Pharmaceutical Negotiator - Chapter 39

The video call connected quickly. Qi An was sitting on the bed, looking at Zhang Sitan, who appeared to still be outside, and her heart softened.

“Sister Sitan.”

“Mmm, is my dad gone?” There seemed to be wind outside, blowing Zhang Sitan’s hair onto her face, which she then tucked behind her ear.

“He’s gone,” Qi An paused, “Sister Sitan, are you busy now?”

“Not really. Just finished a meeting, waiting for a car to pick me up.”

“Ah.” Qi An wasn’t sure if she should continue speaking, afraid of disturbing her, and also afraid that Sitan would be unhappy if she spoke.

Zhang Sitan was sitting on a long bench. It was already dark, and the car to pick her up should arrive in about ten minutes.

She had been busy and dizzy these past few days abroad, falling asleep as soon as she returned to the hotel, almost unable to distinguish reality.

When Qi An messaged her today, she remembered that there was also a tangled mess of rope waiting for her to untie back home.

“Just say what you want to say.” Noticing Qi An’s carefulness, Zhang Sitan frowned slightly.

She rarely showed her true emotions, always hiding them and facing people with a smile. She had lost her temper during the video call with Zhang San Gong today, and now seeing Qi An’s hesitation, her face showed emotion again.

“Ah.” Across the screen, Qi An couldn’t sense the extra air of severity around Zhang Sitan.

She (silly/dumbly) opened her mouth: “I think… it’s late at night, you shouldn’t have let Uncle stay in a hotel.”

“Mmm,” Zhang Sitan nodded. There was wind around, and she leaned closer to the screen so her voice could be heard more clearly, “But he’s already there.”

The implication was, what was the use of saying this now?

“Ah, yes.” Qi An was a little stunned, momentarily forgetting what she wanted to express, and could only follow her instinct.

“Sister Sitan, do you have a bad relationship with your uncle?”

“Yes.” The wind picked up again, making a “whoosh” sound. It would come in gusts, and then stop.

“Ah, ah, oh.” Qi An was a little confused, sitting upright on the bed holding her phone, on one hand finding it surprising that Sister Sitan also had a difficult relationship with family, and on the other hand, still trying to find an angle to make herself look better.

“Heh.” Zhang Sitan chuckled softly, watching the person on the screen fidgeting and adjusting her angle.

She had never mentioned her family to anyone, not because it was too shameful or embarrassing, but with a kind of numbness, she didn’t feel it was necessary to mention them.

Qi An’s clumsiness slightly eased her mood; after all, it was hard to get angry at a person like this.

“I transferred him money at the end of the month when I got paid, and now he’s asking for it again, I don’t know where he plans to spend the money.” Zhang Sitan explained plainly.

“Ah.” Qi An recalled the old man indeed kept saying Zhang Sitan didn’t give him money, “Uncle said there have been heavy rains and floods recently, and something at home might have been damaged, maybe he needs the money.”

Silence. Qi An heard the sound of the wind coming through the screen, and quickly raised the phone close to her face, afraid of not hearing Zhang Sitan’s voice clearly. The beautiful angle she had just found turned into a close-up of her face.

“Mmm, I’ll transfer him some more money later.” Zhang Sitan’s tone still sounded flat. Vaguely, Qi An felt she was in a bad mood.

“Actually, it’s fine for him to stay with me.” Qi An explained.

“You have work tomorrow, don’t you? It’s almost eleven, why aren’t you sleeping?”

“Not sleepy.” Qi An looked at the screen and moved the phone away again, wanting to look better.

“The car is here to pick me up, I’ll call you back when I’m at the hotel.” Zhang Sitan said suddenly.

“Gotta go, bye.”

“Ah, bye-bye.” Qi An hurriedly waved, then realized Zhang Sitan couldn’t see her waving hand.

The video call was ended. Qi An shrunk slightly, pulled back the covers, and lay down.

Even though Zhang Sitan wasn’t there, she still maintained her old habit of only sleeping on half of the bed. The quilt Zhang Sitan usually used was folded and put into the closet, leaving the other half of the bed completely empty.

Only one pillow remained, proclaiming that someone else had once slept there.

Qi An tilted her head, resting on both pillows, and couldn’t help but recall Zhang Sitan’s words just now.

She didn’t know why Sister Sitan had a bad relationship with her family, to the point of rushing him to a hotel so late at night. She looked at the old man, who seemed quite normal, and he was skinny and frail, so he probably wouldn’t be abusive.

Hiss. Qi An mentally went through most of the reasons for conflict between children and parents, but couldn’t apply any to Zhang Sitan.

Sister Sitan was too wonderful, she couldn’t imagine anything bad being associated with her.

She waited and waited in bed. When the video call rang, Qi An jumped and immediately tapped the green button.

“Sister Sitan.” Qi An found her face squashed together while lying down, so she sat up again.

“Mmm, I’m at the hotel.” Zhang Sitan was also lying on the bed, “I just took off my makeup. Didn’t make you wait too long, did I?”

“No, no.” Qi An looked at Sister Sitan lying in bed, talking to her sideways, and for a moment felt like she was back when Sitan was still in Beijing, where she would lie down like this at night, facing her and talking to her.

“My mother passed away from cancer when I was in the ninth grade.”

“Ah.” Qi An’s eyes widened, startled by Zhang Sitan’s opening, then she understood that Sitan was explaining why she had a strained relationship with her family.

“For about four or five years, my impression of my mom was withered and haggard. She didn’t really care about me, and I didn’t communicate much with her.”

“The deepest impression I have is of that small patch of land in front of the door. Cucumbers were grown there. The home-grown ones were small and slightly wilted, but my mom often picked them for me to eat.”

Zhang Sitan’s voice was still faint, with a hint of a sigh on her face, more like she was telling a story, telling Qi An her own story.

“My dad is actually quite a good person. Although he’s petty and bullies the weak, he truly puts in the effort to work. In the countryside, there’s no central heating, so you have to burn firewood in winter. He would chop it up in late summer and early autumn and lay it out on the roof to dry.”

“He loves to drink. And he goes crazy when he drinks. I can actually understand him; his life wasn’t going well, so he could only rely on alcohol to act tough.”

“The day I was applying for college, I found out my password had been changed. I cried all day and begged him to tell me the password.”

“I can understand him. The family really didn’t have money back then.”

“I don’t really resent him.” Zhang Sitan smiled, the corners of her mouth curling up very lightly, and then dropping just as lightly.

“The reason I sent him to a hotel is because I understand him. He came, got the money, and then he’ll leave. You have to work tomorrow, there’s no need to waste your energy on him.”

“It’s also more convenient in the hotel. I ordered a meal for him and booked a train ticket,” Zhang Sitan continued, “As a young girl, can’t you be a little more guarded against people?”

Qi An had been listening quietly. She wanted to interrupt at first, but then lost the desire to speak.

When Zhang Sitan said all this, her emotions were very muted, like she was just telling a story. From a completely detached perspective, she was telling a very ordinary story.

This story was neither dramatic nor bloody. Like most Chinese families, it had warmth, and also hysterics.

So, one couldn’t escape it, nor could one fully and happily accept it.

“No,” Qi An mumbled.

“What?”

“I said I can’t be guarded against people.”

A low laugh escaped Zhang Sitan’s throat, and she buried her head in the pillow, “Suit yourself.”

“I need to sleep. Thank you for today, sleep well too.”

“No.”

Zhang Sitan chuckled again, “You’ve gotten bolder, huh? What else do you want to talk about?”

“Ah…” Qi An thought seriously for a moment.

She went from sitting to lying down again. Although this would make her look ugly on the screen, Qi An really wanted to lie face-to-face with Zhang Sitan.

“Qi Zhiguo,” Qi An murmured.

Hearing the name, Zhang Sitan was a little surprised, watching the person on the screen lie down, her hair pressed against the back, her eyes wide.

“He is a very, very good father.”

“Mmm,” Zhang Sitan agreed aloud, still remembering the day he was taken away by the police, when he said, “Dad is sorry.”

“I think humans are really complex,” Qi An frowned, sighing softly.

This sentence successfully made Zhang Sitan laugh.

A clear, shallow laugh came from the phone, like the silk screen placed in front of ancient court ladies while they danced. A light veil, reflecting the lady’s graceful curves and fleeting light and shadow.

Qi An lay there looking at Zhang Sitan, feeling how utterly charming she was. Luckily, she wasn’t right next to her now; separated by a screen, she could still retain some reason, not to kiss her again.

But she also wished Sister Sitan was right beside her now, lying next to her, close enough to feel the warmth of her body, the scattered strands of her hair, and the faint, light fragrance on her face after applying skincare.

“Sister Sitan.”

“Mmm?”

“I miss you a little.”

The words of longing were finally spoken. Qi An’s tone carried a hint of coquetry: “You haven’t sent me any messages these past two days.”

“Heh.” Zhang Sitan laughed again. Earlier, when Qi Zhiguo was mentioned, she had intentionally avoided saying more, fearing Qi An would be sad. But Qi An seemed unaffected and was still flirting with her.

“I’ve been very busy,” Zhang Sitan comforted her, her tone unconsciously laced with soothing intention.

“Oh.” Qi An didn’t speak again, her eyes still on the screen, as if trying to see right through the person inside.

Zhang Sitan couldn’t hide the smile on her lips and coaxed her again, “I’m coming back soon.”

Qi An remained silent, her pouted lips slightly reddish. It was late, and in the light, she easily brought to mind the little fox spirits of ancient tales, lingering on country roads to hinder scholars heading to the capital for exams.

Naturally, Zhang Sitan remembered the day Qi An pressed her lips against hers, and she recalled the scent of the body wash with cherry blossom, pear, and cedar, as well as the cold, cool tip of the tongue that sought her out.

“Alright, hurry up and sleep. You can video call me tomorrow.”

“Okay, Sister Sitan, good night.” Qi An still pouted, her desire unfulfilled.

“Mmm, good night.”

Keeping in mind Zhang Sitan’s words that she could still video call her, Qi An hastily skimmed through a few slides of her PPT at work the next day, then rushed to the stairwell and took out her phone.

The video call rang “deng deng deng deng,” ringing for many seconds without an answer. Qi An thought Sister Sitan must be working, but she felt a bit unwilling to hang up the call.

Thinking she would let it finish and cancel automatically, someone answered the call.

An unfamiliar face appeared on the screen. It was a girl, her age was unclear, with the typical Southeast Asian features: a low nasal bridge and large, round eyes, giving a feeling of innocent charm.

She greeted the screen loudly: “Hello!”

“Miss Zhang is still in a meeting, I am her assistant.” (Imagine this spoken in an accented English)

“Ah.” Qi An realized this was the assistant Nick had found for Sister Sitan.

Her English had a slight accent, as if she were speaking with a hushed voice. But her pace was not fast, and Qi An easily understood.

“Then, then, let’s hang up for now,” she stammered.

The person on the other end hung up without asking anything, which Qi An found quite puzzling.

Then she remembered when she was a new assistant, she was probably just as clumsy. If it were her answering the phone, she would likely do the same: not ask the other person’s name or reason for calling, and hang up casually without a word of relay.

However, she had grown up a lot now, she could even criticize others for being unprofessional.

But still, she was so unhappy. Sister Sitan had clearly said she could video call her, but she was in a meeting, and an unfamiliar young girl answered the phone.

And this girl was doing her job.

She was the proper assistant.