"Zhou Fei?" Yibo asked.
"Yes, Zhou Fei." Zhan replied, scanning the unit again. He was really hoping Zhou Fei would appear from one of the two rooms.
It was a studio-type two-bedroom condominium unit. No division between the living room and dining room/kitchen. The door to one of the rooms was wide open, and he could tell it was Yibo's room because some of his clothes were scattered on the floor. If Zhou Fei was in there, she probably heard him by now.
Unless the woman was soundly sleeping.
"That bitch!" Yibo let out a curse that made him cringe.
"M- Mr. Lan-"
"She is not here, Zhan."
"Then I shouldn't stay here for too long," Zhan said in a serious tone and in a professional manner, gripping the strap of his backpack a bit tighter.
He wouldn't have to stay in the unit for long with Yibo looking like this, almost naked. He's drunk and angry. Whatever Yibo and Zhou Fei are arguing about is not his problem.
He was about to walk back to the door when Yibo grabbed his arm. "Wait a minute, Zhan."
"Mr. Lan," he said. His eyes slightly widened as he looked at Yibo's hand holding his arm.
Throughout his time as Yibo's secretary, Yibo's hand never made contact with his skin, not even once - friendly or otherwise.
Not for the lack of trying on Yibo's part. But he himself avoids them touching each other, for his own sake.
"Keep me company, Zhan," Yibo said, his voice filled with desperation that caught Zhan off guard.
"I need someone to talk to right now before I kill someone."
Zhan frowned at his last sentence. But he opted not to ask even if his curiosity was killing him. It must be personal between him and Zhou Fei. If he doesn't know, he won't be affected.
"You're drunk right now. It's not ideal for me to be here while you're like this." Zhan was nervous but tried to maintain a no-nonsense tone.
"Damn you, Zhan! For once, come out of your cave. I need a friend right now. I could really use a friend to talk to right now. I really need to talk to you, and I promise I'm not drunk—tipsy, yes."
Is there a drunk who admits to being drunk? Zhan thought drily.
"And who knows if you're here or not?" Yibo whined.
"Whether someone knows or not..." He emphasized the words "...that's not the point, Mr. Lan. Besides, can you imagine how Zhou Fei would react if she found out I was here? She'd probably hate me even more if she didn't hate me enough."
"To hell with Zhou Fei! To hell with her father!"
Zhan winced though he agreed with Yibo silently.
Then Zhan took a calming breath. As he spent time there, he realized that Zhou Fei wasn't the only reason why Yibo was angry. His future father-in-law was in the picture too.
Zhan wished he could just disappear. He doesn't want to know and involve himself in Yibo's problem with his girlfriend and her father. And it's not the right time to tell Yibo what he found out about Shen Guangshan.
But Yibo was still holding his arm tightly and the heat emanating from Yibo felt like it was burning his insides. He yanked his arm away, trying to break free from Yibo's hold.
"You are not even decent to give me instructions, Mr. Lan," Zhan said huskily. "And please, can we get on with the reason why I am here? I need people's payroll."
