In response to Mi Zhongde’s question, Mi Cai smiled and said, “Yes, he’s my friend.”

Mi Zhongde returned Mi Cai’s smile, and then the people behind him respectfully called out “President Mi” to Mi Cai, who nodded in acknowledgment.

Mi Zhongde then said to Mi Cai, “I have to go to Nanjing for a meeting in the next few days. Please take care of the affairs in Shanghai.” After finishing, he looked at me again.

I was genuinely annoyed by Mi Zhongde, but I still smiled at him. At the same time, Mi Cai nodded and said to Mi Zhongde, “Uncle, take care of yourself and don’t overwork!”

After patting Mi Cai’s shoulder lightly to reassure her, Mi Zhongde walked towards the exit surrounded by a crowd.

Mi Zhongde had walked far away, and I looked at his retreating figure again, feeling that this man was unfathomable. In contrast, Mi Cai seemed so vulnerable in front of him, it was hardly a fair competition. Of course, this comparison was only in terms of appearance. Mi Cai had her own means, otherwise, she wouldn’t have dismantled Mi Zhongde’s plot against her within a week.

However, judging from the situation just now, Mi Cai and Mi Zhongde hadn’t really fallen out yet, which indicated that they were currently in a balanced state of equal strength, but restraining each other. As for who could completely control Zhuo Mei, it was hard to say. Subconsciously, I always felt that Mi Zhongde had a better chance of winning, after all, his foundation in Zhuo Mei was much deeper than Mi Cai’s.

I followed Mi Cai to her office again, jokingly asked, “What were you thinking when you told Mi Zhongde to take care of his health?”

“Nothing.”

“Really? Despite how he treats you, you actually wish him a long life? …Well, it’s true that most nuisances live a thousand years!”

Mi Cai stopped, frowned and said, “I won’t allow you to talk about him like that.”

I was shocked by Mi Cai’s attitude, and it took me a while to ask, “Is he really worth your defense?”

Mi Cai’s expression was somewhat gloomy, and after a silence, she replied, “He is still my uncle.”

I looked at Mi Cai, helpless at her answer, because her kindness was fatal in the business struggle. But what could I say? A highly educated and independent woman like her wouldn’t be easily influenced by others. Moreover, from an outsider’s perspective, I could certainly despise Mi Zhongde’s character to the extreme, but in fact, he was indeed Mi Cai’s real uncle.

…

When we arrived at Mi Cai’s office, I still didn’t consider myself an outsider. I sat in Mi Cai’s office chair and blatantly opened her drawer to take out the photos I hadn’t finished stealing and examined them carefully.

“Zhao Yang, don’t you think it’s rude to rummage through people’s drawers?” Mi Cai asked me in an annoyed tone.

“I know, but you always say I’m like a primary school student, so it’s normal for me to have poor self-control, right?”

Mi Cai gave me a speechless look, a look of not wanting to bother, and continued eating.

Out of boredom, I even took out her camera and started taking random pictures of her while she was eating. It was a typical case of a small man taking advantage, but I was having a blast…

After stuffing all the photos I took into my pocket, I finally asked Mi Cai seriously, “Comrade Xiao Mi, have you started the plan to help Wei Xiao’s grandfather set up a counter in Zhuo Mei?”

Mi Cai nodded, “I informed the planning department to come up with a plan this morning…” She paused and then asked me, “By the way, do you have any ideas for the marketing promotion after the bar reopens?”

I replied with a sense of helplessness, “Not yet, you understand that in the current harsh marketing environment, many creative marketing ideas are hard to implement!”

Mi Cai nodded and said, “It is indeed a challenging task, but it’s also the best way to hone one’s skills, isn’t it?”

I smiled, “If you’re willing to perform there every night, I can center the marketing around that, using minimal resources to create a sensational marketing effect!”

Mi Cai gave me a half-smiling expression, “I can perform there, as long as you pay me a performance fee.”

Of course, I knew Mi Cai was joking with me, but I went along with her and said, “Name your price, money is not a problem for me.”

“The problem is that you don’t have money, right?”

“You know me too well… But isn’t it a bit hurtful to talk about money? After all, we’re friends.”

“Who’s friends with you.” Mi Cai unconsciously retorted.

I didn’t mind and asked, “So if we’re not friends, what are we?”

“I’m the landlord, you’re the tenant…”

“Is that all?”

Mi Cai looked up at me, and after a long time, she said, “What do you think?”

“Actually, that’s a pretty good definition. I’m your male landlord, and you’re my female tenant…”

Even though I deliberately confused the roles of landlord and tenant, Mi Cai remained indifferent and didn’t say anything more. She just lowered her head and continued eating. But I felt a bit disappointed. If we were just landlord and tenant, why would I care so much about her?

…I spent the entire afternoon supervising the bar after leaving Zhuomei. The renovation of the bar is more than halfway done, and it won’t be long before it can reopen with a new image. This is good news and something we’ve been looking forward to, but it also makes me anxious. So far, I have no idea about marketing and promotion. If this continues, I worry that the bar, despite the hefty investment in renovation, will go down the same old path and die in dismal management.

I thought: I can hardly bear such a blow. After all, this bar carries the hopes of many people. I owe Jian Wei and Mi Cai 500,000 each, and the best outcome would be to repay them with the bar’s profits. I’m worried that Le Yao might take a wrong path under such heavy debt. She is the most unstable woman I know.

This evening, I was a bit lonely playing racing games in the square. This loneliness would last until late at night because Mi Cai went on a business trip to Shanghai in the afternoon and naturally spent the evening with Wei Ran.

Thinking of her and Wei Ran together, I felt inexplicably uncomfortable. I knew I shouldn’t feel this way, but who can control their own thoughts? So I started to blame myself, but in the process, I seemed to feel even lonelier!

As it got dark, I packed up the racing game and was about to leave when I suddenly received a WeChat message from CC. She asked me to check out today’s entertainment news. I was a bit surprised, but I took out my phone anyway.

Then I saw a piece of news about Le Yao in a prominent position on the entertainment section of a website. The news revealed that she had spent a night in a hotel with a well-known male actor, suggesting a possible romance.

Of course, the focus of this news was the famous male actor, as Le Yao was still a newcomer with no fame.

I couldn’t confirm the authenticity of this news, so I immediately called Le Yao, hoping to verify it with her. I hoped it was just a piece of hype in the entertainment industry. But if it was hype, why would they choose Le Yao, a newcomer with no fame? After all, her hype value is not high, and her status in the entertainment industry is far from the other party involved in the hype, which clearly does not conform to the rules of hype.

So, as the dial tone rang on my phone, I was even more eager to know the truth!