Sometimes Qian Fei felt Li Yifei was quite an extraordinary person. What others saw as extremely difficult tasks, he always managed to accomplish quickly using his own methods. And throughout the process, no matter how much effort or hardship he endured, he never let her know. Only after everything was done would he casually say to her, "I got it done for you. If you want to thank me, hurry up and marry me."
Qian Fei thought this side of Li Yifei was especially manly.
This time was no exception. Within just a few days, Li Yifei made good on his word and got her transferred to his company, even placing her in the same department. He became her direct supervisor, and she and Zhao De became colleagues under the same boss.
When she asked Li Yifei how he managed such efficiency, he replied, "If I didn’t hurry, we’d miss the exam registration deadline!"
The Securities Representative Exam could only be registered through a securities firm—individuals couldn’t sign up on their own. Seeing how seriously Li Yifei took her matters warmed Qian Fei’s heart, filling her with an indescribable sense of gratitude.
A week later, she officially started her new job and, with Li Yifei’s help, successfully registered for the Securities Representative Exam.
The female employees who had previously gossiped about her were all visibly shocked when they saw her.
Qian Fei imagined they’d probably hold another "toilet conference" during their bathroom breaks:
—"Wow, that girl is relentless! She even followed our Director Li into the company!"
The thought of this scenario suddenly struck her as quite amusing.
When Zhao De saw her, he was completely floored, his mouth hanging open wide enough to swallow an egg whole: "Fei Fei? It’s actually you! I was wondering who this person could be, someone Director Li would argue with the boss to hire—never thought it’d be you! This is great, now the three of us can play Landlord together again!"
Qian Fei chuckled. She thought Zhao De really never learned—he’d already forgotten the pain of losing six rounds in a row.
With only two months left until the end of the year, it was the busiest time. Rumors were circulating that the China Securities Regulatory Commission was planning major reforms to the IPO policies, and everyone was on edge waiting for the new directives.
Yet, during this most hectic period, Li Yifei shielded Qian Fei completely. He told her to focus solely on studying and not worry about any work. Or rather, the tasks that should have fallen to her were all handled by him instead. He created every possible condition for her to study undisturbed.
Qian Fei could sense that some people from other departments were quite dissatisfied with her situation. She mentioned to Li Yifei that maybe she should work on projects with them during the day and study at night instead.
Li Yifei disagreed.
He said, "You had to take care of your father before, so you’re already way behind others. Now there’s only a month left—if you don’t push yourself now, you’ll definitely fail! And if you fail, I might not be able to protect you anymore. I told upper management that I hired you because you’re absolutely going to pass the Securities Representative Exam!"
Qian Fei said, "But Zhao De secretly told me that people are already starting to gossip behind my back. They’re saying they don’t understand why the company leadership would pay to keep someone who does no work and just studies all day. Others want to take the exam too—why should I get to focus solely on preparing?"Li Yifei pondered for a moment before saying, "Don't pay attention to those gossipers. They're just jealous that I dote on you so much! I'll pamper and love you as much as I please—what business is it of theirs? Just focus on your studies and don't worry about anything. If there's any trouble, I'll handle it!"
●︶3︶●
Later one day, after lunch, Li Yifei took Zhao De to a corporate meeting, leaving Qian Fei alone at her desk studying. At some point, the deputy head of the investment banking department strolled over and asked her with a smile, "Qian Fei, what projects are you working on right now?"
Following Li Yifei's prior instructions, Qian Fei replied, "I'm mainly assisting Manager Li with the IPO projects for the hotel and CBD trading company!"
The deputy head let out an "Oh," still smiling, but sighed. "Ah, the IPO market has been closed for over a year now. The company's performance is getting worse, and ambitious people have all left. Xiao Qian, have you given any thought to changing jobs?"
Qian Fei was taken aback. Hadn't she just switched jobs to come here? Change again? Was she some kind of spring-legged jumper?
She shook her head. "Not for now!"
The deputy head smiled and said, "I see! Well, carry on with your work. I was just taking a stroll after lunch!" With that, he clasped his hands behind his back and ambled back to his private office.
Qian Fei couldn't shake the feeling that there was more to this conversation. Near the end of the workday, Li Yifei returned to the office with Zhao De.
Li Yifei went to report to their superiors first, while Zhao De rushed over to Qian Fei, fuming. "This is all your fault! You troublemaker! Before, we could just leave straight after meetings and go home early. But today, that little brat Li Yifei insisted on dragging me back to the office, saying 'today's work must be done today' and that we had to report the meeting outcomes immediately. Pah! He just wanted to pick you up after work—as if I couldn't see through that!"
Qian Fei silently handed Zhao De a bottle of mineral water.
"Rehydrate a bit. You're spraying spit everywhere—don't pass out from dehydration later!"
Zhao De took the water with a "Hmph!" and tossed his head. "You two are so annoying! If it weren't for you, I'd have been off work ages ago!"
After drinking, his expression shifted from righteous indignation to nosy gossip mode. "So, little Feifei, when exactly did you two get together? I've been wondering—why did you treat me to two meals out of the blue and keep asking about Yifei in roundabout ways? Tell me the truth—did you two start sneaking around right after that? Let me tell you, we're brothers who've fought through the trenches of Landlord together. Keeping this from me is just disloyal!"
Qian Fei silently raised her textbook to cover her face. She wondered just how much he loved the phrase "sneaking around"...
Zhao De pressed on relentlessly. "Hey, little Feifei, why are you hiding? Since when are you so shy? I've already suffered the 'six twos' humiliation at your hands—if you were going to be embarrassed, you should've been then, not now!"Qian Fei silently put the book down again, looking at Zhao De with a forced smile that didn't reach her eyes. "Brother De! Don't worry, next time I'll definitely let you play the 2 first!" No sooner had she finished speaking than someone chimed in with a teasing tone from the side, "Why are you calling him brother? He should be calling you sister-in-law! How can you mess up the family hierarchy like this? What would Zi think of your disregard for proper ethics!"
Qian Fei nearly choked, turning her head with difficulty to see Li Yifei's completely serious face.
Zhao De smirked slyly, "I knew there was something going on between you two! You little liar, Feifei, trying to fool me!"
Li Yifei walked over, helped Qian Fei pack up her books, and pulled her to her feet. "Let's go, time to head home after work!" Then he turned to Zhao De, whose expression hadn't quite caught up with the situation and looked slightly dazed, "Like I said, this is your sister-in-law. From now on, don't call her 'little Feifei.' It's disrespectful, and your brother isn't happy about it!"
Zhao De blinked somewhat cluelessly, "My brother isn't happy? Who?"
Li Yifei raised an eyebrow, "Me!"
Zhao De's mouth and eyes began to twitch involuntarily.
Qian Fei burst out laughing.
As they were leaving their workstations, Li Yifei suddenly turned back and said, "Oh, Zhao De, you should go to the hospital for a check-up when you have time. During the corporate meeting today, I noticed you looked pale and were sweating coldly!"
Zhao De smiled and said, "It's nothing! Probably haven't been eating well lately, feeling a bit weak!"
Qian Fei watched him smiling foolishly with his pale face, feeling a pang of sadness. He was alone in Beijing with no one to take care of him, and he didn't know how to look after himself. She'd heard he just grabbed whatever food he could find every day.
She nudged Li Yifei's arm and said, "Tomorrow's the weekend. Let's invite Zhao De over for dinner!"
Li Yifei looked down at her, eyebrow raised, "Is it really appropriate for you to invite another man home right in front of me?"
Qian Fei rolled her eyes at him and turned to ask Zhao De, "I'm thinking of inviting you over for dinner tomorrow to cook something good and help you recover. Will you come?"
Zhao De nodded eagerly like a chicken pecking at rice, "Yes, yes! Can I request a dish? I want to try the legendary stir-fried eggplant strips!"
Qian Fei couldn't help but laugh, "Can't you aim a little higher? After all that effort, you just ask for stir-fried eggplant strips! Why not order a meat dish or something? Don't worry about the dish being too fancy—if you dare to name it, I can make it!"
Zhao De grinned, "Then tomorrow I'll bring a whole squirrel, and you can make me 'Squirrel Fish'!"
Qian Fei nearly spat, "With your understanding of dish names, if you wanted to eat 'Husband and Wife Lung Slices' tomorrow, you'd have to bring me a live couple, wouldn't you?"
●︶3︶●
On the way home, Qian Fei recounted her lunchtime conversation with the deputy general manager to Li Yifei.
Li Yifei pondered for a moment before telling Qian Fei, "I'll take you home first, then I have something to take care of."
Qian Fei went home, cooked dinner, and waited for quite a while before Li Yifei returned.
When she asked where he'd been, Li Yifei said, "I went to visit the deputy general manager at home."
Qian Fei hesitated before finally asking, "You didn't go to slap him, did you?"
Li Yifei smirked, "If you weren't taking exams and needed this job, I really would have slapped him! How dare he try to push you out? But since you need to study and can't afford to lose this job, I had to hold back. I went to his place to tell him I'm giving up my project bonus—the finance department will transfer that money directly to his account as project development fees."Qian Fei gazed at him with watery eyes, unsure of what to say.
Li Yifei reached out and pinched her cheeks, shaking them playfully. "Don't look at me like that—it makes me impulsive. I might lose control and force myself on you, and then we'd have a scandal about a landlord coercing a tenant into paying rent with her body! Honestly, I just wanted you to know how good I am to you. Once your exams are over, hurry up and pledge yourself to me. Stop holding back!"
Listening to him speak such vulgar words with such a frank expression, the grateful little bubbles in Qian Fei's watery eyes instantly burst.
●︶3︶●
After dinner, Qian Fei asked Li Yifei to text Zhao De to ask what time he'd arrive tomorrow and what else he wanted to eat besides stir-fried eggplant strips. Zhao De replied that she could just make whatever dishes she knew how to cook, as long as she picked the four most expensive ones.
Li Yifei laughed and cursed, "That shameless bastard dares to boss my woman around like this? Just wait till I get my hands on him!" Then he replied with two words: "Got it."
Zhao De also asked if they should bring a deck of cards to play Landlord. Qian Fei said sure, but Li Yifei objected, "Sure what? Once he's done eating, kick him out. Focus on your studies. After your exams, you can play Landlord—or even challenge the U.S. President—no one will stop you."
Qian Fei giggled and went back to her room to study.
Early the next morning, Qian Fei and Li Yifei went downstairs to the market to buy groceries.
Around nine, Qian Fei asked Li Yifei to check if Zhao De was awake. Li Yifei called, but no one answered.
By ten, Qian Fei urged him to try again. Still no answer.
By noon, both were growing impatient, but Zhao De still wasn’t picking up.
Qian Fei asked, "What do you think he’s up to?"
Li Yifei said, "Probably still asleep. His sleep schedule is notoriously messed up." After a pause, he added, "Start cooking. I’ll keep calling. By the time the food’s ready, he’ll have to be awake!"
Qian Fei tied on her apron and got busy in the kitchen.
By 1 p.m., the table was set, but Li Yifei still couldn’t reach Zhao De.
Both were now simmering with irritation and anger.
Li Yifei grumbled, "Just wait till that guy wakes up—I’ll teach him a lesson!"
Qian Fei chimed in, "Whether you slap him or kick him, count me in!"
By 2 p.m., the food had gone cold, and Zhao De still hadn’t answered.
Their patience had run out.
"Let’s not wait any longer. Heat up the food, and we’ll eat. If we wait any longer, your stomach will start hurting from hunger," Li Yifei said.
Qian Fei got up to reheat the dishes.
As she carried them back, she heard Li Yifei’s phone ring. Thinking it was Zhao De, she was surprised to hear him address a different colleague instead.
She watched as his face suddenly turned pale while he listened.
Her heart clenched with dread.
When he hung up, she asked nervously, "What’s wrong?"
Li Yifei looked at her, his eyes red, his voice hoarse. "Zhao De is gone. It happened last night—sudden heart attack."
The plate in Qian Fei’s hands crashed to the floor.
●︶3︶●
On Monday morning, Li Yifei and Qian Fei attended Zhao De’s funeral. Many colleagues were there. Throughout the service, Qian Fei wept bitterly.This was the second time someone had left her side, after her mother.
Thinking back to those lunchtimes when they used to bicker and play Landlord together, remembering how just three days ago he had come to her with that cheeky grin of his to gossip, recalling how the night before last he had insisted on having stir-fried eggplant strips, and how yesterday she had prepared a whole table of dishes waiting for him—only for him to leave without taking a single bite—Qian Fei was overwhelmed with sorrow.
Life was so fragile. It could be gone in an instant, leaving no room for the living to brace themselves.
As the company’s leader stood before the remains to deliver the eulogy, Qian Fei’s heart ached with grief. Such a good person, such a warm-hearted friend, gone just like that—had he even stopped to ask whether those left behind could bear to let him go?
By the time she stepped out of the funeral home, Qian Fei’s eyes were swollen. Li Yifei suggested she take a day off to rest at home, but Qian Fei shook her head. "I don’t want to be alone right now."
So Li Yifei took her back to the office.
At noon, Qian Fei had no appetite and didn’t go downstairs for lunch.
She walked to the break room, leaned her forehead against the glass, and stared blankly outside.
Amid the towering buildings of Financial Street, there would no longer be a man named Zhao De.
Footsteps approached from behind.
"What are you thinking about?"
It was Li Yifei’s voice.
Qian Fei’s nose stung.
"I was thinking… we should be kinder to ourselves and to those around us while we’re still alive. If there’s something we want to do, we should do it as soon as possible—without hesitation, without overthinking, without weighing the costs. Because one day… it might just be too late."
She straightened up, turned around, and lifted her gaze, tears pooling in her eyes as she looked at Li Yifei. "Right now, there’s only one thing I want to do!" She opened her arms, wrapped them around Li Yifei, and rested her head against his chest, murmuring, "I just want to hold you like this." She closed her eyes, tears spilling from beneath her lashes. "Li Yifei… hold me too, please."
Li Yifei tightened his arms, pulling her close—so tightly, so firmly—into his embrace.
Author’s Note:
You must be wondering why I had to kill off Zhao De. It’s because one of my colleagues recently passed away from a sudden heart attack. His death shook many of us deeply and made us realize some things. We all came to understand that we must cherish those around us and act on our desires while we still can—life is precious, and we shouldn’t waste it on pettiness or hesitation.
I had originally planned to wait until my job stabilized and I didn’t have to travel so much before writing this story, because juggling work trips and writing would be exhausting. But my colleague’s sudden death made me realize—if there’s something you want to do, you must do it now. So I threw caution to the wind and started this story. Now, even though I’m exhausted every day, I don’t regret it.
Let me tell you a little more about that colleague of mine.Last May, my incredibly kind, kind, kind colleague passed away suddenly from a heart attack. He was my senior at work and always took great care of me in the company. His temper was so gentle—he was truly a very, very, very good person. A few days before his passing, I was working overtime late at night when he handed me a sausage, saying, "Honghong, you need to eat on time," and I just grinned at him. Before I even got to eat that sausage, he suddenly had a heart attack and was gone. I wrote the eulogy for his memorial service, crying uncontrollably while writing it. During the service, when our boss read the eulogy, all our colleagues wept bitterly too. He was genuinely such a good person—everyone who ever interacted with him couldn’t bear to lose him. Even now, as I write this, I feel tears welling up again.
This chapter is dedicated to those who often stay up late working overtime. Take care of your health, cherish yourselves, and don’t hesitate to show love to those around you. If there’s something you want to do, do it now—don’t delay. Life is so short, so unpredictable—we must strive to be happy.
Everyone, try not to stay up late, avoid napping face-down on your desk at noon, and don’t drink too much coffee. Don’t smoke or drink excessively. These habits over time can easily lead to heart attacks—that’s exactly what happened to my colleague.
Dear everyone, being alive is a blessing. Let’s all cherish ourselves and those around us, and remember to be happy every day!
Thank you to the lovely readers who showered me with support! I can’t repay your kindness, so I bow in gratitude!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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