TuxedoTranslations

Chapter 22

Zhuang Yanyu noticed that the other side of the call had gone silent.

He checked his phone—no disconnection, full signal.

Why wasn’t there any sound?

Putting the phone back to his ear, he strained to listen.

The private room was noisy, with Chen Kang and Vice President Zhang engaging in a pretentious back-and-forth typical of business negotiations.

The background noise made it hard for Zhuang to tell if the silence was due to a signal issue or something else.

Deciding to step outside, he signaled to Supervisor Xu, who mouthed for him to stay safe.

Zhuang nodded, acknowledging the reminder, and exited the private room.

The hallway outside was quiet, with only a waitress standing by in case guests needed assistance.

Noticing that Zhuang was on a call, she merely smiled politely and stayed put.

Away from the noise, Zhuang could now make out Wen Chenxi’s soft breathing over the phone.

It was unmistakably his good friend’s breathing.

“Ah-Xi, are you still there?” Zhuang asked, puzzled.

After a five-second pause, Wen Chenxi finally replied, “Still here.”

“Why weren’t you talking just now?”

What was I supposed to say? Call you my little bro?

Wen Chenxi forced himself to stay composed. “Hm? Maybe I didn’t hear you clearly.”

Zhuang didn’t overthink it; bad signal was a common issue.

Still thinking about the term of endearment, he hesitated briefly before softly asking, “Did you hear what I said earlier?”

“What did you say?” Wen Chenxi asked, his tone steady.

Zhuang’s face heated up again, feeling a little embarrassed.

So this was what humans meant by feeling shy—hot all over, especially the face, like being wrapped in a warm towel radiating steam.

But Zhuang adapted quickly.

To bring their friendship to another level, having exclusive nicknames for each other seemed like a great idea.

For example, his dad, Old Comrade Zhuang, preferred to call him “Little Eleven” instead of his given name.

Pressing his lips together, Zhuang tentatively began, “It’s the little—”

Before he could finish, Wen Chenxi interrupted, “Xiaoyu, why’s it so quiet on your end?”

Successfully derailed, Zhuang obediently replied, “I’m outside.”

“Outside? Aren’t you supposed to be eating with them?”

“I’m just outside the private room; they’re still inside,” Zhuang explained.

“They’re from the Harbor Group, right? Hosting the dinner?”

Zhuang replied with a dissatisfied “Mm.” Clearly, Vice President Zhang’s earlier behavior still irked him.

The thought reminded him of the idea to raise their price, so he said, “Chen’s original quote wasn’t high, but based on the unethical bribe from their partner, I think we should raise it.”

“Chen Kang informed me,” Wen Chenxi said calmly. “The initial quote was indeed low. I support you—go ahead and raise it.”

Surprised by his friend’s support, Zhuang asked, “Aren’t you worried that if we raise it, they won’t work with us?”

Wen Chenxi chuckled.

He rarely laughed aloud—Zhuang had mostly seen him smile faintly.

But now, the soft laughter over the phone, slightly filtered through electronic processing, was deep and pleasant to the ear.

“They won’t,” Wen Chenxi said with certainty.

These past few days of meetings with leaders hadn’t been in vain.

The higher-ups were already aware that Azure Technologies held cutting-edge technology. If H City genuinely wanted to build a high-tech maritime hub, they needed something different from traditional terminals—and that technology was exclusively with Azure Technologies and Zhuang Yanyu.

Moreover, the policies made it clear: H City’s development was a top priority. The ambitious city plan, especially the 800,000-square-meter tech park, was proof.

Once completed, it would rank among the country’s top three industrial parks.

And Azure Technologies was the first major company the leaders wanted to bring in.

It’s impossible for Weilan Technology to invest and set up here while not supporting a single project for their collaboration.

So, in the end, Haigang Group will have to cooperate with them, unless they can come up with another new technology that can satisfy the leadership.

After listening to Wen Chenxi’s explanation, Zhuang Yanyu also made an estimate in his mind: “Then let Chen raise the price a bit.”

Wen Chenxi raised an eyebrow: “Just a bit?”

According to Wen Chenxi’s estimate, even a 20% increase would still be lower than the current market price.

After all, this technology is exclusive to them at the moment, and the cost of setting up and operating the entire dock’s fully automated server is not cheap. They’ll also need to maintain it later.

This fish is still a bit too kind.

Zhuang Yanyu said, “Weilan Technology will need to build factories and offices to set up in the tech park, right?”

Wen Chenxi smiled: “So, you mean, let Haigang Group build them?”

Zhuang Yanyu nodded: “Yes, and when they build for us, the price should be at least 20% lower than the market.”

Raise the price here, lower it there, and the savings will be there!

Wen Chenxi chuckled: “Alright, we’ll do it your way.”

At this point, the conversation should have ended.

Because the people in the private room were probably starting to eat by now.

But Zhuang Yanyu was still standing there, not hanging up, and clearly didn’t want to go back to the private room.

Wen Chenxi seemed to understand his thoughts and asked softly, “You don’t want to eat with them?”

Zhuang Yanyu didn’t hide it: “No.”

Wen Chenxi: “Then should I come pick you up?”

Zhuang Yanyu was taken aback: “You’re coming to pick me up?”

Wen Chenxi’s voice was gentle: “My work is done, and I don’t have anything else planned tonight. If you don’t want to eat with them, would you like to have dinner with me?”

Zhuang Yanyu, who had been a bit down just now, immediately brightened up: “Yes.”

Actually, Zhuang Yanyu had wanted to leave directly earlier.

But since Supervisor Xu, General Chen, and a few other colleagues were still there, it wouldn’t have been very polite to just leave without saying anything. But he couldn’t find another excuse.

Now, though, he had a perfect excuse.

Wen Chenxi kindly said, “Then send me the address.”

Zhuang Yanyu lowered his head and sent him a location via WeChat.

Wen Chenxi looked at the location: “It’s very close, about 15 minutes to get there.”

Zhuang Yanyu: “I’ll wait for you downstairs. I’ll go back and tell them first. I’ll hang up now.”

At this moment, he was ready to hang up, completely without the hesitation he had before.

Wen Chenxi: “You don’t have to hang up.”

Zhuang Yanyu: “Don’t need to hang up?”

Zhuang Yanyu glanced at his phone’s battery. He wasn’t one to spend a lot of time on his phone. He had left home with a full charge, but after messaging and calling his friends, his battery had drained quite a bit. He had 30% left now.

Wen Chenxi: “Hmm, didn’t you say you were going downstairs to wait for me?”

Zhuang Yanyu: “Yes.”

Wen Chenxi: “So, when you said you were going downstairs to wait for me—”

He paused for a moment and said, “I’ll keep you company while you wait.”

Zhuang Yanyu found it a bit strange. Wait with him… himself?

It was a bit odd, but Zhuang Yanyu unconditionally supported his good brother in doing anything.

After all, he only had one brother, right?

He didn’t hesitate any longer, didn’t try to hang up, and took his phone into the private room.

Supervisor Xu saw him come in and, thinking he was done with the call, looked up and greeted him: “Xiao Zhuang, come on over. Why did you talk for so long? Are you hungry? I’ve already prepared some soup for you.”

Vice President Zhang, relieved to see him back, also smiled and said, “Look at the menu and see what you want to eat. We can add more dishes. I heard you like lighter food. Want me to recommend a few dishes?”

Zhuang Yanyu first sincerely thanked Supervisor Xu, then said, “You all eat, I might need to leave first.”

Everyone was taken aback and looked at him.

Vice President Zhang cursed inwardly. “He’s not really going to leave and raise the price again, is he? Doesn’t even want to talk anymore?”

The young man has no sense of business—weren’t they supposed to discuss everything and move to the next step?

I can bargain, you can bargain!

Supervisor Xu asked with concern, “Xiao Zhuang, where are you going later?”

Zhuang Yanyu didn’t hide anything: “My brother is coming to pick me up. I’m going downstairs to meet him.”

Chen Kang exchanged a glance with Supervisor Xu, then stood up with him: “I see. You’re unfamiliar with the area, and we don’t feel comfortable letting you go down alone. Vice President Zhang, we’ll escort Xiao Zhuang downstairs, and we’ll come back up in a bit.”

Vice President Zhang understood. He knew they wanted to ask about what had happened in the restroom.

Now that Zhuang Yanyu, a key technical member, was about to leave, they had to report to the company about what had happened.

So, he politely agreed.

Everyone understood without saying a word.

When they left the private room and escorted Zhuang Yanyu downstairs, Chen Kang indeed asked him what Vice President Zhang had said in the restroom.

Zhuang Yanyu didn’t hide anything, telling him everything, including what Vice President Zhang had said about taking kickbacks.

Chen Kang patted his shoulder, saying with satisfaction, “You did the right thing refusing. Xiao Zhuang, don’t worry, when the project is completed, you’ll get a big bonus. And you need to believe in the future of Weilan Technology. You’re just starting. When you lead your own team later, you won’t care about this small change.”

Zhuang Yanyu: “I know.”

After all, he wanted his brother to make money, not himself.

Supervisor Xu, more concerned about his personal matters, asked, “You said your brother is coming to pick you up? Your brother is in H City? Isn’t he in A City?”

Zhuang Yanyu nodded: “Yes, he’s here now too.”

Chen Kang suddenly thought of something: “Don’t tell me that brother of yours, the one you insisted on giving the steel rebar to when you were drunk?”

Zhuang Yanyu was momentarily confused: “What?”

He did something like that when he was drunk?

Chen Kang laughed: “You don’t remember?”

Zhuang Yanyu really didn’t remember. He asked blankly, “What did I do?”

Chen Kang and Supervisor Xu then explained the whole thing, laughing as they told him about how he had insisted on taking a steel rebar back with him and refused to go home until he had it.

Zhuang Yanyu: “??”

Zhuang Yanyu’s face instantly turned bright red.

He felt like his brain was about to fry.

How could he have done something like that?

And then, the steel rebar he brought back… Did Ah Xi see it too?

Seeing Zhuang Yanyu’s shocked expression, Chen Kang laughed even harder.

Supervisor Xu cleared his throat a few times, trying to comfort him: “It’s fine, this sort of thing… everyone has their first time, you’ll get used to it, haha.”

Zhuang Yanyu: “Please, stop talking…”

No one told him that sometimes being a person means doing things that make you want to bury your face in the ground!

He not only wanted to bury his face, but he also wanted to dig a hole to crawl into.

Supervisor Xu: “Alright, alright, we won’t make fun of you. Really, this kind of thing is normal. I was like this when I was young, too.”

Chen Kang added: “But, after we analyzed it, do you think your brother might have needed steel rebar to build a house and asked you to lend him the money?”

Zhuang Yanyu wearily replied: “No, that’s not it.”

Chen Kang clapped his hands: “Aha! So I guessed right! Xiao Zhuang must have misremembered, right? It’s normal for your memory to get confused when you’re drunk.”

Zhuang Yanyu sighed: “I didn’t misremember. My brother really did mention wanting the rebar.”

He briefly explained the situation.

After hearing the explanation, Chen Kang clicked his tongue: “Your brother is really strange. Normal people’s wishes are either for wealth or for relationships, but your brother actually wanted a steel rebar… it’s a bit bizarre. Could it be that he meant to say he wanted a partner as strong as a steel rebar…?”

Chen Kang suddenly stopped speaking, as if he had thought of something.

He looked Zhuang Yanyu up and down.

Such a handsome and delicate young man, just lacking in emotional intelligence, sometimes a bit too straightforward.

Thinking about this…

Chen Kang: Damn.

It couldn’t be what he was thinking, right?

Zhuang Yanyu: “?”

Chen Kang, with a serious expression, said: “Xiao Zhuang, you need to stay away from your brother in the future!!”

Zhuang Yanyu: “Why?”

–

Author’s Note
PS:
Chen Kang (shouting desperately): He’s trying to hit on you, ah!

Wen Chenxi (on the phone): Should I remind you that I’m still on the phone with Yuyu?
(Thinking to himself: This is bad, Yuyu is going to realize I want to eat fish. Will he lie down and let me cook him?)

Lost in delusions—

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