Mr. CEO, You Look Strangely Familiar

Holly Wood was startled and quickly turned around, her face pale. ”I’m... sorry.”

Leon Lynch walked over, sat down in his chair, and looked at her. ”There’s nothing to be sorry for.”

He reached out, placed the photo album in his drawer, and locked it. ”Is it clean in here?” he asked.

She nodded. ”It’s clean. I’ll leave now.”

As she was about to leave with her cleaning supplies, he said, ”Take these tools downstairs, then come back up.”

She froze for a moment, then nodded.

A moment later, she pushed the door open and came back in.

”Close the door.”

Holly Wood did as she was told and approached the desk.

”Holly, actually, I thought you knew. I wasn’t trying to hide it from you.”

She was at a loss. ”President Lynch... what are you referring to?”

”All of it.”

”I don’t pay much attention to anything besides reading novels online. I only found out today.”

He looked at her, sensing her restraint.

Leon Lynch stood up, walked over to her, and reached out to tilt her chin up. ”Just now, what were you crying about outside the restroom?”

She was shocked. ”President Lynch... how did you know?”

He turned and swiveled his computer monitor toward her. She immediately saw the security feed on the screen.

”You’re monitoring me?”

”I just happened to look. Tell me, what were you crying about?”

She lowered her head. ”I don’t know.”

Leon Lynch asked again, ”You don’t have a boyfriend, right?”

”No.”

”Then stay by my side.” It took a great deal of courage for Leon Lynch to say those words.

”Huh?” She lifted her face and looked at him, confused.

”Stay by my side. I find your temperament puts me at ease.”

’It wasn’t like, and it certainly wasn’t love. It was a sense of peace.’

”But aren’t you in love with Miss Ains—”

Leon Lynch suddenly pulled her into an embrace. His unique scent struck Holly Wood like a bolt of lightning, and she didn’t dare move a muscle.

”I loved her for many years. That love won’t disappear overnight. But I believe in time. I believe that eventually, a woman will appear by my side and, little by little, my love will transfer to her. Can you do that?”

’How did things suddenly take this turn? This is too unexpected!’

Holly Wood still felt like she was hallucinating.

”President Lynch... are you serious?”

He released her, a smile on his face. ”Surely you don’t think I’m joking with you?”

Her face turned as red as an apple. ”I never thought... that you would ask me to...”

”I’m almost thirty. I’m not young anymore. I’m the only son in the family, and my mom has been nagging me for a long time. I want to give it a try. With you.”

As if mustering all her courage, she said, ”I want to give it a try, too. With you.”

”Mm, okay. We’ll start by giving it a try then. From now on, don’t call me Mr. Lynch or President Lynch. Just call me Leon.”

She nodded and immediately turned around. ”I’ll head out first.”

”Okay.”

Holly Wood bolted. She yanked open the door and ran, not stopping until she was far away. Her blushing face and racing heart still hadn’t subsided.

Leon Lynch turned, stuck his hands in his pockets, and stood by the window, his expression unreadable as he gazed at the distant horizon.

A relationship not founded on love could be a tragedy, a drama, or a comedy. It all depended on how the people involved handled it.

Everything has its risks. The key is whether one dares to take the gamble.

The three little ones became classmates. Their teacher wasn’t a young woman, but a retired professor from the nation’s top university.

If it weren’t for Nora Ainsworth, he wouldn’t have bothered to come out of retirement to teach three little kids.

The professor was sixty-one years old, with a long beard and a pair of glasses. He was in excellent spirits.

When he arrived at the Grant family’s home and saw the three little tykes, his first sentence was a pronouncement. He chuckled. ”I can see that not a single one of these three little ones is the quiet, obedient type.”

He walked into the room with his satchel. In front of him were two desks pushed together. Dorothy Ellsworth sat in the middle, with the other two on either side of her.

Seeing him enter, Elmer Grant was the first to ask, ”Old sir, are you our teacher?”

The old professor replied, ”Yes, I am. Today, I’ll be teaching you your very first lesson.”

Dorothy Ellsworth asked, ”Professor, what class are you teaching us today?”

”This morning we’ll have math, and this afternoon we’ll have language arts. How does that sound?”

The three of them clapped. ”Okay! Okay!”

”I’m best at math,” Dorothy Ellsworth volunteered. ”I’m good at math.”

The old professor nodded. ”Mm, excellent. I’ve brought three sets of textbooks. I’ll pass them out to you, and we’ll start from the first page.”

After handing out the textbooks, he took a piece of chalk and wrote two large words on the blackboard: Self-Introduction.

”Now then, let’s look at the first page. It says ’Self-Introduction.’ The three of you, can you please introduce yourselves to me one by one? Tell the professor what your strengths are.”

Dylan Grant stood up and replied calmly, ”I’ll go first. My name is Dylan Grant. I’m heading for three. I have money, a house, a car, talent, connections, status, looks, ambition, and a wife. The only thing I’m missing is a child. Thank you.”

The old professor’s eyes went wide. ”Student... Dylan Grant, can you tell the professor what you mean by ’heading for three’?”

Dylan Grant replied, ”It means I’m heading toward the age of three. I’m over two years old, so am I not heading for three?”

The old professor nodded. ”That’s quite a lot of strengths. You even have a wife. Alas, your professor feels inadequate. I’m still an old bachelor.”

”Professor, why are you an old bachelor?”

”My wife died of cancer in my forties, and I never remarried. Doesn’t that make me a bachelor? Alright, sit down. Next.”

Dorothy Ellsworth stood up.

”My name is Dorothy Ellsworth. My name means ’lots of everything.’ I have lots of beauty, lots of cuteness, lots of gentleness, lots of kindness, lots of virtue, and lots of class. In short, I’m a great beauty. But that’s not my only strength. My greatest strength is having a husband with money, a house, a car, talent, connections, status, looks, and ambition. And that’s Dylan Grant. Thank you.”

The old professor’s face had already started to twitch. ”Forgive me for asking, but do your parents know that you two have pledged your lives to each other?”

”Yes,” they answered in unison, making the old professor feel like his entire worldview had been shattered.

With a trembling hand, he pointed at Elmer Grant. ”Your turn.”

Elmer Grant stood up with a mischievous grin and said, ”Professor, I don’t have any strengths.”

The old professor said in disbelief, ”Your brother has so many strengths, and you have none? Then what do you have?”

”I don’t have good grades, a family, height, looks, coolness, muscles, martial arts skills, diligence, seriousness, responsibility, an ability to endure hardship, tolerance for labor, humility, enthusiasm, a wife, or kids. In short, I have nothing.”

’The old professor almost coughed up blood. How in the world were these three children raised?’

’Are these three kids even from Earth?’

”Fine! Please sit down.”

The old professor took a deep breath and said, ”Today, we’ll start by learning to recognize numbers...”

Before he could finish, Dylan Grant spoke up. ”Professor, we already know how to recognize numbers. You don’t need to teach us that. Can you teach us addition and subtraction?”

”Oh, that impressive? Then let’s start learning addition and subtraction.”

Several dozen minutes passed...

The old professor put down the textbook and said, ”Have you all learned what I just taught?”

”Yes!” they shouted in perfect unison.

”Good. Then I’ll test you.” He clasped his hands behind his back and said with a smile, ”Dylan Grant, stand up and answer a question.”

He stood up and looked at the old professor.

”What is 1 + 1?”

”2.”

”What is 3 + 2?”

”5.”

”What is 7 + 3?”

”10.”

”Good. Sit down. You’ve learned the addition within ten that we taught today quite well.” The old professor nodded, then said, ”Dorothy Ellsworth.”

Dorothy Ellsworth stood up, a little nervous. ”You said earlier that you were good at math. The professor will test you now.”

”Professor, did I really say that just now?”

The old professor chuckled. ”The professor isn’t deaf yet. Now, I ask you, what is 5 + 3?”

Dorothy Ellsworth mulled it over for a moment, glanced at Dylan Grant, and then answered, ”8.”

”Good. Correct. Sit down.”

Dorothy Ellsworth quickly sat down, surprised she only had to answer one question.

”Elmer Grant, your turn.”

Elmer Grant stood up, ready for his question.

”What is 2 + 2?”

Elmer Grant looked up at the ceiling and answered, ”3.”

”Incorrect. The answer is 4.” The old professor continued, ”What is 4 + 2?”

”4.”

”Wrong. It’s 6.” He looked at Elmer Grant. ”You’ve gotten two questions wrong. Were you not listening in class? Listen again. What is 2 + 4?”

”2.”

The old professor’s beard was practically crooked with anger. ”The answer to the last question was 6! You can’t figure it out just by reversing the numbers?”

”Professor, I think there’s a problem with this math.”

”What kind of problem?”

”Why does 1 + 1 have to equal 2? That seems like a low-probability event. For example, my brother and I are twins, and we’re both boys. Put us together and you get 2. But if you add me and Dorothy together, is that still 2? We’re not even the same gender. I don’t think you can just add individuals together and say it equals some number.”

”What kind of twisted logic is this?”

”Elmer Grant’s twisted logic.”

”...”

When Nora Ainsworth got home at noon, she found the old professor walking out with his books, his beard twitching. ”Professor, how was the children’s class?”

Just as the old professor was about to speak, Elmer Grant ran over. ”Mommy, the professor said we were very well-behaved, studied hard, and have great potential!”

The old professor replied resentfully, ”Yes! Miss Ainsworth, I’ll be heading back for now. I’ll be back this afternoon.”

”Okay, thank you for your hard work.”

Back in the living room, Nora Ainsworth instructed the three of them, ”The professor has nurtured many pillars of the state. It’s a rare opportunity for you to be taught by him. If you study under him, you will definitely achieve outstanding results.”

”Mommy, what’s a ’pillar of the state’? Is it someone talented at building houses?”

”...”

”’Pillar of the state’ is an idiom. A ’dòng’ is a ridgepole, and a ’liáng’ is a main beam. It refers to timber that can be used as the main beam of a house, a metaphor for a person who can shoulder great responsibilities for the country. Understand?”