Facing this unexpected gift, Qian Heng reminded himself that the most valuable quality for a successful legal professional, no matter what happened, was calmness! Then, peel away the layers and uncover the truth!
He stared at the box of condoms, lost in thought…
Gradually, a hypothesis finally took shape in his mind—
Cheng Yao liked him!
She really had improper thoughts about him!!!
Once he thought along these lines, Qian Heng suddenly understood everything. All the complicated clues unraveled neatly, reconstructing the truth for him.
Who would have thought—Cheng Yao usually seemed so obedient and well-behaved, yet when it came to love, she was this wild.
And only at this moment did Qian Heng feel that the confusion over why he had been acting abnormal all day was finally resolved. It seemed he had been prescient—before Cheng Yao’s passionate confession, he had already sensed the crisis from her clingy, sticky gazes, sensitively detecting the subtle signs. That’s why he had been irritable and restless.
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Gp qsa obu bl oyp kaakvyczl—sq nswapl, kv oyp clnywpl bl eked’v jdso bso vs alflnv bla.
Xqqknl asxydnl—lmvalxlzu wdrasqlppksdyz! Usxrzlvlzu wdalzkyczl! Gcpszwvlzu dsv yzzsole!
Jwv Ubldt Zys oyp vbl yppkpvydv zyoula sd bkp vlyx. Rq bl ekalnvzu alflnvle bla okzezu ryppksdyvl nsdqlppksd, oswzed’v kv nsxrzlvlzu nawpb bla nsdqkeldnl yde plzq-lpvllx? Eswze pbl cl wdyczl vs bydezl vbl czso yde iwkv sd vbl prsv?
Rq pbl alpktdle kd bwxkzkyvle aytl yqvla clkdt alflnvle, oswzed’v yzz vbl lqqsav bl bye kdhlpvle kd xldvsakdt bla ts vs oypvl? Gde byed’v pbl fwpv ytalle vs nzlyd bkp hkzzy qsa y xsdvb? Rq bl alflnvle bla, vbl hkzzy nzlydkdt oswze cl tsdl, yde bsxl-nssjle xlyzp oswze rascyczu cl kxrsppkczl vss.
Mbkp oyp y ckv vaknju.
Rd yd kdpvydv, Ckyd Tldt qlzz kdvs ellr ekpvalpp.
Ebld Ckyd Tldt yrrasynble okvb y pvlad qynl, Ubldt Zys oyp pvwqqkdt y xynyasd kdvs bla xswvb.
“Ubldt Zys, nsxl blal.”
Seeing Qian Heng’s serious expression, Cheng Yao nearly choked on the macaron in fright. She followed him nervously to the staircase, far from the living room and the other colleagues.
“Did I revise the prenuptial agreement wrong?”
Qian Heng pressed his lips tightly together: “No, it’s something more serious. I believe you know exactly what it is.”
Cheng Yao’s heart skipped a beat. She had been so careful and secretive—how the hell did he still find out???
“I’m sorry, boss!” She nearly dropped to her knees in confession. “That succulent of yours—the roots were already rotting when I brought it over. I tried everything to save it, but it wouldn’t survive. I was afraid you’d be upset, so I bought a new one to replace it later. It looked pretty similar—I thought you wouldn’t notice. Who knew you’d have such sharp eyes…”
“What?!” Qian Heng raised his voice, his tone full of shock. “My original succulent died?!”
“…”
Cheng Yao was on the verge of tears. So the thing Qian Heng came to question wasn’t that at all! He hadn’t even known! She had confessed for nothing!
Because she had secretly replaced the succulent and deceived her boss, Cheng Yao had to stand there and get scolded by Qian Heng for three full minutes. By the end of the lecture, she had completely forgotten to ask what he had actually wanted to talk about.
Qian Heng seemed to have forgotten about it too. Because Cheng Yao heard him ask, in a slightly unnatural tone—
“You didn’t sleep well last night, did you?”
“Huh?” Cheng Yao touched her face. Her dark circles must be pretty bad. She nodded without suspicion. “Yeah, I didn’t sleep well.” The underfloor heating broke—it was so cold.
“This dress—you wore it specially, right?”
Cheng Yao nodded. Even Qian Heng could tell!
Qian Heng looked at her, his expression shifting unpredictably. He was silent for a moment before saying meaningfully—
“Cheng Yao, not only am I a non-marriage advocate, I’m also DINK.”
Cheng Yao: ???
Does your commitment to no marriage and no kids mean your subordinates have to follow suit too???
Probably not…
Just as Cheng Yao was pondering the meaning of Qian Heng’s words like deciphering an imperial edict—weighing whether she should declare that even if she got married and had children in the future, it wouldn’t affect her work—Qian Heng abruptly changed the subject.
He glanced at her, then quickly lowered his gaze, his eyelashes fluttering lightly twice: “Was your gift… serious?”
At the mention of this, Cheng Yao perked up. She nodded vigorously to show her sincerity: “Yes! I carefully selected it just for you, boss! I hope you like it!”
After saying that, Cheng Yao added: “Besides the gift box, I also personally baked a cake for you, boss! I brought it over and put it in the fridge with Bao Rui’s stuff. I originally thought we’d all eat it together as dessert after dinner, but I didn’t expect Wu Par to order special desserts. Compared to a French pastry chef’s work, mine is a bit inferior. But! All my heartfelt feelings for you, boss, are baked into that cake by my own hands!”
Unfortunately, Cheng Yao’s enthusiastic declaration elicited no response from Qian Heng at all. He just gave her a rather subtle look, then turned his gaze away again.
“I didn’t expect you to seem so loud and impulsive usually, but at critical moments, you hide your thoughts this deeply.”
Cheng Yao paused, then quickly realized: Qian Heng probably thought that on normal days, she didn’t show particularly fervent loyalty to him as her boss. It was only through this carefully chosen and handmade birthday gift that he finally saw her deep, unwavering devotion!
If she didn’t seize the moment to butter him up now, when would she?!
Cheng Yao decided on the spot: “Boss, some things—though I don’t say them out loud, and they might not always show—but deep in my heart, they’ve long taken root and sprouted. I just waited for the right occasion, your birthday, to express them. Haven’t you heard the saying? Silent nourishment—some feelings are just like that…”
After hearing this, Qian Heng fell completely silent.
After a long, long pause, Cheng Yao finally heard his voice again. His tone was still calm, but—whether it was her imagination or not—she felt that at the very end of that calm voice, there was a faint, slight tremor.
“Cheng Yao, in this world, not everything turns out the way you wish.”
“Not everything you put effort into will necessarily get a response or reward.”
Cheng Yao looked up and met Qian Heng’s gaze. For some reason, there was a trace of pity in his eyes. But when she stared harder into them, Qian Heng turned his head away, avoiding her line of sight.
What on earth was all this about?
Cheng Yao was utterly bewildered and increasingly anxious. With the end of the year approaching, Qian Heng was suddenly being so profound and cryptic—it felt like something unfortunate was about to happen to her.
Was he preparing an excuse to dock her year-end bonus?!
Or because she secretly replaced the succulent, was he going to revoke the benefits he’d previously promised?!
Just as Cheng Yao was trembling and completely unable to figure out Qian Heng’s intentions, he spoke again.
This time, the topic jump was even bigger.
He coughed lightly, his voice very unnatural: “When you were in school, you weren’t very good at legal logic, were you?”
Huh??? He even knew that??? Back then, because the academy used full English instruction and the professor adopted American textbooks, Cheng Yao’s English wasn’t great, so the whole course felt like listening in a fog. She really hadn’t done well in it.
“Did you look at my transcript, boss?” Cheng Yao asked nervously. “I admit my grade in that course wasn’t high—it dragged down my GPA—but unlike some people, I didn’t fake anything. The transcript and resume I submitted to the firm are all genuine…”
Qian Heng said nothing. He just pressed his lips tightly together, then nodded with an inscrutable expression.
“Yes, you really weren’t good at it. Wanting to have a child yet using contraception—that’s completely contradictory and logically inconsistent.”
Cheng Yao: ???
Could it be that when she was on a business trip to City B last time and bored on the plane reading “The Overbearing CEO’s Runaway Bride with Child,” Qian Heng had seen her??? The male lead in that novel was exactly that kind of person—one day saying “Give me a child,” the next “Take the pill, I don’t want any complications”—a total whirlwind lunatic. If Qin Qin hadn’t strongly recommended it, saying the plot got great after the first third, Cheng Yao wouldn’t have made it past chapter five!
“When you have time, stop thinking about all this nonsense. Even as a woman, you should have ambition and a career focus.”
Cheng Yao thought despairingly: It seems he really did see her reading that novel…
Qian Heng glanced at her again, then added reservedly: “I quite admire women with career ambition.”
Oh, okay… Cheng Yao thought. Next time I’ll read classic court judgments…
After saying that, Qian Heng glared at her once more before walking away.
Cheng Yao watched his retreating back, completely bewildered. She felt her own legal logic was probably fine, but Qian Heng’s legal logic might actually be failing—after all, everything he’d said tonight was utterly incoherent and without any logical thread!
Whatever, whatever—he’s already twenty-eight. No need to hold it against him!
Cheng Yao consoled herself with a mental victory for a moment, then happily ran back to Bao Rui to play games with him.
But they hadn’t been playing long when Tan Ying came over with her phone, a gossipy expression on her face, interrupting the two of them.
She looked mysterious, glancing left and right like an undercover agent making contact, before lowering her voice: “Recently, Wang Lu and Li Minglei from the firm have started dating.”
Bao Rui was shocked: “For real? Didn’t Wang Lu just break up not long ago? And isn’t she two years older than Li Minglei? I remember Li Minglei telling me he wasn’t into older woman-younger man relationships.”
Tan Ying rolled her eyes at Bao Rui: “Haven’t you heard the saying? Homophobia often means deep in the closet. Same logic—those who fear older woman-younger man relationships actually secretly love that dynamic deep down.”
Both Bao Rui and Cheng Yao expressed disbelief.
“Hey? What’s with those expressions from you two?” Tan Ying got annoyed. “I have solid evidence, okay? First, take out your phones and check the group email Sister Zhu just sent.”
Cheng Yao obediently pulled out her phone and checked her inbox. Sure enough, not long ago, Sister Zhu had sent a notice about a lawyer etiquette and dress code training. And shortly after, another notice about a lecture on “How to Balance Personal Relationships and Work as a Lawyer.”
Bao Rui looked suspicious: “This training notice is a bit weird, sure, but what does it have to do with Li Minglei and Wang Lu?”
Tan Ying opened the email: “Look—the lecture email on balancing personal relationships and work has an attachment with a simple outline of the lecture content.”
“So?”
“When has any lecture ever included an attached outline before?” Tan Ying looked triumphant. “Everyone, you’re lawyers— you can’t overlook any unusual clues! I, the future renowned senior partner Lawyer Tan, had a flash of inspiration and felt this wasn’t simple! So I followed the trail and carefully studied the lecture outline!”
“And it was shocking! Look at this: ‘1. The drawbacks of lawyers dating peers in the industry; 2. The drawbacks of lawyers dating colleagues in the same firm; 3. The drawbacks of hierarchical relationships in the workplace; 4. How lawyers can handle the awkwardness after rejecting a confession; 5. The best golden three years for new lawyers to focus on their careers.'”
After reading it out, Tan Ying tapped the table: “See? This lecture is clearly targeted at specific colleagues. At first, I was afraid I might be wrong, so I went to confirm with Sister Zhu. And sure enough—she said this lecture wasn’t planned at all before. It was Qian Par who, during the birthday party today, suddenly pulled her aside and told her to hurry and arrange it next week. Even the outline was dictated directly by Qian Par himself.”
Bao Rui seemed convinced; a doubtful expression appeared on his face.
Tan Ying pressed her advantage: “Think about it—when has Qian Par ever cared about lectures or trainings? And suddenly arranging a lecture on this theme during his birthday party? He must have caught wind of something at the party! He definitely discovered an office romance in our firm!”
Cheng Yao couldn’t help interjecting: “But that doesn’t prove it’s Wang Lu and Li Minglei. It could be someone else.”
“Have you started dating recently?”
Cheng Yao shook her head: “No. Work has already drained me dry.”
“Then think—among the single women in our firm right now, there are only three: you, me, and Wang Lu who just broke up. Since neither you nor I are dating, that leaves only Wang Lu. As for the men—Wu Par’s relationship status is a mystery, but I think he’s taken, so pass. That leaves only Qian Par and Li Minglei as currently single! Could Qian Par be dating? Impossible! Because he’s always been in a passionate romance with his money! So there’s only one suspect!”
Tan Ying’s face practically spelled out “The culprit is Li Minglei” in big letters.
Cheng Yao glanced at Li Minglei and Wang Lu, who were playing cards together not far away. No matter how she looked at it, their vibe didn’t scream sparks. She still wasn’t convinced: “It’s not necessarily only single people who date, right? What if someone married like Bao Rui suddenly cheats?”
“Cheng Yao, don’t talk nonsense!” Bao Rui jumped up first. “Years ago, there was a male lawyer in our firm who cheated, and the wife and mistress fought all the way into the office. Qian Par was so annoyed that, although he never made it an official rule, basically if anyone in the firm is proven to have an affair, they’re fired on the spot.”
Fine. Cheng Yao glanced at Li Minglei and Wang Lu again. They were avoiding even the appearance of impropriety so carefully—yet Qian Heng had still caught them. She felt a bit sorry for them: “But our firm doesn’t have a rule against office romances, right? Why go to such lengths with a lecture to indirectly warn the young couple?”
“Not sure.” Tan Ying also looked puzzled. “I’ve heard before that Qian Par doesn’t care about office romances—as long as it doesn’t affect work.”
Bao Rui leaned in, lowering his voice: “I think I know the reason.” He sneakily glanced at Qian Heng, who was chatting expressionlessly with Wu Jun not far away. “I heard Qian Par’s last blind date fell through.”
Tan Ying got excited: “Huh?!”
“Anyway, reliable sources— it definitely fell through.” Bao Rui looked sympathetic. “Qian Par has it tough too. At the ripe old age of twenty-eight, still holding onto his virginity. If this keeps up, by thirty he’ll be a wizard. Maybe he’s lonely and wants someone to keep him company, but reality is so harsh. He can’t stand office romances now—I think it’s understandable. His own love life failed, yet he has to watch little couples in the office flirting right under his nose. Doesn’t the contrast just make him feel even more miserable? He has to break up the lovebirds!”
“…”
Though Cheng Yao felt Qian Heng wasn’t that kind of person, after being brainwashed by Tan Ying and Bao Rui, she started to find it suspicious.
After all, today’s Qian Heng had been truly abnormal—saying all that illogical nonsense to her. And he had personally admitted before that he was quite satisfied with his blind date match. Could the failure of this blind date have really hit him so hard that his behavior turned strange?
Before Cheng Yao could fully sort it out, her phone vibrated.
She checked—it was a WeChat message from Qian Heng:
“Hope you can control your eyes.”
“In the last ten minutes, you’ve sneaked glances at me six times.”
Cheng Yao: ???
When Tan Ying was gossiping just now, she had indeed subconsciously looked at Qian Heng a few times—but six in ten minutes?
Wait—if Qian Heng wasn’t looking at her, how did he know she’d glanced at him that many times??? Was he secretly thinking of ways to dock her year-end bonus again?!
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