Take a day off
My sister has finally come back, Lin Yu'an must spend time with her!
Lin Yu'an directly sent a concise leave request email to Gu Lin: "Mr. Gu, there is an emergency at home and I need to take a day off."
After sending the message, I turned my phone to silent mode and stuffed it deep into my pocket.
Today, no one, no matter who is the king, can disturb him and his sister.
Lin Jiating looked at her brother's actions, smiled knowingly, and swiftly pushed her small suitcase into the corner of Lin Yu'an's slightly crowded rental apartment.
"Okay, leave it to me today! I'll take you and Xiao Doupi to eat delicious food and drink spicy drinks!"
Her first stop for her so-called "delicious food and spicy drinks" turned out to be a time-honored Cantonese dim sum shop.
In the elegant private room, Doupi sat on a baby chair, excitedly grabbing the crystal clear shrimp dumplings with his chubby little hands.
Lin Yu'an looked at her sister who was full of energy and finally couldn't help asking the question that she had been holding back all the way.
"Sister, what have you been doing in America for the past six months? Why do you feel like you've been reborn?"
Not only is her temperament more assertive and confident, but even her eyes reveal a sharpness and maturity that comes from having experienced many storms.
Lin Jiating picked up a plump siomai with an elegant yet heroic movement.
"I'm now a 'cross-border bridge'! I help some niche but distinctive domestic brands incubate overseas markets, especially in the beauty and fashion accessories sectors."
She put down her chopsticks, her eyes shining.
"An An, you have no idea how popular TikTok Shop and overseas independent websites are right now! Foreigners are becoming more and more accepting of Chinese designs, especially those with a touch of oriental mystical elements or neo-Chinese style."
She began to talk non-stop, "I was completely in the dark at the beginning. From product selection and supply chain integration to logistics and customs clearance, customer service... I had to learn the entire chain. The most challenging thing was cultural differences. A piece of packaging copy or image that you think is fine might be offensive or incomprehensible to a foreigner. Staying up late was the norm, and jet lag was even more torturous. It was common to wake up at three or four in the morning for meetings with domestic suppliers or American influencers."
Lin Yu'an was shocked when he heard this. He could imagine the hardships involved.
Although my sister was independent before, she didn’t work this hard.
"However," Lin Jiating changed the subject and a proud smile appeared on her face.
"I'm lucky, and I have a pretty good eye. Two of the brands I signed with are already quite well-known in niche circles in North America and Europe, with high repeat purchase rates. One silk scarf brand, in particular, specializes in natural plant dyes. It caught the eye of a Hollywood stylist and became a huge hit. This time, I came back to finalize the expansion of production capacity with the domestic manufacturer, and I also wanted to visit you."
She patted Doupi's little head and said, "Of course, it's mainly to look after my precious son and...his hard-working brother."
She winked at Lin Yu'an.
“No wonder…”
Lin Yu'an looked at his sister's neatly cut and high-quality sequined blazer.
Although the style is bold, it really suits her current aura.
"Sister, you are so amazing! Really!"
He truly admired his sister's courage and resilience, which he lacked.
"What's so great about that?" Lin Jiating waved her hands, but the light in her eyes couldn't deceive anyone.
"I'm just brave and I took the plunge. By the way, An An, tell me about yourself! How does it feel to be the CEO's secretary at Gu Group? It's a top-notch place! Have you ever been frozen into a popsicle by that legendary icy CEO?"
Without warning, the topic turned to Lin Yu'an's work, or more precisely, to Gu Lin.
Lin Yu'an almost choked after taking a sip of boat porridge.
He put down his spoon and began to pour out the beans.
From the trepidation of the first day on the job, to being repeatedly crushed by Gu Lin's scanning gaze and harsh and precise comments, to those outrageous "re-do" requests, and Gu Lin's suffocating aura...
He spoke vividly and with rich expressions, sometimes imitating Gu Lin's cold tone, and sometimes making an expression of despair.
"...Sister, you don't know, the temperature in his office is always like a morgue! Every time I go in to deliver documents, it feels like I'm challenging the limits of the human body!"
Lin Yu'an rubbed his arms exaggeratedly.
"And his face, while incredibly handsome, is always expressionless! I wonder if his facial nerves are dead!"
Lin Jiating listened with great interest and burst into laughter from time to time.
"Hahaha! An An, your description is too harsh! But it sounds like... this president is indeed a tough guy."
"More than a tough guy!" Lin Yu'an continued to complain, "He's a monster! A workaholic! I even wonder if he doesn't need sleep! One time, I worked overtime until two in the morning, and just as I turned off my computer and was about to leave, he called me on the internal line! He was asking about a project detail! I really wanted to crawl along the phone line to see if he lived in the office!"
"Pfft!" Lin Jiating laughed so hard that tears came out. "And then? You went?"
"How could I not go?!" Lin Yu'an's face was filled with indignation. "He's so energetic in the office, his suit impeccably tailored, not even a wrinkle! And here I am, with dark circles under my eyes, floating in like a wandering soul... Sister, do you think he's a robot? Living off the resentment of the workers?"
Complaints are like a torrent of water, endless.
Gu Lin is picky about the temperature of his coffee – “I changed to Pu’er and he still complained about the wrong water temperature!”
He even required the format of the document to be accurate to the millimeter - "He even had to use a ruler to measure the page margins!"
Then there are his infuriatingly concise instructions – “Um,” “Redo,” and “Get out” are his three-in-one formula for life!
…
Lin Yu'an seemed to want to pour out all the bitterness that had accumulated over the past six months at once.
Doupi was full and was playing with his sister's new toy car in the baby chair.
Lin Jiating was entertaining her son while listening to her brother's storm of complaints.
The smile on her face gradually took on a hint of inquiry and amusement.
An An's complaints were fierce and her tone was indignant, but why did the look in her eyes...seem to be more than just a complaint?
When Lin Yu'an mentioned once again how sharp and accurate Gu Lin's decision was in turning the tide on a key project, his tone unconsciously carried a hint of...admiration that he himself didn't even notice?
Lin Jiating finally couldn't help it. She put down the toy she was using to tease Doupi and leaned forward slightly.
A pair of beautiful eyes that somewhat resembled Lin Yu'an's stared at him mischievously, with a sly smile at the corner of her mouth:
"An An," she said slowly, drawing out her tone, "I've been listening to you for almost an hour, and you keep talking about your CEO Gu... Do you hate him? Or..."
She paused deliberately, looking at her brother's instantly frozen expression, and uttered the second half of the sentence with a wicked smile, "...You like him?"
boom--!
Lin Yu'an felt a surge of hot blood rushing to his head, his cheeks instantly became hot, and the tips of his ears turned red!
My heart seemed to be tightly grasped by an invisible hand, and then suddenly released, beating wildly in my chest!
Like Gu Lin? !
That iceberg?
That devil?
The boss who treated him like a beast of burden?
"Sister! What nonsense are you talking about!" He retorted almost screaming, his voice cracking, attracting the attention of the guests at the next table.
He hurriedly grabbed the teacup and took a big gulp, trying to suppress the inexplicable panic and...guilty?
"Who... who likes him?! I'm accusing him! I'm exposing the bloody history of capitalists exploiting the working people! Do you understand?"
His reaction was too big, too intense, and it didn't seem like he was simply denying a joke.
Even Doupi was startled by his uncle's suddenly raised voice and looked up at him blankly.
Lin Jiating looked at her brother's flushed face, evasive eyes and overly excited rebuttal, and the amusement in her eyes deepened.
But she also knows when to quit.
She raised her hands in surrender and said with a smile, "Okay, okay, I was just kidding! Look how anxious you are! I was wrong, I was wrong, okay? How could our An An like that kind of cold and unfeeling person? She must be extremely annoying!"
She kept saying, "It's so annoying."
But the tone and look clearly said, "I don't believe you."
Lin Yu'an felt uncomfortable when she looked at him, and his heart was in a mess.
His sister's words "I like him" were like a stone thrown into the lake of his heart, stirring up deep-seated ripples that he had never faced before.
He didn't dare to think too deeply about it, and subconsciously and almost violently suppressed the thought.
Impossible! Absolutely impossible!
He just... just got used to complaining about his boss!
Yes, that's it!
He abruptly changed the subject and picked up a plump chicken foot for his sister with his serving chopsticks.
"Eat...eat this! The chicken feet here are very tasty! Eat it quickly!"
He picked up the toy car and teased Doupi, "Look, Doupi! The car is running fast!"
Lin Jiating obediently started chewing the chicken feet and did not continue the dangerous topic.
He only occasionally glanced at his brother, his eyes still filled with a knowing smile and a hint of barely perceptible worry.
Lin Yu'an was a little absent-minded for the whole day.
When he went shopping with his sister, he would subconsciously notice the well-tailored dark suits in the windows of men's clothing stores, like the ones Gu Lin often wore;
When he took Doupi to the indoor playground and watched other children being lifted high by their fathers, Gu Lin's stern profile would flash through his mind uncontrollably;
Even when he was queuing at an internet-famous milk tea shop, he would feel inexplicably irritated when he heard the sweet conversations of the couple in front of him.
He wanted to share another secret with his sister countless times - about "An Xiaomiao", about the mysterious and clumsy "God L".
Every time the words were on the tip of his tongue, he would retreat when he saw his sister's cheerful and bright smile and thought of her trust and gratitude in him.
He didn't want his sister to know that he was live-streaming in women's clothing online, even if it was just to make money to support Doupi.
He didn't want to see the surprise, confusion, or even... disappointment in his sister's eyes.
He just wanted to maintain the image of a "normal" brother in front of his sister, although he had a hard time.
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