Zhang Xiaofeng glanced at his phone. He had thought it was Su Yuebai calling, but it turned out to be his boss.
He answered, “Hello, Boss? It’s late—what’s up?”
“Xiaofeng, I’ve got a favor to ask. A headhunting agency just introduced a top-tier tech guy to me. We met earlier—he’s young and talked a great game. But he seems too young. I’m not quite convinced. Tomorrow morning, could you test his skills for me? If he’s as good as he claims, a 10,000 yuan salary wouldn’t be too much.”
Zhang Xiaofeng frowned slightly. Was this even a favor? This clearly meant his boss already saw him as one of his own and trusted him greatly—it was a show of appreciation!
He couldn’t help but feel excited. He had to live up to that trust!
Zhang Xiaofeng replied, “It’s not a problem at all. Just a small thing. What’s his background? Where did he graduate from?”
“He studied abroad—just came back from the U.S. after graduating.”
Zhang Xiaofeng could guess the concern. The boss was likely worried the guy was all talk, arrogant, inexperienced, and possibly useless when it came to actual work.
“I got it, Boss. I’ll meet him tomorrow and help you vet him properly.”
“Alright, sorry for bothering you so late. Get some rest.”
“Not at all.”
…
The next morning, Zhang Xiaofeng arrived at the office at 9:00. The returnee had already arrived as well. The two met in the general office.
He was 26, male, named Zhang Xinbo, dressed in a sleek black suit with an air of sophistication. His speech was refined, and his hairstyle looked like it had a whole bottle of hair gel keeping it in place.
“Hello, Team Leader.” Zhang Xinbo greeted him politely, reaching out a hand.
“Hello.” Zhang Xiaofeng shook his hand and they briefly chatted.
After about ten minutes and seven or eight questions, Zhang Xiaofeng noticed that although the guy answered well, his foundation seemed weak. That was understandable—many inexperienced newcomers were like this.
But soon, Zhang Xiaofeng realized the guy only knew how to answer interview questions. When asked to read software and inspect underlying code, his expression shifted. In less than a few minutes, beads of sweat formed on his forehead. He likely graduated from a lousy school overseas. These days, just being a returnee didn’t mean you were actually good.
After thirty minutes, Zhang Xiaofeng said, “You can stop now.”
“Yeah… I understand this code. I’m just lacking practical experience since I just graduated,” Zhang Xinbo replied awkwardly, scratching his head.
“Did the boss already hire you?” Zhang Xiaofeng asked.
“Not yet. He said there would be another technical interview today.”
Zhang Xiaofeng nodded and told him to go speak to the boss. Honestly, it wasn’t just about the weak school—this guy clearly didn’t study seriously either, probably spent his school days partying. No way he was worth 10,000 yuan. Enjoying the story? Read on at g.com.
He sent a message to his boss on WeChat, summarizing Zhang Xinbo’s skill level. Twenty minutes later, his boss called.
“Xiaofeng, thank goodness for you. This guy’s no good. Last night, he sounded so slick and impressive, but you exposed him today. Seriously, thank you!”
Zhang Xiaofeng chuckled, “No big deal. Just doing my job.”
“So modest! You’re absolutely worth the 20,000 yuan salary I’m paying you!” Zhang Longfa appreciated him more and more. This was a top graduate from Qingbei, polished by two years in PD—companies would fight to recruit someone like that. He had hit the jackpot.
Zhang Xiaofeng just smiled lightly. After a brief chat, they ended the call.
…
The morning passed uneventfully, and the afternoon was quiet as well. By evening, Zhang Xiaofeng went home, packed his goods, and headed to the market to set up his stall. The weather was terrible—it started pouring rain. Luckily, he had brought an umbrella, and all the merchandise was wrapped in plastic, so it was fine.
Because it was so cold, sales were even better. In just five minutes, he sold over 200 yuan worth of goods—something that wouldn’t have happened before.
…
Meanwhile, Su Qianghai and Su Yuebai were scouring the city for Zhang Xiaofeng, constantly calling and asking acquaintances if they’d seen him. But no matter how much they searched, they couldn’t find him. Jiang City was huge, and their hopes were slim, but they prayed for luck—maybe they’d randomly bump into him.
Until a friend called and said, “I know where he is. He’s running a stall at a spot I passed just now.”
That friend gave them the address. Elated, Su Qianghai and Su Yuebai immediately rushed over.
At that moment, Zhang Xiaofeng was busy selling his goods. Suddenly, he noticed two pairs of feet on the ground. Frowning, he looked up mid-sale and stared coldly at the two people in front of him.
It was none other than Su Yuebai and Su Qianghai.
“Boss?” a customer waved his hand in front of Zhang Xiaofeng’s face.
Zhang Xiaofeng handed him the gloves he wanted, completely ignoring Su Yuebai and Su Qianghai, continuing to work.
Su Yuebai picked up two pairs of gloves and said, “Boss, I’ll take these two.”
“Sorry, not for sale.”
Su Yuebai’s face fell. “Why? I’m a customer. You should sell to me. Why turn away money?”
“I don’t want your filthy money!” Zhang Xiaofeng snapped, yanked the gloves from her hands, and began packing up his stall. He wasn’t selling tonight anymore.
“I said, I don’t want your money!” Zhang Xiaofeng didn’t even look at her. He hoisted his goods and left.
Su Yuebai felt terrible. On a cold rainy day like this, seeing her made him abandon his business. He… he truly hated her.
Zhang Xiaofeng had already walked far. Su Yuebai chased after him and called out, “Husband, please come back with me. Come home, okay? Please?”
Zhang Xiaofeng didn’t even turn around.
Suddenly, Su Qianghai rushed up and blocked his path, shouting coldly, “Zhang! What’s your problem? What gives you the right to treat my daughter like this? Who do you think you are?! Grown a backbone, have you?! Huh?!”
Zhang Xiaofeng looked at him and sneered, then ignored him too and turned to leave.
Suddenly, Su Qianghai grabbed his shoulder tightly.
Zhang Xiaofeng turned back and snapped, “Not only do I ignore your slut of a daughter, I ignore you too! Who do you think you are? Think you’re so powerful?”
“Watch your—” Su Qianghai stopped himself and roared, “Let me tell you something, Zhang. We came here today to ask you to come back—that’s already giving you a huge amount of face! And you dare act like this? What kind of attitude is this?!”
“This is exactly my attitude!” Zhang Xiaofeng shouted. “What are you gonna do about it?!”
Su Qianghai trembled with rage, his chest tight like it had been stuffed with a boulder. But what could he do? He had come to bring this man back!
“Zhang Xiaofeng! Watch your mouth! Our family’s already given you more than enough respect. Don’t be ungrateful!”
“Hahaha! What a joke! You dare say I’m ungrateful? I’ve swallowed my pride for your family so many times! Get the hell out of my sight! I don’t deserve your rich people’s scraps!” Zhang Xiaofeng waved down a taxi, opened the door, and was ready to leave. No matter what the Su Family did, he would never return!
“Wait!” Su Qianghai held the door and said, “Zhang Xiaofeng, show some decency! My daughter has been crying her eyes out all day—how can you ignore her? You got her pregnant and now you’re just walking away? Are you even human?!”
Zhang Xiaofeng glared at him coldly, then laughed. He waved the taxi away, letting it drive off. Turning back, he said icily, “Your daughter’s sadness has nothing to do with me. Yes—I’m ignoring her. What are you going to do about it? And how dare you say I got her pregnant and ran? Are you blind or deaf? She’s the one who told me to get lost! Didn’t you hear that, you fat pig? Why don’t you just chop those useless ears off and feed them to a dog?!”
Su Qianghai almost coughed up blood. He stood there speechless. Zhang Xiaofeng wasn’t wrong—his daughter had indeed told him to leave. But so what? They were rich! They had the right to say it! And he had no right to talk back! They gave him a place to stay, food to eat, a car to drive—and he even slept with their daughter. What right did he have to lose his temper?! He’s gotten too bold!!!
“Zhang Xiaofeng, I, Su Qianghai, am telling you now—coming here today already showed you more than enough face. You’d better appreciate the chance I’m giving you. Take the damn step down or things will get unpleasant!”
“Great! Then let me tell you this!” Zhang Xiaofeng shouted back. “I don’t like being pleasant! I love being unpleasant! Take your filthy selves wherever it’s coldest and stay there. Don’t come here looking for trouble!”
Su Qianghai was stunned, his face turning red like it might burst. The words hit so hard he couldn’t even refute them. Every point Zhang Xiaofeng made was true—and that made it worse!
“Stop fighting!” Su Yuebai rushed between them and turned to Zhang Xiaofeng. She spoke softly, “Husband, come home with us, okay? I won’t treat you like I did before. It was all my fault—you weren’t wrong, it was me…”
“Shut the hell up!” Zhang Xiaofeng interrupted. “I don’t think you were wrong—I was! You did everything right! There was nothing wrong! That’s it. Goodbye!” He turned and walked off.
Su Yuebai froze. Her mouth opened like she wanted to say something more, but Zhang Xiaofeng broke into a run and left her coldly behind.
She felt a sudden, crushing ache in her heart. Her hand let go, and the umbrella fell to the ground with a slap. She stood there in the pouring rain, completely soaked, letting it drench her to the bone.