Chapter 21
Chen Zhiyu deliberately slowed his breathing, barely daring to make a sound.
Because it was too late, the two decided to take a taxi home.
Josh asked him in the car, "How many days?"
"Today is the 30th, the official holiday starts tomorrow morning, and school starts on the 2nd," Chen Zhiyu answered, then asked her, "Do I have to go out for New Year's Day too?"
Josh knew what he was asking and replied, "Of course I have to go. My sister-in-law called me two days ago."
"Okay, whatever you say."
The north wind at night carried a biting chill, and the streets were nearly deserted.
Josh and Chen Zhiyu arrived at their destination quickly. They jogged into the residential area and then into their building.
Once they were climbing the stairs and the cold wind had stopped, Josh dared to complain, "It wouldn't even take him a minute to drive to the neighborhood, and he dares to charge me eight extra dollars! Is he crazy?"
As night fell, the temperature dropped sharply, and a cold wind even picked up. The driver very "kindly" suggested that for an extra eight yuan, he could take the two of them directly to their apartment building entrance.
"You really have the nerve to bring that up? We're all able-bodied, we ran all the way home and we were all warmed up by then." Saving where you should and spending where you should is Josh's usual style. "That eight yuan would have been enough for me to eat for two days."
Listening to Josh's complaints all the way, Chen Zhiyu calmed down.
When they got home and the bright lights shone down, Josh finally turned her attention to Chen Zhiyu's face and exclaimed in surprise, "You're wearing makeup?"
Chen Zhiyu looked embarrassed and awkwardly touched his face, saying, "Our teacher said it's better to wear some makeup when going on stage."
Josh took two steps closer and looked him over carefully. "Do you need to remove your makeup?"
"Hmm?" Chen Zhiyu felt somewhat uncomfortable being stared at so openly by her.
Before Chen Zhiyu could respond, Qiao Xi had already reached out and touched his face. Because she had just come back from outside, even though her hands were in her pockets while she was running, her fingertips were still icy cold.
The cool fingers gently rubbed his face, but Chen Zhiyu felt as if his face was on fire. He deliberately slowed his breathing, not daring to breathe out, and let the hand run rampant on his face.
After a while, Josh finally heard him say definitively, "If you've used foundation, you really do need to remove your makeup." His tone was as if he were consulting him. "Let's remove it, regular face wash probably won't get it clean. Do you need me to help you?"
Chen Zhiyu steadied his breathing, looked directly at her, and said softly, "Okay."
The unique warm light in the bathroom cast a hazy glow over the two figures.
Josh and Chen Zhiyu stood in front of the makeup mirror.
The bathroom sink shelf is the simplest kind, made of glass, with only one layer, and two sets of toothbrushes are placed side by side on it.
Josh's various toiletries were also neatly arranged.
Chen Zhiyu is tall and close by, making it easier for him to see the words on the packaging. The oval box contains makeup remover balm, the pump bottle contains makeup remover oil, and there are also facial cleansers, and so on.
"Oh, I forgot." Josh muttered to himself, then turned around and went back to his room. When he came back, he was holding two hair ties.
Josh put one on for himself first, a dark brown one.
"Lower your head."
Chen Zhiyu obediently bent down.
Chen Zhiyu's bangs were getting a bit long, so Qiao Xi put a simple pink and white hair tie on him, with a pink bow at the top.
She looks rather well-behaved.
When he looked up again, Josh suppressed a laugh and, after a while, finally commented, "Pretty cute."
Chen Zhiyu looked at himself in the mirror and glanced at Qiao Xi helplessly.
"This was a free gift with the purchase, I don't have anything else." Josh's eyes darted around. "How about we switch?"
Seeing the huge mushroom cloud above Josh's head, Chen Zhiyu decisively refused, "Let's forget about it."
Wash hands, emulsify, and apply to face.
Chen Zhiyu strictly followed Qiao Xi's instructions. The cleansing balm had a light, sweet scent, somewhat like ice cream.
Usually, Josh would remove her makeup alone, but today the two of them stood in front of the mirror like idiots, going through the same steps, each with a layer of white fog covering their face, making them look like the white-faced Cao Cao from the opera.
Seeing Chen Zhiyu like this, Qiao Xi found it amusing. For some reason, she stood on tiptoe and used the emulsified makeup remover to draw three horizontal lines and one vertical line on his forehead.
The two stood in front of the mirror, grinning foolishly at each other.
After laughing for a while, Josh kicked Chen Zhiyu. "Stop laughing. You wash your face first, then I'll wash mine. You don't have to go to school, but I have to go to work tomorrow."
Josh has to work one more day before he can have a holiday. On New Year's Day, he will take Chen Zhiyu to visit Liu Weifeng.
In Josh's words, some etiquette is essential.
They would even bring gifts every time they visited, even though Liu Weifeng had mentioned that he didn't like any of the things they brought and that it would be better to save more money to pay off the debt as soon as possible.
After so many years of getting to know each other, Josh had a general understanding of Liu Weifeng. He said this simply because he didn't want them to waste money on him.
It's a bit sad to think about, but when they first went there, their legs were weak when they left the villa.
Liu Weifeng always stays at home on New Year's Day.
Once they got to know each other, Liu Weifeng's wife, Yang Ling, would invite them to stay and have a family reunion dinner at home.
Yang Ling really likes Qiao Xi and Chen Zhiyu, and she always greets them warmly whenever she sees them. She's gotten so used to it that she even calls Qiao Xi a few days before New Year's Day to discuss the menu for the day.
It's no exaggeration to say that the two of them had quite a skill to maintain such a relationship with their creditor. "Liu Weifeng's son has been living abroad for many years, so I guess the two of them are lonely," Josh speculated at the time.
We agreed to make dumplings together for New Year's Day this year.
Chen Zhiyu has some basic dumpling-making skills and can make them well, but Liu Da Lao can't.
A stern and imposing gang leader, holding a piece of dough in his hand, looked like he was carrying a heavy burden of hatred. He didn't look like he was making dumplings at all. If you didn't know better, you would think that the dough owed him a debt and that the son was paying for the debt.
Most importantly, his skills weren't up to par, and he was eventually kicked out by Yang Ling.
Liu Weifeng, who had been kicked out of the kitchen, was happy to have some peace and quiet. He went back to the living room and started watching TV, but after a while, his roaring voice rang out again, "Chen Zhiyu, come here."
"Are you trying to kill me? Why are you shouting so loudly?" Yang Ling was startled and almost broke the dumpling in her hand. She snapped at him impatiently.
Chen Zhiyu, however, remained unmoved, focusing intently on making dumplings beside Qiao Xi.
Josh's hands were covered in flour. When Liu Weifeng called for the second time, Josh nudged him on the shoulder and advised, "Go and take a look, the dumplings are almost finished."
Chen Zhiyu then obeyed and reluctantly went to the living room.
The living room was the same as before, with a rather luxurious interior. Chen Zhiyu sat on the far side of the sofa, the furthest away from Liu Weifeng.
"Hiss." Liu Weifeng saw him sit in that spot and closed his eyes.
The two watched television in silence.
The news channel was on TV, and the host was explaining the current situation. Liu Weifeng would occasionally chat with Chen Zhiyu for a few minutes.
During the commercial break, Liu Weifeng glanced at Qiao Xi, who was in the kitchen, and suddenly asked Chen Zhiyu, who was sitting in front of him, "Do you want to work for me?"
Chen Zhiyu paused in his peanut-peeling motion, looked at him with a puzzled expression, not understanding what he meant.
"Choose the major I need, and after graduation, you can directly join my company and work for me," Liu Weifeng stated clearly.
"Purpose?" Chen Zhiyu asked calmly.
"You seem like a good prospect," Chen Zhiyu replied after glancing at the television program.
Chen Zhiyu didn't answer directly, but only asked him, "Then how do we settle the debt? Will it be wiped clean?"
"Pah!" Liu Weifeng pointed at him, then at Qiao Xi, who was chatting with his wife. "You're just as shameless as your sister. I'm wondering, are you two really not siblings?"
Liu Weifeng had a keen eye. Seeing Chen Zhiyu's gaze, he turned away and said, "Never mind what I said." He didn't try to persuade her further, only saying, "Qiao Xi is at the age where she should be dating. Do you think she'd be willing to live with you while you're burdened with debt?"
"Even if she's willing, what about you?"
One sentence hit the nail on the head.
Chen Zhiyu thought to himself, "I mustn't let that old fox Liu Weifeng find any fault with me, otherwise I'll just be waiting for that old bastard to take advantage of me." He asked, "What are you thinking?"
“I didn’t mean to harm you. Our company is legitimate, and I genuinely believe in you two. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have helped you back then.” This reveals the truth: “Our company does indeed lack technical talent.”
“There are plenty of them on the market now,” Chen Zhiyu said.
Chen Zhiyu's thinking was correct. Liu Weifeng's company had no need to recruit a child who hadn't even graduated from high school. "That's true, but I'm getting old, and I'm afraid there won't be a successor."
Liu Weifeng's decision wasn't impulsive; it was the result of careful consideration. The company was genuinely short-staffed, and he genuinely wanted to find capable and reliable individuals.
Not only him, but his wife also immediately thought of the two children.
Josh is a very good girl; she can compliment you in a way that makes you feel comfortable without making you feel sick or nauseous.
He's hardworking and capable, it's just a pity Josh has no interest in joining his company. Chen Zhiyu has witnessed rapid changes in the past two years and believes he'll soon be able to handle things independently.
Such a promising talent should be recruited as soon as possible.
Before he could finish speaking, Chen Zhiyu interrupted, "I won't be your godson."
Liu Weifeng was so angry that he cursed, "Pah! You treat me like your godson? Even my own son wouldn't do that, and neither would I!" Then he added, "I want to find someone I know well, someone who knows me inside and out."
"No, I want to work."
"Do you think I'm begging you now?" Liu Weifeng raised his eyebrows. The kid opposite him was completely different from the crying and whining guy he used to be.
"I still owe you money," Chen Zhiyu said after a timely pause.
"So you were waiting for me here." Liu Weifeng laughed, tilting his head back. After thinking for a moment, he continued, "Well then, after you graduate from high school, come directly to my company and start from the bottom." He then added, "After you go to university, if you don't have classes, come to the company to learn from your experience."
"As for salary, it will definitely be calculated based on the internship salary in the early stage, which will be used to offset the debt. Performance will be calculated separately."
"Don't worry, the more capable you are, the more you'll earn."
"Think about it carefully yourself."
Undeniably, Chen Zhiyu was very tempted by the latter point alone.
After Josh and Chen Zhiyu left Liu Weifeng's house, Chen Zhiyu immediately told Josh about it.
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