TYAM Chapter 77

The two of them were busy in the first half of the night and lying down in the second half.

Although their bodies were asleep, their consciousness seemed to wake intermittently, as if immersed in the emotions of significant life moments—like the night before starting school, the instant of landing a first job, and other important milestones.

Their pulses and heartbeats turned into electric signals, continuously affirming their connection with each other.

It felt as though their lives had started to intertwine from this moment on.

Their souls finally converged. When one opened their eyes, the other would smile, and even separated by thousands of miles, they would still sense each other’s presence.

Jiang Wang would wake up halfway through the night, glance at Ji Linqiu, kiss his reddened shoulder and his sweat-dappled forehead, and then nestle closer before falling asleep again.

The night was tranquil and serene, the moonlight bright and gentle.

It wasn’t until someone knocked on the door at one in the afternoon that they finally woke up again.

“Boss Jiang! Boss Jiang, are you there?”

“Hey? Where did he go?” 

Jiang Wang called out lazily, put on a jacket, and opened the door just a crack.

“Aha, I knew you were here,” Boss Lu said with a laugh. “Didn’t see you two at breakfast, missed you again at lunch, and there’s a meeting in an hour—wake up already.”

“Thanks,” Jiang Wang glanced at the clock, “We pulled an all-nighter working, I nearly broke my keyboard.”

“I can tell, but it’s strange—you look great for someone who stayed up all night.” Boss Lu handed him a packet of materials. “Oh, by the way, here’s info on our new eye-protection lamp and study desk. Take a look if you’re interested. See you around!”

“See you.”

Jiang Wang accepted the brown paper bag, thanked him again, and closed the door.

Turning back, he saw Ji Linqiu slowly buttoning up his shirt, his slender fingers fastening each button one by one.

Jiang Wang sat beside him and reached out to feel his forehead.

Thankfully, no fever.

Ji Linqiu glanced at him, seemingly guessing what he was worried about.

“I’m fine,” Ji Linqiu said hoarsely. “My waist hurts. Next time, use a pillow.”

“I didn’t believe it before,” Jiang Wang teased lazily, “but Teacher Ji really does have a great waist and excellent flexibility.”

Before he could finish, a pillow hit him squarely.

Teasing aside, there was work to do.

The first day involved professional exchanges between teachers and training organizations. On the second day, besides open discussions, there was also an exhibition for teaching tools and office supplies.

Jiang Wang was a bit distracted during the meetings. Showing up was half for the sake of networking and half to scout new talent.

Their company, Buwang Education, had long started acquiring properties to provide affordable housing for employees. New hires could rent dormitories at low costs, and exceptional performers might even be rewarded with an apartment. 

Their goal wasn’t to make quick money but to become a respected, long-standing institution.

With their high benefits and solid growth plans, Jiang Wang exchanged contact information with several teachers on the first day. Some even approached him to self-recommend.

Although Ji Linqiu spoke less on the second day and mostly stayed in a corner sipping coffee, by the end of the afternoon, he had filled 70% of their talent shortlist without Jiang Wang even needing to ask.

When Jiang Wang returned, exhausted from mingling, he was surprised by the progress.

“How did you manage this?!”

Ji Linqiu wagged a finger. 

“Trade secret.”

They ordered cups of hot tea and chatted leisurely. Boss Lu, who had knocked earlier, came by again to chat.

“Boss Jiang, you’ve got great taste, buying a batch of my desks! I’m telling you, the materials we use are top-notch — no formaldehyde, all for the students’ well-being!”

Boss Lu babbled on enthusiastically. Seeing Jiang Wang’s distracted expression, he leaned closer conspiratorially. “Oh, you missed some juicy gossip yesterday. Let me tell you something.”

“See that girl handing out resumes over there?” He pointed to a petite figure in the southeast corner. “The shortest one in the room. You better not hire her.”

Ji Linqiu’s expression shifted slightly. “Why not?”

“She’s a troublemaker,” Boss Lu said dismissively, waving a hand. “She used to be a good teacher but then started demanding better pay and opposing unpaid overtime. She even pushed for a school anti-harassment policy.”

“Normal people avoid unnecessary trouble, right? But not her. She even tried to start a union and stirred things up by helping another female teacher sue the school principal![mfn]you go girl[/mfn]”

Jiang Wang sipped his tea and asked calmly, “How’s her teaching?”

“That curly-haired girl’s actually decent. She once taught a student who got into Tsinghua University. She’s a physics teacher.” Boss Lu recalled some hearsay, clearly unimpressed. “But good teaching isn’t enough. If you can’t get along with people, you’ll still suffer.”

“After she offended the principal, she was sidelined for two years before finally leaving. And the teacher she helped? Settled out of court, got a hefty settlement, and left without giving her a dime. How stupid of her.”

Ji Linqiu and Jiang Wang exchanged a glance and subtly nodded.

After Boss Lu left, they approached the teacher in question, politely inviting her for tea and snacks.

The teacher, nicknamed “Little Curly Hair,” was about 155 cm tall with brown, tightly curled hair. Her black-framed glasses perched on her nose, making her face look only the size of a palm.

Clearly starving, she ate ravenously once the server brought over the cake.

Ji Linqiu asked tentatively, “Should we order a bowl of wonton soup for you?”

She nodded vigorously.

After she’d eaten her fill, they handed her a business card and a company brochure, inviting her to interview with them.

“My name is Fu Er,” she introduced herself, adjusting her glasses. “I’m 27, not interested in marriage, and my salary expectations include performance bonuses and an annual bonus, with a two-week vacation policy.”

Jiang Wang agreed generously. 

“If your performance is outstanding, we can offer a 14-month salary.”

Having faced numerous rejections over salary demands that day, Fu Er became wary at their quick agreement.

“I know people are talking about me,” she said, frowning. “And I do care about certain things.”

“Let me be clear in advance: I don’t like attending social drinking events. I can handle high workloads, but only if they come with appropriate compensation, not empty promises.”

Her voice was sharp and defensive, like a small, bristling animal ready to fight. 

Ji Linqiu, however, saw her as a potential strong ally.

In Buwang Education, he oversaw the English department, Duan Zhao managed mathematics, and another teacher handled Chinese. However, they still lacked a top-tier science expert.

Despite her petite stature, Fu Er seemed like someone who could command a room.

“That’s great,” he said. “Would you be willing to do a trial lesson?”

Fu Er blinked, feeling like the situation was a bit surreal.

“With all my demands, you… actually agree to them?”

She had been pushed by her parents to attend this event to see if she could find a new job. For two days straight, she had run into employers trying to hire cheap labor, and as soon as she brought up her conditions, they’d immediately lose interest.

Jiang Wang and Ji Linqiu exchanged a glance, then opened their laptop and showed her the 4.0 version of their internal physics materials.

Fu Er took the mouse and began reviewing quickly. She skimmed through the pages at a speed that made it seem like she wasn’t even looking at the problems.

Then she slightly shook her head.

Jiang Wang observed her expression and asked, “What do you think isn’t working?”

“There’s a good variety of question types, and the difficulty is tiered,” Fu Er replied, her eyes still fixed on the screen. “But… the traps aren’t clearly identified, and many core concepts are missing.”

“Look here,” she said, highlighting a section in red. “The basic concept is wrong. Whoever compiled this material didn’t do a good job.”

Her movements were natural and focused, completely ignoring social niceties as she dove into analyzing the material.

“Alright,” Ji Linqiu chuckled. “Let’s set a time to meet in Yuhan.”

Fu Er froze for a moment and quickly responded, “Then I’ll head to the train station to buy a ticket!”

“No need for that. Our company covers travel and accommodations for teacher interviews,” Jiang Wang said as he handed her a large bowl of wonton soup brought by the server. “If you pass the trial lesson, I’ll also cover food and lodging.”

The two of them stayed at the ICV forum for four days, collecting a stack of teacher contacts.

On the flight back, Ji Linqiu glanced at Fu Er, who was engrossed in solving problems, and leaned over to ask, “What do you think Peng Xingwang is doing right now?”

Jiang Wang, who had been swamped, slapped his forehead as he remembered the kid at home.

“That’s strange,” he muttered. “I called him yesterday, and he didn’t react much.”

Usually, Peng Xingwang would cling to them over the phone, whining about missing them and chatting endlessly. Even if he didn’t, he’d at least leave them a long message.

Could something have gone wrong at home?

It turned out, nothing was wrong.

When the two adults opened the door and entered their house, they found the kid squatting in the garden, looking troubled.

It wasn’t until the glass door to the greenhouse slid open with a sharp sound that Peng Xingwang realized his brothers were back. He turned around in a panic.

“—Big Brother!”

Jiang Wang set down his suitcase and walked over to see what he was up to.

What he saw was a scene that looked like a plant nursery, with small green seedlings scattered everywhere.

Jiang Wang smiled. “Peng Xingwang, care to explain what happened here?”

Peng Xingwang gulped nervously.

“Grandma Zhang from downstairs… brought us a bag of sunflower seeds from her hometown. She said they were fresh and could be roasted and eaten.”

“And then?”

“And then… I wanted to see if raw sunflower seeds could grow…”

Ji Linqiu, who had just finished changing his shoes, walked over and froze when he saw the lush clusters of green sprouts crowded together.

“You watered all of them?”

“I… I only spread a thin layer across the bottom of the pots!” Peng Xingwang was on the verge of tears. “How was I supposed to know they’d all sprout?!”

This many sunflowers, if they weren’t transplanted into soil, they’d all die!!!

Jiang Wang didn’t say much. He rolled up his sleeves, grabbed a handful of seedlings, and got to work.

Ji Linqiu ruffled Peng Xingwang’s hair and joined him in planting the sunflowers.

The two adults worked diligently in the greenhouse, planting flowers assembly-line style, faces turned to the soil and backs to the sky.

Jiang Wang muttered to himself, “Why is it that every time we come home, we end up doing manual labor? Last time it was mopping the floor, now it’s planting flowers. Next time, we might have to help hatch eggs.”

Peng Xingwang walked in with another small pot of sunflower seedlings, his eyes brimming with tears. “Big Brother, I didn’t mean to!”

Jiang Wang immediately tried to comfort him. “It’s fine, it’s fine. I actually loved sunflowers when I was a kid!”

Peng Xingwang pouted. “You don’t love them. You’re just saying that to make me feel better. I know.”

“…!!”

Ji Linqiu was already doubled over with laughter on the side.