Rong Ning did not reply, waiting for him to continue.
You know I like you. I have liked you since our school days, and I hope you can reconsider, Gu Yan’s eyes were filled with anticipation and longing. For you, I can give up everything abroad.
Rong Ning wasn’t particularly surprised by the first part of what Gu Yan said, but that final sentence, delivered in a steady tone, felt as though it was tightening around his neck and hammering against his chest, making it hard to breathe.
This kind of suffocating affection was something Rong Ning had no fortune to accept.
President Gu, have a few more sips of coffee, Rong Ning let out a breathy laugh, pushing the coffee cup in front of him a little closer to Gu Yan’s hand. The coffee beans President Jiang bought are quite good. Take your time to savor them.
Gu Yan lowered his gaze, his fingertips gently rubbing against the rim of the cup. A moment later, he looked back up at Rong Ning. Didn’t Jiang Mohai reject you? Why don’t we give it a try?
Rong Ning furrowed his brow, his other hand tucked inside his trouser pocket curling into a fist as a warning look flashed in his eyes. How do you know he rejected me?
Long ago, Gu Yan had shown signs of confessing to him, and Rong Ning had explicitly told him that he already had someone he liked.
For him to suddenly confess now, could it be because he knew Jiang Mohai had turned him down?
Aside from his assistant and his best friend, practically no one else knew about the dynamic between him and Jiang Mohai.
I saw it, Gu Yan paused. I was there at the time.
Ah? Rong Ning found it hard to believe, a faint, unsettling sense of being spied on creeping into his heart.
The day he had pulled Jiang Mohai into the dimly lit stairwell, it had been to avoid others. As luck would have it, the confession, the kiss, and the rejection had all been witnessed by Gu Yan.
On your birthday, I was there too, just wanting to catch a glimpse of you from afar. You guys… I was in the stairwell too, I heard it quite clearly…
Stop talking! A wave of shame washed over Rong Ning, and he irritably cut him off.
His sense of shame didn’t stem from being rejected by Jiang Mohai, but from the fact that his kiss had essentially been live-streamed.
Gu Yan took a deep breath, his tone hardening. What’s so great about him that you have to lower your status to chase after him…
President Gu! Rong Ning shot him a sideways glare, an angry spark instantly condensing between his brows. Having completely lost his patience, he tapped the table with growing dissatisfaction. What right do you have to belittle Jiang Mohai!
If not for the consideration that this senior had once helped him out, how could Rong Ning have tolerated him for this long? Anyone else would have been beaten and chased out with sticks.
I just want to be with you, is that wrong? Gu Yan’s eyes flashed with a ruthless intensity.
I call you Senior out of respect, but if you insist on tearing down our relationship, I won’t be polite either, Rong Ning’s attitude turned similarly hardline, his tone cold and detached. Don’t let your paranoia ruin even our friendship. Please respect yourself, President Gu!
With that, Rong Ning stood up and walked straight out of the meeting room.
Crash!
Before he had gone very far, the crisp sound of a coffee cup shattering against the floor echoed from behind. Rong Ning gave an involuntary start, but he did not turn back.
Hearing the commotion, Qin Shu charged over clutching a stun baton. President Rong, did he hurt you?! He then raised the weapon in his hand and marched toward the meeting room.
Rong Ning hurriedly intercepted Qin Shu. He didn’t hurt me. We just had an unpleasant chat, and he’s the one who took the loss.
Furious, Qin Shu swung the baton around in the air. Daring to run wild on Lingyue’s turf, why doesn’t he go take a piss and look at himself in the mirror!
Rong Ning couldn’t help laughing, his gaze sweeping over the aggressive, claw-wielding Qin Shu standing before him as he took a subtle step back. Tsk, you’re an elite white-collar worker at least, why do you look like a street thug?
Qin Shu offered an awkward smile, carefully putting away the stun baton. Noticing quite a few colleagues staring at him, he suddenly felt rather at a loss.
Rong Ning glanced around the room and waved his hand in dismissal. It’s fine, everyone back to work.
Qin Shu scratched his head with a grin and followed Rong Ning back to the office.
Gu Yan was ultimately escorted out by the security guards. He was sensible enough not to cause a scene.
Rong Ning spent the entire afternoon obediently staying at the company, yet didn’t see Jiang Mohai return by the end of the workday.
It wasn’t that he didn’t want to persuade him; he simply couldn’t catch sight of the man.
As the sky gradually grew dark, Rong Ning headed straight back to Rong Chuhexuan’s apartment.
The moment he stepped through the door, the rich aroma of home-cooked food hit his senses.
Rong Ning eagerly changed his shoes, trotted over to the dining room, and looked on with pleasant surprise. I couldn’t tell you had this skill in you?
Small potatoes~ Liang Chen dished the plates onto the table with an air of full pride. My husband is even better at cooking!
Ugh… He truly never missed a single chance to praise Rong Chuhexuan.
Rong Ning curled his lip, pinched a piece of braised pork between two fingers, and popped it into his mouth. Fine, fine, I get it, Rong Chuhexuan is amazing.
Tsk! Liang Chen slapped Rong Ning lightly on the arm. Go wash your hands.
Oh.
After washing his hands and returning to the dining room, Rong Ning noticed that Rong Chuhexuan wasn’t home. He glanced at the spread on the table and turned to ask Liang Chen, Is Rong Chuhexuan still not back? Should we save some for him?
I saved some for him, just eat your own. Liang Chen pushed a bowl of porridge toward Rong Ning and smiled with deep meaning. Learning to care about people now, are we?
As if! Rong Ning ducked away from Liang Chen’s scrutiny and lowered his head to eat.
Midway through the meal, Rong Ning received a text message: the scheduled time to replace the door lock was set for tomorrow afternoon.
This time, no matter what, he was getting a fingerprint lock. He never wanted to change a password again.
Early the next morning, Rong Ning woke up quite early.
The previous night, as Rong Ning lay in bed reading sports news, he had quickly drifted off to sleep, so he had no idea when Rong Chuhexuan had returned.
He had purposely woken up early today hoping to catch Rong Chuhexuan, say hello, and tell him he was heading back to his own place tonight, only to find that Rong Chuhexuan had already left before he even got out of bed.
Why was everyone working themselves to the bone like this?
Something wasn’t right…
Inside the master bathroom, the sound of running water played continuously, Liang Chen was taking a shower again.
Rong Ning knocked on the bathroom door. Liang Chen, I’m heading back to sleep at my own apartment today. I left the car keys on the dining table for you.
Got it. Liang Chen suddenly popped the bathroom door open just wide enough for his head to poke through. Leaving right now?
Mn, the driver is downstairs. Through the gap in the door, Rong Ning caught a stray glimpse of the faint red marks lingering on Liang Chen’s neck, prompting him to mutter, You take two showers a day and still scrub this hard.
Pointing a finger at the spot, Rong Ning shook his head in resignation. Your neck is red.
Liang Chen quickly covered his neck and sidestepped a bit further behind the door. I like it! I love taking baths, I’m happy taking eight a day if I want.
Freakish habits! Rong Ning rolled his eyes at him. Carry on, I’m off.
Wait!
Liang Chen called out to him, and in his rush, the door swung open a fraction wider.
Turning back, Rong Ning caught sight of the sea of red marks scattered across Liang Chen’s entire body, which instantly crashed into his field of vision.
Turns out those marks on his neck were merely the tip of the iceberg.
Rong Ning winced as he surveyed Liang Chen. Tsk, tsk, tsk. You really are brutal on yourself.
Tsk, stop looking! Liang Chen retreated entirely behind the bathroom door, muttering, My bathrobe fell in the water, help me grab a new one. It’s in the bottom-left drawer of the guest room across from yours.
Fine, stay in there and don’t come out.
After autumn set in, the rooms got rather chilly, especially in the mornings.
Rong Ning found the drawer Liang Chen had mentioned, which contained two bathrobes.
Lifting the top one and draping it over his shoulder, he used his knee to push the drawer shut. In that fleeting moment, something caught his eye, an object that looked exceptionally familiar. He pulled the drawer back open.
Carefully retrieving the mask hidden in the gap beside the other bathrobe, Rong Ning examined it closely.
It was an exact match to his own.
He turned the white mask over and over in his hands multiple times, until his defenses finally broke and a wave of emotion washed over him. Crap! You’re actually a pretty decent guy. Rong Chuhexuan, with you acting like this, how am I supposed to find it in my heart to curse you out?