Making his way to the couch, Nuocheng grabbed the folder as he sat down.
The contents of the document were something he and Chenxi had already discussed, so he got to signing fast.
The second was land documents. Somewhere in S City, the first land was meant for a restaurant, and the second was rights to the newly purchased hotel.
He had just finished signing the document when Chenxi walked in.
"You’re dressed, good. I don’t have to beat your ass today."
-_-
"XiaoXi, here’s a sandwich to go..."
Auntie Wu handed the wrapped sandwich over at the door, patting Chenxi’s arm the way she always did, like he was still twelve years old showing up late for school.
"Thank you, Auntie Wu."
Nuocheng grabbed his coat off the hook, glancing once toward the hallway before he headed for the door.
"You can stay if you want to." He said it without turning around, keys already in hand. "But text me when you’re leaving."
He didn’t wait for a response.
Chenxi kept one hand on the wheel and unwrapped the sandwich with the other once they were on the road, taking a bite at the next red light.
"Brief meeting with management first, then we head to the farm. After that, we swing by Lianhua Hotel to check on the staff. There were complaints about the new food line."
"Ugh." Nuocheng dropped his head back against the seat. "That creepy old bastard again. Isn’t it about time we just started our own farm?"
"Actually, not a bad idea." Chenxi glanced over at the next light. "I’ll call your dad about it."
"Wait, seriously?"
"Why not? We’ve got the land, and it’d save us dealing with him every quarter." Chenxi took another bite. "I’ll ring him after the meeting today."
"What are people even complaining about?" Nuocheng stared at the passing buildings, and Komi’s food was pretty good; it had a lot of good reviews.
Were they hating for hating’s sake?
"Short version, customers are describing the taste as, and I quote, ’aggressively mediocre.’" Chenxi kept his eyes on the road.
Nuocheng huffed, saying nothing for a while.
"You gonna tell me what happened after I left? I could literally smell the tension."
"No."
"Fair enough." Chenxi finished the last of his sandwich one-handed, crumpling the wrapper and tossing it into the cup holder. "Guessing it didn’t go well."
"Guess all you want. You didn’t tell me what you and Sicheng were discussing yesterday. Why should I tell you what happened between us..."
Pfft—
Chenxi gave Nuocheng a side glance, so that was why he got his panties in a twist.
"You’re so childish."
-_-
Nuocheng’s lips twitched, letting out a huff before turning his face to the window.
"I’m not childish."
"You are. A little." Chenxi’s mouth curved, though he kept his eyes on the road. "You could just ask him yourself, you know. Instead of pouting about it."
"I’m not pouting."
"You’ve had your face turned to that window since we left the house."
"I’m looking out the window. Should I look at your stupid face instead?"
-_-
"Okay, at what exactly? We’ve passed four intersections since you started sulking."
Chenxi barely kept the laugh out of his voice. "There’s nothing out there but traffic."
"Maybe I like traffic."
"Nobody likes traffic, Nuocheng." Chenxi shook his head slowly. "You’re mad because a man you’ve known for two days won’t tell you his business, and it’s eating you alive."
"I am not mad. You’re the one reading into it."
Chenxi’s lips curled up; this cousin of his was quite easy to read.
Still, if he told him what they talked about, it wouldn’t be a secret.
"Then why are you gripping your knee so hard?"
Nuocheng looked down. He was, in fact, gripping his own knee. He let go immediately, crossing his arms instead, jaw tight.
"This is ridiculous. I don’t even care what you two talked about."
"Sure you don’t." Chenxi tapped the wheel, grinning now, not bothering to hide it. "That’s why your voice went up an octave just now."
"My voice did not—"
"It did. Right there. Just now. Again."
Chenxi laughed outright, the sound filling the car. "You’re worse than a kid who got left out of a secret during recess."
Oh, now he was the butt of the joke.
"I am the heir to a multi-billion dollar company. If I say I’m not moved, then I’m not."
"Yet, this "heir" is currently sulking over gossip you’re not allowed to hear. Truly, a man of great importance." Chenxi wiped at the corner of his eye, still grinning. "Does it help if I tell you it wasn’t even that deep?"
"I don’t want your pity summary."
"Suit yourself." Chenxi shrugged, entirely too pleased with himself. "Guess you’ll just have to keep wondering."
Nuocheng let out a strangled noise somewhere between a growl and a groan, slumping back into his seat, glaring out at the traffic like it had personally wronged him.
Chenxi laughed the rest of the way to the office.
The garage swallowed the last of the daylight as Chenxi pulled into his usual spot, engine ticking as it cooled.
"We’re here." Chenxi grabbed his tablet off the dash, still smiling. "Try not to sulk in front of the board, please. Bad for morale."
"I don’t sulk."
"You’ve been sulking since the guest room door."
Nuocheng shot him a look and got out of the car without dignifying that with a response, straightening his jacket as they crossed the garage toward the elevator.
The doors slid open, and Chenxi hit the button for the executive floor, still visibly pleased with himself.
"For the record," Chenxi said, watching the numbers climb, "I only asked to talk to him because I wanted to make sure he was actually staying by choice. Not because you dragged him there."
Nuocheng’s arms uncrossed slightly. "And?"
"And that’s between us." Chenxi’s grin returned, sharp and immediate. "Nice try, though."
"You’re insufferable." Nuocheng shoved the elevator button harder than necessary.
"And yet you keep me around." Chenxi didn’t even look up from his tablet.
The elevator doors opened onto the executive floor, department heads already gathered near the boardroom, a few glancing up as Nuocheng and Chenxi stepped out.
Nuocheng smoothed his expression into something more composed, the earlier irritation folding neatly out of sight the way it always did the moment work started.
Chenxi fell half a step behind him, murmuring low enough that only Nuocheng could hear.
"Traffic, by the way. I saw it too. Real riveting stuff."
"Get in the room, Chenxi."
Chenxi laughed under his breath and did exactly that.