Lucy had a silk scarf wrapped around the strap of her bag, fearing any wear and tear that would make it harder to resell or lead to a price drop.

Designer bags, jewelry, clothes, and watches—these luxury items were all things she used to fake a wealthy woman persona and seduce Li Qixing.

Don't let Li Qixing's current infatuation with Lucy fool you; if Lucy had appeared before him as a Cinderella figure from the start, a kid from an elite family like Li Qixing might not have even looked at her, or worse, might have been on guard.

Personas are sometimes just that mysterious.

Sigh, when you're out and about, your identity is whatever you make of it. At least for now, Lucy was playing the part very successfully.

Lucy looked embarrassed, a blush spreading across her face as she said in a small voice, "I did this just to play the wealthy woman persona well, didn't I?"

Looking at her shy expression, a wave of affection welled up in Chen Cheng's heart.

Scum Cheng just had that kind of ability; whoever he was with, she was all he could think about.

He reached out and gently pinched her cheeks, which were actually quite mature-looking, and said softly:

"You don't have to pretend anymore; I am your home."

Looking at his gentle demeanor, Lucy's heart nearly melted, and she nodded without thinking, "Mm."

"Alright, let's go, let me give you a tour."

Lucy happily grabbed the hand Scum Cheng reached out toward her.

Chen Cheng took Lucy for a tour before returning to the kitchen.

There wasn't a single flaw to be found; Chen Cheng planned to give the cleaning lady a big red envelope when he had a moment later.

This cleaning lady had been dispatched by the five-star hotel next door after Chen Cheng made a phone call.

Make no mistake, once you flash the most prestigious Amex Black Card, you become a guest of honor at any five-star hotel, and they will serve you with the utmost dedication.

As they walked into the kitchen, Chen Cheng frowned at Lucy, who was wearing a white shirt; zhajiangmian was just too easy to splatter.

"How about you change your clothes? If it splashes on you, it'll ruin your mood."

Lucy raised an eyebrow, "Are there clothes here?"

Chen Cheng didn't dare give a definitive answer, fearing she would spot a flaw.

After a two-second pause, he nodded, "There should be. Gao Yue brought people here to tidy up, and she is very meticulous."

As he spoke, he led Lucy toward another master bedroom. Scum Cheng didn't dare go toward the bedroom where she and Xiao Ye had slept last night, fearing there might be some flaw in the walk-in closet he hadn't noticed earlier.

Scum Cheng didn't want to ruin Lucy's mood at this moment.

He took a look in the walk-in closet of the secondary master bedroom, and there really were clothes.

Gao Yue was so thoughtful that Chen Cheng even considered having her act as his assistant and finding someone else for HR.

Lucy picked out a loose-fitting linen loungewear set to change into.

The two of them messed around a bit before coming out of the walk-in closet.

She wasn't going anywhere, so Scum Cheng wasn't in a rush to have the main course; he just indulged his hands a little.

In the kitchen.

Looking at the wide variety of condiments, Chen Cheng really felt he should give Gao Yue a raise; she was just too thoughtful.

When the two of them were at the supermarket earlier, Lucy saw the fresh noodle stand and said she wanted to eat zhajiangmian.

Chen Cheng knew she was homesick and agreed immediately.

She was from Beijing, and zhajiangmian was a Beijing specialty.

Chen Cheng stood at the counter cutting ingredients, while Lucy was at the sink washing bowls from the cabinet. Even though Chen Cheng said there was a dishwasher, she wouldn't listen; she insisted on washing them herself.

Chen Cheng guessed that she wanted to help him with the chores, so he let her be.

Zhajiangmian wasn't a big job; it didn't even require another person to help pick or wash vegetables.

The noodles and minced meat were bought ready-made from the supermarket; all they needed to do upon returning was cut some cucumber and carrot shreds and prepare the sauce to finish it off.

After the prep work was done, Chen Cheng started heating the oil in the wok.

When the oil temperature was right, he added the minced meat and stir-fried it until it changed color, then added the minced green onion, ginger, and garlic, stir-frying until even, and finally poured in the pre-mixed sauce and stirred it well.

Watching Chen Cheng's fluid and effortless movements, Lucy was somewhat surprised.

Smelling the increasingly rich aroma from the pot, she asked, "You even know how to make zhajiangmian?"

Chen Cheng's lips curled up, "Is it possible that this isn't difficult at all?"

Lucy huffed and rolled her eyes at him.

"How did you get by in Cambridge? Did you eat Western food every day?"

This Cambridge wasn't the one in the UK, but the Cambridge in Massachusetts, Ugly Country. Although it felt like the countryside compared to international metropolises like New York, it was home to two major prestigious universities.

The famous Harvard and MIT were both located there.

Lucy only managed to escape abroad after getting a full scholarship to Harvard, studied for her MBA at Harvard, and then spent over two years on Wall Street.

Lucy nodded, "Pretty much. If I got tired of it, I'd try other cuisines, or just swallow protein powder."

Chen Cheng couldn't help but smile; Lucy's self-discipline was a bit excessive, even in his opinion.

In the evenings, in the vast majority of cases, she would just swallow protein powder or eat oatmeal to satisfy her hunger.

After the sauce was made, the water in the other pot also boiled.

Lucy knew how to do this, so she volunteered to boil the noodles.

After scooping up the noodles, the two sat at the dining table.

Lucy couldn't wait to spread the fried sauce, while Chen Cheng used chopsticks to top it with cucumber and carrot shreds for her.

Chen Cheng had known her for so long, but this was the first time he'd seen her act like a starving ghost reincarnated, and he couldn't stop smiling.

Once the sauce was spread, Lucy picked up her chopsticks and stirred it, but before it was even mixed well, she took a mouthful.

"Mmm~" Lucy groaned, "This is really good."

Chen Cheng shook his head with a smile; she had truly been poisoned by Western food.

It was her own fault, too; after coming back, she had been crazily self-disciplined every day, making do with protein powder, oatmeal, and fat-loss meals.

She didn't touch oily or salty food in private at all, only eating a little when social requirements demanded it.

She was really quite harsh on herself.

As she ate, Lucy started to shed tears.

Chen Cheng was taken aback, but he didn't say anything to comfort her, just pulled out two tissues and handed them to her.

It was clear she was remembering the troublesome matters back home again.

Five years ago, Lucy was on a business trip with her boss, Li Xun. Li Xun pretended to be drunk and had Lucy help him into his room.

As soon as the door closed, Li Xun's "drunkenness" vanished, and he started making unwanted advances on Lucy. Lucy resisted with all her might, and in the end, she had to threaten to commit suicide by slitting her wrists with a broken makeup mirror to make Li Xun give up his intentions.

But when they returned to the company, before Lucy could report him, the old fox had already made his move, spreading rumors everywhere that it was Lucy who had seduced him and that he had refused to comply.

Rumors are things that can turn white into black, and given Li Xun's position in the company at the time, there were countless people ready to kiss his ass.

Unable to withstand the public opinion, the company had to step in and resolve the person who caused the problem.

Lucy's parents were also affected by the public opinion; they would rather believe the rumors than their own daughter's innocence, scolding her for not having any self-respect.

Li Xun went even further, spreading the matter throughout the entire Beijing financial circle.

Having lost her job, Lucy couldn't find another, nor could she get support from her family.

In the end, she had no choice but to choose to run away.

Being cyberbullied and failing to get understanding from her loved ones, it was hard to imagine how she had lived through the days before getting her offer and the full scholarship.

Fortunately, that hatred for Li Xun made her strong, and she didn't seek death.

Seeing that she had cried enough, Chen Cheng thought for a moment and said, "After you've rested, why don't you come work at Company Name?"

"Huh?" Lucy was stunned, completely not expecting Chen Cheng to say this at such a time.

"Go to Company Name and be the CFO. Help me reorganize Company Name's financial situation and revise and perfect the financial system."

Lucy doubted herself a bit, "Can I be the CFO right away?"

Chen Cheng nodded firmly and smiled at her, "Don't overestimate others' abilities, and don't underestimate your own potential."

"In reality, this world is just one giant amateur show."