Chapter 34
The employees at Dongjian had recently noticed that their boss was no longer working late, which was a departure from his usual routine of staying later than them. In fact, he now left the office at roughly the same time as them, and sometimes even earlier.
“Our boss is finally acting like a real boss. He used to work so late that I felt bad leaving before him,” remarked Jiang Xiaowen with appreciation.
“Do you guys have any idea who our boss’s partner is? We can’t seem to find any clues,” another employee wondered.
“I’m not sure. He still uses his chauffeured car to come and go from work. Maybe we’re mistaken, and he doesn’t have a partner after all?”
“How could that be? Would not being in a relationship cause such a dramatic change in his demeanor? Personally, I think it’s because Mr. Xiao isn’t coming around as often recently. Didn’t he start coming by again not too long ago? I bet they had a fight earlier.”
A male coworker chimed in, “Hey, can you guys stop gossiping? Are you still trying to match our boss with Mr. Xiao from the Xiao family? Aren’t you afraid our boss will marry into a wealthy family and be mistreated? Mr. Xiao is known for being quite flirtatious!”
The female coworkers immediately ganged up on him, with one saying, “Where did you see that Mr. Xiao is flirtatious? He comes to our company every few days. Where would he find the time to be flirtatious?”
The male coworker quickly sought forgiveness, “Alright, alright, I won’t argue with you. I’ll shut up.”
“What are you guys talking about?” A voice interrupted their conversation.
Everyone in the office was startled and turned to the door.
Jiang Xiaowen was the first to respond, “Oh, it’s nothing, Mr. Fu. We were just discussing some project-related matters. Are you leaving for the day?”
“Yes, I have something to attend to. You can all leave early if your work is done,” Fu Yu replied.
“Alright, thank you, Mr. Fu. Have a safe journey.”
Fu Yu closed the office door and glanced at the wall clock. It was only 5:30, and he was leaving half an hour early. He felt a bit guilty for not setting a good example for his subordinates, but Xiao Yi had invited him for dinner tonight, and Xiao Yi always arrived early. He didn’t want to keep him waiting for too long.
The driver took them to the restaurant they had agreed upon. As they entered, Xiao Yi was already there, as expected. Usually, they chose upscale and elegant restaurants in the city for their meetings, all arranged by Xiao Yi. However, today’s restaurant was more casual, and the prices were relatively reasonable. According to Xiao Yi, the chefs here specialized in authentic local cuisine.
Fu Yu usually didn’t pay much attention to his meals and would eat at the company cafeteria when he didn’t have any business dinners. However, these days, Xiao Yi had been taking him to various places to eat and drink, and surprisingly, he had gained a few pounds despite his naturally lean physique.
“This place is not easy to find, right? I told you I’d pick you up,” Xiao Yi said considerately as he pulled out a chair for Fu Yu.
“No need, I’m afraid the people from the company might notice,” Fu Yu replied.
Xiao Yi’s actions paused for a moment. “What if they do notice?”
“It’s not a big deal, but let’s not let them find out for now.”
If his subordinates discovered his relationship with Xiao Yi, the news would undoubtedly spread. He didn’t mind personally, but it might have a negative impact on Xiao Yi. Besides, he hadn’t fully determined the extent of his feelings for Xiao Yi. If they were to go public, it should only be done when their feelings were clear.
“Alright, I’ll follow your lead.”
As soon as they took their seats, the dishes started arriving one after another. Clearly, Xiao Yi had given advance orders to the kitchen. This restaurant only offered dine-in services, and the two of them, both distinguished individuals, attracted the attention of other diners. Especially Fu Yu, who was dressed meticulously in a suit, drew frequent glances from the others.
They talked about company matters, project details, and some trivial matters unrelated to work. Despite being separated for many years, their previous sense of understanding remained.
Fu Yu saw Xiao Yi’s lively and carefree smile while he was talking and felt a warm sensation in his heart.
Xiao Yi should live like this, leading a carefree and comfortable life. He, the fortunate and talented son, shouldn’t have to experience sorrow and pain.
But he had caused Xiao Yi to go through so much suffering.
Fu Yu’s thoughts drifted for a moment. Had he done enough to make amends?
To make amends for past mistakes and reciprocate the other person’s feelings, he had to repay with an equal measure of emotion. But until now, he was still uncertain if his own feelings had reached that level, and he couldn’t distinguish how much of it was due to guilt and how much was genuine affection.
These ambiguous emotions were far from deserving someone as affectionate and wholehearted as Xiao Yi.
“What are you thinking about? Focus on eating,” Xiao Yi said, raising his chopsticks and tapping the ones that Fu Yu had paused.
Fu Yu snapped back to reality and was about to respond when a female voice chimed in from the side:
“Mr. Xiao, good evening…”
Fu Yu looked up at the voice and saw a lovely girl standing next to their table. She had a shy and timid look on her face, her gaze fixed unwaveringly on Xiao Yi, and her cheeks slightly flushed.
Xiao Yi took a second to recall and then said, “Lan Lingling?”
Lan Lingling nodded rapidly and couldn’t hide her delight that Xiao Yi remembered her. “What a coincidence, are you here with friends too?” She politely inquired, intending to greet Xiao Yi’s friend as well, but her gaze remained fixed on him.
Being in the entertainment industry, she had seen all sorts of handsome and beautiful male celebrities. However, none of them exuded the same charisma as the man before her. His cool and elegant demeanor created an instinctive sense of distance, yet she couldn’t resist the urge to get closer to him and understand him.
The man elegantly wiped his mouth and spoke with a voice as pure and slightly cool as melting snow, “Hello, I’m Fu Yu.”
Lan Lingling came to her senses and hurriedly said, “Hello! I’m Lan Lingling!”
Seeing that Lan Lingling was still staring at Fu Yu, Xiao Yi furrowed his brows unhappily. “Are you here with friends? Your friend should be waiting for you; you should go back.”
But Lan Lingling interpreted this as considerate concern. “Okay, Mr. Xiao, you two enjoy your meal. I won’t disturb you.” She obediently returned to her own table.
“This is the young artist who was signed to Xiong Yu after being oppressed by Guangyu.” Xiao Yi explained in one sentence and didn’t dwell on this small incident, shifting the conversation casually.
However, Fu Yu was lost in thought.
The girl just now reminded him of something: Xiao Yi was liked by many people, and most of those people, like Xiao Yi liked him, loved him silently.
Just like Lan Lingling, her admiration was so obvious and pure, a complete expression of infatuation with someone. She could be happy just because she heard Xiao Yi say a few words, and she didn’t want to disturb him any further. Perhaps being friends with Xiao Yi was more than enough for her, and she didn’t dare to hope for more.
Her love was gentle, humble, considerate, and affectionate, exactly like Xiao Yi’s feelings for him.
Fu Yu couldn’t help but ask himself, what did he have that deserved Xiao Yi’s affection? Could he truly provide the kind of emotion the other person wanted?
Perhaps Xiao Yi and someone like Lan Lingling, who already liked him, would be happier together?
Thinking of this, an inexplicable bitterness washed over him.
