Chapter 19 — The Bed of Your Own Choosing

I didn't expect her to know. "Gu Cheng once said you loved a female reporter for many years." "We broke up." "Because she went to Shanghai?" "Your information is really complete." "As an investment consultant, information is a bread and butter." She paused for a moment: "After breaking up with me, did you ever consider that you still had the same problem?" "I thought." "So what do you understand now?" I didn't answer right away. Outside the window is the warehouse we rented, with forklifts going back and forth. Han Dongming signaled to me through the glass, reminding me of the next meeting. "I used to think that, in love, the important thing was whom you chose." I said, "Later I discovered that choosing at crucial times is indeed important, but more important is whether or not I usually leave the decision up to the other person. That year, Shen Nianchu went to Gu Cheng first; later, Meng Lan chose Shanghai first. In both cases, I felt left behind by the outcome." "Is there a difference?" "Yes. Shen Nianchu had not moved beyond her old relationship; Meng Lan was moving forward with her life. But at that time I only saw her wanting to leave." Shen Nianchu nodded. "Do you still love her?" "Probably still do." "So why don't you go look for her?" "She is not lost; she has her own life." Shen Nianchu stood up, threw the paper cup into the trash. Walking to the door, she turned around: "Zhou Yanxuan, did we really have no possibilities that year?" This time she didn't ask like she wanted to go back, just confirming on behalf of her younger self. "Yes." I said, "But at that time we both wanted the other to prove ourselves. She wanted to prove that she was not someone to be abandoned; I wanted to prove that I would never be left behind again. Both of you keep your position, it's very difficult to move forward together." She smiled a bit bitterly. "It looks like you still won, finally able to make it clear." "It's not a win. It's just many years late." After she left, the investment agreement was signed smoothly. A few days later, Gu Cheng came to find me. He was no longer wearing the fancy clothes of his youth, just a normal shirt, his eyes clearly tired. "Shen Nianchu said you guys received the investment." He went straight to the problem, "I have a group of merchant resources in my hand, which can be imported into your platform." "Under what conditions?" "Give me cash, plus a portion of shares."I looked at the documents. The merchant contracts were valuable, but the price he demanded was too high. "Cash can be discussed, shares cannot." Gu Cheng frowned: "Are you afraid that I will come in and take control?" "The company is not mine alone, I can't use what the team has been working on for several years to solve your capital problem." "You were like that that year." "How?" "You calculated every relationship too carefully." I closed the document: "Do you feel that calculating clearly is not good?" He was silent for a moment, then suddenly laughed. "I didn't feel good before. Now the company is about to not be able to pay salaries, only to find out that people who don't calculate clearly will have to make up the accounts in the end." In the end, we bought part of his merchant contract, without giving shares. The price was not high, but enough for him to take a breath. When signing, Gu Cheng said: "If you were in Room 406 that year, you could have stopped me from many things." "It's also possible that you didn't listen at all." "That is also possible." He took the documents and walked to the door. "Yanxuan, sometimes I really admire the fact that you changed dorms." I looked at him. "It's not because you avoid me." He said, "And because you dared to change it so early. Many people clearly know that the position is uncomfortable, and still think that they should just sleep for one night and then figure it out. "After the door closed, I remembered the set of keys with the red tag when I was eighteen years old. A bed really can't change my destiny. But it made me say no for the first time before everything really started.

When Han Dongming got married, he called all the people in Room 407. The wedding was held in his hometown, in the yard there was a red tent, the table was full of large pots of food. Zhao Yue brought his two children, still insisting that he was the most handsome person in the room; Du Hang had been married for three years. After hearing our college story, his wife immediately asked why he never mentioned the socket he had repaired eight times. Meng Lan also came. It wasn't me who invited her, but the bride who knew her. The two of them once collaborated on a project brand in Shanghai, the relationship is closer than I thought. When I saw her at the reception desk, the red envelope in my hand almost fell to the ground. "Long time no see." She said. "Long time no see." We haven't seen each other for three years. At first I only texted on holidays, but later Later I only occasionally liked something she posted in her feed. She got promoted, changed companies, went on business trips abroad, I knew a little about it all, but never asked for details. At the wedding reception, we were placed at the same table. Zhao Yue didn't know we broke up.
Holding the glass, he said: "Sister-in-law, that year Yanxuan was very difficult to serve in the dormitory. You accepted him as a contribution to society." There was silence on the table for half a second. Meng Lan raised her glass. "The goods have been returned." Zhao Yue's face quickly turned red: "My mouth drank a lot today." Han Dongming ran to the rescue: "It's okay, return goods also have after-sales service." I kicked him once. Meng Lan smiled, and the atmosphere relaxed.