The air in the entryway hung heavy for a brief moment; Liang Yutong instantly shifted from being a player in the drama to a mere spectator. Lin Xi grabbed Mu Shuo: "What exactly did you mean by what you just said?" Mu Shuo snapped his mouth shut instantly; in his panic, he had inadvertently sold out Duan Yiheng.
He felt so guilty that he didn't even dare to steal another glance at Duan Yiheng. Duan Yiheng was utterly speechless; turning around, he led Lin Xi toward the bedroom. "Let's leave this space to the two of them. I'll explain everything to you once we get inside." Lin Xi glanced back at Liang Yutong, who gave her a wave.
Once inside the bedroom, Duan Yiheng sat down at the foot of the bed. Just as he was about to pull Lin Xi onto his lap, she raised a hand to his forehead, adopting a stern, interrogating demeanor: "No beating around the bush—I want a clear explanation."
Duan Yiheng leaned straight back, feigning being pushed over by her, and let his entire body collapse onto the bed. Lin Xi lifted one leg, knelt onto the mattress, and positioned herself between Duan Yiheng's splayed legs. She grabbed his wrists: "Get up. Stop playing dumb, will you?"
Duan Yiheng bent his legs and snapped them together; caught off guard, Lin Xi was pulled down onto his chest. Seizing the opportunity, Duan Yiheng flipped their positions and pinned her beneath him. "I *did* harbor a bit of a crush back then," he admitted, "but Mu Shuo—he was simply parroting what Mu Zhao told him."
Mu Zhao and Duan Yiheng were as close as brothers; Mu Zhao had known about Duan Yiheng's feelings for Lin Xi from the very beginning. However, Duan Yiheng was six years older than Lin Xi, and their social circles didn't overlap. So, for the sake of his brother, he had sacrificed his own romantic prospects.
Fundamentally, Mu Shuo actually looked down on Yu Lang and Duan Mingxuan; their lives were a constant chaotic circus—all noise and no substance—and they seemed to know nothing but how to goof off aimlessly. Duan Mingxuan was perhaps marginally better than Yu Lang, though even that was debatable; Yu Lang went through women at a speed that even a Ferrari couldn't keep up with. "So Mu Shuo was your informant all along."
Lin Xi lifted her gaze. "That time Duan Mingxuan and I went to the club—when I got drunk that night and ran into you—was it him who tipped you off?" Duan Yiheng replied, "Mm. Duan Mingxuan had just started seeing someone back then, and I was worried about you." Lin Xi reached up and wrapped her arms around his neck. "So, this was a long-planned scheme."
"It was," Duan Yiheng said, bumping the tip of his nose against hers. "And the scheme paid off." He tilted his head to kiss the corner of her mouth; just as he was about to deepen the kiss, a knock sounded at the door. Lin Xi hurriedly pushed him away and stood up, leaving Duan Yiheng momentarily speechless. Twice now—twice their kisses had been interrupted.
Seeing the two of them emerge, Liang Yutong pointed a thumb back toward the living room. "Mu Zhao is here." Lin Xi nudged Duan Yiheng toward the exit. Upon seeing them, Mu Zhao offered a greeting and said, "I'll take him back with me for now; I'll deal with him properly once we get home." Duan Yiheng replied, "I'll walk you guys down."
Liang Yutong would likely be staying the night here; if he lingered any longer, it would practically amount to kicking them out. Mu Zhao nodded. "In that case, let's head downstairs together." Trailing behind the pair, Mu Shuo let out a disgruntled huff as he reluctantly exited Tiandu Yuxi. Mu Zhao gave him a smack on the back of the head.
"All you know how to do is barge in blindly; don't you understand the concept of 'retreating to advance'?" Mu Shuo's eyes lit up. "What do you mean?" Mu Zhao pointed at Duan Yiheng. "Ask him; I don't have any experience with that sort of thing." Duan Yiheng rolled his eyes. "…Go read a book. Do you really not know what 'retreating to advance' means?"
Mu Shuo felt that neither of them possessed a shred of humanity. After they had left, Lin Xi linked arms with Liang Yutong and headed toward the bedroom. "Why don't you go take a shower first? We can chat later once we're in bed." "Let's take a bath together," Liang Yutong suggested. Lin Xi instinctively covered herself, shaking her head.
"Stop hiding," Liang Yutong chuckled teasingly. "I spotted that hickey on the side of your neck ages ago." Lin Xi dashed into the bathroom and tilted her head to the side; sure enough, she saw the fading traces of a kiss mark. What kind of eagle eyes did Liang Yutong have? She'd managed to spot it even though it was practically gone.
It looked like she'd still need to cover it up when she went to work tomorrow. Liang Yutong approached her from behind and whispered in her ear, asking how she felt about it. Lin Xi's neck and cheeks instantly flushed crimson. She gently pushed Liang Yutong's face away. "It's not as if you lack experience yourself."
Having said that, Lin Xi fled back to her bedroom, terrified that Liang Yutong might start teasing her with even more nonsense. The phone on her bedside table buzzed; Lin Xi walked over to check it. It was a message from Duan Yiheng, asking if she could join him for a meal the next morning.
Lin Xi declined. There was so little time in the morning, and since he didn't even arrive at the office until ten o'clock, what kind of "breakfast" was he even talking about? She was convinced Duan Yiheng was just pulling her leg. Sure enough, his very next message confirmed it was a joke, telling her to get some sleep.
Getting to sleep early, however, proved unlikely; she and Liang Yutong ended up chatting until one in the morning. The next morning, Lin Xi drove to the office. To her surprise, Qin Yang was already there. Upon seeing her, Qin Yang handed a stack of documents over to Lin Xi:
"These all require CEO Duan's approval. Make sure you get his signature on them today; once he's signed them, hand them back to me." Lin Xi quickly took the files. "Understood." "Wait a moment," Qin Yang called out, stopping Lin Xi just as she was about to leave. "There's something else I need to discuss with you."
"On Monday, I'll be traveling to Lancheng to represent CEO Duan. I need you to temporarily cover my duties while I'm away. Let's cross-reference our respective schedules first, and then you can proceed with arranging CEO Duan's itinerary."
Qin Yang was responsible for the Group's corporate affairs, while Lin Xi managed matters related to Yinfan Technology; yet, there was only one Duan Yiheng to go around. Consequently, they had to cross-check their schedules every day to prioritize tasks and formulate a logical itinerary for Duan Yiheng based on urgency and importance.
This was a task Lin Xi had been performing all along, so she was already well-versed and efficient at it. Lin Xi returned to her workstation and flipped through a couple of pages of the schedule when she suddenly spotted an entry that had yet to be finalized. It was a handwritten note from Qin Yang: "Likang Partnership Plan — Meeting with Tan Qi."
Lin Xi pondered the note for a moment. It appeared that, prior to Duan Yiheng taking the helm at Yinfan, the primary focus for the entire second half of the year had been this partnership initiative with Likang.
Tan Qi was currently the person in charge at Likang. Logically speaking, since Duan Yiheng had instructed Qin Yang to make a note of this matter, a meeting should have been scheduled as soon as possible. Duan Yiheng entered the company and came to a halt outside the secretarial office. After a moment, realizing that Lin Xi still hadn't noticed him, he raised his hand and knocked on the door.
Upon seeing that it was him, Lin Xi instinctively rose to her feet: "Good morning, Mr. Duan." Duan Yiheng walked in: "What are you busy with?" Lin Xi relayed the instructions Qin Yang had given her, then turned to ask Duan Yiheng: "Shall I arrange a meeting between you and Ms. Tan as soon as possible?"
Duan Yiheng shook his head: "Let's wait another couple of days." Lin Xi asked, puzzled: "Why?" "Tan Qi is quite ambitious."
Duan Yiheng smiled. "She's managed to keep her composure and hasn't reached out to me yet; I know she's waiting for me to make the first move. The one who moves first is the one who ends up on the defensive." Lin Xi asked: "So, are you two just going to keep up this standoff?" Duan Yiheng replied:
"My trip to S City—and specifically my meeting with Lu Tong—serves as a signal. If I can leverage the capital resources of Heitian Investment, I'll possess far more leverage and initiative when negotiating with Tan Qi." Lin Xi said:
"…So, it turns out you didn't go to S City just to have fun." Duan Yiheng replied:
"I simply took the opportunity to discuss potential collaboration with Lu Tong while I was there." The trust between them was solid; they had reached a consensus that very evening while taking a stroll. Tan Qi, by now, must surely be aware that he had met with Lu Tong. Within three days—no doubt about it—she would be the one to request a meeting with him.
Upon hearing this, Lin Xi gathered the documents Qin Yang had given her and said: "These all require your signature; I'll bring them over to your office for you." The two of them entered the CEO's office in single file; once inside, Duan Yiheng positioned himself in front of the desk, blocking Lin Xi's path.
"Care to join me for lunch today?"