Chapter Six: A Nighttime Outing

"Go back and rest this afternoon. Meet me at the place where you had skewers last time at midnight." I had just finished a long morning, stretched, and was about to go eat when this guy gave me this message.

"I have something to do tonight, sorry, let's have dinner another time!" A rejection as always.

"You think I invited you to dinner? You're dreaming. It's work. Go back!" With that, he left without looking back, leaving me standing there bewildered. Working in the middle of the night, it really was "Before Dawn." No wonder no one wanted to come.

"Honey, this is fate! It's a stroke of luck! To be honest, if I hadn't fallen for the operations director, someone like Chu Zhen, I would definitely be chasing after him relentlessly. I'd be willing to stay up all night, even at midnight." Huang Yanyan's reaction to my complaints left me speechless.

"How about we switch?" This young lady is so willful; she doesn't understand the helplessness of ordinary people like us who have to bow down for a meager living!

"You'd better go to sleep! Otherwise you won't be able to get up tonight."

"If I sleep now, I'll be even less able to get up at night!"

"I have a proposal to write today, I'll definitely be up all night, I'll call you then." This best friend is really reliable. She's probably the one who gained the most from her four years of college. A woman who was destined to be a socialite from birth, but ended up living the life of a loser.

"What does your operations director look like? When are you going to bring him over for a look?" I was genuinely curious about what kind of man could make Huang Yanyan so infatuated.

"Don't worry, I'll definitely handle it. I'll introduce you to her and dazzle you." A complete novice in love, she managed to portray herself as a seasoned veteran.

"I'm not going to brag anymore. Wake me up on time, and don't be late. This is my first day at work." I reminded him repeatedly. After witnessing Chu Zhen's cold demeanor this morning, and with Lao Cao's introduction, I came to the conclusion that this man was not to be trifled with.

"Who is it? The phone keeps ringing!" Still half asleep, I answered the phone impatiently.

"Where is he?" Chu Zhen's voice was filled with anger, and I instantly woke up. I checked the time and it was already one o'clock.

"Oh, oh, I'll be there soon!" Without waiting for a reply, I hung up immediately. Luckily, I hadn't removed my makeup or changed my clothes. I grabbed my bag and went out. When I got to the living room, I found Huang Yanyan sitting on the floor, asleep on the coffee table.

I should have set an alarm; I actually believed Huang Yanyan's nonsense.

"Yan Yan, get up and go to bed!" I woke him up because I was worried the floor was too cold, even though I was in a hurry.

Fortunately, the rental apartment was very close to my destination, and I ran all the way there, arriving in just five minutes.

"Um, yes, yes, I'm sorry, I forgot to set the alarm," I said breathlessly.

"This is the first time, don't let it happen again." Chu Zhen handed me a glass of water. "Drink it!"

"Thank you!" I was really thirsty, so I gulped down the water, emptying the bottle in no time.

"Teacher Chu, what are we doing out here?"

"Call me Chu Zhen."

Who is he? This morning he called Chu Zhen and told me to call him Teacher Chu; I obediently called him Teacher Chu, but then he told me to call him Chu Zhen.

"I'll still call you Teacher Chu during work hours!" I made a point of addressing him with a respectful title, "you."

"Look over here, any news material?"

"Young people drinking and eating skewers on the street at dawn?"

"A lobster restaurant where young couples fall in love?"

...

This is a food street, and it's relatively quiet in other seasons. But in the middle of summer, it's the peak season for late-night snacks. For young people, the nightlife is just beginning.

"Can we not associate this with food?"

"Was that something to drink? Or was it some bored producer taking an intern for a late-night stroll?" After saying that, I realized how abrupt my question had been.

"That's a good topic. Then come stroll with me~" I saw the corners of Chu Zhen's mouth turn up. No, not a smile, but a sly smile, an evil smile.

"Teacher Chu, if there's nothing else, I think it's more suitable to take a good nap in the middle of the night, what do you think?" I don't want tomorrow's news to be about an intern being harmed by a perverted producer.

"What are you thinking about? Didn't I give you an afternoon off to catch up on sleep? Come with me!"

Looks like I was overthinking it again.

"Can you see the difference between this side and that side?" After walking two streets with Chu Zhen, she suddenly asked me this question.

This road runs parallel to the food street, but it's completely different. It's unusually quiet here right now, with only the rustling of leaves. The street at night is devoid of the daytime hustle and bustle, tranquil and cozy. Handsome men and beautiful women walking along the street are a truly beautiful sight. Thinking about it, I couldn't help but chuckle to myself—this guy really knows how to find a date spot!

"What are you laughing at? You look so lewd."

"Me, a pervert?"

"yes."

"You're the one who's creepy. You brought me here on a dark and stormy night. Who knows if you're after my money or trying to kill me?"

"Besides your life, what wealth can you scheme for?"

"Even if you don't have money, you can still have beauty!" I said smugly.

Chu Zhen stopped, slowly lowered his head, and stared at me.

"What are you doing!" I was a little nervous. How could I have said such a thing? But being this close up, I realized that Chu Zhen was really too perfect. How much growth serum would I need to grow my eyelashes to be like that!

"It's alright, there's nothing to rob me of." Chu Zhen stepped back. This was a complete disrespect for my looks. I was one of the top three beauties in the department.

"Um, what exactly are we here for?"

"Collect news materials."

Where are the source materials?

What's the name of our program?

"Before dawn."

"It is just before dawn."

"I understand." I didn't quite understand. Did he want me to see what the city looked like before dawn? But it was the middle of the night, and there wasn't even a car, let alone anyone.

"Hello, may I ask why you are here at this time?"

...

"Oh, I see, it's because of the pressures of life, right?"

……

"Yes, me too."

I held the recorder up to the air in front of me and asked and answered my own questions.

"What are you doing? Are you crazy?!" Chu Zhen looked at me, completely bewildered.

"Are you crazy? At this hour, besides interviewing ghosts, who else can you interview? No wonder nobody's following you around. You're crazy." I was speechless. I'd rather quit my job than torture people in the middle of the night.

"You know the saying, 'Don't talk about people during the day, and don't talk about ghosts at night,' right?" Chu Zhen looked at me sinisterly.

"Damn, don't scare me!" Suddenly I felt a chill run down my spine. Did I just interview a passing ghost?

"Teacher Chu, why don't we go back? I don't think there's anything worth interviewing on the way."

"Wait a minute, it'll be here soon."

"Um, how about we go sit in that KFC over there and show up after we have someone to interview, okay?"

"Lin Dang, are you scared?"

"Just pretend I'm scared!" I took off running into the KFC. My behavior was so childish; I scared myself half to death instead of anyone else. Only when I felt the warmth of the KFC lights did I calm down.