Wife Takes the Reins: The Calm CEO

Chapter 25: Lunch with Two Handsome Men

“Lan, hearing you say that puts my mind at ease. It’s time to clock out—let’s grab a bite together!” When facing Yu Feilan, Feng Lingzheng revealed her most genuine self. “Sure, no problem.” After saying that, Yu Feilan casually picked up his suit jacket draped over his office chair, then pushed Feng Lingzheng all the way out the office door to the private elevator. Coincidentally, Li Xiaowan happened to be waiting for the elevator there. When she saw Feng Lingzheng and Yu Feilan walking toward her—especially when she laid eyes on Feng Lingzheng—Li Xiaowan’s heart couldn’t help but skip a beat. She immediately wondered to herself, “Since when have I become so afraid of seeing someone so ‘ill-mannered’?” But on the surface, she forced herself to remain calm and said, “Good morning, Feng Dong. Good morning, President Yu!” “Are you at a loss for words, or do you have nothing left to say to us?” Feng Lingzheng asked, without even looking directly at Li Xiaowan. “Zheng, let’s go—the elevator doors are open,” Yu Feilan said quickly upon seeing the situation, and the elevator doors opened at just the right moment. “Xiaowan, aren’t you coming in?” After stepping into the elevator, Yu Feilan saw Li Xiaowan still standing there in a daze and asked kindly. “I... You guys go ahead. I’ll take the next one.” Li Xiaowan began to feel nervous the moment she faced Feng Lingzheng. “Get in!” Feng Lingzheng quickly reached out to block the elevator doors as they were about to close, glaring at Li Xiaowan with a grim expression. “Zheng, don’t be so harsh with a young lady. Xiaowan, come on in!” Yu Feilan said gently. “Thank you, President Yu.” Since President Yu had said that, she certainly couldn’t refuse the offer, so she strolled leisurely into the elevator. But before she’d even had a chance to steady herself, Feng Lingzheng’s annoying voice—at least in Li Xiaowan’s opinion—rang in her ears: “You’re slower than a snail.” “Feng Dong, you…” Li Xiaowan was about to retort, but then she thought better of it. She couldn’t get angry—she absolutely must not get angry—otherwise, she might end up humiliating herself. Fortunately, Feng Lingzheng didn’t say anything else, and the three of them remained silent in the elevator. The atmosphere was extremely awkward, and under these circumstances, Yu Feilan certainly wouldn’t dare to say anything either. As soon as they stepped out of the elevator, Li Xiaowan hurriedly looked around, trying to spot Qi Xin'er, but unexpectedly, that annoying voice rang in her ears again: “Let’s go together!” “Feng Dong, what do you mean ‘together’? Are you suggesting we have a meal? I’m sorry, but I’ve made plans with a friend. You two go ahead.” At that moment, Qi Xin'er also spotted Li Xiaowan. “Xiaowan, let’s go!” However, Qi Xin'er didn’t immediately notice that Feng Lingzheng and Yu Feilan were standing not far from where Li Xiaowan was. Li Xiaowan, however, was secretly overjoyed and was just about to pull Qi Xin'er toward the entrance of the hall when, unexpectedly, Feng Lingzheng added, “Are you going to ignore what I just said and forget the promise you made at the Feng Family Estate?” Her tone was icy cold. It was a situation where she wanted to cry but couldn’t. Li Xiaowan knew she could no longer pretend not to hear her, so she reluctantly took Qi Xin'er’s hand and turned back. “If you agree to let my friend come along, then I’ll agree to go with you.” Li Xiaowan knew she was testing Feng Lingzheng’s patience, but what else could she do? Was she supposed to leave Qi Xin'er behind and go alone? Wouldn’t that be prioritizing romance over friendship? Wait—what? Prioritizing romance over friendship? Where had her mind wandered? “Xiaowan, just go ahead. I’ll eat by myself,” Qi Xin'er said, sensing the awkward atmosphere—she wasn’t the type to fail to read the room. “Fine! Let’s go!” Feng Lingzheng’s reply was crisp and to the point—she simply didn’t want to waste any more words on Li Xiaowan; in her mind, even a single extra word felt superfluous. “Xin'er, come with us. It’ll be nice for the two of you to keep each other company,” Yu Feilan suggested kindly. Hearing Yu Feilan say this, Qi Xin'er completely abandoned any thought of leaving. She certainly didn’t want Li Xiaowan to feel uncomfortable even during a simple meal; she had to stay with Li Xiaowan to offer her support and encouragement. “Let’s go, then, Xiaowan. Thank you, Feng Dong, and thank you, President Yu,” Qi Xin'er said politely. “No problem. Just wait for us at the garage exit,” Yu Feilan said before taking Feng Lingzheng by the hand and heading toward the exit—he certainly didn’t dare leave Feng Lingzheng, who was brimming with tension, there alone. As for the other people passing by Li Xiaowan, without exception, they all gave her a second look, probably thinking to themselves: First, a stunning beauty appeared by her side, and now a dashing, wind-like hunk has shown up, along with the dignified and refined President Yu. Just who is she, and has she pulled some secret trick behind the scenes? “Xiaowan, don’t you feel like those people walking by are all looking at you with ill intent? In their eyes, I see mostly envy and jealousy. You’ll have to be extra careful from now on to prevent others from playing dirty tricks or making things difficult for you,”” Qi Xin'er offered a well-meaning reminder. Even working alongside Yu Feilan, if someone with ulterior motives wanted to cause trouble, they wouldn’t care about saving face for Yu Feilan. Besides, don’t forget that Yu Feilan is the dream lover of the vast majority of women in the Company—a woman’s jealousy is like a raging fire; once it starts burning, it’s very hard to put out. “What others think is their business; we can’t control that. It’s fine, Xin'er—you don’t need to worry about me so much. Besides, I’m not that clueless!” Qi Xin'er’s kind reminder felt like a warm breeze brushing against Li Xiaowan’s cheeks, bringing her immense comfort. “Xiaowan, I know you’re not stupid, but you’re too kind at heart. You almost never think too much about yourself when dealing with people or handling matters. To use a popular term these days, you’re the ‘sweet and clueless’ type of girl. Girls like you are the easiest to be taken advantage of. It’s best to be a little more cautious in everything you do, okay?” ” Qi Xin'er truly felt a sense of frustration toward Li Xiaowan—as if she were watching someone help count the money after being sold out. In reality, Li Xiaowan wasn’t stupid at all; she was actually very smart. It was just that her heart was too kind. “Xin'er, with you by my side, I don’t even need to worry about all that, right?” Li Xiaowan knew her own personality well, but just thinking about having Qi Xin'er always by her side put her mind at ease. “I can’t stay by your side forever. You have to promise me that if one day I’m not here, you’ll take good care of yourself and think more about your own well-being. Do you remember that?” Qi Xin'er said without thinking; she always had a feeling that she and Xiaowan would be parted in the not-too-distant future. “Xin'er, I promise you, but you have to promise me too—don’t ever just leave me behind and go off on your own.” Li Xiaowan shared the same premonition as Qi Xin'er. She really didn’t want to be apart from her. Although she knew full well that one day they would inevitably have to part ways, she hoped that day would be as far off as possible. “Okay, it’s a deal. Whoever breaks their promise is a puppy,” Qi Xin'er said playfully. “I certainly don’t want to be a puppy, so I’ll definitely keep my promise!” Li Xiaowan said happily. The two of them stood at the exit of the basement garage, chatting and laughing as they waited for Feng Lingzheng and Yu Feilan. ‘Beep, beep…’ The car horn blared incessantly. Li Xiaowan and Qi Xin'er both looked in the direction of the sound and saw someone not far away who looked as if a dark cloud were hanging over their head, though through the windshield, it was hard to make out their features clearly. The two hurried over and got into the car. “Are you blind? The car’s been parked right in front of you for ages—couldn’t you see it?” Feng Lingzheng demanded loudly, completely disregarding how Li Xiaowan might feel hearing this. “What do you mean, ‘am I blind’? Was that car really parked right in front of me? It was clearly at least three meters away from where we were standing,” Li Xiaowan retorted, struggling to suppress her sense of injustice. “All right, Zheng, calm down. Didn’t I tell you before not to be so harsh with girls?” Yu Feilan, sensing that things were taking a turn for the worse, immediately stepped in to soothe him in a gentle voice. But he knew full well that the reason Feng Lingzheng kept putting Li Xiaowan on the spot time and again was entirely because he was still dwelling on that past relationship. In other words, he hadn’t completely forgotten those years that felt like a knife cutting through his heart; as time passed, the pain hadn’t faded—it had only grown deeper. As Feng Lingzheng’s best friend, Yu Feilan actually felt even more distressed than Feng Lingzheng himself,He didn’t want to see Feng Lingzheng, even after all these years, still wallowing in the past that had left him so deeply scarred, but unfortunately, Feng Lingzheng simply couldn’t escape the shadow of that heartbreak. Yu Feilan firmly believed that even without Li Xiaowan’s appearance, Feng Lingzheng would still occasionally think of that cruel woman who had ruthlessly betrayed him overnight. Now, Li Xiaowan’s reappearance might just have given Feng Lingzheng an outlet for his emotions. As his close friend, Yu Feilan,was actually deeply conflicted. On one side was the kind-hearted Li Xiaowan; on the other, his best friend, who was bottling up his emotions and desperately needed an outlet. He didn’t know what stance to take on the matter, but one thing was absolutely certain: as long as it truly helped Feng Lingzheng, he would spare no effort to make it happen—or even take advantage of the situation. All four chose to remain silent. They later arrived at what appeared to be an authentic French restaurant, where elegant and dignified waitresses spoke in French—words Li Xiaowan and Qi Xin'er couldn’t understand. After about two minutes, Yu Feilan finally spoke up slowly: “Xiaowan, Xin'er, I’ve ordered an authentic French steak for you, along with some truffles and top-grade foie gras. I’m not sure if it will suit your tastes—have you ever had French cuisine before?” “No, we haven’t,” Li Xiaowan replied without a moment’s hesitation. “We’ve only seen it on TV,” Qi Xin'er added. Upon hearing this, Yu Feilan showed no sign of disdain on her face. On the contrary, she said gently, “That’s perfectly normal. I remember the first time I went out for a meal in France—I didn’t know anything about it and ended up making a bit of a fool of myself. If it hadn’t been for Zheng by my side, I wouldn’t have known how to save the situation.” “Really? Could President Yu tell us what happened back then?” Li Xiaowan asked curiously. The atmosphere was already quite stifling, so since there was a funny story to hear, she might as well ask all the details—it would be the perfect way to lighten the awkward mood.