King of Technology: A Fresh Start in 1983

He Fan lowered his head and silently began to gather the dishes on the table, carrying them to the kitchen to wash them.

Zhan Yiling said coldly, "Just leave it there, I'll wash it later."

"Aren't you going home?" He Fan turned around halfway and asked in surprise.

"Are you trying to get rid of me?"

"No, no! I thought you were upset and that you were too lazy to talk to me and would just go home."

He Fan hurriedly explained.

"Ugh! I already told my family I wouldn't be going home tonight," Zhan Yiling said reproachfully.

Zhang Wei reflexively stood up, grabbed his coat and bicycle keys, and walked towards the door.

Seeing this, Zhan Yiling quickly called out to He Fan, "Zhang Wei is trying to hide again, He Fan! Look what we've done to him!"

He Fan quickly went over and held Zhang Wei down: "Zhang Wei, since it's your birthday today, you don't have to go to the cinema all night."

"Is this... convenient?"

Zhang Wei turned around in disbelief, looked at He Fan and Zhan Yiling, and asked hesitantly.

He Fan chuckled: "It's okay, I'll give you two cotton balls, just plug your ears."

...

The next evening, when Zhang Wei got home from get off work, He Fan wasn't there.

It wasn't until it was almost dark that He Fan and Zhan Yiling returned leisurely, each carrying a large palm-leaf fan.

It turned out that the two of them couldn't stand the heat inside the house and went outside to cool off.

Upon seeing Zhang Wei, He Fan waved the letter in his hand and said, "Zhang Wei, you've been acting strangely lately..."

"You used to urge me to come downstairs to get the mail every day, but if I hadn't suddenly remembered to check the mailbox today, you would have completely forgotten about our overseas connections, right?"

"Don't talk nonsense. Zhang Wei is a regional sales director now, busy as hell all day long, unlike you who idle around all day." Zhan Yiling patted He Fan on the back of the head with a palm leaf fan.

"He's busy as a bee all day long, that's his own fault, he's such a cheapskate."

"To save money for the company, they're reluctant to hire anyone, leaving themselves exhausted and overworked. Who would want a leader like that who's all alone? I wouldn't take him even if he were given to me for free."

"He Fan, how dare you talk like that?" Zhan Yiling slapped He Fan on the back of the head again with a palm-leaf fan.

"That's true." He Fan muttered, tossing the letter in his hand to Zhang Wei.

Zhang Wei was taken aback by He Fan's words, and only then did he realize that his inner feelings had indeed changed during this period.

He himself was completely unaware of it, but He Fan, who was always so outspoken, saw right through him.

Judging from Zhan Yiling's tone, she must have already realized it, but just hadn't pointed it out.

When he reached out and took Qin Shunan's letter, his first instinct startled him.

The happiness and urgency I felt every time my fingers touched Qin Shunan's letters back then seem to have vanished.

Instead, there was indifference, even a slight sense of rejection.

It's as if, subconsciously, they no longer want their current world to be disturbed by any external factors.

Zhang Wei silently returned to his room to read the letter.

Seeing this, He Fan and Zhan Yiling also quietly went into He Fan's room.

But instead of closing the door, they all looked at the room opposite the living room, as if they all sensed that a certain moment was about to arrive.

Sure enough, not long after, the door to that room was opened.

Zhang Wei walked out with a stack of letters in his hand and said expressionlessly, "Shu Nan understands."

Zhan Yiling immediately stood up as if by reflex, raised her right hand and said, "I swear, I didn't reveal a single thing in my letter to Shu Nan."

"I swear, I never corresponded with Shu Nan at all." He Fan also raised his right hand in a jeering manner.

"I know, it has nothing to do with you, she found out herself."

Zhang Wei slumped onto the living room sofa, dejected. "I really shouldn't have told Shu Nan the details of my school applications back then, so she knows exactly which schools and majors I applied to."

"When she didn't hear from me, she contacted all the schools directly. Although it took a lot of effort, she still managed to find out about them all."

"She knew Cornell had accepted me, and she even went to Cornell specifically for that purpose."

"They know I applied to change my enrollment from spring to fall, and they also know I haven't paid my enrollment deposit yet..."

Zhan Yiling then asked, "Zhang Wei, was your first reaction that you regretted letting Shu Nan know about the schools you applied to?"

"Do you think you can keep it a secret forever? Do you really want to never tell Shu Nan?"

Zhang Wei froze for a long time before stammering, "What I mean is, it's better if I tell her myself than if she finds out..."

"Then why haven't you told her yet?"

Zhan Yiling persisted, "The initial agreement was to postpone it for a few months until you made up your mind, instead of keeping it a secret indefinitely, right? How much time has passed now?"

He Fan nudged Zhan Yiling with his elbow: "This is between Zhang Wei and Shu Nan, why are you meddling?"

Zhan Yiling tossed her hair: "I've already gotten involved. I was the one who came up with that terrible idea. How am I supposed to face Shu Nan now?"

Zhang Wei lowered his head and said, "It has nothing to do with you. It was my own decision."

Upon hearing this, Zhan Yiling immediately leaned closer and stared at Zhang Wei's face: "Zhang Wei, tell me honestly, the reason you've been dragging this out until now isn't just that you want Shu Nan to find out on her own, is it?"

Zhang Wei turned his face away and denied it, saying, "Of course not, I don't have that many thoughts. I was just too busy recently and didn't have time to think about it."

Zhan Yiling immediately turned to He Fan, staring intently at him: "Do you believe what he said?"

He Fan, caught in the middle with an innocent look on his face, was in a dilemma. He swallowed hard and asked Zhang Wei, "What did Shu Nan say in the letter?"

"She didn't say much, just told me to figure it out myself and then tell her clearly."

"That's all? She didn't say what kind of decision she hoped you would make?"

Zhan Yiling grew increasingly anxious: "Does she mean that she'll accept whatever decision you make?"

Zhang Wei glanced at Qin Shunan's letter again: "She said she hoped I would figure out what I really wanted and then follow my heart."

"What? She didn't persuade you to go to the UK?" Zhan Yiling then asked.

Zhang Wei shook his head.

Zhan Yiling sighed silently.

He Fan couldn't help but stare at Zhan Yiling: "What's wrong?"

"You really want me to say it?" Zhan Yiling turned to look at He Fan and asked in return.

Seeing that He Fan and Zhang Wei were looking at her expectantly, she hardened her heart and said, "Alright, then I'll be frank."

"Based on my understanding of Shu Nan, if you decide to give up, Zhang Wei, Shu Nan will absolutely not say a word to try to persuade you to stay."

He Fan's eyes widened immediately. He glanced at Zhan Yiling, then at Zhang Wei: "It can't be that bad..."