What to Do When Mistaken for the CEO’s Brother? 7

Chapter 7

After attending a business dinner in City A, it was already late at night.

Murong Yan, sitting in the back of the car, looked tired. He loosened his tie.

“CEO Murong, are we returning to One Mansion?” Duan Shao, his secretary, asked, turning around from the front seat.

One Mansion was Murong Yan’s residence near the company, and the closest place to their current location.

“What’s on the schedule for tomorrow?”

Despite the drinks, Murong Yan’s voice remained steady, betraying no hint of intoxication.

Duan Shao: “Nothing scheduled at the moment. Everyone should be at the beach resort in City B for the second day of the team-building event, followed by two days off.”

Murong Yan raised an eyebrow.

The team-building event. Between all the business dinners, he had almost forgotten.

“Returning to A City tomorrow afternoon?”

Duan Shao nodded. “Yes.”

“I’ll go there as well,” Murong Yan said casually.

Duan Shao: “Alright, CEO Murong. Shall we depart tomorrow morning?”

The trip to City B would take half a day. If they left tomorrow morning and encountered traffic, they might miss everyone.

“Let’s go tonight,” Murong Yan said after a moment. “Come with me to pack. Ask Xia Jie to take over for Yu Qi.”

Murong Yan had two personal drivers, Yu Qi for the day shift and Xia Jie for the night shift.

Although he asked Duan Shao to help him pack, there wasn’t much to pack. Murong Yan traveled constantly, and his housekeeper always prepared his luggage in advance, packed according to the length of the trip, with clothes and necessities. The only things he needed to pack himself were urgent work documents.

They left the city after gathering his things. By the time they reached the resort, the sky was starting to lighten.

Most of the accommodations the company had rented belonged to individual owners within the resort complex. However, several villas in the villa area, including the one reserved for Murong Yan, were his private properties.

Since he rarely stayed there, the key card was usually kept at the resort’s property management office. But at this hour, the office was closed. He would have to use the spare key hidden near the villa entrance.

The car stopped at the entrance of the villa area. Xia Jie got out and retrieved a small suitcase from the trunk. Duan Shao took it and was about to follow Murong Yan inside when the CEO stopped.

Murong Yan took the suitcase from him. “It’s late. You and Xia Jie should get some rest. Next door, Villa 203. The key card is under the doormat.”

Duan Shao: “CEO Murong, I’ll escort you inside…”

“No need.” Murong Yan shook his head and walked towards the villa.

The doormat looked disheveled, its corner curled up.

He frowned and lifted it.

There was nothing underneath.

Murong Yan paused, then noticed a silver card lying on the window ledge above the door.

He picked it up and swiped it, unlocking the door.

The ambient lighting in the living room cast a dim glow.

Someone had been here.

Murong Yan’s eyes narrowed. He grabbed a golf club from near the door.

The living room was empty, but the door to the bedroom on the left was open.

He walked quietly towards the open door.

Steady breathing came from within.

Entering the room, Murong Yan was surprised to see a familiar face on the bed.

That young man from the Brand Marketing Department.

He had the surname Murong. What was his name again? He couldn’t recall.

The disheveled doormat explained everything.

The young man lay asleep on the bed, fully clothed, a faint smell of alcohol clinging to him. He must have wandered into the wrong villa while drunk.

Murong Yan relaxed, placing the golf club against the wall.

But—

Was it truly a drunken mistake, or was it deliberate…?

He didn’t know and didn’t care to speculate.

As he turned to leave, the sleeping young man suddenly reached out and grabbed his hand.

His fingers were cool and soft.

Perhaps dreaming, he gripped Murong Yan’s hand tightly, his pink lips slightly parted, murmuring something.

Murong Yan’s gaze lingered on the young man’s full lips, his long lashes, and finally, on his own hand held captive.

He didn’t understand why he hesitated for a second.

Then, reason returned. He gently pried the young man’s fingers loose and freed his hand.

He closed his eyes and left the room.

Murong Cheng woke up to bright sunlight streaming through the window.

Opening his eyes to unfamiliar surroundings, he panicked, then remembered the team-building event at the beach resort.

But something still felt wrong.

He looked at his clothes, the same ones from yesterday. The embarrassing memory of getting drunk at the beginning of the dinner resurfaced.

Oh dear.

But this wasn’t his room. Where was he?

He groggily reached for his phone.

1:20 pm!

Murong Cheng shot up in bed.

He blinked, double-checking the time.

1:20 pm.

A chill ran down his spine. He vaguely remembered the checkout time was 12:30 pm, and the bus back to A City was scheduled for… 1:00 pm.

He unlocked his phone. Three missed calls from Mu Haoqiong, two from last night and one from around 11:00 am.

And a barrage of messages.

[PoorPoor: Where did you disappear to? Coming back to sleep tonight?]

[PoorPoor: Asked your colleagues. They said your team leader took you back to your room. Where did she take you?]

[PoorPoor: Did they get you a separate room? We’re going to sleep then?]

[PoorPoor: Going to bed. Left the door unlocked. Call if you need anything.]

[PoorPoor: Where are you?]

[PoorPoor: Your luggage is still in your room. Checkout is at 12:30 pm.]

[PoorPoor: Dude, did you get kidnapped?]

[PoorPoor: Where are you? Reply when you see this!]

[PoorPoor: About to check out. I’ll take your luggage.]

[PoorPoor: The bus is about to leave. Where are you???]

Seeing the messages, Murong Cheng felt his blood run cold.

[Cheng: I overslept…]

Mu Haoqiong replied almost instantly.

[PoorPoor: Thank goodness! I thought you were kidnapped!]

[PoorPoor: Where did you sleep last night? Why didn’t you come back to the villa?]

Villa? He was in a villa, wasn’t he?

Murong Cheng looked around, finally realizing he wasn’t in the same villa as yesterday.

But his key card was for the other room. How did he get into this villa? Was this Yueyi’s room?

His heart sank. He jumped out of bed.

He stepped out of the bedroom into the living room.

The good news: he hadn’t been kidnapped. Judging by the view, he was still at the resort.

The bad news: there was someone else in the living room.

And it wasn’t Yueyi.

A man sat on the sofa at the far end of the room.

His back was turned, and he was surrounded by a cloud of smoke.

Hearing the noise, he extinguished his cigarette and turned around.

Murong Cheng’s heart stopped.

It was—Cheng Geng, the General Manager of Legal?

How did he end up in his superior’s room?

And the current situation—

He woke up and came out of the bedroom, and Cheng Geng was smoking in the living room. Murong Cheng’s mind raced, his face burning crimson.

“Mr…. Mr. Cheng.”

He stammered, taking a couple of steps towards the man, nervously licking his lips.

The villa door opened, and Duan Shao entered.

He opened his mouth to speak but was interrupted by Murong Yan.

“Is Xia Jie at the entrance?”

His voice was low and cool, and Murong Cheng felt momentarily dazed.

Duan Shao nodded. “Yes—”

He was interrupted again.

Murong Yan: “Wait for me outside.”

Then, his gaze returned to Murong Cheng. “Gather your things. You’re coming back to A City with me.”

He didn’t ask why Murong Cheng was there. It was a command, not a question. Murong Cheng had no choice but to obey.

Especially since he was the one who had trespassed.

He didn’t have anything to pack, but he still went back to the bedroom, pretending to gather his belongings. He quickly washed his face and fussed with his hair in the mirror before returning to the living room.

A black Rolls-Royce was waiting outside. Cheng Geng was already in the back seat.

Murong Cheng opened the rear passenger door.

The smoke had dissipated, leaving only the faint scent of the man’s cologne. It reminded him of the laundry detergent his mother used to use, a comforting, almost soporific scent.

But despite the scent, Murong Cheng couldn’t fall asleep.

He was starving.

He had barely eaten anything last night before getting drunk, and he had slept through breakfast and lunch. The drive back to A City would take at least three hours.

His stomach growled. He shifted uncomfortably in his seat.

Was this what it felt like to be truly famished?

The aloof executive beside him seemed oblivious to his plight. Shortly after they left the resort, Murong Yan started an online meeting. He placed his laptop on his lap, put on his headphones, and occasionally spoke in a low voice.

Murong Cheng took a sip of water from his bag.

Now he was even hungrier.

Should he ask Mr. Cheng if he could go back to A City on his own? There was a high-speed train, but the station was far from the resort. The total travel time might not be much shorter than driving.

Or perhaps ask to be dropped off for food and then take a taxi back?

He shuddered to think how much that would cost.

He would just have to endure the hunger. He sighed dejectedly.

He noticed something yellow sticking out of the pocket behind the front passenger seat. It looked like food.

Although it felt wrong to take something from his superior’s car, he couldn’t resist reaching for it.

It was a pack of disposable shoe covers.

Disappointed, he put it back with a sigh.

Ten minutes felt like hours.

The more he thought about his hunger, the hungrier he became.

It was just the General Manager of Legal Affairs. Asking him to stop for food shouldn’t be too much to ask, right?

Hunger finally overcame his fear. Ignoring the ongoing online meeting, Murong Cheng typed a message on his phone and carefully held it up for the man to see.

[Cheng: Mr. Cheng, could we stop somewhere so I can buy some food?]

The man glanced at him, nodded slightly, and then texted his secretary.

Soon, Murong Cheng heard Duan Shao quietly instructing the driver. A few minutes later, the car stopped at a service area.

Duan Shao opened the door and got out, raising an eyebrow at Murong Cheng. “Come on, the boss said to take you to the restaurant.”

Instead of allowing him to grab a quick snack at a convenience store, they went to a restaurant where Duan Shao ordered him a bowl of beef noodles. Mr. Cheng and the driver waited outside, while Duan Shao sat across from him.

Murong Cheng was overwhelmed.

“I could have just bought a sandwich…”

He felt bad making his superior wait.

But Duan Shao insisted, paying for the noodles.

“Eat here. The boss doesn’t like people eating in the car.”

That was a convincing argument.

“I’ll eat quickly,” Murong Cheng said, picking up a large clump of noodles with his chopsticks and immediately burning his tongue.

Duan Shao chuckled. “No rush. The boss is in a meeting. The signal isn’t good on the highway.”

Murong Cheng nodded vigorously. “Oh, okay.”

After a moment of silence, he asked, “I’m Murong Cheng from Brand Marketing. How should I address you?”

Duan Shao: “Call me Duan-ge.”

Murong Cheng nodded obediently. “Okay, Duan-ge.”

Although he wondered why Murong Cheng kept calling the CEO “Mr. Cheng,” since Murong Yan hadn’t corrected him, Duan Shao wouldn’t either.

Not wanting to make the young man uncomfortable by staring, Duan Shao started a conversation.

“You’re a new graduate this year?”

Murong Cheng nodded quickly. “Yes, Duan-ge.”

“Is the work hectic? Manager Xu must have worked you hard during the product launch.”

Murong Cheng felt a pang of guilt. “It’s alright.”

They had worked hard, just not him.

Duan Shao: “How did you end up in Mu… how did you end up in the boss’s villa last night?”

Murong Cheng choked on his noodles. “I… I don’t know. I was drunk… I’m sorry, Duan-ge… I didn’t mean to trespass…”

Duan Shao waved his hand dismissively.

“I’m not blaming you.” At least Murong Yan didn’t seem to care. “Just curious. Don’t worry about it, finish your food.”

Despite Duan Shao’s reassurance, Murong Cheng finished his noodles quickly. The thought of Cheng Geng’s cold face made him nervous.

Half a bowl of noodles remained. Duan Shao looked at Murong Cheng, who was wiping his mouth with a napkin.

“Finished already?”

“Yes,” Murong Cheng nodded repeatedly. “Don’t want to keep Mr. Cheng waiting.”

Duan Shao chuckled. The new employee seemed quite intimidated by the CEO. It was understandable. Murong Yan’s aloof demeanor and imposing presence could be intimidating.

“It’s really alright.”

Despite his aloofness, the CEO was a good person, at least to his employees.

Duan Shao stood up.

“Let’s go then. Are you full? Want to buy anything for the road?”

Murong Cheng shook his head. “No, thank you, Duan-ge.”