There was no way Manager Yang would dare accept a toast from Wen Yun.
At this point, he realized he’d probably messed up badly. His legs nearly gave out, and he forced an awkward smile, stammering, “President Wen, you must be joking. I—I wouldn’t dare.”
Wen Yun looked at him coldly. “You seemed daring enough just now.”
Everyone at the table understood that Manager Yang had likely displeased Wen Yun. Quiet resentment toward his sycophantic behavior grew among them.
Always scheming, yet ultimately digging his own grave.
Xie Zhinan, however, wasn’t paying attention to any of this. His focus was on his hand, where the back of it felt slightly itchy and tingly—a strange, indescribable sensation.
He didn’t even know how things had escalated to this point. At the moment, he felt an odd sense of detachment, as if his soul had floated out of his body and was observing everything in the room from above.
Wen Yun sat down next to Xie Zhinan. Under the table, his hand moved slightly and lightly pressed against Xie Zhinan’s hand.
It only brushed against his pinky finger, gently squeezing it.
It felt both apologetic and soothing.
Wen Yun’s familiar scent—a cold, woody fragrance—enveloped Xie Zhinan again. It inexplicably calmed him, pulling his drifting soul back into his body.
Everyone at the table was observant enough to notice that something was off between Wen Yun and Xie Zhinan.
Someone cautiously broke the silence, asking, “President Wen, are you and Xiao Xie… acquainted?”
Wen Yun didn’t answer, nor did he look at the person who asked. Instead, he turned his head slightly to look at Xie Zhinan.
Xie Zhinan kept his head down, not looking at anyone—or rather, he seemed to be staring at his pinky, which had just been touched.
Everyone quickly caught on to Wen Yun’s attitude.
He was waiting for Xie Zhinan to speak.
When Xie Zhinan noticed that no one had spoken for a long time, he raised his head slightly and saw that Wen Yun was looking at him. So were the others, their gazes warm and encouraging, as if silently pleading:
“Please say something. We admit we were wrong. Give us a chance to survive!”
Xie Zhinan: “…”
With Wen Yun not answering, the topic inevitably shifted to him. Xie Zhinan had no choice but to swallow and mutter an unclear “Mm.”
The same person hesitantly asked again, “Are you… friends?”
Though they said “friends,” everyone knew that the atmosphere didn’t feel like that of mere friendship. They were probing for more information, hoping to figure out how to handle things going forward.
Since Wen Yun wasn’t opening up, they shifted their questioning to Xie Zhinan instead.
Xie Zhinan’s pinky was still lightly touched by Wen Yun’s finger. From their seated positions, no one else could see it.
He’s here again, Xie Zhinan thought.
Once again, it was that mysterious yet calm demeanor, leaving people unable to read him.
Xie Zhinan’s pinky finger trembled slightly, but he didn’t pull away, keeping his expression steady. His Adam’s apple quivered as he said, “…High school classmates.”
But no high school classmate would secretly touch another’s hand under the table at such a gathering.
Wen Yun’s fingers gently squeezed his pinky, as if dissatisfied with his answer.
Xie Zhinan’s pinky moved awkwardly.
The place where they touched was minimal—a single fingertip lightly resting against the other’s—but it carried a unique intimacy.
As he tried to withdraw his hand, Wen Yun’s hand subtly shifted, not much, just enough to maintain contact, as if afraid he would pull away again.
Xie Zhinan couldn’t bear it. His fingers were numb, his arm felt weak, his face was hot, and his ears were buzzing.
It seemed that yesterday’s argument had no effect on Wen Yun.
Xie Zhinan had mustered the courage, determined to speak his mind, thinking he had made a strong point, but to Wen Yun, it seemed like… it seemed like he had merely been scratched by something soft and feathery.
There was no intimidation, no threat, so the next day, he could easily bring that soft, feathery thing back.
Wen Yun would occasionally poke at him again.
Courage only comes once.
Harsh words… perhaps those weren’t even harsh words. In the end, Xie Zhinan only dared to say them once.
Quickly, he returned to his usual passive self, retreating into his shell, occasionally coming out to catch his breath.
The others received their answer and relaxed, the atmosphere at the table becoming lively again. They started chatting about how fate had brought them together. Manager Yang, perhaps wanting to regain some face, half-complained, half-jokingly said, “Xiao Xie, you really are something. Since you know President Wen, you should have told me.”
“Are you that important?” Wen Yun lazily asked.
Manager Yang: “…”
The others: “…”
Someone beside him quickly tugged at Manager Yang’s arm, signaling him to stop.
He was usually so sharp, but today, it seemed like he had lost his mind.
Xie Zhinan’s hand moved slightly, lightly brushing against Wen Yun’s.
Wen Yun glanced at him, seeing that his ears were red, and then returned his gaze to the room, speaking indifferently, “Our company promotes based on ability, not on classmate connections. I don’t think I need to inform anyone about who I know.”
He added, almost carelessly, “After all, it’s just a high school classmate.”
Just a high school classmate, not important, not worth caring about.
Unless, of course, his hand didn’t press even further into Xie Zhinan’s palm.
On the surface, he seemed distant and restrained, but under the table, Wen Yun’s hand clung to Xie Zhinan’s like glue, slowly inching forward until it hooked around his pinky.
Xie Zhinan felt like half of his body was going numb, weakening.
The others at the table immediately agreed, though Manager Yang’s face turned pale.
He had managed to get promoted because of connections, and this was as bad as being insulted to his face.
Yet, he couldn’t get angry. All he could do was awkwardly chuckle along.
The atmosphere at the table lightened slightly, and the conversation shifted to reminiscing about high school. One younger leader laughed as he shared a story about how he had once tried to pursue a girl in high school, bringing her breakfast every day, only to realize after a month that he had been delivering it to the wrong class, to her brother’s class instead. He ended up not getting the girl and nearly got beaten up.
As they continued chatting, someone looked at Xie Zhinan and, whether joking or probing, asked, “What about Xiao Xie? You joined our department right after graduation, but we’ve never seen you in a relationship.”
The hand on Xie Zhinan’s fingers suddenly tightened.
Xie Zhinan turned his head, but Wen Yun’s gaze was lowered, his expression indifferent. It seemed like he had noticed Xie Zhinan’s glance, and Wen Yun briefly glanced at him, his eyes as unreadable as ever.
He only looked at him once before turning his gaze away, appearing calm, uninterested.
Xie Zhinan looked at his hand, which was being tightly squeezed, with some confusion.
The atmosphere at the table fell quiet again. Xie Zhinan wasn’t used to this kind of setting, nor did he feel comfortable inserting himself into conversations like this, but since someone had asked, he had no choice but to answer. “No… I haven’t.”
His voice was very soft, as if speaking to the person next to him.
Everyone at the table subtly turned their attention to Wen Yun’s expression and found that he was lowering his eyelids, as though tacitly agreeing with the topic.
It seemed this conversation hadn’t caused any trouble; in fact, it had been silently permitted.
So the person who had asked continued, “What about before? Have you had a relationship?”
Before…
All eyes were on him. Xie Zhinan instinctively turned his head to look at Wen Yun.
Wen Yun’s gaze fell on him at that moment, his eyes deep and unreadable, always wearing that indifferent, detached expression.
Xie Zhinan felt a sudden unease in his chest under Wen Yun’s gaze.
He didn’t even know what he was afraid of.
Yesterday’s argument still stood between them, and Wen Yun’s current attitude left him uncertain. His reason and desires were pulling at him, and countless conflicting emotions were about to tear his heart apart.
Xie Zhinan didn’t know whether to flee or to stay. He could only instinctively choose the safest response.
He didn’t dare look at Wen Yun and lowered his head again, speaking quietly with little confidence. “No… no.”
Hiss.
After speaking, he silently inhaled a sharp breath.
His fingertip was gently twisted and squeezed again, this time with a little more force.
It felt like a punishment, a clear sign of displeasure.
And that’s when Xie Zhinan realized he had answered wrong.
[mfn]
[Author’s Note]
Dishonest people will face some consequences =w=
Hehe.
Thanks for everyone’s support!
See you next time~
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