Shen Duoyi was stunned by the shout, and his hand that had already grabbed the car door loosened. He just wanted to talk about his childhood friend Fei Yuan, after all, Qi Shi'an had already explained their childhood friendship, so he shouldn't hide it anymore. Besides, he had even kept a photo of Fei Yuan.

With a "click", the car door was locked. Shen Duoyi said helplessly, "Is this necessary? Are you interrogating me?"

"Don't waste time, you can talk now." Qi Shi'an threw the car keys on the dashboard, lowered his eyes to stare at the car logo in the center of the steering wheel, looking very cool.

Shen Duoyi fiddled with his house key and said slowly, "I've mentioned my childhood friend a few times. His name is Fei Yuan, and we grew up together since we were young. When we were in high school, during puberty, I might have had my first crush—"

Qi Shi'an interrupted, "Your first crush was on him? Which grade?"

"Sophomore year."

"Wasn't that the year I met you?!"

"Yes, that year. Don't get excited."

"No wonder you ignored me. It turns out you had a boyfriend!"

Shen Duoyi quickly explained, "No! He didn't know anything, I never said a word!"

Qi Shi'an looked at Shen Duoyi with a face full of shock and disbelief, as if looking at a spoiled child. He said incredulously, "Shen Duoyi, you don't think that a secret crush counts as a relationship, do you?"

Shen Duoyi asked timidly, "It doesn't?"

"No! A relationship is between two people. Your one-sided infatuation doesn't count as a relationship!" Qi Shi'an started shouting again, with a hint of relief in his anger. "Bullshit first love, that doesn't count at all. Hurry up and forget about it!"

Shen Duoyi rested his elbow on the car window, propped his head up, and fell into deep thought. He had lived for more than twenty years, but he didn't even have a first love. "Should I continue?" He felt that his train of thought had been interrupted.

Childhood friends are different from others, they meet often. What if old feelings are rekindled again? Qi Shi'an said, "Continue. How did your feelings for him change?"

"His family lived in Qiuye Street, and at that time, my grandfather and I also lived in his house. He used to take care of me often, and if I encountered any problems at school, he would help me."

Qi Shi'an clenched his fist and rubbed his brow with his knuckles. "You lived together and went to the same school?"

"Yes, later he beat up a classmate for me and transferred to another school."

...He even played the hero saving the beauty!

Qi Shi'an unscrewed a bottle of water and took a few gulps, trying to calm himself down as much as possible. "Does he have a girlfriend now?"

"Huh?" Shen Duoyi didn't react for a moment, then explained after a few seconds, "After he transferred, he met a boy and they got together. Their relationship has been really good over the years."

Qi Shi'an's veins started throbbing again. He looked at Shen Duoyi with a look of disappointment. "In other words, he likes men? Since he also likes men, how could you still secretly have a crush on him?!"

Qi Shi'an was almost furious. When Shen Duoyi rejected him, he was aggressive, but how could he be so timid when pursuing someone?

Shen Duoyi was puzzled. "What are you angry about?"

"What am I angry about? What can I be angry about?" Qi Shi'an punched the steering wheel, and a "bang" resounded through the not-so-spacious car.

He turned to glare at Shen Duoyi and said with a resounding tone, "You were all alone, having to take care of your grandfather and yourself, studying during the day and working at night. When you encountered a scoundrel like me harassing you, you didn't even dare to express your feelings to the person you liked. What do I have to be angry about? I fucking feel distressed for you!"

Shen Duoyi was stunned, and his hand holding the key suddenly clenched tightly.

Although it was Qi Shi'an who was growling, his chest was also heaving non-stop. His heart felt like it had been fried in hot oil, constantly trembling and tightening.

He turned to face Qi Shi'an's gaze and said straightforwardly, "At that time, I wasn't even sure if that feeling could be considered as liking someone. Even if it was, it was mixed with a certain proportion of dependence, because I really lacked a sense of security at that time. I once kept a photo of him, but later I returned the photo to his partner. I'm very happy, without any regrets."

Even if it was really liking someone, he had long since let it go.

"Besides, I never thought you were a scoundrel."

Shen Duoyi finally finished speaking. He wanted to ease the heavy atmosphere, so he pretended to be heartbroken. "If I had known that a secret crush doesn't count as a first love, I wouldn't have said anything."

Qi Shi'an's expression softened, but he still pretended to be cold. "What about the one who pretended to be your boyfriend? Why didn't you develop that?"

"No way." Shen Duoyi found it amusing. "He's the partner Fei Yuan met after transferring schools."

"..." Qi Shi'an was hit with another wave of shock, but he no longer had the energy to scold anyone. He just leaned against the seat and kept sighing. Shen Duoyi glanced at his watch and realized that a long time had passed. "I've said everything, so I'll go home now?"

Qi Shi'an suddenly asked, "Is he more handsome than me?"

Shen Duoyi was in a difficult position. "About the same."

"Is he taller than me?"

"Also about the same."

"Is his personality similar to mine?"

"No."

"Don't misunderstand, you two are not similar." Shen Duoyi was afraid that Qi Shi'an would misunderstand, so he quickly explained, "You two are completely different types. Don't overthink it. I've long since given up on that idea, and I definitely don't like the whole substitute thing."

Qi Shi'an was overjoyed, but he kept a straight face and said, "I didn't misunderstand."

He was just a little unbalanced and wanted to hear a few nice words. Actually, if the first answer had been "you're more handsome", there wouldn't have been any follow-up questions. Shen Duoyi finally understood, and before getting out of the car, he squeezed out a sentence, "Tomorrow after work, at Tokyo Bar, my treat."

Qi Shi'an drove off into the distance, already thinking about which tie to wear tomorrow.

Last week, the new announcement posted on the system was taken down and replaced with a more detailed outline. The outline listed the implementation plan in stages. Shen Duoyi took a look at the update time after reading it and found that it had just been released 15 minutes ago.

He had only logged into the company's system to back up data before going to bed. The external network could only view some sections, while the rest required logging into Ming'an's internal network to see. So there might be new arrangements that he couldn't see yet.

And all of this indicated that Qi Shi'an was still working at 11:30 pm.

Shen Duoyi felt that he was already working hard, but Qi Shi'an truly impressed him with his dedication - staying up all night to monitor the markets, attending back-to-back meetings, working overtime to meet deadlines, and now squeezing in time wherever possible.

"Duoyi, why aren't you asleep yet?" Grandpa Shen suddenly knocked on the door and came in, looking haggard, clearly sleepy from getting up in the middle of the night. Shen Duoyi closed his laptop and replied, "I'm going to bed now, don't wake me up grinding soy milk in the morning."

Grandpa Shen said, "Then I'll order takeout."

"Where can you get takeout so early?" Shen Duoyi leaned against the headboard and laughed. The old man had ordered once and found it quite novel, even getting a bit addicted. Grandpa Shen hunched over slightly and yawned, puzzled, "You had a long face when you went out, but you look quite happy after coming back."

Shen Duoyi was stunned for two seconds. "I went to a friend's house. His family is really interesting, so I'm in a good mood."

Grandpa Shen was about to go to the bathroom. "As long as you're happy, that's all I hope for - that you're happy every day."

The last half of the sentence was blocked by the bedroom door, but it could still be vaguely heard. Shen Duoyi slipped into the covers and turned off the light, then closed his eyes with gratitude.

Around midnight, when most households were asleep, the lights in the Ming'an Building office were finally turned off. Qi Shi'an and Zhang Yiming had finished working out the work plan for the new quarter and were walking shoulder to shoulder towards the elevator.

"I'm going back to the retirement home. Do you need a ride?"

"Why are you going back to the retirement home? It's such a detour for work tomorrow." Zhang Yiming chewed on a mint to stay alert. "You'll see, You Zhe said he's pulling foreign exchange, and it's likely he'll have to run to futures too."

The elevator arrived, and Qi Shi'an walked in and pressed the first floor. "His company's foreign exchange originally didn't account for a large proportion, and in the current market conditions, it's not the time to strive to be a leader. Everyone wants others to explore the way first."

Zhang Yiming said, "You boldly explore, and your brothers will back you up."

"I've already opened a separate personal account to start over as a trial." As soon as he left Ming'an, Qi Shi'an merged into the night. His car was parked at the entrance. He glanced at the time and said mercilessly, "You'd better walk on your own. I'm in a hurry to get home and sleep."

It was indeed a detour from the company to the retirement home, and there weren't many new clothes at home. Qi Shi'an was purely going to get that "Local Chronicles Collection" book.

The time frame for the "medium and long-term customer acquisition plan" fell on the entire quarter, similar to a kind of resource migration, with both difficulties and risks, and neither were low.

The first thing Shen Duoyi did when he arrived at the office was to log into the system to check the detailed announcement. He didn't expect the proportions of futures and foreign exchange in the acquisition plan to be comparable.

However, regardless of the proportions, the consulting department would usher in a busy period. Shen Duoyi glanced at the supervisor's office and sure enough, he had gone to a meeting first thing in the morning.

First, hierarchical meetings were held top-down, permeating layer by layer, making every department down to ordinary employees understand this plan. Then the technical departments compiled the system's investment plans and had to produce detailed and accurate data reports. The next step was to train the consulting department.

Only after the entire consulting department had completed the training would the preparatory work for this plan be considered complete.

After a full day of meetings, Qi Shi'an was on the verge of blacking out, with messy data flashing before his eyes when he blinked. His throat was already becoming hoarse and in urgent need of alcohol to moisten it.

"Mr. Qi, will you be staying a while longer?" Annie couldn't help asking before packing up the equipment.

The pen tip did not stop and continued to make a summary on the paper. Only he and the statistical chart displayed on the screen remained in the conference room.

He wanted to check the time, only to remember that he had taken off his watch when washing his face during the lunch break.

Annie was very perceptive. "It's been a quarter of an hour since work ended."

Qi Shi'an was about to finish writing. "Bring me my bag and the watch on the desk. I won't go back to the office."

Annie moved quickly. It was estimated that no high heels could slow down her steps. Qi Shi'an finished writing the summary, put the pen cap on, took the bag with one hand, grabbed the watch with the other, and left.

He pressed the floor where the consulting department was located and happened to see Shen Duoyi standing outside when the door opened. Just as he thought the timing was perfect, Shen Duoyi shattered the tacit understanding. "I've waited several times, thinking you were going to work overtime."

"There will be plenty of opportunities to work overtime in the future. No rush." Qi Shi'an smiled resignedly, then stretched out his hand, as if seeking help from a child. "Help me put it on. It's not easy with one hand."

Shen Duoyi lowered his head and put the watch on for the other person. Comparing it with his own waterproof watch, he felt a bit embarrassed and said, "This watch of yours looks nice. Do you have a black strap?"

Qi Shi'an replied, "I think so. This one of mine is a limited edition. The black one is slightly cheaper."

"How much?"

"One hundred and seventy."

Shen Duoyi was surprised. "One hundred and seventy?"

"...The unit is ten thousand."

After Qi Shi'an said that, he looked away, always feeling that Shen Duoyi was slicing him with eye knives.

From Ming'an to Tokyo Bar, Shen Duoyi hadn't recovered the whole way. His annual salary wasn't even that much, yet Qi Shi'an casually wore it on his wrist. Then he thought of the more than 100,000 yuan he had lost and the 40 million yuan the other party had scooped away. He actually had to treat him.

"What are you thinking about? Sit by the bar." Qi Shi'an raised his hand and snapped his fingers. After Shen Duoyi came back to his senses, he asked, "I'll just order randomly, okay?"

Shen Duoyi said, "Let's just order butterbeer. It's such a big can, it'll fill you up."

Qi Shi'an disagreed. "Is this how you treat someone? The martinis here are good. Let's start with two glasses. And get a Baileys. They have summer cocktails this week. Take a look."

Qi Shi'an passed the drink menu and leaned in close, like classmates huddling together to discuss a problem. Shen Duoyi looked at the names on it, not one of which was simple and easy to understand. He looked to the end. "Why is there a drink called Chihuahua? Isn't a Chihuahua a dog?"

"Then let's order that and see if they'll serve you a dog." Qi Shi'an couldn't stop laughing, even though it made his throat burn and ache, but he was extraordinarily happy.

The music suddenly changed, more soothing than the previous song. Customers gradually increased, and the resident band also clocked in on time. Shen Duoyi leaned sideways against the bar and couldn't help asking after a long time, "Do you come here often?"

"Mm." Qi Shi'an answered, "I'm used to coming here to relax for a while before watching the night market. I also come for a couple of drinks to unwind after long meetings. I usually leave after drinking. It's like going to a gas station to refuel."

They chatted idly. During this time, young men and women came over to share tables, someone went on stage to commandeer the lead singer position and sang a short song, and someone made a business call. In the end, only tired-looking solo patrons remained at their tables.

Qi Shi'an took that book out of his bag. "For you, tell me about it after you finish reading."

Shen Duoyi immediately lost interest in observing the bar's motley patrons. He held the book and started reading, occasionally taking a sip of martini, tasting a hint of sweetness in the alcohol. Qi Shi'an felt a burning in his throat and was too lazy to talk more, so they both just quietly drank.

As the songs changed several times, sometimes fast, sometimes slow, Shen Duoyi stopped reading when he got tired and listened to the band sing.

Qi Shi'an asked, "We can request songs, do you want to request one?"

Shen Duoyi didn't often listen to music and could only think of a few songs. He shook his head, just wanting to be a well-behaved spectator or listener. However, Qi Shi'an thought for a moment and called the waiter over. "Help me request a song."

The lights dimmed. Everyone relaxed and enjoyed this moment of leisure. Shen Duoyi picked up his drink and took a sip, his gaze happening to catch Qi Shi'an's profile, just as the song Qi Shi'an requested flowed into his ears.

......

Shen Duoyi asked, "What song is this?"

Qi Shi'an replied, "'Seems Like an Old Friend Has Come'."

"In ten years both, in ten thousand years together..." Shen Duoyi couldn't sing it yet, but had already memorized the lyrics. It was about to end and the singer was preparing to bow.

He reached out and turned Qi Shi'an's chair. "Old friend, you're blocking me."

Applause erupted. Qi Shi'an's hoarse voice mixed in, "This time the old friend has come, and will never leave again."