Chapter 93 Meeting [VIP]

Chapter Summary: After all, Teacher Fu hasn't accepted my friend request for over a week.

After taking a shower, Fu Xianyin, with her hair still wet, lay sprawled on the bed with her phone in hand, staring at the little red dot that appeared in her WeChat contacts.

She took a deep breath, locked her phone, and tossed it aside, but grabbed it again within two seconds, unlocked it, opened WeChat, and continued staring blankly at the little red dot.

Just now downstairs, when Gu Linzhao said those words, Fu Xianyin almost couldn't even maintain the most basic decorum.

She didn't even hear whether Gu Linzhao said, "Let's add each other on WeChat" or "Let's add each other on WeChat too."

If it were "add it too", then Fu Xianyin could at least maintain a calm facade.

If it's "add one more time".

Fu Xianyin felt her whole body stiffen.

What's the difference between this and being executed by slow slicing?

Six years ago, when she left without saying goodbye, she knew that Gu Linzhao would not let it go, so she not only deleted his WeChat, but also blocked all his contact methods.

To this day, she has not removed Gu Linzhao from her blacklist.

Gu Linzhao's gaze remained fixed on her. Fu Xuanyin held her room key and ID in one hand, and gripped the handle of her suitcase with the other. She smiled apologetically, shaking her stuffed hand, and said:

"I'm sorry, I'm not available right now."

That's a very poor reason.

It was so bad that even Fu Xianyin himself knew it was bad.

The clothes weren't without pockets; she even carried a small shoulder bag with her, and her phone was currently inside the bag.

It's just a matter of leaving your ID and picking up your phone; what's so inconvenient about that?

She even thought with a hint of despair that such a clumsy excuse could not possibly fool Gu Linzhao.

It's better to just be straightforward. After all, six years have passed, and the reunion is only due to project cooperation, so he probably won't dwell on the past.

Unexpectedly, Gu Linzhao was convinced by this reason.

He nodded and said, "Okay, we'll talk about it later."

Generally speaking, slang like "we'll talk about it later" or "we'll definitely do it next time" implies that there is no going back and no next time.

However, it's hard to explain the underlying psychology.

The instant Gu Linzhao disappeared from sight, Fu Xianyin immediately opened WeChat and removed him from her blacklist.

I thought this little episode was over.

To everyone's surprise, Fu Xianyin had just finished showering when she discovered an unread message on WeChat. She initially thought it was from a group chat, but upon clicking on it, she found a friend request in her contacts.

The phone immediately became a hot potato; it was neither safe to hold onto it nor to throw it away.

Fu Xianyin cursed herself for being so spineless.

After mentally preparing herself for what seemed like an eternity, she finally reopened WeChat and clicked on the friend request.

The verification information field only has three characters.

Gu Linzhao.

There wasn't a single extra piece of information.

That does fit his style of doing things.

Fu Xianyin was about to click "agree," but when she scrolled down, she suddenly added a source.

She was taken aback.

My finger hovered above the phone, then paused.

The source section clearly states:

The other party added me by searching my account.

It's not a phone number, nor is it a business card sharing.

It's a search account.

Fu Xianyin didn't know how she was feeling right now.

She just stared blankly at that line of words, lost in thought.

If Gu Linzhao wanted to add her as a WeChat friend, the easiest way would be to ask Lu Heyu to share his business card.

Or, at the very least, he could search for a phone number. After all, it's a collaborative project between the two sides, and basic information like phone numbers would be easy for Gu Linzhao to find.

It's just a little troublesome.

The account was searchable, and Fu Xianyin never expected it to be through this channel.

She was certain that her personal contact information only included her phone number and email address, and that she had never saved her WeChat account.

If Gu Linzhao wanted to find her WeChat ID, he would have to go through a third party, such as Lu Heyu.

But wouldn't it be more convenient to share her business card directly through a third party? Why bother searching for her WeChat account?

A bold and absurd idea suddenly emerged from Fu Xianyin's mind.

Gu Linzhao would directly search for and add her account, could it be because... he always remembered her WeChat account?

Therefore, there is no need for a third party to share it, nor is it necessary to go through the extra trouble of finding her phone number.

The time it takes to pick up your phone and type a few words is actually the most time-efficient thing to do.

But the problem is...

Why does Gu Linzhao still remember her WeChat account?

So many years have passed, even if he remembers, why is he so certain that her account hasn't been changed?

unless……

stop!

Stop!

Fu Xianyin placed her phone face down on the bed and jumped up from the bed.

She walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, looked at the bustling view of Beijing, and made a call to the front desk:

"Excuse me, could you please bring me a glass of wine?"

"Anything is fine, the stronger the better. Please hurry, thank you."

The doorbell rang, and Fu Xianyin, without even entering the door, picked up the wine glass and drank it all in one gulp.

The spicy liquor burned her throat. Fu Xianyin placed the empty glass on the tray, politely thanked the waiter, and, to the waiter's somewhat shocked expression, closed the door. Then, she collapsed onto the bed, covered her face with the blanket, and began to sleep.

I'm still too tired.

Look, he's so tired he's starting to lose his mind and start having all sorts of wild thoughts.

Xingfan Technology is very user-friendly, at least that's how Fu Xianyin has experienced it so far.

Considering her long journey, they even gave her a week to adjust to the time difference.

With nothing much to do, and in the freezing cold, Fu Xianyin stayed in the hotel for a week.

Cheng Zhaozhao and Chen Nianke already know that she and Gu Linzhao have reunited.

Fu Xianyin initially wanted to keep it a secret, but as soon as she turned on her computer and saw the project details, she couldn't help but think of Gu Linzhao.

After going back and forth like this, she lost her temper and simply told Chen Nianke and Cheng Zhaozhao directly.

The two of them were both incredibly shocked.

Cheng Zhaozhao: [Holy crap, no, holy crap.]

Chen Nianke: [You two... you just met like this?]

Chen Nianke: [So you worked on this project for over a year and you didn't even know the boss of the partner company was Gu Linzhao?]

Fu Xianyin: [Wait, is this the important point?]

Cheng Zhaozhao: [Exactly, is this the point?]

Cheng Zhaozhao: [So you knew absolutely nothing about this before you returned to China?]

It's not that I don't know.

Fu Xianyin told the two of them the whole story.

And what we get in return is another round of "WTF"s.

A week passed quickly. Winter break in the US is very short. In China, the annual leave hasn't even started yet, but MIT has already started its semester.

While communicating with Andrew, Fu Xianyin diligently went over her assigned tasks several times.

She's now completely dependent on others for her services; if she doesn't work hard, she'll be letting down the bed she sleeps in every night.

On the day she went to Xingfan Technology, Fu Xianyin got up very early.

Xingfan Technology starts work at nine in the morning, and Fu Xianyin was already waiting downstairs at eight-thirty.

When Lu Heyu came down to greet her, he was momentarily shocked: "Teacher Fu, why did you come so early?"

Fu Xianyin smiled and said, "It's your first day at work, so be positive."

She countered, "It's quite early, isn't that causing trouble for Teacher Lu?"

Lu Heyu shook his head: "No, no, I arrived at eight o'clock this morning."

He took Fu Xianyin up the elevator and explained the company's basic functions and floor layout to her step by step.

The elevator stopped on the sixth floor. Lu Heyu politely held the elevator door open for Fu Xianyin and gestured for her to proceed.

"This is our project team's office. This is your office, Professor Fu."

After exiting the elevator, Lu Heyu led her forward until they stopped in front of a door.

Fu Xianyin smiled, somewhat surprised, "I also have an office."

She thought they would just find her any workstation.

The office door opened, and even though Fu Xianyin was somewhat prepared, she still subconsciously took a breath.

The floor-to-ceiling windows were clean and bright, as if they were brand new. The interior decoration was also carefully arranged, with a whole set of brand-new electronic equipment, and Fu Xianyin even saw a projector on the wall above the ceiling.

Is it really necessary to be this luxurious?

After leading her to his office, Lu Heyu politely left. Before leaving, he thoughtfully said, "Teacher Fu, there are tea leaves and cups in the cabinet, all prepared for you. Please feel free to use anything in the office."

Fu Xianyin smiled and thanked her.

After Lu Heyu left, Fu Xianyin plopped down on the small sofa in the office, sprawling out in all directions, and finally couldn't resist stretching out her arms.

Working in an office like that, you can imagine how great it would be.

She was even willing to work overtime.

Starsail Technology really knows how to manipulate people.

Lu Heyu told her that the project team would hold a meeting at 9:30 to introduce and welcome her. She was supposed to start work at 9:00.

With some time to spare, Fu Xianyin quickly familiarized herself with the office layout and tool arrangement before turning on her computer to begin preparations.

At 9:20, Fu Xianyin was already at the conference room door with her computer.

She hadn't met many of the project team members. Lu Heyu wasn't actually the team leader; the real team leader was a woman named Hu Chengcheng.

The meeting room door was closed, so Fu Xianyin couldn't see inside. She wasn't sure if this was the meeting room Lu Heyu was referring to, and she was too embarrassed to open the door rashly.

Just as she was about to send Lu Heyu a WeChat message to confirm, a familiar voice suddenly rang out behind her:

Why don't you go in?

It was Gu Linzhao.

Before she could even think about why Gu Linzhao was there during their project team meeting, Fu Xianyin turned around, nodded politely, and said, "I'm not sure if this is the meeting room. I wanted to confirm with Teacher Lu."

"This is the one."

Gu Linzhao's voice sounded emotionless. He knocked lightly on the conference room door twice and then pressed the doorknob.

The door was pushed open, and there were already seven or eight people sitting inside.

Hearing the noise at the door, they all turned to look.

The door was still being held open by Gu Linzhao. He looked at the computer in Fu Xianyin's hand, raised his chin, and said succinctly, "Come in."

Fu Xianyin thanked her and went inside.

The heavy doors closed, and Fu Xianyin glanced at the people in the conference room. She didn't recognize a single one of them.

She pulled out a stool near the door and was about to sit down when someone suddenly pressed the stool down on her.

Gu Linzhao placed his hands on the back of the chair.

He looked at Fu Xianyin and said, "Sit forward."

...

Okay, you're the boss, whatever you say goes.

Fu Xianyin had no choice but to move forward a few seats and sit down.

When the time was 9:28, Hu Chengcheng arrived late.

As soon as she entered, she said to Gu Linzhao, "I'm sorry, Mr. Gu, I was organizing project materials and I'm late."

Gu Linzhao didn't say anything, he just nodded.

The meeting was chaired by Hu Chengcheng.

After briefly introducing the main purpose and agenda of the meeting, she led everyone in welcoming Fu Xianyin.

Fu Xianyin stood up and gave a brief self-introduction.

After introducing herself, Fu Xianyin briefly described the progress of her assigned part.

After saying those platitudes like "It's an honor to work with you all" and "I hope we can complete the project together smoothly in the future," Fu Xianyin was about to return to her seat when suddenly a man in the conference room raised his hand slightly.

“Professor Fu,” he said, “when you usually communicate, what do you use most? Text messages, emails, or do you also prefer WeChat?”

"I use WeChat."

Fu Xianyin smiled and said, "My WeChat ID is my phone number. You can just search and add me."

The man, Cheng Yu, nodded and said, "Okay, I understand."

Seeing this, Fu Xianyin also switched the PPT page back to the one where she first introduced herself.

The meeting wasn't very formal, so after sending the friend request, Cheng Yu joked, "Because I remember that Professor Fu stayed in the United States for quite a few years, I was worried that Professor Fu didn't use WeChat much anymore."

Fu Xianyin laughed: "No, I use WeChat quite often. I also use WeChat to contact my friends in China. It's convenient for making phone calls and video calls."

She closed her laptop and was about to return to her seat when she looked up and suddenly met Gu Linzhao's eyes, which seemed to be smiling but not smiling.

Fu Xianyin had seen that look in her eyes many times.

Some teased her with smiles, some lazily joked with her, and others looked at her casually, calling her a little hooligan.

It was a gaze that was somewhat familiar, yet also somewhat intimate.

They were at least close enough that this shouldn't be happening to them at this moment.

Fu Xianyin tightened her grip on the notebook.

The next second, the man's casual voice rang out in the conference room:

"Really? I thought Professor Fu didn't use WeChat much."

"After all, Professor Fu hasn't accepted my friend request for over a week."

[Author's Note]

Mr. Gu is starting to tease Yin Yin in a sly way~