Chapter 4 Meeting Cheng Mingdu, slow down, slow down even more...
Feng Ting said something fair: "But she did come with 100% sincerity, made full preparations, and reacted very quickly. It's just that I'm a little unsure about the exoskeleton part. I can't say for sure whether it will be able to run in the future."
Cheng Mingdu listened for a while, his fingers gripping the rim of his glass, before finally speaking: "So, are you going to vote or not?"
Feng Ting shrugged: "The amount isn't large, but without clarifying the technological boundaries and business model, I choose to wait and see."
Cheng Mingdu looked at Zhou Ruochen.
The latter smiled apologetically: "I've already made my choice; I still prefer the industrial intelligence company. The returns are clear, and the timeframe is well-defined."
Feng Ting laughed and said, "That makes sense. The industrial intelligence project is mature and has a clear roadmap."
As he spoke, he looked at Cheng Mingdu and said, "But then again, it would be quite reasonable for you to make a move, after all, you've been focusing on deep technology and high-barrier-to-entry fields for the past two years."
Cheng Mingdu didn't reply. He just glanced around at the crowd, ignored their probing, and turned to walk towards the edge of the crowd.
*
Outside the banquet hall, the lights flickered and people moved about, while inside the brightly lit private room, only Ye Yuying and Ding Chu sat quietly.
The private room, now empty of people, was no longer the scene of fierce battle it had been an hour earlier, as if a mere blink of an eye could have determined the fate of a company and the future of an industry.
Ye Yuying remained seated, unable to move. She could feel the steel nail embedded in her body gently tugging at her nerves with each breath.
The effects of the nerve block injection are already nearing their end.
Ding Chu placed his laptop bag next to Ye Yuying, stood up and said, "Boss, sit here and don't move. I left my cane in the car, I'll go get it."
After saying that, Ding Chu hurriedly left, leaving her alone in the silent interplay of light and shadow.
In the absolute silence, the passage of time becomes exceptionally clear, and every second feels incredibly long.
Ye Yuying leaned back in her chair, her fingertips gripping the rim of her cup, her palms slightly sweaty. She closed her eyes, her breathing deep and even, trying to suppress the pain that was spreading down her spine.
Outside was a brightly lit banquet hall, but inside it was as desolate as a post-war ruin.
After the defense, she didn't expect anyone to contact her immediately, nor did she anticipate any feedback.
She has already presented all the results and the distribution channels; the rest is up to fate.
She raised her hand and gently pressed the brace on her left waist, feeling the steel plate begin to heat up slightly as the medication wore off, which could be considered a slight abnormal discharge or signal disorder in the nerve endings.
As nerve connections are gradually restored, the body begins to re-perceive the previously suppressed pain signals.
She glanced down at her watch.
Theoretically, the medication should take effect in twenty minutes, after which the pain should completely subside. She must make her final decision for the night before then: wait, or leave.
But before that, she instinctively reached into her bag and expertly grasped the box of painkillers…
It's almost a conditioned reflex; the neuralgia terrifies her. She's been taking painkillers constantly for years, and now the dosage is getting higher and higher. She doesn't know what to do in the future.
The doctor advised her not to rely too much on medication, otherwise she would develop drug resistance, and to only take it when she could no longer tolerate it.
But in the past, she would endure the pain until midnight, when she would writhe in agony on the bed, and shed helpless and desperate tears.
She had never successfully endured a single bout of pain, so she chose to take medication before the pain became widespread. Over time, her hand developed a kind of conditioned reflex.
She hesitated whether or not to take a painkiller.
Suddenly, a series of deep footsteps came from the doorway.
It's not Ding Chu.
She paused abruptly, her fingers instinctively clenching.
The sound of the door opening wasn't loud, but it was clear enough.
She suddenly looked up.
Light seeped in through the crack in the door, casting a long, narrow shadow.
The person who arrived was wearing a dark suit, tall and slender, with a steady gait.
It is Cheng Mingdu.
Ye Yuying's hand was still in her bag, her fingertips touching the edge of the pills, as if she were frozen in that instant.
He stopped and his gaze fell on her.
At that moment, Ye Yuying's courage from her verbal battle with investors half an hour earlier seemed to have been drained away, like a fisherman at sea who suddenly lost the protection of the sea god in a storm and was blown to pieces in the tempest.
She was caught off guard. Although she had imagined their reunion countless times in the past, four years ago, in her imagination, she would have instinctively stepped forward and hugged him without saying a word. This was their unspoken understanding.
However, when another four years passed, twenty-six-year-old Ye Yuying knew that eight years was too long, enough for the initial abrupt departure to ferment into a deep-seated grudge.
Moreover, she also considered that perhaps he already had someone else by his side.
After her thoughts went through a series of twists and turns, her rationality quickly returned.
She put down the medicine in her hand, left the bag on the seat, got up, looked at him, and maintained a dignified, mature demeanor, creating a five-meter-wide barrier between them.
She smiled slightly, her tone calm: "Long time no see—"
She should have added a polite title after it, but she couldn't bring herself to use any of the titles, such as "President Cheng," "Mr. Cheng," or "Brother."
So much so that the carefully prepared lines, the ending of which seemed to be waiting to continue, sounded particularly empty because of the abrupt ending.
"It has been quite a long time."
Cheng Mingdu didn't respond to her greetings. He simply took two steps forward, sat down in the chair opposite her, and looked at her face with a slight frown.
The moment he sat down in front of her, her expression remained unchanged, but beads of sweat began to gather on her back.
She sat down as well.
Because once she sat down, it felt like a long, drawn-out conversation was about to begin, and she worried that the awkwardness of the conversation would never end, and that she would completely give up after twenty minutes.
The moment she leaned back in the chair, a sharp pain shot through her nerves like a faint electric current. Her expression remained unchanged, but her fingertips quietly gripped the edge of the chair tightly.
They sat facing each other, and Cheng Mingdu's gaze never left her.
His deep gaze made his eyes less direct, adding a touch of gentleness to his reunion with an old friend—someone he once knew intimately, yet now seemed like a stranger sitting before him, as if clad in full armor.
So she lowered her head, picked up the water glass on the table again, and took a small sip to ease the complicated emotions churning in her heart.
Only when she put down her water glass did she find the courage to say, "I thought you weren't coming today..."
"If I come, will you come?" His tone was extremely soft, carried on his voice like undulating musical notes.
She nodded honestly: "Yes."
If she were only thinking of herself, she probably wouldn't come. But if it's for the sake of the whole team, she would come even if Cheng Mingdu wanted to tear her apart.
Cheng Mingdu's gaze seemed to soften slightly. After a moment of contemplation, he asked:
"Are you getting used to being back in China?"
Ye Yuying looked up, her eyes showing surprise, as if she hadn't expected them to be able to talk so calmly after being apart for so long.
But this peace is precisely the furthest distance.
She didn't answer directly, but said, "The pace is faster in China."
The country was much more bustling, but she still felt a sense of rootlessness. Even when she sat alone on the street, watching people come and go, she still felt like she was adrift.
This has never changed anywhere.
"Hmm...you're the founder of Ashera, right?" It sounded like a question, but he already had a conclusion.
Ye Yuying looked at him, remained silent for a long time, and finally nodded silently.
"Why is she called that?" he suddenly asked, trying to glean something from her reaction.
Ye Yuying froze, her expression stiffening for a moment. The words stuck in her throat, like a very noticeable walnut, preventing her from speaking.
He told himself this word many years ago on the rooftop of his school.
The fact that she has this name shows that she hasn't forgotten a thing—those little details, those lonely nights, and the years he has spent gently piecing together her broken self...
She tried to buy herself some time to think by drinking water, only to find that her cup was already empty.
She lowered her eyes, bit her lip almost imperceptibly, and forcefully suppressed the emotions that surfaced due to the memories.
She stated frankly, "Because it fits the mood perfectly. Ashera, the goddess of Canaan, represents reconstruction after destruction. Users of artificial exoskeletons should all experience this process; it brings the power of reconstruction..."
Her voice was as soft as the wind rustling through fallen leaves, as if she were considering whether she should add that sentence, but her mouth spoke first: "The word Ashera, you said it..."
Cheng Mingdu's brows twitched slightly, and those fragments that had long been buried deep in time slowly surfaced. Each time, these fragments were like layers of painful waves crashing against him.
"Hmm..." His voice was slightly hoarse.
He remembers everything.
They all remember, but as time goes by, they can only tacitly agree not to bring up the past again.
Their conversation ended there.
After Cheng Mingdu stood up, he placed a business card in front of her and said calmly, "If you need any help in Jiangcheng, you can contact me."
She nodded, Cheng Mingdu glanced at her, and turned to walk out the door.
She stared at the extremely business-like business card for a long time, her heart filled with mixed emotions.
He seemed to have forgiven her and never held a grudge against her; everything had returned to where it all began years ago.
However, he remained as kind as ever, always providing her with protection, both in Chengdu and now in Jiangcheng.
She didn't speak, but kept the corners of her mouth turned up, a smile that hid bitterness.
"Cheng Mingdu." She suddenly called his name, without any honorifics or taboos.
But he had already stepped outside and could no longer hear it.
She watched the figure by the door completely disappear at the end of the corridor before leaning back in her chair as if all her strength had been drained. The pain surfaced completely at that moment, like a thin layer of ice being shattered, awakening each nerve ending.
She took a deep breath, feeling as if she were sinking into the depths of a storm unknown to anyone.
The painkillers were still in her bag, but she didn't touch them. She twirled the business card between her fingers, examining it repeatedly until her knuckles turned slightly white, but she remained silent.
A moment later, she suddenly stood up and rushed out before the effects of the antidote completely wore off.
Cheng Mingdu's figure disappeared down the corridor. She knew she couldn't run and was destined not to catch up with him.
So she turned and walked into a corridor parallel to his, holding onto the wall and leaning against the blinds along the way, keeping pace with his steps, and moving forward with difficulty step by step.
Her gaze was fixed on the figure on the other side of the glass, watching him move between light and shadow through window after window, sometimes hidden, sometimes suddenly appearing.
Only at this distance, in this corridor where light and shadow flicker, could Ye Yuying dare to gaze at him without any concealment or reservation.
She stared at the traces of sunlight like a drowning person, watching every inch of his figure as he moved.
That was the light she could no longer approach, the obsession of her girlhood, and the harsh winter that the nightingale could not fly through.
She silently recited it in her heart, her voice so soft that only she could hear it.
Cheng Mingdu, slow down, slow down even more...
Ye Yuying is now completely unable to walk normally...
Her legs began to spasm, her steps became increasingly unsteady, and the distance between her and him grew further and further. When she walked out of the corridor, he had already come down the steps, and the black car was already parked below the steps.
Her legs completely lost their support, and she fell to the ground like a puppet without its tether.
A note from the author:
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20 red envelopes~ [Let me see][Cat emoji]
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