Treasure Hunt: Tycoon's Priceless Runaway Wife
Chapter 50: Not Caged, But Covered

Chapter 50: Chapter 50: Not Caged, But Covered

The information revealed in what Le Tong said and did made Ji Rui’s mood become quite subtle.

Aside from business matters, in dealing with others, he’s never been a sensitive person, you could even say he’s somewhat dull.

Of course, it’s not that he’s inherently dull, but rather from childhood he’s always stood at a height others couldn’t reach. Only others flattered him, trying to read his face. Why would he need to read theirs?

Yet, even someone as oblivious as him could slightly detect something unusual about Le Tong.

Le Tong doesn’t seem to like being alone with him in private. Or, to put it more bluntly, Le Tong actually dislikes him.

There are many who dislike Ji Rui, and just as many who hate him. He’s always been indifferent, but upon realizing his secretary dislikes him, Ji Rui felt a faint displeasure.

Yang Sheng had been out taking a phone call for a while, and Le Tong returned with a drink of sour plum wine. At the table, only Ji Rui remained seated.

"No more stomach pain?"

The question seemed to come out of his mouth without passing through his brain, even Ji Rui himself didn’t realize why he remembered her stomach problems.

Le Tong was momentarily stunned, recalling that day when she mentioned her stomach pain during dinner with Ji Rui and Lawyer Fan.

"Mm."

Le Tong returned after wandering around, but her appetite didn’t come back with her.

Moreover, after wandering a bit, it seemed even her mood took a downturn. Holding a fork, she listlessly flipped the food on the plate a few times without any intention of eating.

Ji Rui rarely bothered with her indifference, glanced at the mountain-high pile of food in front of her, then at the once lively but now listless Le Tong.

"Not eating? You’ll lose out!"

Still with her eyes downcast, Le Tong’s mood slowly climbed from the depths, "So what if I lose? It’s Special Assistant Yang’s treat, not my money." With that, she looked around.

Ji Rui knew she was looking for Yang Sheng and suddenly lost interest in talking, picked up a spoon, and resumed eating his barely-touched seafood soup as if he were alone.

Le Tong and Ji Rui sat facing each other, yet neither spoke, each eating their food in silence.

Ji Rui, being taciturn by nature, didn’t find this unnatural, and Le Tong was used to the quiet when alone with Ji Rui, occasionally eating some food, sipping some wine, and sometimes resting her cheek on her hand, staring blankly at the bustling street outside.

"Hey, are you two strangers sharing a table? Like mismatched door gods, neither acknowledging the other?!"

Having been gone for a while, Yang Sheng returned without knowing when, shaking his head and sighing at the two sitting across from each other without any interaction.

Actually, his call ended quickly; he didn’t rush back, hoping to give the two a chance to talk.

Even though he was just observing the drama, he knew that the reinterviewing might stir up feelings between the two, making him, as a friend to both, somewhat stuck in the middle, unappreciated by either side.

Of course, what he worried most about was his little junior being bullied or exploited because, even though their relationship was delicate, Ji Rui was still in a dominant position.

"Brother, sit down!"

Le Tong had been staring out the window. Hearing Yang Sheng’s voice, she immediately turned, her previously dull eyes suddenly brightened as she reached for Yang Sheng’s arm and pulled him into the seat beside her.

"Brother, what do you want to eat? I’ll get it for you!"

Le Tong’s previously slumped face now radiated, eagerly standing up.

Yang Sheng looked at her, then glanced at Ji Rui, "Mm, you decide. You know what I like to eat."

Le Tong responded with a smile, bouncing towards the buffet area lightly.

"Yang Sheng, are you very familiar with her?"

Initially, Ji Rui didn’t intend to learn about Le Tong from Yang Sheng, but watching their seamless interaction, he spoke without thinking.

"Yes, quite familiar."

Yang Sheng looked at Le Tong’s back, speaking slowly.

"Do you like her?"

Ji Rui usually doesn’t care about such matters. Despite years of friendship with Yang Sheng, he never asked about Yang Sheng’s romantic interests, and Yang Sheng never spoke about them either.

Intuition told Ji Rui that when it came to relationships, Yang Sheng was similar to him.

Yang Sheng smiled ambiguously without answering.

Ji Rui did not ask further. Even being close friends with Yang Sheng, he knew some boundaries should not be crossed.

"Rui, promise me, if you feel she’s not suitable as your secretary, just dismiss her."

Yang Sheng lost his playful demeanor, turning serious and solemn.

Ji Rui raised his head to look at him, "I’ve never said she isn’t competent! So, you don’t need to worry about me impulsively firing her!"

Yang Sheng nodded and added, "Also, promise me, don’t make things difficult for her!"

Despite knowing Ji Rui for years, this was the first time Yang Sheng asked him so earnestly.

Ji Rui set down the knife and fork, crossed his arms, leaning back.

"Give me a reason!"

As the president of the group, it’s normal for Ji Rui to have expectations of his subordinates, "don’t make things difficult for her" was hard to gauge!

Moreover, he’s a serious person, not easily promising anything, but if he did, he’d execute it earnestly.

"There’s no reason!" Yang Sheng, usually reasonable, found it hard to explain the details to Ji Rui regarding this.

"Yang Sheng, don’t be foolish!"

Ji Rui was somewhat angry. Yang Sheng has always been principled, distinguishing between private and public matters, never mixing personal feelings, which was what Ji Rui admired most.

But now, he seemed to abandon his principle for Le Tong, no wonder Ji Rui was angry.

"Rui, I’m not being foolish. I can’t explain it."

Yang Sheng couldn’t tell Ji Rui all he’d heard about Le Tong from the professor because Le Tong never liked mentioning those things. Probably, she didn’t want people looking at her with pity.

Yang Sheng himself kept it secret, never letting her know he heard a lot about her from the professor.

Ji Rui assumed Yang Sheng was clouded by personal feelings, firmly shaking his head.

"Yang Sheng, you know what I’m like. I can’t promise you this. Even if it were about you, I couldn’t agree."

Seeing Ji Rui’s resolute stance, Yang Sheng realized there was no room for negotiation, and reflecting on it, knew he was being unreasonable, smiled at Ji Rui.

"All right, I was indeed being a bit foolish. It’s okay if you don’t agree, I’ll just be careful in the future, ensuring you won’t find a chance to make things hard for her!"

Ji Rui raised an eyebrow, "You’re sheltering her?"

Yang Sheng shook his head, "No! You’re mistaken, it’s not sheltering, it’s protecting!"

Search the lightnovelworld.cc website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.