Gong Yue and the others were hosting a book club in the bar, and Shang Zhitao sat to the side, listening attentively. But in her mind, she was thinking about the “adventure” Luan Nian had mentioned.

Luan Nian sat beside her and asked, “Are you enjoying it?”

“What?”

“The book club.”

“It’s quite fun.” Shang Zhitao liked this atmosphere, where everyone exchanged thoughts about a book and shared their insights, making people no longer feel like isolated islands.

“Have you participated before?” Luan Nian asked her.

“Yes, with…” Shang Zhitao wanted to stay with Sun Yuanzhu, but she remembered how Luan Nian had refused her on the phone last year, saying You’re living with your ambiguous male roommate. She didn’t want Sun Yuanzhu to suffer such criticism, even if he wasn’t present. So she said: “With a group of friends.”

She felt a bit afraid, because before confirming their relationship, Wan Jun had asked her to get rid of Luke, and Xin Zhaozhou had asked her to go to Shenzhen with him. So, in her mind, dating also represented a conditional exchange in certain situations that required sacrifice.

Seeing her vague response, Luan Nian asked, “Do you want to move in with me?”

“What?”

Luan Nian had startled her again. If it had been before, like in the first or second year, when he asked her this, she would have happily agreed. But now, she asked: “What?”

What, representing rejection.

Luan Nian stopped talking. After a while, he stood up: “Let’s go, it’s getting late.”

“Okay.”

The two of them went to eat fish again. When the owner saw Shang Zhitao, he smiled: “Haven’t seen you in a long time.”

“Yes! Been a bit busy.”

Just as she finished speaking, she remembered Luke catching fish here last time. She turned around quickly to look for him, but it was too late—Luke had gone into the water again.

Shang Zhitao was a bit calmer this time and called from the shore: “Come up here, I won’t hit you.”

Luke didn’t listen to her and was especially happy, thinking: Today I must be performing very well, so they brought me swimming. He put in even more effort.

Today, the fish restaurant was crowded, and everyone rushed to the pond’s edge to watch the beautiful Samoyed catching fish. The Samoyed was impressive, catching four big fish in the blink of an eye. Shang Zhitao couldn’t catch Luke and stomped her foot in anger: “Just you wait!” Then she glared at Luan Nian: “Think of something!”

Luan Nian, having enjoyed enough of the spectacle, finally put his fingers to his lips and gave a sharp whistle. Hearing it, Luke swam back, jumped onto the shore, shook off his fur, sat down, and looked at Luan Nian. Shang Zhitao suddenly felt a bit awkward—the dog she had raised for several years listened to Luan Nian.

“See? Dogs need to be trained, too. You feed it every day, but haven’t taught it anything. What can it learn from being with you?” Luan Nian’s words seemed deliberately provocative, angering Shang Zhitao, who glared at him several times, but he acted as if he hadn’t seen it.

Shang Zhitao asked the shop owner for a large towel to dry Luke. While wiping him, she scolded in a low voice: “So you prefer the rich, huh? Whoever gives you meat, you’re good to them, right? I walk you and feed you every day! How can you be so heartless?”

Luke disagreed and naturally talked back. As he talked back, Shang Zhitao became angrier, and the person and dog started arguing.

Luan Nian stood to the side, watching her scold the dog, thinking that Shang Zhitao’s brain would probably always be like this. Arguing so energetically with a dog, when his method of training with two pieces of meat would be more effective.

Their newly repaired relationship made them both cautious, afraid that one wrong move would return them to square one. Luan Nian drove Shang Zhitao home and asked as she was getting out of the car: “Is anyone home?”

“No.”

“Can I come up for a bit?” Luan Nian proactively suggested coming up, which surprised Shang Zhitao, who reflexively asked: “Why?”

“?”

“I promised my roommates we wouldn’t bring strangers home.”

“If I recall correctly, we were very intimate last night.”

Shang Zhitao’s face turned slightly red. She got out of the car, took Luke, and said to Luan Nian: “It’s late, goodnight.”

Days passed uneventfully. During this time, Shang Zhitao went to the Northwest twice and rented an apartment in that small county. Lu Mi’s mind was full of thoughts about sleeping with Will, but Will never gave her another chance. He still found her annoying when he did, and still scolded her when he needed to. By summer, Shang Zhitao’s assignment was finally about to take effect. She was very happy and sent Sun Yuanzhu an address, asking him: “How far is this from you?”

Sun Yuanzhu replied at noon: “Sorry, I was just doing a test. It’s less than thirty kilometers from me. What’s up?”

Shang Zhitao was particularly happy and called him. As soon as the call connected, her excited voice came through: “Sun Yuanzhu, I applied for an S+ project assignment, and the address I just sent you is the house I rented!”

“Really?” Sun Yuanzhu was very happy: “How long is the assignment? When will you arrive?”

“I’ll be there in half a month!”

“Then I need to take time off to be your tour guide for two days and take you around, okay?”

“Okay.”

After hanging up, Lu Mi came over and asked her: “So happy about seeing Brother Yuanzhu?”

“Just good friends.”

“Not considering upgrading your good friend to official status?”

Shang Zhitao quickly shook her head: “Don’t talk nonsense.”

Lu Mi laughed a couple of times, then told her: “Did you know, I heard your planning department has a new girl, 22 years old, a Columbia graduate, won major awards during her studies, and brought in resources. The company hired her with a high salary.”

“Wow, 22 years old. I bet she has a high position?”

“Same level as you.” Lu Mi patted her shoulder: “Sister, the survival environment in the planning department is too harsh, the competition is too fierce. Why don’t you come back to the marketing department?”

“Your Will, for whatever reason, also really dislikes me. I’m not going back to the marketing department either.” The two of them chatted and laughed it off.

The day after Lu Mi gossiped with Shang Zhitao, that girl arrived. The 22-year-old girl wore a high-end dress, had a crisp and minimalist aura, was beautiful, and naturally became a picture just standing there. Tracy brought her into Luan Nian’s office. Shang Zhitao saw Luan Nian stand up to greet her. They shook hands, and the girl’s face turned slightly red.

Lu Mi messaged Shang Zhitao: “Flora, do you know what smell I just caught?”

“What smell?”

“A talented man, a beautiful woman, a perfect match, the smell of an affair.”

“Nonsense. They’re many years apart!”

“Are you sure? Would a young girl mind Luke’s age? Young girls would throw themselves at him and then brag about it to people around them. Whether a man is charming has little to do with age. Age affects duration, hardness, and endurance, but these things can be compensated for with technique and vanity. You’re too naive.” Lu Mi was talking nonsense again.

“Are you sure age affects duration and hardness?” Shang Zhitao asked her.

Lu Mi sent a thinking emoji: “I haven’t slept with anyone that old, wait until I sleep with Will, who’s in his thirties, and I’ll tell you.”

Shang Zhitao couldn’t help but laugh at her workstation, thinking I could tell you, based on current judgment, there’s no effect. Or maybe those in their twenties are more vigorous, but she hadn’t experienced that.

Lu Mi was now obsessed, thinking every day about how to sleep with Will. Their first words to each other every morning were:

Will Lu Mi be able to sleep with Will today?

And the last thing they said before bed was definitely:

Lu Mi didn’t sleep with Will today, must try harder tomorrow!

Shang Zhitao didn’t say anything more but glanced at Luan Nian’s office while getting water. They were discussing something, and all three people in the office were laughing.

The girl’s name was Song Ying, English name Yilia, a name that suited her well. Luan Nian personally brought her out to meet the planning department colleagues. Shang Zhitao heard Luan Nian introduce her: “This is Yilia, a young genius who will help us tackle some difficult projects.”

Luan Nian had never said he was bringing someone in to help with difficult projects. In his eyes, there were no difficult projects, only stupid people. Also, no one had ever received the treatment of Luan Nian personally introducing them when they first joined the company, so when everyone looked at Yilia, there was some fake friendliness—friendliness under pressure from authority. When it came to Shang Zhitao, it was the same few sentences.

Yilia will sit next to Flora. Flora will be going to the Northwest for an assignment soon. Before she leaves, get familiar with the work from her. She knows the company’s processes best.”

“Hello, Flora.” Song Ying extended her hand to Shang Zhitao: “Please guide me.”

Shang Zhitao had never shaken such a soft hand. Someone with such hands must be beloved by heaven, spared from any hardship.

“Yilia, I need to learn a lot from you.”

“We learn from each other as we teach,” Yilia said, neither humble nor proud.

Shang Zhitao suddenly remembered her first day at work, like a frightened bird, afraid of being fired for making mistakes, her heart full of trepidation. She didn’t have Yilia’s confident demeanor.

Five years had passed just like that.

She thought as she sat down.

Yilia wasn’t like Kitty either. Her credentials were more impressive than Kitty’s, but her personality was very good. By the time work was almost over, she had already bonded with colleagues, except for Shang Zhitao, who kept her head down studying project materials. While accompanying Grace during her breast pumping session, Grace said: “Yilia is like a little sun. Luke must be very satisfied; her onboarding mentor is Luke.”

“It’s great to have talent,” Shang Zhitao sincerely praised her. But at that time, she just said this. She couldn’t imagine what it was like for someone to truly have talent. It was on the day before her departure, in the conference room, when she saw Yilia present her design for a client. All hand-drawn, exquisitely beautiful.

“I gathered a lot of information, but I’m not sure if I understood it correctly. Based on the client’s style, I hope their print advertisements appear in this style.” She picked up a stack of drawing paper from the floor and showed everyone: “The story I want to tell is about a flower grower who lives at the edge of the sky. Her flowers bloom only once every ten years. During these ten years, she needs to stay there constantly, waiting for the flowers to bloom. This is the craftsmanship spirit that this flower client wants to embody.”

“After the flowers bloom, hundreds of people seek them. The flower grower looks at the men and women of the world and gives ten beautiful flowers to them, meaning the flowers go to those with whom they have affinity.”

“…”

As Yilia spoke seriously, Shang Zhitao thought she was truly radiant. In her hands were her drawings, integrating mythology with flowers, people with love. Her presentation was coherent and logical, every sentence meeting the client’s needs and tone. She was truly a person who knew how to tell stories.

Such a young woman, such a dazzling person.

Shang Zhitao saw Luan Nian smile.

He rarely smiled in meetings, but today he did. His eyes looked at Yilia with a bright light.

Everyone was praising Yilia, thinking this girl was impressive. Grace looked at Shang Zhitao and said: “Fortunately, she won’t compete with you for the expert position next year. The company requires at least five years of employment, otherwise, it would be hard to say which of you would win.”

“She’s very impressive.”

It was an impressiveness that Shang Zhitao could never possess. Some people are born with such abilities, while others, no matter how hard they try later, still fall far behind.

As the meeting ended, Shang Zhitao saw Yilia walk up to Luan Nian and ask him earnestly: “Luke, how should I adjust this creative version? I’d like some advice from you.”

Luan Nian took her drawings and looked at them, telling her: “I have no comments, submit it to the client and market for verification.”

“Thank you for guiding me the other day, it was enlightening,” Yilia sincerely thanked him.

Teaching and learning, giving and receiving, time had come full circle, as if back to the beginning. But this time the person was different. She was beautiful, smart, talented, calm, and humble, so dazzling. She was the type of subordinate and student that Luan Nian greatly admired.

That night, while Shang Zhitao was packing up, she saw Yilia and another colleague still in Luan Nian’s office. They were having a great conversation. Luan Nian truly loved work, Shang Zhitao knew. He enjoyed working with smart people; it made him happy.

He had finally found joy in his work.

Shang Zhitao was happy for him too.

She got on the subway and received his call: “Why didn’t you wait for me?”

“I’m going home to pack my luggage.”

“You’re changing your mind on plans we’ve already made?”

They had originally agreed that Luan Nian would accompany Shang Zhitao to pack her luggage after work today, and tomorrow he would take her to the airport.

“I saw you were still working, and it’s getting late.”

“Just tell me, what’s wrong?” Luan Nian was a bit angry; he didn’t understand why Shang Zhitao would change her mind suddenly. When he was angry, his tone wasn’t very nice.

“It’s too late, I need to go home and pack.”

“Your flight’s in the afternoon, what’s the rush?”

“I changed it to a morning flight.”

“Why?”

“I want to go earlier.”

“What’s the hurry? Is there someone you’re eager to see?” Luan Nian hung up the phone. He hated Shang Zhitao’s unexplained mood swings and her attitude of not saying a proper goodbye before her departure.

Shang Zhitao’s eyes reddened on the subway, but she sniffled and texted Luan Nian: “I ordered home appliances, and they called today to coordinate delivery time, moving it up to tomorrow afternoon.”

Even though she was very angry, she still wanted to explain to Luan Nian.

Luan Nian saw her message when he got home and drove out again. There was no traffic late at night, and he reached her community entrance in twenty minutes. He asked her: “Finished packing?”

“Yes, finished.”

“Come down.”

“Okay.”

Shang Zhitao went downstairs and saw Luan Nian leaning against his car smoking. She took the cigarette, put it out, and threw it in the trash can. Seeing his unpleasant expression, she stood in front of him, wrapped her arms around his waist, and hugged him.

She was appeasing him, showing vulnerability.

Seeing that Luan Nian didn’t move, she took his hand and put it around her waist, stood on tiptoe to kiss his jaw, unable to reach his lips. Luan Nian finally smiled: “Shorty.”

“I’m one point seven one, five meters,” Shang Zhitao objected, quibbling over 0.5 centimeters.

“You’re one meter seventy-two, rounded up.” Luan Nian rubbed her head, opened the back door of the car, and took out a backpack with its packaging already removed: “Change to this bag.”

“…Oh. Why did you remove the packaging?”

“Otherwise, it would collect dust at your place?” Luan Nian had her put it on and adjusted the shoulder straps for her, casually asking: “Shang Zhitao, did you sell all the bags I gave you?”

Shang Zhitao quickly shook her head: “No!”

Luan Nian looked at her: “Go on up, Ms. Shang. I wish you a smooth journey to the Northwest.”

“Then I wish you happiness at work and in life.”

“You should wish that I get angry less often!”

Shang Zhitao didn’t know what others were like before leaving. She finally took her luggage to Luan Nian’s home. On the way, she asked him: “Will you come see me?”

“You chose to go to the Northwest.” Luan Nian’s meaning was: why didn’t you think about leaving me when you made that choice?

“Then I’ll come back to see you.”

“I might not be here.”

Shang Zhitao finally understood that Luan Nian was still sulking. He was just that kind of person—petty, vindictive. If he were angry, it might take a long time to appease him.

That night, Shang Zhitao was beneath him, her legs wrapped around his waist, her body seeking his. He dodged, pressing her hands to her sides: “Why so eager, Flora?”

Shang Zhitao couldn’t move her hands and was anxious, feeling empty inside. She suddenly became angry at Luan Nian’s arrogant attitude.

After quieting down, a few seconds later she said to him: “Please let go of me.”

“I don’t want to do it anymore.”

Neither knew what they were being petty about. Shang Zhitao was bothered by his special attention to Yilia, while Luan Nian was bothered by her urgent desire to go to the Northwest. Yet they both felt these thoughts were ridiculous and couldn’t be openly acknowledged.

Neither spoke. Luan Nian went to the bathroom, and when he came out, Shang Zhitao had already gone to the guest room.

They each lay in bed, angry. In the middle of the night, Shang Zhitao hugged Luan Nian from behind, her hand slipping into his T-shirt. Sun Yu often said she had no backbone, saying: “Shang Zhitao, can’t you hold out a bit? Why do you always give in during every fight? Why are you always the one comforting him?”

Shang Zhitao told Sun Yu: “It’s not like that, I don’t feel like I’m giving in. I’m just trying to communicate well with him.”

“Does he communicate well with you?”

“He’s much better now.”

Shang Zhitao thought many things couldn’t be compared horizontally. You couldn’t compare Luan Nian with other men—other men who hold their girlfriends in the palms of their hands and never say a harsh word. If compared like that, Luan Nian would truly be unacceptable. You had to compare vertically, comparing the current him with his past self. Wasn’t he much better now?

Her hand moved inside his T-shirt, her fingertips feeling his tense body. Luan Nian turned around, and Shang Zhitao’s hair fell on his face, pricking him with a tingling sensation in his heart. That tingling spread from his neck downward, a fire burning so intensely he had no choice but to sit up, grab her hair at the back of her head, and forcefully pull her in, his hand pressing hard on her waist.

They didn’t often use this position. Shang Zhitao couldn’t bear it, her hands patting his back, but Luan Nian liked it. His hands on her waist pressed harder until Shang Zhitao let out one hoarse sound. Only then did he suddenly flip over, placing her beneath him.

Each thrust was lethally fierce, as if wanting to use up all his future strength in this one night.

At the end, Luan Nian’s hand pinched her face and said to her: “If you miss me, come back.”

“Or I’ll come see you.”