Fifty-Six

Upon seeing the message, Su Hao’s drowsiness dissipated significantly. She held her phone, unsure how to respond. After a long while, she sat up, leaning against the headboard.

Still holding her phone, she wondered, is this a man who has someone in his heart?

About five minutes passed.

Su Hao finally typed.

Su Hao: No wonder you’re so familiar with Hui Jiang. How is she now?

Z: I also want to know how she is.

Z: How are you?

Su Hao: Of course, I’m fine.

Z: I missed her once, I don’t want to miss her a second time.

Su Hao: You have to fight for it.

Z: Thank you.

Su Hao: You’re welcome.

Z: Hui Jiang is a southern city that nurtured her gentle personality. Even when she’s gnashing her teeth, she’s still beautiful, making me infatuated.

Su Hao: Is that so? That’s great.

He must really like that girl to tell her everything and come to her, a person from Hui Jiang, to talk.

No wonder he asked about Hui Jiang right away. Su Hao felt a bit empty inside. She sat there for a while longer, he didn’t reply again, maybe because it was night.

Listening to someone else’s story, Su Hao felt a bit melancholic. A few seconds later, she hugged her knees, staring blankly at the fluttering curtain.

The next day, Su Hao overslept. Rushing with her breakfast, she arrived at the company, eating while working. The others, delayed by her lateness, ate breakfast beside her. After finishing, they noticed the roses at the side. Qi Qi nudged Su Hao, “Did you receive roses today?”

Su Hao turned her head to look.

Only then did she realize, in her hurry, she had accepted them when Uncle Lin handed them to her. Qi Qi took out the card inside and handed it to Su Hao.

Su Hao opened it.

Good morning

My Su Hao.

Keep up the good work today, how about beating me again?

—Zhou Yang.

Su Hao: “”

“Ugh! He’s at it again! That website spent money again!” Yan Chong, with bedhead, ran out, looking sleepy. “Let’s get him!”

Xiao Qi: “Let’s get him!”

Su Hao: “Okay.”

Qi Qi laughed so hard her shoulders shook, thankfully not seeing Su Hao’s card, or she would’ve realized the man chasing Su Hao was the same troublemaker.

Today, the opponent wasn’t so easy to deal with. It seemed like they found the knack, and the whole company was in a hectic mess all morning. The opponent likely switched to a different sales strategy. Su Hao and the opponent were almost evenly matched, but Su Hao made a ruthless move, removing some images and replacing them with buy-one-get-one-free links.

By almost noon, they finally reclaimed 40% of the traffic. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Su Hao slumped in her chair, picked up her phone, and saw Z’s goodnight message from last night.

Reviewing the chat log.

His feelings for the girl from Hui Jiang were still very intense.

Last night’s melancholy and emptiness had faded a lot now. She looked at her computer, realizing that work achievements could make her forget many things.

She glanced at Z’s profile picture before putting down her phone and continuing to work.

The weekend arrived quickly. Since they were staying a day in Dong City, Su Hao packed her luggage briefly and boarded the company’s team-building car.

Yan Chong rented a seven-seater minivan, just right for six people, and hired a driver. Su Hao sat in the back, near the window, when her phone rang.

It was Tang Yu.

Since Tang Yu’s birthday, when Su Hao was sent back by Zhou Yang, she hadn’t contacted Tang Yu much.

Tang Yu: How are you?

Tang Yu: That trader Tang Rui seems to be in some trouble recently. He’s handling Wen Jia’s subsidiary’s trades and is facing a critical situation.

Tang Yu: He’s having a tough time.

Su Hao: Is he okay?

Tang Yu: Not too well.

Su Hao: Thanks for letting me know.

Su Hao didn’t understand Tang Rui’s job but hesitated for a moment and sent him a WeChat message.

Su Hao: Tang Rui, are you okay?

Su Hao waited for a while, but there was no reply. She silently put down her phone, not thinking or asking further. The scenery outside the window flew by, and upon entering Dong City, the scenery was more beautiful than Li City, with fewer high-rise buildings. By around 1 PM, they arrived at the resort.

Everyone got off the car.

The weather was quite cool. Su Hao wore a light jacket and saw the steel cable between two mountains in the distance. Xiao Qi took off his hat, pointed at it, and said, “We’ll play there later. Nervous, Su Hao?”

Su Hao smiled, “Not really.”

“Don’t be nervous, we’re all here.” Xiao Qi patted Su Hao’s shoulder and turned to enter the hotel. Su Hao followed. Each person had their own room.

All rooms had large floor-to-ceiling windows and a balcony overlooking the swimming pool.

Su Hao sent a message to Cheng Ling to let her know she was safe, then went downstairs to eat. Solving the meal for six people was easy; they grabbed their food and all sat together to eat.

Xiao Qi said, "We need to climb for about an hour to reach the top. Do you want to take the cable car?"

Xiao Hua shook his head, "No, we rarely come here, so let's climb the mountain."

Qi Qi leaned against Yan Chong and nodded, "Right, we want to climb too."

Su Hao naturally had no objections either.

So, after finishing lunch, the group walked to the foot of the mountain, picked up a map, and started climbing. Su Hao's stamina was quite good, but the others seemed to struggle, stopping and starting frequently. Qi Qi saw Su Hao and clung to her arm, saying, "Hao Hao, you're really strong, you haven’t complained about being tired even once."

As they spent more time together, Qi Qi realized Su Hao was very mature and gentle. She rarely complained or showed fatigue, she was strong and seemed to have seen through everything and could handle anything.

Su Hao took a sip of water. The closer they got to the top, the louder the screams from people walking the tightrope became.

She glanced at Qi Qi and said, "I'm tired too, but saying it won’t help, better to save some energy."

Yan Chong glanced at Su Hao and poked Qi Qi, "You should learn from Su Hao."

"I can’t!" Qi Qi deliberately acted rebellious.

Seeing they were about to start bickering, Su Hao quickly walked a few steps ahead. Perhaps, if someone is there to support and care, complaining comes naturally. Finally, they reached the top.

Fortunately, there weren’t many people waiting. Xiao Qi and the others eagerly went to put on safety gear. The distance wasn’t very long.

Su Hao lagged behind, watching Xiao Qi and the others cross one after another. It seemed easy, but standing at the edge and looking down at the green mountains and waters below, it was vast and bottomless, making her legs feel weak. Qi Qi and Yan Chong crossed together.

Qi Qi screamed continuously up there.

Yan Chong supported her, saying, "Quick, take a few more steps and you’ll be across. Stop screaming, my eardrums are going to burst.”

"Ahhhhh—" Finally, they crossed. Qi Qi sat down on the other side, looked at Su Hao, and gestured, "Hao Hao, you shouldn’t come, go back the way you came, it’s too scary."

Su Hao was already in her gear. She pressed her lips together, smiled, and reassured Qi Qi.

Since she was already here, after crossing this tightrope, they could descend the mountain from the other side. Su Hao took a deep breath, and following the coach’s instructions, stepped onto the tightrope.

The moment she stepped on, her body wobbled, her legs felt weak. She glanced at the valley below, her vision darkened, and she froze, unsure of what to do.

"Su Hao, come over," Xiao Qi's voice echoed from the other side.

At this moment, the tightrope swayed. Su Hao turned to see a tall man in safety gear, wearing a white shirt and black trousers, a familiar watch on his wrist. He adjusted his collar and looked up, revealing his handsome and charming face. Su Hao was stunned.

Zhou Yang raised an eyebrow, grabbed the overhead handle with one hand, took a couple of steps, and said, "You’re pretty brave. Turn your body and move forward. Don’t look down."

When did he get here?

Su Hao couldn’t move her feet, tightly gripping the handle.

Every step he took made the tightrope sway. Su Hao swallowed nervously, unable to stop looking down. Zhou Yang reached her, lifted her chin, gently turned her body, and lightly supported her waist, whispering in her ear, "Move forward, don’t scare me. Your face is very pale."

Su Hao looked at Xiao Qi and Qi Qi on the other side. They were extremely anxious but kept looking at the man behind her.

His hand at her lower back gave Su Hao some support. She bit her lip, slowly taking her first step. "Good girl, keep going," Zhou Yang’s voice encouraged from above.

Su Hao swallowed again, her legs trembling. She carefully stepped forward. Several times she felt like she couldn’t find the tightrope, afraid she’d fall. His hand steadied her, bringing her back. Su Hao’s palms were sweaty as she looked at Xiao Qi and the others, inching her way to the other side.

Qi Qi grabbed her arm as soon as she stepped on the platform.

Su Hao’s knees were shaking. Zhou Yang stepped off behind her. Two coaches approached to help remove their safety gear.

Once freed, Su Hao took a few steps to the edge of the pavilion, taking deep breaths.

Suppressing her emotions, being understanding, taking care of her family, not wanting them to worry, working hard alone, always considerate, being abandoned—all of it felt like a string snapping in her mind.

Zhou Yang rolled up his sleeves, opened a bottle of water, and handed it to Su Hao, noticing she turned her head away. He gripped her shoulder, turning her back around, a tear drop falling on his hand.

Two streams of tears rolled down her cheeks. She furrowed her brow, trying to hide.

Zhou Yang threw the water aside and pulled her into his chest. The scent of fir trees comforted her, making her blurt out in a low voice, "I was scared to death."

Zhou Yang raised his hand, stroking her hair.

His fingers were trembling too.

"You made it. I was scared to death too."

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