Pharmaceutical Negotiator - Chapter 12

As soon as the plane landed, sounds from all directions rushed in.

People around were moving in a hurry, even those pushing luggage carts piled high with five or six suitcases were walking quickly.

Zhang Sitan pulled her suitcase and directly bypassed the welcoming crowd, heading for the escalator.

The sky outside was not very blue, carrying a soft, grayish white hue. However, white clouds stretched for miles, covering large areas and leaving only small gaps in the sky.

Taxis and private cars were lined up for several rows around the airport road. The traffic wasn’t moving forward, and there were no drivers in the cars; they were all standing by the airport entrance soliciting passengers for shared rides, with suitcases stacked together and crammed into the trunks.

A driver came over and asked Zhang Sitan where she was going. Zhang Sitan gave the address of her residential complex, and the driver immediately shook his head and walked away.

Zhang Sitan smiled wryly, pulled her sun hat down, and dragged her suitcase to the subway station.

The area where she lived was even more congested than the airport road. These shared ride services calculated fares per person, and taking her wouldn’t cover the fuel costs spent on the road.

Zhang Sitan felt a sense of familiarity only after entering the residential complex. She lifted her suitcase with effort, pulled open the unit door, and pushed the suitcase into the elevator.

She rented a two-bedroom, one-living room apartment. The location was decent, close to her workplace. The only downside was the age of the building; the soundproofing was poor. She could clearly hear the music from the elderly ladies dancing in the square downstairs and the sound of chopping meat filling from next door early in the morning.

Actually, Zhang Sitan could have rented a smaller one-bedroom apartment or shared an apartment, only needing one bedroom. But her alcoholic, often abusive old father sometimes came to Beijing for “medical treatment,” so she had to keep an extra bedroom.

Her hand touched the lock, and the display screen lit up, showing the fingerprint icon. Zhang Sitan then placed her index finger flat on it. The lines on the display screen changed from red to green, and the door opened.

The apartment had been vacant for over a month. Fine dust swirled around with the breeze created by pushing the door open.

Zhang Sitan opened the windows wide, rinsed her hands under the tap, grabbed a cleaning cloth, and started cleaning.

The tables, chairs, windowsills, floors, and cabinets the damp cloth wiped over them, leaving a wet streak.

Before leaving, Zhang Sitan had removed all the bedding. Now, she took a new set from the cupboard and put it in the washing machine.

After thoroughly cleaning every room, Zhang Sitan finally had time to take a hot shower.

The day’s busy schedule gave her a big appetite. Right after her shower, without even waiting for her hair to dry, Zhang Sitan collapsed onto the sofa, picked up her phone, and ordered a stone pot rice.

The clothes in her suitcase were already organized in the closet, and the sachets in the corners had been replaced with new ones.

Following the routine after every business trip, Zhang Sitan methodically put everything back in its place, placed the various documents and reports needed for resuming work tomorrow into her bag in advance, changed her shoes, and went downstairs to pick up her takeout.

Although this residential complex was old, the security was very good, which was one of the reasons Zhang Sitan chose to live here. Living alone, she had to be careful about various aspects.

Takeout and packages were kept at the guard’s room, and residents had to go down to pick them up themselves.

As she reached the complex gate, the delivery guy in a Meituan jacket had just lowered his phone from his ear, mounted his electric scooter, and left.

Zhang Sitan knocked on the window of the guard’s room. The elderly guard inside bent his finger and pulled the window open.

“Grandpa, picking up takeout, for North Building 703.”

“703, 703!”

The old guard seemed excited when he heard Zhang Sitan’s apartment number and shouted toward the back.

After shouting, he took the takeout from the basket and handed it to Zhang Sitan, mumbling, “Your phone was out of service when I called you. This child has been waiting here for you for a long time.”

Zhang Sitan was stunned to hear someone was waiting for her. She peeked inside the guard’s room and met Qi An’s timid gaze.

It wasn’t until Qi An pushed a large suitcase out that Zhang Sitan dared to blink, confirming she hadn’t mistaken her.

The dark green suitcase reached above Qi An’s waist. Qi An struggled a bit to push it, indicating it was quite heavy.

Zhang Sitan deliberately kept her phone number out of service at the guard’s room. Her abusive old father was constantly trying to contact her, and Zhang Sitan feared that once he had her number, her life would lose its quietude.

“Why didn’t you send me a message?” Zhang Sitan took Qi An’s suitcase.

Qi An lowered her head, picking at her fingers, and finally mumbled after a long while, “Didn’t dare to.”

Zhang Sitan was speechless for a moment, but then she recalled how she herself used to stare at Qi An’s chat box, unable to type anything, and suddenly her frustration dissipated.

“How did you know I lived here?”

“Asked… asked Teacher Su.”

“Does President Qi know?”

Qi An didn’t answer. Zhang Sitan frowned, “Bringing such a big suitcase, how many days are you planning to stay?”

Seeing that Qi An only kept her head down and walked forward, Zhang Sitan opened her phone, “I’ll send a message to President Qi.”

“Ah.” When Qi An heard Zhang Sitan was going to send her away, she hastily pressed down on Zhang Sitan’s hand holding the phone.

Zhang Sitan paused, her gaze sharp, “If you didn’t tell her, she’ll worry about you.”

“I… I wanted to tell her tonight.” Qi An retracted her hand as soon as she met Zhang Sitan’s eyes.

“Why tell her tonight?” Zhang Sitan put away her phone.

“I was afraid you’d send me away.”

Qi An explained softly, laying out all her little thoughts. If Zhang Sitan got angry, she would immediately and smoothly return to Qingdao. But if Zhang Sitan was willing to let her stay in Beijing, she would then report to Qi Shenli.

Zhang Sitan was silent for a moment, then pushed Qi An’s suitcase into the apartment.

“Where you choose to develop is your own business. However… President Qi shouldn’t be short of property in Beijing. Are you sure you want to cram in this small apartment with me?”

“Mhm, mhm.” Seeing a glimmer of hope, Qi An nodded in surprise.

To make Zhang Sitan more certain, she added pitifully, “I’m a little afraid to live alone.”

“I’ll pay rent!”

Saying this, Qi An quickly pressed the transfer buttons on her phone.

The daily limit on WeChat was 200,000 yuan. Qi An consecutively sent eight transfers of 200,000 yuan.

Zhang Sitan watched her operation speechless. She clicked “Refund” on each one, “Are you planning to live here for several years?”

Seeing Zhang Sitan refuse the money, Qi An was visibly flustered. She tightly clutched the suitcase handle with her left hand, terrified that Zhang Sitan would throw her out the next second.

Zhang Sitan noticed all these small movements. She turned off her phone, took out bowls and chopsticks from the cabinet, and divided half of the freshly picked-up takeout.

“Have you eaten?”

“I’ve eaten…” A hesitant tone.

“What did you eat?”

Silence.

Zhang Sitan sighed. This little person had gone from being reserved to increasingly open in front of her, but after the whole incident with Qi Zhiguo, she had regressed back to square one.

She picked up her phone and ordered another bowl of noodles, pushing the half bowl of stone pot rice toward Qi An, “Go wash your hands. I also ordered noodles.”

Seeing this gesture, Qi An knew Sitan was letting her stay. She excitedly said, “Thank you, Sister Sitan.”

After dinner, Sitan helped Qi An put the sheets on the bed in the other bedroom and carefully explained the door code and the placement of items in the house to her.

“I have no right to interfere with your own choices, but don’t waste time unnecessarily. You have enough resources to challenge worldly views, but if you came to Beijing to be an ostrich, then you’re wasting more than just time.”

Qi An replied earnestly, “I didn’t come to be an ostrich. I don’t blame anyone for my father’s matter. I came to Beijing after serious consideration.”

This was the first time Qi An had voluntarily brought up Qi Zhiguo. Seeing the expression on her small face, trying hard to prove herself, Zhang Sitan couldn’t help but curve her lips into a smile.

Upon returning to her own room, Zhang Sitan messaged Qi Shenli. She only relaxed after ensuring Qi An hadn’t run away from home in a fit of pique.

The temperature in Beijing was higher than in Qingdao, and the air was more stagnant and less mobile.

Zhang Sitan bought a membership at the downstairs gym. She got up early in the morning and went there to start the treadmill.

She bought the membership on Double Eleven, taking advantage of a discount—buy one year, get one year free, and a thousand yuan off. Considering Zhang Sitan’s running frequency, it was a great deal.

When leaving, she passed Qi An’s bedroom. The door was closed; the person was probably still asleep. Zhang Sitan hesitated whether to say hello but ultimately left without leaving a note.

It was late June, the season where even a light stretch made the body warm up, and a two-kilometer run would bring sweat to the sides of the nose, gathering into beads that then dropped onto the sports shirt. Being covered in sweat felt exhilarating and satisfying.

Zhang Sitan’s few moments of relaxation were: first, kicking off her heels after work, stripping off her bra, and putting on cotton pajamas; and second, now.

She ran with her head down, absorbed in her own world. Her hair was pulled up, and sweat formed on her neck, gathering into drops, which then rolled down onto her sportswear. It was utterly sweat-soaked, invigorating, and delightful.

Leaving the gym, Zhang Sitan picked up a few steamed buns and two cups of porridge from the breakfast shop.

Due to environmental requirements, the porridge containers and straws were now paper. The shop owner thoughtfully arranged the two cups in a paper bag to prevent them from tipping over.

Her hand smoothed over the electronic lock, lighting up the fingerprint sensor. Zhang Sitan pushed the door open, holding the paper bag with one hand.

Inside the door, a pair of large eyes heard the movement and popped up from the sofa.

“Sister Sitan.”

“Mhm, bought some breakfast.” Zhang Sitan replied, placing the paper bag on the coffee table and taking out the porridge and buns one by one.

Qi An’s short hair was a mess, with several parts sticking up, clearly indicating she had slept without drying her hair properly last night.

Zhang Sitan glanced at her flyaways and smiled, “How did you manage to sleep into such a wild hairstyle?”

“Ah.” Qi An reached up to press down her standing hair, “I couldn’t find the hairdryer after showering yesterday…”

“The hairdryer is in the cupboard under the sink.” Zhang Sitan patiently instructed her, “Generally, things are stored in the cabinet behind the TV. Ask me if you can’t find anything.”

“Mhm.”

“Eat.”

They sat down in front of the sofa. Zhang Sitan took a straw, poked open the small hole on the porridge box, inserted the straw, and handed it to Qi An.

“Where are you planning to send your resume?”

“Al… already sent it.” Qi An swallowed a mouthful of bun with difficulty when she heard Zhang Sitan ask her.

Zhang Sitan was intrigued that Qi An already had an idea. “Where did you apply?”

“Can’t say.” Qi An lowered her head, avoiding Zhang Sitan’s eager gaze.

“Hahaha, alright.” Zhang Sitan saw her desire to keep it a secret and felt even more curious but didn’t ask further.

After breakfast, Zhang Sitan slung her large black bag over her shoulder. Before leaving, she reminded Qi An, “It’s close to the subway station here, very convenient to get around. You can go to the supermarket and see if you need anything.”

Qi An responded, and helped Zhang Sitan close the door.

Enduring the scorching heat all the way, Zhang Sitan finally arrived at work. After clocking in, she hurriedly went to her desk and started wiping it down with a wet wipe.

Other colleagues turned their heads to congratulate her on her successful return, and Zhang Sitan thanked each of them.

After tidying her workspace, Zhang Sitan took the reimbursement receipts to finance and her work summary for the past month to Director Zhang’s office.

In Director Zhang’s office, a lean middle-aged man carefully flipped through Zhang Sitan’s report and praised, “Very good.”

Zhang Sitan smiled. Director Zhang’s “very good” meant “excellent.”

“I will contact Qidong Pharmaceutical as soon as possible and try to start the project early.”

Qidong Pharmaceutical was the project Li Hao had competed with her for. Starting a new work layout as soon as she returned, Director Zhang nodded with satisfaction toward Zhang Sitan:

“But don’t overwork yourself. There’s an interview today. Would you like to interview an assistant for yourself?”

“No need, the HR department can decide.”

Zhang Sitan knew that temporary assistants hired like this didn’t stay long; they all used this as a stepping stone, either for civil service exams or further studies. So, she had no intention of interviewing them.

Director Zhang nodded, understanding her meaning, and said no more.