duplex design, and Li Qiao, carrying the bananas, pressed her fingerprint on the biometric lock.
The door opened instantly, releasing a pungent smell of smoke rushing from the inside.
Lii Qiao, accustomed to it, pushed open the door and headed straight to the second-floor study with her long, slender legs.
At that moment, Li Shaoquan was sitting in front of his computer, coding away, with heavy dark circles under his eyes and unkempt hair that looked like it hadn't been trimmed in a while.
He was naturally a handsome and refined young man, yet he chose to live like a slovenly tech nerd.
Li Shaoquan was the only child of Li Qiao's second uncle, born into wealth, but at the age of twenty-six, he was still not engaging in any serious occupation.
His ultimate dream in life was to become the "Godfather" of the Red Hacker Alliance, in other words, the father of hackers.
"Red Hacker" was simply a codename. There had once been a cross-seas hacker war in South Sea. Afterwards, numerous young people spontaneously formed the Red Hacker Alliance and defeated the gang of illegal hackers who had attempted to destabilize the local economy.
That year, Li Shaoquan was eighteen years old, and from then on, he became obsessed with joining the embodiment of justice—the Red Hacker Alliance.
Li Qiao squinted her eyes as she walked up to the computer desk, placing the three bananas in front of Li Shaoquan. The room was filled with the smell of smoke, causing her to frown with disapproval. She turned to glance at the floor-to-ceiling window. To her surprise, the window was open.
Looking at the ashtray brimming with cigarette butts, she wondered, how has he not smoked himself to death?
Just then, Li Shaoquan, biting on his cigarette holder, looked up and rubbed his eyes, mumbling unclearly, "This fruit... must've been expensive, huh!"
Three bananas, such a grand gesture.
Li Qiao leaned casually against the computer desk, surveying the yellowing wallpaper around her before lazily shifting her gaze back, "It's the thought that counts. Help me look up someone."
Li Shaoquan's fingers, which had been tapping on the keyboard, paused for a moment. He took a drag on his cigarette holder, picked up a banana, and waved it, "I'm worth just three bananas to my future Red Hacker Godfather?"