IMH - 22

When Sun Yue texted Yu Qian asking if she had found her earring, Yu Qian had just come out of the surveillance room.

She texted Sun Yue back, saying the earring had been found. It was picked up by a cleaning staff member and delivered to the lobby manager after the entire floor was cleaned.

Sun Yue replied:

[I’m coming to pick you up! I’m already outside the hotel now!]

Although the message used two cheerful “lahs,” when Yu Qian got into Sun Yue’s car, she still felt that her assistant seemed more nervous than usual, with dark circles and bags under her eyes from lack of sleep.

But Sun Yue didn’t say anything, and Yu Qian wasn’t one to proactively ask questions.

At the company, Yu Qian and Sun Yue met Cheng Xiaonan.

Presumably, Shen Shen had told him about seeing the surveillance. Cheng Xiaonan’s first reaction upon seeing Yu Qian was to uncomfortably turn his head and touch the tip of his nose before greeting her.

Yu Qian, as usual, gave a lukewarm “CEO Cheng.”

Cheng Xiaonan didn’t mind her cold address. He smiled and said the weather was nice today before turning to Sun Yue to ask for a contract.

“Ah? A contract, oh, I’ll go get it.”

Sun Yue went to the office to get it, and when she came out, she was absentminded, dropping the contract on the floor.

Cheng Xiaonan helped pick it up and suddenly spoke, “Is the total price for this order of ours so cheap?”

It was an appendix to a cooperation agreement with the Angu team. Previous venue fees had already been settled, but some labor and meal costs were changed later, requiring a new contract and reimbursement voucher.

Sun Yue mistakenly filled in 2149 instead of 21490, even writing “Two Thousand One Hundred Forty-Nine Yuan” in caps.

Doing the math, there was a difference of nearly 20,000 yuan.

It wasn’t a major issue, as it hadn’t been sent to Angu for review yet.

Cheng Xiaonan had just asked casually, not expecting Sun Yue to suddenly burst into tears, her tears pattering onto the tiled floor.

Yu Qian heard Cheng Xiaonan say “Oh,” then he frowned a little, turning to her with a distressed and innocent look, mouthing—I didn’t say anything, did I?

Yu Qian had already noticed Sun Yue’s abnormal mood today. She took off her coat and put it over Sun Yue’s head, pulling her wrist towards the meeting room, while saying to Cheng Xiaonan, “Borrow your meeting room for a bit.”

“Go ahead.”

Cheng Xiaonan followed behind the two girls, pouting. He thought, “Jiejie is so much nicer to her assistant than to me. Maybe I should also ‘whine’ a bit? It feels like it could save a lot of trouble?”

________________________________________

A window was open in the meeting room, and the autumn breeze blew in, stirring the strands of hair on Yu Qian’s forehead.

Sun Yue, eyes red and choked with sobs, confessed that she had been distracted these past two days.

Her new neighbor, who had moved into the same building as Sun Yue’s family, was a classmate of Sun Yue’s from middle and high school—a six-year period—and this fact made her extremely uneasy.

When Sun Yue was in school, she was a chubby girl. She felt her looks and personality were very ordinary, not as bright as the other girls in her class, nor as outgoing.

Even when others were chatting excitedly about a topic, if she tried to tentatively say something, the lively atmosphere would instantly fall silent. She could only laugh awkwardly and say, “You guys chat, I... I’m going to the restroom.”

To have “friends,” she deliberately tried to please her classmates every day.

She’d run errands after class to buy food for everyone, go to the school gate alone before evening self-study to pick up takeout for everyone, sign up for unpopular events like shot put and discus at sports day...

Even so, she still couldn’t gain everyone’s affection.

When something was lost in the classroom, those “friends” who always made her buy things actually said, “Could it be Sun Yue who took it? Isn’t she responsible for locking the classroom last every day?”

Those days were too terrible. Having finally escaped that environment, Sun Yue didn’t want to see her old classmates. She hadn’t attended a single class reunion these past few years.

One experience was enough; she never wanted to have any more interactions with them.

Actually, Sun Yue had only seen that classmate from a distance. She heard from the gatekeeper uncle that they were new residents, living on the top floor of her building.

These past two days, Sun Yue had been suffering from insomnia, especially last night, where her dreams almost took her back to her school days.

Sun Yue wiped away her tears, her voice heavy with a nasal tone as she repeatedly apologized: “I’m sorry, CEO Cheng, it was my oversight at work. I’m willing to be punished, I’m sorry...”

Cheng Xiaonan pulled out a box of tissues and handed them over: “There’s nothing to be sorry about. I think you’re pretty lucky to have run into me. We found the error before the documents were officially sent, so there’s still a chance to fix it. Don’t cry.”

Actually, Cheng Xiaonan probably knew that a work error wasn’t the real reason the girl was crying, but as a male leader, he couldn’t say more. He could only look up at Yu Qian, as if asking for help.

Sun Yue mumbled despairingly as she blew her nose: “It’ll never get better, my life won’t get better...”

Yu Qian tapped the table twice with her fingertip: “It will get better.”

“You haven’t experienced it; you wouldn’t understand,” Sun Yue shook her head, tears streaming down her face.

But Yu Qian said, “I haven’t experienced your level, but there are worse things. Do you want to hear about them?”

Sun Yue didn’t react for a moment, looking blankly at Yu Qian: “Huh?”

In her eyes, Yu Qian was so beautiful, an industry veteran, with money and looks, she must have been at the center of attention.

Yu Qian wasn’t actually as good at comforting people as Cheng Xiaonan was.

She was quite fond of Sun Yue, her little assistant. Last month, when Yu Qian had her period, Sun Yue specially delivered a pile of heating pads and brown sugar ginger tea on her day off, telling her to rest more.

Yu Qian didn’t like bringing up the past, but if bringing up the past could comfort a despairing and crying colleague, she was willing to share.

Her story was complex, but not difficult to tell.

It had to start from high school.

For a few years, Qu Liwen had always worried about her growing up, because many child models who were beautiful when young became less stunning as they grew older. But Yu Qian had always been beautiful, even more beautiful than when she was a child.

This made Qu Liwen very happy. In the years leading up to Yu Qian’s adulthood, she frantically took on advertisements for her.

At that time, Yu Qian had endorsements from two major brands, as well as many other jobs.

She spent very little time at school and rarely had friends.

It was by chance that she returned to school one day and found that her deskmate had become a girl with excellent grades in their class. That girl was a bit introverted, quiet and gentle, but quite friendly to Yu Qian. She would lend Yu Qian her notes, saying they contained important points the teacher had covered.

Yu Qian said she didn’t need to take the college entrance exam, and the girl’s eyes widened, her face full of envy: “Oh my goodness, you’re so lucky!”

Because of their deskmate relationship, Yu Qian slowly became familiar with her.

One weekend, Yu Qian invited her new friend to her home for the first time.

At the time, there was a brand’s makeup set on Yu Qian’s desk. After the girl left, Yu Qian found that the lipstick from the set was missing.

When she went to school, Yu Qian didn’t think much of it. She only told the girl:

That lipstick was borrowed from the brand for props; her own sample hadn’t arrived yet. When it did, she could give the girl a few as gifts. But the prop needed to be returned first.

The girl initially didn’t want to admit it, her face flushing as she remained silent for a long time. In the afternoon, she quietly apologized to Yu Qian, saying she had indeed taken it, and pulled the lipstick out of her backpack to return it to Yu Qian.

It was originally a private matter between two girls, but unexpectedly, the boy in the back seat overheard it and shouted, “Oh, so you steal things!”

Later, Yu Qian had work and didn’t return to school for a long time.

By the time the school contacted Qu Liwen, Yu Qian’s deskmate had already been bullied for a long time.

Someone in the class lost money, and some said it must have been that girl, claiming she had stolen Yu Qian’s things before.

This matter slowly spread. The girl was called a thief every day, isolated, and sometimes tripped when walking in the classroom.

Later, the situation escalated. Some even put cockroaches in her packed lunch.

At the request of the school teachers, Qu Liwen brought Yu Qian back to school.

In the homeroom teacher’s office, Yu Qian’s deskmate’s parents insisted that Yu Qian shouldn’t have brought makeup to school, that the lipstick was a gift from her to their child, and that she should come forward to clarify.

The girl didn’t dare say she had been to Yu Qian’s house, nor did she dare say she had stolen anything. She told her parents that Yu Qian had brought the lipstick to school and given it to her.

Yu Qian stood in the office that day, looking at her deskmate—

The girl had lost a lot of weight, her eyes were swollen from crying, and there was a scar on her arm from who knows what. She timidly avoided Yu Qian’s gaze, hiding behind her parents.

The girl’s mother screamed hysterically: “It’s all because of you! My daughter is being misunderstood! Do you know what kind of life she’s living every day now? If someone hadn’t put a dead mouse in a box at our doorstep, I wouldn’t even know what happened to my daughter!”

The couple’s words were fierce. They pointed at her nose and said, “You are the culprit of this school bullying!”

Later, the school leadership discussed with Qu Liwen. In senior year, most of the time was spent reviewing first and second-year knowledge and doing practice tests. If Yu Qian wasn’t preparing for the college entrance exam, she actually didn’t need to endure such great pressure staying at school.

Yu Qian knew that the school was very subtly suggesting she leave.

In this matter, Qu Liwen respected Yu Qian’s wishes. She didn’t make her drop out directly but arranged for her to transfer schools.

On the day she packed her things to leave, Yu Qian found a piece of paper in her backpack. Someone had written on it in elegant handwriting—”Yu Qian, I’m sorry.”

At the new school, new classmates became curious about this beautiful transfer student who was rarely at school.

Under everyone’s curiosity, those past rumors began to twist.

Yu Qian became the villain who slandered classmates for stealing and led to school bullying.

In the following days, she also experienced what school bullying felt like.

When talking about what happened to her, Yu Qian skipped the details, only saying, “That time was indeed not very happy, and I felt there was no hope of things getting better. But after a long time, I felt it all passed.”

________________________________________

While the two girls chatted, Cheng Xiaonan sat to the side.

He was a little distracted, recalling his conversation with Peter a few days ago.

The day after the fashion show, before Peter went abroad, Cheng Xiaonan had breakfast with him.

He asked Peter if Yu Qian had been happy during her years abroad.

After asking, he smiled again, saying there was no need to answer.

He knew without asking that Yu Qian was always the strongest, no matter what she faced.

She wouldn’t tell others if she was unhappy.

Peter’s hangover after-effects hadn’t subsided yet, and he still had a headache. He drank two sips of hangover soup, but his gaze kept scrutinizing Cheng Xiaonan, seemingly judging if he was reliable.

Putting down the white porcelain bowl of hangover soup, Peter asked, “How do you think Yu Qian’s relationship with her mother is?”

Everyone thought Yu Qian must resent her mother.

Qu Liwen, as a mother, was indeed extremely selfish. Cheng Xiaonan didn’t deny this. She continuously used her daughter to earn money for the materialistic life she wanted, making it difficult for Yu Qian and her to have a close relationship.

But Cheng Xiaonan always remembered Yu Qian saying that when she was little, she and Qu Liwen took a taxi to a shooting location for an advertisement. After the advertisement, they couldn’t find a taxi on the street and had to wait under the sun.

At that time, Yu Qian was 5 years old and told Qu Liwen she was thirsty.

Back then, bottled mineral water wasn’t popular and couldn’t be bought everywhere, and there were no nearby stores.

Finally, Qu Liwen took Yu Qian’s empty water bottle into an unfamiliar hardware store and asked the owner, “Excuse me, do you have any cold boiled water here? My daughter is thirsty. Can we buy a cup?”

Cheng Xiaonan told Peter, “She must love her mother very much, but the way love is expressed can be different.”

Perhaps it was after hearing his answer that Peter decided to tell Cheng Xiaonan something about Yu Qian:

Everyone thought Yu Qian hated Qu Liwen, but she actually didn’t. During the time Qu Liwen passed away, Yu Qian never cried in front of people but became even more silent.

For a period, Yu Qian suffered from severe insomnia and, at Peter’s urging, saw a doctor.

The hospital suggested she see a psychologist. When the psychologist’s report was ready, Peter picked it up for Yu Qian.

Yu Qian was at work on the day the report was picked up.

When Peter found her, she had just rested and still had her makeup on from the shoot.

Peter worriedly told Yu Qian, “Yu Qian, I’m telling you, you really need to adjust your mood. The doctor said you might have a tendency towards depression?”

Yu Qian leaned against the wall and lit a cigarette. She held the cigarette in her mouth, opened the diagnostic report, read it for a while, and then used a lighter to set the report on fire.

Holding the smoking report paper, she said, “The diagnosis is wrong.”

Peter told Cheng Xiaonan, “You asked me if she’s happy. I can only say, she’s strong enough.”

________________________________________

The autumn wind blew through the London plane trees outside the meeting room window, and the large leaves projected onto the office table swayed.

Sun Yue had stopped crying. With her nose and eyes red, she hugged Yu Qian, saying she was grateful Yu Qian was willing to chat with her, and that she would definitely become as strong as Yu Qian.

Cheng Xiaonan looked at Yu Qian’s calm face and suddenly felt that if Yu Qian could also cry with snot and tears like Sun Yue, it would be good.

Yu Qian hadn’t expected Sun Yue to be so dramatic. After crying and venting her emotions, like being reborn, she pulled her and Cheng Xiaonan together, saying she wanted to treat them to dinner.

Sun Yue chose a restaurant that wasn’t cheap, but in the end, Cheng Xiaonan paid the bill. Sun Yue was a bit embarrassed, so Cheng Xiaonan said, “I’ll deduct it from your salary then. You haven’t worked all day today; I remember.”

Sun Yue looked horrified, confirming: “CEO Cheng, just one day’s deduction, right?”

“Maybe a month’s deduction.”

Cheng Xiaonan gestured towards Yu Qian with his chin, “But if you can safely send Yu Qian back to the hotel, I won’t deduct even one day.”

Sun Yue, having received her orders, sent Yu Qian to the hotel and even back to her room.

She stood at Yu Qian’s room door, patting her chest, saying, “That’s great, no salary deduction!”

Yu Qian looked at Sun Yue but said nothing.

The dinner bill, in the end, was paid by Cheng Xiaonan, and Sun Yue, that silly girl, still hadn’t realized it.

Yu Qian had experienced this kind of “calculation” many times before.

After showering, Yu Qian found unread messages on her phone from Cheng Xiaonan:

[Don’t misunderstand, dinner was mainly for you.]

What did she have to misunderstand?

Yu Qian frowned and texted Cheng Xiaonan back, saying it wasn’t necessary and he could deduct it from her salary.

Cheng Xiaonan directly called her. From his voice, he might have already been home, sounding like he was lazily lying on a sofa with the speakerphone on.

He said, “Why are you being so polite with me?”

Yu Qian asked, “Why shouldn’t I be polite?”

“You probably don’t remember,”

Cheng Xiaonan’s laughing voice came from the phone, flowing into her ear with the night, “I used to be this good to you. Although we haven’t seen each other for so many years, I haven’t changed.”

Yu Qian was reluctant to parry such words. She felt she should say something to interrupt Cheng Xiaonan.

The person on the phone was still talking: “Actually, I should have taken you back to the hotel, but I had some other troublesome things to do, so I just let Sun Yue take you. Next time it’s this late, I’ll still take you...”

This feeling was too familiar, too much like before.

Yu Qian didn’t realize she was deliberately avoiding it. She just suddenly spoke, stiffly interrupting him: “No need.”

After she said this, Cheng Xiaonan suddenly fell silent.

Only quiet remained on the phone.

Yu Qian thought Cheng Xiaonan would hang up, but he just paused for a moment, then suddenly laughed: “What? Are you afraid the Pixiu on your floor will bite me if I don’t take you?”