RKNDL chapter 33

After that lunch in Wen Yun’s office, Xie Zhinan found himself being summoned upstairs every few days for various reasons.

By now, not only did Assistant Lin know him, but so did the secretaries in the office.

Every time he arrived, they would smile at him with a mysterious look and even offer him snacks.

As a socially anxious person, Xie Zhinan wanted to escape. But they were always tacit and friendly, never asking unnecessary questions, as if they genuinely believed he was some pitiful little subordinate constantly at the mercy of the big boss.

This strange dynamic made his skin crawl.

So, when he received another message from Wen Yun, he couldn’t continue ignoring this strange situation any longer.

[Y]: Come to my office at noon.

[Xie Zhinan]: 0.0

[Y]: ?

[Xie Zhinan]: Boss… I already made plans to have lunch with a colleague today. 0.0

[Y]: Technically speaking, I’m also your colleague.

Xie Zhinan thought, But we didn’t make any plans… right?

Of course, he wouldn’t dare send that to Wen Yun. Lacking the courage to outright refuse, he could only send an ambiguous emoji.

[Xie Zhinan]: qvq

Wen Yun had pointed this out before:

Xie Zhinan was very good at dodging situations he couldn’t handle. He had a knack for muddling through with feigned innocence.

For example, in the past, when Xie Zhinan couldn’t take it anymore during their love making, he’d simply lie on the bed and pretend to faint.

Even though he was generally very accommodating towards Wen Yun, he sometimes felt Wen Yun went too far. Yet, unable to reject him outright, Xie Zhinan resorted to these little tricks, putting on a blatantly fake act. His fluttering eyelashes were like a butterfly poised to take flight, his breathing was shallow and uneven, and every now and then, he’d sneak a peek through barely opened eyes.

And Wen Yun always fell for it.

After all, Xie Zhinan never asked anything of him. This kind of theatrical pretense was probably the most “rebellious” thing Xie Zhinan had ever done.

So easy to tease.

Sometimes Wen Yun would push further; other times, he’d let him off the hook.

There was something inherently soft and fragile yet resilient about Xie Zhinan that always softened Wen Yun’s heart, making him reluctant to make things too difficult for him.

In the executive office on the 22nd floor, Wen Yun stared at the silly emoji Xie Zhinan had sent. A faint smile crossed his lips as he replied with a single period.

….

In truth, Xie Zhinan didn’t have any plans with his colleagues.

Lately, he’d been disappearing at noon so often that he’d lost his status as the department’s lunch buddy. As soon as lunchtime arrived, Li Mo and the others would head to the cafeteria, laughing and chatting, leaving him behind. The colleagues who remained in the office weren’t particularly close to him.

After thinking for a moment, Xie Zhinan decided to eat at a restaurant downstairs.

Perhaps out of some strange intuition, he felt that if he ate in the cafeteria, he might run into *someone*.

With this thought in mind, he went to a congee restaurant. It was peak lunch hour, and the dining area was packed. His sharp eyes spotted the last two seats in a corner, and he quickly slid into one, scanning the QR code to browse the menu.

The menu was full of choices, and Xie Zhinan’s indecisiveness struck again. When he focused, it was hard for him to notice what was happening around him. At that moment, he was engrossed in the menu and completely unaware of the sudden commotion in the restaurant.

Someone sat down beside him. The space was narrow, and the person’s leg gently brushed against his knee. Xie Zhinan, uncomfortable with such close contact from strangers, kindly shifted himself to the side.

Still entirely focused, he didn’t lift his head even once. While he was scrolling up and down, struggling to decide what to order, his ankle was bumped again.

The corner seat was indeed cramped, so Xie Zhinan scooted in further.

Then his calf was brushed.

Even someone as mild-tempered as Xie Zhinan began to feel annoyed at this point. He abruptly pulled himself away from his phone and looked up—

Xie Zhinan: “…”

Xie Zhinan: “…………”

He froze when he saw the familiar, cold face staring back at him.

“What?” Wen Yun asked coldly.

Xie Zhinan, guilty and flustered, stammered, “N-nothing.”

He quietly withdrew his legs, only for Wen Yun, without the slightest courtesy, to stretch his long legs and press against him again.

In this cramped space, their legs were touching intimately. The restaurant was busy and crowded during lunch, with few seats available, so everyone was sitting close together. No one paid attention to the unusual atmosphere between them.

Yet Xie Zhinan’s ears immediately turned red.

“Y-you shouldn’t do this,” Xie Zhinan whispered to Wen Yun.

“Do what?” Wen Yun raised his eyelids slightly, his tone emotionless and a little lazy. “I’m not the one lying, tricking people, and standing them up.”

Xie Zhinan: “?”

Unfounded accusations! Completely fabricated! Utterly outrageous!

Clenching his fists, Xie Zhinan mustered a weak protest, “…I-I didn’t! Uhm.”

“Oh.” Wen Yun’s voice was icy. “Then I must not have noticed that we have an invisible colleague in our company.”

Knowing he was at fault, Xie Zhinan rubbed his nose and fell silent.

Wen Yun suddenly asked, “Why didn’t you come upstairs today?”

Xie Zhinan, already anxious, habitually pinched his hand. Just as his nails pressed into his palm, a warm finger came over and gently pried his thumb open. Xie Zhinan instinctively tried to pull away, but Wen Yun naturally touched his hand.

It was just a light, restrained touch, but Wen Yun frowned slightly and asked, “Are your hands cold?”

Xie Zhinan shrank his fingers slightly.

His health hadn’t been great in the past couple of years. In winter, his hands and feet often felt like ice. City A, being a southern city, had a damp chill that seeped into the bones, making it hard to stay warm.

It wasn’t quite that cold yet, though. Xie Zhinan’s hands had just cooled down from wandering outside while deciding where to eat. His body was fine.

But now, after Wen Yun’s touch, his hands felt like they were burning. Curling his fingers into a fist, he replied, “N-no, not cold.”

Wen Yun’s dark eyes lingered on him for a moment before he said, “If you catch a cold, you’re the one who suffers.”

Xie Zhinan’s face flushed a little from Wen Yun’s affectionate yet helpless reprimand. He murmured quietly, “Really… not cold.”

It seemed like he was afraid Wen Yun might grab his hands and stick them in his pockets to warm them.

So Xie Zhinan quickly added, “My hands are cold, but my body isn’t.”

Seeing that Xie Zhinan was firm, Wen Yun didn’t push further. He simply said in a chilly tone, “Then stop trying to dodge the question.”

Realizing his attempt to skirt the issue had failed, Xie Zhinan replied with a weak, “0.0.”

He wanted to start pinching his hand again but stopped himself under Wen Yun’s faint gaze.

Sitting in the corner with Wen Yun blocking his way out, their legs pressing against each other, Xie Zhinan couldn’t escape. The subtle scent of Wen Yun’s cologne enveloped him, trapping him completely.

When escape is impossible, it’s best not to try.

Lowering his head, he looked like someone resigned to his fate. He mumbled quietly, “Coming up to your office every day… feels a little weird.”

“Oh,” Wen Yun replied coldly. “You didn’t come up yesterday.”

“…But I came up the day before.”

“You didn’t come up last Friday.”

“…”

“You didn’t come up last Tuesday either.”

“…”

“You didn’t come up the Wednesday before last.”

Wasn’t this frequency high enough?

Xie Zhinan finally couldn’t help but wonder, were they in some kind of relationship where they had to meet every day?

Assistant Lin and the secretaries in the CEO’s office had been looking at him more and more strangely.

Almost like he was some kind of meal.

Xie Zhinan traced the source of the problem and realized it was still Wen Yun.

He secretly, carefully, and cautiously glanced at Wen Yun.

With just a hint of grievance.

And, of course, this glance was caught by Wen Yun.

Xie Zhinan quickly retracted his gaze, pretending nothing had happened.

Wen Yun’s favorite pastime was to pull Xie Zhinan out of his shell and poke at the soft, hidden parts of him he refused to reveal. “Why are you glaring at me?”

Xie Zhinan lowered his head and tried to defend himself. “…I wasn’t.”

“You were.”

Xie Zhinan weakly attempted to cover it up. “I wasn’t…”

“It seems like next time when I’m with you, I’ll need to set up a camera to record your face, so you can’t deny it later,” Wen Yun said.

Xie Zhinan quickly shrank back, his ears turning red, closing his mouth and remaining silent.

When did Wen Yun become so talkative?

… bullying people like this.

Before… he clearly wasn’t like this.

He sneaked another glance at Wen Yun, but Wen Yun had been watching him the whole time, his lashes slightly lowered, his gaze lazy yet focused, making it so every time Xie Zhinan looked up, he would meet those deep, dark eyes.

To avoid being wrongly accused again, Xie Zhinan spoke up in advance, “…I didn’t glare at you this time.”

So, last time he did glare.

So silly.

His acting wasn’t convincing at all.

Wen Yun decided not to bother with it, raising an eyebrow, and asked, “So?”

So…

Xie Zhinan carefully stretched out his hand, hesitantly reaching for Wen Yun’s sleeve, his cheeks tinted with a beautiful blush, his eyelashes trembling nervously in the rare winter sunlight. He quietly said, “…I’ll treat you to a meal.”

“Don’t… be angry.”