Chapter 13

translated by astrid83

After dinner, Manager Li prepared two small cakes, one of them chestnut flavoured, the other covered in strawberries. Cheng Yanqing took a few more glances at the strawberry cake, causing Manager Li to ask: “You like this flavour?”

Cheng Yanqing hurriedly waved his hands: “I’m fine with anything……”

“You’re the birthday celebrant today.” Manager Li said in a slow and deliberate manner: “Whatever you want is up to you.”

Cheng Yanqing then took the strawberry cake.

The chandelier in the living room emitted a dim yellowish glow, causing the entire room to be lit in an ambiguous and blurry way; the gramophone was playing a gently moving classical music piece, making the atmosphere ambiguous and enchanting.

After using a small spoon to eat the cake for a while, Cheng Yanqing stopped his movements and gave a quick glance around. Manager Li became keenly aware of this: “What happened?”

“There are no more tissues……”

Manager Li stood up: “I’ll help you get some.”

Cheng Yanqing sank into the dining chair upholstered with brushed leather. Before he realised what was happening, a pair of fair and slender hands with well-defined bones had already wiped away the cream from the corners of his lips.

Manager Li had very wide palms that were able to easily hold both of his cheeks and tilt his face up for scrutiny.

Cheng Yanqing heard him say as he furrowed his brows: “How come there is still a bit more?”

Music was still playing from the gramophone, soothing and pleasant to the ears.

Manager Li lowered his eyelids as he met his eyes, his eyelashes were thick and dense, at this distance, Cheng Yanqing could clearly count how many eyelashes he had.

“I can do it on my own……”

Cheng Yanqing’s words were abruptly cut off.

One corner of his lips became wet.

Cheng Yanqing widened his eyes as the wetness shifted from the corner to the center of his lips, repeatedly gliding and sliding. Time seemed to pass very slowly; at least, it was Manager Li’s movements that were very slow. Slowly, unhurriedly, trying to crumble him into pieces and nibble away at him.

Manager Li picked him up.

“You’re not drunk today, right?” “ En .”

“You know what we are doing, right?”

“ En .”

“Only lovers would do this sort of thing.”

“ En ……”

“Chengcheng.”

Cheng Yanqing cried and could not answer him.

He never thought that when Manager Li said that “today was his birthday and whatever he wanted to do was up to him”, his meaning was “today was his birthday, whatever position he wanted, he would be able to satisfy him”.

Whatever Manager Li asked, Cheng Yanqing would always answer with a yes.

Because he had not refused at the very beginning, he didn’t even have the ability to refuse now. However, Cheng Yanqing did not want to refuse anymore either.

Finally, when he had gotten his voice back, he called out softly in a raspy voice: “M-Manager Li……”

“ En ?” Manager Li inclined his chin and turned over to his side to look at the snow-white rabbit that had been stained with splotches of pink in front of him. He, who had always not shown his feelings or intentions on his sleeve, actually revealed a rare look of delight: “What did you call me?”

“M-Mr. Li……” Cheng Yanqing changed his term of address, then asked weakly: “Then can I get to know you a bit better?”

If they became lovers, they should get to know each other on a deeper level, right?

For example, his family background, his parents, and also about the man himself.

“Of course.”

Manager Li laughed and reached a hand out to rub his head: “Wait for me for a few days, alright?”

“Then……Then we are together now, right?” Cheng Yanqing quickly followed up.

“If not, then?” Manager Li asked as he kissed the corner of his lips.

……

Manager Li resigned.

His resignation process was handled quickly, it was requested in the morning, and he left the company that same afternoon. A few more executives left one after another since then.

——The chairman could finally no longer hold out.

He was forced to resell more than half of the shares to others. It was heard that the company that had bought the shares was not satisfied with the current employees and wanted to swap them out for their own people.

Finance was a critically important department.

Cheng Yanqing thought, sooner than later, he would also be persuaded to resign.

His colleagues left one by one.

After Manager Li left, their contact seemed to become less frequent.

Originally, they had met every day during work…… Cheng Yanqing started to become afraid that this relationship that had just budded would fizzle out without any reason.

That was until a week later when the new General Manager took office.

The remaining colleagues had heard rumours about him, that he was a rigorous and responsible Management genius.

His parents had passed away when he was very young, he was then fostered at his uncle’s and aunt’s house. He started interning in his first year of university, and from then he demonstrated astonishing business skills. Within a mere two years, he had created a business turnover of a hundred million for the company. After he graduated, he was directly promoted to Sales Executive, and not even a year later he had become the Sales Director, managing more than 50 sales under him. Today, he had already become the Vice-President of the group, with an annual salary up to the millions.

He had personal business to attend to this visit, and would manage the company for a while at the same time. When the company has returned to the right track, he would then return to the group’s headquarters.

Cheng Yanqing did not care about that very much.

Whether he would be staying or leaving, the company had probably already decided internally. Besides, Manager Li had already left, and there didn’t seem to be much left to recall fondly. But this time round, if he left, he probably would not be able to stay in the big city and might go back to his hometown. When that happens, he would be even further from Manager Li.

Cheng Yanqing checked his phone frequently.

The person from the topmost chat had last replied 8 hours ago. He could not help but feel somewhat depressed, completely missing the fact that the office had turned dead silent.

A colleague whispered: “The new General Manager is here.”

There was an inexplicable complication mixed into their voice.

Cheng Yanqing lifted his gaze and saw a familiar figure.

——Slender, tall, upright, with a neatly pressed suit. Seeing him, the man suddenly broke into a smile: “I’ve kept you waiting for long, Chengcheng.”

Even after changing his identity, Manager Li was still the same Manager Li.

However, he became General Manager Li who could call him to go to his private office any time.

Oh, no, he should be calling him Mr. Li now.

end

yay and that’s the end of this novel!! happy to finish it after 1+ years ;-; May this cute couple live happily ever after!!!

Kind of want to see a spin-off of Tang Mo bc dude is just laughing at the two dumb dumbs on the sidelines and I wanna laugh AT him. but idt the author will write another in this universe 🙁

ANYWAYS if you like my translations, do consider giving me a kofi at:

Do check out my other projects as well, which are these two:

https://www.foxaholic.com/novel/after-transmigrating-into-a-book-i-have-an-entire-family-of-cannon-fodder/

and

https://www.foxaholic.com/novel/boss-transmigrates-as-a-little-cutie-c152-part-2-end/

thank you all for reading Mr Li, He Is Not What He Seems to Be!

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