People came and went in the coffee shop as they waited to the side. Whenever someone passed by, Shang Zhitao would step forward slightly closer to Luan Nian to make way, and after the person passed, she would step back again, over and over. Luan Nian watched her flustered, blushing face without moving. Her blushing face resembled that of a young girl experiencing first love.
“Why are you blushing?” Luan Nian suddenly asked her.
“Hmm?” Shang Zhitao raised her head to look at him, her eyes falling into his cool gaze. His eyes carried a hint of playfulness as he asked again: “Why are you blushing?”
“Maybe it’s too hot.” Shang Zhitao truly felt hot; she wiped the fine sweat from her forehead. The air conditioning throughout the entire airport was working well, so how could it be hot enough to cause this? Yet Shang Zhitao felt hot for no apparent reason.
“Shang Zhitao.” Luan Nian suddenly called her by her Chinese name, and seeing her looking at him with clear eyes, he slowly said: “How do you expect to survive in the advertising industry like this?”
Confusion was written in Shang Zhitao’s eyes; she clearly didn’t understand why Luan Nian suddenly said this. Even her framed glasses couldn’t hide the clear pool in her eyes. That small confusion was like a piece of ice floating on a lake melting in early spring, gleaming with a gentle light.
Luan Nian had a fleeting thought of removing those glasses that made her look so silly. He continued slowly: “Being so timid, shy, cowardly, and humble—how will you survive in the advertising world? Do you know what kind of people are in the advertising industry?”
Hearing him say again that she wasn’t capable, Shang Zhitao suddenly felt angry. As she grew angry, her face reddened even more: “I don’t know. Please enlighten me.”
But Luan Nian just shrugged: “I can’t teach you. The only advice I can give you is to change your job.”
Having said that, he didn’t wait for Shang Zhitao to respond and turned to go to the cashier to get the coffee. Shang Zhitao took a cup of coffee without a word and followed beside him. As they left the coffee shop, the noise subsided somewhat, and everything suddenly became quiet. The inconspicuous stubbornness in Shang Zhitao’s bones suddenly jumped out, clamoring for her to resist. She took a few quick steps to stand in front of Luan Nian, blocking his path. Her eyes suddenly showed a hint of firmness, and her whole person acquired some edges, although these edges weren’t very obvious. Luan Nian stopped and looked at her: “What’s wrong, Flora?”
“I’ve noted your advice.”
“And then?”
“I won’t change jobs!” When Shang Zhitao got angry, she was like a child. Just these four short words, and after speaking, her eyes suddenly reddened. She felt utterly wronged, feeling that Luan Nian was pushing her to the edge. After saying this, she turned and left, but despite being so angry, she didn’t forget that cup of coffee. Her hand remained steady, and when she reached Lu Mi, not a drop of coffee had spilled.
Lu Mi saw her poor expression and took her legs off the suitcase, asking casually: “Hey, what’s wrong with you?”
“Nothing.” Shang Zhitao handed the latte to Lu Mi and sat down beside her.
Luan Nian walked over and offered her coffee, prepared for Shang Zhitao to refuse it. But she, with reddened eyes, accepted it and even said: “Thank you.” No matter how angry she was, her good manners remained. Shang Zhitao must have grown up in a modestly well-off family, with loving parents who doted on her. Though not extravagantly wealthy, they had spared no expense on her education. This was evident in her everyday words and actions.
Luan Nian frowned slightly, suddenly realizing he was overstepping. What did it matter to him whether someone stayed at the company or not? She wasn’t even an employee in his department.
Lu Mi felt the strange atmosphere between them but didn’t know what had happened, so she sat between them without speaking. They each sipped their coffee as if they didn’t know each other. Only when the other two from the Creative Center arrived did they exchange a few simple words.
After leaving the airport, Shang Zhitao sat in the taxi, looking at the lush green world outside, and suddenly felt that she shouldn’t be so angry over the words of an irrelevant boss. The world was so wonderful; anything was better than Luke’s mouth. How dare Luke’s mouth even call itself a mouth, hmph.
This is my first time in Guangzhou!
“Grace from Creative just said Luke is treating everyone to morning tea and asked us to join,” Lu Mi said.
“Oh, okay.” Shang Zhitao was somewhat reluctant; she didn’t want to eat with Luan Nian. Food eaten with him would surely not taste good. Even though she had tried to persuade herself not to be angry, she still harbored resentment in her heart.
“You’ve been acting strange since you came back from buying coffee. What’s wrong?”
“Nothing, just got bitten by a mosquito. It’s itchy and annoying.”
“Where did it bite you? I have some Thai green balm. Let me apply some for you.” Lu Mi took her seriously and pulled out a small bottle of green balm from her bag, which she had brought back from her trip to Thailand.
Shang Zhitao had no choice but to point to where she had been bitten by a mosquito the night before: “Here, this spot.”
“Wow! That mosquito has quite a nasty bite!” Lu Mi laughed. It wasn’t clear if she was referring to the mosquito or Luan Nian.
Shang Zhitao was amused by her remark. At the hotel, she changed into a different outfit and set off with her laptop.
Shang Zhitao’s outfit was a vibrant V-neck floral dress, her fair neck connecting to that small patch of jade-like skin on her chest. An ordinary person who occasionally changes style can suddenly appear full and bright.
Walking beside her, Lu Mi couldn’t help but exclaim: “I didn’t expect this! You look quite polished, girl!”
Shang Zhitao blushed slightly at her compliment, instinctively looking down at her neckline, which was modest and didn’t reveal much. She didn’t know what Lu Mi was making a fuss about.
When they arrived at the restaurant, Luan Nian was adding items to the menu. Hearing Lu Mi’s greeting, he looked up from the menu, nodded toward them, his eyes scanning over Shang Zhitao before lowering his head to continue ordering.
The restaurant was noisy, with elderly people chatting in Cantonese, their tones gentle and pleasant. Shang Zhitao felt as if she had gone to Hong Kong in the 90s, watching her favorite Hong Kong films. Remembering the years she spent learning Cantonese songs using pinyin, her eyes brightened even more.
Grace asked Luan Nian: “I heard before that Luke is Cantonese?”
“My ancestral home is Jiangsu.”
This served as an opening, and everyone began to chat about their hometowns. Shang Zhitao sat there quietly, listening, occasionally answering one or two questions. Her quietness was like the water glass beside her—just placed there, picked up when needed for a drink, and not seeming superfluous when not in use.
Somehow, the topic turned to dating and marriage, and Lu Mi put her hand on Shang Zhitao’s shoulder and asked her: “Do you have a boyfriend?”
Shang Zhitao was suddenly flustered by the question, her face instantly turning red: “No.”
“You blush so easily. Don’t tell me you’ve never dated before?” Female colleagues love to gossip, even if the gossip has nothing to do with them. At this moment, except for Luan Nian, all eyes were on Shang Zhitao.
Shang Zhitao was put on the spot and had to admit. Her response was sincere, unlike the glib seasoned professionals: “I dated once in college.”
“Tell us about it?” Lu Mi teased her.
“Better not.” She pursed her lips, looking to the side. Suddenly, she remembered Xin Zhaozhou’s first kiss on her cheek in a noisy duck blood noodle shop. She still remembered the awkwardness between them at that time.
“Would you like some tea?” Luan Nian, who had been silent, suddenly asked them, and then stood up to pour tea for the girls. Grace wouldn’t dare drink tea poured by the boss and hurriedly got up: “Let me, let me.”
“It’s fine. Taking care of the ladies is my responsibility.” Very gracious, not at all like the person who had repeatedly mocked Shang Zhitao and told her to quit. In passing, he rescued Shang Zhitao from her predicament.
Deep down, Luan Nian disliked socializing, and today’s gathering was a form of socializing. He particularly disliked the meaningless topics discussed during meals, as if knowing how many people someone had slept with would make them do the job better.
With this gesture of pouring tea, his subordinates naturally understood the situation, so they stopped their random chatter and began to seriously discuss the case at hand.
Shang Zhitao’s anger toward Luan Nian disappeared at once, and she even felt a bit grateful. How strange this Luan Nian was, making you switch repeatedly between respecting and disliking him, yet he seemed to enjoy it.