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Psst! We're moving!
By the end of December, on the last Friday of the month, it snowed again.
The snowflakes danced in the wind, falling gracefully.
This was the second snowfall of the year.
Yu Qing sat in this unfamiliar office, still not accustomed to her new role. When others called her “President Yu,” she didn’t react—it suited her better when they called her “Lawyer Yu.”
Today was her first day working at Lemong. Originally scheduled to start after New Year’s Day, she had come a few days early.
Outside the window, the world was blanketed in white.
The snow that began falling during the night showed no signs of stopping.
The forecast predicted heavy snow.
Judging by the intensity, it might turn into a blizzard.
The last time she saw such a heavy snowfall was years ago, when she was still studying abroad.
During the Christmas break, she went traveling.
At her destination, a sudden blizzard trapped tourists at the foot of the mountain, and she was among them.
So many people waited for the snow to stop and for the roads blocked by the storm to be cleared.
In the crowd, she met her mother.
Her mother had also been on vacation, just having ended her second marriage.
They exchanged fewer than ten sentences, with long stretches of silence in between.
Later, when the road reopened, her mother waved goodbye, showing no intention of traveling together.
And so, they each went their separate ways.
“Knock, knock.” Qin Moling knocked and entered.
He reminded her, “We’ll leave in fifteen minutes.”
“I’ll go with you. I don’t have any other plans this afternoon.”
“Even if you go, we might not necessarily beat Fu Jichen.” Yu Qing sorted and organized the documents on her desk.
She was heading to NewTech for a meeting about investment discussions. Fu Jichen would also be there.
Qin Moling leaned against the edge of the desk. While Yu Qing turned around, he pressed down on the lucky cat figurine’s waving hand to stop its movement. When Yu Qing turned back, he quickly released it.
Still, he decided to go along.
“It doesn’t matter whether we win or lose. If you go alone, there will be more people on their side, and you’ll be at a disadvantage.”
It wasn’t as if Yu Qing would be entirely alone—other senior executives from Lemong would also attend—but in Fu Jichen’s eyes, these people held no significance.
Yu Qing’s phone vibrated—it was time to take her medication.
When she used to live in Fu Jichen’s apartment, every night after their deep conversations, she remembered to take her birth control pills without setting an alarm.
Now that they weren’t together every day, she relied on reminders.
And often, several reminders.
She feared forgetting amidst her work, thinking she’d take it after finishing, only to forget once she was done.
Yu Qing took the pill bottle out of her bag. Since bringing it to the office, she had transferred the birth control pills into a small vitamin bottle.
Qin Moling watched her pour out a white pill. “Why are you taking medicine?”
Yu Qing swallowed it with water, nonchalantly replying, “Oh, just some extra vitamin C.”
Qin Moling reached out his hand. “Give me one—I caught a chill today, so I’ll take it to prevent a cold.”
Yu Qing: “...”
Quickly screwing the cap back on, she stuffed it into her bag. “No way. These are what Fu Jichen bought me—I won’t share them with anyone.”
________________________________________
Fu Group.
Fu Jichen and Pan Zheng were preparing to head to NewTech when Ye Jinhua arrived.
Ye Jinhua rarely came to the company, especially not on such a snowy day. Her hurried demeanor suggested she had something important to discuss with the boss.
Pan Zheng glanced at his watch. “Mr. Fu, there’s no rush. We can leave in ten minutes and still make it on time.”
Fu Jichen nodded.
Pan Zheng closed the office door and waited outside.
“You’re going out?”
“Mm. To discuss matters with Teacher Qiao.”
“I thought you’d stay in the office today with all this snow.” Ye Jinhua placed a shopping bag carefully on his desk.
Fu Jischen walked over. Judging by the appearance of the bag, he couldn’t tell what was inside. “Did you go shopping?” He assumed it was something his mother had purchased.
The bag wasn’t light, and Ye Jinhua let out a sigh. “No, it’s from home.”
“These are the perfumes I’ve collected over the past few days—all single bottles, sixty-one in total. I’m giving them to you. Perhaps they can complete a set with the ones Yu Qing has collected. They feel lonely sitting here, but with Yu Qing, they might finally reunite as a full collection.”
She reminded her son, “There’s a note inside the bag about how to store the perfumes. Take a look. You can give her one bottle every day. It’ll keep her in a good mood.”
Fu Jichen looked at his mother in disbelief. Even as single bottles, these were valuable antiques that had taken considerable effort and money to collect.
“Mom, I appreciate the thought.”
Too precious.
He couldn’t accept it.
“A gentleman does not take what is dear to another.”
Ye Jinhua looked at him. “Do you and your father even dare call yourselves gentlemen?”
Fu Jichen: “...”
Ye Jinhua stopped teasing her son and got to the point. “From childhood until now, you’ve never given me much worry. Now that I finally have a chance to help, I’ll do my best. First, I’m giving you these single bottles. On important occasions, I’ll give you an entire set—even if it makes my heart ache.”
She patted her son’s shoulder. “Go ahead and get busy. I’ll head upstairs to find your father and scare him a bit.”
Fu Jichen: “...”
“Mom, thank you.”
Ye Jinhua waved her hand and left with a light step.
Fu Jichen took one bottle and put it in his pocket. Then he called the personal secretary to organize the remaining perfumes according to his mother’s instructions.
As the time approached, Fu Jichen and Pan Zheng headed downstairs.
With the snow today, traffic was congested, so they had left an hour early. Even so, time was tight.
Fu Jichen signaled to Pan Zheng, “Let’s walk. At this speed, we’ll definitely be late.”
The biting wind stung their faces, and the snow hadn’t stopped.
Yu Qing and Qin Moling were also walking.
A car accident caused a pile-up on the road, creating a standstill. After half an hour, traffic was still paralyzed.
The two of them walked under an umbrella toward NewTech.
“You slow down; we have enough time,” Qin Moling called out to Yu Qing’s back.
Yu Qing ran ahead on her own, “We can’t just arrive right on time.”
Qin Moling closed his umbrella and jogged after her.
Finally, they arrived at the NewTech building.
Yu Qing took several deep breaths and tidied her hair.
The other executives also arrived, out of breath.
One person gasped, “Lawyer Yu, do you run every day?”
Yu Qing shook her head. This time wasn’t too bad.
In the past, when she was abroad, she had agreed on a meeting time with a client, but unexpected roadblocks left her stuck in the middle of the road, unable to move forward or back.
To make up for lost time, she ended up running barefoot.
They entered the conference room, where only Qiao Han and Qiao Weiming were present. Fu Jichen and his team hadn’t arrived yet, nor had the staff from the brokerage firm.
Yu Qing drank half a glass of water and quickly shifted into negotiation mode.
The conference room door opened, and Fu Jichen entered, surrounded by others.
His expression was calm, showing no sign that he had just run part of the way.
Qiao Yang had run out of breath, and her chest still hurt.
Though there were still more than twenty minutes left, Fu Jichen insisted on hurrying. Once he started running, the others didn’t dare to lag behind.
Fu Jichen glanced at Yu Qing, then sat down and opened his laptop.
Qiao Yang represented Fu Group and couldn’t afford any carelessness. She quickly adjusted her state.
This was the first round of negotiations.
Before all projects could be finalized, there would likely be countless arguments and fierce debates over principles.
Of course, much of it involved private bargaining between the two sides’ upper management.
Once the interests reached an unspoken balance, the people below began to work.
The last time Fu Group invested in a company, the meeting room erupted into chaos—it gave everyone headaches.
She even dreamed at night about arguing with the other party.
In the past, Fu Jichen rarely sat at the same negotiation table as her. He typically handled complex large-scale mergers and acquisitions. Since NewTech was his personal investment, he, as the largest shareholder, needed to be present.
As for Qin Moling, he rarely appeared in person.
Today, he probably came to accompany his beloved.
The crux of this negotiation revolved around one point: Lemong Tech wanted to invest in NewTech, and Fu Jichen had agreed—but only through a technical stake, offering them 15% of the shares.
Yu Qing disagreed, insisting on at least 25%.
After reaching consensus on the smaller points of contention:
Fu Jichen spoke: “25% isn’t impossible.”
Everyone turned to look at him.
Yu Qing showed no excitement at his words, knowing the trap would follow.
He never budged an inch in business, and she knew him well.
Fu Jichen met Yu Qing’s seemingly serious yet mischievous gaze: “At that point, we’ll amend the company’s charter, and your Lemong shares won’t carry voting rights.”
Shares without voting rights? What use were they to her? Yu Qing: “Then let’s stick with 15%. When the time comes, President Fu, give our Lemong two board seats.”
Both sides remained deadlocked.
Yu Qing wanted to participate in NewTech’s management, but Fu Jichen refused.
Qiao Yang occasionally glanced across the table. Diagonally opposite her were Yu Qing and Qin Moling. Yu Qing’s gaze remained fixed on Fu Jichen.
Fu Jichen, too, seemed to be watching Yu Qing throughout.
The two of them managed to engage in rational combat through their gazes, neither yielding to the other.
Yu Qing wanted 25% of the voting shares. Once she invested in NewTech, she planned to acquire shares from her cousin and uncle.
Her uncle and cousin together held 25% of NewTech.
Combined with her existing 25%, she would equal Fu Jichen’s stake, creating a mutual balance.
Fu Jichen likely anticipated Yu Qing’s plan, insisting on giving only 15%. Even if she acquired her uncle and cousin’s shares, she would hold only 40%.
With Fu Jichen holding 60%, he would still maintain absolute control.
Negotiations hit a deadlock.
Neither side was willing to budge.
Fu Jichen closed his laptop. “If Lawyer Yu is genuinely interested in cooperation, we can discuss this further next time. I have plans tonight, so I must excuse myself.”
The conference room fell silent as others quietly organized their documents.
Rejected so coldly by Fu Jichen, Yu Qing must feel some disappointment.
That’s what they thought.
Yu Qing began packing up her materials. “I definitely have good intentions. If I didn’t, why would I want to manage the company alongside President Fu?”
The atmosphere relaxed slightly.
Even amid flirtation, Yu Qing didn’t forget the stakes. “Half the company equity each—no sadness, no loss of money. How perfect.”
Fu Jichen: “Why don’t you dream on?”
Others: “...”
Qiao Yang instinctively glanced at Fu Jichen beside her. Had he completely fallen out with Yu Qing?
With so many people present, he didn’t show her any face.
Yu Qing packed her laptop into her bag, stood up, and continued Fu Jichen’s line: “I am dreaming now. In my dream, our President Fu said to me: Yu Qing, NewTech is all yours. Why pay anything?”
Fu Jichen: “...”
Someone couldn’t help but laugh.
The previously tense atmosphere instantly became lively.
They were astonished at how Fu Jichen and Yu Qing could switch from confrontation to affection in an instant.
Qin Moling picked up Yu Qing’s laptop. “Let’s go. If you keep dreaming, soon the entire Fu Group will be yours, and you’ll cry.”
“Why would I cry?”
“You’ll break the paper shredder.”
“... “
People gradually left the conference room.
Fu Jichen was the first to leave. He had plans that evening—some friends had invited him out.
Tonight was the last day of the year; they were celebrating the New Year.
He didn’t have time to stay late, planning to leave after a while.
In the car, Fu Jichen sent Yu Qing a message: [I’ll be home before ten o’clock tonight.]
Just as the message was sent, his phone alarm rang.
A special reminder: [Stop taking pills tomorrow.]
He had set it for Yu Qing.
This cycle was ending, and her period was approaching—it was time to stop.
Fu Jichen informed Yu Qing immediately: [Don’t take the pill tomorrow.]
He didn’t understand why she was so stubborn.
When she first started taking the pill, she felt nauseous and unwell.
Her menstrual flow also seemed irregular.
Knowing it was harmful to her body, she still insisted on taking it.
Yu Qing replied: [Do you remember which day I started taking the pill?]
Fu Jichen sent her a screenshot: [I’ve been keeping track for you. After all, it’s medication. The damage from its components might not show until many years later. Whether we’re together in the future or not, I hope you stay healthy.]
After a long pause,
Yu Qing: [President Fu, if we separate, what kind of person will you look for?]
Fu Jichen: [I’ll find someone like you. Surnamed Yu, named Yu Qing. Her father’s name will be Yu Shaohong, and she’ll have an older brother and sister.]
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