There was only one wall lamp left on in the bedroom, which was enough, and every detail was projected into the mirror.
Shen Ruozhen didn't know how he spent that night, but he knew what he looked like every time he was intimate with Xiang Mingzhang.
His dissolute posture, decadent expression, hair, clothes, lips and teeth were all clearly visible in the mirror.
Shen Ruozhen couldn't let go and felt as unfamiliar as if it was his first time, so Xiang Mingzhang guided him step by step.
Shen Ruozhen lowered his head to avoid him, so Xiang Mingzhang pinched the back of his neck, lifted his chin, and almost forced him to look up to "admire" him, and even called his nickname in his ear.
In an instant, Shen Ruozhen fell into a daze, and was overwhelmed by a surge of pleasure. He could not tell whether it was purely a physical perception or a double stimulation of the mind and senses.
The scar from the gunshot seemed to be embroidered on his chest, tightening constantly and tugging at his heart. Shen Ruozhen felt very sore and numb. Xiang Mingzhang tried to comfort him, but it was of no use. Instead, the soreness and numbness spread to every part of his body.
It's ridiculous and outrageous.
Shen Ruozhen repeated this silently countless times while hugging Xiang Mingzhang tightly. He thought he was just enduring it, but in fact he couldn't help himself.
Sweat and tears mixed together, and Shen Ruozhen's hands were wet.
He trembled and tried to shield his shameless face in the mirror, but he couldn't reach it. When he was about to fall, Xiang Mingzhang covered his hand from behind and pressed it lightly on the mirror.
Their palms felt cold and together they stained the damn glass at the head of the bed.
In the second half of the night, morning mist rose up. It was very thick and crept into the room from the window, trying to invade Shen Ruozhen's dreams. Shen Ruozhen fell into a deep sleep, resting his head on Xiang Mingzhang's shoulder, until the mist dissipated and daylight appeared.
Xiang Mingzhang woke up, and after being violent, he became gentler and asked, "Do you want to get up?"
Today is Monday. Shen Ruozhen said hoarsely, "Yes."
Xiang Mingzhang rubbed Shen Ruozhen's forehead with his chin and asked, "Would you like to take a shower?"
Shen Ruozhen was very frugal with words: "Wash."
Xiang Mingzhang said: "Do you want to go by yourself, or should I take the trouble to carry him?"
Shen Ruozhen felt like his whole body was falling apart, but he didn't show weakness and forced himself to turn over. Just as he was about to get up, Xiang Mingzhang hugged him from behind and lifted him up without knowing how.
There were suits prepared in the villa, custom-made according to Shen Ruozhen's size and preferences.
After taking a shower, Shen Ruozhen did not wear the brand new white shirt. Instead, he picked out a black one from Xiang Mingzhang's closet, which was slightly loose on him.
Xiang Mingzhang said: "This is the first time I see you wearing a black shirt."
Shen Ruozhen's chest was covered with spots. He said, "The marks are bright red. I'm worried that the white shirt can't cover them."
Xiang Mingzhang played dumb: "So serious?"
Shen Ruozhen buttoned up his shirt: "At least the skin is not broken. Thank you for your kindness."
Xiang Mingzhang choked and asked, "Does it hurt?"
How could the feeling of losing one's mind be pain? Shen Ruozhen was too ashamed to answer. He raised his chin slightly and said in a masterly manner, "Pick a tie for me."
Xiang Mingzhang opened the drawer and selected a narrow silver-gray tie. The satin material was shiny and soft, which could neutralize the sharpness of the black shirt.
He helped Shen Ruozhen put it on, and while tying the knot he said, "Don't you like coming from behind?"
Shen Ruozhen's eyes wandered, and he was sick because of the mirror: "... Hmm."
Xiang Mingzhang said: "Then why were you willing to turn around and lie down obediently last night?"
Shen Ruozhen was fiddling with his sleeves, nearly pulling his cufflinks off. He said nonsense, "You forced me to do this."
"How did I force you?" Xiang Mingzhang was not angry. He fiddled with his tie and tortured him slowly. "Did I spank you?"
Shen Ruozhen couldn't stand hearing such words: "Don't say it anymore."
Xiang Mingzhang turned a deaf ear to him: "Then why?"
Shen Ruozhen's ears were red, half hidden in his black hair. He admitted, "I want to see... what we look like."
Xiang Mingzhang was satisfied, and he tied his tie. He lowered his head to fasten Shen Ruozhen's cufflinks and coaxed him, "Don't be ashamed. I forced you to do this, okay?"
Shen Ruozhen didn't believe Xiang Mingzhang's sweet words. This man had two different faces in bed and out of bed. He said vigilantly: "Do you want to hit me?"
Xiang Mingzhang asked back: "Where are you hitting?"
Shen Ruozhen didn't like to use vulgar words, and said, "It doesn't matter where you hit me."
"Okay." Xiang Mingzhang said meaningfully, "Young Master Shen is delicate, and President Shen is precious. If he gets slapped, he'll probably turn red and tremble."
Shen Ruozhen felt like he had been slapped by Xiang Mingzhang. It didn't hurt, but it felt like fire was burning on his body. He shut up to stop the loss. If he continued talking, he would probably get into trouble.
Xiang Mingzhang said, "Let's go downstairs and have breakfast. I'll ask Aunt Qian to make you some ginseng soup."
After going downstairs, they had a sumptuous breakfast and called Ling Tuaner over. There was a white porcelain cup in front of Shen Ruozhen. He held the cat in one hand and opened the lid with the other.
The effects of forest ginseng are remarkable. After drinking it, Shen Ruozhen felt more energetic and his cheeks looked more rosy.
Xiang Mingzhang called Xiang Yue's assistant and asked him to go to the company later today. After breakfast, he drove with Shen Ruozhen to Xiang Yue Communications to work.
After wiping off the wet footprints on the floor of the office building, Shen Ruozhen went to the sales department on the 12th floor. Monday morning was the busiest day and people were rushing around the department.
He glanced towards Li Zangqiu's office. The door was locked and the assistant's room was also closed.
At ten o'clock sharp, a meeting notice was issued in the company system, and all the management from Xiang Yue and Yisi's departments had to attend.
Shen Ruozhen took a pen and a notebook and went to the conference room on the fifth floor. Colleagues from other departments arrived one after another, and Zhou Kesen and Xiang Ruxu came over from the R&D center together.
Feng Han arrived first and prepared on the stage with meeting materials.
A quarter of an hour later, Xiang Mingzhang appeared with empty hands. He glanced at the people sitting below, his eyes lingered on Shen Ruozhen's face, and then he smiled.
They woke up at dawn, embracing each other, took a bath together, and changed clothes with red faces. Shen Ruozhen felt a little guilty and raised his hand to tighten his collar, but forgot that the shirts all belonged to Xiang Mingzhang.
The door closed and everything was quiet. Xiang Mingzhang stepped onto the stage with a serious look on his face and said, "Are all the people from all departments here? I don't think I see President Li."
Shen Ruozhen raised his hand: "Mr. Li is not feeling well and has taken sick leave and is not coming to the company."
Xiang Mingzhang nodded, and the meeting began. He cleared his throat and said, "I called you all here today to announce something about Xiang Yue and Yi Si."
As soon as Shen Ruozhen received the notice, he guessed that Xiang Mingzhang was going to announce that he would return the acquired shares to the Chu family.
As soon as the voice on the stage fell, Zhou Kesen immediately turned his head to look at him, and Shen Ruozhen nodded in affirmation.
Xiang Mingzhang paused for a moment to give everyone time to react, then continued: "This was not a spur of the moment decision, but it was indeed to satisfy my selfish desires."
Xiang Mingzhang has always been serious, even aloof, but this time he was more sincere.
He admitted that he wanted compensation, and talked about the two companies' more than one year of coexistence, handover, running-in, and mutual assistance, and finally mentioned the support and cooperation plan.
Shen Ruozhen already knew everything, no matter the apparent reasons or the truth behind it, he listened very carefully. Even if Xiang Mingzhang said it three or five times, he would not miss a single word from beginning to end.
He understood that Xiang Mingzhang's decision to announce it in advance was to treat Xiang Yue as a team with transparent decision-making, and to Yi Si as a prelude to him taking over in full.
Calling him by his real name in private, Xiang Mingzhang finished speaking and said, "Director Chu," despite the awkwardness.
Shen Ruozhen stood up and said on behalf of Yisi and the Chu family, "Yisi is very lucky to have made a complete transformation, thanks to Mr. Xiang and everyone's care."
Xiang Mingzhang really liked the literary tone and asked, "Anything else?"
Shen Ruozhen said: "No more."
Laughter rang out in the conference room. Xiang Mingzhang raised his lip corner and said, "It's too brief."
Shen Ruozhen did not prepare a speech, but spoke from the bottom of his heart: "There is no need to write a long article from the bottom of my heart. Xiang Yue and Yi Si have only been together for one year, and their friendship will last forever."
(End of this chapter)