My Boss Always Flirts With Me - Chapter 47

Chapter 47

“A wedding?”

Fang Ci was combing Qiuqiu’s soft fur and hummed into the phone.

On the other end of the line, Shen Liu was crunching on something. After a while, he said, “That’s normal. People have a wedding when they get married.”

Fang Ci was silent. He said, “We can’t have a wedding.”

“Why not?”

Fang Ci analyzed, “We’re still in an agreement, and we haven’t reached that step. Plus, our families don’t know, and we can’t tell our colleagues.”

Shen Liu was puzzled. “Then why did he bring it up?”

Fang Ci said, “Maybe he feels like it’s a necessary step, just like getting the certificate and living together.”

Shen Liu: “I thought it was a moment of impulse for him.”

Fang Ci said, “No, he wouldn’t.” That word was hard to associate with Teacher He. He was a master planner who liked to handle things step by step, especially important matters.

But Shen Liu disagreed. “Do you two have to logically analyze every time you go to bed? That’s ridiculous.”

Fang Ci sat cross-legged on the sofa, combing Qiuqiu’s fur. Qiuqiu “meowed,” and the whole cat went limp, resting its head on his lap in the sun. He put his fingers into its fur and gently massaged it.

The scattered fragments of last night appeared before his eyes. He seemed to have run his fingers through Teacher He’s hair, too. Teacher He’s hair was on the coarser side and easy to style, but it was said that such people were very stubborn.

Stubbornly staying within his logical framework.

However, Teacher He’s state yesterday didn’t seem to be the result of rational thought. Fang Ci hadn’t figured it out yet. He just said, “You can’t count physiological matters in that, can you?”

Shen Liu: “?”

After a brief silence, Shen Liu said, “Anyway, I think CEO He really cares about you.”

Fang Ci laughed. “Are you so sure?” Even he wasn’t brave enough to confirm that.

Shen Liu: “Not really. I just don’t want to lose the bet. Sleeping upside down is too scary.”

Fang Ci: “…”

Shen Liu said, “Luckily, there’s no time limit.”

Fang Ci: “Okay.”

Shen Liu asked again, “If he doesn’t confess, what are you going to do?”

Fang Ci brought up his theory of developing a product. Shen Liu was confused after listening and didn’t say anything for a long time. He didn’t have much experience to refer to, so he couldn’t judge whether it was good or bad, but it also felt off no matter how he listened.

“Do you have any suggestions?” Fang Ci stopped and asked. They were both in product development, so they might be able to discuss it and upgrade the plan.

Shen Liu thought for a long time and said, “I think there’s a problem with this analogy.”

“Tell me,” Fang Ci humbly asked for advice.

Shen Liu: “I’m not sure about the others, but whether it’s developing a product or a system, there’s a deadline, right?”

“If you set the deadline to ‘a lifetime,’ isn’t that a little too broad?” Shen Liu said. “Think about it. We didn’t set an end time for our bet, so I don’t feel any pressure and don’t care about winning or losing. For you two, the so-called ‘taking it slow’ is just ‘dragging it out’ without a time limit, right?”

“Then how long are you going to drag it out? Until you can’t take it anymore, or until you can’t go on?”

Shen Liu paused for a moment and finally said, “And according to your current situation, doesn’t CEO He even fail to meet the standard of a boyfriend?”

Fang Ci subconsciously wanted to refute, but the words were stuck in his throat.

He had to admit that Shen Liu was right. It had been nearly a month since they had that frank conversation, and He Chi was still very good to him, taking orders and carrying them out diligently. But was that really what he wanted?

A month is fine, a year is no problem. But what about a lifetime?

He thought of the hands that were never held on the road, the unsaid affection, and He Chi’s business-like demeanor in all his “to-do lists.”

He suddenly felt a little panicked.

He suddenly realized that this marriage had a lot of uncertainties and many hypothetical preconditions.

If this marriage didn’t exist, what would He Chi’s life be like now? Could he devote all his time to work, without having to be distracted by an “insignificant person,” without having to do anything against his habits?

What was the meaning of this marriage? What was the meaning of his existence in it?

“…Ci Pian? Ci Pian, are you still listening?” Shen Liu’s voice came from the phone again.

Fang Ci realized he had zoned out and quickly said, “I’m listening.”

Shen Liu: “I don’t have anything else to add. I just suggest you think about it carefully.”

Fang Ci: “Mhm, thanks.”

Shen Liu: “Good luck.”

Fang Ci “mhmm” again and hung up the phone.

The sunlight was still glaring, but it didn’t feel as warm on his body. Fang Ci was staring blankly at the empty living room.

Perhaps his stiff state was a little abnormal. Qiuqiu licked his finger. Fang Ci felt the moistness on his fingertip and came back to his senses, picking it up.

Qiuqiu was timid and was afraid he would suddenly let go. It held his hand tightly with its two paws.

Fang Ci felt its tension and smiled. The man and the cat looked at each other silently. After a long time, he said softly, “You’re getting heavier again, so the earth will still turn without anyone. A product isn’t that dependent on a product manager… Even if I wasn’t here, you would still eat well, right?”

Qiuqiu tilted its head and “meowed.” Fang Ci smiled. “Just a hypothesis. You won’t starve anyway.”

Qiuqiu kicked his leg twice.

Fang Ci put it down and played with it for a while, treating it as a distraction.

Around 10 o’clock, the doorbell rang. Fang Ci opened the door and saw Yuan Cheng. He greeted him, “Manager Fang, CEO He asked me to get some documents.”

Fang Ci had already prepared them after receiving He Chi’s message. He handed them over and said, “Thank you for your hard work.”

Yuan Cheng took the documents and then saw that he was also holding two bags. He asked, “Are these for CEO He too?”

Fang Ci said, “It’s almost lunchtime. I figured you haven’t eaten, so I made an extra portion.”

Yuan Cheng’s eyes were filled with surprise, and then they turned into joy. “Thank you so much. I was just wondering what to have for lunch.”

Fang Ci smiled. “You’re welcome.”

He was indeed being polite. Before he knew anything, Yuan Cheng would never be this polite. They used to joke around in the group chat, but now Yuan Cheng didn’t. He rarely participated in their teasing topics, and his WeChat messages had become much more reserved, probably a professional habit of a CEO’s assistant.

Fang Ci watched him drive away.

Yuan Cheng was in a hurry with the food container. He was on a tight schedule. Working overtime on a Sunday was unexpected. He Chi had informed him that the shareholders and the overseas team had a project to align today. It was likely that the overseas department had some issues.

What was even more unexpected was Fang Ci. At the company, he only saw that he was a capable worker. But this trip showed him a caring and thoughtful side of him. Look, no wonder CEO He started going to work later and getting off earlier after he got married. There was a reason for it!

He glanced at the time. Great. He had more than two hours until the meeting. His stomach was saved! With the loving meal, maybe their meeting in the afternoon would go a little better.

He Chi also didn’t expect Fang Ci to have prepared lunch for him. He opened the container, and the food was all made with fresh ingredients. There was a small portion of cold food like salad, and the rest was hot food with meat and eggs. There was even a small piece of strawberry cake on the bottom layer.

There was a note in the container that said: [Teacher He, eat well.]

He Chi’s expression softened involuntarily, and he curved his lips into a smile.

He looked up and saw that Yuan Cheng was also holding a container. His smile faded instantly. He frowned slightly. “You’re holding lunch, too?”

Yuan Cheng was an expert at reading people. He was smiling at first, but when he heard this, he flinched and his mind went through eighteen turns. He said, “Yes, Manager Fang gave it to me. Manager Fang is so thoughtful. He knows I don’t like meat or sweets and only like vegetables. So, he didn’t put any chicken legs or cake in it.”

It was impossible for it to be all vegetarian, but Yuan Cheng absolutely couldn’t say that his container had braised meat. After all, he still wanted to contribute to the company for a few more years.

He Chi glanced at him calmly, nodded, and said, “Go eat.”

Yuan Cheng said, “Yes, sir.” He grabbed his container and disappeared from He Chi’s sight.

The food container was insulated, so the food was still warm. He could taste a familiar flavor. He rarely had the leisure to slow down and finish a meal. He was usually busy, and so was Fang Ci. They would just make do with lunch. Sometimes they wouldn’t even get to eat if they had a meeting. This meal today was a complete surprise.

He wondered what time he had made it and if he had gotten a little more sleep in the morning.

After finishing the main course, he opened the dessert layer. There was a slice of cake left from yesterday in the fridge. Now, Fang Ci had cut half of it. He hesitated for a moment, remembering the positive review he had given yesterday. Fang Ci might have thought he liked it, so he specially prepared it for him.

He wasn’t sure which of the thoughts that arose at this moment was the most important. He suddenly felt a little regretful. He had left too quickly this morning and hadn’t spent more time with him.

Yesterday was still too long. The little one’s eyes were teary, and his nose was red. He thought, next time, I need to have more self-control and take better care of him.

The taste of the strawberry cake hadn’t changed. After a night, the flavor was even richer. He Chi overcame his aversion to sweets and swallowed the cake bite by bite.

It was okay. It was acceptable. Perhaps as he got farther and farther away from his childhood, time gave him the ability to heal himself, and his evaluation system gradually returned to normal.

In his memory, the fragmented birthdays and the messy cakes on the floor were long gone, leaving only a vague outline.

That’s good.

After finishing the cake, he put the lid back on the container.

There was still half an hour until the meeting. Yuan Cheng sent him an email: [The outline for the afternoon meeting is ready. The performance report for the European region is being transferred.]

[Okay. Which meeting room did you book?]

Yuan Cheng replied: [The one named “First.” It was unlocked for a new employee training on Friday. The other meeting rooms are all locked.]

[Okay.]

After the conversation ended, his work for the morning was also finished. The mouse slid across the screen, leaving the email interface.

Then it paused and slid toward the search bar.

The icon flickered, and he typed in the keywords: wedding venues, ceremony, country, process…

It was the first time he had seen a lot of the content. After thinking for a moment, he still saved it in his notes. The timing was still unknown, so he couldn’t add it to his schedule for now.

Half an hour passed quickly, and the note named “Marriage” was filled with another page.