At noon, Mi Cai and I went to the restaurant downstairs. Perhaps because we had been repeatedly troubled by Fang Yuan’s matter these past two days, neither of us felt like talking much. We sat silently on opposite sides of the table. She flipped through a magazine while I played with my lighter.
Finally, I put down the lighter, trying to break the silence, and said to her, “Let’s talk about something light-hearted.”
Mi Cai closed the magazine. It seemed she also disliked using it to kill time while silence consumed us. She asked, “What do you think is a light-hearted topic?”
“We could talk about your plans after returning from the U.S. Didn’t we agree before to make time to travel together?”
Mi Cai finally smiled and said, “Yes, after returning and finishing the work integration post-IPO, I should be able to find some free time.”
I nodded, suddenly remembering something and asked her, “How many places have you been to in China?”
“Not many, why?”
“We could travel domestically for now. I recently had an idea: I want to build a music caravan, form a band, and then go on a tour along the artistic path I’m about to create…”
Mi Cai seemed interested in my caravan idea and asked, “Are you planning to perform too?”
“Yes, I’ll definitely participate in the first stage of performances. Imagine it: carrying your favorite guitar, traveling with the caravan to every place that appeals to young artists across the country. Each night ends with an exhilarating performance, and each morning, we head to another city as the sun rises… Isn’t that great?”
Mi Cai nodded, “Hmm… will you invite me to join you?”
“Of course, you absolutely must come with me, and also CC, Robben…” I became increasingly excited, raising my tone a few notches, “Combining music and travel to serve our dreams—I can’t think of anything more exciting than this. Most importantly, the woman I love most will be traveling with me. You know, just thinking about it gives me a sense of happiness, which has been extremely rare in my life!”
“I’m also excited about your plan. Since studying in the U.S., I’ve rarely had the opportunity to travel with my camera and photograph the scenery along the way…”
I held her hand and asked, “Don’t you feel happy just because I’m by your side on this journey? Always thinking about your camera!”
Mi Cai looked at me helplessly and smiled, “You interrupted me before I finished. Of course, you’re more important than the camera. The camera only records images and scenery, but having you by my side is what truly makes my soul travel!”
“This answer hits the nail on the head. I like it… So we’re agreed. Once you return from the U.S., we’ll immediately start the music caravan plan.”
“Agreed. It’s our promise.”
“Great, let’s seal it with a high five. If I fail to deliver, I’ll never touch the guitar again.”
“Deal. If I fail to deliver, I’ll never touch the camera again.”
We smiled and slapped our hands together. The anxiety caused by our differing opinions at Fang Yuan’s workplace was finally released in this moment. I really wished to stay in this moment without pulling away. Even though our music caravan plan had not yet begun, the excitement generated by anticipation was already enough to make me reluctant to leave!
…
After finishing lunch at the restaurant, we each went off to attend to our own business. Mi Cai went to her villa to pack her luggage for the U.S., while I called Fang Yuan. Regardless of the outcome, I still needed to return to him the resignation letter he had asked me to pass on to Mi Cai. However, I really didn’t understand why Mi Cai had done this.
On this rainy afternoon, I met Fang Yuan again at the bar “The Fifth Season.” He looked very down, probably because he had drunk too much the previous night.
It wasn’t the bar’s business hours, so the hall only had me, Fang Yuan, and a bartender. This time, I didn’t order any alcohol, just two mild drinks. Then I took out the resignation letter from my briefcase and handed it to Fang Yuan, saying, “Mi Cai wants you to submit this resignation letter to her personally.”
Fang Yuan looked up at me, his eyes immediately filled with pain, but he didn’t say anything, perhaps already mentally prepared to leave Zhuo Mei.
I quickly added, “Don’t think too much about it. Mi Cai wants you to accompany us to the airport to see her off the day after tomorrow. Initially, she wanted you to submit the resignation letter to her personally. When I talked to her about it a second time, she didn’t mention the letter again. Anyway, it’ll all be clear the day after tomorrow.”
Fang Yuan sighed deeply and put the resignation letter into the inner pocket of his suit. After a while, he said to me, “This morning when I went to the company, I had already received notice from the HR department that all the projects I was working on have been suspended… Now it’s just a matter of time before the official termination notice comes out. It might be better if I resign voluntarily…”
I tried to persuade him again, “Mi Cai’s thoughts are always hard to fathom. Don’t rush. Let’s wait and see. She’s probably still weighing things up, otherwise it wouldn’t have been just a suspension of work.”
Fang Yuan finally nodded, “I have no choice but to be patient!”
I nodded along with him and handed him a cigarette, asking, “By the way, what does Chen Jingming think about what you’re going through now?”
Fang Yuan lit the cigarette and took several deep puffs in silence before replying, “He hasn’t commented at all.”
“What… you didn’t talk to him about this?”
“No, I don’t want to make him uncomfortable… But he is the favorite of General Manager Mi. There’s no reason he wouldn’t know about this. If he wanted to get involved, he would have approached me by now.”
I didn’t say anything, but I was quite surprised by Chen Jingming’s attitude. After all, both Fang Yuan and I were considered his protégés in the planning industry. His silence at this moment was hard to interpret. Could it be a form of selfish self-preservation?… I didn’t want to believe that, but I could only explain it that way!
I had no right to blame Chen Jingming for his attitude this time. Finally, I said to Fang Yuan, “If you really can’t stay at Zhuo Mei this time, please seriously consider our Lucku… It’s a company that Jane and Yang Chongrong have invested in wholeheartedly, and its future development prospects won’t be bad. I can assure you that choosing to return to your hometown to start a business at this time would definitely not be a wise decision… Then, not only would you have to take care of Yan Yan, but all the endless trivialities and obstacles in the process of entrepreneurship would drive you to the brink of collapse!”
Fang Yuan’s face showed a rare sign of negativity. After a while, he said to me, “Let’s talk about it later…”
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