Tang Luoqing leisurely wandered around the cultural and creative park, and by the time she got home, it was already evening.
Zhou Yancheng called again to say that he had to work overtime and would not be coming home for dinner. Tang Luoqing was already used to it, so she cooked herself some frozen dumplings.
While the dumplings were boiling, she put some cat food out for Little Milk Candy and watered all the flowers on the balcony.
After finishing her meal and washing the dishes, the phone in her pocket suddenly rang.
Tang Luoqing looked at the unfamiliar number on the screen and answered hesitantly. “Hello?”
“May I ask if this is Miss Tang Luoqing?”
A clear, pleasant male voice came through the receiver. “Hello, I’m Lu Yu from Lu’s Cultural and Creative.”
Tang Luoqing froze.
Lu’s Cultural and Creative?
Was that the company operating the cultural and creative park she had visited today?
Why would they be calling her?
Tang Luoqing tightened her grip on the phone, vaguely sensing what this might be about. Nervous yet expectant, she replied, “Yes. May I ask… what is this regarding?”
“It’s like this. We happened to come across some of your illustration work and thought it fit the theme of our City Images series for the second half of the year extremely well.”
Lu Yu’s voice was warm and straightforward. “We’d like to invite you to our company tomorrow to discuss the details of a potential collaboration. Would you happen to have some time?”
Before he could even finish speaking, an enormous wave of delight seemed to crash into Tang Luoqing’s ears.
Sitting on the sofa with Little Milk Candy in her arms, Tang Luoqing’s mind went blank for a brief moment. Her voice was filled with restrained excitement and a hint of disbelief. “Really? I have time. What time tomorrow?”
“How about ten tomorrow morning? I’ll have my assistant add you on WeChat and send the address to your phone.”
“Okay. Thank you, President Lu.”
After hanging up, Tang Luoqing was still a little dazed, but she could not stop herself from becoming excited.
Less than two minutes later, she received a friend request on WeChat. After she accepted it, the other person exchanged a few polite words with her before sending her the address.
Tang Luoqing lowered her head and stared at the chat, still unable to believe it. After hesitating for a moment, she reached out and pinched her own arm hard.
The pain made her hiss immediately, and only then did she dare to believe that this was not a dream.
Lu’s Cultural and Creative was one of the most highly regarded cultural and creative companies in the industry. For a freelance illustrator like her, who had little fame, securing a collaboration with them was practically like having a pie fall from the sky.
Tang Luoqing excitedly jumped up from the sofa and bounced in place once before quickly covering her mouth, afraid that she might actually laugh out loud.
Then she crouched down and hugged the little cat, which had been infected by her happiness and was bouncing around excitedly. She rubbed her face against its soft belly, her eyes sparkling with joy.
Early the next morning, Tang Luoqing put on a white shirt and jeans, slung the canvas bag containing her portfolio over her shoulder, and arrived at Lu’s Cultural and Creative early.
Lu Yu was even more easygoing than he had sounded over the phone. He was personally waiting for her in the conference room, and when he saw Tang Luoqing walk in, he stood up with a smile and extended his hand. His manner was warm and approachable, without the slightest trace of a boss’s usual aloofness.
He went through the entire proposal for the City Images series in detail, explaining everything clearly, from the theme and positioning to the merchandise categories and the desired artistic style.
Tang Luoqing listened very attentively, nodding from time to time.
Whenever she came across something she did not understand, she quietly asked questions and filled page after page of her notebook with notes.
“We’re planning to create fifteen main illustrations for this series, along with some additional elements for extended applications. The project will take approximately three months.”
Lu Yu pushed the contract toward Tang Luoqing and smiled. “As for the payment, you can rest assured. It’s absolutely at the top industry rate. I’ve looked through your work, and you have a lot of talent. I’m confident in entrusting this project to you.”
Tang Luoqing stared at the figure written in the contract, her eyes widening in surprise.
The payment for this project was actually more than all the fees she had received from every previous commission combined.
She blinked hard, suppressing that rather embarrassing look of astonishment, then carefully read through the entire contract. After confirming that everything was in order, she picked up the pen and neatly signed her name.
Tang Luoqing’s handwriting was just like her personality. It looked soft, yet there was a sense of strength to it. Every stroke was written carefully and deliberately.
When she walked out of the Lu’s Cultural and Creative building, the sunlight was warm and bright, bathing her in a comfortable glow.
Tang Luoqing carefully placed the contract inside her canvas bag and pressed a hand over it as though she were protecting some precious treasure.
The smile on her lips was impossible to suppress. She walked along with a smile on her face, her footsteps practically floating.
Eager to tell Zhou Yancheng the good news, Tang Luoqing took out her phone and wanted to send him a message. She typed it, deleted it, typed it again, and deleted it once more. In the end, she put her phone back into her pocket.
Forget it. She would wait until he came home that evening and tell him in person. Sharing the happiness face to face would make it even more wonderful.
With that thought, Tang Luoqing quickened her pace. She even stopped by a large supermarket and bought many of Zhou Yancheng’s favorite ingredients. After returning home, she plunged straight into the kitchen and busied herself there all afternoon, preparing a table full of dishes.
There were sweet and sour spare ribs, cola chicken wings, broccoli with minced garlic, stir fried beef with green peppers, and a somewhat more troublesome soup made with lamb and white radish.
Tang Luoqing carried each dish to the table one by one and arranged them neatly. Then she sat on the sofa and waited, calling Zhou Yancheng to ask where he was.
The phone rang almost until the end before he finally answered.
“When will you be home? Dinner’s ready.”
Tang Luoqing’s voice was filled with uncontrollable happiness. “I also have some good news to tell you…”
“I’m busy right now. Can we talk about it when I get home later? Be good.”
Zhou Yancheng said this from the other end of the phone, sounding as though he really was very busy, before hanging up.
Tang Luoqing looked at her phone in surprise. Then, thinking it over, she remembered that Zhou Yancheng had indeed been very busy lately preparing for a new project. She glanced at the time on her phone from time to time, doing her best to reassure herself as she waited at home.
Time passed minute by minute.
Seven o’clock, eight o’clock, nine o’clock.
The dishes grew cold, were reheated, and then grew cold again, yet Zhou Yancheng still had not returned.
Unable to hold back any longer, Tang Luoqing sent Zhou Yancheng a message. He only replied, “I’m busy. I’ll be home later,” and said nothing else.
Tang Luoqing sat on the sofa with her knees pulled against her chest, staring at the table full of cold dishes. The excitement she had felt earlier slowly faded away.
It was almost eleven when the sound of the front door opening finally came from the entrance.
Zhou Yancheng walked in, reeking of alcohol. His tie hung loosely around his neck, and two buttons of his shirt had been undone, revealing a glimpse of his collarbone.
When he saw Tang Luoqing standing beside the sofa waiting for him, he opened his arms and walked over, pulling her into his embrace. He rubbed his chin against the top of her head and spoke in a slightly husky voice from the alcohol. “Baby, have you been waiting long? Did you miss me?”
Tang Luoqing could barely breathe in his arms. The tips of her ears immediately turned red as she pushed against his chest. “Let go of me first. I have some good news to tell you.”
“What good news?”
Zhou Yancheng did not let go. He simply held Tang Luoqing in his arms, lowering his head to nuzzle her cheek as he spoke lazily. “Let me hold you for a while first. I haven’t seen my baby all day. I missed you so much.”
Tang Luoqing’s cheeks turned red from his words, and her heart filled with sweetness. The little disappointment she had felt after waiting all evening instantly disappeared.
“I got a collaboration with Lu’s Cultural and Creative.”
Tang Luoqing lifted her face, her soft, beautiful eyes sparkling like stars.
“It’s that very famous cultural and creative company. They asked me to draw an entire series of illustrations, and the payment is really high.”
“Lu’s Cultural and Creative?”
Zhou Yancheng raised an eyebrow. After a brief moment of surprise, he reached out and pinched Tang Luoqing’s cheek. “I knew my baby was the best. Your work is so good. It was only a matter of time before someone noticed you.”
What Zhou Yancheng did not say was that Lu’s Cultural and Creative was also the regular illustration company collaborating with their company on its resort projects.
Tang Luoqing’s heart warmed when she heard the faint pride in Zhou Yancheng’s praise.
She was just about to continue explaining the details when the phone in Zhou Yancheng’s pocket suddenly vibrated.
He took out his phone and glanced down at the screen. Then, without revealing anything, he put it back into his trouser pocket and continued, “But, baby, I drank almost a jin of baijiu with the client today, and my head is spinning. If I hadn’t been thinking about coming home to see you, I would have just slept at the hotel.”
Hearing this, Tang Luoqing’s heart softened. She quickly said, “Then go take a shower and get some sleep.”
“Okay.”
Zhou Yancheng hugged Tang Luoqing once more and lowered his head to give her a light kiss on the lips before turning around and walking into the bedroom, closing the door behind him.
Only Tang Luoqing remained in the living room, along with the table full of completely cold dishes.
Tang Luoqing sighed and returned to the dining table, placing every dish into the microwave one by one to heat them up.
After reheating everything, she sat down at the table and glanced at the tightly closed bedroom door before eating slowly, one bite at a time.
Somehow, the food seemed a little bland.
What she did not know was that after returning to the bedroom, Zhou Yancheng did not immediately go take a shower. Instead, he took out his phone and looked at the message on the screen.
[Are you home? I still haven’t had enough to drink this time. Let’s continue drinking next time.]
A faint smile tugged at the corners of Zhou Yancheng’s lips as he replied.
[Yeah. We’ll make plans again later.]
At the same time, the lights in the president’s office on the top floor of Zhou Group were still on.
Assistant Shen stood in front of the desk. After his phone screen went dark, he put it away and respectfully reported, “President Zhou, Miss Tang has reached a preliminary cooperation agreement with Lu’s Cultural and Creative.”
Assistant Shen had just received a message from Lu Yu saying that he had signed the contract with Tang Luoqing. He thanked him for acting as the intermediary and even sent him an 888 yuan red envelope.
Assistant Shen had therefore reported the matter to his boss immediately.
Zhou Jinbai was looking down at the documents, a fountain pen held between his fingers, its tip resting motionless against the paper.
Upon hearing this, he did not even raise his eyes. He merely responded with a faint, “Hmm.”
The fountain pen continued moving across the document, and his rhythm appeared completely unchanged.
After an unknown amount of time, Zhou Jinbai closed the final document.
He stood up, picked up the coat hanging over the back of his chair, and walked out of the office.
Not long afterward, a black sedan sped through the streets late at night, the glow of the streetlights sweeping past the windows one after another.
When the car reached the section of road near Yujing Bay, the driver instinctively eased off the accelerator. The speed gradually dropped as the car slowly moved toward a place by the roadside where it could stop.
At that moment, Zhou Jinbai, sitting in the back seat, had his gaze fixed on the documents in front of him. Without raising his head, he calmly instructed, “Keep driving.”
His voice was very faint, without the slightest trace of emotion.
Assistant Shen, sitting in the front passenger seat, was slightly startled and instinctively turned around to look.
Zhou Jinbai’s expression remained unchanged. Assistant Shen quickly raised his hand and lightly tapped the driver, signaling him to keep going.
The driver in the front also suppressed his surprise and pressed down on the accelerator again, sending the car onward.
Silence filled the vehicle. No one said it aloud, but everyone knew that ever since Zhou Yancheng had moved into Yujing Bay with Tang Luoqing a year ago, Zhou Jinbai had moved out of his own apartment in the complex not long afterward.
Even though the two brothers’ apartments were not in the same building and an entire central garden separated them, he had still moved away.
Later, Zhou Jinbai moved into Yunhu International, which was even farther from the company.
And the route from Zhou Group to Yunhu International did not pass through Yujing Bay at all.
Even so, on every late night journey home in the past, as long as President Zhou was not away on a business trip, the car would take a detour and stop for a few minutes beneath the trees outside Yujing Bay.
But this time, after returning from his business trip, he had not done so.
Was it because of what he had said to President Liao that time? Did the boss not want to let himself become too deeply involved?
Assistant Shen did not know.
The car soon left the boundaries of Yujing Bay.
Throughout the entire journey, Zhou Jinbai in the back seat kept his head lowered, his gaze fixed on the open document in front of him. He did not glance even once toward the residential complex outside the window, as though there was nothing special about that place.
However, if one looked carefully, they would notice that the fingers gripping the document had unconsciously tightened slightly, the knuckles straining until they turned faintly pale.
And the page of the document spread open in front of him had not been turned even once in the past ten minutes.