It went without saying that Ji Fanyin didn't intend to flirt with Zhao Qi.
Romance would be an impediment to her money making plans since she had no idea which fastidious client would have qualms with her love life.
After ensuring that Zhao Qi wasn't one of Ji Xinxin's carefully reared fishes and that it was unlikely for him to become a client, Ji Fanyin eventually classified him as a normal friend.
Having more friends definitely opened up more opportunities.
Zhao Qi was bound to know quite a few people, so he might just be able to introduce a few new clients to her.
While adding each other to their friend's list, Zhao Qi happened to catch a glimpse of Ji Fanyin's phone and remarked curiously, "You don't seem to have many chat groups.
Most people's WeChat was filled with rows after rows of group chats, but Ji Fanyin's WeChat only had three. It was all empty beneath that.
"I'm not too fond of chatting," replied Ji Fanyin as she put away her phone. "Is it not apparent?"
Zhao Qi looked a bit nervous. "Am I being too talkative?"
"Don't worry, you'll know if I'm not interested in listening to you."
Ji Fanyin felt that Zhao Qi's frequent bouts of nervousness reminded her of a hamster.
"There are times where I'm terrible at reading the room. If I ever get too naggy, feel free to cut me off whenever you wish," said Zhao Qi earnestly.
Amused by those words, Ji Fanyin chuckled softly. Her response caught Zhao Qi off guard, and his ears began turning red.
"I won't befriend someone I dislike," replied Ji Fanyin with a smile.
Zhao Qi's heart was finally put at ease. He took a look at his watch and exclaimed in surprise, "Woah, we spoke for quite long! It's almost lunchtime now."
Right after he said those words, a woman walked over and informed everyone that they could head in to have their meal.
Ji Fanyin lowered her head slightly as she rose from her seat, and when she finally straightened up her posture, she casually tucked her long hair behind her shoulders.
Song Shiyu couldn't help staring at her—it was almost as if he was seeing Ji Xinxin chatting with someone else. His gaze was so searing that it nearly burned a hole through her.
But Ji Fanyin chose to feign ignorance.
It was not as if Song Shiyu was paying her now, so she couldn't be bothered to put on an act for him.
As the crowd entered the Western restaurant, Zhao Qi naturally walked alongside Ji Fanyin and continued engaging her in conversation, though he was the one talking most of the time while she simply listened.
When Ji Fanyin finally stopped at a random seat along the long table, someone else made use of this opportunity to pull out the chair for her. She shot a glance over and noted that the other party wasn't a waiter. So, she gave him a slight nod along with a word of thanks before taking the seat.
She was too used to receiving such gestures to pay it much heed.
Zhao Qi, however, shot a disgruntled look at the man who pulled out the chair for Ji Fanyin. The latter disregarded him and nonchalantly settled down right beside Ji Fanyin.
Ji Fanyin was gracefully digging into her smoked salmon salad when she noticed that she was starting to become the most eye-catching figure at the table.
It wasn't just the men at the table. Even the women gathered in their small groups were gossipping about her in a way that they themselves probably thought looked discreet.
Ji Fanyin brushed this abnormal atmosphere aside while chewing on her smoked salmon.
This is probably Ji Xinxin's problem. There's no need for me to get involved.