"I apologize for having you come here. Another day, I will personally visit the estate to express my thanks."
The person always watched Mr. Xu's expression and chose his words carefully.
Several other men in uniform attire followed, each holding a briefcase and keeping a respectful distance.
All of them belonged to the upper echelons of society.
Alone, Xu Jingxi, as if he were simply coming for a meal, led the way. Amidst the high-profile figures, with his presence and upright stature, he had an overwhelming aura of distinction.
"My father is busy with meetings and scheduling a visit to the estate is difficult. There's no need for grand displays; please, Uncle Jiang, stay where you are."
Xu Jingxi's words were measured and rational, exemplifying the Xu family's principle of maintaining a low profile.
The middle-aged gentleman steadied his step, radiating an aura of calm dignity, and watched Xu Jingxi leave: "That's fine, take care, and be careful driving."
Xu Jingxi nodded and walked towards the parking lot without glancing over.
With a myriad of complex thoughts flooding her mind, Leh Ying took out her phone, swiped lightly, canceled her Didi order, silently paid the cancellation fee, and tucked away her phone into her coat pocket.
As if bewitched, she always hoped for a stroke of luck. The first time she saw a delicate white bougainvillea in winter, she admired it for a long time.
It wasn't until a luxurious black Mercedes pulled up beside her and stopped that her stroke of luck came. The bougainvillea was indeed beautiful in the light of winter.
"Have you been waiting long?"
His languid voice floated out of the car window, tinged with a raspy nasal sound.
Following the sound, Leh Ying hurriedly peered into the car.
The man inside wore a finely tailored black suit, his expression remarkably nonchalant.
"8 minutes." She didn't pretend.
Xu Jingxi rested one hand on the steering wheel and suddenly laughed softly, "Took a smoke break."
That was quite long. She had seen Liu Huaiying smoke before; he could finish one in 3 minutes, fiercely too.
But this man in front of her was the epitome of elegant and indolent.
The car door opened automatically. Leh Ying's fingers clenched inside her coat pocket, hesitating for two seconds in feigned restraint before she slipped into the passenger seat beside him.
Everything fell into place with natural ease. He didn't ask where to drop her off, nor did he inquire why she was there.
He merely looked at her from his seat. Xu Jingxi's eyelids seemed heavy, and with a slight lift, a thin smile appeared—his gaze elegantly tender.
For a moment, Leh Ying felt an inexplicable tingling around her heart, unsure of what else was tingling. Right now, if Xu Jingxi took her to be sold, she would probably count the cash for him.
Utterly disgraceful.
She nervously bowed her head to buckle the seatbelt but couldn't find it in her fluster.
Xu Jingxi chuckled low and slow, his elevated figure leaned in closer, easily found the buckle, wrapped it around her, and secured it.
Leh Ying sat rigid, not daring to move as his warm and shallow breaths brushed past the hair near her temple, easily unsettling her resolve.
She pretended to be calm, gazing at his handsome face so close by.
She was curious to ask if she was the first girl he had helped with a seatbelt.
Xu Jingxi had already withdrawn his hand, started the car, and merged into the fast lane.
It took her a long time to process the care and consideration he showed just moments ago before Leh Ying finally exhaled a sigh of relief.
Even if he really sold her, she wouldn't fuss or demand to get out of the car. Oddly enough.
She sat quietly, gazing out of the window.
The lights of Forty-Nine City gradually came on, a reminder that the city's indifference was real, as was the vast chasm between power and money.
As the old saying goes, past the Second Ring Road, you're outside the city.
Recalling the banter over the chessboard at the Friendship Hotel, Leh Ying hesitated before asking, "What happened with Liu Huaiying, sir? Did his Zhongguancun project not get approved?"
He calmly operated the indicator to change lanes, replying with an air of insignificance, "Does it matter."
By mentioning a sensitive subject, he showed no interest in discussing it with her. Leh Ying straightened up abruptly, "Alright, it's a serious matter. I shouldn't have pried."
That evening.
So she followed him in a daze to the Xu family's four-courtyard mansion at Xizhu Market, a ping-pong club where the human presence was scarce.
Xu Jingxi didn't take her into the main hall to meet the guests, but left her in the resting pavilion, whispering.
"Go have dinner and wait for me, I need to see an elder inside."
The meeting was probably not with businessmen, not something outsiders should overhear.
Standing under the porch of the courtyard mansion, Leh Ying looked up slightly, "Will it take long?"
She didn't know why she was sweating in the cold weather, the strands of hair on her forehead sticking unattractively to her cheeks; Xu Jingxi frowned slightly and reached out to move the damp hair away from her forehead.
The young girl looked at him with eyes like a cat, wanting to say something but reluctant to speak, letting him touch her hair.
After a while, knowing she would get no answer and that she wasn't entitled to manage Xu Jingxi's schedule, she honestly entered the resting room, "Please go, sir. I'll watch a film and wait for you."
She noticed that most people who showed up here were elderly men, accompanied by police* at all times.
The elders seemed low-key, but their identities were far from simple. Taking a closer look, Leh Ying was frightened--two of them were high-ranking officials frequently seen on television.
The bellboy brought over tea and snacks and a delicate dinner, started the movie, and left Leh Ying all alone.
She nestled in the corner of the sofa, sick and having eaten nothing, roamed all day and seemed feverish, so weak she couldn't even bother to grab some water to drink.
She got up and turned her head to look toward the main hall, behind a thick glass partition.
The two elders with grey at their temples stopped their table tennis match and took positions on either side of Xu Jingxi, talking about something inaudible.
Turning her gaze back to the movie, an old one that she had never seen before, she couldn't find it captivating and even during the climax, forgot what the movie was about.
She didn't remember how long she waited until the bellboy bent down to rouse her.
"Mr. Xu asks for you to come out."
Leh Ying rose, sleepily walking toward that silhouette outside the door.
The light from the traditional Chinese lanterns wasn't very dim.
With his back to her, Xu Jingxi stood by a column in the hallway, awkwardly close yet distant, holding a bottle of mineral water. He unscrewed the cap, but didn't take a sip, screwed it back on, and tossed it into the trash bin nearby.
Hearing the sound of her high heels on the floor, Xu Jingxi didn't even turn around but stepped down and walked ahead.
The young master was so busy, seemingly dedicating his life to the arena of power.
He was tall and, even walking slowly, Leh Ying couldn't keep up. Once outside the main door, they entered a narrow alley.
The dim, hazy alley, deserted.
His tall figure appeared to guide her from the front.
"It's all alleys here, I don't know the way, can you wait for me?"
The young girl's voice was delicate and weak.
Xu Jingxi stopped, turned around with a sneer, "As if I could leave you here."
She smiled and said no, assuredly Mr. Xu wouldn't. Bundling up in her trench coat, she quickly walked towards him and stood in front of him asking "Can I hug you?" Not giving him a chance to refuse, she plunged thoughtlessly into his embrace, her cheek buried in his chest, inhaling the crisp and pleasant scent that emanated from him.
A simple, cold fragrance, not from perfume.
It was the aristocratic scent of traditional, high-quality agarwood clothing incense, personally attended to.
How to describe it.
The scent wasn't overpowering; on him, it was like the soft luxurious elegance of someone who had just bathed.
You see, no matter how she hugged Xu Jingxi, he didn't push her away, not at all, nor did he embrace her on his own, just stood there firmly, asking in a low voice what was wrong.
She shook her head, "Nothing…"
Probably delirious with fever, Leh Ying unconsciously made a bolder move, sliding her hand into his open black suit jacket, gripping his slender waist under the luxurious silk-blend shirt fabric.
Gentle, yet extremely careful.
"Your waist is really nice."
Taut and powerfully firm, it comforted her touch and likewise made her feel more secure against his chest.
Xu Jingxi suddenly chuckled softly, "Have you tried it?"