New Client in the President’s Office - Chapter 14

After reminding about the gathering time on Sunday, Yu Xinnian hung up the phone.

To be honest, Shen Yan felt that Yu Xinnian’s call was completely unnecessary, even somewhat ambiguous.

There was a subtle feeling of using official matters for personal reasons, which made Shen Yan very uneasy.

Moreover, Yu Xinnian was Feng Shanshan’s secret crush.

Even though Shen Yan didn’t understand what Feng Shanshan liked about him, for someone like her, who had social anxiety, Yu Xinnian a social butterfly who would casually greet strangers on the street was a terrifying existence.

These past few days, not only had she run into Yu Xinnian when buying breakfast in the morning, but she had also coincidentally met him during lunch.

He didn’t remind her in the morning, nor at noon, but instead chose to call her office phone right before she got off work in the evening.

What’s that saying again? That introverts are just playthings for extroverts?

Could it be that Yu Xinnian enjoyed seeing her flustered and awkward demeanor?

Did he find it amusing?

She hoped she was just overthinking it.

That night, when she got home, she dutifully told Feng Shanshan about all her recent encounters with Yu Xinnian.

Shen Yan: “I swear, I have absolutely no thoughts about him.”

Feng Shanshan looked Shen Yan up and down.

Ever since she had known Shen Yan in high school, she had always had thick, jet-black long hair.

Her hairstyle was a middle part, and even after so many years, her hair parting hadn’t widened at all, which made Feng Shanshan quite envious.

Her face was small and fair, with a delicate oval shape, and she wore a pair of framed glasses that slightly obscured her beauty.

She also had a nice figure tall and slender.

But she didn’t care much about dressing up.

She had been wearing either a T-shirt with jeans or a T-shirt with wide-leg pants for years.

Back in their dormitory days, she would at least put on some makeup when they went out together, but ever since she started working, she hadn’t given herself any time for makeup at all.

“Old Shen, are you panicking?”

Feng Shanshan couldn’t help but laugh when she saw how serious Shen Yan was about recounting her interactions with Yu Xinnian.

“I was just casually mentioning it.

If he really has feelings for you, don’t worry about me.”

Shen Yan shook her head vigorously like a rattle-drum.

“No, no, no.

I’m not into his type.

He’s way too familiar with everyone.”

Feng Shanshan laughed.

“Alright, you know how I am I have a three-minute passion for things.

Besides, I’ve only seen him a few times.

He looks decent and seems like a good person.

Let me observe him the day after tomorrow and see if he’s actually interested in you.”

Shen Yan got even more nervous after hearing Feng Shanshan’s words.

“No, no, no! How did this suddenly turn into him being interested in me? What if he thinks I’m being narcissistic?”

Feng Shanshan found Shen Yan really amusing.

No wonder Yu Xinnian enjoyed teasing her.

Because of this little episode, before heading to the alumni gathering at A University, Feng Shanshan dragged Shen Yan along and gave her an elaborate makeover.

“This is called the ‘rich lady’ makeup style,” Feng Shanshan admired her masterpiece in the mirror, looking quite satisfied.

Shen Yan: …

Feng Shanshan even wanted to lend Shen Yan one of her dresses, but Shen Yan refused outright.

“Thanks, but no.”

Feng Shanshan: “Why not?”

Shen Yan: “They’re all colleagues.”

Feng Shanshan: “That’s exactly why you should let them see how different you look after work!”

Shen Yan refused.

“No, no, no.

Tonight, I’m just your humble servant.

I’ll follow behind you the whole time.”

Feng Shanshan: “ Didn’t Yu Xinnian tell you to keep an eye out for someone suitable at the gathering?”

Shen Yan clutched her chest.

“I just got dumped not long ago.

My heart is wounded. I need to lock it up for a while.”

Feng Shanshan burst out laughing at her dramatic reaction.

“Come on, you and Zhong Cheng were practically playing house.

Would breaking up with him even make you sad?”

Shen Yan thought about it.

“A little, I guess.

After all, he did save me a seat in the library for several months.”

Feng Shanshan, who had also benefited from Zhong Cheng saving seats when she was preparing for her state-owned enterprise exam, could relate.

“That’s actually pretty important.

Good thing we’ve graduated and don’t have to fight for seats in the library anymore.”

Since Shen Yan refused to change into a dress, Feng Shanshan couldn’t force her.

“Are we taking the electric scooter?”

Feng Shanshan was momentarily stunned when Shen Yan led her to the underground garage.

Shen Yan looked at Feng Shanshan, who was wearing a skirt.

“Do you want to drive?”

Feng Shanshan was wearing a short skirt that reached just above her knees.

If she sat in the back, it would be easy for her skirt to ride up.

But if she sat in the front to drive, it would be safer.

Besides, when Shen Yan bought the scooter yesterday, she had also bought a windshield cover at the store, which could provide extra protection.

Feng Shanshan took out her phone, opened a ride-hailing app, and saw that there were 100 people in line ahead of her.

She gave up.

“Fine, I’ll drive.”

Shen Yan added, “At this time, even if you manage to get a ride, just look at the map.

The whole area is red with traffic.”

Feng Shanshan listened to Shen Yan’s words, opened the map app, and saw that every road around them was marked in deep red.

She couldn’t help but sigh, “This is the city center of S City, huh.”

Although she had accompanied Shen Yan to buy the new electric scooter and even helped her bargain for a 200-yuan discount, Feng Shanshan wasn’t familiar with riding it.

She took a moment to get used to it before letting Shen Yan hop on.

Neither of them was familiar with the location of the hot pot restaurant, so Shen Yan had to navigate and give directions from the back.

The wind on the road was strong, and Shen Yan’s throat was starting to hurt from giving directions.

Weaving through the traffic, they quickly arrived at the entrance of the hot pot restaurant.

Shen Yan was stunned when she saw the rows of seats outside the restaurant and the long line of people waiting.

She checked the time 4:30 PM.

Feng Shanshan parked the scooter and, seeing Shen Yan standing there in a daze, quickly asked the staff at the entrance, “Do we need to get a queue number?”

The staff member responded warmly, “Yes, we start giving out queue numbers at 4:30, and entry begins at 5:00. You can line up over there.”

Following the staff’s pointed direction, Feng Shanshan saw two long lines beside a large iron gate next door.

She quickly pulled Shen Yan along to join the queue.

“Is Yu Xinnian even reliable? He talked so much about this hot pot place, and it turns out to be a viral restaurant with a long wait?!”

Feng Shanshan panted as she spoke, having rushed to the end of the line.

Shen Yan frowned.

“That doesn’t seem right.

This gathering was organized by our university’s Communist Youth League secretary and the student council president.”

Feng Shanshan pulled out her phone, opened the group chat, and checked the group announcements for a while.

There was no mention of needing to queue for a number.

She privately messaged Yu Xinnian:
Is this Yu Jie Hot Pot? We’re here already. Do we need to queue for a number?

Yu Xinnian replied:
You guys got there so early?! There’s already a line? Just head straight inside to the V88 private room.

Feng Shanshan showed the chat history to Shen Yan.

Shen Yan was puzzled.

This hot pot place was so insanely popular, and yet it had private rooms for reservations?

But since Yu Xinnian had said so, they walked back to the entrance and found the same staff member from earlier.

“We’re heading to the V88 private room,” Feng Shanshan informed her.

“One moment, our manager will take you there.”

The staff member spoke into her walkie-talkie.

Shortly after, a man in a black suit emerged from inside the restaurant presumably the manager.

“Hello, the V88 private room, correct? Please follow me.”

The manager politely led Feng Shanshan and Shen Yan inside.

The two of them exchanged glances, both seeing the same confusion in each other’s eyes.

The manager led them into a private room, which was decorated similarly to the main dining area.

However, there was something unexpected a full karaoke setup inside.

“This is the menu.

You can take a look and order whatever you like.

If you don’t want to order yet, you can use the karaoke system to pass the time.”

The manager introduced the room to them.

Feng Shanshan placed the ordering tablet on the table.

“Our friends haven’t arrived yet, so we’ll wait before ordering.”

The manager understood the implication immediately.

“I’ll step out, then.

If you need anything, just call me.

I won’t disturb you.”

Once the manager left and they were alone in the room, Shen Yan grabbed Feng Shanshan’s arm.

“What is going on? I just searched this place on review apps, and no one mentioned being able to book a karaoke private room here.”

Feng Shanshan’s mind worked quickly.

“Yu Jie, Yu Xinnian… Could it be…?”

Shen Yan waggled a finger.

“Sounds plausible! Very plausible!”

Feng Shanshan clicked her tongue.

“So, Yu Xinnian’s family must be pretty influential.”