Chapter 35: Not an Explanation but a Consultation, Shift Your Thinking

Chapter 35: Not About Explaining, But Asking – A Mindset Shift

Finally, in July, he found a pretty good job.

A mid-sized company. The salary wasn't high, but it wasn't low either – enough to support himself and save a little each month.

"Finally, I don't have to keep spending my own savings."

He was quite happy. On the first day of work, he even dressed up a bit.

He had to take the subway, and his foot hadn't fully recovered yet, so he walked more slowly. He had to leave earlier than Su Lichen.

Su Lichen, toothbrush still in his mouth, straightened the hem of his shirt and said, "Call me if anything comes up."

Xu Moxing nodded, kissed Su Lichen on the cheek, and dashed out the door excitedly.

The first day was fine.

The second day was fine too.

On the third day, he started to feel something was off.

There was a guy in the office named Zhao Yingyun. He was a few years older and had more seniority.

At first, he was polite to Xu Moxing, but gradually the tone shifted.

"Xiao Xu, redo this table. The format isn't right."

"Xiao Xu, double-check this data. How come there are so many errors?"

"Xiao Xu, you can't even do something this simple? How did you get through college?"

He said it with a smile, but there was a sting in every word.

But the table format was something Zhao Yingyun had told him not to mess with. When the director criticized it, he said Xu Moxing had changed it.

As for the data check, Xu Moxing had done exactly what Zhao Yingyun told him to do.

The issue was simple; it was Zhao Yingyun who insisted he do it his way, which led to the errors.

Every time, Xu Moxing wanted to defend himself, but making excuses would sound like he was deflecting blame.

So he just said, "Okay," "I'll fix it," "Sorry," and kept his head down working.

He wasn't sure if he was overreacting. Maybe the guy is just blunt? Maybe he really wasn't doing well enough?

But it still bothered him.

That evening, when he got home, Su Lichen saw his expression and asked, "What's wrong?"

Xu Moxing hesitated, but finally opened up.

"...Maybe I'm overthinking it."

Su Lichen looked at him without saying a word.

Xu Moxing told him everything. Then he added, "Maybe he's just direct and doesn't mean anything by it."

Su Lichen was silent for a few seconds, then asked, "What's his name?"

Xu Moxing froze. "Why?"

"Nothing," Su Lichen said. "Go on."

Xu Moxing talked a bit more, and by the end, even he felt it wasn't worth dwelling on.

"Forget it. Maybe I'm just too sensitive," he said.

Su Lichen looked at him.

That look was different from before.

"You're not being sensitive," he said.

Xu Moxing looked up at him.

Sometimes it's about presence and style.

Some assholes are bullies who pick on the weak. They mistake politeness for weakness and good manners for an invitation to walk all over you.

Seeing that Xu Moxing was soft and kind-hearted, they thought he was easy to push around.

That's why, after working for years, many people become hard to push around.

Because one of the worst traits of these jerks is that they bully the weak and fear the strong. If you stop being a pushover, they won't dare mess with you.

But making Xu Moxing tough overnight wasn't realistic.

So Su Lichen took an indirect approach. He said, "Next time he criticizes you, don't feel like you're shifting blame. You're just trying to figure out what's right.

You can say something like: 'Zhao, didn't you tell me to do it like this? I originally suggested this method, but you said I was wrong. So why is it changed back now?'"

Xu Moxing was stunned.

He opened his mouth but didn't know what to say.

Su Lichen continued, "He'll make up a ton of excuses. Don't argue. Stay polite, like you're still a newbie, and ask, 'So just to be clear, should I use the method you taught me, or the one you said was wrong?'"

"People like that are gutter roaches – they'll never admit they were wrong. You're not arguing or explaining; you're just trying to get it right."

Xu Moxing listened, trying to wrap his head around it.

Su Lichen saw his expression and broke into a smile.

"What's wrong? Don't you want to know what's correct? Better to ask than do it wrong and lose pay, right?"

Xu Moxing nodded. "You're right. I'm not arguing or explaining. I'm just making sure I get it right so I don't get docked."

Xu Moxing's politeness was his own standard, his chosen way of treating the world.

Being polite isn't wrong. What's wrong are the people who don't know how to respect that.

But the problem is, some "people" don't deserve Xu Moxing's politeness. Or rather, they need to be schooled by Xu Moxing's boundaries before they're worthy of his good manners.

Su Lichen patted his head. "Kindness and politeness both need thorns to protect yourself. If you're kind and polite to a gutter roach, it'll crawl all over you and eat you alive."

Xu Moxing thought it over, but still felt he couldn't bring himself to do it.

"What if... what if he just said it without thinking?"

Su Lichen looked at him.

"That makes it even easier," he said. "Once you ask, he explains clearly, and the misunderstanding is resolved."

Xu Moxing was taken aback for a moment, thinking that it actually made sense.

Su Lichen reached out and ruffled his hair.

"You're not sensitive," he said. "You're just too kind."

Xu Moxing looked at him, realizing that Su Lichen understood how he felt.

He knew I wasn't sensitive, wasn't making a fuss, wasn't seeing everyone as a bad person.

He thought I could question him back.

Su Lichen kissed Xu Moxing. "You don't need to make big changes, and you don't have to feel burdened. Next time he criticizes you, just ask what you're thinking."

"Even if you fail next time, it's okay. Then we'll try again the time after."

Su Lichen knew Xu Moxing too well. He reassured Xu Moxing even before he started, about that first step he might be too scared to take.

"I can do it!"

The next day, Xu Moxing went to work.

Zhao Yingyun came again.

"Xiao Xu, the data in this form is wrong..."

Xu Moxing looked up and smiled at Zhao Yingyun.

"Brother Zhao, what's wrong with the data? The data was given to me by you. Where is it wrong? I'll fix it right away. Next time you ask me to handle data, can I find a colleague who is familiar with the data to double-check it? After all, I'm new here and still need guidance. Otherwise, I'm not sure whether the data you give me is correct, and I feel embarrassed making mistakes all the time."

Zhao Yingyun was taken aback.

Xu Moxing looked at him with his big curious eyes, waiting for his answer.

The office was silent for a second.

Zhao Yingyun's expression changed, and he gave an awkward smile. "Oh, next time I give you data, just ask me to double-check it. Sometimes I'm too busy and might have made a mistake."

Xu Moxing nodded. "Okay, Brother Zhao, I'll fix this right away. Um, by the way, is the new data you just sent correct? Could you take a look?"

Xu Moxing opened the new data Zhao Yingyun had sent him and showed it to him.

Zhao Yingyun glanced at it. "It's correct. Go ahead and process it, and get it back to me as soon as possible."

"Okay, thank you, Brother Zhao."

Xu Moxing lowered his head and continued working.

His hands were trembling a little, but inside he felt amazing.

That evening when he got home, Xu Moxing brought back takeout. Instead of eating right away, he first told Su Lichen about what happened.

Su Lichen listened, the corner of his mouth quirked.

"And then?"

"Then he didn't bother me anymore," Xu Moxing said. "The whole day was normal. Oh, right, in the afternoon there was another mistake, but it was caused by him. He quietly explained the situation to me without loudly scolding me in the office."

Su Lichen nodded. "Great job, my A Mo."

The two of them kissed.

"You're the best!"

Xu Moxing looked at him and exclaimed, "How do you know everything? You're so amazing. I hereby declare you a superior human."

Su Lichen felt refreshed by his flattery. "I love hearing that, keep praising me."

"I'm not flattering you. This is all genuine, from the bottom of my heart."

Xu Moxing intertwined their fingers.

Su Lichen pulled him up and opened the takeout containers.

"Let's eat. It's late. When I get off work early one day, I'll cook."

"Okay. I think I'm past being hungry. I was really hungry on the subway earlier."

"How about buying some snacks to replenish your energy around four o'clock?"

"Sure, I'll check."

The two chatted while eating dinner.

At night, lying in bed, Xu Moxing suddenly said, "A Li."

"Hm?"

"Thank you."

Su Lichen turned to look at him.

Xu Moxing stared at the ceiling, a smile on his lips.

"Thank you for saying I'm not sensitive," he said. "Thank you for saying I'm kind."

Su Lichen didn't speak.

After a while, he reached out and pulled Xu Moxing into his arms.

"Sleep," he said.

Xu Moxing lay on his chest, listening to his heartbeat.

He suddenly felt that Su Lichen now seemed different from before.

He hadn't become a different person; he was still himself, just much warmer and softer than before.

He liked who he was now.