01x08 - Episode 8

[bunniefuu]

Morning.

I need to talk to you.

They said you rushed out
suddenly yesterday.

I didn't dare call you,
and you went quiet.

So,

this morning, when I ran into Zhao Heng,

I asked him how you were doing.

Why didn't you dare call me?

I was afraid you'd misinterpret it.

I should've told you before I joined

the Celestial Insurance project team.

But I worried things wouldn't
come across clearly over a call,

so I wanted to talk to you in person.

Turns out Ma Ke told you already.

I wouldn't misinterpret it.

It's not my personal project.

Don't talk to me like that.

So let's talk work.

Ma Ke asked me to help you
get up to speed on the project.

You know my family situation.

My dad keeps assuming

I landed the Ande Energy project
only because of his connections.

That day, when you said right here

that digital finance
was the next big trend,

I wanted to give it a shot too.

Unexpectedly, Mr. Pi assigned me
to the Celestial Insurance project team.

He said since we get along well,
we'd make good partners.

So,

I never meant to steal your project.

Still, you didn't turn it down.

True. I didn't.

Because I saw it as a chance
to compete with you fairly.

I didn't want to give up.

I want to prove my ability

to my dad through this.

You're right.

As I switched projects midway,

there's no reason
you can't join in halfway.

You're not mad anymore?

It's no big deal.

After those sarcastic remarks
I made, I let it go.

Then friendship first, competition second.

Finally wrapped it up.

Come on, let's grab something to eat.

All done?

I'm passing. I've got
a gym appointment at 9:30 p.m.

I mean that poser.

After we cleared the air,
I can be genuine friends with him.

That's great.

Eat more,

but don't put on weight.

Fine, don't eat then. I can eat alone.

Boss, just one.

One bowl of beef noodles.

If my presence here bothers you,
I can leave right away.

I don't own this place.

Right. One alcohol-free beer, too.

Okay.

What's wrong? In a bad mood?

No.

Oh, thanks.

Why aren't you prying
any further this time?

I'm done asking.

Don't want you to think
I'm always pestering you.

I invited Xu Chi out for dinner,

and she said she was hitting the gym.

But I just saw her heading home,
not to the gym.

You…

I think she means jogging with Ye Xinzhi.

They're neighbors. It makes sense
that they go the same way.

How do you know that?

I…

I saw them jogging in the morning.

But I just feel like something's wrong.

What's wrong?

Xu Chi and I
are on the same project team now.

Logically, we work together
more than before.

She cooperates and shares everything
with me as she should, flawlessly.

But…

For example, just now,

I invited her to dinner,
and she turned me down,

telling me when, where,
and with whom in full detail.

Yet I feel like something's wrong.

Super business-like, huh?

Ms. Bu,

it's my great honor
to sit and talk with you.

I hope I can play the host

for you sometime in the future.

She sounds like this, right?

Why would she act like that?

There's nothing strange in this.

Since you don't treat her as a friend,
why would she treat you as one?

That's nonsense! When

haven't I treated her as a friend?

The way you're acting now
can easily send the wrong signal.

Before joining the team,
I laid out every detail

and background to her clearly.

So you mean

once you explained everything to her,

she has to accept it all, right?

Think you're some rich young lady?

Wait. You actually are one.

What are you doing?

Are you really going to confront her?

I need to figure out why.

She is my only friend.
I can't hold it in. Give it back to me.

You want the truth?

I'll tell you.

You've got low EQ.

What did you say?

-Say that again.
-Is what I said wrong?

Look at how you act.

You hold your head high,
all proud, like a swan,

and you blow up over the smallest problem.

That's low EQ.

No wonder your dad
has grown to dislike you over the years.

You love Zhang's Crispy Pastries,

and this little brat
knocked them all over.

What little brat?

That's your brother.

Do you even act like an older sister?

Bad Tianna! Bad Tianna!

No wonder after over two decades,
you've got no real friends

except Xu Chi.

Go on.

You call her your best friend, right?

She knows you live at Bairui Apartments.

She knows your life goal
is to earn your dad's approval

and take over Siwei Group.

When you're upset,

she drops all her work
and stays up late drinking with you.

But what about you?
Do you know where she lives?

Do you know what her life goal is?

Where were you when she was upset?

She stays at the 9 Days Inn over there.

A place of just over 20 square meters.

Why did she join Maxmise?

To earn more money
to buy back her mother's old apartment.

The down payment is over a million.
That's exactly what your car cost.

How do you know that?

Did she tell you?

She didn't.

At her workstation

is the real estate flyer
for that old apartment.

Feels like

even I, her regular colleague,

know more about her than you,

her supposed bestie.

I only got this car
the day before yesterday.

You memorized my license plate so soon?

Didn't you say you were broke?

-Then why buy a car?
-Easy there.

Every man needs his own car.

Mine is a used car.

Sure, I came from a poor family,

but I get by fine now.

After all, Maxmise pays pretty well.

So, you actually care about me.

I don't care about you.
Why are you following me?

To make sure you get home safe.

You're in a bad mood,
and it's late at night.

If anything dangerous happens on the way,
I can rush over and play hero.

Nothing bad happening

would be ideal.

But you'd notice me quietly

watching over you from behind.

Maybe you'd be touched
and give me a chance.

You're being awfully blunt.

Haven't I always been

a true rogue in your eyes?

I know exactly what you're thinking.

You're thinking that money

would be enough
to turn your whole family's fortunes

around, aren't you?

I don't have that much value to offer,
so wake up!

Go on. I'm giving you a chance.

No. My beat-up car

is way too shabby
for anything adult-rated.

How about we go somewhere else?

You don't have the guts.

With all that tough talk just now,

you were trying

to get my attention,
just like before, right?

I won't buy

a single word of it.

Xu Chi is nothing like you.

Never say that men have no guts.

Believe it or not,
I could do something right now.

I don't. Yes.

And one more thing.

In my car,

don't say anyone else's name,

male or female,

or I'll get jealous.

Alright.

Fasten your seatbelt.
I'll drive you home and then leave.

Okay.

Wait.

Am I really that terrible as a person?

Not exactly terrible.

You're used to being on top,

so you don't know how
to get along with people like us.

People like you?

Yeah.

Ordinary folks like Xu Chi and me.

I grew up from a village to a small town.

She's half-orphaned.

On the surface,

we look polished, working in the CBD,

earning decent salaries.

But the truth is,
we have to grind for over a decade

to reach the starting line
you were born into.

Take switching project teams, for example.

She has to get Sha Sha's approval,

yet you made requests
to the partner directly.

No.

But Xu Chi told me she is confident

and doesn't care about
my resource advantages.

As I switch projects midway,

there's no reason
you can't join in halfway.

And we both compete on our own merits.

I want to see through this opportunity

which one of us
will be Maxmise's Rookie of the Year.

At your age, you still buy into this?

Young lady,

whether in friendship or romance,

a disparity in roots
makes for a bitter struggle.

We grind for over a decade

just not to envy your background.

But that doesn't mean we won't admire it.

Regardless of your bad temper
or low EQ day-to-day,

once you cross someone's bottom line,
there will be no turning back.

What bottom line of Xu Chi did I cross?

Did I steal her resources

or go to Mr. Pi directly for materials?

Stealing resources is trivial.

If it were me, there's one thing
that would break my heart.

You never gave her a heads-up

before you acted.

-I have to hang up.
-Wait.

What is it?

Never mind. I'll tell you some other time.

It's not that you forgot.

You never thought about it.

It's not that you don't trust her.

Subconsciously, you never
took her into account.

That's what I meant, the saddest part
from the start.

You never saw her as a friend.

Fine, then there's no turning back.

Are you leaving?

Someone as thin-skinned as her
doesn't deserve to be my friend.

Don't follow me.

What are you grinning at?

Yesterday…

Xu Chi,

why are you

being so fake-polite with me?

Right.

Chi.

Argue with her like this later.

Tell her…

Today I'm here
to apologize to you for the second time.

A,

I didn't consult you
before asking to join this project.

B,

I never looked into the root cause
of why you've been upset for so long.

That's my fault.

-You don't have to--
-Don't speak yet.

Other than these, I don't believe

I've done anything wrong to you.

Why didn't you tell me you were upset?

Even if I acted improperly,

that's no excuse for you
to be fake-polite with me.

Fine.

Zhao Heng said I don't care about you.

But you've never opened up to me, either.

That's just how I am.
If you don't want to tell me, I won't ask.

I'm giving you space. Is that so wrong?

-Tianna--
-Don't come closer.

Moved to hear me apologize?

I could've done what you do,

taking advantage of your emotions,
pretending to make up with you,

and keeping on being your polite bestie.

But I can't.

There's a thorn in my heart,
and I can't remove it.

What I want is a friend

with full mutual trust.

I thought you were different
from everyone else.

Then what are you doing here?

What… What am I doing here?

I'm here to tell you

that from now on,
in the Celestial Insurance project,

I will hold nothing back.

I'll prove I'm better

than you with real results.

Do you think

she acted like a kid in kindergarten?

When upset, she comes right up and says
she will not play with me anymore.

Actually, it was good advice

when you told me that day
to talk things out with her.

I used to see her as this aloof,
strong leading lady,

so I was trying too hard in front of her.

Now I realize she's just a kitten
hissing and showing its claws.

So you teased her on purpose?

Yeah.

But you've always outshone me.

Come to think of it,
we're not actually that close.

We've only been coworkers for six months.

I did help you once when you were down,

but our friendship
amounts to just a bottle of drinks.

You've always had no friends,

so out of gratitude,

you projected all your ideal hopes
for friendship onto me.

You're right. I really

don't deserve to be your friend.

Hiding my inferiority complex
around you has been exhausting.

So bring on the rivalry.

Let's reset everything. Be just colleagues

and compete all out,
so we'll have no hard feelings.

What do you say?

What do I say?

Fine.

I'll hold nothing back from now on.

I'll

-hold, hold…
-Hold nothing back!

So annoying.

She has issued her challenge.

If I don't take her challenge head-on,
she'll think I'm dismissing her anger,

and she'll fly into another fit of rage.

So letting her punch at thin air like this

is way more fun, right?

Aren't you afraid of losing to her?

My confidence has long been
fully restored.

After all, I have to live up
to all your bitter advice.

Besides, the Celestial Insurance project
is managed by Ma Ke.

Both Bu Tianna and I
are junior analysts brought in halfway.

Even if we go at it

and polish our proposals to perfection,

the winner of our little competition
won't be promoted

to consulting manager, right?

It's such a relief
to clear the air with you.

No more working out of the café.

I can take a breather

and enjoy this amazing view.

No need to worry about running
into Maxmise colleagues out in public.

This is really nice.

By the way, Du will be here soon.

How's the data analysis
for Benyuan Digital Collectibles coming?

All documents have been sent,
except for one file.

Can I ask a question out of curiosity?

Are you and Du

planning to muscle in
on the partnership between Wen Ruosen

and Benyuan Digital Collectibles?

What makes you say that?

The documents you had me compile
are extremely detailed.

You also asked me to draft

an investment prospectus
for the digital collectible gallery,

run data simulations,
and conduct research.

Only competitors

would dig into another firm's
business thoroughly.

Quite the opposite.

Our goal is to make
this partnership happen.

Alright.

I'd better work
on the documents in the hotel,

so I won't get in your and Du's way.

Aren't you going to ask why?

You'll tell me when you're ready.

Could you check your phone?
Just check your--

Ms. Xu is here too.

If you had told me she was here,
I wouldn't have parked so fast.

I could've driven around a bit longer.

No, it's fine. I'm leaving now.
I won't hold up your meeting.

I'll send you the data
in about half an hour.

-See you.
-Off I go.

Wait, don't go. Come back.

What data?

Ye, what's wrong with you?

Look how hot it is outside.

You're sending her out to work on data.

Have you got any decency?

-I'm fine.
-No, no need.

You stay here and work. Alright?

We can talk right here.
It's nothing urgent.

You won't be a bother. You work here.

That's settled.

It's quiet here. You can work here.

Okay.

He still gets photos
printed out these days.

What's this?

What are you staring at?

You've got something shady in the room,

and it's making you look guilty?

Would you stop talking nonsense?

She's a young lady.

She's waltzed right into your place.
You've got so many young ladies,

and I've said this
about every one of them,

but you defend her the most.
You keep defending her like this.

Believe it or not, I'll knock you out.

It… It… It.. It's broken!

Your laptop is fine.

-It came loose.
-It has a roll cage structure.

It came loose from the impact.

Wait.

Wait.

It isn't responding.

What's wrong?

Nothing. My hard drive…

Well, it's not responding.

-Hello, support service?
-Oh my.

Can you repair portable hard drives?

-Oh no.
-It won't work?

This is bad. Yeah, it just fell.

Mind if I have a go?

Your laptop's USB ports are fine.
The problem must be the hard drive.

The support service can't fix it.
Take it to a physical store.

No, listen.
I'm flying to Shenzhen tomorrow morning.

All my roadshow materials
are stored inside this drive.

I'm running out of time.
What am I going to do?

Where's your backup?

I didn't back this one up.

If it's a port issue,

swapping the drive's port might work.

Or we could try data recovery.

I've got all the tools back at my place.

I could give it a go.
Only a few hundred meters away.

You know how to fix hard drives?

You're saving my life, girl.

Please help me. Thank you.

-Wait for my update.
-Thanks.

You somehow found a girl
who can repair hard drives.

You really… You…

Oh, no!

What's wrong?

All the material in there is bound
by non-disclosure agreements.

I… I do trust Xu Chi,

but I think I need to keep an eye on her.

-I'll go with you.
-No,

you'll go instead. You go instead.

I don't know her well.

But it's your portable hard drive.
How should I…

I'm in a panic. Stop stalling.

Who's there?

Well…

Du said his hard drive

seems

to…

He is worried about the material on it.

-No…
-This is my fault.

I should've brought my tools over
to your place.

Well.

-My bad.
-No. Would you

-like to come in?
-Is it alright?

Sure, it's just kind of messy.

{\an8}DELIVERIES PLEASE LEAVE AT DOOR
TABLE ON THE LEFT

I only have one chair at home,
so you'll have to make do.

I've swapped out the ports,

but the laptop says it needs formatting.

So I'm running DiskGenius now.

Why do you even have these tools at home?

My ex-boyfriend liked DIY,
and I picked it up because it seemed fun.

I planned to give this kit to him,

but after we broke up,
I ended up keeping it.

FILE RECOVERY, DATA SCAN
SEARCHING FOR FILES…

Almost done.

It's more than likely to be fine.

I found it pretty amusing

seeing how panicked Du was.

You

high-flying business elites

are so used to working efficiently.

Once one link in the chain breaks down,

you're at a loss
and come crashing off your pedestal.

Yeah. You're right.

But spare us some dignity, please.

Alright.

I promise I won't mention this to Du.

It's fixed.

Come here.

Sit right here.

-Right.
-I…

I'm copying his material
onto another portable hard drive.

Keep an eye on me

and make sure I don't save
any of his material onto my computer.

PROGRESS: 94%

Okay. Mission complete.

What a relief.

Remember to remind Du
to get an SSD next time.

They're much more shock-resistant.

And always keep multiple backups
for important data.

I'm only an amateur.

We just got lucky to fix it this time.

No, it's not luck.

You're naturally brilliant.

Smooth talker. Then I won't
charge you for the repair.

Hurry back. Du must be anxious.

-Go.
-Thanks.

Thank you.

We've got it! Yes!

Great! Perfect!

This girl is incredible.

Where did you find

such an all-round talent?

Back when we recruited interns.

See what great taste I've got?

Yeah, you're amazing. You're so great.

Why didn't you ask her out?

I want to take her out
to dinner to thank her.

She really bailed me out.

She's one of us.

There will be plenty of chances later.

What do you mean "one of us"?

I want her

to take part in Wen Ruosen's project.

Listen,
watch how you talk to her from now on.

I've got high hopes for her.

Alright. You value her that much.

What?

Are you grooming her
to be your right-hand?

Maybe.

You have no idea

how fast she's improving.

Just a few days ago,

she was still weeping
over her stolen project.

Getting backstabbed

by someone you trusted at work

really hurts.

You'll get used to it after a few times.

Tomorrow when you go back to the office,
don't overthink it.

Just go head-to-head with her.

After my little talk,
she's completely transformed.

She can calmly analyze
the competitive landscape

and skillfully handle
interpersonal relationships.

She's got the heiress
wrapped around her finger.

I was just at her place.

Despite her cramped living space,
she received me with total poise.

I only have one chair at home,
so you'll have to make do.

She gives me that impression,

she is neither insecure

nor does her confidence seem overt.

When I was her age,
I was nowhere near as composed.

That's really something.

For a talent like this, you know,
you need to hold onto her.

Bring her straight over to C&C.

Train her personally yourself.

Better than having her
stuck at another company. Don't you think?

No rush.

Let her weather the storms
at Maxmise first.

Everyone,

I just spoke with the people
from Celestial Insurance.

They aren't satisfied
with our initial proposal.

I don't see much point
in pushing forward with it.

We might as well

scrap it and start over.

Are you serious?

We'll never get any sleep.

Well, Ma Ke, the research report for
Celestial Insurance is massive and messy.

We're already burnt out.
Are you sure we need to restart?

Yang Rui, do you know who suggested this?

Bu Tianna.

Both she and Xu Chi are new hires.
You seniors are already intimidated?

Alright.

Let's hear what they both have to say.

I love competition

because I have never lost.

What a coincidence. Neither have I.

Alright.

So, everyone in agreement?

Their team's consultants
drafted new proposals,

but in the end,

Bu Tianna and Xu Chi
clashed the most fiercely.

What approaches did each of them take?

Bu Tianna took the top-down approach.

She kept meeting senior executives
from major insurance firms.

She knows plenty of high-ranking contacts.

She also knows a great deal
about Celestial Insurance's competitors.

Standing on giants' shoulders,
naturally, she sees further.

Xu Chi built
grassroots connections instead.

She spent lots of time
with Celestial Insurance's staff,

trying to figure out exactly
why the previous proposal got rejected.

So who do you fancy more?

Bu Tianna.

You're rooting for Xu Chi, aren't you?

I suppose I am.

Bu Tianna's got connections,

but Xu Chi has solid backing too.

Backing?

Do you spot something off?

It might be

an issue with the India branch.

-The India branch?
-Right.

Celestial Insurance doesn't have
an overseas branch in India.

It's not your mistake. It's mine.

Our company recently
brought on an Indian partner.

My frequent meetings with him

are impacting me.

I've confused a nod with a "no",

and a shake with a "yes".

Are you messing with me on purpose?

Alright. Back to business.

As competitors,

I'm not in a position
to comment on Maxmise's project.

But in the slides you sent me,
all key information has been redacted.

That's well done.

From now on,
for our private conversations,

we'll only discuss ideas,
no concrete details.

Otherwise, we risk leaking
confidential business information.

Got it.

Overall, this proposal you showed me
is logically well-structured.

As an analyst's first draft,

it's pretty solid.

Only pretty solid as an analyst's draft?

What more do you expect?

Experience comes from repeated failures.

You've been on this project
for barely over a month.

Do you really expect
a flawless finished proposal right now?

Still, you can compete
against Bu Tianna with this,

and you'll stand a fighting chance.

But my goal isn't just
to beat her in this competition.

I want the client's
genuine approval of my solution.

Client satisfaction is a relative notion.

Getting them to compromise and buy in
is what usually happens.

But I--

XIAOXI

ANSWER

Xinzhi, I'll arrive in Beijing
the day after tomorrow.

-In the evening--
-Ms. Liu, hold on a second.

Just a moment.

Chi, do your research thoroughly.

The client will respond to it.

Okay.

Xu Chi,

you spent the day on site for the project.

Why are you back at the office?

Something's still off about this proposal,

so I came back to look up materials,

hoping for some inspiration.

Alright. I've got a little spare time.
I'll take a look for you.

-Great.
-Come on. Walk me through your thinking.

Okay.

My new proposal focuses on breaking down
Celestial Insurance's value tree.

Xu Chi, this proposal
is far too complicated.

I'd suggest redoing it with a focus

on scenario-based big data business
and enhancing the customer experience.

Redo it?

But won't that get too granular?

Besides, I barely have experience
with scenario-based design.

Our last proposal got rejected
because it was too abstract.

I believe in you.

Alright. Don't stay up too late.

Get some rest.

Redo it…

Didn't get much sleep?

Ma Ke suddenly asked me to refocus

on scenario-based big data business
the day before yesterday.

You should have told me earlier,
so I could've helped revise it.

Good work, everyone.

Today's weekly meeting
is to go over progress

and requirements
for each of your projects.

Let's begin.

-Ma Ke.
-Everyone's here.

-Mr. Pi, you're back.
-Just got back from the US.

I was heading
to my office to beat jet lag,

but seeing you having your weekly meeting,

I wanted to drop in and listen.

Carry on. Don't mind me. Thank you.

Take a seat.

What's wrong?

Why so serious?

I have a question. Ma Ke,

is this ongoing project

hitting roadblocks?

We've finished research
and framework building.

The client is happy with that part.

But they want revisions to the proposal.

We're updating it right now.

I read the first version.

Do you have a new draft ready?

We now have five proposals,

each taking a different approach.

Mr. Pi, since you're here,

-shall we walk you through them?
-Alright.

Xu Chi, you're in charge of scenario-based
big data business, right?

Right.

Mr. Pi, Xu Chi has been telling me

she's very confident in her proposal.

Let her go first.

-Wait, a couple of days ago, I just…
-Xu Chi,

if you've got solid ideas, speak up.

Let Mr. Pi give us his feedback.

Ma Ke is right. Xu Chi,

you were brimming with confidence
on the Bolo Culture project last time.

Tell us your thoughts.

I'll give a brief overview.

Xu Chi, hold on.

I have a question.

For the scenario-based customization

of pet medical insurance you mentioned,

what's the annual premium revenue
for each one?

Sorry.

Roughly over 100 million a year.

Huayuan Insurance is comparable in size

to Celestial Insurance.

Their pet medical insurance premium
was around 50 million last year.

Celestial Insurance's
annual premium revenue

is nearly 100 billion.

The pet medical insurance scenario
you proposed

can only generate
at most several billion in premiums.

What impact could that possibly have
on Celestial Insurance's

multi-billion-yuan business?

I haven't collected enough materials.

In this case,

why did you tell Ma Ke

you were confident in your proposal?

Ma Ke,

as the project manager, what's your take?

Alright.

Mr. Pi.

My approach starts

with the key value drivers
of their current business.

I built a value tree
for Celestial Insurance.

Please take a look.