Chapter 45
After a dizzying display, the account page was filled with unread messages. Aside from a few ads and messages from friends and family, the pinned chat window was a sea of red unread messages.
The last message contained only two words: Yoda's name, and it had been sent not long ago. But by then, Yoda had already woken up and was chatting with Shixing using a new account.
He could only see his own name and had no idea what Shi Xing had said at that time. Yoda reached out to open the page and see the number; he had to post every day during his unconscious period to generate this many.
However, Yoda suddenly hesitated to reach out. Those were all messages Shi Xing had sent to him during his coma. If Shi Xing wanted to tell him something, he could have simply told him directly during the time he was awake. All the things he wanted to say during the years he was in a coma were here.
Even if both of them thought the account was gone, Shi Xing could still see it.
However, Shi Xing had never said anything, and Yoda hesitated. Although the unconscious self was still himself, Yoda always felt that the two had different meanings for Shi Xing.
I gritted my teeth and turned off my phone.
Forget it, it's too late to open it. Once I start reading the first one, I'll be unable to resist wanting to read the whole thing. There are so many, I wouldn't see the end even if I stayed up until dawn.
Yoda reluctantly tossed aside his phone and drifted off to sleep, his mind filled with speculation about what Shi Xing might say.
Even in his sleep, Yoda was wondering what Shi Xing was trying to say with all those messages. Having not slept well all night, Yoda walked into the office in a daze.
The new receptionist has arrived, and Liu Si is handing over her duties.
"This is the recent visitor information and the responsible designer. Just tell the designer when someone comes. After a while, you'll be more familiar with it and won't need to check each one individually. After all, we don't usually have repeat customers in this line of work. Haha."
"This area is specifically for storing packages, mostly small material samples that designers have collected from various places. Everyone has a general area, and you can just put any new packages that arrive here."
Suddenly remembering something, she pointed to the top shelf and said to the other person, "By the way, put all of Wang Mian's designs on the top shelf. He's too lazy; he always accumulates a bunch before taking them down. Anyway, he's the tallest person in the firm, so putting them on top makes them visible and doesn't bother the others."
Yoda saw that Liu Si was teaching quite well, and indeed, people are more confident in their own familiar fields.
He arrived at Shi Xing's office quite early. Yoda quietly went in, intending to scare him.
Shi Xing kept his head down, but he knew who it was just by the sound of footsteps. His tone was tinged with amusement: "Your favorite breakfast is on the table, come and eat."
Yoda was speechless: "How did you know it was me?"
Shi Xing looked up, his smile widening: "Only you would sneak in without saying hello."
"Okay, so it was my rudeness that made me lose." He said this with words of remorse, but his actions betrayed his self-righteousness. He picked up the breakfast; it was just the right temperature. "How did you know I hadn't eaten?"
Shi Xing put down his pen: "You never eat out in the morning. Every time you come in, you first make all sorts of health-preserving porridges in the office. I haven't heard you pour water since this morning."
Yoda gave Shi Xing a thumbs-up, truly admiring him. It was indeed true what they said in the industry: if you can endure the hardships of design, you'll succeed at anything. Yoda ate happily, looking at Shi Xing with a satisfied smile: Maybe he'd even succeed as a detective.
However, Shi Xing is right. Since Yoda regained consciousness, her health and wellness skills have improved rapidly. But it seems she's gone a bit too far. Even Yoda's mother went from feeling sorry for her "good daughter" to telling her to "take your disgusting mush and get out of here."
This isn't anyone else's fault; Yoda can eat anything that's good for her health right now. In her opinion, since she's going to eat it anyway, it's more cost-effective to mix and match and eat several different kinds at once.
Adding bananas to green juice provides vitamins and increases satiety.
Spirulina powder mixed with sesame paste can boost immunity, promote hair growth, and nourish the kidneys.
Cement porridge made with purple cabbage and purple sweet potato is a good thing, except for the slightly unpleasant color.
For a time, Yoda even tried mushroom drinks, which were said to replenish amino acids and provide antioxidants. Although they looked like witch's potion, they tasted quite good, with a pure, unadulterated mushroom flavor, and every sip had an earthy aroma. It's a pity they were discontinued later, probably because the taste was too authentic.
After being rejected by her family for these bizarre dishes, Yoda had no choice but to cook them in her office. Liu Sidu said that Yoda usually seemed very kind, but when she made these dishes, it was like she was poisoning people, and no one dared to get close.
"You haven't eaten yet, have you? Would you like me to make you a cup?" Yoda, having finished eating herself, still remembered Shi Xing and asked considerately.
Shi Xing's smile froze. "Yes, I've already eaten, thank you."
"Have a drink, it's good for your health."
Shi Xing, who had been leaning back in his chair talking to Yoda, straightened up without making a sound after hearing this: "Ahem, I have something to do. I'm not eating."
Yoda was unhappy: "Even you don't approve of my skills?"
Shi Xing was stared at by Yoda with nowhere to hide, and really didn't want to try Yoda's culinary disaster. Even if every ingredient was healthy, the process of eating it would be very unhealthy for his body and mind.
He shrugged helplessly: "I really have something to do. I took on a mall uniform project, and the deadline is today."
Yoda leaned down: "Really? What a coincidence. Let me see."
Yoda looked closely and realized that Shi Xing hadn't lied; it was indeed a local shopping mall that was about to open.
The final rendered image was piled on top of a bunch of drawings. Normally, renderings are not printed out; like Yoda, they are sent directly to the client after completion. Now, it is convenient to view them on a mobile phone, and it is also convenient for the client to make modification suggestions.
However, the tooling requirements are higher, the projects are more complex, and printing them out makes them easier to view.
The overall designs of the shopping malls were largely the same, which puzzled Yoda. Even with fewer orders, he insisted on avoiding repetitive designs. Having worked for so long, this kind of template-based mall design didn't suit his current mindset.
"Why did you take this job? This mall doesn't have much public space; the main area is divided into individual shops, so there's not much room for design."
Shi Xing said, "My current workwear project is slow to be paid, and the firm can't rely on you for its costs. I just happen to have an acquaintance who asked me for help, so I'll do one."
Yoda nodded: "Alright, but your design here is quite grand."
Yoda pointed to a cultural wall in front of the mall plaza, where the calligraphy was written in a vigorous and flowing style. Even though Yoda didn't understand calligraphy, he could intuitively feel that the entire font had its own unique charm, exuding a sense of power while remaining relaxed.
It made the mall, which was originally too cramped, appear more spacious.
Shi Xing smiled; the places Yoda pointed out were indeed the ones he had put the most effort into. The shops in the mall were all decorated by the merchants themselves after they moved in, but other aspects like accessible pathways and fire safety design followed fixed standards.
This cultural wall is the only one that was specially designed by Shixing, taking into account the layout of the shopping mall and the nearby cultural facilities such as schools and libraries.
It's a joyful thing when your design is so well-made that people can see its core elements at a glance.
Yoda remembered something and was about to ask Shixing if she could see the information when she heard Liu Si's voice. She went to Yoda's office but Yoda wasn't there. Without thinking, she turned around and knocked on Shixing's office door: "Sister Yoda, someone is looking for you."
When Yoda came out, he saw an older woman preparing for renovations. As usual, he asked for the apartment address: Building B, Room 310?
Having frequently visited local residential areas, he knew the layouts and locations of most apartments almost instantly. However, when Yoda and Liu Si looked at the address, they exchanged a glance, finding it somewhat unbelievable. It was right next to the apartment they had previously worked on; what a small world!
Before, when the order was canceled, Yoda had doubted his luck; now, he had the same doubt, wondering if he was just too charming. After seeing Yoda, the aunt nodded in satisfaction: "You're the one. When can you start pretending?"
Yoda said uncertainly, "Auntie, um, are you really going to sign the contract today? Or, I can come to your home to take measurements first. I'll give you a rendering so you can take a look before you decide."
Li Fen said loudly, "Why bother with that? Let's use this time to start decorating. I'm in a hurry to move in, and I've already found a place I like. I saw you several times when you came to the house next door before."
“We even talked. I asked you if I wanted to remove the water and electricity provided by the developer, and you explained it to me. You even came to my house to check. Although I didn’t hire you for the renovation, you told me everything so well. I thought to myself, hiring you for the renovation is definitely worth it.”
“I saw the renderings you designed for my neighbor. Oh, I think they’re great. I don’t know what’s wrong with my neighbor. You drew such a good one for them, but they still wanted to find someone else to do it, and now the result is completely different. It looks exactly like your drawing, but for some reason, the finished product is very different. Yours looks very warm and comfortable, while theirs looks dark and gloomy.”
Yoda and Liu Si asked at the same time, "Is the renovation over there already finished?"
Aunt Li Fen nodded and said, "Of course, I even took pictures."
Can we take a look?
"Why not? Here you go."
Upon inspection, the two realized that Yoda's design had indeed been copied verbatim, but the entire style had been altered. While Yoda's original design also featured a creamy aesthetic, the intended effect was entirely different from what they had achieved.
Yoda's design, while maintaining a unified color scheme, utilizes different materials to break the monotony of a single tone. Furthermore, for the furniture, the largest surface area of tiles is covered with a glossy material. Additionally, some cabinet panels feature glass with metal frames, brightening the room without disrupting the overall color scheme.
However, the finished product that Li Chong made based on a few candid photos is completely different. He probably doesn't understand why different materials should be used in different areas, and instead chose to use beige wall paint throughout the house.
Normally, this wouldn't be a problem in a well-lit apartment; a unified color scheme would prevent any issues. However, this apartment is a middle unit with poor lighting and isn't on a high enough floor. In brightly lit areas, the walls will appear lighter, while in poorly lit areas, they will appear darker.
Therefore, if you simply use the same shade of wall paint, the final result will appear as a mixture of light and dark on the wall.
Furthermore, the current furniture is all light-colored, which makes the walls stand out even more. At first glance, the overall effect of the walls being too monotonous is particularly noticeable. Also, using only one color throughout the entire house makes it feel very monotonous. When the lighting is poor, people sitting in a monotonous environment can feel somewhat dull.
Seeing that Yoda and the other person were looking closely, Li Fen quietly leaned closer and said, "You don't know, his family is suffering a huge loss now."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com