Chapter 46
Chapter 46
The executives didn’t expect that President Tan, who could make them tremble with a single look, was actually henpecked.
If you have the ability to continue talking, what is wrong with college students?
Why did you pull away as soon as you saw your husband?
“Do you have any other complaints? What’s wrong with being a college student?” President Tan said, ignoring the incredulous expressions of the executives.
“I don’t care if you hire outside help or pay other employees higher wages to end their vacations early. I want results in three days,” President Tan said. The executives had achieved their purpose, and left happily, wishing to kowtow to their lovely little boss.
“Why are you here?” Tan Yue asked as he walked over.
“I’m here to bring you food,” Song Linchu said with a smile, holding up the lunch box in his hand. “Gege, I heard everything.”
“…” Tan Yue opened the office door and forcibly changed the subject. “Come in.”
Although Song Linchu was prepared for Tan Yue’s office to be luxurious, he was still shocked when he entered.
Located at the edge of the building, Tan Yue’s office had two floor-to-ceiling windows, and being on the 38th floor, one could almost overlook half of Haikou, which gave off an extremely high-end feeling.
There were two small rooms inside the office, one being a gym, and the other being a lounge.
No wonder Tan Yue never went to exercise but still had a good figure – he was secretly working out his abs at the company every day!
Butler Liu went into the lounge and set up the food on the table. Song Linchu noticed that the lounge was like a suite with a small dining area outside and a bedroom inside with a bed for resting.
Luxury, it was too luxurious!
Tan Yue washed his hands and sat down at the table, asking Song Linchu, “Have you eaten?”
“I ate a lot of desserts in the afternoon, so I’m not hungry. I’ll eat when I get back. Gege, you go ahead and eat,” Song Linchu said.
“Let’s eat together,” Tan Yue said.
Butler Liu added, “ I saw that Master did not eat a lot today, so I asked the kitchen to prepare a few more dishes. The food is enough for the two of you.”
Since that was the case, Song Linchu also sat down, and Butler Liu brought another pair of chopsticks. The two of them had dinner together.
Tan Yue had just eaten two mouthfuls of rice when someone came looking for him with an urgent matter. He had to get up and go handle it first before returning to the table.
Song Linchu asked in confusion, “Gege, you’re working so hard, and I can’t help at all.”
Tan Yuepaused as he picked up his chopsticks and said, “You’ve already helped a lot.”
“Really?,” Song Linchu smiled. “Gege, you don’t need to comfort me.”
“I’m not. You provided the news that they leaked information, which is the greatest help.”
Song Linchu suddenly realized that it was indeed the case.
After giving it some thought, he realized that the two people in the lounge had only revealed their secret because they had no idea that someone was in the bathroom. This mistake had led to their exposure, and now Tan Yue had a chance to salvage the situation. Otherwise, they would have never noticed it. When the product was about to go online, they would have been caught off guard by their competitors, causing incalculable losses.
Song Linchu was not modest at all and said, “Maybe I was going to win the first-prize award that day, but all my luck was spent there. Now I’m just a big loser.”
Tan Yue replied, “When everything is settled, I’ll buy you a car.”
Song Linchu was stunned for a moment before he realized that Tan Yue was offering to give him a car. He quickly waved his hand and said, “No, no. I don’t even have a driver’s license.”
“Go get one. It’s simple,” Tan Yue said.
“I’ll think about it,” Song Linchu replied vaguely.
He had to leave to practice driving but he had been lazy lately and didn’t want to move from the house.
Tan Yue knew that he was a bit of a homebody and not fond of exercising, so he shook his head helplessly. However, he didn’t reveal his thoughts. After all, they had a driver, so it didn’t matter if he couldn’t drive.
Tan Yue was genuinely busy, so he ate much faster than usual. In less than five minutes, he put down his chopsticks and said to Song Linchu, “Take your time and eat.”
Song Linchu noticed that Tan Yue hadn’t eaten much and was afraid that he would be hungry later, so he said, “This fish fillet is delicious. Gege, have some more.”
As he spoke, he picked up a piece of fish fillet and put it in Tan Yue’s bowl.
Tan Yue hesitated for a moment, but he picked up his chopsticks and started eating. Butler Liu happened to see this scene and was surprised. Although their master wasn’t obsessed with cleanliness, he wouldn’t eat food that had been touched by someone else’s chopsticks.
‘Too intimate,’ he thought. ‘It looks like the so-called marriage agreement with Song Linchu will soon turn into a real one.’
Of course, Butler Liu was unaware that his seemingly cold and distant master and his partner had already exchanged a kiss during a quiet night, while the other party was sound asleep.
Tan Yue ate a little more, but probably lacked the appetite so Song Linchu didn’t force him. He soon finished his meal and once he walked out of the lounge, he found that someone was reporting to Tan Yue again.
When the person saw him come out, they automatically stopped talking.
Tan Yue’s expression remained unchanged. “Continue.”
The person was surprised for a moment, then said, “Director Zhou said that his stomach wasn’t feeling well that day, and he left for 10 minutes. He didn’t lock his computer, and that’s when Lili slipped in. He claims to have no knowledge of how she managed to copy the data. We investigated him, and he has no debt or urgent need for money. His condition has been stable, and Wanou’s salary and shares are generous, so the probability of him being the spy is very low. Someone else must be involved.”
Computers belonging to managers and above at Wanou are encrypted in a special way, and it’s not as simple as copying and pasting. It’s quite suspicious how that woman was able to easily copy the data that day.
Therefore, she was just a scapegoat who did the most dangerous job without knowledge. Someone else was the real traitor.
Naturally, the project leader was the first suspect, but he had ample evidence to prove that he had no motive. Moreover, if he really wanted to leak secrets, there was no need to make it so complicated. He could have done it without anyone knowing.
The situation suddenly became more complicated.
Tan Yue pondered for a moment and asked, “Have you found out who’s behind this?”
“We conducted an in-depth investigation of the company and found that it appears to be part of Rongheng. However, it has four equal shareholders who collectively own 60% of the shares. We discovered that the real controller behind these four shareholders is the same person, Tan Zhao.”
Tan Yue narrowed his eyes.
Tan Zhao, his half-brother.
Ever since he became the patriarch of the family, he had suppressed his brother, who should have been the heir, and his eccentric and biased father, completely cutting off communication with them.
Tan Yue knew that the other party would not give up easily because he had always been on guard against him. However, he didn’t expect to be played by him here.
Well, he thought the other party wanted more and was going to make a bigger move.
As it turns out, he overestimated the other party.
After several years, his older brother still hadn’t made any progress.
Tan Yue lowered his head in contemplation for a moment, seemingly having come up with a solution and after giving the man some instructions, asked him to leave.
Song Linchu had no idea who Tan Zhao was, but he knew that the Tan family was a prominent clan and that it was probably associated with someone who wanted to rebel.
He couldn’t be of any help here, so just as he was about to tell Tan Yue that he was leaving, someone knocked on the door and came in asking him to sign some documents.
“This is the packaging for a new product that needs to be redesigned. However, the relevant designers have gone abroad on their honeymoon, so we had to outsource the work. We need you to sign off on it.”
Tan Yue furrowed his brows. “Why is it this company again?”
“They’re the only ones accepting orders for the New Year. You know how it is… it’s only the second day of the new year.”
Tan Yue flipped the document over on his desk, refusing to sign it. Instead, he said, “Tell Mr. Lu to come see me.”
“Yes, President Tan.” The man didn’t dare say another word, amd ran away with his tail tucked between his legs.
As soon as the man left, Song Linchu approached Tan Yue, who was now frowning as he scrolled through his contact list on his phone.
“Gege.”
Tan Yue lifted his head and saw Song Linchu. His expression relaxed slightly, and he said in a low voice, “I have another meeting later. You should go back first.”
But Song Linchu said, “What kind of packaging do you need? Can I try designing it?”
Tan Yue was taken aback. “You can design?”
“I think so…” Song Linchu didn’t want to overpromise. He wasn’t trained in this field, and jewelry design had nothing to do with packaging design. He blushed a little and said, “You can consider it as an additional option.”
Tan Yue obviously had two completely different attitudes when dealing with his own college student versus other students.
With his own, he had to give them opportunities and couldn’t dampen their enthusiasm. Even if the result was unsatisfactory, he still had to praise them. Tan Yue was no longer the crude, straight steel man he used to be. He had a doting heart.
He hooked his lips and said, ”Hmm, I’ll have someone send you the relevant requirements and materials later.”
Tan Yue let Song Linchu use his laptop. He didn’t take up much space and could sit next to Tan Yue and work.
Tan Yue made a call, and someone quickly added Song Linchu on WeChat and sent him the necessary documents.
Although the requirements were challenging, Song Linchu felt he could do it.
This was the first time he could be of use to Tan Yue, and he was full of enthusiasm. He immediately started working on the design.
After meeting with Mr. Lu, Tan Yue had several more meetings to attend. During the break, he messaged Song Linchu, telling him to rest in the lounge and that he would call him when he was ready to leave.
Song Linchu replied with an okay and yawned before continuing to work on the sketches.
By the time Tan Yue returned to the office rubbing his throbbing temples, it was almost 1 o’clock. He opened the door and found Song Linchu lying on the desk, fast asleep.
He still held a pencil In his hand, and a piece of white paper lay spread out on the desk. It was obvious that he was more accustomed to sketching than to digital design.
Tan Yue walked in quietly, careful not to wake him up.
The white light cast a soft shadow on the peaceful sleeping face of the young man, outlining his facial features more prominently and making him look like a quiet sleeping beauty waiting for his prince to wake him up.
Tan Yue reached out and took the pencil from his hand. Then he couldn’t resist bending down and planting a kiss on the young man’s slightly parted lips.
Unfortunately, fairy tales are deceiving. Sleeping Beauty was not awakened by a kiss, but instead, he rubbed his mouth with annoyance and turned over to continue sleeping.
Tan Yue: “…”
Tan Yue nudged him, “Linchu.”
Possibly because his sleeping position was uncomfortable, Song Linchu was quickly awakened. He didn’t even know how he fell asleep. He yawned and asked groggily, “Is it time to go back?”
“Yeah.”
Song Linchu rubbed his eyes and looked dazed, obviously still trying to wake up.
Seeing him in a daze like this, Tan Yue’s tiredness from working overtime was alleviated a lot. He couldn’t help but reach out and rub the young man’s head before turning to shut down the computer.
Song Linchu sat there for a while before finally coming to his senses. He stood up from the chair, pulled it back, and was about to leave when he felt a needle-like pain in his leg.
He let out a painful “hiss” and fell back into the chair.
“What’s wrong?” Tan Yue was shutting down the computer when he heard him.
Song Linchu smiled awkwardly and said, “My foot is numb.”
Tan Yue walked over, “Why didn’t you go to the lounge and sleep?”
“I don’t even know how I…”
Song Linchu’s words suddenly stopped.
Tan Yue half-squatted in front of him, reached out, and helped him rub his numb leg.
The man’s hands were like magic. The foot that was originally piercingly painful was suddenly greeted with a stimulation like an electric shock. Wherever he pressed, a current of electricity would surge through his limbs and spine, rushing straight to the crown of his head, even his scalp was numb.
Song Linchu couldn’t stand this kind of stimulation and reflexively wanted to pull his leg back.
“Don’t move.” Tan Yue said softly, still grabbing his leg.
Song Linchu dared not move.
Tan Yue continued to help him massage and said, “You take the packaging box design work home, don’t come with me tomorrow.”
He would definitely have to work overtime every day, and even work overnight. He didn’t want Song Linchu to stay up with him.
“Oh, okay.”
Song Linchu responded absent-mindedly, not really knowing what Tan Yue had said.
All his attention was on his leg.
It was the first time Song Linchu realized that his leg was so sensitive. Wherever Tan Yue pressed, the sensation of numbness and tingling would follow, spreading through his leg and even the whole body. He was completely overwhelmed with sensation.
After a moment, he suddenly grabbed Tan Yue’s hand and his leg slipped out of his grasp, closing tightly together.
“Mm?” Tan Yue lifted his gaze to look at him.
Song Linchu turned his head, avoiding eye contact with Tan Yue, revealing his embarrassment through his flushed neck and earlobes.
“It’s fine now,” Song Linchu said in a low voice.
Tan Yue was about to ask how it was so quick, but his gaze fell on the young man’s awkward attempts to conceal his embarrassment, and his words got stuck in his mouth.
Indeed, he was still a young man with hot blood. He could react to such a light touch.
Tan Yue couldn’t help but let out a low chuckle.
Song Linchu’s face became so red and he wished he could find a hole to crawl into.
He turned his body to the side and glared at the straight steel man, saying, “Don’t laugh!”
Song Linchu was in despair. Tan Yue had only touched his leg a few times, without even making skin contact, yet his third leg was somehow so excited that it had to join in on the fun at this moment.
He was too ashamed to face anyone.
If there was a train, he would jump on it and run away overnight.
Tan Yue stifled his laughter, and the office suddenly became silent. Under this tranquility, an indescribable ambiguity and restlessness permeated between the two of them, filling every corner of the office.
Under the illumination of the fluorescent lights, it felt like the temperature was rising, as if they had been steaming.
Tan Yue, who originally had no other thoughts, suddenly felt a tightness in his throat.
With a low voice, he asked, “Do you want me to…”
Song Linchu realized what he was about to ask and immediately interrupted him, “No!”
“…”
Song Linchu lay on the desk, almost pleading in a hushed tone, “Gege, please let me calm down for a bit, just for a bit.”
Seeing how embarrassed he was, Tan Yue shook his head helplessly and said “okay.” He mercifully let him go and got up to continue shutting down his computer.
Song Linchu felt his face burning and turned his body to gradually let the damn third leg shrink back to normal.
Fortunately, it was only a momentary impulse, and he did not have that kind of desire in his heart. He emptied his mind and, in no time, his body returned to normal.
But psychologically, he could never recover. Song Linchu had already shut himself off and when they arrived home, he immediately rushed upstairs.
As long as I can escape fast enough, embarrassment won’t catch up with me.
Butler Liu, who lived on the first floor, heard their return and got up from bed. He only caught a glimpse of Song Linchu’s silhouette and was astonished at the speed of this intellectually advanced yet physically simple human being.
He couldn’t help but worry and asked, “What happened to Little Lin?”
Tan Yue was obviously in a good mood. Even his usually indifferent face was now adorned with a smile.
His voice was laced with a laugh, “He went to look for a turtle shell.”
Butler Liu was confused, “Why would he need to look for a turtle shell?”
Tan Yue took off his coat, “Probably to help with his leg numbness.”
Butler Liu: “…?”
Song Linchu had come back downstairs to retrieve his laptop and script, which he had left on the back seat of Tan Yue’s car. He heard Tan Yue’s response and nearly stumbled down the stairs in disbelief.
This stinky straight steel man!
Because of this leg numbness incident, Song Linchu felt embarrassed and avoided Tan Yue for several days. However, it wasn’t like he had many opportunities to see Tan Yue anyway. Tan Yue had been working overtime since the second day of the New Year and often stayed up all night, sleeping for a maximum of four hours a day or even less.
Even though Tan Yue appeared calm in front of him, Song Linchu could see that he was not only under work pressure, but also under psychological stress.
Song Linchu felt both distressed and worried. Could his body really withstand such intense overtime work?
Unexpectedly, Song Linchu’s worries became a reality this time.