2. Flower pots and bouquets
Tuowu Advertising Company was expanding its staff, and the original office was running out of work. Ling Ling volunteered to be among the first to move to the next building. She could finally get away from Yu Chuanbei, no longer having to worry about running into him every day, afraid that he would do something extreme. And Yu Chuanbei dared to come to her office and kiss her, he must have calculated that she didn't have a new boyfriend at all. Ling Ling was unwilling to be manipulated by him, and when Zhong Mingtong asked her if she was free on Friday night, she decided to invite him to the new office and have dinner together. It was almost time to get off work on Friday, and Ling Ling arranged the office. It was a rare opportunity for Dr. Zhong to have free time to visit, so she always had to show her hospitality. There was a knock on the door, and before she could respond, several workers laboriously carried a large flowerpot into her office. Curious, she was about to ask a question when she saw Yu Chuanbei following behind, followed by the embarrassed receptionist. She already knew what was going on, so she told the girl not to worry and to get back to work. "Boss Ling, let me make you some tea," the receptionist said cautiously. "No need. He'll be gone soon." Ling Ling rolled her eyes at him, but Yu Chuanbei just smiled cheekily, dismissing the situation. When the room was quiet, she stood in front of him with her hands in her trouser pockets and asked him, "What are you doing?" As soon as Yu Chuanbei entered the room, he sat down on the sofa in the reception room with ease, not treating himself as an outsider at all. "I'm here to celebrate your housewarming! You moved in such a hurry that you didn't even say goodbye to your neighbors, so I had to come over. This flower is called Strelitzia reginae. Look at the orange petals and blue pistil, which are your favorite colors. Doesn't it look like a crane about to spread its wings and fly high? Aren't the bamboo nodes on your bracelet wishing you a promotion? I'm wishing you a meteoric rise." Ling Ling found his smug look childish and funny. The data analysis director of a Fortune 500 company was still doing this kind of childish competitive trick. She sarcastically said, "You're clearly trying to make me die, cursing me to the west!" Yu Chuanbei frantically defended himself, "How could that be! Do you know how long I spent picking these flowers in that humid market? I even have a rash on my neck, look!" He unbuttoned his tie and shirt, revealing his neck. A small rash did appear above his collarbone, but his restless Adam's apple betrayed his hidden agenda. Ling Ling, unwilling to be seduced or deceived, said with a piercing gaze, "You chose such a large pot because you knew I couldn't throw it away. Keeping a living thing here, seeing it...
Tuowu Advertising Company was expanding, and the original office was running out of work. Ling Ling volunteered to be among the first to move, to the building next door. Finally, she could get away from Yu Chuanbei, no longer living in constant fear of running into him and fearing he might do something drastic.
Yu Chuanbei had dared to come into her office and kiss her, surely because he'd calculated she didn't have a new boyfriend. Ling Ling refused to accept his schemes, and when Zhong Mingtong asked her if she was free on Friday night, she decided to invite him to the new office and have dinner together.
It was almost time to get off work on Friday, and Ling Ling arranged the office. It was a rare opportunity for Dr. Zhong to have some free time to stroll around, so she always had to show the best hospitality etiquette.
There was a knock on the door, and before she could respond, several workers laboriously carried a large flower pot into her office. She was about to ask something curiously, but she saw Yu Chuanbei following behind them, and then the receptionist girl with an embarrassed expression. She already knew the whole situation, so she told the girl not to worry and to get back to work.
"Then Mr. Ling, let me make a cup of tea for Mr. Yu." The girl at the front desk said cautiously.
"No need. He left soon." Ling Ling rolled her eyes at him unhappily, but Yu Chuanbei just smiled shamelessly and didn't take it seriously.
When the room was quiet, she stood in front of him with her hands in her trouser pockets and asked him, "What are you doing?"
Yu Chuanbei sat down on the reception sofa with aplomb as soon as he entered the room, not treating himself as an outsider at all. "Celebrating your new home! You moved in so hastily, without even saying goodbye to your neighbors, so I had no choice but to come. This flower is called Strelitzia reginae. Look at the orange petals and blue pistil, your favorite colors. Doesn't it look like a crane about to spread its wings and fly high? Aren't the bamboo nodes on your bracelet meant to wish you success? I'm wishing you great success here."
Ling Ling found his smug demeanor childishly amusing. A data analytics director at a Fortune 500 company was engaging in such childish, competitive stunts. She sarcastically retorted, "You're clearly trying to make me die, cursing me to the grave!"
Yu Chuanbei frantically defended himself, "How could that be! Do you know how long I spent picking these flowers in that hot and humid market? I even got a rash on my neck, look!"
He unbuttoned his tie and shirt, revealing his neck to her. There was indeed a small patch of eczema above his collarbone, but his restlessly beating Adam's apple betrayed his little thoughts.
Ling Ling didn't want to be seduced or deceived by him, so she said with a sharp eye, "You chose such a big pot, didn't you just know I wouldn't want to throw it away? Keeping a living thing here will remind me of you. If there was bare soil in my office, you would be eager to plant something that could take root."
"Boss Ling really has a keen eye. She's as good at choosing men as she is at looking at things." He stuck to her again in a mean way.
"My vision is not very good, otherwise we wouldn't have to break up. Mr. Yu is so unfathomable, I'm just lucky enough to have fallen for his tricks a few times, so I can guess how well you understand me." She turned away, still not letting go.
"Ling——" He really couldn't do anything with her. He just wanted to apologize sincerely again, admit his mistake and beg for mercy.
The phone rang, and the receptionist said that a Mr. Zhong was visiting Ling Ling. She asked him to come upstairs, then hung up the phone and turned to Yu Chuanbei and said, "Zhong Mingtong is coming, you can go now."
Yu Chuanbei's mind was buzzing with alarm. "Is he your new boyfriend? So, was it that insignificant Aojie project or your Dr. Zhong that led to our breakup?"
Ling Ling was so angry that she didn't want to talk to him anymore. She could tolerate him not trusting her, but she couldn't tolerate him saying that the project she had worked so hard for was insignificant.
There was a gentle knock on the office door. Ling Ling knew it was Zhong Mingtong from the sound. She felt that the sound of each person knocking on the door could reveal their personality.
She tried to calm down and went to open the door, but when she looked back at Yu Chuanbei who was still not ready to leave, she just felt tired.
As soon as Zhong Mingtong entered the room and saw this scene, he felt the atmosphere of confrontation between two people. However, before he entered the room, it should have been Ling Ling and Yu Chuanbei, but after he entered the room, it became Yu Chuanbei and him.
But he still maintained a warm and gentle attitude as he handed Ling Ling a large bouquet of tulips. "Congratulations on your new home. I hope you can always pursue your passion for advertising creativity and achieve results that make you happy."
Ling Ling took the bouquet and held it in her arms. She felt warmed by him again and said to him gratefully, "Thank you, Dr. Zhong. These are my favorite flowers."
"Yes, the tulip panel painting that Ling drew before is still hanging in my bedroom. I can see it every morning when I open my eyes."
Yu Chuanbei's sudden interruption made Ling Ling want to gouge him out with her eyes.
Zhong Mingtong continued gently, "You remember the advertising sign you made for the BEAUTY shampoo, the one next to our residential track, decorated with tulips? You saw it when you went house hunting. I see that tulip bush every morning when I run, so I wanted to buy it for you."
Zhong Mingtong's words were even more devastating. Ling Ling wailed inwardly. It was a perfectly good Friday, a perfect time to work a long night shift and enjoy a peaceful weekend. But now she had to juggle two men. Her heart felt like it was stuck in a roller coaster, tied to a thin rope and forced to go through the ups and downs.
She had no choice but to tug at Zhong Mingtong's sleeve and said, "The restaurant I booked is downstairs. Let's go over there for dinner."
Zhong Mingtong followed her out, but Yu Chuanbei still followed behind. She assumed he was leaving too, so she ignored him.
Unexpectedly, when they reached the restaurant floor, Yu Chuanbei got off the elevator with them.
"What are you doing?" Ling Ling asked him with a frown.
"When you're done, we can talk here. I'll be at the next table and won't disturb you." He said it in an official manner, but to Ling Ling's ears it sounded full of personal resentment.
"Yu Chuanbei--" She wanted to repeat again that they had broken up, but he didn't give her the chance.
"Between him and me, who do you choose? Or are you ready to choose him?" he asked her with a gloomy face.
Ling Ling looked at Zhong Mingtong in embarrassment, and he said tactfully, "I will go to the seat you reserved according to the message you sent me. Come find me after we've agreed." Ling Ling nodded gratefully at Zhong Mingtong.
Seeing Zhong Mingtong leave, Yu Chuanbei said, "He is not suitable for you. Even if you two are together, it won't last long."
Ling Ling smiled wistfully and said, "You said I was like a rag doll thrown on the street. I'd be grateful to anyone who took me home and treated me well. Dr. Zhong is a good person. When I was a girl, I always thought I'd spend the rest of my life with a man like him. We started from the same point and worked together. Unlike you, you've been waiting for me at the finish line for a long time. You find my clumsiness and embarrassment along the way ridiculous."
"Ling, I regretted saying that to you the other time. I was blinded by jealousy. I'm sorry. But I've never looked down on the things you love. We've been together for so long, you know. So let's not do something we'll regret just because we're angry. I don't want to be separated from you at all. I believe we still love each other deeply. Give us some more time, okay?"
Faced with Chuanbei's plea, Ling Ling was at a loss as to what to do. She lowered her head, hugged her shoulders, and said weakly, "Go away."
Zhong Mingtong saw Ling Ling, sitting across from him, looking distraught, and he realized that his plan to confess his feelings today had fallen through. She drank glass after glass, chatting away on lively topics, but the corners of her mouth always drooped in bitterness.
When she was completely drunk, she began to curse Chuanbei without any regard for her feelings. After cursing, she made excuses for him, and then cried again. Zhong Mingtong thought that she must have forgotten who was sitting across from her, otherwise she wouldn't be so open and reveal her feelings to him.
Drunk, Ling Ling fell into a coma, her dream returning to the day she first met Yu Chuanbei. It was a sunny day, and she had just resigned from a small state-owned enterprise and was strolling to a nearby park. Resigning and leaving an industry meant a change in one's past lifestyle, the end of relationships, and a reckoning with all the hard work. She ran, tumbled, and let loose in the park, then encountered a stray dog she named "Shasha." And then, she bumped into Yu Chuanbei. He had a clean face and clear eyes. The confusion in his eyes when they met added a touch of endearment to his charming demeanor. That day, she dragged this stranger into a tavern. That day, she was also drunk.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
