Chapter 50
Only two plates of lobster on the table were eaten, and the other plate was not touched at all. There was still a lot of barbecue left. Xia Kaiqun hurriedly said, "Sister Zhong Qin, please eat some more. It's still early. Your general manager will drive you back later." After saying that, he glanced at someone sitting opposite him who was eating grilled squid.
But this time, someone ignored him and continued eating his grilled squid without any intention of stopping.
Xia Zhongqin saw everything about their unusual interaction. She glanced at the time on her phone and saw it was already 7:30 in the evening. "Thank you, Teacher Xia. I really can't eat anymore."
"Teacher Xia and Mr. Lian, please take your time eating. I'm going back first." After saying that, Xia Zhongqin found the Didi app in Alipay and started to hail a taxi.
Just as Xia Zhongqin had chosen her destination, she heard Lian Yijian, who was sitting next to her, say, "Zhongqin, this is a commercial street. There's a lot of people at night, and traffic jams are common. Drivers generally don't want to take orders from here. My car is in the B1 parking lot of the Sucheng Metro Building. Please wait here for me and I'll drive over."
Before Xia Zhongqin could say no, Lian Yijian had already stood up.
Seeing this, Xia Zhongqin also stood up, but the place on the back of her foot where the skin was rubbed was extremely painful. She gasped and couldn't help but scream.
Even though the voice was very low, Lian Yijian still heard it. He stopped and turned around to ask, "What's wrong?"
Xia Zhongqin didn't reply to Lian Yijian. He followed her gaze and, with the help of the incandescent light from the food stall, noticed that the skin on her insteps was already scarlet where it had been rubbed off.
"Zhong Qin, please sit down first. I'm going to the pharmacy first."
Without waiting for Xia Zhongqin to sit down on the chair, Lian Yijian hurriedly trotted to the Li'an chain drugstore opposite Banbianyang BBQ.
The place on the instep where the skin was scraped was really painful. Xia Zhongqin persisted until Lian Yijian's back crossed the street, and an inexplicable feeling arose spontaneously.
Lian Yijian's nervousness for Xia Zhongqin caught Xia Kaiqun's eye, and he lost his earlier surprise. A hint of hesitation flashed across his face, but he couldn't help but say, "Ms. Zhongqin, I've known your CEO for over ten years, and I've never seen him so caring and attentive to a girl."
"Don't be fooled by his usual aloofness. But once you get to know him, you'll find he's actually quite humorous and has strong problem-solving skills. He's a man of high emotional intelligence and high IQ. Of course, his character is also impeccable, so ladies, don't miss out on him."
Xia Zhongqin didn't respond to Xia Kaiqun's question, but instead changed the subject and asked, "Teacher Xia, why hasn't Mr. Lian had a relationship in all these years?"
"In his own words, there's no one he likes. There are quite a few girls chasing him, but he hasn't taken a fancy to any of them. The only one he's interested in is you, Zhong Qin." Xia Kaiqun saw Lian Yijian, who had already bought the medicine, walking towards them not far away and said quickly, "He's embarrassed to break the promise. As his good friend, I really don't want to see you two miss each other like this, so I'll be the bad guy."
As soon as Xia Kaiqun finished speaking, Lian Yijian came over and put the iodine, cotton swabs and Band-Aids he had bought on the table.
Lian Yijian unscrewed the cap of the iodine bottle, tore open the outer packaging of the cotton swab, took out a cotton swab, dipped it in iodine, and handed it to Xia Zhongqin, "Zhongqin, disinfect it with iodine first, and then put on the Band-Aid."
This time, Xia Zhongqin didn't say "thank you". He took the cotton swab and started applying it on the instep of his feet. In the middle, Lian Yijian handed her three new cotton swabs dipped in iodine.
After the Band-Aids on both of Xia Zhongqin's feet were put on, Lian Yijian got up and went to the B1 parking lot of Sucheng Metro Transportation Building to pick up the car.
As soon as Lian Yijian left, Xia Kaiqun turned to Xia Zhongqin, who was clearing away the iodine, cotton swabs, and Band-Aids on the table, and said, "Zhongqin, you can feel Yijian's concern for you, right? Look, when he saw your foot was injured, he was so nervous that he immediately ran to the pharmacy to buy medicine. Apart from his mother and you, no one else can enjoy this kind of treatment. His behavior is uncontrollable and a true expression of his feelings. So don't miss out on a good man like Lian."
Xia Zhongqin, who had already put the iodine, cotton swabs, and Band-Aids into the medicine bag, did not respond to Xia Kaiqun immediately. After a moment's silence, he asked, "Teacher Xia, let me ask you a question. To be honest, what is it about me that makes someone as outstanding as Mr. Lian like me?"
Xia Kaiqun smiled, then recounted all the good qualities he knew about Xia Zhongqin, and finally said, "Love is deep and lasting without knowing why. Girl, believe me, Yi Jian is sincere to you. What about you? Do you have feelings for him?"
Xia Kaiqun's last sentence was simple and direct. Xia Zhongqin has never been a shy girl. If she likes something, she likes it; if she doesn't like something, she doesn't like it.
Xia Zhongqin spoke out her true thoughts and feelings about being with Lian Yijian, and concluded, "Teacher Xia, I've never been in a relationship, so I don't know if what I just told you is a sign of falling in love. President Lian is, by far, the best leader I've ever had. The brothers and sisters in the delivery department always go to him when they have difficulties. Even if the problems are difficult to solve, he never shirks them and always shoulders them all."
After hearing what Xia Zhongqin said about Lian Yijian, Xia Kaiqun already felt that something was up. Finally, after hearing what Xia Zhongqin said, he had a plan in mind. "You don't know which will happen, an accident or tomorrow, so girl, just follow your own heart. As for Yijian, I'll tell him your feelings for him tonight."
"In fact, although Yi Jian seems to be in a rush all day long, he is responsible for the delivery of projects in the entire Southern Jiangsu region. He carries the highest level of authority and responsibility among all other regions, and his workload is very heavy, especially the Suzhou Metro project, the nation's first rail transit project."
"If this project is completed successfully, the experience gained can be replicated for subway projects elsewhere. I heard that Hefei Metro will be working on a rail transit project early next year. If this project fails, the reputation of Beijing Smart Interconnection Company will be greatly affected. So the pressure on him is enormous. I believe that with you by his side, he'll feel much better. And just as he said, only you, a girl, can be the PMO for Southern Jiangsu District. You can help him relieve his stress at work."
"Teacher Xia, rest assured. I will do my best to share the burden with Mr. Lian on the Suzhou Metro project. I will also do my utmost to deliver the projects he has assigned me as project manager. This is my first time as a PMO and I have no experience, but I will work hard to learn from it, cooperate well with Mr. Lian, and serve as a good assistant."
When Xia Zhongqin said this, Xia Kaiqun did not eat the food on the table, but listened to Xia Zhongqin seriously.
Xia Zhongqin's words were sincere and genuine. As a veteran with almost 20 years of work experience, Xia Kaiqun could naturally hear it. It was Xia Zhongqin who was speaking the whole time, and he did not interrupt or interrupt.
Seeing that she had finished speaking, Xia Kaiqun finally spoke up, "No wonder both Pan Lulu and Liu Qingqing from the company have shown such strong feelings towards Yi Jian. There's no one Yi Jian likes. His vision is indeed unique. Sister Zhong Qin is truly extraordinary."
The two of them chatted for almost twenty minutes without realizing it, and Lian Yijian had already returned from the Sucheng Metro Building parking lot to pick up his car.
He drove the car into Shilu Food Street with difficulty, and then parked on Jinmen Road outside the Banbian Lamb BBQ Stall. He rolled down the window on the driver's seat and called out "Zhong Qin".
The instep of her foot had been smeared with iodine and covered with a Band-Aid, so it didn't hurt as much anymore. Xia Zhongqin, upon hearing the shout, immediately picked up the medicine bag on the table. Just as she was about to reach for her computer bag, Xia Kaiqun had already stood up and picked it up. "Let's go, girl. I'll take you to the car."
As usual, Xia Kaiqun's camp bed was placed in the second row of Lian Yijian's car, so when Xia Zhongqin opened the back door, Xia Kaiqun said, "Sister, you sit in the passenger seat. I'll put your computer bag on my camp bed."
The entire second row was filled with Xia Kaiqun's camp bed, and there was really no room for anyone to sit.
When Xia Zhongqin turned around and prepared to walk to the passenger seat, the passenger door had already been opened from the inside by Lian Yijian, who was sitting in the driver's seat. Before getting in, Xia Zhongqin said to Xia Kaiqun, who was standing outside the car, "Goodbye, Teacher Xia."
The car started only after Xia Zhongqin sat in the passenger seat and fastened her seat belt.
Shilu is originally a prosperous business district in Suzhou. The daytime temperature in July is very high, and because it is a weekday, not many people go out shopping. Now, the night wind is cool, and both sides of the food street on Jinmen Road are crowded with tourists who come out for shopping at night.
The car on Kinmen Road was also moving forward step by step with difficulty. The two people in the car were speechless. It took Lian Yijian almost fifteen minutes to drive through this 300-meter-long Kinmen Road that originally took only two minutes to reach Guangjin South Road.
After all, the atmosphere in the car was too depressing. After driving a short distance on Guangjinan Road, while waiting for the red light at the intersection, Lian Yijian spoke first, "Zhong Qin, after you go back home tonight and take a shower, remember to reapply iodine and then put on a Band-Aid to prevent infection. Eat light food for the next two days and get enough rest."
Ever since she chatted with Xia Kaiqun about her and Lian Yijian, Xia Zhongqin had a lot of questions she wanted to ask Lian Yijian.
After getting in the car, she was very conflicted. Finally, after hearing Lian Yijian's words of concern for her, Xia Zhongqin mustered up the courage to say, "Mr. Lian, I've been at Beijing Smart Internet Company for over a year. As your leader, you've always taken good care of me in both work and life. I think you also helped me get the company's year-end bonus. Just now, when I went to pick up the car, Teacher Xia talked to me about your opinion of me. Am I really as good as you say I am in your eyes?"
When Xia Zhongqin said these words, the sixty-second red light had turned green. Lian Yijian did not reply to her immediately, but drove the car to a parking space on the side of the road and stopped.
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