Lin Xi found the food at this restaurant to be decent enough. Noticing the look of deep internal conflict on Tan Qi's face, she said, "If you don't know how to put it into words, let's just eat for now. This fusion-style stewed pork ribs dish is actually quite good." Tan Qi let out a sigh, then turned to Lin Xi and said:
"I'm the one in charge of both the company and the family now. Don't you think I ought to have an heir?" Lin Xi nodded. "Are you planning to get married?" Tan Qi shook her head. "I just want to have a child." Lin Xi replied:
"I understand your decision, but why are you telling *me* this?" "Look," Tan Qi continued, speaking mostly to herself, "in-vitro fertilization in this country is only available to married couples. I don't want to have a mixed-race baby, and adopted children just aren't the same as biological ones. So, I've decided to conceive naturally."
Lin Xi grew even more bewildered. "A-and then? Do you have a boyfriend?" Tan Qi shook her head again. "No. You see, I've got my eye on someone's genes—and that person happens to be somewhat connected to you."
Lin Xi's gaze froze. She abruptly turned to look at Duan Yiheng, her eyes instinctively drifting downward. Duan Yiheng was speechless. Was she actually suspecting that Tan Qi had her sights set on *him*? Duan Yiheng pressed his legs together, then reached up to cup Lin Xi's face, gently turning her head so she was facing Tan Qi again. Lin Xi completely lost her appetite. She took a sip of water and asked Tan Qi, "Who is this person who supposedly has a connection to me?" She had already mentally rehearsed the lines she would use to reject Tan Qi—just in case Tan Qi had gone the unconventional route and set her sights on Duan Yiheng. Instead, Tan Qi simply said:
"Zhou Zheng—the guy you went on a blind date with." Lin Xi blinked. "What on earth does he have to do with me?" "Well, he likes you, doesn't he?" Tan Qi spread her hands. "He told me so himself." Terrified that Duan Yiheng might misunderstand, Lin Xi hurriedly interjected:
"That's absolutely not true! I cleared things up with Professor Zhou ages ago. He was probably just using me as an excuse to turn *you* down." Tan Qi looked surprised for a moment. "You can interpret it that way? I suppose you have a point." Lin Xi was speechless. Duan Yiheng tapped the table:
"You're both missing the point. What do you mean, 'using her as an excuse'? Isn't the real reason simply that Tan Qi wants a child, but she doesn't want a husband?" *Oh, right.* Lin Xi snapped back to reality and said to Tan Qi, "In that case, Professor Zhou turning you down makes perfect sense." "What do you mean?"
Tan Qi looked puzzled. "Are you saying I'd have to commit to a marriage just to have a kid?" Lin Xi hesitated. "Well... Professor Zhou doesn't strike me as the type to have a child with someone so casually." Tan Qi pondered this for a long moment, then let out a soft "Oh." A moment later, she looked surprised again:
"You don't think he actually wants to *date* me, do you?" Lin Xi chuckled. "Maybe." Seeing that Tan Qi was genuinely getting flustered, Duan Yiheng cut in: "Alright, you can ask him about that yourself when you have a moment. I want to talk to you about the collaboration between Likang and Yinfan." Tan Qi scoffed:
"I'm not talking about it." Duan Yiheng sighed. "If we don't do it now, we'll just have to schedule another meeting and waste even more time later." Tan Qi retorted, "Easy for you to say! You're the one who strung me along. I actually took our first meeting seriously and prepared for it, only for you to treat me like a mere prop." Lin Xi poured Tan Qi a cup of tea and said gently:
"Everyone has conflicting schedules; it's hard enough just getting us all in the same room. We might as well take this opportunity to get the discussion out of the way." Tan Qi gave a noncommittal huff—a sign that she was willing to back down gracefully. She couldn't play hard-to-get *too* much; after all, there was no benefit to be gained from actually pissing off Duan Yiheng.
Tan Qi immediately summoned her assistant, who had been waiting outside, and the four of them spent the rest of the evening discussing business in the private dining room. Before leaving, Tan Qi turned to Duan Yiheng and said, "That favor you asked of me a couple of days ago? I've taken care of it for you." Duan Yiheng gave a slight nod. "Thank you."
Tan Qi gave a breezy wave. "I'm off." Lin Xi and Duan Yiheng had arrived in the same car; after pulling into the garage at Tiandu Yuxi, Duan Yiheng leaned over and unfastened Lin Xi's seatbelt. Lin Xi smiled and murmured her thanks.
Duan Yiheng chuckled softly. Just as Lin Xi was about to step out of the car, he stopped her, cupped her waist, and pulled her onto his lap. Lin Xi was forced to part her legs, ending up straddling him. With the steering wheel pressing against his back, the car cabin suddenly felt incredibly cramped; Lin Xi was stunned—and blushing furiously. "What are you doing?"
Duan Yiheng held her firmly by the waist and proceeded to settle the score. "Back at the restaurant—what exactly were you imagining?" Lin Xi immediately felt a pang of guilt. "It wasn't on purpose! Tan Qi went on a blind date with you once, and she came right out and said she wanted to marry you. It's only natural that my mind might wander a little, isn't it?"
"The look on your face back then suggested something else entirely—certainly not that she was interested in *me* as a person," Duan Yiheng retorted, rolling his eyes at her. Some things were simply too crude to put into words—words that Duan Yiheng, for his part, simply couldn't bring himself to say. Judging by the look in Lin Xi's eyes, it was clearly *Tan Qi* who had set her sights on *him*... The air hung in silence for two seconds. Lin Xi struggled hard to suppress her laughter; unable to hold it in any longer, she attempted to charm her way out of the situation with a bit of playful pleading: "I'm sorry! Isn't saying I'm sorry enough? It was my dirty mind—I'm the one who corrupted the pure dynamic between you and Tan Qi."
Seeing that she could still manage a laugh, Duan Yiheng furrowed his sharp brows. "How is it that I don't detect even a hint of jealousy from you regarding this matter?" "Who says?" Lin Xi craned her neck. "I've already got my rejection lines all prepped and ready." "Oh?"
Duan Yiheng didn't let her off the hook in the slightest. "Let's hear them." "Uh..." Lin Xi cleared her throat. "Prolonged desk work can negatively impact sperm motility. Mr. Duan, while you may be handsome, you—" "But what?" Duan Yiheng gave a cold sneer. "But I'm useless?"
Lin Xi threw up her hands in feigned innocence. "I've been wronged!" Duan Yiheng gave a cold huff. "I'm coming upstairs with you tonight." Lin Xi decided to turn the tables on him:
"If she really *did* have the hots for you, and I went and praised you to the high heavens, wouldn't that just make things even worse? I had to sacrifice your ego a little bit, didn't I? Besides, you seem pretty hung up on this whole thing yourself—don't tell me you're actually disappointed that Tan Qi ended up fancying Professor Zhou instead?"
"You ungrateful wretch—you're getting way too cheeky!" Duan Yiheng gave her a playful smack on the backside. "You're asking for it." Lin Xi immediately began squirming, trying to slide down and get away. Duan Yiheng's expression shifted, and he issued a stern warning: "Don't move." Lin Xi's face instantly flushed crimson, and she murmured in a voice barely louder than a mosquito's buzz: "I need to get down."
Duan Yiheng frowned, pressing his hand against her back to pull her close into his embrace. "Wait a second," he said in a deep, husky voice. Lin Xi gave his shoulder a playful nip. "How long do I have to wait?" Duan Yiheng replied:
"In any case... it's certainly not going to be over anytime soon." Lin Xi asked:
"...Do you guys—men in general—really care that much about how long it lasts?" Duan Yiheng retorted: "...If a man *didn't* care about that, would he even be a man?" Lin Xi mumbled under her breath:
"I'd say the ones who care the most are probably the merchants selling those 'Kidney-Boosting' pills." Duan Yiheng:
"..." Her mouth was getting sharper by the minute. Deciding to cut her off once and for all, he simply sealed her lips with his own. Lin Xi was utterly terrified, convinced he was about to try something inappropriate right there in the parking lot. She shoved him away violently, then scrambled frantically to push open the car door—banging her head in the process.
Duan Yiheng sat sprawled casually in the driver's seat; lifting a hand, he grabbed her arm. "Are you an idiot? Does it hurt?" Lin Xi shook her head, sounding a bit aggrieved. "It's only because *you* were acting out of line!" "Kissing you counts as 'acting out of line'?" Duan Yiheng genuinely couldn't understand. Lin Xi:
"...I was just scared, that's all." Duan Yiheng stepped out of the car with a sigh of resignation. "I'll walk you upstairs." "No need," Lin Xi was quick to decline. "I still have things to attend to at home; I won't trouble you." Duan Yiheng frowned. "What do you have to be busy with?"