MC - Chapter 20

On Monday morning, the planning department held an early meeting where Liu Pinyuan announced that Zhang Rufan’s proposal had been approved. OW would host a “Coffee Market” event next month, tentatively scheduled for mid-November. With just under half a month to prepare, it wasn’t exactly urgent, but ensuring every detail of the event was properly handled would still be no easy task.

Liu Pinyuan valued ability over experience when assigning roles, and she appointed Zhang Rufan as the main person in charge of this event, tasked with coordinating every aspect of the event.

With the proposal finalized, Zhang Rufan was naturally happy, but she knew this was only the first step. Properly implementing the plan was the real challenge. Especially since this was her first time taking charge, her lack of experience in overseeing an entire event made her feel anxious and under pressure.

What troubled Zhang Rufan the most wasn’t the work itself, but interpersonal interactions. Having been at OW for less than a month, she barely knew her colleagues and had hardly spoken to most of them. Now, as the person in charge, she had no idea how to naturally or smoothly delegate tasks.

Moreover, organizing the event required collaboration with other departments. As a newcomer, she wasn’t yet a familiar face in the company, and many colleagues from other departments didn’t even know who she was. While work was work, the workplace still operated on personal connections. Unfortunately, she wasn’t good at playing those social games. As her former colleagues would say, she “didn’t know how to curry favor.”

Distressed by this, Zhang Rufan spent the entire morning pondering the issue. She created a detailed work plan, dividing the event into several sections, but still hadn’t figured out how to broach the topic of task delegation.

Despite the early roadblock, Zhang Rufan had no intention of backing down. Thanks to Zhang Shengyi’s military-style upbringing, she had been raised with a strong sense of discipline and purpose. Once she set her mind on something, no matter how difficult it was, she would never give up easily—whether it was her middle school entrance exams, the college entrance exams, or now, her career.

She set aside other tasks for the time being and decided to tackle what she saw as the most crucial part of the event first: contacting cafes in Shangjing and inviting baristas to participate in the market.

Shen Mingjin had mentioned before that he knew most of the well-known baristas in Shangjing, so Zhang Rufan planned to ask him for introductions. She also owed him a meal, and had intended to invite him at noon. But right before lunch, Liu Pinyuan called her into the office to confirm some event details. By the time she left the office, it was already late.

Yuan Shuang packed a meal for Zhang Rufan. Since she had told Shen Mingjin in the morning that she would visit the café, true to her word, she didn’t even take a break after eating—she left the company immediately and headed to Culture Street.

When she arrived at Jindu, Zhang Rufan instinctively scanned the room for Shen Mingjin. He wasn’t behind the counter, but when she shifted her gaze, she spotted him behind the dessert display, arranging various pastries. The girl standing beside him was someone Zhang Rufan had seen before—she’d also been there last time, delivering desserts.

Having recently researched cafes, Zhang Rufan knew that most specialty coffee shops sold desserts—some had their own in-house bakers, while others outsourced. Since Jindu didn’t have a bakery on-site, and given that she had twice encountered desserts being stocked there, she guessed Shen Mingjin probably had a partnership with a bakery, and that the girl beside him was likely one of its employees.

After checking all the desserts, Shen Mingjin said to the girl beside him, “Everything looks good. Send me the bill later.”

“Come on, we’ve been working together for over a year. You think I’d worry about you skipping the bill?” The girl clearly had a close relationship with him; her tone was light and familiar. “Besides, my mom would love it if you did—preferably by paying with yourself as her son-in-law.”

Shen Mingjin let out a hearty laugh, responding with his usual poise and ease, “Auntie sure knows how to make a losing deal.”

“A sure win, more like. You have no idea how much my mom likes you. If you say yes, our bakery will supply desserts to your cafe for free—total win-win.”

“Too kind, too kind,” Shen Mingjin replied with a mock ancient-style bow, deflecting the comment with good-humored wit.

Though their conversation wasn’t overtly flirtatious, it was still clear that the girl had feelings for Shen Mingjin. Zhang Rufan instinctively gave her an extra glance.

As he was speaking, Shen Mingjin caught a familiar figure out of the corner of his eye. Turning his head, he saw that it was indeed Zhang Rufan. She was standing silently by the dessert display, not interrupting. When he looked her way, she gave him a faint smile—like a quiet, wordless greeting.

Shen Mingjin hadn’t left the cafe all morning. He had even ordered lunch in. Since Zhang Rufan had said she would come see him but hadn’t shown up, he couldn’t help but wonder whether Du Sheng had ignored his warning and invited her out instead. Now, seeing her here, half the weight on his heart was lifted—though not completely.

Once the desserts had been tallied and the girl had left, Zhang Rufan spoke. “The desserts here are outsourced?”

“Yeah,” Shen Mingjin replied. “It’s an old shop. The owner is my mom’s childhood friend. I’d tried her desserts before and thought they were pretty good, so when the cafe needed a dessert supplier, we partnered up.”

Their families had known each other for years. Zhang Rufan unconsciously pressed her lips together and looked at him. “You’ve known each other since you were kids?”

“Hm?” Shen Mingjin paused for a second before realizing who she meant by “you two.” He studied Zhang Rufan’s expression. Her tone was neutral, but in the flicker of her eyes, he picked up on a rare trace of emotion.

It was like seeing a shooting star in broad daylight—unexpected and thrilling. Shen Mingjin quickly turned his head, coughed lightly into his fist to compose himself, then turned back to her. “You mean Zheng Pei? Yeah, I guess you could say we’ve known each other since childhood.”

Only then did Zhang Rufan learn the dessert girl’s name—Zheng Pei. She lowered her gaze slightly and, after a brief pause, said, “She… seems to like you too.”

When she said that, the emphasis in her tone was on the word “like.” But what Shen Mingjin picked up on was the word “too.” It felt like an unconscious reveal of her own feelings, and it made his heart swell with joy. In that moment, the tension and frustration of the entire morning—especially the unease brought by Du Sheng—vanished completely.

“The elders used to joke about arranging a marriage between us when we were little,” Shen Mingjin said.

When someone is truly overjoyed, even if they restrain their smile, their eyes still give them away.

Seeing the delight Shen Mingjin couldn’t hide, Zhang Rufan instead frowned slightly.

Lately, she had been cramming knowledge about love. After watching A Little Thing Called First Love, Cheng Yi had recommended a list of classic romance films. Over the past week, whenever she had time after work, she would watch a few, trying to understand the feeling of love through film.

Hearing what Shen Mingjin said just now, she immediately thought of Flipped, a movie she had seen a couple of days ago—childhood friends, growing up together, sharing countless moments. Such a relationship was undeniably special.

Caught up in emotion, she failed to consider one simple fact: Shen Mingjin hadn’t grown up in Shangjing.

Snapping out of it, she pressed her lips together and looked at him, speaking with a kind of quiet solemnity. “I can compete with her fairly.”

Shen Mingjin completely lost control of his expression. He lowered his head, raised a hand to his forehead, and his shoulders shook with laughter as he muttered, “The starting points aren’t even the same. How is that fair competition?”

“What?” Zhang Rufan didn’t catch what he said.

Still grinning, Shen Mingjin lifted his head. His voice trembled slightly as he said, “Do your best! Just like the long-distance races in high school—believe in yourself, don’t give up!”

The words rang familiar. Suddenly, Zhang Rufan remembered him cheering for her at school sports meets. Every time she ran, he was there on the sidelines, shouting encouragement. Back then, she had assumed it was just part of his duty and pride as a member of the sports committee.

“I will.”

Shen Mingjin’s mood turned from cloudy to clear skies, but he still felt a lingering worry. So he took a roundabout approach and asked, “Ace of Hearts, do you remember that high school Chinese text about earthworms and devotion?”

Zhang Rufan didn’t quite understand the question, but she replied anyway: “‘The earthworm has no sharp claws or strong bones, yet it eats the earth above and drinks from the springs below—all through single-minded dedication’?”

“Yep, that’s the one.” Shen Mingjin suddenly straightened up and, with exaggerated seriousness, said, “Our teacher taught us that to do anything well, you need focus and determination. If you let yourself get distracted by temptations, you won’t accomplish anything.”

Zhang Rufan nodded. She agreed with the principle, but didn’t understand why he was suddenly bringing it up.

“Same goes for chasing someone,” Shen Mingjin said, coughing lightly before finally getting to the point. “Since you’ve decided to pursue me, you can’t let anyone shake that resolve. No one. Got it?”

Seeing how serious he looked, Zhang Rufan thought this was a truly important matter, and she nodded solemnly in agreement.

Only then did Shen Mingjin break into a full smile and ask, “So, what would you like to drink today?”

Zhang Rufan ordered a flat white. Shen Mingjin told her to find a seat, and after she turned around, he dropped all pretense. He grinned from ear to ear, spun around in place, snapped his fingers, and exclaimed, “Yes!”

Nearby, Xiao Mu—who was steaming milk—watched his boss’s borderline manic reaction with the classic "fake smile" expression and asked, “Bro, how long have you had this condition?”

“Go wash the cups.”

…

Shen Mingjin personally made the flat white and even crafted a smiley face in the foam. When he brought the coffee over to Zhang Rufan, he carefully adjusted the cup so the smile faced her directly—the latte art mirroring the faint smile on his own face.

“Thank you,” Zhang Rufan said, then looked up at him. “Are you busy?”

Shen Mingjin raised an eyebrow and simply pulled out the chair across from her and sat down.

“My proposal got approved. OW is hosting a ‘Coffee Market’ next month.” Ever since the proposal passed that morning, Zhang Rufan had been wanting to share the news with Shen Mingjin face-to-face.

“That’s great news.” His mind turned quickly, and before she could even continue, he asked, “Does this event involve inviting baristas?”

“Mhm,” Zhang Rufan nodded. “I wanted to ask you for a favor.”

“You want me to introduce some baristas to you?”

“Mhm.”

“I already told you—it’s no problem,” Shen Mingjin replied without hesitation. Even if she hadn’t come up with the idea because of him, he would’ve been happy to help. After all, it was just a small favor between classmates.

He looked up at her, and said casually, “Actually, I’m heading to an old café tonight to visit a mentor.”

Zhang Rufan leaned forward instinctively, her interest piqued. “Can I come with you?”

The corners of Shen Mingjin’s lips lifted, and he nodded without a second thought. “Sure. You can ask him in person if he’d be interested in the event.”

Initially, Zhang Rufan had just planned to ask for some baristas’ contact info so she could follow up later via phone or social media. But if Shen Mingjin was willing to take her around to visit cafés in person, that was even better. Face-to-face invitations showed sincerity—and they had a higher success rate.

She remembered she hadn’t managed to treat him to lunch earlier, so she asked, “Then… can I treat you to dinner tonight?”

A smile crept into Shen Mingjin’s eyes. She really is a good student—applying what she learns and seizing opportunities.

“Sure,” he agreed easily.

Zhang Rufan gave a small smile, lifted her cup, and took a sip. Then her gaze drifted toward the smiley face in the foam, where it lingered.

“What are you thinking about?” Shen Mingjin asked, waving a hand in front of her.

Snapping out of it, Zhang Rufan put down her cup and sighed, so softly it was almost inaudible. “Work stuff.”

“Didn’t your proposal get approved? Why don’t you seem happy about it?”

Zhang Rufan rarely spoke to anyone about her worries. But under Shen Mingjin’s steady gaze, she found herself voicing them before she could stop.

“You just joined the company, and they handed you a major project—feeling pressure is normal.” After listening patiently, Shen Mingjin reassured her, “Don’t be so anxious about getting along with your coworkers. They’re just people. What, do they have extra eyes or fewer ears than you?”

A glimmer of laughter flickered in her eyes.

“You just don’t talk to people enough. Relax. Most people aren’t that hard to deal with. Same goes for work—if you’re a little more proactive, I think your coworkers will come around.”

To Shen Mingjin, dealing with people came naturally. But for Zhang Rufan, it was a minefield. After hearing what he said, she couldn’t help asking, “How do I be proactive?”

He knew that even building rapport with a single person was a lot for her—never mind winning over the whole company.

After thinking it over for a moment, he said, “Tell you what. You go back and focus on doing your job well… and I’ll help you be proactive.”

1. 咖啡集市 (Kāfēi jíshì) – "Coffee Market," an event organized by OW.

2. 青梅竹马 (Qīngméi zhúmǎ) – "Childhood sweethearts," referring to a close relationship since youth.

3. 娃娃亲 (Wáwa qīn) – "Child betrothal," an old custom of arranging marriages between children.

4. 不会来事儿 (Bù huì lái shìr) – "Doesn’t know how to handle social situations," describing Zhang Rufan's awkwardness in networking. 

Characters

章入凡 (Zhāng Rùfán) – The protagonist.

沈明津 (Shěn Míngjīn) – A former classmate who wrote Zhang Rufan a love letter in high school, in her copy of Anne of Green Gables.

章胜义 (Zhāng Shèngyì) – Zhang Rufan’s father. 

李惠淑 (Lǐ Huìshū) – Zhang Rufan’s stepmother ("惠姨 Huìyí").

章梓橦 (Zhāng Zǐtóng) – Rufan’s much younger half-sister (~18 years age gap). 

章胜嫔 (Zhāng Shèngpín) – Rufan’s aunt (father’s sister). 

程怡 (Chéng Yí) – Rufan’s close friend from middle school. 

谢易韦 (Xiè Yìwéi) – High school class monitor who is getting married, prompting the reunion.

杜升 (Dù Shēng) – Someone Zhang Rufan didn't want to add as a friend on WeChat at first.

刘品媛 (Liú Pǐnyuán) – The planning department manager at OW.

孙璐 (Sūn Lù) – Zhang Rufan’s direct supervisor at OW, who goes by "Sister Lu" (璐姐, Lù Jiě).

袁霜 (Yuán Shuāng) – A friendly coworker in the planning department.

周慈 (Zhōu Cí) – Shen Mingjin’s mother

Sevyn here ~~~

Enjoy!