Song Ran was too busy in the next two days and worked overtime on Saturday, so he had no time to return the rope. And Li Zan didn't call to urge him, maybe he was more busy.
On Sunday morning, Song Ran suddenly remembered this while sorting out books at home, and turned out the small note. She leaned against the wooden window on the second floor, hesitating slightly: after returning the rope.
But she couldn't think of anything else to do, so she could only take out her phone. When the wind blew, she let go without noticing. The little white note flew up in the wind, swirling in the air like a white butterfly, fell to the gardenia tree and hid itself as a flower.
Song Ran immediately ran downstairs, looked up under the tree, and saw green leaves and white flowers, but the shadow of the note was nowhere to be seen.
There was a car noise outside. A van parked outside the courtyard gate, and two or three workers got out. They were the construction team that had been appointed to add a moisture-proof layer to the house.
We'll arrive at nine o'clock as promised, and we won't miss a minute.
Before Lao Li retired, he worked as a construction quality inspector. He had been exposed to wind and sun for a long time, and his skin color was darker than that of ordinary people. But he has a good appearance, and it can be vaguely seen that he was a handsome man when he was young.
He was quick and experienced. He walked into the house and looked around, touched the corners of the floor and walls, and quickly came up with several construction plans. The time consumption, advantages and disadvantages are clearly analyzed. Finally, I would like to recommend a cost-effective option to Song Ran, which can get things done in one day.
After Song Ran took it, Lao Li and three workers moved the furniture away and used a machine to pry the cement floor.
Soon the entire floor was lifted, revealing the damp bricks and soil underneath. They work very quickly and are not lazy at all. Song Ran had a good impression of them.
The construction noise was so loud that she couldn't read a book, so she simply sat aside and watched them mix the gravel.
"Uncle, what is that?" she asked him, pointing to a roll of black stuff.
"Waterproof membrane." Lao Li didn't say much, but he started chatting when he talked about work. "The terrain on Beimen Street is low and the moisture is heavy. I'm afraid the cement mortar is not enough, so I need to add a layer of membrane. Inside the exterior wall I’ll also double-proof the wall’s feet against moisture, so it won’t get wet during the next rainy season.”
"Oh." Song Ran sat on the steps, holding her chin and asked, "Uncle, Grandma Wang said you are from Jiangcheng, why did you come to Liangcheng?"
Lao Li wiped the sweat from his head and said with a smile, "My son is over here."
At this time, a worker interrupted: "Old Uncle Li's son is very powerful. Miss Song, you will never guess what kind of job he does."
Song Ran became interested: "What do you do?"
"The elite members of the army who are responsible for bomb disposal and explosive disposal. They are trained by the country. The Imperial City Military Region has been trying to poach them, but the Jiangcheng Military Region refuses to let them go."
Song Ran: "So powerful?!"
"That's right. I'm only twenty-three, and I've achieved several second-class meritorious services. I'll be a good candidate for a high-ranking official in the army in the future. Tsk, Lao Li is going to be blessed!
Lao Li laughed so hard that his eyes rolled up and he waved his hands: "There are many powerful young people nowadays, don't let Miss Song see the joke."
"Uncle, you are so humble." Song Ran said, "You must be good at educating children."
"It doesn't take much teaching, it's all innate."
At about five o'clock in the afternoon, the moisture-proof layer was completed and the floor was re-paved. It was smooth and without any flaws.
Lao Li said that the cement floor will be completely dry in five or six hours. In the evening, his workers would come over to polish and maintain it, and it would be fine if they kept it for a few days.
After the construction team left, Song Ran remembered to look for the note, and searched for a long time to no avail. She couldn't help but suspect that the note might have been driven into the cement and into the floor.
She had no choice but to wait for Li Zan to contact her and ask for the rope.
The next day is Monday.
Liangcheng TV's "Frontline" was temporarily offline two months after it aired.
More than sixty days after the war began, the war in the East Kingdom has entered a stalemate, and social attention has dropped significantly. The battle is going on endlessly, but if there is any energy, the audience will turn their attention to the stock market. The stock market has been doing well recently, and the money I throw into it has doubled. Even the aunties selling vegetables in the streets are talking about finance.
Each major TV station has launched columns to broadcast stock market analysis, and Liangcheng TV is no exception, adding a special financial section. After "War" was offline, the attached "Before the War: Eastern Kingdom" also finished its last episode.
On the day after the broadcast, colleagues gathered in the office to discuss stocks. Song Ran sat in front of the computer and checked the official account of "Before the War: Eastern Kingdom".
In today's last issue, netizens left many messages, praising the behind-the-scenes staff for their careful production, and thanking the reporters for their true presentation.
Song Ran looked through them one by one.
"Ranran, do you want to buy stocks?" Xiaodong called her.
Song Ran raised his head and smiled: "I don't understand."
"You don't need to understand. Everything you buy has gone up recently, and many people have made money."
"Really. I invested 5,000 and earned 800," Xiaochun said. "Shen Bei's 300,000 has now increased to 380,000."
Song Ran has only been working for two years, has little savings, and does not expect a windfall. He said: "The stock market is risky, so forget it."
Shen Bei stirred the coffee with a straw: "If you want to make money, you have to take risks. There is no such thing as a guaranteed profit."
Song Ran didn't speak, Xiao Qiu joked: "You, a rich little woman who can easily get hundreds of thousands from home, stop talking."
Shen Bei laughed. At this time, supervisor Liu Yufei called everyone to a meeting.
The outstanding journalists of the first half of the year were selected. In addition to the commendation award recorded in the file, there is also a bonus of tens of thousands.
On the way to the conference room, Xiao Xia whispered to Song Ran: "Ran Ran, this is a bull market and stocks are reliable. You take a small part of the bonus to try the water and use it as financial management. How can you save money if you only earn a dead salary? Money to live in?”
Song Ran was amused and said, "It's not necessarily me. ... But if it's true, then I'll listen to you."
At the meeting, Liu Yufei mentioned the suspension of the broadcast of "Frontline".
The station plans to create a new military news program, which will be broadcast weekly and the content of each issue will be deeply explored. While paying attention to international wars, it also promotes the heroic deeds of Chinese soldiers overseas.
Liu Yufei said: "The first group of reporters in Dongguo will be back soon. Those here who volunteer to go to Dongguo must submit their registration forms before Friday and organize training in a unified way."
No one expressed their stance immediately, and everyone was making their own calculations in their own minds.
After Liu Yufei finished speaking, the meeting entered the key stage. He announced the winner of the Outstanding Journalist Award for the first half of the year - Shen Bei.
Everyone was surprised, but not completely surprised. This kind of award, if you think about it with your toes, is given to those who are strong in the background.
Song Ran silently accepted the reality. After all, Shen Bei also did a good job at home.
Colleagues had some sympathy for Song Ran, but didn't say anything extra after the meeting. We are all colleagues, and it would not be good for anyone if gossip spread in the workplace. As an adult, I still understand this. Only Xiaoqiu sent Song Ran a hug and comforting expression. Song Ran replied with a big smile, saying it was okay.
Shen Bei probably knew it from the bottom of her heart and invited everyone to have hot pot. She said that everyone took good care of her and expressed her gratitude by eating. Naturally, everyone was happy to participate in such good deeds and praised Shen Bei for her generosity.
Shen Bei chose a high-end hot pot restaurant, which is the level where TV stations usually entertain guests. Colleagues were even happier and kept saying "it's a waste of money".
Xiaoxia said: "I'm afraid you will eat half of your bonus."
Shen Bei smiled: "That's right. It was everyone's help, otherwise the work would not have been so smooth."
The private room divided by the glass wall is spacious and stylish, and is covered with long red and black tassels. There are more than ten people sitting around a table, and each person has a small pot in front of him.
There was an empty seat next to Shen Bei.
Xiaodong asked: "Who else is coming?"
"My boyfriend." Shen Bei smiled and ordered a spicy hot pot for him.
Everyone was in an uproar: "You have a boyfriend?! Why didn't we know?!"
"You didn't ask, why should I take the initiative to catch people and tell them?"
Xiaoxia's gossip aroused: "What do you do?"
"Soldier."
Xiaochun: "So cool?!"
Xiaoqiu: "No wonder you went to Jiangcheng Military Region last time. Did you secretly meet with men through work?"
Shen Bei: "No."
Xiaodong: "Are soldiers very handsome?"
"Like a machine gun, I can't stand you anymore." Shen Bei giggled and stood up, "You order the bottom of the pot, I'll go to the bathroom first."
Song Ran happened to be going too.
On the way, Shen Bei took her arm affectionately and leaned his head on her shoulder. Song Ran understood what she meant and pursed her lips and smiled.
Shen Bei is a pampered young lady who spends money lavishly. She really doesn't care about this little bonus. But looking at her background, if Taili wanted to give her a benefit, she wouldn't be able to tell her boss that she didn't want to.
Society is inherently unfair. Just work harder on your own.
In the bathroom, Shen Bei applied powder and lipstick in front of the mirror, touched up her makeup, washed her hands, and found that she had run out of toilet paper.
She fished twice: "There's no paper?"
"I have."
Song Ran took out a tissue from his bag and accidentally brought out a red string and dropped it on the sink.
Shen Bei picked it up, looked at it, handed it to her, and said casually: "Your rope is the same as my boyfriend's."
Song Ran's heart skipped a beat, and she felt faintly panicked, but she felt that it couldn't be such a coincidence.
Back in the private room, the hot pot and various dishes were served, just waiting for Shen Bei's boyfriend to arrive.
Song Ran sat there, feeling increasingly uneasy.
Before the hot pot was boiling, Shen Bei suddenly stretched her neck and her eyes lit up. She straightened up and waved towards the door of the box: "Here!"
Song Ran turned around with everyone, and the moment she saw him, her heart dropped, as if someone had poured a bucket of ice water over her head.
Li Zan walked in, the corners of his mouth curled into a slightly curved polite arc, he nodded to everyone, and said, "Sorry, I'm late."
He walked to Shen Bei and sat down,
Shen Bei smiled and said, "It's not too late. The time is just right." Then she handed him the hot towel.
Li Zan took the towel and wiped his hands with his lips still slightly pursed. He seemed a little quiet because he was not used to a table full of strangers. He wiped his fingers and glanced around the people on the table, and then he saw Song Ran sitting diagonally opposite.
He lightly curled his lips at her, nodded slightly in greeting, and then looked away.