Chapter 4, Non-compliant Access Card

Wang Cheng did not respond; he turned around, raised the "Temporary Exit Permit," and opened his mouth as if to say something to the security guard. Suddenly, he felt a wave of dizziness, and his hand unconsciously pressed against the card reader. In an instant, he felt as if he had entered a passage, wildly running through a dark corridor. At the end of the corridor, there seemed to be a monitoring room, where he astonishingly saw the large screen in the monitoring room flickering continuously, the images shaking incessantly, making it nearly impossible to discern what was on the screen.

Wang Cheng felt quite frustrated during this meal, as Julie was completely immersed in her own world, constantly sending text messages and posting on Weibo. Halfway through the meal, Wang Cheng finally found a moment to ask casually, "How many Weibo posts can you make in a day? Just now, in this short while, I saw you post at least twenty times, right?"

Immediately afterward, another voice came through: "Be careful, is this something we would say? We are just workers, can we say such things? If this gets out, anyone could easily crush us."

As Wang Cheng's hand reached out, a variety of whispers suddenly filled his ears, growing louder and louder. Wang Cheng struggled to control his body; the beautiful woman was right beside him, and he had to maintain a composed demeanor. However, the more he tried to mask the roaring in his ears, the more he felt the sound spiraling out of control, gradually turning into a deafening roar. His heart began to race, his breathing quickened, and he felt short of breath and anxious.

This is purely treating Wang Cheng as a glutton

It is said that there is a popular rumor in office buildings that female white-collar workers can quickly gauge the financial status and quality of their date by asking ten questions. Among these, "What sports do you like?" is the second "must-ask question," and the worst answer is "I enjoy hiking and driving myself." This is because such activities typically do not cost much. When a man gives this answer, it implies that he has some money but is not wealthy, is naturally frugal, or can be described as stingy.

Wang Cheng closed his eyes, shook his head, and soon felt his thoughts ebbing away like a tide through the dark passage he had entered. ... After a while, everything before him returned to normal, and he heard Julie's voice, seemingly reprimanding the security for their lack of diligence, resulting in the temporary access card not being completed at all ... . ... Wait a minute

Wang Cheng was looked down upon, yet strangely, he did not feel humiliated. He only felt a sense of indifference.

Julie is a person who excels at controlling conversations. Under her gentle guidance, Wang Cheng spoke incessantly about the snacks from his hometown. In the encouraging and appreciative gaze of Julie, he spoke with such enthusiasm that saliva flowed and his appetite surged

She deliberately emphasized that "mealtime belongs to Wang Cheng," which implicitly suggested that the two could no longer deepen their relationship. After finishing this meal, they would no longer be entangled with each other—this underlying meaning had already been sensed by Wang Cheng, who had always been keen on reading between the lines.

Seeing this topic left Wang Cheng speechless, Julie quickly changed the subject: "What famous snacks are there in your hometown?"

Wang Cheng displayed such an expression, and at that moment, he vaguely heard Julie's incessant chatter, her voice seeming to come from another world, distant and hollow: "Tch, it's just a meal, I don't want to eat at a hotel, look how anxious you are, what the heck..."

When he exerted all his strength to lift the access card and bring it close to the card reader, the card reader did not respond

At that moment, under Julie's urging, the security guard had no choice but to redo the access card. During the dispute between Julie and the security guard, Wang Cheng did not pay attention; he was fully engaged in battling tinnitus and hallucinations. Fortunately, the newly made access card was successfully accepted, and the assertive Julie did not notice that Wang Cheng's complexion had turned unusually pale. When the two of them exited the hotel lobby, Wang Cheng finally returned to normal.

It is the boss who is making money, not me. Besides, you can still receive overtime pay; I don't even know where my overtime pay is.

No one noticed that the Asian mixed-race man sitting on the sofa had already stood up. He folded the newspaper and walked away, texting on his phone: "Thor, I believe this is indeed something you would be interested in. I may have discovered..."

With such thoughts in mind, yet the body does not cooperate... Of course, any vigorous young man, when faced with a bright and energetic young woman, would not easily refuse, especially when she is a petite and capable office worker, the very heroine of Wang Cheng's frequent fantasies. Therefore, this opportunity... is something Wang Cheng longs for.

Julie displayed a look of disappointment: "This is not called exercise... I had thought that you would at least say you enjoy hiking."

However, Julie's upbringing is only at this level; she thought that Wang Cheng liked hiking, but in fact, it was a form of mild disdain—hiking is simply walking, and this type of exercise costs the least.

These questions are still commonly asked by white-collar workers during dates, serving as subtle techniques to explore each other's financial status. Wang Cheng was reluctant to answer the first question, while the latter question...! When this topic was brought up, Wang Cheng felt a surge of indignation. It is pitiful that in his profession, he has never experienced what a long vacation looks like since he started working.

Julie's actions froze in mid-air as she stared intently at Wang Cheng for a moment. Then, she casually tapped the screen twice, sending out the Weibo post, put away her phone, and with a beaming smile, initiated a conversation: "Well, since this meal is on you, technically this dining time belongs to you; it is 'your moment'... So, what do you want to talk about? Talking about work is out of the question; I'm already exhausted from work, and I don't want to discuss work-related matters after hours. Hmm, do you have any knowledge about luxury jewelry, clothing, or cosmetics? ... I mean, have you ever bought these gifts for a girlfriend? ... Alright, what sports do you like?"

Julie is a well-mannered girl who understands social etiquette. As Wang Cheng is hosting, she recognizes that this time should belong to him. Although the meal is not a lavish feast and she does not criticize the price range of the dishes, she still acknowledges that this time belongs to Wang Cheng and offers a polite apology for it—however, that is all.

Wang Cheng can answer this question: "I enjoy playing video games"

Julie is a smartphone enthusiast, constantly fiddling with her phone while walking, browsing the web and frequently sending text messages. In this situation, she naturally had no intention of specifically choosing a restaurant. Just near the hotel, Wang Cheng casually found a restaurant that looked clean, and the two of them went in to order dishes

The young and impetuous Wang Cheng wanted to defend himself a little; he wanted to express how high his gaming skills were, how outstanding he was, and how he often earned some pocket money from idle game boosting. However, upon seeing Wang Cheng's hesitance, Julie waved her hand with an understanding expression and said, "Alright, alright, playing video games is just sitting there doing nothing; it hardly counts as exercise... By the way, your home isn't in this city, is it? How much is the property fee for the community you rent in? What do you usually like to do during your time off?"

"It's just a meal, no problem... Hehe, we can't afford anything too expensive, a simple roadside meal will do. You choose the place, but we have to work overtime tonight, so we can't go too far. Let's find somewhere nearby..." As Wang Cheng spoke, he walked to the entrance of the office building, picked up the temporary access card, and swiped it.

At this moment, a security guard sitting in front of the monitoring console was slapping the screen with his hand while lamenting, "This corrupt individual, look, there's another problem..."

Wang Cheng did not pay much attention; he already knew that this kind of light beauty, which could only be admired from a distance, was not his type. Therefore, he felt neither joy nor anger, merely engaging in casual conversation, the purpose of which was simply to avoid an awkward silence. He continued along this topic...