Thunderous applause erupted.
Whether sincere or not, everyone sitting below the stage at this moment cheered for the dozen or so people on stage who had won prizes.
“She really is beautiful, this President Yu…”
Gazing at the beautiful figure on the stage, who seemed to become the center of everyone’s attention just by standing in the front row, Jin Enna whispered a word of admiration to Mai Suisui beside her.
“Is she? I wouldn’t say anything if you said that normally, but can you really see her from this far away?” Mai Suisui’s reaction was relatively flat, merely clapping symbolically along with the crowd.
“Of course. Sometimes, the merits of a girl can only be noticed by another woman.”
“Then why didn’t I feel it?”
Hearing Jin Enna say this, Mai Suisui was somewhat unconvinced.
Jin Enna smiled gracefully. “Your mind isn’t on it at all, so of course you wouldn’t notice. Why didn’t you go draw a lottery ticket just now? Look at Shen Qingqing’s beaming face on stage; she even won 8,888. There’s truly no justice in this world.”
“I was just thinking about the post-New Year development of a project product.” Mai Suisui “honestly” confessed her absentmindedness.
“Please, can we not talk about work after clocking out?” Jin Enna immediately pretended to cover her ears with her hands. “Furthermore, we are about to go on holiday! We’re going back for the New Year! Thinking about work after the New Year as soon as the holiday starts—are you a demon?”
It had to be said that Jin Enna’s actions made Mai Suisui see a bit of Shen Qingqing’s shadow in her.
This should be considered a classic case of “he who touches pitch shall be defiled,” right? Who would have thought that a powerful woman who usually stood alone in her work would have a bit of a silly streak in private?
“Oh, by the way, you aren’t catching an early flight tomorrow, right? After the gathering breaks up, shall we call Qingqing and go for a drink?”
“We’ll see.”
Mai Suisui was still absentminded.
The atmosphere of the New Year was very warm, but the joys and sorrows of people are not interconnected; Mai Suisui only felt they were noisy.
Why… has “TA” (that person) still not replied to the message?
Mai Suisui didn’t know why she was so conflicted, as if she were obsessed, caring deeply about this person who had only sent a question mark and a sentence of encouragement after all their interaction.
Could this even be called an interaction?
It was just her own one-sided harassment.
The moment she thought of this, Mai Suisui felt exceptionally frustrated. She found a deserted spot, opened her text messages, and scrolled back to the question mark at the very beginning.
The question mark on the phone screen seemed to possess some incredible magic, leaving her heart unable to find peace.
Her slender fingers couldn’t help but tap haphazardly and forcefully on the phone screen, mixed with a bit of personal emotion.
A dialing confirmation suddenly popped up.
Mai Suisui’s brows furrowed, and she reflexively tapped it…
She didn’t react at first, not until she saw the interface showing that the call was being placed did she freeze for a moment.
Immediately following that, Mai Suisui’s eyes widened suddenly, and her brain cleared in an instant.
In her wild wandering thoughts just now, she had actually dialed the number!
However, just as Mai Suisui was about to hurriedly hang up the phone, she hesitated.
Stunned with her mouth open for a few seconds, Mai Suisui, as if possessed, brought the phone to her ear, subconsciously holding her breath and remaining silent.
If the other party really answered, what should she say?
In this tense moment, her messy little brain even found the time to come up with such a strange thought.
However, to her both relief and disappointment, the voice coming from the phone was:
“Sorry, the number you have dialed is powered off. Sorry, the number you…”
Once is an accident, twice is a habit.
Mai Suisui, whose courage had grown, listened to the busy tone coming from the phone at her ear. After thinking for a moment, she actually tried to dial it again.
Then, suppressing the strange, intense heartbeat in her chest, she pressed the phone tightly against her ear.
It was still the same reply.
Mai Suisui knit her brows. So, was the phone turned off?
Or had she been blocked?
Mai Suisui held the phone up before her eyes, expressionless.
“Suisui, what’s wrong?”
Shen Qingqing, who had come down from the stage to find Mai Suisui to play, looked at her with a face full of confusion.
“It’s nothing at all!”
Mai Suisui shook her head. Her heart was very calm at this moment, as if she had long anticipated this scenario.
Come to think of it, if it were herself, receiving a bunch of negative energy text messages out of nowhere, and having kindly sent a sentence of encouragement thinking it would be over, only to receive another large pile of nonsensical messages—
Thinking carefully, that sentence of encouragement was probably just her own wishful thinking, wasn’t it?
It was likely just a perfunctory sentence sent by someone who was genuinely impatient.
And she, the way she was being sentimental, was truly laughable.
Mai Suisui tapped her own head. She had really been muddled during this period. After thinking about it, she sent the sentence [I’m sorry, I’ve disturbed you during this time] and deleted all the text messages.
“Suisui, are you coming to play with us or not?”
Shen Qingqing issued the invitation again. Mai Suisui put away her phone and smiled, saying, “Alright!”
…
Nothing much else happened after that.
After the New Year’s gala ended successfully, the employees in the entire auditorium were liberated. Those who needed to relax relaxed, and those who needed to go home went home; in short, everyone had a smile on their face.
In the middle of the night, Yu Nian finally settled all the work before the New Year.
Life is like that, consuming time in happy or unhappy affairs; work is also a part of life.
She had long since grown accustomed to it.
“Ding-ling-ling!”
After entering the door, Yu Nian raised her hand to rub her temples. She changed her shoes at the entrance and didn’t even take off her coat, carrying her bag straight back to the bedroom. Then, carrying her full-body exhaustion, she fell forward onto the soft bed.
As a result, as soon as she fell, she suddenly reacted. Raising her face to see that some faint marks had been left on the clean quilt, she let out a sigh.
She was too busy today. Now she felt as if her entire face were coated in a thick layer of oil paint, greasy and uncomfortable.
“It seems I’ll have to find someone to clean up…”
Propping herself up with difficulty on the bed, Yu Nian turned to look around the bedroom, her eyes tinged with a faint weariness.
Because she was too busy with the company, she naturally had no time to maintain the cleanliness of her home.
Looking at it now, it was a bit messy.
The dust that the housekeeping lady had wiped clean when she first moved in had settled on the surfaces again.
“It really is time for a spring cleaning. I wonder if the housekeeping companies are on holiday?”
Turning over to lie on her back, Yu Nian squinted her eyes tiredly, staring blankly at the bright chandelier above her head for a while.
The sound of a video call suddenly rang out. Yu Nian answered it casually; it was her younger sister.
“Sis, when are you coming back?”
Yu Nian yawned. “I’ll check the flights in a bit. Speaking of which, why did you call my work number on video?”
“Your other phone won’t go through; it’s off as soon as I call.”
While talking, Yu Qiu on the other end of the phone impatiently helped Yu Nian check the flights.
Yu Nian patted her head.
She had almost forgotten that her other phone was left at home to charge.
As soon as she unplugged the charging cable and turned it on, Yu Nian’s expression immediately became very puzzled.
Yu Qiu’s eyes lit up on the other side: “Sis, there’s a flight tomorrow afternoon at 16:20. But you’ll be home at midnight; do you want me to drive and pick you up?”
“I’m telling you, I learned to drive really well at school. I just got my license a couple of days ago; it’s the perfect time to show off for you.”
“Mhm, mhm, mhm.” Yu Nian nodded perfunctorily while scrolling through the dozen or so text messages that flooded in the moment the phone turned on.
This Mai Suisui… what is she babbling about?
She even asked whether she should thank her boss?
Isn’t your boss me?
You’re asking me about this?
Wait.
That fish soup this morning…
So that was what Mai Suisui was planning at the time?
“Then it’s settled, sis! I’ll go ahead and book the ticket for you?”
“Okay, okay, okay.”
Mai Suisui had called her twice, at the time the company was having the New Year’s gala…
What did she want to do?
The fish soup delivery wasn’t successful, so she was thanking her directly?
No… Mai Suisui didn’t know the person on the other side was her.
Then why would she call a “stranger” for no reason?
“Then don’t forget to reimburse me! My little treasury has been squandered a lot lately.”
“Mhm, mhm, okay, okay.”
And the last text message—why did she suddenly apologize for no reason?
She even said she had been disturbing her during this time.
Yu Nian felt like laughing. This person finally realized it!
A normal person would have blocked her long ago, right?
According to her usual practice, since the matter had ended here, she wouldn’t look for more trouble.
However, today’s situation was a bit different. Her mood was somewhat weary, and plus, she ultimately hadn’t responded to this person in time, which gave her a sense of inexplicable guilt.
Tapping the screen, she casually sent another question mark back.
In the end, before she could even turn off the screen, the phone ringtone rang out.
The sound was very urgent, as if it were pressing her to answer the call.
Yu Qiu on the other side of the other phone was a bit disappointed. “Sis, it’s already the holiday, and there are still people looking for you for work?”
Yu Nian pursed her lips. “I’ll handle the work first. Don’t forget to send me the flight information. Hanging up.”
Yu Qiu, looking at the disconnected video call on the other side of the phone, let out a very reluctant “Oh.”
After walking a few steps, intending to inform the two ladies at home about her sister coming home tomorrow, she suddenly froze.
Wait a minute. I was calling her work phone!
The one that rang was clearly her private phone. Why did she lie to me saying there was work to handle?
Something is fishy!
…
Leaving aside what Yu Qiu was thinking, Yu Nian, after connecting the call, was questioned head-on by a certain someone.
“Didn’t you block me? Why did you reply to me again…”
“And… question mark, question mark every day. Do you not know how to type!”
Yu Nian endured the piercing noise from the phone, frowning as she asked, “Where are you?”
“Huh? You’re a girl? Wow, I’m a girl too! What a coincidence! Hehehee…” Mai Suisui chuckled foolishly on the other end of the phone.
“Are you drunk?” Yu Nian asked expressionlessly.
“By the way, stranger, did you see my thanks? If you didn’t receive it, I’m telling you now—I thank you, okay!”
“If you’re drunk, go back early…”
“I’m sorry to you, okay!”
Yu Nian’s forehead was covered in black lines. Just as she was about to say something more, another female voice came from the other side of the phone.
It was her secretary’s voice.
“Hello, you are Suisui’s friend, right? Suisui has had a bit too much to drink, but don’t worry, I’m taking her home right now.”
Yu Nian gave a soft “Mhm” and hung up the phone.
“Drip, drop, drip, drop…”
After hanging up the phone, the huge house seemed to become even more silent.
Just as the hands of the clock on the wall silently pointed to 2:49 AM, Yu Nian on the bed suddenly opened her eyes and sat up, muttering through gritted teeth:
“Mai… Sui… Sui!”