Chapter 222 Suddenly I feel that Qin Jixiu is a little cute...
Qin Jixiu held his hands against the cold door panel, the anger in his chest had not completely subsided. When his fingertips felt a bit cold, he suddenly realized that his reaction seemed a bit extreme.
He and Shi Rui were both men, and he had simply caught them changing shirtless. That shouldn't have been the beginning of such a tense situation. But he had just slammed the door so loudly that it could have been heard even in the secretary's office next door.
Qin Jixiu took a deep breath, put on his black shirt, raised his hands to button the shirt one by one, and his bony fingers suddenly paused at the collar.
Although the fact that he likes men will be made public sooner or later, it is not the right time. If people guess something because of the commotion just now and spread some irrelevant gossip, it will be troublesome.
After tidying up his clothes, Qin Jixiu walked to his desk and glanced at the tea stains on the table that had not yet been cleaned up. He dialed the intercom and said concisely, "Xiao Shi, come here."
When Shi Rui heard the call, he immediately put down the receiver and pushed the door open.
"Close the door." Qin Jixiu pointed to the blinds, "Pull that up."
Shi Rui did as he was told. The metal blades clashed softly, dimming the office light and creating a more secretive atmosphere. When he turned around, he met Qin Jixiu's gaze. The other person's expression was complex, not as furious as before, but also a bit of scrutiny.
"What happened just now," Qin Jixiu spoke first, trying to be calm, "Don't tell them anything."
Shi Rui immediately reacted and nodded, "I know, Mr. Qin."
Qin Jixiu drummed his fingertips on the table, trying to make his fuss seem less suspicious, but he couldn't help but overdo it, making it all the more obvious. "We're both men. If we met in a public restroom, we might even see each other's genitals while peeing. So, it wasn't a big deal."
The words were rough, but the truth was true, but they were too rough. Shi Rui's heart was "...", and looking at his forced calmness, he suddenly felt that Qin Jixiu was a little cute.
Qin Jixiu was stuck for a moment because he suddenly remembered that the thing clearly had other nicknames... But forget it, the words used in each nickname were very straightforward and bold anyway.
To make his explanation more plausible, he added, "You opened the door so suddenly I wasn't prepared, so being startled is normal. You've only been here a few days, so I subconsciously thought it was Assistant Li or Assistant Qiao who opened the door. There's a difference between men and women, and it wouldn't be good for them if word got out, so we'd better not cause unnecessary trouble."
Shi Rui nodded in agreement.
Qin Jixiu didn't give Shi Rui a chance to respond, and said more emphatically, "Also, I don't want these boring personal matters to become the gossip of my subordinates after dinner. Just pretend what happened just now never happened, and don't let me hear any discussion about this matter in the future."
When he came out of the office just now, two secretaries looked over and asked him, "Why is Mr. Qin so angry?" Shi Rui glanced at the tea stains that had not been wiped clean on the corner of the desk, and he had a rough idea in his mind why Qin Jixiu suddenly went to change his clothes.
"Don't worry, President Qin," Shi Rui raised his eyes and spoke sincerely, "When I came out just now, the two sisters asked me about it. I told them that I accidentally knocked over your teacup, which is why you got angry at me. They expressed their understanding and also criticized me, telling me to be quick and efficient when I work with President Qin in the future."
Qin Jixiu paused at this. He hadn't expected Shi Rui to be so clever, finding the perfect excuse to cover up his lie, explaining the reason for his roar without involving anything else.
He looked up at the man before him. He stood tall and straight, his eyes clear, not a hint of pretense. Furthermore, Shi Rui, in a white T-shirt, looked even more like the photo he'd seen a thousand times than he had in a shirt. Qin Jixiu's heart was filled with old resentment. How great would it be if this man were truly the same person he appeared to be?
It's a pity that beneath such a gentle appearance lies a rotten soul.
There was already a hint of annoyance in his eyes. Qin Jixiu didn't want to reveal too much, so he waved his hand and said, "Nothing else, get out."
"Okay, Mr. Qin." Shi Rui turned around and left. He wanted to pull up the blinds, but he felt it was too deliberate. He still felt a little guilty, so he walked out straight away.
At noon, in the staff cafeteria, Shi Rui was looking for a seat with his plate in hand. As soon as he sat down, several hard-to-ignore gazes fell on him.
His somewhat casual attire was already conspicuous, and he had expected this.
"Shi Rui, there's no one here. Can we sit down?" Three new employees who came into the company with Shi Rui came over with food trays.
Shi Rui raised his eyes and said nothing, which was considered as his agreement.
As soon as the two men and one woman sat down, one of the men couldn't wait to speak: "Shi Rui, I saw you running around the company so many times this morning. What's going on? Is Mr. Qin so difficult to serve?" His words hinted that Shi Rui had offended Qin Jixiu, and the gloating look on his face was not hidden at all.
The man next to him echoed, "Yeah, Boss Qin seemed pretty good-tempered at the conference, and he was very understanding of us young people. How big of a mistake did you make to deserve his corporal punishment like a dean?"
Shi Rui took a leisurely bite of his rice, raised his eyes to look at the two people's work badges, and a faint smile appeared on the corner of his mouth: "I'm a newcomer and I don't know much. It's normal for Boss Qin to have high requirements for work."
Zhao Lei was the first to speak. Hearing his remarkably effective response, he changed the subject, glancing over Shi Rui's face. "We're all saying you're lucky to be in the CEO's office. You're the only one among our new hires who was given the special treatment by President Qin. You should cherish this opportunity. Perhaps you'll rise to the top in the future. 'If you become rich, don't forget us.' Don't forget us when you do."
The implication in these words couldn't be clearer - while openly saying Shi Rui was lucky, they were secretly spreading the rumor that he was chosen by Qin Jixiu because of his looks. Men are always jealous of good-looking men. On the one hand, they want to be a "gigolo" but can't, and on the other hand, they hate the "gigolo".
So no matter whether Qin Jixiu likes men or not, people who are talking about it just want to label Shi Rui as someone who relies on his looks to get ahead. As for the truth, no one cares.
Shi Rui put down his chopsticks, a look of realization on his face: "Really? Maybe I'm really lucky. I heard that Boss Qin randomly picked a file from our collection, and I was the one chosen."
The other man was Wang Sheng. Seeing that he was completely tight-lipped, he simply poked the fuse and asked, "Shi Rui, are you hiding some background from us? Otherwise, how could you have gotten into the CEO's office so easily and have President Qin pay so much attention to you?"
Shi Rui blinked: "I don't know. My parents never told me that they knew Mr. Qin. How about I call and ask now?"
His tone was relaxed and joking, but it left the other person speechless.
Zhao Lei and Wang Sheng exchanged glances, each seeing embarrassment in the other's eyes. Shi Rui neither confirmed nor denied what he had said, but it was impossible for him to actually make the call.
Seeing the two men being humiliated, the woman with them kept laughing with her head down.
"Yeah, maybe we're overthinking it." Zhao Lei chuckled, took a few bites of his rice, and said nothing more. They sat there for less than two minutes before finding an excuse to leave in a hurry.
"They didn't give you any trouble, did they?" a familiar voice called out. Jiang Lin sat down across from him, his plate in hand, a look of worry on his face. Although Jiang Lin hadn't witnessed Shi Rui's punishment that morning, he'd heard about it from the discussion within the department, so it was hard not to know.
"Nothing, just chatting for a few minutes." Shi Rui smiled, picked up his chopsticks and continued eating. "By the way, there is some information I need to share with you."
"What?" Jiang Lin asked curiously.
"The man you saw watching the musical with Mr. Qin last time," Shi Rui paused and emphasized in a low voice, "wasn't Mr. Qin's boyfriend, just his good friend."
What I mean is, I have shared this news with you, so please don’t send me any more videos of Qin Jixiu and that designer being intimate to “provoke” me.
As for why that damn video can irritate me, don’t worry about it.
When Jiang Lin heard this, his eyes lit up instantly and the chopsticks in his hand stopped moving: "Really?! I thought..." He stopped talking and scratched his head embarrassedly.
Shi Rui looked at his excited expression and suddenly felt a little awkward. He asked tentatively, "But why do you care so much about Mr. Qin's emotional state?"
Jiang Lin's cheeks flushed slightly, and his eyes were filled with longing. "Don't you think Mr. Qin is very handsome? He was speaking on the stage, encouraging us newcomers. He had a calm demeanor, a composed demeanor, and looked very stylish in his suit and tie. But I only dared to watch him from afar. He was from a completely different world from us."
Jiang Lin was Shi Rui's junior high school classmate, but later transferred to another school after his family moved to another city. Their meeting that day at a Jiangcheng coffee shop was purely accidental, and they never imagined they'd end up working at Zhengfeng together and becoming roommates. Shi Rui kept a low profile on campus, aside from his undisguised face. Therefore, few of his classmates knew much about his family background.
Jiang Lin sighed heavily again: "People like us can only dream about Mr. Qin in our hearts."
Shi Rui's heart skipped a beat. He had always thought that his old classmate had a gentle temperament. They hadn't seen each other for many years, so he had never thought about exploring what had happened to Jiang Lin. He didn't expect that Jiang Lin, like Shi Xi, liked men.
"Are you after President Qin?" Shi Rui still subconsciously wanted to confirm.
Jiang Lin was stunned for a moment, his face flushed even more. "Don't get me wrong, I just think he's good-looking, I don't mean anything else. And I know my own weight, so I don't dare to have any thoughts at all."
Shi Rui looked at his embarrassed look, and suddenly a strange emotion arose in his heart.
He thought back to how he'd felt about Qin Jixiu recently. He couldn't help but pinch a pair of legs that looked like his at night. He'd almost quit his job when he'd mistakenly thought Qin Jixiu had a boyfriend, but even though he knew he shouldn't, he couldn't help but keep his eyes on him. When he heard that Qin Jixiu didn't actually have a boyfriend, a feeling similar to joy welled up in his heart. And just now, when he saw Qin Jixiu changing his clothes, his heart had been pounding. There were other, indescribable reactions as well...
But is that really wishful thinking? Shi Rui asked himself.
If it wasn't desire, then it could only be admiration. He just admired a mature man with superior looks, a great body, ambition and skills, that's all.
He hadn't thought about being with Qin Jixiu. After all, Qin Jixiu was his superior, and he wasn't destined to stay in Zhengfeng for long. He would return to Lincheng sooner or later. His parents' request that he earn a million was just a pretext. If he didn't make enough money after a year, his parents would drag him back home.
But what if Qin Jixiu couldn't help but pierce that window paper? Qin Jixiu probably wouldn't be tactful. What would he say?
"Secretary Shi, I've had my eye on you for a long time. Just follow me from now on. If you follow me, I guarantee you'll have a good life and no one will dare bully you."
This is too materialistic and not like Mr. Qin.
"Shi Rui, you've noticed recently, right? My feelings towards you are completely different from my feelings towards others. When I first saw your resume, I was fascinated by your handsome face and wanted to possess you. When I saw you talking and laughing with others, I would be jealous and crazy. I wanted to keep you by my side all day. Shi Rui——"
Shi Rui felt so sour at his own imagination that he couldn't help rubbing his arms.
"Shi Rui." At this time, a magnetic and pleasant male voice sounded behind him, overlapping with the voice in his head just now.
Shi Rui turned stiffly and saw Qin Jizheng looking at him seriously with his arms folded. The cafeteria became even more lively with President Qin's sudden arrival. Everyone's eyes were looking over here, and some people were eager to stand up and watch.
"Having a meal and chatting with someone?" Qin Jixiu raised his hand to check the time on his watch. "I'm leaving in ten minutes. I'll drive the car myself?"
Shi Rui shook his head and stuffed a few mouthfuls of rice into his mouth.
"I'll be right back."
"Three minutes." Qin Jixiu said this and walked out of the staff cafeteria with his long legs.
The author has something to say:
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Shi Rui, do you really not want to be with Mr. Qin? I don't believe it.
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