ACMS 24 part 2

He put the phone down again and helped Qiao Man for ten minutes. When the time was up, he gently reminded him, “Time’s up.”

Qiao Man set the bricks aside, carefully fenced off the part he’d completed, and neatly put the rest back in the box.

Qiao Le had taught him from a young age to always put his toys away and never leave them lying around.

Once everything was packed up, Qiao Man threw himself into Qiao Le’s arms. Qiao Le scooped him up and grabbed his teddy bear slippers.

“Time for bed.”

“Mm-hmm!” Qiao Man nodded eagerly, though his eyes kept drifting toward the unfinished amusement park.

Qiao Le couldn’t help laughing. “You like it that much?”

“Super love it!” Qiao Man stretched his arms over his head to make a big heart. “Thanks, Brother—and thank you, Uncle Shen!”

“Don’t thank me—thank your Uncle Shen,” Qiao Le said as he carried him back to the room.

Qiao Man tilted his head, thinking it over. “Then I’ll treat Uncle Shen to pizza?”

“You have money to treat him to pizza?” Qiao Le laughed.

“I do!” Qiao Man patted Qiao Le’s shoulder. “Put me down, put me down.”

Qiao Le set him down, and the little guy dashed off in his slippers, thudding across the room to rummage through a cabinet. In no time, he came back hugging his piggy bank and shook it proudly. “I’ve got money.”

The piggy bank jingled and clinked.

It was where Qiao Man stored all his cash—New Year’s money, birthday money, Children’s Day money, red envelopes from Fang Jiaxu and the others, plus some coins he’d collected.

He shoved the piggy bank into Qiao Le’s hands. “Here, Brother—it’s for you.”

He was pretty generous about it, too.

Qiao Le laughed and set the piggy bank back, then scooped him up and tossed him onto the bed. “Rocket launch!”

The little guy rolled across the bed twice, hugging his Psyduck plush as he giggled. After laughing himself out, he asked again, “So when are we going to treat Uncle Shen to pizza?”

The way his eyes sparkled—Qiao Le could tell right away that he just wanted to eat pizza himself. But he didn’t call him out on it. “Uncle Shen’s on a business trip. We’ll treat him when he gets back.”

“When is he coming back?” Qiao Man asked.

Qiao Le had no idea when Shen Hechuan would be back. “I’ll ask him tomorrow. It’s really late now—no more talking, time to sleep.”

“Okay.” Qiao Man covered his mouth, then let it go and said, “Good night, Brother.”

“Good night.”

–

The next morning, still dreaming of pizza, Qiao Man reminded Qiao Le as soon as he woke up to ask Shen Hechuan when he was coming back.

Qiao Le gave a few vague “mm-hmms,” sent him off to kindergarten, then went back to sleep for another hour. By the time he got up again, it was already nine o’clock.

He grabbed some steamed buns and soy milk from the breakfast stall near his apartment, eating while pulling out his phone to message Shen Hechuan.

He sent the photo he’d taken the night before of Qiao Man building the LEGO set, telling him how much Qiao Man liked the gift and said he wanted to treat him to pizza. Then he asked when he’d be back.

After the message was sent, he finished his breakfast—but still no reply from Shen Hechuan.

Qiao Le didn’t think much of it. He figured Shen Hechuan was just busy with work, so he put his phone away and started his own workday.

In truth, Shen Hechuan hadn’t been ignoring him on purpose.

He’d left early that morning for an on-site inspection after rescheduling his trip to return early. It wasn’t until he finished touring the site that he finally saw Qiao Le’s message.

He responded right away.

Just after he sent the reply, Judy came over to remind him, “Mr. Shen, time for the meeting.”

After the on-site inspection, there was a project briefing, followed by a dinner with Suzhou’s urban development officials.

Shen Hechuan put his phone away. “Let’s go.”

Later that day, Qiao Le opened Shen Hechuan’s message after making a delivery.

[Shen Hechuan: The day after tomorrow at noon.]

[Shen Hechuan: What time works for you?]

[Qiao Lelele: How about Saturday? Are you free?]

He saw that Shen Hechuan’s reply had come in over an hour ago. He was just about to close the chat when a new message popped up.

[Shen Hechuan: Do you have time the afternoon of the day after tomorrow?]

Qiao Le had just started typing a response when Shen Hechuan initiated a voice call.

Qiao Le answered. “Hello?”

Shen Hechuan asked, “Do you have plans the afternoon of the day after tomorrow?”

Qiao Le had a flexible schedule delivering food, but Qiao Man had school. He said, “I’m free, but Xiao Man has class.”

“It’s not about that,” Shen Hechuan said. “I have something I need to talk to you about.”

Something to talk about?

Qiao Le asked, “What is it?”

“It’s not something I can explain in a sentence or two. I’ll tell you when I get there.”

After saying that, he seemed to lower his voice and speak to someone beside him—Qiao Le didn’t catch it. Then he heard Shen Hechuan say, “You pick the time and place.”

Hearing that, Qiao Le figured it must be something important. “Then how about the usual place? Let’s meet at—”

“Seer Coffee?”

Qiao Le chuckled at the quick reply. “We really are in sync. That work for you?”

“Anything works for me,” said Shen Hechuan. “Baihui is convenient too.”

“No need—Seer Coffee’s good. I’ve been around that area a lot lately.” He paused, then added, “And their desserts are really good.”

Shen Hechuan caught on right away. “My treat.”

“Deal.”

While Shen Hechuan was on the phone, Judy stood not far off, waiting for him.

She couldn’t make out what he was saying, but when she came over earlier to remind him about the meeting, she’d heard him say, “I have something I need to talk to you about.”

When he said that, his tone and expression were both very gentle.

Judy had been working beside Shen Hechuan for years, and this was the first time she’d seen that kind of look on his face. It was clear—whoever he was talking to wasn’t just anyone.

Could it be… the boss’s girlfriend?

Was President Shen really dating someone?

She sneaked a glance at Shen Hechuan.

He had his back to her now—broad shoulders, narrow waist, long legs. Whether it was looks or figure, he was top-tier.

As the person in the company who spent the most time with Shen Hechuan, no one knew his charm better than Judy. And that wasn’t even counting the people outside the company—there were plenty of folks inside who secretly had feelings for him too.

Of course, she wasn’t one of them. She didn’t go for the president type—she liked younger guys.

She and her friends from the executive office often gossiped about what kind of person it would take to win over the boss. But all these years, they’d never found a single clue.

Well—maybe one or two tiny clues. Like the photo someone had taken in the cafeteria that one time, and now this phone call with an unknown contact.

A woman’s sixth sense was rarely wrong—and Judy was a firm believer in vibes and signs.

The more she thought about it, the more certain she felt: the boss was in a relationship!

How wonderful!

While she sighed over this late-blooming romance, she couldn’t help but lament her own situation—still no ideal younger man in her life.

Shen Hechuan ended the call and walked over. “Let’s go.”

“Yes, President Shen.”

Judy followed after him, secretly resolving that she had to check out that bar her friends recommended tomorrow night. Maybe she’d finally meet that dreamy bartender they kept talking about.

–

After hanging up, Qiao Le got back to work. He was currently delivering to Yunjing University.

Since the semester started, food delivery orders to the campus had surged.

Once he reached the designated spot, Qiao Le messaged the customer and then switched over to WeChat.

Aside from a few group messages, the most recent chat was with Shen Hechuan.

He said he’d be back the day after tomorrow… How long was the flight from Yunjing to Suzhou?

Qiao Le thought about it but couldn’t recall—he’d never been there.

He had planned to go last year, but something happened in his family and he dropped the idea.

Thinking about Suzhou, his mind naturally drifted back to Shen Hechuan. What kind of important thing could he want to talk about in person? Was it family urging him to marry again?

A hot, restless breeze swept by, cicadas rasped in the trees, and in the distance, new students were shouting military training chants.

Surrounded by all these campus sounds, Qiao Le found himself dazed.

“Hello?”

A hesitant voice behind him pulled him back.

He turned to see a girl with a ponytail standing there, wearing a new student’s military training uniform. Her face was flushed red from the sun.

He got off his scooter and gave her a smile even brighter than the September sun. “Hi, are you ‘Wang Tiesheng Who’s Deeply in Love With Blacksmithing’?”

The girl blinked, then blushed as soon as she heard the name “Wang Tiesheng.” The usually tough-looking girl suddenly grew bashful. “…That’s me. I ordered milk tea from Chacha’s.”

She even slipped into a cutesy tone unconsciously. After a moment, she added, “My name’s Su Qiao.”

Qiao Le took the milk tea out of the delivery bag and handed it to her, still smiling. “Enjoy your drink, Su Qiao.”

Sunlight spilled across his face in patches, casting a play of light and shadow over his features, making his already striking looks even more eye-catching. It was the kind of face that would turn heads walking down the street.

Su Qiao suddenly felt like the campus heartthrob chosen this year wasn’t that handsome after all. She took the drink and, without thinking, blurted out, “Are you a campus delivery rider? Can I add you on WeChat?”

Then she got a little flustered and tried to cover it up, gesturing at her milk tea. “I mean—so I can contact you for deliveries next time.”

Campus delivery riders were the ones who handled food orders for schools with restricted access.

Most schools didn’t allow regular delivery drivers inside, but demand was still high, so campus delivery platforms sprang up, acting as intermediaries between food services and students.

Su Qiao thought Qiao Le looked about her age and assumed he was a student too.

In fact, the only reason he could get in was because he wasn’t wearing platform gear—the gate guard, like Su Qiao, thought he was a student.

And technically, he was a student at Yunjing University. Just… on a leave of absence.

“I’m a full-time delivery rider,” Qiao Le said with a smile. He had to work at at the bar, so he didn’t chat long.