If Qin Hanguan knew An Dai, he would probably be called a "sordid straight man" by the talented artist.
Zheng Yu'an never fully believed in rumors and gossip. These past few days, he had been working overtime to review WE GO's financial situation. When the boss works overtime, the employees in the department have no choice but to keep him company.
It was when Chen Li came in for the third time to empty the ashtray that Zheng Yu'an realized he had finished his cigarettes.
"What time is it?" he asked Chen Li.
Chen Li: "Almost 11 o'clock. Are you leaving?"
Zheng Yu'an glanced at the spreadsheet. His mouth tasted bitter from smoking too much. "Let's go. I'll turn off the lights."
Chen Li knew he was being considerate and didn't argue, going out to pack her things first.
Zheng Yu'an saved the file, shut down the computer, and hung his suit over his arm. After checking the power, he pushed open the door and went out.
Chen Li was waiting for him.
"Drive carefully tonight," Zheng Yu'an said as he pressed the elevator button. "If there's nothing else, you don't need to stay this late with me."
Chen Li smiled and said, "It's fine, Mr. Zheng. My husband is on the night shift these days and can pick me up."
Zheng Yu'an realized he had been force-fed a mouthful of dog food, making him feel somewhat choked.
Since being seconded to the Banking Regulatory Commission, Zheng Yu'an had not been involved with any women for more than three years. He didn't have the habit of hunting for beauty or casual hookups. It seemed he had been a monk for far too long.
Sure enough, there was a car waiting for Chen Li at the entrance. Zheng Yu'an glanced at it, feeling that this mouthful of dog food tasted especially lonely. He thought he regretted not copying a set of WE GO's materials. During the long night, unable to sleep, at least he would have something to do.
No one wants to continuously work overtime right after the opening, and Zheng Yu'an was unwilling to overwork his subordinates like this either.
Bai Jian opened an account at JZ Bank on Friday, and Zheng Yu'an made a special effort to go downstairs to meet him.
After completing the business, the two had a cup of coffee at a nearby Starbucks. Bai Jian invited him to attend his pottery exhibition on Sunday.
"It's a very private exhibition. Mostly friends of friends will be there." Bai Jian knew that Zheng Yu'an had a sense of propriety. Although the man was considerate and gentle, he always maintained an appropriate distance. He wasn't "one of those" people and was more respectful than intimate with him.
Zheng Yu'an saw through his intention to avoid suspicion and said with a smile: "How can I not go to my teacher's exhibition? Where's the invitation?"
Bai Jian sent the electronic version to his WeChat.
The two talked for a while before parting ways. Before returning to the office, Zheng Yu'an went to the smoking area, only to find Qin Hanguan there as well.
The man had a cigarette in his hand and raised his wrist when he saw him: "You're here."
Zheng Yu'an also tapped a cigarette out of his Suyan pack and put it in his mouth.
Qin Hanguan was again being a smart mouth: "Your cigarette isn't strong enough."
Zheng Yu'an glanced at the Nanjing cigarette in the other's hand, not wanting to discuss the topic.
Qin Hanguan didn't keep picking on him. The two talked about business while smoking, eventually returning to the WE GO business. The other party's financial capabilities were strong, and the scale was large. Zheng Yu'an knew best how the territory had expanded all the way. Qin Hanguan never doubted Zheng Yu'an's abilities, but dealing with the finances of a large enterprise was not an easy task, especially since, besides Zhang Jin, Yan Shuwang also had Luo Yan under his command, neither of whom were easy to deal with.
"They are also Deloitte's clients," Qin Hanguan flicked the ash. "Many large banks are eyeing them."
Zheng Yu'an: "We've been with them for a long time. We always have an advantage."
Qin Hanguan: "Yan Shuwang is not easy to serve. You'll know once you've met him."
Zheng Yu'an smoked half his cigarette and said with a smile: "Just don't offend him."
"You make it sound easy," Qin Hanguan scoffed and added, "He has a very good alcohol tolerance. You two might be evenly matched."
Zheng Yu'an said: "As long as we don't mix drinks."
Qin Hanguan smiled with a cigarette in his mouth. He suddenly remembered something and took out his phone to show Zheng Yu'an: "I have a photo of that guy. Do you want to see it?"
Zheng Yu'an was about to say no, but Qin Hanguan had already shoved the phone in front of his face. He could see it with a slight bow of his head.
"What do you think?" Qin Hanguan asked.
Zheng Yu'an's hand holding the cigarette didn't move. Some of the ash broke off and fell on his sleeve before Zheng Yu'an came to his senses.
"Where did you secretly take this?" Zheng Yu'an couldn't help but ask.
The man in the photo did have long hair. His features were not clear because the photo was taken from too far away. He was very tall, standing out from the crowd, a clothes rack.
Qin Hanguan didn't feel guilty: "I asked the little girls in their company for it."
"..." Zheng Yu'an almost dropped the cigarette butt in his hand. He said helplessly: "Don't mess around with your relationships with women too much. Don't cause trouble, okay?"
Having promised to go to Bai Jian's exhibition, Zheng Yu'an didn't sleep in on Sunday. He also picked up An Dai, who was very busy, talking on the phone almost the entire way.
When they were almost there, An Dai had time to introduce him.
"Many of the people coming today are business leaders," An Dai flipped down the sun visor and applied lipstick in the mirror. "Capitalists."
Zheng Yu'an smiled and said: "They don't understand art. What are they coming for?"
An Dai glanced at him: "You say that as if you understand it."
"I don't understand," Zheng Yu'an opened the car door for her, bent down, and offered his arm. "That's why I'm here to broaden my horizons, Teacher An."
Bai Jian was the host of the exhibition, and there were times when he was too busy to attend to everyone. Zheng Yu'an was considered An Dai's male companion, giving him more freedom than others. Even if most of the faces were unfamiliar, he didn't feel any restraint.
As a leading figure in modern pottery, Bai Jian's representative work is an owl. Zheng Yu'an had bought an ashtray from him, which he still uses.
After greeting An Dai, Zheng Yu'an wandered around the villa alone for a while.
Indeed, there were many business leaders among the people who came. As long as half of the financial circle overlapped, Zheng Yu'an had no difficulty socializing. They exchanged polite greetings like "Mr. So-and-so" and "Director So-and-so," and he didn't have enough business cards to hand out in the end.
Champagne was placed on the dessert table. An Dai took two glasses and clinked them with Zheng Yu'an.
"Those people over there are Bai Jian's friends," An Dai nodded toward the end of the corridor.
Zheng Yu'an was driving and didn't plan to drink alcohol. He asked: "Are they all artists?"
An Dai: "How is that possible? There are also big bosses. They are basically friends bringing friends. I don't recognize several of them."
Zheng Yu'an didn't pay much attention at first, glancing over once or twice before looking away. Bai Jian seemed to say something, and the group moved their positions. As the figures shifted, Zheng Yu'an took a few more glances.
An Dai scrutinized his expression: "Do you recognize someone?"
Zheng Yu'an waited until the group disappeared from view before saying uncertainly: "I don't know."
An Dai was baffled: "Have you been too busy lately?"
Zheng Yu'an smiled in a sighing manner: "Possibly."
Early Monday morning, Zhang Jin called. He didn't lower his voice on the phone, shouting with surround sound: "Little Zheng, when are you coming?"
Zheng Yu'an was packing his things. He raised his shoulder to hold the phone, smiling: "I'll be there in the afternoon."
Zhang Jin: "Come at noon. The food in our building's cafeteria is no worse than the bank's."
Zheng Yu'an thought there was no problem, so he told Qin Hanguan and took Chen Li with him.
Also in the park, WE GO's building was in the Hudong Science and Technology Entrepreneurship Park. It was built with huge investment, with two buildings, north and south, connected by a sky bridge in the middle. A huge WE GO neon sign hung on top. It must be very eye-catching at night.
Zhang Jin came out to greet them in person, and handed him a cigarette while waiting for the elevator.
Zheng Yu'an took it but didn't light it. He casually held the cigarette in his palm and entered the elevator.
"Go to my office?" Zhang Jin said with a cigarette in his mouth.
Zheng Yu'an nodded and turned to instruct Chen Li: "Go chat with Sister Luo."
Chen Li smiled and agreed. After she left, Zheng Yu'an lit the cigarette that Zhang Jin had given him.
Zhang Jin: "Meet our Director Yan later?"
Zheng Yu'an glanced at him, holding the cigarette between two fingers, his wrist against his cheek: "Didn't you say we were going to the cafeteria to eat?"
Zhang Jin smiled: "Did you think we would really let you eat in the cafeteria? We're not that stingy."
Zheng Yu'an smiled noncommittally. He didn't chat with Zhang Jin for long before Luo Yan came.
A woman in her early forties, a flower that never fades. Zheng Yu'an always felt that Luo Yan hadn't changed much in the past eight years, only that her makeup was more vivid. She was more polite than Zhang Jin, calling Zheng Yu'an "Little Director Zheng."
Actually, Zheng Yu'an was also thirty years old. The title "Little" made him seem a bit young, but everyone in the room except Chen Li was basically half a cycle older than him, so it wasn't inappropriate to call him that.
In the end, the four of them still went to WE GO's cafeteria. Zhang Jin's previous statement that they weren't stingy was like the four letters FLAG stamped on his face.
On the contrary, Zheng Yu'an had to comfort him: "I really don't mind eating in the cafeteria."
These words were indeed from the bottom of his heart. Even if it was an employee cafeteria, WE GO's restaurant was up to standard, and even had a la carte service, which saved Zhang Jin's face somewhat.
Naturally, Zheng Yu'an wouldn't smoke in the company of a non-smoking lady. He noticed someone coming down from upstairs while he was eating. Luo Yan "exclaimed" in surprise: "Director Yan is here."
Zheng Yu'an looked up and followed her gaze.
Yan Shuwang, 35 years old, unmarried.
Qin Hanguan also had two labels: long hair, great beauty.
The name, age, and marital status couldn't be seen with the naked eye, but the two points of great beauty and long hair were unmistakable.
It was just a fleeting glance.
Zheng Yu'an remembered the man he had glanced at a few more times at Bai Jian's pottery exhibition on Sunday.
Unlike today, Yan Shuwang hadn't tied up his hair that day. He revealed his smooth forehead, and his eyebrows and eyes were outlined like ink paintings, exquisitely beautiful, and any words to describe them seemed vulgar.
When Yan Shuwang looked at people, the corners of his slender eyes were slightly raised, like bird feathers.
"What a coincidence," Zhang Jin greeted him. "Director Yan!"
Yan Shuwang's gaze wandered over and landed on Zheng Yu'an's face.