8. Crimson Vortex
"Xiao Chi, your column is so good, you should treat us to a meal." Qin Xiancheng wanted to take advantage of it. "King Chen personally came out to support you today and led the army in person! Du Yanni's expression, tsk tsk, it's enough to make her quiet for a while."
Chi Jin bought three bottles of Coke from the freezer, gave one to him and Ouyang Yuan, and said, "Yuanyuan, Editor-in-Chief Chen just stopped it before you did. Will you blame me?"
Ouyang Yuan didn't even raise her eyelids: "No. I didn't want to follow."
"If Editor-in-Chief Chen warns you again, I'll go and tell him on your behalf."
"Wow!" Qin Xiancheng slapped his thigh exaggeratedly. "When did Editor Chi become so close to King Chen? He can even pass on messages?" He winked. "Besides, in our Sister Yuan's eyes, these things are just passing clouds, right, Sister Yuan?"
Chi Jin immediately became alert, not wanting to engage in such gossip with his married boss: "Stop! If Chen Yisheng must have a preference, it has to be Jin Yaojia..."
She stopped talking abruptly, her mind flashing back to the inexplicable atmosphere between Chen Yisheng and Jin Yaojia during their last ride. This Miss Jin was a bit tricky.
"Don't even mention him. I'm impressed." Qin Xiancheng sighed. "She was able to get an exclusive interview with Director Gu this weekend. Miss Jin is really something. I think she should just switch careers and become a reporter. She's wasting her talent here."
Before he finished speaking, a slender figure carrying a tray of food passed by the table. Chi Jin quickly signaled Qin Xiancheng to shut up.
"Strange, I rarely see her in the slave cafeteria." Ouyang Yuan's eyes followed her all the time, "The eldest lady is also here to have fun with the people, how strange."
Chi Jin chuckled: "Stop looking, be careful that the six-figure ring on her hand will fly over and hit someone."
"She's married?" Qin Xiancheng was surprised.
"Little finger." Ouyang Yuan said, "The one on King Chen's ring finger is a wedding ring, right?"
"Speaking of King Chen," Qin Xiancheng's gossip fire ignited again, and he leaned forward. "Haven't you noticed that Editor-in-Chief Lin has been coming to our office a lot lately? I heard the gossip over at Childhood—of course, you have to listen to what they say—saying that King Chen is actually Chief Lin's kept gigolo!"
Chi Jin nearly spit out a mouthful of Coke and laughed speechlessly: "Ha! Can this rumor be any more outrageous? Putting everything else aside, imagine Chen Yisheng's stinky face serving a rich woman?"
"How come you don't know that Mrs. Lin likes this?"
"That's very perverted." Ouyang Yuan held her forehead with her hand.
"Can we please not mention Chen Yisheng?" Chi Jin couldn't help but complain, "What's wrong with this world? Any man who can breathe can become the center of attention."
Seeing that both girls looked unhappy, Qin Xiancheng quickly changed the subject.
"Okay, okay, I won't say any more! Hey, Sister Yuan," he turned to Ouyang Yuan, with a hint of flattery, "I have an interview scheduled with a very popular internet celebrity. Why don't you come with me? Just to practice?"
"No." It was the expected answer. "If you have a goal, you'll get lost. My life is a stroll."
Qin Xiancheng wanted to persuade him again, but a gentle voice suddenly interrupted:
"Brother Xiancheng?"
The three of them looked up and saw Jin Yaojia had returned without them noticing. He was standing by the table holding a tray with a perfectly sweet smile on his face.
"Huh?" Qin Xiancheng was stunned.
"That interview... can I go with you?" Jin Yaojia's eyes flickered with just the right amount of admiration. "I've never had the chance. Actually, I really want to learn from you!"
The arrival of the young lady made Qin Xiancheng feel shocked and embarrassed, his face flushing red. "Ah? You? The two of us?"
Jin Yaojia smiled and nodded: "Yeah! I haven't had the chance yet. In fact, I really want to learn from you!"
Qin Xiancheng stood up nervously and scratched his head, hesitating and at a loss. Even Chi Jin could see the pink bubbles emanating from Miss Jin, and tactfully took Ouyang Yuan and walked ahead.
…
Because she was in a good mood, Chi Jin took the initiative to ask Taozi to cook hot pot at home. After work, she went to the vegetable market to buy ingredients and asked Taozi to go home first to prepare the pots and pans.
When they don't talk about Taozi's boyfriend, the way they get along returns to how it was before, just like close friends.
Chi Jin started chatting about work, and unknowingly brought up Chen Yisheng, whose temperament had changed drastically in recent days. Taozi asked a few more questions, and she became more and more excited.
Taozi's mouth was stuffed with beef covered in sesame sauce. Her eyes lit up when she heard this. When Chi Jin paused for a moment, she slapped her thigh and said, "I told you that the guy who sent you back last time wasn't some old man! Okay, I'm definitely going to take advantage of you."
"Ah?" The shrimp paste Chi Jin had just picked up almost fell back into the pot.
"First, that Miss Jin you were just nagging about is completely innocent of anything to do with Chen Yanwang! He readily agreed to 'yes' that day because he wanted to personally take you home! But he couldn't just say 'I'll take you' outright for fear of scaring you or seeming too deliberate. So, that Jin came along and provided the perfect cover. As for Miss Jin... judging by how she's flirting with your male colleague, she's like a gentle spring breeze to everyone else, so there's nothing to worry about."
She took a sip of her iced Coke and continued reasoning, "Secondly, that side job you got busted for, and it hasn't even made a splash yet. And you're even thriving. What does that mean? It means that Editor-in-Chief Chen never intended to make a big deal about it! Maybe... seeing how hard you work to make money, he feels bad for you and just wants to support you silently. He never thought of using this as a prank!"
"Stop it, Peach, he's married."
"Ah... this." Taozi refused to give up, "Have you seen his wife?"
Chi Jin shook her head, but she believed that this rumor was definitely not groundless.
Taozi changed her perspective: "It's just because you know he's married that you don't consider him as a potential partner. If he wasn't married, would he be your ideal type?"
Chi Jin hurriedly shook his head: "No. No matter how much you say, I don't want to interfere with other people's marriages."
"So what? I'm not asking you to have an affair with him. I'm just asking if Chen Yisheng is your ideal type."
Chi Jin shook his head without even thinking: "He is several years older than me."
"Okay, okay," Taozi finally stopped and shrugged. "It's boring. But you're right, don't mess with married men. Nine times out of ten, they have married women at home and colorful women outside."
Chi Jin thought, you are very devoted in your analysis, but I am a complete love-brained person.
"By the way, Chizi, I'm going home this weekend."
"Ah? Then why don't you go back home for dinner tonight? You can spend more time with your uncle and aunt."
"Isn't this to make amends for you and have dinner with you?"
Chi Jin quickly waved his hands: "Oh my god, I'm so sorry, then go back home when you're full, I'll clean up."
Taozi was really rude. She swept away the last few slices of tripe like a whirlwind, drank half a cup of Coke, burped contentedly, wiped her mouth, grabbed her bag, and rushed out the door in a hurry.
Chi Jin smiled helplessly at the table, now suddenly quiet and cluttered with dishes. She turned on the TV, switched to a random channel for background music, and leisurely ate her hot pot. It wasn't long before the phone in her pocket buzzed, and two words flashed on the screen: Mom.
Chi Jin immediately wiped his hands, turned down the volume on the TV, and pressed the answer button: "Hello, Mom? I was just thinking of calling you."
"Eating?"
"Yeah, cooking hot pot with my roommate."
"Are you getting along well with your little roommate?"
"Yeah, same old same."
Chi Jin turned on the hands-free mode and freed his hands to fish out the shrimp balls that had sunk to the bottom of the pot and had turned cold and white.
"I want to tell you something serious!" Mom's tone changed instantly, becoming serious and urgent.
Chi Jin guessed that it was the registration for the civil service exam, so she stood up and took a can of cold beer from the refrigerator.
Sure enough, a familiar voice urged from the other end of the line: "Your aunt came to tell me today that there will be a civil service exam next week. Have you seen it? I think there are many positions you can apply for with your major, so give it a try!"
"My aunt wants to laugh at me every day." Chi Jin said dissatisfiedly, "Just leave her alone, okay? I won't take the exam, ever."
The voice on the phone suddenly rose, with a kind of heartbroken indignation of "How could you be so ignorant?" "Then you will let your aunt laugh at you?"
Sure enough, the "main topic" of this phone call will always revolve around this center.
Chi Jin put down his chopsticks and said seriously, "Why would you make a fool of yourself if you don't take the civil service exam? I have a job I like now, and I'm doing well."
"You're too young to understand the value of a guaranteed income. You have food to eat today, but what about tomorrow? If the company says they don't want you, they don't have you anymore."
"Our boss said he wouldn't give up on me."
"That's your boss, not your biological mother. Your parents are the only ones who truly care about your own good in your life."
Chi Jin walked to the window, clutching a cold beer can. Outside the kitchen window, the city lights shone brightly at night. Under each lamp, a soul seemed to be living a life whose life was being "planned" by its family. A chill seeped in through the glass, and the fire on the other end of the phone continued fiercely.
"Jinjin, I'm not nagging you, but you're getting older, and it's time to think about getting married. Even if you don't take the civil service exam, find someone in the system."
"Mom. Stop it."
"Think I'm annoying again? How many mothers don't nag? Let me tell you something. Your aunt introduced you to a civil servant at the tax bureau. Although he's not as educated as you, he's from an urban family and he's an only child. Ask your aunt for him later! Hurry up and add him on WeChat and chat!"
"With such good conditions, why didn't my aunt introduce them to my cousin first? I guess she's missing some limbs."
"You're just trying to piss me off! By the time you're almost thirty, the people you'll be introduced to are either divorced with kids or just plain ugly. You should seize the moment now, while you're still young and have the capital!"
"Our company is full of unmarried people who are thirty years old."
“So your company is not good.”
Chi Jin raised his head and drank the last sip of wine. The cold liquid rushed down his throat with determination. The words came out of his mouth like a sword tempered by fire: "What's wrong with being married and having children? If I really like him, I will be his child's stepmother!"
“Beep—beep—beep—”
A busy tone suddenly sounded, and the person on the other end of the phone hung up angrily.
Chi Jin lost the mood to eat any more. Dejected, she downed her ice-cold beer in one gulp, feeling heavy and suffocated. The "stable" future her mother had described was clear, but it also felt like a suffocating gloom. Civil service exams, blind dates, returning home, marriage and children... every step felt like a pre-programmed routine. And what about her current life? Even the small, uncertainties of "instability" felt more vibrant and appealing to her than the planned "iron rice bowl."
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