Chapter 8: Luck

Chapter 8 Luck

Zhan Zilang gave an awkward chuckle. "You caught that too?"

Ms. Zhou shook her head helplessly. By now, she could fully tell he had little life experience.

"If you didn’t know him, you should’ve just asked me who he was. Look at your reaction—it’s like saying 'I did it' without being asked."

Zhan Zilang was so impressed he had nothing to say except, "Ms. Zhou, your logic is spot-on."

Ms. Zhou brushed it off. Since he knew Xiao Wang, it meant Xiao Wang’s earlier inquiries had been deliberate.

In that case, Ye Ru had been the most accurate in her assessment.

After a moment’s thought, she advised Zhan Zilang, "Then you should go greet Secretary Xiao later. It’s only proper for a new employee to do so."

Xiao Wang often came down for coffee, and Ms. Zhou saw him frequently. Usually, he chose a time closer to the end of the break, but today he had come unusually early.

"Right."

By now, Zhan Zilang was totally sold on Ms. Zhou and was ready to follow her lead.

He stood up immediately but was stopped by her.

"Too many people right now. Wait a bit longer."

So Zhan Zilang waited, but the stream of people around Xiao Wang didn’t slow down. He couldn’t help but remark, "Secretary Xiao is really popular."

Ms. Zhou just smiled. Of course, the position of the CEO’s secretary naturally drew smiles from everyone, but there was another important reason—Xiao Wang was still single.

Young, successful, good-looking, mild-mannered, and abstaining from smoking and drinking—even though he had made it clear to everyone he was a committed bachelor, the women at work still secretly ranked him as one of the top catches.

Though Ling Yu was also single, everyone was sane enough to leave him out of such discussions.

Ms. Zhou even suspected that Xiao Wang’s open declaration might actually make him more appealing to women.

Then again, maybe that was just her. People love a challenge—there would always be those who would take on the challenge.

But given how long it had been without any rumors about Xiao Wang, it was clear he was very disciplined in his personal life.

As break time was ending, most people had left the break area, and Xiao Wang finally had a moment to himself, sitting by the window with his coffee, enjoying the view.

Zhan Zilang glanced at Ms. Zhou, and after receiving her nod, he got up and walked over.

Ms. Zhou watched him go, then began sorting through the notes she’d collected, occasionally looking over to observe the two talking excitedly. Just their expressions made it obvious they were old acquaintances.

When she looked up again later, however, the two were gone.

Ms. Zhou quickly looked around and finally spotted them by a vending machine in the distance. She watched as they made their purchases and walked back, laughing and chatting.

Xiao Wang casually looked up and noticed her gaze, offering her an easy smile in return.

In the next moment, Zhan Zilang was standing before her, while Xiao Wang had already departed midway.

"Ms. Zhou, Secretary Xiao treated us to these." Zhan Zilang placed a can of apple juice in front of her.

"How nice of him. What did you talk about for him to treat you?"

"Nothing much. He just said it’s office tradition for seniors to treat juniors and told me to pick your brain more. Oh, and..." He held up another can. "I’ve got black tea here. Wanna trade?"

"No need, apple juice is fine."

"Sis Zhou, you like apple juice?"

"Yep, I do. What’s up—do you want some?" Since Xiao Wang was paying, she wouldn’t mind letting him have it if he wanted.

Zhan Zilang replied, "Nope, just making conversation." Earlier, when Xiao Wang offered to pay, he had chosen black tea based on his own preference but wasn’t sure what to pick for Zhou Zuofei.

While he hesitated, Xiao Wang had already picked for him.

So Sis Zhou likes apple juice—he made a mental note of it. Though he wasn’t sure if it would ever come in handy, remembering never hurts.

"Let’s head back after finishing the drinks. It’s about time."

After that, Zhou Zuofei didn’t ask Zhan Zilang any more questions. In her mind, he had now become a rich intern with serious connections. In short—not someone to mess with.

Wasn’t knowing that enough? Why dig deeper?

Back in the office, Zhou Zuofei wrapped up the remaining work and managed to punch out right on time.

It was Wednesday—a random weekday stuck in the middle of the week. But once today was over, the weekend was only two days away. Suddenly, the weekend was in sight!

Zhou Zuofei cheered up, ready to go home, whip up something nice, and relax. Just as she was shopping in the supermarket, she suddenly received a message.

[Teacher Yao: Xiao Zhou, hello. I’ve been trying to reach Zhang Qiaoqiao for a long time but couldn’t get in touch. If you’d like to continue with the support program, I can assign you another student.]

Zhou Zuofei stared at the message, lost in thought, almost holding up the line for other shoppers.

During her junior year, she had participated in a volunteer teaching program organized by her university at a rural middle school near City K.

Teacher Yao had been her point person at the time, and they had exchanged contact information.

In her senior year, she saw Teacher Yao post about a mentoring initiative on social media. The gist was that each participant would mentor a needy student in a one-on-one arrangement. The mentor and student wouldn’t meet—only monthly financial support would be provided, with all communication relayed through the point person.

By then, Zhou Zuofei had already received an offer from Universal. Compared to her classmates, who were either job-hunting like crazy or swamped with grad school apps, she felt incredibly fortunate.

Whether out of a desire to pass on that luck or simply gratitude, she decided to join the program. A couple hundred bucks a month was well within her budget at the time.

Zhang Qiaoqiao had been her mentee. They never interacted directly—most of the time, Zhou Zuofei sent the money to the official account, and Teacher Yao would update her on Zhang Qiaoqiao’s recent grades.

The girl’s grades had been consistently stable, and Zhou Zuofei had been looking forward to her getting into college. Though the mentoring program only covered high school, she would have been willing to continue helping if Zhang Qiaoqiao made it to university.

But then, just two months ago, with the college exams right around the corner, Teacher Yao suddenly informed her that Zhang Qiaoqiao had transferred schools. It had happened abruptly, and even he didn’t know where she had gone.

Zhou Zuofei was floored. Who would transfer schools so close to the exams?

She had asked Teacher Yao to check it out, and he had been diligent, but it seemed there were still no answers.

After some thought, she replied:

[Thanks, Teacher Yao. If she can’t be found, let’s drop it. You can assign me another suitable student if available.]

After sending that, she wasn’t in the mood to shop anymore. Pushing her cart to the checkout, she prepared to leave.

Back home, she received another message from Teacher Yao.

[Understood, Xiao Zhou. Thank you for your support. I understand your concern for Zhang Qiaoqiao. From what I’ve gathered, she was likely taken in by family out of town, so her education shouldn’t be an issue. Please don’t worry too much. I’ll put together the info for a new student and send it next week.]

Reading this, Zhou Zuofei breathed a sigh of relief. If that was the case, then everything was truly fine.

Since Zhou Zuofei had chosen to participate in this kind of program, she naturally didn’t expect anything in return or seek recognition. All she wanted was for Zhang Qiaoqiao to get her life-changing opportunity.

Her appetite came roaring back, and Zhou Zuofei hummed a tune as she walked into the kitchen to prepare a hotpot meal (Chinese communal stew).

That evening, she cuddled with the director on the sofa while watching a movie. The lights were off, leaving only the glow of the TV. If not for the lingering smell of hotpot, the atmosphere would have been quite nice.

The director stayed in Zhou Zuofei’s arms for a full minute before seizing the chance to escape. She didn't mind, just grabbed a pillow instead, and spent a peaceful, ordinary Wednesday night.

The next day, as usual, she bought breakfast at the shop downstairs from her office. She habitually arrived early, giving herself plenty of time to eat at her desk.

Just as she stood in line at her usual breakfast spot, she suddenly felt a tap on her shoulder, followed by a male voice behind her.

"Hey there."