The "revolutionary friendship" between the two bigwigs
Meng Yihe looked at the two messages and her ears felt a little hot again.
He stared at the screen for a long time before slowly replying: "Just woke up, I'm okay."
The message was replied to almost instantly: "Okay, that's good. What are your plans for today?"
Meng Yihe: [No.]
Cui Yu: [Then get some rest. What do you want to eat tonight? I can bring it over, or we can go out to eat?]
Meng Yihe hesitated for a moment after seeing the message. He did need some time alone to process it, but he wasn't opposed to seeing Cui Yu. Before he could decide how to reply, Cui Yu's next message arrived:
If it's inconvenient for you, that's fine.
I just wanted to see you.
This thoughtfulness softened Meng Yihe's heart slightly. He recalled his parents' shocked but ultimately accepting attitude last night, and his own promise to "give it a try".
He took a deep breath and typed back: "You decide."
After sending the message, he tossed his phone aside, but his heart started racing uncontrollably again.
In the end, Cui Yu did not come to the apartment or ask him out. She simply told him to rest well for a day, but kept sending him messages of greeting and sharing her thoughts.
That evening, Cui Yu made a video call on time. In the video, he was in his own study, wearing pajamas, looking refreshed and relaxed.
"Have you eaten?" he asked with a smile, his tone natural.
"I ate." Meng Yihe nodded, the camera deliberately focusing on her chin and below to avoid a direct close-up of her face.
Cui Yu saw through his little scheme, but didn't point it out. She just smiled and chatted with him about everyday trivia, interesting anecdotes at work, and even what little trouble Cui Xuyue had gotten into.
His tone was relaxed and cheerful, sharing life like any ordinary couple. This natural attitude greatly eased Meng Yihe's tension, and he gradually relaxed as well, occasionally responding with a few words. Although he still didn't talk much, his eyes softened considerably.
The video call lasted for more than half an hour.
Most of the time, Cui Yu was talking and Meng Yihe was listening.
Cui Yu was laughing as she shared the embarrassing story of how Cui Xuyue tried to water the flowers in the yard but ended up getting soaked.
Meng Yihe couldn't help but smile slightly.
Just then, the door to Cui Yu's study was quietly pushed open a crack, and a furry head peeked in, blinking its curious big eyes.
"Brother, who are you talking to on the phone? You're laughing so happily. Is it Brother Meng?" The boy's clear voice carried a sly probing tone, clearly indicating that he had been eavesdropping at the door for a while.
Upon hearing this, Cui Yu turned to look at the door, his smile widening. He said to Meng Yihe outside the camera, "Look, speak of the devil and he appears." Then Cui Yu waved to the door, "Come in, what are you doing sneaking around like that?"
Cui Xuyue immediately scurried in like a happy puppy. He sidled up to the desk, unceremoniously squeezing his head into the camera's field of view, and flashed a big smile at Meng Yihe on the screen.
"Brother Meng! Good evening! I knew it was my brother calling you!"
Meng Yihe, on the other side of the screen, paused for a moment when she saw the energetic young man, nodded, and replied softly, "Yes, good evening, Xuyue."
Cui Xuyue seemed to want to say something more, chattering away as he prepared to share his new game for the day.
Just then, Cui Yu, who was standing next to him, looked at Meng Yihe on the screen, then at his younger brother who had squeezed in next to him, and a mischievous smile suddenly flashed in his eyes.
He reached out and put his arm around his younger brother's shoulder, then looked at the camera and said in a completely natural tone, even with a hint of deliberate boasting: "Xuyue, you have to be even nicer to your Meng-gege from now on, okay?"
Cui Yu paused deliberately, pleased to see Meng Yihe's expression slightly stunned on the screen, as if she didn't understand why he suddenly said this.
Then, Cui Yu slowly said, emphasizing each word: "Because he is now your sister-in-law."
“Sister-in-law…Sister-in-law?!” Cui Xuyue suddenly turned her head, her eyes wide open.
My brain's CPU completely overheated from that sentence, freezing for several seconds.
He simply couldn't connect the title "sister-in-law" with the aloof and handsome Brother Meng on the screen!
The next second, he suddenly burst into a thunderous exclamation and a series of questions: "Waaaaahhhhhh—! Really, bro?! Really, really?! Brother Meng is really...is...?"
"Good heavens! When did this happen?! Why didn't you tell me sooner?!"
“Brother Meng…uh…” Cui Xuyue hesitated for a moment, clearly still unable to say “sister-in-law”, so she turned to Meng Yihe, her eyes shining brightly and her tone full of excitement.
"Brother Meng! Is this true?!"
Meng Yihe's face flushed crimson instantly, visible to the naked eye. The redness spread from his cheeks to the roots of his neck, and even his fingertips began to burn. He opened his mouth, seemingly wanting to retort, to say "Don't listen to his nonsense," or to blame Cui Yu for his recklessness, but the overwhelming shame rendered him speechless.
He could only stare blankly at the excited boy on the screen and the culprit who was grinning triumphantly.
"Cui, Yu!" Meng Yihe finally squeezed out the two words through gritted teeth, her voice trembling slightly with extreme shame and anger.
"Hey, I'm here."
Cui Yu laughed even harder, and even winked at the camera, deliberately saying to his younger brother, "Look, your brother Meng is shy."
"Ahhh, Brother Meng, don't be shy! I'm so happy! My brother..." Cui Xuyue was still excitedly rambling on.
Meng Yihe could no longer stay there.
He felt like he was on fire. In a panic, he pressed the hang-up button, and the screen went black instantly, disappearing from Cui Yu and Cui Xuyue's excited faces.
The world is finally quiet.
Meng Yihe sat alone on the sofa, her hand still tightly gripping her scalding phone. Her heart pounded wildly, and her cheeks were so hot they could fry an egg. She could still hear Cui Yu's clear "Sister-in-law" and Cui Xuyue's excited exclamation echoing in her ears.
"That...bastard!" he muttered through gritted teeth.
I don't know if he's cursing Cui Yu or the situation that caused him to lose control like this.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the screen, in the study.
Cui Xuyue was still excitedly circling around her brother.
"Brother! You really...you and Brother Meng are...together?! That's amazing! I knew it! When can I go visit Brother Meng?!"
Looking at the video call screen that had been disconnected, Cui Yu imagined Meng Yihe's embarrassed and indignant expression on the other end of the phone. He was in an extremely good mood. He ruffled his younger brother's hair and said with a smile, "Don't bother him for now. Your brother Meng is shy. Let him get used to it slowly."
"Okay, okay!" Cui Xuyue nodded vigorously, her face beaming with excitement and joy at having stumbled upon such a huge piece of gossip. "Does that mean I can see Brother Meng more often from now on? That's great!"
On Monday, a workday, everything at the Xinghuan Group headquarters was operating as usual.
Cui Yu and Meng Yihe appeared together in the company's underground parking garage and then took the elevator upstairs together.
This in itself is not surprising.
After all, they often need to commute to and from get off work together to discuss work.
Director Meng maintained his usual aloof demeanor, walking briskly with his eyes fixed straight ahead. However, upon closer inspection, one might notice that he seemed less "icy" today. Some even vaguely sensed that Director Meng's ears appeared slightly red.
But upon closer inspection, I must have misread it.
At the core team meeting in the morning, the two were still the absolute main characters.
Meng Yihe was in charge of finalizing the technical solutions, but when a project manager stammered during a presentation due to nervousness, he did not interrupt him coldly as he usually did. Instead, he waited silently until the other person finished speaking before pointing out the problem.
Although his tone remained calm, it lacked some of his impatience.
Midway through the meeting.
The administrative assistant brought over coffee. She habitually placed a cup of black coffee in front of Cui Yu first, and then placed another cup of black coffee with a little milk next to Meng Yihe.
However, today...
After she put down her cup, Cui Yu very naturally reached out, took the cup of coffee next to Meng Yihe, and then pushed his own cup of plain black coffee in front of Meng Yihe.
The assistant was stunned for a moment, almost thinking that he had misremembered the habits of the two directors.
To her even greater surprise, Meng Yihe merely glanced at the coffee that had been switched, without making any move or uttering any objection. She simply picked up the cup silently, carefully blew on it, and then took a small sip.
Cui Yu picked up the cup of coffee with milk, took a sip, and then smiled at his dumbfounded assistant: "Thank you, I wanted to try something different today."
Administrative Assistant: "...No, you're welcome."
During lunchtime, several executives invited Cui Yu to join them at the executive restaurant, but Cui Yu politely declined with a smile: "You guys go first, I have something to discuss with Director Meng."
Everyone nodded knowingly, assuming it was another important project, and then left.
Then, everyone saw Cui Yu walk very naturally towards the strategic department area, stop at the door of Meng Yihe's office, knock on the door, and after receiving permission, push the door open and go in.
"Is Director Meng not going to the restaurant again today?"
"I guess so, his assistant seems to have gone to the sandwich shop just now."
"President Cui went to keep watch again? What a great partner..."
"It seems their relationship has become even stronger since they came back from Bincheng..."
After a few words of discussion, no one found it too unusual, since "Director Cui worrying about Director Meng's meals" had almost become a common sight in the company.
They simply felt that the revolutionary friendship between these two bigwigs seemed to have reached a new level.
In the office, Meng Yihe was processing emails on his computer screen without looking up. Cui Yu closed the door behind him, walked to his desk, and placed the delicate food box she was carrying on the table: "Don't eat sandwiches. I had someone bring some light dishes and porridge from outside. Eat them while they're hot."
Meng Yihe paused for a moment while typing, glanced at the food box, then at Cui Yu, and said softly, "Thank you."
"Why are you being so polite with me?" Cui Yu smiled, casually sat down in the chair opposite him, took out his phone as if processing a message, and showed no intention of leaving, clearly intending to supervise him to finish his meal.
Meng Yihe silently opened the food box, and the aroma of the food wafted out. He picked up his chopsticks and quietly began to eat.
To outsiders, every interaction seems to reflect the past, yet something always feels different.
I can't quite put my finger on it.
It seems more natural, more justified?
In the following days, work remained the main focus. The success of the Linnan project brought new opportunities, but it also meant that more follow-up work and strategic deployments needed to be carried out.
On Friday afternoon, after the last document that needed urgent signing was processed, Cui Yu closed his pen, looked at Meng Yihe who was still checking data across from him, and leaned back in his chair in a relaxed manner.
"What are the plans for tomorrow?" Meng Yihe looked up from in front of the screen.
"Organize the follow-up technical archives of the Linan project."
A typical Meng Yihe-style weekend plan.
Cui Yu chuckled and shook his head. "I knew you'd say that. There's no rush to archive it. The weather's nice tomorrow, shall I take you somewhere to relax?"
A hint of doubt flashed in Meng Yihe's eyes: "Where?"
"The equestrian club I frequent has a nice atmosphere, should I go check it out?"
Horseback riding?
This was a completely unfamiliar area for Meng Yihe, but looking into Cui Yu's encouraging and expectant eyes, the word "no" circled on her lips before finally turning into a hesitant "...I'm not good at it."
“It’s alright.” Cui Yu’s smile deepened. “It doesn’t have to be something you’re good at. Just go and experience it. Riding a horse slowly for a while is very relaxing. And…”
He paused, lowered his voice, and spoke with a hint of coaxing.
I want to take you to see the places I like.
Meng Yihe was silent for a few seconds, her fingertips unconsciously tracing the edge of the paper, and nodded: "Mm."
Saturday morning.
Cui Yu drove Meng Yihe to the equestrian club in the suburbs.
The club boasts a tranquil environment, a vast area, and modern facilities that blend seamlessly with the natural scenery.
Cui Yu was clearly a regular here. The staff greeted him warmly, their curious gazes falling on Meng Yihe, who stood beside him with a cool demeanor, but they were all well-trained and did not ask any further questions.
"Don't be nervous," Cui Yu whispered to Meng Yihe, her tone relaxed.
"Let's start by getting to know horses."
He led Meng Yihe to the stable. A dark brown horse with glossy fur and a beautiful physique saw Cui Yu, snorted affectionately, and poked its head over. Cui Yu smiled, touched its cheek, and skillfully fed it a sugar cube.
"This is Chase Wind, my old buddy, he's very gentle," Cui Yu introduced, then patiently explained to Meng Yihe how to interact with horses, basic horse tack knowledge, and safety precautions.
Meng Yihe was initially a little reserved, standing a bit far from the horses. But watching the natural and intimate interaction between Cui Yu and Zhui Feng, and listening to his deep and gentle explanation, she gradually relaxed, and even cautiously reached out and, following Cui Yu's instructions, gently touched Zhui Feng's neck.
Feeling the warm and vibrant touch of his hands, a hint of curiosity flashed in his eyes.
With the assistance of a professional coach, the two mounted their horses.
Cui Yu rode the Chasing Wind, while Meng Yihe rode a more docile and smaller teaching horse.
At first, Meng Yihe's body was very tense, and his grip on the reins was slightly stiff. He was focused on recalling the key points he had just heard and carefully controlled the horse beneath him to walk slowly.
Cui Yu wasn't in a hurry to get him running. Instead, he controlled Zhui Feng, walking slowly beside him and occasionally reminding him to relax and follow the horse's rhythm in a relaxed tone. He would also sometimes point out the scenery in the distance for him to see.
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