Chapter 5: Achieving Sam's Freedom
It was company routine. Almost everyone had to take a turn once every two months.
"Bei Wei, you took a day off last week. How about you come in tomorrow? It'll count as compensatory leave for you, alright?" Wang Shijie looked at Bei Wei and asked.
"No problem." Bei Wei nodded, as if she had expected it.
"I'll find one more male colleague." Wang Shijie looked around the room and then turned to Zhang Yang. "Zhang Yang, you'll take the shift tomorrow."
When they heard it was Zhang Yang, several young single guys in the office immediately let out a sigh of relief.
Brother Zhang? Then it's fine. Nothing to worry about.
In their eyes, Zhang Yang was harmless and absolutely the least threatening one. There was no way he could become competition in pursuing Bei Wei.
"Alright." Zhang Yang also nodded.
Although he planned to pick up his car tomorrow morning, he could inform Bei Wei first and slip out for half a day.
People often helped each other like this before, so it wouldn't be a problem.
After arranging the weekend duty schedule, Supervisor Wang announced the end of work. The office instantly scattered as everyone began welcoming the long-awaited weekend.
After work, Zhang Yang saw Bei Wei packing up her bag and preparing to leave, so he walked over to talk to her about it.
"Sure. Brother Zhang, if you have something to do, go ahead and handle it. I can cover for a while." Bei Wei nodded and agreed readily.
"Thanks. I'll treat you to a meal sometime." Zhang Yang said casually.
"Really?" Bei Wei looked at Zhang Yang with a smile in her eyes. "Brother Zhang, then… I'll hold you to it?"
"I mean it. Your Brother Zhang can still afford a meal." Zhang Yang waved his hand. "You pick the place, you choose the time."
With an income of over ten thousand a day, he had some confidence. He couldn't afford something ridiculously expensive like hundreds of thousands, but a meal costing several thousand was no problem. Even in the Shanghai, spending several thousand for two people was already quite high-end.
"I'm just joking, Brother Zhang." Bei Wei pursed her lips slightly. "If it's convenient, just bring me something to eat tomorrow. I don't really feel like ordering takeout."
With her personality, she naturally wouldn't take advantage of others like some girls might. She wouldn't treat polite words as serious and put someone in an awkward situation.
"Alright. I'll bring you something tomorrow at noon." Zhang Yang kept this in mind.
After work, Zhang Yang excitedly went to the nearby [A membership-based warehouse store known for bulk and premium products.].
On the first day of earning ten thousand a day, he wanted to achieve [A slang term meaning having enough money to shop freely at Sam's Club without worrying about prices.].
Today was destined to be a massive shopping trip.
In the past, no matter what, he would never choose to shop at Sam's. After all, he lived alone, and Sam's products usually came in huge quantities costing hundreds at a time. It simply wasn't his first choice.
His usual options were the wet market, the supermarket, or the convenience store downstairs…
But now, Sam's welcomed him.
Salmon slices costing nearly three hundred per kilogram (~136 per lb)—he took ten packs. Cod chunks costing two hundred per kilogram (~91 per lb)—he took seven or eight packs. Blueberries with stems at one sixty per kilogram (~73 per lb)—he grabbed quite a few, though fruit couldn't really be stored, so he would buy more after finishing them.
There were also things he had long been tempted by but never bought because of the price, like beef ribs and cashews. He threw plenty of those into the cart as well.
If you have money but don't spend it, then it's just a number.
Even though he spent several thousand in one go today, which seemed like a lot, once he went home and slept and opened his eyes the next day-oh, another ten thousand.
If you weren't buying houses, cars, or luxury goods, how could this money ever run out?
Pushing a cart filled to the brim and carrying large bags of his spoils, Zhang Yang returned home loaded with purchases.
Outside it was pitch black, but the small single apartment was brightly lit.
"Finally managed to stuff everything in." Zhang Yang closed the refrigerator door and let out a long breath.
The previously empty, cheap refrigerator was now packed to the brim.
They say when there is food at home, the heart feels at ease. The simplest definition of a comfortable life was having plenty of food and clothing, and Zhang Yang now felt exactly that.
"I'll have these for dinner tonight." Zhang Yang took out a box of beef ribs and cut himself a piece of salmon.
That evening, he busied himself happily for quite a while.
He blanched the beef ribs before stewing them until the meat became tender and fell off the bone. He sliced the salmon and even tried arranging it nicely on the plate. He washed a large bowl of cherries.
With a hiss, he opened a bottle of zero-calorie cola and poured himself a full glass.
The window was half open. Sitting at the table with the evening breeze blowing in, he looked at the simple yet abundant dishes in front of him, took a big gulp of cola, and enjoyed the pleasure of Sam's freedom.
"Right, let me check RedNote."
Although the system hadn't reacted yet, he still couldn't help wanting to see the comments on today's new post.
'This is the same person!?'
'You're sure you lost this much in a month? You didn't already lose weight before and just come here to fool us, right?'
'Please please please share the method. How did you do it?'
'It's definitely the same person. After losing weight he looks so much more energetic. Damn, I'm suddenly excited.'
'There's hope, there's hope. A month ago he looked hopeless, but now there's clearly huge room for improvement!'
'The skin isn't loose at all and he even looks younger. How did you manage that?'
From top to bottom, every comment was filled with disbelief.
If Zhang Yang had simply lost weight but had loose skin, many people would definitely say he looked older after slimming down. But thanks to the system, he didn't have a single bit of excess skin from head to toe.
That effect made him look completely different compared to a month ago.
Zhang Yang spent some time interacting with netizens and also shared some of his weight loss experience. Of course, he shared the good experiences, but the extreme methods like fasting just to reduce weight were left out.
'It's not really experience. I just verified the results through practice.'
'When it comes to fat loss, rest is more important than diet, and diet is more important than exercise. If you start with a large base weight, controlling diet and creating a calorie deficit while maintaining your basal metabolism is enough to lose weight.'
There were too many people asking for weight loss advice. Many girls wanted to slim down. Zhang Yang wasn't a professional, so he could only answer based on his own experience.
However, everyone's focus seemed a bit off. The suggestions he was hoping for hadn't appeared yet.
So he asked again.
'You have to be patient.' Zhang Yang closed RedNote, stood up, began washing the dishes, and then went downstairs for a walk to aid digestion.
~~~~~
Living alone in the Shanghai far from home, he had always lived quite freely-especially now.
In the past, his life had been nothing but work and going home from work. He had never leisurely taken a walk like today, strolling through nearby parks. The rhythm of life seemed to slow down all at once.
Girls walking dogs, young people out for night runs, livestreaming influencers outdoors, and children in the park with little ponytails running around happily.
The charm of the Shanghai was not only its prosperity, but also the everyday life visible everywhere on this land.
On the way back, Zhang Yang received a call from his father Zhang Zhaohai. The father and son chatted briefly before his father got straight to the point.
"By the way, add someone on [A widely used Chinese messaging and social media app for chatting, payments, and everyday communication.] later?"
"A blind date introduction?" Zhang Yang was already used to this sort of thing. He didn't really resist it either.
Some things that seemed cliché actually happened all the time in real life, especially since he was twenty-five.
"Yes. She's the niece of your mother's former colleague. She also works in the Shanghai. She's quite good in every aspect. Make sure you seize the opportunity." Zhang Zhaohai spoke earnestly. "You're twenty-five this year. After this year, the situation will be different."
Men also had their 'market value'. If everything about you was average, then age was the only advantage you had.
After twenty-five, you were already approaching thirty.
Not good-looking, average job, ordinary family background, and approaching thirty-it would become very difficult…
Fortunately, Zhang Yang had turned the dividing line of age into a turning point in life.
"Alright, send it over. I'll add her later." If the introduction was unreliable he would decline, but since it came from his mother, he had to show respect.
A moment later, his mother Song Wenqin sent the WeChat contact.
Zhang Yang added it casually, then stopped by a fruit shop outside the apartment and bought a bag of fruit that looked very sweet before carrying it back to his place.