Chapter 77: The “Strawberry Flavor XL” Incriminating Evidence
Ji Hanmo’s pitch-black eyes gazed quietly at Fu Yue.
This man’s level of attractiveness was cheating.
The speech Fu Yue had prepared got stuck in his throat.
Ji Hanmo didn’t press him.
He turned the tablet computer by his hand around.
The light from the screen reflected off Fu Yue’s face. It was a reservation page for a high-end restaurant.
The menu was meticulously designed, featuring nothing but Fu Yue’s recent favorites.
Ji Hanmo rested a hand on Fu Yue’s knee and gave a gentle push, his gaze shifting from the screen to Fu Yue’s face.
“…Are you free on Christmas Eve?” His voice was unexpectedly soft. “I booked a restaurant.”
Fu Yue sat on the desk, looking down at him.
Ji Hanmo’s usually cold and sharp features softened slightly. He looked up, his eyes filled with anticipation. “I don’t want to be in a cold war with you anymore.”
Fu Yue watched him, unmoving.
Ji Hanmo continued: “Regarding that matter… if you want to investigate it, I won’t object. I can even help you. However, do not hide any of your progress from me.”
Fu Yue looked at the man. The lines he had rehearsed in his mind completely dissipated.
His gaze moved from the Dietary Habits Report next to his leg, to the reservation page, and finally to the man’s face—which bore an expression that could only be described as a “clumsy” attempt at a peace offering.
After all that… Ji Hanmo hadn’t suspected that his soul had been swapped.
He had gone through all that trouble to collect “evidence” just so he could invite him to a meal he actually liked to end this cold war.
A warm current gently washed over Fu Yue’s heart.
This man, who Fu Yue had once thought was extremely dangerous and high-and-mighty, was trying to get close to him, to understand him, and was constantly extending a helping hand.
The feeling was unfamiliar, but it wasn’t bad.
Fu Yue lowered his lashes. “Fine, I promise.”
“Good,” Ji Hanmo responded.
With this agreement reached, Fu Yue would no longer be fighting a lone battle.
At this moment, his first instinct was to tell Ji Hanmo about that USB drive.
The hacker’s actions weren’t just targeting him; they targeted the racing club, which meant they were targeting the Ji Group.
But the words reached his lips and he swallowed them back down.
The matter with the USB drive was complex; it couldn’t be explained in just a few sentences.
Fu Yue didn’t want to discuss it in this newly “thawed,” tender atmosphere.
Moreover, he had a more urgent main mission to push forward.
Thinking of this, he gave Ji Hanmo a relaxed smile, swinging his feet while sitting on the desk. “We can have dinner, but you have to give my things back.”
He held out his hand to Ji Hanmo.
Setting aside the fact that they were Chen Bai’s things…
If those things stayed in Ji Hanmo’s office, Fu Yue would feel unsafe every time he visited.
As soon as he finished speaking, his waist tightened—
Ji Hanmo had already stood up, his hands firmly supporting Fu Yue’s waist.
Through the fabric of his shirt, he could feel the warmth of the man’s fingertips.
“Get down.”
His movements were light, as if he were afraid of breaking something.
Fu Yue subconsciously grabbed the man’s shoulders, the distance between them suddenly shortening.
They were so close he could see every single one of Ji Hanmo’s eyelashes.
So close that…
Ji Hanmo’s breathing visibly quickened for a second.
The moment Fu Yue’s feet touched the ground, those two hands didn’t let go immediately.
He instinctively took half a step back, his lower back hitting the edge of the desk. He bumped into the potted kumquat tree, causing it to wobble.
Tumble.
A plump little kumquat fell from the branch, bounced twice on the solid wood desk, and stopped right by Ji Hanmo’s hand.
Ji Hanmo looked down, his fingertips picking up the small fruit.
The faint scent of citrus filled the air.
“Fu Yue.”
Ji Hanmo suddenly called his name with a smile. “Are you that afraid? Afraid of what I might do to you here?”
Fu Yue felt a coolness in his palm.
The kumquat had been pressed into his hand.
“Don’t worry.” Ji Hanmo withdrew his thumb from Fu Yue’s palm. “I’m not in that much of a hurry.”
Coming out of Ji Hanmo’s office, Fu Yue was still a bit dazed.
He had originally prepared an entire script.
He had even drafted three versions of his final words: the “Silenced for Good” version, the “Vivisected for Research” version, and the “Forced Love” version.
Instead, he had drowned in a bottomless abyss of tenderness.
He was actually looking forward to that dinner.
With his mind wandering through these thoughts, Fu Yue strolled back to his own office.
He pushed the door open.
There was a new plant on his desk as well.
A pot of pink begonias, their flowers vivid and emitting a light fragrance.
Additionally, a figure was waiting there, looking restless.
It was Chen Bai.
“Fu Yue.” Chen Bai’s eyes lit up when he saw him.
Fu Yue casually closed the door behind him and placed the kumquat on the desk.
Chen Bai’s cheeks were slightly red. “Fu Yue, where did you put the things I asked you to put in your office?”
Fu Yue looked into Chen Bai’s clear eyes and began to organize his words.
Where did he put them?
Fu Yue hadn’t managed to get that “Strawberry Flavor XL” evidence back.
They had been confiscated by Ji Hanmo.
He didn’t dare say: “Sorry, your condoms were seized by the Chairman.”
If Chen Bai knew, he would probably have a psychological shadow every time he saw Ji Hanmo in the future.
Thus, Fu Yue relied on his “worker” instincts and began to talk nonsense.
He gave a tactical throat-clear. “Chen Bai, those things… I helped you dispose of them.”
Chen Bai was stunned. “Disposed of them? Why? Those are hard to find; I had to get a shopping agent for those.”
“That’s exactly the problem.” Fu Yue’s expression turned serious. “Your choice was inaccurate.”
Fu Yue gestured vaguely in the air. “Strawberry flavor is too cloying; it’s not steady enough. Furthermore, while XL displays confidence, it will create unnecessary psychological pressure on the other party, making you seem…”
Fu Yue’s tone became meaningful. “Well, too aggressive.”
The subtext: Too high-demand.
Chen Bai caught the implication and looked bashful for a moment. “There’s that much thought behind it?”
“Of course.” Fu Yue was sweating internally, but his face remained steady as an old dog. “What you and Ji Linyue need right now is to close the distance between you again, not to go ‘full throttle’ right from the start. Understand?”
Chen Bai was struck by a sudden realization. “Fu Yue, you really know your stuff!”
“It’s nothing, it’s nothing. I’ll recommend some more suitable ones to you later.”
After seeing Chen Bai off, Fu Yue sat back at his computer, feeling like his energy had been drained.
He put a few drops of eye medicine in, made himself an iced Americano, and clicked into his company email.
An email from the “Security Department” was already lying there—the equipment room surveillance footage he had requested.
He reached out and clicked the attached video file.
In the frame, under the dim lighting, his own figure appeared at the corner.
He was peeking around, looking suspicious, like a petty thief preparing for a break-in.
Fu Yue fast-forwarded, dragging the progress bar. He replayed it, checking carefully frame by frame.
Nothing.
There was nothing.
In the surveillance footage, aside from himself and the occasional passing security guard, everything else was empty.
That humming, ghost-like woman seemed as if she had never appeared.
Fu Yue’s heart sank.
Either the equipment had malfunctioned, or… it was the other party’s doing.
They were highly skilled, able to wipe their traces from the surveillance without a sound.
Either way, it meant he was facing a difficult opponent.
Tick-tock.
The clock on the desk jumped.
Fu Yue’s eyelid twitched.
He glanced at the mission countdown—there were less than 36 hours left to create a “solo” opportunity for Ji Linyue and Chen Bai.
“This is too hard!”
Fu Yue felt like he was about to crack.
On one hand was an invisible enemy; on the other was the pressing main mission KPI. A worker’s life was truly bitter no matter where they went!
He closed the video and began brainstorming.
A restaurant? Cinema? Amusement park? Hotel?
It was hard to create a logical opportunity for any of those.
As he thought, he aimlessly browsed the company’s Office Automation (OA) system.
Suddenly, he was drawn to an internal notice with a bolded title.
[Notice Regarding the Annual Health Physical for Group Management Personnel]
Fu Yue’s eyes instantly lit up.
He snapped into a sitting position and clicked that notice at lightning speed…
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