Chapter 14: When Will This Ever End
994 Words
In the middle of the night, Ji Yunze sat on the bed handling files on his laptop, while Xiao Tongyu, lying beside him, breathed softly in her sleep.
She was utterly exhausted, too tired to care whether she was supposed to wait for the CEO to fall asleep first.
Ji Yunze turned his head to stare at the woman beside him. Her cheeks were flushed pink against the pillow, her long lashes resting gently on her eyelids. Her lips were slightly parted, pouting in a way that looked inexplicably adorable.
Ji Yunze found himself entranced. Unable to resist, he reached out to brush aside a strand of hair that had fallen over her eyes.
Perhaps tickled by his touch, Xiao Tongyu frowned and clutched at the robe over Ji Yunze’s inner thigh.
“Secretary Xiao, let go.”
But Xiao Tongyu remained motionless, lost in deep sleep.
Ji Yunze’s brow furrowed. He leaned down, pressing his lips to hers.
After a moment of savoring her, he pulled back. Xiao Tongyu licked her lips lightly, let out a soft whimper, then relaxed again, her breathing steady.
This woman…how is she so alluring?
Ji Yunze recalled the desperate words he’d overheard Xiao Tongyu say to Lin Xiao in the hallway earlier:
“You said I was tacky and ugly, that the sight of me made you sick.”
“Where were you when Qin Mengyan and her friends beat me, tore my hair, and threw my backpack?”
“When I was sick and begged you to buy me medicine, what did you say?”
“You told me to drop dead.”
Xiao Tongyu…what have you been through?
The next morning, Xiao Tongyu woke up and glanced at her phone: 10 a.m.
She bolted upright in panic.
Then she remembered—Ji Yunze had promised her a day off yesterday. Relieved, she slumped back.
Ji Yunze was already gone. The spacious suite was empty, leaving her feeling blissfully at ease.
She showered, changed into the new casual clothes she’d bought—a loose hoodie and skinny jeans—and with her bare face, she looked like a college freshman.
As she was about to leave, Su Rou called.
“Tongtong, you have to save me! President Ji has already smashed his ninth coffee cup…”
“What happened?”
“He says the temperature’s wrong…” Su Rou’s voice trembled.
Xiao Tongyu frowned. “It’s 60-degree Americano with Geisha beans. The machine shows the temperature. How could it be wrong?”
“I don’t know either, but President Ji insists it’s wrong.”
Deep down, Su Rou knew the issue wasn’t the coffee—it was the person making it. She’d seen the way Ji Yunze looked at Xiao Tongyu.
In her year as Ji Yunze’s personal secretary, Xiao Tongyu had never taken a single day off. Today, her first absence had turned Ji Yunze into a raging beast. Within two hours, he’d shattered nine cups, smashed a phone, destroyed a laptop, kicked a chair to pieces, and berated everyone on the executive floor—including his assistant, Wu Yan.
At this rate, the entire CEO office would be rubble by day’s end.
Xiao Tongyu bit her lip. She knew Su Rou wanted her to come in.
But this rare day off felt like a mercy from Ji Yunze—giving it up would be self-sabotage.
“I’m sorry, Rourou. I’m not feeling well today. Just hang in there. Maybe stop bringing him coffee? Tell him I’ll make ten cups tomorrow!”
She wasn’t lying. After skipping food since noon yesterday and being ravaged by Ji Yunze all night, her stomach churned queasily.
Hearing her discomfort, Su Rou relented. “Don’t worry, Tongtong! Rest well. President Ji can yell all he wants—we’ll survive!”
“Thanks, Rourou!”
After hanging up, Xiao Tongyu planned to eat first, then visit Lawyer Wang.
Fruits and supplements in hand, Xiao Tongyu knocked on Lawyer Wang’s office door.
“Uncle Wang.”
Wang Kejin looked up, removed his glasses, and smiled warmly, crow’s feet deepening.
Wang had worked for Xiao Tongyu’s father, Xiao Ming, at Xiao Corporation. After Xiao Ming and his wife Li Xiayu died in an accident thirteen years ago, the company was sold, and Wang opened his own law firm.
“Tongtong! What brings you here?”
Knowing she’d been swamped as CEO secretary at top-tier JI Group, Wang hadn’t seen her in months despite her monthly visits.
“I have a day off today. Came to see you.” She set down her gifts and sat across his desk.
Wang studied the young woman—Xiao Ming’s daughter, who’d endured so much. His heart ached for her.
“Have you eaten? Let me order something—”
“I’m fine, Uncle Wang. Just wanted to visit.”
Leaning forward, Wang changed topics. “About your parents’ car accident…the sabotaged brakes. I’ve kept investigating, checking with the police periodically.”
“But without pressure, cold cases get buried under new ones. It’s…slow.”
Xiao Tongyu smiled sweetly. “I understand. Thank you for never giving up. I didn’t come just for that—I missed you and Auntie Xu.”
Wang and his wife had always adored her. If not for Xiao Ming entrusting her to the Lin family, they’d have adopted her themselves.
Knowing the Lins mistreated her, Wang asked gently, “Tongtong, you’re twenty-four now…any boyfriend?”
Xiao Tongyu blushed. “Uncle Wang, I’m too busy for that.”
“Alright. Next time, come for dinner. Auntie Xu will cook your favorites.”
“Of course!”
After more small talk, Xiao Tongyu left.
Outside, autumn sunlight warmed her porcelain face, offering rare tranquility.
She sighed. A boyfriend? She longed for someone to lean on.
But as Ji Yunze’s plaything, what man would dare want her?
Would freedom only come when he grew bored and discarded her?
When will this ever end?
- Writer
