On the computer screen, two professional teams were battling fiercely, yet Yu Tu found his mind wandering.
He recalled the moment he said he wanted to give up—the look of surprise and pity in Qiao Jingjing's eyes. He couldn't understand why she felt that way when he was clearly choosing a path widely regarded as more promising.
Aside from his teacher, she seemed to be the only one who had looked at him like that.
"Yu Tu," Zhai Liang barged in without knocking, "when did you get back? I had no idea."
Snapping out of his thoughts, Yu Tu paused the game. "Not long ago. You were on the balcony making a call."
"Oh." Zhai Liang plopped down on Yu Tu's desk, grinning slyly. "You met up with Xia Qing today, didn't you?"
Yu Tu glanced up at him. "How did you know?"
"Haha, who do you think I am? So, how did it go..." Under Yu Tu's scrutinizing gaze, he trailed off and raised his hands in surrender. "Seriously, it wasn't me who said anything. Xia Qing went to Hangzhou for work and met up with Bao Bao. Isn't it normal to chat about you?"
"If you're that free, you should go abroad sooner. And," Yu Tu remembered to warn him, "cut the nonsense in front of Mian Hua from now on."
Zhai Liang was taken aback and protested loudly, "Mian Hua actually snitched on me? What's wrong with that girl?"
Feeling deeply betrayed, he decided to confront Mian Hua in the game later. "By the way, Qu Ming just called and invited us to dinner tomorrow night. 6:30 in Pudong. Let's go together."
"Tomorrow, I..."
Zhai Liang cut him off, displeased. "That cheapskate rarely treats anyone, and he's doing this to see me off. Don't embarrass me. All our college classmates in Shanghai are going."
Yu Tu nodded. "Fine, I'll go on my own tomorrow."
Many of Yu Tu and Zhai Liang's college classmates worked in the Lujiazui area, so the dinner was naturally nearby—just a ten-minute walk from Qiao Jingjing's home.
By the time Yu Tu arrived, almost everyone was there. The Western restaurant didn't have private rooms, so the seven or eight of them sat in a partitioned area, the atmosphere lively.
Qu Ming spotted him first and stood up, brimming with confidence. "Here comes the genius who dominated two majors."
Yu Tu wasn't particularly close to this classmate. During college, he had been buried in his studies, spending nearly every day in the library. Aside from roommates like Zhai Liang and Bao Bao, he hadn't been very sociable. Qu Ming, however, had always harbored noticeable animosity toward him. At first, Yu Tu didn't understand why, but it became clear after he and Xia Qing broke up post-graduation.
Qu Ming used to love mocking him with that same line, but now, with his beaming smile, it was hard to tell if he meant it sincerely or not.
After greeting everyone, Yu Tu took a seat.
As they chatted casually, a classmate named Zhao Tian suddenly asked, "Qu Ming, didn't you say Xia Qing was coming? Why isn't she here yet?"
Yu Tu was startled.
Qu Ming smiled and pulled out his phone. "I'll call her right now."
He dialed the number. "Emma, why aren't you here yet? The restaurant is just a few steps from your hotel."
Whatever was said on the other end made his smile fade gradually, though he eventually chuckled again. "Alright, alright, no problem. We'll catch up next time."
After he hung up, Zhai Liang asked, "What, is Beauty Xia not coming?"
"She said she had an urgent matter in Beijing tonight and just left for the airport."
Zhao Tian sounded puzzled. "She didn't tell you?"
"Haha, she said she was just about to call me.""It's been a while since we last saw her." Someone expressed disappointment.
Another classmate said, "Xia Qing is apologizing to us in the WeChat group."
Zhai Liang quickly checked WeChat and saw Xia Qing sending a message, "Sorry, classmates in Shanghai. I had originally planned to meet up with everyone today, but I had an urgent matter yesterday and had to return to Beijing. I forgot to inform you."
"My apologies, this meal is on me. Send me the bill later. @Qu Ming."
Everyone present was sharp enough to immediately understand that Qu Ming had been stood up by Xia Qing—she had already returned to Beijing yesterday and completely forgotten to tell him.
Qu Ming, however, reacted quickly. "I must have misheard on the phone and thought she was leaving today. Come on, let's order." He gestured for the waiter.
Zhai Liang nudged Yu Tu discreetly and whispered, "Did you know Xia Qing went back to Beijing yesterday?"
Yu Tu lowered his gaze to his tea, not denying it.
"His real intention was not the wine—he probably organized this gathering for Xia Qing," Zhai Liang felt the logic was solid. "If he invited Xia Qing alone, she'd definitely ignore him, so he used my farewell as an excuse for a class reunion. But why did he invite you? Isn't he afraid of being completely overshadowed?"
Soon, however, he understood why Qu Ming dared to invite Yu Tu. Because, clearly, Yu Tu was no longer seen as a threat in Qu Ming's eyes.
Before all the dishes had even arrived, Qu Ming targeted Yu Tu with a somewhat flippant tone, "I ran into someone from the parallel class the other day and heard you're starting work at his place next month, Yu Tu?"
"Who from the parallel class?" a classmate asked curiously.
"Ren Wang from Zhongx, the state-owned enterprise."
Zhao Tian sounded puzzled, "Isn't Yu Tu at the aerospace institute?"
"Planning to resign, right?" Qu Ming looked at Yu Tu with a hint of condescension. "But starting fresh now, you'll have to begin from the bottom, won't you? I heard from Ren Wang that you're getting the same salary as a fresh graduate?"
The table fell silent.
Then Qu Ming continued blabbering, "Yu Tu, why don't you try our foreign investment bank? The pay is much higher here. Otherwise, how can you manage in Shanghai on three to five hundred thousand a year? And working under that guy Ren Wang—his grades were terrible back then. It's kind of embarrassing for us classmates, isn't it?"
With Yu Tu absent, Qiao Jingjing gleefully picked Wang Zhaojun and went into matchmaking mode herself. She deeply believed that after such intensive training, she could easily crush some newbies. Unexpectedly, she encountered teammates even worse than her and got completely demolished by the enemy for two consecutive rounds.
Just as she was fuming, Xiao Zhu called.
"Jingjing, I went to Anne's to buy salad, guess who I ran into?" Xiao Zhu's voice was deliberately hushed.
"Eighty Heroes' Head Coach, Teacher Yu."
Xiao Zhu: "...You knew?"
"Obviously, I remembered their salad because I knew he was eating there. By the way, just buy the salad and come back. Don't go looking for Edward, or he'll refuse to take money again."
Edward was the owner of that Western restaurant, whom Qiao Jingjing knew.
"Got it, I've bought it and will bring it to you right away." Xiao Zhu continued, "I was just sitting there waiting for the salad and ordered some other snacks too. I happened to be right next to Teacher Yu, but there were some plants between us, so he didn't see me."
"Don't go bothering him.""Of course not But I saw his friends weren't very friendly toward him. One even mocked him with really harsh words. I was furious."
Qiao Jingjing frowned.
In the Western restaurant.
Zhai Liang was so angry he almost jumped up. "Yu Tu works in a confidential unit. After resigning, there's a declassification period where he can't join foreign companies. If you don't understand, don't talk nonsense. Don't take out your anger from being stood up by Xia Qing on..."
Yu Tu stopped him, looking calmly at Qu Ming. "Do you only plan to live until thirty?"
Qu Ming was provoked by what Zhai Liang said. "What do you mean?"
Yu Tu: "Then why are you in such a hurry? There's still plenty of time. Let's see again in a year."
"Hah." Qu Ming sneered. "I know you great scientists look down on us finance guys, but our industry isn't an easy place to make it either."
Yu Tu said politely, "You don't need to include the first 'us'."
Qu Ming was livid. "You!"
Yu Tu calmly raised his glass toward him.
Zhai Liang was still fuming, and everyone else also felt Qu Ming had gone too far. Just as they were about to smooth things over, a waiter approached their table carrying a bottle of wine.
His eyes quickly scanned everyone at the table, then he accurately smiled at Yu Tu and said, "Mr. Yu, I've brought the wine that you and Miss Qiao stored here last time."
Yu Tu was taken aback. The waiter had already placed the wine along with an ice bucket on the table, then served two plates of thinly sliced ham.
"This is from our owner to Mr. Yu. Please enjoy." He smiled and withdrew.
Everyone was momentarily confused by this sudden development.
"Yu Tu, you've been here before." Zhao Tian, who knew more about wine, picked up the bottle to look and couldn't help exclaiming, "Romanee Conti?"
Aside from Yu Tu, everyone present worked in finance. How could they not know about wine? Of course they knew about such a famous and expensive wine. But knowing about it was one thing - actually seeing it was another matter. They all became a little excited.
"Let me see, let me see."
"Yu Tu, you've been hiding your talents! How much does this bottle cost?"
"Must be at least six figures."
Zhai Liang also looked at Yu Tu in surprise.
Yu Tu's gaze fell on the wine bottle. Suddenly he smiled and said, "I have something else to attend to, so I'll take my leave today. Please continue chatting."
Everyone was stunned as they watched Yu Tu stand up, take his coat, put it on calmly, then pick up that bottle of wine. Without hurry, he bid farewell to everyone and left.
Wait!
...He actually took the wine with him?
Over ten minutes later, Qiao Jingjing perfectly echoed the silent exclamation in Yu Tu's classmates' hearts.
"You actually brought the wine back?!"
Yu Tu stood at the doorway. "Couldn't bear to let them drink it, so I brought it back."
Qiao Jingjing studied his expression and explained, "Knowing you were going there, I remembered that restaurant's salad and had Xiao Zhu go buy some. And then~~ you... don't mind me meddling, do you?"
Yu Tu raised an eyebrow slightly. "Do I seem that ungrateful?"
Qiao Jingjing's eyes immediately brightened. "I thought so too. So, was it satisfying? Were you happy?"
Yu Tu nodded. "To the degree of a successful rocket launch."
What kind of description was that! Qiao Jingjing almost laughed out loud. And feeling as good as a successful rocket launch...
"I feel like that's a bit dirty..."
Yu Tu didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "What are you imagining?""No, no," Qiao Jingjing quickly changed the subject, "Then~~ should we celebrate the rocket launch with a drink?"
A six-figure bottle of wine? Just as Yu Tu was about to refuse, he heard Qiao Jingjing say, "Though it only cost a few hundred, we still shouldn't waste it."
Yu Tu wondered if he had misheard: "A few hundred?"
"Of course! Do you think I'm stupid, casually treating strangers to such expensive wine?" Qiao Jingjing said triumphantly, "I know the owner of that shop—we filmed there before. This is an empty ** used during filming."
"..." Yu Tu was speechless.
"Drink or not? Anyway, I'm not gaming today. I just noticed I've developed a callus on my left thumb."
Yu Tu's response was to carry the wine inside and close the door.
Qiao Jingjing cheered and dashed to the kitchen, "I'll get the glasses."
However, they didn't start drinking immediately because Qiao Jingjing suddenly remembered a question.
How many calories are in red wine?
Alcohol seems high in calories, she quickly searched online. Fortunately, red wine has relatively low calories among alcoholic drinks—about 70 calories per 100 grams. Acceptable.
Then Qiao Jingjing wandered around the house with glasses, looking for the perfect spot to drink.
The balcony was too cold, the dining room too dull. In front of the floor-to-ceiling window would work, but it needed some atmosphere. So she brought over the rose from the dining table, dug out two candles from a drawer...
Perfect!
Yu Tu silently watched the time nearby. Twenty minutes later, he finally took his first sip of wine amidst flowers and candlelight.
They didn't stay up late that night, nor did they talk much. Yu Tu felt somewhat grateful that Qiao Jingjing didn't ask any probing questions. She merely complained intermittently about the wine tasting worse than rice wine, ranted about incompetent teammates in games, and happily amused herself by browsing her phone and taking selfies...
Beyond the floor-to-ceiling window shimmered Shanghai's most premium nightscape, yet he felt more relaxed than he had in a long time.
His phone kept buzzing with WeChat messages from Zhai Liang. He only checked them on his way home.
"Who is Miss Qiao?"
"Who is Miss Qiao, who who who?"
Miss Qiao...
Was a superstar who would weigh her wine with a kitchen scale to calculate the calories.
A former classmate he had just gotten to know again.
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