“I disagree.”
“I know.” Li Xuan nodded.
Such an indifferent attitude clearly infuriated Qi Boyuan. “So it doesn’t matter, huh?”
“Alright, alright.” Chu Tianheng gestured for a pause. “What are you two arguing about? Let’s get this straight. Li Xuan, are you suggesting bringing someone in for administration? Who is it?… Boyuan, calm down. Normally, you’re not this quick-tempered. It’s not such a big deal. Don’t blow your top over this.”
Qi Boyuan was so angry his head was spinning. “No, senior, you haven’t grasped the underlying issue here. In any case, I absolutely do not agree with this person coming in.”
“Then explain it,” Chu Tianheng said.
“Explain what? I don’t even know him.” Qi Boyuan pointed at the table in front of Li Xuan. “You explain it yourself.”
“Calm down,” Chu Tianheng patted Qi Boyuan’s shoulder and turned to Li Xuan. “Alright, you explain. If you’ve dragged me in as the referee, someone has to tell me the whole story.”
“I’ve already made myself clear.” Li Xuan looked up. “Recruit for the administrative position as planned. Ask Xiao Ding if she can delay her departure by a week to finish the handover. As for Zhao Jizhe, he can come in tomorrow, but just give him a random position. Don’t count him in the payroll, and don’t assign him any actual work. Just pretend he doesn’t exist.”
“Pretend he doesn’t exist? Unless I go blind. Li Xuan, anyone you bring into the company—even if it’s Sheng…”
Li Xuan’s sharp gaze immediately shot over, and Qi Boyuan realized his slip. He swallowed the rest of his sentence, and his tone softened slightly. “Look, I have no issue with anyone else. You’re the boss, you call the shots. But this guy, absolutely not. Something’s off about him—he doesn’t make any logical sense. I met him just once and could tell something was wrong. You know this deep down, don’t you?”
“I do. And?”
“And? You’re asking me ‘and’? Just don’t let him come. I don’t get why you’re so determined to bring him in.”
“Because I want him to leave—willingly.”
“Are you a philosopher?” Qi Boyuan was so angry he almost laughed. “I don’t care about him coming or going, willing or not. My gut tells me there’s something wrong with this person, and I can’t accept such a potential risk in the company turning into a problem down the road.”
“Any problem he causes, I can handle,” Li Xuan said calmly.
“But this is an issue that can be avoided altogether!”
“Why are we arguing again?” Chu Tianheng tried to mediate.
Qi Boyuan rubbed his temple. “Senior, you haven’t even met this person…”
“Well, I’m about to, aren’t I?”
“You’re supporting this?” Qi Boyuan’s eyes widened.
“I…” Chu Tianheng laughed awkwardly and glanced at Li Xuan. Li Xuan pressed his fingers to his temple and said, “What you see as avoidable, for me, it isn’t. There’s no need to discuss this further.”
Qi Boyuan stared at him for a few seconds, said nothing, and turned to leave the office.
“Wait,” Li Xuan called after him.
Though visibly unwilling, Qi Boyuan stopped stiffly in his tracks.
“I’m off to rush some blueprints,” Chu Tianheng sighed, glancing between them. “Talk it out, will you? What’s with all the yelling? The walls are thin, and the employees outside can hear everything.”
With those words, he left, closing the door behind him.
“What is it?” Qi Boyuan asked impatiently.
Li Xuan paused for a second before saying, “When Zhao Jizhe arrives, don’t mention Sheng Min around him.”
“So you do know there’s something wrong with him. You’re protecting your boyfriend, but you’re willing to risk the company?” Qi Boyuan couldn’t believe it. He shook his head in frustration. “Li Xuan, you’re too stubborn. Let’s see what kind of mess your madness creates.”
……
No matter how much Qi Boyuan protested, Zhao Jizhe still arrived punctually the next morning. Though some employees had overheard bits of Li Xuan and Qi Boyuan’s argument, no one dared to approach Zhao Jizhe. He didn’t seem to mind, sitting quietly near the administrative desk and helping out whenever asked.
“You don’t actually need to do these tasks,” Xiao Ding said awkwardly. “The boss said it’s not necessary.”
Zhao Jizhe didn’t respond and continued to help out anyway. After a while, Xiao Ding gave up and included him in her work routine.
Overall, Zhao Jizhe had a very low presence. When he had nothing to do, he sat silently without talking to anyone. But Qi Boyuan’s opinion of him didn’t change—especially whenever Li Xuan left his office, and Zhao Jizhe’s gaze followed him. Perhaps it was preconceived bias, but to Qi Boyuan, his stare felt like that of a snake lurking in a damp jungle, sending chills down his spine.
Li Xuan, on the other hand, didn’t seem to notice—or care. He had other things on his mind—Sheng Min was about to return to N City, and the injury on his hand hadn’t healed yet.
He was torn between wanting to see Sheng Min and worrying about how he’d react to the injury on his hand. It was a sweet torment, an excruciating mix of emotions.
The day before Sheng Min’s scheduled return, Li Xuan went to the hospital to change his bandages. He knew it was too late for any miracles, but he couldn’t help asking the nurse again, “Can the stitches come out today?”
“Of course not!” The nurse skillfully wrapped his hand in gauze. “At the earliest, next week. Don’t worry—it’s not a serious injury. Take your time.”
The reassurance didn’t help. Clenching his teeth, Li Xuan muttered a forced thank you. Once the nurse left, he pulled out his phone and noticed a message from Sheng Min:
[‘The promotional schedule changed. I won’t be back this week.’]
It was followed by an emoji that said, [‘Miss you.’]
Li Xuan froze. The news was like a blessing, yet it carried a heavy weight of disappointment. The brief relief of not having to explain his injury was overshadowed by a deep sense of loss. Staring at his reflection in the glass, he noticed how tightly his lips were pressed together.
[‘Okay.’]
He typed it out, then deleted it.
[‘When will you be back?’]
He deleted that too.
[‘Okay.’]
But it wasn’t okay. Not at all.
Frustrated, Li Xuan headed to the parking lot. Passing by a vending machine, he stopped and bought a bottle of orange juice that Sheng Min endorsed. Absentmindedly, he scrolled through Sheng Min’s fan forum. The pinned post was an advocacy for respecting idols’ private lives and rational fan behavior.
The drink dropped into the dispenser just as Li Xuan’s gaze fell on the promotional image of Sheng Min smiling. For some reason, his mind flashed back to Yang Xu’s inexplicable phone call.
It felt like a hidden seed of doubt had suddenly found soil to break through, quickly rooting and sprouting.
Something’s not right, Li Xuan thought, frowning. He quickly pressed Sheng Min’s number, but it rang until it automatically hung up with no answer.
Without hesitation, he dialed Yang Xu’s number instead.
“Hello?”
“Where’s Sheng Min? Why isn’t he answering his phone?”
It was almost the same conversation as that night, even Yang Xu’s hesitant tone hadn’t changed.
“Ge, he, he…”
“Is he still on set? Did something happen to him?” If earlier he had only harbored doubts, now he was almost certain of his suspicions. “I’m asking you, speak!”
“What happened? I don’t know, okay?” Under his sharp questioning, Yang Xu suddenly burst into tears. “He told me to go find the hotel housekeeping and when I came back, he was gone. He left a message saying he had to handle something, and I haven’t been able to reach him for days…”
Li Xuan dialed Sheng Min’s number again as he walked to his car, but it still didn’t connect.
As the busy tone droned on, Li Xuan recalled that his recent conversations with Sheng Min had all been extremely brief. But since Sheng Min had always been the one to call, and he sounded completely normal, Li Xuan, distracted by his own worries, had failed to notice anything unusual.
His heart sank. One moment, he thought about Yang Xu mentioning Sheng Min’s debt-ridden younger brother visiting before his disappearance; the next, he remembered Sheng Min casually bidding him goodnight every day as if nothing were wrong.
Lost in thought, he almost ran a red light, slamming the brakes just in time at the crosswalk.
At that exact moment, his phone suddenly rang. The caller ID showed Sheng Min.
