Back in the private room, Meng She glanced up and casually asked, “Why did you take so long?”
Yu Qinzhou followed behind Ming Qi, closing the door with one hand. Before Ming Qi could speak, he said, “We chatted for a bit. I have a cousin who’s a fan of Mr. Ming—he’d like to invite him to an outdoor barbecue party. Mr. Ming already agreed.”
Before Meng She could react, Ming Qi turned to Yu Qinzhou with a baffled look:
When did that happen? Why don’t I know about this?
Yu Qinzhou only smiled and said nothing, then asked Meng She, “Would you like to join us, Mr. Meng?”
Meng She felt a little flattered. He looked at Ming Qi, then at Yu Qinzhou, and quickly nodded.
“I’ll have everything prepared—drinks and barbecue—to welcome you both.”
When he said the word “drinks,” Yu Qinzhou deliberately emphasized it.
Ming Qi: “…”
Wait. Why did he suddenly have a bad feeling about this?
Because of Yu Qinzhou’s mention of the barbecue party, Ming Qi found himself distracted throughout the meal.
He could not resist secretly messaging Yu Qinzhou.
77.: Why are you suddenly hosting a barbecue party, Mr. Yu?
It really did not seem like something Yu Qinzhou would be interested in.
Although Yu Qinzhou was chatting with Meng She, it was as if he had expected the message. His gaze occasionally drifted to the phone lying on the table. When the screen lit up and the name [77.] flashed, he calmly picked it up and looked down.
Y: [“Mr. Yu” poked my head and said: I’ll treat you to barbecue]
Ming Qi froze for a moment at the unexpected reply.
He remembered when the “poke” feature had first come out. At the time, he was dieting for a role and had been extremely strict with food. After a few days, everything tasted bland, and after seeing a late-night barbecue video online, he had deliberately changed his poke message to something like that—so he could nudge Meng She into using it and then act pitiful enough to get treated.
Meng She had found it both annoying and funny, but still agreed to take him out after filming.
But then something came up, and they never went.
After the craving passed, Ming Qi stopped thinking about barbecue.
He had never expected that someone would remember such a casual, fleeting detail and keep it in mind.
The feeling was… strange, but warm.
Ming Qi tapped the screen, his fingertips feeling a little hot.
77.: But drinking isn’t good for your health. Can we switch to beverages instead? What do you think, Mr. Yu? [Cat looking pitiful.JPG]
Yu Qinzhou chuckled silently: Is Mr. Ming acting cute?
Ming Qi touched his face, wondering—did this count as acting cute?
So he sent a whole series of cat stickers to Yu Qinzhou, each one ridiculously adorable—exactly what Yu Qinzhou would consider “acting cute.”
Yu Qinzhou took his time saving every single sticker.
Y: Then I’ll go with what Mr. Ming says.
…
By the end of the meal, Meng She was practically glowing with happiness—and had even added Yu Qinzhou on WeChat. After eating, he quietly tried to pay the bill, only to be told it had already been settled. Startled, he quickly pulled Ming Qi aside and whispered, “What’s going on? Did you pay? Or did Mr. Yu?”
If it was Yu Qinzhou, that would feel a bit inappropriate.
Ming Qi thought, Of course it was him.
After a moment’s thought, he stuck with the earlier explanation: “Probably my family paid.”
His voice was not loud, but the words “my family” still reached the man walking leisurely beside him. Yu Qinzhou’s brow lifted slightly as he slipped his hands into his coat pockets and chuckled. “Mr. Ming’s family is very considerate.”
Ming Qi: =.=
He had never seen anyone praise himself so naturally.
With Meng She present, Ming Qi could only nod stiffly. “Yeah… my family is great.”
They exited through the south door of the restaurant toward the parking area. Normally, this was where they would say goodbye, but Yu Qinzhou suddenly turned and asked casually, “Want me to give you a ride back?”
Ming Qi blinked in surprise and was about to refuse, but when he met Yu Qinzhou’s deep, narrow eyes, he suddenly remembered—Meng She still did not know about Xijing Bay.
In that brief moment of hesitation, Yu Qinzhou had already turned to Meng She. “Where do you live, Mr. Meng? I’ll drop you off first.”
Meng She was so overwhelmed by the thought of finally riding in the Cullinan he had been dreaming about that he felt like he was floating. Whatever Yu Qinzhou asked, he answered without thinking. Only when a gust of cold wind hit him did he shiver back to his senses and ask sheepishly, “Isn’t that too much trouble?”
“Not at all. I’m pretty free anyway.”
Well… that was true.
After all, this was someone who had nothing better to do than drive a luxury car around taking ride-hailing orders.
Yu Qinzhou stuck firmly to his “persona,” leaving Meng She with no reason to doubt him.
At this point, Ming Qi had no choice but to get into the car. When he reached the door, he hesitated briefly, then chose to sit in the back seat with Meng She. Yu Qinzhou tossed his coat onto the front passenger seat and took the driver’s seat.
Meng She’s attention was completely captured by the refined and imposing interior of the Cullinan. The smile on his face could barely be suppressed, but he did not want to look uncultured, so he sat upright and secretly snapped photos with his phone.
Click, click, click—after who knew how many pictures, he picked a few subtle shots that just happened to showcase the car’s identity and posted them on Moments with excitement: Guys, I actually rode in a Rolls-Royce!
Then he put his phone away and turned to Ming Qi. “But I feel like I forgot something…”
Meng She’s place was not far from Huachang Tower—about a twenty-minute drive. When he got out, he waved at Yu Qinzhou and Ming Qi. “Thank you, Mr. Yu. I’ll leave Ming Qi in your care.”
“Not at all.”
The black luxury car drove off in the opposite direction. Meng She walked a couple of steps toward his apartment before suddenly shouting, “Holy—!”
He had been so focused on riding in the car that he completely forgot his own beat-up vehicle was still parked at Huachang’s lot!
…
Once Meng She got out, Ming Qi leaned forward, gripping the back of the front seat and poking his head closer to Yu Qinzhou, lowering his voice. “Did I interrupt your work? Maybe you can just drop me off somewhere—I can take a ride home myself.”
From the rearview mirror, Yu Qinzhou caught the hint of guilt on his face. One hand held the steering wheel, while the other reached back to gently ruffle Ming Qi’s short hair—like he did with Xiao Ba. The motion was light, almost like his palm brushed past the tips of his hair.
Ming Qi froze slightly at the unexpected touch.
“Letting you take a ride home by yourself doesn’t feel right,” Yu Qinzhou said. “But if you really feel bad about it, why not come to the office with me?”
Ming Qi: “…Huh?”
“Don’t want to go?”
It was not that he did not want to—it was just… unexpected. Ming Qi glanced at the time: 2:20 p.m. By normal standards, Yu Qinzhou had already lost quite a bit of his lunch break. He did not want him to waste more time going back and forth, so he simply nodded.
The Yu Corporation headquarters stood at the center of the capital’s financial district—a forty-two-story skyscraper with an LED curtain wall that made it stand out even among other high-end buildings. The car entered the underground garage, which was quiet during work hours. Yu Qinzhou picked up his coat and led Ming Qi into a private elevator.
Ming Qi had lived in the city for over twenty years and had passed by the financial district countless times. He had seen the Yu headquarters from the outside many times—but stepping inside was a first.
The elevator stopped at the top floor. As Yu Qinzhou walked toward his office, he said, “I’m usually on this floor. If you ever come looking for me, you can take the private elevator straight up.”
Ming Qi felt he probably would not come often—but he still nodded.
The office door opened to a space that could be described as minimalist. It was spacious, with a desk by the floor-to-ceiling windows and a dark-toned sofa off to one side. A glass partition separated the work area from the lounge. Yu Qinzhou led him into the lounge area and said, “You can use the books on the shelf or the tablet. If you’re tired, you can rest in the next room.”
“Okay.”
Not wanting to delay Yu Qinzhou, Ming Qi quickly settled into the lounge, picked a book he liked from the shelf, and curled up on the sofa.
Seeing how quietly he adapted, Yu Qinzhou smiled slightly before dialing the internal line.
Downstairs, the secretary’s office answered promptly. As soon as the call ended, one of them asked, “Didn’t they say the chairman already left? Why is he back? And he even ordered two coffees and desserts.”
The other secretaries immediately perked up, poking their heads out from behind their monitors. One narrowed their eyes thoughtfully. “In the two months I’ve worked here, I’ve only ever seen Director Xi eat desserts. The chairman has never once asked us to prepare anything like that.”
The secretary who answered the call let out an “oh” and said, “Then Mr. Xi is probably upstairs.”
She turned to prepare coffee and desserts.
…
The secretary brought the coffee and pastries to the top floor. When she delivered them to the chairman’s office, she did not see Xi Yixiu. Only Yu Qinchou was seated at the desk, eyes lowered as he reviewed documents.
The secretary felt puzzled. Just as she turned to leave, the corner of her eye caught a glimpse of a slender figure behind the glass door.
It was only a brief glance, not very clear, but she was certain she had never seen this person before.
Holy crap.
Big news.
She hurried back to the secretary office and blurted out before even thinking, “Girls! There’s someone hidden in Chairman Yu’s lounge!”
As soon as she finished speaking, Xi Yixiu turned around with a cup of coffee in hand. He looked slightly doubtful, as if he had misheard. “What did you say? Someone is hidden in Yu Qinchou’s lounge? Yu Qinchou? Are you sure?”
The secretary’s expression froze.
Could someone tell her why Mr. Xi was here?
Her eyes darted around helplessly. Under Xi Yixiu’s urging gaze, she gave an awkward laugh. “Y-yeah… I think so? Anyway, there’s someone unfamiliar in the rest area.”
Without another word, Xi Yixiu put down his coffee, grabbed a file from his office, and headed upstairs.
He pushed open the door to the chairman’s office and stretched his neck like a giraffe, looking left and right. Unfortunately, the young man in the lounge had changed position and was now reading a book with his back turned.
Damn it. Still couldn’t see his face at all.
“What are you doing?” Yu Qinchou’s voice was cold.
Xi Yixiu quickly retracted his gaze and, pretending to be serious, handed over the document. As he pulled out a chair, he said very formally, “Here to deliver a file.”
And also to see what kind of person was hidden here.
He didn’t say the last sentence out loud. His gaze landed on Yu Qinchou’s left hand. “You changed your ring? That looks like the design you made yourself back in college. Didn’t you once joke it would be a wedding ring?”
“Who told you it was a joke?” Yu Qinchou asked back.
Xi Yixiu smiled. “If it’s not a joke, then don’t tell me it’s really a wedding ring? You’ve got a partner—”
Before he could finish, his smile froze.
He slowly turned his head toward the figure behind the glass door.
No way…
Just a holiday had passed, and he had been on a week-long business trip—what exactly had happened?
Still confused, Xi Yixiu turned back to Yu Qinchou, only to notice a pair of sapphire cufflinks on his shirt sleeve.
Yu Qinchou noticed his gaze and asked leisurely, “Do you like them?”
Not understanding how the topic had suddenly shifted, Xi Yixiu nodded honestly. “They’re not bad.”
Yu Qinchou praised him lightly. “Good taste. He gave them to me.”