The Ceo Of The Company Next Door Seems To Have A Crush On Me Chapter 27

The Scent of Dark Clouds and Warm Fingertips

Go to his house?

Lu Zhijian didn’t know what to do. The last time he went to a friend’s house was when he was seven, and then he came to Jingji and never kept in touch with his friends from his hometown again.

He wanted to say, I’ve already eaten, thank you, I’ve already started cooking myself, I’m not hungry today…

These were Lu Zhijian’s most common phrases, a polite way to refuse others, because he never knew if the invitation was sincere or just a formality. Refusal was the best option for everyone; sometimes Lu Zhijian could even sense the other person sighing in relief after he declined.

Those words were right on the tip of his tongue. As soon as Lu Zhijian uttered the first syllable, the rest would flow out smoothly, but he couldn’t do it.

Lu Zhijian was very tall, one meter ninety-one, and he had to look down slightly to see Yan Xucheng. Now he stood blankly at his own doorway, still wearing the black silk shirt he wore to work. The shirt was slightly wrinkled from his casual movements just now, making him look a little disheveled and somewhat pitiful.

Yan Xucheng suddenly noticed that Lu Zhijian’s hair was very black, with a slight natural wave, looking good without much styling.

And… damp.

It was an abstract description, but whenever Yan Xucheng met Lu Zhijian’s eyes, he always felt a scent of dark clouds at the tip of his nose—the prelude to rain.

Yan Xucheng suddenly reached out, placing the back of his hand on Lu Zhijian’s forehead. Although unnecessary, he instinctively stood on his tiptoes. Lu Zhijian’s body reacted quickly, immediately grabbing his wrist.

It was a very slender wrist. Lu Zhijian unconsciously relaxed his grip. He wanted to pull his hand away, but the heat radiating from Yan Xucheng’s wrist was so scalding that he didn’t dare move. He opened his mouth, unsure what to say, and could only inquire with frequently blinking eyes.

Yan Xucheng ignored his gaze. He frowned slightly, his eyebrows reminding Lu Zhijian of the continuous, dark cyan mountains in Haicheng.

“You’re not hot. Are you sick? You don’t look very energetic.”

Yan Xucheng murmured to himself, “Doesn’t seem like it.”

Only he was in a state of internal chaos due to the sudden physical contact.

Lu Zhijian shook his head, like a large dog drenched in rain rubbing against its owner’s palm. The light, soft strands of his hair brushed against the back of Yan Xucheng’s hand. Yan Xucheng seemed oblivious, naturally withdrawing his hand as if this action had been performed thousands of times.

“It’s good that you’re not sick.”

The next moment, he directly grabbed Lu Zhijian’s hand: “Then let’s go to my place for dinner.”

“…Okay.”

By this time, Yan Xucheng had already pulled Lu Zhijian out of his door and reached his own doorway, ready to step inside. Hearing Lu Zhijian suddenly speak behind him, he turned back and asked, “What did you just say? I didn’t hear clearly.”

“I said, my door doesn’t seem to be closed.”

Yan Xucheng leaned over to look, and indeed it wasn’t. He smiled apologetically at him: “It really isn’t. Leave the closing to me! You go in first.”

With that, he gave Lu Zhijian a push.

Lu Zhijian followed his momentum forward, entering a warm world.

Yan Xucheng ran over quickly to close Lu Zhijian’s door, then hurried back, pushing Lu Zhijian, who was standing in the entryway, inside, and closing his own door behind him. “Come on, come on, hurry up and come in.”

Yan Xucheng’s home had a unique warmth. On the cream-colored dining table were several appetizing dishes, and at the other end of the table were two pieces of cake that looked like matcha flavor.

“I bought cake today, wanting to eat it with you. When I came back, I knocked on your door and found you weren’t home. I thought, isn’t this perfect? I can let you taste my cooking. Although it’s not as delicious as yours, I think it’s pretty good. Even if you don’t like it, it doesn’t matter, we can still eat cake! Oh, do you like matcha?”

Lu Zhijian was visibly constrained, sitting at the dining table watching Yan Xucheng serve him rice: “I worked overtime today. It’s delicious, I like it.”

Yan Xucheng handed him the rice and chuckled, “You’re so funny!”

Lu Zhijian pursed his lips, unsure what to say, and smiled along with him.

For some reason, Yan Xucheng looked exceptionally handsome under the light, especially when thinking of something amusing. His smoky blue eyes were bright, like the lake surface in Haicheng reflecting the starry night sky.

Yan Xucheng laughed even harder, starting to chatter like a small firecracker: “Actually, I also sent you a WeChat message asking when you’d be back, but you never replied… But it’s okay! I saw your light turn on from the balcony right after I finished cooking. The timing was perfect.”

He spoke as if he were pouting!

“Sorry, I—” Lu Zhijian wanted to find his phone, patting his body before remembering he had left it on the living room sofa.

Yan Xucheng made a “shush” gesture, stopping Lu Zhijian’s apology, half-chiding and half-joking: “I didn’t tell you all this just so you could apologize.”

Then what was it for?

Lu Zhijian didn’t ask. The atmosphere was rare now, and there was no need for so many questions. Sometimes leaving some things unknown could brew something more captivating.

What exactly that something was, Lu Zhijian couldn’t articulate right now, but he knew he would understand later.

The lighting was soft, and a vase not far away quietly emitted the sweet scent of roses. Yan Xucheng sat opposite him, occasionally serving him food, and excitedly sharing interesting things he encountered at the hospital today.

Perhaps the light was too bright; Lu Zhijian’s eyes suddenly felt sore, and he even had the urge to cry.

He quickly lowered his head, pretending to be engrossed in eating, but his ears were perked up, carefully remembering every word Yan Xucheng said.

Reviewing his own day, Lu Zhijian didn’t find anything interesting—just meetings, approving documents, and more overtime approving documents. Not a single thing to be happy about.

He had nothing to share, so he memorized what Yan Xucheng said. If Yan Xucheng brought up related topics later, he could answer fluently, just like facing a teacher’s questions when he was little.

When they finished eating, and Yan Xucheng placed the two adorable cakes on plates, Lu Zhijian felt awkward again: “Sorry, I didn’t bring anything.”

Last time Yan Xucheng brought him a bottle of wine. He thought hard but couldn’t think of anything suitable to give him today.

Yan Xucheng seemed to see the good side of everything, his tone exaggerated: “Then next time I can shamelessly come to your house for a free meal!”

Lu Zhijian relaxed. Yan Xucheng bumped his shoulder. Lu Zhijian looked at him in confusion, but he just winked: “Besides, we’re friends—it would be too distant if we kept reciprocating every time.”

“Mhm!”

Lu Zhijian smiled secretly. Yan Xucheng definitely hadn’t noticed that he unconsciously puffed out his cheeks, making Lu Zhijian want to poke them.

They ate too much dinner, leaving insufficient space for cake. Yan Xucheng slowly poked at his cake: “What’s wrong with you today?”

“Hmm?” Lu Zhijian tilted his head to look at him, a pale green smudge of cream mixed with matcha powder still at the corner of his mouth.

Now they weren’t sitting opposite each other like before, but on the same side of the dining table, very close. Yan Xucheng shifted his gaze, looking straight ahead, vaguely focused on the air: “I feel like you’re unhappy today.”

“Hmm…” Lu Zhijian hesitated for a moment.

Yan Xucheng was about to say, “Haha, I was just asking, you don’t have to answer,” to move the topic along, when Lu Zhijian suddenly seemed to figure something out, digging into the cake with a fierce scoop.

“Because a hateful vice president was causing trouble today.”

“Is that so?” Yan Xucheng was an excellent conversational partner.

Lu Zhijian nodded, complaining uncharacteristically: “He always tries to proposition good-looking male artists in the company. It’s truly disgusting. He already has a wife, and his father-in-law—they’re birds of a feather, sharing the same bad habits.”

!!!

“Father-in-law?” Yan Xucheng’s eyes widened in surprise. “Wait, his wife is a woman? And his father-in-law knows?”

Lu Zhijian met Yan Xucheng’s gaze. Yan Xucheng leaned back, asking uncertainly, “No, it can’t be what I’m thinking, right?”

“Mhm,” Lu Zhijian nodded, confirming his guess: “It is exactly what you’re thinking.”

!!!

Yan Xucheng felt like his head was a tangled ball of yarn played with by a cat. “No, he’s messing around, and his father-in-law isn’t angry? That’s his daughter’s husband!”

“He’s not angry. Their marriage is purely a result of a transactional exchange of interests. The vice president needs someone to help him rake in money in the industry, and his father-in-law needs to maintain good relations with the upper echelons. His wife is just another tool to tie their interest group together.”

That’s too awful!

Yan Xucheng naturally had strong empathy. Although he hadn’t met her, he couldn’t help but imagine how desperate the woman caught between a scumbag husband and a scumbag father must be. His delicate brows furrowed tightly. He slumped onto the table in defeat, “You’re right, they really are hateful.”

Lu Zhijian quietly looked at Yan Xucheng’s slightly messy red hair. He could understand Yan Xucheng’s feelings. He didn’t need to guess that Yan Xucheng was feeling indignant for that woman; he was always so warm-hearted and gentle.

But Lu Zhijian found it hard to generate similar emotions. He disliked Sun Hui, but this aversion always felt separated by a layer of plastic. All his emotions were like this, like an uninvolved bystander.

Sometimes Lu Zhijian himself felt he was excessively cold.

Lu Zhijian extended his index finger and touched Yan Xucheng’s tightly furrowed brow.

The unfamiliar body temperature transmitted to his brain. Yan Xucheng couldn’t help but widen his eyes, staying frozen in place.