Chapter 272: Su Yuning’s Stress Relief Method

Downstairs in the Su Company building, Gu Yan was stealthily watching as Wang Haoran descended alone. He let out a quiet sigh of annoyance.

He wanted to go up and ask Su Yuning about the cooperation details immediately, but he worried she might get angry if he went up too soon.

So, Gu Yan waited until the employees had left for the day before quickly heading to the CEO’s office.

After knocking and entering, he saw that the secretary had already prepared Su Yuning’s lunch. She was looking at her phone and hadn’t started eating yet.

Seeing him, Su Yuning asked with a puzzled expression, “Gu Yan? Why are you here again?”

“I came to get the thermos I used to bring the chicken soup.”

Gu Yan walked over, his voice filled with concern, “Yuning, did the cooperation go smoothly?”

“It went very smoothly,” she replied with a smile. “I’m sorry, I accidentally broke the thermos, so I had to throw it away.”

“It’s okay, it’s just a thermos.”

In truth, getting the thermos was just an excuse. Gu Yan was more concerned about whether the cooperation had gone well. If it hadn’t, he would’ve had to help secretly. But seeing everything went well, he felt relieved.

Having confirmed the main issue, he casually asked, “Yuning, did you enjoy the chicken soup?”

“Chicken soup?”

At his question, Su Yuning’s thoughts raced back to the scene of her drinking chicken soup with Wang Haoran. She hadn’t tasted the soup Gu Yan brought, but Wang Haoran had enjoyed it all…

Remembering those moments, she picked up her water cup, took a sip, rinsed her mouth, and then looked at Gu Yan with a smile.

“It was very delicious!”

“I’m glad you liked it. I’ll make more for you in the future!”

“Thank you! But I’m going to eat lunch here at the office today, so you should head home. Otherwise, my mom might scold you again!”

“Alright, see you later then!”

Seeing her pick up her chopsticks, Gu Yan didn’t want to disturb her any longer. As he left the office, he couldn’t help but smile, feeling happy from her gratitude.

Walking away, he wondered, *What was Yuning looking at on her phone so intently? Celebrity gossip? Short videos? TV dramas?*

Knowing her, it was probably economic news, market analysis, or internal company documents…

Thinking about how dedicated she was to her career, Gu Yan felt both helpless and tender-hearted.

‘I need to keep protecting her silently.’

(tln : feel bad bro…)

***

After Gu Yan left, Su Yuning put down her chopsticks and picked up her phone again.

Displayed on the screen was her private photo album.

Scrolling through the newly added twenty-plus photos, she viewed them several times.

These photos were taken by Wang Haoran using her phone, capturing her drinking chicken soup from above. There were shots of her looking down, looking awkward, and even of Wang Haoran’s hand caressing her face…

Looking at these photos, she thought back to Wang Haoran’s departure earlier.

At that time, she had boldly taken off her undergarment in front of him and stuffed them into his hands.

Wang Haoran had been startled, quickly hiding them away.

“Haoran… hehe… why were you surprised? Isn’t this what you wanted…”

With a light laugh, Su Yuning lost her appetite. She went to the resting room within the CEO’s office, locked the door, and sat on the bed.

From the cabinet, she took out a tiger-shaped plush toy.

The toy was tattered, not from old age, but from being intentionally damaged. The colors were still vibrant, but the holes looked as if they had been made by a sharp object.

In the cabinet, there were four or five other similarly damaged toys.

Beside these toys was a sharp pair of scissors.

Clearly, the holes were made by Su Yuning using the scissors.

This was her way of relieving stress.

She had developed this habit over a year ago when the pressure became too much.

As the CEO of the Su family company, she worked tirelessly to avoid disappointing her family. But making money wasn’t easy, and despite her efforts, crises were unavoidable.

During these times, instead of receiving encouragement, her family, including her grandmother, only blamed her.

Her uncles and cousins schemed to take the CEO position from her.

She didn’t care for the position itself but knew her cousins were incompetent and would lead the company to ruin within years.

But her grandmother was oblivious, regularly wanting to replace her.

At home, her parents praised her and considered her their pride, adding more pressure.

Yet, she could still bear it, until Gu Yan, her nominal husband, added to her stress.

Initially, she didn’t mind him, hoping they could part amicably after three years. But soon, she couldn’t wait to divorce him.

Why was Gu Yan so stubborn and arrogant?

She had repeatedly told him to stay quiet during family meetings and company negotiations, but he insisted on speaking up with nonsensical comments. Though he meant well, his words only made things worse, getting them mocked and worsening their situation.

Lacking Gu Yan’s mental fortitude, she felt increasingly stressed from the constant ridicule.

Afraid to give up, she found a way to relieve her stress by stabbing her frustrations into plush toys, imagining them as Gu Yan, her cousins, her grandmother, her late grandfather who enforced the marriage, and those who mocked her.

Whenever she felt mentally exhausted, she’d lock herself in the room and start venting.

She’d destroy a toy every two weeks.

Now, holding a toy and scissors, she didn’t stab it.

Instead, she gently stroked the toy.

“Haoran… I thought you and Yunshuang were my friends… that I could be myself around you…”

“I feared you being too good to me… I might not be able to resist…”

“But you also bullied me…”

“I forgive you this time… because you like me… afraid I won’t accept you…”

“But… if you were just playing with me… then I…”

“Hehe…”

With a dark glint in her eyes, Su Yuning smiled.

Her scissors silently opened and closed against the tiger plush toy.

*Snip.*

The tiger’s tail fell off.