Chapter 161 Bai Yinnian Extra: Intern (4)
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Just as Jian Chi’s foot touched the ground after exiting the car, Ji Huaisi pulled him close. It happened so fast that Jian Chi barely had time to react, just following his instincts. Ji Huaisi’s calm eyes met Bai Yinnian’s composed face. After a few seconds, Ji Huaisi spoke, “Mr. Bai, didn’t expect to run into you here.”
These words, in a different tone, lost the subtle friendliness and revealed a lack of warmth. Bai Yinnian, sitting in the car, met Ji Huaisi’s gaze without showing any signs of inferiority. Instead, he smiled faintly.
“Me neither.”
His tone was calm, and the smile didn’t reach his eyes.
Ji Huaisi’s lips slightly moved, and the stagnant air from a moment ago seemed like a fleeting illusion. He heard Ji Huaisi asking, “Did you two also meet on the way? What a coincidence.”
Bai Yinnian, with one hand on the steering wheel, casually tapped his index finger. “Work’s done. I’m giving Jian Chi a ride home. His internship company happens to be under my company. Didn’t he tell you?”
The sunlight outside, now unobstructed, spilled onto them, but Jian Chi shivered. Ji Huaisi’s hand, holding Jian Chi’s, exerted a bit more force, signaling something ominous to Jian Chi. It interrupted the silent air, “Mr. Bai is my current boss. I only found out after joining the company and seeing him. Quite a coincidence.”
“You didn’t mention it to me.” Ji Huaisi’s tone carried a hint of disappointment, but compared to true accusations, the turned head and lowered tone showed their intimacy more clearly.
Jian Chi did want to tell Ji Huaisi about this but kept forgetting, considering it wasn’t urgent. Who would have thought they would unexpectedly meet under these circumstances? So he shifted the topic, “How did you end up downstairs in my apartment?”
“I initially went to your company. They said you and the boss were out for work today, so I thought I’d wait for you here,” Ji Huaisi said. “When they mentioned someone surnamed Bai, I had a guess, just didn’t expect it to be true.”
This explained why Ji Huaisi’s reaction to Bai Yinnian was distant rather than surprised. Jian Chi was about to speak, but Bai Yinnian’s sudden voice interrupted, “I have something to attend to. I’ll take my leave. Don’t forget to submit the report on Monday.” A brief pause, with a subtle deeper meaning, “If you don’t understand anything, contact me anytime, or listen to that pen.”
Jian Chi didn’t fully grasp the meaning in the last sentence. The rising car window blocked Bai Yinnian’s face, and the black car gradually became a dot in his field of vision. Going upstairs and taking out his keys, Jian Chi stepped inside without changing his shoes. Ji Huaisi closed the door with one hand and, with the other, pulled Jian Chi into the narrow space between the door and their bodies. All of this happened in just two seconds, eyes locking onto each other.
“If I hadn’t run into you just now, were you not planning to tell me that Bai Yinnian is your boss?”
Jian Chi could now sensitively perceive Ji Huaisi’s changing emotions. Compared to before, Ji Huaisi seldom deliberately concealed his fluctuations, except in front of outsiders.
Although it might sound bad, the occasional display of Ji Huaisi’s possessiveness was quite cute.
“I wanted to tell you the first day I met Bai Yinnian, but I was afraid you’d link it to what the Bai family did before. I was overly worried,” Jian Chi said while observing Ji Huaisi’s expression. “Are you angry?”
They locked eyes for a few seconds. Just as Jian Chi was about to say “I’m sorry,” Ji Huaisi surrendered with a smile. Closing the distance, their noses were about to touch. “Actually, when you first told me about the internship, I checked all the information about that company, including Bai Yinnian being part of it.”
This unexpected answer left Jian Chi genuinely stunned. “You already knew?”
Affirmative response.
“By that time, you had already received the interview notice. I knew you were happy and cared a lot about this internship opportunity. Saying it would only make you uncomfortable, so I pretended not to know. The company is so big, and the job positions are different. I thought the chance of you meeting Bai Yinnian was minimal, but unfortunately, I guessed wrong.”
Suddenly, Jian Chi vaguely understood why Ji Huaisi insisted on picking him up every day—a trivial and unnecessary request. A mixed feeling of amusement and being touched emerged. Ji Huaisi chose to conceal it because of his feelings, and Jian Chi also delayed informing Ji Huaisi out of consideration for his emotions. This unspoken understanding led to today’s misunderstanding.
Jian Chi held Ji Huaisi’s other hand, intending to comfort him. It was a small signal between them. If he suddenly pinched Ji Huaisi’s hand, it meant something had changed. For example, the displeasure Ji Huaisi just showed. However, as soon as Jian Chi touched it, Ji Huaisi seized all five fingers, exchanging a kiss, leaving Jian Chi with no room to think about other things. All senses were firmly controlled by Ji Huaisi’s breath, and in the chaotic movements, Jian Chi didn’t even know where the phone had fallen.
No one paid any attention.
On the following Monday, three days later, Jian Chi submitted the completed report. It wasn’t a formal assessment, and he wanted to use this report to test his abilities. So, without asking anyone for help, he only listened to a few sentences he hadn’t had time to record before. Placing the document on Bai Yinnian’s desk, Jian Chi planned to leave quietly.
He didn’t succeed.
The sound of the pen scratching across the paper abruptly stopped. Bai Yinnian put down the pen, placed the document Jian Chi handed over to the side, didn’t open it immediately, and instead looked at Jian Chi. His experienced gaze locked onto Jian Chi’s approaching steps to the door. “Did you find it difficult?”
“Not really.”
“You didn’t come to ask me, I guess it’s not challenging for you.”
Jian Chi couldn’t determine the emphasis of this sentence, but it reminded him of something. He took out the recording pen from his inner pocket. “Your pen.”
In the split second before placing it on the table, Bai Yinnian pinched the other end of the pen, obstructing Jian Chi’s movement. “It’s yours.”
Jian Chi was briefly stunned, faced with this not-so-precious and somewhat strange gift. He didn’t know how to refuse. Bai Yinnian seemed to sense this, and the fleeting smile in his eyes disappeared. Without giving any chance for refusal, he said, “Remember to carry it with you.”
When he let go, Bai Yinnian’s fingertip lightly brushed over the back of Jian Chi’s hand. The unintentional touch caused a brief moment of strangeness in Jian Chi. Before he could think deeply, he had already put the recording pen back into his inner pocket. Bai Yinnian’s lifted gaze lingered on Jian Chi’s neck for a few seconds before calmly moving away, as if it were a meaningless gesture.
“Are you back together with him?”
This question stopped Jian Chi. The sudden inquiry was clearly beyond the scope of work. After a pause, he answered, “Yes.”
“Do I need to congratulate you? I didn’t get a chance to say it last time we met.”
Despite a lingering sense of strangeness, Jian Chi still replied with a “Thank you.”
Bai Yinnian asked, “I remember Shao Hang and the others are continuing their studies at Boros University, the same university as you. Are you still in contact with them?”
This question left Jian Chi even more uncertain about how to answer. Compared to others, Bai Yinnian, who knew about his past, was harder to deceive. As he pondered, his heart beat a bit faster. Just then, the phone on the desk rang. Jian Chi seized the opportunity to request leaving, and Bai Yinnian didn’t stop him. While answering the call on speaker, Bai Yinnian’s gaze remained fixed on the direction Jian Chi was leaving, with a thoughtful depth in his lowered eyes.
Back at his workstation, Jian Chi still felt a bit jittery. He couldn’t lie to Bai Yinnian with a straight face, but telling the truth was even more impossible. It was not something easy for anyone to accept, and it could be considered shocking. Most importantly, Bai Yinnian’s inquiry seemed to be tinged with some impure motives, making it difficult for Jian Chi to speak during their eye contact.
To relax his tense mood, Jian Chi turned on his computer. The chat icon in the taskbar was blinking, indicating a small group formed by colleagues from the legal department. Despite being an intern, they didn’t overlook Jian Chi. On his first day, Jian Chi was immediately added to the group and rarely participated in the chat.
It seems they were discussing whether to organize a weekend outing together. Jian Chi noticed someone asking if he wanted to join the activity, and immediately someone else followed up with a question. Jian Chi replied with a sentence: “Where to?”
: Rare to see Little Jian slacking off, screenshot for memory.
: It’s not decided yet. You can also help us vote. The weather is so good these days; it’s a waste not to go out and play.
: If you feel lonely, you can bring friends. We always split expenses equally, so don’t worry about the cost. It’s more lively with more people.
It’s strange, Jian Chi’s originally ordinary social connections miraculously improved after coming to Baros. No need to say much about university; what surprised him even more was that temporary colleagues were exceptionally friendly. Jian Chi thought for a moment, didn’t take much time, looked at the bright sunshine outside the window, and typed a ‘okay’.
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