Chapter 23 Soft Nails
"Hello? Ruolin?"
After a moment, Jiang Ruolin managed to calm herself and then said, her voice still thick with emotion, "Liu Shang, why are you so foolish?!"
"That pressure is immense. It's not yours to bear, and you can't handle it right now."
"No matter what happens in the future, as long as you're always by my side, that's enough."
There was a second half to that sentence, hidden in Jiang Ruolin's heart: *Everything else, leave it to me to solve!*
Although she didn't say it, Liu Shang had already guessed what this kind, sincere, and endearingly stubborn girl was thinking.
"Ruolin, listen to me carefully."
"Those who truly care about you, like your parents, have only one goal: for you to live a happy and fulfilling life."
"They object to us being together now only because I'm not yet good enough to give you that happiness."
"But one day, if I can prove that I have the ability to make you happy, I don't think anyone will object."
"As for those who don't truly care about you, or who have ulterior motives, from now on, just pay them no mind."
"In fact, much of this so-called pressure you're thinking about is unnecessary, something you've built up in your own head."
"Ruolin, believe me, this world is beautiful, and our tomorrow will be even better."
"Trust me. Enjoy our time at university, enjoy our youth. Don't pay any attention to the noise and negativity, okay?"
Hearing Liu Shang's comforting and incredibly warm words, Jiang Ruolin quietly agreed.
"Liu Shang, when did you get so good at comforting people?"
"Also... I miss you."
Liu Shang, who had been running, finally stopped. He looked up at the darkening sky and said softly:
"Ruolin, I miss you too. Always. For the rest of my life."
...
Early the next morning, before Zheng Shiwei and Fu Liang returned from their all-nighter at the internet cafe, Liu Shang had already eaten breakfast in the cafeteria and squeezed onto a crowded bus.
Coincidentally, just as Liu Shang arrived at the company, Xu Tiande and Mr. Zhong, who drove their own cars, also arrived one after the other.
At this hour, there were still not many people in the huge office hall.
"Liu Shang, did you come from school? How did you get here?"
In response to Xu Tiande's concern, Liu Shang smiled. "Yes, Professor Xu. I took the bus from school this morning."
"My boy, the Petroleum University and the company are in two different districts; the distance between them isn't short."
"As a student, your time is tight, and everyone understands that. Don't push yourself like this in the future. Focus on your studies and your life."
Faced with a kind-hearted old academic like Professor Xu, Liu Shang genuinely felt a little warmth in his heart.
"Well, thank you for your concern, Professor Xu."
"But I usually get up at this time to go for a run anyway."
"Now that I'm working here, and for fewer hours than everyone else, I naturally have to make the most of the limited time I have."
Mr. Zhong, standing beside them, smiled and patted Liu Shang on the shoulder. "Alright, this kid is good. Hard work is always a virtue."
"However, you're still young. If you run into difficulties, whether at work or in life, don't bear them alone. You can come to me or Professor Xu."
"By the way, your workstation and computer have been set up. It's near my office and Professor Xu's."
With that, Mr. Zhong led Liu Shang to his workstation, giving him a brief overview of the company on the way.
Their technical department was located in a huge, open-plan office.
In the center of the space were two long rows of workstations facing each other, about twenty in total.
At one end of the office was a row of about seven or eight small offices with glass partitions. These were the office spaces for the technical department's management.
The two largest rooms at the front belonged to the department's technical experts, Mr. Zhong and Xu Tiande.
Just as Liu Shang, Mr. Zhong, and Xu Tiande were chatting and smiling, an unexpected figure hurried in.
Liu Shang looked up and saw it was his unwelcome senior, Ma Yuan.
"Hey, Professor Xu, Mr. Zhong, you're all here so early."
This Ma Yuan was the type who always arrived at the last possible second, and often, he was even a little late.
It was a mystery why he had suddenly come in so early today.
Xu Tiande and Mr. Zhong nodded to him with a smile and then went back to their respective offices.
At this point, Ma Yuan came over to Liu Shang with a smile and patted his shoulder cordially.
"Liu Shang, you're here bright and early!"
"From now on, we'll be colleagues. If you don't understand anything, feel free to come to me anytime. My workstation is just over there, not far from yours."
Liu Shang smiled back at him but didn't offer any polite nonsense that held no substance.
Afterward, Liu Shang turned on the computer. It was a standard, older model, but it was more than enough for office work.
Soon, official work hours began, and the chatter in the office died down as people started to get busy.
On his computer, Xu Tiande and Mr. Zhong added Liu Shang on QQ one after another. Most of the office used QQ to communicate and transfer various documents.
"Liu Shang, I've just sent you some well engineering designs, construction reports, well completion reports, and a lot of other practical technical information."
"Look them over when you're free, study them, and then try to work on some yourself. If you don't understand anything, come to me anytime."
"During this initial period, don't worry too much. It's better to focus on learning, so don't put too much pressure on yourself."
The old professor, Xu Tiande, stood beside Liu Shang's workstation and patted his shoulder with a smile.
Liu Shang also nodded with a smile and agreed.
At this moment, Ma Yuan came over at "just the right time."
"Liu Shang, for these basic technologies and on-site procedures, you should come to me anytime."
"Before you came, I was in charge of all of this."
"Professor Xu has a lot on his plate and is usually very busy. He's often out of the office for meetings with clients or handling other company business. Let's not add to Professor Xu's burden."
A normal intern, hearing what Ma Yuan said, would have happily accepted the offer.
Naturally, Xu Tiande wouldn't be bothered by such a small matter.
However, for Liu Shang, every moment of his time was extremely precious, and he didn't have the spare energy to waste on pointless talk with Ma Yuan.
"Thank you, but there's no need, Brother Ma. I think you're usually very busy yourself."
"I'm going to familiarize myself with the documents and materials Professor Xu sent me first, and then try to draft some design plans and reports for Professor Xu to look over."
So early in the morning, he was met with such a soft rebuff from Liu Shang, and the whole series of moves Ma Yuan had painstakingly planned the night before was thrown into disarray.
The chairman, Song Guangyuan, had given Liu Shang the position of technical engineer, same as Ma Yuan, so Ma Yuan had no authority to order Liu Shang around.
What's more, with Xu Tiande standing right there, it was difficult for Ma Yuan to say anything harsh to provoke or pull rank on Liu Shang.
As he stood there, stunned, Xu Tiande also smiled. "Ma Yuan, you should go back to your work."
"Liu Shang will be studying with me for a while. If his work truly involves on-site matters in the future, I'll have him find you."
Now that Xu Tiande had spoken, Ma Yuan could only force an awkward smile and return to his desk with a slightly gloomy expression.
The little drama that had just unfolded was seen by many people in the office, and most of them were smiling inwardly, as if watching a good show.
At the same time, they were secretly thinking: *So this is the rumored Liu Shang from yesterday?*
*Not bad. This freshman is really something. No wonder he pulled off that stunt of barging into the conference room yesterday!*
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