Difficult to Complete chapter 14
Tan Xiaolei called Gu Yan back around 9 PM, directly making a voice call:
“Sorry, Gu Ge. I’ve been in meetings all day today and forgot to bring my power bank. My phone died in the afternoon, and the old professor’s lecture was like a chant—almost put me to sleep.”
He sounded genuinely tired but still managed to joke.
Gu Yan couldn’t help but laugh. “Thank you for your hard work, Teacher Tan!”
He had social engagements that evening and had just gotten back. Although drinking at such events was inevitable, he didn’t dare drink too much, fearing he’d make a fool of himself.
Fortunately, over the years, he had built up a decent tolerance for alcohol, so he could handle ordinary social events without much trouble.
And now, at his level, he usually had more control over whether or not he drank and how much. This saved him a lot of trouble. It’s not like when he just graduated, where even after drinking to the point of exhaustion, he still had to be grateful, thanking his superiors and the partners for offering him drinks.
He felt thirsty after drinking, so after changing into slippers, he went to the kitchen to pour himself a cup of hot water.
“I really can’t imagine you sitting there seriously listening to an old professor’s lecture. It must be pretty funny.”
Somehow, these words hit Tan Xiaolei’s funny bone, and he couldn’t stop laughing. After a good laugh, he brought up the topic from that morning:
“Hey, did President Gu see my resume? Is he planning to hire me?”
Gu Yan walked into the living room, sat sideways on the single sofa, holding the phone in one hand and a glass cup in the other, occasionally sipping water.
In front of him was an entire glass wall. He had chosen this apartment without hesitation precisely because of this glass wall.
He always said that Shen Qi was like an old lazy cat, who loved to curl up on the lounge chair on the balcony to read and bask in the sun during winter, and once settled, he wouldn’t easily move.
So when Gu Yan saw this glass wall, he thought about laying a soft carpet on that floor, where Shen Qi could lie down, bask in the sun, read his favorite books, or just lie there all day doing nothing.
They could also kiss and make love on it, doing everything they wanted to do. At that time, Shen Qi would definitely cry hard, his voice hoarse, calling him “husband.” Just thinking about it was exciting.
Later, they really did do many blush-inducing things under that glass wall. Gu Yan would probably never forget the way Shen Qi pressed his hands against the glass wall, raising his neck high, pleading and begging.
At that time, the living room was lit with warm yellow lights, and outside, the city lights were vibrant and lively. Gu Yan only felt his heart was full, filled with Shen Qi, and the entire world seemed to be contained within him.
Because Shen Qi was his whole world.
So sentimental. So foolish.
But at this moment, the lights outside were still bright and bustling, yet through the glass wall, he saw his own tired and lonely reflection.
Gu Yan put the glass down on the coffee table, stood up, walked over, and drew the curtains, covering the entire glass wall.
“If you really love the design profession, I’d certainly welcome you to join us, but if it’s for some other reason…”
Gu Yan paused for a long time without saying anything, and Tan Xiaolei didn’t push him, just listening silently.
“Anyway, I hope when you make this choice, you consider your own thoughts and future as much as possible. Be careful, don’t act impulsively or get carried away.”
Tan Xiaolei still didn’t say anything.
So Gu Yan joked, “Teacher Tan, you currently have a stable job, why would you want to leave that for a stressful job? This is like a god coming down to earth, oblivious to the struggles of mortals, huh?”
Tan Xiaolei couldn’t help but laugh again. “Alright, President Gu, thanks for your kind words. I’ll think about it seriously.”
…..
The news that Shen Qi and Zhao Lingling had fallen out spread even faster than when Zhao Lingling had confessed to Shen Qi. Within two days, the entire company knew.
People are always so realistic. Those colleagues who used to smile and greet Shen Qi now avoided him like the plague. Even the team members under him were clearly avoiding him outside of work.
Shen Qi didn’t blame them. They were all lowly workers, and no one had it easy. There was no need to offend the higher-ups for a little camaraderie and risk being targeted or even losing their jobs.
But the chubby manager was going too far. That fatso probably felt that his enthusiasm had been wasted on a dog and that Shen Qi wasn’t worth it, so he started making things difficult for him again, being deliberately petty and obstructive.
It’s true that Shen Qi had a good temper and a gentle nature, but he had his bottom line. Anyone could dislike him in private, but when it came to work, he had to stand his ground.
Unfortunately, the chubby manager loved to mix business with personal feelings. He had Shen Qi and his team revise a proposal seventeen or eighteen times.
Revisions were one thing, but after the revisions, the fatso waved his hand and dismissed the proposal, choosing instead the proposal from another team, which was clearly inferior.
Then he picked on Shen Qi, criticizing and belittling their team’s hard work, calling their proposal worthless, like trash.
The chubby manager had been transferred in the second year after Shen Qi started working. He liked employees who were sweet-talking and flattering, but Shen Qi not only didn’t suck up to him, but often opposed his “creative ideas.”
The two of them had endured each other for four years, mutually displeased but coexisting with only the occasional clash.
But this time, Shen Qi had had enough. Near the end of the meeting, he had a huge argument with the chubby manager in front of the entire marketing department, angering the fatso to the point where he loudly threatened to fire him.
Shen Qi didn’t wait to be fired. Twenty minutes later, he slapped his resignation letter on the chubby manager’s desk, grabbed his things, and walked out of the office without looking back, then out of the company building.
There was nothing to regret or agonize over. The moment he decided to clear things up with Zhao Lingling, he knew he’d have to leave sooner or later. There was no need to drag his entire team down with him.
And he had long wanted to have a big fight with that fatso. It was satisfying.
But… standing outside the company, Shen Qi was looking at the building across the street, where Gu Yan was.
He walked out of here today, and who knows where his next job would be. Maybe he’d never get to eat at that Hong Kong-style tea restaurant again.
If there was anything to regret, it was probably just that.
Who knows what kind of shock Tang Yan experienced during his years studying abroad, but ever since he returned, the once reclusive homebody who never stepped out of the door had turned into a complete social butterfly, constantly organizing drinking and dining events in the group chat.
Two days before Christmas, he was in the group again, talking about hosting a Christmas party. Usually, there were always friends willing to humor him, but this time no one responded.
On such an important day, those with partners spent it with them, and those without used the opportunity to find one. Who had time for a guy like him?
Shen Qi watched Tang Yan complain for ten minutes and then coldly and mercilessly replied, “Busy, maybe next time.”
There wasn’t anything specific going on; he just didn’t want to go out. Having just lost both love and career, he really wasn’t in the mood to drink and brag in front of his friends. There’s no need to play the victim either; he had brought this upon himself and had no right to complain.
Just as he was about to put his phone on the bed and go take a shower, he received a call from his mother, asking if he would be coming home for New Year’s Day.
Shen Qi hadn’t been home this year. He didn’t go back during the May or October holidays, and the last time he visited home was last year during the Lunar New Year.
“Yunjie is getting married on the 2nd, and if you come back, you can attend the wedding,” his mother said.
Yunjie was a relative on his grandmother’s side. While not particularly close, their families weren’t distant either. By all accounts, Yunjie should address Shen Qi as “big brother.”
Shen Qi wasn’t really interested in attending a wedding, and since New Year’s Day was only a three-day holiday, it would take two days just to travel back and forth, making the whole trip too exhausting.
“It’s too much trouble. I’ll just wait until the Spring Festival to go back; it’s not that far off anyway.”
The Spring Festival was early this year, just at the beginning of February. Shen Qi’s company usually gave a holiday half a month in advance, so after New Year’s, the Spring Festival holiday wasn’t far away.
“Alright, then come back for the Spring Festival,” his mother said, sounding somewhat displeased, but she quickly changed the subject. “Will you be bringing your girlfriend?”
He wasn’t sure when it started, but every time he was about to return home, his mother would ask this question. If he answered no, she would nag him incessantly—
“I’ve spent my whole life working hard, doing all the chores by myself.”
“I have a son who’s not as good as others, no ambition, no drive.”
“You don’t have a good job, just a small group leader after all these years. Can’t even find a girlfriend, while other people’s sons your age already have kids.”
“I must’ve owed you and your father in my past life.”
…
She would repeat these words over and over, not just on the phone but also in person. This was why Shen Qi was increasingly reluctant to go home.
He knew, of course, that his mother had worked hard for the family all her life. He saw her efforts and appreciated them, but he really didn’t like how she constantly brought it up. It made him feel uncomfortable.
“No, I… still don’t have a girlfriend.”
“I knew it.” His mother’s tone grew even colder. “In middle and high school, you were constantly getting love letters from girls. Now that it’s time to date and get married, you can’t even bring home one girl.”
“Your Aunt Wang knows a few girls. When you come back, I’ll have her arrange some blind dates for you. You’re almost thirty; how can you not be married yet…”