156. The emotional storage cabinet of workers

"So I said, you two are really a suitable couple and should not be separated." Luo Hao laughed playfully twice, and then said: "Yu Chuanbei also asked me to advise you, no matter how unforgettable or lingering your feelings are, it is just love after all, just one of the many life experiences of human beings. You must not let obsession become the creed of action and confine yourself to the same place. Later, he drank too much and recited poems. I only remember these few lines, which seemed to be: The two forget each other, gradually drifting away and leaving no books. I will never think about you, and you should not think about me. Give your heart that you used to have to others... Well, in short, life is short, the world is vast, and you should live without being fussy about trivial matters - what's wrong with living in your ex-boyfriend's house? What's wrong with welcoming the next new relationship? What's wrong with not getting married in this life? What's wrong with pretending to be miserable and making jokes in the workplace giving me a sense of accomplishment? Money can't buy my mother's happiness, right?" Ling Ling laughed dumbly, took a swig of wine, and said, "Can't you just say 'this girl' is happy with it?" "At your age, you should almost use 'old lady'." Luo Hao couldn't help but taunt her. "Get out!" Ling Ling kicked the side of his sofa. Luo Hao restrained himself and said, "That wasn't me who said that. It was Yu Chuanbei who said that." Ling Ling worriedly inquired about Yu Chuanbei's situation, "The deep diving he mentioned is very dangerous, right?" Luo Hao sighed and said, "Yes. We met when we were studying in Hong Kong. He was very obsessed with diving at the time and even persuaded me to go with him. In the end, I only went once, in a cave diving. I was scared to death and never dared to touch this kind of thing again. Later, Jinnan came and scolded him, saying that he was his parents' only son and told him not to touch extreme sports. Only then did he stop. Jinnan, who was scolding Yu Chuanbei with her hands on her hips at the time, was really beautiful. She was so beautiful that the moon would be ashamed of the flowers, and she was heroic. She had the style of an older sister and the charm of a little woman..." The following moments became Luo Hao's exclusive tribute to Yu Jinnan. Ling Ling internally plotted whether to kick him out, using the excuse that it was too late for a man and a woman, claiming he was working overtime by chatting with HR, or claiming he couldn't join her because he had a client meeting early the next morning. *~*~*~*~*~*~ Ling Ling had finally decided to move into Yu Chuanbei's house, but first she had to go to Shunyi to pack up. She hadn't been back since breaking up with Zhong Mingtong, always fearing the awkwardness of running into each other upstairs and downstairs. She figured he probably felt the same way, avoiding each other. After packing up her belongings, Ling Ling glanced back at the house. …

"That's why I'm saying that you two are a perfect match and shouldn't be separated." Luo Hao laughed playfully and added, "Yu Chuanbei also asked me to advise you that no matter how unforgettable or lingering your feelings are, it's ultimately just love, just one of the many life experiences of human beings. You must not let obsession become a creed for action and confine yourself to where you are.

Later, when he was drunk, he started reciting poetry. I only remember a few lines: They seemed to go something like this: We forgot each other, gradually drifting apart, letters vanishing. I will never think of you, and you shouldn't think of me. The heart you once shared with me, I can give to someone else...

Well, in short, life is short, the world is vast, and we should live without being particular about trivial matters. What's wrong with living in my ex-boyfriend's house? What's wrong with welcoming the next new relationship? What's wrong with not getting married in this life? What's wrong with playing the fool in the workplace to give me a sense of accomplishment? Money can't buy my happiness, right?

Ling Ling laughed dumbly, took a swig of wine and said, "Can't you just say 'this lady' is happy with it?'"

"At your age, you should almost use 'old lady'." Luo Hao couldn't help but ridicule her.

"Get out!" Ling Ling kicked the side of his sofa.

Luo Hao restrained himself and said, "That wasn't me who said that. It was Yu Chuanbei who said that."

Ling Ling worriedly inquired about Yu Chuanbei's situation: "The deep dive he mentioned is very dangerous, right?"

Luo Hao sighed and said, "Yes. We met when we were studying in Hong Kong. He was very obsessed with diving at the time and even persuaded me to join him. In the end, I only went once, in a cave diving, which scared me half to death. From then on, I never dared to touch this kind of thing again. Later, Jin Nan came and scolded him, saying that he was his parents' only son and told him not to touch extreme sports. Only then did he stop obediently. Jin Nan, who was standing with her hands on her hips and scolding Yu Chuanbei at the time, was really beautiful to the sky, with a face that could shame the moon and flowers, a heroic demeanor, and the style of an older sister, but also the charm of a little woman..."

The following moments became Luo Hao's special performance in praising Yu Jinnan. Ling Ling was planning in her heart whether to drive him away on the grounds that it was too late and it was inconvenient for men and women, or on the grounds that he was chatting with HR and should be paid overtime, or on the grounds that he had to meet a client early the next morning and could not accompany him now.

*~*~*~*~*~*~

Ling Ling finally decided to live in the house in northern Sichuan, but she had to go to Shunyi to pack her things first.

Ever since she broke up with Zhong Mingtong, she had never returned home, always fearing that the two of them would run into each other again, upstairs and downstairs, and it would be awkward. She thought he must have the same idea, avoiding each other as much as possible.

After packing up her belongings, Ling Ling glanced back at the house. Once upon a time, she had been so insistent on buying a house with her own name on it, believing a title deed was the symbol of her independence. Now, she was truly independent, but with it, she was also detached from many of her most cherished relationships. But she wasn't sad. Everything in her past had shaped her present self.

She walked out of the room with her suitcase and eventually ran into Zhong Mingtong who was just about to leave. They looked at each other at the two ends of the short staircase, hesitating for a few seconds in surprise.

Mingtong walked up the stairs, walked towards her and said, "Let me help you carry it."

"Oh, thank you." Ling Ling looked very embarrassed.

They walked towards the subway station in silence. Mingtong spoke first: "I see you haven't been back to stay recently."

Ling Ling moved closer to him after following him, saying, "Well, yes, I've been too busy lately, so I'm staying at the company hotel. But now, I'm moving to Yu Chuanbei's old house. He left Beijing, and I don't know if he'll come back in the future."

Mingtong was silent for a few seconds and then said, "That's good. Being closer to your company will reduce commuting time and improve your sense of happiness." He paused and said, "I always feel that you still can't forget Yu Chuanbei in your heart, although I have always refused to admit it, and hope to use our feelings and time to dilute that kind of lingering. But after all, you have been through a lot together, and the emotional foundation built by hardships is difficult to uproot. Of course, I am not shirking responsibility for our separation. The main reason for our separation must be between us. It's just that - whether you are with Yu Chuanbei or with anyone else in the future, I wish you happiness. Of course, my blessing is not important." Mingtong's words were particularly twisted, but Lingling could understand him.

"Thank you, Mingtong. Your blessing means a lot to me. I'm always grateful to have met you, especially when I feel disillusioned with the direction of my life." Ling Ling said softly, and then asked him, "What about you? How have you been lately?"

"Me?" They entered the subway station. At security, Mingtong uttered the word and meticulously cooperated with the security officer checking his suitcases and backpacks. Then they reached the platform. The approaching train cast a faint white light through the dark tunnel, drawing ever closer until it was blinding. "I—I'm with Lu Yan." Mingtong uttered this as the train whizzed by. He desperately hoped Ling Ling couldn't hear him. At least, he finally spoke frankly, like a child admitting a mistake to a parent, with the audacity of "Yes, I did it, come on and scold me."

The train arrived at the station and they walked in. There were no seats, so they stood side by side, each holding the handrail.

"That's great, congratulations, you two are a good match." Ling Ling said to Mingtong's face reflected in the glass of the subway map in front of her.

She saw Mingtong's face smile stiffly as the background changed rapidly, but the smile disappeared in an instant.

They passed a few more stops in silence, and Ling Ling raised her head and said, "Next stop, I have to change trains."

Mingtong nodded, then waited for the train to slow down. As the doors opened, she smiled at him and said goodbye. She pulled her suitcase and left, watching the doors close again. He didn't dare admit it. He didn't want to say goodbye, because he didn't want her to see him years from now; that wouldn't be the person he wanted. "100 Things I Dare Not Do," they ultimately couldn't complete together. They only made it to 54, barely halfway through. He simply didn't dare.

After Ling Ling settled into Yu Chuanbei's old house, she felt settled, no longer feeling adrift. It seemed as if everything had finally settled, that she was destined to live out her life alone, which was fine.

She devoted herself to her work without any distractions, like an ascetic monk who loves to practice. Of course, the boss liked such employees, and especially liked her personally.

Ling Ling could feel Fang Tuowu's subtle closeness, but she now felt that she was an emotional insulator and did not want to have any such extension, so she always politely maintained the proper distance between superiors and subordinates.

As Ling Ling was promoted in Tuo Wu, Adrian from Hemino finally generously gave her a big gift - he signed a promotion planning project for a new ketchup with Tuo Wu.

Lingling and Chuqi had been hanging out together these days, brainstorming ideas. Shaoyao had been accompanying them, recording their every thought, feeling like she was almost a stenographer. But every day after she finished writing, she would be forced to delete her thoughts by the two of them, and then watch them deny themselves.

Chu Qi collapsed on the sofa in Ling Ling's office and said, "Since it's a big shot like Hemino, how about we make this case a bit more grandiose? For example, in a vast wilderness, drain the lake, let fresh tomato sauce roll down from the mountains and flow into the lake, and then have an extraordinary pilot fly over the lake and drop a huge bundle of French fries. How about it?"

Ling Ling crossed her legs, pinched a French fry, and dipped it into her second bottle of ketchup. She said, "No, there's dirt and non-drinkable water in your lens, which will make people feel that the food they're about to eat is not clean."

Chuqi suddenly sat up and said, "What about replacing the lake with a swimming pool?"

Ling Ling shook her head again and said, "That's even worse, because it will make people think of - urine."

Upon hearing this, Chuqi slumped back onto the sofa in frustration and said dejectedly, "Ketchup is a supporting ingredient in many dishes. It's an unremarkable ingredient, and few people can tell the difference between different ketchups. Oh, this order is so difficult!"

Ling Ling savored the flavor of ketchup, gazing at the hurried crowds beneath the skyscrapers. "Ketchup is still food," she said, "and food is always connected to family. Every generation has its own collective memories. Our elders struggled to make ends meet, but the generation we serve now is more independent and enjoys a more refined lifestyle. They're also particular about ingredients. That's why we want Hemino's ketchup to be unique, because it truly tastes purer and richer."

Author's Note

Liu Qiu

author

07-24

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