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Psst! We're moving!
Shang Zhitao dragged her suitcase out of the airport.
It was June in Suzhou, the plum rain season with continuous drizzle, yet her body still felt sticky with sweat. She got into a taxi and called Alex. “Boss, I’ve arrived. I’m going to check into the hotel now and then head straight to the venue.”
“Thanks for your hard work, Flora. Luke and the planning department are on your next flight. The main group will arrive tomorrow morning.”
“The cars to pick up the bosses have been arranged, so please don’t worry. I’ll report other situations to you after I assess the situation on-site.” Shang Zhitao still tended to sweat easily, taking out a tissue to wipe the fine beads of sweat from her forehead.
“First independent business trip, how does it feel?” Alex suddenly asked her.
Shang Zhitao thought seriously for a moment. “Actually, I’m quite nervous.”
“There’s nothing to be nervous about. Tell me promptly if you encounter any difficulties.”
“Okay, thank you, boss.”
Shang Zhitao hung up the phone and opened her computer in the taxi. Suzhou in this season had its unique charm, but she had no mood to appreciate it. The day after tomorrow was the company’s roadshow in the East China region. They had skipped Shanghai, which they visited every year, and chose Suzhou instead. She went through the entire venue plan again and then called the exhibition company. “Hello, how’s the site looking?”
“We’re starting setup this afternoon, currently checking the materials.”
“Okay, I’ll go drop off my luggage at the hotel first, then I’ll come find you.”
The driver looked at her in the rearview mirror and finally couldn’t help but speak. “Young lady, starting to work at such a young age?”
“I’m 23 years old!”
“Looks like you’re only seventeen or eighteen.”
Shang Zhitao’s face flushed a little at the driver’s words. She secretly looked at her faint reflection in the car window, thinking, “I should wear makeup. Otherwise, people will always think I’m very young. I need to look more mature.”
Lingmei chose a location by Taihu Lake this time because they were launching a “China Chic” initiative this year. This involved the localization packaging of international brands and the integration of traditional Chinese culture into local brands, which was a very new topic at the time. Luan Nian said that since they were doing it, the four major regions should choose locations that aligned with the theme. East China was set in Suzhou, North China in Xi’an, South China in Fuzhou, and Central China in Luoyang. The other locations were large-scale, but only the East China region invited S-level clients, making it smaller in scale but with a high budget. Alex thought for a long time and decided to entrust East China to Shang Zhitao.
The small scale, but being the first stop and involving all S-level clients, made Shang Zhitao a little nervous. She secretly asked Alex why he would entrust such important work to her.
Alex said, “If not you, then who?”
Shang Zhitao couldn’t quite understand this sentence, but Lumi did. She asked Shang Zhitao, “Shouldn’t you be preparing for a promotion review? What are you going to use to get promoted without projects? Just your hard work? Lingmei is very realistic. If the leader gives you an opportunity, take it and weigh your options. Treat Alex to a meal later.”
Shang Zhitao cherished this opportunity very much.
After checking into the hotel, she took a taxi to the venue, checking all the reception vehicles and guest information on the way. When she met with the event company at the front desk, she saw Luan Nian checking in. Only Luan Nian from Lingmei was staying at the conference hotel, because he had to do interviews and one-on-one meetings with several S-level clients after the conference, so they simply booked him here.
Luan Nian put away his documents, turned around, and saw Shang Zhitao, along with the fine sweat on her forehead. He thought, “Why do you sweat so much?”
“Good morning, Luke,” Shang Zhitao greeted him, then introduced him to the people from the event company. “This is General Wang from the event company, and this is our boss, Luke.”
“Please rest first. We’ve booked a private room here for dinner tonight, to treat you and Flora to a simple meal.” The company that won Shang Zhitao’s project was a new supplier added this year. It wasn’t a big company, but they were serious about execution. The boss personally supervised the work with a sincere attitude.
“Thank you, but the company has an internal meeting later, I appreciate the thought,” Luan Nian smiled at General Wang, then asked Shang Zhitao, “How’s the progress?”
“Material inventory is complete. Setup will begin shortly. Rehearsal can be done after three o’clock tomorrow afternoon, and client reception has also been arranged,” Shang Zhitao stated the important information concisely. She understood Luan Nian well and knew what he cared about.
“When will Alex arrive?” Luan Nian asked again.
“Tomorrow with the main group.”
Seeing Luan Nian discussing work with Shang Zhitao, the supplier said, “Flora, I’ll wait for you over there. You two can finish your work and then come find us at the venue.” The supplier’s politeness was cultivated through years of serving clients. Shang Zhitao had also become “you” at this point.
“It’s okay, you guys go ahead and get busy. After you’re done, Flora will go over the overall process with me again, and we’ll bring Alex online.”
“Okay.”
What was there to go over in the overall process? They had gone over it eight hundred times. Shang Zhitao was a little puzzled and turned to go to the venue. The moment she stepped into the venue, she received a message from Luan Nian: “11188, my room number.”
Shang Zhitao’s face flushed instantly. She replied, “I’m not going.”
“?”
“What if someone sees us? It won’t be good.”
“? What are you thinking? Meeting.” Luan Nian snorted coldly. He could see through the little things in Shang Zhitao’s head at a glance.
“Oh.”
Shang Zhitao felt that she had been manipulated by Luan Nian again. They hadn’t seen each other for more than a month, and she thought Luan Nian was talking about something unspeakable. Any adult man or woman would have wild thoughts seeing him send his room number.
She stayed at the venue for nearly three hours, clarifying all the details with the exhibition company, before taking her computer to Luan Nian’s room. Standing at his room door, she suddenly remembered that time at his room door in Guangzhou, with all the messy thoughts in her head, and her face flushed again. It was strange. Logically, they should be very familiar, at least in bed, but today, standing at his room door, she still blushed.
Blushing and nervous. The little drum in her heart was beating loudly. She took a deep breath before reaching out to ring the doorbell. Luan Nian answered the door while on the phone. Seeing it was Shang Zhitao, he moved aside to let her in and then said, “Alex, Flora is here with me now. We can both go online for the other meeting later.”
Shang Zhitao thought Luan Nian was really open and aboveboard, and she felt full of admiration for him. She looked up at him, only to see him raise an eyebrow at her, a bit mischievously. Shang Zhitao’s face flushed again, and she sat down on the chair opposite his hotel desk. Luan Nian saw the fine sweat on her forehead, opened the small refrigerator, took out a can of small Coke, twisted open the tab with one hand, and placed it in front of her. Then his fingertips pinched her earlobe. Luan Nian really liked Shang Zhitao’s earlobes, soft and full, and they would be the first to turn red when she was shy.
Shang Zhitao didn’t dare to move, afraid of disturbing his phone call.
Luan Nian was a little absent-minded. He had been too busy for the past month, only staying at the company for half a day at a time. There were several nights when he couldn’t sleep, missing Shang Zhitao’s beautiful body in the darkness.
Shang Zhitao didn’t dare to breathe loudly, finally unable to resist, she slapped his hand, her eyes widening to tell him to behave.
Luan Nian was in a good mood, pinching her face with one hand, making her lips form an “o” shape, before finally sitting back down opposite her. The meeting was a bit long. Luan Nian tossed the menu to Shang Zhitao, asking her to help order dinner. Shang Zhitao went out to call the hotel front desk and ordered dinner for two. When she came back in, she saw that Luan Nian had already hung up the phone and was standing by the window looking at her.
She suddenly felt a little weak in the knees, a tingling sensation snaking upwards from her knees. The room was a bit dark, and she couldn’t see Luan Nian’s expression clearly, but she could see the straight, verdant bamboo outside the window behind him.
She pursed her lips tightly, the same nervous and flustered feeling she had at his house enveloping her again for the first time.
“Flora,” Luan Nian called her.
“Hmm?”
“Meeting time.”
It really was meeting time. The ambiguity between the two of them just now hadn’t dissipated. Shang Zhitao sat opposite Luan Nian, feeling utterly foolish. Why was she so deeply poisoned by his allure?
She sat opposite him, listening in on the meeting, but didn’t dare to look at him. His gaze felt like it wanted to devour her. During the meeting, when it was Alex’s turn to report the progress of the day after tomorrow’s event, Luan Nian sat opposite her, watching her speak seriously.
Shang Zhitao had transformed. She was no longer like before, reporting work in just a few words. She knew what the leaders cared about, and every sentence was to the point, concise and clear. Except for her flushed face.
The doorbell to their room rang. Dinner had arrived. Alex took the initiative to call a break. “It’s past seven o’clock, everyone’s probably a bit hungry. Shall we take a forty-minute dinner break?”
“Okay.”
Shang Zhitao got up to clear the table. Luan Nian watched her. Adults didn’t need to pretend too much. At this moment, they both knew what they wanted to do most. The bed was soft, and in her urgency, Shang Zhitao called his name, “Luan Nian!”
Luan Nian rarely heard her call him by his first name directly. He stopped and looked at her, brushing the stray hairs from her face. “What’s wrong, Flora?”
“The event company might look for me...”
“Hmm...” Luan Nian’s lips were imprinted behind her ear. He asked her again, “Have you thought about me?”
“What?”
“In the past month or so, have you thought about me?”
Shang Zhitao didn’t speak, pulling his hand to show him, but her eyes were still childlike, innocent and clear. Luan Nian covered her eyes, and the two of them sank deeply into the bed.
Shang Zhitao didn’t dare to make a sound, biting Luan Nian’s finger when she couldn’t help it. Luan Nian winced, pinching her face. “Are you a dog?”
His lips pressed down, blocking her voice in his kiss.
Like fighting.
They were still ten minutes late going online.
“Sorry, just took a private call. Let’s start now.” Luan Nian glanced at Shang Zhitao. She was pulling up the zipper of her dress, the zipper going up, little by little covering her beautiful back. Luan Nian took her hand away to help her, but his movements paused, his lips falling, silently pressing against her back.
Shang Zhitao jumped away, glaring at him. He just shrugged, turned to the online meeting, and asked a question, looking like a proper human being.
Shang Zhitao was starving. She listened to their meeting while quietly eating. Luan Nian wasn’t so lucky. He participated seriously in the discussion the whole time. Shang Zhitao occasionally fed him a bite, which he swallowed hastily. Seeing Shang Zhitao eating so heartily, he glared at her every now and then.
The meeting went on until eleven o’clock. Shang Zhitao casually sent out the meeting minutes and then started packing up her computer.
“I’m leaving.”
“Not staying here?”
“No.” Shang Zhitao slung her large bag over her shoulder. “I still need to go to the venue to take a look. They’re setting up overnight tonight.”
“Okay.” Luan Nian opened the door for her and casually asked, “Did you apply for a promotion?”
“Yes. I asked Alex. Because my grade is low, the promotion can be internally assessed by the department this time. Alex told me to feel free to apply,” Shang Zhitao told Luan Nian truthfully. “But I haven’t had time to prepare the promotion materials yet.”
“When’s the review?”
“Next Monday.”
“Are you prepared to fail?” Luan Nian scared her.
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