echo
The morning light filtered through the slits in the blinds, carving streaks of light and dark across the floor, like some kind of hidden judgment. Ye Yidong awoke to a sharp headache and a wave of nausea churning through his chest. The sun stung his eyelids, and he struggled to open them. His vision blurred at first, then slowly focused.
The first thing that caught his eye was the unfamiliar pattern on the ceiling, not the minimalist ceiling light in the apartment. Then, he felt a heavy weight in his arms and the even, yet slightly rapid, warm breath brushing against his neck.
He jerked his head sideways.
Lin Xiaoning lay beside him, sunken into the pillow. Her cheeks were still crisscrossed with tear stains, her eyelids red and swollen. Even in her sleep, her dense eyelashes occasionally fluttered restlessly, like butterfly wings disturbed by the wind. She slept restlessly, her brows slightly furrowed, as if trapped in some nightmare from which she could not awaken.
In an instant, the fragmented and distorted memory fragments of last night, soaked in alcohol and distorted, crashed into his mind like disturbed waves - his father's sad and tired face, his own uncontrolled crying, the swirling lights and shadows in the bar, her slender but firm arms as she supported him, her soft embrace, the kiss she gave him in an attempt to comfort him... and then, the completely uncontrollable, almost predatory chaotic entanglement.
That wasn't the picture he'd carefully sketched countless times while sober. In his imagination, all of this should have happened naturally, filled with cherished tenderness and the joy of mutual confirmation, a relationship that blossomed openly in the sun, not a tearful, disorganized robbery in a dark corner driven by alcohol and pain.
The person he was willing to give everything to protect was now lying beside him, becoming his in a way he had never expected, with obvious signs of trauma.
His heart felt like it was being gripped by an icy hand, tightening suddenly. The hangover headache and churning in his stomach were instantly overshadowed by a sharper, more panicky feeling. He suddenly woke up and practically jumped up, the movement so violent that it lifted the sheets and startled the people next to him.
Lin Xiaoning was awakened by the noise and opened her eyes dazedly. Seeing Ye Yidong suddenly sitting up, his face pale, his eyes filled with panic and regret, she subconsciously shrank for a moment, and then, an almost instinctive, maternal tenderness quickly replaced the fleeting fear. She didn't look at herself, nor did she care about her physical discomfort. Instead, she eagerly propped herself up and reached out to touch his forehead. Her voice was hoarse and full of worry from just waking up: "What's wrong with you? Are you still feeling uncomfortable? Does your head hurt? Do you want to go to the hospital?"
Her care was so natural and focused, as if the person who had been treated roughly last night and had tears in the corners of his eyes was not her, but him.
At that moment, Ye Yidong felt not joy, but a sense of emptiness, as if a bottomless abyss had opened beneath his feet. He had found the woman of his dreams, but it seemed to push her further away, creating a rift between them that might never be healed, in the worst possible way. Instead of a sense of fulfillment filling his heart, a vast, suffocating emptiness welled up inside him. Everything had gone in the opposite direction of everything he had planned.
Deep within every woman, a mother's soul seems to lurk. When someone she cares about suffers immense pain and grievance, the urge to protect her breaks free from all constraints, bursting forth, overwhelming all her own discomfort and pain. This is what happened to Lin Xiaoning at this moment.
She looked at Ye Yidong's pale face, the regret and self-loathing in his eyes that threatened to drown him. She remembered his silent yet persistent protection over the past five years, his rebelliousness that nearly broke with his family for her, his willingness to abandon his predetermined future and accompany her into the mundane world of the chemical industry. The price he paid for her was nearly the price of a complete self-reinvention.
What could I offer him? In this moment of crumbling, fragile wreckage, it seemed there was nothing I could do but embrace him, accept him, and warm him with my own equally broken warmth. Perhaps falling completely in love with him, giving myself to him, was the only way to fill the immense emptiness he felt at that moment, to prove he wasn't completely destitute?
However, perhaps the cruelty of love lies in the fact that it often reaches the emotional peak at the very beginning. In the long journey that follows, no matter how carefully the two people manage and cherish each other, they can only delay the slowly downward curve at best, but can never reverse the gravity that has quietly begun to fall.
Lin Xiaoning's insomnia grew worse, like a spiderweb that grew thicker and thicker, entangling her tightly. In the stillness of the night, her brain, like an overloaded, completely out-of-control server, hummed and whirred furiously in the darkness, countless thoughts racing uncontrollably: Xu Wu's unfathomable gaze, Zhao Qing's icy scrutiny, the corroded pipelines of the catalyst, Wu Jiaming's desperate roar, her father's sighs on the phone, Teacher Zhao's unanswered emails, Bai Jinyu's frivolous lips, Ye Yidong's scalding tears, and... herself, torn between reality and ideals, unbalanced between giving and taking.
My body was so exhausted as if it had been hollowed out, but my consciousness was terrifyingly clear, and every brain cell was screaming and dancing.
Ye Yidonggang saw it and was worried, so he insisted on accompanying her to the best hospital in the city.
The waiting area was filled with the mingled smell of disinfectant and old and new paper. Doctors in white coats hurried by, their faces weary yet calm. Their diagnoses, like scalpels, dissected her pain with precision yet cold determination.
The young male neurologist, wearing gold-rimmed glasses, spoke in a calm tone, as if reading from a textbook. "From a neurophysiological perspective, chronic anxiety and stress can lead to an imbalance in certain neurotransmitters in your brain. For example, insufficient secretion of the inhibitory neurotransmitter gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) may prevent the effective calming of overexcited neurons. Decreased levels of serotonin (5-HT) can affect emotional stability and sleep initiation. Meanwhile, there may be an overabundance of norepinephrine and dopamine, substances that promote alertness and pleasure. It's like a city's traffic signal system being completely disrupted: a green light appears when it should be red, while a red light appears at intersections where it should be red. I recommend checking some basic physiological indicators first, and if necessary, consider using sedatives to help regulate this 'signaling system.'"
Worried, Ye Yidong sought out an old Chinese medicine practitioner with a calm demeanor and a faint aroma of medicinal herbs on his fingertips. He gestured for Lin Xiaoning to stick out her tongue, then carefully took her pulse. He paused, "Miss, your pulse is red and dry, a classic case of 'Yang not entering Yin.' The Nei Jing states, 'Yang Qi is stretched by torment.' Your excessive worrying has depleted Yin Blood, causing a false Yang to rise and your mind to lose its composure. Among the five internal organs, the heart governs the mind, the liver stores the soul, the spleen supports thinking, and the kidneys store the will. You currently have excessive heart and liver fire, a dysfunctional spleen, and kidney yin deficiency. This imbalance has left your organs unbalanced and your mind distracted. This is why you're unusually alert at night and exhausted during the day. I'll prescribe a few doses of Huanglian Ejiao Decoction combined with Jiaotai Pills with modifications to clear heart fire and connect the heart and kidneys, and then we'll consider further conditioning." His words, imbued with an ancient, holistic wisdom, linked her insomnia to an imbalance in her entire system.
Lin Xiaoning had a vague feeling that a psychologist might be able to provide more effective help. The gentle, perceptive female psychologist listened quietly to Lin Xiaoning's chaotic narration, not interrupting, only nodding occasionally. "It sounds like you're experiencing a very high level of stress," she said slowly. "Interpersonal struggles in the workplace, uncertainty about the future, doubts about your self-worth, and... recent unexpected events in your intimate relationships that may have brought some shock and confusion." She cleverly avoided delving into the details, but Lin Xiaoning felt completely exposed. She suggested that Lin Xiaoning consider some systematic psychological counseling and learn stress management and emotion regulation techniques.
Every doctor's advice was perfectly reasonable, with clear logic and a definitive diagnosis. Lin Xiaoning felt only the glare of the sun, only to feel even more lost. The scientific jargon, the sophisticated theories of yin and yang, the penetrating psychological analysis—all seemed to explain her pain from every angle, but none could immediately offer a sharp knife to cut through the tangled web. She felt as if she were being labeled with countless labels, yet she still couldn't find the single, essential switch that would allow her to sleep peacefully.
One night, unable to fall asleep, she even mechanically browsed an article about the relationship between insomnia and sex. The article that popped up coldly stated the close, two-way relationship between the two: insomnia could lead to decreased sexual desire, while sexual dissatisfaction or pressure could also trigger or exacerbate insomnia. She felt her predicament had been accurately touched upon, yet still offered no path to relief.
The aftermath of the audit storm gradually subsided, like turbid water after a rainstorm, the surface slowly returned to calm, but countless mud and debris settled underneath.
Everyone in the company felt as if they had undergone a high-intensity stress test, ultimately realizing a harsh and realistic truth: those intense conflicts were perhaps not simply problems in themselves, but rather one of the most effective management tools. They were a sharp knife in the hands of Chairman Xu Wu, wielding it to precisely disrupt the old, entangled balance of interests, even if the process was bloody, in order to establish a new order more aligned with his will and strategy.
The one who felt the most profoundly was undoubtedly Xu Wu, the man at the center of the storm. The result was a swift rollout of brand-new, meticulously worded, and meticulously detailed rules and regulations, plastered across nearly every office wall. Cold and striking, they silently announced the end of the old era and the arrival of new rules. He brought in a large number of "management elites" with impressive resumes to fill key departments. The ostensible goal was to "strengthen management and standardize processes," but in reality, it was to dilute the power of the old team and firmly grasp the company's direction. To everyone's surprise, Zhao Qing remained in his position as financial manager, but the sharpness in his eyes was replaced by a deeper, more elusive caution.
To everyone's surprise, this brutal, almost catastrophic, storm, far from damaging Changqing Chemical, has instead spawned a remarkable vitality. Under the iron fist of new regulations, unspoken rules have been dismantled, and efficiency has been pushed to its limits. After undergoing management restructuring and technological innovation, the production line has unleashed incredible potential. The quarterly financial reports are dazzling, with sales and profit margins continuing to exceed expectations, and the flames of IPO have been rekindled...
This weighty performance report, along with the new vision it represented, once again brought Lin Xiaoning to the attention of Chairman Xu Wu. He peered through the report and data comparisons on the production process optimization she had spearheaded, his eyes sharp. This girl possessed both a keen eye for identifying hidden dangers and the courage to propose innovative solutions, displaying rare resilience amidst turmoil. She was no longer just an outstanding student recommended by the department head; she was a forged sword that he might be able to wield.
Xu Wu's ambitions expanded once again. This success wasn't the end in sight. He wanted to capitalize on this momentum and mobilize all resources at the upcoming annual meeting to launch a campaign for a public listing. This annual meeting would no longer be just an internal celebration; it would be a grand roadshow for top investment institutions and potential strategic partners, marking the beginning of Evergreen Chemical's journey to a broader capital market.
The lighting, the stage, the flow, every detail must be flawless, conveying strength, innovation, and infinite possibilities for the future. Who can take on this task? Xu Wu tapped his fingertips on the list.
The appointment was made suddenly and forcefully: Lin Xiaoning was unanimously appointed as the chief organizer of this annual event.
When the news came, Lin Xiaoning was facing a production data report. She was stunned, and her fingertips felt slightly cold. This meant that she would once again leave the relatively pure technical field and return to the glamorous but invisible power center stage. The first thing she thought of was Ye Yidong. She wanted to stand with Ye Yidong under the gaze of the entire company and even all the important guests... Ye Yidong held her hand and found that her fingertips were cold. "This is an opportunity," he whispered with a complicated look in his eyes, "but you are too tired... and it may also be... another vortex."
But there was no room for refusal. Xu Wu's will was the company's highest directive. The immense pressure surged like a tide, instantly drowning all previous confusion and struggle. In that moment, the private pain of insomnia, emotions, and self-doubt seemed to be forcibly pushed aside by an invisible hand, making way for a greater and more urgent matter.
With strong financial backing, preparations unfolded with astonishing speed and intensity. Venue selection, segment design, guest invitations, material preparation, copywriting, lighting and choreography... The sheer complexity of the tasks involved, with time measured in hours, was overwhelming. Lin Xiaoning and Ye Yidong felt like they were caught in a high-speed machine, toiling day and night. The delicate and complex emotions between them were temporarily frozen beneath the icy weight of the workload, leaving no time for exploration or deconstruction.
Through countless cycles of communication, dispute, modification and confirmation, the annual meeting plan gradually took shape. It was brilliant and dazzling, carrying Xu Wu's huge ambitions and expectations.
Until the eve of the annual meeting.
Everything seemed settled, all the materials ready. Lin Xiaoning lay in the hotel room the company had arranged for the preparatory team. The champagne-colored, flowing dress she'd prepared for the next day hung solemnly in her closet, like a battle robe awaiting a coronation.
But she had no desire to sleep.
The cold light of her phone screen pierced the darkness, illuminating her sleepless eyes. It was one thirty-seven in the morning.
Tomorrow—no, strictly speaking, today—at nine o'clock in the morning, the company's annual gala will begin. She and Ye Yidong will stand side by side under the spotlight, becoming the focus of the entire audience.
This is the most important stage she has reached in the three years since she started working, and it is also the moment in her life when she needs to be glamorous and impeccable the most.
But her mind was like an overloaded server running wildly and on the verge of burning out, humming and refusing to shut down.
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