Just before quitting time, Song Xinya received a cup of milk tea.
It was Dong Dongdong’s treat—he had just closed the third-highest-performing deal in the company, so every colleague got a cup.
Chen Siyan said, “Well, well, Teacher Dong, signed another deal, huh?”
Dong Dongdong replied, “Just another fly’s leg.”
“Business is tough these days. Even a fly’s leg is still meat. It may not be much, but at least it’s something.”
“All I do is small-time stuff. Even if I signed a hundred fly’s legs, it still wouldn’t compare to one big deal from you and Teacher Song. With performance like ours, thank goodness we were born in great China. If we’d been born in northern Myanmar, we’d have been getting zapped until we screamed our heads off.”
Everyone in the lobby burst out laughing.
One colleague said, “Teacher Dong, you’re being way too modest. At least you can close a fly’s leg. Those of us who can’t even close a fart are the ones who’d get zapped until we screamed our heads off.”
Chen Siyan corrected him. “Brother, you’re being modest too. If you really ended up in northern Myanmar, someone like you—who can’t even close a fart—wouldn’t just get electrocuted. They’d harvest your kidneys, heart, and liver too. They’d take anything harvestable, then bury you in the ground as fertilizer for their marijuana.”
The male colleague pressed his palms together. “Amen. Thank God I was born in a powerful country.”
“Amen is Christian,” Chen Siyan corrected him. “Our country doesn’t believe in that. No matter how devoutly you pray, our country’s gods won’t protect you.”
The male colleague picked up a feather duster, flailed his arms and kicked his legs wildly, then began chanting Buddhist scriptures. “Amitabha, pineapple pineapple honey, form is emptiness, emptiness is form, pineapple isn’t as tasty as pineapple honey…”
He shook violently, panted heavily, writhed ominously, and twisted around while letting out distorted howls…
Chen Siyan said, “Oh my god, what the hell? If someone saw this, they’d think somebody had died. Are you jumping rope or performing an exorcism to help some wandering soul cross over?”
Another wave of laughter swept through the lobby.
After everyone had finished laughing, Dong Dongdong picked up a plate of pineapple cut into bite-sized pieces and placed it in front of Song Xinya.
“Teacher Song, do you know how the selection process for the Gold Medal Lecturer works?”
Recently, Yuan Jingcheng had been pushing forward with reforms to the company’s rules and regulations. There had been no news at all about the Gold Medal Lecturer selection, and Dong Dongdong was growing anxious. So he had come to Song Xinya—the CEO’s wife—to find out what he could.
Song Xinya said, “I know just as much as you do right now. I don’t know whether Mr. Yuan plans to change the selection process.”
Dong Dongdong let out an “oh,” then walked away in disappointment.
He didn’t know whether the CEO’s wife truly had no idea or simply didn’t want to tell him.
The truth was, Song Xinya really didn’t know.
She had always been extremely principled in her work and preferred to keep public and private matters separate. She never asked Qin Yuhe about confidential company matters in private.
Chen Siyan was the same as Song Xinya in this regard.
Although Chen Siyan and Song Xinya were very close friends, he had never taken advantage of their friendship to pry into company affairs.
Friendship was friendship, and work was work.
The best friendships were those untainted by personal gain.
He had been a top salesperson at every company he had worked for. He relied on no one but himself and was always number one.
Dong Dongdong carried over a plate of pineapple chunks and walked up to Chen Siyan.
“Bro, do you know how the Golden Lecturer selection works?”
Chen Siyan said, “Little bro, I haven’t got a clucking clue~”
Seeing how calm and composed he looked, Dong Dongdong asked in puzzlement, “Aren’t you curious?”
“I’m so curious I want to turn into a paramecium and crawl into President Qin’s brain to take a look.”
Who would ever complain about having too much money? This affected their promotions and raises—who wouldn’t be curious? He was practically dying to know.
Song Xinya felt the same way. Her curiosity scratched wildly at the depths of her heart, tugging at her again and again until she felt itchy all over.
The three of them didn’t have to endure their curiosity for long. The very next day, Yuan Jingcheng announced the selection process for the Golden Lecturer.
It was the same as when Zhao Yinian had been general manager:
“The Golden Lecturer will be selected by the International Education and Training Association. In addition to performance, every candidate must prepare a PowerPoint presentation and give a speech as part of the competition. The final score will be based jointly on performance and the live presentation.”
Dong Dongdong relaxed.
Song Xinya relaxed too.
Because this meant they had a chance to win.
Never mind how slim that chance was. At least there was one.
Under the previous selection process, whoever ranked first in performance would become the Golden Lecturer. Chen Siyan would have won for sure, leaving Song Xinya and Dong Dongdong no chance at all.
Hearing the news, Chen Siyan gave a carefree smile and said to Song Xinya and Dong Dongdong, “Congratulations, you two. You finally have the chance to go head-to-head with a peerless expert like me.”
Song Xinya said, “You have my condolences. The Golden Lecturer position was practically in your pocket, and then the selection process suddenly changed. Now you have to compete with us all over again.”
Chen Siyan rolled up his sleeves. “Sometimes it’s fate, sometimes it’s destiny. Fighting the heavens is where the fun lies.”
He shot Song Xinya a teasing glance. “Just don’t cry when you lose to me.”
Song Xinya said, “If you lose to me, I’ll have Tiantianquan wipe your tears for you.”
“Thanks in advance,” Chen Siyan said. “If I really do lose, remember to have Tiantianquan give me a kiss right on the mouth, too.”
For the next month, Song Xinya was busy preparing for the Golden Lecturer selection.
Dong Dongdong kept signing up even the tiniest clients, and his sales figures were closing the gap fast.
The difference between his and Song Xinya’s performance continued to shrink.
To hold on to second place, Song Xinya was also constantly developing new clients and meeting with them.
Her days were full, busy, and rewarding.
At noon in Jingbei, it was midnight in New York.
When Song Xinya went to sleep, Qin Yuhe was waking up.
But no matter how busy they were, the two of them contacted each other every day.
Sometimes they had time to send messages.
Sometimes they talked on the phone.
Sometimes they video-chatted.
Sometimes they chatted through the bedroom’s security-camera app.
Although they were separated by the Pacific Ocean and a twelve-hour time difference, as long as they truly cared about each other, they could overcome any obstacle.
From then on, problems were no longer problems.
That evening, Song Xinya returned home and switched on the bedroom light.
The camera on the desk rotated its round little head, its large, perfectly round eyes turning toward her.
The man on the other side was watching her.
Song Xinya gazed into the camera with a smile, her beautiful eyes curved into crescents. Her lovely eyes shimmered like a sea of stars.
“Mr. Qin, why are you up so early today?”
New York. Wall Street. The overseas branch of the Qin Group.
Qin Yuhe lounged in his office chair, leaning back with one arm resting casually on the armrest. His long, pale fingers hung naturally at his side.
The light fell across his handsome hand. The scar in his palm had healed considerably.
The raised, crisscrossing marks had smoothed out, and his skin had regained its elasticity.
Qin Yuhe gazed at the woman’s face on the screen, the corners of his lips lifting in response to her smile.
When she received no answer, a worried look appeared on her bright, alluring face. She asked again, her voice tinged with urgency.
“Qin Yuhe, why aren’t you saying anything?”
Qin Yuhe smiled lazily. “Don’t call me Qin Yuhe. Call me your husband.”
