A few playful remarks, and Jian Fei seemed unable to keep up with the conversation. Ke Teng, imagining her embarrassment through the screen, mercifully let her off the hook.
In the evening, her sister arrived by car to meet Jian Fei. The next day, they successfully reached Beicheng.
The examination went smoothly. Her sister was in great health, with all indicators meeting the requirements. The specialist fitted her with a cochlear implant and asked her to return in a month for a trial fitting.
Jian Fei had a three-day leave, but unexpectedly finished all her tasks in one day.
Having come all the way to Beicheng, she hesitated about whether to take her sister out to play. Ke Teng's assistant had already prepared a plan.
"President Ke asked me to spend two days showing you around. Here's the itinerary. Let me know if you have any objections."
It had to be said, Ke Teng had done a truly excellent job helping her sister.
The assistant pretended to be Jian Fei's classmate, and the specialist pretended to be the assistant's distant relative. Everything was arranged perfectly, leaving no room for error, so her sister wouldn't suspect anything.
And now, he was taking them sightseeing.
Jian Fei was beginning to feel grateful to this young wealthy gentleman.
It was the first time the sisters had visited a big city. Although they didn't buy anything to save money, they took many photos and had a very happy time.
On the afternoon of the third day, they headed home. After seeing her sister off, Jian Fei reported to the hospital punctually on the morning of the fourth day.
After a few days away, the office seemed to be greatly missed, and her enthusiasm for work was unprecedentedly high.
She strode into the hospital with brisk steps, but before she even reached her office door, she saw several colleagues standing outside, whispering amongst themselves.
"What's wrong? Why aren't you going in?"
She thought the director was angry about something, which scared everyone into not daring to go in.
To her surprise, they gestured and beckoned Jian Fei over.
"I want to ask you, do you know the man inside? How did you meet him?"
"How come there's a handsome guy in the office so early in the morning, sitting at your workstation instead of anywhere else?"
"He's so handsome, he looks like a high-quality young man. When did you meet such a capable man?"
Jian Fei listened, completely bewildered. What high-quality man? Sitting at her workstation?
Upon entering, she finally understood. It was Ke Teng.
Hadn't he returned to Shangcheng to handle work? Why was he back so soon?
And sitting at her workstation so early in the morning.
As if afraid others wouldn't know about their relationship.
Recalling what had happened a few days prior, Jian Fei still found it difficult to look directly at Ke Teng. She walked over awkwardly.
"Why are you here?"
The work in Shangcheng had been handled. Staying there was just for routine matters.
Ke Teng found it boring. Conveniently, the hospital here was urging him to discuss a project, and he also wanted to see Jian Fei, so he came back.
He knew she would be surprised to see him, but he didn't expect this much surprise.
When he used to torment her, he was expressionless, his heart like still water, like a female demon who had experienced a thousand battles.
And now, just from sleeping for a night, the female demon had transformed into a shy young girl. This contrast made Ke Teng incredibly happy.
"What kind of attitude is that? I helped your sister, and this is how you speak to me?"
Jian Fei blinked and awkwardly picked at her fingers.
"I didn't mean it like that..."
"I know you helped a lot with my sister's situation. When are you free? I'll treat you to a meal."
She wanted to repay Ke Teng, but her ability was limited, so all she could do was treat him to a meal.
His change in attitude was pleasing, and Ke Teng accepted it, slowly standing up.
"Sure. I'm free now. I haven't had breakfast yet, let's go."
"..."
Jian Fei looked at him, then at the director's office, then turned to look at the office doorway, and lowered her voice.
"Why didn't you eat breakfast before coming out? It's so convenient to eat breakfast at the hotel."
"It's not that I won't treat you, but I can't right now."
"I've only been working for a month and I've already taken three days off. Now I'm leaving early as soon as I arrive. People will talk."
She pleaded slightly, "How about tonight? Wait until I get off work. You can eat whatever you want."
Ke Teng looked at her big, watery eyes. "Whatever I want? Are you sure?"
"Of course, but it can't be too expensive. You know I'm poor. Besides, you eat abalone and ginseng every day, isn't it tiring?"
Ke Teng found her hurried backtracking and stinginess amusing.
"Then I won't order anything expensive. Let's eat at home. You can cook whatever you want."
'Let's'...
Jian Fei didn't dare to meet his gaze, nor did she dare to casually interpret his choice of words.
"Then you can go. I'll call you after work."
A few days away had resulted in a backlog of work. She threw herself into her tasks, and time quickly flew by until closing.
Colleagues started to stand up one after another, and only then did Jian Fei turn off her computer.
Grabbing her canvas bag, she hadn't even left the office when Ke Teng's call came in.
"Are you out yet?"
From the sound of it, he was at the hospital entrance?
Jian Fei quickened her pace. "You're not waiting for me at the hospital entrance, are you?"
"Of course not." Ke Teng's tone was matter-of-fact. "I'm waiting for you at your office door."
"Ah?"
"You don't have a car, so it's inconvenient to go home. And I'm in a hurry to eat, so what's wrong with waiting for you?"
"Are you that afraid of others seeing you walking with me?"
It wasn't that she was afraid of others seeing her walking with him.
Jian Fei thought, *I'm just afraid of causing you any negative impact!*
*Standing next to me would surely boost my score. I...*
When she reached the door, sure enough, her colleagues were looking back at Ke Teng as they walked.
She knew what they were saying just by thinking about it. Jian Fei had no choice but to brace herself and walk towards him.
"Let's go."
The weather was getting colder. Today she wore a black mock-neck sweater, black pencil pants, tan ankle boots, and a dark coffee-colored coat, her hair down.
Although her clothes clearly weren't high-end, her fair skin and the dark colors made her look quite elegant.
Thinking about the beautiful curves beneath the sweater, Ke Teng smiled and put his arm around her shoulder.
"Go."
Jian Fei froze instantly, her legs unable to move.
"You, you, you, don't do this."
"Do what?" Ke Teng asked intentionally.
Jian Fei stiffened. "My colleagues are all watching. Don't do this."
He held her even tighter.
"So what if they're watching? Isn't it normal for a woman your age to have a man by her side? Or are you perhaps thinking I'm not good enough for you and afraid people will laugh behind your back?"
Jian Fei was speechless.
*Do you think I have the right to look down on you?*
They practically jogged to the parking lot.
Getting into the car, Ke Teng saw her expression of relief and felt a bit displeased. He deliberately teased her.
"Is your old classmate a police officer?"
"What?" The topic shifted so abruptly that Jian Fei couldn't react immediately.
"Acting. Don't tell me you don't know who I'm talking about."
She realized he was referring to Jiang Chuan.
She couldn't help but ask in surprise, "How did you know what he does?"
After all, he was a potential love rival. Couldn't he do some investigating?
However, Ke Teng didn't say it out loud.
"We bumped into each other unexpectedly, and I found out."
"He's on a blind date, and his parents are accompanying him."
"Such a grown man, and still a mama's boy. How ridiculous."