Assistant He carried a laptop bag as he stepped out of the elevator, striding quickly towards the main entrance.
Just as he was about to pass through the sensor door, his peripheral vision caught a glimpse of a figure that seemed quite out of place with both the building and the people around it.
It happened to be quitting time, and those who worked in the building without needing overtime were all heading out like him, except for this one figure, which was moving against the flow.
Although the person wore a hat and mask, obscuring their face, wherever this figure passed by, the crowd moving in the opposite direction parted like Moses parting the sea, voluntarily making way for an unobstructed path.
It seemed as if the person noticed someone looking at them, for without stopping, they turned their head, locking their gaze precisely on him.
Meeting those shimmering yet innately cold eyes, Assistant He suddenly paused.
In the next moment, he turned around and followed that figure.
From the look in the eyes of the person Jiang Lingxi saw in the crowd, she was sure the other party must know her.
Noticing the person following her, she decided not to head towards the reception desk but rather directly went to a tall green plant in the corner of the lobby.
Once she stood there, she didn’t rush to speak but first sized up the young man in a suit and tie, his hair immaculately combed.
Assistant He instinctively held his breath under her scrutiny, stood at attention, and then cleared his throat to relieve himself, tentatively calling out, "Madam?"
Jiang Lingxi was rare to feel embarrassed by a form of address.
But since he could recognize her despite the hat and mask, and could call her that, this person was undoubtedly a close subordinate of Shen Yunqing.
Thinking of this, she straightforwardly stated her purpose, "I’ve come to see Shen Yunqing."
With this sentence, the last bit of uncertainty in Assistant He’s heart faded away.
But it seemed this was the first time Madam had proactively come to see the boss!
Even though he was curious to death about Madam’s purpose for meeting the boss, Assistant He held it back firmly, glanced towards the elevator with a troubled expression, and said, "Madam, unfortunately, the boss isn’t at the company."
Jiang Lingxi guessed a possibility when she saw the troubled look on his face, but after hearing it, she couldn’t help but take a light breath, "Has he gone on a business trip again?"
"No, it’s just that the boss hasn’t been feeling well these past few days and has been recuperating at home. I was just about to head over to report on work." After explaining, Assistant He then extracted a key term from Jiang Lingxi’s earlier words, "Again? Has Madam been here before?"
"Yes, but your boss wasn’t here then either, the reception said he was on a business trip."
"The boss indeed often goes far away." Assistant He didn’t dare ask why not call the boss first, having finally become the boss’s most trusted subordinate, professional skill aside, knowing one’s place was of utmost importance.
Jiang Lingxi glanced at the laptop bag he was carrying and smoothly said, "I’ll go over with you."
She didn’t care where she met Shen Yunqing, as long as she saw him.
Yet, the person in front of her still looked troubled, no, it seemed even more troubled than before.
Assistant He felt as though with this four-word question, the person’s eyes also grew dangerous, so he hurriedly shook his head and waved his hands frantically, "No, no, it’s just, just that Xiyuan has very strict entry controls, prohibiting strangers from entering and exiting." Seeing the increasingly dangerous look, he simply clenched his teeth, "The access system hasn’t recorded your information, Madam."
After explaining, Assistant He sneaked a look at the silent madam in front of him and felt that he’d rather face an enraged boss than the current madam.
The silent, oppressive aura spreading around was nearly stifling him!
"Call and say I want to see him."
This sentence, though not a command, seemed like one, as Assistant He immediately pulled out his phone the next moment he heard it.
Trembling, he dialed the number at the top of his contacts.
Assistant He quickly switched to speaker mode.
The phone rang, and Jiang Lingxi felt a bit disdainful—there wasn’t even a ringtone!
Then came the silent, oppressive wait.
No one answered for so long, Assistant He couldn’t help wiping the sweat off his forehead, awkwardly chuckling as he explained, "The boss might be resting now, maybe you could resche—"
Before the word ’dule’ could come out, just before the call was automatically disconnected, the "buzz" stopped abruptly, followed by a somewhat deep and hoarse male voice coming through the phone, "Assistant He?"
Assistant He instinctively responded, then cautiously glanced at Jiang Lingxi standing across from him, "Uh, boss, madam wants to speak with you." Saying that, he handed the phone over.
After a brief silence, it was Jiang Lingxi who spoke first, "Shen Yunqing, it’s Jiang Lingxi, I have something to discuss with you."
Those unaware might think it’s a matter of national importance being discussed here.
The sound of shattering glass came through the phone, disrupting his thoughts.
"Boss? What’s happened over there, boss? Are you alright?"
Jiang Lingxi frowned too, she had merely spoken a sentence, was such a reaction necessary?
"It’s nothing." After a moment, the other side replied with two simple words to Assistant He’s barrage of questions, paused, and added, "You both come over."
"Alright boss, I’ll bring the madam over right away."
The call ended, Shen Yunqing sat in the dimly curtained bedroom, looking at the broken glass on the floor beside the bed, a bit dazed.
The phone in his hand had quieted down, but the voice he just heard seemed to linger in his ears.
Even automatically altering to: "Shen Qing, I have an idea for you to listen to."
Until a soft knocking came from outside the bedroom door, "Sir, I just heard something shatter in your room, are you hurt? Is it convenient for me to come in and clean up?"
Only then did Shen Yunqing come back to his senses, "It’s fine, no need to clean up for now, we will have guests later, prepare Xihe, no, South Garden for them."
The person waiting outside the door was momentarily stunned before replying, "Yes, sir."
Listening to the footsteps departing, Shen Yunqing turned back the covers, got up, covered his mouth for a light cough, and then walked barefoot to the wardrobe.
He began seriously selecting clothes appropriate for meeting someone soon.
In the car heading to Xiyuan.
Jiang Lingxi, withdrawing her gaze from the car window, looked at Assistant He who was sitting upright in the driver’s seat through the rearview mirror, "Just now, I seemed to have heard you say your boss’s place is called Xiyuan, which Xi character is it?"
"It’s the last character in your name, the Xi from Chenxi (dawn)."