Chapter 60, Chapter Sixty: Go to My Room
The next day, because she had to go on a business trip in the afternoon, Shen Mengqing simply didn't go to the company in the morning and worked from home.
She had unintentionally brought that set of jewelry, which was far too expensive and troublesome, home last night. She found an empty jewelry box, carefully arranged the pieces, and planned to send them to him by express delivery, just like before. She thought it would be safer to send it to Tanxiang Road; if he didn't accept it, Aunt Chen would accept it for him.
After packing her suitcase, Shen Mengqing took a taxi to the airport. The summit was to be held in Haishi, and the flight would take nearly four hours.
She had just gotten into a ride-hailing car when she received a text message that her seat had been upgraded to first class. She knew without a doubt that Yu Xin had arranged it for her.
Since the company reimburses his travel expenses for business trips, he's happy to pay for it, and she has no objection.
The two met in the lounge. It was almost lunchtime. Shen Mengqing picked up a bowl of noodles and ate with relish. Yu Xin sat opposite her, tilted his head, and glanced at her from behind the computer screen: "Is it that delicious?"
Shen Mengqing nodded: "Would you like me to order you a bowl?"
"No need, I'm not hungry." Yu Xin turned her gaze back to the computer. "Just fill your stomach. We probably won't be able to eat dinner until after eight o'clock when we get there."
"Then what will you do?" Shen Mengqing asked.
Yu Xin shrugged and said nonchalantly, "I'll just have to make do with the airplane food."
He's a strange person. You could say he's picky about food, since he can eat his fill of airplane food; but you could also say he's not picky at all, since he's incredibly particular about the taste of even a simple wonton. Shen Mengqing thought about it and concluded that this was a common trait among those in positions of power.
After boarding, Yu Xin helped her put her carry-on bag on the overhead rack, and the two sat down side by side. Shen Mengqing suffered from dysphagia, wanting to sleep as soon as she finished eating, and by the time the plane was taxiing for takeoff, she had already fallen asleep.
Throughout the flight, she slept soundly, only occasionally waking up when her neck swayed forward and she was jolted awake, only to be swallowed up by sleepiness again in a second. Yu Xin found it amusing. He patted his shoulder, about to suggest that she could lean against him to sleep if she didn't mind, but before he could even speak, Shen Mengqing leaned against him without hesitation.
It seems that no matter what kind of creature it is, it is always most unguarded when it is sleeping.
Yu Xin was probably infected by her drowsiness, so he also leaned back lazily and closed his eyes for a nap.
At six o'clock, the plane landed, and the two were awakened by the sound of the landing gear gripping the ground.
Shen Mengqing was sore and thirsty that she swallowed several times to relieve the dryness and pain in her throat. She looked around blankly before realizing that she had fallen asleep on Yu Xin's shoulder.
However, they were no longer the kind of people who would wriggle around on your shoulder. Shen Mengqing blinked and asked Yu Xin, "Did you not eat?"
"Mmm." Yu Xin's voice was a little hoarse from just waking up. "I can't eat if you're leaning on me."
Shen Mengqing: "Then let's go out for dinner later tonight, it's on me."
"Winning 50,000 yuan makes all the difference; you speak with real confidence now."
Shen Mengqing didn't respond, too lazy to argue with him.
The summit had pre-registered the arrival time of each guest in Shanghai and arranged for a car to pick them up. The two disembarked smoothly and got into the organizer's car, which drove them to the hotel.
The hotel is situated by the sea, and the latter half of the journey is almost entirely along the coast. In winter, darkness falls early, and the sea reflects the color of the dome, an endless expanse of black. The sea and sky stretch out freely, meeting at a distant horizon. Scattered boats dot the sea, casting glimmers of daylight on its surface, bobbing gently with the waves.
Before me lay a tranquil and peaceful scene. In the face of the vastness of nature, all the troubles of the mundane world seemed insignificant and could be left behind.
Seeing that Shen Mengqing was staring intently, Yu Xin asked her in a low voice, "Do you want to go to the beach?"
Shen Mengqing turned around and answered him, "Will you have any free time these next few days?"
Yu Xin took out his phone, checked the schedule sent by the organizer, and said, "The day after tomorrow night should be fine."
"Okay, let's go for a walk on the beach the night after tomorrow."
The driver listened to the conversation between the two and silently glanced at the strikingly good-looking couple in the rearview mirror.
He was puzzled. He had checked the guest list before coming to pick up the guests, and if he remembered correctly, the man was the company chairman, and the woman was the chairman's secretary. But listening to their conversation, it sounded like the secretary was giving orders to her boss. The chairman must have a good temper to not get angry! You see, he had seen quite a few people today, and several bosses had berated their secretaries or assistants in front of him, all over trivial matters.
What's even stranger is that the aura between the two is more like that of a couple than colleagues. The driver, as if he'd stumbled upon some juicy gossip, couldn't help but glance at the person in the back seat after making his own deductions.
Not long after, his gaze met Yu Xin's cold eyes again. He was startled by Yu Xin's gaze, coughed awkwardly, and didn't dare to look again.
They arrived at the hotel along the coastline, where the hotel staff helped them settle their luggage. When checking in at the front desk, Yu Xin asked if there were any rooms with a sea view. The front desk checked and found that there was only one room left.
Yu Xin looked at Shen Mengqing. Before Shen Mengqing could speak, the expectant look on her face betrayed her thoughts. Yu Xin then booked the sea view room for Shen Mengqing at the front desk. He stayed in the room booked by the organizer.
Once in the elevator, Yu Xin crossed her arms and leaned against the wall: "Our rooms aren't together. Call me if anything happens."
“I know,” Shen Mengqing said smugly. “What could possibly happen in my deluxe ocean view room? I hope Mr. Yu isn’t uncomfortable sleeping in the single room and is just jealous of me.”
"cut."
Seeing how happy she was, Yu Xin scoffed, but the corners of his mouth unconsciously turned up in a smile.
His deluxe executive room was on a lower floor. He gave Shen Mengqing a few more instructions before stepping out of the elevator.
Shen Mengqing swiped her card to enter the room, and as soon as she opened the door, she saw the inky black twilight sea outside the glass window.
The scenery was so beautiful that Shen Mengqing took out her phone, found the right angle to take a picture, and then posted it on her WeChat Moments after a long time, with the caption:
"Would it be alright if all future summits followed this standard?"
Jiang Yu, a top-tier surfer, liked her post almost instantly and commented:
"Is the board office still hiring? I'd like to join TT."
After Shen Mengqing replied to her with a smile, Li Qinghe's comment popped up, saying that he would arrive at noon and see her in the conference hall tomorrow.
She simply replied "okay," and Yu Xin called to urge her to come downstairs for dinner.
Both of them were so hungry they could barely walk, so they decided to have a buffet at the hotel's restaurant. The buffet at a five-star hotel wasn't exactly cheap, but Shen Mengqing had already planned to treat Yu Xin to a good meal, so he generously paid the bill.
Since she was in Haishi, she naturally had to eat seafood. Shen Mengqing filled a plate with shrimp and crabs. On her way back to her seat, she happened to come across some freshly grilled oysters, so she took the opportunity to serve herself several more.
Once seated, she piled a mountain of oysters on the table: "Let's eat some together."
Yu Xin leisurely picked up her chopsticks and only picked up one piece to put on the plate.
"That's too little, have a few more." Shen Mengqing pushed the plate towards him.
Yu Xin chewed a few bites and said, "I can't eat anymore."
Shen Mengqing couldn't finish it either, and advised him, "This is good for men."
Yu Xin chuckled softly: "Hinting at me?"
"..."
She might as well eat it all.
Shen Mengqing yanked the plate back, but Yu Xin did the opposite, holding the edge of the plate firmly and finishing off a few more oysters.
Having just finished eating, Yu Xin put down his chopsticks and said seriously, "There will be a lot of people tomorrow, so stick close to me."
Shen Mengqing: "Mm."
Yu Xin: "Especially don't waste time meeting with unimportant people."
Shen Mengqing sensed a hidden meaning in his words; he probably saw Li Qinghe's comment on her WeChat Moments.
"Please rest assured, Mr. Yu, when have I ever interfered with your work?" Shen Mengqing said kindly.
Yu Xin dusted off his trousers and leaned back in his chair: "Then please continue to maintain this, Secretary Shen."
It was past nine o'clock at night when they finished dinner. Shen Mengqing was a little tired and dragged her heavy steps back to her room to rest.
Occasionally, the sea breeze would howl at night. The room's soundproofing was not very good, but fortunately, Shen Mengqing was too tired and was sleeping soundly, so the sound of the wind blowing through the glass did not wake her up.
She woke up naturally before the alarm clock rang in the morning.
My phone popped up with many new notifications, all reporting that a typhoon would make landfall tomorrow afternoon in Haishi. The winds were quite strong, and news media said it was the strongest typhoon in recent years.
The summit will end tomorrow morning, and most people will leave between tomorrow afternoon and the day after tomorrow. It seems they will have to stay here for another day.
Shen Mengqing put on his coat, walked to the glass window and opened it. The wind wasn't strong yet; the sky was blue with white clouds, a clear and calm day before the storm.
She quickly put on some makeup, changed into her formal work attire, and went downstairs for breakfast.
The dining hall was crowded, with no spare tables. Shen Mengqing spotted Yu Xin and Tang Si at a glance; they each occupied an empty table, and they were even seated next to each other. Tang Si's eyes lit up when she saw Shen Mengqing, and she waved enthusiastically to her. Yu Xin, on the other hand, simply kept his gaze fixed on her, as if he was certain she would come over.
With a poor appetite in the morning, Shen Mengqing only brought a plate of light steamed snacks. She strode forward, past Yu Xin, and sat down opposite Tang Si.
"Long time no see, Secretary Tang," she greeted with a smile.
Tang Si had been bored in her room for almost a day, but seeing Shen Mengqing cheered her up considerably: "Sister Mengqing, did you arrive yesterday too?"
Shen Mengqing replied, "Yes."
Tang Si suddenly felt the pressure of the gaze beside her. She turned her head and looked at Yu Xin, saying, "President Yu, would you like to come and sit with us?"
"OK."
The gloom on Yu Xin's face eased a bit. It seemed that Secretary Tang wasn't as inept at handling things as Zhu Shaoming had said, and he quite liked what she said.
He had just sat down next to Shen Mengqing when Li Qinghe placed a plate opposite him.
As Li Qinghe sat down and moved his chair closer, he said, "Everyone's here."
Shen Mengqing greeted him as "President Li," and Yu Xin put his hand on the table, tapping the surface absently with his fingertips, his eyes downcast, and his expression unfriendly.
"Which floor do you live on?" Li Qinghe asked Shen Mengqing casually.
Shen Mengqing said, "I'm staying in a high-rise apartment with a sea view. Mr. Yu should be in the same room arranged by the organizers, just like you."
"Oh! I saw your post on WeChat Moments last night. The scenery is really beautiful. I also want to stay in a sea-view room," Tang Si said.
Shen Mengqing teased, "Then have your boss add money to open one."
Tang Si shrank back into her seat; how could she dare to say such a thing to Li Qinghe?
"President Yu is so good to you." She leaned closer and whispered.
Shen Mengqing smiled noncommittally.
After finishing breakfast, the group headed to the conference hall together.
The summit agenda was packed, with lunch and dinner both taken at the hotel, leaving virtually no time to rest in the rooms between each event. Executives from well-known companies like Yu Xin and Li Qinghe were seated at the front on comfortable sofas, while Shen Mengqing, along with a group of company secretaries, sat on hard chairs at the back, feeling like she was being punished. After a while, her back ached, and she had to get up and walk around every now and then.
She endured it for a day and a half before finally getting rid of the hard bench.
By noon on the second day, there were already faint signs of a typhoon making landfall. The palm trees in front of the hotel were swaying and tilting in the wind. The entrance to the beach was cordoned off to prevent people from getting close. Even from a distance, one could see the turbulent sea, with waves much higher than the previous two days.
With high-speed trains and planes departing in nearly two hours still operating normally, many people rushed to leave the hotel. Since there were no suitable times for transportation back to Beicheng, Shen Mengqing and Yu Xin decided to stay here for another day.
Too windy to go out, Shen Mengqing stayed in her room and ordered room service to bring her food. She ate while watching variety shows and TV dramas to pass the time.
In the evening, she was awakened from her sleep by the sound of the wind. Outside the glass window, it was almost dark, with dark clouds looming over the city, and the waves roared and surged like ferocious beasts, constantly crashing onto the shore. Shen Mengqing stood in front of the window, and the entire pane of glass was trembling, with a whistling sound of drafts. Several thick trees downstairs had been snapped in half by the wind, and the ground was littered with many blown objects, a scene of utter chaos.
She went back to her bedside, picked up her phone, and wanted to see if anyone else had posted about the typhoon online. Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.
Shen Mengqing put on her slippers and went to open the door. Yu Xin stood at the door, staring at her and said directly, "Your sea view room is too high up, and it has glass windows. It's too dangerous."
"Yes, a little." Shen Mengqing was indeed a bit scared. "Does the hotel have any extra rooms?"
Yu Xin shook his head; he had already asked before he came.
He said, "Let's go to my room."
Shen Mengqing was taken aback: "Huh?"
“My room is on a lower floor and sheltered from the wind, so it’s definitely safer than yours.”
Yu Xin explained for a while, and seeing that she remained silent, he raised an eyebrow and said, "What, you don't dare to go?"
Shen Mengqing pondered for a moment. Staying here or going to Yu Xin's room both seemed to pose some risk to his personal safety, although they were two different threats.
Forget it, life safety is more important.
"Wait for me to get ready."
Shen Mengqing quickly put some personal items into her bag, then closed the door and left with Yu Xin.
Although Yu Xin's single room wasn't a sea-view room, it looked about the same size as hers, and it even had a sofa chair, more than enough for two people.
"You sit here for a while, I'm going to take a shower."
As soon as Yu Xin finished speaking, he began to take off his shirt one by one in front of Shen Mengqing. Shen Mengqing quickly turned his back and coughed awkwardly.
She reminded him, "Can you be more careful? I'm still here."
Yu Xin said in a flat tone, "It's not like you haven't seen it before."
"..."
If he's going to be so generous, then she won't hold back either.
Shen Mengqing turned around, stared at him, and held a glass of water, adopting the posture of a judge scrutinizing him.
Yu Xin unbuttoned his shirt, pulled it down to his innermost plain white t-shirt, then suddenly stopped, grabbed a handful of clean clothes, and headed into the bathroom.
Shen Mengqing snorted and said to his back, "Who's the one who can't take a joke? You stingy guy."
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A note from the author:
Aqing: Putting my personal safety aside for now, let's take a look at your abs first [doge emoji]
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