Gently bite the jasmine

Zhang Mo waited for Lin Xi, a thin cigarette between her fingers.

Seeing Lin Xi approach, he glanced over and asked, "You don't mind, do you?"

Lin Xi shook his head.

Three minutes later, Zhang Mo stubbed out the half-smoked cigarette on the trash can and said, "Go inside."

Lin Xi followed her into the restaurant.

The two of them weren't there to eat; no one touched the dishes on the table.

Lin Xi glanced at the time and said, "Just say what you have to say."

Zhang Mo smiled and changed the subject: "Have you never smoked before?"

Lin Xi frowned: "Does whether I smoke or not have anything to do with what you're going to say today?"

"This is boring." Zhang Mo took a sip of water. "I dislike you obedient girls the most."

Lin Xi: "Please don't label me."

“Okay.” Zhang Mo looked at her. “I just want you to help me arrange to meet Mingxuan.”

Lin Xi looked at her, puzzled: "Can't you contact them yourself?"

Zhang Mo snorted: "It's all because of you. He actually wants to break up with me and said he'll block me if I keep bothering him."

"...It's none of my business."

"It was my fault. I shouldn't have caused trouble at your welcome party," Zhang Mo apologized for the first time ever. "But can you tolerate your boyfriend treating someone else better than you?"

Lin Xi was speechless for a moment.

She had been distancing herself from Duan Mingxuan ever since she found out he was in a relationship.

"My relationship with him is just that of childhood friends," Lin Xi smiled, her eyes lowered. "It can't compare to yours."

Zhang Mo: "I don't understand why he's so good to you. I have no other choice; he'll definitely listen to what you say."

Lin Xi felt a pang of sadness. She knew that Duan Mingxuan was already having a hard time in his relationship, and Zhang Mo was actually asking her to help him get back together with Zhang Mo.

“I’m sorry, I can’t do that,” Lin Xi refused. “You can try to contact him yourself. It’s not appropriate for an outsider like me to interfere in matters of the heart.”

"Lin Xi, this is no fun," Zhang Mo's smile faded. "Why did you come if you weren't going to help?"

Lin Xi was speechless: "It was you who threatened me."

“If I’m threatening someone, then I have to make sure it hits the mark,” Zhang Mo said. “I don’t know much about what’s going on between you and those two brothers, but that night, everyone could see clearly that Duan Mingxuan didn’t like you being with Duan Yiheng.”

Lin Xi's expression remained unchanged: "So?"

Zhang Mo: "Since you're here, you obviously don't want Duan Mingxuan to know that you're working at Yin Fan, and with Duan Yiheng no less."

Lin Xi: "I will tell him."

Zhang Mo: "But you can't right now. I guess you're afraid he'll ruin your job."

It must be said that Zhang Mo understands Duan Mingxuan very well.

Duan Mingxuan is domineering and assertive at heart, and has an extremely strong possessiveness towards the people and things around him.

He's like a child; when he gets angry, he does whatever he wants. But he also has a beautiful face, and a few innocent words of repentance are enough to make others soften their hearts.

From childhood to adulthood, this tactic has always worked whenever Lin Xi and Duan Yiheng show signs of getting closer.

Lin Xi compromised again: "I will talk to him about it. Whether he goes or not is his business. There will be no next time."

She didn't eat and left the restaurant.

Zhang Mo insists on seeing Duan Mingxuan. Is she confident she can win him back?

Lin Xi walked aimlessly along the roadside, her thoughts wandering aimlessly.

She didn't even know what she was at the moment she agreed to Zhang Mo's request.

She had only one question in her mind: Would Duan Mingxuan get back together with Zhang Mo?

Lin Xi was hungry and wanted to find a place to eat, but she disliked being alone, so she decided to take a taxi.

Before I could even lift my hand, a familiar Maybach came to a smooth stop on the side of the road.

The driver got out of the car and jogged over: "Miss, what are you doing here?"

Lin Xi recognized Duan Yiheng's car and quickly said, "I'm meeting a friend."

"Then hurry up and get in the car, Mr. Duan is in the back."

The driver opened the car door for her, and Lin Xi glanced at Duan Yiheng before getting into the car.

"What are you doing here?" Lin Xi asked.

After work, calling her "General Manager Duan" felt a bit awkward, so she simply stopped using that form of address.

Instead of answering, Duan Yiheng asked, "Didn't you eat?"

Lin Xi was taken aback, then nodded.

Duan Yiheng: "Choose one, go eat now or go back."

I had to go back and talk to Duan Mingxuan about Zhang Mo, so I had no appetite at all.

Without hesitation, she said, "Now."

Duan Yiheng responded and asked the driver to find a quiet restaurant nearby.

The two had just sat down when Lin Xi's phone rang.

It was Duan Mingxuan calling again, and she answered reluctantly: "Mingxuan."

"Xiao Xi, you haven't come back all day, where have you been?"

Lin Xi: "I'm with my friends."

Duan Mingxuan pressed further: "Liang Yutong?"

Lin Xi avoided the main point: "What do you want with me?"

Duan Mingxuan: "I was just asking if you need me to pick you up?"

Lin Xi glanced at her watch: "No need, I'll be home around nine. Don't go out, I need to talk to you."

Duan Mingxuan readily agreed.

After hanging up the phone, Duan Yiheng pushed a bowl of soup towards her: "Didn't you tell him about your work?"

"Thank you." Lin Xi took it, then shook her head. "I plan to talk about it after the training is over."

Duan Yiheng raised his eyes slightly without changing his expression: "What if he objects? Should I find a new secretary?"

"No," Lin Xi hurriedly assured him. "His opposition won't change anything. It's just that my entry into Silver Sail was too fast, and I didn't think of a way to tell him right away. You know what he's like."

She had actually struggled with this issue, but Duan Mingxuan seemed too resistant to it.

Duan Yiheng seemed to have taken the wrong medicine, repeatedly clashing with Duan Mingxuan.

She was genuinely afraid that if the Kings of Hell fought, the little devils would suffer.

Thinking of this, Lin Xi asked, "Did something happen between you and Duan Mingxuan? I felt that something was off between you two when I came back this time."

Duan Yiheng slowly took a sip of soup and replied, "Nothing happened."

That was truly bizarre, and Lin Xi couldn't figure it out at all.

The two then ate their dinner in silence without saying another word.

Lin Xi finished eating first, paused for a few seconds, and then suddenly asked, "Is your birthday... coming up soon?"

Duan Yiheng paused in his hand holding the spoon, without looking up at her, and gave a soft "hmm".

"So...do you want a birthday present?"

Duan Yiheng put down his spoon, and with a crisp clink of porcelain, he met Lin Xi's gaze.

After about two or three seconds, he asked softly, "Are you delivering it?"

Lin Xi didn't respond to that question, but instead asked, "Would you throw it away?"

Like cakes and cards for many years.

Duan Yiheng chuckled lightly: "I'm not a child."

"Oh, then just say you don't know how."

Beating around the bush.

Duan Yiheng: "...He's gone."

Lin Xi got up and followed.

The night was dark and gloomy, but two blinding beams of light pierced through the ornate iron gate.

Duan Mingxuan stood on the second floor and saw the car coming in, then curled his lip in disapproval.

To his surprise, Lin Xi got out of Duan Yiheng's car.

His expression changed several times in an instant, but he finally couldn't help but call out to her, "Xiao Xi."

Lin Xi was startled and looked up, only able to make out Duan Mingxuan's blurry outline in the night.

"Xiao Xi, come up here." Duan Mingxuan's tone was slightly displeased.

Just as Lin Xi was about to go upstairs, Duan Yiheng in the car suddenly called out to her, "Secretary Lin."

Lin Xi didn't realize for a moment that she was being called. She stood there for several seconds before bending over and leaning against the car window, looking like she was waiting for her boss's instructions.

Duan Yiheng glanced at her: "Don't forget my birthday present."

Noticing the hint of mockery in his eyes, Lin Xi was stunned for a moment, watching helplessly as the Maybach drove west.

"Lin Xi," Duan Mingxuan called her by her full name angrily, "You come up here."