After Becoming a Full-Time Employee, I Signed a Romance Contract with My Ice-Cold Boss - Chapter 11

Are you Sister Xu Que’s girlfriend?

Inside the office.

When Xu Que entered, the fruit tea in Jiang Fengyi’s glass was half-finished, and only a small portion of the fruit had been eaten.

Seeing the newcomer, Jiang Fengyi was in the middle of stuffing a piece of fruit into her mouth.

“Don’t prepare so much next time, I can’t finish it.”

As she spoke, she naturally pushed the remaining fruit platter toward Xu Que. The two had already grown accustomed to this mode of interaction at home—sharing leftover food with one another.

Xu Que took the fork from Jiang Fengyi’s hand and began to eat, one bite at a time.

Leaning against the office desk, she spoke while eating: “I just heard some gossip about you.”

“Heard? From whom?” Jiang Fengyi was curious, and she guessed correctly in an instant. “You heard it from Xiao He, didn’t you? Lately, the two of you have been huddling together to gossip whenever you have a free moment.”

“Weren’t you just suspecting that Xiao He was a fanatic fan of mine?”

Xu Que brushed it off vaguely: “Oh, that was just a misunderstanding. First, tell me if this gossip is true or false?”

She continued to press for an answer, as if it were very important to her.

“I heard the second young miss of the Zhao family also fell in love with you at first sight.”

After Xu Que finished asking, the movement of her hand forking the fruit slowed down. She focused all her attention on the expression of the person in front of her.

“Also?”

Jiang Fengyi pinpointed the loophole in her words with precision, slightly arching an eyebrow. “Then tell me, who else besides her fell in love with me at first sight?”

Xu Que avoided her eyes. “I said it’s just gossip. Whether it’s true or false hasn’t been determined yet. I don’t remember.”

Jiang Fengyi simply assumed she had chatted too much with He Shuyi and couldn’t remember the names.

Yet, at that moment, the words Xu Que had used to deal with He Shuyi were circling in her own mind.

[The first day I met President Jiang, I also fell in love with her at first sight.]

Was that really just a lie used to deceive others?

Listening to her own heartbeat, Xu Que suddenly felt a bit uncertain.

In terms of emotions, Xu Que was somewhat slow, but the palpitations she felt when facing Jiang Fengyi were something she had never experienced before.

Furthermore, did she really enter Jiang Fengyi’s office just to inform her of the gossip? Or was it just an excuse to see her?

Xu Que couldn’t distinguish it herself.

Seeing her frozen and motionless for a long time, Jiang Fengyi asked, “Why do you look so preoccupied? Is work unhappy?”

“No, I’m just too stuffed. I’ll rest a bit before eating more.”

“If you can’t finish it, don’t eat it.”

“No, I can’t let it go to waste.”

“Fine, suit yourself.”

Jiang Fengyi stood up. “You stay here. I’m going to the marketing department for an inspection.”

Holding the fruit box, Xu Que also turned to follow. “I’m going out too. How can an employee rest alone in the boss’s office?”

The corners of Jiang Fengyi’s mouth curled up as she teased, “Are you a ‘normal’ employee?”

“It seems the status of ‘assistant’ suits you better than the status of ‘partner’.”

The person preparing to leave muttered softly, “No, I adapt well to both identities.”

The head behind the computer screen was acting stealthily. In the intervals of work, her eyes would glance toward that tightly closed office door from time to time.

Finally, the shut door opened once more.

Xu Que had gone in alone, but she came out with President Jiang. At the same time, she was holding an extra box of something that was clearly a gift from President Jiang.

The two stood at the office door, talking for a long time with an air of reluctance before finally parting ways.

He Shuyi covered her mouth. To have this much ‘sugar’ for afternoon tea—wasn’t it a bit too extravagant?

Having ‘shipped’ the couple successfully, she watched Xu Que return to her workstation with a face full of smiles.

Being stared at, Xu Que rubbed her arms. “Your smile is so creepy.”

“Keep it up, I have high hopes for you and President Jiang.”

Leaving behind such a cryptic sentence, she stopped smiling at Xu Que and began to focus on her work.

Soon, the weekend arrived.

Xu Que planned to go back during these two days of rest to visit the director and the children.

“Do you have plans for the weekend? I want to go back to the orphanage.”

Jiang Fengyi pushed her unimportant dinner appointments to a later date. “I happen to have nothing going on. I’ll go back with you.”

Saturday morning.

Before departure, Xu Que moved the cardboard boxes she had packed last night into the car. The space in the back of her commuter car was almost entirely crammed with boxes.

Xu Que drove the car near Jiang Fengyi’s house, then got out carrying a freshly cooked breakfast.

Jiang Fengyi had just woken up to wash her face when she heard her doorbell ring. Xu Que had reminded her last night that they would leave early today, but this was too early.

With a toothbrush still in her mouth, Jiang Fengyi hurried to open the door.

“Didn’t you record your fingerprint? Next time, just come right in.”

Xu Que walked to the dining room with practiced ease and set down the breakfast in her hand.

“If you came out after washing up and suddenly saw an extra person in your house, wouldn’t you be startled?”

Xu Que opened the lid, and the oatmeal porridge—not long out of the pot—was still emitting wisps of steam. She had added milk while cooking, and upon opening it, a rich milky aroma wafted through the air.

“Wait until you finish washing up to eat.”

Jiang Fengyi sat at the dining table. Before her sat a bowl of porridge Xu Que had scooped out. The temperature was just right upon entry—soft, waxy, and sweet, with a slight graininess from the oats.

After finishing breakfast, she followed Xu Que downstairs.

The car was parked not far away. Xu Que walked around to pull open the passenger door.

“There are a lot of things in the car, don’t mind it.”

Jiang Fengyi looked toward the back.

“You call this ‘a lot’?”

The back seats meant for passengers were steadily piled with cardboard boxes, and quite a few things were stacked under the seats as well. In short, every available space had been utilized.

“Can’t they go in the trunk?”

“The trunk is full too.”

Jiang Fengyi, wondering what her imagination had conjured, asked, “Xu Que, tell me honestly, are you secretly working part-time for a freight delivery service on weekends?”

Xu Que seemed suddenly enlightened and discussed it with her seriously: “Would driving for a ride-share service earn more than freight delivery?”

A line of black appeared on Jiang Fengyi’s forehead. “I don’t know. That falls into my blind spot of knowledge.”

Saturday was a sunny day.

The further the car drove toward the suburbs, the more open the view on both sides of the road became. There were no buildings nearby to block the view, and the rising morning sun poured through the car window, casting patches of golden light across the two of them.

Xu Que happened to glance sideways and felt as if Jiang Fengyi’s face was shrouded in a layer of holy radiance.

Her heart suddenly skipped a beat.

Jiang Fengyi had woken up too early. After getting into the car, she started to feel drowsy. With the sun shining warmly on her body, she unconsciously drifted off to sleep.

By the time Jiang Fengyi woke up fully and opened her eyes, she didn’t know how long the car had been parked. The piercing sunlight was blocked by the shade of the trees overhead, and the faint sound of cicadas could be heard from the branches.

Xu Que was nowhere to be seen in the driver’s seat. Jiang Fengyi looked around and noticed that there were fewer cardboard boxes in the car.

She smoothed out her sleep-messed hair and opened the car door.

After walking only a few steps, she saw several five- or six-year-old children running toward her.

“Sister, you’re awake!”

Xiao Hua held Yuanyuan’s hand, looking at Jiang Fengyi with curiosity. This was the pretty sister brought back by Sister Xu Que.

The orphanage rarely saw strangers. Several children surrounded her, talking non-stop one after another.

“Sister Xu Que told us to watch over you. She said to go call her once you woke up.”

“Sister, you’re so pretty!”

“Sister, your hair is so long!”

Xiao Hua explained obediently, “Shan Shan runs fast; she already went to notify Sister Xu Que.”

Jiang Fengyi smiled and rubbed the girl’s head. “You’re so well-behaved. What’s your name?”

“My name is Xiao Hua.” She pulled over another little girl whose cheeks were red and who was half a head shorter than her. “She is Yuanyuan.”

Beside them, a little girl with twin braids and a cleft lip followed up: “Sister, I’m Xiao Yu!” Her voice was a bit muffled, but Jiang Fengyi listened patiently.

Yuanyuan looked up at Jiang Fengyi and slowly fished out a candy Xu Que had just given her from her pocket.

“Sister, eat candy.”

Held by Xiao Hua, she was quiet and seemed a step slower than the other children. She pushed her hand holding the candy toward Jiang Fengyi and tilted her head to look at her.

With childish innocence, she asked, “Sister, are you the girlfriend Sister Xu Que brought back?”

Jiang Fengyi was amused. “Do you even know what a girlfriend is?”

“I learned it from watching TV dramas with Auntie Fu Fu. A pretty sister brought home is usually the girlfriend.”

Xiao Hua was also curious: “Are you and Sister Xu Que back to meet the parents?”

“Yes, that’s how it’s played on TV.” Xiao Yu straightened her clothes and said proudly, “Then we are Sister Xu Que’s parents.”

Yuanyuan was very logical: “You said it backwards. We are younger, so Sister Xu Que should be our parent.”

The little ‘radish heads’ began to argue over the question of who was whose parent.

Jiang Fengyi pinched Yuanyuan’s chubby face, peeled the candy from Yuanyuan’s hand, and stuffed it into Yuanyuan’s mouth. “I’m not Xu Que’s girlfriend, just an ordinary friend.”

Yuanyuan puffed out her cheeks and frowned, her fingers twisting the candy wrapper. She felt worried in her heart—how could it be different from what Sister Xu Que said?

“Sister, I have candy too!”

Shan Shan had already run back. Thinking Jiang Fengyi wanted to eat candy, she generously shared her own candy with the pretty sister.

Xu Que pulled Jiang Fengyi out from the group of children and spoke to the little ‘radish heads’ who only reached her waist.

“Keep your candy for yourselves. Sister only eats the candy I give her.”

“Why?” Shan Shan asked her. “Is the candy you give sweeter?”

“Of course. I kept the sweetest candy for Sister.”

Xiao Hua curled her lip. “Sister Xu Que, you should save those words to fool three- or four-year-olds.”

Originally, there were already several children surrounding Jiang Fengyi, and now that Xu Que had arrived, a whole string of children followed behind her.

When children gather together, they start chirping incessantly.

The two seemed to have become teachers in a kindergarten, leading a whole class of children. Xu Que’s head felt like it had expanded a size from the noise. She grabbed Jiang Fengyi and ran.

Seeing this, the children thought Sister Xu Que wanted to play a game of tag with them. They giggled and chased after them, their short legs showing no small potential as they followed closely behind.

Xiao Hua and Yuanyuan followed a step behind at the very end.

The group began to play wildly in the courtyard.

Jiang Fengyi ran forward. A surge of heat came from the wrist that was being pulled, scorching her skin slightly.

After tiring out the children, Xu Que finally had time to unload all the cardboard boxes from the car.

Jiang Fengyi wanted to lend a hand, but she was pulled to the side to sit down.

“You rest for a bit and catch your breath.”

Jiang Fengyi sat in an office year-round and exercised little. After running a few laps, even the color of her lips had paled slightly.

“For you.”

Xu Que handed something to her with a closed fist.

“What is it?”

With a flip of her palm, a pink candy sat in her hand.

“I said it just now—I’ll be the one to give you candy.”

Having just finished exercising, Xu Que had taken off her T-shirt due to the heat, revealing a workwear tank top underneath. Whenever she moved a cardboard box, the muscle lines of her arms became visible.

A sense of beauty belonging to strength was manifested in her. After setting down the boxes, those fluid lines vanished back beneath her skin.

Sweetness spread in her mouth. Jiang Fengyi sat under the shade of the tree, feeling the breeze and watching Xu Que move the boxes trip after trip.

“What’s inside?”

“Gifts for the children,” Xu Que replied with a smile. “Bought with the money you transferred to me last time.”

Jiang Fengyi was stunned. The few cold digits in her phone had actually been exchanged for so many gifts that the children looked forward to.

It turned out that Xu Que worked hard to earn money in order to support the children here.

Xu Que placed the final gift box—exquisitely wrapped and different from the other plain packaging—into Jiang Fengyi’s hands.

“This is a gift for you.”

Under the bright sun,

Xu Que’s temples were slightly damp. The oncoming breeze carried her unique botanical scent to Jiang Fengyi, instantly narrowing the distance between them.

One was sitting and looking up, the other was standing and leaning down.

The gift box in their hands became the bond connecting the two.