Chapter 9#
Chapter 9#
“I practice épée, but I’m just average,” Tan Xiao said, not being falsely modest but feeling a bit embarrassed. “I’ve participated in competitions, but I’ve never won any placing.”
Zhang Xingchuan said, “If you compete again next time, can I go see?”
“Sure.” Tan Xiao said readily.
In matters he was good at and could show off in, he was very capable of acting cool and loved doing so.
But he was also very accepting of his lack of talent and poor performance in some things; there was no need to pretend when he wasn’t capable. Take fencing, for example: he truly wasn’t good at it, but he wasn’t ashamed to show it.
Zhang Xingchuan was interested in seeing it, and he welcomed Zhang Xingchuan to see how he made a very handsome entrance and then was quite poorly defeated.
Tan Xiao added, “But when would you have time? You’re a CEO whose ‘dates’ can only be eating lunch boxes in the office.”
“…” Zhang Xingchuan was at a loss for words.
The word “date” has a broad meaning and doesn’t necessarily have to be the narrow kind.
Tan Xiao picked up his chopsticks to eat. The CEO’s lunch box was quite generous—four dishes and one soup, with dessert and fruit.
“If you make an appointment with me in advance, I’ll have time,” Zhang Xingchuan said.
When he said this, he made it clear that Tan Xiao had already gained a special status and priority treatment with him.
Tan Xiao didn’t feel overwhelmed by the favor, but he was certainly happy.
To him, Zhang Xingchuan was also a very special friend. If Zhang Xingchuan needed him for something, he was also willing to give Zhang Xingchuan the privilege of “cutting in line” before other matters.
He looked at Zhang Xingchuan now, hesitating to speak.
Zhang Xingchuan said, “What is it? Just say what’s on your mind.”
Tan Xiao joked with a smile, “The way you just spoke really had a bit of a ‘domineering CEO’ flavor.”
“Is it possible,” Zhang Xingchuan struck a cold, aloof face and said, “that I am a domineering CEO?”
Tan Xiao nodded in recognition.
Actually, he thought to himself: Domineering where? You capybara CEO.
A few days later, Zhang Xingchuan went out of town on a business trip.
During his absence, Tsinghua University started its semester, and Tan Xiao’s winter internship ended.
Tan Xiao returned to campus, going back to his routine, living a fulfilling and simple life.
After Zhang Xingchuan returned from his business trip, the two hadn’t met.
President Zhang was busy, and Dr. Tan wasn’t idle either.
Occasionally, Zhang Xingchuan would send Tan Xiao very brief WeChat messages asking about his daily situation. Tan Xiao would reply in seconds whenever he saw them, though he rarely took the initiative to disturb Zhang Xingchuan.
Although Zhang was just an ordinary “salaryman CEO” with an annual salary of ten million, his work was enough to occupy most of the time and space in his life.
Today was Saturday, and Tan Xiao was working on his doctoral thesis in the library again. In fact, it was already completed, and his supervisor said there were no problems and it would be sent for blind review next week.
Tan Xiao was mostly free of desires, but he was extremely responsible for his studies. Regarding his thesis, as long as it wasn’t submitted, he couldn’t help but open it, finding fault like a nitpicker, and then revising it over and over again until the last moment before submission.
Some doctoral supervisors urge their students every day to write faster, write well, and write seriously, but the students play dead and don’t reply to messages.
Tan Xiao’s “boss” (supervisor) rarely worried about such things. On the contrary, sometimes Tan Xiao sent him messages too frequently, and he would play dead for several days.
Today, Tan Xiao came to the Economics and Management Library to find a reference book. He couldn’t remember the exact title, so he went to the shelves to look for books with similar names. He found many, but none were the one he was looking for.
His phone was left at his seat to charge. A classmate he knew came over with his phone, found him behind the bookshelves, and whispered a reminder: “Your supervisor is calling you. It’s vibrated several times.”
Tan Xiao thanked him in a low voice and took the phone to look. It wasn’t his supervisor, because the caller ID showed “Domineering CEO.” The classmate thought this was a nickname he had given his supervisor in his contacts.
Besides the missed calls, there were also WeChat messages, each twenty minutes apart.
Zhang Xingchuan: Free? Want to hang out?
Zhang Xingchuan: Sleeping?
Zhang Xingchuan: Reply to my message when you see it.
Tan Xiao no longer rushed to find the book. He walked quickly out and called back in the hallway.
When the other end picked up, Tan Xiao deliberately said in an AI tone, “Hello, Mr. Zhang. May I ask what you’re looking for me for?”
Zhang Xingchuan didn’t say anything.
“Brother (Gege),” Tan Xiao was teasing the CEO, and after finishing, he laughed, switched back to his normal voice, and explained, “I’m in the library. I was busy looking for materials just now and left my phone on the desk to charge. Why did you suddenly call me?”
Zhang Xingchuan said, “I’m near the West Gate of Tsinghua. Do you have time at noon?”
The CEO didn’t even get to rest on weekends. He had made an appointment to discuss matters this morning, but the other party’s itinerary changed at the last minute, giving him half a day’s break, and he decided to come find Tan Xiao to play.
Dr. Tan was a third-year PhD student, busy with his studies and might not be free until graduation—this was normal.
Zhang Xingchuan truly had only today free for the near future; he didn’t know when he would have time next.
Originally, he thought that since today was Saturday, Tan Xiao shouldn’t be too busy. Even a “competition king” like Zhang Xingchuan would sleep in and go out to play on weekends during his student days.
He had called Tan Xiao several times but no one answered, and sent WeChat messages without a reply. He didn’t know if he was sleeping too soundly or was already out playing with someone else and had forgotten everything.
The more Zhang Xingchuan waited, the more annoyed he became. He planned that when Tan Xiao finally had time to call or message him back, he would also coldly reject Tan Xiao.
Tan Xiao at ten o’clock ignored him; at eleven o’clock, he would let Tan Xiao know he was out of his league.
It soon became eleven o’clock. Zhang Xingchuan thought again: Then let’s wait until eleven-thirty to let Tan Xiao know he’s out of my league.
Just past 11:10, Tan Xiao called.
Seeing the caller ID, Zhang Xingchuan immediately decided magnanimously not to hold a grudge against the young “brother.”
Tan Xiao didn’t know he had unintentionally escaped the domineering CEO’s heartless revenge.
He calculated the distance; it was nearly two kilometers from the Economics and Management Library to the West Campus Gate. Walking would be too slow.
He looked around from the steps outside the library, walked quickly to the campus road, and randomly grabbed a passing student on an electric scooter. Without a word, he straddled the back seat and began making a wish: “Fellow student ‘Bodhisattva’, please help me. I’m in a hurry. Please deliver me to the West Gate.”
The boy had just paused by the side of the road to reply to someone’s message on his scooter. He didn’t know how he had been luckily chosen as a “one-day Bodhisattva.”
The “Bodhisattva” was extremely confused by the current situation and said, “I’m not going to the West Gate! No, who are you?”
Tan Xiao said, “Look at me again carefully.”
The boy looked back at him and found him to be a stunningly handsome guy, becoming even more confused.
He suspected this stranger was trying to use a “honey trap” on him, which definitely wouldn’t work.
The boy asked hesitatingly, “Do we know each other?”
But the handsome guy was going for “abstract” humor.
Tan Xiao said very seriously, “I’m your twin brother!”
The boy was dazed for three seconds before finally laughing out loud, passively accepting the temporary mission of being a “Deliverance Bodhisattva” and taking this handsome “goblin” to the West Gate.
The CEO’s business car was already parked in a temporary parking space outside the West Campus Gate.
Tan Xiao exited the campus and walked toward the business car. The people in the car saw him, and the automatic door in the back slid open.
Zhang Xingchuan was in the back row, looking relaxed as he smiled at Tan Xiao.
He sat on the left by the window, leaving the seat on the right for Tan Xiao.
Tan Xiao smiled and walked up quickly. Upon reaching the car, he wasn’t in a hurry to get in. He held both sides of the door frame and leaned his upper body into the car, his handsome face right in front of Zhang Xingchuan.
Zhang Xingchuan subconsciously wanted to pull back, but quickly realized there was no need to hide. He sat still and held his ground.
Having returned to his student status, Tan Xiao was clearly several times more innocent and lively than when he was an intern “social animal.” Meeting Zhang Xingchuan made him very happy.
“How do you have time to come find me to play?” he asked Zhang Xingchuan. “Did you miss me?”
Zhang Xingchuan felt Tan Xiao’s warmth toward him. The little resentment from waiting had mostly faded and now disappeared without a trace.
He said, “I was stood up by a client. It happened that I was very close to the school, so I came to see you.”
Tan Xiao really missed him. Hearing him say it so plainly, a look of disappointment appeared on his face.
“I missed you, I missed you,” Zhang Xingchuan said with a smile in a very perfunctory tone. Then he pointed outside and said, “In a bit, I’ll have someone set up a sign here with ‘I miss you so much at the West Gate’ written on it.”
Tan Xiao burst out laughing.
Zhang Xingchuan said, “Hurry up and get in the car. Time is tight; I have other things to do this afternoon.”
Tan Xiao was happy again, got in the car and sat down, and the driver in the front closed the door.
Zhang Xingchuan told the driver the name of a restaurant. The driver acknowledged and drove according to the navigation.
Tan Xiao consciously fastened his seatbelt and asked, “Is this place good?”
Zhang Xingchuan said, “I don’t know. I haven’t been there. Dazhong Dianping says it’s good.”
Tan Xiao was slightly surprised and said, “Why do you still use Dazhong Dianping?”
“Because only my cooking skills are niche; my taste is still very mainstream,” Zhang Xingchuan said. “I’m not like you. I truly can’t eat the food I cook myself.”
Tan Xiao started laughing again. After not seeing him for a while, anything Zhang Xingchuan said could make him happy for half a day.
Zhang Xingchuan brought a bag from the back.
“I saw this piece in the store and bought it because I needed to make up the minimum for an order,” Zhang Xingchuan said. “It should suit you well.”
Tan Xiao opened it and looked. It was a cream-colored spring jacket. He asked doubtfully, “Isn’t this a runway piece? What minimum order were you making up?”
Zhang Xingchuan was also confused: “What runway piece?”
He saw that Tan Xiao’s daily clothing style was similar to this brand, so he went to this boutique to choose a gift for him.
Tan Xiao was actually a VIC (Very Important Client) of this brand. The latest product catalog the brand sent him this month had the cover model wearing the exact piece he was currently holding.
“It’s just… I saw it on Xiaohongshu,” Tan Xiao said. “It’s quite nice.”
This jacket was a far cry from Zhang Xingchuan’s styling. If he hadn’t proactively asked, the store salesperson wouldn’t have shown him this piece.
Tan Xiao saw through the truth and said, “You bought it specifically for me, didn’t you?”
Zhang Xingchuan didn’t reply, which was equivalent to a default.
Tan Xiao said amusedly, “Why do you have to make excuses for giving me a gift?”
Because it was a bit expensive, of course.
Zhang Xingchuan had intended to give Tan Xiao a gift, and choosing what to give was truly difficult.
Something too cheap was out of the question—not to mention whether he could bring himself to give it. Tan Xiao was clearly raised with wealth. His daily food, clothing, and accessories were all of high quality. To give a gift, it naturally couldn’t be worse than what he used himself.
But if he truly gave a luxury item matching a CEO’s status, he was worried it would cause an unnecessary burden for Tan Xiao.
He had never been this conflicted over a small matter like giving a gift. Usually, when giving something to those around him, he wouldn’t be so cautious.
On New Year’s Eve, when Tan Xiao invited him to dinner, he had bought Tan Xiao a Year of the Horse gift on the way to pick him up. He certainly wouldn’t have had this kind of mentality then.
Now that the person had become special in his heart, the way he treated this relationship had naturally changed as well.