Chapter 56
After Tong Yufei moved out, she completely cut off contact with Mo Daoyan. The two never met again, not even a single phone call, until half a month later, when she came to pick up the remaining things, and she came back to his house.
She came after get off work. She didn't have a key, so she could only stand outside the door and wait. The early autumn night wind was already chilly. She curled up on the steps at the entrance of the stairs for nearly three hours, her arms wrapped around her bent knees, and fell asleep in exhaustion. It was not until around ten o'clock that she was awakened by the sound of him opening the door. Her hair was messy and stuck to her cheeks, and there was still sleepiness in her eyes.
He walked straight into the house without closing the door or showing any intention of welcoming anyone.
"I'll be leaving soon." She packed her things and put them at the door, half of her body hidden in the shadows. "The union representative said they contacted you three times and wanted to come to mediate, but you said you were busy. Tomorrow is Sunday, so you should be off, right? They didn't even take their day off to come to your house to mediate." The sound of water in the bathroom drowned out her voice, so she had no choice but to follow him. "Mo Daoyan, it doesn't have to be like this."
He spat out the mouthwash, and the look in the mirror was piercingly cold: "What's the matter?"
"Treat them like enemies."
"Being an enemy is at least aboveboard; it's better than being hypocritical and disgusting yourself."
She didn't refute, but just laughed softly.
This faint smile was like a needle, piercing his eyes: "Is it funny?"
She shook her head: "If I can't be a good person, I can't even have the courage to be a bad person. I'm not worth your bother."
"It's not worth it, but being bitten by your own dog is hard to accept. And you still expect me to wish you a happy new love... and a happy old love?"
"You don't need to bless me. After all, blessings are just blessings and don't count... I didn't come here today to ask for blessings. I want to communicate with you peacefully. The divorce process will be very long, so can you set a time for mediation earlier? Anyway, you have already had this intention, so it will be less of a worry after it is done. In addition, if the mediator asks about the reason for the divorce, you can tell him all our conflicts. The more serious the better, including whether you mind that Ye Yimo and I are too close. He is my brother, and I can't say it out loud, but you can. The content of the mediation will only be heard by the representatives and should not be spread out, otherwise they will always try to mediate."
She was not testing him, nor was she waiting for him to keep her. Instead, she was teaching him how to leave her completely. She was strangely relaxed, with a sense of relief after having unloaded a heavy burden. He looked at her and felt it was ridiculous. It was she who had shamelessly pretended to be pitiful to keep him, and now it was also she who was anxious to divorce to escape moral judgment.
He suddenly turned around, grabbed her collar and threw her into the bathroom.
She struggled in pain, prying his hand apart, her nails scratching bloody marks on the back of his hand.
"Haven't you eaten yet? You might as well work hard in bed." He pinned her kicking legs with his knees, holding her firmly against the sink. "How dare you come here and tell me this?"
"Divorce is my right." Even though she was completely suppressed, the edge in her eyes was still sharp. Her eyes were red but she raised her head stubbornly, "There's nothing noble about you."
"No matter how noble it is, it was you who asked for it."
"I don't care about it now."
"It's not your turn to choose." Feeling her trembling, he deliberately increased his strength until she was a little breathless. Then he let go of her hand like teasing prey and calmly adjusted the wrinkled cuffs of his shirt. "I have the final say on marriage and divorce." After that, he turned and went back to the bedroom, leaving only one sentence, "I've been working overtime recently, so don't bother me."
He had indeed been living in the company again these days. Sales of the new refrigerators were impressive, but it wasn't enough to give them peace of mind. They still faced a high-pressure environment, with wolves in front and tigers behind. In front, international brands like German and Japanese were "jackals in power." Their products were a bit pricey, but the quality was reliable. Families with more money, especially the wealthy, favored imported brands. From behind, domestic brands were eagerly catching up, some developing new technologies, others engaging in marketing wars, each trying to grab a piece of market share. The situation wouldn't be reversed overnight. How much of Xinli's business remained depended on their success.
Recently, in order to establish their brand image, major home appliance companies have started a trend of "smashing refrigerators", starting with someone unknown. If a company produces defective products, they will smash them to show their determination. Tong Zhaoyang was not willing to be left behind, so he took two of his subordinates and joined the ranks of smashing refrigerators. In two months, he smashed 300 refrigerators, which made the surrounding workers gasp in amazement. Wow, all the money was smashed.
It is like sailing against the current, if you don't move forward, you will fall behind. The most severe challenge was technical. Three years ago, the international convention required the elimination of CFCs. Xinli was developing new environmentally friendly refrigerants while also working on the three-door large-capacity refrigerator. However, more troublesome than technology was people. As the cake became bigger, some people couldn't sit still. They used their connections to get people into important positions and replaced suppliers to make money. As a result, many batches of goods had problems and suffered heavy losses.
Seeing the situation was dire, Mo Daoyan and Zhou Dinghe discussed countermeasures. They played the good cop and the bad cop, respectively. They obtained authorization from Chen Huaili and immediately began reorganizing the company. He established a strict employee code of conduct and reward and punishment regulations, and plastered the company walls with motivational slogans like "If you don't work hard today, you won't have food tomorrow," "The strength of your connections depends entirely on your work," and "The company is my home, and our future depends on everyone." Zhou Dinghe targeted Chen Huaili's nephew directly. The nephew, who had been slacking off under the guise of deputy workshop director, was dismissed by Zhou Dinghe for a random offense, making an example of him.
When the new rules came out, all the employees were worried, but they were still convinced by this drastic management. Without destruction, there is no construction. How could two knowledgeable and cultured international students as leaders lead them into trouble?
During the days when he was working overtime like crazy, Tong Yufei did as he wished and never came to disturb him again, not even a word.
Sadly, he wasn't happy about it.
Time flies, and it is already winter.
In the middle of the month, Tong Yufei appeared in the reception room of Xinli Company.
She hadn't come this time for Mo Daoyan, but specifically to interview Chen Huaili. As the key figure who had the greatest influence on her daughter, Chen Huaili was essential for completing her personal interview with Chen Jueyao. However, Chen Huaili was busy with work, often leaving early and returning late, so she had no choice but to accommodate his schedule and visit him directly at the company. Chen Huaili also attached great importance to this interview. Despite his packed schedule, he still managed to arrange a meeting with her during a meeting. As soon as the meeting ended, he hurried to the reception room to accept her interview.
Halfway through the interview, Da Ding approached Chen Huaili with the lab equipment acceptance form for his signature. He unexpectedly ran into Tong Yufei, who was currently questioning someone. People often say, "Looks make up 30%, and your attire 70%," but Da Ding felt that Tong Yufei completely defied that trope. She was still wearing her usual light-colored coat and dark blue jeans, yet she seemed a completely different person. The submissive, timid young wife she'd once sat beside Mo Daoyan was gone, replaced by a calm and elegant demeanor as she spoke with Chen Huaili.
If I were to use an idiom to describe it, it would be "unrestrained and unworldly".
Da Ding returned to the laboratory with a speechless look and came to Mo Daoyan's desk, where he was busy designing the architectural diagram.
"I saw Miss Tong in the reception room," Da Ding asked anxiously, "When did she become a reporter?"
"Short hair, short knowledge." Ji Xilin slapped a newspaper in front of Da Ding, "Take a good look."
The newspaper was from last week, and the character section contained Tong Yufei's second report on Chen Jueyao, "Zhaojun Shuo"
The previous article "Dancer in the Alley" not only did not fall into oblivion, but as Mo Daoyan expected, it caused a huge uproar, and all of it was negative. Complaint letters flew to the newspaper like snowflakes. Many people accused Chen Jueyao of improper behavior and not setting a good example for young actors. Some people even pointed the finger at Tong Yufei, calling her Chen Jueyao's "lackey" and "writing eunuch."
The subtitle of this article "On Zhaojun" is "Wang Zhaojun on the stage, Chen Jueyao off the stage". Through the form of dialogue between ancient and modern times across time and space, the article allows two women from different eras to engage in a soul-to-soul conversation. The conversation starts from the changes in women's living conditions, and explores the ideological constraints of the old and new eras step by step. While affirming social progress, it directly points out the current extreme trials of Chen Jueyao, which are comparable to the parades in ancient times. Teacher-student love is a private matter in the moral category, but it made a talented girl pay a devastating price.
The questions at the end of the article are like a wake-up call. Since historical injustices can be redressed, why can't Chen Jueyao and others be given a chance to defend themselves?
If "Dancer in the Alley" was a trap that drew public attention to the core of the discussion, then "The Story of Wang Zhaojun" cleverly used the appeal of artistic images to successfully transfer people's sympathy for Wang Zhaojun to Chen Jueyao. The actor developed a subtle emotional connection with the character's fate, and ultimately won some support for him.
"I read this article yesterday. The propaganda campaign was absolutely perfect." Da Ding scratched his head and laughed. "I can't believe it was written by Miss Tong. I just can't recognize the value of this."
It turned out that Tong Yufei's article had already spread throughout the company. After all, the protagonist of the article was the extremely popular Chen Jueyao, the boss's second daughter. That was why Ji Xilin laughed at Da Ding for being like many men, only focusing on Chen Jueyao's romantic anecdotes and completely ignoring the article's ideological depth and the author's extraordinary skills.
They were discussing Tong Yufei's new career, but her husband, Mo Daoyan, remained silent. Da Ding teased him, "You're pretending to be calm. You must be secretly happy to hear everyone praising your wife like this. Stop pretending. Show your pride out loud."
Mo Daoyan's assessment of the article was different. Thinking back to the previous incident, he simply assumed that Tong Yufei's writing, like her personality, was always rife with Huairou tactics. Her motivations were cunning, even though the final outcome and effect were unexpectedly positive. He responded calmly, "Journalists are professionals. Writing good articles is their job. Your surprise just shows that her starting point was low, and your initial understanding of her wasn't very high."
"That's not what I meant."
Da Ding hit a snag and retreated awkwardly, puzzled. Tong Yufei had made such a big leap from proofreader to reporter, right? He deserved some praise. Why didn't Mo Daoyan defend his wife and even laced his words with sarcasm?
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