"Come on! Why celebrate such an unlucky anniversary?" Du Yu waved her hand dismissively, trying to steer the conversation away. "That thing of yours... I don’t even want to mention it."
Zhou Zhuofei retorted expressionlessly, "Then why bring it up?"
"Alright, alright, I won’t say another word." Du Yu knew full well that even though her friend claimed to have moved on, if she truly didn’t care, why would she remember the date so clearly?
She changed the subject. "Speaking of which, your company is a major corporation, right? With so many people, haven’t you met anyone interesting?"
Zhou Zhuofei lifted her gaze, her tone dripping with disdain despite her calm expression. "The company? My colleagues?"
Du Yu looked puzzled. "Wait, does your company ban office romances? I don’t remember you mentioning that."
"Hold on. Work is annoying enough as it is—who’d even consider dating a coworker?"
"Is it really that bad? The atmosphere among my colleagues is pretty good."
"Guess it’s just the nature of our workplaces. To me, no matter how handsome a guy is, the moment he starts talking about work, he stops being attractive—just another living, breathing human. In my eyes, people only fall into two categories: cooperative colleagues and uncooperative ones."
Du Yu clicked her tongue in disapproval. "You’re so steeped in work mentality. That’s not the way to look at it. Besides colleagues, there are bosses too. Your company’s General Manager Ling is quite handsome, isn’t he? I saw him on a magazine cover last time I passed a newsstand."
Zhou Zhuofei replied offhandedly, "General Manager Ling is good-looking, but he’s the male lead type. Isn’t it expected for someone like him to be handsome?"
Du Yu raised an eyebrow. "If he’s the male lead, then who’s the female lead?"
Zhou Zhuofei immediately shut her mouth. How had she accidentally let her inner thoughts slip out?
She must’ve been overthinking plotlines yesterday.
Clearing her throat, she feigned nonchalance. "Well, the female lead isn’t me or you, so it’s none of our business."
Du Yu nodded in agreement. "True. If this were a novel, we’d probably just be background characters whispering in a corner."
As she said this, she noticed Zhou Zhuofei’s lips twitch into something resembling a bitter smile.
"What’s that expression for?"
"Nothing. I just think you’re absolutely right."
Du Yu chuckled before sighing. "Seriously, though, sometimes when work gets exhausting, my mind starts wandering."
"What kind of wandering?"
"I imagine someone suddenly showing up to tell me I’ve inherited a distant relative’s fortune, or some clueless rich person offering to spoil me rotten." She spread her hands, her tone blunt and bold, eyes gleaming with dreams of sudden wealth. "I’d love nothing more than to strike it rich overnight and live the easy life."
Zhou Zhuofei patted her hand sympathetically. "Then I’m afraid this lifetime’s a lost cause. Let’s aim for a better reincarnation next time."
Sometimes Zhou Zhuofei figured being a background character wasn’t so bad. Compared to nameless extras, she at least had a role—and a decent job to boot.
What more could she complain about?
As they chatted, Du Yu suddenly remembered something and pulled a velvet pouch slightly larger than her palm from her bag, retrieving a deck of tarot cards.
"I brought these today. Want me to do a reading for you?"
Du Yu loved dabbling in new hobbies, and lately, she’d taken an interest in mysticism, buying books and tarot decks to teach herself.
Zhou Zhuofei wasn’t particularly interested, but not wanting to dampen her friend’s enthusiasm, she played along.
Du Yu shuffled and cut the deck with practiced flair before asking, "Do you have any pressing dilemmas or decisions you’re struggling with?"
Zhou Zhuofei shook her head. "You know I don’t dwell on things like that."
"Then... how about a general luck reading?"
Under Du Yu’s guidance, Zhou Zhuofei drew a card from the deck. When she turned it over, the illustration showed a man and woman facing each other, each holding a golden cup.
Clueless about tarot, Zhou Zhuofei shot Du Yu a questioning look.
Du Yu’s eyes lit up with excitement. "Wow, the Two of Cups!"
"Care to translate that into something I understand?"
"Hold on." Du Yu eagerly dug out a tarot guidebook from her bag, flipping through the index before pointing at an entry. "This card’s a great omen! For work, it means smooth collaboration and harmony with colleagues, plus good health. For relationships..." She slowed her speech for emphasis. "It suggests a potential romantic breakthrough. This card’s also nicknamed ‘The Minor Lovers’—you might meet someone special soon!"
Though Du Yu was thrilled, Zhou Zhuofei remained unmoved, her mind stuck on how impossible that sounded.
Her life was as uneventful as stagnant water—how could a love interest just appear out of nowhere? That’d be straight out of a soap opera.
"How?"
"Why not? Think about it—any new colleagues at work lately? Or maybe someone you’ve recently met?"
Zhou Zhuofei paused. She certainly wouldn’t connect Zhan Zilang to the reading, only saying, "That’s such a stretch. New faces show up at the company all the time—your interpretation could apply to anyone."
"Don’t be so resistant! This is just encouraging you to stay open-minded. Stop assuming every male coworker who talks to you is just buttering you up."
Du Yu clicked her tongue, annoyed by Zhou Zhuofei’s skepticism.
Zhou Zhuofei muttered, "But that’s exactly what it is."
"With that attitude, no wonder you’re single." Du Yu grumbled as she gathered the cards. "You weren’t this much of a homebody in college."
"I think my life’s fine as it is. No financial worries, no one nagging me—aside from the occasional parental lecture..." She hesitated before adding, "Which I just ignore."
"Your parents nag? They just tell you to date someone suitable—that’s nothing. You should hear mine!" Du Yu rolled her eyes, wishing she could trade families with Zhou Zhuofei.
"Are they still pushing you to change jobs?"
"Absolutely. They look down on my current work and keep saying I should just move back home so they can hook me up with a ‘stable’ position."
Du Yu’s expression was a mix of amusement and exasperation. "To them, no matter how much I earn, it’s ‘unreliable.’ Only a government job with benefits counts as ‘secure.’ You should’ve seen my face when they told me to quit and take a $200/month job back home. Who knew frustration could make you laugh?"
The two friends exchanged glances and sighed in unison.
"Life’s hard."
"Truly tragic."
Good times never last. As their lunch break neared its end, Zhou Zhuofei and Du Yu hugged goodbye outside the restaurant.
"Alright, get back to work."
"Work hard and get rich soon!"
With that, the two parted ways. Zhou Zhuofei walked back to the company, the distance from the restaurant to the Huanyu Building being just a ten-minute stroll.
She was walking steadily along the sidewalk when she suddenly heard hurried footsteps behind her. Out of curiosity, she glanced back.
A casually dressed man in a baseball cap was sprinting in her direction. For safety, Zhou Zhuofei deliberately moved closer to the curb to make way.
The man was fast—in the blink of an eye, he was already right in front of her.
Though Zhou Zhuofei had thought there was enough space between them, as he drew near, she realized it might not have been sufficient. Just as she was about to step aside again, his shoulder brushed against hers.
The impact wasn’t strong, but her half-slung bag was knocked off her elbow and landed on the grassy verge.
Seeing the mishap, the man immediately stopped to pick up her bag, dusted it off, and handed it back to her while apologizing profusely.
"I’m really sorry—are you okay?"
Zhou Zhuofei rubbed her shoulder. It didn’t hurt, and since she was holding her phone while her bag contained nothing fragile, she waved it off, accepting his apology.
The brim of his cap was pulled so low that his eyes were obscured, the shadow even stretching down to his nose, leaving only the sharp, refined line of his jaw visible.
Coupled with his stylish outfit and fashionable look, the mysterious aura made her think of celebrities who disguise themselves in public.
"I’m truly sorry, but I’m in a hurry and have to go. If anything in your bag is damaged, feel free to contact me anytime."
He apologized earnestly, pulling a business card from his pocket and handing it to her.
She took it and glanced at the design—minimalist, with black text on a white background. It bore only a name, [Jiang Shen], and a phone number.