I immediately texted Mi Cai back: “What time shall we meet tomorrow afternoon?”

“Would 2 o’clock be okay?”

“No problem, we’ll definitely accommodate your schedule.”

This time, it took Mi Cai a while to reply: “The information from last time, it was leaked by Chen Jingming, wasn’t it?”

I sensed that Mi Cai was still bothered by the previous incident, so I quickly explained: “Yes, but Chen Jingming was passive in the whole event.”

“Don’t worry, I’m not that narrow-minded. After all, he lost the opportunity to be promoted to the upper management of Polaroid because of your leak. I’ll help you make up for what you owe him.”

This message made me feel a bit strange. Before I could reply, Mi Cai sent another message: “Of course, what I value more is their work experience and abilities. I believe they will definitely create value for Zomei.”

I felt a bit relieved: “They definitely will. I have faith in my former boss and colleagues.”

“Mm, I trust your judgment too!”

Mi Cai’s reply finally put me at ease. It was almost certain that Circle and Chen Jingming would work at Zomei. However, I was still worried about Mi Zhongde. Although Mi Cai, as the CEO of Zomei, had the power to hire and fire, the transfer of middle and senior management still required the approval and signature of Mi Zhongde, the acting chairman.

In the darkness, I reached for a cigarette on the cabinet, lit it, took a deep puff and exhaled slowly. Then I texted Mi Cai: “It’s so late, why haven’t you rested yet?”

“Looking at various reports… Do you have any good songs to recommend? I’ll listen to it before going to sleep.”

I couldn’t think of a song suitable for bedtime, so I replied: “I like folk and rock music, you might not like it.”

“Then I’ll listen to ‘Elope’. ‘Elope’ is good!”

“It’s so late, do you really need to tease me like this?”

Unexpectedly, Mi Cai sent a voice message, singing the beginning of ‘Elope’: “Dedicate our youth to the glorious city behind us, pay the price for this dream, leave love to the most sincere girl beside me, you accompany me to sing, you accompany me to wander, accompany me to be both defeated…”

I responded with a voice message, of course, singing the next line of the song.

Then, we sang the song ‘Elope’ in its entirety on WeChat, one line at a time. After that, I felt sleepy, and I suppose Mi Cai did too. But the originally heavy night suddenly became gentle.

…

The next morning, I went to Circle and Yan Yan’s new home. In fact, since they got married, I hadn’t visited them, which was a stark contrast to the past when I would go over to mooch meals every few days. I was a bit confused about the source of this change. Perhaps it was because I no longer worked at Zomei, and I had been back in Xuzhou for a long time, which created a sense of distance between us.

Circle and Yan Yan’s new home was a standard three-bedroom apartment. The modern Korean-style decoration made the whole house look exquisite. The wedding photo of Circle and Yan Yan in the living room added a warm touch to the house. This was the life I had been dreaming of for a long time, but it was still too far away from me.

In fact, it wasn’t far. At least when I was in Xuzhou, I was infinitely close to it. But now, it seems like a somewhat unreal dream, where reality and fantasy fiercely clash, resulting in both happiness and pain.

I forced myself to stop thinking about it, not wanting to immerse myself in wild thoughts. Because all these wild thoughts only prove that my current life is terrible and unsatisfactory.

At noon, Circle, Yan Yan and I were having lunch around the table, chatting about some daily life. The conversation eventually turned to Jian Wei.

Yan Yan asked me: “Zhao Yang, do you know that Jian Wei is going to start an advertising company?”

“She mentioned it to me, what’s up?”

Yan Yan said in a tone of incomprehension: “I can understand if she doesn’t want to be a housewife, but if she wants to work, she can totally go to her father’s company, or help Xiang Chen manage his business. Starting her own advertising company, isn’t that just making things difficult?”

“Did Xiang Chen agree?” I asked, focusing on the key point.

Yan Yan pouted and shook her head: “Of course Xiang Chen doesn’t agree. But with Jian Wei’s personality, Xiang Chen really can’t control her. That’s why he’s so upset that he ran off to France!”

I looked at Yan Yan in surprise and asked: “What does him going to France mean?”

Circle laughed and took over the conversation: “Don’t listen to Yan Yan’s exaggerations. Xiang Chen went to France to discuss wine agency business.”

Yan Yan disagreed with Circle’s explanation and added: “Doesn’t their company have people specifically dealing with foreign business? He doesn’t need to go there personally. I think it’s because he’s angry with Jian Wei.”

After a while, I finally asked: “Where is Jian Wei?”

“She went back to Shanghai a few days ago, saying she was going to raise funds to set up the advertising company. I don’t know where she’s going to get the money from. Given her personality, she probably won’t ask her father for it.”Yan Yan’s words left me in silence. I had put Jian Wei in a difficult position. If she hadn’t given me the 500,000 she had saved over the years, it would have been no problem for her to start a small advertising company. So, I need to find a way to repay her as soon as possible.

……

After dinner, Yan Yan was washing dishes in the kitchen. Circle and I were sitting on the living room sofa, smoking. I took a deep drag, flicked the ash off my cigarette, and asked Circle, “Have you contacted Manager Chen?”

Circle nodded and said, “I have. There’s no problem on his end. We can meet with President Mi as scheduled.”

“Good. Judging from Mi Cai’s tone, I think there’s a high chance this will work out. If you and Manager Chen can really join Zhuomei, I hope you can help her as much as possible. You know how deep the waters are at Zhuomei, and she’s just a woman after all.”

“Don’t worry. For Chen Jingming and me, this is a great favor. We may not be able to repay her with our lives, but we will certainly do our best to assist her.” After a brief pause, Circle added, “Zhao Yang, to be honest, I really hope you can join Zhuomei too. Your creativity was fully demonstrated in the last ‘Love is not a Luxury’ promotion. In fact, compared to Chen Jingming and me, you might be able to help her more!”

Facing Circle’s heartfelt words, I was somewhat swayed. After all, once Chen Jingming and Circle joined Zhuomei, I would no longer feel guilty for letting Chen Jingming down.

After a while, I smiled and said to Circle, “The bar is in the midst of preparations for its opening. Let’s talk about this later.”

Circle nodded and said, “Alright, but I suggest you think it over. Running a bar is not a stable business, and its fortunes can change overnight.”

“Don’t worry. Once the bar business stabilizes, I will seriously consider it.”

After a brief silence, Circle jokingly asked, “What’s the situation with that model? She really caused you a lot of trouble!”

“She’s gone to Beijing. She’s doing quite well and has recently received a new film offer.”

“That’s great. Actually, from the moment GUCCI specifically asked her to shoot their promotional poster, it was clear that she was born for this industry. Maybe she can really help you in the future, Zhao Yang. If she can make a name for herself in that circle, her influence will be enormous!”

I just smiled and didn’t say anything. I don’t like to look too far into the future, so whatever Le Yao’s future looks like, I don’t think it has much to do with me.

……

Finally, it was one-thirty in the afternoon. It was time for Circle and me to set off, and Chen Jingming was already on his way to the agreed-upon teahouse…

Whether things can go smoothly or not, it all depends on the upcoming meeting.