⌈”Yes, but it’s not good to stray too far from the facts.”⌋
Ji Min: “…”
He thought this matter was already behind them.
But he didn’t expect it to catch up to him here.
The awkwardness from that moment surged back again.
Mixed with a familiar yet unidentifiable sense of guilt, it left Ji Min speechless for a moment.
His reaction at that instant was very unlike him.
He felt like a shy, frustrated youth.
If Ji Min were ten years younger, everything would be easier to explain.
After all, young people often do things impulsively without thinking.
But Ji Min was not young.
He pursed his lips, his mind a chaotic mess.
Lu Ran, not hearing a response, tilted his head in confusion, staring at him.
Then, he asked, “Don’t you like what I said?”
Ji Min froze, turning his gaze toward him.
Lu Ran looked down, fiddling with the armrest behind him for a moment, before lifting his head to ask, “Is there something wrong with my work, Boss?”
Ji Min felt an unfamiliar sensation well up in his chest.
He realized it was really hard to describe Lu Ran as a person.
This boy was young, yet his methods were endlessly unpredictable.
Most of the time, he could infuriate someone to the point where they wished they could vanish instantly.
But there were times, certain moments…
When he could make it impossible to say anything harsh, softening one’s heart completely.
Like now.
While fiddling with the sponge grip on the armrest, Lu Ran raised his eyes and asked him, “Did I do something wrong?”
Ji Min opened his mouth, feeling an intense inner conflict.
Did he do something wrong?
Of course, he did!
What normal person would actually consider those things as part of their work and seriously discuss with their boss whether they performed well enough?
Who likes to have their abilities in that area “clarified” every day?
Even if someone is complimenting you, it’s still strange.
But when looking into the boy’s eyes, Ji Min couldn’t bring himself to say any of those words.
The “interrogation” he had imagined in his mind was long forgotten, scattered somewhere in the corners of his thoughts.
In the end, Ji Min turned his head to avoid Lu Ran’s direct and clear gaze.
He cleared his throat softly and said, “Overall, there’s nothing major to address, but there are areas that need improvement.”
At his words, the previously dejected figure suddenly perked up.
Lu Ran stepped around to Ji Min’s side, crouching down, his hands gripping the armrests of the wheelchair, nodding seriously, “Mm, mm, go ahead.”
His attitude was like a student eagerly awaiting feedback on a project.
Ji Min once again turned his head to avoid the boy’s gaze.
“Only…”
He stuttered for a while, but couldn’t find anything to follow up with.
It was Lu Ran who looked at him and, as if afraid to trigger Ji Min’s fragile pride, cautiously asked, “Is it because I exaggerated too much?”
Ji Min hesitated before nodding.
It wasn’t the content that was exaggerated.
Of course, something like “one night” wasn’t exactly scientifically plausible, but the king oyster mushroom wasn’t a big deal.
With his strength, if he wanted to, it wouldn’t be hard to make someone unable to get out of bed the next day while sitting in a wheelchair…
Ji Min quickly stopped that line of thinking.
What was exaggerated was the boy’s tone and the way he kept describing their relationship!
But before he could say anything, Lu Ran nodded thoughtfully.
“Yeah, being too far from the truth wouldn’t be good either.”
Ji Min was about to agree when he suddenly paused, turning to look silently at the boy leaning on his leg.
Wait, what did that mean?
Lu Ran didn’t notice his boss’s emotions at all.
He was still mumbling to himself, “What if one day you find someone, and they discover the goods aren’t up to standard?”
Ji Min: “…?”
Not up to standard?
Lu Ran continued to analyze seriously, “So, you shouldn’t focus too much on the hardware, but rather describe the abilities, since abilities can’t deteriorate over time.”
Ji Min: “…”
He gritted his teeth and said, “What nonsense are you talking about?!”
He took a deep breath, reminding himself that he wasn’t like Gu Ningqi, a fool who would get upset over such a thing.
But Lu Ran could tell he was annoyed and shrank back a little.
The boy stared at him for a while.
Finally, he sighed heavily and couldn’t help but complain, “If I say you’re good, you get angry, if I say you’re not, you get angry. Boss, you’re really too troublesome!”
Ji Min: “…”
He suddenly realized something and turned his head to find that Butler Chen and the driver were both watching them with curiosity.
Butler Chen was trying to maintain composure, but it was obvious he was holding back a laugh.
The driver, however, was much less composed.
At that moment, he was lowering the car window, sticking his head out, wearing a look of someone enjoying a gossip-worthy scene.
When he saw Ji Min look at him, a slight expression of “Why did you stop talking?” appeared on his face.
Ji Min: “…”
He immediately fell silent and quickly entered the car through the accessible ramp.
He didn’t forget to shout to Lu Ran, who was still standing outside, “Get in the car!”
Even after the car started moving, Lu Ran still felt a little dissatisfied.
Clearly, it was his own fault, yet he had to say it was exaggerated!
Halfway through the ride, he couldn’t hold back any longer. He reached over and tugged at Ji Min’s sleeve, frowning as he said, “The king oyster mushroom wasn’t exaggerated at all.”
As he spoke, he pulled out his phone, “I saw other CEOs online and they all have…”
He paused for a moment, extended his arm, and then clenched his fist. “They say it’s like this!”
Ji Min: “…”
But Ji Min, in the end, was not Gu Ningqi.
Although he was still furious, Ji Min managed to calm down. The frustration that left him speechless had long since subsided.
There was no enjoyment in defending himself now, and he had returned to his usual pale, indifferent demeanor.
He glanced at Lu Ran with a cool, detached gaze, then asked in return.
“Then what about you? Why don’t you compare it with the things you found?”
Hearing this, Lu Ran was completely stunned for a moment.
Then, Ji Min saw it—the boy, who had previously been so serious, almost academic in their “discussion”, slowly, slowly began to turn red in the face.
He gradually looked like a tomato.
“I—!”
Lu Ran, his face red, struggled for a moment before blurting out, “I’m only nineteen!”
Still plenty of room to grow!
After saying this, he looked somewhat embarrassed.
He had already been curled up in the back seat, but now he awkwardly pulled his legs up even more, wrapping his arms around his knees, curling up like a ball.
He was even irritated because his arms weren’t as thick as Ji Min’s.
The sight of the boy was utterly amusing.
But Ji Min suddenly looked away, no longer in the mood to tease him.
In fact, ever since he had asked that question, a sense of regret had slowly crept into his heart.
That was too much.
How could he ask such a question?
The car fell into silence.
The man, who had momentarily gotten the upper hand with his sharp tongue, now clenched his lips tightly.
He didn’t dare look back.
For the rest of the ride, there was no conversation.
That one question left Ji Min feeling embarrassed for days.
It wasn’t until Monday, when Lu Ran went back to school, that he finally relaxed a little, pushing that slightly out-of-line question from his mind.
However, on Monday, Ji Min received an unexpected message.
His assistant, while confirming his schedule, said: “President, the chairman of the Shen Corporation would like to meet with you. He’s asking when you have time.”
Upon hearing this, Ji Min furrowed his brows slightly and asked, “Shen Hongyuan?”
The assistant nodded.
Although it followed the usual formal procedure for a business meeting, since it was Shen Hongyuan seeking him out, it was likely unrelated to work.
The Shen family was well aware that Shen Xingyu and Ji Min were alumni, and they had some personal connections as well.
With this relationship in place, if there were any business dealings between the Shen and Ji families, it was always Shen Xingyu who reached out to Ji Min.
So, Shen Hongyuan must have had only one purpose for meeting Ji Min.
That was Lu Ran.
Ji Min paused for a moment, his fingers still gripping the pen.
A sudden feeling of guilt flashed through his mind.
He had just spoken harshly to some kid over the weekend, and now that kid’s father was coming to see him.
If the father-son relationship in the Shen family was normal, it really would feel like the father was coming to lecture the high-ranking “scoundrel” Ji Min.
But it was clear that Shen Hongyuan wasn’t a good father.
He wouldn’t do something like that.
At that moment, Ji Min’s mind, unexpectedly and inopportunely, replayed Lu Ran’s sarcastic voice.
“Mr. Ji, if you want to sleep with me, do you think my father would pack me up and send me straight to your bed?”
The pen slid slowly over the final stroke of the character “旻”, trailing a long tail.
Ji Min set the pen down on the desk and massaged his forehead with his long fingers.
He suspected that he hadn’t been sleeping well lately.
That might explain why all these random thoughts kept popping into his head.
He waved his hand and said, “I won’t meet him.”
As soon as the words left his mouth, he frowned again and called the assistant back, “Just this evening.”
When Shen Hongyuan received the message, he was still somewhat incredulous.
He hadn’t expected Ji Min to agree so easily.
This time, the meeting was arranged not through personal channels, but via official company arrangements.
Shen Hongyuan had put in some effort.
He arrived early at the designated location.
When he opened the private room door, he was already wearing a polite smile.
However, at that moment, Shen Hongyuan couldn’t help but sigh inwardly.
The Ji family’s business connections were truly rare.
His eldest son, Shen Xingyu, didn’t have such a close relationship with Ji Min. If Ji Min could truly fall deeply for one of his sons, Shen Hongyuan would be overjoyed, even in his dreams.
But why did it have to be Lu Ran?
Shen Hongyuan suppressed the pang of pain in his heart.
Anyway, after today, everything will be over.
“Mr. Ji, you’ve really chosen a great place,” Shen Hongyuan greeted, “I didn’t expect that you, Mr. Ji, would treat me this time.”
It was typical of people like Shen Hongyuan to beat around the bush before getting to the point.
He would drag the conversation on until he felt the relationship had been sufficiently warmed up, and only then would he introduce his real purpose.
Ji Min sat quietly at the table, casually flipping through a finance magazine beside him.
He was far more interested in the magazine than in Shen Hongyuan.
He had no intention of indulging in small talk with Shen Hongyuan.
After checking the time, he spoke in a neutral tone to remind him, “Mr. Shen, my time is limited.”
Shen Hongyuan was taken aback by the abruptness.
He glanced at Ji Min, then slowly let go of the business-like air he had been carrying, sighing like an ordinary middle-aged man.
“Mr. Ji, please don’t blame me for circling around. It’s just…” Shen Hongyuan took a sip from the glass of water on the table before continuing, “I honestly don’t know how to bring this up.”
He allowed a trace of pain to show on his face.
Ji Min remained calm, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.
“Every family has its troubles,” Shen Hongyuan sighed again as if talking about something mundane.
“I wasn’t aware that the Shen family was facing any problems,” Ji Min replied indifferently.
Shen Hongyuan waved his hand.
“It’s unrelated to that. While I’m meeting you through formal business procedures, what I need to talk about is family matters.”
Before Ji Min could respond, Shen Hongyuan raised his hand to rub his face, his expression full of difficulty.
“I know that family secrets shouldn’t be aired and I wasn’t planning to bring this up. But… my conscience just won’t allow me to let my son stay around you and cause you trouble.”
Ji Min raised an eyebrow slightly.
Shen Hongyuan spread his hands helplessly, looking like a weary father. “But… I really can’t hold back anymore, because Lu Ran… he… this child is not normal!”
Not normal.
Ji Min’s expression showed slight surprise.
It wasn’t because of Lu Ran, but because he was astonished that Shen Hongyuan, as Lu Ran’s biological father, would evaluate his own son in such a way.
Before meeting Shen Hongyuan today, though he knew that Lu Ran’s biological parents were peculiar, he still thought of Shen Hongyuan as “Lu Ran’s father”.
But now, Ji Min found this relationship quite amusing.
He sneered, “Mr. Shen, your words are really interesting. I’ve never felt that there was anything wrong with Lu Ran. But you, as his father, would evaluate your own son like this?”
Ji Min’s response wasn’t unexpected for Shen Hongyuan.
He didn’t seem surprised, only sighing as he said, “Mr. Ji, you don’t understand!”
Shen Hongyuan said urgently, “You must think I, as his father, am wrong.”
“But he’s my own flesh and blood!”
“If there was really nothing wrong with him, why would I keep delaying his return to the family?”
“Why would I even say all this in front of you?”
At this point, Ji Min did start to listen more carefully.
Because he also found these matters to be baffling.
Seeing that Ji Min was taking it seriously, Shen Hongyuan gritted his teeth and went all in.
Thinking of what he was about to say, even though he had prepared himself, Shen Hongyuan’s face still twitched with discomfort.
Shen Hongyuan had once thought he would never speak of such an embarrassing matter again in his life.
Let alone allow anyone else to mention it.
But unexpectedly, now it was he himself who had to bring it up.
But someone who achieves great things isn’t concerned with small details!
Taking a deep breath and steeling himself, Shen Hongyuan finally forced the words out with great difficulty.
“You don’t know what Lu Ran has done!”
“He actually… threw dog shit on the dining table and then used it to threaten us!”
Shen Hongyuan’s tone was filled with indignation.
This was perhaps the most genuine emotion he had shown since entering the room.
It was the most humiliating moment of his life!
He had made such a huge effort to reveal this story. He refused to believe Ji Min wouldn’t be moved by it!
Shen Hongyuan had prepared himself for the worst. Given Ji Min’s status, he was sure he would see disgust and disdain on Ji Min’s face.
Even if Ji Min might, from this moment on, distance himself from everyone in the Shen family.
But so what?
Shen Hongyuan stared at Ji Min without blinking.
At first, the man sitting in the wheelchair indeed had his pupils constricted and paused for a moment.
Shen Hongyuan’s satisfaction hadn’t even had the chance to fully form.
He watched as the shock in Ji Min’s eyes dissipated at a speed so quick it was almost unimaginable.
Eventually, it turned into a kind of calm indifference, as if it were nothing out of the ordinary.
The man looked at him and said, “Oh, and then?”
His tone was extremely flat.
It even carried a sense of “Is that it?” confusion.
Shen Hongyuan was momentarily stunned.
Before he could react, he saw Ji Min furrow his brow.
Then he asked, “He doesn’t usually act like this. What did you do to provoke him?”
