An 80s female translator was spoiled rotten by a rough and jealous man.

Chapter 331 "We don't seem to know each other well?"

The two men ate quickly, and after finishing their food, they left the cafeteria without lingering.

As soon as the seat opposite her became available, Jiang Fu, who had been holding back for a long time, suddenly turned to the side, adopted an interrogative posture, and asked bluntly, "You like him?"

Meng Youyou replied slowly and deliberately, "Is it that obvious?"

Jiang Fu nodded: "Yes, you were very enthusiastic, and your intentions were especially obvious when you went straight to this table! Moreover, you were very proactive in chatting with him and asking about his health. Logically speaking, a girl doing this kind of behavior is most likely because she has taken a liking to him."

“I think I’m not the only one who noticed. Anyone who’s not completely oblivious would be able to tell that you’re interested in him,” Jiang Fu murmured.

Just as Meng Youyou was about to speak up and correct her for using the adverb of degree "somewhat" inappropriately, she heard Jiang Fu immediately add, "Although his attitude was particularly cold and he didn't seem to want to talk to you much."

Hearing this, Meng Youyou almost choked on her food. She paused for a moment before defending herself, saying, "You don't understand him. He's all talk and no action."

"It's true that I don't know him, but do you?" Jiang Fu retorted. She joined the army after graduating with a master's degree, and had been working there for two years longer than Meng Youyou. At least she had met Huo Qingshan a few times before his accident, had worked with him a few times, and exchanged a few words with him. Even so, she knew more about him than Meng Youyou, a newcomer who had been working there for less than a month.

Jiang Fu teased her with the man's exact words from a dozen minutes ago: "If I remember correctly, the first thing I heard when I walked closer to this table was that handsome guy coldly saying, 'We don't seem to know each other.'"
Who was he saying that to? Surely not to Company Commander Zhan?

Meng Youyou was speechless, feeling utterly deflated. She wrinkled her nose in annoyance, stuffed a large piece of beef brisket into her mouth, and chewed vigorously to vent her frustration.

Seeing her gloomy look, Jiang Fu's interest was immediately piqued: "So, you've really fallen for him?"

Jiang Fu expressed her incomprehension: "But why? You only met him for the first time today. Although Battalion Commander Huo is indeed handsome, you don't know what kind of person he is. Are you such a superficial person that you fell in love just because you saw his face?"

Meng Youyou swallowed the beef brisket, then smiled enigmatically at the person next to her: "Then you really... don't know me well enough!"

...

The work schedule in the military is mostly quite regular, especially for civilian positions, with a relatively fixed 8 am to 5 pm. Of course, there are occasional special periods when it gets busy and requires overtime. For example, this period is the quarterly review period, and we need to work overtime to catch up. The lights in the office building are always on until 8 pm before they are gradually turned off.

After a busy day at work, the two girls walked out of the office building side by side. Meng Youyou invited Jiang Fu to go to the supermarket in the camp to buy some food, and generously offered to treat them.

The supermarket in the service center isn't large, but it's not cramped either. The glass doors of the store are covered with a frosted camouflage film, and the interior is fully stocked with all kinds of goods. Most of the daily necessities, bread, instant noodles, drinks, and coffee that you can find in supermarkets outside are also available here.

The shelves were spaced just wide enough for two people to walk sideways. Meng Youyou and Jiang Fu stopped in front of the shelf displaying potato chips and picked out their favorite snacks.

Standing on the left, Jiang Fu was the first to notice something. She didn't move her upper body much, but nudged the girl on her right who was looking down intently at the colorful packaging bags and choosing potato chip flavors with her shoulder, and whispered, "Hey! Hey! Your crush is over there!" As she spoke, Jiang Fu tilted her neck back slightly, deliberately clearing a small passage for her to see.

Upon hearing this, Meng Youyou paused in her movements and turned her head to look in the direction Jiang Fu had moved aside. The moment her gaze settled, Jiang Fu unexpectedly picked up a bag of tomato-flavored potato chips from the shelf, raised her voice abruptly, and said in a serious tone, "Youyou, is this the brand you're looking for?" Her volume was not abrupt, but just enough for the man standing a few meters away to hear.

Huo Qingshan was drawn to the scene, and the two people's eyes met unexpectedly in mid-air. As a result, Meng Youyou was once again caught by the man secretly watching him.

However, this time was different from the last. The moment their eyes met, the man casually looked away. It was as if he had only seen a random passerby whose name he didn't know, and he didn't even want to linger for half a second. His reaction was the perfect example of bumping into a stranger on the street.

Meng Youyou stared at the man's decisive back as he put down the items in his hand, turned around, and quickly disappeared at the end of the shelf. Her eyes suddenly flickered, and a strong urge to tease him suddenly welled up inside her.

She reached out and pulled Jiang Fu, who was trying hard to purse her lips and suppress a smirk, close her ear and whispered, "Do you believe me? I can get his WeChat today."

Jiang Fu glanced to her left and, seeing that no one was around, finally stopped holding back, slumped her shoulders, and grinned. But she barely made a sound; she laughed silently for a while, and only after she had laughed enough did she straighten up and pick up on Meng Youyou's challenge, readily accepting the challenge: "What should we bet on?" Jiang Fu raised her eyebrows lightly at Meng Youyou.

In Meng Youyou's eyes, this expression was tantamount to a blatant provocation; the other party practically had the proverb "Young man, I advise you not to be too arrogant" written on his forehead.

"I can't take it anymore! I can't take it anymore!" Meng Youyou declared boldly, then scoffed, "We'll see~"

...

Meng Youyou lingered alone by a shelf near the checkout counter, carefully selecting chewing gum. She picked up a purple-packaged can, pretending to read the ingredient list on the back of the bottle carefully, then put it down. She then picked up a green-packaged can next to it and looked at the similar ingredient list again, for what seemed like the umpteenth time.

This kind of pointless behavior is essentially just wasting time; her mind isn't on these few ordinary cans of chewing gum at all.

Out of the corner of my eye, I caught a glimpse of a familiar, tall figure appearing at the corner of the passageway on the other side, walking with steady steps.

Meng Youyou's eyelids twitched, and she casually grabbed a can of chewing gum, inadvertently taking the lead... and placing the shopping basket on the checkout counter before the man. Throughout the entire process, she didn't turn around or make eye contact with him.

The overhead lights in the cashier area were blindingly bright, casting a blinding white light that made the girl's overly straight spine appear smooth and straight. A dark shadow from behind was cast onto the counter, completely enveloping Meng Youyou.

The girl watched intently as the cashier deftly picked up the items from the basket, appearing completely focused. The barcode scanner beeped a few times, recording the prices of several bags of red and green potato chips, two bottles of yogurt, and the can of chewing gum she'd casually grabbed into the cash register. The numbers on the display jumped up and down before settling on a single point. The cashier glanced up and said in a clear voice, "That'll be thirty-seven yuan and fifty cents in total."

As soon as she finished speaking, she pushed the IC card reader next to her forward, its metal casing gleaming coldly.

Meng Youyou slowly reached into her pocket, but a hint of anxiety flashed across her face. The girl then frantically searched her pockets, from right to left, but to no avail. She slowly raised her head and explained to the cashier, "I'm sorry, I forgot my card."

After a pause, the girl feigned confusion and asked, "Excuse me, can I pay with my phone?"

"The camp service center does not offer mobile payment options," the cashier replied.

This answer didn't surprise Meng Youyou at all. After all, she had been working for so many days and wasn't new to the army. How could she not know that due to the confidential nature of the border post, mobile payment wasn't available for internal purchases? "I see," Meng Youyou murmured softly, her voice trailing off with a hint of helplessness, before slowly turning her head to meet a pair of deep, dark eyes with an incredibly smooth and natural gaze.

As planned, the moment she turned around, a perfectly appropriate look of surprise should have appeared on her face. But when their eyes met, Meng Youyou vaguely sensed a clear understanding and a hint of long-awaited interest hidden in the other person's eyes, which flashed by in an instant.

Meng Youyou narrowed her eyes, unsure, but still uttered the pre-set lines: "Commander Huo, may I borrow your card?"

Upon hearing this, Huo Qingshan raised an eyebrow and glanced back at the merchandise shelf area. Meng Youyou knew what he was looking for. Just a few minutes ago, she had been walking with another girl, but now she was inexplicably alone. Anyone would find this strange.

Meng Youyou also looked over. There weren't many people shopping at the supermarket at this time. As far as the eye could see, there were only empty aisles and shelves full of goods, without a trace of human presence.

A few seconds later, the man casually looked away, asking no further questions, and silently handed over the security card. His rough fingertips gripped the edge of the card, and the emblem on the card gleamed faintly in the light.

"Thank you, Battalion Commander Huo." Meng Youyou smiled as she took the card, her fingertips brushing against his intentionally or unintentionally. Then she turned around to pay the bill, picked up her bag, and left the cashier. However, she didn't go far but waited on one side of the supermarket exit.

Seeing the man finish paying and walk over, Meng Youyou stepped forward, blocking his way. She tilted her fair face up, waved her phone, and said with a smile, "I'll transfer the money to you."

"No need," the man said calmly after stopping, clearly not caring much about the few dozen yuan.

The girl insisted on unlocking her phone, muttering, "This won't do! We're not even close..." Her words trailed off as Meng Youyou looked up, blinked thoughtfully, then tilted her head and scrutinized him from head to toe, her eyes revealing a clear sense of inquiry, as if she were examining a man with ulterior motives.

She suddenly stepped forward, instantly closing the distance between them to almost nothing, then stood on tiptoe to keep their eyes level. Meng Youyou stared intently into the man's eyes, a playful smile on her face, and asked, "Could it be... you're interested in me? Trying to curry favor?" the girl retorted.

A warm breath brushed past the man's nose, carrying a light peach scent, sweet and familiar. At the same time, that inexplicable, strange feeling welled up inside him again. He froze for a moment before remembering to step back. He took a half-step back with his right foot, creating some distance, then took out his phone from his pocket and deliberately asked, "Alipay?"

Meng Youyou lied without batting an eye: "I don't use Alipay."

Upon hearing this, the man's lips curled slightly, his smile enigmatic. He looked down, pulled up his WeChat payment QR code, and handed the screen over.

Meng Youyou glanced down at him, then reached out and took the phone from his hand. This action was truly unexpected.

Huo Qingshan couldn't tell whether her action was a "snatch" or a "catch". If it was a "snatch", she actually used very little force and was not fast, so he could have easily stopped her; if it was a "catch", he had no intention of handing over the phone.

After receiving the phone, the girl tapped and swiped the screen repeatedly for over ten seconds before returning it.

The phone was returned to its owner. The man looked down and saw a brand new chat dialog box on the screen. The interface was clean, with only a system notification that a friend had been added successfully. In the name bar at the top of the page lay two slightly intimate words: "Yoyo".

The man looked up from his phone screen, frowned slightly, and stared at the person opposite him. His eyes seemed to convey that he needed an explanation.

Meng Youyou simply shrugged, gave the man a gentle and harmless smile, picked up the plastic bag in her hand, waved it in front of the man, and said in a sweet voice, "Thank you for the treat, Battalion Commander Huo."

After saying that, the girl walked towards the supermarket door. As she brushed past the man, she casually said, "Perfect timing, I'm willing to give you a chance to sneak in."

The girl's cunning voice drifted into Huo Qingshan's ears without uttering a single word, possessing a seductive power that gave him a fleeting illusion that the "opportunity" she spoke of was exceptionally tempting, making him itchy to take action.

...

On both sides of the road outside the supermarket, there were marble flower beds, each about half a meter high. Meng Youyou sat on the edge of the flower bed, licking the milk stains on the yogurt lid.

Jiang Fu emerged from the supermarket and strolled over. Meng Youyou took out a bottle of green grape-flavored yogurt that was left in her bag and handed it to her; she remembered that this was Jiang Fu's favorite flavor.

Jiang Fu reached out and took it, then gestured with her chin towards a distant direction, asking meaningfully, "Did it succeed?"

Meng Youyou put down the yogurt lid, then took a big sip of the yogurt. It contained several blueberry pieces, bursting with juice that was sweet and sour in her mouth. The girl hummed softly, "What do you think?"

"To be honest, your way of asking for WeChat is a bit questionable," Jiang Fu teased, winking at him.

She had been hiding behind the shelf and watching the whole interaction. When Battalion Commander Huo suddenly turned around, she almost didn't react. When she hurriedly pulled her head back, she accidentally knocked over several boxes of cookies. Afraid of breaking them, she could only pick them all up and pay for them, even though none of them were her favorite flavors.

Jiang Fu was in the middle of a rant: "How tacky! Pretending not to have your card, asking someone else to pay for you, and then using the excuse of paying back the money to ask for your contact information. How did you even come up with that? It's a cliché that's been around for twenty years."

"No. No. No!" Meng Youyou held up a finger in front of Jiang Fu and shook it mysteriously. "You're completely wrong!"

The girl jumped down from the flower bed. "The tricks don't care how new they are, but who's using them! In the end, as long as they work, that's all that matters!" Meng Youyou placed her palms flat on her chin and twisted her neck from side to side, like she was dancing a Xinjiang dance. Her expression was full of smugness, like a victorious peacock.

Moreover, even if it's an old trick from twenty years ago, it's still a novelty to him, he's had enough.

Jiang Fu pulled away her waving arm with a look of disgust and couldn't help but complain, "What a narcissist!" The two were close and spoke without restraint. "Can't you just be a beautiful woman who doesn't even realize it?"

"Why don't you see people in this world who demand intelligence unaware of their own limitations?" Meng Youyou pouted arrogantly. "Can't they even recognize that they have a brilliant mind? Those top students can easily answer all the questions and get full marks every time during exams. Have they ever considered how other people feel?"

Meng Youyou looked up to the sky and sighed, "Where is justice?"

Jiang Fu chuckled, amused, and exclaimed, "That makes sense!"