Chapter 14

 

At twenty-five, their son should naturally start a family and establish a career. Since he’d planned his own career, as a mother, it’s her duty to take charge of the direction of his family life. This was Gu Shuangyang’s perspective.

After spending a whole night thinking it over, Professor Liang decided to call his ex-wife again. But the call, made with such careful courage, ended after just a few words.

The first sentence: “Shuangyang, for people of our generation, it was normal for men to marry and have children at twenty-five, but young people these days tend to mature late.”

The word “mature late” made Gu Shuangyang burst into laughter, and she retorted, “I don’t know about others, but your son is definitely not a late bloomer… He matured early during puberty and is now very mature.”

Very mature…

Just then, a gentle, inquiring voice interrupted: “What’s making you so happy?”

Gu Shuangyang replied, “Nothing, just talking to Old Liang.”

Not wanting to hear more, Professor Liang slammed the phone down.

…

Taking every new beginning seriously was Ming Xi’s habit. Now that she had a place to stay, there were many things she needed to sort out. She hadn’t brought much luggage from Yicheng, so organizing her clothes in the dorm didn’t take long.

However, now that she wasn’t staying in a hotel, she needed to buy more necessities.

Longmao Parkway sold all sorts of items, but everything there was too expensive for her.

So Ming Xi went out and asked someone who looked neatly dressed for directions: “Hello, do you know if there’s a wholesale supermarket in Haigang… or a farmers’ market?”

The woman instinctively clutched her handbag, as if deeply offended and replied curtly: “I don’t know, I’ve never been to such a place.”

Okay. Ming Xi changed her approach and specifically asked young people walking with their heads down. Soon enough, she got an answer.

Just like her, someone young, sensitive, and broke!

She boarded the No. 124 bus and rode for over ten stops before getting off. A hundred meters ahead stood the Hongxing Agricultural Wholesale Center — the closest place to Haigang’s city center that also gathered vendors and traders from all over the country.

She moved quickly and efficiently, buying bedding and basic necessities.

The market had a bit of everything. Besides daily goods, the gray makeshift tents also housed many clothing stalls.

Ming Xi wandered around, thinking about buying some clothes, but then decided against it. It wasn’t that she couldn’t bear to spend the money — she was just afraid of buying something that didn’t fit her new image. She wasn’t a student anymore, nor was she still in a small provincial city like Yicheng. If she made herself look ridiculous, the stake would be higher.

She hadn’t even officially started her job, but already she had the burdens of a working person…

Ming Xi pouted in distress.

She couldn’t find anything good at the wholesale market, and she didn’t have enough money to spend at the department store. Then an idea struck Ming Xi — she found a tailor shop tucked in a corner of the market.

She selected two thick fabrics and asked the tailor if he could make her two sets of clothes quickly.

The styles didn’t need to be complicated, just simple and well-fitted.

From observing the customers at Longmao Parkway, she felt that wealthy and respectable people tended to dress simply and neatly. She didn’t intend to imitate the style of the rich, but she also didn’t want to appear shabby. Having lived in the secular world since childhood, Ming Xi knew too well that people mostly judged people by appearances.

The owner of the tailor shop was from Anhui and spoke with a thick accent. He understood what she wanted and took thirty yuan for the labor, asking her to pick it up in a week.

Ming Xi was very satisfied, having solved the most troublesome matter with the least amount of money. Custom-made, after all, meant something you couldn’t find just anywhere. Scarcity makes things valuable. For her to not copying others and not chasing trends, this was a poor girl’s way to keep her dignity in style.

With clothes settled, Ming Xi went to find a beauty salon. It was also a tiny shop tucked into a corner.

The proprietress leaned against the glass door cracking sunflowers seeds. Tossing the husks aside, she squinted at Ming Xi and said, “Wash and cut, six yuan. Cut only, four.”

Ming Xi: “…I’ll skip the wash.”

The woman chuckled, ushered her in, and pressed her into a swivelling chair. She pulled out a comb and scissors.

“Your hair’s short—hard to cut. I’ll just trim it up a bit.”

“Not too casually!” Ming Xi blurted, covering her head. After a moment’s hesitation, she lifted her eyes carefully, almost eagerly. “You know that Hong Kong drama XXX? Could you cut it like her hairstyle?”

“Don’t know it,” the woman said, annoyed.

Fine. Ming Xi began describing it in detail—from the bangs, slightly choppy to give a lively look, to the layered sides, to the even, clean ends that framed the face neatly.

In short, it should be neat! It should be presentable!

When Ming Xi finished, the woman laughed at her: “You young girls sure have a lot of opinions!”

Ming Xi rolled her eyes pitifully and said slowly: “It’s hard out there for us from out of town… If I don’t make myself look decent, how am I supposed to get a job and make money?”

The woman looked at her with a more scrutinizing look, as if guessing what sort of work she did.

Smiling sweetly, Ming Xi explained, “I work in a big department store—they’ve got strict standards for appearance.”

“Ah, that explains it!” The woman smiled too, softening toward her.

It had to be said that the owner of this small salon tucked away in the wholesale farmers’ market had excellent skills; she’d practically nailed the look Ming Xi was looking for.

Facing the mirror, Ming Xi examined herself with a serious gaze. Her newly trimmed bangs fell across her forehead, revealing two smooth, willow-shaped eyebrows; the soft fringe made her bright eyes seem even livelier.

The woman gently tucked the hair behind Ming Xi’s ears, revealing two delicate, graceful ears.

“Don’t tell me you look like a completely different person with this cut,” the woman said.

It was because she hadn’t really looked at Ming Xi before!

Ming Xi knew she wasn’t plain. Once she’d grown more self-aware, she realized she was actually quite pretty—after all, Han Junjun wouldn’t have chased after her otherwise. If she worked a little harder to turn “pretty enough” into “good-looking,” that face of hers might someday be a small advantage at work.

She was starting from nothing in Haigang. As long as she wasn’t selling herself, using her looks a bit to gain small favors was perfectly fair.

That wasn’t a shortcut—it was natural talent. Youth and beauty were also a kind of ability; an invisible right a woman could use to carve out her place in the world.

If a girl’s beauty was only used to make boys like her, then the right to beauty did not belong to her directly; instead, it became a tool for boys to show off. And it’s the kind that’s offered for free.

Ming Xi smiled at her reflection, bright and fresh. She paid the five yuan, pocketed her one-yuan change, and lugged her big shopping bags back to the dorm.

…

In the corridor of Longmao dormitory, she put down the big bag and stood in front of the door to unlock it. The new key and lock didn’t fit perfectly yet; it took some effort to turn. Just as she was about to push open the door, a warm, steady voice sounded behind her.

“…You’re the new one, right?”

The tone was a little uncertain, but sounded quite friendly.

Ming Xi turned. A man in his late thirties or early forties stood there, hair slicked back neatly, a briefcase in hand—looking every bit reliable. She straightened up and answered politely, “Hello, sir! I’m Ming Xi, the new general office clerk at Longmao. I’ll be officially starting next Monday.”

“Hello, hello! Don’t be nervous… I’m not your boss.” The man laughed, and once he confirmed who she was, added, “Now I know that you’re Ming Xi. I just wanted to make sure I’d recognize you next time.”

Why did he want to confirm her identity? Seeing the man’s friendly smile, Ming Xi smiled too.

It was the first time she met such a gentle and elegant person. Although she knew that the other person was being polite to her, it still gave her a feeling of comfort, like a gentle spring breeze.

The man took out a business card from his pocket and handed it to her with a polite smile: “I’m Yang Minwen from Shuangyang Electronics. Longmao’s marketing manager also lives in this building—the last room down the hall. I came to discuss something with him today.”

Ah, so that was it. Ming Xi’s smile relaxed a lot. She also knew that there were many upper managements living in her dormitory, and they were all capable people from out of town.

Ming Xi took the business card and feigned a glance at it, then, with a composed smile, adopted the politeness of a formal speech: “Hello, Mr. Yang, it’s an honor to meet you. If there’s anything I can help with in the future, please don’t hesitate to ask.”

Yang Minwen smiled naturally, his demeanor very upright: “You’re too polite. We’re both from Yicheng—of course we should look out for each other.”

How did he know she was from Yicheng? Ming Xi wondered, though she kept her face calm, pretending she wasn’t surprised.

He didn’t explain further—just nodded politely and walked off, briefcase in hand, unhurried and graceful.

Ming Xi: …!

She still couldn’t figure it out…

After making her bed, Ming Xi sat on the edge of the bed and tried to figure it out. Professor Liang had clearly introduced her to the job, so why did Mr. Yang, whom she only met today, seem to know so much about her? Could it be that Professor Liang knew this Mr. Yang?

What was Professor Liang’s connection to Shuangyang Electronics?

She took out the business card again and examined it. It said Yang Minwen, Deputy Marketing Manager of Shuangyang Electronics.

In any case, it was good to have more connections. Ming Xi also saved Yang Minwen’s phone number in her contacts list, adding the note “Yicheng Fellow.”

Putting it all together, she finally had nearly ten contacts in her phone.

With just a few people, it was easy to find Liang Jiancheng’s number. Her heart suddenly skipped a beat.

Now that she’d officially joined Longmao Parkway, should she call Liang Jiancheng to let him know?

To be honest, after that interview, she’d felt a little resentful. But now, she wasn’t angry anymore. Whether she’d accepted his offer or not, she ought to thank him for trying to help. Accepting came with gratitude; declining still required courtesy.

So… how should she say it best, to express her gratitude while also showing that she had other ambitions?

In fact, this matter… it was quite embarrassing for her to specifically called to mention it. Water flows to low places and people go to high places—but that sort of truth is something others should say, not oneself.

Yet facts were facts—

She despised the idea of being a receptionist at his company — there was no future in it. If she had accepted, she would only have felt unhappy and resentful, and would owe him a favor for nothing.

Ming Xi acted without delay. Having a rough idea of ​​what to say, she dialed Liang Jiancheng’s number.

For a long while, there was only silence on the other end — then the connection tone finally came through. Beep… beep… beep…

After another half-minute with no one answering, Ming Xi was about to hang up.

Just as she was about to hang up, the call suddenly connected.

“Hello…”

That single hello conveyed a sense of unfamiliarity and indifference towards a stranger.

There was also a hint of huskyness in the voice.

“Hello, Mr. Liang, it’s Ming Xi,” she quickly answered.

“I know.”

Unconcerned with Liang Jiancheng’s attitude, she got straight to the point: “I’m sorry to bother you. I’m calling to let you know that I’ve already found a job. The professor introduced me, so regarding your company—”

Here, Ming Xi made a deliberate pause.

“I know.”

Again with I know.

When talking to an intelligent person, there’s no need to say too much. Especially when the other person was a busy person.

“Thank you so much for your help.”

“Didn’t I not help you?”

“…” Even if it was the professor who helped her, it wasn’t wrong to thank him, was it?

Liang Jiancheng’s slightly dry voice came through the receiver again. Compared to the slightly impatient retort earlier, his next words were measured and sincere: “It’s good that you went somewhere else. My company is still small and not very formal. Since you’re just starting out in your career, it will be beneficial for you to receive systematic training in a large establish company.”

His tone was neutral, betraying no emotion — but the content itself felt genuinely considerate, as if he was truly thinking of her future.

Ming Xi followed up with this: “I think so too, so…” She would not go to his company to work as a receptionist.

Since she’d already explained herself, and since long-distance calls weren’t cheap, Ming Xi decided to wrap it up politely and end the call.

“If Professor Liang returns to Haigang at the end of the year, could you please let me know? I’d like to visit and thank him personally.”

“Okay, I will,” Liang Jiancheng said.

Ming Xi smiled, her voice tinged with concern and a touch of politeness: “Goodbye, Mr. Liang. Oh, and— your voice sounds hoarse. If you’ve caught a cold, please rest well and drink plenty of warm water.”

“Thank you,” Liang Jiancheng thanked her, then added, “I do have a cold.”

“…Drink more warm water.”

“…”

Ming Xi wanted to hang up, but out of courtesy, she waited for Liang Jiancheng to do it first, but he didn’t. Not only did he not hang up, but he started talking again—

And he talked a lot. As if that initial coldness had only been unfamiliarity, and now that they’d spoken a few words, the distance between them had melted away. Had her “drink more hot water” actually moved him?

“I still think the same thing—” Liang Jiancheng said in a clear, steady voice. “I think you’re well suited for foreign trade. I really hope you’ll consider it in the future. Foreign trade looks simple on the surface, but it has great potential — tremendous potential, in fact. China has already reached accession agreements with all WTO member states, and once the market access issues are settled, we’ll officially become a member. After that, the domestic trade environment will enter a very optimistic phase…”

What was supposed to be a one-minute call turned into five.

55 57…60…

The call duration was still getting longer.

Ming Xi stayed quiet, listening carefully — since she was the one paying for the call, she made sure not to miss a word. Before this, she had known little about world trade.

He spoke of it so convincingly — but what did all that have to do with a receptionist job?

“If you ever want to go into foreign trade in the future, you’re always welcome to… cough!”

Liang Jiancheng’s voice sounded deep and hoarse, and despite his effort to control it, he still coughed heavily.

Hearing how plainly he’d put it, Ming Xi suddenly had a thought. Putting together everything he’d said before — since he was so forthright, she might as well ask directly:

“…Were you planning to hire me as a foreign trade sales representative before?”

The moment she asked, Liang Jiancheng seemed to sense something odd.

Both of them fell silent for a few seconds — the easy rhythm of their conversation froze in an instant.

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