The next day at noon, Xie Sui was at the company browsing through articles written by industry peers.
Seeing that it was almost lunchtime, he opened his food delivery app, opening it and closing it, closing it and opening it again.
The dazzling array of options inside the software made him completely lose his desire to order food.
Just as he was struggling, the young girl from the front desk came walking over to Xie Sui’s workstation, holding an exquisite thermal bag that looked distinctly expensive and was printed with the logo of a top-tier private kitchen restaurant. She kept looking around curiously along the way.
“Brother Xie Sui, your delivery! And it was actually sent over from Lanting!”
The young girl’s voice carried an uncalculating surprise and envy.
This Lanting private kitchen restaurant was famous in the circle for being exceptionally expensive and difficult to reserve. A simple meal from there was enough for an ordinary person to eat for several meals.
Hearing this, Xie Sui froze for a moment before accepting the heavy thermal bag. The bag felt incredibly high-quality in his hand, and it was divided into several layers inside.
He opened it. The top layer was a translucent bird’s nest soup, the middle layer contained four kinds of side dishes, and the bottom layer consisted of glistening white rice along with a post-meal dessert.
The nearby colleagues had already been drawn over by the aroma.
“It’s actually Lanting! I’ve swiped past it on the internet several times, I just never had the money to buy it.”
“Xie Sui, hurry up and taste it, how does it taste?”
Xie Sui very quickly realized whose handiwork this came from.
Bearing the eager gazes of several people, Xie Sui took a bite. “It’s alright.”
Seeing that some people’s saliva was practically about to droop down, Xie Sui reminded them, “Don’t go getting ideas about it.”
“Oh.”
The several people returned in disappointment.
Originally, he thought Jin Huaiqian was just acting on a passing whim, but he hadn’t expected that for the next few days, Xie Sui would receive luxurious lunches that didn’t repeat a single dish.
The company colleagues were all so envious their eyes turned red. Unable to take it anymore, they clamored that they wanted a taste.
Hearing their wailing, Xie Sui had no choice but to deal with the noise by sharing a little bit with them.
During this time, the two of them still communicated normally, and Jin Huaiqian never brought up the matter of sending food.
Xie Sui didn’t ask either, wanting to see how long he could hold out.
After not lasting more than a few days, Jin Huaiqian couldn’t restrain himself anymore and directly called him over the phone.
Jin Huaiqian got straight to the point: “How does it taste?”
Xie Sui: “Not bad.”
“That’s it?”
“Yeah, that’s it.”
Jin Huaiqian hung up the phone right then and there.
Listening to the busy tone coming from his cell phone, Xie Sui doubled over with laughter.
Xie Sui stopped teasing him. He gathered the pictures he had taken over the past few days together and posted a status on his Moments, visible only to Jin Huaiqian.
The accompanying text read: It feels really good to be kept on someone’s mind~
After posting it, he sent another WeChat message to Jin Huaiqian.
S: 【Stop sending it, I prefer to eat what you make.】
“Xie Sui! Where are you? Do you have time this afternoon?” Shen Yi’s voice was brimming with vitality.
“The company.”
“Fencing club! Want to go?” Shen Yi said excitedly, “I’m lacking some cool sports footage for my video clips lately. Come play with me, and act as my model while you’re at it! With your physique, putting on a fencing suit will definitely look drop-dead handsome!”
Fencing?
Xie Sui thought about how he hadn’t gone to practice his moves for quite a long time, so he agreed to it.
The fencing club Shen Yi found was of a fairly high standard, with an elegant environment and professional facilities. After changing into the fencing suits, putting on the masks, and picking up the épées in their hands, Shen Yi began admiring himself in front of the mirror.
After a moment, he nodded his head in satisfaction, catching sight of the person behind the mirror from the corner of his eye, which left him even more stunned.
The form-fitting and upright fencing suit outlined Xie Sui’s superior physique perfectly, exuding an elegant yet sharp sense of power. Shen Yi held up his camera from the side to aim at him, snapping several pictures in a row.
Next, he handed the camera over to Xie Sui, telling him to take a few pictures of him too.
“Find a good angle, I need to post all of these.”
Xie Sui took a few pictures for him and tossed the camera back: “See if they work.”
Shen Yi nodded in satisfaction: “Not bad, not bad, I look way too handsome.”
Xie Sui simply couldn’t be bothered to deal with his vanity.
The two of them had just walked inside when they heard the “clang, clang” sound of clashing metal coming from within, as well as the sound of shoes moving rapidly and friction against the floorboards.
The two found a spot.
Xie Sui asked, “Do you know how?”
Shen Yi said somewhat uncertainly, “I, I think I do, my brother taught me before.”
Xie Sui understood his disposition thoroughly: “How long did you learn?”
Shen Yi: “Probably around twenty minutes.”
Xie Sui’s thought of having a proper practice match probably wasn’t going to be realized.
Shen Yi struck a proper stance: “Come on, come on, let’s have a match.”
Xie Sui: “Don’t you go crying later.”
“How is that possible? I’m very formidable too.”
From a single glance, Shen Yi’s movements showed he had only learned a bit of the surface, swinging the foil around in a wild mess of hacking.
Xie Sui was forced to call a halt.
“Why stopped playing?”
Xie Sui took off his mask. “I’m afraid of being hacked to death by you.”
Shen Yi curled his lips. His gaze shifted, and suddenly as if discovering some massive secret, he excitedly dragged Xie Sui’s arm: “Look, look, is that Jin Huaiqian?”
Xie Sui looked in the direction Shen Yi was pointing.
Not far away on the strip, wasn’t that tall and upright figure who else but Jin Huaiqian?
Not only him, but another person was also standing by his side.
The posture of the two looked close, especially when that young man looked at Jin Huaiqian—his eyes held an undisguised reliance and admiration.
An inexplicable trace of unpleasantness welled up in Xie Sui’s heart.
“Who is that person beside him? You couldn’t have been cheated on, right?”
Xie Sui: “Don’t talk nonsense.”
After Xie Sui finished speaking, he couldn’t stay serious for more than two seconds before he uncontrollably began walking over toward Jin Huaiqian’s side.
Jin Huaiqian was currently pointing out the correct way to hold the sword to the young man, his voice not loud, but close enough to be heard clearly: “Keep your wrist relaxed, don’t tense it up too much. Yes, rely on your forearm to drive the movement.”
The young man listened very intently, his wheat-colored face looking exceptionally healthy and vibrant under the lights. He nodded from time to time, his eyes sparkling as he looked at Jin Huaiqian.
“President Jin,” Xie Sui’s voice cut in abruptly, drawing out his tone, “What a coincidence.”
Jin Huaiqian and the young man lifted their heads at the same time.
Seeing it was Xie Sui, the corner of Jin Huaiqian’s brow twitched imperceptibly, seeming a bit surprised, but he very quickly restored his composure.
“Mr. Xie, what a coincidence.”
He cast a glance behind Xie Sui. “Are you here to practice as well?”
Seeing him put on this act, Xie Sui laughed mockingly in his heart. Old man, pretending to be so proper.
“Yeah, just accompanying a friend to shoot some footage along the way.” Xie Sui brandished the sword in his hand, but his gaze drifted toward the young man by Jin Huaiqian’s side, the corner of his mouth curving into a somewhat ambiguous smile. “This is? Won’t President Jin introduce him?”
“Xue Xing, a student at the fencing club.” Jin Huaiqian said, “This is Xie Sui.”
The young man seemed somewhat timid, but he still nodded politely toward Xie Sui.
Xue Xing spoke up, his voice clear: “Hello, Mr. Xie.”
“Hello there,” Xie Sui said with a smile, his gaze turning over Xue Xing’s face before landing right back onto Jin Huaiqian. “Just teaching someone is so boring. President Jin, since we happened to run into each other, how about a match?”
The moment these words came out, the nearby Xue Xing looked at Xie Sui with some surprise, then looked back at Jin Huaiqian.
Shen Yi also huddled over, his lens aimed right at this side, carrying a face full of an expression waiting to watch a good show.
Xie Sui stood beneath the light, dressed in the white fencing suit, his figure slender. He carried a smile on his face, inside of which was hidden a streak of refusal to admit defeat.
“You want to compete?” Jin Huaiqian asked, his voice giving away no emotion.
“Of course,” Xie Sui tilted his chin up, “What, is President Jin afraid?”
Jin Huaiqian smiled: “Of course we can.”
Shen Yi excitedly held up the camera to find an angle, entirely filled with thrill over the material he was about to capture.
Xie Sui and Jin Huaiqian stood facing each other, their gazes locking together from beneath their masks.