" France is great." I meant to offer a polite compliment, but perhaps because I'm used to complaining, I almost blurted out, "It's great because they surrender."
"Ahem..." I coughed lightly and didn't say anything more, lest the other person not accept Chinese "humor."
We chatted for a few minutes, and I pointed in the direction of the airport:
"Mr. Zarathustra won't arrive for several more hours. Shall we go inside, have a seat, and get something to drink?"
"Wine?" Rosago glanced at me.
"No, I meant coffee, tea, cola, and the like. Don't drink and drive." I was a little surprised that the other person's first reaction was alcohol.
You're a ride-hailing driver!
That's a bit too reckless, isn't it?
Rosago, the foreigner, clearly didn't get my humor. After thinking for a few seconds, he said:
"Sorry, I got up too early today and I'm a little sleepy. I'd like to take a nap in the car."
"Okay." I secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Although I don't reject socializing and am even quite willing to get along well with people from partner companies, the thought of spending several hours with a complete stranger still makes me a little uncomfortable.
Even if the other person is a stunning beauty, this feeling won't be diminished much.
Yes, that's how I felt, and I imagine the other person felt the same way, which is why they chose to sleep in the car.
Back at the airport from where I parked, I found an empty seat and sat down, but didn't actually follow through on my suggestion of getting a drink.
These all cost money!
Based on my understanding of President Huang, he is a fairly generous person. However, as the big boss, he is unlikely to pay attention to the expense reimbursement of a low-level employee. Such minor matters are usually handled by the finance department according to procedures.
So, if I wait at the airport until noon, lunch will definitely be reimbursed, but I'll have to pay for expenses like coffee, cola, tea, and snacks in between myself—these are unnecessary items.
Of course, if I could get Comrade Rosago along, similar expenses could be reimbursed—client entertainment expenses!
For that reason, when I extended the invitation, I was quite sincere, at least half of it.
After sitting for a while and playing on my phone, I suddenly realized a serious problem:
I haven't had breakfast yet!
I was in such a rush to leave the house today!
Hearing my stomach rumbling and feeling my thirst and hunger, I decided to go find something to eat.
Things are expensive at the airport. Maybe I should look for KFC or Golden Arches's, or just grab a piece of bread or something? I stood up and walked to the side of the hall.
After seeing the first shop that looked like it sold local specialties, I went inside, looking for food with good value for money.
As I passed the freezer area, my phone suddenly rang.
"Hello, Mr. Rosago, what's up?" I glanced at the caller ID.
Rosago's voice came from the other end of the phone:
Thunderstorms in Ningbei have caused the cancellation of all flights.
"Mr. Zarathustra might take the high-speed train."
"Isn't this guy just too unlucky...?" I said, amused and exasperated.
"Shall we wait at the high-speed rail station?"
There will definitely be plenty of time, as there is a high-speed rail station right below the airport.
Even if Mr. Zarathustra couldn't buy this station, it would take at most an hour and a half to get from here to the city's high-speed rail station, which wouldn't be enough to cover the travel time from Ningbei to the city.
"Wait a little longer for feedback from them," Rosago replied calmly.
As we were talking, I saw the door above the freezer be pushed open, and a chubby little hand reached in and grabbed a Baxi white peach oolong ice cream.
Following the hand, I saw a child who looked about one year old.
His gender was unknown, but he sat in the stroller with chubby cheeks, babbling incessantly, looking very cute.
Such a young child eating ice cream? The parents are so irresponsible! I looked up at the adult pushing the stroller and saw that she was a gentle and beautiful lady.
I had no intention of stopping it; what other people do is none of my business.
As long as there's no child abuse, I'm just venting.
However, is feeding ice cream to a toddler around one year old considered child abuse...?
Overall, the child seemed quite happy.
After hanging up the phone, considering I might need to get to the high-speed rail station at any time, I didn't dabble in anything. I grabbed a small package of pastries and a bottle of mineral water and headed to the counter to pay.
I had just found a place to sit down and hurriedly finished my breakfast when Rosago called again:
"All the high-speed rail tickets for today are sold out, Zarathustra will have to stay at a nearby hotel and come back tomorrow."
Bad luck is really hanging over me... Oh well, at least I can go straight back without having to wait until noon or go to the high-speed rail station... I hummed in agreement.
"Shall we head back now?"
"Yes, come again tomorrow," Rosago said immediately. "Come to the parking lot, I'll take you back; I'm heading back to the city anyway."
"Okay," I replied with a smile.
It's not that I'm trying to save money or cut corners, since the return trip fare is reimbursable.
However, in the workplace, it's always good to maintain good relationships with people from partner companies.
Even if you don't get an extra order because of this, it will give you more options when you switch jobs in the future.
The only problem is, how should we get along with each other later?
When two unfamiliar people are put together, the situation can be quite awkward.
Let's chat about company business casually, it'll only be about an hour anyway... I reassured myself, left the airport, and found Rosago and his Mercedes.
After I got in the car and fastened my seatbelt, before I could even say anything, Rosago glanced at me sideways:
"Sit still."
Hmm? I'm a little confused for a moment.
The next second, the vehicle started and sped off.
Hey, hey, hey, we're still in a parking lot, you're speeding!
After a series of turns, the car slowed down, passed through the gate, and exited the parking lot.
Then, the Mercedes continued its reckless speeding, swerving left and right on the road, weaving in and out, not only teetering on the edge of speeding but also showing absolutely no sign of braking.
Several times, I thought we were going to have a car accident, but Rosago skillfully maneuvered the vehicle to avoid the danger zone.
"Wait, is this going too fast?" I finally came to my senses and swallowed hard.
"Don't worry, I used to be a race car driver," Rosago said, his eyes shining as he looked ahead.
But wasn't that driving too fast? This is a city road, not a racetrack... I muttered a couple of comments, quite nervously.
I didn't dare say anything more, afraid that Planeswalker Rosago might get distracted and crash into the railing, or injure innocent people.
At that moment, I remembered that I had " Assassin " abilities, and decided that if anything went wrong, I would either jump out of the car to escape or forcibly take control of Rosago and stop the vehicle.
Forty minutes later, the car, which had been speeding along, stopped outside the building where our company was located.
"Thank you, thank you." I said, my face slightly pale, as I unbuckled my seatbelt.
If it weren't for my Assassin abilities and excellent balance, I would definitely be carsick and throwing up everywhere by now.
"No need, see you tomorrow." Rosago waved with a broad smile.
I let out a sigh of relief and waved goodbye to the race car driver.
Once inside the building, I glanced instinctively at the spot where the vending machine had been, only to find it completely empty.
Thank goodness... I walked towards the stairwell and pressed the up button.
While waiting, I bent down and started tidying my clothes.
Suddenly, a pair of long legs wearing leather boots walked over.