A perfect life begins with changing the timeline.

Chapter 96 Promotion and Regularization

"Brother Li, I'm at the hotel! Oh my, my stomach is so full. No, Brother Li, you're terrifying! I feel like I'm going to become a big fat guy if I eat a few more meals."

"Haha, Brother Li, I've found that the TV programs on Guangdong TV are quite funny."

"Brother Li, you have so many books at home! Do you have any recommendations? I'd like to read them by my bedside."

"Hmm, it is indeed a bit late. Brother Li, you have to get up early for work tomorrow, right? What time do you usually get up?"

""

"Play ball in the morning? Doesn't that mean you have to get up really early?"

To be honest, this big star is surprisingly good at chatting.

He glanced at the time, which was just past midnight, shook his head slightly, and made sure that the other person wouldn't message him after he said "goodnight" for the third time before yawning and closing his eyes.

He then slept until the alarm rang, and he quickly got up, washed up, got ready, grabbed his tennis bag, and ran downstairs.

The fat guy's triangular body, which looked like a mountain of flesh when he sat down, gave him a strong sense of crisis.

Nothing beats a healthy body, so get moving!

After all, the thought of his butt possibly being that wide in the future sent chills down his spine.

I played ball, did morning exercises, and then took a shower a little after 8 o'clock before driving directly to work.

Before getting off the bus, he made sure to pack "An Introduction to Traditional Chinese Medicine" into his bag just in case.

However, Bie Yan didn't contact him today.

When he arrived at 9 o'clock, he received a text message from the big star: "Brother Li, I've gained two pounds."

Li Mu was speechless, thinking to himself, "You digested it pretty quickly."

Sui Kuan was called out by Shang Xiaobin early in the morning and didn't see him all day. He just slacked off at his workstation. Then, in the afternoon, Deputy Director Lü, who had been elusive ever since Li Mu started his internship, suddenly appeared in the office.

It's clear that this elderly man, who looks older than his father, is quite popular.

As soon as he appeared, the reporters in the office greeted him familiarly and offered their regards.

Li Mu was no exception to the custom, and the old man seemed to know him, even smiling and giving him encouragement to "work hard".

Then, with the arrival of Zhang Zhengwen, the old man finally revealed his purpose.

First, Director Zhang announced that tomorrow would be the day this old man retires, and the Department of Culture and Sports would hold a small ceremony. Then, at noon, this old man, Mr. Lü, would treat everyone to lunch to celebrate his retirement.

After finishing his story, the old man, who was about to end his professional career the next day, left with a smile.

Li Mu wondered if it was just his imagination, but he felt that the deputy director's back looked somewhat hunched when he left.

He guessed that the other person must have left the place where they had worked their whole life to do this.

While thinking, he sent a message to Bie Yan: "Brother Bie, Deputy Director Lü and Director Zhang just arrived together. They said they'll be holding a small retirement ceremony this morning and having lunch together."

"Okay, I understand."

Li Mu didn't continue asking his older brother when he would take office; instead, he continued to slack off.

Unfortunately, he didn't have many resources or channels to get news at the moment. But he wasn't in a hurry. Instead, he planned to follow his older brother's arrangements steadily, so he didn't feel much pressure taking it easy.

Time flies, and it's almost time to get off work.

"Brother Li, wanna play chess?"

Fan Taobing sent a message.

Li Mu thought for a moment and replied, "What do you want to eat today?"

"Boiled vegetables and boiled eggs in plain water."

"?"

"Really, Brother Li, you don't need to worry about me today. I'm just here to play chess with you. I'm not eating."

Her words in the text message were very firm.

only----

"Didn't you say you weren't going to eat?"

At home, Li Mu looked at the celebrity in front of him, who was slurping up spaghetti on a plate, and said with a ridiculous expression, "Have you thought this through? This Roman pasta is made with bacon fat, egg yolks, and Parmesan cheese—it's not low in calories."

.

"Why did you make it smell so good!"

The big star, like a starving ghost, stirred his noodles with chopsticks, his mouth full of melting egg yolk and cheese, mumbling as he ate, "Fine, I'll just go hungry for the next two days after this meal!"

"There's some bread left over from yesterday's baking. Would you like some dipped in the sauce?"

"want!"

'

Li Mu was both amused and exasperated.

I thought to myself, "I know you; I think you're a celebrity. People who don't know you would think you're a refugee."

So, after finishing a plate of pasta and licking the plate clean with bread dipped in vegetable soup, the big star very considerately took away the plates, wiped the table, and set up the chessboard.

Just as eating can be addictive, so too can Go (the board game).

As they played their pieces, they chatted casually: "I spent all day reading scripts in the hotel today, just waiting for this game tonight to refresh my mind."

"Is it starting?"

"Hmm, about two weeks from now. The director is arriving tomorrow, but I heard from Sister Hua that the film might not start shooting until after October 1st—Brother Li, want to grab a drink?"

"Aren't you going to lose weight?"

"Oh dear!"

"Never mind if I asked, but I don't drink. If I drink, I won't be able to see you off tonight."

"That won't do. What's the point of me drinking alone?"

"Why don't we have some tea?"

"What's the point of drinking tea?"

'

'

In short, with two glasses of red wine and a game of chess, the two of them were quite content.

It's still two rounds, but today's star player isn't thinking things through.

Just as she said, she had spent the whole day reading scripts in the hotel and desperately needed a mental break. But Go is also a mental sport. Li Mu won the first game by a narrow margin, but in the second game, she was almost completely overwhelmed by Li Mu in the early stages.

"Ugh—I can't take it anymore."

By 9 a.m., she had already lost her energy.

So, Li Mu got up and saw her downstairs.

Today, when he passed by the tennis court, there were two people doing a rally. However, those two must have been experts. Just by looking at the speed and power of the ball during the rally, Li Mu knew that he couldn't possibly be fooled.

But Fan Yongbing seemed quite interested, his previously tired eyes widening even behind his mask: "Brother Li, how do your skills compare to these two?"

"You overestimate me. If I go in—if they dare to fight, I'm willing to die."

"Uh—really? So modest?"

"Humble? No, no, no."

Hearing the "thump thump thump" sounds, Li Mu quickly shook his head, but the words that came out were: "Touch me, and I'll die."

"————?"

"Touch me, and I'll die."

"what?"

"Touch me, and I'll die."

"I heard you, you don't need to keep saying it, do you?"

"No, this is to convey a meaning to you. I'm saying it three times because it's important!"

"————Pfft, hahaha."

Instantly, she let out a burst of silvery laughter.

It also successfully attracted the attention of the two older men in the room.

Li Mu quickly took her away.

"Hmm, you know what, I'm actually starting to get interested in tennis—"

The two chatted as they walked to the gate, where Li Mu personally saw her into a taxi.

As soon as I turned around and walked into the residential area, another text message came: "Brother Li, I definitely won't be able to sleep tonight."

Why?

"I ate so much, played two games of chess, and didn't do any exercise at all. What am I going to do tomorrow?!"

'

The two of them started chatting, exchanging pennies here and there.

We chatted until after 11 p.m. before the text message exchange finally ended.

Li Mu emptied his inbox, which was already overflowing, and thought to himself that he hadn't realized before that this person was such a chatterbox.

On Thursday, Li Mu was called away to work by others as soon as he arrived at his workplace.

A small banner has been put up in the main office of the Culture and Sports Department; it is for Deputy Director Lü.

The newspaper expressed its gratitude for his hard work as part of the retirement ceremony.

Around 10 o'clock, everyone, including Bie Yan, had arrived. They offered their blessings and applause to the elderly gentleman in the suit, wearing a red flower on his chest, who had worked diligently for the newspaper his entire life.

-

The elderly man bowed in thanks, and then, with a blessing in hand, naturally extended an invitation to attend his retirement banquet at noon.

The ceremony was simple, but the banquet featured a rich variety of dishes.

However, as a newbie, he and Sui Kuan sat at the table with the intern reporters, while Brother Bie sat at the table with Director Zhang and the retired Grandpa Lü.

For these interns, including Li Mu, attending such a retirement ceremony for the first time was obviously full of novelty, and they even talked about what they would be like when they retired in the future.

To be honest, when you put yourself in their shoes and think about how you'll be wearing a suit and a red flower as you say goodbye to your workplace in twenty or thirty years, everyone's mindset is quite peculiar.

After the retirement banquet, and watching Mr. Lü get into the car driven by his children and leave, the ceremony, which didn't evoke particularly strong emotions from the interns, came to an end.

It was past one o'clock, and everyone returned to their offices to continue their afternoon work.

At 2:30 p.m., just as some reporters who had been delayed by attending a retirement ceremony were about to leave, Zhang Zhengwen and Bie Yan appeared at the door of the main office.

"Everyone, please put aside your work for now. I have something to announce."

As Zhang Zhengwen spoke, everyone looked over.

"What's wrong?"

Sui Kuan whispered.

Li Mu shook his head, looking puzzled. "I don't know."

For some reason, Bie Yan also turned her gaze over.

Seeing that everyone's attention was on him, Zhang Zhengwen spoke directly: "I just received an official notice from the company and the editorial board that Comrade Bie Yan, a senior reporter in our department, will officially assume the position of deputy director of the Culture and Sports News Department starting tomorrow."

"

The crowd, who had been listening quietly, fell silent instantly.

Immediately afterwards, applause broke out, though it was unclear who started it.

"Splash splash ...

Li Mu clapped, and Sui Kuan clapped as well.

However, Li Mu, who already knew the news, remained calm, while Sui Kuan was utterly astonished, his eyes wide as he stared at Bie Yan, who was bowing slightly in gratitude.

Brother Bie—he got promoted!?

Deputy Director! ???

Thinking of this, his eyes widened even more.

Bie Yan, who had straightened up, looked at him and Li Mu again.

But he wasn't looking at Li Mu, but at Sui Kuan.

Seeing Xiao Sui's surprised expression, a look of satisfaction flashed in his eyes.

At the same time, Zhang Zhengwen's voice rang out again: "This appointment is, firstly, an absolute recognition of Comrade Bie Yan's personal abilities. His achievements over the past few years are evident to all. It's not just about being fast and prolific, but also about having ideas and taking responsibility—"

As expected of a leader, Zhang Zhengwen's words were clearly very insightful.

After finishing discussing Bie Yan's matter, he changed the subject again: "Also, our department's intern, Li Mu, is officially a full-time employee starting today!"

"iii————

As all eyes in the office focused on Li Mu, Sui Kuan, who was standing next to him, stared wide-eyed.

Li Mu————

You've been promoted to a full-time position!?

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