Chapter 12: Twelve Heartbeats "How Deep is the Secret Marriage"
There was no need to say who this "she" was. Jiang Han simply replied, "Okay, Mr. Xu."
Jiang Han closed the door gently and looked at the desk by the window. Fortunately, she was the only one there.
Wen Huai walked over and raised his head: "Special Assistant Jiang."
"Secretary Wen." Jiang Han called out, but then another name came to mind, and his thoughts wandered. But he quickly said, "Mr. Xu is looking for you."
"good."
She walked around the table and knocked on the glass door.
"Come in."
After getting the consent, Wen Huai grasped the square wooden handle and pushed hard.
The air temperature, which was obviously more than one degree colder than outside, slowed down her delicate high heels, but she quickly recovered her pace and stood in the center.
"Mr. Xu, you're looking for me."
"Um."
Xu Youjing had his back to her and lowered his head so she couldn't see his movements clearly.
After a few seconds of silence, he turned his head and said, "Sit down first."
"good."
Wen Huai sat on the sofa and only then saw what he was doing, so he asked, "Mr. Xu, do you need me to make coffee for you?"
Xu Youjing didn't stop his hands: "Can you do hand grinding?"
"Yes."
She had already stood up, and the person opposite her was already walking over with coffee.
"sit."
A white ceramic coffee cup was placed in front of her. Xu Youjing sat down on the sofa diagonally opposite her. "I have something to ask you."
Only then did Wen Huai notice that he had only made one cup of coffee, which was for her.
After a moment's hesitation, he got to the point: "What's the matter?"
Xu Youjing looked away from her gray shirt and matching trousers. "How far do you want to go in keeping your marriage secret?"
She was stunned: "To what extent?"
Seeing that she was puzzled, Xu Youjing said patiently: "You don't want others to know that you are married, or..."
Their eyes met, and her image was clearly reflected in those deep eyes. Wen Huai couldn't help but tighten his hands on his legs, as if this was the only way to calm his turbulent heart.
"There's no need to know that the person you're marrying is me."
He continued his unfinished words with a calm expression, as if he were discussing a topic that had nothing to do with him.
Wen Huai whispered in his ear, staring at his face for a long time before saying, "Mr. Xu, please decide. I will accept the adjustment."
"Agree to the adjustment?" Bo Liang raised the corner of his lips. He looked at him and said, "I thought you had made your choice after changing your clothes."
Wen Huai was stunned. She didn't expect that he would notice that she had changed clothes.
Because she was afraid that others would notice something, she also found a similar color to replace it, even though her wardrobe was all in a single cool color.
So when he said this now, was he dissatisfied with her changing into clothes similar to his, or was he dissatisfied with her not discussing it with him and hiding it from him?
With reason at his fingertips, Wen Huai quickly gave up his first idea and insisted, "You misunderstood. The one I wore this morning was really wet."
He didn't say anything, so Wen Huai continued, "After getting the marriage certificate, we each went about our own business. I didn't intend to hide this matter during Dad's mourning period. I don't want you to take over Peak now and we become superiors and subordinates."
Noticing his gaze, she continued, "My status as secretary and boss is sensitive. The summit is coming up, and the company's new product is about to be launched. It's a critical time, and I don't want my actions to affect the company and bring negative consequences. So, Mr. Xu, if you agree, I don't intend to hide the fact that I'm married."
The implication is that the person to be concealed is him.
As expected.
Her behavior said it all. However, Xu Youjing thought she would conceal her married status, which surprised him.
"I agree."
Wen Huai loosened his clenched hands, and the white back of his hands finally regained their color.
Xu Youjing placed the black velvet box next to the coffee: "This is for you."
"This is?"
She opened it and saw a plain ring standing in the center right of the box.
Heo Yoo-kyung: "It's a symbol that you're married."
Wen Huai lowered his head to look.
This plain ring looks sparkling at first glance, but if you look closely you will find that it is not inlaid with any diamonds. Instead, it is purely hand-carved and uses natural light to create a star-like effect.
It's her favorite style.
Hearing no response, Xu Youjing glanced sideways. Seeing that she was still looking at him, he thought she didn't like him. He opened his lips, but met Wen Huai's beautiful eyes, and his tongue stumbled.
She said, "Thank you."
He turned his eyes away, and when the words came to his lips, he heard Wen Huai's next sentence: "How much is it? I'll transfer it to you."
“…”
"What's wrong?" Feeling his silence, she looked at the ring she liked, "Is it very expensive?"
A look of pity flashed across her watery eyes, which Xu Youjing caught, and then she remembered that she had refused to buy the clothes prepared in the apartment because she was worried about the price.
But the words he said changed their meaning: "It's not expensive. It's not reasonable for the woman to pay for the wedding ring."
He had already stood up: "So that grandma won't nag you when she sees you empty-handed at the birthday party."
"Thank you." She should say this no matter what.
Wen Huai also stood up, knowing that the topic was over and she should leave. Even Xu Youjing thought so.
Before leaving, she took more than just the ring.
When the man had already turned his back, Wen Huai heard his voice trembling a little: "Mr. Xu, I haven't had my coffee yet."
Xu Youjing looked at him and raised his eyebrows slightly.
Her palms were sweaty, but she still met his gaze and asked, "Can I have it?"
Silence stretched, and Wen Huai wanted to bite his tongue off. But on the surface, he remained polite, not wanting to let the boss's hand-made coffee go to waste.
She saw him nod in a faint expectation. After thanking him, she picked up the coffee cup and walked out of the office in an orderly manner.
No one knew that her hands were so nervous and sweaty that she could hardly hold the smooth cup handle.
Fortunately, everyone was busy with their own things and no one noticed what she took out.
Xu Youjing, sitting at his desk, looked at his complete set of cups, which was missing only one piece, and felt awkward. He averted his eyes and flipped open a document.
-
The cafeteria was particularly lively during lunch break today, with most people talking about whose names to fill in on the questionnaire.
After finishing their meal, Wen Huai and Dong Chen sat down in the corner, listening to the whispers of the people at the next table.
"Boss Xu actually let us choose for ourselves, so I'm going to choose my idol! Who knows, I might even get a chance to meet him."
"How does your idol fit the bill? He's been showered with resources since his debut, and he has nothing to do with 'Wings'. In your fifty-word excuse, are you planning on bragging about who his dad is?"
This caused a burst of laughter. The man was unable to refute it, after all, the facts were there in front of him.
Wen Huai also smiled and wondered which celebrity would be suitable.
"Sister Wen." Dong Chen handed over a cup of coffee.
Wen Huai thanked him and put it aside, his thoughts drifting to the cup of hand-ground coffee he had that morning.
Dong Chen asked, "Sister Wen, who are you going to fill in?"
She had a candidate in mind, but was still hesitant, so she simply said, "I haven't decided yet."
"I've thought about it. I've filled it all out." He said mysteriously, lowering his voice. "Guess who I filled in?"
Wen Huai: "Who?"
"I think Qiao Mian is suitable," said the girl at the next table. "I even checked. She has such great resources now, but she doesn't even have any car endorsements. Isn't that just leaving an opportunity for us?"
Wen Huai was distracted by her companions' echoes. She picked up some vegetables and put them in her mouth, but she couldn't taste anything until she swallowed them.
"I wrote Qiao Mian, too." Dong Chen didn't notice Wen Huai's strangeness and said to the table across from him, "I estimate that more than half of the people will write Qiao Mian this time. A female celebrity, whose background fits the theme, and who has influence, isn't she the one."
The man was a little worried: "But won't Qiao Mian be very expensive? I secretly asked a colleague in the finance department, and he told me that Qiao Mian's commercial endorsement would cost at least this much.
He raised his fingers and sighed, "The budget for endorsement fees was only one million before. This is too much."
The other one was full of fighting spirit: "What's the big deal? A mere four million is nothing to Mr. Xu. Don't forget Mr. Xu's background. If Qiao Mian really agrees to take it, we'll be in for a treat. Wouldn't it be a sure thing for us to meet him offline?"
"That reminds me, there was a rumor in the entertainment industry that Qiao Mian was the eldest daughter of the Qiao Group."
"Which Qiao Group?"
"You're stupid! Don't you know about the six top families in North City's wealthy circle?" She said with regret. "It's just a rumor. Fans say it's fake. After all, Qiao Mian has relied on herself all the way to get here. Everyone knows how much she's endured. If she's really the daughter of the Qiao family, how could the Qiao family not invest money?"
"Speaking of which, if this is her marketing tactic, creating a tough, innocent persona, and she's actually the daughter of the Qiao family, then doesn't that mean she and our CEO Xu are childhood sweethearts?"
“Pah.”
The chopsticks crashing onto the plate interrupted the conversation of several people.
Wen Huai picked up the dropped chopsticks, apologized and took out paper to wipe them.
The small incident was not taken seriously, and their topic evolved from "Is the spokesperson Qiao Mian?" to "Are Qiao Mian and Xu Youjing childhood sweethearts?" However, Wen Huai could no longer listen as before.
She quickly stuffed the food into her mouth, picked up the plate and stood up, saying to Dong Chen, "Eat slowly. I suddenly remembered that I still have a job to do."
"Sister Wen, you eat so fast again!"
Looking at the hurriedly departing figure, the onlookers blinked their eyes: "Why did Secretary Wen leave so quickly?"
Dong Chen: "She remembered she had unfinished work, so she left first."
"Oh my god, this is too much effort."
"Come on, don't interrupt me, keep talking..."
-
President's Office.
The office was deserted, with only one person sitting at a desk. The blanks had already been filled in, leaving only the flickering input line. He turned to look at the person across from him, his thoughts already wandering.
Ten minutes ago, Wen Huai took out the coffee cup from the sterilizer and put it back in its place while everyone was taking a break.
Xu Youjing was not there, so she didn't stay for long. She put the cup down, closed the door and left, just sitting there in a daze.
Suddenly, Wen Huai was interrupted by a vibrating phone. She answered Lu Miaomiao's call, her voice a little hoarse.
"Are you in a bad mood?"
The two of them are indeed best friends since childhood. Lu Miaomiao keenly captured her low mood with just one sentence.
Wen Huai took a sip of water: "No, I ate a little too much at noon and I feel sleepy."
"It's so strange to hear you, the king of rolls, say I was sleepy during the day." Lu Miaomiao muttered a few more irrelevant words before getting to the point. "I sent my grandfather to be cremated today and just got here."
Wen Huai was stunned, "Why didn't you call me?"
She thought the process wouldn't be so quick.
"Well, grandpa and I depend on each other for survival, and we don't have any other relatives. Let's get it done sooner so we can rest in peace. Besides, you took it all on your own back then, so of course I can handle it too." She pretended to be relaxed, but choked up a little at the end. "Xiao Ai, I'll come to your house tonight. Can you have a drink with me?"
Wen Huai thought about her father's process. It wasn't just her, Xu Youjing also helped a lot. But before Lu Miaomiao came back, he was on a business trip, and she didn't know about his existence.
Now is not a good time to mention him.
Her eyes fell on the ring on her ring finger resting on the mouse. She looked at the screen, pressed her fingertip, and submitted the questionnaire.
He has helped her so much, she can't tell lies for selfish reasons.
Wen Huai turned to Lu Miaomiao and said, "Okay, let's get drunk tonight."
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