He Yao was unwilling to accept that Zhan Jingrui had not agreed to the business matter, so she decided to be direct this time.
Standing up, she raised her wine glass and said loudly.
“Our CEO Xu has invited you to dinner time and again, and money doesn’t grow on trees. Plus, we spent tens of thousands on buying you pants just now.”
“Considering his sincerity in trying to win you over, and the fact that you two were old deskmates, please give him some business.”
“Otherwise, if we keep spending without earning, we’ll all be left to drink the northwest wind.”
“That little bit of business is not difficult for you, is it? If you think it’s fun to refuse an old friend when he’s down on his luck, then don’t drink this glass. I’ll drink it myself.”
With that, He Yao tilted her head back and downed the entire glass of wine in one go.
Xu Zheng watched nervously from the side, but at the same time, he silently gave her a thumbs-up.
The words were crude, but the logic was sound.
It was better to be direct with someone like Zhan Jingrui, who liked to play dumb.
Getting a direct answer from him would save them from constantly trying to guess his thoughts, making their lives less stressful.
Zhan Jingrui hadn’t expected He Yao to corner him like this.
Among adults, many things are understood but not explicitly stated.
With a thin veil of pretense, it prevents awkwardness when meeting again.
It loses its meaning when everything is laid bare.
Since He Yao insisted on saying it, and Xu Zheng was looking at him expectantly, Zhan Jingrui decided to be honest.
“For a company as small as yours, and for such a small amount of business, it’s not worth my intervention. Moreover, if I personally allocate business to you, it would be unfair to other companies, and my subordinates would be resentful and gossip behind my back.”
“Therefore, from this perspective, Xu Zheng, I will not manage your affairs.”
Xu Zheng’s heart sank instantly, but he had to play along.
“Yes, yes. You have your considerations. It’s not easy for anyone, not easy at all.”
“However, since you’ve treated me to dinner several times and spent tens of thousands on pants, it wouldn’t be right for me to just take from you. How about this, I’ll give you a chance to bid. Whether you succeed or not will depend on you.”
Xu Zheng’s hope rekindled slightly.
“Really, top student! But what does bidding mean?”
“Someone will send you the specific operational methods later. Just follow them. Alright, I’ve eaten my fill, and even got a pair of pants. It’s been a pleasant evening. I won’t overstay my welcome, so I’ll take my leave now.”
Xu Zheng hurriedly stood up to see him out.
Since everyone had been drinking, they couldn’t drive. He offered to call a designated driver for Zhan Jingrui. Zhan Jingrui didn’t refuse.
He Yao accompanied him. After the designated driver was called, Zhan Jingrui suddenly turned his head.
“What about you? How are you getting home?”
He Yao pointed to her nose, “Me? I’ll take a taxi.”
In reality, she was planning to figure out whether it would be more convenient to take the subway or the bus.
She was reluctant to spend money on a taxi.
Zhan Jingrui, with a sudden surge of old classmate camaraderie, patted her shoulder.
“Both our cars are empty. Why waste money? Where do you live? I’ll give you a ride.”
Before He Yao could say anything, Xu Zheng quickly gave her hotel address.
“Thank you for your trouble, President Zhan. Then I’ll leave He Yao to you.”
He Yao was pushed onto Zhan Jingrui’s car like a duck being forced onto a shelf.
After getting into the car, Zhan Jingrui used his phone to search for her hotel and found it was only a three-star establishment. He thought to himself that Xu Zheng was quite stingy.
In school, he’d claimed to like He Yao, but hadn’t put much effort into pursuing her. Now, he still claimed to be infatuated with her, but when it came to actual matters, he acted this way.
He suddenly felt annoyed for He Yao.
“Have you ever seen a social survey? In fact, many public items in hotels are very unhygienic.”
He Yao knew this, of course. That’s why she slept fully clothed every night. What else could she do?
“Staying in a hotel for a few days is already almost killing CEO Xu. What more can we expect? He can’t possibly rent an apartment for me, can he? I’ll just make do for now.”
Renting an apartment? That wasn’t impossible.
Zhan Jingrui said, “Xu Zheng just likes to pretend to be poor. From what I know of him, even if he didn’t eat or drink, and just spent his inheritance, his father’s accumulated wealth would be enough for him to squander for decades. Don’t listen to his nonsense about saving money for him.”
“Arranging dormitories for employees is something he should do. If you want, I can help you ask for it.”
He Yao certainly wanted it. Who wouldn’t want a good deal that saved money? But, “You help me ask? How?”
“Do you want to ask him openly, or subtly?”
He Yao thought to herself: Isn’t that obvious? Who would want to ask openly if they could ask subtly? Besides, if I could get it by asking openly, would I need your help?
Zhan Jingrui could tell what she meant from her expression and stopped talking, turning to look out the window.
The street was lined with a dazzling array of shops, one after another.
Soon, he spotted a convenience store and told the designated driver to pull over.
The driver stopped, and He Yao looked at him confusedly as he entered the convenience store.
She thought he was going to buy water, but he came out with two bottles of yogurt, a bag of bread, and a pack of unidentifiable snacks and got back into the car.
“You probably didn’t eat much for dinner.”
He handed one bottle of yogurt, the bread, and the snacks to He Yao.
He Yao indeed hadn’t eaten much, as she’d barely had a few bites.
Thinking that since things had come to this, there was no need to be polite with him, she took the yogurt and took a few sips, then opened the bread.
“Continue. How will you help me ask?”
Zhan Jingrui didn’t answer. “Eat first. I’ll tell you after you’re full.”
He Yao immediately squeezed the bread tightly, rolled it into a ball, and stuffed it into her mouth in a few bites, then finished the yogurt.
She finally felt a little full.
Then she opened the snacks and chewed them slowly, “Can you tell me now?”
Zhan Jingrui glanced at her, reached into the snack bag, and pulled out two pieces of snack. He crushed them in his hand, scattering them onto his shirt, and then, to He Yao’s bewilderment, opened the yogurt and poured it onto his shirt as well.
The food, which was perfectly clean, mixed together to look like human vomit, making it disgusting.
He Yao got goosebumps.
“What are you doing?”
Zhan Jingrui didn’t explain. He picked up his phone, took a picture of himself, and sent it to Xu Zheng via WeChat.
“Your assistant ruined another shirt of mine.”
Xu Zheng had been thinking that the business matter was progressing and that he would praise He Yao tomorrow, telling her to do a good job during the bidding.
But then Zhan Jingrui sent this, making his forehead throb.
“It must be that we haven’t gotten together in a long time, and He Yao was too excited today and drank a bit too much. Don’t take it personally.”
Followed by a ¥20,000 transfer.
“You understand, I’m a man and I don’t know anything about clothes, so I don’t know how to help her compensate. Consider this money as payment for dry cleaning. Calm down, calm down.”
Zhan Jingrui didn’t say anything and accepted the红包.
Then he opened a QR code and handed it to He Yao.
He Yao looked at the QR code that suddenly appeared.
“What for?”
“I’ve received the money. I’ll transfer it to you. Don’t you want it?”