Inextricable

On Monday, when Xu Xingxing went to work as usual, Chen Wanwan came to her to inquire about recruiting workers for the shop. Xu Xingxing, who had chosen a few resumes, showed them to her friend for her opinion. Chen Wanwan had worked for many years, so her eyes were trained, and she eliminated some resumes.

“If you eliminate them again, where will we find the people?” Xu Xingxing smiled as she looked at the remaining three resumes. 

Chen Wanwan didn’t care. “That’s it. Although we are short on time, we can’t lower our standards. The shop assistants should not only be able to make milk tea, but should also have the ability to manage the shop. They should be capable of working hard, doing business while being social. And also, having experience is a must.”

Hearing Chen Wanwan’s words, Xu Xingxing felt under pressure. Although she was only the boss of a small shop, she still had a lot to worry about.

On seeing Xu Xingxing’s depressed look, Chen Wanwan could not help but chuckle. “Ok, Xingxing, don’t worry too much. I’ll arrange less office work for you till this matter settles,” Chen Wanwan said as she hugged her friend.

Xu Xingxing smiled, looked up at Chen Wanwan, and said, “Thank you, Deputy Leader Chen.”

Chen Wanwan gave Xu Xingxing a grateful look when she heard the words ‘Deputy Leader’ and replied, “Don’t worry, Boss Xu! Your sister, this deputy leader, will especially operate behind the scenes to protect you.”

In terms of work, although Xu Xingxing assisted Yan Jialin, she also had other tasks to complete. Chen Wanwan took care of all these and helped her do them. All Xu Xingxing was left to do was to follow Yan Jialin out to meetings. While she was grateful to Chen Wanwan for lessening her work duties, she also started hurrying on the matter of recruiting shop assistants.

The process of designing Xu Xingxing’s shop was ongoing, so after she got off from work, she went to look after it.

Since it was the time when everybody got off work, there was a lot of traffic on the commercial street. Xu Xingxing walked from the street to the door of the shop and saw three interior decorators still working inside.

The decor of this shop was quite good from the beginning, so there were no major changes they had made when designing. The three workers were professionally dressed and serious in their work. They were recommended by Zhan Liangting’s colleagues.

""

“Everyone has worked hard, come and have a drink and rest for a while,” Xu Xingxing said with a grateful smile.

The three workers looked back as they heard a woman’s voice, and when they saw Xu Xingxing, they looked at each other with some doubt. They had come because of Zhan Liangting’s instructions, and thus had not met Xu Xingxing before.

“My name is Xu Xingxing. I’m Zhan Liangting’s friend. This is my shop. He should have told you about me.” When Xu Xingxing saw their doubtful looks, she introduced herself first.

After they heard Zhan Liangting’s name, the three of them laughed, and the leader, a man in his forties, smiled and said, “This is the first time I’ve seen you. I’m the leader of the decoration team, you can call me Lao Zhang.”

[TL Notes: Lao, lăo is a Chinese word that means “old.”] 

“Hello.” Xu Xingxing nodded with a smile, reaching out to shake hands with Lao Zhang.

Lao Zhang smiled shyly and said, “My hands are dirty, so I won’t hold your hand.”

Lao Zhang took out the drawings and pointed at them, showing Xu Xingxing, and saying, “The counter in this store used to be at the entrance; we need to dismantle it to make room for tables and chairs.” Lao Zhang was aware that Xu Xingxing had come to check on the renovation’s progress.

She had already placed an order for tables and chairs and they were waiting to be shipped and installed after the interior decoration was completed.

Xu Xingxing looked at the drawings and said, “You have done a lot today.”

When Lao Zhang heard the compliment, he smiled shyly again, and said, “The work is light and fast, and it is expected to be completed within 10 days.”

‘Hmm… Then it will take at least two weeks to open the shop.’ When she heard Lao Zhang’s words, Xu Xingxing thought and noted down in her mind to recruit shop assistants as soon as possible.

She had two interviews today and was not very satisfied with either candidate. One of them was boastful,while the other was demanding too much salary. Xu Xingxing had no choice but to continue screening resumes, with Chen Wanwan always available to check them.

……………………

When Xu Xingxing returned from an out-of-office meeting with Yan Jialin in the morning, they ran into Ma Mengguang, the deputy director of the public relations department. He stood at the main intersection of the underground garage, seemingly waiting for someone. After Yan Jialin parked the car, a Mercedes-Benz drove into the parking lot with its headlights on.

After it stopped, the door opened and a group of people disembarked, including Lin Weiyu.

Yan Jialin didn’t seem to see what happened, and continued to walk forward, so Xu Xingxing also only glanced at them lightly, before following Yan Jialin to the elevator.

As soon as the two stood in front of the elevator, they were greeted by Ma Mengguang.

“Deputy Director Yan!” Ma Mengguang smiled and called Yan Jialin.

Yan Jialin’s complexion did not change, she turned around and faced him, smiled politely, and said, “Deputy Director Ma.”

Most of the people in the public relations department were eloquent and had excellent warm-up skills. Seeing that Yan Jialin answered him, Ma Mengguang also smiled. When the elevator arrived, a group of people got on it together, and Ma Mengguang introduced everyone.

After the introduction, Ma Mengguang said, “Miss Lin has come to sign the endorsement contract today, and the TIE Group has also sent a representative here. I will trouble you for the on-site translation work.”

That was not really troublesome, so Yan Jialin smiled lightly and said, “Ok.”

Hearing Ma Mengguang say that Yan Jialin would be the translator, Lin Weiyu also greeted her with a smile and said, “Hi, Deputy Director Yan.”

Yan Jialin nodded slightly.

Lin Weiyu turned her gaze to Xu Xingxing, wanting to say hello to her, but hesitated. Xu Xingxing saw this and smiled politely. “Hi, Miss Lin, my surname is Xu.”

After hearing her self-introduction, Lin Weiyu smiled and said apologetically, “Hi, Miss Xu, this is our first meeting.”

When Xu Xingxing heard Lin Weiyu’s words, she didn’t take it to heart. Celebrities see a lot of people every day, so it was normal not to remember her. But on hearing Lin Weiyu’s words, Yan Jialin glanced at her with a gloomy expression.

When the elevator arrived at their floor, they all got off. Xu Xingxing and Yan Jialin had already gotten off earlier, and now they were the only ones left, heading off to sign the contract.

As soon as she got off the elevator, Lin Weiyu’s assistant frowned uncomfortably and said, “Is that Miss Yan a deputy director? Didn’t you see her look? Is she a bigshot here?”

Lin Weiyu was also quite uncomfortable with Yan Jialin’s last look at her. But she didn’t show it, instead just telling her assistant, “Do not talk.”

Ma Mengguang listened to this discussion, smiled and said, “This is Miss Yan’s character, and even her good friend Sophia, who is President Huai’s secretary, is the same. In addition, she is also a friend of  President Huai’s assistant, Leo.”

After hearing Ma Mengguang’s words, Lin Weiyu’s assistant, who was about to open her mouth to say something, shut her mouth tightly.

With this sentence, Ma Mengguang had reminded them something very important, Yan Jialin had the capital to be so aggressive.

Yan Jialin did not bring Xu Xingxing with her when the contract was signed in the afternoon. After she came back from the signing, she asked Chen Wanwan to go to Huang Qiansong’s office. After the three of them had a short meeting in the office, they disbanded.

After Chen Wanwan came out of the office, she walked to Xu Xingxing’s desk and revealed the news to her first.

“Sister Jialin said that after Lin Weiyu signed the spokesperson contract this time, there will be a new product launch event. The launch event is being held as a charity dinner, and people from the TIE Group will also participate. Do you want to go?”

Xu Xingxing looked at Chen Wanwan surprisingly and asked with a smile, “When is it?”

Chen Wanwan said, “Next weekend.”

“I’m going to open my shop next Sunday,” Xu Xingxing calculated the time and sighed.

“So fast?” Chen Wanwan couldn’t believe her ears.

“Early opening brings early peace of mind.” Xu Xingxing continued, “One day of delay is a waste of one day’s cost.”

Chen Wanwan felt that her friend’s thoughts made sense, and she nodded along, saying, “Alright, since you’re busy, I won’t add your name. I think Xu Zhixin on the list for this dinner, and I really wanted you to see your idol. What a pity!”

Xu Xingxing was taken aback, and remembered the last time she had met Xu Zhixin. If she hadn’t seen him before, she might really have gone. Now that she had met him, she didn’t have such deep regrets about missing this occasion.

After getting off work in the afternoon, Xu Xingxing continued with the interviews. By the time she finished, it was already 9 o’clock in the evening. Xu Xingxing was a little anxious because she still hadn’t found a suitable person till now. She glanced at the time, sat in her seat and waited for the last interviewer.

After a while, a boy came over from behind and asked politely, “Excuse me, are you Miss Xu?”

Xu Xingking looked back and saw a boy. He looked young, about 1.8 meters tall, was wearing a Korean-style black down-jacket, had delicate eyebrows, and displayed a pair of small canine teeth when he smiled.

The first impression of him was good, so Xu Xingxing nodded and said, “I am.”

""

“Hello, I’m Du Yizhe,” the boy said cheerfully as he reached his hand out to shake her hand. 

“Then take a seat and we’ll start the interview,” Xu Xingxing said while shaking hands. Then she served him a cup of coffee. 

After taking a sip of coffee, Du Yizhe nodded and began to introduce himself.

Du Yizhe was just 23 years old this year. After graduating from college, he worked in a milk tea shop, accumulating good experience. Listening to his conversation, Xu Xingxing understood that his logical thinking ability was also good.

Xu Xingxing was quite satisfied with this interview.

However, she still had to ask the other party if he was satisfied as well. Xu Xingxing looked at the resume and asked, “What about the salary?”

Du Yizhe was very straightforward, and said with a smile, “I’ll just follow your arrangement.”

Xu Xingxing felt relief, and finally both parties had reached an agreement. Xu Xingxing smiled and said, “Okay, I’ve made my decision.”

Du Yizhe felt that Xu Xingxing was being a little casual, so he asked with a smile, “Don’t I need to go back to wait for news in such type of general interviews?”

“No need.” Xu Xingxing said, “The store is preparing to open now, you can come into work tomorrow, right? You can help me look at the decor of the store tomorrow, and you can give your ideas as well. I will come here tomorrow night to sign a contract with you.”

Du Yizhe had no objection to Xu Xingxing’s arrangement. She then glanced at the time, smiled and said, “That’s it, see you tomorrow.”

After bidding farewell to Du Yizhe, Xu Xingxing got up, ready to leave. As soon as she left the table, a big dog surrounded her. The big dog with golden hair looked up at her docilely, his wet eyes full of friendliness.

Xu Xingxing’s heart softened at the sight, she raised her eyes to look at the girl sitting at the next table. The girl was dressed in a red plaid lace dress, with white stockings, and brown leather shoes. Her hair was permed in big curls, tied at the back with a bow made of the same pattern as the skirt. She was quite cute when she smiled.

As the girl smiled at Xu Xingxing in a friendly way, she touched the dog’s head and asked, “Is this a golden retriever?”

The girl nodded happily with a sweet voice, “Yes, it’s called Ah Jin.”

Golden Retrievers were the most docile among large dogs, and Ah Jin was even more obedient.

Xu Xingxing looked at Ah Jin, smiled and said, “Very beautiful. I have a cat.”

The girl’s eyes lit up, and she asked, “Oh~a cat? Wow! What’s its name?”

“It is called Mimi, and it’s very clingy.” Xu Xingxing chatted with her.

“I like cats too, but my boyfriend doesn’t like them so he won’t let me keep them,” the girl said with some frustration.

Du Yizhe, who was standing behind them, suddenly opened his mouth to say, “Hey, I have limited energy. You can’t even take care of yourself. So how will you take care of them?”

Xu Xingxing was taken aback for a moment, when the little girl opposite smiled sweetly and stuck out her tongue at Du Yizhe.

When Du Yizhe and the girl saw that Xu Xingxing was staring at them, he touched his head embarrassingly, and explained, “This is my girlfriend. I brought her here with me because there was no one at home.”

After he finished speaking, the two of them looked at each other, and Xu Xingxing could see the coquettishness in the girl’s eyes and the doting in the boy’s eyes.

“A couple, a pet, they’re really beautiful.’

Xu Xingxing began to prepare the things required to officially open the shop. After discussing with people, she decided to use a famous milk tea brand called “Wuyin” in her store. Du Yizhe used to work in one of Wuyin’s chain stores and had already received training there, so it would be easy for him to handle operating the shop.

With many pedestrians crowding the narrow Commercial Street , it was not suitable to set off firecrackers there. Xu Xingxing was simply going to hang a banner and paste two posters to inform people about the store, along with printing some leaflets, which would then be distributed at the Heping Street intersection.

Xu Xingxing initially set a three-day discount offer at 50% off, but was scolded for doing so by Chen Wanwan.

“What? Do you want to help the poor? 50% off, you’re just giving it away for nothing.”

Xu Xingxing rubbed her nose and asked, “What about 40% off?”

“20% off!” Chen Wanwan said helplessly, “It’s not like no one will buy it.”

Because of the upcoming charity dinner, Chen Wanwan had a lot of things to do, so Xu Xingxing only discussed very important matters with her, and talked about other things with Du Yizhe instead. 

Huangfu Yiduo, who was Du Yizhe’s girlfriend, would also be present there frequently. She was a freelance comic screenwriter who liked to hang out with Du Yizhe every day after finishing her work. Usually she sat quietly and played with Ah Jin without disturbing Du Yizhe, so Xu Xingxing didn’t have any objection to her visits. 

On Sunday, the shop opened, with a brand new look.

On top of the door was a big LED signboard with the words “I drink”, and a red banner hung beneath it, with the words “20% discount for all drinks on our opening three days.”

There were a few milky-white high chairs in front of a series of wall tables that were of the right height. There were multiple display boards of specialty beverages on the table, which connected to the counter. The menu for the varieties of milk tea offered in the store was displayed on two screens above the counter.

Du Yizhe was positioned behind the counter and under the screen. He was evaluating raw materials while wearing a black cap and a dark green apron. There was a little storage room visible further back. The storage room contained a refrigerator, where things that required refrigeration were kept.

The décor style of the store was very fresh and elegant, and the colours were well-matched. The milky sweet aroma of tea would greet the customers who opened the door and entered the shop.

As Xu Xingxing stood outside the door and looked into the shop, her heart felt full of satisfaction and happiness. This was the small business she had invested in, it was just like a child for her.

On the first day of opening, Chen Wanwan was supposed to come to help, but it happened to clash with the time for the charity dinner. She would end up running back and forth, almost dying of exhaustion.

“Congratulations, Boss Xu, but I can’t come anymore,” Chen Wanwan said sadly.

Although Chen Wanwan couldn’t come and help, Xu Xingxing didn’t blame her friend. “It’s alright, you have helped me a lot with the shop. You get ready for dinner. Good luck.” It was completely dark by this time, at seven o’clock in the evening, and the dinner party would start soon. Xu Xingxing stood on the street, looked up at the dark sky, and smelled a trace of moisture in the air. It would probably rain tonight.

“Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh, let’s not talk anymore, Sister Jialin and I will go pick up the TIE’s representative, and President Huai and the others should be here soon.” After speaking, Chen Wanwan hung up the phone.

Xu Xingxing smiled at this. She then looked up at the Yinzi International Hotel across the road.

Yinzi International Hotel was located in a very tall building, and the roof on the top floor was also a banquet venue. The new product launch dinner of IO and TIE joint jewellery was being held there. Huai Jing would also attend it.

Although Xu Xingxing and Huai Jing were in the same company, their positions were very different, and they had never met each other in the company. Last time they had met, Xu Xingxing had told him that she would be busy with her shop for a while, so Huai Jing hadn’t called her again. 

You don’t bother me, and I don’t bother you— a statement that showed that the relationship between the two had not surpassed any boundary, and that they were still each sticking to their hearts. If she had been busy and didn’t call him, would he stop contacting her?

As night fell, the number of people on Commercial Street gradually increased.

Since the street is where crowds enter the market, Xu Xingxing decided to distribute the promotional leaflets there, so that she could reach more people.

Fearing that it would be inconvenient to distribute the leaflets, Xu Xingxing hadn’t worn any gloves. She smiled and said “Welcome” while handing out the leaflets. Just as the leaflets were being handed out in a hurry, she felt a sudden bit of coolness on the back of her hand.

She lowered her head and watched small water droplets fall on the back of her hand. It was raining.

Although Xu Xingxing didn’t care at first because the rain wasn’t too heavy, it soon seemed to be getting heavier and heavier. Her eyes blinked in response to a raindrop landing on her eyelashes. She rubbed her eyes up and down and then handed a leaflet to a person, who was holding an umbrella.

The man stretched out his hand and took the leaflet with his slender fingers. His fair skin stood out in the dark night. He pinched the flyer with his thumb slightly. On seeing this familiar beautiful hand, Xu Xingxing’s heartbeat became fast and she breathed lightly, then cleared her throat. The man’s umbrella had covered her head. He was wearing a well-tailored black suit with a neatly tied tie, as if he was about to attend an important event. He stood tall and upright under the street lights on Commercial Street. Above the black umbrella, raindrops slid down the curtain of light like shooting stars in the night sky.

As both the man and the woman’s eyes met, Huai Jing whispered, “20% off the whole menu, is it sweet?”

As if being blown by a breeze on the grassland, Xu Xingxing’s voice trembled slightly as she asked, “You…how do you…”

She raised her head and glanced at the Yinzi International Hotel, and then spotted Huai Jing’s assistant, Leo, watching them with an anxious look.

Xu Xingxing understood. She looked at Leo and was about to call him, but her body was stopped by a familiar touch.

The familiar touch flustered Xu Xingxing’s heart instantly. She was hooked into the man’s arms, and the big umbrella was slightly tilted, and by the time it was propped upright again, the two of them were together under that black shade.

Xu Xingxing’s face flushed slightly, she raised her head and met the man’s gaze.

The tails of Huai Jing’s eyes were slightly raised, and his light brown pupils appeared flamboyant. He looked down at the woman, raised the corners of his lips, and put his fingers lightly on her lips.

“Hush, I came to see you secretly.”