After returning to Shen City, Bai Ying took a day off. The next day, he went to work as usual. During lunch break, Duan Yunjin asked him furtively, “What’s going on? Did your business trip to the Capital City not go smoothly? The boss hasn’t looked happy since he got back.”
“I don’t know.” Bai Ying answered her in a small voice.
Ever since returning from the banquet, Qin Juanshu’s mood had been terrible. Although he tried not to show it in front of Bai Ying, Bai Ying could sense that his boss was harboring a belly full of anger. Especially when they landed back in Shen City and he was dropping Bai Ying off at home—Qin Juanshu had seen Tan Ming, who came to pick him up, and asked who he was.
Bai Ying had answered like this: “He’s my neighbor. He’s a really nice guy!”
Qin Juanshu immediately couldn’t hold back and sniped sarcastically, “Oh, another good Samaritan.”
It wasn’t wrong to say that, but Bai Ying always felt there was something off about it. He and Duan Yunjin gossiped about it for a long time but still couldn’t figure out what was wrong with Qin Juanshu.
“Menopause, probably,” Duan Yunjin concluded in the end.
Since the raise had happened a while ago, the overworked employees started griping about the boss behind his back again.
Not long after they finished griping, Duan Yunjin brought up another matter. “Speaking of which, Little Bai, do you know someone from the building next door? While you and the boss were on your business trip, someone from over there came looking for you. But he didn’t seem to know exactly which office you were in and asked around every office. He said he was looking for someone called ‘Little Ying’—not sure about the character. I suspect it was you.”
“The building next door? I don’t know anyone there. I’ve never even been over…” Bai Ying’s voice trailed off as he spoke.
Wait, he had been there!
Bai Ying suddenly remembered that he had once mistakenly entered the building next door and even barged into someone’s office!
Cold sweat instantly broke out. Bai Ying asked Duan Yunjin, “He just knocked and pushed the door open when there was no response. It’s not that big a deal, right?”
Duan Yunjin thought it wasn’t either, but Bai Ying still grew uneasy.
Had his apology back then not been sincere enough…
No, Bai Ying thought again—if it really was that person, shouldn’t he know his name?
Bai Ying confused himself with his own thoughts. When Duan Yunjin said that the man came wandering around here every day at quitting time these past few days, Bai Ying decided to take a look after work. But when quitting time actually came, he forgot all about it.
Because the client was being way too difficult!
The contractor couldn’t exactly say whether they’d find anyone from the client side after hours, but most clients didn’t care if the contractor needed to clock out. Bai Ying was driven to distraction by all sorts of ridiculous demands. Just then, a savior appeared—Lin Si stepped up. Amid everyone’s awed gazes, Lin Si stayed behind to argue with the client, allowing the others to hurry off and clock out.
Xiao Lu had gone back to school that day, so the only three veteran employees left were them, hugging their briefcases. Halfway there, Qin Juanshu happened to emerge from his private office and offered to give them a ride.
Truthfully, the only one he really wanted to send off was Bai Ying.
Qin Juanshu reflected seriously on himself and realized his attitude these past few days hadn’t been great. Bai Ying hadn’t done anything wrong at all—the ones at fault were all those men with ill intentions toward him. That day when Bai Ying had been drugged, he hadn’t even properly comforted him. It hadn’t been that long ago; maybe it wasn’t too late to make up for it now.
Once he dropped the others off at home, he could use the excuse that it was getting late and invite him to dinner. He’d just heard about a nice restaurant…
Qin Juanshu’s plan was perfect, but plans couldn’t keep up with changes.
The elevator happened to stop at the fifteenth floor. At this off-hours time, someone was actually coming up. Duan Yunjin had a hunch and tugged at Bai Ying. “Here he comes, here he comes!”
Bai Ying didn’t react at first and had no idea who Duan Yunjin was talking about.
Until the elevator doors slowly opened, revealing a face Bai Ying had seen once before.
The young man’s cold eyes seemed to thaw the moment they landed on Bai Ying, like ice melting in an instant.
But Bai Ying’s mind went blank, with only one thought looping: It really was him coming to find him—he was sorry, he hadn’t known that pushing the door open after knocking with no response was such a grave offense…
Bai Ying hadn’t yet figured out the best apologetic pose when the young man who stepped out of the elevator suddenly moved forward and pulled him straight into an embrace!
“Little Ying…” The person in his arms was soft like he had no bones at all. Yun Ze let out a soft sigh. “I’ve finally seen you again.”
His actions were sudden and caught everyone off guard.
A few seconds later, Duan Yunjin’s terrified shout exploded in front of the elevator. “President Qin, calm down!”
***
Bai Ying had no idea how things had escalated like this.
Duan Yunjin slipped away onto a colleague from the design department’s car and fled. Though she still wanted to hear the gossip, Qin Juanshu’s terrifying expression—like he was about to commit murder—made her drop the idea immediately. Half an hour later, Qin Juanshu’s car pulled up in front of a Western restaurant, carrying both Bai Ying and Yun Ze.
Yun Ze was very dissatisfied. “Little Ying, I want to catch up with you. Why do we have to let some irrelevant person sit there?”
Qin Juanshu regretted letting himself get held back earlier and not punching Yun Ze. “Mr. Yun, Bai Ying is my employee. I was planning to give him a ride home and grab dinner anyway. You’re the irrelevant one.”
Bai Ying was baffled. When did we ever plan to have dinner?
Yun Ze looked at Bai Ying. “Little Ying, come work as my assistant at Yunxin Group. It must be exhausting working under a boss who doesn’t separate work and personal matters.”
Seeing that Qin Juanshu was about to lunge past him and throw a punch, Bai Ying hurriedly held Qin Juanshu back. Glancing at Yun Ze, who seemed ready to stir more trouble, Bai Ying quickly used his other hand to grab Yun Ze too.
Yes, at that moment, Bai Ying was sitting between Qin Juanshu and Yun Ze.
There was no way Qin Juanshu would drive for Yun Ze, so he called his driver with one phone call. The three of them sat together in the back seat. Fearing these two would start fighting, Bai Ying voluntarily sat in the middle—a decision proven incredibly wise.
Both were big bosses, so why did they act like sworn enemies upon meeting?
Bai Ying painfully closed his eyes. This was so hard for him.
Holding one with each hand, Bai Ying tried to calm them down. What excuse could he come up with?
“…I’m hungry,” Bai Ying said, rendered speechless by his own words.
What a lame excuse!
Yet the two men, who had been at each other’s throats, miraculously called a temporary truce and agreed to let Bai Ying eat first. Neither Qin Juanshu nor Yun Ze wanted to leave the other alone with Bai Ying, and Bai Ying didn’t dare let them be alone together either. The three maintained a delicate balance and entered the Western restaurant, which mainly catered to couples, just like that.
The waitress’s gaze swept over the three of them. All had striking good looks, especially the one in the middle, who was stunningly beautiful. Even in an ordinary business suit, his appearance lit up the entire room. If this gentleman had appeared with just one of the handsome men flanking him, the waitress would have inwardly praised them as a perfect pair. But all three together…
The waitress was curious but didn’t dare ask.
She could only remind them, “The large tables suitable for family dining are all booked tonight. We only have couple’s seats left…”
Qin Juanshu looked at Yun Ze. “Hear that? They’re all booked.”
“I heard,” Yun Ze shot back, looking at him. “So why haven’t you left yet?”
Bai Ying gritted his teeth and tugged at each of them with one hand.
He gave the waitress a pleading look. “Can we add an extra chair?”
The waitress apologized, “I’m sorry, we don’t have that precedent.” Their restaurant had some class, after all—chairs weren’t something you could just add on a whim.
But neither Qin Juanshu nor Yun Ze would budge. Under the pressure from these two presidents, that extra chair was eventually added.
Yun Ze made one call to summon the manager. Qin Juanshu, not to be outdone, called the restaurant’s investor.
Seeing Yun Ze about to call in more reinforcements, Bai Ying hurriedly pulled him back. “Enough, enough.”
