Jiang Che: [Image]
Jiang Che: [I'm not talking anymore, your wife's checking up on me.]
Zhao Yang: [Xiao Shu, you're so beautiful even in the surveillance footage? Tsk tsk tsk!]
Shu Yang followed up with an ultimate compliment: "[That's right! Ji Mingshu! She's a woman who exudes elegance and refinement even in sub-zero temperatures!]"
Cen Sen ignored them, glanced at the surveillance footage, and dialed the internal line to tell Zhou Jiaheng to come down and pick up the person.
But he hung up as soon as the intercom rang once, because Zhou Jiaheng had already appeared in the corner of the surveillance screen.
After Zhou Jiaheng made two mistakes in a row, the assistant's awareness suddenly improved dramatically.
Knowing that Ji Mingshu was coming to visit the company, he specifically instructed the driver to inform him at the three traffic lights before arriving at the company.
As Ji Mingshu got out of the car and walked inside, he was already waiting at the door for the arrival of the president's wife.
He carefully accompanied Ji Mingshu, leading the way with an extremely respectful expression, almost to the point of being obsequious. "Madam, you've had a hard time. Let me carry this. Please come this way, Madam."
The aloof Shu Shu didn't even glance at her, only humming in response.
Stepping into the president's private elevator, the aloof Shu Shu glanced at the lit-up 68th floor and suddenly asked, "Tomorrow is the New Year, Assistant Zhou, aren't you going home?"
Zhou Jiaheng: "Yes, yes, President Cen specially arranged a plane for me. I'll be going home early tomorrow morning."
He also smiled and told her how considerate Cen Sen was to his employees, "President Cen even prepared a car full of gifts for my parents and insisted that I take them back with me. He said that I didn't go home for the Chinese New Year in Australia for the past two years, and he wanted me to spend some quality time with my parents this time. These gifts are all his heartfelt wishes."
"President Cen even gave me a full seven days off, and he's already planned out the New Year's Eve dinner. He wants me to eat at Junyi Huazhang Hotel in my hometown, and if any relatives or friends come over, they can just stay at the hotel..."
The more Zhou Jiaheng rambled on, the more frustrated Ji Mingshu felt.
Please, who wants to hear this!
She thought Zhou Jiaheng would be like walking on thin ice, and would definitely be able to share her views and complain about Cen Sen, who doesn't even give holidays during the New Year. But she never expected that this guy would be so happy to receive a little favor and would be so grateful to Cen Sen!
How pathetic! How disappointing! Such a spineless scoundrel doesn't deserve to be Ji Shushu's friend!
She wanted to signal Zhou Jiaheng to stop nagging immediately, but the next second Zhou Jiaheng suddenly mentioned how hard Cen Sen had been working these past few days to make up for the losses he suffered from returning to China early.
Ji Mingshu paused for a moment, then suddenly asked, "Um, how much was lost?"
Zhou Jiaheng stopped abruptly, a slightly troubled expression appearing on his face. But Ji Mingshu kept pressing him, and since it wasn't exactly a trade secret, Zhou Jiaheng hesitated for a moment before reluctantly extending one finger.
"One hundred million?"
"…Dollar?"
Zhou Jiaheng then stretched out his other hand and made a zero gesture.
"...One billion?"
Zhou Jiaheng kept his eyes down and said quickly, "The total investment for the twelve phases is one billion US dollars."
Ji Mingshu fell silent.
Although she was rather numb to monetary figures and knew that Cen Sen's net worth was far more than that amount, she also understood that one billion dollars was a huge sum for a personal investment.
The anger that had been building up on the way here was instantly extinguished by this bucket of $1 billion cold water, and at the same time, a feeling of guilt slowly began to grow in her heart. If it weren't for her, this investment wouldn't have been lost.
"Madam, we've arrived."
When the elevator reached the top floor, seeing her staring blankly for a while, Zhou Jiaheng pressed the elevator button and reminded her.
As Ji Mingshu walked into the president's office, he felt dizzy and his sense of guilt grew stronger the closer he got to Cen Sen.
Walking up to Cen Sen's desk, she lowered her eyelashes, silently opened the thermos, and whispered, "I packed some chicken soup for you. Drink some to warm yourself up. There are always long queues at this shop; everyone says it's made with the best ingredients."
Cen Sen remained silent for a moment.
Previously, when he asked on WeChat if the purchase exceeded the supplementary card limit, she was clearly very angry and accused him of thinking too materialistically of her.
Moreover, in the surveillance footage just now, her demeanor didn't seem like she was there to bring him soup out of concern; it was more like she was going to throw the hot soup from the thermos in his face and settle scores with him.
He took off his glasses and scooped a small spoonful from the small bowl that Ji Mingshu had pushed in front of him.
Hmm, the taste is normal.
He looked up at Ji Mingshu and said, "Sit down."
But Ji Mingshu lingered by his desk, fidgeting with the lid of the thermos, reluctant to move.
There was condensation on the inside of the thermos lid. Ji Mingshu was fiddling with the outside of the lid and didn't pay much attention. The water inside dripped onto the ground.
After a moment, she put down the lid and took a small step, just about to say something to Cen Sen, when she suddenly slipped and fell, followed by a difficult 98.5-degree side spin, her haute couture little red dress billowing in the wind and her flowing hair dancing wildly in the air—
She landed perfectly in Cen Sen's arms :)
Cen Sen was still holding a spoon in one hand, not moving an inch, when he suddenly felt a weight on his leg. In contrast, Ji Mingshu was much more proactive, automatically wrapping her arms around his neck the moment she sat down.
"..."
"...?!"
Ji Mingshu was stunned for a moment, and it took her about four or five seconds for her mind to go blank before she realized what had just happened.
She belatedly met Cen Sen's calm eyes and clearly saw a variety of emotions in them, such as "I didn't expect you to be so proactive," "Very good, your way of throwing yourself into my arms is very unique," and "Since you've done it so blatantly, I'll reluctantly accept it."
No! She didn't do it on purpose! She must have been possessed by a ghost to have performed such a series of difficult moves so smoothly, naturally, and flawlessly!
Thinking of this, Ji Mingshu subconsciously let go.
But Cen Sen had already put down the spoon and wrapped his arms around her waist.
"Wait...wait a minute!"
"No, it's just that the floor was too...too slippery, I didn't mean to!"
Cen Sen's gaze had already fallen below her collarbone, and he simply hummed indifferently, then agreed: "We'll replace the flooring after the New Year."
They clearly didn't take her explanation seriously.
Ji Mingshu blushed involuntarily. Seeing Cen Sen's lecherous gaze, her shyness somehow began to evolve into a state of complete recklessness.
When she noticed Cen Sen's hands starting to caress her intimately, she decided to go all in and openly hugged him, snuggling into his arms.
Cen Sen was tempted, but then she quietly brought up the important matter: "I overheard Grandpa and Dad talking in the study the other day about how you came back from Paris early and Cen Yang snatched a project investment from you. I'm so sorry..."
The darkness in Cen Sen's eyes faded slightly.
Ji Mingshu then said in a low voice, feeling guilty, "Otherwise, let's not buy that island yet. If you can see the aurora, it's in the Arctic Circle, which must be extremely cold. You can only go there a few times a year, and the maintenance costs are very high."
"Also, I can buy less stuff in the future. And that ring you gave me last time, I haven't had a chance to wear it yet, how about I give it back to you?"
"It's just a small amount of money. I'm not so poor that I need my wife to sell her jewelry." He rubbed Ji Mingshu's head, and his fatigue seemed to suddenly lessen.
Ji Mingshu was somewhat happy to have saved the island and the ring, since she had only made a token gesture and had no real intention of selling them.
She swayed restlessly on Cen Sen's lap, and for some reason, she started asking about Cen Yang again, even whispering an explanation for him, "Actually, Cen Yang has had a tough time too, it's just... it's easy to go from frugality to extravagance, but difficult to go from extravagance to frugality, something like that, you understand? He must have had some lingering resentment all these years..."
Cen Sen understood perfectly; he could even understand why Cen Yang still couldn't let go of the past after so many years.
Actually, there are some things about the Cen family that are not for outsiders to know, and even close people like Ji Mingshu are unaware of them. He also doesn't want Ji Mingshu to know.
Being happy and simple forever is far better than carrying the burden of the past.
Just as he didn't want to tell her the truth about the malicious cutting incident, lest he ruin the beautiful image of Cen Yang, the brother who had given her warmth in her childhood.
However, not causing trouble doesn't mean he can allow Ji Mingshu to keep mentioning other men in front of him.
Ji Mingshu wanted to say something more, but Cen Sen suddenly sealed her lips with a gentle kiss.
She was also a weakling; she lost herself in this gentleness within seconds, and what awaited her was that in the next second, she would be deeply penetrated and conquered by this suddenly fierce gentleness.
She struggled back and forth in Cen Sen's lap, breathless from the kisses, and whimpered, trying to make a sound.
But Cen Sen didn't give her a chance at all. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Cen Sen press a button on the desktop touch panel. The button glowed slightly, and there was a faint diagonal line on it, as if it meant "Do Not Disturb."
She didn't have time to think too much, because after the kiss ended, Cen Sen picked her up and placed her in a corner of the empty desk.
The desk was much colder and harder than Cen Sen's thighs, making it quite uncomfortable to sit on.
Seeing Cen Sen casually wipe his lower lip with his fingertip, Ji Mingshu subconsciously leaned back. Cen Sen also leaned forward, supporting himself with his hands on either side of her.
His eyes were deep black, gazing at her with a clear, serene expression. He casually loosened his collar, his Adam's apple bobbing slightly, revealing a hint of his collarbone. Ji Mingshu suddenly felt... a strong urge to possess this man.
The air was still, and there was no escaping their gazes. Ji Mingshu's ears turned red, and she asked cautiously, "Is it... is it going to be office play?"
Chapter 67
It must be admitted that Ji Mingshu is a woman who is quite pragmatic at times.
The blinds in the office slowly lowered, and the lights changed from strong white light to soft warm yellow, creating a dim and hazy atmosphere.
From the direction of the desk came the rustling sound of clothes and documents falling to the ground, along with a suppressed, soft moan.
Ji Mingshu sat on the table, her hands weakly clinging to Cen Sen's shoulders, falling down several times and then returning to them each time.
Knowing there were other people outside, she didn't dare to make a sound. With tears welling up in her eyes, she could only bite Cen Sen's neck in a pitiful manner.
Cen Sen's black hair was slightly damp. When he was deeply in love, he would occasionally whisper something in Ji Mingshu's ear. His voice was low and hoarse, filled with unbearable desire, and even his eyes were red.
In fact, Ji Mingshu's worries were somewhat unnecessary. With the Lunar New Year approaching, most employees were already on holiday, and there were very few people in the Junyi headquarters building, especially in the top-floor president's office. In addition, Cen Sen had put up a "Do Not Disturb" sign, so who would dare to take even half a step closer and eavesdrop?
But that's how it is. Ji Mingshu went in and didn't come out for several hours. The assistants in the general manager's office across from him were a little unsure of what to do. They looked at each other, and they could read the ultimate awkwardness in each other's eyes: "Is it appropriate for us to do aerobic exercise in broad daylight?"
When someone calls to say they have documents that urgently need Mr. Cen's signature and approval, they reply without batting an eye, "Mr. Cen is busy," but at the same time, they can't help but silently imagine the scene of him being excessively busy, which makes it even more awkward.
Around 7 PM, Cen Sen dialed the internal line and calmly informed them to leave work. They were eager to disappear and hurriedly packed their things, rushing out like a whirlwind.
Ji Mingshu made sure no one was outside before she dared to put on sunglasses, pull up her collar, and follow Cen Sen out in small steps.
Her gait was unnatural, as if she might collapse at any moment, and her knees were slightly red.
Perhaps because they had already had their fill of office play, Cen Sen didn't cause any more trouble when they got home that night. Ji Mingshu nestled in his arms and slept soundly.
The next day was Lunar New Year's Eve, and the heavens, after days of heavy snow, finally smiled upon us.
Ji Mingshu and Cen Sen got up early and headed to the Ji family mansion.
At noon, the two stayed at the Ji family home for their New Year's Eve dinner. During the meal, their second uncle, Ji Rubai, brought up the old topic again, focusing on one central theme and two basic points, and launched a comprehensive campaign to urge them to have a child after three years of marriage.
"Second Uncle, I'm only twenty-five. What's the rush? There are plenty of girls my age who aren't even married yet, and are still pursuing graduate studies and looking for jobs," Ji Mingshu said, putting down her chopsticks and acting coquettishly.
But Ji Rubai wasn't buying it. He was also very good at reasoning. "Still talking about being 25? You'll be 26 after the New Year. Besides, you haven't gone to graduate school or found a job, so how can you compare to others? Furthermore, does going to graduate school or finding a job affect getting married and having children? Sihuai, tell me, aren't there quite a few girls at your school who get married and have children while pursuing graduate studies?"