The day after seeing off the agency rep, Shang Zhitao really did start working her contacts.
She opened her address book and called them one by one. "Hello, this is Shang Zhitao."
"You're asking whether the pandemic has affected our company? It's complicated. There's been an impact, but we're still doing business."
"Not only are we still doing business, we've gotten our internet advertising license. So how about Director Wang shifts a bit of budget over to try us out?"
She repeated these lines over and over without growing tired of it. Some people agreed, some refused. It didn't matter. As long as someone said yes, that was a good start.
She had no idea that while she was making her calls, Luan Nian was also on the phone at home.
He was a man who had never deigned to work connections, too proud for that his whole life. But today he lowered his head and started calling people, and the first call went to Jiang Lan.
Jiang Lan picked up and asked him, "What's going on? It's rare for you to call me first."
"Do your regional branches handle ad budgets separately?"
"Yes, it's allocated out and each branch draws on it as needed."
"A friend of mine opened an agency in Ice City. Want to try shifting some budget her way?" Luan Nian wasn't in the mood for pleasantries. "I'll put it this way. I'm introducing you to the most professional internet advertising team in the business."
Jiang Lan laughed. "Say no more, I get it. Shang Zhitao. Fine. You owe me one."
"I'll take you to dinner."
"Deal."
Luan Nian made call after call. He passed Fu Dong's number to clients and friends and had Fu Dong handle the follow up. Fu Dong was grateful. "I have to tell the boss about this."
"Don't." Luan Nian told him, "Don't tell her. I'm only making the introduction. Whether it works out is up to how well you negotiate. If you succeed, it's the result of your own effort. There's no need to tell Shang Zhitao. No need at all."
That was what he said. But every one of the dozen or so contacts he passed along to Fu Dong ended up shifting their budgets, without exception.
Shang Zhitao's internet advertising agency business had officially launched.
She had run into a new lane, one where she had to learn a whole new business logic, and there was a great deal she didn't understand. She asked her channel manager to stay in Ice City instead of going back, set him up with an office at the company, and went to find him something like eight hundred times a day. She was humble and sincere about it, put real effort into learning the business, and the channel manager was willing to teach her. Within a month, Shang Zhitao had brought more than twenty clients online. She was like someone possessed, scrolling through ads on the app every day with her phone in hand, discussing ad placements with her staff as she went. They ran things down to the finest detail, tracking exactly which hours saw the most traffic, and in just a month they'd become the benchmark in the supermarket retail category.
In his report, the channel manager said, "This new agency in Ice City is extremely professional. I think we should hand them other license categories too."
Through her own effort and that of her whole staff, Shang Zhitao won her first battle, and with it, respect.
While she went without rest seeing clients and running campaigns, Luan Nian came three times, but the two of them never crossed paths. All three times, Shang Zhitao happened to be out of town, once with her team on a retreat, twice to see clients. It might have looked deliberate, as if she were avoiding him, but Luan Nian didn't mind. He still stayed in her guest room every time, went to the supermarket to fill her fridge, spent two full days with Luke, and before he left he'd cook something and leave it in the fridge for Luke. A couple of times he made a few dishes so that when Shang Zhitao got home, all she had to do was heat them up.
They still didn't talk much. Luan Nian kept things within reasonable bounds, careful never to add to her worries.
Sometimes his friends teased him. "Off to Ice City every week, and what do you have to show for it? She still won't even look at you." Even as they laughed at him, they worried on his behalf. Chen Kuannian said, "Can an iron tree bloom? Can Luan Nian ever get a kiss out of his little peach?"
"Luan Nian could just castrate himself," Tan Mian said. "He's not using it for anything anyway."
Luan Nian said nothing while they talked like this, just sat there, seemingly lost in thought. He'd asked Fu Dong once, "How often does your boss go on dates?"
"Our boss? She doesn't get off work until past ten. Where would she even go on a date?"
Sometimes the two of them exchanged a few words.
Shang Zhitao would run into logic she couldn't work out, things even the channel manager couldn't explain clearly, and in her frustration she'd call Luan Nian. "I want to ask you something."
"Go ahead."
"The model we're running for the fast moving consumer goods lane doesn't seem right."
"What's wrong with it?"
"I just feel like the placement logic is off."
"Send it over, let me take a look."
Shang Zhitao sent him the whole plan and the data. He glanced at it and said, "Shang Zhitao, are you too tired to think straight? Look at it yourself. Does your target audience even match the product?"
"If your head's too tired, take a break once in a while. Don't run it into the ground."
"Oh. That's what it was." Shang Zhitao pulled up the product information again and, sure enough, the mistake went all the way back to the source. Solving the problem lifted her mood a little, and she told Luan Nian, "Thanks. I really didn't expect your brain would still work this well, so close to forty."
Then she hung up.
Twice in a row now, Shang Zhitao had teased him about his age, as if reminding him that his best years were behind him. Luan Nian shrugged it off. But one day, flipping through a magazine, he came across an ad, plain white board with black text: "Who doesn't like a younger man?"
Luan Nian stared at the picture for a long while, then swore. "What kind of garbage ad is this."
He called Shang Zhitao. "Let me ask you something. Do you like younger men?"
"Huh?" The question caught her off guard.
"Young, handsome younger men."
Shang Zhitao finally caught on. "Who doesn't like a younger man?"
"You've got a screw loose." Luan Nian snapped and hung up.
Shang Zhitao held the phone, stunned for a moment, then burst out laughing.
"Boss, what are you doing?" Fu Dong asked her.
"Someone's being weird."
The next day, Luan Nian's social media feed, which never had anything on it, suddenly had a photo. It was a magazine cover shoot, him in a black shirt, leaning against a sofa, collar loosely open, a hint of his chest showing, the lines of his body on full display.
The comments were quite something.
Song Qiuhan: Is this a marriage ad on your feed?
Tan Mian: Empty nest senior seeking companionship?
Chen Kuannian: @Shang Zhitao
Shang Zhitao was friends with both Chen Kuannian and Song Qiuhan, so of course she saw the comments on Luan Nian's post. She tapped to enlarge the photo and thought to herself that this man was probably always going to be like this. At twenty, the kind of young man who gave people no peace. At thirty or forty, the kind of middle aged man who gave people no peace. Even at seventy or eighty, he'd probably still be a troublesome old man who gave people no peace. How had heaven been so generous to him?
She thought that was the end of it, but Chen Kuannian messaged her directly and asked, "Well? Think you could manage to sleep with him?"
Shang Zhitao was nearly done in by that. "Wouldn't dare, wouldn't dare."
"What's there not to dare? It's not like you haven't slept together before." He really was worried for his brother. At this rate Luan Nian was going to end up alone for good. And the man was too proud to ever bow his head. Week after week he went to Ice City to see the dog, fine, look at the dog then, but he couldn't even manage to see the person. Anyone who didn't know better would think it was really the dog he loved.
"By the way, you've started an ad company, haven't you?" Chen Kuannian asked her.
"That's right."
"I have a friend in Ice City who does jewelry. I'm heading over soon, you two should talk."
"Sure, thank you, Director Chen. Dinner's on me."
"Deal."
The friends decided Luan Nian clearly couldn't manage this on his own, so they worked out a plan, taking turns bringing him to Ice City under the pretext of introducing clients. That way, Shang Zhitao, you can't keep avoiding him, can you?
Chen Kuannian said he'd go, and true to his word, he got moving, contacted his friend first, and when it came time to book tickets, bought two on the spot and sent them to the group chat. "Your boy's escorting Director Luan on his quest to win back his wife. Paying my own way too. I hope Director Luan remembers this kindness and buys me plenty of drinks later."
"Nonsense," Luan Nian shot back.
Still, he went along with it.
It turned out the client's pull was worth something. Shang Zhitao really hadn't gone anywhere, and she even came to the airport to pick up Chen Kuannian. Luan Nian walked beside Chen Kuannian and saw Shang Zhitao, whom he hadn't seen in a while, wearing a pair of large sunglasses.
When she took them off, her eyes showed the toll of too many late nights.
"Sorry about this. The business only just launched and there's a lot I still haven't sorted out. I've pulled a few all nighters, I probably look a bit of a mess," Shang Zhitao apologized to them. She sometimes found herself sighing over it, no longer the woman in her early twenties who could pull all nighters and still look fresh after washing her face and dabbing on a bit of foundation in the morning.
Something in Luan Nian ached a little at that. But he wasn't going to say what's the point of all this, is it about money, I have money. He wasn't going to say things like that anymore. If Shang Zhitao wanted to pursue her own value in life, that in itself was a fine thing.
When they got in the car, Chen Kuannian pretended to head for the front passenger seat, but Luan Nian slapped his hand off the door handle, and he laughed it off and obediently climbed into the back.
This time none of them bothered with the polite formalities of a first meeting. Shang Zhitao took Chen Kuannian and Luan Nian straight to the old tavern for drinks, with Fu Dong along for company. When Big Zhai saw Luan Nian, he turned and headed for the kitchen. "Taotao's ex boyfriend is here."
Old Shang heard that and came out, finally getting a look at Luan Nian.
He turned and walked back in, and to everyone's surprise, he was smiling.
Big Zhai didn't understand it and asked him, "What are you smiling about?"
"I'm smiling because Taotao's dated her way through so many." He jutted his chin toward the door. "Decent looking, at least, for someone that age. Aside from that, I suppose he'll do."
Shang Zhitao came in to say hello and caught the tail end of her parents' whispered conversation. She cleared her throat. "Get back to work! A few more days and they'll shut us down for the pandemic again, and then we'll really be out of luck!"
Big Zhai flicked her forehead. "So much to say. Your dad's been so worked up lately he can't sleep."
"I'm joking, what's there to be worked up about? If we don't make money, we don't make money, worst case we just close up shop."
"Don't. I can't sit still doing nothing. Business has been much better lately anyway."
Shang Zhitao carried out a plate of peanuts and set it in front of Luan Nian. "Here, Director Luan likes these."
"Your company's hospitality gets worse every time."
"Even the Party promotes thrift and hard work!" Shang Zhitao shot back, refusing to back down.
Chen Kuannian watched Luan Nian get bested and snickered on the side, live streaming the exchange to their group chat with the caption: "Every single word a fight to the death. No wonder he's doomed to die alone."
Luan Nian's friends were reliable, if they said they'd handle something, they handled it. Still mid meal, the other side had already sent over a time and place and worked out the meeting details.
"Not drinking?" Chen Kuannian asked her. "Still on your meds?"
"Two men can't get enough out of drinking with you?" Luan Nian said to him. "You go on and on about drinking every day, no wonder Xiao makes you sleep on the couch." Drinking on top of no sleep, wasn't that just asking to drop dead? What business was worth risking your life for?
Chen Kuannian just chuckled.
As they ate, Luan Nian stood to pay the bill. Big Zhai slapped a QR code sign flat on the table. "This one's on Taotao. No need to pay."
Luan Nian picked up his phone, scanned it anyway, and asked Big Zhai, "How much do I owe?"
"No need to make such a fuss about it." Big Zhai took his phone from him and closed the payment page. "Go eat, and drink a little less from now on."
"Alright." Luan Nian agreed, then added, "Thank you."
After the meal, they headed out.
Chen Kuannian asked Luan Nian, "You've got more business to handle again?"
"Yes."
"Got it, go on then!"
Luan Nian walked beside Shang Zhitao. He'd had a little to drink, and his face was faintly flushed.
"How's business going for you?" he asked Shang Zhitao.
"Not bad." Shang Zhitao told him, "Fu Dong told me a lot of the clients we've brought on lately came through you."
"Mm."
"Thanks for that."
"Don't mention it."
Once inside, Shang Zhitao curled up on the sofa while Luan Nian took Luke out for a walk. He kept the walk long, and ran into Shang Zhitao's neighbor along the way. The two of them had crossed paths a few times before, enough that the neighbor felt on familiar terms with him, and while waiting for the elevator she asked, "So when's the wedding?"
"Next year," Luan Nian said without thinking.
"Next year, huh, that's coming up fast. How nice. What do you do for work?"
"Advertising company."
"Oh, ad sales. I get it, I get it."
Luan Nian gave her a smile, resisting the urge to bristle at her odd enthusiasm. When he got back inside, he found Shang Zhitao curled up asleep on the sofa. Luke had come up to nudge her and she hadn't even stirred. She really was worn out.
Luan Nian walked over, bent down, and lifted her up. Shang Zhitao's eyes opened slightly, and she heard Luan Nian say, "Go sleep in bed," before closing them again.
Luan Nian carried her to the bedroom, then went to the guest room.
Later that night, Chen Kuannian asked him, "You didn't go back to the hotel. Did it finally happen?"
"What?"
"Did the little brother finally come in handy?"
"Get lost."
When Shang Zhitao opened her eyes the next morning, she heard sounds coming from the kitchen. She pushed the door open and found Luan Nian standing in the morning light, cooking breakfast. The rice cooker was full of fragrant whole grain porridge, and he was frying an omelet with bell peppers and onion mixed in, exactly the way Shang Zhitao liked it.
She stood there watching him for a moment, thinking that waking up to a kitchen full of that smell on a morning like this felt like real happiness.
But it was only a passing thought.
Life went on like that.
By November, Shang Zhitao came across a women's awakening initiative. The stories behind it struck her, and she was moved by the people who'd started it and their high minded purpose. She told Luan Nian, "I want to donate the money from selling that bag."
"Donate it to whom?"
"A women's awakening initiative."
"Is the person running it Lin Chun'er?"
"Yes. Why does that name sound a little familiar to me?"
"Because she's Song Qiuhan's girlfriend. I'll have her get in touch with you."
The day Lin Chun'er called Shang Zhitao, Ice City got its first snow of the year. Shang Zhitao had just left the office and was squeezing onto a bus. She answered the phone and heard a very gentle voice say, "Is this Shang Zhitao?"
"Yes, who's this?"
"This is Lin Chun'er. Luan Nian told me you wanted to make a donation."
"That's right. A million in total." Shang Zhitao had rounded the number up a bit to make it even.
Lin Chun'er could hear the bus announcing its stops on the other end and said, "Thank you, Shang Zhitao. I'll add you as a friend and send you the donation details a bit later."
"Sounds good. I'll get it arranged as soon as I've looked it over."
Somehow, after only a few exchanges, the two of them felt unusually in tune with each other. Shang Zhitao said, "Come by my place for drinks sometime, if you get the chance!"
"I'm not one to hold back on that kind of thing. I'll come in December!"
And so that money became an act of kindness, finding its way to where it belonged. If it could help even a few people, that would be more than enough.
In her note with the donation, Shang Zhitao wrote: "May you live free of worry all your life. May you always keep the courage to break a deadlock."
It seemed like once you passed thirty, the days started sprinting by. Shang Zhitao stayed constantly busy, with endless work always waiting for her.
One morning she woke up and found Luke hadn't come to greet her.
She looked around and found him lying by the window, eyes shut tight, looking like he was in pain. Shang Zhitao ran over and cradled his head. "What's wrong? Luke?"
Luke got up, retched a few times, and vomited.
Shang Zhitao had never seen Luke like this. Terrified, she called Luan Nian. "Luan Nian, I think Luke's sick. He threw up, and he won't get up when I call him." She was so frightened she didn't even realize she'd started crying.
"Don't cry," Luan Nian told her. "Take him to the vet. I'm heading to the airport right now."
By the time Luan Nian arrived, it was already afternoon. Luke was on an IV drip at the animal hospital, with Shang Zhitao sitting beside him, lips pressed tight, clearly upset.
Luan Nian sat down next to her and asked, "What happened?"
"They said it's gastroenteritis." Shang Zhitao felt deeply guilty. She'd been so busy lately that she'd neglected him. Last night he'd been pacing around the floor, anxious, and it hadn't even occurred to her that he might be sick.
Luan Nian crouched in front of Luke and cupped his muzzle in his hand. "Look at you, all grown up, even know how to get sick now."
Luke let out a low whine and rested his head in Luan Nian's palm. Luan Nian pulled his hand back, and Luke caught it in his mouth and dragged it back, insisting on resting his head there.
Luan Nian pulled a chair over and sat down in front of him, keeping one hand in for Luke to rest against while he pulled out his phone with the other and called Dr. Liang. "Yeah, it's fine. I might not be back until the day after tomorrow."
"No problem. Where are you?" Dr. Liang asked him.
"I'm in Ice City."
"You're with Shang Zhitao?" Dr. Liang felt himself perk right up.
Luan Nian glanced at Shang Zhitao and gave a soft affirmative sound.
"Can I talk to her?" Dr. Liang asked.
"No. I'm hanging up now." Luan Nian ended the call and sent him a text instead. "We're not dating, so no, you can't talk to her."
"No worries, I won't say anything then. Go on, stay a few more days."
Amused, Luan Nian hung up.
"If you have things to take care of..."
"I'm fine." Luan Nian cut Shang Zhitao off. "Aren't you supposed to be busy? Go to the office."
"I brought my laptop."
"Then you can get some work done."
"Okay."
Shang Zhitao really did have an enormous pile of work waiting. She'd only had the license for less than half a year, and she had to hit the conversion numbers clients wanted, or who would agree to invest more the next round? So she opened her laptop and started typing away. Luan Nian watched her for a long while before he finally spoke.
"Shang Zhitao, how about I look after Luke together with you?"