Chapter 5 He was like a gentle viper
Chapter 5
"Knock knock"
The slow, deliberate tapping of the table echoed in the quiet reception room.
Wen Yining looked up instantly.
He leaned back in his chair, looking at her with an indifferent air. One of his pale hands rested on the black table beside him, the extreme black and white giving off a refined and noble air.
"Wen, do you recognize me? Otherwise, why do you look at me like I've seen a ghost?"
Wen Yining pursed her lips upon hearing his deliberate rhetorical question.
She wished she had never met him. Since he didn't immediately drop the pretense, she was even less likely to admit to knowing him first.
Wen Yining repeated her high-sounding, stereotypical words, "Mr. Li has an extraordinary aura."
He spoke in a gentle tone: "Is he more extraordinary than your distinguished guest, Mr. Chen? Otherwise, why are you afraid of me but not him?"
Wen Yining choked and stared at him with wide eyes.
His eyes curved slightly, a gentle smile on his face, as he looked at her intently, as if patiently waiting for her answer.
It was as if he wasn't the one asking such a pointed question.
She understood; he was doing it on purpose, forcing her to take the initiative and admit that she knew him.
After thinking for a long time, Wen Yining, who was not good at speaking or socializing, really didn't know how to deal with it, so she simply gave up and stopped talking, turned her head and picked up the cup next to her and took a sip.
The water had long since cooled down, and the fragrant tea flavor had turned icy and bitter. As I swallowed it, I could clearly feel the hard ice water slowly flowing down my throat into my stomach. The coldness made my stomach ache slightly, but the icy stimulation eased my tense nerves a little.
Wen Yining dared not drink anymore, gripping the glass of ice water tightly as if clinging to something for support. She kept turning her head to look at the door, anxiously hoping that her secretary and the male classmate would return soon. However, she also had a vague idea in her heart that, given the secretary's shrewdness, it was impossible for them to return in a short time.
Suddenly, Yu Guangli stood up and walked towards her. Wen Yining was startled and instinctively shrank back, tilting her head back and watching his every move warily.
He walked to the tea station on the table, took a new cup, poured some water, and then walked over to her, placing the cup on the table next to her.
With the movement, the jacket rode up to reveal a clean, crisp shirt and a pale, white wrist.
Wen Yining, holding a half-full glass of water, looked at his sudden behavior with a puzzled expression. The next second, she noticed that the water was steaming, and the steam formed a ring of white mist on the glass.
Realizing what had happened belatedly, a chill ran through Wen Yining's heart.
He's so perceptive!
Her keen sensitivity and meticulousness terrified her.
How did he discover that her glass of water was iced?
As she stared blankly at the steam in her cup, she suddenly felt alarm bells ringing. A strange and powerful presence approached, and then the cup was snatched from her hand.
Wen Yining felt a chill run down her spine and immediately turned to look. He had already stood up. Her gaze swept over him, and a neatly pressed shirt peeked out from under his black coat. His fair and slender neck, as well as his Adam's apple, were clearly visible in her vision, carrying an unfamiliar, cold, and masculine aura.
Wen Yining quickly looked away, her heart pounding inexplicably, and she forgot to thank him for a moment.
I thought he was going to say something nasty again, but he put the glass of cold water on the table and didn't say anything, as if it were just a casual thing to do.
He leaned against the table next to her, neither too close nor too far, his fingers casually resting on the cup she had just used, his index finger tapping lightly on the glass.
"Mr. Li sounds too cloying. Li Changjing. Li as in 'wood,' 'long' as in 'short,' and 'jing' as in 'white jade capital.'"
A thought flashed through Wen Yining's mind. She nodded and deliberately called out to him, "Thank you, Uncle Li."
He looked to be in his early twenties, I don't know how much older he was than her, but he definitely couldn't be called her uncle.
The knocking stopped abruptly, and her heart jumped.
Li Changjing raised an eyebrow, turned his head, and looked down at her with an ambiguous expression.
There was no sign of anger, but his aura was imposing, and he commanded respect without being angry.
He must have understood her rejection.
Wen Yining couldn't help but grip the cup tightly.
From the moment I saw him in this meeting room, he always seemed to be smiling, low-key, humble, and approachable, as if he had a very good temper.
But Wen Yining would never be so foolish as to think that the children of high-ranking officials are genuinely good-tempered after working in the "palace" for so long and experiencing these incidents.
He looked at her for two seconds, then suddenly smiled. Unlike his previous polite and fake smile, his deep eyes revealed a genuine smile, seemingly a little helpless. His eyes curved slightly. "It's our first time meeting, Wen. I didn't realize you were so cute."
Wen Yining's heart skipped a beat, and a sense of anxiety rose within her.
His sense of aggression, determined to win, was like looking through a transparent veil; you didn't pierce it, but you could clearly see the sharp glint of the blade on the other side.
I don't know if people of this status are good at playing dumb, but he didn't expose her and just slowly played along with her.
However, she is not good at it, nor does she have such a strong mentality.
Rejection is useless.
She had to get him to let go on his own without offending him.
Wen Yining forced herself to calm down, picked up her cup and took a sip of tea. "Mr. Li, what kind of tea is this? My boyfriend loves tea, and he always takes me to a teahouse whenever he comes to see me. Unfortunately, I don't know much about tea, and they all taste pretty much the same."
Li Changjing stared at her. Wen Yining calmly let him look at her.
The girl has a cool and quiet appearance and temperament. Because of her young age, she still has some naive student air. Her eyes are bright and clear, with a clean and clear appearance.
She probably didn't even realize that, despite her seemingly delicate and fragile appearance, her eyes always inadvertently revealed a resilience and stubbornness.
What Li Changjing liked most about her was her eyes.
Li Changjing suddenly smiled again, sat down next to her, and replied, "Qimen black tea."
Wen Yining secretly observed his expression carefully, but found no anger or similar emotions. The way he looked at her gave her the illusion of looking at a child with tenderness and doting.
Unable to discern his attitude, unsure if it was the prelude to a storm, she could only remain extremely vigilant.
He nodded. "Qingming Festival is in a few days. If you're interested, you can go to the place of origin to experience it. After all, no matter how good the water is, it can't compare to the aroma and flavor that comes from water from the place of origin."
His overly calm attitude instilled a sense of unknown fear in Wen Yining. She gripped her cup tightly with her slender white fingers and nodded. "I'll talk to him. If he has time during the Qingming Festival, we can arrange to meet there."
"At this time of year, it's mostly tea merchants and tourists going there. People from other places might not be able to get a seat, and tickets are hard to book. If you need anything, I can put in a good word with them." It was that indulgent and doting tone, like talking to a child.
She pieced together the dating experiences she had heard from her roommates.
Holding the cup, she spoke earnestly, her words carrying a hidden meaning: "My boyfriend doesn't like me getting too close to other people. When we went out to play a while ago, we ran into one of my male classmates. Maybe I talked to him too much, because he got very unhappy, left immediately, and even blocked me. It took me a long time to coax him back."
I already have a boyfriend, and I love him very much, so please stop talking to me! Just go!
Li Changjing seemed oblivious to her obvious implication. His tone remained calm: "Leaving a young girl like you in an unfamiliar place, isn't that...?"
He was very gentlemanly and didn't offer any further comment.
Wen Yining shook her head, feeling like she was a deeply in love, hopelessly in love person. "Although he has a bad temper, he's usually very good to me."
He suddenly smiled again, looked down at her, and curled the corners of his mouth, "Ningning, you are really cute."
Wen Yining's heart skipped a beat. The tender and ambiguous feeling the man had for her made her hurriedly look away, unable to meet his gaze.
But I could still feel his gaze.
She had never told so many lies in her life. Under his gaze, she had reached her limit. Afraid of being discovered, Wen Yining stood up and walked to the tea station, turning her back to him to pour water.
She has a boyfriend, and her rejection was quite obvious. People like them are so perceptive of the subconscious meaning behind words that they could definitely see through her rejection.
In that case, he should give up.
She wouldn't force herself on someone who already has a boyfriend; she doesn't think she's that attractive.
He suddenly spoke up behind her, his tone still calm and gentle, with a touch of unhurried politeness, "But Ningning, you haven't left the campus for the past few months except for work. How did your boyfriend meet you and have so many things happen?"
Wen Yining suddenly turned to look at him, her expression changing drastically. She hadn't even noticed that the kettle had soaked her sleeve along with the cup.
He actually investigated her! And he investigated her in such detail!
It turns out he knew all along; he had been teasing her with great interest!
Li Changjing met her gaze quietly, as if he didn't see her fear and embarrassment. He wore a gentle smile, calm and natural as if he hadn't said anything.
Like a gentle venomous snake.
You never know when he will suddenly bare his fangs; even when he bites, he may seem gentle, but it is highly venomous.
Wen Yining instantly felt that everything about her was laid bare before him, leaving her with nothing to hide and nothing to hide!
Wen Yining's face turned pale, and her eyes showed fear.
But finally, the curtain was torn away, revealing the sharp, cold glint of the blade.
"Knock knock knock"
A soft knock on the door broke the silence in the room.
An unassuming-looking bodyguard with shrewd eyes pushed open the door, walked to Li Changjing's side, and whispered something to him.
He casually rested his hand on the back of the chair and listened as if he hadn't heard anything, then turned to look at Wen Yining.
He seemed to only then notice her fear and distress, and suddenly sighed as he walked towards her.
Wen Yining's eyes reddened as she stared intently at him, instinctively backing away until her lower back hit the table.
Li Changjing stopped in front of her. Wen Yining was 170 cm tall, which was not short for a girl, but she still had to look up at him.
His imposing aura swept over her, and Wen Yining's fear of him reached an unprecedented level, causing a layer of hair to stand on the back of her neck.
He handed her a tissue from the table, but Wen Yining didn't touch it.
"Ningning," he called her name.
Wen Yining paused for two seconds, then stiffly raised her hand.
Lee Chang-kyung placed the tissue in her hand, and perhaps sensing that she disliked being touched, he even very gentlemanly avoided touching her skin.
Even with his head down, he could feel the gaze on him from above. He sighed again, "Did I scare you?"
Wen Yining lowered her head, gripped the tissue tightly, and remained silent.
The door rang again. Wen Yining looked up and saw her secretary walk in alone. She stood in a corner far away without saying a word.
Li Changjing didn't even glance at them, as if he didn't care who came in, or as if he had a confident air about him.
"It's my fault for not thinking things through. I should have come next week. I was too eager to see you and forgot to consider that Grandma is in the hospital. You really weren't in the mood."
Wen Yining was no longer surprised, but hearing him talk about these things so casually still made her feel a little uneasy.
"As for investigating you, you know... given your status, there's nothing we can do." His tone was sincere, unlike that of a pampered and privileged young master, but rather like a good-natured male classmate.
Wen Yining's eyelashes trembled, and her cold expression melted away.
Secretary Feng watched all this quietly from the corner. After all, she was just a young girl of 18, innocent and naive, and did not realize that this was just a tactic used by those in power, combining soft and hard approaches.
Having followed this man for two or three years, he knows best how he manipulates people's hearts.
Li Changjing glanced at Secretary Feng, who immediately understood and came over. "Sir, we've already spoken to General Manager Chen. It's 10:45 now. We'll set off now and are expected to arrive at 11:30 in 40 minutes."
Is he finally leaving?
Wen Yining's heart raced with excitement.
She thought Li Changjing was going to say something more to her, but she didn't expect him to be so decisive. After saying goodbye, he left cleanly and decisively, as if he were a stranger, without any of the ambiguous and covetous look he had shown earlier.
Wen Yining's social life and experiences from childhood to adulthood were unremarkable. Her most vivid memories were of studying, memorizing, and doing exercises. Most of the people she met were teachers and classmates of the same age. This was the first time she had met someone like Li Changjing.
She couldn't understand him; he was unpredictable.
As Li Changjing left, the bodyguards at the door also left.
The stuffy, airtight reception room suddenly became bright and airy.
Wen Yining looked up blankly at the reception room where she was now all alone, as if she had just woken up from a ridiculous, ambiguous, and terrifying dream.
A note from the author:
Sorry for the long wait [dog head holding a rose] (bows)
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