The top floor of Shanhe Real Estate.
The CEO’s office had been tidied up.
Light brown flooring made the room feel comfortable and spacious. A long, arched desk with a black base and wooden-striped surface stood on dark gray carpeting, looking both classic and imposing.
One side of the room was lined with three-tiered bookshelves, with beautiful green plants placed underneath. The vibrant green added a touch of life to the office, and combined with the view of the CBD outside the window, it was a pleasant environment.
The only strange thing was the chair behind the desk, which had been laid flat on the floor and covered with a white blanket.
Ring, ring
At exactly nine o’clock in the morning, the phone on the desk rang incessantly, like a death knell.
After a long moment, Zhao Yisen struggled to reach an arm out from under the blanket to silence the alarm.
He opened his eyes in a daze, letting his bangs fall messily across his face, his hair a tangled heap.
This was his first time spending the night at the office.
The computer in front of him had been left on all night, casting a white glow. Rubbing his eyes and glancing at the proposal he had finished working on late last night, Zhao Yisen fumbled for the printer and pulled out a stack of documents.
Now, he just needed to stamp them.
However, after searching for a long time, he couldn’t find his personal seal. It was then that he realized, belatedly, that the item must still be at his former office in the Gu Group headquarters.
“…”
Assistant Jiang had likely been too busy and forgotten to have someone move his belongings.
A full day had passed, and Zhao Yisen felt that the awkward atmosphere between him and Gu Jia had eased somewhat.
But thinking of the “stupid” things he had done at the hospital, he still had a bit of an ostrich mentality, wanting to avoid seeing the CEO.
However, he absolutely had to retrieve his personal seal.
After a quick wash, Zhao Yisen drifted out of the door like a ghost, running straight into Lu Ming, who was arriving for work.
Lu Ming saw his destination at a glance. “Yisen, are you going to the Gu Group?”
“…” Zhao Yisen nodded weakly.
Lu Ming pressed his lips together.
Just as he thought, in this situation, the only way was to ask Gu Jia for help.
But—
Watching Zhao Yisen’s tired and helpless appearance, a sense of powerlessness suddenly welled up in Lu Ming’s heart.
In the past, regarding help for Yisen whether material or otherwise Lu Ming had always accepted it half-heartedly, because the other party was always forceful and quick to make decisions for him, leaving no room for refusal.
But now, even though he had the opportunity to stop him, from the perspective of Shanhe Real Estate, he desperately realized that he still couldn’t do it.
After a long silence, Zhao Yisen blinked.
“Is there something on my face?”
…
Zhao Yisen navigated his way into the Gu Group with familiarity.
Along the way, many people recognized him, but they only dared to watch from a distance.
Zhao Yisen: ?
Exiting the elevator, he didn’t think much of it and headed straight to his former office, thinking he should quickly grab the seal and go deal with the mess Qian Zheng had created.
Zhao Yisen’s old office was at the end of the top-floor corridor, passing by the CEO’s office.
To avoid alerting anyone, he carefully moved to the door of Gu Jia’s office and peered through a gap in the frosted glass.
There was no one inside.
Zhao Yisen breathed a sigh of relief; it seemed the CEO hadn’t arrived yet.
He didn’t even call Assistant Jiang, fearing the other man might accidentally leak his whereabouts.
With that, Zhao Yisen became a cheerful young man again.
He headed north, humming a tune as he reached his office door, and pushed open the glass door without any guard up.
“…”
Someone had left a small gap open in the floor-to-ceiling window in the room.
As the door opened, the air in the corridor was pushed toward the window by the pressure difference, creating a draft.
A ballpoint pen on the desk was rolled to the edge by the wind, only to be stopped by a finger with distinct, bony knuckles.
Gu Jia looked up, his dark golden eyes fixed on his husband, who had failed to come home last night.
“…” Zhao Yisen’s heart skipped a beat.
…Why was Gu Jia here?!
The man sat in the office chair with his back to the floor-to-ceiling window. The wind coming from in front of him lifted the black hair on his forehead, and his rimless glasses rested on the bridge of his sharp nose, giving him an air of intellectual coldness.
The two remained silent amidst the sound of the wind.
“Uh, good morning, President Gu. What a coincidence.”
In the end, Zhao Yisen bore the pressure and said a few words to break the silent atmosphere.
However, Gu Jia did not take it kindly, saying coldly, “I don’t think it’s a coincidence.”
Not a coincidence?… Zhao Yisen was choked up, thinking, could it be that Gu Jia came here specifically to intercept him?
This bizarre thought flashed through his mind without leaving a trace. Zhao Yisen maintained an awkward smile on his face, stood on his tiptoes, and cast an occasional glance at the desk, intending to find a reason to slip away as soon as he got his seal.
…
Having slept alone in the master bedroom for a night, Gu Jia had felt that things had become incredibly absurd when he got into the Rolls-Royce this morning under Wang Baobao’s sympathetic gaze.
Yisen hadn’t asked him for help, and hadn’t even come home.
After arriving at the company, Jiang Mingze told him that his “good husband” had suddenly proposed moving back to the office at Shanhe Real Estate.
The excuse was that he didn’t want to trouble him anymore.
Gu Jia had sneered as he listened, and hadn’t spoken all morning, scaring Jiang Mingze into silence.
The man raised his head and stared at the young man standing before him.
So, why did Yisen come back now?
Heh. An answer immediately surfaced in Gu Jia’s mind, disappointment flashing through his eyes, followed by a look of malice.
He lowered his gaze. Someone must have made him come here.
Gu Jia clenched his fists, his knuckles making a faint cracking sound.
…Obedient. Truly obedient.
Taking advantage of this brief silence, Zhao Yisen held his breath, stepped forward, and quickly scanned the items on the desk.
It wasn’t on the desk, so it must be in the drawer.
Gu Jia’s wrist remained on the edge of the table; he sat hunched behind the desk with no intention of moving.
“…”
He was clearly the one who had occupied the magpie’s nest, but not only was this “magpie” self-righteous, he was also someone not to be trifled with.
With his head down, Gu Jia’s expression was darker than the sky before a thunderstorm.
Seeing Zhao Yisen walk over, he bit his molars, suppressing the surging emotions in his heart, waiting almost thirstily for his “good husband’s” next move.
Gu Jia was truly curious.
For the sake of Lu Ming, how far could Yisen actually go?
As the two locked eyes, the office fell into a long silence.
Standing in front of the desk, Zhao Yisen, having been frightened by the sarcasm, was unwilling to speak again. He used his eyes to request that Gu Jia yield his position so he could open the drawer.
Zhao Yisen’s eyes were bright, making it hard to refuse.
However, Gu Jia remained unmoved.
He sneered, his gaze sweeping from top to bottom and back to Zhao Yisen, signaling him to do it himself.
Zhao Yisen: “…” Fine.
He walked to Gu Jia’s side with a aggrieved expression.
The distance between the desk and the floor-to-ceiling window was very short, and since Gu Jia had no intention of moving, the space under the desk was almost completely blocked.
Zhao Yisen sighed, knelt on one knee, and looked into the space beneath the desk.
He was wearing yesterday’s clothes, but had left his suit jacket at Shanhe Real Estate, leaving only his white shirt and dark dress pants.
The simple combination of the shirt and pants highlighted Zhao Yisen’s excellent proportions, making him look clean and refined without losing his sense of elegance.
The young man had delicate features and a smooth, beautifully curved jawline. His light purple eyes made people unwilling to look away. He was currently lying on the ground, peering inward with his eyes slightly narrowed, his cheeks flushed from his sleepless night.
Gu Jia: “…”
Zhao Yisen maintained this awkward position, earnestly scanning the right side of the space under the desk.
It doesn’t seem to be here…
As he looked, a part of the office chair blocked his view. Zhao Yisen gripped the armrest and used a little force, which accidentally rotated Gu Jia, who was facing the front, directly in front of him.
“!!!”
Zhao Yisen was startled, though he still feigned composure, his gaze avoiding the man by falling straight onto the drawer on the left.
In Gu Jia’s eyes, however—
His ex-husband, who had despised physical contact the most in his previous life, was now kneeling in front of him, his left hand gripping the side of the chair, his fingers lightly touching the floor.
Zhao Yisen’s upper body was tilted forward slightly, his eyes lowered, his chin almost touching Gu Jia’s knee.
The other’s breath, erratic and shallow, hit Gu Jia’s lap.
“…” Gu Jia suddenly had the urge to scoop the person in front of him up and press him firmly against the desk.
After an unknown amount of time, Zhao Yisen finally caught sight of his personal seal. He measured the distance. “President Gu?”
I found it; can you please move?
Gu Jia watched him silently, his gaze growing deeper, indicating his stance: “Continue.”
Zhao Yisen: …?
He steeled his heart, leaned forward, and reached out to grab the personal seal from the top drawer on the left side of the desk.
As his fingertips touched the seal, the tip of his nose brushed against Gu Jia’s black belt, a patch of icy sensation.
Zhao Yisen finally got what he wanted.
However, before he could let out a sigh of relief, the gaze from above him suddenly became even more obscure and scorching.
Zhao Yisen: “…”
Lacking various experiences, the young student Zhao realized belatedly that he was currently in a very bad position.
To an outsider, he was almost kneeling on the ground on one knee, with his entire head buried in Gu Jia’s lap…
!!! Zhao Yisen finally understood why Gu Jia had been looking at him with such a strange expression.
His face burned red, and he wanted to retreat immediately
Just then, a commotion came from the corridor.
“Move everything in this office out…” Jiang Mingze appeared outside the door, directing the workers.
There was no time to stand up. Zhao Yisen was shocked and immediately dove under the desk.
Gu Jia: “…”
“Be careful not to break anything…” Jiang Mingze pushed open the glass door while instructing the workers.
He paused slightly when he saw Gu Jia sitting behind the desk.
“President Gu?”
Jiang Mingze explained, “Uh… Young Master Yi asked to have the things in this office moved back to Shanhe Real Estate.”
Gu Jia’s gaze dropped downward, then returned.
“You move it.”
“Yes.” Jiang Mingze nodded, feeling vaguely that the President’s expression was a bit odd.
He stepped aside to make room for the workers.
The workers entered the room on tiptoes and began to move the things in the office.
…
Under the desk.
Zhao Yisen huddled in the corner, clutching his knees in regret: Why did I hide? Doesn’t this make it even harder to explain!
His field of vision was limited to Gu Jia’s long legs. After squatting for a while, Zhao Yisen began to feel his legs go numb.
Perhaps because it was a bit stuffy underneath, combined with his lack of sleep, Zhao Yisen’s face turned red, and he showed signs of tipping over to the side.
As soon as he shifted, Gu Jia’s keen eyes caught it, and he extended his right leg, his knee bracing the young man’s body.
Although Zhao Yisen was filled with shame and indignation, he couldn’t overcome his physical exhaustion; he leaned his head against Gu Jia’s leg, the rest of him as red as a cooked shrimp.
The office was filled only with the sounds of moving.
Soon, the workers finished packing everything and left the office one by one, leaving only Jiang Mingze.
Having rested a bit, Zhao Yisen let go of Gu Jia’s leg and was about to move forward, but was pushed back into the innermost corner by the other’s knee.
Zhao Yisen: ?
After checking what remained in the office, Jiang Mingze returned to the desk. “President Gu, there might still be some of Young Master Yi’s things left on the desk or in the drawers, so…”
Should we clear out so he can finish organizing?
Gu Jia remained as immovable as a mountain. After a long silence, he sneered, “He will come to get them himself.”
Jiang Mingze swallowed hard… What does that mean?
Under the table, Zhao Yisen thought: He’s calling me out…
In any case, most of the things were packed.
Before leaving, Jiang Mingze steadied his nerves and decided to call Shanhe Real Estate where Yisen was, to have someone meet him.
He took out his phone, dialed the number, and smiled at Gu Jia.
“Then I’ll call Young Master Yi first.”