Lauren Bright turned her head, looking at Mia Turner with admiration. "I just love how hardworking and ambitious you are."

Mia smiled, pulling down the shutter door and locking it.

Lauren's usual store was the one Mia managed. They interacted frequently, developing a good relationship and becoming close friends in private. Their conversations were free from the constraints typical between a supervisor and a subordinate.

Initially, when the headquarters decided to open a branch in Luk Jing City, only Lauren's superior, now the city's marketing director Chen Yuanxia, brought Lauren and two others from the provincial headquarters to Luk Jing City.

At that time, the headquarters was expanding. Various districts were opening branches, leading to a shortage of staff. Managers assigned to open branches in the cities had to recruit staff as soon as they arrived.

The first store in Luk Jing City, now the Kangjin store managed by Mia, was far from complete except for the premises. Recruiting staff wasn't easy.

Mia, then a fresh college intern, naïve and eager for a challenge, found the job exciting and decided to interview. Surprisingly, she ended up working there for five years.

Over those five years, Luk Jing City's stores expanded from one to 40, and the staff grew from the original four to over 500.

There was a large parking area in front of the Kangjin store.

After unlocking her car, Mia asked while fastening her seatbelt, "Where's the address?"

"Heli Street, Le Shi Zhe," Lauren replied.

Mia started the car, warming it up a bit before slowly merging onto the main road.

It was already winter in Luk Jing City, a time of long nights and short days. It was just past six in the evening, but the street lights were already on.

The street lights, lined up neatly, emitted a warm yellow glow. In their light, one could occasionally see insects fluttering about.

Once their car smoothly joined the traffic, Lauren said, "You've heard about my promotion, right?"

Mia's hands tightened slightly on the steering wheel, her voice soft, "Mhm."

"Then you probably guess why I invited you to dinner tonight." Lauren looked at Mia, "This is a major client of mine, and I'm giving this opportunity to you."

At a red light, Mia stopped the car and pulled the handbrake before turning to look at Lauren, listening as she continued, "I've always admired you, which is why I've been more favourable to you at work…"

Among the ten store managers under Lauren, Mia was the most hardworking and ambitious. With her excellent business skills, she met and often personally exceeded the company's sales targets for the store and herself. Any supervisor would appreciate such a subordinate.

So, when Lauren received the notice from headquarters to become the market director of Luk Jing City after New Year's, her first thought was to have Mia take over her position; tonight's dinner with the significant client was crucial for Mia's chance to enter this role.

"You know what to do, right?" Lauren asked.

In Mia's eyes was a determination and confidence Lauren had never seen before, "Don't worry, I won't let you down."

————

The client hadn't yet appeared when they arrived at Le Shi Zhe. Lauren took the opportunity to brief Mia on information about the training institute and Mr. Blue.

About ten minutes later, the door opened, and a waiter's polite voice followed, "Gentlemen, right this way, please."

"Thank you," Ethan Blue nodded slightly to the waiter.

Mia, who was still talking to Lauren, paused, feeling the voice was familiar but couldn't place where she had heard it.

"The client's here," Lauren said to Mia, smiling as she stood up to greet Ethan Blue walking in, "Mr. Blue."

"Manager Lauren," Ethan greeted her with a handshake.

Lauren then shook hands with Ethan's assistant, Ling Cheng, and only then realized Mia, who should have been beside her, was missing.

She turned and saw Mia still seated, stunned. A hint of frustration crossed her mind as she called out with a slightly stern voice, "Mia Turner, come here."

Mia's grip on her cup, a whirlwind of emotions, tightened her mind. She hoped the person behind her wasn't who she thought.

However, reality often differs from our wishes. As she stood up and turned around, the first thing she saw was that familiar face.

The man was dressed in a neatly pressed black suit, his tie perfectly knotted. His nearly 1.83 meters height added to his impressive, authoritative presence.

His hair was longer than the last time she saw him, his features still sharp and refined, his lips thin and rosy. His clear, black and white eyes narrowed slightly upon seeing her.

But his expression quickly changed to a smile with emotions Mia couldn't decipher.

She exhaled quietly and walked over to Lauren.

"Mr. Blue, this is my most capable subordinate, Mia Turner. Mia, this is Mr. Blue."

As soon as Lauren finished speaking, Ethan extended his hand, his lips curling slightly, smiling, "Hello, Manager Turner."

Mia stared at the hand extended towards her. The hand was slender and well-shaped, reminding her of memories she thought were long buried. The vividness of those memories made her silently frustrated.

"Manager Turner?"

Hearing the teasing tone in his voice, Mia bit her lip and, gathering her courage, shook his hand, "Hello, Mr. Blue."

"Not very good."

Mia looked up in surprise, meeting his deepened gaze, hearing him repeat, "Not very good these past six months." He squeezed her hand slightly as he spoke, his smile growing more enigmatic.

He mentioned six months.

This reminded Mia of their last conversation, which had been quite final. She thought they would never meet again, but just six months later, they met in a situation where she was disadvantaged.

Luckily, Lauren quickly noticed the tension between them and intervened, "Mr. Blue, let's not stand here. Please take a seat," directing a waiter to start serving.

Mia let go of his hand, but as Ethan released her, his fingers grazed her palm. In her nervous state, he passed by her with a light smile, sitting beside Lauren.

"Manager Turner, please," Ling Cheng politely gestured for Mia to sit first.

Mia nodded with a smile.

Sitting beside Ethan, Mia felt uncomfortable being so close to him. She was restless, listening intermittently to his conversation with Lauren, images of her and Ethan involuntarily surfacing in her mind.

She hadn't intentionally thought about them, but those long-buried memories now surged forward unbidden.

Her head ached, and the air felt thin, making it hard for her to breathe.

"Excuse me, I need to use the restroom," Mia said with a slight nod to the others, grabbing her bag and hurriedly leaving the table.