Chapter 64 That doesn't seem like an illusion.
The next morning, Mu Yan replied to his supervisor, telling her that he had made up his mind. His supervisor acted quickly and immediately arranged for someone to book his round-trip airfare and hotel.
Mu Yan had heard from other colleagues about the process of attending the summit. The time was very flexible, and he could take a trip to the capital while he was there, but the expenses for the trip would not be reimbursed.
It was Mu Yan's first time traveling far from home, and she was a little nervous, so she arrived at the airport several hours early on Monday morning.
He was traveling with a colleague from another project team. The colleague was in his thirties, very capable, and arrived quite a while later than him.
"Have you had breakfast?" A colleague bought breakfast at the airport and gave Mu Yan a cup of soy milk. "There are also steamed buns, some with red bean paste and some with meat. Have some here. The airplane food at this time is terrible, it's all bread."
"Thank you, Brother Wang, that's fine," Mu Yan smiled a little embarrassedly. He had come in a hurry and hadn't had breakfast. "How much is it? I'll transfer it to you."
"No need, no need, it's not much money. It's fine with me, I'll just give you a meat bun and a red bean bun." The colleague handed the buns to Mu Yan. "Little Mu, you're here so early. You didn't get much sleep yesterday, did you?"
"Hmm," Mu Yan took a bite of the bun and smiled a little embarrassedly, "I'm afraid I'll miss my flight."
"Is Xiao Mu a local? Has he been to the capital before?"
Mu Yan smiled and shook his head: "This is my first time traveling so far."
“You’re still young, you’ll have plenty of opportunities in the future,” my colleague said. Although she had been here a few times before, she still thought it would be a waste not to visit. “We can do some sightseeing on the way. If it’s your first time in the capital, there are actually quite a lot of things to do.”
With a little while before boarding, Mu Yan kept glancing at the screen.
My colleague is very talkative and holds a slightly higher position than Mu Yan. Since we're not in the same project team, we don't hold back when we chat.
"Zhou Yiting asked you to come to this summit, so she must value you a lot. Do you usually get along well with her? If you do, you should be getting promoted in a few months."
Mu Yan paused for a moment, then said somewhat embarrassedly, "Thank you for your kind words, Brother Wang."
He remembered his colleague saying that he had been to the capital several times, so he asked him if there were any gifts he could give as souvenirs.
"Yes, who do you want to give it to? A new amusement park or something opened recently, and they have those ridiculously expensive plush toys that kids should really like. I'm going to buy one for my son. Also, you can get amulets for the elderly for peace and safety. I'm going to fulfill a vow there, and I can go with you..."
A colleague took out his phone and showed Mu Yan a video of that "expensive toy," which was an adorable little owl. You could name it and wake it up; it would even twist its neck and squeak.
Mu Yan couldn't help but laugh while watching the video. No wonder kids like it; it's really adorable.
"Thank you, Brother Wang. I'm sure my niece will like this too."
"It's quite cute," my colleague shrugged, "but it's also quite expensive."
Mu Yan couldn't help but gasp when he saw the price on his phone; such a small gadget cost several hundred yuan.
But when he thought about how he and his brother hadn't played with many toys when they were little, he felt he couldn't let Jiajia suffer any more.
When he was little, his brother would bring home discarded glass marbles he found on the street for Jiajia to play with. He couldn't let Jiajia suffer like that.
The boarding announcement sounded, and Mu Yan and his colleague boarded the plane together. The seats on their tickets happened to be window seats. As soon as his colleague boarded the plane, he started to catch up on sleep, while Mu Yan, who hadn't slept for more than a few hours the night before, didn't sleep much.
At first, he was a little airsick because of the bumpy ride, but later when we got to high altitude, he couldn't help but stare out the window.
When his colleague woke up and saw that Mu Yan was still awake, he couldn't help but marvel at how energetic young people are.
After getting off the plane, the two went straight to the hotel. Xinqi, such a large company, was very generous, booking each of them a private room. As soon as Mu Yan arrived at the hotel, he called Shang Qiyue to let him know he was there.
Shang Qiyue didn't react much, but he didn't seem to be hanging up either, so Mu Yan didn't want to just hang up directly.
"Sir, is there any gift you would like? I have plenty of time, so I should go and pick out a gift."
There was a moment of silence on the other end before someone said calmly, "I don't really want anything. You can buy it for your family. I often travel to the capital for work."
He paused, his tone sounding somewhat flippant: "What, you're already preparing my birthday present so early?"
Mu Yan smiled, a little embarrassed: "I don't know what to give you. You have everything... If there's nothing suitable, I'll pick something else."
"It's okay, buy whatever you want, don't put too much thought into it." Shang Qiyue was indeed thinking the same thing as him. There was nothing he hadn't seen, and nothing he wanted but hadn't gotten. He even thought about telling Mu Yan that if all else failed, he could write him a greeting card. But then he thought that if he actually received a greeting card, he might not be so happy.
Not long after hanging up the phone, Mu Yan was called downstairs to eat by his colleague. Brother Wang originally planned to go back to sleep for a while after eating, but when he heard that Mu Yan wanted to go for a walk by himself, he readily agreed to take a taxi with him to Yunlin Temple in the suburbs.
Today happens to be Monday, so there won't be as many people coming to burn incense; it should be a bit quieter. This will save us from the crowds in the following days.
The temple is built against the mountain and is extremely popular. There are neat stone-paved roads outside the temple gate, and people come and go to offer incense and pray for blessings.
Mu Yan bought three incense sticks at the entrance and slowly walked inside with his colleagues.
When he was little, Mu Yan didn't believe in ghosts and gods, but after his mother fell ill, he began to believe that they existed.
Even if it's just something to hold onto, it's good. The gods are merciful and shouldn't hold his disrespect as a child against him.
Thanks to the expensive medicine and medical equipment provided by Shang Qiyue, her mother's condition has improved, albeit not by much. But it's enough for Mu Yan to believe that everything will get better, that Mu Juanhua will recover, and that perhaps the restaurant she failed to open a few years ago will have a chance to open again in the future.
There weren't many people on a weekday, and Mu Yan and his colleagues quickly made their way back to the main hall.
Outside the main hall, the abbot's soft chanting could be heard. A colleague, seeing the white-haired, venerable abbot, turned around in surprise, intending to tell Mu Yan how lucky they were; some people had come several times without seeing the abbot.
Soon he saw for whom the abbot was chanting sutras.
The man wore a simple yet impeccably tailored dark gray trench coat; even kneeling, his upright posture and distinguished bearing were evident. The elderly abbot stood respectfully beside him.
Mu Yan guessed that this person must be rich and powerful, and that wealthy people are probably more likely to believe in this than ordinary people.
Other worshippers went into the main hall, but Mu Yan instinctively wanted to avoid any possible interaction with such people.
While he was still hesitating, the man who was offering incense in the main hall quickly stood up, turned around, and was personally escorted to the door by an elderly abbot of the temple.
Mu Yan looked up and saw the man slowly descending the stone steps. This time, he saw the man's face clearly. His expression was indifferent and cold, and even the most handsome features became intimidating.
Mu Yan quickly deduced that he must also be a top-tier alpha, because even though he and his colleagues were betas who couldn't smell pheromones, they still felt an inexplicable sense of oppression when the man approached.
As the two passed each other, Mu Yan suddenly felt that the other person glance at him.
That didn't seem like an illusion, because when the man looked over, his gaze lingered in the air for at least two seconds.
Mu Yan's heart skipped a beat, and he subconsciously looked away. By the time he came to his senses, the person had already walked down the steps, and his figure disappeared into the crowd surrounding him in the blink of an eye.
This should have been an incident that didn't need to be noticed, because even his colleague standing next to him didn't notice it at all.
This shouldn't be a misperception, but Mu Yan quickly guessed the reason.
Yesterday, Shang Qiyue had dinner at Mu Yan's place, so I should have some of his pheromones on me.
These powerful figures probably all knew each other, and perhaps they were just wondering why Shang Qiyue had chosen such an ordinary person as himself.
Mu Yan's colleague pulled her into the main hall to offer incense devoutly, then went to collect a peace charm. They circled the incense burner three times, which was considered as praying for divine protection for the person they cared about.
Mu Yan spent a few yuan to buy a sachet to hold a good luck charm, put it in his bag, and then returned to the hotel with his colleague.
Before going to bed that night, Mu Yan hesitated for a moment about whether to tell Shang Qiyue about meeting that man, but after thinking about it, she realized there was no need. If they were on good terms, the man would naturally tease Shang Qiyue. If they weren't on good terms, there was even less reason to upset Shang Qiyue.
Besides, their relationship is about to end. For someone of Shang Qiyue's status, having a nobody by his side is like occasionally eating at a roadside stall; it shouldn't affect his image too much.
The summit went smoothly over the next few days. Mu Yan was not good at socializing, but it was an area he was familiar with, so even the social aspects were not too difficult for him.
People from other universities also attended. After all, University A is one of the top universities in the country, so there were bound to be a few teachers and students there. Mu Yan ran into Jiang Yizhuo and a university classmate he wasn't particularly familiar with; they took the initiative to come over and greet him.
They should all have been recommended for postgraduate studies in their respective majors at the same university. Mu Yan remembered that Senior Jiang seemed to be pursuing a combined master's and doctoral degree.
Jiang Yizhuo greeted him warmly and offered to treat him to dinner, but Mu Yan smiled and declined, saying he was going with his colleagues. Jiang Yizhuo, always so friendly, insisted on bringing him along. Mu Yan, however, considered that his colleagues were also over thirty, a full twelve years younger than them, and that people in this industry generally didn't enjoy socializing much, so he declined.
Jiang Yizhuo didn't insist and instead offered to treat Mu Yan to a late-night snack. Mu Yan had no reason to refuse and had to agree.
When Mu Yan encountered Jiang Yizhuo again, he felt a mix of emotions.
He was grateful to Jiang. In the first semester of his freshman year, the academic advisor gave the scholarship to an alpha whose GPA and awards were not as good as his. At that time, he was young and arrogant. Mu Yan was dragged by his roommate to argue, but he was told that "the scholarship is awarded based on comprehensive strength".
Mu Yan then asked how comprehensive strength was calculated.
The advisor glanced at him impatiently: "I awarded him the scholarship, and no one except you objected. Doesn't that mean his overall abilities are stronger than yours?"
The roommates were furious, but they couldn't fight city hall. In the end, the dorm leader pulled them away. The dorm leader, Yao Zhiyuan, came from a family that owned a factory selling counterfeit bags in Province B. They were quite well-off. Knowing that Mu Yan's family was having difficulties, he asked him if he wanted to lend him some money.
Mu Yan shook his head. Yao Zhiyuan knew that he was proud and that he could only borrow money temporarily and not for a long time, so he did not insist. Just then, Jiang Yizhuo was looking for a tutor for his sister, so he sent Mu Yan's WeChat to him.
Jiang Yizhuo didn't actually ask Mu Yan to tutor his sister. In his words, it would be like casting pearls before swine to swine with Mu Yan, whose grades were so good. Instead, he made some inquiries and introduced Mu Yan to a few students whose foundation wasn't too bad. He also told Mu Yan to attend the department's mathematical modeling lectures and then started guiding him through modeling competitions.
Because he had already planned to receive a scholarship, Mu Yan turned down several part-time jobs distributing flyers. Jiang Yizhuo's help really helped him through a very difficult time. Even though he feels awkward now because of Lu Chong, he is still very grateful to Senior Jiang.
Jiang Yizhuo didn't bring that classmate with him when he went out in the evening, saying that he was suffering from some water and soil incompatibility and was resting in his room.
Mu Yan didn't know if he was really suffering from acclimatization issues. Jiang Yizhuo was very considerate in these matters, and perhaps he didn't bring Mu Yan because he felt that Mu Yan and he weren't familiar with each other and he was afraid that they would feel uncomfortable.
Jiang Yizhuo borrowed a car from a local friend and drove Mu Yan to a hot pot restaurant in a somewhat out-of-the-way location.
The two had a good relationship in college. Jiang Yizhuo was a talkative person. After not seeing each other for more than a year, they talked about Yao Zhiyuan and many mutual teachers and friends, and before they knew it, they were talking late into the night.
There were only a few tables left with diners, and not much food left on the tables either. Jiang Yizhuo ordered another plate of meat and asked Mu Yan as if he had made up his mind: "Have you and Lu Chong broken up?"
Mu Yan nodded.
From the moment he got on the bus, he was terrified that Jiang Yizhuo would ask him this question.
It wasn't because I was sad, but rather because I felt a little embarrassed.
"It's good that you broke up. Actually, I wasn't very optimistic about you two from the beginning..." Jiang Yizhuo realized he'd said something inappropriate as soon as he finished, and put a piece of meat on Mu Yan's plate. "Sigh, I shouldn't have said that. Actually, Lu Chong asked me to come today. He was afraid you'd dislike him if you saw him, so he asked me to come and talk to you..."
Mu Yan stopped eating and looked at him, waiting for him to speak.
Even if he dislikes Lu Chong, he will still give Jiang Yizhuo this face.
Jiang Yizhuo looked at Mu Yan, but couldn't say anything.
"I didn't want to pass on his message in the first place; he really was a jerk before..."
Lu Chong said he would wait for you forever, but he hasn't been doing well lately. Jiang Yizhuo actually wanted to tell Mu Yan this.
People tend to side with their own family, regardless of right or wrong. After knowing each other for so many years, seeing Lu Chong argue with his father for the first time about someone, saying he would only marry Mu Yan, Jiang Yizhuo truly believed that he would treat Mu Yan well in the future.
However, he knew perfectly well what kind of scoundrel Lu Chong had been before, and he really couldn't be the one to act as a persuader.
Mu Yan didn't want to put Jiang Yizhuo in a difficult position, so he smiled and asked him what Lu Chong wanted to say.
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