The next day
Tuesday
A little after six in the morning
Dong Xuebin got up early. After brushing his teeth and washing up, he started packing. He did not bring much—not even a suitcase, just a large bag. He stuffed in some clothes and tossed in a few pairs of socks. Once that was about enough, he calmly opened the door and went out. When he got downstairs, it was right around work time, and quite a few people were heading out. Han Fei and He Zhou from the Second Office also lived in this building. They came out from another unit and ran straight into Dong Xuebin.
He Zhou said, "Director Dong."
Dong Xuebin gave a grunt. "Going to work?"
"Yeah. You're leaving on a business trip today?" He Zhou asked.
Dong Xuebin nodded, turned, and waved. "I'm off."
Han Fei followed behind without saying anything, her little mouth muttering away. Who knew what she was mumbling to herself about.
Dong Xuebin knew he had already left a very bad impression on his colleagues, but he did not care. Instead, he laughed to himself. People were like that: when they were at a lower level, they tended to be more obsessive and unwilling to let things go. It had a direct connection to self-esteem. The more insecure someone was, the more they might fear being looked down upon. Dong Xuebin used to be like that. But as his rank climbed step by step, he had become more tolerant instead. He could take many things in stride and let them go. He felt that, aside from certain women, nothing could hurt him anymore.
He took a cab.
To the airport.
About an hour later.
Dong Xuebin got out of the car and entered the airport terminal with his bag.
This