Chapter 39: Quick Wit and Refined Elegance

(I)

Zheng Yutong woke up, but her mind was still somewhat hazy.

Surrounded by pitch-black darkness, she had no idea where she was. Reaching out to touch her body, she discovered to her utter shock that she was almost completely naked. The realization jolted her completely awake. Clutching the towel-quilt tightly around herself, she sat up and leaned against the headboard. After a moment, as her eyes gradually adjusted to the gloom, she realized she was in a hotel guest room, and she was entirely alone. This discovery allowed her heart to settle slightly.

Running her fingers through her fluffy, long hair, she forced herself to try to recall the events, but she could not remember how she had checked into the hotel. She only had a vague memory of a tall, remarkably beautiful girl walking toward her, though the face remained indistinct. Qin Ke’s striking facial features in her memory had also blurred away.

A raging thirst gripped her. Turning on the bedside lamp, she saw a glass of water on the nightstand, picked it up, and drank several large gulps. Then, she noticed a handwritten note lying on the nightstand and hurried to pick it up. Such exquisite regular script, she muttered to herself.

After reading the words on the note, she finally realized that the pretty girl she had dimly remembered was Bian Xiaoqi, Qin Ke’s girlfriend. It was Bian Xiaoqi who had brought her to the hotel, undressed her, tucked her into bed, and poured her a glass of plain water...

The sentence, "Loving someone is not your fault; the only mistakes are the time and the place," acted like a sudden awakening from a dream. The ancient idiom of the prince being willing while the goddess remained indifferent had reversed: now the goddess was willing, yet the prince was indifferent.

Trapped by her emotions, drowning her sorrows in alcohol, and collapsing in a drunken stupor—Bian Xiaoqi must have witnessed it all. Overcome with shame at the thought of her unseemly behavior the previous night, she buried her face in the towel-quilt. Yet, the fact that Bian Xiaoqi, a stranger she had never met, could show such patience in caring for her stirred a deep sense of gratitude within her.

After a moment, she told herself, "Zheng Yutong, it is time to let go. Forget the absurdity of last night. The night passes, and the sun rises all the same." With this thought, she shook off her lethargy and quickly got out of bed.

When checking out, she was informed that the room charges had already been settled.

Stepping out of the hotel lobby into the faint, early morning dawn, she hailed a taxi and headed home.

At eight o'clock in the morning, Qin Ke walked into the office precisely on time. Scarcely had he seated himself at his workstation when he received a call from Zheng Yutong: "Supervisor Qin, please come to my office."

Stepping into Zheng Yutong’s office, Qin Ke felt a sudden burst of brightness. Zheng Yutong stood straight, having changed into a black tailored suit and white high heels. Her long hair was pinned up, and she wore a touch of delicate makeup. Her styling was completely different from the previous day, making her look much fresher and more capable.

Before he could speak, Zheng Yutong took the initiative: "Supervisor Qin, for my unseemly behavior last night, I offer you my apologies. For the attentive care your girlfriend Bian Xiaoqi showed me, I express my sincere gratitude. I hope this will neither affect your work nor our continued friendly relations."

Qin Ke immediately replied, "Director Zheng, you flatter me. Let the past remain in the past. I am very glad to see you looking refreshed and back at your post this early in the morning. Please rest assured, we are a team, and I will continue to work hard."

"Inside this envelope is eight hundred yuan, which includes the hotel room charge. We agreed I would play the host; I cannot let you foot the bill." With that, Zheng Yutong retrieved an envelope from her bag and handed it over.

"Director Zheng, that's too much. Six hundred is plenty." Saying this, Qin Ke took the envelope and pulled out a two-hundred-yuan bill.

"Supervisor Qin, let us not argue over a little more or less. I hope to have the opportunity to see Bian Xiaoqi again and become friends with her," Zheng Yutong said.

"Director Zheng, my girlfriend is a wonderful person. I am sure the two of you will make good friends." Refusing to push the matter further, Qin Ke tucked the envelope into his pocket.

As Qin Ke turned to leave, he reached the doorway, then suddenly paused and turned back. Zheng Yutong immediately asked, "What is it? Is there something else?"

Qin Ke smiled and said, "Director Zheng, today you look both capable and spirited. Your smile is very beautiful."

"Haha, that is the best greeting I have heard all day. I quite agree." Having cast off her emotional baggage, Zheng Yutong laughed heartily.

Delighted to have mended his relationship with Zheng Yutong, Qin Ke returned to his workstation. Fu Sichen immediately slid his chair closer, leaned in, and whispered, "Supervisor Qin, seeing you come out of that old woman's office looking so cheerful—what did she say to you? Did she promise you some new perks?"

Qin Ke also lowered his voice: "Comrade Fu Sichen, you must show respect to your superiors and address her as Director Zheng. She encouraged me to work hard and share the burdens of the department."

"Spare me the sales pitch. Though, I wouldn't mind sharing the burdens for Supervisor Qin," Fu Sichen said, curling his lip.

"Comrade Fu Sichen, the person who needs you to share his burdens has arrived," Qin Ke said with a smile.

Fu Sichen looked up and saw Lin Haidong approaching.

Lin Haidong announced, "Qin Ke, Sichen, I am going to visit my client, Company V, this morning. The two of you will come with me. First, we will listen to the client's feedback on the project's progress, and then we'll inspect the equipment on-site. This project is quite substantial; the network equipment and cabling are already installed, and we are now entering the equipment debugging phase."

(II)

After Qin Ke left the house in the morning, Bian Xiaoqi did not go to the company. Waiting at home until past eight o'clock, she immediately dialed Yu Chuan, the secretary to Vice President Fan Aiming: "Hello, Secretary Yu! This is Bian Xiaoqi from Zhengyang Real Estate."

"Hello, Ms. Bian. This is Yu Chuan."

"Secretary Yu, I wonder if President Fan mentioned to you our Zhengyang Group's desire to donate a scholarship to your esteemed university?"

"President Fan already informed me last night."

"Secretary Yu, that is wonderful. Our Group Chairman, Mr. Gu Zhengyang, has long desired to support higher education students, but being unsure of how to execute it, he has entrusted the entire matter to me. This is my first time handling such an endeavor, and many details remain unclear to me. Surely you have experience in this area, and I hope you can provide us with concrete advice and guidance. I would like to invite you to a meeting today to seek your counsel in person. You set the time; I am available whenever you wish."

"Ms. Bian, it is a commendable thing that your enterprise is willing to sponsor students at our university. I am more than happy to help bring this to fruition. The campus of University T is too vast, and you might find my office difficult to locate. How about this: let's meet at a café named 'Fangyuan' just outside the main gate of the university, and let's set the time for 10:00 AM this morning."

"Secretary Yu, it's a date," Bian Xiaoqi said happily.

Noticing the time was 9:05 AM, Bian Xiaoqi dialed the sales office of Qinghe Jiayuan. A receptionist answered with a sweet voice: "Hello! This is the Qinghe Jiayuan sales office of Zhengyang Real Estate. How may I help you?"

Satisfied with the receptionist's service attitude, she said, "Hello, I am looking for Zhang Qinqin."

After a moment, she heard Zhang Qinqin's pleasant voice come through the receiver: "Hello, this is Zhang Qinqin. How can I help you?"

"Qinqin, it's Bian Xiaoqi. Did Gu Weiliang arrive at work on time today? What time did he leave yesterday afternoon?"

"Director Bian, hello! I haven't seen Gu Weiliang at all yet. He left quite early yesterday afternoon—probably just before 5:00."

"All right, I understand. Qinqin, keep a log of his arrival and departure times for the next couple of days," Bian Xiaoqi instructed.

"Director Bian, I will," Zhang Qinqin agreed.

Hanging up the phone, Bian Xiaoqi immediately dialed Dong Minglou: "Director Dong, are you currently at the sales office?"

"Director Bian, I am."

"Has Gu Weiliang arrived for work?"

"Gu Weiliang is here. He's outside smoking right now. Would you like to speak with him?"

"No need. I will go to the sales office this afternoon and find him myself."

Hanging up, Bian Xiaoqi let out a cold laugh: "Gu Weiliang, you really have a way with people; even Dong Minglou is covering for you."

After receiving Bian Xiaoqi's call, Dong Minglou hurriedly called Gu Weiliang. After a long wait, he finally heard Gu Weiliang's sleep-heavy voice: "Old Dong, calling so early—what is it?"

"Young Master Gu, you had better get over here quickly. Bian Xiaoqi just called to check up on you, and I covered for you. She said she's coming to find you in person this afternoon," Dong Minglou said nervously.

"Got it. I'll head over this afternoon," Gu Weiliang replied impatiently.

Bian Xiaoqi arrived at "Fangyuan" ten minutes early. It was a café occupying two floors. She walked up to the second floor and chose a cozy booth by the window. Sitting there, she could watch the stream of people entering and leaving the main gate of University T.

She had tied her long hair into a ponytail, wearing a white short-sleeved, cinched-waist dress adorned with a white pearl necklace. She wore no earrings and had applied very light makeup, making her look youthful and radiant. Standing gracefully, she resembled a university student; seated with such poised and serene elegance, she looked just like the girl next door.

Staring at the main gate of University T, she spotted a young man in a casual blazer riding a bicycle out of the school gates and heading straight for "Fangyuan." Instinctively, she felt this young man must be Yu Chuan. Consequently, she stood up, went downstairs, and stepped out of the café.

The young man had already locked his bicycle and was walking with brisk strides toward the main entrance of the café. He was of medium height, with hair of moderate length, fair skin, and an air of scholarly composure. Bian Xiaoqi felt an instant fondness for him. Smiling warmly, she stepped forward, extended her right hand, and said, "Hello! Are you Mr. Yu Chuan? I am Bian Xiaoqi."

"Hello, I am Yu Chuan." The young man extended his right hand and gave hers a gentle shake.

"Secretary Yu, please come in. Let's go upstairs to talk." Bian Xiaoqi led the way, guiding Yu Chuan up to the second floor and seating him at the booth she had reserved.

With a smile, she asked, "Secretary Yu, what style of coffee do you prefer?"

"A hot Americano will be fine," Yu Chuan replied.

Bian Xiaoqi immediately signaled the waiter and ordered two cups of hand-ground "hot Americano" coffee.

After exchanging business cards, Yu Chuan looked at the youthful, radiant, and elegantly poised Bian Xiaoqi, feeling an immediate wave of admiration. He smiled and said, "I didn't expect Director Bian to be so young. You look just like a student currently enrolled at our university."

"We are much the same. Secretary Yu is also very young; you don't look like an administrative manager at all, but rather like a university student yourself," Bian Xiaoqi said with a smile.

"I am indeed still a student. I am a first-year doctoral student under Vice President Fan, and I also serve as his part-time secretary," Yu Chuan laughed.

"Secretary Yu, that is wonderful. Having firsthand experience as a student, the advice you offer will be much more pertinent and guiding. Since we are close in age, communication will be all the easier. Please, share your thoughts first."

(III)

Sipping the fragrant coffee, Yu Chuan began, "Director Bian, let's dispense with the polite pleasantries. Based on my experience, I have a few suggestions for your company's consideration."

"Secretary Yu, please go ahead." Bian Xiaoqi listened with rapt attention.

"First, you need to provide a general overview of your company. This should include your core business scale and sectors, total output value, total profit, and total headcount. These are basic details we need to understand and review for the university leadership's reference and decision-making. Second, your company needs to specify the scope of the scholarship. Is it aimed at the entire university, or a specific department? Is it restricted to undergraduates, or will it encompass master's and doctoral students as well? Our university admits over two thousand undergraduates per class; what proportion of scholarship recipients does your company envision? Third, your company needs to specify the total monetary amount of the scholarship you can provide, how many tiers it will be divided into, and for how many consecutive years you intend to provide it."

After a brief moment of thought, Bian Xiaoqi replied, "Secretary Yu, I think I'd rather call you Dr. Yu; it feels much more approachable."

"Dr. Yu, regarding the first point you raised, our company will provide detailed, accurate, and authentic data. Regarding the second point, considering the continuity of the scholarship distribution and its impact, we will initially target only the incoming first-year undergraduates of this year, with the recipient ratio temporarily set at ten percent. As our cooperation deepens, our company will consider increasing this ratio. Regarding the third point, the total budget for this scholarship provided by our company is tentatively set at no more than four hundred thousand yuan. Depending on the actual evaluation results, our company will disburse the required funds promptly. In the first year, the scholarship will be preliminarily divided into first, second, and third tiers: twenty-five first-prize awards of 2,000 yuan each; seventy-five second-prize awards of 1,000 yuan each; and one hundred fifty third-prize awards of 500 yuan each. This totals 250 awarded students, with a total scholarship amount of 200,000 yuan, distributed continuously for four years until this cohort of undergraduates graduates. In the second year, in addition to continuing the scholarship for the senior undergraduate class, we will also issue it to the new incoming cohort. By then, both parties can negotiate and introduce a new version of the scholarship distribution plan. Do you find this proposed plan reasonable and feasible?" With clear logic and fluent speech, Bian Xiaoqi articulated her thoughts in one breath.

Yu Chuan considered this for a moment and said, "Director Bian, I believe it is entirely feasible."

Bian Xiaoqi continued, "Dr. Yu, in addition, I would like to add a few points."

First, our company will not interfere with your university's scholarship evaluation process; we completely respect your procedures and autonomy, but we do hope the evaluation will be open, fair, and just, and we retain the right to be informed.

Second, our company would like to know your university's definition and ratio criteria for financially disadvantaged students. We hope your university can provide us with a roster and detailed information for each student. Based on this, our company may formulate an additional sponsorship plan specifically targeting disadvantaged students.

Third, can Vice President Fan Aiming of your university make the final decision on the cooperation between your institution and our company? Is it necessary for the leaders of both sides to meet in advance? If things go smoothly, our company hopes to finalize this cooperation as early as next week.

Fourth, based on our corporate operational status, our company reserves the right to expand or increase the amount and scope of the scholarship after a four-year scholarship cycle concludes, and similarly holds the right to terminate our cooperative partnership.

Hearing Bian Xiaoqi respond with such swiftness and thoughtfulness, Yu Chuan felt a surge of secret admiration. He smiled and said, "Director Bian, you are extremely meticulous. The first and second points you mentioned pose no problems at all. Regarding the third point, Professor Fan has full authority to make the decision. On the day of the signing ceremony, the leadership of both sides will meet first and then jointly attend the ceremony. As for the fourth point, our cooperation is entirely voluntary, and no coercion is involved. Please have your company draft the opinions and terms we discussed into a formal proposal as soon as possible for the review and decision of our respective leaders."

"Dr. Yu, thank you for your insightful advice. I will send the proposal to you before the end of the workday this afternoon. Speaking with you has been a great pleasure," Bian Xiaoqi said with a smile.

"Director Bian, I share the exact same feeling," Yu Chuan replied warmly.