Chapter 6: Postponed

Her internal monologue slipped out, and only after saying it did she realize it was inappropriate. She glanced at Li Qingji with a hint of apology.

“What I meant was… I didn’t know you were the new boss at Siningte. Given that we work under the same roof, I think it’s inappropriate, so I don’t want others to know about our relationship.”

After saying that, she stole another glance at him. His expression was calm, showing no emotion.

She let out a sigh of relief and tentatively asked, “What do you think?”

Li Qingji was actually indifferent: “It’s up to you.”

“Thank you…”

The car started up, and as the driver drove out of the parking lot and onto the road in front of the company, Jiang Nai spotted Yao Qi among the bustling crowd of people heading home. She knew that people outside couldn’t see inside, but she still felt a bit embarrassed since she had lied to others.

However, she quickly reminded herself that it was essential for no one at the company to find out. Putting aside the fact that office environments generally aren’t conducive to romantic relationships (at least, let’s assume her relationship with Li Qingji is of that kind), the complications arising from Li Qingji’s identity could be quite troublesome for her. She wanted a normal working environment and a typical work experience.

“What do you want to eat tonight? I can have the aunt prepare it now,” Li Qingji asked.

Li Qingji had returned on a morning flight from the capital, and since he had only recently taken over at Siningte and had several meetings to attend, he went straight to Siningte without going home, which is how he ended up encountering Jiang Nai at the company in the afternoon.

“I’m fine with anything, I’m not picky,” Jiang Nai replied.

“Then I’ll just have her make a few random dishes.”

“Okay.”

The car fell into silence for a while, and Jiang Nai recalled what happened in the tea room at work today, along with Yao Qi’s ashen face. She wanted to say a few words on Yao Qi’s behalf, but she hesitated about how to approach it since… it could be considered speaking ill of him.

Li Qingji was right beside her; he must have sensed Jiang Nai’s repeated glances his way. He sorted out the documents he had in hand, set them down, and turned to look at her.

“What’s on your mind?”

In the daylight, his light-colored eyes were rarely seen deep in this lighting, and the proximity gave off a sense of intimidation.

Jiang Nai suddenly found it hard to speak. After a long pause, she finally asked, “I just wanted to know, why are you at Siningte? I remember Siningte isn’t under Hengchuan—”

“Just acquired,” Li Qingji interjected.

“…”

Acquired.

He made it sound as simple as buying a cabbage, yet it was such a large enterprise.

“Do your family know you work here?”

“They don’t know.” Jiang Nai added, “Even if they do, it wouldn’t matter; they’d just think I’m dabbling in something small and wouldn’t take it seriously.”

Li Qingji’s gaze remained fixed, and Jiang Nai felt as if his expression implied that it wasn’t really anything small and trivial.

She frowned slightly. “Is it not okay for me to work here…?”

“It’s fine.” Li Qingji leaned back, closing his eyes to rest. “The position actually fits your major.”

——

After returning home, the housekeeper was already in the kitchen preparing dinner. They each went about their own tasks, and after about ten minutes, they returned to the dining room to eat together.

Having spent the entire day out, Jiang Nai rushed to take a shower after dinner. Since Li Qingji was already back, she reminded herself not to linger too long in the bathroom, keeping her time under thirty minutes. After finishing her bath and changing into pajamas, Jiang Nai lay on the bed and scrolled through her phone. She saw a post from Yao Qi, who she had recently added to her friend list. It didn’t say much, just a “sighing at the sky” emoticon.

Jiang Nai lay on her pillow, contemplating whether she should test Li Qingji’s stance. Deep down, she felt he wasn’t as rash a person as he seemed. There was a light knock at the door, and someone entered. Jiang Nai turned her head to see Li Qingji, who had taken off his outer coat and was in a shirt, standing in front of the mirror, loosening his tie.

How should she start the conversation…?

“Didn’t drive this morning?” he asked.

“Ah? I took a taxi.” Jiang Nai hadn’t expected him to ask that suddenly, and without thinking, she replied, “The morning rush was too congested, so I didn’t drive.”

In reality, it was because his cars were too conspicuous; she had no intention of driving those sporty vehicles to the company.

Li Qingji glanced at her in the mirror: “So taking a taxi means there’s no traffic?”

Jiang Nai: “…”

Li Qingji seemed to understand something and said, “Why don’t you have Chen Min accompany you to buy a car that you like?”

Actually, during the time they had spent together, Jiang Nai found that he was quite nice most of the time, at least methodical in his work.

He wasn’t a person who was unreasonably fierce.

So, mustering a bit of courage, she propped herself up on her elbow and pretended to cough lightly. “When I ran into you at the company today… it just happened that people were gossiping a bit. I’m new here, so I’m not really sure, but everyone seemed quite nervous.”

Li Qingji casually placed his tie aside, and from this angle, Jiang Nai could see his fingers resting on the first button of his shirt, his fingers clean and long.

Her gaze lingered there for a second before she quickly looked away. After hesitating, she finally said, “Um… is it possible that you’re a bit too intimidating at the company?”

Li Qingji paused his movements, turned to look at her, and after a moment, smiled faintly. “I didn’t say anything about you guys when you were talking bad about me at the company today. How am I intimidating?”

So he did hear the bad talk.

Jiang Nai immediately sat up straight. “N-no, I mean, it’s not that it’s bad talk.”

Li Qingji watched her leisurely, seemingly curious to see what kind of excuse she would come up with next.

After a long pause, Jiang Nai finally managed to say, “Well, it’s somewhat the truth…”

“What?”

“That’s just the impression you give them. There’s nothing you can do about it.”

This was the first time she had ever spoken to him like this. Though she murmured, her words were clear in the quiet room.

Li Qingji paused slightly before chuckling, though the amusement didn’t quite reach his eyes. “Yeah, there’s nothing I can do.”

“…”

He turned to head into the bathroom.

“Are you going to fire her over this?” Jiang Nai quickly asked.

Li Qingji replied, “What do you think?”

How would I know?

Yet she didn’t dare to say this out loud, and Li Qingji didn’t give her a chance to respond either as he walked into the bathroom.

——

Once the bathroom door closed, Li Qingji stood in front of the mirror for a few seconds. The fog hadn’t cleared yet, and a slightly sweet scent of the body wash lingered in the air.

It was a very unfamiliar fragrance.

He realized it was because she had just taken a shower.

Walking into the shower, he indeed noticed the new toiletries in the niche.

In fact, he wasn’t someone who observed the small details of life very well, but these items were just too vibrant: the orange shower gel covered in flower patterns, the turquoise shampoo bottle, and some other colorful bottles and jars.

They were all things for girls. Li Qingji glanced at them a few times before retracting his gaze and turning on the shower.

Outside, Jiang Nai couldn’t figure out Li Qingji’s thoughts and couldn’t comfort Yao Qi about anything.

Sigh, she could only wish for the best.

She pulled up the blanket and prepared to sleep. Closing her eyes, she suddenly remembered that the bed today belonged to another person, so she shifted over quite a bit to the left, far away from their middle line. But in less than two minutes, she shifted back.

They were a couple; they were married, and some things just had to be adapted to.

Even though that was what she thought, the moment she heard the bathroom door open, she instinctively closed her eyes.

Li Qingji came out in his pajamas, his hair still a bit damp from a quick blow-dry. He walked to the side of the bed and glanced at the person on the other side; she was all curled up in the blanket, with half her head buried in it. However, from this angle, he could still see her face, pale and pure under the soft light, her long eyelashes casting a small shadow.

The silhouette trembled slightly, just a little, but he could see it clearly.

She hadn’t fallen asleep.

“Jiang Nai.”

“…Hmm.” The person with her eyes closed responded reluctantly.

“You can go to sleep; I still have some things to do. I’ll sleep in the study tonight.”

The person lying down opened her eyes, her pupils reflecting the light, bright and sparkling. If she had to be described, it was a bit like the joy of “surviving a catastrophe.”

Li Qingji found it somewhat amusing, “You bought condoms, but you haven’t prepared mentally?”

Jiang Nai widened her eyes in surprise, “How did you know?”

Li Qingji replied, “Aren’t they in my drawer?”

He had unexpectedly seen them when he came over to get something before dinner.

Seeing him say it with a straight face made Jiang Nai’s cheeks flush, “Sorry, I…”

“I don’t force people.” Li Qingji interrupted her. Perhaps it was the lighting; his expression seemed somewhat gentle at that moment. “Let’s talk about this later.”

The concern was directly broken, and Jiang Nai felt a bit embarrassed, but his words were a boost to her confidence.

“Talking about it later” was good; at least they would wait until they were familiar, right? She really had no interest in being in bed with a “stranger.”

That night, Jiang Nai fell asleep feeling relaxed and a bit pleased, and this little joy even led her to have a good dream. In her dream, her career was thriving, and she no longer had to be suppressed by anyone. She also dreamed that she found her mother and was completely capable of supporting her, finally living the life she wanted.

She was so happy.

—

Li Qingji didn’t like being disturbed by outsiders, so there were no live-in maids at home, nor was there a habit of arranging for someone to come early in the morning to make breakfast.

When Jiang Nai wasn’t around, his breakfast in the morning was prepared by his assistant.

The next morning, the two ran into each other downstairs after getting ready. Jiang Nai was still very serious about her appearance today, wearing a khaki shirt, cream-colored trousers, with her long hair tied up, and light makeup that highlighted a simple yet sophisticated office look.

Li Qingji glanced at her and said, “Come with me to the garage.”

“No need, I’m going to catch a taxi soon.”

“I didn’t say you had to take my car.”

Jiang Nai replied, “Hmm?”

“Chen Min prepared breakfast, come and get it.”

Perhaps due to his long-standing high position, he sometimes spoke with an unconscious commanding tone, leaving no space for refusal.

Jiang Nai had no choice but to follow him to the garage. When Chen Min saw her, she politely greeted, “Miss Jiang,” and handed her a packed breakfast.

Jiang Nai thanked her and ran upstairs, hurrying to catch a taxi outside the community. As she arrived at the company entrance, she ran into Yao Qi.

Yao Qi whispered, “I haven’t received any news from Mian Mian all night, so I guess they’re not firing me.”

Mian Mian from the personnel department of Siningte, Yao Qi’s friend.

Before Jiang Nai could speak, Yao Qi continued, “Don’t think the time hasn’t come. Our big boss is very decisive; it’s normal to receive a dismissal notice late at night, but I haven’t!”

Jiang Nai said, “Sister Yao Qi, I really don’t think they will fire you. You haven’t made any fundamental mistakes; he shouldn’t be that irrational.”

Yao Qi responded, “Yes… I was a bit scared yesterday. But thinking it over, those who get fired are usually the ones with work problems or not aligned with him in the upper management. I have no issues with my work, and I absolutely follow the boss.”

Jiang Nai couldn’t help but chuckle.

Yao Qi laughed along, feeling more relaxed. “Hey, is that breakfast you have?”

“Yeah, have you eaten? Let’s eat together.”

“I already had breakfast at home.”

As they spoke, they entered the company lobby and went to the elevator. After waiting a little while, the elevator arrived from the basement level.

Ding—

The elevator opened. Just as Yao Qi was about to step inside, she saw the people inside and froze for a moment; it was Li Qingji and two of his assistants.

Yao Qi was momentarily speechless, but remembering that Li Qingji hadn’t held a grudge, she gathered her courage and greeted, “Good morning, boss.”

Li Qingji replied with a grunt, his gaze sliding past the two outside without stopping. Seeing this, Yao Qi completely relaxed her heart, pulling Jiang Nai in as they entered. She happily greeted Chen Min, who was standing beside Li Qingji.

Chen Min smiled in response and casually asked, “Have you eaten?”

Yao Qi replied, “Yes, yes, I did. Sister Min, you haven’t had breakfast yet?”

“I have,” Chen Min lightly lifted the bag in her hand, “It’s from the boss.”

Yao Qi exclaimed, “Oh, this bag… is the same as Jiang Nai’s.”

“…”

“…………”

Since Jiang Nai entered the elevator later, she stood in front of Li Qingji. However, she could see him as soon as she lifted her gaze, because the elevator doors were made of reflective material, and his height completely blocked her view of him in the mirror.

Hearing this, she immediately looked up at him, and Li Qingji happened to glance at her through the mirror. Jiang Nai’s heart suddenly felt like it was being tugged, a strange sense of guilt washing over her.

“They should have been bought from the same place, how coincidental,” Chen Min remarked after a few seconds of silence.

Jiang Nai chuckled awkwardly, “It is quite coincidental.”

With Li Qingji still present, Yao Qi didn’t dare to speak freely like she would in front of others. After a polite exchange, she leaned in closer to Jiang Nai and whispered, “The boss eats this too? Is it really that good? Give me the address later, I’ll order it tomorrow.”

Jiang Nai replied, “…Okay.”

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