Chapter 2 Chapter 2 Siheyuan

On the way to the old house, Guan Mi concentrated on driving.

When the car stopped at a red light, she wanted to say that the purpose of tonight's family dinner was to meet the daughter of Gao Group.

I glanced at Shen Yanfeng in the back seat through the rearview mirror. He was resting with his eyes closed.

She pursed her lips and said, "Let's talk about it when we get there."

Forty minutes later, the car slowly stopped in front of a very imposing courtyard house with green bricks and gray tiles.

On the other side of the courtyard gate, the pink Porsche parked there pushed open its door.

Guan Mi's gaze lingered for a moment on the figure walking down from the passenger seat, and he turned his head and whispered, "Boss Shen, Miss Gao from the Gao family is here too."

Shen Yanfeng opened his eyes, "Who?"

"Gao Qi."

He didn't say anything else, perhaps he already understood.

She got out of the car to open the door and heard the sound of two high heels getting closer.

"I thought you weren't coming." Shen Xiayu's tone was a little teasing.

Chen Yanfeng stepped out of the car, the afterglow of the setting sun shining on his extremely handsome outline. The corners of his lips curled up slightly: "Second sister, I haven't seen you for half a month, how come you have lost weight again?"

"Do you think it's easy to do things under Mom's watch?" Shen Xiayu said, nudging the woman beside her with her elbow. "Gao Qi, my good sister, you met her when you were a child."

The woman who was introduced was very quiet and dignified. Her appearance was not outstanding, but she had a good temperament and her eyes gave people a gentle feeling like water.

"Hello, Sister Gao Qi." Shen Yanfeng still smiled.

Chen Xiayu curled her lips. No wonder many rich girls in the circle were fascinated by her brother who looked gentle and affectionate.

"I'm only one year older than you, why do you call me sister?"

Gao Qi smiled gently: "It doesn't matter, you can call me whatever you want, I don't care about it."

Guan Mi waited quietly by the side and closed the car door only when they were about to go in.

"Guan Mi." Shen Yanfeng suddenly turned around.

"Boss Shen." She turned around subconsciously, and the evening breeze blew past, lifting a strand of hair from her temples.

I waited for about two seconds before I heard him speak.

"You go back first."

"OK."

The guard at the door pushed open the door.

Shen Yanfeng stepped aside to let the two ladies go first.

"Chen Yanfeng," Chen Xiayu suddenly lowered her voice, "What on earth were you planning on keeping such a beautiful woman by your side for three years? At first I thought you wanted her to go out for business social events, but you actually hid her so well."

Shen Yanfeng chuckled: "Second sister actually thinks I need to rely on my beauty to do business?"

"Then tell me, why do you keep her?" Chen Xiayu raised an eyebrow. "Do you know how many people who admire you are wary of this secretary beside you?"

Gao Qi on the side interjected softly, "I heard that Secretary Guan even taught herself French in order to go on a business trip to France with Yan Feng. It seems she is a very smart and outstanding girl."

"What you said," Shen Xiayu deliberately changed the subject to another level, "Could it be that she has feelings for Shen Yanfeng?"

"What nonsense." Chen Yanfeng's expression remained unchanged. He took out a cigarette and lighter from his pocket and lit it with a "click".

He lowered his head, took a puff, and slowly blew out a smoke ring. "I asked her to learn French."

"Do you still have any manners? Don't you know I hate the smell of cigarettes?" Chen Xiayu glared at him and pulled Gao Qi, "Let's go first."

Gao Qi was pulled forward a few steps, but looked back unconsciously.

Beside the corridor pillar, Shen Yanfeng had a faint smile on his face.

So... he lit a cigarette on purpose to drive them away?

Chen Yanfeng leaned lazily against the pillar, flicking the ash of his cigarette lightly: "Second sister, if you have the leisure time, why don't you finish the projects on hand first and worry less about my people."

"His people? Are they in love?" Gao Qi couldn't help asking.

"How is that possible?" Chen Xiayu said firmly, "Let's not talk about whether it's possible or not. If they really talked about it, would he let Guan Mi open the car door? Given his personality, I'm afraid he would want to hold someone in his hands and pamper him."

Gao Qi's heart suddenly trembled: "Really?"

"He's very nice to all the women around him, except for my mom, who's the difficult one."

"But he didn't treat you..."

Chen Xiayu: "He likes to go against me verbally, but if anything happens to me, he will be the first to stand up and protect me."

As soon as he finished speaking, a loud and powerful scolding came from the direction of the dining room: "Chen Yanfeng! Smoking again! You ignored my words, didn't you?"

Then, an energetic old lady came out with a cane.

Shen Yanfeng immediately put out his cigarette and walked over in two steps: "Grandma, why didn't you tell me you were back?"

Guan Mi didn't go anywhere.

She lives far away, and it takes her about an hour and a half to get back by subway.

She lives in a three-bedroom shared apartment. Lately, her two roommates have been having a falling out, and the atmosphere in the apartment is tense. The smallest of things can lead to a huge argument. So, she'd rather stay out than go home too early.

The time when the family dinner ends depends entirely on the mood of the family. Once, Shen Yanfeng came out less than half an hour after he went in.

So she'd better wait here, lest he lose her.

She walked towards the old locust tree on the right side of the courtyard gate with her notebook. The stone table and stone bench under the tree were illuminated brightly by the tree lights, which was just right for her to quietly deal with the contract to be reviewed tomorrow.

When Shen Yanfeng came out of the old house, his face was not very good.

The old housekeeper, Uncle Yang, followed him out and asked from behind with concern whether he wanted to call a driver to take him home.

"No, I'll go to Lu's house and sit down."

My childhood friend Lu Kai’s house is right at the entrance of the alley, just a few steps away.

As soon as he walked out of the door, he caught a glimpse of a woman sitting under a locust tree.

She was concentrating on the computer, holding a bottle of yogurt with a tube in her left hand, and holding... in the other hand he couldn't help but look and found that it was the box of pastries he gave her in the morning.

Guan Mi picked up a piece with a small fork and stuffed it directly into his mouth. Just as he was about to chew, he heard footsteps approaching.

When she looked up, she saw Shen Yanfeng, who had changed into a black shirt, with one hand in his pocket, slowly stopping in front of her.

The whole person stood up subconsciously, puffed out his cheeks, and shouted "Boss Shen" indistinctly.

She pretended to be calm and chewed quickly, but she choked and frowned, so she quickly drank a few mouthfuls of yogurt.

Shen Yanfeng watched her series of actions quietly, and waited until she swallowed before speaking: "Why are you sitting here?"

“It’s nice here, not too hot.”

There was a moment of silence.

"Let's go." He turned around and suddenly stopped. "Go to my room and get my watch. It's on the desk."

"Okay." Guan Mi closed the computer, put the yogurt in his hand next to the unopened bottle, and walked quickly towards the door.

She had been in there several times in the past three years.

This courtyard house is the largest in this area. Although the decoration style inside is not luxurious, it will give people a sense of oppression.

For Guan Mi, this pressure comes from Shao Xin and her husband, both of whom dislike their youngest son, Shen Yanfeng.

Shen Yanfeng's father, Shen Minyan, is the head of the famous Shen family in Beijing and has been deeply involved in politics for decades.

The eldest son Shen Cunyi has inherited his mantle perfectly. He is able to stand on his own at a young age and his style of doing things is quite similar to his style back then.

His daughter Shen Xiayu assists Shao Xin in managing the Shaw Group.

But this youngest son just doesn't play by the rules. Instead of taking the ready-made smooth road, he insists on going to mess around with some film and television company.

Even though Shen Yanfeng has made his company the best in the industry, in Shen Minyan's eyes he is still "not doing his job properly."

He often couldn't find him, but when he checked, he found out that he was living a carefree life abroad, racing, skiing, watching football games, etc., so he particularly disliked Shen Yanfeng's casual and free nature.

Every time the father and son meet, the atmosphere becomes tense.

Something must have happened at the family dinner tonight, otherwise why would Shen Yanfeng suddenly change his clothes? His hair looked a little wet. Did he take a shower?

Guan Mi walked to the left door, puzzled. It was locked, but she knew where the key was.

The living room is still very lively.

After the door opened, she went straight to the desk and picked up the watch worth a million dollars.

When he turned around, his eyes inadvertently swept across the only photo frame on the table.

Inside is a photo that makes people look very energetic.

There were four men and one woman, all in their twenties, wearing the same racing suit. The girl in the middle was smiling brightly, with her shoulders supported by two tall, handsome men beside her.

Chen Yanfeng leaned against the car door, the wind blew the strands of hair on his forehead into a mess, his helmet was stuck in the crook of his elbow, and the smile on the corner of his mouth was vague, revealing a natural ruffian spirit.

This photo once caused heated discussions in the company group. At that time, many female employees labeled Chen Yanfeng "pure handsome", "hard handsome", and "walking hormone".

Guan Mi had heard of the girl in the photo but had never seen her. She only knew two of the men, one was Lu Kai, the other was surnamed Liao, and she had never seen the other one.

As soon as I closed the door and turned around, I met Shao Xin's scrutinizing gaze.

The other party stood quietly outside the living room, as if he had been waiting for a long time.

Without any words, Guan Mi walked towards her consciously.

"Secretary Guan," Shao Xin's voice was as cold as her expression, "remind Yan Feng to have dinner with Gao Qi on the 3rd of next month."

Guan Mi's brain was like a calendar management system, and he immediately pulled up Shen Yanfeng's schedule. "Mr. Shen will go to Paris on the 3rd of next month to sign a contract for a participating project."

"You have to go there in person," she added.

Shao Xin glanced at her with a look of surprise, "Gao Qi is holding an art exhibition this weekend. Ask Yan Feng to make time before the 3rd. Secretary Guan, you must get this done for me."

Guan Mi lowered his head slightly: "Boss Shao, I will try my best to communicate with Boss Shen, but I can't guarantee that I will be able to..."

"If you can't do it, don't eat this bowl of rice." A sharp flash of light flashed in Shao Xin's eyes, "Don't think that I can't do anything to you just because you are Yan Feng's man."

Guan Mi was silent for a moment, and finally just responded calmly: "Okay."

Actually, I don’t have the time. Tomorrow is Friday, and I have a very important industry symposium that will last the whole day. Next Monday I will fly to Hong Kong City and have an appointment with a well-known director there to discuss cooperation.

His recent schedule was almost full, including many private activities. Shen Yanfeng didn't like to have his plans disrupted.

Shen Yanfeng was already sitting in the car. Guan Mi gave him the watch first, and then went to the locust tree to collect his things.

As she was walking towards the car with her bag, Wen Li called her.

She answered hurriedly, "I haven't finished get off work yet, and I'm going to drive my boss home."

Wen Li's gentle voice came from the other end of the phone: "Driving so late? Be safe and call me when you get home."

"It's very late when you get home. You should go to bed first. I'll call you tomorrow morning." Her tone softened unconsciously.

"It's okay, I'll wait for you."

Hearing this, Guan Mi felt that all the fatigue of the day had dissipated. She lowered her eyes and smiled, and while they were still a few steps away, she talked to Wen Li for a few more words.

Shen Yanfeng in the car opened his eyes and looked at the scene outside the car through the glass.

He clearly saw that Guan Mi, who had smiled less and less in the past two years, was smiling now. His smile was very relaxed and gentle, and he kept talking for a few steps.

She is such a talkative person?

On the phone with your family?

I walked to the car and hung up the phone.

Guan Mi opened the car door, got in, fastened his seat belt and drove out.

"Let's go to Lu Kai Bar."

"OK."

I thought it would be a quiet journey as usual.

"Is that what you eat for dinner?"

Shen Yanfeng suddenly broke the silence, and she subconsciously glanced at the rearview mirror and met his deep gaze.

"Yes, it would be a waste if we don't eat it." She answered softly, with a barely perceptible embarrassment in her tone.

"Is this how you usually eat dinner?"

"If you're working late, just be casual."

"Working late..." After Shen Yanfeng repeated these words meaningfully, he suddenly laughed and saw her face becoming a little nervous in the rearview mirror.

"How about giving you a raise next month?"