Labor Day five-day holiday. With two days off and three days of overtime for Ying Ni, it’s almost as if she didn’t have a break at all.

Moreover, she was the only one working overtime in her department.

On the 10th, the payroll came out, and Ying Ni’s mind went blank as she grabbed the pay slip and rushed toward the manager’s office.

“The salary will be adjusted in June. You’re not the only one. All employees will have their salaries adjusted,” the female leader said, looking through the data for a long time.

Noticing Ying Ni standing there waiting, she impatiently tapped the folder and said, “It will happen soon, next month.”

Ying Ni stood as firmly as a wooden post.

The female leader elaborated, “It’s impossible to give you a raise alone right now.”

Ying Ni had been brushed off several times, and she just wanted to know one thing, “How much?”

When it came to the key point, the female leader chuckled and played it down, “That depends on the company. I don’t have the final say. You’ll know when it happens.”

Huaxing Trading mainly focuses on garment exports. Although not an industry leader, the company has about 500 employees, so it’s not small either. Ying Ni’s salary increases by only 200 yuan every year, while her colleagues see nearly 1,000 yuan increases.

It was nearly nothing.

Ying Ni remained silent and just stared at her.

The female leader felt uncomfortable under her gaze and stopped pretending to smile. “Look, there’s nothing I can do.

Getting you into this company is already a big favor. If you resign, you won’t find another job like this, with social insurance and a comfortable office.”

“Be content.”

Ying Ni looked out the window. The sky was grey and cloudy, the air quality poor, and it was hard to tell whether it was smog or the signs of rain.

Either way, it felt suffocating.

“Nowadays, university graduates are everywhere, and you only have a high school diploma. Your education is a weakness, you should know that… But then again, you have strong work skills and are willing to endure hardship. The company sees that for sure,” the female leader said smoothly, “Don’t worry, I’ll do my best to fight for you. The company will not treat you unfairly!”

When Ying Ni left the office, her face showed little disappointment because she had already expected this outcome.

She had never been interested in studying, her grades were terrible, so bad that she couldn’t even bear to look at them. In her senior year of high school, her parents sent her to study abroad in the UK, and following the advice of the agency, she chose a generic finance major.

She thought it was just to enhance her resume, but unexpectedly, the family’s financial situation collapsed, and she had to drop out in her third year and return to China.

Finance positions valued background, and the school wasn’t highly ranked, and she hadn’t graduated. After three years of studying abroad, the only thing she could really showcase was her English.

However, education was the first stepping stone to finding a job, and her resume was so empty that even the less reputable education industry wouldn’t hire her.

So, rushing into the manager’s office was an impulse; she wasn’t in a position to resign.

Her work piled up, with endless trivial tasks to handle. After work, she had to rush to the city center to take the subway. She couldn’t afford to be upset, so she quickly returned to her desk.

As soon as she sat down, Team Leader Zhao came over to invite everyone to dinner because it was his birthday.

“I won’t go, I have an appointment,” Ying Ni forced a smile. “Happy birthday, Zhao Ge.”

Team Leader Zhao’s smile froze on his face. A colleague named Xiao Wen quickly stepped in to smooth things over, “Come on, Zhao Ge is specially inviting you. Who are you meeting? Just cancel.”

Ying Ni didn’t care about anyone’s feelings, “I can’t cancel.”

After saying that, she didn’t look at anyone and expressionlessly opened the document to continue working on the spreadsheet.

…

Huaxing Trading was located in the suburbs, about 20 kilometers from the city center. It was rush hour, and the subway was packed tightly.

As soon as Ying Ni exited the subway, Yu Jiaojiao’s phone call came in, “Where are you?”

Ying Ni looked at the upscale restaurant not far ahead, adjusted her messy hair and skirt, and replied, “At the entrance.”

Yu Jiaojiao urged, “Hurry up, we’re waiting for you.”

Ying Ni replied, “Okay,” but her reluctant footsteps gave away her unwillingness.

After returning to China, Ying Ni had deliberately distanced herself from old classmates and friends, refusing to attend any form of reunion. Yu Jiaojiao had mentioned class reunions several times, but she had rejected every time without even thinking, too lazy to come up with any excuse.

Until last week, Yu Jiaojiao had helped her mother get a bed at a private rehabilitation hospital where beds were in high demand.

As a thank you, Ying Ni called to invite Yu Jiaojiao to dinner. At the time, Yu Jiaojiao was in Paris attending a fashion show. After chatting a bit, they decided to meet up when she returned.

Just as Ying Ni was about to hang up, Yu Jiaojiao suddenly brought up the reunion again: “Why go through all that trouble? Let’s just meet at the class reunion.”

Ying Ni didn’t respond.

Yu Jiaojiao added, “I’m organizing this one. I hope all the classmates can come.”

Ying Ni felt there was nothing to discuss, “Sorry, I—”

Yu Jiaojiao interrupted her, “You don’t want to come because of your family situation, right?”

Prideful as Ying Ni was, she wouldn’t admit it.

Yu Jiaojiao pressed, “Then why aren’t you coming?”

Before Ying Ni could answer, Yu Jiaojiao continued, “Gao Xin will be there too. Her mom is a top-level expert at the Western Medical Center for Neurology. You can ask her about your mom. Maybe she has a way to wake her up.”

That was the only thing that could change Ying Ni’s mind.

Her pride mattered less than her mother’s health.

After hanging up the phone, she stood in front of the hotel for a moment. The spotless glass door reflected her image, clear yet blurry.

The class reunion was meant to reminisce about the glorious past, but in reality, it was a way to observe how others were doing and if they were doing better than oneself.

As someone who had once been the center of attention but now felt fallen, Ying Ni felt a huge weight on her chest, more suffocating than when she left the manager’s office.

The hallway before the venue was filled with flowers and balloons, and a sign read “Mingde Class of 2010 10th Year Reunion.” The venue was set up beautifully, with high-end and cozy decorations.

It wasn’t a banquet with formal seating, but a buffet-style table, and people gathered in small groups. No one paid attention to who entered through the door.

Ying Ni sighed with relief.

But just as she took a couple of steps in, Yu Jiaojiao rushed over, lifting her skirt dramatically. “The celebrity—! We’ve been waiting for you!”

Ying Ni: “…”

The title “celebrity” stemmed from when Ying Ni was in high school, and a well-known talent scout had taken an interest in her. After much persuasion, they wanted her to sign with their agency.

However, Ying Ni had no interest in the entertainment industry and would go out of her way to avoid the talent scout, who persistently blocked her at the school gate for nearly a month.

This became widely known at school, and there was much discussion.

They said if she relied on her looks, she would be famous within three years.

Yu Jiaojiao’s loud voice caught everyone’s attention. Ying Ni explained, “There was a traffic jam.”

Yu Jiaojiao enthusiastically draped her arm over Ying Ni’s shoulder, “Come on, come on. We’re playing board games. We lost badly.”

Ying Ni was pushed to a seat at a table with nearly ten people. After some brief greetings and understanding the game rules, she reluctantly joined in.

Yu Jiaojiao was the first to be eliminated. Ying Ni was the second.

She wasn’t interested in the reunion or the game. She just wanted to ask, “Where is Gao Xin?”

Yu Jiaojiao looked at the others, “She couldn’t make it, something came up. Next time, I’ll help you set up another meeting with her.”

Ying Ni’s fingers dug into her palms, growing irritated. After a moment, she stood up, “I’ll be right back—”

Just then, someone shouted, “A rare guest!”

Everyone turned to look at the door. Ying Ni followed their gaze. The man who entered was tall and thin, in a crisp suit, like he had just come out of an important meeting.

She thought he was some famous person from her school days, but she didn’t recognize him at all.

From the way the others reacted, his career must have been very successful.

Almost immediately, everyone’s attention was drawn to him.

Someone joked, “Yu Jiaojiao, you’re amazing. You even got Chen An here.”

Yu Jiaojiao proudly lifted her chin, “You underestimated me.”

Ying Ni didn’t recognize the name. He was probably an alumnus from a different class. Amid the conversation, Ying Ni turned her attention away and glanced at her phone.

Classmate A said, “I went to Yokohama last month and passed by Chen An’s factory. It was bigger than I expected. When was it built? This year?”

Classmate B sneered, “You’re a bit out of touch. CEO Chen set up subsidiaries in Japan, the US, and France a few years ago.”

Classmate A awkwardly laughed, “I study arts, so I don’t really follow business news.” After a while, they couldn’t resist asking, “Is his company worth 300 billion now?”

“300 billion?” Classmate B laughed aloud, “It broke 600 billion this morning.”

Everyone fell silent, and no one could continue the conversation. Ying Ni felt a bit confused. Mingde was a private prestigious school, and the students came from rich or influential families. It was unlikely they would envy others’ success.

Following the gazes of a few female classmates, she looked back at the man.

The man, Chen An, was stopped by someone near the door, walking alongside another classmate Ying Ni recognized. He tilted his head slightly as if speaking to the other person, his bow tie neat, tall, and lean, but not too thin.

As he approached, his features became clearer.

He had deep eyes, sharp contours, and a calm demeanor that strangely exuded a sense of polite detachment.

Up close, Ying Ni still didn’t recognize him.

She casually asked, “Which class is he from?”

Yu Jiaojiao’s eyes widened in