OCY - Chapter 47

Chapter 47 - I like you

After saying this, he belatedly realized it was too ambiguous.

But Gu Hengzhi didn't react much, instead, he smiled, "Okay."

In the rearview mirror, Xiao Liu's expression was extremely terrified, as if he had seen a ghost. The last time he saw Chairman Gu smile like this was when there was a problem with the project data, and a deputy general manager got called into the office for a brutal scolding.

The sound of the scolding could be heard through the door, frightening them into silence.

So the boss could smile so normally?

If he took a photo now and sent it to the company group, everyone would surely not believe that this was their cold-faced boss.

Of course, he didn't have the guts to do that.

Soon they arrived at the restaurant they had booked in advance. Xiao Liu got out of the car and opened the rear door for Gu Hengzhi.

Ji Linxue thought Xiao Liu would stay and eat with them, but unexpectedly, only Gu Hengzhi and he entered the restaurant.

Thinking this, he asked the question that was on his mind.

Gu Hengzhi glanced at him and casually made something up, "He can't eat outside, he has children to take care of at home."

Xiao Liu, who was present at almost every meal, hello? Boss, do you want to listen to what you're saying?

"Children? He got married so early?" Ji Linxue was very surprised. Young people nowadays get married relatively late, especially those who need to build their careers. They simply don't have time to raise children. Xiao Liu looked about the same age as him. Did he actually have children already?

Gu Hengzhi said calmly, "Yes, one is a Border Collie and one is a Ragdoll."

Ji Linxue, "..."

The two stepped into the restaurant, and a waiter immediately came forward and led them to a private room.

Ji Linxue noticed that the ground floor was empty. Logically, even if this kind of place had slow business, there wouldn't be a single customer. The only possibility was that Gu Hengzhi had booked the entire restaurant.

The waiter quickly led them into the private room, which was a very elegant room with a European-style decor. There was a candelabra on the table, and a large bouquet of champagne-colored roses was placed next to the seats, looking very romantic.

The waiter handed them a tablet and quietly withdrew.

Gu Hengzhi selected a few items on the tablet and handed it to Ji Linxue, "See if there's anything else you want to eat."

Ji Linxue took it, added two dishes casually, and asked curiously, "Is this place's business not good? Why aren't there any other customers?"

"I had the place cleared. We're not serving other guests today."

Ji Linxue looked up in surprise, "Your restaurant?"

"Yeah," Gu Hengzhi said casually, "When you weren't here, I was too lazy to eat out, so I hired a few chefs specifically to cook for me. Later, I felt that was too wasteful, so I just opened a few restaurants. I can even make some money on the side."

Ji Linxue picked up his teacup and took a sip. He somehow felt that Gu Hengzhi's tone was very mournful, as if he had been eagerly waiting for him to come back.

When he spoke again, he couldn't help but deliberately tease, "Chairman Gu has chefs now, so I can relax a bit and cook one less portion."

Gu Hengzhi also curved the corner of his lips, "Compared to them, I still prefer what you make. What you make is the most delicious."

Ji Linxue was momentarily speechless. Whenever they talked about this kind of topic, he didn't know how to respond.

Gu Hengzhi was clearly a straight man, but the things he said were always so ambiguous, making him have thoughts he shouldn't.

Thinking of this, Ji Linxue's good mood vanished. He put the teacup on the table, propped his chin on his right hand, and looked outside, "Have you ordered? How long until the food is served? I'm a little hungry."

Seeing him deliberately avoid the topic, Gu Hengzhi's eyes darkened almost imperceptibly. The next second, he noticed something, "Where's your bracelet?"

Both their gazes fell on his empty wrist. Before going abroad, Ji Linxue had something on his right hand – the palace bell bracelet Gu Hengzhi gave him.

But Gu Hengzhi recalled and found that he hadn't seen that bracelet since Ji Linxue got off the plane.

Ji Linxue hid his right hand a bit, his gaze evasive, "I took the bracelet off and put it away."

Gu Hengzhi's fingers under the table tightened. He suppressed the impatience in his heart and said calmly, "Why?"

Ji Linxue scratched his face and said awkwardly, "Not long after I got to Country A, my bag was stolen. Fortunately, I chased after it and got it back immediately, but since then, I took off the bracelet, afraid it would be stolen by a thief."

Thieves were rampant in Country A, and combined with him being used to staying in the country for a long time, he had no defensive awareness at all, making him the perfect target for thieves. 

Ji Linxue was even a little relieved at the time that it was his bag that was stolen and not the bracelet. Bags were a bigger target. If it were the bracelet, he really didn't know where the thief would hide it.

Hearing his words, the flame in Gu Hengzhi's chest seemed to be extinguished by water with a puff. He pressed the corners of his lips together to keep himself from smiling.

"It's good that you're okay," he said, "If it was stolen, I would buy you a new one."

Ji Linxue shook his head. That was the first bracelet Gu Hengzhi gave him, and perhaps the last. Its meaning had far exceeded its intrinsic value.

A moment later, service staff filed in, bringing the dishes. They were orderly and quickly served all the dishes. The dishes were still steaming hot.

Gu Hengzhi picked up a piece of fish and put it in Ji Linxue's bowl, "Try the steamed fish here."

Ji Linxue put it in his mouth. The fish was tender and soft, fresh and delicious. It almost melted in his mouth, completely incomparable to what he had eaten before.

As expected of a master chef.

And yet, Gu Hengzhi could still praise his cooking as better than the chefs here without changing his expression?

There were probably nine dishes on the table. Fortunately, the portions were not large, enough for two people to finish.

After eating, they planned to go home. As they left, Gu Hengzhi took the bouquet of flowers from the private room. Meeting Ji Linxue's puzzled gaze, he said, 

"The flowers here are replaced every day. Anyway, they'd just be thrown away if left here, so we might as well take them."

Ji Linxue looked at the roses that were blooming vibrantly and looked very fresh. He thought that 'indeed, it would be a waste to throw them away'.

The sky outside had already darkened. This street was mostly filled with restaurants, all with exquisite decor. Except for the one they ate at, the other restaurants were packed.

Xiao Liu and the others had already left. Gu Hengzhi drove on the way back.

The sense of unfamiliarity had completely disappeared during the meal. Ji Linxue couldn't help but chat with him about the interesting things abroad. Although it was tough there, there were also many interesting things.

Infected by his smile, Gu Hengzhi also had a smile on his face.

The car finally arrived at the residential area. They chatted all the way up the elevator, but saw an unexpected person at the door of their apartment.

Bai Chutang.

Ji Linxue had kept in touch with Bai Chutang during his time abroad. Grandma Bai's condition had basically stabilized, but she needed dialysis and had become emaciated, speaking indistinctly, taking a long time to say a single sentence brokenly.

Since both sisters had to go to school, Bai Chutang had hired a caregiver to look after Grandma Bai. If it weren't for the help from the foundation, she didn't know how she would have managed.

Seeing Ji Linxue, the surprise in her eyes flashed, followed by great joy.

" Linxue ge! You're back?"

Ji Linxue smiled, "I just came back today. Why are you here?"

He had only told his three roommates about his return, and hadn't even had time to tell his parents yet, so Bai Chutang didn't know either.

“If I’d known, I would’ve gone to pick you up.”  Bai Chutang pretended to complain. As she spoke, her gaze fell on the bouquet of flowers in Ji Linxue's hand, "Wow, what beautiful flowers! Were you guys just on a date?"

Meeting her round, probing gaze, Ji Linxue quickly explained, "We just went out for a meal. The flowers were from the restaurant's private room. It seemed a waste to throw them away, so we brought them back."

"Is that so?" Bai Chutang looked at them suspiciously again.

She had worked part-time in many restaurants, but she had never heard of getting such exquisitely wrapped bouquets with a meal. And it wasn't Valentine's Day or any other special day today. Either Gu Hengzhi secretly prepared these flowers, or they booked a couple's private room at the restaurant.

Bai Chutang shrugged. Scheming little couple!

She didn't want to expose their little romantic gesture. Who knew Ji Linxue thought she liked them and said casually. 

"If you like them, then take them. We just brought them back casually, and we don't have any use for them."

Gu Hengzhi's gaze shifted to his side face, the look making Ji Linxue's hair stand on end.

"...What's wrong?"

Bai Chutang waved her hands in a panic.

"No need, no need, I don't like flowers."

She might like them, but she wasn’t about to take them!

"I came to see Hengzhi ge. Gege, I have something I want to ask you. Do you have time now?" 

Bai Chutang was anxious. When Gu Hengzhi nodded, she quickly stated her purpose.

She had come to ask about the foundation. Because she was in a hurry and Gu Hengzhi hadn't replied to her messages, she had come directly to his door.

Gu Hengzhi pushed Xiao Liu's WeChat to Bai Chutang, "You can contact him if you have anything. He's clearer about which materials need to be submitted."

"Thank you, Hengzhi ge."

Having gotten her answer, Bai Chutang didn't dare to stay any longer. She said she still had things to do and wanted to run off quickly.

Ji Linxue pressed the fingerprint lock and pushed open the door, "Come in and sit for a while."

Bai Chutang lied without changing her expression, "No need, I still have my part-time job. If I don't go now, I'll be late."

She didn't dare to go in. When Linxue ge went abroad before, Gu Hengzhi's reaction had startled her. It was a long time later that she figured out the relationship between these two.

Linxue ge had finally returned, and she didn't want to be the insensitive person who ruined their good time.

That bouquet of flowers just now almost killed her.

Ji Linxue said helplessly, "Alright."

Bai Chutang quickly got into the elevator and waved goodbye to them.

"Then I'll be going."

Ji Linxue nodded, "Be careful on the road, send me a message when you arrive."

"Okay."

After the elevator door closed, he turned and went inside, only to find that Gu Hengzhi had already entered and was standing by the dining table, pouring himself a glass of water.

Ji Linxue quickly called out to him, "Don't drink that, it's cold water. I'll boil some hot water for you."

Perhaps it was a common ailment of dominant CEOs, Gu Hengzhi's stomach wasn't very good. Today, he heard from Xiao Liu that in the year he was away, Gu Hengzhi had been hospitalized twice for stomach problems.

"No need," Gu Hengzhi's voice was cold and heavy, "I just like cold water, it cools me down."

Ji Linxue, ?

Cool down from what?

Perhaps his puzzled expression was too obvious, Gu Hengzhi laughed out of exasperation, put down the cup, and walked up to him with large strides, his voice carrying a hint of helplessness.

"She saw it, and you still haven't?"

Ji Linxue said inexplicably, "Saw what?"

Gu Hengzhi sighed. The next second, he gently cupped the back of Ji Linxue's neck, his warm lips pressing against Ji Linxue's cheek, a touch and then a separation, like a dragonfly skimming the surface of a lake, creating ripples.

"Ji Linxue, I like you."