She thought Chen Dongyang might hesitate, but he nodded without a second thought.
“I’m almost ready,” he replied.
Tian Tian was a little surprised. “That’s amazing! Where did you get so much inspiration? You don’t get stuck at all?”
Or was it that his designs were shoddy, and he thought this competition was some minor affair where he could just submit any random drawing?
She hadn’t expected Chen Dongyang to be so confident.
“I haven’t hit any snags yet. What’s wrong? Are you having problems?”
Haven’t hit any snags yet…
“Designer Chen, you’re so Versailles.”
Tian Tian couldn’t help but look at him again.
“I’ve only been in this industry for two years, and I’ve been completely stuck lately. Is it because I don’t need money badly enough? I feel like I’m falling far behind you in terms of effort.”
Chen Dongyang glanced at her again.
Big eyes, thick eyelashes, a perky nose, a small red mouth, and skin like white porcelain…
He quickly looked away again.
“If you don’t lack money, there’s no need to push yourself so hard. Go out and travel more when you have time. The more you experience, the more inspiration you’ll naturally gain.”
As he spoke, they had arrived at the car.
Tian Tian hadn’t drunk any alcohol, so she could drive herself. Chen Dongyang was ready to say goodbye.
“Although we are in the same industry, we are not rivals. If you ever lack inspiration or encounter problems, you can call me. I can’t guarantee I can help, but exchanging ideas can always broaden your perspective.”
Tian Tian didn’t pay much attention to his words.
She knew Chen Dongyang was just being polite, and they weren’t close enough for her to need to ask him for help.
After that meal, the two lost contact again.
It wasn’t until four days later that Tian Tian’s design drawings were flagged by the on-site construction crew for having data issues.
She felt quite frustrated. She reviewed the drawings several times, unable to understand where the problem lay. She asked her colleagues in the office, and they all said the theory seemed fine.
She wanted to go to the site herself to see the difference. Rummaging through her phone for the contact information of the construction supervisor, she scrolled through and saw Chen Dongyang’s name.
His WeChat name was simple, just his real name.
In an instant, she remembered what he had said that night and inexplicably wanted to test his capabilities. Tian Tian sat back down.
After thinking for a long time, she sent Chen Dongyang three words.
“Are you free?”
Then, she felt that it might sound inappropriate and added a follow-up.
“I have a question I’d like to ask for your advice.”
Chen Dongyang was at the construction site and didn’t see her WeChat message immediately. By the time he did, Tian Tian had already finished work and gone home. Fearing he might cause delays, he called her directly.
Tian Tian was surprised but answered.
Chen Dongyang got straight to the point.
“I was busy just now and didn’t check my phone. What’s your question?”
He had a businesslike demeanor, so Tian Tian stopped being coy and explained the problem she was encountering, sending him the data.
She expected him to hang up, ponder for a moment, and then explain, but he answered after just running through it in his mind.
“There’s a slight error in a certain algorithm, which causes a gap of nearly a centimeter when materials are actually assembled. If there’s a gap in this step, the next step will naturally have problems as well.”
Tian Tian, following his advice, pulled out the drawings and recalculated. It was true; in one calculation, she had rounded off a decimal to one place.
Theoretically, this was fine, but in practical operation, it would indeed lead to errors.
“Thank you, I understand now. I was a bit resistant at first, thinking there was an error in the workers’ cutting on site, but now I’m completely convinced.”
Chen Dongyang emerged from the construction site. Hearing her so readily admit her mistake, he let out a light chuckle on the phone.
“Your error wasn’t much on its own, but manual cutting also has its own inaccuracies. When the two are combined, the problem becomes significant.”
“But thankfully, the problem was discovered in time, so it’s good that nothing went wrong.”
Tian Tian felt that she had been rather short-sighted before.
Seeing the small projects he took on, she subconsciously assumed he lacked capability. In reality…
Her face felt a little hot. Although Chen Dongyang couldn’t see her expression, she felt embarrassed for herself.
She instinctively reached for her teacup to take a sip of water, but her attention was entirely on her phone. She lost her grip, and the glass cup shattered on the floor.
Chen Dongyang heard the crisp sound of glass breaking from the phone and quickly asked if she was alright.
Hot water splashed onto her. Tian Tian slid her chair back, saying she was fine, but her heel, clad in a slipper, accidentally stepped on a shard of glass.
With a startled cry, she stumbled back a couple of steps along with her chair.
The chair, an ergonomic model with three legs and three wheels, was stable when sat on normally, but at this moment, it suddenly tipped over.
Chen Dongyang heard a series of crashing sounds from his phone, along with Tian Tian’s pained exclamations. Realizing something had happened, he urgently asked,
“What’s wrong, Miss Jiang? Are you okay?”
Tian Tian felt incredibly embarrassed today. It was the first time she had fallen so badly, and she was broadcasting it live for someone to hear.
Her phone was flung to the side. She wanted to tell Chen Dongyang she was fine and be strong.
But her foot really hurt, and her eyes caught sight of the conspicuous bloodstain on the floor.
Her consciousness immediately blurred. Her survival instinct kicked in, and she fumbled for her phone.
“Chen Dongyang, I fell…”
Chen Dongyang responded, “I heard. Is it serious? Did something break? Did you get cut?”
“I’m fine… but I’m bleeding…”
“Don’t panic. I’m on my way over now. Where did you get cut? Can you move? Do you need me to call 120?”
“I don’t know. I’m afraid of blood. Chen Dongyang, I’m fading…”
Afraid of blood?
Chen Dongyang ran quickly to his van. As he started the engine, he shouted into the phone,
“Don’t look at the bleeding, listen to me, listen to me! Cover your eyes, don’t fall asleep, you can’t pass out! If you faint, I won’t be able to get into your residential area, and you’ll be in serious trouble from blood loss! Talk to me, talk to me quickly!”
Tian Tian felt her consciousness fading, her eyelids feeling heavy. She really wanted to pass out.
But she knew she couldn’t. She was all alone in the apartment. If no one came to help, would she die?
She didn’t want to die, especially not in such a pathetic way.
“What should I say… I don’t know what to say…”
Hearing her weak voice, Chen Dongyang drove as fast as he could.
“Tell me your name, what’s your name?”
“I, I’m Jiang Jing Tian.”
“Good. How old are you? Where did you go to elementary school? Junior high? High school? University? Answer me!”
He kept her talking with questions all the way, shouting loudly for Tian Tian to answer him, and finally, she didn’t pass out.
When he reached the entrance of the residential area, the security guard naturally wouldn’t let him in. Chen Dongyang was prepared and showed his phone to the guard.
“The resident in Building B, Unit 501 is ill. I’m her boyfriend. You can ask her if you don’t believe me.”