PTBLSI chapter 40

 

The annual meeting banquet was held in a local auditorium with nearly 100 tables. In addition to eating, there were program performances from various departments and branch companies, including the group’s senior executives.

By the time Qi Xi arrived with Fu Yanchuan, the meeting had already started. The dim, flickering lights made it difficult to see below the stage.

Fu Yanchuan handed Qi Xi over to Zhou Zhiwei. While Qi Xi was watching the performance on stage, Fu Yanchuan told Zhou Zhiwei, “Don’t let anyone disturb him.”

When Zhou Zhiwei applied for the job, she never imagined that she would end up taking care of the president’s boyfriend. She believed Qi Xi was Fu Yanchuan’s boyfriend because Xu Chen had told her that Fu Yanchuan personally instructed them to commission an artist—and that artist’s real name was Qi Xi.

She also guessed why Fu Yanchuan didn’t keep Qi Xi by his side. The main table was reserved for the Fu family and the group’s senior executives. If Qi Xi appeared there, he would inevitably be stared at like an animal on display.

She nodded to assure Fu Yanchuan, then saw him hold Qi Xi’s hand and leaning close to his ear, saying softly, “Go sit with Sister Zhou. I’ll be up front. If anything happens, send me a message.”

There was a dance on stage. It was originally very ordinary, but what wasn’t ordinary was that all the men and women had swapped roles, which made the audience burst into laughter.

Qi Xi listened to Fu Yanchuan while keeping his eyes on the stage. He didn’t recognize anyone but still laughed happily. He patted Fu Yanchuan on the shoulder and said, “It’s fine. You go.”

Fu Yanchuan didn’t find anything unusual about Qi Xi’s tone, but Zhou Zhiwei was taken aback. She recalled the first time she met Qi Xi; his interactions with Fu Yanchuan hadn’t seemed like this before.

At Fu Yanchuan’s signal, Zhou Zhiwei escorted Qi Xi to a seat in the middle of the third row. The seating had been arranged in advance, and she had temporarily cleared out this seat.

“You can sit here. Once all the dishes are served, you can eat.”

Qi Xi glanced carefully around the people at the table, sat down, and said to Zhou Zhiwei, “Thank you, Sister Zhou.”

Zhou Zhiwei felt her ear twitch. She was an only child and had never been called “sister” before. This was the first time someone the president had asked her to take care of had called her “sister.” She replied awkwardly, “No need to thank me. If anything happens, tell me.”

“Mm, I know.”

Looking at Qi Xi’s obedient nod, Zhou Zhiwei felt like she was taking care of a younger brother. Half of the colleagues at the table were from the president’s office. The other half were from the neighboring workstation, known for shipping President Fu with the white moonlight CP.

“Zhiwei,” the colleague quietly sized up Qi Xi, pulled her over, and whispered, “Isn’t this President Fu’s former stand-in?”

Zhou Zhiwei gave her a look and said, “Don’t ask. Be careful or you’ll lose your job.”

Qi Xi had never been to this kind of event before. At first glance, he saw nothing but people. He was nervous but also curious. He observed everything and still stole time to watch the performance on stage. He was so busy that his eyes kept darting around.

Zhou Zhiwei thought he was looking for Fu Yanchuan and pointed toward the front tables with her gaze. “He’s at the very front.”

At first, Qi Xi hadn’t been looking at Fu Yanchuan, but once Zhou Zhiwei pointed him out, he found him.

On stage, the group’s senior executives performed a program. Zhou Zhiwei wondered who could have persuaded a group of senior executives to cross-dress and dance. She couldn’t help but tell Qi Xi, “I heard they invited President Fu to participate in the program, but he refused. They said that even if President Fu didn’t participate, they would perform the program separately, but he still refused.”

Qi Xi looked at the men on stage wearing women’s qipao[mfn]The qipao, also known as the cheongsam, is a traditional Chinese dress for women, characterized by a high collar, fitted silhouette, side slits, and cultural symbolism rooted in Manchu heritage.[/mfn] and wondered what Fu Yanchuan would look like in one. He also couldn’t imagine what kind of program Fu Yanchuan could perform. Curiously, he asked Zhou Zhiwei, “Has Brother Yan ever performed?”

Hearing the way Qi Xi addressed Fu Yanchuan, Zhou Zhiwei was surprised yet not surprised. She replied, “Only once. I didn’t see it in person; I only watched the recorded video. It was the year he became president—he played a cello piece.”

Qi Xi’s eyes instantly lit up. He leaned closer and asked, “Anything else? Can you show it to me, too?”

“It might be on the group’s official website. After all, President Fu is the face of the company, our ‘group heartthrob.’ They even use him for recruitment promotions! I’ll look for it.”

Qi Xi watched expectantly as Zhou Zhiwei picked up her phone. Meanwhile, over on Fu Yanchuan’s side, the table was filled with shareholders and senior executives. The executives’ performance had already ended at this moment. After changing clothes, they returned to their seats. Seeing Fu Yanchuan arrive, they immediately teased him for having dodged a disaster.

Fu Yanchuan sat down in silence. Fu Zhenrong sat on his left. Fu Zhenrong glanced at him and then turned his gaze away. Fu Yanchuan acted as if he hadn’t seen him either.

Everyone at the table was paying attention to the father-son duo because, at the summary meeting that afternoon, Fu Yanchuan’s speech had been replaced by Fu Jinshen’s. Fu Zhenrong had been in a bad mood ever since, and the atmosphere at the table had become tense.

Fu Jinshen sat diagonally across from Fu Yanchuan. As if the atmosphere weren’t sharp enough, he asked Fu Yanchuan, “What were you busy with this afternoon? Don’t tell me you were having fun with that little one from your place and forgot the flight time.”

Before Fu Yanchuan could react, Fu Zhenrong slammed his palm on the table and glared at Fu Jinshen. However, he heard Fu Yanchuan answer nonchalantly, “Mm, he got up late.”

Fu Zhenrong abruptly stood up. Fu Jinshen laughed loudly and without restraint. “Old Seven, when kids grow up, they should have their own lives. You control too much!”

“Mind your own business!”

Fu Zhenrong didn’t want to lose his temper. He turned around and left by himself, leaving everyone at the table too afraid to breathe loudly.

Suddenly, Fu Yanchuan raised his glass and said, “Sixth Uncle, everyone, you’ve all worked hard.”

Seeing that Fu Yanchuan had taken the initiative to ease the tension, the others hurriedly raised their glasses, pretending that nothing had just happened.

After finishing his drink, Fu Yanchuan poured another glass, picked it up, and went to the neighboring tables to offer a toast, salvaging the nearly ruined atmosphere.

There was also middle management from the group on both sides. Seeing Fu Yanchuan approach, they prepared to drink with him. However, Fu Yanchuan did not intend to toast table by table. He simply went to the tables in front of the stage and toasted those at the back.

The third table that Fu Yanchuan toasted to happened to be the one where Qi Xi was sitting. Everyone at the table stood up and raised their glasses, feeling flattered.

“President Fu!”

The only person who saw through the truth, Zhou Zhiwei, had her filter for Fu Yanchuan completely shattered. What robot? What cold, aloof, domineering CEO? Fu Yanchuan was clearly a hopeless romantic. He didn’t want to expose his feelings, yet he couldn’t stop showing off.

He wasn’t toasting them at all; he was blatantly there just to take a look at Qi Xi. Did he really think everyone at the table was blind?

By 11 PM, the performances were more or less finished. Qi Xi started to get sleepy and sent Fu Yanchuan a message:

[Brother Yan, how much longer until it ends?]

Half of the people at Fu Yanchuan’s table had already left, and the other half were waiting to have a private gathering after it ended. When he saw Qi Xi’s message, he replied,

[Want to go back?]

Qi Xi didn’t reply after seeing the message. He looked in Fu Yanchuan’s direction. Fu Yanchuan seemed to sense his gaze and looked back. He understood what Fu Yanchuan meant.

Fu Yanchuan put away his phone and started to leave, but the people at the table quickly stopped him. “President Fu, you’re not leaving already, are you? Don’t do this every year. Come have a couple more drinks with us.”

“Not interested.”

Fu Yanchuan refused outright. The other party persisted. “We’re going to soak in hot springs tomorrow. Want to join?”

Before they could finish speaking, Fu Yanchuan was already walking toward the exit. When he reached the door, he turned back and saw Qi Xi running toward him. He caught the person who threw himself at him with both hands.

Through the gap in the closing door, someone inside caught a glimpse of Fu Yanchuan holding Qi Xi in his arms.

It was as if Qi Xi had been separated from Fu Yanchuan for a long time. With his face pressed against Fu Yanchuan’s chest, his voice muffled, he said, “Brother Yan, I really missed you.”

Fu Yanchuan lowered his gaze. The person who had buried his face in his chest lifted his head, looking as if he needed coaxing. He slightly curled the corner of his lips. “Wasn’t it you who wanted to come?”

Qi Xi answered without hesitation. “If I stayed inside waiting, I’d miss you even more.”

Fu Yanchuan couldn’t help but touch his face. He lowered his head and said in a low voice, “Let’s go back.”

There were people in the hallway who had come out for some air. They didn’t recognize Qi Xi, but they did recognize Fu Yanchuan. Seeing the two of them holding each other so intimately without regard for others, Fu Yanchuan showed no intention of avoiding it. Instead, they didn’t dare look too closely. Only after Fu Yanchuan led Qi Xi away by the hand did they react in shock.

Fu Zhenrong was sitting in the car downstairs. As he watched Fu Yanchuan come downstairs holding Qi Xi’s hand and get into the car with him, he took a hard drag on his cigar, his expression unchanged.

The driver in the front seat was so scared that he barely dared to breathe until Fu Zhenrong finally spoke.

“Follow them.”

The driver saw that the only car ahead was Fu Yanchuan’s. Not daring to argue, he silently followed, praying in his heart that whatever conflict there was between the father and son wouldn’t be taken out on him. He still had to earn money to support his family.

Fu Yanchuan and Qi Xi returned to the small seaside villa. The fireplace was burning, and the house was warm and cozy.

Qi Xi took off his coat and collapsed onto the sofa in front of the fireplace. Fu Yanchuan followed him over. Only then did Qi Xi remember to tell him, “Brother Yan, I saw you play the cello. You were so handsome, and it sounded so good. How can you do everything?”

Fu Yanchuan had barely eaten anything. After a few drinks, he felt lightheaded. He didn’t immediately respond to Qi Xi’s comment and asked, “Where did you see it?”

“Sister Zhou showed me. She said it’s a program you performed at a year-end party before. When will you play it for me, too?”

Fu Yanchuan finally remembered. “I don’t play very well. Do you really want to hear it?”

Qi Xi nodded repeatedly. “How can you lack confidence, too? It’s obviously really good. Just looking at you, I can tell it sounds great.”

Fu Yanchuan laughed and fell forward, pressing down on Qi Xi. “Did you eat enough at dinner?”

Qi Xi hadn’t actually eaten enough. He’d been busy for several hours—watching how the annual meeting was run, watching the performances, and paying constant attention to Fu Yanchuan. He didn’t have much time to eat, so the dishes had gone cold and tasted bad.

Fu Yanchuan could tell at a glance that Qi Xi hadn’t eaten enough. Looking down at the person beneath him, he said, “Kiss me, and I’ll cook you a late-night snack.”

Recently, Qi Xi had noticed that Fu Yanchuan was especially fond of asking him to kiss him. He cupped Fu Yanchuan’s face and planted a heavy kiss on his lips. The sound was so loud that the firewood in the fireplace even cracked with a “pa” sound. Then, he told Fu Yanchuan, “You kiss me, and I’ll cook you a late-night snack.”

Fu Yanchuan thought Qi Xi was mischievous at times. Staring straight at Qi Xi, he answered, “Okay,” and pushed him back onto the sofa, kissing him deeply.

Qi Xi kicked off his shoes and wrapped himself tightly around Fu Yanchuan, responding passionately.

 

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