Chapter 8 A good match won't just happen to be perfect...
Jiang Nuanyu stood in front of the bathroom mirror, surrounded by soft, bright lighting, but her face looked pale and unhealthy.
She didn't know how she got out of their sight.
The string that had been taut all day seemed to be suddenly snapped, then snapped back and lashed at her, causing a burning pain.
Only then did she realize how rash, inappropriate, and even superfluous her unexpected confession on Menghe Island that night had been to Liang Qi.
He never contacted her, nor did he leave any contact information. His "Let's meet then" was, in retrospect, just a polite gesture to go with the flow.
Thinking of this, she felt unbearably ashamed. Her brows furrowed tightly, and tears welled up in her eyes, blurring her vision.
Six years ago, her feelings for him ended abruptly before they even truly began; six years later, she turned the gears between them, thinking she had a glimmer of hope and that her relationship finally had a foundation, only to be forced to end it all.
It seems that she can only be so passive because she is destined to fall in love with him.
She blinked to wipe away the moisture in her eyes, and looked at herself in the mirror with red eyes.
She's no longer that 20-year-old girl; she won't lose control and cry over something like this anymore.
She splashed cold water on her face, took a deep breath, dried her hands, and went outside.
On the way back, she kept her head down the whole way, afraid of accidentally witnessing a scene she didn't want to see and couldn't face. After finally sitting down and catching her breath, she looked up and saw Liang Qi and Shi Youning sitting opposite her in the window seat.
Shi Youning was ordering food, while Liang Qi sat quietly, his eyes lowered as he looked at the table.
As if sensing her gaze, he suddenly turned and glanced in her direction.
Jiang Nuanyu hurriedly lowered her head, and in that instant she didn't even see what Liang Qi's expression was.
·
When Ye Ji arrived, Jiang Nuanyu was pouring wine into a glass. When she saw Ye Ji, she raised her eyelids slightly and said, "You're here."
Ye Ji put down his bag and noticed that the bottle in her hand was already a third empty. He couldn't help but ask in surprise, "Why are you drinking already?"
Jiang Nuanyu didn't respond, but instead picked up another cup, poured some water into it, and placed it in front of her.
Ye Ji was taken aback upon seeing this, and asked suspiciously, "You didn't just order drinks and not any food, did you?"
Jiang Nuanyu nodded.
Ye Ji hesitated for a moment, then sighed and beckoned a waiter.
After we ordered, she asked again, "What happened to you?"
Jiang Nuanyu took a sip of wine, lowered her head, and slowly shook it.
Seeing her like this, Ye Ji already had a pretty good idea of what was going on. "How are things between you and that person?"
Jiang Nuanyu remained silent, this time not even shaking her head.
Ye Ji also lost his patience: "Are you mute? Did he drug you to make you mute?"
Upon hearing this, Jiang Nuanyu's throat moved, but she didn't know how to speak. She tilted her head back and drank the rest of the wine in her glass in a few gulps.
She drank too quickly, and the alcohol hit her head, instantly causing a blush to rise to her cheeks. Once she calmed down, she said, "Can we talk about something else?" As she spoke, she picked up the bottle and poured herself another drink.
Ye Ji said bluntly, "Do you look like someone I can talk to about anything else right now?" She urged, "Speak—"
Jiang Nuanyu's eyes flickered, and after a few seconds, she said, "I won't say."
Ye Ji: "..."
While the dishes were being served, Jiang Nuanyu couldn't help but turn her head and glance in Liang Qi's direction.
Earlier, to avoid facing him directly, she had quietly moved her chair, hoping to keep out of his sight and avoid distractions. But now, when she looked over, the area was empty, and the waiter was clearing the tableware away.
She looked away, forcing herself not to think about why they had left early. Whatever the reason, it was none of her business.
Jiang Nuanyu has a good alcohol tolerance and is usually quite restrained when drinking. But this one night, she drank a bottle and a half of red wine by herself. By the time she was about to go home, she was clearly a bit too drunk and could barely walk steadily.
Ye Ji was worried and accompanied her home.
As soon as she entered the door, Jiang Nuanyu kicked off her shoes and collapsed onto the sofa. Ye Ji closed the door behind her, tidied up the shoes that Jiang Nuanyu had just taken off and left lying around, and then took out slippers from the shoe cabinet to put on.
She went to the sofa, nudged the motionless Jiang Nuanyu, and asked, "Do you want to wash up before going to sleep?"
Jiang Nuanyu did not react.
Ye Ji sighed deeply. She was exhausted from supporting the person all the way back, so she put down her bag and went to wash up first.
When she came out of the bathroom, she heard a faint sound coming from the other end of the sofa. She thought it was Jiang Nuanyu wanting a drink of water or something. But when she got closer, she found that Jiang Nuanyu was crying.
Ye Ji was startled and quickly squatted down next to her, helplessly comforting her: "Why are you crying? Don't cry, don't cry."
Jiang Nuanyu was drunk, but she still refused to cry out loud, only sobbing. Ye Ji knew that she was still conscious.
She suppressed her sobs, letting out a faint cry every now and then, which made people feel uneasy.
Ye Ji patted her back gently, his words pale but his tone as gentle as possible: "You're just feeling unwell from drinking too much, it's okay. Next time, eat something before you drink."
Jiang Nuanyu cried for a while, her voice gradually weakening, as if she had run out of strength, and she just curled up and silently shed tears.
"Why are there other women around him..." she muttered, as if talking to herself, "Why...there are always other women..."
Ye Ji was taken aback, but immediately understood what was going on.
She closed her eyes briefly and said, "It's perfectly normal for him to have women around him; it would be abnormal if he didn't. What's the big deal that's making you so upset?"
Jiang Nuanyu sobbed again, almost choking back tears: "But I don't have a chance anymore..."
“I don’t think so. You confessed to him and he didn’t reject you, so that’s an opportunity,” Ye Ji said. “But you’ve set your moral standards too high for yourself and others, expecting him to be completely celibate. But nothing is that perfect. His circumstances are what they are.”
Jiang Nuanyu didn't say anything more, and it was unclear whether she had listened to him or not.
·
The alarm clock rang shrilly early the next morning. Jiang Nuanyu buried her head in the corner of the sofa, seemingly not intending to pay any attention to it.
Ye Ji was kept awake by the noise. Last night, worried that Jiang Nuanyu might fall to the floor in the middle of the night, she had slept with her on the sofa.
She squinted at the bright sky outside the window, then turned to see the person next to her still motionless, and sighed helplessly: "Get up."
She turned off the alarm clock and called out again, "Get up, time for work."
Jiang Nuanyu remained unmoved.
Ye Ji didn't tolerate her. He got up, turned her shoulders, grabbed her arms and pulled her up, forcibly "turning on" her.
Jiang Nuanyu was forced to sit up. Her body woke up before her brain did, and her eyes were filled with a blank stare.
She slowly gathered her hair behind her head, her thoughts gradually returning. She glanced at Ye Ji, tossed the blanket aside, and got up to walk towards the bathroom.
"Thanks," she said in a hoarse voice. "I'll treat you next time."
Jiang Nuanyu entered the company with a throbbing, hangover head. As soon as she stepped into the office area, she was hit by a strong, sweet, creamy bread smell. Normally she might find it pleasant, but now it smelled so cloying it made her feel nauseous.
She hurried to her workstation and ordered two extra-strong black coffees for delivery. She had originally planned to eat something at the office to tide her over, but now she had completely lost her appetite.
As usual, I turned on my computer, and the task of writing Liang Qi's interview transcript was prominently listed on my schedule for the day.
My temples suddenly throbbed with pain.
If I had known this would happen, I would have finished writing this interview yesterday no matter how difficult it was. I procrastinated and dragged it out until today, and things are even worse than yesterday.
She spent a few minutes mentally preparing herself, put on her headphones, and searched for an unusually noisy playlist, using her extra energy to fight off the music.
This seemed to be an effective method. Like an emotionless robot, she blocked out all distractions and finally finished the manuscript before lunch in one go.
She clicked save and took off her headphones. Only when the white noise from the office area began to rustle through her ears did she feel as if she had finally returned to reality, and a dull ache began to settle in her chest.
She hadn't eaten breakfast, and her stomach was feeling rather empty and uncomfortable. After sitting there for a moment, she sent the manuscript to He Anqi for proofreading, then picked up her phone and went to the restaurant.
Just as they turned into the elevator lobby, they ran into Sun Ying and Shi Youning, who were waiting for the elevator.
Jiang Nuanyu was slightly surprised. She had been so engrossed in her work all morning that she hadn't even noticed when Shi Youning arrived.
However, to make up for her rudeness last night, she took the initiative to greet him with a smile as soon as their eyes met: "Yingying, Shi She."
Sun Ying invited her, "Are you going to eat? Want to come along?" She looked at Shi Youning questioningly.
The latter smiled and nodded.
Jiang Nuanyu smiled and said, "Okay."
The three of them entered the elevator together. Using the reflection from the door panel, Jiang Nuanyu secretly glanced at Shi Youning.
Shih Yu-Ning is more like a model than a photographer.
Unlike her workwear-inspired outfit yesterday, she wore a pink and purple tweed dress today. The dress's fitted silhouette accentuated her slender waist and long, shapely legs, while she wore flat shoes. She exuded a striking yet effortlessly sophisticated air.
Even from a same-sex perspective, Shih Yu-Ning possesses undeniable charm.
Jiang Nuanyu felt a sudden pang of sadness, but she quickly suppressed it.
The conversation at lunch focused on the previous day's filming, mostly between Sun Ying and Shi Youning; Jiang Nuanyu occasionally chimed in to keep the conversation flowing.
Although Shi Youning has not signed a contract with the magazine, judging from the tone of her words, there should be a lot of cooperation between the two parties in the future.
Jiang Nuanyu felt quite pressured by this, and wondered if she was blurring the lines between public and private matters.
In short, she found the meal extremely tiring.
In the afternoon, Jiang Nuanyu replied to a work-related message, returned to the chat list, and her gaze unconsciously drifted to Shi Youning's chat box.
The two added each other on WeChat after the meal.
She stared at the profile picture for a few seconds, suppressing the urge to click on the other person's Moments.
Whether she looked at it or not, her feelings for Liang Qi made her feel that she wasn't entirely honest.
·
After returning from Dream Island, the most important thing for the magazine was to organize an exhibition in collaboration with a luxury brand.
The planning for the exhibition started several months ago and progressed smoothly, except that the venue had not yet been secured.
The Tianqi International Convention and Exhibition Center, operated by Yunjing, is an excellent choice, but it is usually only open to international summits, high-end forums and large-scale brand annual meetings, and it is difficult for ordinary business activities to get a slot.
During their stay at Menghe Island, the magazine, on a whim, mentioned their venue request to Yun Jing. They responded the very next day, saying they could free up a week's worth of slots in early August.
Time was indeed tight, but compared to the gap several months later, this timing was more effective. After weighing the options, the magazine and the brand ultimately decided on this plan.
The curatorial teams from both sides have been working at full capacity for nearly half a month to achieve the most complete on-site presentation within a limited time.
On Saturday, the official opening day, the convention center was packed with people. Inside and outside the venue, layers of security personnel systematically guided the flow of people and maintained order.
With the support of YunJing's resources, the brand not only had a larger budget than before, but also brought back half of the key exhibits that were originally planned to be sent overseas to support the exhibition, attracting a large number of media and important guests.
Jiang Nuanyu is in charge of writing the later stages of the feature article, which requires her to visit the site in person. She deliberately came at noon, when there would be fewer people compared to peak hours.
She wandered back and forth in the exhibition area, taking photos and marking keywords in her notes. It was three hours later when she finished visiting both the large and small exhibition areas.
She started her period this morning, and this is the most uncomfortable time of her life. Although she doesn't experience much menstrual cramps, her lower abdomen still feels heavy and bloated after standing or walking for a while.
However, she still had one small exhibition hall left to visit.
She didn't want to come back the next day, but she really couldn't keep going, so she thought she'd sit for a while and then continue. But looking around, all the few sofas in the rest area were occupied. And as someone working for the magazine, it wouldn't be appropriate for her to just sit there doing nothing.
She went to the coffee shop, only to find it full of people.
Despite the air conditioning in the stadium, she broke out in a cold sweat. Desperate, she thought of the emergency exits.
Unfortunately, there are quite a few people who share the same thoughts as her.
Inside the emergency exit, people were sitting or standing at every turn of the stairs and at every corner platform, and there were even people wearing media vests huddled together having a small meeting.
Jiang Nuanyu climbed the stairs, floor by floor. When she reached the third floor, she glanced up and saw that no one was there anymore. Just as she was about to sit down halfway up the stairs, the two people who had been talking on the opposite platform suddenly fell silent and looked up at her.
Their eyes met, and it was truly awkward.
She had no choice but to silently climb up another floor.
The safety door on the fourth floor wasn't closed properly, and a sofa was peeking out from the crack, along with some green plants, making it look like a rest area.
Jiang Nuanyu's heart skipped a beat, but then she saw a sign on the door that read "Non-staff members please stay away".
She was already in poor condition, and after climbing several floors, her legs were weak. That sofa was like an oasis she had stumbled upon while traversing the desert. After hesitating for a moment, she comforted herself by thinking that she was practically a staff member, and quietly slipped inside.
Inside was an elevator lobby, completely empty and eerily quiet.
She tiptoed over, and as soon as her body touched the sofa, she felt the heaviness in her lower abdomen ease considerably. She slowly leaned back and let out a long sigh.
The air conditioning on this floor was at the perfect temperature, and with the sun shining in, Jiang Nuanyu was almost asleep.
She didn't know how much time had passed when she vaguely heard someone talking. The carpet absorbed the footsteps, and assuming they were far away, she didn't open her eyes.
However, a few seconds later, the sound suddenly became clear.
She suddenly opened her eyes, sat up straight, and turned her head in the direction of the sound. She saw a group of people who had just turned the corner and were heading towards the elevator.
And the one walking in the very center was none other than Liang Qi.
A note from the author:
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