-23- Figured it out

Due to the time difference, the Mini Awards ceremony took place at 2 a.m. in China. On the evening of August 9th, everyone left work as usual. Before leaving, Lu Kai gave everyone a pep talk, saying that tonight would be their last peaceful night and they should all get some rest so they could get ready for battle mode tomorrow. With Lu Kai and the others gone, the studio became empty. Perhaps because they'd been so busy recently, Zhao Jinghuan felt a strange sense of unease at the sudden moment of free time. She thought about what she could do to calm her mind, and after much deliberation, she finally changed into her cycling uniform and went out to run orders. The studio had been busy lately, and she hadn't run orders in almost a month. The station's dedicated delivery contracts had long since ceased, so she suddenly went online to run crowdsourcing orders, and surprisingly, her volume was much higher than usual. When she passed by Pinhai Building, she didn't have time to chat with Ji Anya, so she just said hello from a distance. But for some reason, the more she ran, the more restless she felt. After 9:30 p.m., she logged off, even though the unit price was higher at night. Riding her electric scooter back to the studio, Zhao Jinghuan unexpectedly encountered Zou, who had returned downstairs. She got out of her scooter and asked her what had brought her back. "Nothing, I was just a little bored," she said, raising her shopping bag. "I bought some snacks and some wine at the supermarket. Want to have a drink?" Zhao Jinghuan, feeling a bit short of company, chuckled and said she couldn't drink, but she was a great snacker. Then she dragged Zou upstairs. They took off their coats upstairs, and Zhao Jinghuan went through Zou's shopping bag. Besides canned beer, she found snacks like spicy noodles, potato chips, and Want Want rice crackers. She asked Zou, "Are you drinking with all that?" Zou hadn't initially thought anything was wrong, but she felt a little embarrassed by Zhao Jinghuan's question. She pulled out her phone and said, "What do you want to eat? I'll order takeout." Zhao Jinghuan said no, "Let's have hot pot. There's the morning market downstairs, and I've stocked up on vegetables." He rushed to the kitchen, set up the induction cooker, and dug out a box and a half of lamb slices, frozen tofu, and some leftover vegetables from the refrigerator. Sister Zou wanted to help wash the vegetables, but she didn't act like she'd ever done any housework. She pressed the detergent and started rubbing it all over the vegetables, saying it was just like what they did in commercials. Zhao Jinghuan quickly stopped her, "In those commercials, sanitary napkins only absorb blue liquid." He said, "Just sit down. There's nothing much to do." Without waiting for the water to boil, Zhao Jinghuan had already washed the vegetables, plated them, and sliced ​​a plate of potato slices of varying thicknesses. They settled in front of the induction cooker, and Sister Zou couldn't help but smile, "…

Because of the time difference, the Mini Awards ceremony was held at 2 a.m. in China. On the night of August 9, several people left work as usual. Before leaving, Lu Kai gave everyone a pep talk, saying that tonight was the last peace and everyone should have a good rest so that they could enter battle mode tomorrow.

Once Lu Kai and the others left, the studio was empty. Perhaps because she'd been so busy lately, Zhao Jinghuan felt a bit uneasy at suddenly having some free time. She thought about what she could do to calm her mind, and after much deliberation, she finally changed into her biker uniform and went out to run the business.

The studio has been quite busy recently, and she hasn't taken any orders for almost a month. The station's special delivery contract had been terminated long ago, and she suddenly went online to run crowdsourcing, and the number of orders was surprisingly much more than usual. When passing by Pinhai Building, she didn't have time to chat with Ji Anya, so she just greeted her from a distance. But for some reason, the more she ran, the more uneasy she felt. After 9:30 in the evening, she went offline and stopped running, even though the unit price was higher at night.

Riding an electric bike back to the studio, Zhao Jinghuan unexpectedly saw Sister Zou who had returned downstairs. Zhao Jinghuan got off the bike and asked Sister Zou why she came back.

"Nothing, just a little bored." She raised the shopping bag in her hand. "I bought some snacks and some wine at the supermarket. Want to drink with me?"

Zhao Jinghuan also happened to feel that she needed company, so she chuckled and said that she couldn't drink, but was good at eating snacks, and then she pulled Sister Zou upstairs.

The two went upstairs to take off their coats. Zhao Jinghuan went to look through Sister Zou's shopping bag and found that besides canned beer, there were snacks like spicy noodles, potato chips, and Want Want rice crackers. She asked Sister Zou, "Are you drinking with these?"

Sister Zou didn't think there was anything wrong at first, but when Zhao Jinghuan asked her out of the blue, she felt a little embarrassed. She took out her phone and said, "What do you want to eat? I'll order takeout." Zhao Jinghuan said no need: "Let's have hot pot. There's a morning market downstairs, and I've stocked up on a lot of vegetables."

As he said that, he ran to the kitchen to set up the induction cooker, and then took out a box and a half of mutton slices, frozen tofu, and various vegetables that he had not finished eating from the refrigerator.

Sister Zou wanted to come over to help wash the vegetables, but she didn't look like she had ever done housework before. She pressed the button and started to smear the detergent on the vegetables, saying that this is how it's played in commercials.

Zhao Jinghuan quickly stopped her, "The sanitary napkins in the commercials can only absorb blue liquid." She then stopped Sister Zou from making trouble in the kitchen, "Just sit down. There's nothing much to do."

Without waiting for the water to boil, Zhao Jinghuan washed the vegetables, plated them, and even sliced ​​a plate of potato slices of varying thicknesses. The two of them sat down in front of the induction cooker, and Sister Zou couldn't help but smile, "You really are making a living here."

"Of course I have. I've been living here for a month now." Zhao Jinghuan bit the end of her chopsticks and looked at the pot that was just beginning to bubble. "At first I was reluctant. Who would like to live in the company? But after moving in, I feel different. As soon as you get off work, this huge house is all my own. It's much more comfortable than the second bedroom I lived in before. Now I feel like I'm not living in the company, but the company has opened its doors to my home. I have to thank classmate Lu Kai for his brilliant idea."

Sister Zou raised her eyebrows, seemingly just because Zhao Jinghuan mentioned Lu Kai.

Zhao Jinghuan asked her what was wrong with a guilty conscience.

Sister Zou said, "Do you like Lu Kai?"

Zhao Jinghuan's face flushed instantly, and she waved her hands repeatedly, "No, no, I just wanted to say that moving here is pretty good." She realized this was a good opportunity to clear up the misunderstanding, and quickly added, "That day, nothing actually happened. Lu Kai came to help me move, and we couldn't find a mover that night, so we went in ourselves. We were so tired, so we both fell asleep after entering the house..."

She realized the ambiguity in her words and quickly added, "We slept separately! He was lying on the floor, and I was on the sofa bed. I originally wanted to take a nap, but I ended up sleeping until Tomato arrived at the office the next morning..."

Sister Zou propped up her cheek and looked at her tenderly. When Zhao Jinghuan stopped, she smiled and asked, "Are you done?"

Zhao Jinghuan nodded, and Sister Zou said, "You should feel better after you finish talking. I think you're about to burst."

She took a sip of beer. "I didn't misunderstand you. I know you're not that stupid. Lu Kai is also a little brat who doesn't understand romance. I don't believe he could have tricked you into his hands in just a few days."

Zhao Jinghuan breathed a sigh of relief. Unexpectedly, Sister Zou asked again, "So, you don't like Lu Kai?"

Zhao Jinghuan was stunned for a moment and didn't know how to answer.

Seeing her embarrassment, Sister Zou clinked her beer and Coke glasses. "Okay, I won't tease you anymore. Whether you like him or not is actually none of my business. I just think you look a lot like me when I first graduated, and I don't want you to follow my path."

Zhao Jinghuan was stunned for a moment. Although Ji Anya had reminded her before that the relationship between Sister Zou and Lu Kai might not be ordinary, she had never really thought about it in this direction.

"So, Sister Zou, you and..."

Sister Zou nodded. "In my early twenties, I was so naive. I didn't understand boys, love, or even myself. I saw a guy who wasn't that unpleasant, and who had achieved some success in the industry before you..." She shook her head. "It wasn't much of an achievement, actually. There were so many guys out there who were better and more capable than him. Even if he was Dorasi, he probably wouldn't be a hair better than Dorasi."

Sister Zou said, "But sometimes it's just silly, like what some people say online. In high school, I liked my teacher, during military training, I liked my instructor, in college, I liked my senior, and after graduation, I fell in love with my senior, and then my boss. You think you like that person, but in fact, you just like a force that is slightly stronger than you in a small space."

The soup base in the induction cooker was boiling, and Sister Zou suddenly changed the subject: "Add some food, or I won't be able to drink this wine."

Zhao Jinghuan obediently picked up half a box of mutton with a serving chopstick. The slices of meat gradually turned red. She couldn't help but ask, "A studio like ours can't really be considered powerful, right?"

"Isn't it? If you think about it calmly, even admiring a strong person is so casual and ridiculous," said Sister Zou. "He knows a few more trendy toys than you, has been to more trade shows, and knows a few more designers, so you think he's so strong and amazing, like he knows everything. But even if that's true, so what? If knowing more is worth loving, then everyone should just marry DeepSeek. A group wedding would be more economical."

Zhao Jinghuan thought for a while, then asked Sister Zou: "So this is why you wanted to leave before?"

Sister Zou nodded. Noticing Zhao Jinghuan's frown, she smiled and said, "Why do you make me sound like a deserter? I'm not running away, I just feel like this relationship has reached a dead end. It's really a bit strange to be with him like this all the time."

She tilted her head as she spoke. "It seems like I'm deserting more and more. Oh, oh, the meat is cooked." Sister Zou picked up a large chopstick of meat and put it in Zhao Jinghuan's bowl first. "Anyway, I haven't left yet because I can't abandon all of you at such a critical moment. But I still have to leave. I'll wait until this little freckle sells well and Lu Kai recoups his investment, then I'll leave."

Zhao Jinghuan asked Sister Zou to eat too, but Sister Zou shook her head and just took a sip of beer. She seemed to suddenly think of something and sat up straight. "Oh, don't get me wrong, I'm not saying you shouldn't be with Lu Kai. I just want to say that you must think clearly about why you like him. I just don't want you to fall into the same trap as me."

Zhao Jinghuan nodded, not quite understanding. She lowered her head and took a bite of the mutton. It was clearly covered with thick sauce, but she couldn't taste anything.

"But then again." Sister Zou stretched, "Maybe if you think it through, there's no such thing as love in the world."