After Being Forced to Kiss My Superior (GL) - Chapter 9
It was the start of another day.
Harvest season had arrived, and in addition to the regular staff, Bixia Winery had brought in extra workers to help with the busy schedule.
Autumn Li arrived early. After finishing the morning work review with Sister An, she had a bit of downtime. With nothing urgent to do, she walked over to the large floor-to-ceiling window and looked outside.
Bixia’s vineyard covered nearly a third of the entire estate. The scale of the work was immediately clear. From her view, the vineyard was full of people working hard—men and women of all ages.
Leaning on the window, Autumn watched quietly. She saw young people who looked like recent college graduates, strong middle-aged workers, and even some elderly folks.
After a few minutes, she turned toward Sister An.
“Sister An, does the harvest season last long?”
“It does,” Sister An replied with a nod. “And because we insist on doing everything by hand to protect the quality, it takes even more time and effort.”
“Once things get busy, some teams have to work in shifts all day and night.”
“I see…” Autumn nodded slowly. After thinking for a moment, she asked, “What about the older workers? Isn’t it too hard on them?”
“Oh, you’re worried about that?” Sister An smiled warmly and looked up at her. “It’s not a problem. Many of the older workers come every year. They’re familiar with the routine and know how to pace themselves. They won’t push beyond what they can handle.”
“Every year?” Autumn was a little surprised.
“Yes. A lot of them live nearby,” Sister An explained. “This area’s a bit remote—nothing like the city. And for seniors, especially those without family support, it’s really hard to find work. Some are even struggling just to get by.”
“That’s why Bixia doesn’t set an age limit when hiring. As long as someone wants to work, we welcome them.”
She smiled again. “That’s a policy Director Ji put in place after she took over.”
Ji Jinyan.
Somehow, hearing that name didn’t surprise Autumn. It made sense. After all, based on how Ji Jinyan had gone to visit Elder Liu with her, and how she quietly took care of her that night—this was exactly the kind of thing she would do.
Just thinking about that night made Autumn cough lightly in embarrassment.
She still couldn’t believe Ji Jinyan had carried her home.
Taking care of someone drunk was no easy task. Autumn knew that from experience. Yan Weiwei got drunk at almost every party. She was small and skinny, but once she passed out, she was like a bag of bricks.
Every time Autumn had to drag her home, she was left completely exhausted.
She wondered what exactly had happened that night.
Ji Jinyan had never brought it up, and Autumn didn’t dare ask—but the questions never quite left her mind.
While she was still lost in thought, Sister An’s voice called from behind.
“Ah Qiu, things are pretty quiet right now. Why don’t you head down and take a look around?”
“It’s almost lunchtime anyway,” she added, assuming Autumn was interested in the harvest work. “It’ll help you relax and get a better feel for Bixia.”
It was actually a great idea.
“Sure,” Autumn nodded. She chatted with Sister An for a moment, then grabbed her phone and jogged into the elevator.
Soon, she arrived at the vineyard.
She’d been at Bixia for over a week now, and though she had passed by the vineyard several times, she had never really walked through it.
From above, it had looked large.
Up close, it was more than that.
It was breathtaking.
Thanks to the previous email exchanges, the colleague in charge of the grape harvest recognized her right away.
“Xiao Li?”
“Yes,” Autumn Li nodded and quickly walked over. “Sister Wang.”
“What brings you here?” Sister Wang greeted her warmly. Then, noticing how Autumn kept glancing out toward the vineyard, she quickly caught on. “Thinking about giving it a try?”
For some reason, Autumn felt both excited and a little nervous.
“Is that… okay?”
“Of course it is,” Sister Wang said with a smile, then turned and led her forward. She stopped at a nearby section of vines and pointed. “This is Chardonnay—usually used to make white wine.”
As she spoke, she plucked a grape from the vine, wiped it clean, and handed it to Autumn.
“Try it.”
“Thank you.” Autumn nodded and carefully took the grape. She bit into it gently—the juice was plentiful, and the flavor fresh and light.
“Good, right?” Sister Wang asked.
Autumn smiled. “Really good.”
“It tastes even better once it’s turned into wine,” Sister Wang laughed, then suddenly pulled out a sunhat from who-knows-where and plopped it on Autumn’s head.
“There are plenty of other varieties over there. Go on—taste whatever you want,” she said cheerfully. “We’ve got more grapes than we know what to do with. Eat until you’re full~”
The confidence in her tone was almost comically bold, and as soon as she finished speaking, a few other nearby workers chimed in with laughter and agreement.
“Exactly! Go for it!”
This was Bixia’s work atmosphere—warm, relaxed, and full of life.
Autumn smiled softly, responding with a quiet “Okay,” then bent down and rolled up her pant legs. Step by step, she made her way deeper into the vineyard.
For no particular reason, she was in a really good mood.
The air carried the gentle scent of grapes, and the soil beneath her feet felt solid and grounding. Every step was simple, but somehow satisfying.
She wandered through the vines, pausing whenever something caught her eye. She watched how others picked the grapes and tried to imitate their technique—snipping off clusters and placing them carefully into the small basket Sister Wang had given her.
Time passed quickly, and she didn’t even notice how long she’d been there—until the sound of her phone ringing broke the quiet.
Autumn quickly wiped her hands on her pants and answered the call.
“What’s up, Sister An?”
“Ah Qiu, are you still out in the vineyard?” Sister An asked. “Director Ji should be in the fermentation room, but her phone seems to be off and I can’t reach her. There’s a document she needs to review.”
“I’m still here,” Autumn replied, nodding as she spoke. “I’ll take it to her.”
“Thank you,” Sister An said gratefully. “I’ll send it over now.”
As soon as the call ended, the file was sent to her phone.
Autumn picked up her pace, afraid of delaying something important. She practically rushed all the way back and hurried into the fermentation room.
But when she asked around, she learned that Ji Jinyan had just left.
“Director Ji stayed here all night,” one of the staff said. “She probably just went back to the dorm to rest. You should still be able to catch her—she left only a few minutes ago.”
The staff member gave her the room number before leaving.
—1303.
For some reason, hearing those numbers made Autumn Li feel a little nervous.
She took the elevator down, found Room 1303, and raised her hand to knock on the door.
Normally, Ji Jinyan didn’t stay overnight at the winery. This room was just for the occasional rest, and to make sure it stayed quiet, the entire floor had been cleared out.
The silence in the hallway was strangely unsettling.
“Director Ji?” Autumn knocked twice. No response. She tried again.
“Is anyone there? Direc—”
Before she could finish, the door opened.
Ji Jinyan stood in front of her, her calm and beautiful face appearing suddenly behind the door—along with a soft, clean scent that drifted into the hallway.
She had clearly just showered. Her long hair hung loosely over her shoulders, still damp. She wore only a button-up shirt and lounge pants. Tiny droplets of water shimmered on her skin under the gentle sunlight.
As Autumn looked up, her eyes unintentionally landed on a small mole at Ji Jinyan’s neck.
“Autumn Li,” Ji Jinyan said softly, looking down at her. “Why are you—”
She paused mid-sentence, then smiled slightly. “Assistant An sent you?”
“…Yeah.” Autumn nodded, lifting her phone to show the document. The faint scent of Ji Jinyan’s body wash lingered in the air, and for some reason, it made Autumn’s face feel hot.
“She asked me to bring this to you.”
“Come in,” Ji Jinyan said casually, not in a rush to check the document. She gestured toward the bathroom. “Go wash your face first.”
“Did you sneak off during lunch to go play in the dirt?”
“…Huh?” Autumn blinked, confused.
Ji Jinyan didn’t answer. Instead, she tilted her chin toward the mirror by the wall.
Autumn glanced over—and immediately saw the smudge of dirt on her cheek. She must have accidentally brushed it on while working in the vineyard earlier.
She felt her face heat up in embarrassment. Quickly covering the spot with her hand, she lowered her head and hurried into the bathroom.
By the time she came out, Ji Jinyan was already reviewing the document.
A hotel had reached out, wanting to collaborate with Bixia. Ji Jinyan had declined after giving it some thought, but the other side had kept sending follow-ups. Their tone had become more persuasive, even flattering—talking up the hotel’s brand image and offering increasingly generous terms.
Since the deal wasn’t finalized, Ji Jinyan preferred to keep it quiet for now. Autumn was the perfect person to handle the delivery discreetly.
After reading the entire document, Ji Jinyan handed the phone back, then stood and called Sister An to follow up.
Autumn stayed seated on the sofa. Her face was freshly washed, makeup-free, her skin smooth and fair. Without the usual polish, she looked younger than usual—less composed, a little softer, and even… cute.
Ji Jinyan glanced over, lips curving slightly.
“I brought back a bottle of our new wine,” she said playfully. “Want to try it?”
Autumn looked over almost immediately. She had been about to say yes, but then thought of that night—and her smile faded. She shook her head.
“…Better not.”
“Alright then.” Ji Jinyan nodded and returned to her bed, sitting down with a relaxed posture. She looked at Autumn and smiled.
“I’m going to take a nap now.”
“Okay.” Autumn understood. She stood up, picked up her phone, and walked toward the door. But as her hand reached the knob, she paused.
Something crossed her mind. She took a quiet breath, then turned back around.
“About that night… thank you,” she said softly.
“I said I’d treat you to dinner,” she added, a little awkward. She’d never liked owing people favors. “When would you be free? Would Friday night work?”
“Saturday,” Ji Jinyan said, cutting her off gently.
She looked directly at Autumn and said in a calm, smiling voice,
“There won’t be much work that day. I’ll be free the whole day.”
Autumn froze for a second, then slowly nodded. Her voice came out a little stiffer than she expected.
“Okay. Saturday, then.”
She turned to leave again.
But just before she could open the door, Ji Jinyan called out once more.
“Autumn Li,” she said with a small smile, her voice light and teasing.
“Aren’t you going to say good afternoon?”