Volume One, Chapter 11: The Mature Lady Mei

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Hearing a knock at the door, I was momentarily stunned. I hadn’t expected anyone to be knocking so late. Walking over, I peered through the peephole and saw Zhou Shutong’s beautiful face. Only then did I lower my guard and open the door, asking warily, “It’s so late, aren’t you asleep yet?”

Zhou Shutong waved the takeout in her hand and smiled brightly. “I just finished my livestream and heard the door open here, so I thought I’d come by and have a late-night snack together.”

I stepped aside to let her in. She wrinkled her delicate nose and asked, “Have you been drinking?”

“Yeah, I just had a few drinks with friends outside. Just got back.”

Zhou Shutong covered her mouth in laughter. “I was worried you might be in a bad mood, but I guess that worry was unnecessary. You had a beauty to keep you company, huh?”

I was taken aback. “How did you know the one I was drinking with was a woman?”

She raised her elegant brows. “You smell like perfume!”

I couldn’t help but chuckle quietly. “Well, your nose is pretty keen!”

Zhou Shutong opened the late-night snacks and handed me a slice of pizza. “Can you still eat?”

Actually, I was a bit hungry. At the flight attendant’s place, I had been drinking without eating, just filling up on liquid.

Patting my stomach, I smiled, “My stomach’s like 128 gigabytes—there’s nothing I can’t eat.”

She took a graceful bite of pizza and said, “Do you have time for a second interview tomorrow afternoon? It’s still at two o’clock.”

I was momentarily stunned, recalling the arrogant attitude of the interviewer earlier that day and couldn’t help but smile bitterly. “I thought I was out of the running!”

Zhou Shutong sighed. “Yang Shao... oh, Tony Yang—that was just the first round. He’s always like that; don’t mind him. I showed the system you developed to the big boss, and she’s very interested. She scheduled the second interview for you tomorrow afternoon.”

Though she didn’t say it outright, it was clear that the chance for a second interview was entirely thanks to her efforts. Yang Shao’s attitude had annoyed me, and I hadn’t even planned to go back. But Zhou Shutong worked so hard to secure this opportunity for me, so I didn’t want to disappoint her. I nodded and agreed.

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This time, I took a much more relaxed approach to the second interview, unlike last time when I had such high hopes. Strangely, lowering my expectations made me feel much lighter.

Just as I stepped out and was about to head downstairs, I heard the door next door open.

Zhou Shutong stepped out with calm elegance, wearing a pale yellow, understated long dress. Her black hair was swept to the side, framing her heart-shaped face with a captivating charm.

“I just sent you a message on WeChat. Didn’t see it?”

I pulled out my phone and saw it was true. Smiling wryly, I said, “Sorry, I forgot to turn off silent mode. You’re heading to the company so early?”

She nodded gently. “Yeah, aren’t you meeting the big boss today? I’ll go with you so that Yang Shao doesn’t say anything bad about you.”

My heart warmed. Even though my job hunt was still far from settled, I was already grateful for how much Zhou Shutong cared.

When we got downstairs, she suddenly asked if I could drive. After I confirmed, she smiled radiantly.

“That’s great. You drive! I’ll take a nap in the car. I got up too early today and didn’t sleep enough.”

She tossed me the electronic key. I took it and saw the four-ring emblem of an Audi Q4. I was momentarily dazed.

I really hadn’t expected her to drive a Q4. It seemed that being an internet celebrity was quite lucrative. While surprised, I couldn’t help but wonder: if she was so well-off, why did she choose to live in this old neighborhood rather than a high-end apartment?

Shortly after getting in, Zhou Shutong fell asleep. Her sleeping posture was sweet. Her fluffy black hair made her skin appear even paler. Sunlight streamed through the window, casting a tempting blush on her cheeks.

Seeing the fatigue in her eyes, I felt a little guilty. If it weren’t for me, she’d probably still be sleeping soundly at home right now.

After about half an hour of driving, we arrived at the parking lot beneath her company. Since it was still early, I wanted her to rest a bit longer and didn’t wake her. I took out my phone and began typing, updating today’s chapter.

After another ten minutes, Zhou Shutong slowly awoke, her eyes still a little hazy. She stretched, glanced at her watch, and said lightly, “Why didn’t you wake me up earlier?”

I silently put away my phone and smiled. “It was still early. I wanted you to get some more rest.”

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We got out of the car and headed toward the company. Zhou Shutong said she came to the office once or twice a week; the rest of the time she livestreamed at home. It was clear she was well-liked—as soon as we entered the building, people greeted her warmly.

Zhou Shutong led me into a meeting room. She smiled and said, “Wait here for a moment. I’ll check if General Manager Mei is available.”

Not long after she left, she returned with Yang Shao and a tall, mature woman.

The woman wore a sleek black business suit. Her sharp, striking face paired with alluring eyes radiated calm composure, as if unshaken by praise or blame—a grace as fleeting as the wind.

She was well-maintained, her skin as white as milk, appearing around twenty-eight or twenty-nine. Yet the corners of her eyes and brows hinted at the traces of time.

Zhou Shutong beamed as she introduced us. “Let me introduce you. This is General Manager Mei—just call her GM Mei. GM Mei, this is Yu Bin, the developer of the software I told you about.”

GM Mei smiled with a fresh, pleasant expression that put me at ease. “I’ve seen the software you designed. It’s excellent and really solves the challenges we’re facing. We’ll purchase the system, and you’ll continue to provide after-sales support...”

From our conversation, I sensed she was highly competent—someone who had risen through the ranks from the ground up, unlike Yang Shao, who was all talk and no experience. Talking with someone so knowledgeable was a pleasure. Soon, we finalized the system price and contract details.

“For this system, based on market rates, I can offer you twenty thousand yuan for one year of usage. If we continue after a year, we’ll renew the contract. Does that work for you?”

I nodded, my admiration for GM Mei rising even further.

Twenty thousand yuan was within my expectations, even a bit higher than I anticipated. Usually, systems like this for inventory management go for around fifteen thousand. Her direct offer of twenty thousand left no room for bargaining.

Just as I was about to agree, Yang Shao, who had been silent all along, suddenly spoke up, interrupting me.

“GM Mei, if I may, I’ve received another offer for a warehouse management system at thirteen thousand yuan. Would you like to consider that?”