Huang Jing entered the company and noticed that many people were staring at her, wondering if she had worn the wrong clothes.
But after looking down and checking again, there was no problem at all; if there wasn’t any issue with her clothes, why was everyone staring at her?
She wanted to ask what was going on, but since they were all strangers, she couldn’t bring herself to ask.
Forget it, since she couldn’t figure out what had happened, she decided not to ask.
Once she got to her desk, she would see if her colleagues knew anything; and if that didn’t work, she could always ask Xia Ke.
As far as this company’s matters were concerned, there was nothing Xia Ke didn’t know about.
As soon as she reached her desk, before she even settled in, her colleagues were already staring at her incessantly.
Huang Jing leisurely put her things in order and then tidied up her desk a bit, "Out with it, what’s up?"
"Is there some juicy news?"
"Does it involve me?"
If she still didn’t know it involved her, she’d really be a fool.
But what had she done? Huang Jing considered herself just a small fry; even her last breakup was only known by a close few.
Now she definitely had no news stirring around her. Could it be about Ho Zhen visiting her at work last time?
But that was also unlikely. Ho Zhen was even less likely to cause a scene. They both worked in the same city; if word got out, how would he carry on at work?
For the face-conscious Ho Zhen, that was impossible. No matter how repulsive his actions might be, he would never let everyone around him know.
Huang Jing’s mind raced, feeling there should be no issue.
Her colleague, seeing Huang Jing’s puzzled expression, also couldn’t help but feel curious. However, remembering the photos and the progress posted on the company’s intranet, it didn’t seem fake.
"Do you know Shen Lan?" Might as well double-check.
At the mention of Shen Lan’s name, Huang Jing immediately understood; she guessed it must be about them going out to eat and then shopping at the supermarket together, which a colleague must have spotted.
Then the post about it on the company’s intranet. Quickly checking online, she saw that the post, published just after eight o’clock last night, had already become a hot topic.
As she scrolled through the photos, she couldn’t stop clicking her tongue, "Really now, can I feel relieved that Shen Lan doesn’t have a girlfriend?"
"Otherwise, just based on these photo angles, I’d really think we were a couple."
"I thought yesterday’s shopping trip meant we were as intimate as can be."
Huang Jing truly didn’t know what to say. Yesterday, when she agreed to go to the supermarket together, she had thought they might be seen, but there was no attempt to hide; they were just travel buddies, just colleagues.
But now that this post was on the internet, Huang Jing really didn’t know what to say.
She really didn’t care, but she worried that her explanation might cause trouble for Shen Lan.
Just then, her phone lit up. She noticed there was a message in the four-person group created for keeping in contact—it was a post by Fan Chen.
Before long, Shen Lan sent her a private message: "I’m sorry, I didn’t expect things to turn out ."
Shen Lan had only become aware of the situation after being alerted by his subordinates.
After a brief moment of shock, he was filled with various forms of anger. The content of the post and the photos taken really could easily mislead people.
After pondering for a moment, Shen Lan sent Huang Jing an apology letter.
Wow, Huang Jing had thought about it and wondered whether Shen Lan would become aware of this, but she hadn’t taken it too seriously, knowing he was a workaholic.
He found out and even sent a message to apologize, and even if she was really upset, she wouldn’t have said it out loud.
Huang Jing: It’s okay, who made you so popular? Now even my colleagues are asking me if I know you, how should I answer them?
Shen Lan replied quickly: Just tell the truth, including our trip together. There’s nothing that can’t be talked about.
After receiving Shen Lan’s reply, Huang Jing knew what to say, "I went to Europe with my friend Xia Ke for the May Day holiday."
The colleague nodded in understanding because Huang Jing had mentioned it before when everyone was discussing where to go for the holidays.
"It just so happened that we ran into Shen Lan and Fan Chen on the plane, and then we hung out together."
"When we returned yesterday, I had no food in the fridge, so I was about to go out to buy some food, and just then, Shen Lan came out."
Only then did Huang Jing remember she had forgotten to mention a major fact, "Shen Lan is a neighbor on the same floor."
This wasn’t any secret, and Huang Jing didn’t worry about gossip suggesting that she chased after Shen Lan to rent a place. She moved in first, and Shen Lan had only recently moved in at the beginning of the year.
Wow, neighbors with Shen Lan? Huang Jing’s colleague was amazed, covering her mouth in shock.
"Are there any vacancies near your place?" Even if there was no chance with Shen Lan, being neighbors with a male god was too good an opportunity to miss.
At this, Huang Jing looked clueless, "Do you think I would know?"
"Xia Ke was the one who helped me find my place when I was looking to rent."
"Right, the place you rent, is it a one-bedroom apartment?" A colleague listening in asked, quite surprised.
Huang Jing hummed in affirmation, "Yes, it’s just me living there, so a one-bedroom apartment is definitely enough."
"Why would Shen Lan also rent a one-bedroom apartment?" Everyone was puzzled and looked at Huang Jing.
Huang Jing waved her hands quickly, "I don’t know either."
"I wouldn’t ask such a question. How big an apartment one rents is a private matter."
If she really asked that question, it might make Shen Lan have additional thoughts, like whether she had feelings for him. Otherwise, why would she ask?
Everyone thought about it and agreed, indeed, it was a tricky question to ask. If the other person didn’t want to answer, it would be awkward.
"Speaking of which, since you’re on good terms with Shen Lan, could you help me ask what type of girls he likes?"
Someone had asked a question of general curiosity, it was true that no matter how long someone had been colleagues with Shen Lan, his personal life remained a mystery.
What type of girls does Shen Lan like? As for that, Huang Jing really didn’t know, "I’ve never asked."
"I’m really not that close to him." Even though they were in the same team and had added each other as friends, today was the first time they had chatted privately.
If it hadn’t been for this incident, they probably wouldn’t have contacted each other at all and would have sunk to the bottom of their contacts list.
"Not close?" A colleague to the side couldn’t help but purse her lips; they had already traveled together.
"We’re really not close. It was just a coincidence. No one expected to run into each other on the same plane."
"If you had been to Europe too, and encountered each other on the same plane and from the same company, you also could have traveled together."
Of course, whether they could actually become companions, Huang Jing wasn’t sure, but there was no way around it, so she could only say so.
Listening to Huang Jing say this, the colleagues still felt it weird, "Would Shen Lan make such a suggestion?"
Indeed, they remembered Shen Lan as someone who’d just sit off to the side, emanating an air of self-isolation.
So for someone like that to take the initiative to propose traveling together was the real question.