The next morning, just past 7 a.m., the doorbell suddenly rang. It was early autumn, and the morning air was slightly chilly. I vaguely lifted the blanket and immediately felt the cold, so I quickly put on a T-shirt before heading toward the door. Looking through the peephole, I saw Jian Wei.
I yawned heavily, opened the door for her, and asked in confusion, “How did you know I live here?”
“Your address is clearly written in the company records.” After Jian Wei entered, she glanced around the small room and sighed, “This tiny place? You’re already on the company’s payroll. Is this really necessary?”
“I call it being thrifty.” I took off the T-shirt again and crawled back into bed. I was feeling very sleepy that morning.
This action clearly upset Jian Wei: “Today is the company’s grand opening. Can you please stop sleeping and take this seriously?”
“Isn’t it starting at 9:18? There’s still time. Let me sleep for another half hour.”
“Forget sleeping. Get up and start preparing. I’ll help you design a hairstyle later…”
I interrupted, “Isn’t it just a simple wash, cut, and blow-dry? How long can it take? Why don’t you check my speech for me first and see if it’s appropriate? Then I can take a quick nap.”
“Where is your speech?”
“It’s on the document on my desktop.”
Jian Wei gave me a helpless look, then pulled up a chair and sat at my computer, complaining, “Zhaoyang, could you please take life more seriously? Can’t you shut down your computer before going to bed at night?”
“If I shut it down, I’ll just have to turn it back on again, right?”
Jian Wei sighed helplessly, while I closed my eyes again, overwhelmed by sleepiness. Just as I thought I could finally relax for a moment, her angry voice suddenly rang out: “Zhaoyang… Wake up!”
Still with my eyes closed, I asked, “What’s wrong? Is there a problem with my speech?”
Suddenly, the blanket was pulled off me, and the cold morning air hit my body, which was only wearing underwear. Finally opening my eyes, I looked at Jian Wei. Her anger exceeded my expectations—she was furious!
“What happened?”
“What’s wrong with you?… You… At such a critical moment, you actually went to a matchmaking website to seek a spouse… You’re so irresponsible!”
I rubbed my eyes and looked at the computer screen. Indeed, the registration page from the dating website was still open. However, I didn’t think this was a big deal, so I calmly said to Jian Wei, “Work and personal feelings aren’t conflicting. I believe I can balance both.”
“You’re embarrassing yourself!”
“What? How is registering on a dating website embarrassing?”
“Do you really think you’re so desperate for women?”
“I’m at the age when I should get married. Tell me, am I not in need?”
Jian Wei crossed her arms and glared at me angrily, “I’m just ashamed for you!”
I sneered, “Fine, I admit it’s embarrassing. But so what? I can’t be compared to you goddesses who always have a bunch of high-quality men around. I’m just an ordinary person, repeatedly dumped, so I have no choice but to rely on dating websites for my love life. That’s just how reality treats me. Do you get it?”
“Anyway, I can’t accept you doing something like this!”
“Who cares whether you accept it or not? All you care about is that I, your ex-boyfriend, have sunk so low as to seek love on a dating website, hurting your former pride. This is nothing but a narcissistic, pathological mentality. To be honest, I really don’t like women like you who are always so high and mighty and overly sensitive!”
Jian Wei kept glaring at me. After all this commotion, I was no longer sleepy. I found a pair of beach shorts and put them on before heading to the bathroom, not wanting to communicate with her anymore. However, I had no intention of giving up my need to seek love through the dating website.
While brushing my teeth, I recalled the reactions of both Jian Wei and Leyao when they found out I had registered on a dating website. They both showed extreme disgust. Indeed, one was a rising star in the advertising industry, and the other was a once-popular actress in China, both of whom had emotional entanglements with me. In their eyes, my behavior was nothing but a stain on my image. However, I couldn’t care less. Compared to them, I was just an ordinary man without natural advantages to attract women, so I had to take the initiative to fight for love.
After finishing my morning hygiene routine, I walked out of the bathroom. Jian Wei was still sitting in front of the computer, seemingly looking at my dating profile. Seeing me come out, she finally closed the laptop and said, “It’s almost eight o’clock. Please don’t procrastinate anymore. Today is a big day for the company’s grand opening. There will be many media and social celebrities attending. You must be at your best, understand?”
“Don’t worry. I’ll be fine. I had a good sleep last night!”
“Just try to relax.”
“Relaxing is exactly what I’m best at…”
…
That morning, Jian Wei accompanied me like an assistant. When I went to get my hair done, she helped revise my speech. When I practiced my speech, she adjusted my collar… Actually, I didn’t like this feeling at all. Her excessive care made me long for the days when she was still my girlfriend. However, reality cruelly reminded me that she no longer was.
As I was a bit distracted, my phone rang again in my pocket. I had already received many calls and messages of good wishes that morning.
I took out my phone and saw a WeChat message. The sender surprised me—it was the girl in the red dress I met in Xitang, or more accurately, Anqi from Tianyang Group, a woman who combined beauty, wealth, and a temperamental personality.
“Zhaoyang, I heard today is the grand opening of your company?”
I immediately replied, “Yes. How did you hear about this?”
“With all the promotion efforts you’ve made, of course I know… Congratulations on your grand opening!”
“Thank you.”
“It’s too early to say thanks. I have a generous gift for you later. Isn’t your opening at 9 a.m.?”
“It’s at 9:18… You’re giving me a gift? That’s really unexpected!”
“Don’t talk now. I haven’t had breakfast yet… We’ll continue after we meet in Suzhou.”
I felt puzzled and couldn’t help but ask, “Our relationship isn’t that deep. Knowing you’re giving me a generous gift makes me feel uneasy. What exactly is this gift? Can you tell me in advance?”
No reply came, as if my message had vanished into thin air. She was still as self-willed as ever. To find out her real motive for giving me such a generous gift, I would have to wait until we met later.
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