Chapter 37
Fu Yuhe could tell that Shen Yi's attitude had changed. After returning from his business trip, Shen Yi seemed like a different person.
The way he had flirted and clung to him before, holding him close and kissing him fiercely, the person who had seemed utterly smitten in every way and sent him good-morning and good-night messages every day-it all seemed to have vanished into thin air with this business trip.
Where had things gone wrong...?
Shen Yi's wicked behavior belatedly surfaced in Fu Yuhe's mind.
Perhaps because the silence had gone on for so long, the smile on Shen Yi's lips faded. He looked down at the love letter in his hand and slipped it into his coat pocket.
"Screech-"
The stool scraped against the floor with a piercing sound, followed by heavy footsteps.
Shen Yi looked up and saw Fu Yuhe right in front of him. "Brother Fu."
"I really underestimated you." The words slipped quietly from Fu Yuhe's thin, tightly pressed lips, carrying a hint of menace.
He walked past Shen Yi, bringing a gust of cold air with him.
Was Shen Yi playing with him?
Fine. Just great. The ridiculous thing was that he himself had actually been so bewitched for a few moments that his head had spun, his heart had stirred more than once, and he had been swayed by his emotions.
Fu Yuhe's face, turned away from Shen Yi, was as dark as ink, his gaze sinister. His jaw worked as he strode out of the study and slammed the door shut with a bang.
The study was so quiet that even the rustle of clothes was clearly audible. Shen Yi slipped his hands, still cold from the wind, into his pockets. He tilted his head toward the fogged-up window and let out a soft breath.
"Ah... he's angry."
When Fu Yuhe wasn't angry, he was unhappy. Now that Fu Yuhe was angry, he was also a little unhappy.
Why was that? Shen Yi didn't understand.
After a long while, he raised a hand and rubbed his hair.
...He really was quite a torment.
A cold wind blew outside, and traffic flowed ceaselessly along the road. Inside the towering buildings, people worked diligently at their jobs.
"Special Assistant Wang!" A woman in black high heels hurried between the workstations, her heels clicking crisply. She called out to the young man carrying coffee into the office, and was still catching her breath when she reached him.
Special Assistant Wang turned toward her and handed her a tissue. She took it and said, "Thank you," before asking, "What did President Fu say about the meeting just now? Was there something wrong with what we prepared?"
During the meeting, President Fu had sat there with an inscrutable expression. He hadn't said a word, but his presence had been impossible to ignore. The person in charge had presented their proposal under the pressure, and at the end, President Fu hadn't said anything except, "Meeting adjourned."
"President Fu hasn't made any requests for now, so don't worry," Special Assistant Wang reassured her with a smile.
After sending the woman on her way, Special Assistant Wang carried the coffee over and pushed open the office door.
"President Fu." He set the coffee beside Fu Yuhe, who was sitting behind the desk. "Your coffee."
Fu Yuhe's expression was indifferent. He picked up the coffee and took a sip, then frowned slightly. "It's too bitter."
"I'll make you another cup-" Special Assistant Wang had made it to Fu Yuhe's usual taste, but if Fu Yuhe said it was bitter, then naturally it was bitter. He was just reaching for the cup when Fu Yuhe said, "Forget it."
Their President Fu had seemed to be in an especially bad mood these past two days, and had spoken less as well. Although he was as efficient at work as ever, the oppressive atmosphere around him was visibly heavier.
"President Fu, your..." Special Assistant Wang paused, then corrected himself. "That young Mr. Fu called from the front desk and said he wanted to see you."
"Handle that sort of thing yourself," Fu Yuhe said mildly. "You don't need to ask me."
Special Assistant Wang immediately said no more. "All right."
Fu Yuhe remained tense and under pressure until it was time to get off work. While riding the elevator, he glanced at his watch. Fu Cheng and the others should have been home by now.
Before the elevator reached the first floor, its doors opened to reveal company employees leaving work. When they saw Fu Yuhe, they greeted him one after another. Fu Yuhe nodded, and the assistant beside him invited them in. The employees exchanged glances, then lowered their heads and entered one by one.
The cheerful atmosphere from their conversation outside froze over. The elevator was utterly silent; they didn't even exchange glances. The tension came from the oppressive presence of their young president.
When the elevator reached the first floor, the employees said goodbye and dispersed.
Fu Yuhe rode home to find the house empty. Carrying the pastries he had picked up on the way, he knocked on Fu Cheng's door. There was no response, and when he opened it, Fu Cheng was nowhere to be seen.
He sat in the living room, listening to the ringing on the other end of the phone until a woman's voice said, "Sorry, the person you have called is busy. Please try again later..."
Fu Yuhe hung up and leaned back against the sofa.
Where had they gone?
Fu Cheng rarely came home late, but there was an unpredictable factor at his side.
Fu Yuhe lit a cigarette and held it between his lips.
Anger at having been fooled filled his heart. Two days had passed since then, but time had done nothing to lessen his bad feelings about the matter-or about that little rascal who made him grit his teeth with hatred.
A fire smoldered inside him.
Fu Yuhe rarely remembered someone so vividly. The various emotions he felt only showed that he had taken Shen Yi to heart.
Smoke hazed his face, making his expression even harder to read.
Only when it was almost dark outside did the sound of the front door opening finally come. Fu Cheng changed his shoes at the door and stepped inside. Before he saw anyone, he heard a voice.
"You're back." Fu Yuhe's voice was low and hoarse.
Fu Cheng saw his brother's back as he sat on the sofa and jumped in fright.