Chapter 32: Small gift

“President Shen.”

“Hmm?”

“Do you really think I’m the kind of person who would say something like that?”

Shen Huaixue froze for a moment, then laughed out loud.

“Lin Jianqing, I’ve noticed you’ve been pretty sharp-tongued lately.”

“I learned it from you.”

“Then I suppose I taught well.”

“I don’t take that as a compliment, President Shen.”

Shen Huaixue seemed to be in a good mood. She closed the documents in her hand, stood up, walked around the desk, and approached him.

Lin Jianqing instinctively stepped back a little. Shen Huaixue stopped and looked down at him.

She was naturally half a head taller than Lin Jianqing. Standing close like this, that natural sense of pressure came back. Lin Jianqing had to lift his eyes slightly to meet her gaze. He really didn’t like the feeling this height difference gave him.

Especially since Shen Huaixue always liked to deliberately exploit it. Sure enough, she looked at him and suddenly said slowly:

“Hmm… after eating breakfast, you do look a bit better.”

“Fresh.”

“But still thin.”

Her gaze moved from Lin Jianqing’s shoulders down to his waist, as if appraising an item that needed resizing.

Lin Jianqing frowned.

“Can you not look at me like that?”

“Like what?”

“Like I’m a clothes rack.”

Shen Huaixue laughed.

“Well, you’re pretty self-aware. Of course I hope you’ll gain some weight, otherwise you’ll need padding for your chest when you wear women’s clothes later.”

After saying that, Shen Huaixue reached out with a mischievous look and rubbed her hand against his chest a few times.

“Shen Huaixue!”

“Hmm?”

“You!!!” After hearing Shen Huaixue’s words, Lin Jianqing nearly choked with anger.

“Hey, hey, don’t get mad.”

Shen Huaixue turned around, picked up a bag from beside the sofa, and handed it to him.

Lin Jianqing glanced down. The bag wasn’t big, but it felt high-quality.

He didn’t take it immediately.

“What is this?”

“Shoes I got for you.”

“Shoes?”

“Mm.”

Her tone was natural.

“Your shoes are too old. As your boss, I naturally have to look out for my employee.”

Lin Jianqing was taken aback. He instinctively looked down at his own shoes.

These shoes had indeed been worn for a long time—the edges were a bit frayed, and the soles weren’t in great shape. But they were still wearable. At least Lin Jianqing thought they were still fine.

“I don’t need them.”

He refused almost immediately, because just from the packaging, Lin Jianqing couldn’t guarantee there weren’t some strange shoes inside.

For example… the kind of exaggerated high heels.

Shen Huaixue seemed to have expected him to say that. Her expression showed no surprise.

“I’m not asking for your opinion. Take it.”

Lin Jianqing still didn’t move.

Shen Huaixue looked down at him, her tone light.

“Don’t misunderstand. It’s not a gift.”

“Then what is it?” The more Shen Huaixue’s ‘gifts’ were, the more dangerous they seemed.

“Work requirement.”

Lin Jianqing’s brow twitched.

He knew that Shen Huaixue could always find a seemingly reasonable excuse for her outrageous behavior.

“Then if you please, President Shen… could you explain what shoes have to do with work?”

Shen Huaixue said matter-of-factly.

“My private actor can’t dress too shabbily on a daily basis. It would affect my aesthetic experience. After all, you have to be refined even in men’s clothing.”

Lin Jianqing: …

It was an impossible reason to refuse.

That fleeting bit of subtle gratitude from breakfast vanished instantly. Cleanly, without a trace.

“You really have a nasty way with words.”

“But I think these shoes I picked should suit you well.”

‘Those are two completely different things.’

Lin Jianqing couldn’t argue for a moment and could only complain internally. Shen Huaixue looked at his complicated expression, and the corners of her lips lifted slightly.

Because Lin Jianqing couldn’t decide whether to accept or not.

“What, hesitating again?”

“No.”

“Are you thinking right now that your shoes really are old, but you don’t want to accept my things?”

Lin Jianqing looked up at her. Shen Huaixue’s smile deepened.

“Or are you thinking, ‘What is this weird woman plotting in her head?’ Lin Jianqing, your thoughts are really easy to read. Whatever you’re thinking is written all over your face.”

Lin Jianqing wanted to say she was talking nonsense.

But the problem was, she was right. He really didn’t want to accept Shen Huaixue’s stuff, but he also knew his shoes were old. More importantly, once Shen Huaixue offered something, refusing it was always a hassle. And Lin Jianqing had no idea what she was thinking.

This woman wasn’t the type to give up after one rejection.

She would just find another, even more infuriating way to make him accept. Lin Jianqing was silent for a moment, and finally took the bag.

“I’m telling you now.”

“Hmm?”

“If it’s expensive, I won’t take it.”

Shen Huaixue laughed.

“Then you’d better not look at the price.”

Lin Jianqing’s hand holding the bag instantly froze.

“Shen Huaixue.”

“Hmm?”

“Are you doing this on purpose?”

“Yeah.”

She answered too quickly, not even pretending otherwise. Lin Jianqing took a deep breath. He told himself not to get angry. This was just Shen Huaixue’s everyday madness. He should be used to it by now.

But… he couldn’t get used to it. Really, he couldn’t.

Shen Huaixue looked at him, the tips of his ears red with anger, and inexplicably felt much better. The vague, indescribable heaviness that had been weighing on her heart for the past two days was also dulled by Lin Jianqing’s reaction.

As expected, Lin Jianqing was more agreeable like this. He liked to talk back, and when he got mad, a little coaxing would fix him right up. If she smoothed his fur properly, he should be a good little cat.

Shen Huaixue suddenly reached out, wanting to touch his hair. Lin Jianqing instinctively dodged backward.

“What are you doing?”

Shen Huaixue’s hand stopped in midair. She looked at him for two seconds, then casually withdrew her hand.

“Your hair is messy.”

“I’ll fix it myself.”

Lin Jianqing raised a hand and casually ran it through his hair, only making it messier.

Shen Huaixue watched him seriously battling his own hair, and finally couldn’t help but laugh.

“Forget it, stop messing with it.”

Lin Jianqing was a bit annoyed.

He suspected Shen Huaixue had come to find him today just to amuse herself. No, actually, this woman seemed to be like this every day.

“Anything else? If not, I’m going back to work.”

“Yes.”

Shen Huaixue sat back down on the sofa and pointed at the small table beside her.

“Don’t go to the cafeteria at noon. Eat here.”

Lin Jianqing was taken aback.

“Why?”

“Because I had them prepare it.”

“I can eat on my own.”

“By ‘on your own,’ do you mean buying a bread to get by? Or simply skipping the meal altogether?”

Lin Jianqing: …

How did she know again? No, actually, even a fool could guess that. Shen Huaixue looked at his expression and said slowly:

“You don’t have to look at me like that. Given your spending habits, it wasn’t hard to guess.”

Lin Jianqing felt a bit stifled. Being guessed correctly only made it worse. The reason he kind of hated Shen Huaixue was because she always acted like she ‘knew everything.’

“I have class in the afternoon.”

“Eat before you go.”

“Lin Jianqing.”

Shen Huaixue looked up at him.

“I don’t want to argue about this today.”

Her tone was still calm, but it lacked the playfulness from before.

Lin Jianqing was slightly stunned. He looked at Shen Huaixue. He wasn’t sure if it was just his imagination, but he felt today’s Shen Huaixue was a bit strange.

She still teased him, still said things that made his blood pressure spike, acting like a smug schemer you’d want to stay away from.

But beneath that malicious tone, there seemed to be something else. Lin Jianqing couldn’t describe it, and he didn’t want to look into it.

Because digging into someone like Shen Huaixue would only cause trouble for himself.

He was silent for a moment, then finally said:

“I understand.”

Only then did Shen Huaixue smile again.

“Good boy.”

“Don’t use that word.”

“Fine, fine, silly Student Lin.”

“That one’s no good either.”

“Hey, you sure have a lot of demands. I’m your financial backer!”

“Normal people wouldn’t like that kind of address.”

“I just think your reaction is cute.”

Lin Jianqing: …

He turned and walked away.

If he stayed any longer, he was afraid he’d get full from anger before even eating lunch.