The next morning, Zhang Yang got in a workout at the gym on the top floor of the Ruijie Executive Apartment. Everything felt great.
Most of the people in the gym were middle-aged, warming up on treadmills. They looked like executives sent abroad by their companies. They ran while holding meetings, rattling off names like Lucy and Andy, along with high-powered jargon like "empowerment," "closed loop," and "consolidation."
The indoor heated pool was next door. Its water was crystal clear, and a few well-maintained women in swimsuits were splashing around.
Zhang Yang stayed on the stair climber, sweating buckets for forty minutes before he called it a day.
After his shower, he put together the first breakfast in his new home, and he didn't skimp:
Oatmeal, Greek yogurt, a handful of nuts and blueberries, and a plate of fragrant pan-fried cod.
Sunlight filled the dining room, glinting off the gleaming table.
Zhang Yang ate slowly, feeling utterly relaxed. Sometimes, you really shouldn't think money is vulgar. Those people who seemed to have idyllic lives and pursued the lifestyle they wanted usually had a solid financial foundation.
If you couldn't afford food and clothes, how could you dream of poetry and distant horizons?
After breakfast, Zhang Yang changed into the outfit he'd worn to work the night before. He checked the time and headed out without a hint of haste.
He stood five foot ten, and in his impeccably fitted work clothes, he looked sharp and bright, with the air of a mature, capable man.
When he arrived at the office and clocked in, he ran straight into Bei Wei.
Bei Wei glanced at Zhang Yang's outfit—the one she'd picked out for him the other day—and immediately flushed. She lowered her head and walked away without greeting him.
Zhang Yang found it a little strange. Bei Wei was usually perfectly open around him. Why was she avoiding him today?
Back at his desk, Zhang Yang turned on his computer and caught up on the work that had piled up while he was on leave. He was busy until after nine. When he finally looked up, he saw Bei Wei getting to her feet and heading out.
He knew Bei Wei usually ordered a Starbucks every morning, so she was probably doing the same today.
Before long, he saw her return with a Starbucks paper bag. Then, to his surprise, she walked straight over to him.
"Brother Zhang, I ordered too much. You can have one." She set down a coffee and said it softly, then turned and left.
Zhang Yang wasn't sure if he was imagining things, but Bei Wei's ears seemed a little red.
He touched the coffee cup. It was hot, but not scalding.
"How come I didn't get one?" Xiang Youde stared at him from across the aisle, eyes wide.
"Want one? I'll treat you," Zhang Yang said, glancing at Xiang Youde across from him.
"Who wants something you're paying for?" Xiang Youde said sourly.
A while later, Zhang Yang received a message from Xiang Youde.
"Old Zhang, you're not an idiot. Don't get the wrong idea, okay?"
"Get the wrong idea?" Zhang Yang blinked.
Whether it was a mistake depended on the person. Without the means, it was just wishful thinking. But with the means, even a mistaken impression could become reality, couldn't it?
The morning passed by in an orderly rush. By the time Zhang Yang had finished his work and his Starbucks, it was already past ten.
The boss's office door suddenly opened in the distance.
Song Mingyang, the owner of Mingyang Advertising, came out, followed closely by the sales director and the planning director.
"Wang Shijie, the marketing lead from Shihong Real Estate is coming tomorrow. Have someone experienced from the Planning Department go with them," Song Mingyang instructed.
Wang Shijie immediately stood up and agreed.
After the others left, Wang Shijie made the rounds and found Zhang Yang.
"Zhang Yang, you know the Shihong project pretty well. How about you go along this time?"
"Sure." Zhang Yang nodded without hesitation.
Shihong Real Estate was one of the company's major clients. They'd worked together several times, and Zhang Yang had been involved in a number of their projects, so he knew them well.
In the blink of an eye, it was lunchtime.
At noon, he went with Xiang Youde to the newly opened Chinese fast-food place downstairs. He got broccoli, steamed egg, a chicken leg, and a bowl of rice. He even removed the chicken skin before eating, since meeting his monthly body-fat target would earn him five experience points.
Xiang Youde, on the other hand, ate whatever he wanted. His plate was loaded with glossy, greasy braised pork, diced chicken with chilies, and dry-fried cauliflower.
"Why are you eating so plainly? Have some braised pork," Xiang Youde urged him enthusiastically.
"No, no. Can't you see I put this together on purpose?" Zhang Yang politely declined. In the distance, he spotted Bei Wei eating with a few female coworkers at another table.
She seemed to notice he was there too. Every so often, she glanced over at him, then quickly lowered her head.
"What are you looking at?" Xiang Youde turned to look. "Are you looking at... Bei Wei?"
His eyes widened, as if he'd discovered something unbelievable. "Old Zhang, don't tell me you're serious. Don't do anything rash, okay?"
There was something he hadn't said aloud: how could a toad like them even dream of eating swan meat?
But before the words could leave his mouth, he took another look at Zhang Yang and immediately lost his nerve.
The Zhang Yang of today was nothing like the man he'd been a month ago. "Reborn" wouldn't have been an exaggeration.
He didn't have the youthful vibe of the fresh-faced interns who'd just graduated, nor was he bursting with teenage energy. But Zhang Yang was now growing into a mature man. Boys and young men were all about youthful charm; a real man was all about maturity.
"So I'm not even allowed to look? Let me ask you something. Have you seen the movie Caught in the Web?"
"What? Why are you bringing up movies?" Xiang Youde looked baffled.
"There's a line in it where Shen Liushu says, 'Even I, Old Shen, want to let loose.' You've heard it, right?" Zhang Yang asked with a smile.
Xiang Youde looked up blankly and saw Zhang Yang eating at an unhurried pace. For a moment, something about the air around him left Xiang Youde stunned.
In the distance, Bei Wei and a few women from the Design Department got up together.
As they passed Zhang Yang, Bei Wei sneaked a glance at him. Sister Liu, walking beside her, suddenly stopped and said with a smile, "Zhang Yang, was the coffee good? Bei Wei treating you to coffee all by herself is a privilege the rest of us have never enjoyed."
"Sister Liu, Brother Zhang brought me lunch when we were on duty last time, so I just..." Bei Wei tugged at Sister Liu's sleeve and hurried to explain.
Zhang Yang looked at Bei Wei, whose face was slightly red as she explained, then glanced at Sister Liu.
"Why don't I treat you to a cup too, Sister Liu?"
"Oh, you really don't have to." Sister Liu said the polite words, but she didn't feel embarrassed in the least. She was a veteran, after all, and people were always flattering her.
For Zhang Yang, a senior colleague who liked to take advantage of small perks was the easiest to handle.
That afternoon, Zhang Yang treated everyone in the Design Department and the Planning Department to a Frappuccino. More than a dozen cups only cost a few hundred yuan. For someone earning twenty thousand a day, it was pocket change.
When you accepted someone's gifts, you felt obliged to return the favor.
There were lots of women in the Design Department, and after each of them got a Starbucks, they had plenty of nice things to say.
"Zhang Yang, you're not getting any younger. I'll find you a match sometime," Sister Liu promised as she sipped her Starbucks.
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