After Becoming a Full-Time Employee, I Signed a Romance Contract with My Ice-Cold Boss - Chapter 34

Because I Like You

Xu Que stared at them with a look of displeasure. The two young women were dressed in professional suits, and the slight bulge beneath their clothes revealed muscle lines formed from long-term training.

She asked again, “Who are you?”

“President Jiang sent us to protect your personal safety.”

Hearing Jiang Fengyi’s name, Xu Que’s expression softened considerably. “I’m not going to wander off; I’m going to see Jiang Fengyi.”

The two exchanged a glance but remained blocked at the doorway, refusing to budge.

“We are sorry, Miss Xu. Please do not make things difficult for us.”

Standing at the door, Xu Que calculated the odds of forcing her way through. Even if the chances were slim, she had to try.

One of the guards said stiffly, “President Jiang asked you to wait for her at home.”

“But Jiang Fengyi has been in a car accident!” she cried out, her heart burning with anxiety. “I won’t be able to settle down until I see her with my own eyes.”

No matter how much Xu Que talked until her throat was dry, the two “great Buddhas” before the door remained unmoved, dutifully guarding her.

“Jiang Fengyi sent you to protect my safety, not to watch over a prisoner!”

One of the bodyguards scratched her head. “How can you say it’s like watching a prisoner? We are simply executing President Jiang’s wishes.”

“Did she explicitly state that I cannot go out?”

The bodyguard merely repeated the same sentence: “President Jiang asked you to wait for her at home.”

In a corner of the kitchen, Xu Que’s discarded phone was vibrating incessantly. The screen lit up, and Jiang Fengyi’s name appeared prominently in the center of the display.

The ringtone lasted for a long time, but with no one to answer, the screen slowly went dark.

The phone’s owner was busy at the door, arguing with the bodyguards in a desperate attempt to rush to the hospital to see Jiang Fengyi.

Seeing that reasoning was useless, Xu Que simply gave up, gathering her strength to push her way out.

Ding—

The elevator arrived on the floor. Xu Que’s attention was drawn away, and she instinctively looked over.

“You even called for reinforcements?”

The bodyguard in front of her flatly denied it.

The elevator doors slowly slid open. The incandescent light inside the elevator was different from the warm yellow light of the hallway; the overhead light spilled down coldly, illuminating the figure standing in the center.

Jiang Fengyi stepped out of the elevator and saw the three people at the door at a glance. Her gaze naturally settled on Xu Que.

She asked with a smile, “What’s going on here?”

Xu Que, who had been ready to burst out, froze instantly, her eyes widening. “You’re okay!”

Ignoring the bodyguards’ obstruction, she rushed straight toward Jiang Fengyi. “That’s great! You’re okay!” Her voice was so loud it made Jiang Fengyi’s eardrums ring.

One of the bodyguards muttered softly, “We told you the President asked you to wait for her at home.”

The other bodyguard tugged at her sleeve and whispered, “Let’s go. There’s nothing left for us to do here. Let’s go downstairs and meet up with the captain.”

The two left without making a sound.

Xu Que tightly gripped Jiang Fengyi’s hands, afraid that this was a beautiful illusion created by her own unstable emotions. She didn’t even dare to blink, staring fixedly at the other woman, fearing that she might disappear in the next instant.

Once she had seen enough to confirm that Jiang Fengyi wouldn’t suddenly vanish, she finally lost control of her emotions. She pulled the woman into her arms, holding her with such force it felt as if she wanted to embed her into her own body.

Xu Que’s arms were wrapped so tightly around her that she could barely breathe. Jiang Fengyi gently patted the head buried in the side of her neck. “I… I can’t breathe.”

Upon hearing this, the person in her arms immediately looked up. The corners of her eyes were red, and she looked at Jiang Fengyi through tearful eyes, as if blaming her for the interruption.

Jiang Fengyi’s fingertip gently brushed the corner of Xu Que’s eye. “Did you see the news notification?”

“Mhm…” Xu Que rested her head back against the other’s neck like an addict. “I thought… I thought you really were in a car accident.”

Holding the “lost and found” Jiang Fengyi, she wasn’t willing to let go for even a second.

Jiang Fengyi coaxed her warmly, “Let’s go inside first, okay? I’ll explain it to you inside.”

The door closed.

The living room was brightly lit, making Xu Que’s red eyes even more obvious. Jiang Fengyi looked at them, unable to turn her gaze away for a moment.

It was Xu Que who spoke first in a raspy voice, “Why… why did the news say you were in a car accident?”

Jiang Fengyi suddenly leaned in close, ignoring Xu Que’s moving lips, and said to herself, “Should we use some ice to soothe your eyes?”

The sudden proximity almost made Xu Que’s brain stop functioning. She turned her head away, silently chanting in her heart, ‘Don’t be seduced by her beauty!’

“No need, it’ll be fine in a while.” Xu Que blushed and pushed her back slightly. “Answer me first.”

Jiang Fengyi explained, “Wen Qing found out that the person following and secretly photographing me this morning was commissioned by the Zhao family. I thought I might as well beat them at their own game. I contacted the media to fabricate the fake news of my hospitalization from a car accident. Now I am in the dark while they are in the light; I want to see what their intentions are toward Jingjiang.”

Xu Que’s gaze was full of accusation. “Then why didn’t you give me a heads-up beforehand?”

“It happened so suddenly, there wasn’t time.”

“Then… in the future…” You can’t be like this again, telling me nothing.

“What’s that smell?”

Jiang Fengyi suddenly stood up, her nose sniffing the air carefully.

“Oh no!”

“I still have soup simmering on the stove!”

Ignoring everything else, Xu Que rushed into the kitchen. Lifting the lid of the clay pot, she saw that the full pot of soup had almost boiled dry.

Helpless, she had no choice but to pour half a kettle of boiling water back in.

Jiang Fengyi was very good at smoothing things over. “Stewing it longer is fine; I happen to like chicken soup that is stewed until it’s soft and tender.”

Xu Que turned around and looked at Jiang Fengyi guiltily. “When I saw the fake news on my phone, my mind was full of thoughts about your accident. I completely forgot to turn off the heat.”

Jiang Fengyi bent down to pick up Xu Que’s phone, which had fallen to the floor.

Xu Que grabbed her. “Be careful of the shards on the floor, don’t prick your hand.”

Jiang Fengyi handed the phone back to Xu Que; the screen still displayed her missed calls.

“So the phone was left in the kitchen. I was wondering why you weren’t answering.”

“I’m sorry, I was too anxious.” Xu Que stared at Jiang Fengyi’s name on the screen. “So stupid, I didn’t even stop to think.”

“I know. You were just blinded by concern.”

Jiang Fengyi brought a broom and swept up the mess on the floor. Xu Que followed her every step of the way, not leaving her side for an instant.

When the other woman was about to dump the broken soup spoon into the trash, Xu Que reached out and snatched it. “I’ll do this; be careful not to cut your hand.”

Jiang Fengyi looked at her with a smile. “You be careful too.”

She continued, “Sometimes, you need to trust me a little more. Don’t carry everything on your shoulders alone. We are allied partners who signed an agreement; I can share the burden for you.”

She gazed deeply into Xu Que’s eyes, her look so profound it was as if she could see through the other’s thoughts and discern if she held a place in her heart.

“I promised you, so I definitely won’t break my word. But you don’t seem to trust me. Give me more trust, okay?”

The soup in the pot continued to simmer over a low fire, bubbling constantly and sending up clouds of fragrant white steam that slowly drifted around the two of them.

Xu Que likewise looked into Jiang Fengyi’s eyes. Unlike the pure gaze of the other, Xu Que’s pupils held a mixture of hesitation, struggle, and things left unsaid.

She wanted to pour out all the words in her heart at once, yet she worried that if Jiang Fengyi knew her feelings, she would recoil and avoid her.

“I… it’s not that I don’t trust you.”

The emotions in her heart were too turbulent. Xu Que could no longer hide them; her feelings poured out like a flood, and once started, they could not be stopped.

“Because I like you!”

“It is precisely because I like you that I want to take on everything in front of you. It’s not a lack of trust; it’s because I care too much. I care so much that I want to show you only my best side.”

“If we hadn’t signed that agreement, I could have pursued you openly. If you allowed it, I would continue; if you minded, I would bury this feeling in the depths of my heart. But because there is an agreement between us, I was afraid that if I said I liked you, you would think I liked your wealth, the power in your hands, or the Jiang family behind you…”

Xu Que smiled bitterly. “I have no way to prove it isn’t like that. I just like you. I like you for being Jiang Fengyi.”

She looked sorrowful. “But I also have to thank this agreement, because it’s the reason we met. Otherwise, how would an intern have the chance to spend day and night with their top boss?”

Because of the agreement, Xu Que found someone to fall in love with at first sight. But also because of the agreement, Xu Que carried a set of shackles.

After Xu Que finished speaking, she felt like a deflated balloon. She turned her head away, deliberately avoiding Jiang Fengyi, subconsciously fearing to see an expression of indifference on the other’s face.

Because of this, she missed the look of deep emotion in Jiang Fengyi’s eyes.

There is nothing luckier than finding out that the person you have a secret crush on happens to have a secret crush on you too.

Jiang Fengyi stared at Xu Que’s bright red ears. The corners of her mouth turned up, and as her face moved, she realized her own cheeks were burning fiercely.

She listened to the thumping of her heart against her ribs, beat by beat, as if it were about to jump out of her chest. Afterward, regardless of everything else, her heart raced to respond to Xu Que’s confession.

As the master of this heart, Jiang Fengyi could only follow her own feelings.

She reached out and gently took hold of the other’s wrist. Xu Que turned to look at her as she moved.

Jiang Fengyi met those eyes that reflected her own shadow and said seriously and tenderly: “I…”

Expressing her love for the first time, her voice trembled slightly: “I… I like you too!”

Her voice wasn’t loud, but it was just enough for Xu Que to hear clearly.

“I don’t know when it started, but I would unconsciously look for you and dwell on a casual word you said. When you appear before me, my heart feels a mysterious joy; when you are gone, I feel a secret sense of loss. This isn’t the kind of emotion a boss should have for a subordinate. I tried to stop it, but feelings aren’t like work—they can’t be controlled.”

“The more time we spend together, the more the liking for you in my heart grows like wild grass, spreading to every corner. I’ve wanted to change the agreement several times, wanting to extend the three-year term to ten years, twenty years, a hundred years…”

The hand that Xu Que was holding turned within Jiang Fengyi’s grip. She flipped her palm up, her fingertips tracing the lines of the other’s palm before interlocking their fingers.

Her other hand naturally pulled Jiang Fengyi closer.

The distance between them suddenly became intimate.

The sorrow in Xu Que’s eyes vanished, replaced by a hope that shone like clouds parting to reveal the sun. The light radiating from her eyes was more intense than the fire burning on the stove.

The prairie fire burned so fiercely that the Jiang Fengyi in her arms had nowhere to escape.

“A hundred years or ten thousand years—change it however you like.” She stared at Jiang Fengyi without blinking, as if she could never get enough. “But, having said you like me, you aren’t allowed to abandon me whenever you please.”

Xu Que lowered her head, gently covering the red lips she had long desired.

The kiss fell like a seal, an imprint carved into the depths of her soul.

“Now, I am yours.”