A few people had just arrived at the office building when they ran into Li Ming and Miao Pengxiong again. Both still had their work ID cards around their necks, preparing to take the elevator to work.
Liu Yifeng glanced at the time. It was 8:55, and the company started at 9:00, so they were just in time.
Clearly, these two were also cutting it close for work.
After all, who would come in early without overtime pay? That would be foolish!
Seeing Liu Yifeng, the two were a bit surprised. "Why are we running into you again?"
"Does that even need to be asked? They must work here too. Yifeng, you weren't honest when you asked me last time. Were you afraid we'd freeload off you if you were doing well?" Miao Pengxiong said with a mix of sarcasm and dissatisfaction.
Lu Fei wasn't one to take it lying down. "Do we need to tell you whether we work here or not? Who do you think you are?"
"What did you just say? Liu Yifeng and I have worked together, after all. Isn't it a matter of politeness to tell the truth?" Miao Pengxiong hadn't expected Lu Fei to be so blunt and his face immediately fell.
Qiangzi looked at the two of them, bewildered, not understanding what had happened before.
Seeing that the two were about to argue, Liu Yifeng quickly appeased them, "Let's all calm down. Let's not let this matter spoil our harmony."
"Yifeng, what's going on? Do you also work in this building?"
"Yes, but I haven't officially started yet. We're here today to renovate the new company!"
Miao Pengxiong glanced at the tool bag on Qiangzi's shoulder and immediately understood. "I see, so you're in renovation now. But this line of work is quite profitable, just a bit hard.
"But that's okay, once you're experienced, you can even open your own renovation company. When I buy a new house, you'll be the first one I call." Seeing Liu Yifeng's situation, he immediately tried to comfort him.
This was typical of someone who couldn't stand others doing better than them, but pretended to be a good guy when others were down.
Just as Liu Yifeng was about to explain, Li Ming quickly said, "Stop chatting, we're going to be late."
Then, he looked at Liu Yifeng again. "Yifeng, which floor are you renovating? I'll come by to see you when I have time!"
"The sixteenth floor!" Liu Yifeng replied.
"Okay, we're leaving first." Li Ming and Miao Pengxiong hurried into the elevator. They didn't wait for Liu Yifeng and the others to get in before quickly pressing for the 12th floor. If they were late, they'd lose their full attendance bonus.
"Yifeng, what's going on with Lu Fei?" Qiangzi was still confused.
Before Liu Yifeng could speak, Lu Fei chimed in, "These two are Yifeng's former colleagues. They work on the 12th floor. Last time I brought Yifeng to see the office building, we happened to run into them, and then we had dinner together.
"You have no idea, this four-eyed guy is so annoying, his words are sharp and mean, and he's incredibly hypocritical.
"I don't know how the other person can be so close to him. He'll corrupt him sooner or later."
Qiangzi finally understood and said, "Since they're former colleagues and their character isn't great, there's no need to get too close. Next time you see them, just nod."
Liu Yifeng had no intention of befriending Miao Pengxiong, but he had a good impression of Li Ming.
"Let's go upstairs first and see how we can decorate the company."
Then they took the elevator to the sixteenth floor. Qiangzi looked at the large office space and nodded with satisfaction. "Not bad, not bad, it has a good feel to it."
"Let's not worry about the 'feel' for now. We need to focus on the renovation and design. I hope we can have the hired employees start working next Monday. Otherwise, if they wait too long, they'll think we're some kind of fly-by-night operation!"
"Don't rush, let me take a look first!" Qiangzi examined every corner and already had a general idea in mind.
"This is a vegetable company, so the renovation should be primarily green. In this spot, I think we can paint some vegetables. In this spot, we can put some potted plants, but instead of flowers, we'll grow some vegetables to show our professionalism. And here at the main entrance..."
As Qiangzi was explaining his design ideas, on the twelfth floor, Miao Pengxiong entered his workspace and as soon as he sat down, he couldn't wait to tell his colleagues about Liu Yifeng doing renovations.
"No way, Liu Yifeng is a legitimate university graduate. How could he be doing such manual labor?" one person exclaimed.
"Everyone has their own destiny. If he's willing to do renovations, that's his business. Why should we worry about it? Let's just focus on the work assigned to us from above, or we'll get reprimanded." a female colleague said indifferently.
Miao Pengxiong suddenly put on a strange expression. "Hongmei, I seem to recall you used to like Liu Yifeng. Now he's doing renovations upstairs, why don't you go up and say hello? Maybe you can rekindle your old flame!"
Xie Hongmei finally stopped what she was doing and looked up at Miao Pengxiong sitting opposite her, a displeased look on her face. "What nonsense are you spouting? When did I ever pursue Liu Yifeng?"
"Don't deny it, everyone in our company knows about it. It's just that idiot Liu Yifeng doesn't.
"Last time I had dinner with him, it seemed he was still single!
"Coincidentally, you and your boyfriend just broke up. I think you two should get together." Miao Pengxiong said presumptuously.
Little did he know, Xie Hongmei found him extremely annoying. "Don't try to play matchmaker here. Liu Yifeng and I are worlds apart. If you keep talking nonsense, I'll tear your mouth apart."
Miao Pengxiong, however, showed no signs of stopping. "I see, you don't fancy Liu Yifeng anymore, do you?
"But that's understandable. Your ex-boyfriend is a rich second-generation heir, his family is in business, and he drives a Benz everywhere. Your standards for choosing a partner have gone up, so how could you possibly look at a poor boy like Liu Yifeng?"
"I say, you're still as sharp-tongued as ever, even more gossipy and meddling than women. Did you finish the proposal I asked you to write yesterday?"
Li Ming, in the office, hearing Miao Pengxiong constantly discussing Liu Yifeng, couldn't help but come out to shut him up.
He disliked gossiping about people behind their backs, especially Liu Yifeng. Although he no longer worked with Liu Yifeng, their friendship remained, and he couldn't stand such remarks.
Miao Pengxiong then quickly shut his mouth. He hadn't written a single word of the proposal.
Seeing that Miao Pengxiong had calmed down, Li Ming returned to his office.
No one else spoke, and they all diligently focused on their work.
Meanwhile, Xie Hongmei's mind flashed with Liu Yifeng's image, but the initial flutter of emotion was gone.
She remembered when Liu Yifeng was still at the company, she would often bring double portions of food, one for herself and one for him. She'd also give him her favorite snacks first and shamelessly asked him to watch movies with her a few times.
She thought Liu Yifeng understood her intentions, and since he never refused her, she kept waiting for him to confess his feelings. Instead, she received news of his resignation.
She had been heartbroken for a long time upon hearing that.
Before Liu Yifeng left the company, he had specifically called her to the conference room. She thought he was going to confess his feelings.
As she was filled with joy, waiting for Liu Yifeng to confess, she never expected him to pull out a thousand yuan and stuff it into her hand.