She joined the company
Today is Zuo Xiao’s first day at work.
She wore a light purple long-sleeved shirt and white cropped pants. Her long hair was pinned back with a shark clip. She also wore thin black-framed glasses—plain glasses with no prescription, which served to enhance her professionalism while minimizing her appearance and presence. After all, it was her first day at work, so it was best to keep a low profile.
In the office building lobby, I met Luffy again.
This was their third meeting. The previous one was last Friday, the day after Zhuang Jinghao extended his offer. Luffy interviewed her, and Brand Director Mao Jiadong was also present. Mao did most of the talking, with Luffy occasionally asking questions, all in a businesslike manner. She received the offer that same day and was scheduled to start on Monday.
Luffy raised his hand, glanced at the Vacheron Constantin on his wrist, and said with a smile: "So early?"
"It's my first day at work." Zuo Xiao smiled faintly. "Does Mr. Lu usually come this early?"
"Not really. I just happened to come in early today and bumped into you. Want some coffee?"
Zuo Xiao shook his head: "I don't want to drink anymore." Luffy said: "Well, let's go up."
The two of them entered the company one after the other. The office was occupied by only the receptionist and a few colleagues. Luffy led her to an empty desk and said, "This is your desk."
It was only after a while that Zuo Xiao realized that Luffy's office was not far away. She sat at her workstation and could see him flipping through documents at his desk through the glass wall.
Zuo Xiao smiled, thinking it was commonplace and not a big deal. If she really cared, she wouldn't be able to go to work and would stay at home all day without going anywhere.
As 9 a.m. approached, colleagues began to arrive at the office. The entire morning was spent identifying people and completing onboarding procedures. Zhuang Jinghao came by three times, looking so fussy that he almost wished he could move his own workstation over.
Zuo Xiao realized that Zhuang Jinghao's approach made her arrival even more noticeable. That's right, she was like a princess in this company. The people she actively approached must be royal relatives, right?
Just before getting off work, Zhuang Jinghao came again and invited her to eat the stone pot fish at the same restaurant as last time.
Zuo Xiao put forward two conditions: "First, I won't ride in your car; second, I'll treat you, and I'll decide where to eat."
"Okay!" Zhuang Jinghao said without hesitation. Zuo Xiao then said, "But the place I want to take you to doesn't open until nine in the evening. Is that okay with you?"
"No problem!" Zhuang Jing was extremely excited. "I'm a free man now! Hey, my brother is on a business trip and won't be back until next week!"
Zuo Xiao nodded. "Excellent! This is a godsend opportunity." "Leading My Sister astray" plan begins tonight.
The two first came to the mall.
Zuo Xiao ran out of pillow fragrance. She liked the bitter rose scent and was ready to buy another one. Zhuang Jinghao tried it on the spot and said it smelled good, so Zuo Xiao bought an extra bottle for her.
"This way we'll have the same sleep fragrance." Zuo Xiao said with a smile, "Will we have the same dream?"
Zhuang Jinghao's face turned red: I sometimes have strange dreams... If that happens, will she find out?
After a while, Zhuang Jinghao took a fancy to a silk suspender nightgown with a bellflower pattern and bought two, one for Zuo Xiao.
As the night deepened, Zuo Xiao led her to the barbecue stall, where the tempting aroma of meat mixed with the smell of fireworks filled her nose.
The last time Chen Liqing took her to this restaurant, the taste was impeccable, and the environment was also impeccable: a typical roadside stall, with a dozen greasy tables placed outdoors, and the small benches were full of people.
As the saying goes, "Diseases come from the mouth," and of course, leading your sister astray also starts with what she eats.
Zuo Xiao ordered a bunch of grilled skewers, a plate of peanuts, and a plate of smashed cucumbers. Zhuang Jinghao volunteered for some beer. Zuo Xiao didn't object and ordered two bottles of ice cold beer.
"Delicious! So delicious!" the little cutie raved, finishing three skewers of pork loin and five skewers of butter in no time. His mouth moved like an assembly line. He then grabbed a skewer of grilled chicken feet, which were tough to chew, but he finally slowed down his eating.
"You rarely eat barbecue, right?" Zuo Xiao said with a smile.
"Eat! But it's always barbecue at home..." Zhuang Jinghao mumbled while gnawing on a chicken foot, "My brother said that barbecue outside is not clean, and the ingredients are too much and too mixed, so we can only eat what he grills at home..."
"Is his baked food more delicious, or is this more delicious?"
"Each has its merits! But I'm almost tired of his grilled ones. This is still better... Can I have 10 more skewers of butter?"
Zuo Xiao chuckled and ordered 10 skewers of butter and 3 skewers of grilled chicken feet. Suddenly, a male voice said, "Beautiful lady, can we share a table?"
Turning her head, she saw two young men standing next to her, their eyes glued to her face.
"No fight." Zuo Xiao said coldly.
"Let's play..." said another, "Brother will pay for you guys, how about that?"
Without even looking up, Zuo Xiao quietly pulled out his phone, pressed "110," and placed his finger on the dial button: "If you keep nagging, I'll call the police."
The two men left, cursing. Zhuang Jinghao stared at her blankly, her eyes filled with admiration: "Teacher Zuo, you are so amazing!"
"Hmm. Have you learned it?" Zuo Xiao asked with a smile. Zhuang Jing nodded frantically.
Zuo Xiao found that she could drink quite well. After a bottle of beer, her face only flushed slightly. She spoke and ate very soberly, so he asked, "Do you usually drink?"
The little cutie smiled proudly: "I've secretly drunk it many times without telling my brother, hehe..."
"Haha!" Zuo Xiao was sure that she had "suffered from the domineering brother for a long time." This way, it would be easier to "lead her astray" and her guilt would be lower.
At this moment, Zhuang Jinghao's phone rang in her bag. She hurriedly took it out to take a look and said in a panic, "My brother is here to check on me!"
"Don't answer it. Just say you're taking a shower." Zuo Xiao commanded calmly.
After the ringing stopped, Zuo Xiao asked, "Is he like this often?"
Zhuang Jinghao nodded. "Every time he's away from home, he's worried and calls to check on me at night. But usually after 10 o'clock, rarely this early."
Zuo Xiao glanced at the time. It was only 9:42. "So what are you going to do? Are you going back now?"
Zhuang Jing was in a dilemma, but suddenly an idea struck her: "Why don't I find a quiet place to call him now and say I'm walking Peter Pan outside!"
Zuo Xiao looked around and realized that it would take a while to walk to a quiet place. She was worried about letting her go alone, so she had to accompany her and wait for her to finish her call before coming back to continue eating... It was too troublesome.
"Let's finish eating first," she said. "Call back around ten and say you were walking the dog outside and didn't have your phone with you, isn't that okay?"
Zhuang Jinghao agreed hesitantly.
Ten minutes later, the ringtone rang again. At Zuo Xiao's signal, she pressed the mute button and nervously put the phone back into her bag.
"You're really afraid of your brother." Zuo Xiao laughed, "Even if you deliberately ignore his calls, what will happen?"
"I was afraid he'd worry..." Zhuang Jinghao said, "One time when I was a kid, I was home alone at night and accidentally fell and twisted my ankle. I called my brother, and half an hour later he came running home covered in blood... Later I found out he'd been hit by a motorcycle on the way home, but he got up and ran without even going to the hospital..."
Zuo Xiao was shocked. She knew that Zhuang doted on his sister, but she had never imagined he loved her to such a perverted degree. It was simply outrageous!
"Another time..." Zhuang Jinghao continued, "My brother came to Beijing to attend university, and my grandparents and I were still in our hometown. One night, he couldn't contact us, so he flew back overnight... But actually, it was because I was sleeping at a friend's house that day, and my phone died and turned off. Coincidentally, my grandparents were staying at a relative's house that day, and they had turned their phones to silent mode before going to bed. My brother called the neighbors to knock on the door, but they couldn't open it, so he flew back in a hurry. Since then, we no longer dare to silence our phones, and we report our daily schedule to him..."
Zuo Xiao was silent. After a moment, he raised his hand and said, "Boss, check out."
She accompanied Zhuang Jinghao to a nearby residential area and sat on a bench to watch her non-physical performance.
"Brother, did you call me?" Zhuang Jinghao said cheerfully, "I'm walking Peter Pan outside! My phone was muted just now, so I didn't hear the call... Oh, it ran away! I'll hang up first! I'll call you back later!"
"Your acting is pretty good. When will you make your debut?" Zuo Xiao's teasing made her feel a little embarrassed, and she put the phone back into her bag with an unnatural look.
"That's it for today, go back quickly."
The two walked out side by side. Zuo Xiao suddenly said, "Do you want to know where the inspiration for my Jasmine Garden came from?"
Zhuang Jinghao pricked up his ears: I want to know!
Zuo Xiao recounted the story: "My ex-boyfriend was a simple-minded second-generation rich kid. He always complained to me that his parents were too controlling. They wanted to know what kind of work he did and where he bought a house. I laughed at him: 'You're so greedy, and you're still spending your family's money. You haven't even been weaned off the money, so of course you deserve to be controlled!' But he refused to accept it and said: 'You're the only one who's independent! But you're still living in my house, and you still scold me every day!'"
Zhuang Jinghao was stunned by what she heard. Zuo Xiao smiled, "I was very angry at the time. Because we were already living together and he had a ready-made house, I didn't think too much about it and just moved in with him. In my opinion, with our relationship, there was no need to worry about who spent whose money or who took advantage of whom. It wasn't until he said that that I realized that in his heart, I was dependent on him."
"Why is this man like this... He's so petty!" Zhuang Jinghao tried to defend her, but her words missed the point. Zuo Xiao pursed her lips and smiled when she heard her silly question: "So what happened next? Did you kick him out? Oh, ex-boyfriend, we must have broken up... Well done!"
Zuo Xiao smiled and shook his head, then continued, "We didn't break up at that time. He apologized to me and begged for forgiveness, so I forgave him. But I moved out of his house. But that's not the point. The point is..."
At this time, the two had already walked out of the community. Zhuang Jing was listening intently. It was Zuo Xiao who discovered that they were going in the wrong direction and pulled her towards the parking lot.
"The point is, I realized then that I thought I was independent and sober, but in fact, I was unconsciously dependent on others in many ways. I lived in my boyfriend's house; I spent money without planning, and occasionally asked my father for help. I had a close friend who always asked me to go out, and when I said I didn't have money, he would buy plane tickets and book hotels for me to go... There were many things like this."
"What's the big deal?" Zhuang Jing interrupted anxiously, "Why do family and friends have to be so calculating?"
Zuo Xiao smiled and said, "Yes. It's normal for people to support each other, rely on each other, and owe each other something. After all, in a society where favors are important, it's hard to tell the difference. But I've learned a lesson from this incident: when you want something, you have to exchange it for something else. One must make choices and can't have everything."
Zhuang Jinghao frowned in thought. Zuo Xiao continued, "Just like my ex-boyfriend, he can't say he doesn't want his parents' control while relying on their money to maintain a wealthy life. If he really wants freedom from his parents' control, he should put in the same effort and earn his own money. Just like me, if I continue to live in his house, I have to endure an unequal relationship between us, and endure him using this to poke me in the back from time to time in the future. It's like a bird in a cage. Since you have chosen to accept your owner's protection, you must also accept being trapped in a gorgeous cage all day, being played with and admired by others... So, the key is to see clearly what you really want, and what you are willing to endure and what you can give up in order to get what you want."
"So..." Zhuang Jinghao asked, "You want to write a story about a girl who gives up everything for freedom? A story about a bird from a cage becoming a bird in the forest?"
"Ha! You're such a good listener," Zuo Xiao laughed. "Yes, because of these feelings, I suddenly wanted to write about a girl who abandons everything and resolutely pursues what she wants, even if she's not sure it's right, and the goal she pursues may just be her imagination... I want to see how much a woman can pay, how much pain she can endure, and how determined she can be on the path she chooses."
Zhuang Jinghao suddenly became excited. "Yes! Jasmine is brave and determined! When I was reading the article, I kept thinking: Jasmine is amazing! I will cheer her on in my heart!"
Zuo Xiao suddenly became curious and asked, "Did you ever doubt while reading this: Was it necessary for Jasmine to abandon her beautiful and stable life, endure so much hardship, and make such great sacrifices in order to pursue such a vague pursuit? Does a girl like her really exist in the world?"
"Of course there are!" Zhuang Jinghao replied, "I think there must be girls like Jasmine in the world, and there are a lot of them! Although I can't do it myself, I always feel that people like Jasmine can do it!"
Zuo Xiao found it strange. Zhuang Jinghao, a small, unassuming flower in a greenhouse, a bird trapped in a cage while being protected by her brother, could actually believe so strongly in the bravery and brightness of human nature. She was a sunflower nurtured by love, an eternally lively and cheerful oriole, a devoted audience member who happily applauded others.
"Have you called a designated driver?" Zuo Xiao reminded him. Zhuang Jinghao quickly took out his phone and arranged a designated driver.
She asked the designated driver to drive the car to the gate of Zuo Xiao's residential complex. Before leaving, she reluctantly said, "See you tomorrow!" Zuo Xiao smiled and patted her shoulder: "See you tomorrow."
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