Financial Workplace Survival Guide – CH 046

Chapter 46 ☆, What Image Do I Have in Your Heart?

It was still the same bowl of noodles and the same familiar owner.

This time, the boss placed the chili peppers on the table for Xin Xin and said while wiping the table, “Don’t let Xiao Chuan’s energetic and impulsive nature fool you; he’s actually reliable and sentimental.”

Zheng Zaochuan was talking to the boss, but his eyes were fixed on Xin Xin, as if watching her reaction.

“Uncle Huang, you’re really eager to sell me.”

Xin Xin lowered her head and ate her noodles, smiling as she said, “That’s right; otherwise the business wouldn’t be so big.”

The owner smiled, seemingly a little sentimental. “He was such a tiny kid back then, and now he’s grown up so much.” As he spoke, he solemnly pointed to the shop across the street. “That shop across the street was bought by Xiao Chuan and given to me. I sold it, so I’m financially independent now. When he was little, I made him a few bowls of noodles, and he still remembers me like this.”

Looking out from this small shop, Xin Xin saw a large supermarket across the street. Located in the heart of Jiangcheng, the prices were bound to be high.

As Zheng Zaochuan ate his noodles, he smiled and said, “Uncle Huang, your kindness to me goes far beyond just a few bowls of noodles.”

The boss said, “You’re just sentimental. Most people don’t like to talk about the past once they have money.”

Compared to the bustling supermarket across the street, this small noodle shop looked much more shabby. Although the furnishings were relatively clean, the walls were peeling off in patches, as if it had been neglected for years.

Zheng Zaochuan enthusiastically introduced to Xin Xin, “Look at that table; it gets so crowded every day after school. I sneak out from there and sit in the corner to observe the whole scene. If I see anyone leaving food, I run over and eat it.”

Upon hearing Zheng Zaochuan’s words, the boss quickly glanced at Xin Xin, looking a little anxious. “Xiao Chuan, why are you telling your girlfriend these things? That’s all in the past.”

The boss looked so anxious, as if he were his son bringing his girlfriend home, afraid of saying something wrong that would make his future daughter-in-law run away.

Under the dim, old-fashioned light, Xin Xin felt inexplicably moved and joked, “I’m not his girlfriend. It’s too difficult to compete for the title of his girlfriend.”

“Not very much,” Zheng Zaochuan blurted out.

Xin Xin was a little surprised, but then she saw him quickly lower his head, his face showing an almost embarrassed look.

This rare lack of candor made the atmosphere somewhat tense.

The shop owner, observing the scene, chuckled, “Xiao Chuan has always been popular with the girls. When he comes to my shop for noodles, several of his female classmates follow him in. They sit on either side of him, and he doesn’t say a word. After finishing his meal, he would leave. The two girls were openly and secretly vying for his attention.”

Zheng Zaochuan was eager to change the subject. “That’s not true. When I was little, my clothes were full of holes, and they all laughed at me. I didn’t talk to them because I was afraid they would laugh at me.”

Ever since Xin Xin met Zheng Zaochuan, he had always seemed nonchalant and carefree. Or perhaps it was because of his legendary business empire that everyone viewed him with a sense of awe.

It wasn’t until today that Xin Xin could imagine what Zheng Zaochuan must have looked like as a teenager.

A poor, indifferent, and sharp-tongued young man facing the world.

“They must like you to bully you on purpose. Isn’t it that little boys like someone, and that’s why they bully them? Sometimes little girls will say things to make someone angry in order to get their attention.”

Zheng Zaochuan looked at Xin Xin with bright eyes, seemingly expectant. “So, did you deliberately say something to make me angry?”

For example, he was just a familiar customer.

Xin Xin opened her eyes wide and said innocently, “I didn’t mean to make you angry. I’m the best to you. Have you ever dealt with any other service providers who treated you better than me?”

Zheng Zaochuan seemed a little disappointed and sullenly said, “Oh.”

After the two finished their meal, the owner wiped the table. Seeing that the two were about to leave, he hesitated for a long time before calling out to Zheng Zaochuan.

“Xiao Chuan.”

Zheng Zaochuan stood there obediently, like a child, and asked, “Uncle Huang, what’s wrong?”

The owner seemed a little hesitant and said somewhat embarrassedly, “You funded the renovation of the shop back then. I promised you I’d keep it open, so whenever you came back, you’d always have a bowl of noodles. But now I’m getting old, and I really don’t have the energy anymore. My son has settled in Chenzhou, and I’m thinking of going there with him. This shop, I…”

Zheng Zaochuan visibly looked disappointed but still smiled and said, “Uncle Huang, it’s nothing. There’s nothing to be embarrassed about. When are you leaving? I’ll see you off.”

The shopkeeper wiped his hands on his apron, revealing a kind smile. “Young lady, I know our Xiao Chuan. He’s truly a good kid, genuinely kind to people. But he’s just not good with words; there are some things he’s unwilling to do…”

“I see you have a good temper. You two should help and tolerate each other. I’m leaving now. Enjoy your meal.”

Xin Xin listened with a smile. It seemed that the boss had already decided that she was Zheng Zaochuan’s girlfriend. She did not refute it and smiled to reassure the old man, “Don’t worry, his cooking skills are excellent. He won’t go hungry. I’m the one who needs his help.”

Zheng Zaochuan glanced at her, wanting to say something, but ultimately remained silent. The two said goodbye to the shop owner and drove back to Haining.

They had known each other for many years, fought side by side, ate and drank together, complained about each other, and even saved each other from danger.

But there had never been a moment when they were closer to each other than now.

Adolescence was when a person was least pretentious. As an adult, one might have been tempered by society, worn countless social masks, and formed the armor that best suited one’s social needs.

However, a person’s personality during their youth was often closest to their true nature.

Xin Xin could hardly imagine that this fearless, confident, and even somewhat arrogant man was once a quiet, reserved boy with a slight sense of inferiority.

“Were you really bullied back then?”

Zheng Zaochuan didn’t play any music, and the car was very quiet, which made their conversation inexplicably serious.

“It’s not so much bullying; after all, they’re boys. But I really don’t have many friends. I’ve always seemed a bit slow. Girls tend to speak indirectly, and like Uncle Huang said, I don’t know why they all secretly compete for me. Other boys think that girls like me, so they don’t really hang out with me.”

Xin Xin teased him, “Looks like you’ve been a scumbag since you were a kid. No wonder you can’t choose now; you’ve always been unable to choose since you were a kid.”

Zheng Zaochuan paused for a moment, and for some reason, a hint of bitterness crept into his voice. “Is it possible that I have no choice at all?”

“Don’t give me that. I saw that chaotic scene you created with my own eyes.”

Zheng Zaochuan didn’t pick up on the topic and abruptly asked, “Star, did you ever date when you were in school?”

“Yes, I did, but as you know, I didn’t really understand it back then. It was that kind of innocent, budding feeling between a young boy and girl, without any deep thought or consideration.”

Zheng Zaochuan asked her, “What does it feel like to like someone when you’re a teenager?”

Xin Xin thought for a moment, and she remembered that the first boy she liked was in the summer of her third year of junior high school. After the high school entrance exam, a boy with a buzz cut and a refined demeanor walked up to her.

“Xin Xin, hello, I’m Fang Wenjie from Class 3. Could you tell me where you’re going to high school?”

Confused, she asked him, “How do you know my name?”

The boy gave a shy smile. “Many boys know your name, so it’s not surprising that I do too.”

Later, everything happened naturally. They went to the same high school, and the boy would secretly wait for her outside her apartment building. After evening self-study, if her father didn’t come to pick her up, the boy would walk her home. If her father did come, the boy would follow them at a distance.

It wasn’t until after the college entrance exam that Xin Xin’s father asked her, “Where’s that boy who always followed you around?”

Xin Xin curled her lip and said disdainfully, “He’s following someone else around now.”

Zheng Zaochuan couldn’t help but laugh. “Haha, I thought you were going to tell a beautiful first love story, but I didn’t expect it to end like this.”

Xin Xin laughed too. “Yes, he liked me for a while. Then one day, a girl cried and said she liked him. He asked me if I had ever liked him, and I didn’t answer. He said, ‘Xin Xin, I’m giving up on you.’ Suddenly, he was with someone else.”

Zheng Zaochuan couldn’t stop laughing. “So you’ve always been this cold-hearted and ruthless since you were a child.”

Xin Xin felt that this description of herself was biased. After all, it was never her who decided to let go first. But for some reason, no matter how much someone initially liked her, they would eventually be moved by someone else.

Zheng Zaochuan thought for a moment, “Sigh, we’re in the same boat; we both love ourselves too much.”

That’s how people who loved themselves too much were; they always kept a safe distance when they were being kind to others. Humans instinctively feared intense, aggressive emotions from others, but no one could resist such emotions.

Xin Xin had reflected on herself; she looked back on her romantic history. Her first love was one she knew nothing about, ending in a daze. When she was with Zhou Yiran, she tried hard to make it work and maintain the relationship. But when Zhou Yiran finally gave up on her, she simply moved out of the apartment they had shared and continued her quiet life.

Later, she got busy with work and had a few meals and flirtations with some men who were pursuing her, but all of them ended without a trace.

Passion faded with age. Those who had never been crazy in love would only become increasingly indifferent after starting work, and it would be impossible for them to be crazy again.

Xin Xin concluded with a smile, “I’ve already discovered that I’m suited for arranged marriages. I might even do well if I marry first and fall in love later.”

Zheng Zaochuan paused for a moment, then said, half-seriously and half-jokingly, “How about we get married first?”

Xin Xin’s heart skipped a beat, and her mouth spoke faster than her brain: “That won’t do. If you’re going to get married first, you need to find a stable person to live with. I’m afraid that when I’m forty, you’ll suddenly tell me that you’re going to find true love.”

Zheng Zaochuan gave a wry smile and asked the question he had asked many times before, “What kind of image do I have in your heart?”