Just that afternoon, Yan Suizhi had told Luke that law firms normally wouldn’t require interns to work out of the office on their first day. Who would have thought that mere hours late, Gu Yan would make an exception to the rule.

-What business trip? To where?

This time, Gu Yan didn’t give him the silent treatment and quickly replied:

-Wine City

Wine City??

Yan Suizhi almost forgot to breathe when he saw the name.

Wine City wasn’t exactly a city per say - whenever people mention it, they usually meant the planet in the Tian Qin system. It was a...dumpster sort of planet, full of swindlers, hoodlums and nasty characters.

In short, it was a planet that carried a certain kind of odour, a moldy sort of smell that could make one choke and stumble, even if one was several lightyears away.

Of course, there was a city called ‘Wine City’ on this planet - Wine City was the capital.

So no matter how it was interpreted, the words left little room for comfort. 

Rather than ask him to go to such a planet, you may as well loop some rope around his neck, hang it from the window and put an end to his misery.

Yan Suizhi didn’t even bother to think before replying simply,

-Not going

-?

-Head hurts just looking at the name, I’m not going

Yan Suizhi rubbed at his temples.

After a few seconds of silence, Gu Yan replied:

-If I recall correctly, you’re a newly hired intern. And yet you seem to think of yourself as a high-level partner. Have I gone mad or have you?

Yan Suizhi: “...”

The mockery in the response was almost stifling.

However, Yan Suizhi was forced to admit that this was the sad reality...a reality that he always seemed to be forgetting.

The esteemed Professor Yan moved his lips, then said self-mockingly, I do apologize, I must have forgotten my manners. 

He moved his fingers and was about to reply when Gu Yan sent over two screenshots.

The first was from the intern manual: 

Business trips will be subsidized based on the duration of the trip with payments totaling 120 xi per day.

The second was also from the intern manual:

Interns whose performance is level C or lower will have their remuneration deducted accordingly.

Yan Suizhi: “......”

And so he giveth and he taketh. You sure have grown, oh student of mine.

A famous professor once said, anyone that attempts to use money to threaten the poor was no better than a beast.

The aforementioned famous professor gave up and replied:

-I’ll go. I’ll go right now.

-By the way, carrying the intern’s manual with you while you’re on the go must have been hard on you, don’t you find it tiring, Gu-laoshi?

Gu Yan didn’t reply, probably because he couldn’t be bothered. 

---

That evening, Yan Suzhi found himself standing in the entry hall of Port Newsa.

This was De Carma’s transportation hub - the port had twelve lanes that were filled with an uninterrupted stream of space shuttles and spaceships from morning to night.

Space shuttles were both convenient and fast, and were always allowed to travel on the shortest interstellar lines. It was suitable for commercial travel but the downside was the frequent line transfers and jump drives, so it wasn’t ideal for those with weak constitutions.

The route taken by spaceships were a little more romantic - it was stable, relaxed and more appropriate for excursionists. 

For people like Yan Suizhi and Gu Yan, they were basically resigned to space shuttle travel for life.

---

The temperature at night was lower compared to day so Yan Suizhi flipped up the collar of his black coat. He stuck his hands in his pockets, eyes sweeping his surroundings. He happened to catch sight of Gu Yan in the middle of the crowd - Gu Yan lifted his finger a little to indicate his location.

“What a truly conspicuous gesture - if someone’s eyesight was even a little bit faulty, they’d probably have to look around for another year.” Yan Suizhi shook his head and said irritably.

His lips were slightly parted and the white fog of his exhale dissipated before his face, partially obscuring his features.

When he finally reached Gu Yan, he realized that Gu Yan was gazing at him with a slight furrow in his brows.

“What are you looking at?”

“It’s nothing.” Gu Yan withdrew his gaze, pulled out his smart device and scanned the screen. With a disapproving tone, he said, “Did you just get here?”

“Didn’t you say 6 o’clock?” Yan Suizhi casually withdrew a hand from his pocket and pointed flippantly with a thin finger at the display screen in the entry hall. “It’s 6 o’clock on the dot, not a second later. What’s the problem?”

“Did you use your face and not your ears to listen during your negotiation class?” Gu Yan strode further inside the great hall. As he turned, the hem of his grey wool coat lifted to reveal his perfectly tailored shirt. “Didn’t you learn about the Golden Ten Minute Rule?”

The Golden Ten Minute Rule suggested that someone who arrived ten minutes early to an appointment had a psychological edge over someone that bordered on being late. Before you even open your mouth, you would have established yourself in a higher position because the other party would usually start off by apologizing for having arrived later. 

Yan Suizhi was familiar with the concept, and it was a lesson that he himself had requested to be added to the course. However, he personally didn’t put this theory to practice.

The reason was very simple. As long as he wasn’t late - even if he arrived a mere second before the agreed upon time - he didn’t feel the least bit apologetic, even if the other party had been waiting for a full ten minutes. It is what it is and there was no need to think twice about it.

He called it ‘mastery of the basics of psychology’.

Gu Yan would probably call it ‘shameless’. 

“I listened to the entire lesson and then tossed it,” Yan Suizhi caught up to him and spoke unhurriedly. “If I arrive early, the other party owes me. If I’m late, then I owe the other party. Rather than worry about appearances or oppression, I prefer to call it even.”

Besides, how many people out there would dare pressure me? Yan Suizhi thought. Keep dreaming.

It wasn’t just a thought that he kept to himself, he shamelessly put it into practice.

After the two of them passed through ticket inspection and took their seats inside the space shuttle, Yan Suizhi touched his ring and then tapped a few times on the holographic screen. 

Gu Yan’s ring vibrated.

“Did you send something?”

Gu Yan’s smart device was a ring as well - it had a simple and stylish design and was worn on the little finger of his right hand. At first glance, it looked like an extremely fitting tail ring that went well with his pale and slender hand.

However, it was apparent that he was none too pleased with the sudden quiver of his ring. Or perhaps, it was purely because the message was from a particularly annoying intern.

“What’s this? A bus ticket?” Gu Yan shot a glance at the message he had received - it was an electronic ticket.

Yan Suizhi leaned back and adjusted his seat, replying calmly, “It’s the transportation cost for travelling to Port Newsa. I’m submitting it for reimbursement.”

Gu Yan: “...”

Translator's Notes

1. xi = literal translation is 'west' but this is the currency used in the novel

2. laoshi = teacher (I personally prefer to translate as 'Gu-laoshi' rather than Teacher Gu, but the meaning is the same)

So sorry for the hiatus! I don't have as much free time to translate these days but I thought I'd try to at least get something out, even if it's a partial chapter OTL Thank you to everyone that has patiently waited (and hope you enjoyed YSZ's sass in this one!).

PLEASE DO NOT REPOST OR RE-TRANSLATE

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