Chapter 579: Zhang Yan! Zhang Yan!

November 3, 2023, Friday, cloudy.

6:00 AM, Shenzhen Bay No. 1.

Accompanied by the pleasant alarm clock sound.

Liu Qingning propped herself up from the soft bed, used voice to wake up the indoor lights, and soft light instantly sprinkled over the room.

She tidied her messy hair, her fingertips subconsciously stroking the warm 【Qingnang Gourd】 on her chest, and whispered "Good morning."

She lifted the quilt and got out of bed; the cool air made her wake up quickly.

She stretched, picked up her phone to look, and there were no unread messages.

Her gaze moved imperceptibly, she changed into sportswear, and walked out.

"Good morning, Miss Qingning." Aunt Mei, who was preparing breakfast in the kitchen, greeted her softly.

"Good morning, Aunt Mei."

Coming to the fitness area in the corner of the living room, Liu Qingning turned on the treadmill, put her phone on the stand in front, and began to warm up.

She knew that Tang Song was probably sleeping with Wen Ruan at this moment.

In fact, before Wen Ruan set off for Yangcheng, she even specifically called her, her words carrying probing and closeness, and they even agreed to find time to come to Shenzhen alone to see her.

If it were before, Liu Qingning would probably have subconsciously refused.

Letting another woman of Tang Song's come to visit her after spending a night with him made her feel uncomfortable from the bottom of her heart.

But now, Su Yu's matter was like a heavy mountain pressing on her chest, heavy, making her almost unable to breathe.

By comparison, Wen Ruan's existence didn't seem so hard to accept.

The speed of the treadmill accelerated bit by bit, and her heart rate soon reached the optimal fat-burning interval.

Liu Qingning looked at the city outside the window that had not yet awakened, her breathing gradually quickened, and sweat slid down her temples.

In her mind, thoughts were like a galloping torrent, never stopping for a moment.

The Xuanji Light Realm financing project was about to start, and she would represent Qingmi AI to go to Modu.

Before long, she would officially meet this legendary "top beauty."

Not on TV, not at a concert scene, not in the news.

But in real life, in Tang Song's world.

Face to face, with no way to retreat.

Liu Qingning felt an unprecedented tension and fear.

No one could ignore Su Yu's beauty and talent; even women would like such a beauty, let alone men.

At the same time, a wave of regret surged in her heart again.

She had lived in the halo of being surrounded by stars since she was a child; talented, top grades, outstanding appearance, which made her develop a kind of near-arrogant rationality and independence.

It was precisely because of such a growth environment that she had some blind spots in emotional cognition.

She couldn't fully empathize with Tang Song's feelings for her.

She always thought that as long as she was good enough, excellent enough, he would always follow her and reach the peak with her.

She took his pursuit for granted, but never truly valued the fatigue and longing in his eyes.

She never thought that she would reach this point today, nor could she accept a failed future without Tang Song.

In the years she had known Tang Song, it wasn't that other girls hadn't appeared by his side.

Whether it was female classmates in the same grade, or some cute junior sisters,

After all, Tang Song in high school was tall, thin, sunny, and cheerful, which was very likable in itself.

It was just because of her existence that those girls tacitly and actively chose to step back.

And Tang Song's gaze never left her either.

Of course, besides these people, the one Liu Qingning had a deeper impression of was a girl from No. 2 Middle School.

She was also Tang Song's junior high classmate.

Seemed to be called Zhang Yan.

From the first year of high school, she occasionally saw the other party's figure on the No. 1 Middle School campus, and every time it was when she was with Tang Song.

A woman's sixth sense, plus natural intelligence, naturally allowed her to detect that the other party was aiming for Tang Song.

The reason she still had some impression until now was because she met the other party in the Imperial Capital more than two years ago.

Once at Tiantongyuan South Subway Station.

Another time, it was at the headquarters building of Gao Si Education.

Her college startup, Century Zhixue, was itself an AI-driven intelligent education technology company, and the service objects were these training institutions.

She met the other party when she represented the company to discuss cooperation.

She could vaguely guess some things, but out of selfish psychology, she didn't tell Tang Song about this.

Later, as policies tightened, Gao Si Education's business shrank significantly, and it was even reported and rectified by the Education Commission, so naturally, the cooperation couldn't be discussed.

Just as she was letting her imagination run wild.

"Stomp, stomp, stomp~" a WeChat video call came through.

【Tang Song】

Liu Qingning smiled uncontrollably first, then her face tightened, and she slowed down the treadmill.

She waited for a few seconds before answering the video.

"Why? Exhausted last night? Woke up so late today? Don't get sucked dry by Wen Ruan!"

Tang Song froze, then said awkwardly: "Last night I had dinner with an executive of 'Zhi Lian Future,' drank a lot of wine, and overslept. They are currently accessing the lime 3.0 multimodal large model to build their own e-commerce content generation engine—"

While speaking, he walked to the fitness equipment and started warming up.

Sure enough, once it came to work and AI, Liu Qingning's attention was instantly pulled back.

Tang Song breathed a sigh of relief.

Because he had a high-intensity ball game with the big sister in the afternoon, the two were actually very "calm" before going to sleep last night.

However, at 2 AM, the big sister who had recovered her strength directly launched a night raid, biting him.

Tang Song was groggy and caught off guard.

It took a lot of effort to defeat Wen Ruan.

The two tossed and turned until 3 AM before falling into a deep sleep, which was why he woke up late.

One hour later.

Tang Song walked out of the hotel fitness center drenched in sweat and returned to the suite.

Wen Ruan was still sleeping soundly, curled up in the soft bedding, revealing only a round and fair shoulder.

Tang Song lightened his steps and walked into the bathroom.

He took a shower and changed into a more formal outfit.

He picked up the tablet in the room and ordered a breakfast with Yangcheng characteristics.

Soon, the doorbell rang, and the exquisite breakfast cart was sent into the room.

Tang Song looked at the time and walked to the side of the master bedroom bed.

He leaned down and whispered in Wen Ruan's ear: "Zhuangzhuang, time to get up and eat."

Wen Ruan's long eyelashes trembled, and she let out a lazy, nasal light hum.

She opened her eyes slowly, her peach-blossom eyes carrying a bit of confusion.

She stretched an extremely alluring stretch, the La Perla silk nightgown clinging tightly to her body with her movements, the breathtaking E-cup about to burst out.

Immediately after, she hugged Tang Song's waist, lifted the hem of his shirt, and rubbed her face against his firm lower abdomen.

Kisses fell all the way from his eight-pack abs, lingering on his mermaid line.

Tang Song's breathing instantly became heavy; he reached out through her silky hair, feeling the delicate touch from her scalp.

The other hand followed the edge of her nightgown, feeling the warmth and fullness unique to the big sister.

Wen Ruan licked her plump lips and said in a hoarse royal sister voice: "This figure of yours is really too tempting, if I were with you every day, I couldn't stand it."

Tang Song's appearance perfectly matched her sexual preferences.

Now the mermaid line, dog-like waist, and chocolate abs were simply killing her; she couldn't handle it at all.

Tang Song blinked and leaned into the big sister's ear: "Then find a teammate."

"Hehe, I knew you had this kind of thought." Wen Ruan bit his lower abdomen, and turned to look at him with charming eyes: "Actually, it's not impossible."

"Ah? Really?" Tang Song's throat rolled, his fingers exerting force.

Wen Ruan nodded, panting: "Liu Qingning is in Shenzhen, tomorrow is the weekend, you call her over. It just so happens that the presidential suite's bed is very big, sleeping three of us is no problem."

Hearing this, Tang Song's eyelids jumped: "That—that still forget it."

Let Liu Qingning play this kind of game with himself?

Just thinking about it would make him explode.

With the white moonlight's personality, it's highly likely she would really take scissors and "click" him off.

"Hmph!" Wen Ruan snorted lightly and gave him a white look: "You just think I'm easy to bully, when it comes to Liu Qingning, you immediately go soft."

"That's because sister is too tempting."

"Go to hell."

The two fought with words for a few sentences.

Coming to the restaurant, sitting in front of the floor-to-ceiling window overlooking the entire Yangcheng, enjoying a leisurely and delicious breakfast.

Cantonese dim sum, wonton noodles, ginkgo, dried scallop, and abalone porridge—the two ate to their heart's content.

After eating, Wen Ruan walked into the walk-in closet, and when she came out, she had already changed into a high-end professional suit.

Elegant and capable, exquisite makeup, eyes confident and composed.

Forming a huge contrast with the lazy and alluring enchantress before.

Wen Ruan raised her chin slightly, her expression indifferent: "Let's go, President Tang, time to work."

After saying that, just as she was about to turn to get her bag, she was pulled into his arms by Tang Song and given a wet kiss.

9:00 AM.

The two came to the Poly Yingkai Plaza in Tianhe District, where the Xingyun International Group Yangcheng branch was located.

This was located on the west side of the central axis of the Pearl River New Town CBD, adjacent to the IFC Four Seasons Hotel where they stayed.

As the core branch in the South China region, the company was located on the 39th floor of the building, leasing half a floor of 1200 square meters of office space, equipped with high-end reception halls, conference rooms, live broadcast rooms, etc., with over 120 employees.

Basically covering all businesses.

Wen Ruan's arrival attracted great attention from the branch company.

When she walked into the branch company on the 39th floor of the building side-by-side with Tang Song, all the executives who had been waiting in the reception hall immediately greeted them, every face wearing a professional and enthusiastic welcome.

"Director Wen!"

"Director Wen, good morning!"

"Welcome Director Wen to come and guide us!"

Amidst a chorus of respectful greetings, Wen Ruan nodded with a smile, her gaze sweeping across the crowd, finally lingering on a few familiar faces.

She had been to the branch company many times, so there were some "old acquaintances."

However, things had changed; the ordinary marketing planner at the time had now become the helmsman of the group.

Her mood was indescribable.

Wen Ruan introduced some of the main persons in charge of the branch company to Tang Song.

Subsequently, she turned to the side, her posture elegant: "This is the Chairman of Rongliu Capital, Tang Song; next, he will participate in the joint investment in 'Zhi Lian Future' together with our Xingyun International Group."

When Branch General Manager Wang Chongxian heard the four words "Rongliu Capital," the smile on his face instantly froze, and his pupils contracted visibly.

Not just him, the other two or three senior executives present also had their faces turn incomparably shocked.

As executives in the media and marketing industry, their sensitivity to information was far beyond ordinary people.

Just last week, they were naturally no strangers to the name that had stirred up the entire Hong Kong capital wind and clouds and ignited countless financial headlines—but they never expected that the chairman of this company would be so young and handsome.

They had previously guessed whether the other party was Director Wen's "little boyfriend."

"Chairman Tang! Long admired your name, long admired your name!" Wang Chongxian almost immediately took a step forward, held Tang Song's hand with both hands, and his waist couldn't help but bend down a bit.

The others also quickly surrounded them, enthusiastic to the point of sycophancy.

Wen Ruan blinked playfully at her man, a look of "proud of you."

After a grand and enthusiastic round of pleasantries, led personally by Wang Chongxian, the group entered the conference room.

The temporary due diligence team composed of elites from the Xingyun International Yangcheng branch was also waiting here, and both sides quickly entered a working state.

Half an hour later.

The motorcade set off, driving toward the "Zhi Lian Future" headquarters located in the Tianyu Business Building in Yuexiu District.

Noon.

Shuocheng Technology.

"Let's go, Zhang Yan." Lulu tapped on her office desk partition, "Time to eat! Time to eat!"

"Oh oh, coming." Zhang Yan hurriedly saved the manuscript she had just finished writing, tidied up her desk, and stood up.

The two squeezed into the slowly descending elevator and went downstairs.

Walking along the street for a while, they drilled into a nearby fast-food restaurant with a cramped space.

The air was filled with the mixed fragrance of oil smoke and rice.

Zhang Yan was still the same, ordering a 12-yuan boxed meal, one meat and one vegetable.

Lulu was quite generous, ordering a 18-yuan two-meat-one-vegetable set meal directly.

The two sat down in front of a greasy small table.

Lulu excitedly shoveled rice, "Zhang Yan, you don't know, that fund I lost the most money on before has completely broken even! Plus the others, calculated, I made a full 2200 yuan this month!"

Zhang Yan opened her eyes in surprise: "So much?"

"Mm-hmm! It's a pity I didn't dare to buy stocks at the time, otherwise I would have made more—"

Zhang Yan ate her bean curd skin with pork and potato shreds silently, listening to Lulu's mouth constantly popping out professional terms seen from forums like "10-billion-dollar mother fund," "market sentiment reversal," "geopolitical benefit stimulation."

She felt that these things were like clouds floating in the sky, too far, too far from her life.

She didn't have as many savings as Lulu; there was only 17,000 yuan in her account.

She had to pay three months' rent at once at the end of this month, and she had to raise an Orange who could eat a lot.

Chatting and chatting, the topic naturally returned to business trip expense reimbursement and salary, Lulu lowered her voice and began to complain: "Our company is getting worse and worse. Look recently, it's either checking attendance or managing discipline, even trivial matters require us to have meetings. I tell you, the more a company goes downhill, the more leaders love to toss employees, this is an iron law! It's just to force us to leave ourselves!"

Zhang Yan nodded along, her eyes lingering with worry and concern.

The rice in her mouth didn't seem fragrant anymore.

After lunch, the two returned to the company.

The atmosphere in the office was even more dull and oppressive than in the morning.

Zhang Yan sat at her workstation, feeling only restless.

Her gaze always drifted uncontrollably to the time in the bottom right corner.

Lulu beside her asked curiously: "What's wrong Zhang Yan? Are you not feeling well?"

Zhang Yan shook her head, whispering: "I—I want to ask for two hours of compensatory leave this afternoon."

Last night, it was because of temporary overtime that she missed those two comic books she was thinking about.

Today was Friday, no matter what, she had to buy them today.

"Then hurry up and ask! Those hundred-plus hours of compensatory leave of yours, keeping them won't turn into cash, they will definitely be cleared by the end of the year, hurry up and take them!"

Zhang Yan said a light "Mm," opened DingTalk, and clicked the "Apply for Compensatory Leave" button on the top right of the page.

Looking at that familiar compensatory leave application page, she hesitated for a while.

Thinking of her comic books.

Taking a deep breath, she quickly selected the time period and leave type for compensatory leave, and clicked "Submit."

Immediately after, the process status showed that the application had reached her direct leader Bai Rui, waiting for approval.

Time passed bit by bit.

Zhang Yan worked seriously while being unable to help refreshing her DingTalk page from time to time.

The application had not been approved.

She felt anxious in her heart, clicked on the chat interface with Bai Rui, tapped the keyboard with her fingers, and typed a reminder. But she deleted it word by word before sending it.

After 3 PM.

Zhang Yan's gaze drooped, her heart anxious.

"Ding—" a group message suddenly popped up.

【Content Director - Bai Rui: "@everyone, everyone stay for overtime tonight, the big boss is having a meeting outside, he has to come back to the company tonight before 7 o'clock, try to stay until after 7 o'clock."】

A burst of fragmented discussion erupted in the office area.

Immediately after, in their small group of colleagues, they also began to discuss fiercely.

【"No way? I already made an appointment with my girlfriend to watch a movie!"】

【"Forget it, let's work overtime. The leader probably wants us to 'perform' so that our department won't be laid off."】

【"I think it's more like President Bai is 'performing' for himself, afraid that he will be laid off first?"】

Zhang Yan bit her lip, her heart sinking bit by bit.

Just like what Lulu said, the company now manages attendance and discipline very strictly, just wanting to seize the opportunity to lay people off without severance pay.

Recently, everyone in the office had become cautious, even those who slacked off at work were gone, and asking for leave was even rarer.

Time passed bit by bit, getting closer and closer to 4 PM.

From the direction of the office entrance, a fat figure walked in.

Looking at the approaching figure of Director Bai Rui.

Zhang Yan, who was sitting at the workstation on the edge of the corridor, began to tremble slightly uncontrollably.

The footsteps got closer and closer.

"Flash!" She stood up from her seat abruptly, whispering: "Brother Bai."

Bai Rui, who was about to pass by her, swept his gaze over impatiently: "Whatever it is, talk about it later."

He waved his hand, signaling her to sit down, and prepared to continue walking forward.

Zhang Yan raised her head and said: "I submitted a compensatory leave application on DingTalk, two hours this afternoon, please approve it."

Bai Rui's footsteps paused, his brows instantly furrowed: "Didn't you see the message I just sent in the group?"

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—"

Colleagues around looked over one after another, with different expressions.

"I saw it." Zhang Yan averted her gaze, her hands tightly clenched into fists at her sides, "But I have urgent matters to handle, I have to leave at four o'clock."

Bai Rui looked at her, his tone already carrying obvious anger: "Must it be compensatory leave today? Zhang Yan, are you doing this to make things difficult for me on purpose?"

Now that the company's business had problems and repayment was difficult, the boss had been blocking finance and personnel recently, and the intention to lay off people was already obvious—his position as content director was already precarious.

At such a time, he naturally wanted to perform well in front of the boss, bringing all the employees of the department to work overtime, letting the boss see his "effort" and "loyalty."

But now, this Zhang Yan, who was usually the most obedient and honest, actually dared to tear down his stage in public!

Zhang Yan's lips moved, her fingers exerting a little force.

She was a very introverted person, plus her childhood experiences, from childhood to adulthood, she was used to following the rules, not wanting to offend people, and not daring to make others angry, especially a direct leader like Bai Rui.

Her characters, just like her person.

Until graduating from high school, she still wrote like an elementary school student, stroke by stroke, neat and tidy, afraid of writing one stroke wrong, afraid of having a trace of being out of line.

Until later in college, she began to practice calligraphy alone, and her stiff brushwork gradually had some style of her own.

She also knew that the safest and least offensive way to handle it was to transfer the money to the boss of "Shiguang Bookstore" on WeChat first.

Let him keep the books, and she would go get them this weekend.

But... she really didn't want to miss it again.

In her mind, the 32 "Dragon Ball" books neatly arranged on the bookshelf appeared.

She wanted to get them immediately.

She wanted to.

She had never been like this moment, so strongly wanting to get something.

An unprecedented impulse surged, collided in her chest.

"Continue working, I have things to do." Bai Rui said impatiently, restarted his steps, and prepared to walk toward his office.

"Slap," a crisp sound rippled in the quiet office.

In the shocked gaze of all colleagues in the entire office area, Zhang Yan closed her laptop abruptly.

Grabbed her backpack, said to Bai Rui's back: "I'm leaving first."

Then, she walked toward the company's main entrance without looking back.

Her footsteps were still a bit running at first, but she walked faster and faster, steadier and steadier.

The moment she walked out of the company's glass door, the gazes of the colleagues and leaders behind her seemed to be isolated in an instant.

As if she had rushed out of an invisible cage that had been suppressing her for a long time.

Zhang Yan's footsteps became unprecedentedly light.

She rushed into the elevator, rushed out of the Huiming Building, and rushed into the cool, free air of the Yangcheng afternoon.

Running, subway, transfer, shared bike—when she finally arrived at the door of that "Shiguang Bookstore" panting, the sky had already gradually darkened.

Seeing the door sign that was still shining with warm light, a big smile appeared on Zhang Yan's face.

Pushing open the door, the wind chime "ding-dong" rang.

"Step! Step! Step!"

"Boss, I'm here. Where are volumes 33 and 34 of "Dragon Ball"?"

The shop owner who was organizing the bookshelf was a gentle middle-aged man; seeing Zhang Yan who rushed in panting, he was stunned for a moment, then immediately reacted.

"Oh, over here, over here, I kept them well for you."

Saying that, the boss smiled and took out two comic books carefully wrapped in kraft paper from under the counter.

Zhang Yan stretched out both hands and solemnly took the two books.

The moment her fingertips touched the pages, she felt as if she were holding a world regained.

Her fingers trembled as she unwrapped the packaging, repeatedly checking the two books.

Qiongdao Photography and Art Publishing House, 2009 edition.

The condition was very new, only the edges of the pages had a trace of yellowing belonging to the years.

After confirming there was no error, she raised her head and bowed deeply to the boss: "Thank you."

"Eh," the shop owner was made somewhat embarrassed by her solemn attitude, "Little girl, you are too polite. These ending ones are relatively scarce, so the price I quoted you before was 70 yuan a book. How about this, you give me 120, I'll give you a discount."

"Just follow 70 a book." Zhang Yan hurriedly picked up her phone and scanned the code to pay 140 yuan.

The books truly belonged to her.

She finally gathered the last two volumes.

"Do you want to see other books? Recently, a lot of good goods have come in." The boss asked with a smile,

"No need, thank you." Zhang Yan thanked him again and put the comic books into her backpack like treasures, carefully.

Walking out of the bookstore.

She stood at the street corner, looking at the endless stream of vehicles and flickering neon lights, dazed for a long time.

Until a "ding-a-ling" phone ringtone sounded, she finally came back to her senses.

Answering the phone.

Lulu's voice sounded: "Hello? Zhang Yan, are you okay? I kept sending you messages and you didn't reply."

"I'm fine." Zhang Yan said in a light voice: "I bought the books."

Lulu whispered: "Sigh, you. Fat Bai was not lightly angered by you, you were a bit too impulsive before, at least don't make him lose face in front of him."

"I—" Zhang Yan's lips moved, her gaze drooping, and she didn't speak again.

"Alright, alright, just know you're fine. I'm quite worried about you, I'll come see you tonight."

Zhang Yan hesitated for a moment and said "Mm."

Hanging up the phone, she let out a breath and rode the shared bike toward the subway station.

The twilight gradually swallowed her thin figure.

Lanyuan Community, Li Wan District.

"Creak—" the old anti-theft door was pushed open.

"Meow—" Orange immediately drilled out from the corner of the sofa, walking with light cat steps, rubbing against her trouser legs intimately with her body, a satisfied purring sound coming from her throat.

Zhang Yan squatted down, dotingly stroking her furry head, then walked quickly to the desk in the living room.

Opening her backpack, she solemnly took out the two brand-new comic books, pushed aside a row of books on the simple bookshelf, and put these last two,

neatly into place.

Thus, "Dragon Ball" 2009 Qiongdao edition, all thirty-four volumes, were all gathered.

Her fingers started from the spine of the first volume, one volume by one volume, slowly sliding backward, until touching the edge of the last volume.

Time seemed to be compressed at this moment, those sealed, fragmented memories about youth and comics surged into her heart like a tide.

She closed her eyes and let out a long, light breath.

That wish that had been buried in her heart for a long, long time had finally reached the moment it could be made.

The sky outside the window was completely dark.

Zhang Yan sat upright at the desk, took out the letter paper with the "Yancheng Agricultural University" header from the drawer, and pulled out the carbon pen she was used to holding.

Unlike those years in the past, this time, there was no hesitation or cowardice in her heart.

It seemed that "Dragon Ball" really gave her omnipotent courage.

The paper was laid flat, the pen tip hovered, and fell.

Neat handwriting appeared on the letter paper: "Classmate, hello: —At eight o'clock in the evening, in the independent office of the presidential suite on the 97th floor of the Four Seasons Hotel.

"Ding-dong—" the WeChat notification sound suddenly rang.

Tang Song's gaze moved away from the laptop and landed on his phone.

Several new message notifications were lying quietly on the lock screen interface.

【Breathing in a Smile: "Photo. jpg""】

Seeing this familiar yet strange nickname, Tang Song's thoughts paused imperceptibly, and some memories instantly surged into his heart.

It seemed that a few months ago, this "Breathing in a Smile" took the initiative to add him as a friend.

Because she called him "Classmate Tang Song," he passed it.

He unlocked his phone, clicked on the notification, and entered the long-dormant chat box.

The previous chat history was still saved, it had been 4 months ago.

【Breathing in a Smile: "Hello, Classmate Tang Song. I'm not looking for you to help with Pinduoduo, nor do I want to borrow money, and I don't want to promote any products, I have no malice. I just haven't thought about what to say yet, can you not delete me?"】

【Tang Song: "Okay, classmate."】

【Breathing in a Smile: "Thank you."】

Further down were the photos she sent.

Tang Song clicked on the photos.

A carefully filmed letter paper filled the screen.

The edges of the letter paper were slightly curled, clearly having been carefully preserved for a long time.

On it was handwritten text.

Neat and tidy, stroke by stroke, carrying a kind of near-clumsy seriousness, like an elementary school student in a practice book, afraid of writing one stroke wrong, carefully.

Immediately after, line after line of text flowed before his eyes,

Classmate, hello:

I thought for a long time, not knowing what form of address to use to appear both formal and sincere; nor did I know what opening remarks to use to not appear abrupt and presumptuous.

Finally, I decided to use this simplest and clumsiest way.

I think the most romantic thing about paper media is that it can be folded, touched, and preserved for a long time, becoming a tangible piece of evidence of time.

But my handwriting really can't be called good; they are always so ordinary, lacking style. I could only try my best to make it neat, but I was too embarrassed to really mail this letter carrying too many emotions to you.

Finally, I could only send it to you in this electronic way.

I think you probably don't remember me much anymore, so I won't introduce myself (actually, I'm a bit ashamed).

I am already 26 years old this year, not knowing on which day I will be pushed by the waves of life into the next stage of life. So before everything changes completely, I want to make a summary and farewell to my past.

From my hometown to Yancheng, from high school to college, and then drifting from the Imperial Capital to Yangcheng in the south.

In these long ten years, my heart seems to be composed of only three things: study, work, and you.

I have no intention of causing you any harassment, nor am I hoping to get anything.

I just want you to know that there was once someone whose gaze followed you for a long, long time.

I don't know if you have read a book—"The Place That Exists Everywhere, The Me That Doesn't Exist Anywhere."

If I have to give the most precise summary of everything I'm about to say, I think nothing is more appropriate than this book title.

You might notice that the playground on Tuesday is a bit emptier than usual; you will remember which volume the new "Slam Dunk" at the book cafe opposite No. 1 Middle School is; you will know that the spicy hot pot on the first floor of the Yancheng University canteen has gone up by one yuan; you will even be distracted for a moment by the broadcast sound in the crowded subway of the Imperial Capital.

However, you probably won't notice me,

Every detail of your life, I have tried to peek at a corner from afar.

The opportunities to meet you are actually not many, and I cherish every single one.

When you appear in front of me, in my eyes, it seems that a square picture frame will immediately appear.

It is not very big, just enough to fit your figure; it is not very long, a Shakespearean sonnet is just enough to be carved.

And I am outside that picture frame, watching quietly, until the picture frame disappears along with your figure.

The life that follows is like a book being flipped through rapidly by the wind.

I drift from one city to another, from the north, to the south.

Sometimes, waking up in the cold night in Yangcheng, listening to the sound of fine rain outside the window.

In my eyes, there will always be the appearance of you wearing a white shirt, washed-out blue jeans, riding a bicycle and passing by my side—the appearance of that clean, glowing boy in my impression supported me through countless long, difficult days.

The faces that crossed in my youth have mostly become blurry, only your outline, in my heart, has become increasingly clear day by day.

This is the complete set of "Dragon Ball" that I spent a long time collecting, the 2009 edition. If you are willing, I want to mail it to you.

I think your life will definitely be very wonderful, like the youth comics you love, full of hot-blooded companions and exciting chapters.

So, I hope you will always be like you were in your youth, enthusiastic, brave, with light in your eyes. ===== CHAPTER 580 =====