By the time they arrived, all the colleagues were already there.

“Here’s our new person, Shang Zhitao, English name Flora,” Zhang Ling stood up to introduce Shang Zhitao. “She’ll be learning from Lu Mi. Everyone, please take care of her.”

Shang Zhitao bowed to everyone: “I’m in your care, seniors.”

The men and women in the marketing department were all so good-looking. Shang Zhitao thought: This must be Ling Mei’s hiring standard, I’m so lucky.

She sat beside Lu Mi, carefully memorizing colleagues’ names as everyone introduced themselves. The marketing department colleagues were frequent flyers, so gathering together wasn’t easy. People in marketing tended to be extroverted, so the atmosphere was particularly lively.

When it was Shang Zhitao’s turn, she thought for a moment and said: “I will work hard.” She couldn’t come up with anything fancy to say, she was just that kind of straightforward person. Everyone was used to people who could speak eloquently, so suddenly meeting such a colleague felt somewhat refreshing.

Zhang Ling didn’t put on airs either, joining colleagues in telling jokes. He said to Shang Zhitao: “Once you enter advertising, it’s as deep as the sea. Think about it carefully.”

“The other day, when I took a taxi after work, the driver asked me: ‘You work in advertising, right?’ I asked, ‘How did you know?’ He said, ‘There are three types of people taking taxis late at night: prostitutes, johns, and advertising people!'” A girl named Qin Xiaoxiao said.

Everyone burst into laughter. Zhang Ling said to Shang Zhitao: “If you have a boyfriend, cherish him. If you don’t have one, it’ll be hard to find one. Look at everyone at this table, none of us are proper people.”

Shang Zhitao quickly said: “I think everyone seems quite proper.” She exuded the simplicity and innocence of someone just entering society.

By the end of the meal, Shang Zhitao had silently memorized all her colleagues’ names. She was like a frightened little sparrow that had accidentally fallen to the ground and couldn’t fly up, unfamiliar with and fearful of everything.

A strange city, strange people—she was fighting alone, with somewhat of a tragic heroism in her solitary courage.

Lu Mi, who appeared carefree, noticed Shang Zhitao’s cautiousness and said to her on the way back to the company: “Let me tell you, don’t be too humble. The company is full of jerks who pick on easy targets. The more humble you are, the more they’ll bully you. Eventually, all the dirty and tiring work will be thrown at you, and you’ll suffer.”

“Okay. Then…”

Lu Mi interrupted her: “No matter who assigns you work, ask them to talk to me first. I’m your mentor, I decide what you do.”

“Okay, thank you, Lu Mi.”

“No need to thank me.”

Lu Mi was brisk and efficient. Back at the company, she sent a compressed file to Shang Zhitao: “Here, take a look. These are the projects we’ll be managing for the rest of the year. First, you need to understand each project clearly, otherwise we can’t manage the budget properly.” Lu Mi paused and handed Shang Zhitao a form: “Here, while you’re talking to these big shots about the projects, take the opportunity to do the big shot interviews.”

The big shot interviews were assignments for new employees, requiring them to interview several company bosses or seniors to understand the corporate culture, department structure, and fully integrate into the company.

“Are all these planning department projects?” Shang Zhitao flipped through the files and saw that all the initiating departments were listed as the planning department.

“Of course! The planning department is difficult to deal with, so they gave it to me because I have thick skin.”

“Do I need to find Luke?”

“Go try and see. You’ll have to deal with him in the future anyway.”

Shang Zhitao felt a bit fearful remembering Luan Nian’s face. Lu Mi tapped her head: “What are you afraid of? He can’t eat you, can he? Go find him now. He’s very serious when discussing work, so he probably won’t give you a hard time.”

“Oh.”

Shang Zhitao carried the files to Luan Nian’s office. She stood at the door, took a deep breath, and then slowly knocked.

“Come in.”

Shang Zhitao pushed open the door and stood in the doorway, in the afternoon sunlight, like a little flower about to bloom. Luan Nian looked up at her: “Something?”

“Hello, we met earlier today. I’m Shang Zhitao, new to the marketing department. Lu Mi just sent me some project materials from your department, and I have a few questions I need to ask you.” Shang Zhitao had prepared her speech before entering and said it all in one breath, then stood there waiting for Luan Nian to respond.

Luan Nian looked at her carefully, finally discovering a quality in this girl: she seemed very humble. Ling Mei rarely had such humble people.

“Is it urgent?”

“Not particularly urgent.”

Shang Zhitao made a mistake. In the workplace, one’s tasks are always the most urgent. People in Luan Nian’s department, no matter where they went, always had to take the lead.

Is it urgent?

Very urgent, if delayed it would affect progress, greatly impact the company, needs to be resolved right now.

Luan Nian nodded, pointing to the long sofa in his office: “Since it’s not urgent, can you wait for me a bit?”

“Okay.”

Shang Zhitao sat properly on the sofa, waiting for Luan Nian. She thought waiting three to five minutes would be enough, so she just waited. Three minutes passed, five minutes passed, fifteen minutes passed, and Luan Nian showed no sign of looking up from his computer. Shang Zhitao wanted to speak several times, but the words reached her lips and then were swallowed back.

She felt it would be impolite.

Shang Zhitao wasn’t in a hurry, so naturally Luan Nian wasn’t either. He calmly handled his work, also waiting for Shang Zhitao to speak up. He wasn’t trying to make things difficult for her; he simply wanted to see how not urgent her matter was, and how she judged the importance of her work.

So Shang Zhitao wasn’t in a hurry either. Her afternoon assignment was to understand these projects. She simply opened her computer and started reading the materials carefully. After going through the materials once, she checked the time on her wrist—forty minutes had passed. This was a bit beyond her expectations. So she looked up at him, but he showed no sign of finishing.

She wanted to interrupt him but couldn’t bring herself to speak.

Finally, when he looked up again, he caught Shang Zhitao’s hesitant expression. He pretended not to notice and lowered his head again.

Seeing his demeanor, Shang Zhitao thought his work must be very important. So she continued to wait quietly for a long time.

Luan Nian finished his work and picked up his phone to reply to messages, glancing at her again. She was looking at him, her eyes full of sincerity, and when he glanced at her, she quickly spoke: “Are you finished?”

Shang Zhitao had waited for who knows how long for this opportunity to speak and finally didn’t miss it.

Luan Nian stood up and sat down opposite her: “What is it?”

This was the first time Shang Zhitao had been so close to Luan Nian. Luan Nian was very serious, and his movements were extremely quick. From his desk to the sofa, those few steps showed his efficiency. Shang Zhitao saw his eyes, eyes different from those of a twenty-year-old youth—that gaze was incredibly confident and sharp, as if the whole world was in his hands.

He asked what it was, as if he had forgotten what Shang Zhitao had said when she first entered. She hesitated, then repeated her purpose.

Luan Nian suddenly smiled. When he smiled, his eyes narrowed slightly, like a fox: “Is it urgent now?”

“What?”

“Wasn’t your matter not urgent?” Luan Nian reminded her.

Shang Zhitao’s face reddened slightly. She didn’t know how to answer whether it was urgent or not. If she said it was urgent, Luan Nian would ask why she initially said it wasn’t. If she said it wasn’t urgent, Luan Nian would very likely stand up and return to his desk to continue working.

She suddenly realized, though she might be overthinking, that Luan Nian might be teaching her a lesson.

She cleared her throat and said seriously, “Luke, I understand now. Next time I have something, I’ll say it directly. Whether it’s urgent or not, I’ll state it clearly. Thank you for teaching me.”

Luan Nian raised his eyebrows, his face saying, “Me? Teaching you? Are you okay?”

But Shang Zhitao nodded: “Yes, thank you. I’ve learned.”