You didn't sleep well last night.
Jingting.
This was the first time Xu Qin had come to a high-end bar like ACCRO alone. Although Yunhe Entertainment paid him a salary much higher than the industry average, he never frequented such places in his private life. Firstly, he needed to save money to support his family, and secondly, he wanted to maintain a down-to-earth and reliable image as a hardworking man at the company.
During the early stages of securing investment for "Yan Ge Xing", he often accompanied President Jiang to various social events. Knowing that his boss was aloof and taciturn, he volunteered to take on the role of a bartender who would fend off drinks, make a fool of himself, and handle ordering and billing. Logically speaking, he should be considered worldly-wise, but when he actually sat at the bar, he felt extremely uncomfortable.
After figuring out that this "unease" stemmed from "the fact that he earned the money without stealing or robbing, but the first thing that came to his mind was guilt and a sense of unworthiness," he scanned the QR code and browsed the wine list, deciding to have a good time tonight.
“Hey, this one, ‘Moët & Chandon Thirteen Black Pearl’…” Xu Qin loudly called over the bartender behind the counter. As the page scrolled over the corresponding image, a blindingly bright CMB·58888 made his voice drop eight decibels instantly. “This one below, what’s Moët & Chandon 92, is that also a whisky, right?”
"That's right, that section is all whisky, Pomeranian 92, 6888 a bottle, you can order directly online."
Xu Qin still felt the pinch, but it would be beneath him to go any further. So, he gritted his teeth and rubbed his thumb against the plus sign after CMB·6888, then met the bartender's smiling gaze: "This is it!"
...
"Expensive wines are just so delicious! Why didn't I realize that before? I used to only taste the bitterness..." Xu Qin drank half a bottle in one go, like a nemesis, shaking his head and swirling the tea-colored liquid in his glass, and began to sigh to himself.
His phone was face down on the bar counter, buzzing loudly. It was right next to him, but he didn't want to look at it; it was just those annoying, trivial things.
For example, "My wife just got pregnant with twins, and our one-bedroom apartment, which we've only been paying off the mortgage for a few years, is no longer enough. We need to find a three-bedroom apartment right away. But we can't afford a new apartment in a good location, and we also have to consider the children's future schooling. So we can only choose an old, dilapidated apartment."
For example, "The younger generation that I personally mentored has become too independent. Taking advantage of the New Year's holiday when I was busy appeasing my wife and keeping an eye on things, he overstepped his bounds and tried to get close to General Manager Jiang. Now he's causing a ruckus in the company group chat every day."
For example, "General Manager Jiang, who usually doesn't interfere in company affairs and can't even remember all the employees' names, actually sent a WeChat message to his subordinate to explain and apologize, right when he hadn't approved the junior staff's budget application in time."
"What the hell does President Jiang mean?!" The sense of crisis that had been swirling in his mind for a long time was amplified by his drunkenness, and he irritably unlocked his phone, opened the pinned WeChat chat, and began to decipher the message word by word.
"I didn't have time to tell you about my problem."
The first time he spoke directly to Lin Duole in the company's group chat, President Jiang didn't respond. Instead, he did so five or six days after Lin Duole had been ignored. Was it because he hadn't responded to that stupid "intention solicitation" in the group? Was this a direct challenge to him?
Looking back, he had just asked, "Where did you get the budget?" when President Jiang immediately sent five large red envelopes in the group chat. Wasn't that a direct challenge to him? It was probably not just a challenge, but also a way of backing up Lin Duole!
What kind of spell did this sissy-like guy cast on President Jiang? Could it be that President Jiang is...?!
Wow! No wonder Mr. Jiang is 35 and still unmarried and childless!
Realizing this, Xu Qin retreated, his sense of crisis reaching its peak. In terms of seniority and loyalty, he had it all figured out. If it came down to that, he'd be a father of two by now. Besides, there wasn't even time to bend over backwards.
His concept of homosexuality was rather vague, but considering that President Jiang was a handsome, wealthy, and domineering CEO, if he were to develop some kind of eye disease and actually fall for him, he might not necessarily be unhappy about it...
Xu Qin thoughtfully brought the glass to his lips, subconsciously pinching his beer belly, which seemed disproportionate to his thin frame. As he pinched it, the image of Lin Duole's youthful energy inexplicably appeared in his eyes, so he silently put the glass down again.
The water droplets on the outside of the glass caused Xu Qin's hand to slip, and the thick bottom of the glass slammed onto the bar with a loud thud. He was startled and shuddered at his own bizarre thought: "Damn! I must have been under too much pressure lately and messed up my brain!"
Perhaps because he had just momentarily lost in daydreams and imagined himself as the domineering CEO's lover, he withdrew some of his suspicious speculations and began to list all of President Jiang's good qualities—
Not long ago, when he was handing out celebratory eggs at the company, General Manager Jiang learned that his wife was pregnant and slipped a 10,000 yuan red envelope into his workstation. It was a thick envelope with no formalities or signature, but it was definitely General Manager Jiang's style.
He admitted that he was being stubborn by arguing with a young man who had just entered the workforce. Actually, he wasn't trying to pick a fight with Lin Duole; he was just angry that Lin Duole, as his apprentice, hadn't given him, his master, an explanation.
"Sigh, forget it. If you're going to be the boss, you have to act like one. Don't cause any more trouble for President Jiang because of what we're doing." Xu Qinping calmed himself down and downed a glass for his sense of the bigger picture. "President Jiang is abroad taking care of his little darling. He's probably even more worried than I am."
After finishing his drink, he switched to the company's large WeChat group, clicked on the Weibo link posted by Lin Duole, and then liked the most popular comment in the comment section that read "Give a shout-out to Manner singer Janus".
Having decided that he had drunk enough, Xu Qin twisted the cap on the bottle of CMB 3444 and pushed it toward the bartender.
"Please store this wine for me. I'll bring my apprentice over to drink with me another day."
-
Jiang Songhe stormed out of Jonathan's room, room A, in a fit of rage.
He intended to just get off the elevator and leave, never to return. But as soon as he reached the elevator door, he saw his usually meticulously styled hair reflected in the metal, now looking worse than a bird's nest. He muttered "Damn it" under his breath, turned back, swiped his card, and entered room B.
After taking a quick shower, while drying his hair, he wandered aimlessly around the green-toned room. When he reached the window, he saw that there was indeed an infrared device installed on the exterior wall. He clicked his tongue and complained that TANG had put in too much effort for the sake of appearances.
"The windows are all installed, but they don't want to install the door. They didn't know that the outside is... tsk, what's it to me?"
After venting his frustrations, he turned around and went to the kitchen based on his memory from last night. He first ran a finger across the island countertop. It was fine; there was no dust. Then he opened the double-door, smart-partitioned refrigerator. Not bad; it could store many kinds of fresh ingredients for Song Yun to nourish her body.
He took out the room key from his pocket, pondered for a long time, and finally decided that he could not let Kun Ji'en label him as a "grandson's assistant" for nothing.
...
Jiang Songhe returned to the Rosewood Hotel feeling refreshed, retrieved his two pre-packed suitcases, checked out at the front desk downstairs, opened a ride-hailing app, and entered "Tang Dynasty" as his destination.
After shifting the focus, the next crucial task was explaining to Jiang Songyun how he had gone back on his word and acted unilaterally. His younger brother's improved attitude towards him was hard-won, so the method of honest explanation couldn't be as forceful as before.
Through WeChat conversation, Jiang Songhe subtly inquired that Jiang Songyun had gained a lot from today's training and was in a good mood. Taking advantage of this, he went downstairs, bought an iced Americano, and arrived early at the restaurant on the middle floor of the TANG Building, waiting for Jiang Songyun to come over for lunch after class.
Yesterday, before parting, Jiang Songhe left the black nanny bag with Jiang Songyun, which contained the new thermos he had given Jiang Songyun.
During the audition, the two brothers had a minor argument over the pink and blue Little Prince model. This new water bottle was actually bought by Jiang Songhe when they went to the specialty store together that night to buy ingredients for corn and shrimp dumplings.
He asked the salesperson to recommend many models, and finally chose a low-key-looking temperature-regulating model.
Considering that Jiang Songyun was in a closed training camp and it would be inconvenient for her to go out to buy daily necessities, Jiang Songhe left the new water bottle along with a fully stocked nanny bag for Jiang Songyun. However, she never had the chance to find out whether Jiang Songyun liked it or knew how to use it.
The two brothers sat facing each other at opposite ends of the dining table. When Jiang Songhe saw Jiang Songyun replenishing his water with sweat and using the new water bottle, his anxiety suddenly doubled. He hesitated, wondering if he should wait for a better time to speak.
Jiang Songyun had probably been thirsty all morning and hadn't eaten yet, so he chugdled water to satisfy his thirst. Putting down the new water bottle, he noticed Jiang Songhe's slightly swollen eyelids and a glass of iced Americano beside him, and asked, "Brother, didn't you sleep well last night?"
It's hard to say whether it is or isn't, but it's also difficult to say no.
Jiang Songhe coughed lightly, pushing the iced Americano—which had also been the trigger for their argument during the audition—to Jiang Songyun. Changing the subject, she replied, "Oh, I bought it for you. Didn't you always want to drink it? I actually bought some last time, but..."
Fearing that Jiang Songyun's mind would race too fast and follow up with questions about how she had been eliminated and then re-entered the competition, Jiang Songhe stopped midway through her sentence.
Upon hearing this, Jiang Songyun wore a touched expression, but quickly became mischievous and modest: "Last time is last time, it's all in the past now. I sweat a lot and have a fast metabolism, so drinking water from the new water bottle my brother bought me is fine! As for coffee, I'll have plenty of opportunities to drink it in two months when I officially turn 18."
Then he pushed the iced Americano back and gestured with his mouth toward Jiang Songhe's swollen eyes: "You should drink this one, bro. You seem to need it more than I do. Look, it's seriously affecting your appearance."
Two months... Yeah, isn't this withdrawal process? How can you withdraw if you're just deceiving yourself?
Taking the icy-cold container, Jiang Songhe squeezed and released it repeatedly, and after a moment of contemplation, he confessed the truth to his younger brother.
Jiang Songyun was stunned upon hearing this, his face revealing no emotion whatsoever.
Jiang Songhe's breathing became labored, and she couldn't help but think of the worst-case scenario: her younger brother would most likely not agree to see her anymore. The withdrawal period had ended before it even officially began. What platform was the Star Show competition livestream on? The preliminary rounds were just around the corner; she needed to find out as soon as possible...
After a long pause, Jiang Songyun seemed to wake from a dream as he repeated what he had heard from his older brother: "You mean, you're staying on the top floor of the Tang Dynasty Hotel? Right above my room?"
Jiang Songhe pursed her lips and affirmed in a whisper, "Mm."
"These are the rooms that the celebrity judges were given to by the talent show?"
"Um."
"The top floor is probably reserved for judges of a high caliber, right?"
"Um."
"What the heck! Bro!? So you live with Janus?! Whoa—"
"...You, you sit down! Keep your voice down!!!"
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