Chen Jiaxian's dormitory still uses plastic tables and chairs, and a simple blue wardrobe is placed at the end of the bed. The only furniture was a cheap garment steamer. Taobao's basic blackout curtains are hung on the windows, not pliable, and tied tightly with white glass ropes.
She sat at the plastic table and looked at the huge YSL bag. She took out the black suit, shook it, and placed it on the table.
She looked at the black suit in a daze.
Such a large amount of money went out, but there was no disturbance in her heart.
The joy of satisfying material desires? Heartache at a financial cost? Or feel proud to have erased the memory of being pushed out of the door?
None.
Are her desires satisfied?
No.
Is she happier, happier, and more determined because of it?
nor.
Consumption is never armor. All she has is her body and the courage to not be hurt.
Now, in this new stage, what exactly does her desire point to?
Chen Jiaxian hugged the expensive black suit tightly, rested her forehead on the table, and cried in embarrassment.
…
midnight.
Chen Jiaxian woke up from the cold.
The heavy rain poured down, hitting the windows with a loud bang. The long-overdue cold snap has finally arrived.
The temperature keeps dropping. Yesterday I was wearing short-sleeves, but now it's so cold that I need to cover myself with a quilt.
Chen Jiaxian opened her eyes and stared at the ceiling in the darkness for a long time.
The temperature has dropped just after buying clothes. The world is so absurd and full of mistakes, but this is life.
She wanted to cry but also wanted to laugh. Finally, she covered her face with her hands, gasped for a long time, and sat up.
She took out her old coat from the suitcase, lit the lamp, and used small scissors to trim the hair balls on the coat bit by bit.
…
The next day was especially cold, and everyone on the road put on thin down.
Chen Jiaxian passed by Zhou Ke's workstation and noticed that it had become empty. She tried to send a WeChat message to Zhou Ke, but she only received an exclamation mark saying "The other person is not your friend yet".
Friendship in the workplace is like dew, it dissipates quickly after separation.
The dew always dissipates easily, just like a mayfly living and dying in the torrent of time.
Chen Jiaxian wrapped her coat tightly and sat at her workstation. She opened her little red book and looked at the "River Tree Memory" video released a few days ago.
She liked this video the most, but the number of likes was nowhere near what she expected.
In other words, no one is watching at all.
She compared it with her personal PBC and became dazed.
A few minutes later, she frowned and re-edited the note, added the hashtag # Waiting for Love, and pressed send.
After half a day, the number of views has increased visibly, but it is still very cold.
The collaborative office buzzes, indicating that there is a new email.
Chen Jiaxian opened the email and saw that the "First Series" topic she submitted was shot by the leaders without any suspense.
Everyone is looking up ahead, no one wants to look down.
They don't care.
…
In the evening, Zhou Yixing frowned: "I can't ask for leave for tonight's dinner, but I have something to do tonight. Director Yang said, let me find someone to replace me. Crazy, who can I find?"
Chen Jiaxian felt a little cold, so she wrapped her coat tightly and said, "Going to a dinner party?"
Zhou Yixing asked back: "Didn't I call you?"
Chen Jiaxian shook her head.
Zhou Yixing comforted her: "It's okay if you don't go. The big guys are eating and drinking, and we can't even take a few bites. We wait at the end of the table the whole time, serving tea and water, urging the dishes to be passed around, and making some witty remarks to liven up the atmosphere."
Having said that, they all know that the core business is encountered at the dinner party, and the dinner party is also the most suitable place for brushing up and managing upwards.
Failure to follow the rules of the game in business society is basically equivalent to giving up on the future.
Chen Jiaxian is neither naive nor noble.
She worked hard to compete in this elite game.
But.
Since being kicked out of the box by Shi Yuan's secretary last time, Chen Jiaxian has never been called out at any business dinner.
Chen Jiaxian paused, and then said: "Then I will go for you."
Zhou Yixing thought for a while and told her: "There is only one distinguished guest at tonight's dinner. It is just a routine meal to maintain relationships. There is no substantive business communication."
If it wasn't like this, how could Chen Jiaxian get her turn?
Chen Jiaxian said: "It doesn't matter."
So Zhou Yixing called Yang Zhi. After the call ended, she looked embarrassed: "Director Yang won't let me take leave."
And Yang Zhi’s original words were: Chen Jiaxian? She can't.
As for what specific aspect this "no" refers to, he has long forgotten. For people of Yang Zhi's class, it is the most normal thing to crucify someone with a trivial matter. So what if it is unfair? He couldn't see it and didn't care.
In the business world, a cheap suit can define Chen Jiaxian.
Zhou Yixing didn't say anything, but Chen Jiaxian guessed most of it.
Even in this situation, it’s not my turn.
Chen Jiaxian had already been mentally prepared.
She lowered her head and smiled: "Okay then."
The two people walked back from the tea room. Zhou Yixing saw the suit under Chen Jiaxian's coat and took a second look.
"Did you buy new clothes?" Zhou Yixing praised, "Very smart."
…
It was getting dark, and Chen Jiaxian stayed in the office to work overtime when her cell phone rang.
It's Yang Zhi.
She checked the time and saw that it was already 8:30 pm, and the people attending the dinner had already set off at 5:30.
Yang Zhi got straight to the point: "I'll give you the address, and you come over and have a toast."
Chen Jiaxian said: "Oh, okay."
Yang Zhi paused: "Wear new clothes. Don't wear your coat today."
After saying that, he hung up the phone.
…
Chen Jiaxian left her coat in the office, wore the angular black suit alone, and took a taxi to Bingsheng Restaurant.
Money is paper and clothes are cloth. No matter how expensive your clothes are, they can't withstand the cold wind.
Almost the same moment she got out of the car, she was freezing.
Chen Jiaxian ran into Bingsheng Restaurant in three steps. When she reached the door of the box, she pushed the door open and went in. Then she was shocked: there was a huge round table in the box, and there were more than a dozen people surrounding the round table.
Didn't it mean that it was just a routine maintenance of relationship with an important guest?
Chen Jiaxian sat down, said hello, and toasted with a glass of wine.
"The suit is nice." The person next to her praised her and briefly chatted with her.
It turns out that this distinguished guest brought an inspection group out of the province for inspection. He returned to Yuecheng today and treated the entire inspection group to a meal before leaving.
Chen Jiaxian looked at the table full of seafood. I opened two bottles of white wine and two bottles of red wine.
If you order expensive dishes, ask Zhuo Xiu to pay the bill.
Only two people left Zhuoxiu Company, Yang Zhi and Zhou Yixing. Yang Zhi was caught off guard and saw a dozen people, so he quickly called out Chen Jiaxian.
After a while, the box door opened again, blowing up a gust of wind. Chen Jiaxian looked up and saw Pan Qiaomu unexpectedly.
He is always high-spirited and always handsome.
Pan Qiaomu walked in with a wine glass in his hand and a smile.
Yang Zhi was surprised: "Qiao Mu?"
