ORCBRB – Chapter 88

Chapter 88

One year later, New York.

On the last afternoon of late August, the sweltering heat made people restless. In front of a magnificent five-star hotel, before a giant statue of a white dove of freedom, a fiery red Ferrari executed a beautiful fishtail stop. The door opened, and a set of car keys was handed out from the driver's seat.

The hotel valet took them and helped the guest park the car.

Walking into the hotel lobby, Sang Shi'an heard a familiar voice. She turned her head and saw Yu Qingci, who had been waiting for her amidst the brilliant lights, dressed in an exquisite tweed suit paired with square-heeled shoes, looking young and refined.

The hem of her current-season Dior ink-wash style dress swirled halfway as Sang Shi'an walked towards Yu Qingci. "Where is she? Which private room?"

"I've been trying to ask you out for two or three days with no luck, but the moment I mention a client, you come running. Do I need to start some kind of project just to get you to see me?" Yu Qingci asked, half-joking.

Sang Shi'an nudged Yu Qingci's arm with her elbow. "Have a heart, Your Highness. I'm really busy. I'll definitely join you for dinner and shopping next time, okay?"

Yu Qingci held up a finger. "And you have to see a movie with me."

Sang Shi'an was speechless. "Don't you have enough prospective girlfriends to ask out?"

Yu Qingci was Sang Shi'an's classmate after she transferred to Harvard. She was also from China, and by chance, Sang Shi'an learned she was Su Ningyue's childhood friend from Yuncheng, which was how the two became close.

When Sang Shi'an first arrived in the United States, she didn't know anyone or the place. Coincidentally, Yu Qingci was naturally friendly with everyone, and with her bewitching face, the number of people pursuing her could circle the entire Harvard campus.

Yu Qingci went through girlfriends one after another, with the longest relationship not even lasting two months. Sang Shi'an jokingly said all her girlfriends were like a stamp collection, their only purpose being to accompany the young miss to dinner.

"They're the ones who actively pursue me. You are the bright moon in my sky, beautiful but unattainable," Yu Qingci sighed dramatically.

Sang Shi'an got goosebumps from her words. "Stop learning that clumsy Chinese from foreigners!"

Yu Qingci laughed out loud. "Alright, alright, my charm isn't enough. I won't waste your time anymore. I'll take you to see Mrs. Smith. It wasn't easy to find out her schedule."

The Mrs. Smith they were about to meet was a woman with a very fortunate life. Born into a noble family, she had been married twice, and both husbands passed away within three years of marriage, leaving her their entire fortunes.

Getting rich and widowed, she naturally had a busy life of enjoyment to lead. Sang Shi'an, on an assignment from her investment bank, had tried to schedule a meeting with her many times, but the feedback from her assistant was lukewarm. It wasn't until today that she finally got an opportunity.

Entering private room 107, Sang Shi'an finally met this Mrs. Smith. She looked much as Sang Shi'an had imagined: dressed in a magnificent gown, with an extravagant diamond necklace around her neck that sparkled under the lights, making her instantly noticeable.

Yu Qingci seemed to be an old acquaintance of the lady. Upon entering, she introduced Sang Shi'an to Mrs. Smith, took Mrs. Smith's hand, and performed an elegant hand-kiss. "You are as radiant and charming as ever."

Sang Shi'an was amazed. She stiffly repeated Yu Qingci's action, silently apologizing to Jian Cenyu three times in her heart.

Mrs. Smith laughed happily, invited them to sit, and initiated small talk with Sang Shi'an.

Sang Shi'an intentionally tried to steer the conversation towards business. Mrs. Smith, being very sharp, quickly noticed her intention and said with a playful smile, "Little girl, why are you so impatient? But seeing as you're so pretty, go ahead and state your purpose."

Since coming to America, Sang Shi'an, in order to improve her abilities as quickly as possible, sought internship opportunities at large companies while studying. She went from internet companies at the beginning to her current investment bank, gaining experience in various capital market operations like bond and stock issuance, financing, and restructuring.

And this time, it was one of the KPIs the investment bank needed to meet.

"To my knowledge, your chain of restaurants has been frequently changing chicken suppliers recently due to the rising price of chicken."

Sang Shi'an paused here, smiling at Mrs. Smith.

Mrs. Smith nodded. "That is indeed the case."

Sang Shi'an continued, "I wonder if you've considered risk hedging? The price of chicken is directly linked to the cost of raising them, with feed costs being the most significant factor. If you were to use futures to lock in and suppress the cost of grains and beans in advance, I believe it could solve this problem for you."

Mrs. Smith's restaurant chain covered the entire United States, specializing in potatoes and chicken. Others might not be able to afford the cost of manipulating raw material prices, but for Mrs. Smith, it was a surefire win.

Mrs. Smith's gaze towards Sang Shi'an finally grew more serious. She said, "I have indeed heard of such methods for controlling costs, but firstly, the capital investment is too large, and secondly, I'm not familiar with this area..."

Hearing this, Sang Shi'an smiled and said, "I can recommend a hedge fund for you. Would you have some time to learn more about it?"

Ten minutes later, Sang Shi'an and Mrs. Smith exchanged business cards and scheduled their next meeting.

As soon as they stepped out of the private room, Yu Qingci gave Sang Shi'an a thumbs-up. "The last time I tried to discuss a collaboration with Mrs. Smith to get some money out of her, it was much more difficult than this."

Sang Shi'an touched her own face and said, "Maybe I'm just naturally beautiful and lovable."

Yu Qingci gave Sang Shi'an a dramatic push. "Oh, stop it! Mrs. Smith is straight, she wouldn't be interested in you."

After all, it was Yu Qingci who had helped make the connection today. Sang Shi'an appeasingly linked her arm with Yu Qingci's and wheedled in a soft voice, "I'll definitely treat you to dinner another day."

Yu Qingci didn't understand. "Why not treat me today? It's almost dinnertime."

Sang Shi'an glanced at the time, thought about what she had to do later, and couldn't help but smile. She gave a cough to cover it up before saying, "I have another appointment later. A client came from far away, I can't stand them up."

It was Yu Qingci who had recommended Sang Shi'an for the investment bank internship. Yu Qingci also knew a bit about the projects Sang Shi'an was recently involved in. After filtering out those who were far away, Yu Qingci listed a few names.

Sang Shi'an shook her head and denied them all with a mysterious air.

Yu Qingci was starting to suspect Sang Shi'an had made a new friend and was about to abandon her. "Then who else is there? You're not just bluffing, are you?"

The smile on Sang Shi'an's lips could no longer be suppressed. "From Australia. My girlfriend."

Before Yu Qingci could fly into a rage, she quickly grabbed her bag and ran out. Just as she stepped out of the hotel entrance, she backed up and said to Yu Qingci, "I probably won't make it to the first class tomorrow morning. Help me ask the professor for a day off!"

Yu Qingci's face was about to turn green. A day off?

Fine. She would ask for sick leave for Sang Shi'an. The understanding professor would surely ask for the reason, and she would just say Sang Shi'an was in the late stages of being love-struck and had gone to the hospital to see a neurologist.

The conversation with Mrs. Smith had taken ten minutes longer than Sang Shi'an expected. By the time she arrived at the airport, Jian Cenyu's plane was landing on the runway.

Squeezing through the dense crowd at the airport, Sang Shi'an's view was gradually blocked by the tall Black and white people, and a wave of emotion washed over her.

A year ago, when she came out of the Securities Regulatory Commission, she didn't even have time to drink a sip of water outside before being put on a plane to the United States, empty-handed.

At the time, asking Sang Shiyue if she could study in Australia was just a subconscious question. Sang Shi'an could understand her family's actions. Coming to the United States wasn't her family's arrangement, but rather to 'report completion of a task'.

Otherwise, she would very likely have been kept in the investigation room.

Her relationship with Jian Cenyu had been forcibly suppressed by the higher-ups with an iron fist, and it wasn't a free lunch. On the surface, they had to actively adopt a "one south, one north" stance. If they had both gone to Australia, the two companies remaining in the country would probably have to become 'Westernized' as well.

You can't accept someone's favor and then continue to dance on their red line. That would be terrible.

As for the future, there was no shortage of same-sex couples in the country. As long as they didn't make a widely publicized official announcement, no one would bother with their affairs.

People tend to have a psychology of compliance. When you first see a couple you don't approve of get together, you want to object, but after they've been together for a long time, you get used to it.

Especially since Jian Cenyu was originally going back to Australia anyway, Sang Shi'an going abroad also gave her more freedom than she would have had in the country.

She tried her best to comfort herself, but sitting on the plane to the United States with even her communication devices confiscated, she couldn't help but feel a sense of wretched abandonment.

But this wretched feeling didn't last long. When Sang Shi'an arrived at her new house in the United States and opened the door, she saw the girlfriend she had been thinking about day and night.

At that moment, Sang Shi'an was incredibly grateful she had come to the United States. If she had stayed in the country, she probably wouldn't even have had the right to have a secret affair.

After a week of passionate encounters that filled every corner of the new house with Jian Cenyu's scent, a week had passed.

Sang Shi'an also received her admission to Harvard.

After Jian Cenyu helped her get everything settled in America and saw her off to school, she boarded a plane to Australia under Sang Shi'an's reluctant gaze.

Sang Shi'an had actually always held a negative attitude towards long-distance relationships. Before their relationship was even discovered, she had said that if her family kicked her out of the country, she would definitely follow Jian Cenyu to Australia.

But now, the situation didn't allow it. They could only gaze at each other from across the Pacific, living a long-distance relationship where they had to text or call every hour.

For the first six months, Sang Shi'an had a very hard time adjusting and was extremely anxious. She worried that Jian Cenyu would forget her or fall for someone else, to the point that Jian Cenyu had to fly to the United States almost every week.

It wasn't until one night when Sang Shi'an saw the dark circles under Jian Cenyu's eyes after she removed her makeup that she finally realized how much trouble her groundless fears were causing Jian Cenyu.

Heartache defeated panic. Sang Shi'an took her friend's advice and found countless internships to distract herself, trying her best not to add to Jian Cenyu's burden. In just one year, she managed to land an internship at a top Wall Street investment bank.

However, this didn't mean she and Jian Cenyu didn't see or contact each other. Sang Shi'an just reined herself in a bit, not letting her love-struck brain go too wild.

But if Jian Cenyu sought her out, she couldn't refuse.

For example, right now—

Haha!

Looking at Jian Cenyu, cool and slender in a white trench coat, a stark contrast to the burly foreigners around her, Sang Shi'an's heart swayed just like the earrings on Jian Cenyu's ears.

Jian Cenyu's gaze also found Sang Shi'an, and she reached out her hands, opening her arms. Sang Shi'an ran over quickly, her beautiful ink-wash dress twirling as she moved through the crowd.

Step by step.

She threw herself at the person she had been thinking of day and night.

Then, as the Romans do, she gave Jian Cenyu an extremely passionate kiss.

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