Deep Desire

At 9 AM, the car parked outside the Lujing family mansion.

Lujing Shen got out of the car and asked Feng Si and Liu Jie to wait inside while he went into the mansion alone.

Feng Si glanced outside the car window, taking in the surroundings. That was the most prestigious upscale residential area in the city, Lujing Shen’s original home.

He turned to Liu Jie in the back seat and asked, “What’s the chairman like?”

Liu Jie replied, “… Do you think it’s appropriate to ask such a question?”

“Just curious,” Feng Si said nonchalantly, “Forget it if you don’t want to tell me.”

He pushed the car door open, and Liu Jie warned, “Where are you going? The boss said we should wait here.”

“Relax ,” Feng chuckled, “Can’t I go out to smoke a cigarette?”

When Lujing Shen’s parents came out with him, Feng Si was leaning against the car door and was lighting a cigarette to smoke.

Seeing Lujing Shen’s frown, he casually threw the cigarette butt away and crushed it with his foot.

Lujing Shen glanced at him and then accompanied his parents to the car behind to see them off.

Feng Si’s attention turned to Lujing Shen’s father and his wife.

Lujing Shen’s father did look a bit weary, but he still stood tall with an imposing presence and no signs of aging. His wife appeared younger, with a gentle smile, and Lujing Shen looked a bit submissive in her presence.

A very strange family.

An Xin, on the other hand, gave Feng Si a closer look. When she got into the car, she asked her son, “Is that your new assistant?”

Lujing Shen nodded, not wanting to say much, and closed the car door for them.

An Xin looked at him before the car drove off, and noticed the assistant Feng Si helped Lu Jingshen open the back door. It seemed like the assistant whispered something in his ear, making An Xin thoughtful.

What Feng Si said was, “Your dad looks quite serious. And you resemble him a lot, will you turn into that kind of person when you’re in your fifties?”

Lujing Shen entered the car without saying a word and closed the door, keeping Feng Si’s teasing outside.

Liu Jie was somewhat speechless. Was Feng Si flirting with their boss?

Forty minutes later, their car arrived outside the Shangxin Building, and someone who received the message hurried out to greet them.

The company’s top executives were holding a board meeting, and the chairman, who hadn’t appeared in the company for a long time, suddenly appeared. Along with him was Lujing Shen, who had been rumored to be missing overseas. Everyone was surprised.

The group quickly entered the building and took the special elevator to the top floor.

The conference room door was open, and Lujing Shen walked in with his father. Everyone turned their heads to look at them, their faces showing various expressions of surprise, excitement, astonishment, and confusion.

The meeting’s host, Lujing Qing, stood up first and gave up her seat.

Lujing’s father took the seat and scanned the people around him, asking, “I heard that you all think I’m incapable and want me to step down?”

Feng Si didn’t follow them in; he bought a can of Coke from the vending machine in the corridor and drank it absentmindedly.

Forty minutes later, plainclothes police officers came up and entered the conference room. When they came out, they were escorting Li Wenzhong, who had been handcuffed.

Although that man was forced into retirement by Lujing Shen, he was still a shareholder in the company. He attended that day’s meeting under the pretense of being an observer. They had no evidence of him hiring someone to kidnap Lujing Shen, but they could still hold him accountable for embezzling company assets.

As Li Wenzhong passed by, Feng Si called out to him, “Hey.”

Li Wenzhong’s cold gaze turned toward him, and Feng Si tilted his head, saying, “I heard you have a spendthrift son at home?”

Recognizing him as Lujing Shen’s new assistant, Li Wenzhong gritted his teeth, “What do you want?”

Feng Si said disdainfully. “Don’t worry, I won’t do anything illegal like hiring someone to kidnap you. But leading someone astray, I’m pretty good at that. I wonder if the remaining assets you left will be enough for your son to squander in the future.”

“You!” Li Wenzhong fumed.

The plainclothes police officers frowned and quickly took him away.

Lujing Qing came out afterward and had a few words with Li Wenzhong.

When she came back, her face didn’t look good, and it turned even colder when she saw Feng Si.

Feng Si took the initiative to speak, “What did the chairman say to him just now? I guess it was about asking him why he wanted to kidnap Lujing.”

“You like to be so clever?” Lujing Qing, on guard, scolded him. “As his assistant, you shouldn’t be so presumptuous when speaking about your boss.”

Feng shrugged indifferently, “Okay, my bad. But I’m just a little curious. Many of the people Lujing Shen is dealing with today are your confidants. Why are you cooperating so generously with him?”

“People who don’t listen to me are useless to keep around.” Lujing Qing sneered. “Those who truly obey me have already settled down under my guidance. The rest are just trying to target Lujing under my name, and their intentions are malicious.”

After saying this, Lu Jingqing directly returned to the conference room.

Feng Si smiled and remained at the door.

Through the gaps in the blinds, one could vaguely see inside. The person in the main seat had changed to Lu Jingshen, with his father sitting behind him, and Lu Jingqing was on his left side.

Lu Jingshen was saying something, looking serious, with his brow furrowed.

Feng Si thought that appearance was really unpleasant. In about twenty years, Lu Jingshen would probably become a cunning old fox in the business world, showing no emotions on his face, which would be really boring.

As the meeting was nearing its end, An Xin, who had been waiting in the lounge, came over. Feng Si, who had been lazily playing with his phone against the wall, stood straight and nodded to her, signaling acknowledgment: “Madam.”

An Xin looked at him and kindly asked, “I heard that you saved Ah Shen from the kidnappers and helped him escape safely. You also got injured in the process. How are you now?”

“I’m all better. It was just a graze from a bullet. Thank you for your concern, Madam,” Feng Si replied seriously.

An Xin said, “Regardless, I am Ah Shen’s mother, and I should thank you for helping him.”

“It’s my duty,” Feng Si replied earnestly. “Helping him is something I should do, no need to thank me.”

An Xin felt that his words sounded strange and was about to say something more, but the meeting was announced to be over.

People started coming out one after another, some excited and thrilled, while others looked defeated.

A variety of emotions on display.

Feng Si looked at Lu Jingshen, who was still talking to someone in the conference room, his head tilted, and his brow slightly furrowed – his usual demeanor at the company.

The three members of the Lu family finally came out – Lu Jingshen, his father, and Lu Jingqing. An Xin went over to support Lu’s father’s arm, and Lu Jingshen stepped aside, catching sight of Feng Si. He pursed his lips, said nothing, and sent his parents to the elevator.

Lu Jingqing accompanied the two elders downstairs. When she came out, she saw An Xin talking to Feng Si. After the elevator door closed, she casually asked, “Mom, what were you talking to Feng Si about just now?”

“I asked him about his arm injury,” An Xin explained. “Because of Ah Shen, we should properly thank him.”

Lu Jingqing dismissed it, saying, “That’s his duty. He takes Ah Shen’s salary, and it’s only natural for him to protect Ah Shen from danger.”

An Xin disagreed, “He did save Ah Shen, so showing gratitude is only right. Besides, you’ve been saying sharp and sarcastic things. Why do you treat Ah Shen’s assistant that way?”

Lu Jingqing shook her head, not wanting to talk more about it. “It has nothing to do with Ah Shen.”

She simply felt that the man laid out all his intentions towards Lu Jingshen on his face, but was he really reliable?

Lu Jingshen went back to his office, and Feng Si followed.

After being away for over a month, coupled with the recent turmoil in the company and the upcoming major personnel changes, there was a mountain of work waiting for him to handle.

Feng Si glanced at his watch. “It’s noon. Shall we go eat?”

Lu Jingshen was going through some documents and didn’t look up. “If I go out now, who will handle these tasks for me?”

“I can do it,” Feng Si readily agreed.

Lu Jingshen tossed a file at him without looking up. “See if you can understand that.”

Feng Si flipped through a couple of pages. It’s not that he couldn’t understand, but there were too many Chinese characters, and it made him tired.

“Looks like my only use as an assistant is to keep my boss warm. Not much else,” Feng Si teased, pursing his lips.

Lu Jingshen finally looked at him directly. Although he had known Feng Si’s character for a long time, he still couldn’t resist being defeated by his shameless cheekiness.

“Why are you looking at me like that? Am I wrong?” Feng Si said without a hint of embarrassment.

Lu Jingshen thought for a moment and said, “You have other uses.”

“Such as?” Feng Si asked.

What Lu Jingshen had in mind was that Feng Si’s presence, though troublesome and difficult to control, did fill a void in his heart. It gave him something else to think about besides work.

He had been reluctant to admit this before, but now he had no choice but to acknowledge it.

But he didn’t say it out loud. Psychological barriers weren’t easily overcome.

Feng Si didn’t press the matter and leaned against the table, saying casually, “I’ve met your family members, and they are all quite different in character. You are most like your father, aren’t you?”

Lu Jingshen remained silent. Feng Si continued, “If your father hadn’t come today, I’m afraid things wouldn’t have gone so smoothly. When he sat at the table, I could see the others getting flustered. Your father is indeed impressive. Even if his health isn’t great, his presence commands respect and keeps people from defying him.”

“So, are you going to become like him in the future?” Feng Si’s last sentence was spoken as he leaned closer to Lu Jingshen, asking, “Will you really become like your father when you’re fifty?”

Feng Si’s eyes contained a teasing glint, like he was just joking.

What Lu Jingshen thought about was, when he turns fifty, there are still twenty years to go. What kind of person will he become by then? Will the person in front of him still be interested in him?

He was uncertain, lacked confidence, and couldn’t give an answer.

But before the words could escape his lips, seeing a hint of disappointment in Feng Si’s eyes, Lu Jingshen changed his response, “Let’s talk about it when I’m fifty.”

Feng Si chuckled softly, “It’s probably better not to. I don’t really like someone like your father.”

Lu Jingshen said, “My mom likes him.”

Sometimes, Lu Jingshen unexpectedly said something humorous, and Feng Si’s smile deepened, “Well, different people have different preferences. I can’t force someone not to like what I don’t like.”

Lu Jingshen said, “…Just don’t be as inappropriate as you are now when you’re fifty. At that time, it’ll be called disrespecting the elderly.”

Feng Si nodded in acceptance, “I’ll try my best to improve.”

Lu Jingshen didn’t really believe he would change, but with Feng Si’s playful interruption, he lost all interest in working.

 Lu Jingshen simply closed the documents in his hand and stood up. ‘Let’s go, let’s have a meal.’