When Hearts Collide: From Ashes to Love

Monday morning, Marian first took a cab to the client's office, bowing at a 90-degree angle and repeatedly offering to treat everyone to coffee. After half an hour of intense verbal "cannon fire," she took another cab back to Xinruan Technology for a meeting. There, she reported on the progress of all her current projects to Julian and her other teammates.

Julian, listening closely, nodded in satisfaction. "It seems your projects are all going well. The remaining ones are just closing tasks, so you can delegate them to an assistant."

Marian hesitated, about to ask what that left for her to do, when Julian flashed a broad smile and announced some good news to everyone:

"I've negotiated a new project. The other side is still in the bidding process. If we can land this deal, your year-end bonus will be doubled."

Everyone perked up. "What project is it?" they asked.

Marian was also intrigued. If she could truly earn twice her usual bonus, it would cover her grandmother's nursing home expenses for next year, saving her from penny-pinching.

Julian explained, "It's a fund-related project under YuTou Group, involving quantitative analytics. The total budget is twenty million. It's the biggest order we've ever seen."

The others gasped. "Twenty million? That's our largest order ever!"

"No wonder—it's YuTou Group, one of the top financial firms in the country. They sure go big."

"Wow, if we can work with YuTou, that's like a mouse falling into a rice vat—a buffet of opportunities. Think about how many subsidiary financial companies they have. If every sub-company uses our software… I can't even imagine!"

Julian turned to find Marian looking uncharacteristically calm, quite unlike the excitement shown by everyone else.

He asked quietly, "What's wrong? Is there a problem?"

Her hands, resting on the table, were folded together, and her right thumb pressed firmly into her left palm. Marian pursed her lips, then looked up at Julian. "Mr. Zhou—uh, I think it's a great opportunity. It's just… I'd rather stick to my current projects. Let someone else handle YuTou's if we win."

She lowered her gaze to the closed notebook on the table, seeming momentarily dazed.

Julian didn't understand. "Are you worried it'll be too difficult? Don't stress. I'm old classmates with YuTou's chief. If we win the bid, I'll give him a heads-up and make sure he doesn't give you a hard time."

"Mr. Zhou, it's not that…" she began.

But Julian was already getting up, notebook tucked under his arm, heading to the conference room door. "No 'buts.' I said you're coming, so you're coming. We're visiting YuTou this afternoon."

Marian's face went a bit pale. "But I'm not really needed for the business negotiations phase, am I?"

Typically, a project manager only steps in once the project is confirmed and ready to start.

"You know the product and the delivery process better than anyone else. I trust you to be there," Julian replied.

Despite Julian's humble, gentle manner, he was still the boss. Marian had no choice but to comply.

3 p.m., YuTou Tower's top-floor reception room.

Assistant Yi Ming brought them coffee. "Please wait here. Our Mr. Fu is still finishing up another meeting."

Julian nodded, looking understanding. "I see. Mr. Fu is always busy."

Yi Ming smiled and left.

Marian surveyed the reception room, noting its tidy layout and immediately recognizable sense of style—yet the table and chairs were all top-grade, the kind that would cost her half a year's rent. She took another sip of coffee, smooth and aromatic, far superior to the instant powder at Xinruan.

Big companies really are in another league, she mused.

After about five more minutes, the door opened. Aaron strode in, his long legs crossing the threshold. "Sorry, I'm late," he said.

He wore a crisp suit, tie perfectly arranged. His sharply defined jawline gave off an air of aloofness.

Julian stood up, greeting him like an old friend, then turned to introduce Marian: "This is Marian, a key member of my team."

Aaron's gaze drifted past Julian, pausing only briefly before extending his hand. "Pleasure to meet you."

Marian reached out with her right hand, leaning forward slightly, her voice calm. "Hello, Mr. Fu."