26

  44. On the first day after the Mid-Autumn Festival holiday, three interns came to our company. Zhang Qiu took them to do the entry procedures and found time to gossip with me: "A new intern named Wu Sha has arrived, she's your junior fellow apprentice. She looks really good, maybe she's one of the beauties of B University."

  "What year is it?"

  Zhang Qiu hehe smiled and said: "It's 89."

  I said, "Zhang Qiu, you're amazing! You've even got the birthday on file during the registration process." This is really not comparable to being unaware; once compared, it's infuriating. Now it's already the era of 89-year-old young girls, and suddenly I feel like I've aged several rounds.

  I took the three interns to the conference room for a brief induction training. Wu Sha was indeed a beauty, with long curly hair, wearing a tight-fitting suit dress and high heels that made her half a head taller than me, making women feel envious.

  I explained some confidential matters and common work in our department to them, intending to disperse. Wu Sha found me and asked: "Shei, I want to ask, do we have a Mentor for our internship?"

  "Yes, I'll take you around to introduce you to each department later."

  To be honest, taking a young and beautiful girl like Wu Sha to walk around the department is not a good thing. She has long legs and walks with big strides, especially with a lot of style, walking in front. I have to follow her step by step, and those who don't know might think she's the manager and I'm an intern.

  The securities company has more men than women, and as we walked by, the two of us became the focus of attention. I don't even need to introduce myself department by department, within half a day, the whole company will know that the investment banking department has such a beautiful female intern.

  I brought her to the investment banking department and introduced a young man named Mike to her as her mentor.

  Mike was particularly pleased to take on this task and walked with a sense of pride that made him unable to walk in a straight line.

  I said to Mike: "Then let Wu Sha be handed over to you, and introduce her to other colleagues in your department."

  Mike laughed with his mouth wide open: "Okay." He turned around and approached Wu Sha: "Which school are you from?"

  "Grade B."

  "There are many seniors from B University in our department, your school produces a lot of talent."

  I think it's about time, I'm heading back to my own office. Then I heard Mike say from behind: "Goodbye, Director Lu."

  "Hello."

  Mike introduced her: "Director Lu, this is our department's new intern, Wu Sha. She's also from B University and the same college as you."

  Then he said to Wu Sha: "This is our Director Lu, who is your direct senior fellow apprentice."

  "Wu Sha said: 'Elder brother, you're good.'"

  This sounds a bit familiar, I also loved calling others like this when I was her age.

  Lu You responded with a "hello" and then walked up to me, "I'd like to discuss the recruitment quota for our department this year."

  "Are you in charge of this matter?"

  He nodded: "Yes, President Ren is on vacation."

  "Alright, let's go to the conference room."

  I spread the document on the table for him to see: "This year, your department's staffing is 54 people, and there are currently 50 on the job. So there are 4 recruitment quotas. Previously, Director Ren mentioned that there were not many young people, and he wanted to recruit more campus recruits."

  He picked up my watch and took a look: "The increase in other departments is quite large."

  I said: "Right, but the investment banking department's performance was average last year, and there are many high-paid people. Who let you all make a fortune?"

  Lu You pushed up his glasses: "I think we need to reserve another batch of goods, otherwise the number of projects this year will be quite limited."

  A head of sponsorship department casually spends several million, and I spoke to him in an official tone: "Director Lu, I know our investment business is doing well and may be even better next year, but we also need to consider the balance of the company's business structure. One sponsorship can support several general managers of a branch. If it's really necessary for business purposes, then you must increase it. You write an email to my leader, if he approves, I won't say anything."

  Lu You knocked on the desktop with his fingers and seemed to want to discuss terms with me: "Do we have to follow the procedure?"

  I laughed: "What else? Are you thinking of us getting romantic?"

  He paused for a moment, then stood up and went out: "Alright, I know. I'll email you back."

  Spring and autumn are the busiest times for HR managers, as they coincide with the peak recruitment season. After interviewing graduating students for two consecutive days, I couldn't help but feel that the competition for jobs is indeed very fierce nowadays.

  I may have been abroad for too long and don't know the domestic market, but looking at that stack of resumes, all of which are filled with internship experiences at well-known financial institutions, overseas study experiences, and various social activities, dazzling to the point of dizziness. I thought of Fu Andong when he was job hunting, it was easy and effortless like playing a game.

  I looked up and asked him: "What do you want me to do?"

  Fu An Dong scratched his head, "I don't know, I've completely lost track of Liu Xi now. Come on, let's figure out a solution to this problem."

  It's been a while since I last saw Liu Xi, ever since we were caught by him eating crabs with Fu An Dong during the Mid-Autumn Festival.

  "Now it's the information age, can't you find someone?"

  He said with a headache: "Yes, I called her phone and she didn't answer, sent her a message and she didn't reply, what else can I do?"

  I quite understand Liu Xi, she's so young and has a lot of capital to vent her temper on Ant.

  "Take action and go to school or her home to block her."

  "Ah?" Fu An Dong looked at me in confusion.

  "Haven't you been to her home?"

  Fu An Dong looked at me strangely: "What's going on that you have to go to her house? It can't be that serious, right?"

  I have thoroughly cleared my conscience," I said to Fan Dong, "Now I don't feel like I owe you anything in this matter."

  "Xu Shenshen, how can you be so immoral? If I hadn't spent Mid-Autumn Festival with you, would I have ended up in this situation now? Liu Xi even changed the lock on my house. She's really quick to act, isn't she? Truly, a woman's heart is the most poisonous."

  "Look, it's exactly this kind of attitude. As a woman, let me tell you something. The breakdown of your relationship definitely has nothing to do with me, and that's just an excuse. To put it simply, even without me, the two of you would still have difficulty getting along normally."

  He looked puzzled: "Nonsense. I'm so good to Liu Xi, you don't know. Wherever I go on a business trip, I try my best to bring her along, wherever she wants to play, whatever she wants to buy, whatever she wants, I'll give it to her. If I were born twenty years earlier, I would have become her parents again."

  I couldn't take it from him, "Then are you willing to marry her?"

  Fu An Dong was asked by me and hesitated for a while before making an excuse: "She's still in university and hasn't graduated yet, it's too early."

  I sighed and walked away with my bag: "I'm not going to discuss my views on love with you here, I have a yoga class to get to."

  The yoga class ended at 9 pm, and I walked home with my yoga bag. Autumn is a golden season, and the ground was covered with a layer of fallen leaves, which made a soft cracking sound as I stepped on them.

  Tonight is a good night, the moon is round, and this side of the night sky is even more profound. There are few pedestrians at the entrance of the community, I see a girl standing in front of the community, wandering back and forth.

  "I called out: 'Liu Xi?'"

  The girl in front turned around, her ponytail swung out in a beautiful arc, and it was indeed Liu Xi.

  I went up to her: "Do you have something to ask me?"

  She nodded: "Do you have time? Let's talk."

  I invited her upstairs: "Why don't you come into my room and sit for a while? It's so cold outside, it's not good to be blown by the wind."

  She nodded, and with the light from the security guard at the door, I got a clear look at Liu Xi. She probably cried recently, her eyes were slightly swollen and hadn't fully recovered yet.

  As soon as I went into the house, it warmed up immediately, and I poured her a cup of milk.

  I sat with her on the sofa, playing the role of a confidante: "Are you going to tell me about Fu An Dong?"

  Liu Xi nodded, but she seemed to be at a loss for words and just sat there stiffly.

  I first explained: "I have to apologize to you first, you may have misunderstood me and Pei An Dong."

  Liu Xi raised his head and said very firmly: "I didn't misunderstand you. If you say that the two of you are good friends who have grown up together for decades since childhood, I really don't believe it."

  I was stunned, "What did you just say?"

  She relaxed a bit and spoke candidly: "I've never seen anyone so attentive to their friends. On Mid-Autumn Festival, he left his parents at home to come accompany you. And that time we were still playing in Sanya, with just one phone call, he could be summoned back. I've been with Dong for a while now, and it's very clear that you are the top priority in his heart, anything related to you is the most important and urgent. Moreover, don't blame me for speaking directly, I don't believe you don't have any special feelings towards him. A woman returns to her country and doesn't contact her own family first, but instead contacts her buddies. On Mid-Autumn Festival, I saw that you also spent it together with him very naturally, you two even being in the same unit didn't avoid suspicion at all, I've even heard colleagues secretly discussing you two behind your backs... If it were me, there's no way I could do these things for my 'good friend'."

  Liu Xi paused for a moment, his eyes slightly red, and said word by word: "My words may not be pleasant to hear, but Xu Shenshen, are you enjoying the special treatment from Pei Andong, then using the excuse of 'good friend' to accept it with a clear conscience?"

  Tears streamed down Liu Xi's face, her makeup was a bit smudged, and I saw jealousy and heartache in her eyes.

  I couldn't answer Liu Xi, because from the moment she said this, I realized for the first time that maybe others saw me and Fu Andong like this, maybe in other people's eyes, our intimate but unofficial relationship was disgusting. I had felt this disgust before, I had been resentful of Lu You and Wang Shu's relationship, even jealous of her, and disliked her without any reason.

  I'm shocked, I used to dislike this kind of ambiguous friendship the most, but now I'm stuck in it.

  I handed Liu Xi a box of tissues, and she continued to say: "I know the feelings you two have had for so many years, no one can replace that. I admit defeat on this point. But I like him, and I'm sure Liu Xi likes him more than you, Xu Shenshen. Can't you just let go of him?"

  Liu Xi bit her lip and tried her best to hold back tears, but they still fell intermittently.

  I sat across from her, and for a moment, I thought I saw the Xudongdong of 5 years ago. The time when Lu You and I quarreled the most fiercely was on the street, he answered Wang Shu's phone call, amidst the hustle and bustle, although the noise was deafening, but I still clearly heard him say to Wang Shu in a gentle tone: Don't worry, I'll take a look for you later, if it's not burned out, everything should be there.

  He hung up the phone and still considerately went far away to buy me my favorite nut ice cream.

  Waiting for him to bring back the ice cream, I questioned him: Are you IT? Are you a maintenance worker? Why do you have to go and help her when someone else's phone is broken?

  Lu You obviously didn't expect me to get so angry and explained: Wang Shu spilled water on the computer, I majored in computer science for my first two years of undergraduate study.

  He is my boyfriend, but I had no idea he studied computer science.

  I slapped the ice cream out of his hand and shouted at him: Lu You, I really hate your relationship, I really hate Wang Shu!

  Lu You fell silent for a moment, then said: "Then I won't go. Alright?"

  This feeling is not pleasant, even if the final result is what I wanted, but it seems like I had to force my way to get it. If I hadn't gotten so angry, he might have gone anyway. Who knows how many times he went to help Wang Shu fix his computer without me knowing.

  ……

  I came to my senses and said to Liu Xi, "Sorry Liu Xi, I didn't think of suspending Fu Andong. You say we're not just friends, speaking from the heart, I treat him like a family member. In this matter, I was indeed selfish. Fu Andong likes you... I don't need to repeat it again..."

  Liu Xi's eyes lit up when he heard the last sentence, a bit unexpected.

  "I'm sorry if I've affected your feelings." I said: "I'll be more careful next time."

  I tried my best to be sincere. Liu Xi seemed to have been waiting for this sentence, she let out a sigh of relief, picked up the milk and took a sip, bid me farewell: "Alright. Let's consider it settled then. I won't say more, it's late, you should get some rest early, I'll leave first."

  I said: "Oh, okay."

  Wishing everyone all the best~~~~ I unexpectedly spent 3 years in Quanzhou, and finished writing 4 articles. Such numbers really evoke a sense of nostalgia...