Chapter 19

In the end, they went to the seafood restaurant in the seaside town.

Jiang Sixun said, “It’s not that I don’t like seafood.” He also gave another reason Xu Zhiyi couldn’t refuse: “It doesn’t matter what we eat; it’s quiet by the sea.”

That night, when she was informed she would be a temporary assistant, Xu Zhiyi called Jiang Sixun’s secretary to ask about the boss’s work habits and what she needed to pay attention to during the business trip.

The secretary was generous with information: In the evenings, when the boss was tired from work, he would go to a bar, and she didn’t need to follow him then. However, if she wanted to join, it was fine, since she was considered the boss’s close family. During the day, when the boss didn’t have appointments or clients to meet, he rarely stayed at the hotel and preferred to work in a quiet café.

“It doesn’t have to be a café; just somewhere quiet and relaxing will do.” The secretary added this as she was about to hang up.

The seaside is perfect for relaxation.

So, after taking their luggage to the room, the bodyguard drove them over.

The fishing lights on the coast were lit, and the evening breeze was gentle.

Under the tranquil night sky, sitting on the wooden terrace and listening to the waves crashing against the rocks was especially pleasant.

While waiting for their meal, Jiang Sixun received a photo from Ning Yun with the flight information for Hong Kong Island.

Soon after, Ning Yun sent him several messages:

[I’m not waiting for you anymore; I’m heading back to Hong Kong to visit Grandpa Lu.]

[Next time you come to London on a business trip, stay at my hotel. Just put my name down, and they should send you extra fruit (grinning face) (grinning face).]

After the jokes, she got to the main point.

[I have a favor to ask: Yinqi rarely finds a friend he’s willing to open up to. I don’t want our situation to affect his relationship with Zhiyi. Next time you bring Zhiyi on a business trip, make sure she stays in touch with Yinqi. He has things on his mind that he never talks about, but I know it’s not easy for him.]

[The three years of cooperation were pleasant, and I’m glad to have met you.]

[When we meet next time, I hope we’ll each have someone to spend our lives with.]

They were both smart people; Jiang Sixun had already guessed what Ning Yun wanted to discuss when she mentioned meeting to talk about them.

She had always been so straightforward, just as she was when he first met her.

There was no need to meet again.

Jiang Sixun wouldn’t get sentimental: [I’ll handle things on my end.]

Exiting the chat, Jiang Sixun asked the person across from him if his parents had given him any cards.

Xu Zhiyi thought he was concerned about her. “Yes, my dad gave me two cards.”

“So, you’re quite rich?”

“…I suppose.”

Jiang Sixun took out his wallet and pulled out a receipt, sliding it across the table to her.

“When you have the chance, transfer the money to me. If you don’t have it now, I can cover it for you, but you can pay me back when you have it.”

Xu Zhiyi: “?”

She picked up the receipt from the table, which was proof of payment to an auction house.

She was puzzled. When had she bought anything?

Jiang Sixun explained, “The painting you gave to Ning Yun—I’m covering the favor for the limited edition bag you owed. If you transfer the money to me, the painting will be considered as your gift.”

She had mistakenly thought it was their token of affection; it turned out it was just covering a favor.

Xu Zhiyi negotiated, “Can I pay you in installments? I don’t want to spend that much of my dad’s money at once.”

Jiang Sixun put away his wallet. “No rush, you can pay me back whenever you’re ready.”

Xu Zhiyi glanced at the payment receipt again. Even before starting her job, she was already in debt of hundreds of thousands.

Jiang Sixun added, “I’ve made it clear with Ning Yun that the mutual use relationship is over. She won’t be sending you anything in the future, but it won’t affect your relationship with Yinqi.”

Xu Zhiyi wanted to ask if they weren’t supposed to clarify things in person.

Realizing that asking might be overstepping, she nodded in acknowledgment.

Soon, their dishes arrived.

The lobsters were plumper than those she had in London. Jiang Sixun asked the waiter for an empty plate, saying, “You eat the lobster, I’ll have the noodles.” He put two lobsters onto the plate and pushed it towards her, transferring both servings of noodles to his own plate.

Xu Zhiyi couldn’t get a word in and silently watched as her boss took such considerate care of her. Tonight, he wore a black shirt, giving him a slightly serious air. Strangely, though, he didn’t seem as distant as usual. Perhaps it was the seaside that made him more relaxed; it was rare to see gentleness on his usually aloof face.

Seeing she hadn’t started eating, Jiang Sixun handed her a fork from his own place setting.

Xu Zhiyi: “…Thank you.”

The meal was quite stressful.

“Do you often come here?” Jiang Sixun broke the silence.

Xu Zhiyi nodded while eating, “Mm.”

She savored the shrimp meat, which was the third time she’d had lobster pasta in a few days, fresh but not greasy.

During the meal, she spoke no more than ten sentences in total.

The waiter cleared the table and brought them two drinks.

Xu Zhiyi rested her chin on her hand, looking at the sea. As a temporary assistant accompanying the boss on a work meal, what was appropriate to talk about after eating?

“Mr. Jiang.” She turned to find something to say, seeing him busy editing something, and stopped.

Jiang Sixun was replying to emails and looked up at her, gesturing for her to continue.

Xu Zhiyi asked, “You mentioned before that you were considering investing in AI healthcare. Any progress?”

“Kohen Capital is screening target companies. We should have results by the end of the year.”

He was replying to an email from Kohen, attaching some basic information about several medical tech companies, including one he was particularly interested in and asking Kohen to conduct a thorough background check.

Jiang Sixun replied to Kohen and then looked back at the silent Xu Zhiyi. Seeing her glass of orange juice was almost empty, he offered her his own glass.

“I don’t drink beverages,” he said.

Though it wasn’t particularly enthusiastic, it was still a gesture of kindness.

Xu Zhiyi, now understanding a bit more about him, accepted the orange juice graciously without arguing.

Spending time with the boss by the sea, besides the view, the orange juice was the only diversion.

“It’s not work hours now,” Jiang Sixun started replying to other emails without looking up, “Don’t think of me as some kind of tyrannical boss who you can’t even use your phone around.”

“…”

A few minutes later, Xu Zhiyi took out her phone from her bag.

There were unread messages. Qi Zhengchen asked her: [How was the concert?] He had been extremely busy lately, focusing on impressing his parents to persuade them to transfer the overseas business to him, and thus hadn’t had time to visit her.

[When I’m not so busy, I’ll take you to see one.]

Xu Zhiyi: [I’ve taken a screenshot, so you can’t back out.]

Qi Zhengchen: [When have I ever gone back on my word?]

Xu Zhiyi replied with a snickering emoji: [There are quite a few. Want me to remind you?]

Qi Zhengchen laughed and quickly changed the topic: [Still in London?]

Xu Zhiyi: [I’ve come to Boston now, and I’m by the seaside.]

Qi Zhengchen’s call came in right after.

Xu Zhiyi didn’t answer immediately. She first put the call on silent and looked up to check if her boss was still busy.

Jiang Sixun noticed her cautious glance and said while replying to emails, “You can take your call. I’m just replying to a friend’s message, it won’t affect anything.”

Realizing he wasn’t working, Xu Zhiyi answered the call.

“Second Brother.”

Qi Zhengchen almost thought she wasn’t going to answer: “Why did it take so long? Do you need to get permission to answer a phone call?”

Xu Zhiyi: “…I’m having a work meal with my boss.”

Jiang Sixun looked up, surprised to hear she referred to this as a work meal.

Qi Zhengchen: “Why are you so afraid of Jiang Sixun? Is he going to eat you? Next time, you don’t need to ask him for permission to take my call.”

Xu Zhiyi replied properly: “I’m a temporary assistant.”

Qi Zhengchen laughed in frustration. “Alright, alright. You’re not having lobster noodles again, are you?”

“Mm.”

“If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were related to the restaurant owner, the way you always recommend those lobster noodles to everyone.”

“…”

The phone’s speaker was loud, and Jiang Sixun could hear clearly what was being said. He watched Xu Zhiyi, who seemed lost for words.

It appeared she often brought friends to this place; Qi Zhengchen had also been there, possibly more than once.

She had mentioned being very familiar with Boston and coming here often. He suddenly recalled that Qi Zhengchen’s alma mater was in Boston and he had graduated with a master’s degree two years ago.

The call ended after ten minutes, and both glasses of orange juice were finished. Jiang Sixun paid the bill, and they returned to the city.

After finishing all his work, he habitually browsed social media to check the day’s hot news.

Ning Yinqi had updated his status with a sunrise photo of a village.

Xu Zhiyi was the first to like and comment on it. They chatted back and forth in the comment section, and somehow their conversation shifted from the sunrise to lobster in Boston.

Jiang Sixun looked at her from the side; she was sitting upright, typing rapidly.

He realized that while she had nothing to say to him, she had endless topics to discuss with peers like Ning Yinqi.

He scrolled through Ning Yinqi’s posts, noting that she had commented on each one.

They hadn’t known each other before June, but she had even gone back to like his posts.

Curiously, he found Qi Zhengchen’s account.

Qi Zhengchen didn’t post often, maybe once every month or two, but every post had that familiar profile picture liking it.

She was quite enthusiastic about liking posts, always the first to support Qi Zhengchen and Ning Yinqi, and she didn’t miss any of Ning Yun’s posts either.

Jiang Sixun clicked on her main page; the last update was over two months ago.

[The day of a worker, bleached night violet.]

The accompanying picture was of her holding two taro-flavored ice creams.

Not understanding the meaning, he clicked a like.

When Xu Zhiyi finished her chat with Ning Yinqi, she saw the boss’s like and quietly exited social media, pretending she hadn’t seen it.

Back at the hotel, she received a call from He Yian.

August was ending, and school would start in two weeks.

The arrangement of her daughter’s room was nearly complete, just a few vases still on their way by air.

He Yian asked with concern, “Zhiyi, when does your internship at Yuanwei end?”

She probably wanted to know when she would return home, and surely intended to come to New York to pick her up.

The thought of her parents flying hours just to pick her up made Xu Zhiyi feel it was unnecessary. She deliberately extended her return time by a week: “The internship should end around the beginning of September.”

He Yian continued chatting, “Are you working at the hotel or the company?”

“At the hotel.” Xu Zhiyi emphasized, “It’s not busy right now.”

She wanted to keep the conversation going, not ready to hang up just yet.

Previously, she most wanted to chat with Xiao Meihua, but her work calls always came one after another, and they never managed to talk for long.

Now, she found herself wanting to be closer to He Yian.

As He Yian was about to speak, the secretary knocked on the office door. She didn’t say “come in” directly but got up to open the door, and said into the phone, “Do you have time for shopping on your business trip?”

Xu Zhiyi: “I just arrived today, so I’m not sure if the schedule is tight.”

She applied lotion with one hand and climbed onto the bed, leaving only the bedside lamp on.

He Yian opened the door and gestured to the secretary to be quiet while pointing at her phone.

The secretary understood and laid out the documents needing signatures on the desk.

While signing, He Yian said, “Your dad received last month’s bills. You only spent a little over two thousand dollars.” She smiled at her daughter, “If you keep spending so little, your dad will worry himself gray.”

Xu Zhiyi responded, trying to be considerate: “I’ll spend a bit more this month.”

Even though the other end was already very quiet, she still heard the rustling sound of paper turning. “Mom, are you busy?”

He Yian’s tone was natural: “No, I’m just looking at the bills your dad gave me.”

She knew her daughter’s temperament well—if she mentioned signing documents, her daughter would surely end the call out of consideration.

Mentioning the bills seemed to have brought the topic back around.

Xu Zhiyi wracked her brain: “Mom, does my brother have a girlfriend?” She had nothing much to talk about with her parents, but she could discuss other people.

“He probably doesn’t. I’m not very sure. You could ask him another day.”

“Mm, I’ll ask him when I get back from the business trip and have dinner with him.”

“What about you? Is there someone you like?” He Yian asked gently, “I’ll keep it a secret from your dad.”

Xu Zhiyi hesitated for a moment: “Yes. But…”

He Yian didn’t press further, patiently listening.

Xu Zhiyi’s mind wandered for half a second: “It’s probably not possible.”

“Well, pursue it when it becomes possible. If you don’t know how to chase a guy, you can ask Sixun and your brother for advice.”

“…”

She quickly responded, “Mm, okay.”

The conversation between mother and daughter finally felt less dry. Although there were still moments of awkward silence, the fact that her daughter was beginning to share secrets brought He Yian an unspoken sense of satisfaction.

After hanging up, she sent a message to her husband: [Just called Zhiyi. I was worried that the issue in London might have upset her and created some distance, but I was overthinking. She didn’t mind at all.]

Xu Xiangyi: [Zhiyi is naturally considerate and understanding, and part of that is thanks to Sixun.]

He Yian couldn’t help but marvel at how Sixun wasn’t their own child.

---

On the third day in Boston, Xu Zhiyi met Cohen, who was also on a business trip.

Cohen looked Xu Zhiyi up and down and asked, “When did you get a new assistant?” He turned to the man beside him.

Jiang Sixun: “Xu’s sister, interning with me.”

He made the introductions.

Cohen looked at Xu Zhiyi again, noting that she did indeed resemble Xu Heng.

He was here to discuss work with Jiang Sixun. The company Jiang Sixun was interested in investing in was a tech medical company run by a woman named Li Ke. Eighteen years ago, she immigrated from Hong Kong to the U.S. Her family was in the medical equipment business, and she was extremely interested in 3D printing, so she started her own company, KEWE Technology.

Li Ke, now 48, has been married and divorced twice, with two children—one ten years old and the other only six. She raises her children as a single mother while running a successful business. Her ability to manage and her success are admirable.

“Li Ke’s management skills are unquestionable. When her family business faced bankruptcy, she was the one who saved it.”

Cohen continued, “Not only Yuanwei but other venture capital firms are also interested in investing in KEWE. Li Ke is also carefully selecting partners.”

It’s a two-way choice, so progress might be a bit slow.

Jiang Sixun: “Try to facilitate the cooperation between Yuanwei and KEWE.”

He valued KEWE not only because of Li Ke’s deep expertise in medical equipment but also due to the capability of Li Ke and her team.

After Cohen finished his coffee and left, Jiang Sixun’s phone vibrated—it was Xu Heng calling, asking if Xu Zhiyi was nearby.

“She is.” As he spoke, Jiang Sixun took out a bone china cup to pour coffee.

Xu Heng: “Find a place to take the call.”

Jiang Sixun sipped his coffee slowly and walked outside, “What’s the matter?”

“My mom wants to confirm when Zhiyi’s internship ends.”

It seemed that Zhiyi didn’t want her parents to come pick her up, so Jiang Sixun decided not to reveal too much: “I’m not sure when it ends. I’m going by what your sister says now.”

“…” Xu Heng was left speechless for a moment.

Jiang Sixun: “I’m busy.” Before hanging up, he remembered, “By the way, I’m heading back to Hong Kong in a few days. If you need help with the mix-up, just let me know.”

After ending the call and returning to the temporary office, Xu Zhiyi had completed the tasks he assigned: “Mr. Jiang, come take a look.”

She was sitting in his office chair and was about to stand up—

“Stay seated.” Jiang Sixun approached with a coffee cup.

Xu Zhiyi sat back down and pulled the progress bar on the page to the top.

Jiang Sixun started reviewing the data in the spreadsheet, suddenly pausing. He set the coffee cup down, leaned slightly on her chair with one hand, and pointed out a data point that needed adjustment, explaining the standards for the changes.

“Got it.” Xu Zhiyi made the annotations.

Jiang Sixun maintained this position and continued reviewing, making some simple calculations and typing with one hand.

She sat while he stood, creating an overwhelming pressure. Being this close, his hormonal presence felt like a rising tide, waves crashing over her, filling her nostrils with a cold sensation.

Xu Zhiyi held her breath for a moment, knowing she couldn’t stop breathing.

Calming herself, she picked up the coffee next to her to relieve the pressure.

Jiang Sixun glanced at her, genuinely fearing she might drink his coffee, and promptly said, “This cup is mine.” He had already taken two sips, while her own coffee cup was on her left.

Xu Zhiyi: “…”

She didn’t put down the coffee but stubbornly handed it to him.

It seemed she was determined to save face, not because she had taken the wrong cup but because she was serving him coffee.

Jiang Sixun smiled as he took the coffee cup from her hand: “Thank you.”

He took a sip and then held onto the cup, not putting it down.