Hearing this, Ji Li also turned his head around—a rare gesture for him—and cast a glance at Xu Nanxin.
Xu Nanxin was completely stiff, his scalp tingling. He knew perfectly well that it was no big deal; it was just answering a phone call, which was entirely normal. There was no way the other man could associate it with Little Rabbit.
“I, um, it’s just…” Under Ji Li’s gaze, Xu Nanxin felt immense pressure, making his speech even more stuttering. Something that should have been incredibly easy to explain ended up sounding exactly like a guilty person giving himself away.
Fortunately, Yang Xuan spoke up to bail him out. “His girlfriend called, you see. Nanxin is just shy and self-conscious, so he feels embarrassed to talk in front of so many people.”
Xu Nanxin looked at Yang Xuan gratefully, thinking to himself: Sister, you are my real, biological sister!
“Oh, so Nanxin has a girlfriend?” He Feng smiled, but left his sentence only half-finished, the trailing tone of his voice carrying an intriguing nuance.
Ji Li retracted his gaze, clearly not thinking much of it. However, he was also quite surprised by the fact that Xu Nanxin had a girlfriend. Doesn’t he like men?
But then again, some people deliberately hid their sexual orientation, not daring to let the people around them know. It wasn’t completely incomprehensible.
He returned to his seat, and Xu Nanxin followed suit, sitting back down before finally letting out a sigh of relief.
He could finally relax properly.
After the gathering ended, everyone left the restaurant together. Some had people picking them up, while others carpooled. Yang Xuan’s husband had also driven over to pick her up. As she got into the car, she asked Xu Nanxin, “Want a ride along the way?”
Xu Nanxin quickly shook his head. “No need, I can just take a ride back myself.”
He definitely didn’t want to play third wheel.
“Nanxin, why don’t you and Shi Le get in my car? I remember you two live quite close to each other. I’ll drop you guys off.” Jiang Yiyuan’s voice remained very gentle.
Shi Le was naturally very happy and nodded with a beam. “Sure!”
Just as Xu Nanxin was about to nod in agreement as well, He Feng materialized out of nowhere, casually slinging an arm around Xu Nanxin’s shoulder. He looked at Jiang Yiyuan and said, “Nanxin is riding with us. Where do you live? I’ll drop you off. Supervisor Jiang wouldn’t fight me for him, right?”
Jiang Yiyuan frowned slightly and glanced at He Feng. Even for someone with a good temper like him, he didn’t quite like some of this man’s behavioral styles.
“Mr. He, your route doesn’t align with Nanxin’s either. He is an employee under my department, so we won’t trouble you.” Although Jiang Yiyuan’s tone remained gentle, it clearly carried a hint of distance and firmness.
He always showed a bit more care toward the employees in his own department, especially the newcomers.
He Feng raised an eyebrow, sizing up Jiang Yiyuan with a look that seemed somewhat surprised. “Supervisor Jiang seems to have an issue with me?”
Jiang Yiyuan smiled and shook his head. “Of course not. You are President Ji’s friend, how could I have an issue with you?”
“Tsk.”
Boring. Communicating with this kind of person was the most boring thing—completely sophisticated and slick. He looked at Xu Nanxin and asked with a laugh, “What about you, Nanxin? It’s rare for us to hit it off so well during our chat. Riding together on the road is the perfect chance to chat, isn’t it?”
Xu Nanxin glanced at Jiang Yiyuan. He could actually refuse. However, he didn’t want Jiang Yiyuan to offend Ji Li’s friend over this matter.
Jiang Yiyuan was usually already very good to them. As for He Feng, he didn’t understand why this guy was inexplicably giving him a hard time either. But they weren’t close anyway; even if the man harbored some kind of malice, it probably wouldn’t go too far, right?
“Brother Yuan, you guys go ahead first!” Xu Nanxin said.
Jiang Yiyuan frowned. “Nanxin…”
Beep beep… A car horn blaring from not too far away interrupted Jiang Yiyuan’s words, conveying its owner’s growing impatience.
“He Feng, are you leaving or not?” Ji Li rolled down the car window and turned his head to look at He Feng.
Hearing the sound, Jiang Yiyuan looked over. Seeing that they were actually leaving with Ji Li, he felt a bit more at ease. So he nodded and said, “Alright, then we’ll head out first. Send a message when you get home.”
“Coming!” He Feng called back in a loud, drawn-out voice.
Xu Nanxin’s footsteps, however, froze instantly. How could I forget that Ji Li was there too! Recalling his last experience riding in Ji Li’s car, he truly never wanted to go through that again!
“What’s wrong? Let’s go,” He Feng said with a smile, though that smile looked entirely ill-intentioned no matter how one viewed it.
Xu Nanxin had no choice but to follow behind He Feng, walking over to Ji Li’s car together. There was a clear look of displeasure between Ji Li’s brows.
He cautiously glanced at Ji Li. Under the man’s visibly cold and indifferent gaze, he braved the pressure and greeted, “President Ji.”
It’s not that I wanted to come! He Feng was the one who dragged me over, so please don’t look at me with those eyes!
“Giving Nanxin a lift along the way, no objections, right?” He Feng put one hand in his pocket and spoke to Ji Li in a leisurely manner.
Ji Li didn’t spare them another glance. He turned his head back, leaving them with only the back of his head, as his faint voice drifted out: “Get in.”
Only then did Xu Nanxin open the back door and get in. He Feng followed closely behind him. Xu Nanxin had no choice but to shimmy over, sitting on the opposite side.
In front of his friend, Ji Li didn’t seem to talk much either. He completely ignored the two people in the back seat, wearing a Bluetooth earpiece while holding an iPad, busy with his own things.
Such a cold, icy person.
Xu Nanxin didn’t speak either. He Feng, however, smiled and asked Xu Nanxin, “Nanxin, was that true or false back at the dinner when you said you had a girlfriend? I actually thought you liked our President Ji!”
“Mr. He, please don’t talk nonsense!” Xu Nanxin denied it instantly, his voice subconsciously raising a few notches. After speaking, he didn’t forget to carefully check Ji Li’s expression.
The man had just warned him last time, yet He Feng just had to bring up the one topic he shouldn’t touch!
Seeing Xu Nanxin react so strongly, the smile on He Feng’s face deepened. “Such a big reaction. Looks like it’s true after all!”
Xu Nanxin: “I don’t.”
Even if I do, the one I like is that gentle and considerate Mr. Z, it has absolutely nothing to do with Ji Li!
I don’t like Ji Li at all!
“Alright, no need to be so eager to deny it. Plenty of people like Ji Li, it’s normal for you to like him too. Besides, he doesn’t bite. But what a pity, he already has a partner, so he never fools around. That’s why he’s exceptionally cold to anyone else who admires him,” He Feng said.
Hearing this, Xu Nanxin subconsciously peeked at Ji Li, only able to see the man’s cold profile. Mr. Z must be a very gentle person, but Ji Li…
Sitting on the side, He Feng caught every single one of Xu Nanxin’s subtle glances.
“Why are you telling me all this?” Xu Nanxin’s voice was clearly lacking confidence, and his expression was even somewhat evasive.
“I’m telling you, don’t look at how cold and difficult he is to others; he’s incredibly gentle to his lover. And that lover of his is an online romance partner—they haven’t even met in person. So, you have to seize the opportunity! ‘The pavilion closest to the water enjoys the moonlight first,’ get it?” He Feng said with a laugh, his eyes malicious, clearly trying to stir up trouble. (Translator’s note: The idiom means being in a favored position to gain advantages).
Ji Li took off his Bluetooth earpiece, turned his head slightly, and shot a sidelong glance at He Feng. “Stop the car. Get the hell out.”