Guide to Rising to Power as a Wife in Beijing's Elite Circle

At 2:17 a.m., I arrived in Shanghai.

Fang Jingxiu did not sleep.

He stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, a cigarette between his fingers, looking out at the myriad lights of this city that never sleeps.

The research trip was very busy. I had four meetings during the day and then had dinner with the leaders in the evening. By the time I got back to the hotel, it was almost midnight.

But he couldn't sleep.

My phone vibrated.

He glanced down and saw it was a WeChat message from Qin Yang.

a photo.

Chen Nuo fell asleep on his desk.

Her face was resting on her arm, her brows slightly furrowed, and her lips gently pursed. The table was covered with documents, the computer screen was still lit, and the cursor was blinking at the end of one document.

She was wearing the same suit she had worn during the day, her hair falling down and covering half of her face.

Below the photo, Qin Yang typed a line of text:

"Chen Ke is still asleep in his office. I didn't have the heart to wake him."

Fang Jingxiu stared at the photo for a long time.

Her face was small, and it looked even smaller against the backdrop of the documents. Her brows were furrowed so deeply; she was probably having a troublesome dream. Her lips were a little dry; she probably hadn't drunk enough water that day.

What he didn't know was that she was alone in that office, facing a group of people who did nothing but work, carrying the workload for three months.

What he didn't know was that she had compiled all thirty-seven comments by herself, writing until 2 a.m.

What he didn't know was that she was so tired that she fell asleep on the table and didn't even have the strength to turn off the computer.

Fang Jingxiu turned off his phone screen and then turned it back on.

Turn it off again, then turn it back on.

He looked at that photo more than a dozen times.

He only came to his senses when the cigarette ash fell and burned his fingers.

He stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray, walked to the window, and opened it.

A cold wind blew in, carrying the dampness of late autumn.

He took a deep breath, letting the coolness travel from his throat all the way to his lungs.

He really wanted to call her.

I really wanted to tell her to quit, and that I would talk to Wan Baoguo about it tomorrow.

I really wanted to tell her that I would have someone talk to her family and tell them to behave themselves.

I really wanted to hug her and say, "It's okay, Brother Xiu is here. Brother Xiu will take care of it for you."

He picked up his phone and found her number.

My finger hovered over the screen for a long time.

Then he put down his phone.

he can not.

Fang Jingxiu lit another cigarette, leaned against the window frame, and looked at the night view in the distance.

He remembered many things.

I remember when Chen Nuo first joined Liu Qingsong's film crew.

At that time, she didn't understand anything, everything was new to her, and she was very cautious when asking questions.

He told himself to help her this once and let her get started.

I remember when she joined the Youth Support Program at the State Administration of Radio and Television.

He personally spoke to Director Li.

He told himself to help her this once and help her gain her footing.

I thought of Tang Hai.

He taught her how to fight back in the study.

He told himself, "Just this once, let her learn."

I thought of Shi Anping's matter.

He knew what she was plotting, and he knew she might lose.

He told himself, just this once, he wouldn't help. Let her fall on her own.

She actually fell.

It hurt quite a bit when I fell.

She cried in the back seat that day, and her tears soaked his clothes.

He hugged her, wanting to tell her that it was okay, that he had made arrangements with Shi Anping, and that he wouldn't really hurt her.

But he didn't say.

He simply wiped away her tears and called her a crybaby.

He kept telling himself, "Just this once."

the last time.

But after each last time, there is always a next time.

She was like a bird in his palm.

He was afraid she would fall if she flew too high, and he was also afraid she would feel suffocated if she flew too low.

He wanted to let her fly on her own, yet he couldn't help but support her from behind.

He always said that she was still young and that they should wait a little longer.

But the officialdom is not a playground.

Being young doesn't mean others will give way to you.

Which of those people with connections wasn't raised with the utmost care and affection by their families?

Do they care that she is young?

will not.

They only care about their daily eating, drinking, and entertainment.

Will those shirked tasks be automatically completed because of her young age?

will not.

They'll just pile up there, waiting for her to carry them all by herself.

Wan Baoguo threw her into that group to test her.

It was a test of whether she could survive without his help.

If he intervenes at this time, what will Wan Baoguo think?

Oh, so this girl can't live without Fang Jingxiu.

After that, who will take her seriously?

Fang Jingxiu took a deep drag of his cigarette and slowly exhaled.

The smoke was blown away by the night wind and soon disappeared from sight.

Do not break or stand.

He repeated those four words in his heart many times.

Breaking means breaking her current dependence on him.

"Standing up" means establishing her ability to walk on her own.

If she doesn't break, she'll never stand up again.

Fang Jingxiu recalled his youth.

At that time, he had just joined the National Development and Reform Commission. He was all alone, didn't know anyone, and didn't rely on anyone.

He's fallen a lot, much harder than Chen Nuo.

Once, a proposal he worked on for three consecutive nights was criticized as worthless by his boss at a meeting.

He sat alone in his office until four in the morning, watching the sky brighten outside the window, and told himself, "It's okay, I'll do better next time."

Back then, no one held him and said, "It's okay, I'm here for you."

At that time, no one helped him wipe away his tears.

At that time, he could only rely on himself.

He eventually made it through.

He knew those falls weren't in vain.

Now it's Chen Nuo's turn.

He can prevent her from falling.

It will allow her to smoothly advance in her career.

It will allow her to never know what it means to shoulder burdens alone.

But what would she look like then?

She will always depend on him.

Whenever I encounter difficulties, the first person I think of is Brother Xiu who will help me.

You never know that you can actually do it.

That wasn't the Chen Nuo he wanted.

The Chen Nuo he wanted was someone who could stand by his side, not someone who would hide behind him.

Being able to enjoy the scenery side by side with him, rather than being held in his arms.

She can shoulder everything on her own when he's not around.

Just like now.

Fang Jingxiu put his phone aside and stopped looking at the photo.

He turned and went into the room, where he poured himself a glass of water.

The cold water slid down my throat; it felt very cool.

He looked at the moonlight outside the window and suddenly remembered a line of poetry.

The moon rises bright, and the beautiful woman is there.

The moon is so bright, and she is so beautiful.

It's a pity she's not here.

Unfortunately, he couldn't hold her.

Unfortunately, he had to leave her alone in that office, facing things she had never faced before.

But he knew it was the right thing to do.