CH 6

The person in charge of arranging the check-in had met Tang Yi a few times before. She smiled, poked her head from behind the computer and said, “The hotel tonight is the company’s territory. The meeting at 8 o’clock tomorrow morning will end at about 12 o’clock. After that, everyone will go to Sanya together.”

Tang Yi was not interested in Sanya or Siya (San – three, Si – four) at all. He now had to think about the issue of accommodation at night. Lin Rui didn’t have face-to-face contact with him since returning to China. The only exchange between the two was Gu Yanting’s “wants to borrow a room” conveyed on his behalf.

Tang Yi’s sentence “Scram where he came from” was not just words. He broke up with Gu Yanting that day, and then moved his things to the second bedroom and locked it.

There was not even a study in the small two-bedroom apartment. Gu Yanting was only concerned about the calamity at the beginning and certainly didn’t realise that Tang Yi had cut off the possibility of Lin Rui taking the opportunity to live there.

— Unless Gu Yanting and Lin Rui shared the same bed shamelessly.

But according to Tang Yi’s understanding of these two people, this was impossible for the time being.

Gu Yanting was still thinking that he hadn’t done him any wrong, and Lin Rui was used to playing a loverboy under the guise of innocence. The two of them, one with a stupid mind and the other with a moralistic appearance, couldn’t be so quick to mix with each other in order to avoid suspicions.

Tang Yi was a typical example of “if I’m not having a good time, the others won’t either”.

It’s just that his stomach pain had finally subsided in the past few days, and he had no patience to smile at his ex’s first love for the time being. So he picked up the pen and turned to the check-in form, “I have a relative here, so I’ll take care of my own accomodation. Is there a change in the meeting schedule?”

The girl in charge was taken aback for a moment, “Not at the moment.”

“Okay, if there are any changes, please contact me through this number.” Tang Yi put down the pen, raised his eyes and smiled sincerely at the girl, “I’m causing you trouble.”

The thing was it was almost October, and the tourism here was flourishing. Tang Yi dragged his suitcase for a while but didn’t see anything he liked, so he finally stopped in front of a hotel.

I have a relative here, this kind of excuse Tang Yi used when he was on a business trip for the first time. At that time, he had just entered the company, and when he was on a business trip, he was arranged a room with a colleague he was completely unfamiliar with.

He knew that many people in society were not bigoted in their attitude towards homosexuality, but they were not friendly either. For example, if you were in the same room with a gay person, you might feel that you were coveted, and if you took a shower in the same bathrom as a gay person, you might feel that you were molested…

He hesitated for a long time, and finally lied to the leader that he had relatives nearby, so he wouldn’t not delay seeing the clients.

It was just that he didn’t have much money on him at the time, and he wanted to use every yuan he had in order to repay the loan faster, so he wandered outside until midnight before finding a bed for 25 yuan a night in the red light district.

Later, Ning Zeyu found him and pulled Tang Yi, with the dark circles under his eyes that were about to spread to his chin, into his room.

Ning Zeyu was open and honest, and bluntly said that he didn’t mind whether Tang Yi was bent or straight. He didn’t mean to bother Tang Yi either. It was just two beds in a room, everyone sleeping on his own after a bit of a chat. Since then, the combination of the two had never been dismantled.

Even if the company made a different arrangement, Comrade Ning might as well come carrying his luggage and kick out the people in Tang Yi’s room.

It was only when Tang Yi was settled in the hotel that he remembered this option.

However, when he fished out his mobile phone from his clothes, he found that the mobile phone hadn’t been turned on since he got off the plane.

The battery of the mobile phone was running out, and after struggling to turn it on, every text message was like a dying old lady saying her last words.

Tang Yi opened one in passing, just in time to see it was from Ning Zeyu.

“Tang Yi, what room are you in?”

Next one.

“Come here, Xiao Yang and Pheasant are fucking.”

Pheasant was the nickname Ning Zeyu gave Lin Rui, alluding to the fact that he became a deputy manager after graduating from a pheasant university and was dropped on them from the above.

The people in the marketing department were all desperate and had to fight for their lives. When Ning Zeyu and Tang Yi were climbing up the ladder, the marketing department’s inhuman records were the best evidence of the fierce battle.

Not to mention how many people’s way Lin Rui blocked being parachuted in, in the past few days, he began to adjust the staff of the second department. The second department was terrified, with the chickens flying and the dogs jumping (in a state of chaos).

Ning Zeyu and his team could only make chicken soup from time to time to comfort the suffering masses next door. After all, they also had some common enemies.

When Tang Yi arrived at the hotel, he saw Ning Zeyu holding a bottle of mineral water in his hand, sitting on the sofa in the lounge area of the hall with his legs crossed.

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There were three or four foreign tourists in the hall, and there was no shadow of Xiao Yang and Lin Rui.

Tang Yi frowned slightly and sat down next to Ning Zeyu.

“What’s going on?”

“Nothing, Xiao Yang is angry with me!” There was a smile in Ning Zeyu’s calm voice, “This kid is really good, protecting his master.”

Tang Yi glanced at him blankly and didn’t say anything.

“You moved out?” Ning Zeyu turned his head and asked him, “Standard room or king-size room? Is there a place for me?”

“No.”

“Tsk, that’s cruel. It’s a shame, I was about to kick Deputy Xiao Lin out to defend my territory.”

Ning Zeyu sighed pretentiously and explained the situation: “Lin Rui asked Xiao Yang to help him deliver his luggage, and Xiao Yang asked the front desk where you stay. The front desk said you live at a relative’s house.”

“Then Lin Rui gave a “eek”, saying ‘that Tang has always been an orphan, where did he get a relative? It can’t be that he doesn’t want to share a room with me?’” The second half of the sentence Ning Zeyu said in a thin, throaty voice that really sounded a bit like Lin Rui’s.

Tang Yi smiled speechlessly, then raised his chin, “Then what?”

“Then Xiao Yang said, ‘Then why don’t you change with Manager Ning, Deputy Manager Lin?’”

Tang Yi: “……”

Ning Zeyu: “Really a good boy. At that time, Lin Rui’s face was so black that he could go undercover in the coal pile.”

“Don’t make trouble with Lin Rui,” Tang Yi rubbed his brow, “I feel that he is coming at me. And he’s got a lot of power behind him.”

Ning Zeyu’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Is he your acquaintance?”

“Not really an acquaintance. Just a bit of an intersection in the circle of friends.” Tang Yi didn’t specify.

Ning Zeyu was smart enough to know that he meant well with this hint and wouldn’t ask him too much about personal matters.

Lin Rui parachuted into their company and their department. Although Tang Yi had no evidence, he had a hunch that Lin Rui’s target was him, and it all was ill-intentioned.

He had nothing to be afraid of. He was naked and had no worries. The only weakness in his whole body was Gu Yanting.

Tang Yi couldn’t deny this. Gu Yanting was his weakness. Even if Tang Yi was angry with him and hated him, he didn’t want him to be wronged by others.

And Lin Rui was probably also very clear about this. It was difficult to say whether he would use Gu Yanting when the time came.

Tang Yi hesitated for a moment and then said to Ning Zeyu, “The company has made a lot of moves this year. Not to mention the acquisition of two small companies, I heard that it is interested in entering the film and television industry. This is not like the style of the old directors.”

Ning Zeyu’s face was somewhat solemn as he looked over.

Tang Yi smiled, “ER started with financial and management software. Although it has been developing well, some application markets are now saturated, and continuous acquisitions at home and abroad have also led to a decline in brand concentration. At this time, most of the old directors will consider changes…”

Tang Yi gently tapped on his knee, raised his eyes and said, “But the new director, not so much.”

ER’s financial situation was good, and the organisational structure was bound to be changed. If there was a new head who had enough power and great ambitions, it could be just a matter of a few words before ER changed its course and moved the focus of its business step by step.

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Ning Zeyu picked up the bottle and took a sip, nodded, and suddenly said, “Behind Lin Rui is Zhou Hao.”

Tang Yi was taken aback for a moment. He hadn’t read the email Xiao Yang had sent him yet, but what could be accessed by Xiao Yang would surely not be very straightforward in content. The person behind Lin Rui needed to be analysed and inferred step by step.

Ning Zeyu shared this information, saving him the trouble

But Zhou Hao… two figures, one big and one small, appeared in Tang Yi’s mind.

How did Zhou Hao get to know Lin Rui? A kept lover?

“Just go with the flow.” Tang Yi thought for a while and said, “Take more care of Xiao Yang, this kid is solid.”

“Hey, I can’t care less, but Xiao Yang is really solid!” Ning Zeyu was surprised: “Are you avoiding Lin Rui?”

“No,” Tang Yi said calmly, “I just don’t want to see him.”

Tang Yi didn’t want to see Lin Rui, but it didn’t mean that the latter didn’t want to see him.

The hotel issued meal coupons to the participants, and all three meals a day were buffet style. Ning Zeyu finally called Tang Yi and they went to the restaurant together. Not long after they sat down, Lin Rui greeted them with surprise on his face.

Lin Rui was indeed born handsome, like a Snow Maiden with delicate eyebrows, and even Tang Yi, who disliked him from the bottom of his heart, had to admit that Lin Rui’s clear, innocent peach blossom eyes were indeed very capable of striking a man’s heart with a single look.

“Hey, Manager Tang, you are here! What a coincidence!” Lin Rui has already gathered a lot of things in his hands. Seeing that there was still a place next to Ning Zeyu, he put the plate down and sat down, “Can I talk to you?” 

Ning Zeyu arched his eyebrows, but Tang Yi nodded faintly and let him start.

“Manager Tang, when I returned home that day, I didn’t notice that you were among the friends who picked me up at the airport. I’m really sorry for my neglect that day!” Lin Rui raised his head and said with a smile, “It’s also Yanting’s fault, he’s just like that, he’s silly and didn’t know to introduce you to me. By the way, were you alright going back by yourself that day?”

Tang Yi’s face was already decorated with a decent smile, and he said with quite a bit of gentlemanly demeanour, “It’s okay.”

“Ah, that’s good!” Lin Rui patted his chest lightly and breathed a sigh of relief, “I wanted to stay at your house for a while back then, and seeing as you didn’t agree, I thought that Brother Tang didn’t like me!” 

Tang Yi smiled and nodded, “I quite dislike you.”

Lin Rui: “……”

Lin Rui probably didn’t expect that with him changing “Manager Tang” to “Brother Tang” already, Tang Yi would smile and end the spiel with this reply. His smile faltered and then he coughed self-deprecatingly, “Manager Tang, you are really interesting.”

Tang Yi ignored him, picked up his cup and took a sip.

“Although there are some things that don’t need to be said, as a good friend of Yanting, I still can’t help but want to say something.” Lin Rui adjusted his emotions, “Yanting is a close friend of mine. Although he spent the night at my house that day, nothing happened between us. He’s a good person in every way, but he has a stupid mouth, so if he does something you’re not happy about, don’t lower yourself to his level, okay?”

If it weren’t for the person opposite him being Gu Yanting’s crush and naturally enjoying Gu Yanting’s special care, Tang Yi could have hardly resisted applauding.

So intimate, so sincere, just like the real thing.

Tang Yi gave Lin Rui a sideways glance, wanting to laugh a little, “Very good, then what?”

“Nothing more, I’m relieved if you guys are good,” Lin Rui lowered his head with an uneasy smile on his face, “I saw that you didn’t want to be in the same room with me today and I thought something happened between you…”

Tang Yi raised his eyebrows and suddenly smiled, “Something happened…”

Lin Rui was taken aback for a moment, “Huh?”

Tang Yi raised his hand and pushed up the frame of his glasses, with a smile at the corner of his mouth, “There are so many things that happened between us, I don’t know which one you want to hear about. Well… for example, I fucked Gu Yanting to death? Or, Yanting is good in every way, but he’s just too unrestrained. He even mentioned you the other day…”

Tang Yi squinted, glanced at Lin Rui up and down a few times, and tsked, “Said you’ve been around a lot of people and you are good at reading people’s needs.”

The smile on Lin Rui’s face stiffened.

Tang Yi smiled: “By the way, Deputy Manager Lin has been on the job for a few days. Don’t forget to give me this week’s work report before 8:30 tomorrow morning. According to the regulations of the marketing department, the deputy manager does not have an assistant. Xiao Yang’s salary and bonuses in the past few days can only be deducted from Deputy Manager Lin’s salary this month. Of course…”

Tang Yi raised his eyebrows, “It’s better to do less of such unnecessary things in the future.”

Tang Yi didn’t manage to wriggle past Ning Zeyu after eating, so he could only take the latter to the hotel he was staying in for a visit. 

Ning Zeyu’s eyes lit up when he saw the other bed in the standard room, and once he lay down on the bed, he said he wouldn’t leave.

Tang Yi had a headache and stretched out his foot to kick him but after a few kicks, he received a call from Gu Yanting.

It had been a few days since the two of them broke up, and this was the first time Tang Yi received a call from Gu Yanting. There had been one before, but he had missed it when he switched off his phone.

Tang Yi’s gaze fell on the phone and he cut the call off blankly.

Gu Yanting called again, and he hung up again.

After a dozen times like this, Comrade Ning sensed that something was wrong, and Gu Yanting stopped the offensive.

He stopped calling and sent a text message instead.

— My parents miss you. They rushed all the way from my hometown yesterday and brought you your favourite pickles and want to cook a meal for you before they go back.

— I tried to persuade them both, but they didn’t budge. Are you coming to eat?

— Where are you? I’ll pick you up, just one meal.

Tang Yi read on, cursing Gu Yanting in his heart for being so shameless that he actually used his parents as a pretext to make peace with him. On the other hand, he couldn’t bear the disappointment and sadness of the two elders.

Gu Yanting’s father and mother had been treating him as their son since he had stopped Gu Yanting from messing around.

This kind of affection was almost a luxury for Tang Yi. Sometimes he felt a little guilty to the two elders — they didn’t know about Gu Yanting’s sexuality. Every time they complained to Tang Yi why Gu Yanting still didn’t marry a wife and start a family, Tang Yi felt sad and condemned by his conscience.

So he checked a lot about finding a lesbian for a marriage of convenience, surrogacy, and in vitro fertilization.

Tang Yi thought about the expectant look in the eyes of the two elders and hesitated for a long time. Just when he was about to send out the text message “I will go back the day after tomorrow”, he suddenly remembered something, paused and called Gu Yanting directly.

The call was picked up quite quickly over there.

“How are you doing lately?” Tang Yi asked.

Gu Yanting was simply flattered and replied: “Okay, okay, pretty good.”

“It’s been cold recently, so wear an extra coat.” Tang Yi said lightly, “If you forgot to bring it, go to Hangzhou Tower and buy two.”

“Oh, no need, our construction site is a bit far away from there, not in the same area.” Gu Yanting laughed heartily, “You are pretty good too, right?” 

Tang Yi sneered, “Good, very good! Your parents are here, and they brought pickles, and they are even frying them for me to eat!”