This sentence felt different from the usual greetings they exchanged in the past. It not only made up for the regret from earlier that morning but also carried other implications. Saying it out loud undoubtedly made his mood even more delightful. So, with a smile, he repeated, “Good morning.”
Although Xu Chenghao found it a bit strange to say it twice, he still nodded in response. “Good morning. You seem to be in a good mood?”
It wasn’t until Jing Yicheng and the others entered and pressed the elevator floor button that he spoke softly, “Yes, I’m in a good mood.”
Xu Chenghao wanted to ask why, but then he realized that the good mood might be related to his identity and work. After all, the implication last night was that someone was at home, so perhaps he received some good news this morning.
Xu Chenghao had always been one to avoid prying into others’ identities, especially if it was related to work. After contemplating for a while about the possible connection between the good mood and work, he decided to remain silent and not pursue the matter further.
Silence was restored inside the elevator. Jing Yicheng stared at his own reflection on the elevator wall and carefully managed his expression. He suddenly realized how silly he looked when he smiled. Adding to the slight scars on his face, his smiling expression could be described as hideous.
Did he just smile at Xu Chenghao earlier? Oh, no… No wonder Xu Chenghao wasn’t speaking now; he must have been frightened by his unsettling smile!
In an instant, Jing Yicheng grew serious and lowered the brim of his cap in an attempt to hide his face.
It was better not to smile until the wounds healed.
They rode the elevator in silence until they reached the office. Just as Xu Chenghao settled into his seat, Li Nian handed him a stack of project summary reports and reminded him: “You just need to finalize the rewards and penalties and move into the maintenance phase. Keep up the good work.”
Xu Chenghao nodded, indicating he understood. Once Li Nian left, Xu Chenghao turned his attention back to the pen in his hand and suddenly remembered something: “Jing Yicheng.”
Jing Yicheng looked over: “Yes?”
Leaning against his chair, Xu Chenghao addressed him: “The project has concluded. Congratulations, you’re free from tomorrow onward.”
Still typing on his computer, Jing Yicheng glanced at him sideways: “What do you mean?”
Xu Chenghao explained: “Starting from tomorrow… No, starting from this afternoon, you don’t need to come to work anymore. You’re free.”
Jing Yicheng froze, and his immediate reaction was to figure out an excuse to stay longer. He didn’t want to leave; there was nothing more straightforward than being able to spend time around him at work.
He had to find a way.
After waiting for a considerable amount of time without receiving any response, Xu Chenghao decided to take the initiative and speak up: “Are you happy now? If you’re eager to leave, we could finish the summary meeting by noon.”
Jing Yicheng’s attempt to smile failed miserably, and he forced out: “I’m quite happy… hehe.”
Xu Chenghao chuckled: “I knew you’d be happy, so I wanted to let you know.”
Jing Yicheng: “…”
He wasn’t happy at all. He didn’t want to leave the company, let alone leave early from the summary meeting!
Now he was starting to suspect that his morning smile had scared Xu Chenghao, prompting him to rush him out.
Feeling extremely frustrated, Jing Yicheng lost all his earlier good moods. What made him even angrier was that he hadn’t found a proper reason to stay when he overheard Xu Chenghao seemingly talking on the phone, mentioning that he would be trying on formal wear in the afternoon.
Jing Yicheng: “!!!”
He nearly choked from the sudden realization!
Look at this situation. He was still around, practically occupying most of Xu Chenghao’s time—living together, eating together, working together. Yet, there were still people trying to steal him away!
Jing Yicheng couldn’t imagine what Xu Chenghao’s life would be like without him taking up so much of his time.
His mind was buzzing with various thoughts, causing his fingers to hover over the keyboard momentarily, unable to type. He came close to even removing the keycaps in his distraction. Eventually, Jing Yicheng decided to abandon his work, grabbed his phone, and sent a message to his assistant: “Find out who invited Xu Chenghao and who’s on the list!”
Assistant, “Understood, please wait.”
Seventeen minutes later, the assistant replied: “The inviter is Miss Zheng Yunyun from the Zheng family. This event is her younger sister’s coming-of-age ceremony. The guest list mostly consists of young people from their circle, including Ruan Chenxuan, Jiang Changming, and others.”
Jing Yicheng: “!!!”
Ruan Chenxuan was on the list too! What was he trying to do by quietly attending the event?
Jing Yicheng was about to explode with anger. He couldn’t shake off the image of Tang Seng (Xu Chenghao) falling into a spider’s web, surrounded by demon spirits trying to take a bite. And now, even Ruan Chenxuan, that scoundrel, was waiting to undermine him and steal the limelight!
No, he had to go too!
Jing Yicheng typed rapidly, sending a message: “Get me an invitation. I’m going!”
Assistant: “Understood.”
A series of messages shattered Jing Yicheng’s good mood completely. During the meeting, his face remained dark, and he had to restrain himself from losing his temper.
This indirectly turned what should have been a celebration and reward meeting into a tense atmosphere because of Jing Yicheng’s oppressive aura. No one dared to cheer or applaud, and even clapping required Xu Chenghao’s lead.
As the meeting progressed, Xu Chenghao noticed that they couldn’t relax, so he handed the matter over to Li Nian and patted Jing Yicheng’s shoulder, gesturing for him to come outside with him.
Jing Yicheng got up and followed, leaving the conference room. Listening to the exuberant voices from inside, he felt like they were celebrating his imminent departure, which made his mood even worse.
“Hey hey hey, what’s bothering you?” Xu Chenghao reached out and grabbed Jing Yicheng, who wanted to go back inside, pulling him in the direction of his office. “After working so hard, it’s natural to celebrate. Why are you getting upset?”
Jing Yicheng had half of his face covered under his cap, lips pursed in silence.
Xu Chenghao guided him to sit on the sofa and poured him a cup of calming tea, asking, “You seemed pretty happy in the morning. Why the sudden change in mood? Did something at the company upset you? Tell me, I’d like to listen.”
Jing Yicheng muttered: “Nothing.”
Xu Chenghao tilted his head and looked at him: “If it’s nothing, why are
you taking it out on us?”
Jing Yicheng: “It’s not about you.”
“Then who is it about?” Xu Chenghao tried to read something from his expression, but the hat covering most of his face prevented him from seeing anything.
Jing Yicheng remained silent. He was contemplating whether to reveal that he had discovered the truth about the banquet, but he worried that it would make him seem childish and petty. Moreover, what if he accidentally alerted Xu Chenghao and the demon?
So he couldn’t say anything.
Unaware that his immaturity was already a well-known fact, Jing Yicheng was trying hard to maintain his aloof demeanor, pressing his lips together resolutely.
Xu Chenghao sighed: “Fine, if you don’t want to say, that’s okay. But you can’t spoil others’ good mood, right? If you’re really unhappy, don’t waste time here. Call the assistant to pack up and leave.”
Jing Yicheng suddenly raised his head: “Are you trying to kick me out?”
Xu Chenghao retorted: “I’m not.”
Jing Yicheng accused: “You just mentioned packing up and leaving!”
Xu Chenghao: “There were words before that too. Don’t take things out of context! What I meant was, if you’re unhappy at the company, you might as well go home and rest. Since we don’t need to attend the meeting anymore and the contracts and agreements are all settled, you can leave and return to your normal life and work. That’s not kicking you out, that’s sending you off.”
Jing Yicheng reluctantly accepted the explanation but still insisted: “I’m not leaving. I want to leave with you in the afternoon.”
Xu Chenghao said, “That’s not necessary. I have a meeting arranged for the afternoon.”
Jing Yicheng: “…Then I want to leave with you even more!”
Xu Chenghao found it strange: “Would you want to be present in my meeting with someone you don’t know?”
Jing Yicheng said confidently: “Knowing you is enough for me.”
Xu Chenghao didn’t believe that he had no ulterior motive. After a moment of thought, he tested, “Do you think it’s Ruan Chenxuan? Don’t worry, it’s not him. I can assure you.”
Jing Yicheng said: “I’ll figure out who it is myself, but I still want to leave with you.”
Xu Chenghao: “…”
This was just being unreasonable. Xu Chenghao rubbed his temples in frustration. For the second time, he regretted agreeing to be friends with Jing Yicheng. What was he thinking back then? Look at this now, it’s not a friendship at all, it’s more like being a kindergarten teacher dealing with a bear child!
Yet, no matter how much he complained internally, it couldn’t match Jing Yicheng’s shamelessness. In the end, when Xu Chenghao drove to the appointed place, Jing Yicheng had managed to worm his way into the passenger seat and nonchalantly joined him for his meeting with Zheng Yunyun.
Initially, Zheng Yunyun was happy to have another handsome guy join, but as things progressed, she found it hard to keep a smile on her face. Because she realized that the handsome guy wasn’t here for her, but for another handsome guy!
When Xu Chenghao was trying on formal wear, Jing Yicheng mostly stood by his side, watching and praising how good he looked. He even helped pick out accessories like cufflinks and tie pins. However, when Zheng Yunyun tried on her gown… the other party not only sat on the sofa with an expressionless face, but his eyes even seemed somewhat disdainful.
Zheng Yunyun began to doubt whether her makeup was poorly done, causing her to appear less attractive and leading to this apparent disdain. Or was the outfit itself unflattering?
Zheng Yunyun decided to try on another dress!
To her surprise, this time, things went even further. When the privacy curtain was drawn aside, there was no one waiting for her to come out!!
Zheng Yunyun: ???
Is this something a gentleman would do? Would any gentleman leave a girl alone to choose her clothes? Shouldn’t they be waiting outside to compliment her? Aren’t they there to accompany her while she tries on dresses??
Xu Chenghao also felt it wasn’t quite right, so he came over and said a few words to Zheng Yunyun, finally managing to make her feel better. Jing Yicheng appeared from the side and said in a soft tone, “Mr. Xu has good taste, so pick something for me too.”
Xu Chenghao glanced at him and asked, “Are you attending an event soon?”
Jing Yicheng nodded and thought, We’re attending the same one.
Xu Chenghao: “What kind of style are you looking for? Give me a rough idea.”
Jing Yicheng: “Something similar to yours… Let’s go over and take a look first.”
Feeling that he had no grasp of women’s clothing, Xu Chenghao apologetically nodded to Zheng Yunyun and followed Jing Yicheng to the men’s formalwear section to help him choose clothes.
Zheng Yunyun: Can’t even smile.jpg
Who can tell her what she was doing there? Why does she feel so irrelevant this time?
The author has something to say: Jing Yicheng: As recorded in my little book, ‘Blocking peach blossoms for a friend is an unshirkable duty.’
Well, he absolutely has no ulterior motives, absolutely not!
T/N: Jing Yicheng is easily becoming my favorite character, lol. His thought process is just so XD!
