North City, 7:30 PM on a summer evening. On the 17th floor of the Emperor Hotel, a grand engagement party was underway. The lavishly decorated hall was packed with people, elegantly dressed men and women holding wine glasses, all intently focused on the stage ahead.
A spotlight illuminated a middle-aged man dressed in a Dior's latest black suit. Holding a microphone, he smiled smugly with a sense of pride.
"Honored guests, dear friends, I'm delighted that you've taken time out of your busy schedules to attend the engagement party of my daughter Li Fei and her fiancé Zijun. On behalf of our family, I thank you all for coming! I hope tonight will be a relaxed and enjoyable evening for everyone! Please make yourselves at home! Thank you all!"
Applause broke out below the stage. In a corner of the room, Bai Shasha rolled her eyes disdainfully as she glanced at her friend Li Si, who was absently caressing the tulip-shaped wine glass in her hand. Helplessly, Shasha nudged her friend's shoulder.
"Snap out of it, Sisi. I really don't know what's going through your head. Just because your aunt scolded you a bit, you actually came here to attend the engagement party of that two-timing bastard and the mistress? Aren't you just torturing yourself for no reason?"
Li Si raised her head, her gaze tinged with a trace of self-mockery. "Shasha, you're not me. My parents are gone, and I'm still living at my uncle's place. His family is hosting this event—how could I not come? So many relatives and family friends are watching. If I didn't show up, it'd look bad, wouldn't it?"
"Dear Lord, girl, I'm begging you, can you stop being such a doormat? Meng Zijun is yesterday's news, and now the flower has bloomed in your cousin's garden. Show some dignity, will you? Pull yourself together, move on, and find a tall, rich, and handsome guy to piss off that Li Fei bitch!" After finishing her tirade, Shasha angrily raised her wine glass and took a large gulp.
Bai Shasha often felt a deep frustration for her friend. Dealing with those vile relatives of hers—you endure, and they just push even harder. An endless cycle of advance and retreat. If it were Shasha, she wouldn't have attended this engagement party at all. Was this about breaking her heart, or breaking it again and again? Wasn't this just offering herself up to be humiliated? But at the end of the day, everyone is their own person. Even though she and Li Si were inseparable friends, she couldn't make decisions for her.
Li Si exhaled deeply and patted Bai Shasha on the back, her calm expression revealing a hint of weariness. "I'm 28 already, about to be categorized as leftover. You've seen how these past few years have gone for me. Where am I supposed to find some tall, rich, and handsome guy just waiting there for me? And look at my so-so background, appearance, and figure. If you were a tall, rich, and handsome guy, you wouldn't choose someone like me either, would you?"
Bai Shasha's smile froze awkwardly, becoming slightly forced. In truth, she fully understood what Li Si was saying. The way things were today, reality couldn't be clearer. The fairytale prince and the beloved Cinderella were all a lie. How many wealthy men would actually choose to marry a girl from a modest background? Nowadays, it's all about combining strengths—you have it, I have it, everyone has it. Marriage alliances aren't just a thing of ancient times; they're just as relevant in today's competitive world.
"You, ah, sometimes I just can't outtalk you. You're always so blunt. Fine, let's not aim for a tall, rich, and handsome guy; how about a sensible and practical one? Doesn't your company have fewer roses and more thorns anyway? I've heard workplace relationships are pretty great, you know. And your company doesn't even have restrictions on that!"
Li Si gently swirled the wine glass in her hand. The crimson liquid wavered, gradually sliding down the walls of the glass, mirroring the turbulence in her heart.
"I'm resigning. My aunt said that if I came to this party tonight, I could immediately quit the company. She also promised that all the back pay she's been withholding these past few years would be returned to me."
Bai Shasha clapped her on the shoulder with excitement, beaming as if she had struck gold. "Ah, that explains it! Li Si, can I just say this is the most sensible decision I've heard you make all night? Haha, resigning is the right call. I've been telling you forever—why on earth did you join your uncle's company straight out of college? Working endless hours, running yourself ragged, only to hold a measly position as a junior clerk making a pitiable 2500 yuan a month, of which you only get 1000 in hand. It's like getting paid cabbage money to worry with caviar-level stress. Why drag yourself through that? What's the point?"
Listening to her friend's tirade, Li Si couldn't help but laugh faintly. Yes, how could she have been so foolish? After all this time, didn't she see clearly by now? All that talk about family and care—they were just excuses for squeezing every bit of value out of her.
At that moment, the hum of nearby conversations abruptly quieted. The air was infused with a cloying sweet fragrance.
"Oh, sis, here you are, snatching a quiet moment for yourself. Zijun and I have been looking all over for you! I knew you'd be here tonight. Zijun didn't believe me."