Love (Or Is It?)

In Wei Chen's meticulously ordered life, there were only a few people he truly trusted.

One of them was Lu Jiu, his colleague at the company, and more than that, a friend who had stood by him since their early days in high school. 

They didn't speak daily. Didn't need constant updates. But when life shifted,when Wei Chen needed clarity or a reason to pause, there was only one place he ever suggested: a quiet little wine bar tucked into a alley in the city, the kind that never showed up on business maps.

There, they weren't executives, project managers, or heirs to prestigious families. They were just two men, stripped of titles, talking straight with each other.

Tonight, Lu Jiu had come in that capacity.

"Are you sure… that what you're giving Shen Shen every day is really love?"

The silence that followed Lu Jiu's question. Wei Chen didn't answer right away. His eyes lowered to the glass in his hand, the surface of the wine quivering slightly with the tension in his fingers. It reflected his face back to him, blurred and incomplete.

"When I graduated...," Wei Chen began, voice low and even,

"I didn't want to come back. I wanted time to figure things out on my own. My father didn't agree. He thought I was being rebellious. So, he cut me off—no more money, no place to stay, not even the weight of the family name meant anything anymore."

Wei Chen paused, lost in the past. When he looked up again, it was with a quiet steadiness that Lu Jiu had only seen a few times before.

"There was only one person who stayed beside me. Shen Shen."

Lu Jiu didn't interrupt. He simply listened like he always did.

"I'm not someone who forgets the people who were there when everything else disappeared."

"But not forgetting someone, and loving them… those aren't the same thing, Wei Chen." Lu Jiu said, his gaze unwavering

That silence returned, heavier now. Wei Chen didn't argue. Instead, he picked up his wine glass and took his first sip of the evening.

It was Lu Jiu who shifted the topic.

"Anyway… have you tried the restaurant I told you about? That little barbecue place I recommended for the company project?"

"Its profile didn't pass. No system. No structure. It doesn't meet our standards." Wei Chen said.

"You haven't even seen it with your own eyes," Lu Jiu said, not sounding surprised. He pulled out his phone and showed the group chat.

"My team tried it today, I ordered a whole spread. Not a single bite was left. A few even said it tasted like home."

Wei Chen remained quiet, his expression unreadable.

Lu Jiu looked up.

"Are you really going to dismiss something just because it doesn't look good on paper? When did you forget that business isn't only about numbers, it's about people?"

Another silence. Then, finally, a pause long enough to register as a crack in the armor.

"I'm not asking you to approve anything, Just try it. Just once." " Lu Jiu added.

Wei Chen exhaled slowly, his eyes fixed on the glow of the lamp above their table. Then, with a voice barely louder than the jazz humming in the background.

"Fine. I'll go."

Lu Jiu's grin was instant. "Perfect. This weekend?"

"I've got dinner with Shen Shen's family."

"You never skip those." There was a lightness to Lu Jiu's laugh, but Wei Chen missed the shift in tone beneath it.

"You already know how it is between Shen Shen and me," Wei Chen said flatly.

"I do," Lu Jiu answered. "And I'm the only one who does."

***

The Next Evening – Office, 51st Floor

Twilight spilled over the skyline. In the quiet of the glass-walled office, Wei Chen was still working, scrolling, analyzing, calculating. The weight of deals and data lay heavy across the screen.

Then the door creaked open.

"You're still here, Mr. Wei Chen?" Lu Jiu stepped in without knocking, easy in his presence. As an executive in another division, he didn't need an invitation. But coming at this hour meant something more.

Wei Chen glanced up. "You again."

"I'm starving," Lu Jiu announced, strolling toward him like he owned the floor. "Let's go eat. You're paying."

Wei Chen didn't flinch. "Send me the location. I'll join you later."

"Nope. You're coming now."

When Wei Chen looked up again, Lu Jiu was already seated, arms crossed, waiting like someone who knew he was already winning.

"Fine." Wei Chen shut his laptop and reached for his jacket.

***

Two Hours Later, on a narrow alley in the old quarter, They walked side by side through the alley, dimly lit and quietly alive. Ahead, a green neon sign flickered, Chuan Jie.

Warm light spilled through the small wooden windows. The kind of light you didn't find in boardrooms or luxury lounges.

Lu Jiu parked the car. Wei Chen stepped out and stood still for a moment, his gaze caught by the soft glow of the sign overhead.

"This is…"

"Exactly," Lu Jiu said with a grin.

Wei Chen didn't move right away. The scent of grilled meat drifting from the kitchen inside reached him slowly, like a memory arriving late. It wasn't remarkable. But there was something about it, familiar. Grounding, somehow.

"Are you going to stand here breathing it in all night? or go inside and eat something real?" Lu Jiu teased

Without waiting, he pushed the wooden door open.

Wei Chen stood there for another breath. Then, slowly, he raised a hand and touched the worn handle. The bell above chimed softly as he stepped inside.

As the door closed behind him, an unaccountable warmth from the restaurant instantly wrapped around him. The sound of sizzling meat, the low murmur of conversation, the faint clatter of dishes none of it was remarkable. But together, it felt… honest.

And Wei Chen didn't know yet if this would be just another meal. Or the start of something that stayed with him far longer than he ever planned.