Xiao Ning turned to look at the fish tank in the corner and said in a deep voice, "I've seen it!"
"You've seen it?" Xiao Qiqi sneered. "How old are you? Did you graduate from elementary school? You're just going to let me use this as a template to paste text with so many typos?" If she hadn't just glanced at it casually, it would have caused problems again! Xiao Ning flipped through it curiously, blushed, and muttered, "If I hadn't noticed, I could have just corrected it."
"GaiGai! Do you know that because of your negligence, we'll be delayed by two more days? If everyone acted like you, how could we possibly finish the project?"
Xiao Ning looked up at Xiao Qiqi with a puzzled expression. "Sister Xiao, why are you so angry? It's just two typos, just correct them and it's over. Is it really that serious?"
The disdainful tone completely enraged Xiao Qiqi. She remained silent for a long time, scrutinizing Xiao Ning from head to toe, then sat down, took out a cigarette, remembering that smoking was prohibited in the office, and simply toyed with it in her hand. "Ning Ruiming, I'll make things clear to you today! Two paths: one, pull yourself together and work hard! Two, pack your bags and leave! Your salary will be calculated by finance immediately! Those are the two options. Think it over tonight and tell me your answer tomorrow." Having said that, she ignored Ning Ruiming and went to the restroom to smoke.
Everything was going wrong. Just before she was about to leave work, she received a call from Li Yue inviting her to dinner. Xiao Qiqi was in a really bad mood, so she left work early and took a taxi to the restaurant Li Yue had arranged. Her QQ car had been damaged by the rain, and Xiao Qiqi was too lazy to fix it; taking a taxi was much more convenient.
It was a chain restaurant, famous for its fish head dishes. Xiao Qiqi didn't have much of an appetite, but Li Yue was quite interested and ate until he was sweating profusely.
“Zhao Xi seems to be acting strange these past few days. Haven’t you contacted them?” Li Yue suddenly brought up Zhao Xi, Jiang Yilan’s boyfriend of many years.
Xiao Qiqi shook her head, "I haven't seen Jiang Yilan for quite a few days either. Maybe they had a fight. That happens all the time."
Li Yue nodded. "Yeah, having someone to argue with is actually a kind of happiness." Li Yue looked up. "How's that matter coming along?"
Xiao Qiqi asked curiously, "What is it?" Seeing the strange emotion in Li Yue's eyes, she suddenly smiled, "You actually took it seriously? If we were a couple, we would have been together long ago. Why would we wait until now?"
"I just think we're a good match. To be honest, I'm way past the age of impulsive love. It's just about having a companion, taking walks together, chatting, grocery shopping, cooking, watching TV, and arguing occasionally. That's all."
Taking walks together, chatting, grocery shopping, cooking, arguing, watching TV—what wonderful days! Xiao Qiqi felt a pang of heartache. She had had those days before; would she ever have them again? Perhaps she would, but the person would never be the same again.
"What, are you thinking about that playboy again?" Li Yue shook his head. "Xiao Qiqi, I didn't expect someone as aloof as you to be so sentimental."
Xiao Qiqi snapped out of her daze and became unusually good at arguing with Li Yue, "I've always been a sentimental person, you just don't know it."
"Okay, even if I don't know, I'll try to understand and learn starting today, okay?"
Xiao Qiqi nodded. "Are you serious?"
"serious!"
"Think about it," Xiao Qiqi laughed. "You need to be prepared, I'm domineering, stingy, miserly, unreasonable, and cold-blooded..."
"Stop, stop!" Li Yue raised his hand. "Xiao Qiqi, you're really sick."
"Haha..." The two of them couldn't help but laugh.
After the two left the restaurant, Li Yue suggested, "Want to grab a drink?"
Xiao Qiqi shook her head. "I was seriously ill before, and I get a fever every time I drink. But I can still drink a little red wine." Since then, Xiao Qiqi hasn't dared to drink at all, let alone go to bars to drown her sorrows. However, life has been too boring, so she's started to get a little restless. So Li Yue drove.
Where to?
"Dark Night!"
"Dark Night?" Xiao Qiqi frowned, seemingly having heard of it.
The bar was elegantly decorated, with a predominantly blue and black color scheme, creating a comfortable atmosphere. Xiao Qiqi sat with Li Yue on a sofa some distance from the stage, watching various attractive men flirt and whisper with their female companions. "Do you come here often?"
"I was just showing off. Someone gave me a membership card a few days ago, and I've only been here once." Li Yue shook his head. "There are too many rich and powerful people in this city. I'm not even in the running."
"This is a members-only bar? That certainly gives you the right to show off." Members-only bars are rare, but they must be special. Judging from Li Yue's tone, this place must be the kind of place where only the rich and powerful can get a membership card.
"Women are just lucky. Men can't get into places like this without status, but women can just walk in arm in arm with a man," Li Yue joked, shrugging. He never had much reserve in front of his old friend.
"Stop making such sentimental remarks! You are like..." Xiao Qiqi suddenly stopped speaking, her gaze fixed on the group of men and women who had just entered.
"What's wrong? Someone you know?" Li Yue looked over as well. Leading the group was a young couple. The man was no more than twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old, wearing a black silk shirt with all the cuffs unbuttoned and the collar buttons casually undone. His entire demeanor was shrouded in a misty haze—elegant, noble, and approachable. A faint smile played on his lips, gentle yet tinged with a hint of melancholy. He wore dark-rimmed glasses, adding to his refined air. In short, he was an extremely handsome prince. The woman beside him wore a matching floor-length dress, with voluminous curly hair reaching her shoulders. She had delicate features, large eyes that curved into crescent moons when she smiled. "Damn, it really is someone I know!" Li Yue hadn't sworn in a long time, but he was so surprised that he couldn't help but express his shock.
Xiao Qiqi's face was unusually pale. She, who had been drinking water, couldn't resist grabbing Li Yue's wine and downing it in one gulp. Li Yue stood up, but Xiao Qiqi grabbed him, "Don't go!" Li Yue looked at Xiao Qiqi; her face was like transparent amber, deathly pale. He couldn't help but grasp her hand, trembling, "Scared? Excited?"
After drinking some wine and calming herself down, Xiao Qiqi took out a pen and paper from her bag, wrote a few words, and slipped a tip and a note to a waiter serving drinks, saying, "For the lady in the black dress with curly hair." The waiter smiled knowingly and left.
Li Yue asked, puzzled, "Qiqi, what are you doing? You're not going to have a duel, are you?" Xiao Qiqi seemed paralyzed, leaning against the sofa, watching as the man led the woman by the hand towards the VIP seats in the center of the bar. As they spoke softly and gently, the woman smiled sweetly, unable to hide the pride or happiness in her eyes.
Li Yue smoked worriedly, "Qiqi, do you know what you're doing?" Xiao Qiqi nodded, forcing a wry smile, "Don't worry, after all these years, I'm not like a little girl who's still holding grudges. But I think it's better if we don't acknowledge each other in this situation." Her gaze lingered on the smiling, curly-haired woman, her brow furrowed in thought. Li Yue immediately understood, "You know that lady?" Xiao Qiqi nodded.
The waiter smiled at Xiao Qiqi from afar, and Xiao Qiqi stood up, saying, "I'm going to wash my hands."
The black marble floor was surrounded by smooth, transparent mirrors. Xiao Qiqi looked at the person in the mirror; her face was still somewhat pale, but her expression was much calmer. She suppressed the turmoil in her heart once again. Xiao Qiqi watched a long dress gracefully approaching in the mirror.
"...Qiqi, why are you drinking here?" The person in the mirror had delicate features, large, slightly evasive eyes, and red lips that still carried the aroma of sweet wine.
"Sister Jiang, handsome guy, gorgeous clothes, fine wine, you're quite pleased with yourself!" Xiao Qiqi turned around to look at Jiang Yilan behind her.
Jiang Yilan was a little reserved at first, but she quickly shrugged nonchalantly, washed her hands, and said, "It's not bad, aren't you envious?"
Xiao Qiqi frowned. "What happened? Where's Lao Zhao?"
"We broke up!" Jiang Yilan took out her makeup box and refilled it.
Xiao Qiqi straightened up. "Basket, are you serious?"
"Hehe, Qiqi, you're so funny. What's real and what's fake? Sigh, only you, with your stubborn and weird temper! You even push away someone like Young Master Chen! In today's society, you really are a rare breed!" Jiang Yilan's tone was full of disdain.
Xiao Qiqi's heart skipped a beat. She took out a cigarette, lit it, and took a deep drag. "Basket, I've always thought you were just all talk and no action. Deep down, you're still that innocent, lovely, and sentimental girl I've known since you were twelve. Is this really you now? There are many people in this world who play games with life, but I've always believed that there's no way you could be in that kind of circle."
Jiang Yilan's lips curled into a comical smile. She snatched the cigarette from Xiao Qiqi's hand and took a drag herself. "Qiqi, you sound very sincere, but I can't help it! Aren't we all changing? Like you, during those four years of university, we were so close, sharing everything, but didn't you also have secrets? Didn't you change too? And what about me? I've been with Lao Zhao for seven years. Seven years, the best years of my youth were spent on him, watching him strive so hard to build our business. And after all these years, we're still stuck in the same place, living simple lives, rented apartments, worrying about buying clothes..." An argument ensued. "Qiqi, I've really had enough! Originally, I thought, let it be, maybe this is my fate. We'll still struggle and work hard together. We'll have a house, a car, nice clothes and delicious food. Until I met him. Qiqi, before, I looked at your on-again, off-again relationship with Young Master Chen with envy and detachment, but now I finally understand. You are truly great, truly worthy of love. At least you possess the dignity that this world is beginning to lack. I can't help it, I'm just an ordinary person, I can't resist temptation! So, I broke up with Lao Zhao."
Xiao Qiqi listened quietly to Jiang Yilan's words, then pondered and said, "Basket, I know everything you're saying. But you're not that kind of person, and you can't afford to play those kinds of games. Do you really understand those people?"
"I understand, but it's just a mutual thing. He's after my novelty, and I'm after his money!" Jiang Yilan sneered blatantly.
"You know all this and you still do this? Do you feel happy degrading yourself like this?" Xiao Qiqi felt a chill to the bone. People can change, let alone Jiang Yilan? That person, who was once so clean, sincere, gentle, and elegant, is now starting to play the games of those rich young masters.
“That’s your worldview, Qi Qi, not mine! Never has been. I don’t think it’s self-degradation, it’s reality!” Jiang Yilan turned around. “I’m leaving, he’s still waiting for me.”
Xiao Qiqi felt a bitter taste in her mouth. "Is it really just about money between you two?"
Jiang Yilan was taken aback for a moment, then smiled, "I don't know. He hasn't said yet, and I'm not in a hurry. Everyone embarks on this path for that reason, right? Do you think I'd want anything else? Love, marriage?"
Hearing Jiang Yilan's words, Xiao Qiqi grabbed Jiang Yilan's hand, "Basket, let go before you get too deeply involved! If you two really take that step, I really... I really don't know how I'll face you in the future!"
"Qiqi, don't talk nonsense. Whatever I do is my choice. We'll always be best friends." Jiang Yilan frowned. Xiao Qiqi's hands were icy cold, and holding hers felt like having ice cubes inside. "Are you not feeling well? Go home early!"
Xiao Qiqi shook her head, "No, you don't know!" She couldn't bring herself to say it. Those past experiences were buried deep in her heart, even to Jiang Yilan, her close friend of over a decade. At this moment, her fear, dread, and disappointment were beyond words. "Lanzi, you can't go. Otherwise, we really can't be friends anymore. I..."
"To tell you the truth, Qiqi," Jiang Yilan sighed, looking at Xiao Qiqi's pale face. "We haven't gotten to that point yet. I just... I just couldn't stand you questioning me like that, so I said it on purpose. I met him at a press conference a few days ago. He said my hair was beautiful, and I heard from a friend that he's very rich. Tonight was the first time we went out together. Now, are you relieved?"
Xiao Qiqi finally breathed a sigh of relief, "Then what about you and Lao Zhao?"
"It's true, we really broke up. What I said just now wasn't a lie; it really is the demon hidden in my heart. Perhaps that's why I was willing to associate with this kind of rich kid." Jiang Yilan sighed again. "Forget it, I feel like dying after you caught us tonight. I don't want to play anymore, let's go home."
"You broke up with Lao Zhao first before you met this person?" Xiao Qiqi let Jiang Yilan pull her out of the restroom. Soft, soothing music flowed through the dark night, and a person whispering elegantly moved slowly in the darkness. The faint scent of wine wafted around, making people feel a sense of disorientation.
"Hmm!" Jiang Yilan nodded. "Actually, I know I can't play with those rich young masters, I was just curious. Where in this world are there still young masters as devoted as Young Master Chen?"
Jiang Yilan and Xiao Qiqi emerged from the restroom, each lost in their own thoughts, only to find an extremely gentle-looking man standing at the door, a half-smile playing on his lips. Xiao Qiqi was surprised: "Dami?"
Following Da Mi, Xiao Qiqi and Jiang Yilan came out through the employee entrance. Jiang Yilan looked very unhappy, hurriedly greeted Xiao Qiqi, and then took a taxi away.
Xiao Qiqi followed Dami slowly along the dimly lit roadside. Dami smiled and smiled again, and Xiao Qiqi finally snapped out of her reverie. "Dami, what are you laughing at?"
Da Mi continued to laugh: "I'm laughing because I introduced a girlfriend to the young master here a few days ago."
Xiao Qiqi laughed after hearing this, "...Thank you."
Da Mi finally leaned against the telephone pole and burst into laughter, "Xiao Qiqi, don't you think it's really weird?"
Xiao Qiqi said seriously, "It's not strange. But I'm thinking about what happened tonight..." She looked at Da Mi, who knew Jiang Yilan.
Da Mi nodded. "Don't worry, I'm not one to meddle. But aren't you curious about the girl I introduced to the young master?"
"Not curious," Xiao Qiqi answered decisively.
Da Mi finally stopped laughing. "Xiao Qiqi, actually you're quite annoying."
Xiao Qiqi was speechless.
“Cowardly, timid, and selfish,” Da Mi continued seriously. “If you still have a heart, don’t let the young master wander around. He’s tired, and you’re tired too.”
"...Thank you." Xiao Qiqi only said two words in the end, perhaps out of cowardice, timidity, and selfishness.
In the darkness, two men embraced and laughed, too passionate to speak. After a long while, Li Yue seemed to remember something, "Xia Xuan, you've really changed; you've even started playing around with women!"
Xia Xuan remained elegant and melancholic, even her smoking posture exuded grace. Her eyes behind her glasses were half-closed, obscuring her expression, and the faint smile at the corner of her lips was like mist on a distant river. "Just putting on an act!"
Li Yue hesitated for a moment, then looked at the spot where he had just been sitting.
"What, you're here with friends? Let me introduce you to them!" Xia Xuan's voice was still very gentle, like a spring breeze.
Li Yue shrugged, about to say something, when a waiter came over and said to Li Yue, "Mr. Li? A lady asked me to tell you that she has left with her friends. We hope you have a good time!" Then he said to Xia Xuan, "Miss Jiang said she had something urgent to attend to and left early. Please forgive her, Mr. Xia."
Xia Xuan looked at Li Yue and smiled slightly, "Thank you! It seems we are really destined to meet, both of us were dumped by our female companions at the same time."
Li Yue seemed thoughtful, but said, "When did you come to Beijing? I heard you've been in the US and Hong Kong these past few years."
“I’ll always be there. But you, you went to the army and disappeared without a trace. Did you decide to abandon your rival of many years the day you left?” Xia Xuan smiled, but her voice remained indifferent. “I’m engaged to Xu Chun.” She lightly shook the transparent dark red liquid with her slender fingers, speaking casually, as if it had nothing to do with her.
Li Yue looked at Xia Xuan in surprise. He had indeed changed. He would never have so bluntly reopened old wounds before; even the barking of a stray dog would have elicited a warm smile. However, Li Yue was no longer the impulsive boy who would swing his fists. He smiled back, "I know. Congratulations!"
The joy and excitement in the air were gradually dissipated by a strange sense of alienation. Xia Xuan shrugged, seemingly unconcerned. "Women, aren't they all the same?" A faint sarcasm appeared in his eyes. "Xu Chun has also come to Beijing. She's even more charming than before. If you want to see her, contact her. She'll definitely be happy."
Li Yue frowned in displeasure. "Xia Xuan, do you know what you're saying?"
“I know!” Xia Xuan sipped her drink. “People say wine gets better with age; but women, on the other hand, become less flavorful with time. So, Li Yue, congratulations on finally understanding this.” She then beckoned, and a waiter came over solicitously. Xia Xuan pointed to the most expensive bottle of red wine in the bar, “This is for the two ladies who just came in.” At the bar entrance, two stylishly dressed men entered, accompanied by two still somewhat naive young women.
Li Yue laughed, "Do you know who I came here with?"
"Who is it?" Xia Xuan asked, but her eyes were gentle as she watched the two girls whose expressions changed. She watched them be surprised, happy, hesitant, and then decisively abandon their male companions and walk towards them.
“Xiao Qiqi!” Li Yue said coldly as he watched Xia Xuan raise her wine glass to the two girls.
With a tremor of her fingers, half a glass of red wine spilled rather unceremoniously onto Xia Xuan's wrist. Xia Xuan looked at Li Yue; the faint smile, the detached melancholy, the cold mockery were gone, replaced by a pair of icy eyes blazing with an inexplicable fire. Li Yue lowered his head and smiled faintly.
XI. Struggle
Su Yan felt completely bewildered; she had simply become Chen Yuanxing's girlfriend. While Su Yan seemed unfazed, Gu Lian repeatedly examined the piles of clothes and jewelry filling the dormitory, sighing with emotion.
"Stop looking, just take whichever one you like!" Su Yan was actually grateful to Gu Lian, although she didn't understand what the considerate and gentle Chen Yuanxing was really thinking about her. If it was just casual flinging like many classmates, it didn't seem like it; he was extremely polite to her and didn't make any advances. If it wasn't, she couldn't believe that someone like him could develop real feelings. Thinking about it, she smiled again, "Don't look at me like that, okay? How are things going with Zhou Zijian from Langya Network?"
Gu Lian sighed, "I'm not as lucky as you. I've been waiting for his call for so many days, but it's all been in vain. It seems he's already forgotten who I am." Gu Lian was a little sullen.
Su Yan sat down next to Gu Lian, somewhat dazed. "Gu Lian, I don't really know if what we're doing now is the right thing to do."
Gu Lian laughed and pinched Su Yan's cheek. "Don't frown. If Young Master Chen sees this, he'll think I'm bullying you! I'm telling you, Hua Tian has a new movie coming out soon, and you absolutely have to make him tell him about us!"
Su Yan pushed Gu Lian's hand away. "I know, I've said it hundreds of times already." She hesitated for a moment. "But Gu Lian, I just met him, is it okay for me to ask him for something like this?"
"Tch!" Gu Lian scoffed. "What's wrong with him? What are you after if you're with him? Isn't it just those things?"