Apex Star - Chapter 43 New World Part 3

“Block him.”“He's technically still my boss.”“Then block him with dignity.”The call ended again.And then started again.I let out a sound somewhere between a growl and a sob, then finally answered with the enthusiasm of a snail crawling through salt.“Yes, Mr. Walton?”“Have you changed your mind yet?”I collapsed onto the towel and gazed at the sky as though it might consume me entirely if I pleaded sweetly enough.“Do you ever take a break?” I asked, shielding my eyes with one hand.“You're avoiding the question.”“Because it's a dumb question.”He exhaled, the sound sharp and irritated even over phone. “It's not a dumb question. It's a business offer.”“It's a weird offer-one that I already said no to.”There was a brief pause, and I could practically hear him clenching his jaw through the speaker.“You are acting unreasonably.”“ Unreasonable?” I sat up. “I'm not the one drafting fake girlfriend contracts like it's a normal Tuesday.”“Isabella-”“Certainly not, Mr. Walton.” I mimicked his tone perfectly. “I told you I'm not doing it. You need to find someone else to play pretend with.”SYNOPSISIsabella Miller thought saying no to her boss’s fake dating offer was the end of the story.But Adrien Walton doesn’t take no—especially not when he’s convinced she’s a gold digger.Suddenly, her student loans are piling up, her father’s vet clinic is on the brink of eviction and her brother is about to be kicked out of college. Coincidence? She thinks not.Adrien Walton is calm, calculating—and he's just pulled every string to corner Isabella into the perfect position.Now she’s stuck choosing between pride and survival.So she agrees to his offer: be his fake girlfriend.No feelings attached. No drama. Just business.Or so she thought.“Conference Room B. Fifteen minutes,” he said, passing by without a glance.The folder he pushed across the table landed with a thud.I opened it. The contract. All of it.---Enemies to lovers? Check.Slow burn? Hmmnyea.Banter so sharp it might file your nails? Yes.Delicious workplace tension? Of course.Tension that could melt steel?Absolutely.Smut?? Wanna find out?Welcome to corporate romance warfare. There’s no escaping this contract.

Xia Ye is pressured by her mother to either land a golden rice bowl (good paying job) or find a golden turtle (rich husband).

So the stakes are high at her latest job interview. Driven by desperation, Xia Ye comes up with a devious plan to drive away the other candidate. Of course, things do not go as plan when the other candidate turns out to be her interviewer!

From Shusheng Bar:

I: “General manager, I only said I will cook but did not agree to wash the dishes.”

He: “If you don’t wash the dishes, do you expect me to wash them?”

I: “Do you know a woman is most attracted to a man who can do housework? Especially when he is wearing an apron and washing the dishes. This is the ideal image of a good man in the thinking of a majority of the women. In order to create the prefect image of a good man, I feel it is necessary for you to wash the dishes.”

He: “A man who washes the dishes is really very attractive?”

I: “Really!”

He: “Well, I will believe you this once.”

He: “Xia Ye, come into the kitchen.”

I: “Do you need me to help you with something?”

He: “Just stand there and don’t move.”

I: “…..?”

I: “If there is nothing I can help you with, I’ll go out.”

He: “Standstill!”

I: “You asked me to come in, just to….. watch you wash the dishes?”

Me: “If you don’t watch, what is the point of me washing the dishes?”

I: “…..”

He is distressed: “I fell in love with a person, but I do not know how to say to her.”

I suggested: “This is simple! Directly tell her I love you, should be all right?”

He is worried: “But …… I’m worried that she will not accept me.”

I comforted: “How can since you are such an outstanding man? There must be something wrong with her brain if she doesn’t accept you!”

He nodded: “Well, I love you!”

I: “…… Huh, there is something wrong with my brain ……”

He: “……”

Nine years ago, Soo Xinyi fell in love with the heir of Han Corporations, Han Zhiyuan. He was everything she ever wanted in her life. Unfortunately, it was a one-sided love as Zhiyuan already had someone else in his heart.

But two years later, due to a series of strange circumstances, she was forced to marry Zhiyuan by his grandfather, Han Huizhong.

Thus from Soo Xinyi, she became Han Xinyi.

Xinyi had hopes that things would slowly get better one day, but she was wrong. Fate played a cruel game with her and in an instant, her heart was crushed forever.

But what will happen when Zhiyuan’s past love re-enter their lives? Will she be a threat to their marriage? And when a best friend turned enemy returns with her, every buried secret will bubble to the surface once again!

“I love you. I love you so much that I cannot bear to hurt you.

And because I cannot hurt you, I chose to bear that pain myself.” - Han Xinyi.

Sometimes, it’s not about spending your life with the one you love, but with the one who loves you…

Join their journey of discovering love as Xinyi slowly makes her place in Zhiyuan’s heart.

Song Fengwan was dumped by her fiancé, who had been dating her for a year, and an illegitimate daughter appeared out of nowhere to ruin her family.