Chapter Eleven: Sending Food to the Leader

  The next day, they saw off the old man. It seemed that he and his son had reached some kind of tacit understanding. Otherwise, according to the old man's intention, after this incident, he would have called Bàng Bàng to follow him back to take care of the family business.

  I took the plan I wrote yesterday to Manager Wei, hoping he could comment on it. Actually, his opinion is the most important thing, without his support, this matter can't be done at all.

  Manager Wei held a poplar wood cigarette that Yang had just handed over, and the smoke he spat out enveloped the entire plan book.

  He waited for nearly half an hour before he lifted his head and said to Yang Mu:

  "This idea is great. Our company headquarters just happens to have someone proposing a solution to this problem, and if we take the lead on this matter, it will be of great significance to our construction site."

  After hearing his words, Yang Mu's heart was settled, but experience told him that there were usually more to come. The previous words sounded too good and were generally used as a prelude to what followed, commonly known as "suppressing first and then raising".

  "But, Xiaoyang, we have to consider the difficulty of this matter. Look at all the experts and scholars in society who are trying to come up with a solution but haven't been able to find a practical way out. If we rashly implement it, it might not be appropriate."

  Yang Mu had anticipated what he would say before he came, and had already thought of a response in his mind. So he handed him a cup of hot water and said:

  "What you said is not unreasonable. Firstly, my plan will involve many people and may cause some of them to lose benefits. Moreover, it's even more challenging because there are no experiences worth referencing in this aspect. However, we should recognize the urgency of this matter. If another group incident like last time happens again, neither you nor I can guarantee a good outcome, which would be a huge loss for both you and the company."

  Manager Wei pretended to hesitate for a moment before responding to Yang Mu, telling him to think about it again. Yang Mu naturally knew the purpose of his actions, which was nothing more than putting on an official air, letting people know he existed, or showing off his attention to this matter.

  As for whether he agreed or not, the answer was already in his heart. The conversation had reached this point and Yang Mu couldn't continue, so he smiled and retreated.

  Playing games idly in the office, phone rang and I picked it up to take a look, unexpectedly it was a text message from Dong Yurou.

  She said she wanted to have boiled meat slices for dinner tonight and asked if Yangmu knew how to make it. Yangmu of course knew how, as long as it was Sichuan cuisine there was nothing she couldn't do, after all she had learned a lot from her father who was a chef at a star-rated restaurant.

  Ever since Yang Mu first showed off his culinary skills to Dong Yu Rong, she would always find ways to get him to cook for her. As for this, Yang Mu was quite confident - anyone who had eaten his cooking had never said it wasn't extremely delicious.

  With this message, Yang Mu was like a shot of adrenaline, quickly finishing the tasks at hand and assigning some things to He Dali. Now that he had applied to be his assistant, he had to hone his skills somehow.

  Humming a little tune to the supermarket, bought some ingredients, of course not just what's needed for boiled meat slices, tonight she's so proactive, he also has to make a good show.

  Carefully carrying on the unique skills taught by his old man, he must create a dish that will leave her with a lifelong aftertaste tonight, and also savor it for himself.

  The more I think about it, the more beautiful it is. My mood is very comfortable. I sent a text message to Dong Yurou with several parallel sentences, telling her that tonight's good time and beautiful scenery are rare and must not work overtime.

  However, the fact is so cruel that Yangmu waited for a while after preparing the dishes and still didn't wait for her to come back. After heating up the dishes, the carefully arranged appearance of the dishes also changed, which made Yangmu feel very heartbroken.

  Carrying the lunch box, she arrived at the Tianpeng Group Building and looked up at the towering high-rise building. Yang Mu's heart felt a little uncomfortable, the gap between her and him was not just a little bit.

  When Yang Mu just graduated, he hoped to work in a company like Tianpeng Group. Later, he hoped to be able to work in a medium-sized company like Manager Wei's. Later still, he could only settle for working in a small planning company with dozens of people.

  Occasionally being worn out by the boss, still having to smile and fawn on him all day long. In over a year, the only time I lost my temper with him was the day I got fired, thinking about it now, I've really lived a pretty miserable life.

  Dong Yunrou didn't answer the phone, and Yang Mu was also here for the first time, so he had no idea which floor or office she was in, so he could only wait quietly downstairs.

  When Yang Mu's cigarette pack was almost empty, he saw his assistant, and she also saw him. They had met before, so they just exchanged a greeting.

  "Are you waiting for us, Director Dong?"

  Yang Mu smiled and nodded, hiding the thermos box behind her back, but she seemed to be intentionally looking at it, tiptoeing to take a peek and saying to Yang Mu:

  "You two are really loving, when you were sick she forced me to cook for you every day, now that she's working overtime you even deliver food to her company, it's really showing off your love everywhere."

  It seems that she has misunderstood her relationship with Dong Yu Rong. Yang Mu also didn't want to explain, because this kind of thing would only get more and more complicated.

  "Alright, just wait a bit longer, our CEO Dong should be coming down soon."

  "Ah, thank you."

  Yang Mu lit another cigarette and gazed at this beautiful yet illusory city. Its beauty lies in its ability to attract people like himself who refuse to leave, its illusion lies in its inability to provide simple pleasures for people like himself.

  "Stop smoking."

  At some point, Dong Yun Ruo was already standing behind him, looking at the cigarette butts on the ground with a somewhat reproachful expression, saying to Yang Mu.

  Yang Mu turned his head and looked at her, then revealed a smile from ear to ear and said:

  "Have you finished work?"

  "If I don't leave work now, I'm sure the cleaning aunt will say you're a person without quality tomorrow."

  Yang Mu smiled and said:

  "You're really busy, getting off work so late."

  "Sorry, I was in a meeting and didn't see your message."

  Yang Mu didn't mean to blame her, he just felt sorry for her that as a woman she had to live such a hard life.

  "I didn't mean it that way, I was worried you wouldn't eat well, so I brought it over."

  "Why don't you go up?"

  Yang Mu looked down at his own slippers and cheap clothes bought from a street stall and said:

  "I couldn't find you anywhere, it's better not to go up, it's better not to go up."

  Dong Yun Ruo's heart felt a pang, waiting so late for so long just to deliver food to herself, this man was really foolish enough, a kind of unprecedented warmth suddenly swept across her whole body.

  On the bus, Yang Mu took out a thermos wrapped in his coat and handed it to Dong Yu Rong, saying:

  "Let's eat first, and then go back later; otherwise, it will be completely cold soon."

  Watching Dong Yurou eating her own cooking in small mouthfuls, Yang Mu seemed to see another scene. At that time, Dan Ya would often go out to eat with him, and every time Yang Mu not only had to pay the bill but also had to accompany her, because Dan Ya always insisted on going into the kitchen herself to cook for him.

  Serving delicious dishes in front of Dan Ya and watching her eat, Yang Mu felt it was a kind of enjoyment, never knowing that he himself also went to eat.

  Those days were just so happy, and being stuck together with Dan Ya was Yang Mu's greatest happiness, as well as his biggest dream. Of course, all of this shattered three years ago.

  A quiet departure took away all her dreams and ideals, spending every day with wine as a friend and smoke as a companion. Those days might have been the darkest time since she could remember.

  Just as he was lost in thought, Dong Yurou suddenly turned around and said:

  "Do you have tissues?"

  What a familiar scene, after all these years Yang Mu still felt so familiar with it, and she subconsciously took out a tissue to wipe the corner of her mouth.

  The air seemed to freeze at this moment, Yang Mu's hand was still raised, and Dong Yun Ruo was staring at him with wide eyes.

  Yang Mu suddenly realized that his movements were a bit too intimate, so he quickly withdrew his hand and pretended to wipe the very clean car window.

  "I was preparing to wipe the glass, and since I saw oil on your mouth corner, I just wiped it off for you, saving you the trouble."

  Dong Yunrou also had no choice but to blush and lower her head, continuing to eat her meal. The action just now was really too intimate, she could even feel Yang Mu's breath on her face.

  As the night wore on, Yang Mu continued to reminisce about the past. Tonight, every move Dong Yurou made reminded him of Tan Ya.

  She is so beautiful, she is so pure, and yet she is so cruel, cruel enough that Yang Mu's heart aches whenever he thinks of her.

  Soft and elegant, your departure taught me how to grow up, taught me a person's loneliness, a person's desolation.