Chapter 8 (Part 1)
A week after Wei Chi was discharged from the hospital, Cheng Zhao called him to arrange a meeting. His attitude took a complete turn, neither agreeing to meet nor not, simply playing Tai Chi with Cheng Zhao. Cheng Zhao, of course, guessed what was going on. After three attempts, he gave up and handed the task over to project manager Yu Huan. "Call him every day until you get through, and specify a specific date." Yu Huan worried, "Will that piss him off?" "I'd be the best if I could just annoy him to death!" "Or, why don't we just visit him? Talking to him in person is more effective than talking on the phone. As the saying goes, don't hit a smiling guest!" "No rush, call first. If there's no effect after two days, we'll go to the company and confront him." As Yu Huan left Cheng Zhao's office, Cheng Zhao whistled loudly. Wei Chi was clearly suspicious of him, but he wasn't completely certain. Cheng Zhao couldn't help but smile at the thought of his current hatred, perhaps even plotting some ruthless scheme. A glance at the time revealed it was almost nine. He hurriedly grabbed his car keys and rushed out of the office. Today was the day Gan Ling was going to the North City Flea Market to stock up, and he had agreed with her to go together. If they were late, Gan Ling might slip away. Cheng Zhao drove straight to Xiaoxi Lane. When he arrived at the bookstore, he parked the car hastily and rushed out of the door, just in time to run into Tian Miao coming out to dry a mop. "Sanshui! Is Gan Ling here?" Tian Miao glanced at him with a cold expression, "No." "Where did she go?" "I don't know." Cheng Zhao had long noticed that this guy had a bad attitude towards him, and he didn't know how he had offended him. Now was not the time to worry about such trivial matters. He walked straight into the bookstore and went straight to Han Xi. The attitude he received from Han Xi was completely different from that from Tian Miao. This girl told him everything she knew. "Sister Ling went to the north of the city! Didn't you agree to leave at nine? She left on her own when she saw you weren't there." Cheng Zhao mentally cursed himself; he'd been right. "Then why didn't she call me?" Han Xi said with a grin, "Of course she was worried you were busy." "When did she leave?" "About ten minutes ago." "Taking a taxi?" "No, taxis are so expensive! She took the bus. First, it's 102 stops to the Guangrui Road subway station, then nine stops to the market." Cheng Zhao breathed a sigh of relief and snapped his fingers. "Thanks!" "You're welcome, Brother Cheng!" The "Brother Cheng" was as sweet as a cup of ice cream, but Tian Miao, who had just finished work, bumped into him. His expression suddenly froze, a solemn expression. Cheng Zhao glanced at him, secretly amused. He had one foot over the threshold when he turned back...
A week after Wei Chi was discharged from the hospital, Cheng Zhao called him to arrange a meeting. His attitude took a complete turn, neither agreeing to meet nor not agreeing, and instead playing Tai Chi with Cheng Zhao. Cheng Zhao, of course, guessed what was going on, and after three attempts, he stopped playing Tai Chi and handed the task over to project manager Yu Huan.
"Call him every day until you get through. Ask for a specific date."
Yu Huan was worried, "Will this piss him off?"
"It would be best if he gets annoyed to death!"
"Why don't we just go visit him directly? Talking to him face to face is better than talking on the phone. As the saying goes, don't greet a smiling guest!"
"No rush, just call first. If there's no effect after two days of calling, we can go to the company and block them."
Yu Huan walked out of Cheng Zhao's office, and Cheng Zhao blew a loud whistle. Wei Chi was clearly suspicious of him, but he wasn't completely sure. Thinking that Wei Chi was now full of hatred and might be thinking of all kinds of vicious tricks, Cheng Zhao couldn't help laughing.
When he looked at the time, it was almost nine o'clock. He hurriedly grabbed the car keys and ran out of the office. Today was the day Gan Ling went to the North City Flea Market to purchase goods. He had agreed with her to go together. If they were late, Gan Ling might slip away first.
Cheng Zhao drove straight to Xiaoxi Lane. When he arrived at the door of the bookstore, he parked the car hastily, pushed the door open in a hurry, and just ran into Tian Miao who came out to dry the mop.
"Sanshui! Is Gan Ling here?"
Tian Miao glanced at him with a cold expression, "Not here."
"Where have you been?"
"have no idea."
Cheng Zhao had long noticed that this boy had a very bad attitude towards him, and he didn't know how he had offended him. Now was not the time to worry about such trivial matters, so he walked straight into the bookstore and went straight to Han Xi.
What he got from Han Xi was a completely different attitude from that from Tian Miao. This girl told him everything she knew.
"Sister Ling went to the north of the city! Didn't you agree to leave at nine o'clock? She left on her own when she saw you didn't show up."
Cheng Zhao cursed himself in his heart, he was right.
"Why didn't she call me then?"
Han Xi said with a grin, "Of course I'm worried that you're busy with work."
"When did she leave?"
"About ten minutes ago."
"Taxi?"
"No, a taxi is too expensive! She took the bus. First, she took the 102th stop to the Guangrui Road subway station, and then took the subway for another nine stops to the market."
Cheng Zhao breathed a sigh of relief and snapped his fingers, "Thank you!"
"You're welcome, Brother Cheng!"
The call of "Brother Cheng" was as sweet as an ice cream. Tian Miao, who had just finished his work and walked in, bumped into him head-on. The expression on his face suddenly turned as if frozen, and it looked solemn and murderous.
Cheng Zhao glanced at it and laughed to himself. He had one foot out of the door when he turned back and said to Han Xi, "Xixi, help me pick out a few detective novels. I'll pick them up later."
Han Xi was overjoyed. "Great! How many do you want?"
"The more the merrier." He came out whistling.
If the 102 bus is still as slow as before, he should be able to catch it. It is worth trying his luck.
Cheng Zhao drove past the 102 platform and didn't see Gan Ling. He continued driving forward for three or four minutes when a blue bus came into view. The bus was very short, and judging by the red sign on the rear, it was indeed the 102. With a burst of excitement, Cheng Zhao sped up and passed the 102.
There was a parking lot next to the subway entrance. Cheng Zhao parked his car and rushed to the entrance to wait.
When Gan Ling got out of the car with a canvas bag astride her, surprise in her eyes, Cheng Zhao felt a sense of joy that his evil plan had succeeded.
"How did you know I was here?"
"I calculated it on my fingers."
"Come on!"
"Wait here for me, I'll get the car out."
"Oh... okay!"
Five minutes later, the two were sitting in the car. Gan Ling said, "If you're busy, don't come. I can take the subway, which is also very convenient."
"What should I do when I get back? The books are very heavy."
"What about your company? If I delay you from making money, I can't afford to pay you back."
"I don't care. There's no end to making money."
“…”
Cheng Zhao turned his head to look at Gan Ling and felt very happy.
The Chengbei Flea Market has been around for years, perhaps even older than them. Within the roughly 50,000 square meter market, small shops are clustered side by side, with numerous stalls scattered around the periphery. The market is well-stocked, and you can find practically anything you can think of here, though quality is up to you.
Gan Ling first went to the antique district. The shop she frequented was called Ping Ping Antiques, which sold both antiques and used books. A corner shelf was crammed with a variety of secondhand books, all at low prices and of varying quality. The selection was updated periodically. While the contents were mostly unremarkable, there were occasional surprises. Gan Ling once found two tattered magazines from the Republican era, nestled among a pile of miscellaneous books. They were being sold as a bundle for just 20 yuan. She carefully repaired them, listed them online, and, surprisingly, sold them quickly, marking them at the market price of 128 yuan. She gradually learned that there were people who specialized in collecting used books of all kinds, across a wide range of genres.
Every time she came to the north of the city, Gan Ling would visit this antique shop to see if she had any finds. Most of the time, she came back empty-handed; after all, luck wasn't always on her side. But for Gan Ling, this wasn't disappointment at all. Being able to quietly search through the sea of books brought her immense pleasure.
The owner of Pingping Antique Shop was also a woman. I wondered if her name was Pingping; no one had ever asked. She was about the same age as Gan Ling, and even had a similar personality: quiet and not particularly focused on business. She never offered sales advice to customers while they were browsing, unless they approached her. This made people feel comfortable. Gan Ling came so often that they got to know each other, a sort of acquaintance.
When Gan Ling entered, the proprietress, who was sitting behind the counter reading an old magazine, looked up and asked, "Are you here?"
"Um."
They smiled knowingly at each other and continued doing their own things.
Gan Ling never asked if new books had arrived; she preferred to search for them herself. The books on the shelves became clearer and clearer as her eyes filtered through them again and again. This was her familiar territory, bringing her a great sense of security and satisfaction.
While she was choosing books, Cheng Zhao would find a place outside to smoke a cigarette and make a few phone calls. When he was done, if Gan Ling hadn't come out yet, he would go in to accompany her.
Gan Ling was flipping through a blue-covered notebook. On the small wooden table next to him were three or four other books. He carefully picked one up and looked at it, not for the contents; they didn't interest him, but simply to check the condition of the books themselves. None of them were in good condition, with the covers torn and tattered. Gan Ling would have to spend a lot of time repairing them.
"Are these what you want?"
"Um."
Cheng Zhao gathered the books together and held them in his hands. Gan Ling glanced at him curiously.
"What are you holding it for?"
"Didn't you ask for it?"
"You don't have to take it, just put it on the table."
Cheng Zhao scratched the bridge of his nose. "Just take it! In case you get confused."
Gan Ling said nothing more.
Cheng Zhao suspected that he might seem like an overcorrecting fool in her eyes, but Gan Ling never said hurtful things, she had always been like that since she was a child. Cheng Zhao was therefore taking advantage of this. So what if she was stupid? He didn't mind being a fool in front of her at all.
Gan Ling tucked the blue book back into her pocket and continued browsing upwards. This was one of her peculiar habits. Most people preferred to look down from the top of the shelf, but Gan Ling did the opposite. She was already standing, not even bending at the waist, which meant she was almost done with her search. And rightly so, with so many similar books, so few new ones, wouldn't time be running out?
Cheng Zhao felt a bit resentful of the shopkeeper. He felt that giving Gan Ling such a small amount of second-hand goods was a disservice to her seriousness. He leaned against the small wooden table, facing the bookshelf, seemingly helping with the search, but in reality, he was secretly observing Gan Ling. This was the perfect time to observe her.
Gan Ling wore a white and green striped polo shirt today, paired with light blue wide-leg jeans and a pair of dark Converse sneakers. She looked fresh and clean, as if she'd just washed it. She wore her ponytail, just like in her school days, though the difference was that it was higher up back then; now it was just pulled back low. Her skin remained as smooth and delicate, giving her the appearance of a natural halo, a shimmering, illusory white light. Her face always held a calm, quiet, focused air. When she turned to look at someone, a hint of curiosity lingered in her bright eyes. She possessed a non-aggressive air, like some healthy, harmless plant, easily overlooked yet possessing an inherent strength.
This unexplainable power might only work in front of Cheng Zhao. Others (such as Wei Chi) seem to have never discovered it, or perhaps they have never truly understood Gan Ling. When Cheng Zhao thought of this, he felt a sour-sweet feeling in his heart.
Does liking someone need a reason? He didn't know. He just felt that just by accompanying her like this, even without doing anything, he could still be filled with joy.
Perhaps he did have a reason. All his warm and beautiful memories were held in Gan Ling's hands, safekeeping them in her care. Seeing her, he couldn't help but soften, wanting her to be happy. Seeing her happy made him feel even better...
"What are you daydreaming about?"
Cheng Zhao came to his senses and realized that he was indeed a little dazed. He didn't notice that Gan Ling had completed the search and was about to leave.
"Have you paid?"
Gan Ling nodded and took the book from him. Cheng Zhao followed her obediently, his eyes involuntarily falling on Gan Ling's waist. Because she had never given birth, Gan Ling's waist was as slender as a young girl's, but not thin. Wei Chi's words attacking Gan Ling flashed through his mind, and he couldn't help but clench his fists. Regardless of the result of the bidding, he didn't regret dealing with Wei Chi at all.
The female shop owner fiddled with a very broken calculator and quickly calculated the total price of the books.
"Seventy-five dollars."
Gan Ling didn't say anything, but Cheng Zhao started to shout, "So expensive! Isn't this a used book?"
The female shop owner explained, "I didn't know much when I first started, but recently I found someone who knows the business to help me re-check the price, so..."
"But we're old customers. Besides us, no one else is interested in this shelf of books, right?"
The female shop owner was helpless. "Well, how about we make it ten bucks cheaper, sixty-five?"
Cheng Zhao looked at Gan Ling proudly. Gan Ling didn't look at him. She took out her phone and scanned the QR code on the counter. "Alipay, right?"
"It's all right."
When the electronic voice announced, "...payment 75 yuan," the female shop owner smiled brightly and said, "Thank you! Come often!"
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