Chapter 3 – Hold Your Little Tail

When Yan Xiuzhi arrived at the place, it was already half past eight in the evening.

Zhou Ziyi had chosen a buffet restaurant with a great night view, reasonably priced, just at the intersection of Zhou Ziyi’s current financial situation and Yan Xiuzhi’s personal taste.

Yan Xiuzhi walked to the window seat and instead of admiring the night view like other customers, he threw his briefcase in front of Zhou Ziyi and said, “Sign.”

Zhou Ziyi raised an eyebrow slightly, suppressing the urge to retort, and smiled, “No rush.”

Yan Xiuzhi sneered, “You’re not in a hurry, yet you force me to meet you like this?”
“General Yan seems to have misunderstood,” Zhou Ziyi looked at him, smiled with lowered eyes, and stood up to walk beside him. “I invited Mr. Yan for a meal, not to engage in a mall battle with you.”

As he spoke, Zhou Ziyi reached out and helped Yan Xiuzhi take off his coat.

Yan Xiuzhi furrowed his eyebrows, realizing that things were not as simple as they seemed… No, he didn’t know what Zhou Ziyi was up to, so he stood still. Seeing this, Zhou Ziyi smiled, leaned in closer, and whispered, “Mr. Yan, you’re my boyfriend now. Do you really need to be so nervous? Or perhaps you don’t even know how to act in a staged performance?”

Yan Xiuzhi was already here, so it wouldn’t be good for him to leave with a disgraced face. He had no choice but to cooperate and take off his coat, saying, “You seem quite skilled at this.”

“Isn’t this taking people’s money , ***?” Zhou Ziyi hung Yan Xiuzhi’s coat. “Besides, no matter how powerful Mr. Yan is, you still needs to eat, right? People need food, and skipping a meal will make you hungry. Why don’t you go get something to eat first, and we can chat while we eat?”

One should not bite the hand that feeds them. Despite Zhou Ziyi’s flashy behavior on X Messenger before, he now appeared quite humble in person. Yan Xiuzhi felt like he was punching cotton, his interrogation turning into finding fault. He had no choice but to follow Zhou Ziyi’s suggestions for now.

He took a couple of steps outside, then suddenly turned back to look at Zhou Ziyi, as if he wanted to say something.

Zhou Ziyi couldn’t help but laugh first, “What’s wrong? Afraid I’ll steal your precious robe and run away without paying?”

Yan Xiuzhi turned and walked away.

After about ten minutes, Yan Xiuzhi came back holding two plates. Zhou Ziyi stood up and asked, “Did you get everything? Then I’ll go too.”

Yan Xiuzhi was taken aback, “You haven’t eaten anything in these two hours?”

Zhou Ziyi actually had a little something to eat, but he replied, “No. Wasn’t I waiting for you?”

Yan Xiuzhi furrowed his brows, about to say something, but Zhou Ziyi had already turned and walked away. When Zhou Ziyi came back with two plates, just as he sat down, Yan Xiuzhi said, “You don’t have to go this far next time. I don’t need you to go to such lengths for me.”

Zhou Ziyi responded, “Next time? Understood.”

Yan Xiuzhi remained silent.

Zhou Ziyi added, “Weren’t you waiting for me too?^[1]Yan Xiuzhi didn’t eat directly, instead he was waiting for Zhou Ziyi to come back and start eating together. The officials can start a fire, but the common people can’t even light a lamp?” ^[2] It’s an Idiom, Meaning: People with power can do what they like while controlling and limiting the freedom of others.

Yan Xiuzhi: “This is basic courtesy from me.”

Zhou Ziyi: “Well, this is the passion of lovers.”

Yan Xiuzhi: “…”

Zhou Ziyi finally realized that this President Yan, who boasted about getting engaged in a week and married in three months, was actually not skilled in fabricating such things. Zhou Ziyi saw this as an opportunity to have a little leverage over Yan Xiuzhi, something to use when necessary.

Just don’t scare away the prospective father-in-law.

Zhou Ziyi had another hypothesis that he wanted to verify. So, in a gentle and slightly playful tone, he asked, “By the way, what are your thoughts on our love story, President Yan?”

As soon as he mentioned it, Yan Xiuzhi recalled the bizarre setting described by Li Fei.

Furthermore, President Yan received a bunch of melodramatic stories forwarded by Li Fei on his phone, which he firmly refused to open.

“No thoughts,” Yan Xiuzhi said, thinking about the ridiculous setting Zhou Ziyi came up with. He squinted his eyes and continued, “Don’t mess around with all that nonsense.”

Regardless of what Zhou Ziyi was thinking, he maintained a calm expression and continued to smile gently at the man across from him, saying, “But we still need some sort of explanation, don’t we?”

“…Just think of something casual,” Yan Xiuzhi glanced at him, his tone slightly softened. “During your study abroad in Country E, I happened to go there on a business trip.”

Zhou Ziyi thought to himself that he had indeed extracted new information. “So, let’s say we coincidentally met there?”

“Sure.”

“What were the specifics?”

Yan Xiuzhi hadn’t really thought about it, but as the client, he could use the timeless phrase: “You decide.”

Zhou Ziyi (without showing any anger) smiled at him and replied, “Alright then, I’ll think about it some more.”

Yan Xiuzhi warned, “No more strange plotlines.”

“Okay,” Zhou Ziyi smiled and winked at him. “Can it be love at first sight?”

Yan Xiuzhi: “…”

He inwardly clicked his tongue but maintained his cold demeanor, giving a nonchalant “Hmm.”

Zhou Ziyi rested his chin on his hand and continued, “Your feelings towards me? My feelings towards you?”

Yan Xiuzhi glanced at him.

Zhou Ziyi smiled and said, “Alright, I am towards you.”

Yan Xiuzhi had a foreboding feeling. Before he could think it through, Zhou Ziyi indeed said, “So, I have to make up a story about a foreign student pursuing a CEO?”

Yan Xiuzhi’s foreboding feeling was confirmed, and he immediately warned, “Don’t play any tricks.”

“Alright,” Zhou Ziyi said, “Can I send it directly to you, or should I continue through Sister Fei?”

Yan Xiuzhi recalled the scene of Li Fei narrating those absurd stories, feeling at a loss for words, and could only say, “You can.”

“But!” He quickly added, “Don’t send me strange things.”

Zhou Ziyi blinked, “Like what?”

Yan Xiuzhi replied, “You know it yourself, no need for me to explain.”

The CEO’s expression remained unsatisfactory, but Zhou Ziyi had already confirmed another one of his guesses.

— Yan Xiuzhi, typical of someone who caves in to persuasion but not to force.

— If you give him advice with a good attitude, disagree once or twice, and say more kind words, he will likely make some concessions.

Zhou Ziyi had figured out Yan Xiuzhi’s general temperament and became more adept at dealing with him. During their first meeting, Yan Xiuzhi spoke coldly to Zhou Ziyi, and he responded by teasing him. The result proved that the reverse approach worked.

So Zhou Ziyi combined the two speculations and started teasing Yan Xiuzhi gently: “By the way, Mr. Yan, you brought these foods… So you prefer foods with higher protein content? More on the healthy side? Are you the type who goes to the gym three times a week and always has visible abs?”

Yan Xiuzhi was initially going to respond to the first part, but upon hearing the last sentence, he changed his tone to a warning: “You better not be too audacious.”
“Mr. Yan, if we get engaged next week, we must be a couple in love right now, right?” Zhou Ziyi innocently said, “We’re all adults, and if I don’t even know if you have abs… wouldn’t people think you have… issues?”

As it turned out, Zhou Ziyi was being audacious enough to make suggestive jokes.

Yan Xiuzhi narrowed his eyes and listened as Zhou Ziyi continued with a smile: “Oh, by the way, I have a mole on my lower back, on the right side.”

Yan Xiuzhi: “…”

“And also here.” Zhou Ziyi extended his left hand towards him, his slender fingers stopping in front of Yan Xiuzhi’s eyes, “Ring finger, see? The engagement ring will probably cover it perfectly.”

Yan Xiuzhi glanced at him but remained silent.

Zhou Ziyi blinked, “Seriously, Mr. Yan, don’t you even plan to prepare an engagement ring?”

“Zhou Ziyi,” Yan Xiuzhi put down his utensils, staring at him and said with a pressured tone, “I’ve said it before, don’t have any other thoughts about me. Otherwise, our cooperation may be terminated at any time.”

“I’m just giving you some points to remember, making it easier for you to handle unexpected situations,” Zhou Ziyi withdrew his hand and propped her chin, “Mr. Yan Xiuzhi, you didn’t fill out the information for me, didn’t confirm your food preferences, and didn’t tell me about your physical features. Think about it, is this how someone who is going to get married should act? I took the initiative to inquire, and yet you still doubt my intentions. How would you feel if I became uncooperative?”

Yan Xiuzhi calmly thought about it.
He had investigated Zhou Ziyi before deciding to cooperate.

“Is this how you approached your previous business partners too?” Yan Xiuzhi finally asked about the other person’s situation for the first time, “I remember you used to work with women. Did you ask them so directly as well?”

Zhou Ziyi was momentarily stunned, then smiled and said, “So you investigated my previous ‘business’ as well? Well, it seems I did a decent job in my previous deals, otherwise, you wouldn’t have chosen to work with me, right?”
In reality, Yan Xiuzhi didn’t have any other choices.

Tang Shirong recommended Zhou Ziyi to him, so he did some investigation and found him barely acceptable, and that was why he agreed to work with him. However, Yan Xiuzhi wouldn’t confess that he chose Zhou Ziyi because of the equal election matter. He simply said, “I know one of your previous business partners, so I asked about it.”
“Uh…” Zhou Ziyi was relieved that he hadn’t taken a sip of his drink, or he might have choked, “What a small world, haha.”

“She knows Tang Shirong, and it’s not strange for me to know her,” Yan Xiuzhi said coldly, “She claims to be your ex-girlfriend.”

“Well, that’s just a good way to put it,” Zhou Ziyi confessed, “Can’t exactly say it was a financial transaction, right? So we just say we had a normal relationship and broke up.”

Yan Xiuzhi: “Did you also ask about their physical characteristics?”

“Well, it’s not appropriate to discuss the girls like that,” Zhou Ziyi coughed softly. “Anyway, we have enough information. But I only go out on dates with them, I’m just a handyman, no need to talk about marriage.”

Would Zhou Ziyi ever say that some girls are willing to stay overnight? Of course not!

Yan Xiuzhi observed him for a few seconds, seemingly pondering the true meaning behind his words. Fortunately, the CEO didn’t intend to inquire further, so he said, “I’ll fill out the questionnaire for you tonight.”

“Oh, okay,” Zhou Ziyi thought to himself, hoping that the question about making love wouldn’t lead to Li Fei’s dismissal.

After thinking for a moment, Zhou Ziyi continued, “By the way, President Yan, I have a suggestion.”

Yan Xiuzhi sensed that it might not be something good, but he still glanced at Zhou Ziyi, signalling him to speak.

Zhou Ziyi said, “Shouldn’t we give each other nicknames? At least it’s not appropriate for me to call you President Yan in front of others.”
“Just call me by my name,” Yan Xiuzhi replied.

“The full name? That doesn’t seem right, too serious,” Zhou Ziyi said, “Yan Yan?”

Yan Xiuzhi’s eyelid twitched.

“Xiu Xiu?”

Yan Xiuzhi stared at him.

Zhou Ziyi opened his mouth again, and Yan Xiuzhi interrupted, saying, “Shut up.”