When it was time to talk to Mi Cai about Fang Yuan and Chen Jingming changing jobs, I found it hard to bring up the topic. Mi Cai, however, waited patiently all the while.
After a while, I finally said to Mi Cai, “I have a friend named Fang Yuan who works at Poly Department Store. You must remember him, right?”
“Mm, go ahead,” Mi Cai replied in a calm yet authoritative tone, which was typical of her professional demeanor.
I was silent again before finally continuing, “…He and my former boss, Chen Jingming, have encountered some difficulties at Poly Department Store. They are considering… switching to your company, Zhuomei. I wanted to hear your thoughts on this.”
Mi Cai didn’t immediately express her opinion. Instead, she cautiously asked, “What kind of trouble?”
“Just the usual kind from losing a power struggle…”
Mi Cai nodded without appearing too surprised, as power struggles are inevitable in the workplace. Some people benefit while others end up defeated. Chen Jingming, for instance, might lose his career entirely if no one offers him a way out, especially considering his age. Fang Yuan might also end up leaving his hometown, which illustrates how ruthless the workplace, or even life itself, can be. We are all helplessly living in a complex, competitive world, greedily feeding our ugly desires with others’ blood.
“Do you want them to come to Zhuomei?” Mi Cai asked me after a long pause.
“Of course I do, and I believe it would benefit both parties.”
Mi Cai smiled slightly and said, “I know Chen Jingming’s resume. He has deep experience in this industry and has made many contributions to Poly Department Store over the years. I’m just curious why the upper management at Poly would be willing to lose such an excellent mid-level manager due to a power struggle?”
Her probing question made me feel her commanding presence and the precision of her thinking and logic.
After a brief silence, I finally responded, “Do you have any concerns?”
“Not exactly concerns. I just want to understand the whole story. If they join Zhuomei, it could affect the personnel structure in our upper and mid-level management. It’s not wrong to be cautious, right?”
I nodded. Mi Cai’s words indicated that she was open to hiring Chen Jingming and Fang Yuan. I then thoroughly explained to her what had happened to Chen Jingming at Poly Department Store.
After listening, Mi Cai fell silent, as if contemplating how to handle the matter. After a while, she said, “Alright, you arrange a time for me to have a face-to-face talk with them.”
“Great,” I immediately agreed, feeling relieved. Given Mi Cai’s position at Zhuomei, if she was willing to meet with Chen Jingming and Fang Yuan, there was a high chance this matter would be resolved.
“Anything else serious to discuss?” Mi Cai asked me again.
I didn’t fully understand the meaning behind her question, so I thought for a moment and replied, “Nothing else. This is the only serious matter.”
Mi Cai then picked up her handbag and said, “Then I’ll go to CC’s place.”
“It’s already this late! Are you planning to stay at CC’s tonight?”
“Mm.” Mi Cai replied expressionlessly, as if still bothered by my previous question about why she hadn’t gone to CC regarding Wei Ran’s confession.
“CC lives in a studio apartment with just a small wooden bed. It must be a bit cramped for you to stay there.”
“Is that so?”
“Of course. I’ve slept on her bed several times. It’s really small. Two people sleeping there would definitely feel cramped!”
“You’ve slept on CC’s bed, several times?”
I immediately realized my words were inappropriate and hurriedly explained, “That was after I got blackout drunk multiple times. CC is a good girl; she had to take me in, but she always slept on the couch, giving me the bed.”
“You really live a messy life!”
Frowning, I said, “Don’t make this about CC…”
“I meant your messy life refers to getting blackout drunk, where are you going with this?”
Looking at Mi Cai’s half-smiling, half-serious expression, my thoughts were pulled back to those painful memories. It reminded me of the days right after breaking up with Jian Wei when I drank myself into oblivion almost every day at CC’s restaurant, which led to CC repeatedly taking me in. So Mi Cai was right. Switching constantly between sobriety and drunkenness—wasn’t that messy enough?
I fell silent, and Mi Cai didn’t press further. She picked up her handbag from the sofa, stood up, and walked toward the door.
Mi Cai just left, and maybe it was better that way—at least I could smoke a cigarette without restraint again!
The endless depth of the night thickened the smoke from my cigarette, making it heavy. I couldn’t break through this haze and drifted into a daze, feeling weightless. Then, faintly, I saw the outline of that city again, still crystal clear and as beautiful as ever.
But suddenly she began to cry, losing her original form, tearing me apart violently. Amidst the pain of being torn, I seemed to see those happy past moments once again.
…
After washing up, I lay in bed, unwilling to think about anything. I just kept smoking and drifting into spells of absentmindedness until a WeChat notification tone broke the silence.
I picked up my phone and saw a message from CC: “Zhao Yang, something big happened. Wei Ran confessed to Mi’er today?”
The message made me realize that Mi Cai had really gone to CC’s place. However, CC was just exaggerating; this was secondhand news. I already knew this, so I calmly replied, “I know… Mi Cai is with you now, right?”
CC sent a photo. In it, Mi Cai was without makeup, yet her beauty carried into her peaceful slumber. I couldn’t help but admire: This is a goddess. Even after receiving a confession, her sleep remained undisturbed, while someone else was kept awake because of her.
Immediately, I replied to CC: “You’re really taking advantage of the situation! Hurry up and send more photos for me to see.”
CC sent a sweating emoji: “After someone confessed to her, you’re still this calm?”
“Why shouldn’t I be calm? It’s not like the animal kingdom, where once a male shows affection to a female, the other male has to jump in and bite!”
CC sent a laughing emoji: “Zhao Yang, can you not be so humorous…”
I didn’t know how to reply, so I threw my phone aside and lit another cigarette. Yet, I couldn’t help imagining what it would be like if Mi Cai really became Wei Ran’s girlfriend someday, and I felt a sudden breathlessness.
But as I had just told CC, I am, after all, a human being. Being human means I can’t be as simple and straightforward as animals. Right now, I have many human concerns and hesitations that leave me powerless.
Even if I pursued Mi Cai successfully, wouldn’t she, like Jian Wei, eventually grow to hate everything about me?
I dared not continue imagining because I was truly afraid of seeing that crystal-clear city crying and losing its luster again!
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