Chapter 7, "The Popular Wife"

Arrived at the hotel.

As soon as we got out of the car, my colleagues exclaimed in amazement as they looked around at the street scene.

Moscow's architecture blends the verticality of Gothic style with the opulence of Baroque, featuring grand symmetry, soaring spires, and distinctive characteristics.

Lin Ke glanced at it a few more times, her emotions surging, as if she were seeing an old friend.

When she first chose a language, she had no direction. Choosing a major requires considering not only personal preferences but also the level of difficulty and future employment prospects. She spent a lot of time learning about each less commonly taught language before finally and carefully choosing Russian.

Russian is relatively difficult in terms of both pronunciation and grammar. After studying for a week, she wanted to give up, but she couldn't back down and had to grit her teeth and keep learning.

Thanks to her school and teachers, she had access to many resources during her school years, from online translation, small meetings, and exhibitions to large international conferences. During her postgraduate studies, she had the opportunity to come to Moscow.

The first time I stood on this land was in winter. The city was covered in snow, and the onion domes and Gothic buildings were like a dream. The whole city was like a giant amusement park.

At that time, when she heard the familiar languages ​​spoken by foreign men and women passing by, she felt a sense of belonging welling up inside her and truly fell in love with the language.

She traveled back and forth many times afterward, and this dreamlike city witnessed her growth bit by bit.

Everything stopped when Si Xiaotie came into this world.

This is her first time back here in almost five years.

When the driver came to settle the bill, Lin Ke collected her thoughts, paid the money skillfully, and arranged the itinerary for the next four days.

When she looked up again, she met the gaze of a man not far away.

As her colleagues gradually entered the hotel, Lin Ke looked away, picked up her luggage, and walked past him as if nothing had happened.

I reached for my phone at the front desk and saw his message: [Si Yun sent a message saying Xiao Tie is asleep.]

Lin Ke: [Okay.]

Yu Guangzhong picked up his phone to reply, and shortly after, another message popped up on WeChat: "[Do you want to come over later?]"

The generous boss arranged for everyone to have a private room, while he himself was offered a suite. Lin Ke replied almost without hesitation: "No."

"Manager Lin, it's your turn."

"I'm here." Lin Ke put her phone in her pocket and took out her passport to check in.

There are no work arrangements for tonight. Everyone can take care of their own dinner. Get some sleep tonight to adjust to the time difference and go straight to work the next day.

Xu Lin pushed the suitcase into the suite and tidied it up. He first took out the clothes his boss was going to wear the next day and told the laundry room to iron them, and demanded that they be delivered back on time before 7 o'clock the next day.

He then placed the boss's personal belongings in his usual spot, but as he was tidying up, he looked at a nude-colored bra in the suitcase and hesitated, then noticed a small dinosaur doll next to it...

These belong to Mr. Si's wife and children?

He always helped me pack my luggage when I went on business trips before, and I've never seen anything like this happen before...

The boss had just finished his phone call and came over. As he walked over, he glanced into the suitcase spread out on the floor. Xu Lin felt a little embarrassed, hurriedly closed the suitcase, and stammered, "President Si... I..."

Xu Lin had only been with him for two or three months, and he was still young and a bit impulsive. Si Yuming went to the refrigerator to get water and spoke naturally, his tone slightly raised, "My wife and daughter packed my luggage last night, and the little girl left it lying around."

"Ah... Oh, okay."

Xu Lin dared not touch the suitcase again. "Mr. Si, I'll go back first. I'll come over at eight o'clock tomorrow morning to wake you up for breakfast."

"good."

As Xu Lin walked towards the door, his hand resting on the doorknob, he heard a casual question asked behind him, "Xu Lin, do you like Manager Lin?"

He didn't quite understand what she meant at first, and turned around: "Huh?"

The man didn't ask any more questions and waved him away.

......

The cooperation with the Russian side has been basically finalized. This trip is for the final negotiations and signing of the contract. The translation work is not difficult, but it takes a long time. Whenever the boss is communicating with the other party, the translator has to be there.

The next day, Lin Ke changed into an apricot-colored suit, her long black hair was tied up at the back of her head, and she wore light everyday makeup.

She has a small face and soft features. Her teachers used to say that she didn't have enough presence and couldn't control the stress in Russian. They were also afraid that she would be so frightened by tall Russians that her brain would turn to mush.

She didn't aspire to become a capable career woman, but translation requires understanding the context—being assertive when necessary and gentle when appropriate. Therefore, she consciously practiced maintaining a composed demeanor at work to try and satisfy her employers.

After getting ready and going downstairs, my colleagues were already having breakfast.

As soon as she sat down, Shen Wan exclaimed, "Beautiful!"

Lin Ke has an unthreatening appearance, but she is not just the gentle and graceful type from the Jiangnan water towns. After working together for so long, Shen Wan felt that describing her as an ice-cold rose was the most appropriate way to describe her. She is beautiful, soft and fragrant, but she is intangible, unsmelling and not easy to get close to. She quietly blooms in her own world.

The girl across from me said, "No wonder so many male colleagues like Manager Lin. Even without talking about them, I'm a little smitten myself. Who doesn't like beautiful things?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Si Yuming walked past with his assistant.

I don't know if he heard that sentence, but his dark gaze lingered on her for several seconds before he looked away.

Lin Ke ignored him and continued eating.

After lunch, we headed to the partner company.

This collaboration is a crucial step for Entropy Domain in opening up the Russian market; otherwise, Si Yuming wouldn't have personally followed up on it from beginning to end.

As soon as everyone got off the bus, they immediately dropped their relaxed expressions and went into battle mode.

Russian executives came down to greet him personally. Si Yuming shook hands and greeted them. Lin Ke translated almost every word the Russians said into Chinese, speaking from less than half a meter behind him.

The two exchanged pleasantries as they walked inside, with her following closely behind.

Upon entering the conference room, Lin Ke took a deep breath. She rarely gets distracted in all her years of work, but she had already drifted off several times along the way. Looking at the tall figure in front of her, she felt somewhat dazed, her roles of "boss" and "husband" becoming confused.

But whether as his boss or his husband, this was the first time she had worked so closely with him. Her heart would skip a beat whenever he looked at her while she was translating.

Si Yuming is undoubtedly a successful businessman. He is intelligent, decisive, and possesses the demeanor inherited from his grandfather, which commands respect just by standing there.

Although she had known him longer than others and had spent several years with him, Lin Ke always felt that he was like a bottomless spring. She didn't know how deep he was or how to guess his true thoughts. Even now, when she looked closely at the smile of her business partner, she couldn't see the real meaning behind it.

As the meeting began, Lin Ke put her thoughts aside and focused on her work.

The meeting proceeded as usual without any surprises until, halfway through, the man suddenly leaned over and whispered in her ear, "I need to gauge their risk tolerance for policy restrictions."

Lin Ke was startled by his sudden approach. After calming herself down and pondering the question that couldn't be translated directly, she quickly asked in Russian after a few seconds, "Mr. Linsky, what are your thoughts on the unexpected policy changes?"

Lin Siji responded briefly, and Lin Ke then conveyed the general meaning to Si Yuming.

Cross-border cooperation carries relatively high risks, and both investing and resource-rich countries have their own concerns. Demarcating boundaries and sharing risks is also a game of strategy.

Si Yuming did not back down and pressed on relentlessly, seemingly wanting to shift all the risks onto the other party.

This was a very strong negotiation, and she, as the intermediary, was crucial.

Some Chinese phrases translated into Russian are too direct and sharp, which can be offensive, but if they are translated too softly, they will not achieve the effect that Si Yuming wants.

She clenched her fists on the table, suppressed her smile, and conveyed her boss's words with the most serious expression and tone.

The other side indeed had a dark expression.

“I told him that the situation in Russia is unstable right now, and we have already taken a huge risk to come up with this cooperation. If he shirks responsibility, I need to increase the profit margin by three percentage points.”

The man moved closer again, this time losing control of the distance. His heavy breathing brushed against her face, making her feel a little itchy. Lin Ke slightly turned away.

Three points is already an astronomical price for such a large multinational project, let alone an additional charge at the last minute. Lin Ke felt it was inappropriate and whispered, "President Si, Lin Si is not a pushover. If we throw this at the problem, the negotiations may fall apart."

Only after saying it did I realize that this sentence had exceeded the limits of what a translator should do. Just as I was about to correct myself, the person next to me spoke again in my ear: "No, Linski is not cotton, but his company is now almost like cotton."

She regained her composure, nodded, and repeated herself in fluent Russian.

After more than a dozen rounds, Lin Ke realized that this money was really hard to earn.

Si Yuming is a real shrewd businessman. He doesn't mention anything that benefits him, but he calculates all the risks for others in detail.

She reached out and quietly massaged her back, which had been stretched out all morning, and shifted her feet slightly under the table to relieve the soreness.

Today is the first day of my period, and my lower abdomen is aching from time to time, which is really awful.

The man caught a glimpse of her hand on his lower back out of the corner of his eye, glanced at his watch, and said in a low voice, "That's enough for this morning, I'm hungry."

Lin Ke was delighted and quickly translated, "Mr. Linski, our discussion this morning is over. Mr. Si needs to have lunch."

The tall Russian man's expression was still not very good. "We have prepared all kinds of Russian meat skewers for you."

Lin Ke's eyes lit up—it was her favorite grilled meat skewers!

Turning her head again to translate, she met the deep gaze of the person looking back at her from the side. She quickly looked away, her expression turning serious in an instant. "Mr. Si, Mr. Linski said he has prepared Russian-style kebabs for you. The kebabs taste good; you can try them later."

Si Yuming didn't miss the woman's rapidly changing expression. Seeing her feigned seriousness, he smiled and took the lead in leaving.

......

After lunch, the Russian side needed to postpone the discussion, so they were arranged to visit the company first. Lin Ke continued to follow behind Si Yuming as his translator.

After the visit, a new round of negotiations began, and the negotiations continued with high concentration until eight or nine o'clock in the evening, when the contract was successfully signed.

There was a banquet afterward, but Lin Ke still had to continue working.

However, meals are always much more relaxed, and casual conversation is child's play compared to formal negotiation language.

The project team had originally arranged for her to sit to the side and behind Si Yuming, not to take a seat, but someone raised their eyes and said to Shen Wan next to them, "Manager Lin, please sit up, I can't hear you."

Shen Wan glanced at Lin Ke, a hint of doubt creeping into her mind.

Mr. Si has used many translators, but none of them have received the same treatment as Manager Lin. Mr. Si seems to trust her a lot. During the day, the two of them worked together to catch the Russian side off guard.

Now they've let her sit at the table to eat...

Shen Wan didn't think too much about it. Lin Ke was indeed outstanding. She deserved a lot of credit for successfully winning this project with a solution that exceeded expectations. President Si never hesitated to reward his employees.

Lin Ke was also somewhat surprised and carefully sat down in the seat that Shen Wan had given up.

However, Linski knew some basic English, and since the occasion was informal, the two communicated directly in English. As a result, her role as translator was completely useless, and she could only eat in silence.

During their conversation, Lin Siqi asked, "I heard that President Si is already married?"

Lin Ke paused in her drinking.

The man nodded readily, "Yes, I have a three-year-old daughter."

Linski: "If Mr. Si comes next time, he can bring his wife and daughter. I will be your guide."

Si Yuming smiled gently: "I think my wife probably doesn't need a guide, but my daughter will definitely like this place."

Linski: "Oh?"

Si Yuming: "Russia is known as the 'Kingdom of Bears,' and my daughter is very interested in these animals."

Lin Ke, who was listening nearby, thought that this was indeed true. Si Xiaotie either liked dinosaurs or tigers and lions. She could control Si Xiaotie from beginning to end with an episode of Animal World. She would definitely be overjoyed to see the bear here.

Thinking of Si Xiaotie, she glanced at the time. It was late at night in Beicheng, and Si Xiaotie was probably sleeping soundly with her little dinosaur.

I video chatted with her at noon. The little girl didn't miss her parents at all during the day. She just kept talking about the fun things that happened at kindergarten and what delicious food and fun toys her best friends brought her.

She was busy when she went to bed at night, and Aunt Chen coaxed her to sleep, saying that she was tired from playing at kindergarten during the day and fell asleep in no time.

Lost in thought, the conversation at the dinner table somehow turned to her, and Linski asked in heavily accented Russian-accented English, "Where's Translator Lin?"

"What?"

Linsky: "Have you ever considered staying in Moscow?"

Lin Ke understood and smiled slightly: "Not for now."

Linski feigned regret, saying, "I was originally planning to introduce you to my younger brother. He just returned from studying in China last year, and I'm sure he would love to meet you."

Suddenly, a hand reached out from under the table, and the man's broad hand grasped hers, pulling her down to his knees.

Lin Ke paused slightly, tried to pull back but couldn't, so she gave up and responded to Lin Siji's straightforward question, "Your brother must be very outstanding."

Linski raised his glass, bypassing the middleman, and said, "No, Lin the translator is even better. I admire excellent people."

Si Yuming was holding her right hand, so she couldn't lift the glass. She squeezed his palm to signal him to let go.

But the man was doing nothing and didn't move. Lin Ke had no choice but to kick his foot. When she kicked him a second time, the man glanced at her sideways and then let go.

After exchanging a few more pleasantries, Linski changed the subject.

The meal lasted until after 11 p.m. Because the signing was completed ahead of schedule and there were no work arrangements for the next day, everyone held a small celebration party after the Russian personnel left.

Everyone was happy to sign the cooperation agreement, and when you're happy, you inevitably have to have a few drinks. Lin Ke was no exception and was forced to drink quite a bit.

She doesn't have a high alcohol tolerance, but she has a habit of using strong liquor as a sleeping aid, and her mind was still relatively clear afterward.

It was already late at night when I got back to the hotel.

It was morning in China when Lin Ke received a call from Si Xiaotie as she entered the elevator.

The little girl, just woken up, called out in a soft, sweet voice, "Mommy~"

Still in the elevator, the signal was bad, and there were people all around, so Lin Ke whispered into someone's ear, "Hey, is the baby awake?"

"Hmm! Is Mom awake?"

Lin Ke didn't explain the time difference to her. "You're awake. Mom is getting ready to go to the hotel."

"Where's Dad?"

"......"

The little girl's voice was quite loud, and the elevator, which had been deliberately quiet because of her phone call, could hear it clearly. Lin Ke lowered her voice again: "Baby, you have to eat your breakfast obediently later."

Si Xiaotie ignored him and shouted, "I want to talk to Dad on the phone!"

Yu Guangli noticed that the person not far behind her seemed to move. Lin Ke panicked and hurriedly hung up, using the excuse of a bad signal.

The hotel has six floors in total. The project team stayed on the fifth floor, and the suites were on the sixth floor. After Lin Ke got out of the elevator, she entered the room and was about to close the door when a pair of large hands blocked the door, and then people squeezed into the room.

Lin Ke's eyes widened in surprise. "What are you doing here?!" Then she looked outside nervously. "How did you get here? Did anyone see you?"

Si Yuming glanced down at her, his expression serious, his voice even carrying a hint of inexplicable coldness, "Didn't Xiao Tie say he wanted to talk to me on the phone?"

"......"

A note from the author:

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