Chapter 120: The Battle

The last time Shang Zhitao cried in front of Luan Nian was years ago.

That day, she had completely broken down. Holding Luke’s leash, she walked away from his house and wandered for a long, long time in the snow. Luan Nian remembered that day—he had followed her from behind but never stepped forward.

Later, he regretted countless times why he hadn’t embraced her when she was crying so hard.

This time, Luan Nian walked up to her, sighed, and pulled her into his arms. Shang Zhitao rested her forehead against his chest, and though there was still some distance between them, she cried her heart out. Her tears soaked through his clothes, dampening his chest. He wanted to hug her tightly but sensed her resistance. So he loosened his grip and let her lean on him.

After she wiped her tears, feeling a bit awkward, she thanked him, gently pushed him away, and took a step back.

“Are you here to see Luke?”

“Yes. I planned to come after the lockdown ended, but many things delayed me.”

“Alright, I’ll bring him down. Wait a moment.”

Shang Zhitao went upstairs to fetch Luke. They hadn’t seen each other for several months, and Luke went wild again. He grabbed his leash with his mouth and handed it to Luan Nian, signaling him to walk him around in circles. During this time, Shang Zhitao said twice that it was time to go home, but Luke either sat stubbornly or turned his neck backward—refusing to leave.

“It’s fine. I’ll walk him a little longer.”

“No need. Come upstairs and play with him.”

“Is it convenient?” Luan Nian asked.

Luan Nian had never asked her if something was convenient before. He always did whatever he wanted, acting on impulse. Shang Zhitao thought carefully: “It’s fine. Come up.”

Upon hearing this, Luke tugged Luan Nian forward: “Quick, let’s go home.”

As soon as they entered, Luke drank half a bowl of water. Walking for so long outside had made him incredibly thirsty. After drinking, he let out a small whine and collapsed on the floor, looking at Luan Nian and Shang Zhitao.

Shang Zhitao fetched a pair of slippers for Luan Nian and pointed to the sofa: “Sit.”

“Okay.”

This was Luan Nian’s first time visiting Shang Zhitao’s home. Her place was decorated warmly, especially the book wall in the living room—it exuded coziness.

“Do you want to look around?” she asked him.

“Sure.”

Shang Zhitao gave Luan Nian a tour of her home. She had converted one of the bedrooms into a gym, while the other two—a master bedroom and a guest room—were decorated simply.

“You sit for a bit. I’ll boil some water.” Shang Zhitao told him before heading to the kitchen.

Luan Nian stood in front of the book wall, randomly pulling out a book. On the first page, he found a bookmark with notes written in strong, bold handwriting—but it wasn’t Shang Zhitao’s.

Her handwriting wasn’t like that. Luan Nian gently placed the book back.

“Is warm water okay? There are no cold drinks at home—I haven’t had time to buy any. Besides, we’re all getting older. It’s better not to drink too much cold stuff.”

...

Luan Nian instinctively wanted to say something to her but remembered Tan Mian and the others repeatedly warning him before he came: “Don’t mess things up.” He swallowed his words and accepted the glass of water Shang Zhitao handed him.

“What happened to you just now?”

“Nothing. I just got the money from mortgaging my property, and it made me feel a bit uneasy.”

“Why mortgage your property?”

“Because our company is struggling to survive. Fewer companies are holding events this year, but employee expenses and rent still need to be paid. Plus, there are hundreds of thousands of unpaid balances stuck.”

“Mm.” Luan Nian grunted, lowering his head to drink.

“If you have something to say, just say it.”

“I want to ask: what’s wrong with you? Why didn’t you prepare a backup plan for your business? Are you running blindly down one path? Oh, you want to start an agency? Then why didn’t you start earlier?” Luan Nian couldn’t hold back anymore. When he became serious, he was quite intimidating.

“I didn’t have the startup capital.”

“I do.”

Luan Nian’s simple statement, “I do,” silenced Shang Zhitao. She looked at him. In the past, she had relied heavily on him. Whenever something happened, she would think, “I need to consult Luke; he’ll guide me.” But now, she had moved beyond that dependence, building her own mental framework. She didn’t even like relying on anyone anymore.

She took out her bank card and placed it on the table: “I mortgaged my property, sold my car, and I still have some savings. I can start over.”

“Luan Nian, I don’t need your help. Though I know you mean well, thank you. This time, I want to rely on myself. And in the future, I also want to rely on myself.”

Shang Zhitao disliked dependency.

Having burned her bridges, she was prepared to lose everything but also determined to succeed. After all, more than a dozen people were waiting for her decisions.

“So why were you crying just now?”

“...I don’t know. I cry when I want to cry. Do I need a reason to cry?”

Luke sensed the tension between them, stood up suddenly, and ran to sit between them, facing Luan Nian, sticking out his tongue.

“You don’t need a reason to cry, but now you should think about what to do since I have nothing to wear.”

“What do you mean? Aren’t you wearing clothes?”

“I don’t like going out in dirty clothes.”

“I’ll buy you new ones right now.”

Shang Zhitao stood up and walked out. Luan Nian followed her out the door.

“Aren’t you the one who doesn’t like going out in dirty clothes?”

“Don’t you need to try on clothes? Do you even know my size?”

“Just buy something random.”

“I never do ‘random.’”

Shang Zhitao no longer had a car, and Luan Nian hadn’t driven here. The two stood by the roadside. Luan Nian, hands in his pockets, watched Shang Zhitao hail a taxi, beads of sweat still clinging to his nose. Suddenly, he remembered the first business trip to Guangzhou, and how he had been momentarily distracted when his eyes swept over her face during dinner.

“How does it feel to have nothing?” Luan Nian finally spoke.

Shang Zhitao looked up at him: “It feels terrible, but also kind of liberating. At the end of the day, I’m a gambler.” She laughed, still the lively girl she used to be.

Then, wishing her success!

They had never gone shopping together before.

Entering the mall, Shang Zhitao intended to head straight for the men’s clothing section, but Luan Nian veered into a café, ordered an iced Americano, a bottle of sparkling water, and a slice of cake, then sat by the window.

He slid the sparkling water toward Shang Zhitao, and they sat facing each other.

The weather in Ice City nearing summer was pleasant. For once, they weren’t arguing, setting aside their past grievances, and simply sat together for a while.

Luan Nian shared some things with Shang Zhitao.

He talked about his parents returning to the country and how he visited them every week for meals. He also mentioned Song Qiuhan and Chen Kuannian, whom Shang Zhitao had met before, and shared stories about Song Qiuhan and Lin Chun’er, as well as Chen Kuannian and Xiao Mei.

His words came intermittently, but she listened attentively.

When it came to Chen Kuannian, Shang Zhitao said: “Thank him. He paid the final installment for his collection exhibition on time, just before payday.”

Luan Nian’s lips twitched slightly. Chen Kuannian didn’t dare delay payment—it was Luan Nian who had pressured him into transferring the funds.

“So, how do you plan to handle advertising agency work?” Luan Nian asked her seriously.

“I have a roommate who works in commercialization at an internet company. I’ve been learning about the current state of the industry from him and am preparing to start studying as well.”

“Studying what?”

“All kinds of certifications for advertising professionals.” Shang Zhitao thought for a moment: “Internet advertising is different from the traditional ad models we used at Lingmei. While the underlying logic is similar, many of the strategies are different. So, I’m planning for everyone in our company to get certified first. No rushing into jobs—only working with proper qualifications.”

Luan Nian nodded: “What about clients? The agency system has already saturated the lower-tier markets, and most clients have already been divided among competitors.”

“Some supermarkets and real estate clients I’ve worked with before agreed to let us run test campaigns. So, I’m planning to apply for those two tracks first.”

“Not bad.”

“Do you have any other suggestions?”

“Aren’t you determined to rely on yourself?”

“But I can still listen to your advice.”

“My advice is simple: just go for it. Trust yourself.” Luan Nian stood up. “Come on, let’s buy clothes.”

“Alright.”

Shang Zhitao led him to the men’s clothing floor: “Pick a store. I don’t know what brands you like.”

Luan Nian walked into a random store and pointed to a piece of clothing: “This one.”

The salesperson, seeing his distinguished demeanor, tried to persuade him: “There’s a sale going on—you could buy a few more pieces.”

Luan Nian turned to Shang Zhitao: “Two pieces?”

To outsiders, it sounded like he was being kept by her.

Shang Zhitao hesitated for a moment and said: “One.”

“Then you pay.”

“? “

“Who else would? Should I pay? Why should I?”

Shang Zhitao noticed the salesperson’s strange expression but didn’t want to argue. She paid and left the mall: “Why aren’t you changing into it?”

“It hasn’t been washed yet.”

She knew Luan Nian had a bit of a cleanliness obsession, but she hadn’t expected it to persist after all these years. Still, she respected people’s quirks now and nodded: “Then wash it when you get home before wearing it.”

“Alright.”

As dusk fell, Luan Nian watched her standing there under the fading light, clean and alone. His heart stirred.

“Shang Zhitao, I’ll come see Luke again tomorrow before heading to the airport. If there’s a chance in the future, I’ll visit again.”

“You can come see Luke anytime.”

“Good.”

Luan Nian took a step closer to her, looking directly into her eyes: “There’s something I think I need to tell you personally. Back when you were competing for the expert position, there were two abnormal questionnaires. They weren’t scored by me. If you can recall, the highest comprehensive score was mine. You always told me to be fair, and I was. Now I’ll ask you this: do you believe me?”

Shang Zhitao’s eyes grew warm. She had known the truth long ago. Less than six months after she left, Grace had been forced out of Lingmei due to bribery and unfair competition. Given Luan Nian’s temperament, he should have sent her to jail, but she had young children, so he showed mercy. The other low-scoring questionnaire came from another expert reviewer. The company had sent out an email to all employees, and shortly after reconnecting with Lumi, Lumi had immediately sent her a screenshot and said: “You deserve it.”

“So, my score reflected my attitude toward you. If you think that when you first joined Lingmei, your abilities were lacking, your confidence was low, and even when you left, you felt I looked down on you, then I must clarify this: you were indeed lacking when you started, but by the time you left, you were the best employee I’d ever had.”

Shang Zhitao suddenly remembered those six years—coming and going through wind and rain, never stopping for a moment, enduring through gritted teeth.

With tears in her eyes, she said to Luan Nian: “Thank you.”

“You can cry if you want. You’ve already cried today, so no need to hold back.”

Luan Nian really knew how to ruin the mood—he always found ways to pour cold water on emotions. Shang Zhitao laughed through her tears, wiping them away with her fingertips: “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

Luan Nian turned and walked away.

Tan Mian and the others had told him: “Human relationships require sincerity in exchange.” He was just beginning to learn that love was a long-term practice. But he was too late—he had already missed the time when Shang Zhitao loved him.

Shang Zhitao watched Luan Nian walk away. After returning home, she initiated an online meeting. Her new partners were all online. Fu Dong led a few people to focus on sales, while the rest were assigned to Fu Dong’s classmate, Fang Ke, to work alongside other girls as ad operators and campaign managers.

During the meeting, Shang Zhitao said: “I know we’re starting late, and I know this might not be the best timing. But I’ve mortgaged my property and sold my car—I’m not planning to turn back.”

“So, comrades, are we ready to fight?”