I'm Trapped in the Block

Chapter 330: Chapter 327: Mr. Guo

All day long, Mr. Guo had been restless at his desk.

He wasn’t anxious about some big business deal, but about a ”private matter” that afternoon—he was going to meet someone.

A very important person.

Just the thought of it made Mr. Guo so nervous that his heart would race, forcing him to stand up from time to time and walk to the floor-to-ceiling windows to calm himself.

Finally, afternoon arrived.

With an apprehensive heart, Mr. Guo arrived at a restaurant.

He had booked the entire restaurant for their meeting, cleared his schedule, and arrived an hour early, where he now sat waiting anxiously.

Though usually perfectly composed while handling company business, he was now as restless as a young man waiting for an interview...

Half an hour later, a young lady appeared at the entrance. She was plain-looking, but dressed simply and neatly. Holding a tablet, she double-checked the address before pushing open the restaurant’s main door.

She was visibly confused to find the restaurant completely empty.

But it didn’t take her long to find the correct table.

”Are you Mr. Guo?”

”Yes, please sit.”

Mr. Guo shot to his feet and shakily guided the Young Lady to her seat. She seemed taken aback by the gesture, waving her hands dismissively.

After sitting down, the Young Lady sized up Mr. Guo for a moment, then asked quizzically, ”Excuse me, Mr. Guo, where have we met before?”

Mr. Guo showed no signs of embarrassment. ”Do you remember the beggar you used to help five years ago? You would often bring me things your family didn’t need anymore and encourage me to find a job, to stand on my own two feet.”

The Young Lady before him froze.

”You’re ’Master’?”

Mr. Guo chuckled. ”That’s right. Everyone around there called me Master. I had nowhere to shave, so I ended up with that ’wise old sage’ look.”

The Young Lady laughed as well. ”I really thought you were a true master. I never expected you to be so young.”

Seeing the Young Lady didn’t care about his background, Mr. Guo breathed a sigh of relief.

She had always been like this, never caring about another person’s social status.

Even though she lived in a wealthy neighborhood, she would befriend the local beggar, bring him things from her home to share, and even sit with him by the riverbank to talk about life.

Mr. Guo remembered how the Young Lady had once told him, while gazing at the river, that she wanted to become a doctor and save lives.

At this thought, he looked at the Young Lady before him and asked, ”So, did you become a doctor who saves lives?”

The Young Lady paused, then lowered her head, looking somewhat dejected.

”No. I did as my family arranged. I studied management, and I’ll join the family company in the future... and my family said they’ve already arranged a marriage for me. I’ll get married as a matter of course after I graduate next year, but I haven’t even met my fiancé...”

The Young Lady’s voice trailed off, and she shook her head.

”Never mind, what’s the point of talking about these unhappy things. What about you? Are you getting enough to eat now?”

Mr. Guo, of course, nodded.

He had ended up a beggar back then because his family had fallen on hard times. His parents, hounded by debt collectors, went their separate ways, leaving him behind, homeless.

Back then by the riverbank, the Young Lady had also asked him about his life’s wish, and he had only said one thing: Just being able to eat his fill would be enough.

But now, it seemed his wish had been realized a little too perfectly.

Instead, as he listened to the Young Lady’s words, he felt a faint ache in his heart for her.

”Do you still want to be a doctor?”

”Not anymore. It’s pointless. That was just a youthful fantasy—everyone says grandiose things when they’re young. Besides, being a doctor is exhausting nowadays, and they have to deal with all those strange and difficult cases brought out of the Abyss...”

The Young Lady spoke with a bitter smile, but Mr. Guo could see there was still a trace of longing in her eyes.

Seeing the atmosphere had grown heavy, the Young Lady quickly changed the subject. She started asking about Mr. Guo’s work, the restaurant’s decor, and then the latest news...

’She’s still such a chatterbox.’

The Young Lady was exactly as Mr. Guo remembered her, completely unchanged.

And so, the two of them spent a pleasant afternoon together.

”My treat next time!” the Young Lady said excitedly as she was leaving, already arranging another meeting.

Mr. Guo happily agreed.

After getting home, he pulled out his tablet and looked up the Young Lady’s parents’ company...

On Saturday, Mr. Guo worked overtime, a rare occurrence.

He had invited the Young Lady’s father to his company to discuss a partnership.

”Mr. Guo, so young and accomplished.” Upon meeting, the Young Lady’s father warmly shook Mr. Guo’s hand.

”You flatter me. The reason I asked you here in such a hurry is because of an urgent matter. I’ll get straight to the point, if you don’t mind?”

”Please, go ahead.”

”Our company needs to temporarily ramp up production for a certain product line. We have a meeting with Yuanxin Technology in a few days, and they have strict volume requirements. Our current supplier can’t provide enough materials on such short notice, so we’d like to purchase the remainder from your company. We’re prepared to offer a good price. What are your thoughts?”

The Young Lady’s father was stunned. Mr. Guo had said he needed something, but instead he was handing him a massive order.

He wasn’t the sharpest tool in the shed, but after struggling in the business world for so many years, he knew when something was amiss.

”What kind of product is it?”

”It’s for intelligent machinery. Yuanxin Technology has an NDA with us, so I can’t go into detail.”

”I understand. But I have one more question, Mr. Guo. How did you hear about our company? At our scale, we shouldn’t even be on your list of backup options, should we? While I’m confident in the materials from my factory, I don’t believe a large corporation would approach us directly, especially for such a crucial order.”

Seeing the Young Lady’s father so confused, Mr. Guo didn’t hide it anymore. He gave a faint smile and said, ”I know your daughter. We’re very good friends...”

”Just because of that?”

”Of course...”

The partnership was sealed without a hitch. A few days later, the negotiations with Yuanxin Technology were also a great success. Everything went off without a hitch.

...

”Xiaoling, in a few days, Dad will take you to meet your fiancé.”

The Young Lady’s father suddenly said to her.

She opened her mouth as if to say something, but ultimately swallowed her words and replied softly, ”Okay.”

...

A few days later, the Young Lady stared wide-eyed at the fiancé standing before her.

”How can it be you?”

”Perhaps it’s fate?”

Mr. Guo smiled. He didn’t know whether what he had done was right or wrong.

Facing the Young Lady, his heart began to race again, especially since they were meeting in front of her parents this time.

His arm trembled slightly as he looked at the table beside him.

There was an ordinary drinking glass on it.

After taking a deep breath, he picked up the glass and GULP GULP GULPED down the water inside.