Chapter 14 You Are Here
Ling Shen's call was never made. The moment he stepped into the company, he automatically turned into the decisive President Ling.
Ling Shen was exhausted after a morning of meetings. The financial data constantly dancing on the projection screen was like a dense swarm of insects and ants, gnawing at his tense nerves. But he still had to stay focused for the banquet that was about to come.
The crystal chandelier cast a dazzling halo of light over the banquet hall. The clinking of high-heeled glasses mixed with the endless compliments. Ling Shen mechanically responded to the greetings from all sides, and he had to dig his nails deep into his palms to stay awake.
Looking at the people constantly crossing each other in front of him, including the toasts from his employees and the courtesies from his partners, Ling Shen felt a tiredness he had never felt before.
When everything was over, Ling Shen was just about to take a breath when his assistant pushed open the door solemnly, "Mr. Ling, Mr. Jiang is here and wants to see you." Ling Shen paused while pulling his tie, and a mocking laugh escaped from his Adam's apple.
"If he wants to see me, do I have to? Tell him that we can talk about it after the New Year if there is anything." He slammed the tie clip on the table. The sound of the metal collision startled the assistant's shoulders.
Although the assistant was a little confused, he still went to convey Ling Shen's words as instructed. Jiang Qichen sat in the reception room, his legs shaking constantly, and his eyes looked at the closed door from time to time.
The dark brown leather sofa still stank of Ling Shen's usual cedar perfume. On the coffee table lay the custom fountain pen that Jiang had given him last year. The pen cap was now tilted to one side, like a funny footnote.
The moment the door opened, Jiang Qichen stood up abruptly, his knee knocking the pen off the coffee table and sending it tumbling to the ground. The anxiety on his face turned into a smile, but it froze the moment he saw who was coming.
"Ling..." Before he could finish his words, Jiang Qichen's smile froze on his face, simply because what he saw was not Ling Shen but Ling Shen's assistant.
The assistant nodded apologetically to Jiang Qichen, "Boss Jiang, I'm so sorry. Boss Ling has been busy catching a flight back and has already left. He asked me to tell you that if you need anything, please come back after the New Year."
The warm air from the air conditioner blew past, causing the white hair at Jiang Qichen's temples to tremble slightly. When he bent down to pick up the pen, he heard a slight cracking sound in his chest.
Not to mention Jiang Qichen's distraught state, Ling Shen didn't even have time to change his clothes after giving instructions to his assistant, and drove out of Ling's directly through the back door.
The car radio was broadcasting the evening news. The news about the plummeting Jiang Corporation's stock price made him subconsciously step on the accelerator, and the tires made a harsh sound when rubbing against the ground.
It was not until the car stopped at the entrance of the alley that Ling Shen came to his senses and realized that he was here again.
The warm yellow light of the bookstore spread through the frosted glass. The wooden sign in front of the door swayed in the wind, and the copper bell tied with a hemp rope swayed gently in the twilight.
Ling Shen looked through the window and saw Su Nian curled up in the rocking chair, with half of the cashmere blanket slipped off, revealing half of her slender legs. There was only a little residual wine left in the wine glass beside her, and the ice cubes had long since melted into water droplets that meandered down the wall of the glass.
Ling Shen carefully pushed the door open, but still couldn't block out the crisp sound of the wind chimes. Before Ling Shen could react, Su Nian had already opened his eyes and looked towards the door.
There were tiny pieces of gold foil on his eyelashes, which flickered in the light, like a night sky dotted with stars.
“You’re here.”
Those few words stunned Ling Shen, who was still hesitating about how to start. There was no questioning, no anger, just normal behavior, but it completely relaxed Ling Shen, who had been tired all day.
Ling Shen couldn't help but relax his hand that was holding his coat. He leaned against the door frame and heard his own violent heartbeat that hurt his eardrums.
"Yeah." Ling Shen nodded, closed the door and walked into the bookstore.
The old wooden floor groaned slightly underfoot, and the air was filled with Su Nian's usual scent of bitter orange and the smell of ink from book pages.
Su Nian stretched his body lazily. His white silk shirt was pulled up because of his movement, and his fair and tender waist was inadvertently revealed to Ling Shen.
The dimple on his waist was like a deep pool under the moonlight, reflecting his gradually uncontrolled breathing.
Ling Shen turned his face away in panic, remembering only the heat rising in his heart. He had never known a man's skin could be so fair, even capable of generating inappropriate desires in others.
He wasn't a good man, and there were times when he needed to relieve himself, but he always ended things hastily and in a businesslike manner. Even after spending so many years with Jiang Yi, and despite the outside world's constant speculation about their relationship, Ling Shen had always only considered Jiang Yi a friend and a benefactor.
Even if Jiang Yi took off all his clothes in front of him, Ling Shen could still put his clothes on him without any expression. Over the long years, Ling Shen's feelings towards Jiang Yi were like his left hand to his right hand.
But the man in front of him, a person he used as a substitute, a person he had only been with for a short time, easily aroused his long-dormant desire.
As Su Nian turned, a gust of wind rustled the title page of a poetry collection on the bookshelf. A note fluttered between the yellowed pages, with half a line of poetry scribbled on it: "You are the last star in my desolate universe."
Su Nian had no idea of the struggle in Ling Shen's mind. He stood up from the recliner, his suit trousers hanging loosely on his hips, revealing a faint waistline.
"Are you hungry? Do you want to eat something? I didn't eat much today. Do you want to eat something with me?" Su Nian asked Ling Shen while taking out the pot.
Ling Shen's Adam's apple rolled unconsciously, and the tip of his nose seemed to still be lingering with the light woody scent of Su Nian.
He looked at the other person's busy figure behind the bar. The loose white shirt outlined his thin but upright figure, and the cuffs were casually rolled up to his elbows, revealing a slender wrist.
"Okay." He heard his voice was a little hoarse, as if it had been gently rubbed by sandpaper.
Su Nian smiled back at that, a warm yellow light in her eyes, like shattered starlight. "Let's just make some noodles. I only have tomatoes and eggs," he said, pulling ingredients from the refrigerator with a deftness that didn't seem like a bookstore owner.
Ling Shen sat on the recliner, his eyes following Su Nian involuntarily. He saw her skillful stir-frying movements and the scattered hair on the back of her neck.
These trivial images scratched Ling Shen's heart like feathers. Jiang Yi had never done this before.
He always ordered takeout as a matter of course, but never waited for Ling Shen to join him. Since meeting Su Nian, whether it was coffee at the right temperature or honey water after being drunk, everything was like running water slowly eroding Ling Shen's heart.
He could no longer tell whether he was looking at Jiang Yi through Su Nian, or whether he had already unknowingly engraved the man in front of him into his heart.
"What are you thinking about?" Su Nian came over with two steaming bowls of noodles and sat down across from him. The sweet and sour aroma of tomatoes instantly filled the air, dispelling the lingering smell of alcohol and fatigue.
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