Chapter 51 – Let’s See the Flowers Together When We Meet

Under the blazing sun, Huang Xiaoxiao sighed halfway through her meal, complaining, “The weather is so nice, perfect for a trip, but here we are, working, working!”

Yan Ankuo consoled her, “Consider it a working holiday.”

“How is that the same?!” Huang Xiaoxiao was on the verge of tears, “I haven’t been on a trip with my boyfriend in ages, we even had an argument about it last time.”

Yan Ankuo rarely pried into others’ personal affairs, but recently, perhaps influenced by Bian Ji, he had become more empathetic, asking, “What happened?”

“I’ve just been too busy, no time to spend with him.” Huang Xiaoxiao lamented, “It’s tough in our line of work; I get home at ten every night, where’s the time for romance?”

Now Yan Ankuo understood, chuckling, “Are you hinting at something?”

“Yes,” Huang Xiaoxiao said half-jokingly, “I spend more time with you than with him, it’s no wonder he’s upset.”

This was a grievance Yan Ankuo wouldn’t accept: “Didn’t you tell him I like men?”

“Just kidding,” Huang Xiaoxiao said, “He doesn’t care who my boss is.”

Yan Ankuo had supervised many interns, most of whom had since been promoted to salaried lawyers, but few were as bold as Huang Xiaoxiao, daring to joke around with him. Everyone else found him intimidating and spoke to him with respect and caution.

“When we finish this case, take a vacation,” Yan Ankuo picked up on Huang Xiaoxiao’s underlying message, making an exception, “If other teams need help, I’ll handle it for you.”

Huang Xiaoxiao repeated three times, “Mr. Yan, you’re awesome,” clearly ready to elevate him to the status of today’s star.

Yan Ankuo couldn’t bear it, telling her to lower her head, shut up, and eat her buns.

The sun shone brightly, yet people were trapped in glass cages. Yan Ankuo didn’t find this a regret; his career was like the summer he chose for himself. But after listening to Huang Xiaoxiao’s words, he couldn’t help but wonder if Bian Ji was also on the other side of the glass.

When they met, it was minus five degrees, now they were wearing short sleeves.

He took off his glasses, pinched his nose, lost in thought.

Then, he took out his phone and sent a message to the person he missed: “[Bian Ji, when we meet again, let’s go see the flowers.]”

Bian Ji couldn’t always reply immediately; he spent most of his time in the sky, so Yan Ankuo didn’t check his phone, continuing his work. It wasn’t until lunchtime that the chat window lit up: “[Aren’t we only meeting next month? Will there still be flowers then?]” Yan Ankuo smiled: “[They will bloom.]”

As he ate, a group of people from the neighboring table suddenly stood up. Their leader muttered, “Let’s go after eating, if we’re late, those guys will have finished work.”

Due to years of handling labor disputes, Yan Ankuo gave them a second look.

“Old Yang, is this the right way to handle it?” asked a dark-skinned, thin man standing beside him, “We’ve been shouting at the main gate for almost a month, it hasn’t helped much!”

Old Yang rolled up his sleeves, revealing muscular arms, and glanced at him, asking, “What else can we do? Got a better idea on how to get back the money he owes us?”

Another man tried to smooth things over, “Yeah, shouting here isn’t helping, let’s go shout at the headquarters of Wenshun tomorrow! If that doesn’t work, let’s go to their CEO’s office!”

As soon as the man finished speaking, everyone responded enthusiastically, dozens of workers surging towards the entrance of the printing factory.

Yan Ankuo and Huang Xiaoxiao exchanged a glance. The latter asked, “Should we follow and see what’s going on?”

Yan Ankuo pondered for a while, finally getting up, “Let’s go.”

Huang Xiaoxiao clasped her hands together, muttering behind him, “Don’t stir up trouble, please.”

Yan Ankuo stood by the shop for a moment, then patted down his clothes, returning to the entrance of the printing factory.

The security guard who had just chased them away was on the phone, pointing at the crowd, muttering, “Coming every day, aren’t you tired of it? If you come again, I’m calling the police!”

Old Yang rolled up his sleeves, pointing at him and yelling, “Call them! Go ahead! The factory owes us wages for a year, I’d like to see who’s right when you call the police!”

The group rushed angrily towards the security booth. Huang Xiaoxiao was about to step forward to stop them when Yan Ankuo raised his hand, saying, “If you go over now, no one will listen to your advice, and you might suffer unnecessary harm.”

Huang Xiaoxiao asked anxiously, “Then what do we do?!”

Yan Ankuo sighed, opening his contacts to find the number of a lawyer friend in Nanjing.

Finally finding a familiar local lawyer, he dialed the number, getting straight to the point, “Director Wang, who is on duty at the legal center this month? Yes, there’s a matter, I’d like to entrust him with…”

After hanging up the phone, Yan Ankuo tore a piece of paper, writing down the address and number of the legal center. He got up, walking towards the security booth, gently pressing the note under the steps with a twig.

Everyone was in high spirits, seeing a strangely acting person nearby, all stopping.

The security guard pointed at him, asking, “Why did you come back? Are you with them?”

Hearing this, Old Yang and the others curiously stopped their actions, sizing up Yan Ankuo, “Who are you?”

Yan Ankuo pointed at the note on the steps, turning to ask, “If I say a lawyer can help you get your money back, will you put away these sticks?”

“A lawyer?” Old Yang said bitterly, “How could we afford one!”

“Fortunately, I know some friends in the field, they’ll be coming over shortly.” Yan Ankuo put away his notebook, “No charge.”

Old Yang’s hand suddenly dropped, looking at Yan Ankuo suspiciously, his eyes filled with sadness and doubt.

“Whether punished for violent injury or believe in a free lunch once,” Yan Ankuo shrugged, “It’s your choice.”

Old Yang hesitated for a moment, walking to the steps, bending down to pick up the handwritten business card.

The next afternoon, the on-site investigation work for Wenshun’s headquarters was basically completed. The remaining material sorting could be done back in Shanghai, so the team planned to buy tickets for a joint return.

Huang Xiaoxiao asked Yan Ankuo, “Mr. Yan, are you coming back with us?”

Yan Ankuo thought for a moment, saying, “You guys go first, I have something to do.”

Huang Xiaoxiao said, “Okay, then I’ll set up an online meeting, shall we review the materials together tonight?”

“Sure,” Yan Ankuo glanced at his watch, “After nine, I might not be available earlier.”

Huang Xiaoxiao noted the time, asking, “So, the Wenshun wage arrears issue, we’re leaving it to Director Wang’s side?”

“Mm, one thing at a time, focus on the case at hand,” Yan Ankuo said.

Hengtian had already taken on President Liang’s case; whether out of professional ethics or procedure, they should avoid any conflict of interest.

“Okay,” Huang Xiaoxiao said, leaving with the team for the station, while Yan Ankuo raised his hand to hail another taxi.

The driver asked, “Sir, good day, where would you like to go?”

Yan Ankuo shed the fatigue of constant work, half-closing his eyes and leaning against the leather seat, lazily saying, “Airport.”

On the second weekend after the long holiday, Narita Airport was still bustling with people.

This was Bian Ji’s last flight of the week, his steps lighter as he stepped off the shuttle bus.

The late cherry blossoms had already fallen, temperatures rising quickly. Bian Ji was sweating in his uniform.

The shirt accentuated the flight attendant’s broad shoulders and long legs, drawing the attention of many passersby. Bian Ji unbuttoned it, carrying his jacket in his left hand, holding his phone in the right, messaging Yan Ankuo: “[I’ve just landed, are you back in Shanghai?]”

Yan Ankuo replied promptly: “[Not yet. I’ve just landed too.]”

Bian Ji was surprised: “[Landed? Weren’t you in Nanjing? Where did you go on another business trip?]”

Yan Ankuo said: “[Not a business trip, personal errand.]”

Bian Ji was even more puzzled: “[?]”

There were many people on the conveyor belt, Bian Ji didn’t check his phone further to avoid danger. Passing a coffee shop, he suddenly spotted a familiar back.

The man was wearing a shirt, working on his computer, wearing familiar silver-rimmed glasses.

Bian Ji slowed his pace, hurriedly taking out his phone to ask Yan Ankuo.

At the same time, a new message appeared in the chat box.

Yan Ankuo: “[I’m at Narita.]”

Yan Ankuo: “[You should be able to see me when you exit.]”

Bian Ji’s heart felt filled with summer vines, warm and swollen, the nerve endings itchy and uncomfortable, yearning to embrace for relief right away.

Standing before the glass door, he was slightly at a loss, as if he had returned to his childhood days of carefully saving his pocket money for a month to buy a model from the display window. Carefully and impatiently, he tapped on the door.

Yan Ankuo was sitting in the most conspicuous spot by the door. Hearing the sound, he quickly reacted, packing up his laptop, standing up, smiling as he walked toward Bian Ji.

“So fast?” Yan Ankuo held his laptop bag in one hand, extending the other toward him, “I thought you’d take longer to come out.”

Bian Ji rushed over, hugging him, feeling that the swelling, itchy place in his heart had finally landed. He asked incredulously, “How did you come here?”

“Didn’t I say, we should see the flowers together when we meet?” Yan Ankuo ran his hand through Bian Ji’s hair twice, “We can see them in Japan too.”

Bian Ji still had flights back to Shanghai to operate, so his free time in Japan was only ten hours. Both had visited Tokyo several times before, lacking the urge to visit famous sights, plus Yan Ankuo was still busy with a new case recently. So, the two only wandered around the hotel area, not venturing far.

The cherry blossoms had long since fallen, fortunately, the lotus flowers were still blooming.

Thus, after leaving their familiar environment and interpersonal relationships, Bian Ji and Yan Ankuo briefly owned ten hours of each other’s company amidst the exotic blooms.