Chapter 25 My wife likes to eat
Haicheng, private banquet terrace.
The neon lights of the night dyed the sea surface into shimmering waves, like a dancing satin ribbon. The lights of the skyscrapers opposite reflected off the man's deep-set face, making his facial features appear extremely prominent.
When talking to business partners, he always seemed indifferent and unpredictable, making it difficult to discern his attitude.
After a long and drawn-out discussion with his business partners, Ji Peiheng succinctly maximized the Ji family's negotiating interests with just a few words: "Mr. Wang, I am a businessman, not a philanthropist."
He smiled, but the sharpness and assertiveness in his smile put immense pressure on the business partner, who wiped away his sweat: "President Ji, I'm afraid I'll have to discuss your terms with the head office."
Ji Peiheng nodded: "Please do as you wish."
After a while, the business partner returned, raised his glass, and said, "Mr. Ji, the person in charge said that we will proceed according to your terms."
Ji Peiheng swirled his wine glass, then gently touched it to his lips, creating tiny ripples: "Pleasure doing business with you."
He held the clear glass with slightly bent knuckles, the silver light of the ring on his fingertip shining out prominently.
The business partners had also heard some rumors about his marriage and said, "Mr. Ji, we haven't had a chance to wish you a happy marriage yet. Your wife must be very beautiful to be worthy of you."
Ji Peiheng twirled the wedding ring on his finger, his tone indifferent: "It is beautiful."
His expression remained unchanged, but the business partner could still detect a hint of... pride in his tone, as if he had been praised.
After chatting for a while, the business partner's phone rang. He glanced at the person on the other end and said apologetically, "Mr. Ji, my wife is calling to check up on me. Excuse me for a moment."
The business partner was standing on the balcony making a phone call. He was trying to calm the other person down, saying in a mix of coaxing and anxiety, "No... I didn't drink much. I'll be back in a bit, okay..."
When he returned, he smiled apologetically and said, "Mr. Ji, my wife made a mountain out of a molehill. I'm sorry you had to see this."
Ji Peiheng gave a slight smile: "Madam is just concerned about you."
His eyes glanced at the phone on the table; its black LCD screen was gleaming and translucent, utterly silent.
Liao Nan, who was closest to him, could clearly sense that he was in a bad mood during the second half of the social event, and a fleeting emotion seemed to pass through his deep eyes.
It's very fast, and hard to tell.
He leaned closer and said, "President Ji, it's almost time. Would you like to go back and rest?"
Ji Peiheng gave a faint "hmm": "I'm going to the restroom."
As soon as he left, the phone screen on the table lit up.
Liao Nan looked at the caller ID and was surprised to see that it was Shi Yang calling.
"Madam, Mr. Ji has gone to the restroom. Would you like to wait for him?"
After a moment of silence, the person on the other end said, "No need, I'm fine too."
After Ji Peiheng returned, he took his coat and turned to leave.
Liao Nan stepped forward and handed him the phone: "Mr. Ji, your wife just called you."
Ji Peiheng paused in his tracks: "What did she say?"
“I told you you went to the restroom, and then your wife hung up.”
Ji Peiheng picked up the phone and dialed back.
Shi Yang was about to go to sleep when a sudden phone call startled her so much that she almost dropped her phone.
Looking at the constantly changing caller ID, she felt a strange sense of unease.
I pressed the green button and whispered, "Hello?"
A soft "hmm" came from the other end.
Silence fell on both sides, and no words were spoken.
The atmosphere was too quiet, and an inexplicable sense of awkwardness lingered in her heart. She wanted to break the tension quickly: "Are you asleep?"
The moment she asked the question, she wanted to bite her tongue off.
What kind of question is that?
Ji Peiheng responded: "No."
She thought she heard the sounds of traffic and horns, which sounded like they were still outside.
"Then you should rest early..."
"Missing me?"
His voice trailed off in a low, rising tone, carrying a subtle magnetism mixed with a faint electrical current that traveled through the telephone and into Shi Yang's eardrums.
It sounds strangely nice.
Shi Yang changed the subject: "When are you coming back?"
"the day after tomorrow."
"……oh."
Lu Qingqing suddenly turned over in bed, opening her eyes a crack: "What are you doing sneaking around in the middle of the night instead of sleeping?"
Shi Yang covered her phone: "I'll talk to you later. Have a good business trip and get some rest."
The dim yellow light from the streetlights cast vertical lines on the man's body, making his sculpted features appear even more profound as they stood at the boundary between light and shadow.
While focused on driving, Liao Nan glanced at the rearview mirror and clearly saw the pleasure in the man's eyes.
"Go to the old western part of the city," Ji Peiheng suddenly ordered.
Liao Nan didn't ask why, but his intuition told him that President Ji's decision to turn the car around and go to a place more than an hour away from Yiguang was related to his wife.
An hour and a half later, Ji Peiheng appeared in front of an old-fashioned snack street.
The food street was too narrow for cars to drive in, so they walked in.
After wandering around the streets for a while, Liao Nan saw Ji Peiheng stop in front of a dessert shop.
The dessert shop had a large lock on the door, indicating that it was closed.
Liao Nan said, "Mr. Ji, how about I come back tomorrow to buy some more?"
"It's too late."
Too late? They're not going back until the day after tomorrow; tomorrow is more than enough time. How could it be too late?
Ji Peiheng had already dialed the phone number left on the shop door.
When the boss received the call, he immediately refused upon seeing how late it was.
Unexpectedly, the other party urgently needed a serving and generously stated that money was not a problem.
Twenty minutes later, the shop owner, wearing a coat, hurriedly rode over on an electric scooter: "Sorry to keep you waiting, what kind of dessert would you like?"
"Cherry pie".
The owner looked a bit embarrassed: "The dessert you requested is our shop's signature dish, all made to order, and the cherries were picked fresh from the fruit market this morning. It's probably not feasible right now. How about you choose another dessert?"
"I want cherry pies," Ji Peiheng said succinctly. "You can contact the fruit market; money isn't a problem."
The boss wiped his sweat: "Well... okay then."
As he made the call, he sized up the distinguished-looking man in front of him, thinking to himself, "What a spoiled rich young master this is."
Forty minutes later, the freshly picked cherries, still damp with the night's moisture, were delivered. Liao Nan gave them a very generous reward: "Thank you for your hard work."
Half an hour later, the cherry pie was ready.
"Would you like to eat here or take away?"
Ji Peiheng said, "Take him away."
The shop owner put the two cherry pies into a small box, then put it in a bag, and casually asked, "Are you buying these for a friend?"
Ji Peiheng took the bag, and even through it, he could smell the sweet aroma of cherries: "My wife loves them."
The boss smiled and said, "There aren't many men who treat their wives this well these days. Your wife must love you very much."
Ji Peiheng paused for a moment, then remained silent.
Liao Nan transferred the money to the boss and said to Ji Peiheng, "Sir, let's go back to the hotel."
"Okay, book your flight for tomorrow."
Liao Nan was taken aback: "You're going back to Beijing tomorrow? What about those officials you were supposed to meet later?"
Ji Peiheng patted his shoulder and said with great trust, "It's up to you now."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com