Chapter 32: Do You Like Zhang Xin?
After venting his anger, Chen Jiamu closed the door and continued to look at his phone. He had completely lost his appetite.
Knock knock knock…
The door was knocked on again. Chen Jiamu’s brows immediately furrowed. Wasn’t Zhang Xin gone yet?
Anger surged again. Chen Jiamu opened the door, ready to yell, but when he looked up, it wasn’t Zhang Xin standing there. A string of curses was immediately swallowed back…
“I say…”
“What are you doing here?”
Shouldn’t he be at the company at this time? Why is he in the apartment complex?
“What do you think?”
Li Qi held up the kitten in his arms, raising an eyebrow, looking at Chen Jiamu with a “what do you think?” expression.
“You went to pick it up.”
Seeing the cat, Chen Jiamu felt a little guilty, reaching out to pet its head, then taking it from Li Qi’s arms. “I almost forgot about it.”
“My bad… my bad…”
Li Qi brushed off some cat hair from his clothes, naturally pinching the kitten’s paw. He looked up at Chen Jiamu, his tone serious and cheerful. “Since I picked up the cat for you…”
“Would you grace me with your presence for lunch?”
“Mr. Chen?”
This was the first time Chen Jiamu had seen Li Qi so elegantly gentlemanly. His cheeks flushed, and his palms, holding the cat, became sweaty.
“Stop with your foreign ways, it’s weird.”
“Lunch… fine, I’ll reluctantly agree.”
Chen Jiamu’s agreement was reluctant, his expression arrogant. But his flushed ears betrayed him.
This elegant Li Qi was truly handsome. He was completely captivated.
He attributed all this to the unfamiliarity of Li Qi’s change. After all, four years ago, he was the one running away, and now that the positions were reversed, he was somewhat uncomfortable.
What was his relationship with Li Qi?
Friends?
Or brothers?
After pondering for a long time, Chen Jiamu decided that they could only be considered friends. Brothers was unlikely; brothers would stand by each other through thick and thin.
Li Qi, on the other hand, tended to stab him in the back…
“Alright, I’ll go change clothes, wait a minute.”
Shaking his head, Chen Jiamu gave up trying to figure it out. He turned back into the room. Li Qi didn’t rush, quietly waiting outside.
“What? You don’t like the color of my sofa?”
“You really like standing here?”
Chen Jiamu put the kitten on the floor and turned to see Li Qi standing at the door like a statue. It was as if he wasn’t allowed to enter the room and sit down. Li Qi was amused by his words, and a smirk appeared on his lips.
Li Qi smiled, and Chen Jiamu became incredibly arrogant, turning his back with a pout and walking towards the bedroom.
Chen Jiamu’s room was simply decorated: a light blue sofa, a white coffee table, and a white rug. There were no fancy decorations in the room. The only plants were a withered… pothos… on the balcony.
Staring at the pothos, Li Qi twitched his lips. He could even kill a pothos. Could he even keep the kitten alive?
“Meow…”
The kitten huddled under the sofa. Seemingly smelling Li Qi’s scent, it timidly poked its little head out from under the sofa and gently rubbed against his trousers.
“Little thing, you’re on your own.”
Li Qi bent down and stroked its head, looking helpless. When he was abroad, Song Jin wanted him to keep a cat for company, but knowing his circumstances, he refused.
“Okay!”
“Let’s go.”
Chen Jiamu changed his clothes and opened the door to see Li Qi squatting down, gently stroking the cat. Chen Jiamu had never seen him like this before, and he felt a strange feeling in his heart.
“Let’s go.”
“I’ve reserved a restaurant. We can go straight there.”
Standing up, Li Qi glanced and saw wipes on the coffee table and grabbed one to wipe his hands. Glancing sideways, he saw Chen Jiamu: a white T-shirt and blue denim wide-leg pants. The fresh and clean outfit made Li Qi feel like he was back to when he first saw him at eighteen years old, except this time, he had furrowed brows and a worried expression.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing, let’s go.” Hearing the sound, Chen Jiamu snapped out of it. He slung his bag over his shoulder and walked towards the door.
Seeing this, Li Qi didn’t say anything, threw away the wipe, and followed.
Along the way, the two didn’t speak much. Only after getting in the car did Chen Jiamu speak: “Was studying abroad very hard?”
Chen Jiamu was bored, playing with the napkins in the car, suddenly remembering Bai Jing saying that he had a lot on his plate abroad.
Could Li Qi be the same?
“Hard work, no, but the food was terrible…”
Li Qi was driving seriously. Chen Jiamu’s initiative made him happy inside, but his expression remained calm.
“Terrible?”
“Yes, terribly awful.”
Li Qi said it through gritted teeth. Even Chen Jiamu found it outrageous. How terrible could the food be to elicit such a response?
Suddenly, he recalled Bai Jing eating like a starving ghost yesterday. He ate plate after plate…
And Bai Jing was incredibly thin. He walked like a stick. If it weren’t for his face, he’d look like a punk.
Thinking of this, Chen Jiamu couldn’t help but click his tongue, his eyes unconsciously glancing at Li Qi. From his side profile to his legs, he took it all in.
Luckily, Li Qi wasn’t that thin. Instead, he was… quite sturdy…
Not the muscle-bound type. He just exuded energy.
“We’re here.”
They arrived at the restaurant quickly. After getting out of the car, they went straight to the private room. The waiter led them in and left.
Through the screen, Chen Jiamu could see the waiter’s amused expression.
“What are you looking at?”
Li Qi finished settling everything and sat down to see Chen Jiamu looking at the door.
“Nothing.”
“Probably trying to peek at a handsome guy.”
Li Qi shook his head helplessly, expressing his lack of understanding. He dropped the topic and started checking the messages his assistant had sent him.
Chen Jiamu’s background was clearly laid out, from university to joining the company with Zhang Xin. It was all meticulously noted.
He only heard the end of the lunchtime drama, not completely understanding the situation between them.
Seeing the close relationship between them and the rumors of them being a couple at the company, Li Qi was silent, his cheeks puffed out.
“Why such a serious expression?”
“What, is your company going bankrupt?”
Seeing his serious expression, Chen Jiamu casually made a joke. He thought Li Qi would be angry, but he answered something completely different.
He asked a random question in return. “Do you like Zhang Xin?”
“Huh?”
Chen Jiamu was stunned by the question. What did that have to do with Zhang Xin?
“What do you mean?”
Seeing his puzzled expression, Li Qi nonchalantly poured himself a glass of water, took a sip, and slowly said, “Nothing. I just overheard something I shouldn’t have.”
“For example… you arguing with Zhang Xin from the company.”