Chapter 15

Chapter 15 Rose x Kiss

Ji Mingzhu looked at the person in front of her and, relying on the little memory she still had, “Assistant Ying?”

The person responded, “Yes, Miss Ji. President Jiang asked me to come down and take you up.”

The guess in Ji Mingzhu’s heart was thus confirmed—so the one who had negotiated with the manager at that gathering really had been him.

Strictly speaking, before that gathering, she and Assistant Ying had met only once.

Back when she and Jiang Ji returned to the country, the first time they met, Jiang Ji had just rushed over from Jiang Corporation. At that time he was probably tied up with urgent matters, so he had an assistant with him.

If they hadn’t run into each other alone today, Ji Mingzhu most likely wouldn’t remember where she had seen this person before.

Setting that matter aside for the moment, another thing suddenly sprang into her mind—

Ji Mingzhu abruptly remembered that day when she came out of the hotel. She hadn’t gone through the underground parking garage but instead went straight through the hotel lobby, and with Lian Tang headed directly to the club.

Afterward Jiang Ji called and asked her where she was.

At the time she also asked him whether he had been staying over at Hua’an Tingcheng the whole time. Jiang Ji denied it, and she didn’t press further, simply believing him completely.

Now that she thought about it, it seemed completely different from what she had imagined before.

So Jiang Ji, after flatly denying it, had even hung up her call especially briskly?!

—“Miss Ji—please follow me, this way.”

Ji Mingzhu had been lost in thought, but Assistant Ying’s sudden voice interrupted her. She answered and directly followed him.

…

Jiang Corporation was located in the business district at the center of Yin City, connected with Lise Avenue, forming a stepped layout.

Ji Mingzhu had never been to Jiang Corporation before. Led by Assistant Ying, she bypassed the front desk and took the private elevator straight to the top floor.

As soon as the two figures disappeared into the elevator, several women at the front desk gathered together and began whispering.

—“Hey, who was that person who went up with Assistant Ying just now?”

—“I didn’t see her face clearly, just glanced quickly, but she was really beautiful.”

—“Is it that one rumored recently to be coming for an interview?”

—“No, that female host can’t compare with this one at all—too plain.”

The front desk staff couldn’t come to any conclusion. Jiang Corporation had always kept a low profile, and this was the first time they had seen a woman taken to the top floor via the private elevator.

The top floor had Jiang Ji’s office and the executive assistant office, and the meeting rooms weren’t on that level. Under normal circumstances no one would go there. As they discussed, someone mentioned the marriage arrangement between the Jiang family and the Ji family. Ji Mingzhu’s passing by suddenly seemed possible, and the topic quickly exploded.

As the elevator slowly rose, Ji Mingzhu stared at the climbing numbers and asked, “Assistant Ying, you’ve been to Hua’an Tingcheng before, right?”

Assistant Ying nodded slightly. “Yes. President Jiang had me deliver some documents there before, and we discussed a contract there.”

Hearing this, the situation suddenly seemed to turn over.

Ji Mingzhu thought about it again and suddenly felt Jiang Ji was really quite a jerk.

That meant that day he was negotiating a contract at Hua’an Tingcheng, and at the same time waiting for her to finish her gathering, conveniently asking Assistant Ying—who came to deliver documents—to help her out?

Recalling the sound of the wind and the horns at that time, Jiang Ji seemed to have waited for her in the underground parking garage for quite a while.

In other words, the one who had stood the other up badly should have been her.

Privately sorting through the sequence of events, Ji Mingzhu looked at the silver-white elevator wall, and an inexplicable feeling rose in her heart. Then his hanging up directly seemed to have a reason to justify it, as if it could be blown away by the wind.

Only—later at the Song family’s full-month banquet, he had first invited her to return to Park Hyatt Residence together, yet he still broke the appointment. That one couldn’t be excused. The Sally chicken in her bedroom would have to keep getting beaten.

The elevator soon reached the top floor. Assistant Ying stepped out first and introduced the three assistants in the executive assistant office. Their responsibilities were all different, each handling their own field, while jointly assisting Jiang Ji.

“President Jiang is still in a meeting. Miss Ji, please sit here for a moment. I’ll go handle some matters. If there’s anything, you can instruct me.” After speaking, Assistant Ying pointed to the sofa in Jiang Ji’s office.

“Mm, go ahead.”

Ji Mingzhu responded casually. After he closed the door, she sat directly on the sofa, half supporting her face with her hand, and began idly playing with her phone.

Recently she had purchased many processing materials usable for video editing, all paid items directly listed on overseas sites. They hadn’t yet been adopted domestically and usually would be delayed by several months.

Ji Mingzhu had a private account and especially liked this kind of material that few people used. She planned to use it directly in the next episode.

She tried a few effects, felt a bit bored, and simply began to look around Jiang Ji’s office.

Although it was located in the extremely expensive city center, this clearly wasn’t a concern for the entire Jiang Corporation building. This top-floor office occupied an excellent position, with considerable floor space and excellent visual effect.

A simple black, white, and gray palette made the whole office grand and clean.

The sense of refinement was hidden in the details.

For example, the porcelain placed on one side of the bookshelf, the pear-wood tea table in front of the sofa. The carpet was soft, silent when stepped on, and the desk presented a dark, heavy-wood black.

Through the blinds, one could overlook Yin City’s Lise Avenue.

In the winter afternoon, slightly warm sunlight poured into the room, spreading along the side of Ji Mingzhu’s face.

She had just had lunch with Ji Shaoyan at noon. The lazy drowsiness, struck directly by the sunlight, surged in from all directions.

Thinking Jiang Ji was still in a meeting, Ji Mingzhu simply let herself go, lazily slumping into the sofa, preparing to nap for a while.

Then she slowly closed her eyes.

…

After an unknown amount of time, as if she suddenly heard a “click” sound, or perhaps some other noise disturbed her, Ji Mingzhu gradually woke up.

As soon as she opened her eyes, her gaze fell directly opposite, where there was a slender figure.

Jiang Ji was sitting on the sofa, holding a phone in his hand, eyes lowered as he looked down. His distinct fingertips rested on it.

As if sensing her gaze, he slowly lifted his eyes.

“Awake?”

“Mm…”

Ji Mingzhu’s voice carried the haziness of just waking up. She brushed the curled hair that had fallen beside her face and shoulders.

“You finished your meeting and came over, and didn’t wake me?”

Ji Mingzhu straightened slightly and looked directly at Jiang Ji. She didn’t know when he had finished the meeting and returned here.

“I wanted to see how long you could sleep here.”

Jiang Ji replied calmly, then discreetly put the phone back in his hand.

Ji Mingzhu didn’t notice this small movement and only complained inwardly.

Still the same as always, like a Buddha.

What this man did best was being silent and unnoticed. He himself stayed calm, but every time he almost scared her little heart into jumping out. She didn’t know whether she should give him a Ninja Turtle figurine.

Then, as if she smelled something sweet, Ji Mingzhu sniffed the air, and then lowered her gaze unintentionally. Her eyes immediately paused.

The pear-wood tea table was filled with various small pastries.

Although she hadn’t tasted them for years, Ji Mingzhu recognized at a glance that these were the An Garden pastries she had loved to eat with Lian Tang during high school.

Because supply was limited, reservations were required each time. Back then Ji Mingzhu would directly use Ji Shaoyan’s name to go, which worked especially well.

“You ordered these for me?”

Ji Mingzhu looked at Jiang Ji suspiciously. However, he had already slowly stood up and gone to the lounge to take off his coat, turning his long neck slightly as he walked to adjust his cufflinks.

Hearing her question, Jiang Ji said meaningfully, “Assistant Ying.”

Ji Mingzhu looked at him thoughtfully, her delicate brows slightly knitted. She only felt that Jiang Ji’s assistant was quite capable—not only able to figure out her preferences, but also able to reserve An Garden Manor’s afternoon tea in advance when she came here.

After Jiang Ji returned from the small lounge, he went straight behind the desk to work.

With these pastries, Ji Mingzhu and he did not interfere with each other, which was best.

For a while, the spacious room held only the ticking sound of the quartz clock.

After a short while, the internal-external line connected to Jiang Ji’s computer buzzed twice.

Jiang Ji pressed it, and Assistant Ying’s voice came through the line.

The sound wasn’t loud, but it echoed in the office clearly enough—

“President Jiang, Host Zhao and her team have come over from the meeting room. They say they still want to try for an interview opportunity and discuss it with you in detail.”

Today the Zhao family had come to discuss business. When Old Master Lu came, he had also brought Zhao Lan along.

“Where.”

“They’re now at the executive assistant office. I have your instructions—no one may enter without prior approval—so I’ve stopped them outside the door, waiting for your directions.”

Ji Mingzhu had come over after having lunch with Ji Shaoyan. She had tasted the An Garden pastries one by one and couldn’t eat much more.

When she heard the conversation between Jiang Ji and Assistant Ying, she was touching up her lipstick.

Actually, ever since she saw the Weibo promotion Zhao Lan bought last time, she had gradually seen several more related news pieces and press releases in the following days.

It was as if Zhao Lan wouldn’t give up unless she secured this interview.

Today she even brought people to block the door. Her intentions were obvious. Although Ji Mingzhu didn’t really know Zhao Lan and hadn’t spoken a word to her, the Zhao family’s actions were somewhat unnecessary.

Thinking of this, she held the lipstick in her hand and slowly walked toward Jiang Ji.

Going around the wide desk, Ji Mingzhu bent down and leaned close.

Jiang Ji looked at her deeply. In his gaze, the girl’s curved waist, her soft figure, and the rich fragrance that spread with her movement—the heavy rose scent, stifled and condensed—because of their closeness, tangled and lingered, stubbornly refusing to disperse.

Her red lips were moist. They brushed past Jiang Ji’s neck and vanished in an instant, then, as if unintentionally, she blew lightly by his ear.

Jiang Ji’s Adam’s apple moved slightly. Then he instructed the other end, “No one is allowed to come in.”

After speaking, he decisively cut off the line.

She sat on the edge of his chair. The bottom of the lipstick in her hand was inlaid with fine gold, forming a sharp contrast with Jiang Ji’s white shirt—a contrast between flamboyance and cold restraint.

Ji Mingzhu tapped his shirt with the base of the lipstick and curled her lips. “President Jiang, may I borrow your collar?”