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“Pay by the second.” After giving the address, Luan Nian hung up.
Shang Zhitao quickly brushed her teeth, washed her face, threw on a large T-shirt, and headed out. The address Luan Nian sent was for a café, bustling with people. When she arrived, he was already there, seated in a corner where he could see the entire café at a glance.
Luan Nian glanced at Shang Zhitao’s unkempt appearance, guessing that this was probably how she’d always be—plain-faced, unremarkable wherever she went.
“Sit here.” He pointed to the seat next to him. Shang Zhitao sat down and noticed Luan Nian pushing a plate of chocolate waffles toward her. “Didn’t eat breakfast?”
“No.”
“Eat before we start working.”
He seemed unusually amiable today, making Shang Zhitao wonder if he had been possessed by something strange. She really was hungry, but after just a few bites, she stopped.
“On a diet?” Luan Nian suddenly asked.
“Not exactly... I feel sick if I eat too many sweets when I’m hungry...” Shang Zhitao felt a little embarrassed. She wasn’t picky about food, but she did have a small quirk: she couldn’t handle too much sweetness when she was starving.
“Still hungry now?”
“No.”
“Then let’s get to work.” Luan Nian pulled the USB drive from his laptop and handed it to her. “Copy the Q4 project inventory folder onto your computer.”
“Okay.”
Shang Zhitao quickly copied the files, then waited for Luan Nian’s instructions.
“Organize the data, compare new customer additions from Q3, analyze the quarter-over-quarter contract amounts, screen service items, and summarize the data results. Write conclusions. Did I make myself clear?”
“Yes.” Shang Zhitao immediately got to work. Luan Nian watched her for five minutes. One redeeming quality about her was her proficiency with office software; all her formulas were handwritten, demonstrating solid skills. Watching her focus, lips pressed tight, fully absorbed in her work, ignoring everything around her, was impressive.
Luan Nian lowered his head and returned to his own tasks.
After finishing the basic data organization, Shang Zhitao also sorted through each salesperson’s data. The sales department at Lingmei was a powerhouse, their performance unmatched in the industry. Even so, analyzing their data together revealed various issues—contract cycles, amounts, and different services agreed upon with clients. Confused, Shang Zhitao frowned deeply as she thought for a long time.
“What’s wrong?” Luan Nian noticed she hadn’t typed anything for a while.
“I don’t understand. This contract was first reported in May but only signed on July 1st. And this one. Every salesperson has similar cases.”
“Can’t figure it out?” Luan Nian asked.
“No.”
“Look at it through the lens of KPIs.” Luan Nian gave her a hint, then returned to his laptop.
This was typical of Luan Nian—he never directly told Shang Zhitao the answers but made her think for herself. She opened the KPI spreadsheet and studied it carefully for a long time. Slowly, something clicked. In a soft voice, she asked Luan Nian, “I see they exceeded their Q2 targets slightly, so were these clients carried over to Q3?”
A faint smile tugged at the corners of Luan Nian’s mouth. “Not too dumb after all.” Seeing her nod, he asked further, “If it were you, how would you solve this issue?”
“I don’t know.”
“And what do you use your brain for? Think.”
“Okay.”
Shang Zhitao thought hard again. Though she hadn’t managed sales before, she had spent the past two months handling market budget management. Sometimes, projects with excess budgets were carried over to the next month or quarter—it was an unspoken rule. At Lingmei, salespeople who met 100% of their targets received full bonuses.
After much deliberation, she tentatively asked Luan Nian, “Increase the targets a bit?”
Luan Nian chuckled at this. “Just raise the targets outright? Do you think they’ll all quit tomorrow?”
“Huh?”
“What’s ‘huh’?” Luan Nian closed his laptop and took the table Shang Zhitao had prepared. There were no errors in the data, and the analysis logic was clear. “This part of the work is good to go.”
“Okay.” Shang Zhitao responded but remained seated.
“Not leaving?”
“You haven’t answered my earlier question yet.”
“Use your overtime pay to cover tuition fees.”
“That doesn’t seem right…” Hearing that her overtime pay would be deducted, Shang Zhitao tried bargaining. “Why don’t you teach me on a weekday when you’re free? I’m not in such a hurry anyway.”
Blatantly bending for survival.
Resilience.
That word suddenly came to Luan Nian’s mind. Shang Zhitao embodied genuine resilience. She had unintentionally grabbed a good hand but was cautiously afraid of losing this round, striving to find a balance within it.
“Tiered sales rewards—not just based on completing tasks, but segmenting performance into tiers. Top performers might earn more, while weaker ones will effectively face salary cuts. Companies can use this method to identify talent, incentivize employees, and weed out underperformers. That’s one answer.” Luan Nian explained, “If you’re interested, ask Tracy. I spoke with her yesterday afternoon.”
“Wow, amazing. Learned something new.” Shang Zhitao was delighted but found his tone odd. “What do you mean by my Tracy… Why is Tracy mine…”
Luan Nian ignored her questions and checked the time—it was already 5 PM. He asked Shang Zhitao, “Are you still hungry?”
“Yes,” she replied honestly.
“Let’s grab something to eat.”
Something to eat? Was Luan Nian treating her? Was she getting a meal paid for by her boss? Because she worked overtime on the weekend? Or because she was overly adorable? No, how dare she let her boss treat her? Did she want to lose her job?
Shang Zhitao’s mind raced with thoughts. After considering her remaining budget for the month, she finally blurted out, “Are we splitting the bill?”
Luan Nian paused mid-action while packing his laptop and looked at her coolly. “You’re splitting the bill with your boss?”
“Otherwise...”
“You’re treating.”
With those two words, Luan Nian turned and walked out, his expression serious, showing he meant it. Shang Zhitao followed behind, thinking to herself that she couldn’t pretend to be wealthy. Her father once said that relationships should be harmonious or else they fall apart. Even if he was her boss, he shouldn’t take advantage of her.
They set off, and Shang Zhitao noticed Luan Nian driving toward unfamiliar territory. To be honest, aside from areas near her company and home, she didn’t know much of Beijing.
“Any dietary restrictions?” Luan Nian saw Shang Zhitao staying silent and thought the silly girl was truly scared. When would she learn to hide her feelings and anxieties instead of wearing them on her sleeve?
“No.”
“Then let’s go eat fish.”
“Huh?”
Luan Nian didn’t elaborate further, focusing on driving up the mountain. He frequented a trout farm on the mountain where they served freshly caught rainbow trout cooked in an iron pot, rich in flavor.
The mountain road was dark, with few lights. Luan Nian drove slowly and eventually pulled over by the roadside. Noticing Shang Zhitao’s wide eyes, he teased, “Afraid I’ll kill you and dump your body?”
...
Shang Zhitao froze, remembering Luan Nian’s usually aloof demeanor. He really did resemble a serial killer who disposed of bodies. Trying to stay calm, she said, “I told my roommate before leaving that I was working overtime with my boss. I also gave her your contact information.”
“Really!” Shang Zhitao added, pulling out her phone to show him. She hadn’t lied—she had sent Luan Nian’s number to someone.
A young woman living alone must have basic self-protection instincts. Shang Zhitao wasn’t as naive as she appeared.
“Then you’ve narrowly escaped death today.” Luan Nian raised an eyebrow, deciding not to scare her anymore.
“Shall we continue?”
“Wait a moment.” Luan Nian’s eyes were bothering him. He took out some eye drops, applied them, then closed his eyes briefly to rest.
“Is your eye uncomfortable?”
“Dry eye syndrome.”
“Oh...” Shang Zhitao had always thought Luan Nian was invincible, but even someone like him had ordinary troubles, like dry eye syndrome.
“My dad has dry eye syndrome too.”
“And?”
“So he stopped using the computer and changed jobs.”
“And what job do you think I should switch to?”
...
Luan Nian wasn’t easy to chat with. As Da Zhai would say, some people just love to provoke. After resting for a few minutes, Luan Nian resumed driving. By the time they reached the mountain, it was already dark. The fish restaurant was lit with bright red lanterns, lively and bustling.
The owner recognized Luan Nian and greeted him warmly from afar. “Mr. Luan is here?”
“Here to eat fish.” Luan Nian replied. “The usual?”
“Sure thing.” Then he smiled at Shang Zhitao. “Hello.”
“Hello, boss.”
Shang Zhitao felt awkward, noticing the owner exchanging glances with Luan Nian as if she were someone special to him. Once the owner left, Shang Zhitao hesitantly suggested, “Should I clarify with the boss?”
“Clarify what?”
“That I’m not your girlfriend…”
“Do you look like my girlfriend?” Luan Nian laughed at Shang Zhitao’s suggestion. What kind of nonsense was filling her head? Eating together equaled being a couple? Was she overestimating herself or misunderstanding him?
“Don’t I?” Shang Zhitao protested.
“Do you?”
...
What a guy!
Behind the fish restaurant was a long corridor. While waiting for the fish, they sat on opposite sides of the corridor.
Shang Zhitao received a message from Sun Yu: “Why aren’t you back yet?”
“Just having dinner. I’ll be back soon.”
“He didn’t give you trouble, did he?”
“No.”
“Good.”
Shang Zhitao put away her phone and glanced sideways at Luan Nian. She remembered the strange sensation on her fingertips last night, and her cheeks reddened slightly. She couldn’t tell whether it was lust or mere admiration stirring inside her. Whatever it was, Luan Nian’s handsome face was right beside her, leaving her somewhat flustered.
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