Episode 22 Old Friends
The next morning, when Lin Ying walked into the office, there was already a cup of hot coffee on the desk.
Since Cen Shuo came for internship, he had been the one who bought her coffee for nearly two months. However, she did not let him spend his money in vain. Occasionally, she would invite him for afternoon tea or even have lunch together on the pretext of work or field work. It was precisely because of these small interactions that he had the opportunity to "take advantage of the situation."
After they had a one-night stand, he still bought her coffee as usual.
She kept her promise yesterday and asked Cen Shuo to come to the office to confirm the schedule.
"Confirm the time and place with Pierre today. Mr. Wang will go with you to meet him."
"Mr. Wang is going too?"
"Of course. Pierre is one of the few young painters in recent years who is willing to entrust his works to Asian galleries for long-term representation. He has previously collaborated with art institutions in Hong Kong and Macau. Now that he has finally come to the mainland, and Mr. Wang is from Hong Kong, there's no reason not to meet him in person."
Seeing Cen Shuo's slightly disappointed look, Lin Ying asked, "What's wrong?"
"…Nothing. I was afraid Mr. Pierre might misunderstand. I mainly introduced you before, and he only agreed to meet you because of your resume."
As a boss, Lin Ying should have comfortably accepted this flattery, but as one of the gallery's managers, and considering Cen Shuo's new job, she couldn't help but advise him—
"Mr. Wang is the founder of Tengchun, and the gallery was his original intention for coming to mainland China. He was also the one who initiated the appointment with Pierre. Whether as agent or boss, Mr. Wang has reasons to meet with him in person. Although you are an intern, you were the one who made the connection and helped the gallery secure this important client. Yesterday, when Mr. Wang heard about it, he mentioned that you are very smart."
If you decide to stay in Tengchun, then regarding coordination and communication... I don't need to be more explicit, right?"
The implication is that he should focus on pleasing the people he should please, rather than the people he wants to please.
But Lin Ying knew that Cen Shuo was clearly holding a grudge. After that night, as a senior, she hadn't given him any explanation at all, which was indeed wrong. If she couldn't explain it clearly, the young man would obviously not be able to settle down.
So that day, she took the initiative to ask Cen Shuo to have lunch together, "There's an authentic local restaurant on Wukang Road, I'll treat you."
The atmosphere in the restaurant was very quiet. Lin Ying deliberately chose a seat in the corner of the second floor, which was secluded and unlikely to cause any misunderstanding. The relationship between the two had not attracted any attention in the company.
I hope so.
Lin Ying asked Cen Shuo to order first, but he flipped through the menu and his eyes darkened: "You order, I don't know much about local cuisine."
Lin Ying didn't bother to be polite with him and ordered a few dishes that were sure to go well with rice - sweet and sour spare ribs, steamed sea bass, braised pork with bean curd sheets, and a dish of stir-fried grass heads, and asked the waiter to serve the food as quickly as possible.
"Why is Mr. Lin suddenly inviting me to dinner?"
"Some things still need to be explained to you face to face. After all, I am your boss. You suddenly came to my house last night, and it would be inappropriate to say anything with the child present."
Lin Ying took a sip of lemonade, which tasted slightly bitter. She went straight to the point, "What do you think of me now?"
He was very frank: "I like you and want to date you."
"Then can you accept me dating you with a child?"
"If you can't accept it, then why did I..."
Lin Ying patiently elaborated:
"I mean, you have to accept that besides being your boss, I'm also a single mother. This identity isn't just a symbol; it means that every day after get off work, I have to pick up my child from school, do the grocery shopping, cook, and do the housework. In the evening, I accompany her to read and study, and on weekends, I accompany her to interest classes.
Beyond all this, I also need to constantly monitor her physical and mental well-being, understand her perspectives, and guide her personal development. Doing all this will inevitably impact my time and energy for other things, including dating and relationships. As a partner, I won't prioritize these things. Are you sure you can accept all of this?"
Such a concrete presentation made Cen Shuo stunned for a few seconds, and then he took a sip of lemonade...
"I know your situation and your daughter's situation. Although I've never been a father, I'm willing to try to learn for you. I'm a quick learner and I have faith. As long as you want to achieve something, give me a chance and everything will be a matter of time."
"You misunderstood, Xiao Cen. Although I'm a single mother, my criteria for love aren't to find a father for my child. You're my subordinate, and you're young. It's actually not fair for us to be together..."
"But I don't think it's unfair." Cen Shuo interrupted again, "I like you as a person. It doesn't matter how old you are or whether you have a daughter..."
"If I have no plans to get married, would you still want to be in this relationship?"
At this point, Cen Shuo was finally speechless, and his prepared response was expectedly choked back.
Fortunately, the dishes were served one after another. The waiter served them rice. Lin Ying urged him to pick up some food. "Most of the local dishes are sweet. You've been at Shanghai University for four years. Can you get used to it?"
Cen Shuo was chewing the ribs, his mind and body seemed to be out of his body. He only replied to her absentmindedly, "I'm used to it." He didn't even care that the rib sauce stuck to his mouth. Lin Ying had no choice but to pull out a piece of paper and wipe the corner of his mouth for him, comforting him:
"Don't think too much. You're still young, and it's normal for you to be unwavering in your feelings. But I'm different from you after all. I'm also a mother..."
"Then can you accept a friends-with-benefits relationship?"
Cen Shuo suddenly mentioned this, "I mean, the kind that has a chance to become a regular employee?"
As soon as these words came out, Lin Ying's hands holding the bean curd sheet trembled twice, and she almost dropped it into other dishes... Are kids nowadays so direct?
She pretended to be calm and took a mouthful of rice, teasing:
"Work internship isn't enough, but dating internship is also required?"
"Honestly, if you really don't want marriage as a prerequisite, I'd actually be relieved... I really don't have the qualifications to pursue you in this state. If you don't want to get married, then at least you don't rule out that kind of thing, right?"
He deliberately lowered his voice, his eyes were evasive, but his tone was serious.
"To be honest, I've liked you since I saw you on the first day of my internship. You can say I'm young, immature, or blinded by lust, but I'm truly attracted to you. It was already like this before that night, and after that night, I was even more certain."
Cen Shuo lowered his eyes, his thick lashes nowhere to hide, and his ears were red as blood... Normally, he was a refreshingly unconventional man, proactive, humorous, clever, and a man like him was always a hot commodity in college, but he chose a different approach...
Every time she saw him, Lin Ying would think of her youth - which was almost completely destroyed by her bad mentality. If she could go back to her twenties, she would definitely kick Yan Yiming out and have a passionate love affair with the handsome guy.
Over the years, Lin Ying has never had a formal relationship, let alone a physical relationship with anyone. Apart from work, she spends most of her time with her daughter and has no time to maintain a relationship.
She herself was also trapped in the identity of "mother". Whether it was love or sex partners, it seemed that such things with no clear results should no longer appear in her life, for herself and for her daughter...
But she broke her promise that night. Cen Shuo threw out the olive branch completely, like a sugar-coated bullet to her.
She thought of Jiang Shu's theory back then, about the three rules he had set with his bed partners. It had sounded absurd at the time, but now she thought it made sense - with an attitude of not having to take responsibility, everyone got what they needed, and there didn't seem to be anything wrong with that.
It is better to be an ordinary person in your behavior than to be a good person in your heart.
Lin Ying picked up the serving chopsticks and picked up a piece of very soft pork ribs for Cen Shuo:
"If you don't mind, why not give it a try?"
After hearing this, Cen Shuo's eyes lit up several octaves, and he didn't forget to nod even though the pork rib soup burned his mouth.
"But we have three rules: our relationship cannot be public, and we won't do it during work hours. I'm usually very busy, so I won't date you too often, so don't get bored."
"Of course I will go whenever you tell me to..."
"You'd better not come to my house so often. It's not convenient with the kids around."
Cen Shuo reacted and immediately said:
"I'm leaving school next month. I've been looking at houses nearby. When I move in, I can help you take care of Ruxing."
"The houses around here are old and expensive. How can you have such a large budget right after graduation?"
Cen Shuo smiled brightly, "I used to work part-time as a real estate agent. I can get a good price from my old colleagues!"
The meal left both of them feeling refreshed. Cen Shuo, in particular, was overjoyed. He had been worried he'd be passed over beforehand, but not only was he not eliminated, he was even notified he could continue, and it was thanks to his own recommendation that he had gotten the opportunity. There was no reason not to be delighted.
After going downstairs, Lin Ying just pulled out the QR code to pay, and the cashier said:
"Ma'am, your table's bill has already been paid."
Lin Ying subconsciously glanced at Cen Shuo, who looked indifferent. "I agreed to treat you, why are you..."
Suddenly, a voice-over came from behind:
"Seeing you were so engrossed in your conversation, I didn't bother you. What a coincidence, Aying."
It’s Jiang Shu again.
The two turned around, and Lin Ying was surprised: "Why are you here?"
"I came to see an old friend. He wanted to eat local cuisine, so I came here to keep him company."
The old friend he was talking about was Pierre, whom she was going to meet the day after tomorrow.
This European face with deep eyebrows and high eyes stood out in the crowd. When he saw Cen Shuo, he greeted him warmly—"Oh Alan! What a coincidence!"
Seeing this scene, Lin Ying's face was just like the weather in Shanghai some time ago, a mixture of cloudy and sunny.
This coincidence led Cen Shuo to greet Pierre, and Jiang Shu was obviously the only one who understood the situation. He slowly explained the relationship between the characters to him - to be precise, his relationship with Pierre, and his relationship with Lin Ying.
Lin Ying also added that Cen Shuo was her subordinate.
Pierre laughed brightly and directly, saying that this was a complete misunderstanding. If he had known this would happen, he would have arranged a meeting with the gallery today. However, Lin Ying quickly said, "Mr. Wang may not be available today. I wonder if you can make an exception?"
"Of course, since you're sister of Jiang. We're good mates in Hong Kong. He mentioned about you back then, and this is called The True Rong of Mount Lu in your language, uh?"
His Chinese pronunciation has a strong French accent, but there is almost no English.
She also heard Pierre joking to Jiang Shu, "You should have told me this earlier, otherwise I would have made an appointment with your sister's gallery last week."
Jiang Shucheng apologized, "Sorry, buddy, I just found out about your cooperation today."
In just a few words, Cen Shuo seemed like a complete outsider, unable to get a word in.
Having to rush back to work, Lin Ying didn't want to talk to Jiang Shu much. Before they parted, she asked rather dissatisfiedly, "What exactly are you going to do?"
"Aying, this is really a coincidence. Pierre finally came to Shanghai, and it would be a shame if I didn't treat him to an authentic meal."
At the end, he did not forget to glance at Cen Shuo. The sensitivity and subtlety between men were no less than those between women.
Before leaving, Jiang Shu deliberately lowered his voice, imitating the tone she had used to secretly tease him last night, and asked in a voice that only the two of them could hear - "Sex partner?"
Lin Ying was stunned and completely froze in place.
But Jiang Shu seemed completely uninterested in this answer. Instead, he waved at her generously and confirmed, "I'm going to see Ruxing this weekend. Remember to send me the address. See you later."
Then he and Pierre got into the car and left.
Six years have passed, and he seems to have changed a lot, yet he seems to have not changed much.
Still so self-righteous, still so unwilling to give others any leeway, but fortunately, not without mercy.
"Is that your brother?"
Cen Shuo brought her back to her senses.
"Um."
"Oh... I thought it was your ex-husband."
Lin Ying was surprised: "What?"
Cen Shuo shrugged his shoulders and pretended to be nonchalant:
"Maybe... he looked at me with ill intentions."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
