Chapter 67: You’re So Energetic, You Take the Lead. Part 1

The words had barely left her mouth before Yue Chengqi regretted them. She touched her lips, whispering a soft apology.

No matter the circumstances, she shouldn’t have snapped at Su Ye. They were both enduring an agonizing situation, holding on by a thread, doing the best they could.

Yue Chengqi stepped forward, pulling Su Ye’s shoulders into a tight embrace. She stroked the girl’s back, offering slow, steady comfort.

Su Ye leaned dejectedly against her waist. Her naturally stubborn hair was tousled, sticking up at the back of her head like a small explosion. She was reaching her absolute limit.

Still, she gritted her teeth. “It’s fine. I’ll tell you everything in a couple of days, okay? Tonight, the procurement officer from the school invited me to dinner. You…”

She caught her breath. “Just remember to come pick me up.”

She won’t let me go with her, but she wants me to pick her up?

Yue Chengqi clenched her fists, growing more confused by Su Ye’s motives. Despite her unease, she could only offer a helpless nod. “I’ll be there exactly on time. Just… don’t drink too much.”

In this era, “drinking culture” at business dinners was rarely criticized. If they went together, they would likely both be pressured to drink. But for Su Ye to go alone—a young girl—it wouldn’t be easy.

Yue Chengqi closed the shop early. She arrived at the restaurant ahead of Su Ye and secretly tracked down the owner, slipping her a fifty-yuan bill.

The owner snapped the banknote with her fingers, nodding with a beaming smile. “Work as a waitress for the night? Sure, why not. Xiao Zhao, take this girl to change her clothes.”

The owner wasn’t about to turn down someone offering to pay for the privilege of working.

When Su Ye arrived, she was stunned to see her girlfriend dressed in a waitress uniform. A white cap tucked away her loose hair, and a mask covered her face, leaving only those eyes—eyes that crinkled with a gentle, shimmering smile as they watched her.

Su Ye suddenly felt like crying.

But the guests were already seated. She couldn’t afford a scene. Straightening her clothes, she took the most inconspicuous seat at the foot of the table. Surrounding her were “big shots” ready to feast, and sitting in the seat of honor diagonally across from her was the Director of the Education Bureau.

In the four corners of the room stood servers holding wine carafes. Standing directly behind Su Ye, naturally, was Yue Chengqi.

As soon as the dishes were served, the Principal revealed his true colors. Rubbing his palms together, he looked at Su Ye and smiled. “Boss Su is truly young and promising! This dinner is actually to discuss something with you. About those payments… how about we settle the accounts collectively at the end of the year?”

“I’ve invited our Education Bureau Director today specifically to introduce more business to you.”

The Director remained silent, being the first to raise her glass.

Su Ye hadn’t even had a bite of food to line her stomach, but she had no choice but to follow suit. To show her sincerity before the others could speak, she downed a full glass of ice-cold…

The girl’s fingers, hidden behind her back, twitched slightly. Her eyes fluttered, and her brow arched a fraction, but she maintained her poker face, drinking the “liquor” to the last drop.

Yue Chengqi moved faster than the others, stepping forward to refill her “wine.”

In the brief moment their gazes met, Yue Chengqi’s eyes curved. Unnoticed by the others, she flashed a smile intended only for Su Ye.

Su Ye took a deep breath and showed the table her empty glass. Her face was slightly flushed, and a hint of feigned grievance touched her eyes. “Let me have one more glass before we dive into the details, shall we?”

She drank another glass.

It was lemon-flavored soda. In the future, it would become a famous brand called Sprite.

The Director at the head of the table possessed striking features—sharp, sword-like eyebrows and starry eyes. Her semi-long hair draped over her shoulders, and her mere presence exuded the heavy authority of a high-ranking official. As Su Ye reached for a third glass, the Director raised a hand to stop her. “There’s no need for more. Let’s talk business.”

Both Su Ye and Yue Chengqi breathed a subtle sigh of relief.

“The fact that Shan Province has successfully attracted so much attention in this wave of investment promotion is inextricably linked to young, capable entrepreneurs like yourself,” the Director said in a deep voice. “By rights, I should be the one toasted. Don’t drink this one. You haven’t eaten; too much alcohol on an empty stomach will ruin your health.”

Su Ye felt strangely flattered.

The Director continued, “Normally, school equipment procurement should go through a public bidding process. However, since the Third Middle School has already sought you out, we can skip a few steps. But you should know that the bureaucratic process takes time. If you want to do business with the system, you may truly have to wait until the end of the year for a unified payout.”

She looked up, her cold gaze crossing the expanse of the glass turntable to lock onto Su Ye. “I wonder if Boss Su can accept these terms? If not, we will proceed with the public bidding.”

Su Ye suddenly smiled. She stood and bowed. “Thank you for your favor, Director. However, I suspect that even with a public bid, the brand I represent would still win. After all, among domestic appliance brands, Qining is second to none, isn’t it?”

The Director leaned back, observing her intently.

“Since we’re having this dinner, it means there’s room for private discussion. I can accept end-of-year payments for most things. However, the Third Middle School was the first to contact me. They’ve already taken two hundred fans and ten televisions. I cannot wait until the end of the year for that portion. My business needs cash flow to function, so…”

Standing just beside the seat of the scrutinized, Su Ye remained poised and dignified, staring back at the powerful woman in the seat of honor. Even from her disadvantaged position, her aura didn’t diminish. With a smile, she countered the Director’s proposal.

“You likely have ties to the hospital system as well. They’ve already taken goods on credit. If the education system does the same, and the administrative system follows suit next week because they see us as an easy mark… then the achievements An City fought so hard for in last year’s investment drive will likely be squandered.”

The Director shrugged, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.

Before she could speak, Su Ye interrupted. “Could the service staff please step out for a moment? The dishes are served; it’s time we speak behind closed doors.”

With that, she turned and took the wine carafe from Yue Chengqi’s hand. It held about four glasses worth of liquid.

Yue Chengqi’s eyes widened slightly. Su Ye gently pressed her hand against the back of Yue Chengqi’s, using her eyes to tell her not to worry. She took the carafe smoothly and placed it before her.

Avoiding six more glasses of real liquor was already a victory.

***

Since Yue Chengqi was paying to work, no one monitored her. Once she changed her clothes, she was free to move. She sat on a small sofa outside the private room, every second feeling like a year.

She detested “drinking culture.” To call it “culture” was a joke so bitter it was insulting. Calling it a “backward custom” was being generous; in reality, it was modern dross.

But right now, she was more worried about the Su Ye of the future. As the business grew, the path to the top would be paved with dinner after dinner, session after session. Su Ye would climb from the lowest seat to the head of the table, from being scrutinized to being the one in the Director’s seat—but her body would suffer for it.

Yue Chengqi suddenly remembered how, when they were younger, Su Ye always told her to carry candy. Yue Chengqi didn’t actually like candy; she preferred bland, even flavorless foods. Most of those candies ended up in Su Ye’s mouth—whenever she felt dizzy, or when her stomach felt uneasy.

Su Ye had sacrificed too much to reach the peak.

And in that future, she had no one. She didn’t have Yue Huan to stay by her side.

Yue Chengqi clenched her fists, her heart aching. By the time she had mindlessly dug four bloody crescents into her palms with her nails, the door finally opened.

Several officials walked out laughing. The Director came out last, supporting a somewhat “drunk” Su Ye.

The moment Yue Chengqi stepped forward and met the Director’s eyes, a flash of realization crossed the older woman’s gaze. She didn’t expose the ruse. She simply handed Su Ye over. “You must be her partner? You’re both very young and capable bosses. I’ll leave her to you. It’s been a pleasure.”

Between women, there was always a touch of shared sympathy, a mutual recognition of the struggle.

As they passed each other, the Director whispered, “I tried my best to slow down the drinking pace. In the future, have her drink some milk beforehand. Avoid the soda; carbonation actually makes the alcohol hit faster. She’ll feel a bit rough when you get home. Give her some honey water.”

They couldn’t change the world from top to bottom yet, but they could help every person they touched within their reach.

The Director gave Yue Chengqi’s shoulder a light pat and walked away without looking back.

She wasn’t young anymore. By the time the younger Yue Chengqi of the original timeline would have been old enough to remember people, this woman had already retired. Yue Chengqi had only heard stories of the female Director from adults—how she had spearheaded education reform, pushing An City’s schools to become the top five in the province, helping countless students escape the wilderness to see the green lakes and lush meadows of the world.

Even if she only ever made it to the position of Director.

In this era, women fought with everything they had just to reach that far. But they had been there. The girls of the next generation would follow their footsteps and continue upward, emitting their own faint starlight from the highest peaks they could reach.

Yue Chengqi gave a slight bow to the Director’s departing back.

Then, she caught Su Ye, pulling the girl’s arm over her neck to keep her from sliding to the floor.

She had borrowed an electric motorized tricycle earlier and lined it with soft cushions. Now, she could toss Su Ye into the back carriage.

The girl was mumbling, wearing a foolish grin.

Yue Chengqi sat on the driver’s seat, staring at the smiling idiot for a moment before pinching her nose.

You poor little thing.

She drove her drunken cargo home, the motor chugging along. The breeze broke the moonlight into fragments, which, along with the flickering streetlights, illuminated the road ahead.

Suddenly, Yue Chengqi felt a tug at her neck. She braked to a halt, clutching her collar as she looked back. The bleary-eyed girl was clutching Yue Chengqi’s hem with one hand while pointing at the sky with the other, her voice cracking—

“Ah Huan, look! Stars!”

Yue Chengqi didn’t want to look at the stars. She looked down into Su Ye’s clear, transparent eyes, where she could see the reflection of the ink-black sky and the shimmering pinpricks of light.

The girl opened her hand and made a sudden grasping motion, as if trying to snatch the starlight. Then, she balled her hand into a fist and pressed it against her chest, whispering, “Beautiful stars, will you listen to my wish?”

“I want to stay with the person I love forever. Please, don’t take her away, okay?”

Yue Chengqi’s eyelashes trembled. A sharp ache rose in the bridge of her nose, and a single tear traced a path down her cheek.