Chapter 41 (The Dog-Headed Boss)
"Of course, you forgot I took her to go racing last time? Our families know each other, and we even lived in the same neighborhood when we were kids. I even had dinner with her when I went back to Chucheng not long ago."
Li Qinghe kept throwing out examples to prove that he and Shen Mengqing were very close. Yu Xin stood aside with his arms crossed, listening silently. After Li Qinghe finished speaking, he casually said, "That's good."
Shen Mengqing didn't want to continue the topic. Just then, two more people happened to enter, diverting Yu Xin and Li Qinghe's attention.
Now that everyone had arrived, the dinner officially began. Shen Mengqing and several other secretaries sat at the back, leaving the battle to their respective bosses.
Looking around, the three people at the table were the youngest: Yu Xin, Li Qinghe, and Wan Qun.
Li Qinghe should be about the same age as her, and Wan Qun looks to be in his early thirties. So, Yu Xin is the youngest.
He was now surrounded and seated in the center of the room. His tailored suit was stretched and flattered by his tall, well-built physique. The room was too warm, so he unbuttoned the first button of his shirt, revealing a hint of his collarbone, exuding an air of asceticism and aloofness.
How come she hadn't noticed before? Yu Xin's every move exuded an air of effortless elegance, completely unlike a lazy rich kid. In this world of fame and fortune, he seemed to have never struggled in the mundane world of money and power, but rather someone born to control his desire for power, looking down arrogantly at the masses vying for fame and fortune.
Sitting next to Shen Mengqing was Li Qinghe's secretary, also a girl. She took the initiative to exchange names with Shen Mengqing, saying that her name was Tang Si.
Tang Si looked sunny and cheerful. Having graduated less than two years ago, she felt a little closer to Shen Mengqing after hearing that her boss was very familiar with her. She said, "Sister Mengqing, you are so beautiful, and your boss is so handsome. You two are like the male and female leads in the Korean drama 'Secretary Kim'!"
Shen Mengqing saw the naivety in Tang Si's face, a naivety that hadn't been completely defeated by the class mentality. She smiled and said, "After you've worked for a few more years, you might think we're like enemies who can't stand each other."
“I understand,” Tang Si said in a low voice. “After all, he’s my boss. No matter how handsome he is, when it comes to work, all I want to do is grab a knife and chop him up.”
Upon hearing this, Shen Mengqing deliberately teased her, "What, do you want to chop up Li Qinghe?"
Tang Si immediately blushed and protested, "I didn't! Sister Meng Qing, please don't tell President Li."
"Don't worry, I won't."
Shen Mengqing patted Tang Si on the back; the little one was really easily frightened.
Once the waiter had filled everyone's glasses with wine, the meal began. The people at the head of the table urged Yu Xin to give the opening remarks, and he readily agreed, leisurely raising his glass.
His speech was brief and concise. After he finished speaking, someone in the room shouted "Bravo!" and applause broke out all around. He raised his glass, tilted his head back, and drank the wine in it in one swift and decisive motion.
Then, his gaze passed over the long table and fell on Shen Mengqing in the distance.
When their eyes met, Shen Mengqing's heartbeat became uncontrollably disordered, unable to understand his meaning.
"Perfect timing, let me introduce my secretary to you all, Shen Mengqing."
Yu Xin's eyes were fixed on her, not moving an inch. Shen Mengqing did not expect him to introduce her in such a formal setting in front of everyone. In her mind, he would only mention it briefly when toasting in private.
Feeling the gazes of everyone in the room, she forced herself to calm down, smiled, stood up, raised her glass, and said, "Please continue to support me in the future."
After she finished her drink, Yu Xin looked away, her eyes turning cold.
Shen Mengqing's toast was quite forceful, which won him a round of applause. Many people followed up by praising Yu Xin, saying that Yu Sheng had not only gained more and more talent in recent years, but his business had also been doing better and better.
Yu Xin smiled wryly and said humbly that he still needed to work harder.
As the drinking party progressed, someone pulled out a lighter, and the smoke that followed spread throughout the banquet like an inextinguishable fire.
Shen Mengqing sighed deeply, knowing he was about to have to smell that awful cigarette smoke again.
Wan Qun sat down next to Yu Xin, casually handed him a cigarette, and said, "Good stuff from abroad, want to have one?"
"No, thank you," Yu Xin replied.
Seeing this, Li Qinghe teased, "I don't know what's gotten into him lately. No matter how much I try to persuade him, he won't smoke. He insists that he's quit."
Wan Qun raised an eyebrow: "Oh."
He then seemed to remember something, and his expression darkened: "It's not because your father passed away, is it?"
Yu Xin's expression remained unchanged: "No."
Li Qinghe gave Wan Qun a wink, signaling him not to bring up such a thing.
Amidst the clinking of glasses, Yu Xin glanced casually at the people at the back of the table and raised her hand to call over a waiter.
He turned his head and whispered a few words to the waiter. Not long after, the waiter placed three air purifiers near the door of the last seat.
This action attracted the attention of several people. Wan Qun stared at Yu Xin in astonishment and said, "Dude, you've become a smoke-free ambassador?"
Yu Xin picked up her chopsticks, took two bites of food, and put them in her mouth, ignoring his joke.
Shen Mengqing's people naturally saw it too. Tang Si, who was next to her, whispered in her ear, "Oh my god, Sister Mengqing, I suddenly think your boss is so charming."
"Huh?" Shen Mengqing asked, puzzled.
"He doesn't even smoke, and he's so thoughtful; he even had the waiter bring over an air purifier."
Shen Mengqing twitched her lips. Are young girls these days so easily moved?
She said earnestly, "Secondhand smoke is very bad, but we've been forced to endure it for too long."
Tang Si nodded: "You're right."
Once the banquet started, the atmosphere became lively, and everyone began to freely offer toasts.
As a newly appointed secretary, Shen Mengqing inevitably had to make an appearance in front of her senior secretaries. She left her seat and got to know each of them in the past, leaving the major clients to Yu Xin Social.
After she finished her round of drinks and returned to her seat, she found an unread message on her phone.
She clicked on it with a puzzled look, and it was a message from Yu Xin.
The boss, a real jerk: "You can drink that much?"
"..."
She looked up and saw two middle-aged men, their faces flushed from drinking, chatting with Yu Xin. He listened silently with his head down, seemingly oblivious to her presence.
Shen Mengqing typed in the input box:
"I'll learn from you^^"
Nothing can compare to his spirit of drinking it all in one gulp.
At this moment, Yu Xin picked up her phone and multitasked with replying to Shen Mengqing's message.
The boss said, "Stop drinking. People who are still on the waiting list for resignation in the system can't take paid leave."
It's so annoying to look at!
Shen Mengqing put down her phone, too lazy to reply to him again.
...
As the dinner party ended, the people at the table gradually dispersed.
Shen Mengqing was at the very back. She had been walking with Tang Si, but at some point Li Qinghe deliberately lagged behind a few steps and walked alongside her. Tang Si, quick-witted, quickened her pace, leaving the two of them to talk.
Li Qinghe turned his head and looked at Shen Mengqing: "I haven't had a chance to ask yet, how did you become Yu Xin's secretary? Aren't you planning to go back to Chucheng?"
"It's a long story. I returned to Chucheng because I felt my career development was somewhat limited, but when the opportunity to become the company secretary came up, I didn't want to miss it," Shen Mengqing summarized in his reply.
Li Qinghe understood. The scene of his first meeting with Shen Mengqing flashed before his eyes. He smiled and said, "You really are still so passionate about your work. What about Aunt Hao? Have you told her yet?"
"I told her, and although she was a little sad, she got used to it."
Shen Mengqing called Hao Meng immediately last night to tell her. Hao Meng was a little disappointed, but when he thought about how he hadn't spent much time with Shen Mengqing when he was young and had been busy making money, he supported her choice.
More importantly, it's easier for Shen Mengqing to have more contact with Li Qinghe in Beicheng, and she now wants to see Shen Mengqing get married.
"Have you ever thought about bringing Aunt Hao to live in Beicheng?" Li Qinghe asked her.
Shen Mengqing shook his head: "My mother used to work hard outside for a long time, and now she just wants to stay at home and enjoy her retirement. I have three aunts, and she spends every day with them. Since coming to Beicheng, she doesn't know many people and is not as happy."
"I see." Li Qinghe changed the subject, his smile widening. "Then does that mean we'll have to help each other out for a while longer?"
Shen Mengqing knew he was talking about blind dates, and generously said, "No problem, as long as I'm still single, you can use me as an excuse."
Li Qinghe: "I'll use it however I want."
Seeing Shen Mengqing smile without saying a word, Li Qinghe asked her curiously, "What, do you have another reason with your mother?"
Shen Mengqing said honestly, "No, but to be honest with her, we're just ordinary friends. If I said I was getting to know you better, she'd probably have already chosen the date for our wedding banquet by the next day."
Li Qinghe was amused by her, and their laughter carried on the wind to the ears of those ahead.
After seeing everyone off, only Yu Xin and Shen Mengqing remained in front of the gate.
Neither of them spoke, and they stood together in the chilly autumn wind. The wind that passed through Shen Mengqing's hair blew across Yu Xin's face, and the atmosphere grew increasingly cold, a stark contrast to the earlier commotion.
Shen Mengqing waited for Yu Xin to leave first, and then she would take a taxi back.
She put her hands in her pockets, looked down at the tips of her shoes, and urged Yu Xin to get up quickly; she didn't want to stand there as punishment.
Suddenly, a black car stopped in front of the two of them. Shen Mengqing looked up and saw Chen Mo sitting in the driver's seat.
She nodded to Chen Mo through the window, and Yu Xin finally moved, taking a long stride to open the back door.
Before getting into the car, he turned to look at Shen Mengqing and said coldly, "Get in the car."
Shen Mengqing: "?"
Yu Xin: "I wouldn't go so far as to let a female colleague who has been drinking go home by herself late at night."
"oh."
Shen Mengqing walked to the passenger seat in small steps. Just as she placed her hand on it, she heard Yu Xin say, "Sit in the back."
Pshaw, she won't listen.
Shen Mengqing quickly opened the passenger door, sat down, and closed it in one smooth motion.
Once Yu Xin was seated in the back, Chen Mo took out a perfume bottle from his hand and handed it to him.
Yu Xin gestured with his chin toward the front seat and said, "Let her use it first."
Shen Mengqing accepted the perfume Chen Mo offered, somewhat puzzled.
Chen Mo stepped on the gas and explained in a flat tone, "After attending these kinds of gatherings, you'll smell of smoke. Spraying perfume can cover it up a bit. President Yu always sprays perfume after social events."
Yu Xin: "..."
The last sentence was just me being nosy.
Shen Mengqing grabbed her collar and smelled it; it really did smell of smoke. She picked up her perfume and sprayed it on herself two or three times. Instantly, the woody scent of Yu Xin filled her clothes.
She originally intended to return it to Chen Mo, but then remembered that Yu Xin hadn't used it yet, so she turned around and handed it to him.
Yu Xin leaned back lazily in his chair, the receding streetlights casting flickering light on his face. He stretched out his long arm and took the perfume bottle; the bottle was too small, and his fingers touched Shen Mengqing's fingertips.
Shen Mengqing withdrew her hand quickly, but Yu Xin still noticed why her hand was so cold.
"Turn up the temperature," he said to Chen Mo.
Even after the air conditioning was turned up, Shen Mengqing still didn't feel any warmth, probably because the other two people in the car were too quiet—one was a silent robot, and the other was a grumpy, cold block.
She reached out to adjust the air vent to point it at her, when suddenly the car's phone rang, and the car screen lit up, displaying the three large characters "Liang Meilin".
When Shen Mengqing saw the character "Lin," he felt it looked familiar. It seemed that he had seen this person make a phone call when he was riding in Yu Xin's car, but he hadn't answered the call.
The Bluetooth connection was to Yu Xin's phone. Chen Mo asked, "Should I answer?"
"I'm hanging up now, I'll call back later," Yu Xin said.
Chen Mo replied, "Okay."
-----------------------
Author's Note: Li Qinghe: A stroke of good luck! I have so many more opportunities now! [Sunglasses]
Xinzi: It's so noisy in the back, woof woof woof!
That wicked dog always cleverly sprays himself with perfume before going to find Ah Qing.
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