After the interview ended, Yunjing seemed to be brewing a massive rainstorm.
At 4:00 PM, the sky was covered in thick, dark clouds, pressing down heavily, seemingly weaving a veil of rain and mist.
The Secretary-General politely saw Qiao Yu out and reminded Lu Jiayan of his upcoming schedule.
There was a meeting with a French client representative in the evening, with dinner arranged at Yunshui Pavilion—authentic Yunjing cuisine.
Yunshui Pavilion was located in Yunjing’s East District, tucked behind a commercial plaza; it was a place of quiet amidst the bustle, offering high privacy.
The client representative brought five people, led by a Sino-French mixed-race individual and three translators. Lu Jiayan’s French was excellent, so the accompanying translation assistant wasn’t of much use. After a pleasant conversation, they each took their seats.
Having arrived in China, they followed local customs, which inevitably involved the culture of the dining table and social drinking.
The client, being Sino-French, was very interested in the cultures of both countries. After a few glasses of red wine, he became quite the chatterbox, chasing after Lu Jiayan with questions about everything. Lu Jiayan had a decent temperament in business dealings; having studied abroad and being well-traveled, he could discuss local customs and traditional culture with ease.
With more talk came more drinking.
By the time Lu Jiayan realized it, he was already slightly tipsy.
The client representative, still wanting more, expressed a desire to meet Lu Jiayan again the next day. Lu Jiayan verbally agreed to the appointment in French though whether there would be a private meeting was another matter entirely.
After all, a capitalist’s rhetoric is just like their heart: neither can be trusted.
________________________________________
Coming out of the Yunshui Pavilion mansion, the heavy rain that Yunjing had been brewing all afternoon came down in a fierce torrent.
The rain came so suddenly that many were unprepared. The commercial street was packed with people, and even the bus stations were crowded.
Qiao Yu had just finished dinner with someone and was squeezed at the entrance of the commercial street, unable to prevent the rain splashing in the puddles from soaking her skirt.
She looked at her phone anxiously, her frustration reaching its peak. The queue for a car on the map app had reached over two hundred people; she wouldn’t be able to get back for at least two hours.
Qiao Yu checked the weather forecast on her phone again.
Great. This heavy rain was going to last until midnight.
Just as she was as fretful as an ant on a hot pan, a car suddenly entered her field of vision.
Due to the traffic jam, that Maybach sat motionless in the flow of vehicles. Even on a commercial street filled with luxury cars, it looked exceptionally noble.
What delighted Qiao Yu even more was that she recognized the car. When she came out of the Shengjia headquarters this afternoon, she had seen the license plate from a distance. A series of arrogant repeating numbers. It was obvious who was inside.
If the situation weren’t so dire, Qiao Yu would never have chosen to knock on Lu Jiayan’s window. But standing in ten-centimeter heels in this suffocatingly crowded place for three or four hours? She’d rather take a risk and catch a ride with Lu Jiayan!
Mustering her courage, Qiao Yu tapped on the window.
A few seconds later, the window rolled down. The back seat indeed revealed Lu Jiayan’s handsome face. Even though she had seen him that afternoon, seeing him again now still made Qiao Yu dazed for a moment.
“President Lu, sorry to disturb you. It’s raining hard outside and I can’t get a taxi. If it’s convenient, could I trouble you to give me a lift?”
Lu Jiayan’s expression looked no different from the afternoon, carrying a hint of distant detachment.
While waiting, Qiao Yu suddenly regretted her impulsive decision. Where did she get the confidence to think Lu Jiayan would let her in the car just because it was pouring outside?
To her surprise, just as Qiao Yu thought she would be rejected, Lu Jiayan opened the car door.
She felt her heartbeat heavy and fast. After saying “thank you,” she carefully lifted her skirt and climbed into the car.
Even after sitting down, Qiao Yu couldn’t believe she was actually in Lu Jiayan’s car. The man seemed a bit uncomfortable, remaining silent with a blank expression, occasionally rubbing his brow.
Qiao Yu didn’t dare to breathe loudly, frantically sending exclamation marks to her brother, Qiao Yan, in their chat. She recounted the entire story of how she ended up in Lu Jiayan’s car.
Qiao Yan: 【?】
【Sis, what kind of CEO romance novel opening is this? You aren’t falling in love, are you?】
Qiao Yu: 【…】
【The man has a wife.】
Qiao Yu couldn’t be bothered with Qiao Yan’s nonsense. Her brother probably acted in too many CEO idol dramas and started treating real life like one.
However, as her gaze lingered on Qiao Yan’s last line, she couldn’t help but feel a slight flutter in her heart. After all, Lu Jiayan actually let her in although her behavior just now was close to moral kidnapping. With rain that heavy, Lu Jiayan couldn’t really just leave her standing there.
Still, Qiao Yu couldn’t help but let her mind wander. Did this mean he had some impression of her?
Just as she was daydreaming, Lu Jiayan’s cold voice rang out: “Miss Qiao, do you have a recording pen?”
People in the interview business usually kept several recording pens in their bags. But she didn’t know why Lu Jiayan was asking for one now.
Qiao Yu nodded and took out a recording pen. “President Lu, do you need to use it?”
Lu Jiayan nodded without expression and pointed at the pen. “Is it convenient to turn it on?”
Qiao Yu: “?”
Lu Jiayan said slowly, “From now on, please keep the recording pen turned on. Do not turn it off.”
He rubbed his brow and tilted his head slightly toward Yao Shen in the passenger seat. “Yao Shen. Report the road conditions to the Second Young Master every ten minutes.”
At this moment, Lu Jiayan suddenly remembered Sheng Mingzhi’s arrogant and willful temper. If that little ancestor found out he was driving another woman home in the middle of the night, he could make a scene out of nothing.
To be safe, he let out a dry laugh and added: “Remember to send him the live location.”
Beside him, Qiao Yu was stunned by this series of “virtuous” operations. She didn’t even realize Lu Jiayan was still speaking to her.
“Apologies.” The man’s voice was still refined, but Qiao Yu felt a chill.
It was as if that tiny, unmentionable thought she had when she knocked on his window had been completely seen through.
Lu Jiayan’s tone was even colder than the rain outside: “My spouse keeps a very tight leash. I hope you don’t mind.”
________________________________________
Sheng Mingzhi had just stepped out of the recording studio when his phone received ten consecutive messages.
They were all locations sent by Yao Shen. One every ten minutes along with a dutiful report of Lu Jiayan’s itinerary.
Sheng Mingzhi: 【?】
He knew Yao Shen wouldn’t go crazy on his own initiative; this was likely Lu Jiayan’s idea.
【Is he sick?】
Sheng Mingzhi was speechless: 【Why send me the location? If he’s lost, tell him to use Amap. Unless he’s currently in a car accident and needs me to personally sign a waiver at the hospital to abandon surgery, I have no interest in your boss’s itinerary (Smiling Emoji)】
The young master hadn’t cooled down over the past few days, and Yao Shen’s actions undoubtedly added fuel to his fire. After sending the message, Sheng Mingzhi immediately practiced “guilt by association” and blacklisted Yao Shen as well.
________________________________________
Just after saying his spouse kept a tight leash, Lu Jiayan was immediately slapped in the face by reality.
After learning from Yao Shen that the assistant had also been blacklisted, Lu Jiayan paused. Then, with a calm expression, he spoke steadily: “See. I told you he’d be jealous.”
He wore the air of an arrogant egomaniac who was proud of his foresight.
Yao Shen: “…”
Um, Boss, I think the Second Young Master might not be jealous?
Also, now that we’ve both been blacklisted, have you thought about how you’re going to contact him?
As a subordinate, the boss’s business was his business. The boss’s private business was the same, because every time the young master fought with President Lu, the ones who suffered were the employees.
Yao Shen spoke with difficulty, preparing to remind Lu Jiayan of the facts: “President Lu, I don’t know if I should say this…”
Lu Jiayan raised an eyebrow and shot Yao Shen a cold, threatening look. “Say it to your year-end bonus.”
Yao Shen: “…”
I suddenly feel like there’s nothing to say!
The Maybach slowly drove into the underground garage of No. 1 Xishan. The aftereffects of the red wine kicked in, and Lu Jiayan’s tipsy feeling grew stronger.
Yao Shen saw him into the living room before leaving. Before he left, he thoughtfully placed the recording pen on the coffee table. It had been recording continuously for an hour, accompanied every few minutes by Yao Shen’s grand vocal reports. It was a modern, “cyber” manifestation of upholding men’s virtue.
Lu Jiayan leaned lazily on the sofa, his gaze falling out the window. The downpour continued. Perhaps due to the alcohol, Lu Jiayan thought of Sheng Mingzhi exceptionally frequently tonight. Frequently enough that even he was surprised.
He remembered the first time he met Sheng Mingzhi; it was also on a rainy day like this.
Sheng Mingzhi was only twelve then, but his frame was far thinner and weaker than other children his age. He was like a porcelain doll that couldn’t speak—beautiful in a way that didn’t seem like a boy, silent and introverted. Only those fox-like, expressive eyes revealed his inner emotions when he looked over.
As the words “silent” and “introverted” surfaced from Lu Jiayan’s memory, he couldn’t help but laugh.
Where did those words apply to the little ancestor now? He didn’t know where the boy had gone to “advance his studies” during those missing years, but he had developed a very high-level arrogant temper and was over-the-top lively.
The memory of “Teacher Sheng’s” solo concert performance suddenly forced its way into Lu Jiayan’s mind again.
The dark, quiet, and lonely living room was now filled with Lu Jiayan’s low, muffled laughter.
Perhaps he had always had a bit of a misunderstanding about Sheng Mingzhi? After not seeing him for three years, he seemed much more interesting than imagined.
________________________________________
This was the scene Sheng Mingzhi saw when he returned home.
Lu Jiayan was half-leaning on the sofa. He didn’t know if the man had fallen asleep; there wasn’t a sound. Having not seen each other for a week, Sheng Mingzhi didn’t expect to see his “cheap” husband the moment he got back.
The living room was terrifyingly quiet. Sheng Mingzhi’s keen sense of smell picked up a hint of alcohol in the air. He wondered how a man as strict with himself as Lu Jiayan could fall asleep on the sofa.
So, he had been drinking.
Sheng Mingzhi muttered “smells terrible” and wanted to ignore him and go upstairs. But a crash of thunder sounded outside, lightning flashed, and the chill in the air caught Sheng Mingzhi’s steps.
The temperature dropped quickly in November. Although the No. 1 Xishan villa was climate-controlled, Lu Jiayan would surely catch a cold if left on the sofa all night.
Sheng Mingzhi’s heart softened for a moment. He told himself it was so the dog man would have a better body to make money and support him. For the sake of his own long-term prosperity, he would grudgingly help Lu Jiayan back to the room.
But just as he crouched down, Sheng Mingzhi’s gaze involuntarily fell on Lu Jiayan’s face.
Under the warm yellow light, the man’s skin was so exquisite that no flaws could be seen even this close. His nose was high, his features deep, and his eyelashes were impossibly long, casting a fan-shaped shadow on his cheeks.
Actually, when Lu Jiayan wasn’t speaking, he was quite handsome. Such a good-looking guy, why did he have to grow a mouth?
Sheng Mingzhi was lost in thought, his mind wandering, so he was completely unprepared to be caught red-handed.
The silence was broken by Lu Jiayan’s voice. The living room had movement once more.
The man’s eyes were still closed, but his tone was lazy and annoyingly drawn-out:
“You’ve been staring at me for so long. Aren’t you going to kiss me yet?”