Chapter 57: What Day Is It Today?

After finishing his call with Zhang Jianhan, Kang Ning returned to the factory. The gnawing anxiety over his relationship and the agonizing worry about his future tormented him relentlessly. That distant, nearly unreachable hope was like a fragile candle flame struggling in a cold wind, at risk of being extinguished at any moment. So, for several days, Kang Ning numbed himself with work, taking on several times the workload of others, hoping that sheer physical exhaustion might dull the weight of his burdens.

Lu Jing had returned. After landing at Chongqing Airport, she rushed straight back to Lei River and then to the factory. When she noticed two meticulously prepared charts hanging on one of the office walls, her curiosity was piqued. The tables made clear at a glance the key performance and schedule indicators. By the twentieth of the month, in just twenty days, the factory had achieved a pre-tax profit of 235,000 yuan—a figure that made her ecstatic, as it equaled the total profit from the entire first half of the year.

Setting down her handbag, Lu Jing strode briskly towards the workshop, greeting the workers cheerfully as she passed. After making her rounds, she finally found Kang Ning, his face smeared with grease, beneath a rare Volkswagen SUV.

Sensing Lu Jing's arrival, Kang Ning tidied himself up and crawled out from under the car, pouring some thinner onto a clean towel. "Was everything smooth?" he asked.

"Very smooth," Lu Jing replied with a smile. "All the parts—over half a million yuan's worth—were bought, and it took a day and a half less than expected." But when she got a good look at Kang Ning's gaunt face as he wiped away the grease, she was startled. Grabbing his arm, she pulled him into the light and scolded him with concern, "What happened? I was only gone a few days and you've lost so much weight. Are you sick?"

Kang Ning forced a smile and shook his head. "I'm fine—still strong enough to punch out a bull."

Lu Jing didn't laugh at his joke. "Are you trying to kill yourself? It's almost time to get off work. Go change, let's eat together."

"I'll pass. This car's a pain, but once it's done I can clear twelve thousand yuan in profit. I was planning to work late tonight," Kang Ning replied, his mood somber, making an excuse to refuse.

Lu Jing was about to protest when Zheng Yi and her husband arrived in their maroon BMW 535, parking beside them. Lu Jing immediately greeted Zheng Yi and her husband. "So, Mr. Fang, you finally decided to come back? Leaving our beautiful Yi at home for half a year—aren't you ashamed? Careful, one day someone might steal her away and then you'll have reason to cry!"

Fang Xiong, dressed in a well-tailored dark suit, was of medium height, about thirty-four or thirty-five, his square face well cared for. A pair of rimless glasses perched on his slightly low nose bridge lent him a scholarly air. He chuckled at Lu Jing's teasing. "We're an old married couple, what's there to worry about? It's you, lovely Lu, who should be looking for your Mr. Right! By the way, this handsome young man is...?"

"He's our master mechanic, from Guilin, and our friend. His name is Wu Xiaohua," Lu Jing introduced. Then, releasing Zheng Yi's hand, she introduced Fang Xiong to Kang Ning, "This is Yi's husband, the city's youngest outstanding entrepreneur and a member of the Political Consultative Conference—he's always traveling the world."

Fang Xiong habitually extended his hand for a handshake, but Kang Ning awkwardly indicated his hands were covered in oil. Fang Xiong quickly withdrew his hand, still smiling graciously to show he didn't mind. Kang Ning took note of this, quietly stepping back half a pace and offering a subtle smile.

"So what brings you here today? Did you know I was back and want to treat me to dinner?" Lu Jing joked with Zheng Yi.

Zheng Yi, remembering her purpose, quickly replied, "How would I know you’d be back today? But treating you to dinner is a given. I caught you—how could I let you slip away? Oh, and my car horn isn't working. I asked someone to check it at that shop up front. The scoundrel quoted five hundred yuan, fiddled with it forever, then said he couldn't find the problem and told us to leave the car overnight and pick it up tomorrow afternoon. I was so annoyed I came here instead."

"You’re being too much of a stranger—knowing I run a repair shop and still going elsewhere? What were you thinking?" Lu Jing saw Zheng Yi pushing the responsibility onto Fang Xiong, so she let it go, pointing at Kang Ning with a smile, "Our master’s right here, no need to look any further. Go on, take a look."

Kang Ning nodded, went to a pillar to clean his hands, then took off his grease-stained overalls, revealing a neat tracksuit underneath. He grabbed a couple of small tools and headed to the BMW, opening the door and climbing inside.

Fang Xiong nodded approvingly at Kang Ning's efficient movements. Zheng Yi, watching from the side, praised Lu Jing, "He’s really careful—takes off his work clothes so he doesn't dirty the car. The other guy didn't bother with that. But isn’t he cold wearing so little? As the boss, don’t overwork your people!"

Lu Jing shook her head. "Who knows with him? Since winter started, I haven’t seen him wear a sweater. He just puts a tracksuit under his overalls. Sometimes even I feel cold looking at him."

Fang Xiong sensed the two women were quite familiar with Kang Ning and couldn’t help asking, "You two seem to know him well. I didn’t see him around half a year ago."

Lu Jing, always perceptive, caught the implication in Fang Xiong’s words. Smiling, she pulled Zheng Yi's hand and replied, "Of course we’re familiar. If it weren't for him back in Libo, Guizhou, we wouldn't have made it home. Later, seeing how skilled he was, I invited him to join us. He's honest and talented—who else deserves our kindness more? What, are you jealous?"

"Not at all," Fang Xiong laughed. "Just curious."

Suddenly, a sharp honk startled Fang Xiong, who was standing at the front of the car. Kang Ning had already fixed the horn. After a few tests to make sure all was well, he screwed the fuse box back together and restored everything to order, then packed up his tools and stepped out. "Just a minor problem—the fuse was blown. I replaced it with the spare that came with the car."

Zheng Yi gave Kang Ning a grateful look and then exclaimed to Lu Jing, "Good heavens, your business must be a goldmine! That guy earlier wanted five hundred yuan and we were willing, but it took you less than five minutes to fix it. Think of the profit margin!"

Lu Jing gave Zheng Yi a playful pinch. "Who told you to be so generous? I won’t take a penny, and you still accuse me. Let me tell you, our shop is known for both honesty and skill. Many people would rather drive farther just to come here. Even the tax office and commerce bureau’s imported cars stumped five or six shops, but our master here, along with our three senior mechanics, got them sorted. When the clients saw the price and quality, they were amazed. Now we’re the designated repair shop for the tax and commerce departments."

Fang Xiong, a car enthusiast, pointed at the rare Volkswagen SUV in the workshop and asked Kang Ning, "That VW isn’t much cheaper than the BMW X7—at least a million. What’s wrong with it?"

Kang Ning, seeing Fang Xiong’s familiarity, answered with a smile, "Transmission issues. The owner said it was just repaired for eighty thousand three months ago, and now it’s failed again. When I opened it up, I found most of the parts were used—just cleaned up and handed back. I told the owner where to get genuine parts. He called at noon to say he’d found them for twenty-eight thousand yuan and they’ll be air-freighted to Chengdu the day after tomorrow. He generously offered us fifteen thousand for the repair."

Fang Xiong was astonished and his wariness toward the honest Kang Ning gradually turned to appreciation. He thought about inviting Lu Jing to dinner—since she had no boyfriend, and she seemed fond of Kang Ning, perhaps he could play matchmaker and have one less thing to worry about, given how often he traveled and how anxious he felt leaving behind a young and beautiful wife.

With his mind made up, Fang Xiong politely suggested, "I’ve reserved a table at the Dynasty Hotel. I think Master Wu is a great guy—let’s all go together. I love cars, too, and this way you two won’t leave me out of the conversation."

Lu Jing, hearing they were headed to the best hotel, exclaimed, "Wow, that’s extravagant! What’s the occasion? It’s not anyone’s birthday or anniversary, is it?"

Zheng Yi pulled Lu Jing over with a sigh. "You’ve been making too much money and lost your head. Don’t you know today is Christmas Eve?"

"Oh, look at me—how could I forget! Xiao Wu, go get changed, we’ll wait in the office," Lu Jing said to Kang Ning, delighted.

Kang Ning wanted to refuse, but seeing the anticipation in Lu Jing’s eyes, the words caught in his throat. Remembering how she had rushed back today, he couldn’t bear to disappoint her. He nodded and went to fetch his overalls, heading for his dormitory.

Yet his heart remained heavy. This time last year, he had spent Christmas Eve with his beloved, Liu Yiqing. What he could never forget was that, on that very night, Liu Yiqing had given herself to him for the first time.