On the way back, Jiang Ran was full of energy. He talked with Zhou Kangbo for two hours and finally got back the original films he had taken.
When they returned to the main cabin, Fu Bo was already lying on his back, snoring soundly. Zeng Pei's head was also nodding, his eyes half open as he dozed off.
Only Xu Yang looked energetic. He stared intently at his computer screen, tapping his fingers quickly, as if he was chatting enthusiastically with someone.
Jiang Ran leaned over: "Are you still busy?"
Xu Yang was startled. He quickly hugged the laptop to his chest, then turned off the screen before looking up. "Yes, yes. I've been staying on Earth for the past two weeks, and there are a lot of things that have accumulated at the company that I haven't dealt with yet."
"Oh?" Jiang Ran looked at his laptop with a half-smile, "Why wouldn't I believe it?"
Xu Yang paused and said, "Let's talk about the post-production of the show."
The topic change was incredibly abrupt, but Jiang Ran had no intention of digging deeper, so they moved on to other topics. However, during those few moments, Jiang Ran happened to glance at Xu Yang's laptop screen. It was a messaging app page, and the contact's name also had the character "Jiang" in it, which seemed like a perfect match.
After returning to the capital star, Jiang Ran didn't stay at home for a few days before Xu Yang came to visit him again.
"You mean," Jiang Ran was a little surprised, "your uncle wants to see me?"
She looked at Xu Yang in confusion: "Did he see the trending searches, misunderstand something, and want to use money to get rid of me?"
Xu Yang's head suddenly got heavy. Before he could say no, he heard Jiang Ran lift her chin and say happily, "My net worth is very high. I won't be tempted unless it's eight figures!"
Xu Yang: “…”
He quickly calmed down and said, "My uncle is very interested in the photos you took in this competition."
"Okay." Jiang Ran sighed slightly.
Xu Yang looked at her reaction and felt a little moved: "Are you disappointed?"
"Yeah," Jiang Ran said as a matter of course, "it's not easy to see a good show these days. I've been lying at home these past few days, almost dead from boredom."
Xu Yang: “…” He was speechless for a moment.
After some nonsense, let’s get back to the topic.
Jiang Ran was a little puzzled: "Hasn't the show aired yet? How did he know what I filmed?"
Xu Yang touched his nose and said, "Actually... Mr. Zhou is quite familiar with the Federal Academy of Sciences."
Jiang Ran understood after hearing this.
Xu Yang's uncle, Jiao Wenbai, was the president of the Federal Academy of Sciences and had a personal relationship with Zhou Kangbo, so it wasn't surprising that they discussed this. Furthermore, if the cooperation was being discussed under the official name of the Federal Academy of Sciences, it would be an opportunity for Jiang Ran to raise his profile.
Xu Yang came here today just to test the waters. They agreed on a time to have a formal and detailed discussion, and at that time Jiang Ran would directly contact Jiao Wenbai.
Before leaving, Xu Yang pretended to ask casually, "By the way, my sister's birthday is coming up soon, and I haven't decided on a gift yet. Do you have any suggestions?"
Jiang Ran asked the other person's age and casually said, "For girls, it shouldn't be easy to go wrong if you give them jewelry."
Two days later, Jiang Ran and Jiao Wenbai made an appointment to meet in a coffee shop, and Xu Yang, as the matchmaker, also came along.
Jiang Ran ordered a cappuccino, the cafe's signature retro product, and almost spit it out after taking a sip.
She frowned, "Why is it more bitter than American food?"
Xu Yang said: "It's normal to not be used to it the first time. This cafe makes the most authentic Capital Star coffee because it's bitter enough."
Jiang Ran thought to himself that the authenticity of coffee is not determined by its bitterness, but he still did not refute it.
No matter how technology develops, humans are rapidly degenerating in the field of food.
Coffee was not the focus of the day. After Jiao Wenbai and Jiang Ran chatted for a few minutes, they began to turn the topic to business.
Jiao Wenbai: "I heard from Lao Zhou that you've captured a lot of images of deep-sea creatures on Earth, and our scholars who study biology here are very interested."
This is similar to what Jiang Ran guessed.
After all, the other party is the president of the Federal Academy of Sciences, and it is unlikely that he came here for the beauty of her work.
Jiang Ran asked: "How do you hope to cooperate?"
Jiao Wenbo: "Our initial consideration is to purchase the rights to use your photos. We need to make a copy of the document for research purposes. In addition, we hope you can record as much of your knowledge of those creatures as possible for our reference."
"My understanding?"
"Yes," Jiao Wenbai said, "Lao Zhou told me that you mentioned some deep-sea creatures when you were chatting with him. You must have some knowledge about them."
"He really sold me out completely." Jiang Ran sighed.
Jiao Wenbo tried to cover up for his friend: "It's because he likes you very much, so he said a lot unconsciously."
Jiang Ran: "Don't be nervous, I don't mean to blame him."
Jiao Wenbai sighed: "You are a good child."
He paused, then asked, "What about the authorization and record keeping..."
Jiang Ran didn't speak for a while.
She pondered in her heart, to what extent should she record her understanding?
While she did have some knowledge of deep-sea creatures, it came more from her past life's work as a deep-sea photographer than from her own specialized knowledge of biology. What if she wrote down all her knowledge and the Federal Academy of Sciences wasn't satisfied?
While thinking about it, Jiao Wenbai was even more nervous than her.
He didn't know that Jiang Ran was worried about her professionalism. He thought Jiang Ran was not satisfied with this cooperation model and was afraid that her next words would be a rejection.
Jiao Wenbo: "Actually, I can also provide you with something personally."
"Hmm?" Jiang Ran thought he was talking about connections or resources, so he casually asked, "What are those?"
Jiao Wenbo recalled the rumors he had heard before and asked tentatively, "A photo of Xu Yang when he was a child?"
Xu Yang almost spit out the coffee he had just drunk. He managed to hold it back with great difficulty, but was choked and speechless for a moment. He could only look at his uncle with shock, which was full of accusations.
Before Xu Yang could catch his breath, Jiang Ran asked excitedly, "Do you have all the photos from childhood to adulthood?"
"Of course, my sister loves taking pictures of Yangyang. I'll make copies of everything you want," Jiao Wenbai continued to flatter his teammates. "There's pictures of him in kindergarten, wearing a little dress and playing a princess in a cultural performance, and pictures of him climbing a tree with a few other kids to get bird eggs. I have everything here!"
"Deal!" Jiang Ran was extremely excited. "I'll send you the information you requested when I get back!"
The two hit it off immediately. Just as Xu Yang had recovered his breath, they even added each other's contact numbers in a blink of an eye.
"No, what does this have to do with me?"
Xu Yang was devastated, but the opportunity was fleeting. He had been sold out completely and now he had no way to protest.
After finishing the discussion, Jiao Wenbai left first.
Not long after, Xu Yang received a message from his uncle: If you like someone, be bolder. I can only help you up to this point.
Xu Yang replied angrily: "How are you helping me? You've disrupted my plans!"
Jiao Wenbai: There are still plans, not bad.
Xu Yang turned off the computer screen and completely gave up the idea of protesting against his uncle who was selling his nephew for fame and fortune.
Xu Yang's eyes were a little vague.
After spending so much time together, he does have a good impression of Jiang Ran, and even... But this does not mean that he can expose his dark history at will!
Is this really a plus rather than a minus?!
When he looked up, Jiang Ran looked at him with burning eyes.
Xu Yang swallowed his saliva: "What's wrong?"
Jiang Ran held his chin in his hand and said excitedly, "I have something on you now. You better be careful next time. If you make me unhappy, I might accidentally post a few photos on Starnet."
Xu Yang: “…”
He knew this would happen.
"Forget it," Xu Yang muttered softly, "Today is a special day, I won't bother with you."
"What did you say?"
"nothing."
As the sky darkened, Xu Yang offered to treat Jiang Ran to a meal in the name of celebrating her championship victory. Jiang Ran immediately agreed, feeling that she had the upper hand over him, so he had to show some appreciation.
However, when we got there and opened the door, countless colorful streamers fell on our heads, and at the same time, we heard the sound of several balloons being popped.
“Surprise!”
"Happy birthday!"
“…”
Looking carefully, Fu Bo, Zeng Pei...
Not a single one was left out, and they all arrived in perfect order.
"You guys are trying to scare me on purpose, right?" Jiang Ran complained, but the corners of his eyes were raised, and it was obvious that he was not really unhappy.
"How could that be?" Fu Bo made an exaggerated expression, "We came here early in the morning to prepare, okay!"
Ren Xiayang was the quickest, he rushed forward a few steps and smacked the balloon at Jiang Ran's head: "This is your punishment for slandering us!"
A group of adults started fighting and quarreling like children.
Jiang Ran had just slapped the balloon back when Fu Bo threw the remaining half box of ribbons at her. Jiang Ran had just grabbed Fu Bo with her backhand when Zeng Pei sneaked over and smeared the cake on her face...
The "kids'" attention always shifts quickly. When Jiang Ran came back from the bathroom after washing his face, Fu Bo and Ren Xiayang were already singing side by side.
Jiang Ran sat next to Xu Yang: "Did you arrange this today? How did you know it was my birthday?"
She hasn't celebrated her birthday for many years, and she has almost forgotten it, and she never mentions it on weekdays.
Xu Yang: "I just happened to see it. You filled out the registration form when you participated in the competition before."
Jiang Ran: "I see."
Under the dim light, Xu Yang glanced quietly to the side.
Jiang Ran was watching Fu Bo and the others, who were huddled together, their tunes drifting off. She usually looked like an iron man, but now, under the light, her features seemed much softer, her eyes narrowed slightly, as if she were relaxing and enjoying the moment.
Xu Yang took out a small box from his pocket, hesitated for a moment, then reached out and rubbed Jiang Ran's shoulder with his sleeve, but his eyes deliberately stayed in the center of the room, pretending to be casual.
"Here, your birthday present."
Jiang Ran took the box without giving it much thought and exclaimed, "Really well prepared... What is this?"
Xu Yang's eyes wandered: "As for the necklace, last time you said that it was the best jewelry to give to girls. When I was preparing a gift for my sister, I also got one for you."
Jiang Ran looked at the so-called necklace pendant with an indescribable expression and couldn't help falling into deep thought.
Did Xu Yang really not notice that one of its eyes was big and the other was small, and that there were many uneven and poorly carved areas on its body?
The only redeeming feature is probably that the material of the pendant is quite good, the jade is crystal clear, but it makes the carving look even more appalling, which is a waste of natural resources.
However, Xu Yang seemed oblivious and asked expectantly, "Do you like it?"
Jiang Ran hesitated for two seconds before saying, "I like it very much... You, um, which store did you buy it from?"
There was a subtle smugness in Xu Yang's tone: "Don't even think about it, you can't buy it."
Jiang Ran felt relieved instantly.
It’s okay if you can’t buy it, it’s okay if you can’t buy it.
After a long and noisy time, the party ended.
As soon as he got home, Xu Yang couldn't wait to call his childhood friend Liang Feichen: "The things have been sent out, are you sure this is okay?
Liang Feichen said as a matter of course: "Of course, if you want to pursue someone, you should be brave enough to strike back and take the initiative to confess! By the way, how did you confess?"
Xu Yang said: "I gave her a dolphin pendant that I made myself. In the ancient legend of the Earth Era, it is a symbol of love."
Dolphin pendant?
Liang Feichen hesitated a little: "Isn't this a little too obscure? Can Jiang Ran understand what you mean?"
Xu Yang was very confident about this: "She was the one who told me this legend."
Liang Feichen breathed a sigh of relief: "That's no problem, just wait, she will definitely look for you tomorrow, remember to contact me if you have any news."
Xu Yang: "No problem."
After hanging up the phone, Zhou Muyi, who happened to be a guest at Liang Feichen's house, sneered: "The second to last one teaches the last one. One really dares to teach, and the other really dares to listen."
Liang Feichen rushed over and pulled his ear: "My reputation as the little prince of love is not in vain! How dare you look down on me?"
"Come on! Is this just a self-proclaimed title?"
"You stupid piece of shit! I'll destroy you!"
“…”
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