On the upper floor of a high-rise building, inside the main office, Assistant Cheng Li placed an invitation on Fei Chuan’s desk.
"It’s the Lin family’s banquet scheduled for next week. Will you attend?"
Fei Chuan didn’t even glance at the invitation. "No."
Cheng Li retrieved the envelope with a sigh. "I heard from our intel that Head Master Lin plans to announce the heir that day. There’s a strong chance your friend, Lin Sanju, will be nad. You’re really not going?"
Fei Chuan, wearing his gold-rimd glasses, continued typing on his computer. "No. She won’t be attending anyway."
Cheng Li exhaled heavily and tucked the invitation back into his pocket. He’d have to compose a polite reply to decline it.
Over the next few hours, he brought several more invitations to Fei Chuan, but all were t with the sa response.
"I don’t plan to go out next week. Decline them all. I need to finish encoding this by then."
"There’s a talented team working on that. You don’t have to handle everything yourself," Cheng Li remarked, unable to suppress voicing his opinion.
He couldn’t fathom why his boss insisted on taking on such a workload when he had a roster of capable staff to work on it. If it were up to him, he’d sit back and let the team do the heavy lifting while he enjoyed the results.
Still engrossed in the screen, Fei Chuan replied flatly, "I’m a programr, not a socialite."
Cheng Li wanted to retort, Then what have you been doing these past few months? Haven’t you been eting people, expanding your network, and solidifying your influence?
But looking at Fei Chuan’s focused deanor as he worked, Cheng Li bit his tongue.
He rembered how things had been three years ago when Fei Chuan first hired him. Back then, his boss wasn’t the sociable figure he’d recently beco but a recluse who spent all his ti buried in his computer. It was only in the last year or so that Fei Chuan had stepped out of his shell, eting people and making connections.
The transformation had been so drastic that even Cheng Li was shocked by the polished, confident facade his boss had adopted.
Cheng Li shook his head. Perhaps Fei Chuan felt he had already ’hooked the fish’ and was now content to retreat into his old habits.
Still, Cheng Li preferred the networking version of his boss. That side of Fei Chuan had brought in significant returns, widening Cheng Li’s own horizons in the process.
But, alas, his boss was a natural introvert who preferred working alone.
Cheng Li returned to his desk just outside Fei Chuan’s office and began working on his own tasks. Not long after, the telephone rang. The caller was none other than Lin Sanju.
With a resigned sigh, Cheng Li prepared to relay the inevitable news of his boss’s decision.
He picked up the phone and, in his usual calm tone, inford Lin Sanju, "Mr. Fei won’t be able to attend. He has prior business etings, and the schedules conflict."
Cheng Li had grown accustod to dealing with Lin Sanju, especially during the ti Lin Sanju had been working to rekindle his friendship with Fei Chuan. They were in frequent contact, so delivering bad news like this wasn’t particularly difficult.
"Oh, is that so?" Lin Sanju sounded disappointed but tried to mask it with understanding. "That’s a pity, but I get it. Fei Chuan has done so much for already. I just thought I’d check in because it’s thanks to him that I’ve been able to connect with a few influential people."
He paused, sighing deeply. "And here I was, talking big and assuming he’d show up. Now, how am I supposed to explain this to Bei Sangyun?"
Cheng Li perked up at the ntion of Bei Sangyun. "Ms. Bei is attending?"
"Yeah," Lin Sanju confird. "I managed to persuade her. But if your boss doesn’t co, I doubt she’ll stay."
"Hold on for a mont," Cheng Li said, putting the call on hold. He got up and went into Fei Chuan’s office in a hurry.
"Boss," Cheng Li ignored Fei Chuan’s warning eyes and continued to tell the news excitedly, "It’s confird that Ms. Bei will be at the Lin family’s banquet next week."
The rhythmic clatter of keys on the keyboard abruptly ceased. Fei Chuan looked up, his gold-rimd glasses catching the light.
"She’ll be there?"
"Yes," Cheng Li confird. "Lin Sanju just told . I haven’t ntioned your decision not to attend yet."
Fei Chuan took off his glasses, his expression unreadable. "I’ll go."
He turned off his computer and stood up. "What’s the trending among ladies nowadays?"
Cheng Li’s eyes sparkled. He silently celebrated his small victory.
"Bags, sir."
After giving Fei Chuan the idea, he returned to his desk quickly and picked up the phone.
"We’ll be coming." He would be finally leaving this boring office.
.....
Bei Sangyun gazed at the limited-edition purse in wonder. It was indeed the sa purse she had seen in the magazine this morning.
Its price was around six figures and was crafted by a well-renowned designer. This designer had recently beco popular among wealthy young ladies; everything she created would be on-trend, which explained the astronomical price.
For the wealthy young ladies, this was considered a fair price to add a piece to their purse collection.
But what was truly incredible was that this purse was one of only three copies in the world. And it had just been released this morning. How could one of the three now be sitting on her desk?
Bei Sangyun picked up the note attached to the box.
[I was shopping for a suit to wear to the Lin family’s banquet when I saw this in a shop window. You’ve given so many thoughtful gifts over the years. Though I’ve returned the favor in small ways, I haven’t properly shown my appreciation for your generosity.]
Shop’s window? Impossible. He must have used his connections to buy the most trending purse right now, she mused.
But her heart ward at the words.
She carefully picked up the dark violet purse, a smile spreading across her face. It reminded her of the ti he gave her earrings at the hocoming dance. He’d been just a teenager then, but his thoughtfulness and maturity had always been beyond his years. That part of him hadn’t changed.
Bei Sangyun admired the purse for a long ti. She’d never been particularly fond of bags, accessories, or jewelry, but this purse felt different. It was so exquisite that she wanted to encase it in glass and display it where she could admire it every day.
When she finally set it down, she picked up her phone and sent him a ssage.
Thank you. I love it so much.
Still brimming with excitent, Bei Sangyun called for Maid Ye Zhai. "Sister Ye, let’s go shopping!"
Now, she had the perfect excuse to buy him sothing personal in return.
As for the banquet, there was no reason to be hesitant about it. Who cares about those people at the Lin family?
All she wanted was to see Fei Chuan. And this was an opportunity she couldn’t let go.
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