The Boss Always Thinks I'm After Him - Chapter 7

Chapter 7 — Heartbeat Progress 0.7%: How Could Someone Mess Up So Badly…

Sensing something was wrong, Xiao Yang suddenly opened his eyes, quickly pulled back his legs, and with lightning speed, stood up and helped Gu Che to his feet.

“Boss, are you alright?” Xiao Yang was both anxious and guilty, his heart pounding loudly.

Help! How could someone mess up so badly? What if the boss got seriously hurt from the fall?

Everyone around turned to look, and some media reporters even raised their cameras to take photos.

Gu Che endured the pain and controlled his expression with difficulty, refraining from snapping at Xiao Yang.

In that moment, he finally understood why Ding Zhanyang spoke about Xiao Yang the way he did. Just moments ago he was a trusted aide; now he had become a troublesome liability.

Gu Che straightened up, pulled his arm out of Xiao Yang’s grasp, gave him a cold glance, then turned and sat back down.

Xiao Yang watched the boss sit, then nervously shrank back into his seat.

It was over, over — he felt the boss’s jaw was stiff, what to do? Although Secretary Zhang said the boss was a good person, he looked really scary when angry…

Luckily, the bidding meeting started soon after, and everyone’s attention shifted to the stage.

Each unit had only 20 minutes to present; there were nine bidding units in total. Compared to the others, most products were mediocre or overpriced, making Phantom’s product stand out exceptionally.

After the committee’s discussion and a few questions to Gu Che, the result was decided.

Phantom’s product won the bid smoothly thanks to several outstanding features such as 360-degree camera, one-touch emergency call, portable battery, and recording functionality.

During the photo session on stage, Gu Che invited Xiao Yang and Meng Yue to join him and introduced them to the committee.

“This is Xiao Yang, the technician responsible for writing the program. This is Meng Yue, the product assistant who helped out.”

“Thank you,” said the president of the Blind Association, holding Xiao Yang’s hand tightly with one hand and Meng Yue’s with the other, not letting go for a long time. “It’s clear you put a lot of thought into developing a product so suitable for the blind.”

“On behalf of all those who will use this device in the future, I sincerely thank you.”

The president looked towards Xiao Yang. Though her pupils were unfocused and her eyes vacant, one could see her deep emotion. Her hands were warm, a little rough, and holding their hands felt like clutching something precious, unwilling to let go.

The scene was full of warmth and harmony, with all cameras and flashes focused on the stage, capturing the moment which was quickly turned into online news.

Xiao Yang, who only did what his boss assigned, felt overwhelmed by such heartfelt thanks and kept waving his hands, “No need, no need, it’s what we should do.”

The bidding project concluded successfully, Phantom won the bid, and at the same time, the Miss product launch was also successfully held — truly a double celebration.

Positive news about Phantom kept trending online, though mixed with a few less harmonious headlines such as:

【Phantom Core Member Betrays】
【Phantom CEO Stumbles and Falls Because of Employee】
【Phantom CEO’s Trusted Aide (Troublemaker)】
【Gu CEO’s Troublesome Aide is Actually Cute】

Today was a good day, everything went smoothly, especially seeing Jixing Technology suffer the consequences — truly worth celebrating. A group of employees were arguing in the chat group, demanding the boss to treat them.

Zhang Rui passed the message to Gu Che, who waved his hand and agreed to treat them to a luxurious buffet in the city center costing 999 per person.

Meng Yue was in the car and was thrilled to hear the news.

But behind her, Xiao Yang shrank into a ball, eyes fixed outside the window, trying to lower his presence.

The car started and quickly headed downtown, the interior quiet except for the navigation voice.

Gu Che focused on handling messages, and after ten minutes, said, “Drop me home first, then you go to the dinner with them.”

That meant Gu Che wouldn’t attend the dinner, which made Xiao Yang slightly relieved.

But in the next moment, Meng Yue turned back and asked, “Is the boss not coming? We have several new colleagues this week and planned to have a meal together to welcome them.”

“By the way, Xiao Gong (Xiao Yang) is also a new member in the technical team, but no one has officially welcomed him yet.”

Xiao Yang gripped his hands tightly, expression blank but his mind raging.

Just shut up, sister — he didn’t need a welcome. Who wants to eat with the boss at company dinners? More importantly, he just embarrassed the boss, and now he was too scared to face him.

He held his breath and silently prayed Gu Che would refuse Meng Yue’s invitation.

After a long pause, Gu Che stopped typing, glanced sideways, and suddenly changed his mind: “Alright, I’ll go with you.”

Xiao Yang’s breath caught; he froze, afraid to move, feeling like he couldn’t breathe.

The one-and-a-half-hour drive felt especially long today. Even though the boss’s car was soft and comfortable, sitting for so long still made him tired.

At seven o’clock, all members of Phantom’s technical team arrived at Wanxingyuan. The waiter handed out utensils and led them to their reserved seats.

Wanxingyuan was a famous luxury buffet in the capital, costing 999 per person, offering everything from sky to sea. The restaurant claimed to have over ten thousand dishes, hence the name Wanxingyuan (“Ten Thousand Stars Garden”).

The dining hall was divided into zones by single, double, four-person, and group tables, with plenty of waiters serving food. The decor was luxurious and grand.

It was Xiao Yang’s first time here, but he couldn’t appreciate the surroundings, instead focusing on looking for something.

Spotting a timid figure, he quickly walked over and pushed Xu Mubai to sit down.

Xu Mubai seemed to find a savior and finally spoke, “I didn’t want to come, but I didn’t dare say no to them.”

“Are you stupid? How can you not come to a 999 luxury buffet?” Xiao Yang looked around furtively.

Xu Mubai also scanned the room, curious, “What are you looking for?”

During the dining rush, people constantly moved around, blocking sightlines.

No sign of Gu Che anywhere; Xiao Yang breathed a sigh of relief, patted his chest, and drank some water. “Looking for the boss.”

“When we were at the bidding, I accidentally tripped him, almost made him fall flat on his face. His jaw got stiff; I’m scared to face him now.”

Xu Mubai chuckled and immediately covered his mouth, then took out his phone to show Xiao Yang something.

He handed over a video clip, which some netizens had found, edited, and spread widely as a funny viral video.

The footage was very clear: the elegant, handsome young CEO was smiling and chatting one second, then suddenly got tripped by an employee stretching, stumbling comically and falling onto the front row chair.

The blundering employee looked panicked, quickly helped the CEO up, but got a cold glare in return.

After watching, Xiao Yang clenched his fists and said through gritted teeth, “Is that funny, huh?”

Xu Mubai put away his phone and stopped teasing him, “You didn’t do it on purpose. Just apologize; the boss probably won’t be petty.”

Xiao Yang sighed heavily, “I didn’t get the chance.”

In theory, the boss really shouldn’t be petty — it was just Xiao Yang feeling guilty.

More people gathered around, forming a circle, eating and joking about the CEO’s embarrassing live moment, laughing and chatting.

Gu Che sat alone in an inconspicuous corner, holding a half glass of red wine, sipping slowly, barely eating, ignoring everyone. No one dared to approach him.

As time passed, people gradually forgot the boss’s presence and got rowdier.

“Here, Xiao Gong, cheers to you,” Zhong Jun brought a full glass of wine, glanced across, then softened his face. “Hey, how can a celebration be with just juice? Come on, fill up Xiao Gong’s glass!”

Xiao Yang refused but was forced to accept the glass.

“Let’s toast the hero of today’s success. Well done.”

Zhong Jun raised his glass, others followed, “Cheers to Xiao Gong!”

“Not at all, not at all,” Xiao Yang stood and clinked glasses, “You’re all my seniors; just call me Yang Zai (little Yang).”

The atmosphere became lively. Xu Mubai crouched behind him, burying his head trying to be invisible.

“Alright, Yang Zai!” Zhong Jun looked around, then to the new colleague beside him, “You’re new too, right? Come, cheers!”

“Out with the old, in with the new. Welcome everyone to our team. Let’s work together and create brilliance!”

Xiao Yang was still uneasy, but seeing Xu Mubai holding orange juice reluctantly stand up slowly made him blush and suddenly feel amused.

After a few drinks, everyone quickly bonded.

Someone brought up Xiao Yang tripping the boss earlier, and everyone laughed happily, including Xiao Yang.

“I really didn’t mean it,” Xiao Yang’s cheeks flushed, voice weak, “We’d been sitting in the car too long; my whole body was soft and limp. I just wanted to stretch, but who knew the boss happened to walk by.”

“An accident, just an accident.”

His head spun slightly as he leaned back in the chair.

Jiang Ni quietly glanced at the corner where the boss sat, then egged him on: “It’s no big deal. Go give the boss a toast, he’ll definitely forgive you.”

“Exactly, go toast the boss.”

Everyone cheered and made a path for him.

Gu Che looked up and noticed Xiao Yang’s drunken state. Something didn’t feel right.

The atmosphere was perfect now; if Xiao Yang didn’t go toast the boss, it’d be a downer.

He summoned courage, holding half a glass of wine, and walked to Gu Che.

Rarely drinking, and after a few drinks today, Xiao Yang was a little drunk. He staggered as he approached the boss, holding up his glass with both hands, bowing respectfully.

“Boss, I toast you.”

“I really didn’t mean to make you fall and lose face today. Please, be magnanimous and don’t be mad at me.”