Chapter 22: The Love of Plain Water

Chapter 22: The Love of Plain Water

Since their second arranged meeting, Fan Xiaoyou had not seen Wu Yang for a long time. If not for the flowers delivered to her office every morning, she might have thought their lives had ceased to intersect.

Fan Xiaoyou glanced at the card in her hand, then at the blooming flowers in the vase on her desk, her brows furrowing slightly. She picked up her phone and finally dialed Wu Yang’s number. “Wu Yang, this is Fan Xiaoyou. I’d like to invite you to lunch—I have something to discuss with you.”

After receiving Fan Xiaoyou’s call, Wu Yang’s mood soared, open and buoyant.

The employees in the sales department saw Wu Yang’s delighted demeanor and couldn’t help but gossip, “Do you think Supervisor Wu is seeing someone? They say only men in love swing between joy and sorrow. Did you notice? Just a few days ago, he seemed lost, but today…”

Another colleague chimed in, “When Mr. Zeng was secretly dating, he never showed such extremes. Otherwise, how could we have not recognized that lady in the KTV? He and that woman kept their relationship so well hidden that none of us found out.”

Wu Yang’s assistant approached, warning the gossipers at the office door, “Talking about your supervisor during work hours? Are you trying to earn a major demerit?”

The sales staff, seeing Tian Xiaotian in her chic secretary attire, scattered like birds startled from a bush. Tian Xiaotian smiled helplessly, then gently knocked on the door. “Supervisor Wu, it’s Xiao Tian. Here’s the material Mr. Zeng sent over from England early this morning.”

Wu Yang took the sales data on ZENY Company handed to him by Tian Xiaotian, sighing in admiration, “Mr. Zeng works at incredible speed. I didn’t expect him to obtain ZENY’s sales data so quickly.”

Tian Xiaotian, starry-eyed, responded, “Of course. Our Mr. Zeng is a top graduate of the London University EMBA program. Such things are trivial for him.”

Wu Yang noticed Tian Xiaotian’s unabashed admiration for Tim and teased, “Xiao Tian, you should be careful. Mr. Zeng is already married. If you keep swooning like this, you might get fired by the future lady boss.”

Tian Xiaotian blushed, flustered, “Supervisor Wu, you’re joking. How could I dare?”

Aware that the time for his meeting with Fan Xiaoyou was approaching, Wu Yang quickly donned his suit jacket and said to Tian Xiaotian, “I’ll be out for lunch. If anything comes up, find me in the afternoon.”

Tian Xiaotian noticed Wu Yang had changed into a brand-new suit and even styled his hair deliberately, so she teased, “Supervisor Wu, do you really have a girlfriend?”

Wu Yang flashed a bright smile, “Guess.”

Before Tian Xiaotian could respond, Wu Yang was already briskly out the door.

At the Aegean Sea Western Restaurant, the midday playlist favored Matthew Lien’s “Bressanone.” When Wu Yang arrived, Fan Xiaoyou was already seated at the same spot as before.

She comforted herself that her attachment to this seat was mere habit.

“Xiaoyou, have you been waiting long?” Wu Yang pulled out his chair and sat down.

Fan Xiaoyou handed Wu Yang a glass of plain water. “Here, have some water first.”

Wu Yang gulped the water down in one breath. As he wiped his mouth, he noticed the searching look in Fan Xiaoyou’s eyes, puzzled. “What is it?”

Fan Xiaoyou’s voice was soft, “Wu Yang, what do you think this glass of water tastes like?”

Wu Yang scratched his head, unable to fathom what she meant. He looked at her, smiling awkwardly, “Well…plain water…plain water has no taste!”

Fan Xiaoyou looked past Wu Yang, her gaze drifting into the distance, and sighed lightly. “Wu Yang, to you this glass of water may be tasteless, but to me it might carry sweetness, bitterness, or even both. My love with Tim is just like this glass of water.”

She continued, a little apologetically, “Wu Yang, thank you for sending me flowers every day this week. They reminded me that someone still cares for me, someone still likes me. But, sadly, after much reflection this week, I feel we are not suited for each other. Because I’ve already tasted a glass of plain water.”

Seeing Fan Xiaoyou once again bring up their incompatibility, Wu Yang’s emotions suddenly surged.

“Xiaoyou, why must you wound my sincerity? I truly like you, truly love you, and want to protect you for a lifetime. Is it because you’ve had a failed romance that you block the possibility of a new one?”

Fan Xiaoyou closed her eyes tightly, holding back the tears threatening to spill, as at that moment the Aegean Sea Western Restaurant’s speakers played, “Outside the car window on a cloudy evening, someone awaits in the future…”

Wu Yang, having been rejected by Fan Xiaoyou again, was in a terrible mood. Hearing the restaurant play Sun Yanzi’s “Encounter,” he cursed, “Go to hell.” He strode to the bar, shouting at the waiter, “Change the song!”

The waiter looked up, recognizing the same overbearing Wu Yang from before, and replied fearlessly, “Sir, this restaurant doesn’t serve just you. How can you be so domineering?”

Wu Yang squared off with the waiter, furious, and barged behind the bar, rudely tapping the computer screen. With a “ding,” he shut the computer off.

The waiter lunged at Wu Yang, shouting, “Hey, you lunatic, what are you doing? Security! Security…” He called for help from the restaurant guards.

Wu Yang was ultimately tossed out by the Aegean Sea Western Restaurant’s security, looking disheveled as passersby pointed and whispered. He tore off his tie in anger, glaring at the onlookers. “What are you staring at? One more look and I’ll