My Weekend Lover Turned Out To Be My Boss - Chapter 30

Chapter 30: 2009 IV. “Tenderness”

After taking You Feifan back to the hotel, I specifically bought a hot water bottle. Once she lay down, I tucked the hot water bottle into her covers, patiently coaxing her: “Be a good girl and get some sleep. You’ll feel better when you wake up. I’ll wake you up later to take your medicine.”

She covered herself with the blanket, only showing her eyes, and muffled, “Mhm… Qiu Wuming… you’re so nice!”

I flicked her forehead and whispered, “Why be polite with me? Go to sleep quickly…”

I patted her blanket rhythmically, like soothing a child. Once her breathing became even and she was sound asleep, I sat back on the headboard and scrutinized You Feifan’s sleeping face. There was a faint scratch mark at the corner of her eye. This scar must conceal a hidden story. Nevertheless, her small face was quite pretty. Even though she dressed and behaved like a big boy, I never defined her as a “T” (tomboy/butch).

Because this person’s words and actions were quite effeminate, with the look of a ‘Shou’ (femme/receiver). I didn’t know how to describe the lack of coherence between her appearance and demeanor. My gaze shifted from her face to the phone on the pillow. I got up, returned to her side, tucked the covers in for her, and smoothly took the phone.

I quietly walked out onto the hallway, lit a cigarette, and turned on the phone. The startup password was 1010. It was effortless to coax the password out of her with a casual excuse. This person’s unguarded heart would cause her great trouble. I went into the settings, recorded my own fingerprint, and changed the phone to vibrate mode.

Coincidentally, just as I finished adjusting the vibration setting, a call came in. The name displayed on the screen was Phoebe. I hesitated for a moment, but for certain reasons, I still answered the phone: “Hello.”

Evidently, the caller was silent for a while because of my voice before finally speaking. The coldness in her tone flowed into my ear as she asked calmly and simply, “Who are you?”

I flicked the ash off my cigarette, leaned against the wall, and answered with a smile: “Who I am is not important.”

“Where is You Feifan?”

“She’s asleep.”

“Where are you two right now?”

I stared at the end of the hotel corridor, the smile on my lips feeling eerie even to myself, and finally asked back, “We’re in a hotel. But… what does that have to do with you?”

This answer clearly aroused a hint of hostility from the other person: “What does it have to do with me? Heh… Even if you don’t tell me, I can find you both just the same.”

I took out my own phone, opened an electronic document, glanced through it, and then replied with a smile: “General Manager Lan, with your financial resources and connections, finding people is certainly not difficult. You are welcome to try.”

As soon as I finished speaking, the other person immediately hung up. I opened You Feifan’s WeChat and, using the information I had, compared it with her chat history. I easily found the contact information for her close friends, including Phoebe, and placed all their numbers on the block list.

Returning to the room, I casually placed the phone back on her pillow. Everything was going smoothly. Before my game began, I could safely take this person out for a few more days of fun.

…

Alcohol makes people delirious, but ultimately, it can only return to calm. The passionate kiss remained only in my memory. I carried the drunken Qin Yun back to the bedroom, cleaned up the mess in the living room, and then stumbled out of her house. I raised my hand and rubbed my lips. It was a strange yet wonderful feeling. Growing up, my first kiss was actually stolen by a drunk woman.

It took me almost two months to provide two sets of design blueprints for Qin Yun to choose from for both the master and guest units. After she finalized her decision, we ushered in the scorching heat of midsummer. I checked the old calendar, found an auspicious day to start construction, and informed Qin Yun. Her work was busier than I imagined. Since the night she got drunk, we hadn’t seen each other, communicating solely through the phone.

Now, I thanked heaven that Qin Yun’s house wasn’t an empty shell. As the supervisor and designer, I could still run errands inside the house with the air conditioning running. One lunchtime, I told the workers to take a break and quickly go eat. I sat alone on a stool, guarding the house. A man with a large travel backpack stood at the doorway. He looked at me suspiciously, and I looked back at him puzzledly, finally asking weakly, “Who are you looking for?”

The man ignored my question and countered, “Is the owner of this house undergoing renovation?”

I scrutinized the man, finding him very familiar. Then, I suddenly realized—it was the guy from the photo frame. I quickly took out my phone, ready to contact the boss. Then, a voice came from behind the man: “Yes. Is there a problem?”

Qin Yun held an exquisitely packaged bento box in her hand. The man stepped aside. Qin Yun handed the bento to me, ignoring the man, and said with a smile, “I’ve been on business trips recently. I just returned today, so I came over to check on the progress. Here, I brought you lunch. Haven’t eaten yet, have you?”

I took the bento box, overwhelmed with gratitude: “I told the workers to go eat first, so I’m watching the place. And this is?”

I leaned closer to Qin Yun’s ear and whispered, “The ex?”

Qin Yun turned back to look at the man at the door. Instead of answering my gossip, she said lightly, “Come talk in the study.”

The man took off his backpack, placed it by the door, and walked straight into the study. Qin Yun looked at me again: “You dare to gossip about your boss? Be careful, I’ll dock your pay.”

Oh, trying to scare me? Was I raised to be easily frightened? Fine, anything related to money is my weakness. I held the bento and smiled sheepishly: “Thank you! Thanks for the food.”

“You’re so gossipy. You won’t get this kind of perk next time.”

Qin Yun joked as she walked toward the study. I watched their figures disappear behind the closed door. I lowered my head to look at the food in my hands. For some reason, even though the food was excellent in color, aroma, and taste, I had lost my appetite.

Just as I sat down at the table and picked up my chopsticks to shovel a few bites of food, an argument erupted from the study. The man was shouting, their voices rising and falling, mixing Mandarin with English—very high-class, indeed! I leaned close to the door, trying to hear what was going on. Bang! The door flew open. The man glared at me angrily, strode out with great momentum, and left.

I saw Qin Yun sitting in the executive chair, pressing her hand to her forehead with her eyes closed, seemingly very angry. Then, she opened her eyes and glared at me: “What are you looking at? Come in and close the door!”

I held the lunch box, looking utterly confused—who am I, where am I, did the Qing Dynasty forget me—but Qin Yun composed herself. I closed the door and immediately squatted by the door, quickly wolfing down a mouthful of rice. I was starving. Qin Yun watched me. I ate and looked at her, and finally, she laughed, holding her stomach.

“If you were wearing a military cotton coat and a Lei Feng hat, the scene would be even more appropriate.”

“You… why are you laughing? Continue being angry…”

“Is eavesdropping fun?”

“Not really fun. I don’t quite understand you two arguing in a mix of Chinese and English!”

“Still dare to talk back to me?”

I put the box aside and clapped my hands: “Speak nicely! Fighting over every little thing… I see he’s dusty; he must have just returned from outside and came straight to find you.”

Qin Yun raised an eyebrow and finally said, “People with incompatible values can’t last. His romance is wandering the four seas, while I love the concrete jungle city life. Two people like this will only argue back and forth when together. It’s better to separate and have peace and quiet.”

I generally understood her meaning and analyzed, “The core problem isn’t the difference in values; it’s that neither of you is willing to yield, which is why it ended this way. So I ask you, after the fight, do you feel relieved or more upset?”

Qin Yun frowned slightly, finally taking her anger out on me: “And what business is that of yours?”

This way of displacing anger was quite childish. I wasn’t offended and suggested, “Boss, can I take a leave of absence?”

She looked at me suspiciously: “What are you planning to do now?”

“I haven’t been to feed the cat in a long time. I don’t know if it’s still there. It should have given birth by now.”

Qin Yun recovered her composure quickly. She rubbed the bridge of her nose, her tone softening a bit: “Then go take a look.”

I clapped my hands and suggested, “Do you want to come with me? It’ll help you shake off all your unhappiness~”

“I don’t have time. I’m always on business trips, and I have a lot of company matters to deal with.”

“Alright!”

With that, I packed up my things, ready to leave. Qin Yun followed me. We walked into the elevator together, with zero communication throughout. The atmosphere was quite awkward. When we reached the first floor, I was about to step out, but she grabbed my arm: “I’m heading back to the company. It’s on my way; I can give you a ride.”

Since she offered, a free ride was too good to pass up. I teased her: “Boss, you can’t earn all the money in the world. You just returned from a tiring business trip. Are you really not planning to relax a little?”

Qin Yun stared straight at the elevator floor indicator, sighing, “That’s the difference in mindset between a leader and an employee…”

Her words left me confused. I pondered for a long time and figured she was probably mocking my short-sightedness. I followed her into the car and habitually buckled my seatbelt. My communication with Qin Yun was fluid. She didn’t shun me because of the class difference, and I didn’t fear her because she was the boss. This balance made our interaction very harmonious.

She parked the car near the area where the wild cat often appeared and said nothing more. I politely said goodbye and watched her speed away. I hadn’t brought any food in my bag. I searched several times around the tree but couldn’t find the mother cat. Perhaps it had moved. I stood by the tree, wondering if I should take a taxi back to continue supervising the work, when suddenly, a small kitten darted out. I tried to catch it, but the little guy was agile and escaped. I followed the direction it ran.

The mother cat was gone, leaving behind a litter of kittens. However, only the one that came out to wander was alive. The small kitten constantly meowed around the hidden grass nest. It was frightened and even trembling. I squatted down and gently stroked its small head: “Little one, where is your mother?”

“Meow~”

“Did she abandon you?”

“Meow~”

“Well… what should we do now?”

I looked around and found a stone, planning to bury the dead kittens in the soil. I could only dig a pit nearby. The kitten kept circling me, preventing me from burying its siblings. Just then, the street-sweeping auntie emerged: “Oh dear. These little cats are dead! I haven’t seen the mother cat for days. Young man, why don’t you take it? Take it home and raise it. It’ll bring you luck, cats bring wealth.”

Saying this, the gossipy auntie swept the ground and left. After filling the soil, I turned to the small kitten. It probably felt familiar with me now, so it didn’t run away. I picked it up and placed it inside my messenger bag: “How about I call you Lucky (Zhao Cai)? What a fashionable and auspicious name~”

“Meow~”

“Let’s go. I’ll give you a warm little home.”

As I left, I subconsciously looked up at the office building. Perhaps Qin Yun was quietly watching me with a cup of coffee at this very moment. Then, I hailed a taxi. I needed to find a pet store first to clean up this little guy. After all, it was now a domestic cat with an address and an owner~