"… Are you alright?" As she stared at Jiang Chen, who approached her, she bit her lips and ran out of words to say.
"Not exactly okay, a minor injury." Jiang Chen had the audacity to point at the small cut on his cheek. If he didn’t point it out, it would have gone unnoticed.
"I, I’ll treat it for you." Xia Shiyu lowered her head, full of guilt. She had never owed favors to anyone, but now she owed this person so much.
"Here? Saliva can disinfect it." Jiang Chen joked carelessly. It even surprised himself a little.
[Hmm? When did I get so flirty?]
"… I have bandage and alcohol at my place." Xia Shiyu coldly answered Jiang Chen’s mockery
"Don’t look at me like that. At least I am your new creditor." Jiang Chen waved the agreement between his fingers. "Look. Though since I am a nice person, I won’t charge you any interest."
[Is there anyone more narcissistic than him?] Xia Shiyu stared at the smiling Jiang Chen with a look of defeat. She was confused. This was the same guy that was afraid to make eye contact with her?
"I’ll repay you, including interest." Xia Shiyu expressed her gratitude with certainty in her voice. And then more hesitantly, she said "With normal interest rate." She wasn’t confident in repaying the high interest on her debt.
Jiang Chen shrugged as he knew this girl too well. She would not back down from her goal.
"Xia Shiyu."
"Yeah?" Xia Shiyu turned her head after the store owner called.
"This is your salary for half of the month. I am sorry, but there is nothing I can do about the thugs. Also, you don’t have to come to work tomorrow," the store owner said laboriously as he finally said the disheartening statement in an almost pleading tone.
After she had taken the envelope of money, she nodded her head emotionlessly. She gazed at the flower shop that was about to close. Evading and doubtful looks surrounded her as people looked away when she tried to make eye contact. She didn’t know why she wanted to cry.
She couldn’t remember the number of times she almost broke down, but this was the first time in her life that she felt so fragile.
"Fired?" Jiang Chen said mockingly. He felt so joyful seeing his manager got fired again.
She didn’t answer Jiang Chen's mockery. She bit her lips, full of emotions. She turned around and headed home as Jiang Chen followed. Xia Shiyu did say that she was going to help him with the wound.
By now, the wound had already scarred up, but Jiang Chen was curious about where his ex-boss lived. He had nothing better to do anyways.
Jiang Chen chuckled to himself as he thought that he was a terrible person. Almost as mischievous as Sun Jiao.
Jiang Chen stepped onto the moldy stairs, and a frown appeared on his face. He was surprised that Wanghai City even had a building this old. The crack- filled walls indicated that this place was not pleasant.
Xia Shiyu pulled out her keys and opened the rusted door. A bitter smile emerged on Jiang Chen's face. [This girl is almost too resilient and independent. Any other girls would not be able to handle these living conditions. Especially with her charming looks, if she wanted her problems solved, a lot of people would be willing to pay 500,000 for her.]
But her attractiveness was completely undermined by her terrible attitude.
There was a hint of a moldy odor when Jiang Chen first entered the room, but the scented air freshener quickly filled his nostrils. It was clear that Xia Shiyu used it in an attempt to solve the problem.
The room was tiny and cluttered with furniture. It was even smaller than Jiang Chen’s cheap apartment. There was no TV in the living room. Only an old wooden desk with even older chairs. Maybe they would be worth something if she sold them as artifacts.
There was no air conditioning in sight either, only a fan placed in the corner of the room. The most expensive electronic was the stainless steel kettle which she had most likely brought with her when she fled from her home.
A laptop was on the table, but there was no wifi here. What would be the use of it?
He noticed that two pairs of shoes were placed neatly in front of the door. There was no way she only owned two pairs of shoes. She must have been in a rush when she escaped. Although the condition of the apartment was not the best, it did look like she spent a considerable amount of time cleaning the place.
"Sorry, it’s pretty crappy here. Sit," Xia Shiyu awkwardly said. It was her first time bringing a not-so-familiar man to her place. Even for her ex, she always asked him to stop in front of her door. The idea of spending time alone with the opposite gender made her extremely uncomfortable. Perhaps it was because of her overprotective mindset that she was friendless, especially at this time, when she needed someone the most. She walked into the tiny bedroom.
Jiang Chen pulled out a chair and sat down on it. However, to his surprise, it almost made him fall. [F*ck, the chair is missing a piece of its leg.]
Soon, Xia Shiyu walked out with rubbing alcohol and q-tips.
"Where?" Her tone was mechanical. She examined the wound as she tried to place her hand awkwardly.
"Here. Are you going to...?" Jiang Chen forced a smile. He only wanted to mock the ex-manager, but she did bring out the rubbing alcohol.
"I said I would treat it for you." Xia Shiyu took in a deep breath as she advanced toward his face.
Jiang Chen felt uncomfortable as well. His hands wiggled back and forth not knowing where to place them.
"Don’t move." Xia Shiyu frowned slightly and gave the restless Jiang Chen a hard stare.
"Okay." Jiang Chen forced a smile again.
It was a delightful fragrance. The lilac aroma twirled around Jiang Chen’s nose. Her flawless neck was decorated with jewelry. Jiang Chen remembered there was a necklace when they worked together. When she leaned forward, the light summer shirt flashed a glimpse of her beautiful cleavage. It was probably only a B, which was nothing compared to Sun Jiao's. But with her serene figure, she seemed like a delightful breeze in the summer day.
She was a goddess in looks and figure. It was quite embarrassing, but Jiang Chen did masturbate to her before.
In his memory, her hair was always tied back professionally. Today, her hair was pulled back in a ponytail which brought Jiang Chen to a memory of his past. The newly graduated Xia Shiyu was nothing like the professional office lady.
"What are you looking at?" She noticed the invasive stare which made her quite scared. But her face still displayed the same guarded and emotionless look.
"No. Nothing," Jiang Chen awkwardly replied.
After the wound was treated, their eyes crossed.
Time stopped for a moment.
Awkwardness ensued.
"It smells very nice here. Hahaha." Jiang Chen rubbed his head to break the silence.
Xia Shiyu zoned out momentarily. Her cheek blushed as her emotionless face smiled slightly, but her eyes looked even colder.
"It’s the scent of lilacs. I probably got it when I worked." With a frown on her face, she quickly cleaned up and headed back into her room.
[Heart pounding fast.] She held her pumping chest as she recollected her breathing. She disappointedly looked at herself in the mirror. She didn’t know why she was acting weird.
[Heart pounding fast.] Jiang Chen also confusedly touched his chest. [There is no way I am interested in this girl.] He immediately rejected the idea and blamed the natural reaction of his hormones. Compared to an icy beauty, he preferred the energetic and lively Sun Jiao. Sun Jiao who occasionally went into her character as the queen of the wasteland while acting as a caring and heartwarming wife.
Xia Shiyu left her room moments later and interrupted Jiang Chen’s train of thoughts. She stood across from Jiang Chen, but there was no conversation between the two. Silence filled the room as the only noise was the ticking clock and their heartbeats.
"Thank you." Xia Shiyu broke the silence first.
"No problem, I just happened to pass by." He lied about the fact that he tried to find her today in the morning with hostile intentions but only left because he heard she left her position.
He didn’t expect this stubborn girl to thank him.
"You," Xia Shiyu briefly paused as if she had something to say. She hesitated for a bit before finally asking what bothered her, "Don’t you hate me?"
He was not surprised by the question. He also considered the question himself. [Do I still hate her?]
"I hated you." In the end, the paragraphs he tried to articulate in his head only turned into three short words. Jiang Chen looked at Xia Shiyu with a perplexed look.
[Then why did you save me?]
She didn’t ask this question, but Jiang Chen read the unasked question in her eyes.
He hated her before. She fired him and almost made him homeless. He was not hesitant to curse her with the most malicious vows… However, that was all in the past. After he had released his anger, it was no longer an incident that bothered him. Life continued, and there was no reason to continue to despise her.
"No particular reason." Jiang Chen sighed as he shook his head. "To be frank, when I heard that you were fired, I was quite ecstatic for a moment. As you can see, the clothes I am wearing right now are purchased from that store. However, I realized that I am still too immature."
"Immature?" She mumbled the word repetitively. She was dumbfounded by Jiang Chen’s words. Her icy, cold eyes began to lose its focus.
If Jiang Chen humiliated her or even hit her, it would make this feel easier. But the man she almost single-handedly pushed to despair didn’t do anything in retaliation. He gave her a helping hand in her most desperate time.
[Why…]
"Even if I retaliated, what would I get in return? To be honest, the feeling of revenge is great. But if I see a girl get pushed to the edge of life by a group of thugs without doing anything, the guilt will overwhelm me - especially since I know you. After all, we don’t have a hatred that runs for generations. It was only a job after all. Even if you gave me the job now, I will not take it."
It was a job after all. Compared to what Jiang Chen lost, he certainly gained a lot more. If he weren't drunk, he would have never passed the alley. He would have missed the opportunity to acquire the interdimensional bracelet.
He never knew where life would take him the next.
"Before I fired you, I thought a lot about it." With a perplexed look, she continued, "Based on the facts, I know I am not a qualified manager."
"You have all the abilities, but you don’t know the human heart" Jiang Chen smiled.
"Human heart? Do you mean psychology?"
"No no, it’s not something from the textbook. The human heart is a complicated matter. Even within a lifetime, it would be difficult to understand it all."
They chatted as if they were close friends that hadn’t seen each other for a long time. Jiang Chen felt the calm he had been searching the entire day for.
Yes, it was incredible shopping, and eating a fancy meal, but he still felt hollow.
In this large metropolitan city, he didn’t even have a single friend he could talk with. Maybe that was what Jiang Chen was searching for that entire day. Everyone took separate path after graduation and moved on.
This tiny apartment brought him the calmness and serenity he had desperately searched for.
Maybe, this peacefulness was what life rewarded those who did good deeds.
Why don’t you work for me?
He stared out the window as night fell. It was getting pretty late. He peeked at the clock, and it pointed directly at 12.
At that moment, he realized there was something wrong. There were only three pairs of female shoes there, but he always thought she had a boyfriend.
"I am staying pretty late, is your friend not going to be jealous?" Jiang Chen casually asked but soon noticed the gloom on Xia Shiyu’s face.
Immediately, he realized what happened. He knew someone as smart as Xia Shiyu would not borrow money from sketchy sources. Then the only option was that after she had lost her job, he loaned under her name.
That also explained why she was left helpless in this old and torn down apartment.
"Your man’s a trash and a half." Jiang Chen stood up for her.
"He’s not my man." Xia Shiyu replied with the same emotionless tone.
"Why don’t you go home?" Her apathetic tone made Jiang Chen quite shocked. So to avoid the awkwardness, he changed the subject.
"I don’t want to bring trouble home." The resilience on her face touched Jiang Chen. She was definitely capable. He thought that maybe it was because upper management had a thing with her. But he was too quick to judge. For a renowned brand, the upper management was not the type to think with the lower half of the body.
"To be honest, I am impressed." Jiang Chen said to Xia Shiyu with sincere.
"Really?" The tone of her voice was filled with self-mockery.
For some strange reason, the second she opened her mouth, Jiang Chen saw a glimpse of wretchedness in her eyes. Perhaps it was not that, perhaps it was weariness.
As a woman, after all the ups and downs she has gone through, she still stayed strong.
Jiang Chen didn’t know what would comfort her. He was not too good at comforting woman in general. Or else he wouldn’t be single for 20 years.
Silenced ensued again.
"Do you want to listen to my story?"
Jiang Chen nodded.
She told him everything that happened after she fired Jiang Chen. The store was facing sales problems, and the headquarter was questioning her ability. From a bunch of anonymous complaints to holding the notice of termination, she felt a mixture of emotions when she left the place. Unemployed, cheating, and gang harassment, she was running out of options, and she finally decided to flee from her apartment and hide there.
What pushed her from despair to hopelessness was hearing the proud voice of her parents on the other side of the phone. However, she couldn’t express her sorrow to them. She could only answer against her will that she was okay, and everything was fine. Her parents were too old to accept this travesty.
Jiang Chen also felt the same heartache when he lost his job. She was not seeking sympathy; she only wanted someone to talk to because she was too tired. However, this person only showed up now.
"You are very strong. If there’s anything I can do to help, feel free to call me."
"Thanks, but I don’t need sympathy." Xia Shiyu smiled as she rubbed her teary eye.
Smiled?
Her?
Jiang Chen was stunned.
"Is there something on my face?" Xia Shiyu felt quite shy after Jiang Chen’s eyes were locked on her.
"No… But this is my first time seeing you smile." He blankly nodded. He knew that if he looked in the mirror right now, he would look extremely foolish.
Haha, Xia Shiyu burst out in laughter. She was also stunned because she realized that she was laughing. Not only was she laughing but she was laughing joyfully.
"Well, is it that funny?" Jiang Chen pretended to cough as he awkwardly rubbed his head.
"You, are very funny."
[Why is it in a questioning tone?] Jiang Chen rolled his eyes as he looked defeated.
"Now that I told you my story, can you tell me yours?" She rubbed her eyes. Her softened expression made her face as pristine as snow.
[She has such an adorable face, why would she remain so cold every day?] Jiang Chen murmured in his mind.
"Me? There really is not much to say. I made some money with my own business." Jiang Chen guiltily made up an unsophisticated lie.
Xia Shiyu slightly frowned and looked unhappily at Jiang Chen. She didn’t even realize such a girly expression appeared on her face.
"Hmm? I don’t believe it."
"Well, there is nothing I can do about it." He opened his palms. Some secrets must be kept hidden forever. "But, I do believe you’ll be an excellent manager. Are you interested?"
This was Jiang Chen’s other consideration.
Open a company and let Xia Shiyu work for him.
Exchanging for gold is not a long term strategy. One day people will question his source of income. If the government noticed him, he would have to live on the other side of the earth. The best way was to open a company. He even thought about the name. It will be called "Futuristic Technology"!
His plan was to gather all the "garbage" from the apocalypse and introduce ground-breaking, innovative products.
iPhone, Microsoft, and Samsung will all be names of the past. Could they be as innovative as technology from 200 years later? Even the computer screen was made by full-sensory technology. If they produced the technology that only existed in sci-fi, all the consumers in the world would go insane.
This was only in the electronic devices.
Blizzards, EA, and Ubisoft would go lunatics over the virtual reality technology. Once a matured virtual reality technology debuts in the market, no one would want to play with a mouse and controller anymore.
Then it would be home appliances, cars, military tech, and even technology for space exploration! The possibilities were endless.
The reason why he chose Xia Shiyu was simple. He couldn’t find anyone else, and he trusted her ability. Although they had a conflict in the past, Jiang Chen realized he forgave her quite easily. Maybe it was because she was not a bad person, or maybe it was because of how similar their experiences are.
So when Xia Shiyu hit rock bottom, Jiang Chen reached out to help her and recruited her.
"Interested?" Xiao Shiyu was still unclear about what Jiang Chen meant.
"How many years would you have to work in the flower shop to pay me back? And since you are unemployed, I just found a job for you."
"You own the company?" Xia Shiyu looked at him questionably.
"What, I can’t? I am excited to see my ex-manager work diligently under me." He said jokingly. But he looked quite serious.
She closed her eyes to consider the proposition for a moment. It was quite attractive to her. She didn’t have any reason to reject it.
"I accept."
"Excellent." Jiang Chen laughed and extended his hand. "Welcome on board, Manger Xia. You are hired by Futuristic Technology, and you starting salary will be 10,000."
The salary was comparable to her previous job. Jiang Chen’s generosity made her feel confused. After so long, he already made this much progress in his career?
She shook Jiang Chen’s hand. The warm but coarse feeling made her slightly tremble.
"That’s a hefty salary you are paying. However, just to be clear, I will not do any sexual favors." Astonishingly, she was surprised she got the job.
Jiang Chen was completely stunned. He was amazed by the glimpse of charm she displayed. The icy beauty made a dirty joke.
"Haha, of course not. But the company does not condone nor prevent employees from seducing the president." The righteous beauty was obviously no match with Jiang Chen in terms of dirty jokes. After she heard the word "seduce", her face flushed with anger.
But to her surprise, she was more embarrassed than angry.
[What’s the reason?]
"Can I get a brief description of the company?" Known for her professionalism, she quickly recollected herself. She headed straight to business. "Futuristic Technology, the company sounds like a firm that specializes in the technology sector. What am I in charge of? Sales, or research and development? If it is R&D, although I don’t any experience in the area, I am confident that I will be familiar with the responsibilities within a month…"
"Stop, stop right here." Jiang Chen signaled Xia Shiyu to stop talking. With her question-filled eyes fixed on Jiang Chen, he cleared his throat. "In simple term, you are the CEO. Therefore you take care of everything." Let the secretary do everything was the way Jiang Chen imagined to be a boss He didn’t have the energy to manage people.
Xiao Shiyu's face all the sudden turned concerned. She never heard of the Futuristic Technology at all.
"Currently, the company is still in planning stage." Jiang Chen answered the question she was worried about as if it was not a big deal at all. "Don’t you feel excited? You’ll be the Steve Jobs of Hua, and I will be the Bill Gates of Hua!"
With passion, he stated the quote that he always wanted to say. He finally had the opportunity to say it.
"…"
"Wait, why do you have your phone out?"
"I am reserving a hospital bed for you." Her look expressed which type of hospital she was sending him to written all over it.
"Wait, you…"
She grabbed her phone and convinced her to let him finish.
"If you don’t join us right now, you’ll regret it in 5 years! Just like how no one believed in Jack Ma. Wait, don’t call." Jiang Chen calmed the almost furious Xia Shiyu with a smile. He was not talented in giving pep talks. He didn’t know how to recruit and excite people. He wanted to use what he has learned through WeChat marketing, but it made him even more suspicious in the end.
"Simple, your position is the CEO. However, since the company doesn’t have a lot of business right now, why don’t you take care of the position of general manager as well. At this stage, I’ll pay you 10,000 a month. You don’t need to repay me with this money. I really don’t care about such a small amount of money. Maybe in the future, your salary would be far above the amount of loan. Don’t look at me like that. I am not joking. Your next task is simple. I’ll wire you 500,000 so you can incorporate the company. You don’t have to worry about what happens next. In two months, you’ll be extremely busy."
She sighed as she stared at the Jiang Chen who was feeling great about his speech. "Are you not afraid I’ll take the money and run?"
"You are not that kind of a person," Jiang Chen disagreed. "Also, 500,000 to learn about a person is worth it. Compared to what the company will be worth in the future."
Since she still couldn't find a job and owed money, Xia Shiyu made up her mind and agreed.
Years later, Xia Shiyu would still be grateful when asked about this day. When media asked about how she almost rejected Jiang Chen's offer, she would just emotionally say one sentence. "Sometimes a split second decision makes a difference between a billionaire and poverty."
"It’s late now. I’ll head back." It was almost one in the morning.
"Mhmm." She stood and walked Jiang Chen to the door.
"Don’t forget to send me your bank account number. I’ll prepay your July salary. You’ll get paid at the end of the month. Also, find somewhere nice to live. It’s not safe to live here, especially for a beauty like you." The exact contract can only be made when the company is incorporated. However, Jiang Chen was not too bothered by the details. He had faith in her loyalty.
Xia Shiyu blushed when she heard Jiang Chen call her a beauty. A lot of people called her that before, but this was the first time her heart started to pump faster. She didn’t display her feminine side this time and nodded calmly.
"Ok."
"That’s all from me. I have to leave for a couple of days, so you might not be able to reach me." Jiang Chen turned around and left.
"Wait…"
"Hmm?" Jiang Chen turned back.
"Thank you... You looked very... handsome when…"
At Jiang Chen’s surprised look, Xia Shiyu slammed the door shut.
[This girl, is she interested in me?] Jiang Chen thought joyfully.
But, it could just be a simple thanks.
He didn’t think too much of it.
She leaned behind the closed door and slowly slid onto the ground. The cold feeling of the porcelain tile pressed against her smooth leg made her mixed emotions slightly calmer.
[What happened there? Why did I say something so embarrassing…] She covered her face as she tried to hid the tingling sensation in her hands. Her lips slightly trembled.
[That was so embarrassing… I want to die… Ahhhhh!]
In "humiliation" she hid her head between her legs.
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