The store manager, likely seeing my hesitation, immediately asked:
“Is there some sort of problem?”
This problem was actually quite significant. The notes on the milk tea order were extremely clear who in the Sales Department wanted what type of drink.
There wasn’t a “client” in sight.
Mainly, it was my own guilty conscience; I knew exactly who each person in the Sales Department was. But then I reconsidered their names were written there, but it didn’t say who they were. Who would know who was an employee and who was a client?
After completing my mental preparations, I pulled the list out of my pocket. As I handed it to him, I prayed to the Heavens: Please don’t be so hands-on. The young guy at the front desk earlier was clearly much more naive and seemed easier to fool.
The handsome store manager took the A4 paper, unfolded it, gave it a casual glance, and then naturally handed it to the young guy at the front desk, giving a quiet instruction.
“Here, prepare it according to this.”
“Yes, Manager He.”
Seeing my lie about buying milk tea for a client smooth over just like that, the heart I had just held in my throat finally settled back down.
I began to establish a long-term, friendly relationship with this store manager. Judging by the current situation in the Sales Department, I’d certainly have to put in some work to escape this “everyone-targeting-me” state, so opportunities like running across town to buy things would surely be countless in the future.
Therefore, if I had to use a few little tricks, then so be it.
Doing things strictly by the book would only result in working myself to death, especially when everyone around you is targeting you.
Through my deliberate displays of goodwill and in-depth communication, I learned that this shop was managed solely by the manager himself, whose name was He Shi. He ran this shop only because the person in his heart liked this specific thing.
In order for the person he liked to be able to drink this at any time, he had made a special trip to the manufacturer to learn the craft, and then opened this shop.
Since he wasn’t short on money, he didn’t pay it much mind, but things in this world are often coincidental.
The unique marketing style, the guaranteed quality, and the handsome young men in the shop made this unique little store an overnight sensation.
Initially, I didn’t have much of a connection with this store manager, but after a short period of conversation, I vaguely felt we could get along.
Then, before leaving, we added each other on WeChat.
As I turned and walked toward the parking lot, I didn’t notice at all that He Shi took out his phone to make a call as he saw me off.
A conversation like this unfolded:
“Hey, Xiao An, did a kid join your company recently?”
“A kid?”
“There isn’t one, right?”
“You Quan? Do you know him?”
At this point, that person who was usually confident and composed seemed to pause for a moment before speaking: “Why are you asking about him?”
Shi smiled, watching You Quan’s car happen to come out of the parking lot and pass by. Noticing him, He Shi leaned his head out the window and waved.
“Don’t bother seeing me off, Brother He! I’m going now, you go back inside!”
When his mouth split into a grin, one could vaguely see the two canine teeth on his upper row. His eyes curved into a smile that looked both handsome and charming.
Shi waited until after he waved to You Quan to reply.
“The kid counted several ‘sins’ of his leader the moment he arrived. He acted all cute and spoiled, insisting on buying my stuff. I saw he was good-looking, so I told him to take out the list. It turned out to be from your company, and most coincidentally, from your department. Watching the way he seriously made up stories about you, I thought it was a bit cute.”
Shi didn’t care if there was a response from the other end of the line, then spoke as if affirming himself or offering praise.
“The way the kid looks when he speaks with his eyes curved is a bit captivating. Mo An, I like him a bit. You have to help me.”
After He Shi finished speaking, he waited for Mo An’s reply.
The two were senior and junior from the same university; they were very close during their school days and had stayed in touch since graduation.
He was certain Mo An wouldn’t refuse him.
To his surprise, Mo An, who usually granted his every request, actually hesitated a bit upon hearing this.
He really wanted to ask if there was some difficulty involved, but then Mo An spoke on the other end.
“Fine, Senior. I’ll do my best.”
Only then did He Shi feel at ease. Since Mo An had agreed, he certainly wouldn’t be vague about it; he was the type of person who did everything seriously.
Mo An then added another sentence: “However, Senior, I can’t guarantee whether this will work or not.”
“Mhm, Xiao An, your promise to help is enough. Whether it works or not depends on the fate between me and him.”
…
I, of course, had no idea such a conversation took place after I left, so I thought it was my sincerity that moved Mo An.
After all, as a genuine “Crown Prince,” I had suffered quite a bit and endured a lot of cold shoulders under him.
Usually, catching a glimpse of him was harder than climbing to the Heavens.
Harder than ascending to the blue sky.
I had just laboriously placed the milk tea on the desks when Hao Lili spoke to me with a cold face.
“The Manager wants you to go to the office as soon as you get back.”
It wasn’t hard to hear several hints of displeasure in her tone.
The “Manager” went without saying; the entire Sales Department was under Mo An’s jurisdiction.
Even though I didn’t know why I was being suddenly summoned by my future wife, my heart was still filled with joy.
Seeing him is far better than wanting to see him and being unable to.
Watching the people in the office swarm forward to pick their milk tea from the desk behind me, I turned quickly, clutching the drink I had prepared for Mo An.
In the process, because there were too many people, I nearly spilled it.
I couldn’t help it and shouted loudly at the people around me:
“Don’t snatch, everyone!”
This was probably the loudest my voice had been in the office recently.
In the past, even if I was unhappy, I endured it for Mo An’s sake.
I didn’t even take the cup I had prepared for myself before heading toward Mo An’s office, feeling a skip in my step along the way.
When I placed the drink prepared for Mo An in front of him, Mo An raised an eyebrow and glanced at me.
“Drink up, I ran a long way to buy this.”
“No…” Mo An said one word, then paused and changed his mind. “Fine, thank you.”
I immediately handed it to him, feeling extremely happy.
“You Quan…”
For some reason, when Mo An called me that, I felt something was wrong.
This tone was exactly the same as that day in the restroom when Mo An told me to leave.
I looked calm on the surface, but internally I was panicking. I didn’t want to fight with him, but I would absolutely not leave.
Then, before Mo An could speak, I said decisively:
“I’m not leaving.”
Mo An was stunned for a moment and asked me a question.
“You Quan, am I gay?”
Although I didn’t know why Mo An either avoided me constantly or came out with such a bizarre question right off the bat, I still thought for a while before speaking cautiously.
“Before, I didn’t know if I was or not. But after meeting you and falling for you, I suppose I must be gay.”
Mo An looked at me very seriously. Just when I thought he was about to say something to me, he told me to leave.
Many expectations had just risen in my heart; I thought Mo An had finally seen the light.
Even though I was completely baffled, I followed his words and prepared to leave.
When I reached the door, I really couldn’t hold it back; I had a strong premonition.
If I didn’t ask clearly today what exactly Mo An wanted to say to me just now, I would very likely lose sleep tonight.
I quickly turned back and stopped at Mo An’s desk.
“What did you want to say just now?”
Mo An probably hadn’t expected me to turn back. He even looked surprised when he looked up from his documents.
Then he laughed with a sense of relief, as if it was only natural for such a thing to happen with me.
He shook his head. “I thought about it; let’s talk about it later.”
Since I had come back, I certainly wanted an answer. If Mo An didn’t tell me, I definitely wouldn’t let it go.
I held out my hand in front of Mo An, signaling for him to listen. “Either say it today, or never speak of it again.”
Mo An thought for a while before finally speaking.
“Did you just go to ‘Yujian’ to buy things?”
Brother: He’s a shop. I had just returned from there. I pointed a finger at the drink in front of Mo An and answered.
“Just came back from there. This should be the only shop in the whole city doing this.”
After saying that, I added: “Mo An, you aren’t such an indirect person. If you have something to say, just say it.”
“You met their store manager?”
At the mention of Brother He, I felt a bit happy. Finding a kindred spirit in a far-off place is always something worth being happy about.
I nodded with a smile.
But Mo An’s next words caught me completely off guard.
“What do you think of him?”
The look of total seriousness between Mo An’s brows made me feel this question was very important. I had to think about it seriously.
“He’s well-spoken, handsome, quite capable… he’s pretty good.”
At this moment, I suddenly realized the reason Mo An was asking this. I couldn’t have accidentally “dropped my vest” (blown my cover) there and been reported right after I left, could I?
I thought fiercely had I left any contact information on that list just now?
Before I could figure it out, I heard Mo An say: “Then, do you like him?”
What? I suspected something was wrong with my ears. How did it get to this topic?
I blurted out: “Who I like, don’t you know that perfectly well?”
I answered with a look of total openness, not thinking there was anything wrong with my one-sided unrequited love.
Afterward, seeing Mo An look at me meaningfully, I belatedly felt a bit embarrassed.
Mo An took a breath, as if he didn’t like this kind of pedantic and melodramatic questioning.
I followed with a sigh; our communication just now had indeed been quite laborious.
Finally, we had reached a consensus on a certain matter, and a sliver of joy quietly crept into my heart.
But Mo An’s next words completely killed my joy.
Because I heard him say: “He likes you.”
“Likes me? Who?” I was a bit confused. Wasn’t it because I had been reported?