Chapter Ninety-Seven: A Day with Tian Ni

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There’s a little story about a sage who traveled through the six states. One day, he arrived in the state of Qi and saw two men arguing over a hole in the wall. One insisted it was a “cavity,” the other called it an “eye.” Each firmly held their own view. When the sage arrived, they asked him what it was. The sage listened and laughed, saying, “It’s a cavity-eye.”

In this world, it’s impossible to find two identical eggs, even less likely to find two identical leaves, and certainly no two people are exactly the same. Each person’s life follows its own path, its own world.

Those who laugh at the infatuated are fools; those who laugh at the indifferent are cold-hearted; those who laugh at the wicked are sinister; those who laugh at the good are honest... There’s nothing unworthy of laughter in this world, and no one can definitively judge another’s life. Good or bad, right or wrong—only those living it truly understand.

The weather was gloomy, the humidity high, making everything feel damp and sticky. The stillness before the rain was so complete there wasn’t even a breath of wind. Waking early, the sky was already dark and forbidding. It seemed a heavy rain was imminent. In such oppressive moments, one longs for the storm to break freely and fiercely, because after the rain comes the rainbow, and the air afterward is fresh, free from the heaviness.

Tian Ni was jolted awake by her alarm clock, which never rang harshly—it played music. Her alarms, twelve in total, were shaped like the animals of the Chinese zodiac, all adorable cartoon figures.

This set of alarms was designed by Tian Ni herself and custom-made by a friend, truly one of a kind. It started with the sound of mountain spring water and birdsong, then mellow violin melodies like a cow’s gentle tune, followed by classic piano pieces, then rock music, and finally heavy metal.

Usually, Tian Ni woke up at the sound of the earlier tunes, but today she stirred only when the dog’s bark turned into wild rock music.

A gentle tap on the alarm silenced it. She had worked overtime at the company last night and only returned home late. The first thing she did upon waking was to check for dark circles under her eyes—fortunately, she still looked beautiful.

Quickly getting ready, Tian Ni turned on her computer and ordered breakfast through her housekeeper. She ate while browsing the news. Previously, she only caught up on news after arriving at the office, but lately, because of the Meihua incident and everything related to it, she checked news about it both before sleep and after waking.

Many media outlets had started attacking Xiao Tianci. Of course, in times like these, no one, not even the President of the United States, could escape criticism and curses. It had been several days, but Tian Ni still found it hard to believe that Meihua could really fall so far. Thinking of Xiao Tianci’s call, she felt both happy and confused. What exactly was she doing? Although she had delicately expressed her feelings to Xiao Tianci, why hadn’t she tried to stop him? Why had she allowed him to act so recklessly? Surely he had his reasons, but no matter the reasons, her own feelings should have urged her to intervene.

Xiao Tianci’s disappearance had become a hot topic, but the global financial storm was sweeping across the world, affecting countless lives directly or indirectly. Seeing no major updates, Tian Ni finished breakfast and drove from home to the office.

Her current residence was close to her original home—her parents’ house, to be precise. She passed it every day. Now, she walked the same path that Xiao Tianci had taken daily two years ago.

Her protection was designed not to interfere with her life—a minimal, unobtrusive style. Since she stayed fixed in one city, protection was easier to maintain. The National Martial Arts Bureau and the Supernatural Affairs Bureau were involved, but there were no visible bodyguards around her.

Having her own home was different; no matter how busy or tired she was, returning there brought a sense of ease. Yet often, the quietness felt too deep, a bit lonely, as the home still felt incomplete.

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She had come to know many things, including that she had been followed all these years. Driving, she couldn’t help but smile softly at the thought.

Her father had come looking for her, but she hadn’t seen him. She truly didn’t know how to face him. Perhaps at the start, she would have argued fiercely, shouted to vent her anger, at least to make him aware of her feelings. But now, that impulse was gone. She could no longer summon hatred, though some frustration lingered.

What she and Tianci had was like running a ten-thousand-meter race: starting with a flight, finishing the race at the end, then turning back to the start line to begin again, step by step.

Thinking of Xiao Tianci, her heart remained restless. Thoughts flooded in, and lately, she found herself wanting to see him more and more. She had initiated contact, asking him to come back, but he said he had matters to attend to. Meihua’s trouble ignited her anger, yet she was powerless.

On the way, they talked about the company until the elevator ride ended and the call disconnected. Tian Ni felt invigorated. Though today’s workload was heavy, she was confident. Remembering a joke Xiao Tianci had told, she laughed quietly to herself—fortunately, she had a private elevator with no one else around.

Ah… this feeling—it seemed she was truly in love. Thinking this, she was unsure whether to feel happy or troubled. After all, she was already married. But her marriage was strange, almost a secret. The spectacle at the time was so grand it seemed the whole world knew, yet except for her family, no one around her knew she was married.

When out with old friends discussing beauty treatments and certain topics, she rarely spoke anymore, causing her friends to comment that she’d matured and become steadier recently.

“General Manager, these are your flowers,” the secretary said, handing her a card. Tian Ni guessed immediately—they were from Dongfang Yi, inviting her out again.

What to do? She was married now. Although she had told him long ago that she didn’t have those feelings for him, that they were just friends, Dongfang Yi had said, “You don’t have to like me, but I have the right to pursue you.”

He had chased her since college, but Tian Ni never felt anything for him. Yet lately, whenever she saw flowers, gifts, or invitations from him, she felt strange inside. She wondered if Xiao Tianci found out, would he be unhappy? Maybe she should just tell him everything and let it go. But with so much going on recently, she hadn’t found the time to talk to Dongfang Yi.

“Take them away, handle it as you see fit,” she told the secretary, then called Dongfang Yi.

“Dongfang... thank you for the flowers, but... please don’t send them anymore,” she said gently, not wanting to hurt her longtime friend.

Over the years, she had said this many times. Dongfang Yi laughed habitually, “Haha... alright, then I’ll try something new.”

Tian Ni sighed and looked up, troubled. Dongfang Yi asked, “Are you free today? I’m going abroad tomorrow for a while.”

Today, she really wasn’t free. A project she had been working on was to be signed with a client today. Otherwise, she would have liked to meet and talk things over properly.

“Sorry, Dongfang, I have to sign a contract with a client today, so…”

Dongfang Yi understood: “I know you’ve been busy with work, but work is important, and so is your health. Take care of yourself. When I return from abroad, we’ll meet.”

“Alright, I have something I want to discuss with you then.”

“Oh? What good news? Can you give me a hint?”

“Well… not convenient to say over the phone. We’ll talk when you’re back.”

“Okay. By the way, what gift should I bring back for you?”

“No need. I have business to discuss when you return.” Tian Ni hung up, shaking her head helplessly. She didn’t want to hurt him, but she couldn’t keep postponing forever. She had already delayed for so many years. Before, it didn’t matter. She hadn’t thought much about it and only occasionally lost her temper when he pressed too hard, but soon forgot.

Now, she felt it was a kind of guilt. She kept telling herself that she needed to end it decisively—clear things up once and for all.

The secretary came in with several documents: “General Manager, these are files from the Planning and Public Relations departments regarding the company’s strategy to cope with the financial storm’s impact.”

Tian Ni glanced over them. “Good. I’ll review them later. Notify the department managers to hold a meeting. This contract absolutely cannot go wrong. You personally oversee today’s signing—make sure every detail is perfect. Tell everyone: if anyone messes this up, they’re out.”

The secretary nodded and left, sticking her tongue out as she went. It seemed the rumor was true: the boss needed a boyfriend. So beautiful, working overtime every day—what a waste! If she were that pretty, she’d have married a rich husband long ago instead of working herself to exhaustion here.

Tian Ni began another day of work. For this multi-million contract, everyone had been working several nights without rest. In this unstable economy, such contracts were hard to come by.

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