Gu Jingchuan rose and walked around his desk, closing in on her step by step. Su Ningyue instinctively backed away, her small lips trembling. “Director Gu…”
It wasn’t until the young woman was pressed against the wall that Gu Jingchuan finally stopped. He looked at her with a gentle gaze. “Can you tell me why you’re so afraid of me?”
Su Ningyue lifted her head to meet his soft eyes, then lowered her gaze and spoke in a small voice. “Because I’m afraid you might seek revenge on me.”
“Why do you say that?”
Su Ningyue nervously twisted her fingers together and said anxiously, “That day at the hotpot restaurant, I was saying bad things about you with my friend. That’s why I was so nervous when I saw you at the tax bureau. I’m sorry—we didn’t mean anything by it.”
Gu Jingchuan let out a light chuckle. This young woman was far too innocent.
Su Ningyue bit her lip and blinked her big eyes. “What are you laughing at?”
Gu Jingchuan teased, “Back then, in your mind, was I just an out-and-out exploiter, plus a middle-aged uncle who squeezed his employees dry?”
“Mm.”
Oh my god! Why did she say “mm” to that?
Realizing what she’d just done, Su Ningyue’s face flushed red as she corrected herself under the man’s amused, half-smiling expression. “Director Gu, that’s not what I meant. We were just venting at the time—we didn’t mean anything else by it.”
“So now that you’ve met me in person, what’s your impression?”
“I just think you’re very special.”
Gu Jingchuan pressed on firmly. “Special in what way?”
Su Ningyue couldn’t really put it into words, so she averted her eyes and made something up on the spot. “You’re wise and brilliant, you work with decisive efficiency, and you became a director at such a young age—you must be really capable.”
Pfft!
This young woman was terrible at giving compliments.
“So in your heart, I’m actually such a good person. Then do you still think I’d seek revenge on you?”
Su Ningyue gave an awkward smile. “Probably… probably not.”
“Rest assured, I’m not that petty. So from now on, don’t be afraid of me.”
Looking at the young woman’s rosy little lips, Gu Jingchuan’s Adam’s apple bobbed. To keep himself from doing anything inappropriate, he turned and sat back down on the sofa, then gracefully gestured to the seat beside him. “Please, have a seat.”
After their conversation, Su Ningyue’s fear of him had indeed lessened somewhat. She raised a finger toward the untouched document on his desk, her eyes flickering as she carefully asked in a voice so soft it seemed afraid of disturbing something, “Then… what about this document?”
“No rush.” Gu Jingchuan glanced down at his wristwatch, then turned his gaze back to Su Ningyue and said slowly, “It’s getting late. Why don’t you join me for a meal first?”
There was a hint of indulgence in his tone, but Su Ningyue had always been slow on the uptake and didn’t notice it.
Hearing this, Su Ningyue was stunned. It took her a moment to snap back to her senses, a silly look on her face as she stammered, “It’s… it’s just the two of us?”
Gu Jingchuan gave a slight nod in response.
Just then, seeing the man gracefully take his coat from the rack by the door, ready to leave, Su Ningyue felt a sudden rush of panic. Forgetting all propriety, she blurted out anxiously, “Dir—Director Gu, actually, I’m not really hungry right now. How about… I just wait for you here?”
As she spoke, she unconsciously took two steps back, as if trying to maintain some distance from the oppressive man before her.
Gu Jingchuan wasn’t at all surprised by her answer, but since the young lady had finally delivered herself to his doorstep, how could he pass up this opportunity?
With one hand in his pocket, he adopted a businesslike tone. “Miss Su, if I don’t enjoy this meal, it might affect my work efficiency this afternoon.”
Almost at the same moment, Su Ningyue’s eyes widened. He was threatening her…
Despicable!
The good impression Gu Jingchuan had built up in her mind just moments ago crumbled instantly.
“Can you have a meal with me now?”
Hmph… Fine, she’d eat with him. She wanted to see what tricks he was up to.
Su Ningyue cursed Gu Jingchuan viciously in her heart, but on the surface, she appeared perfectly well-behaved.
“Of course. It’s my honor to have a meal with Director Gu.”
Gu Jingchuan turned and took the lead, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. So even a rabbit would bite when cornered.
As they walked out of the office, Su Ningyue had initially planned to hide her face, but she discovered that the entire floor was empty except for the two of them. “Where is everyone?”
“Once noon passes, they’re free to go eat.”
Su Ningyue suddenly felt that Gu Jingchuan was a fairly benevolent leader—at least he didn’t force his employees to work overtime.
In reality, that wasn’t the case at all. Gu Jingchuan was afraid the young lady would feel constrained, so he had already instructed Secretary Yang and the others to go eat early.
The two took the private elevator directly down to the basement, where a sea of cars stretched out before them.
“Wait.” Su Ningyue felt puzzled. Gu Jingchuan turned his head and asked gently, “What’s wrong?”
“Aren’t we eating at the cafeteria?”
They were practically strangers who had only met a few times—could they really go out to eat together?
“There are a lot of people in the cafeteria. Can you handle that?”
Su Ningyue imagined the scene of them being gossiped about by a crowd of employees and shook her head frantically. At that moment, her heart was full of conflict. She had only wanted a simple meal, never expecting it to be this troublesome.
Suddenly, a “beep” sounded, and the lights of a black Land Rover flashed on. Su Ningyue knew it was Gu Jingchuan’s car—understated yet luxurious.
Gu Jingchuan opened the passenger door, inviting the young lady to get in. However, Su Ningyue didn’t catch his intention and stubbornly headed for the back seat. Just as she was about to open the door, the man’s deep voice sounded by her ear. “Sit in the front.”
Su Ningyue blushed and waved her hands. “I—I’ll just sit in the back.”
“Miss Su, are you treating me as your chauffeur?”
“No, that’s not what I meant.” Su Ningyue quickly denied it. How would she dare to make Gu Jingchuan her chauffeur? But her behavior really was easy to misunderstand.
Left with no choice, she reluctantly took the passenger seat. Gu Jingchuan closed the door, a triumphant smile on his face, then walked around to the driver’s side. The space that had seemed fairly spacious before now felt suffocating with the man’s presence.
Su Ningyue nervously twisted her fingers together, her heart pounding wildly. She could even feel the heat rising to her face.
Suddenly, a pair of slender hands reached out. Su Ningyue flinched, staring in shock at the man leaning toward her. “What are you doing?”
Gu Jingchuan caught the faint, elegant fragrance emanating from her and was instantly struck with the urge to tease her. His handsome face lowered as he said ambiguously, “What do you think I’m doing?”
Just as Su Ningyue was about to cry out, she heard the sound of a seatbelt being fastened. She looked down and saw… it was this…
Then Gu Jingchuan released his hold on her, straightened his back, and kept his eyes forward. “I just wanted to help you fasten your seatbelt.”
“Thank you.”
Su Ningyue muttered softly.
Gu Jingchuan turned his gaze to her small head, truly wanting to pull her into his arms and stroke her hair a couple of times. He told himself he needed to wait a little longer.