The Ceo Of The Company Next Door Seems To Have A Crush On Me Chapter 4

Perfume and the Piglet

Yan Xucheng obediently greeted him, “Uncle Jiang.”

Yan Hong gave a pointed look. “They just said they were well-behaved and law-abiding. I wonder who is the reason I have to run to your school every few days.”

Glancing at Lan Lan’s expression, Yan Xucheng felt he couldn’t let his father continue. If he did, the welcome party would turn into Yan Xucheng’s Criticism Session 9.0 Plus. He quickly changed the subject. “Uncle Jiang, what are you holding?”

Jiang Zhi handed the item to Yan Hong. “This? It’s a garlic peeler gadget.”

Hearing this, Lan Lan subconsciously looked at the bowl and immediately became exasperated. “Is this how you work? You’ve only peeled this much in half an hour?”

As Lan Lan scolded her husband, the Jiang family members discreetly stepped back to watch the show. Fortunately, since Yan Xucheng had just returned today, most of Lan Lan’s attention was focused on him. She only scolded Yan Hong briefly before tenderly cupping Yan Xucheng’s thin face. “Look how skinny you are. You didn’t eat properly abroad, did you? Mom will make you something delicious.”

Then she went into the kitchen with Shen Heyan.

After being scolded by Lan Lan, Yan Hong also felt Yan Xucheng had lost weight. He pinched Yan Xucheng’s arm, frowning. “Why is the flesh on your arm so soft? Starting tomorrow—”

Yan Xucheng quickly interrupted. “Oh, Dad, flesh is supposed to be soft. Hurry up and peel the garlic, or Mom will get angry again.”

Distracted by him, Yan Hong forgot about bringing up exercise. He looked at the two large boxes on the floor. “Put your luggage in your room later. Your mother and I already cleaned it for you.”

“Got it—”

“Don’t just leave it there. Hang the clean clothes in the closet.”

“Got it—”

“Hey! You haven’t changed your slippers yet.”

“I’m going now!”

Yan Xucheng pushed one box into the corner and opened the other. “Come on, Jiangjiang, gifts for you all.”

He took out several boxes of various sizes. “Here, this is yours. Open it and take a look.”

Jiang Mingyi opened a small box, inside which lay a bottle of blue perfume.

Seeing the perfume, Yan Xucheng’s memory was instantly jogged. “This perfume! My phone was snatched right after I left the perfume shop that day.”

“That time, huh.”

Jiang Mingyi didn’t think much of it, but Yan Xucheng’s memory suddenly returned to that day. If it hadn’t been for Lu Zhijian, he wouldn’t have known what to do in the end.

Thinking of Lu Zhijian again after several days, Yan Xucheng was surprised to find his memory of him was still clear. It was very comfortable to be around him; his mannerisms were like a gentle spring breeze. He didn’t talk much, but whenever Yan Xucheng spoke, Lu Zhijian would look at him intently, his eyes like the autumn night sky.

His eyes—speaking of which, Lu Zhijian’s eyes always seemed to carry a hint of melancholy. The sadness was more pronounced whenever he lowered his eyelids, as if he was shrouded in waterlogged dark clouds. Although it wasn’t raining, it looked heavy.

That’s why Yan Xucheng tried hard not to let there be any awkward silence during their meal.

At the time, his mind was focused on the robber. Now, recalling it, Lu Zhijian, wandering alone on the streets of Country F, seemed particularly lonely.

Was he traveling alone?

He wondered if Lu Zhijian felt sad by himself?

If only he had offered to exchange contact information back then—

“Yanyan? Yanyan!”

Yan Xucheng snapped back to reality. “Huh? What is it?”

“I should be asking you what’s wrong? You suddenly zoned out while talking.” Jiang Mingyi looked worried. “Are you tired because of the jet lag?”

“No, I just suddenly thought of something else.” Yan Xucheng shook his head. He noticed Jiang Mingyi had already unwrapped two gifts. The blue perfume lay quietly in the velvet box, its smooth bottle catching a flash of light.

After dinner, the Jiang family returned home. Before leaving, Jiang Mingyi deliberately pretended to be casual and said to Shen Heyan, “Well, Mom, I’m going home now.”

Shen Heyan, unaware of anything, held Jiang Mingyi’s hand reluctantly. “Won’t you stay the night?”

“No, no.” Before leaving, Jiang Mingyi gave Yan Xucheng a meaningful look.

Yan Xucheng gave a subtle nod. Only after the elevator doors closed did he return home. “Dad, I’ll help you clean up.”

Yan Xucheng tied his smooth long hair into a low ponytail with a hair tie, put on an apron around his waist, squeezed a pump of dish soap onto a scrubbing sponge, rolled up his sleeves, and vigorously scrubbed the pots. Yan Hong was outside tidying the messy dining table.

The meal had been greasy, and the table was oily, forcing Yan Hong to scrub hard with dish soap. As he wiped, he casually brought up a topic. “You said you already got an offer from Qishan?”

“Yes.”

Qishan Private Hospital has been very popular among High-Net-Worth Individuals in recent years, known for its advanced Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine treatment methods. The main hospital is in Jiangcheng, and they only established a branch in the Jingji (Capital Region) last year. Although it’s in the Jingji, the Jingji is large, and it would take a long time to get there from Redwood Academy.

Yan Hong confirmed again. “So you’re going to work there?”

“Yes.” If his hands weren’t covered in bubbles right now, Yan Xucheng would have scratched his head. It had only been three months since he was last home; why had his dad suddenly become senile?

Yan Hong didn’t notice Yan Xucheng’s bewildered expression. He forcefully suppressed the upward curve of his lips and casually took out an item. “In that case, I’ll give this to you.”

Yan Xucheng leaned over and saw a red booklet. “A property deed!”

He reached for it, but Yan Hong blocked him. “Hands, hands, hands. Rinse off the foam first. Look at you, acting like you’ve never seen anything before.”

Yan Xucheng thoroughly rinsed his hands under the faucet, dried them with a paper towel, and eagerly flipped open the booklet. “Wow, is this for me?”

Yan Hong said nonchalantly, “It’s near Qishan Private Hospital. You can drive there in fifteen minutes.”

He was afraid that if he gave the property deed first, Yan Xucheng might feel obliged to work there even if he didn’t want to, which was why he asked twice. Yan Hong didn’t realize his thoughtful gesture had just been mistaken for senility by his son. Now, he was fully enjoying his son’s worshipful gaze.

Yan Xucheng exclaimed, “Dad, I love you!”

Lan Lan was called out by his voice. Seeing the property deed in Yan Xucheng’s hand, she understood what had happened. Watching Yan Xucheng almost jump for joy, she smiled and patted his shoulder. “That’s nothing. Just providing a little help within our means for your life. Living closer to work means you can sleep in a little longer in the morning.”

Lan Lan smiled and stroked Yan Xucheng’s head. “Once you start working, you can’t be late like you were for school. Even if you live close, you need to maintain a regular schedule, understand?”

Yan Xucheng nodded obediently. “I know, Mom.”

From now on, his days of being late, leaving early, and eating breakfast during class were completely over. He was truly and thoroughly going to become a mature and reliable adult!

With a house in hand, Yan Xucheng felt energized while working.

He secretly looked outside. Lan Lan had already gone to the bedroom to rest, and Yan Hong was tidying the messy living room. Good, no one was paying attention to him now.

Yan Xucheng held a plate, pretending it was the property deed, and mimicked Lan Lan’s gesture. “That’s nothing.”

He instantly felt satisfied. “I wish I could say that one day!”

From then on, Yan Xucheng had one more motivation to work hard.

Yan Xucheng hadn’t adjusted to the jet lag yet, so he went to bed before nine. The sheets and duvet cover had been washed yesterday and still carried the scent of laundry pods. He pulled down the soft pillow, leaving space between the pillow and the headboard, tossed all his carefully blow-dried long hair up, rubbed his face against the fragrant pillow, and fell into a deep sleep in less than ten minutes.

Lan Lan had woken up very early today and also went to bed early. After Yan Hong finished mopping the floor, he returned to the bedroom.

Lan Lan and Yan Hong were early risers. At six-thirty in the morning, they went out for a run together. Only Yan Xucheng lay in bed, his face flushed from sleep. They brought back breakfast after their run: steamed buns and shumai from the breakfast shop at the community entrance. That shop had been open for thirty years; when Lan Lan and Yan Hong were busy with work and couldn’t make breakfast when Yan Xucheng was little, he would eat there.

The buns and shumai were served on white porcelain plates. Yan Hong opened the timed rice cooker; the porridge was already cooked. The snow-white rice and golden peeled corn kernels looked especially appealing in the white porcelain bowls.

“Xiao Cheng isn’t awake yet?”

Yan Hong knocked on the door, but Xiao Cheng just turned over and continued sleeping.

Yan Hong knocked again, and Xiao Cheng pulled the blanket over his head.

After waiting for a long time without hearing a sound, Yan Hong pushed the door open. The room’s blackout curtains were tightly drawn, letting in no light. The nightlight switch was still by the bed. Yan Hong could only try his best to see, but fortunately, the room wasn’t large, and the lump under the blanket was clearly visible.

Yan Hong patted him. “Xiao Cheng, get up and eat breakfast. You’ve almost slept for twelve hours.”

Yan Xucheng didn’t move.

Yan Hong helplessly pushed Yan Xucheng, but this slight force felt like a cradle to Yan Xucheng, making him sleep even sounder.

Lan Lan waited a long time for the father and son, but neither came out. She lost her patience. “Are you two like meat buns thrown to a dog, gone forever?! Yan Xucheng, it’s half past eight, get up! I’m counting to three. One…”

Yan Xucheng, who had been motionless moments before, immediately opened his eyes. “I’m getting up right now!”

Lan Lan glared at Yan Hong. “You have five minutes.”

Yan Hong quickly followed his wife out. Yan Xucheng squirmed around in the blanket, finally rescuing himself from the tangled sheets. His chest felt cool. He looked down and saw that his pajama buttons had come undone at some point, revealing his beautiful collarbone and chest muscles.

He quickly buttoned up, then touched his hair, relieved that it was still smooth and not tangled.

Yan Xucheng combed his hair back, revealing his smooth forehead, and sat down at the dining table in his pajamas within two minutes, starting to eat heartily.

Lan Lan served him another bowl of porridge, sighing as she watched his cheeks puff out while he ate. “You wake up and eat, then eat and sleep. Are you a piglet?”

Yan Xucheng swallowed the food in his mouth. “It’s because I haven’t had Grandma Qiao’s breakfast in so long.”

After breakfast, Lan Lan and Yan Hong had to go to work. They weren’t idle like Yan Xucheng. Yan Hong was a senior engineer at a state-owned enterprise, and Lan Lan was a law firm partner. Indeed, only Yan Xucheng in this house was currently unoccupied.

“Remember not to open the door for strangers when you’re home,” Yan Hong instructed while putting on his shoes.

“Oh, Dad, I know.”

Lan Lan remembered something. “If you have nothing to do, you can go check out your new house. The decoration is built-in, but you can change it if you don’t like it.”

“Okay!” Yan Xucheng stood at the door in his thin pajamas, watching them leave for work. As soon as they were gone, he immediately contacted Jiang Mingyi. “You still haven’t told me, when are we going to see your Ex-Husband Guy?”