Chapter 13

Xu Yuan’s words were truly suggestive, and even Meng Zhengrong, after listening, took almost half a minute to regain his composure.

Yes, his birthday was coming up soon, but as Xu Yuan had mentioned, she didn’t even know about it. So how could an ordinary employee in the company be aware of it?

In this social circle, many matters were beyond one’s control when it came to gossip, and at least at this moment, Meng Zhengrong found himself unwittingly led by Xu Yuan’s train of thought.

“Which employee?” Meng Zhengrong furrowed his brow and asked.

Xu Yuan looked at Meng Zhengrong in surprise and said, “I don’t know.”

In fact, if Meng Zhengrong were to inquire, he would find out that she had already figured out who that person was. However, in his presence, she had to pretend not to know.

“But I do need to know your birthday so I can prepare,” Xu Yuan continued. She had already revealed this matter to Meng Zhengrong, and no matter how Bai Wei explained it later, he already had a preconceived notion. In this way, her objective would be achieved.

Now there was another important matter at hand – Meng Zhengrong’s birthday.

Although their relationship was not intimate, they were, after all, nominally married. Even if it was just for show, she had to make sure everything was done beautifully.

Meng Zhengrong glanced at her and said, “It’s next Wednesday. You don’t need to bother with getting me a birthday gift. I’d be happy if we could have a meal together.”

Compared to women, men are often less enthusiastic about gifts. Moreover, men like Meng Zhengrong have everything they want, so they don’t have much interest in gifts. However, he knew that women often desire to prepare some kind of surprise, and with so many things on his plate right now, the thought of acting surprised and touched by receiving a gift was exhausting. So, what he said at the moment was sincere.

“Do not attempt to prepare any surprises for me. Just having a meal together is enough to make me happy.”

Xu Yuan was not insensitive; she could tell that Meng Zhengrong was being genuine. “Really, no need to prepare a birthday gift?” she asked.

To be honest, she didn’t want to prepare one either. She didn’t have the time or the inclination for it now. Meng Zhengrong’s wealth and status meant that he could obtain whatever he wanted, making gift-giving less appealing. However, Xu Yuan decided to respect his wishes.

“Okay, then I won’t prepare anything,” she replied, relieved to avoid the hassle.

In the past, when she served the emperor, she put a lot of effort into finding interesting gifts, and it took a toll on her. Now, although Meng Zhengrong had an imperial aura, she didn’t want to go out of her way to please him. With the emperor, she was willingly a servant, but with others… she didn’t feel the same obligation.

Seeing Xu Yuan’s straightforward response, Meng Zhengrong found it a bit strange. He had achieved his goal, so why did he feel a slight… unease? Maybe it was just a fleeting sensation.

Meng Zhengrong quickly adjusted his mindset. Not having to play along with a charade was much more relaxing. It was a good thing that she could understand his words, right?

Both of them left work on time, and it was rush hour. The traffic was congested, and they had been stuck for over ten minutes. Meng Zhengrong made a spontaneous suggestion, “How about we have dinner outside? By the time we finish dinner, the traffic should have eased.”

Xu Yuan didn’t have any objections; having a meal was better than being stuck in traffic.

They got out of the car, leaving the driver behind in disarray. Meng Zhengrong remembered a nearby alley with a small restaurant that had been there for years. It served homely but delicious dishes. Xu Yuan followed him through a series of turns until they finally arrived at the small restaurant.

The restaurant was narrow with only three or four tables, but it was well-kept, and each table had a small potted plant, creating a pleasant atmosphere.

They ordered a dish of spicy fish head, a stir-fried meat dish, and a garlic pea shoots soup. The food arrived quickly, and Xu Yuan found that Meng Zhengrong’s praise for this restaurant was well-deserved. The food was delicious in terms of taste, aroma, and presentation.

As the evening darkened, Meng Zhengrong saw that Xu Yuan was enjoying her meal and thought it was a good opportunity for a heart-to-heart conversation. He said, “Xiao Yuan, I’m thirty-one years old this year. It may not be considered young anymore. Before we got engaged, I had a gap of almost a year and a half when I wasn’t in a relationship. You probably know about my past girlfriends.”

Xu Yuan had guessed that he was going to talk about that, so she nodded, “Yes, I know.”

A man like Meng Zhengrong, with his qualities, had always been in demand, and she didn’t expect him to have a completely blank romantic history at his age.

“In the time before our engagement, I had past relationships, but you don’t need to worry about them because I’ve become a stranger to all of them in this lifetime. There will never be any contact again. Also,” he paused and poured her a cup of tea, “I strongly dislike mixing personal and professional matters. So, in the company, there are no romantic entanglements between me and the employee. I hope you can trust me on this.”

Meng Zhengrong was speaking the truth. He had a reputation for keeping personal and professional lives separate. Even though his secretaries were young and attractive, they dared not have any ulterior motives because they knew that if he found out, they would be asked to leave.

Of course, Xu Yuan was an exception; she was his wife, and her presence at Meng Corporation was reasonable. There was no need to worry about mixing personal and professional matters in her case.

At the beginning, Xu Yuan had already guessed that the woman in question probably had a secret crush on Meng Zhengrong. He might not even know her name.

However, Xu Yuan had no intention of personally handling this matter. Her past experiences had taught her that it was best to stay out of situations when it wasn’t necessary to intervene.

By telling Meng Zhengrong about this, she wanted to see how he would handle it.

“I naturally trust you,” Xu Yuan looked at Meng Zhengrong. “It’s just that even the least significant employees in the company know your birthday, and I didn’t. It makes me feel embarrassed.”

The use of “least significant” was a clever choice of words.

With such an understated dig, Xu Yuan felt quite satisfied with herself.

Meng Zhengrong reassured her, “No need to feel embarrassed. It’s normal that you didn’t know.”

He didn’t know her birthday either. Of course, he couldn’t say that out loud. However, her comment did remind him that he needed to ask Xu Nuo about some details regarding Xu Yuan. At the very least, he should remember her birthday, especially since their first year of marriage was coming up.

Men might not care much about their own birthdays, but women did, especially their first birthday after marriage; it was significant. If he didn’t know and didn’t prepare a surprise gift, Xu Yuan would likely have some opinions about it. This matter could even become a long-lasting memory for her.

Their dinner was pleasant. When they got back in the car, the traffic had cleared up. They returned home without any delays. Xu Yuan brought some work documents with her to review, and Meng Zhengrong didn’t disturb her. Instead, he went to his study and made a call to the security department of the company. Within half an hour, the surveillance footage was retrieved.

As Meng Zhengrong watched the footage, he realized that he had no recollection of the woman who had made the phone call.

Since Xu Yuan had brought up this matter, it meant that she cared about it. He understood that and knew he needed to handle it properly. Even small issues could turn into big problems if not addressed.