innocent year

Chapter 98 The Most Familiar Stranger

In order to go back to Beijing to watch the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games, Qiu Shi specially asked her boss to take five days of annual leave.

Since Macau's gambling rights were officially opened in 2003, and several VIP rooms in Hua Jiahui's hands were on the right track, he had to arrange for Qiushi to do a job that had nothing to do with casinos.

"I can't really be a Junket Operator with Brother Jiahui in the future." He said, "You are a good college student. You look good, your English is good, and it is serious to do a clean job."

"Are there any jobs in Macau that don't involve gambling?" Qiushi retorted, "70% of the taxes that casinos pay to the government every year come from the legally licensed Junket Operators. If you want me to say, the whole of Macau belongs to this job." The most innocent and most serious."

"That's what you said, but if you put it bluntly, isn't it a case of cheating? It's detrimental." Hua Jiahui threatened him.

"My mother and my uncle left early," Qiu Shi smiled, "I won't get married and have children, don't be afraid."

And Hua Jiahui just patted the other person's shoulder lightly and said, "I'm afraid."

With the other party's persistence and encouragement, Qiushi finally decided to apply for a job at the local tourism development bureau.

With the implementation and continuous adjustment of the free travel policy in the past few years, the tourist source market of Macau has expanded from Japan and South Korea to Hong Kong, Guangdong and other places with convenient locations, and gradually extended to the mainland.Today, tourists from North China have become the main consumers in Macau.Therefore, Qiushi's growth background gave him a great advantage.Coupled with excellent academic performance and strong language skills, he stands out from the crowd of job seekers.

Therefore, he started as a tourism commissioner at the most basic level and became the director of the promotion department in four years.The work content includes assisting in the formulation and implementation of the tourism policy of the Special Administrative Region, and striving to establish a high-quality tourism image for Macau, etc.

This former Portuguese colony has embarked on a new path of prosperity step by step since the day of its return. In 2006, Macau's total gaming revenue surpassed that of Las Vegas. In 2007, Macao's per capita GDP surpassed that of Singapore and became the "richest man" in Asia.

When Qiushi stood in front of the Ruins of St. Paul’s, a local landmark, and looked at the Mandarin-speaking tourists and the lotus-shaped Grand Lisboa in the distance, he still couldn’t forget the night of July 2001, 7 when he learned that Beijing had successfully bid for the Olympic Games. excited.

"Okay, you are allowed to go back to your hometown to watch the Olympics during the holidays. If you have time, you can also meet colleagues in the Beijing office." Qiu Shi's boss was very kind and told him with a smile.

After he mentioned it to Hua Jiahui, the other party asked defensively: "Going back to Beijing again in a good way? Could it be that you want to find that bad boy? Now you have everything in Macau, and the boss thinks highly of it. Don't start a madness and throw away all your future career."

"Watching the Olympic Opening Ceremony was a dream of mine when I was a child." Qiushi emphasized repeatedly.

"Hmph, I think it's only half." The other party raised an eyebrow, "Watching the Olympic opening ceremony with Xu Minghai in Beijing is a 'one' dream."

Qiushi didn't know what to say.Hua Jiahui can always hit his seven inches steadily and accurately.

"Tickets are hard to buy, aren't they? I heard that Macau has been sold for tens of thousands of yuan." Hua Jiahui asked again.

"I registered as soon as the official website went on sale last year. However, the Development Bureau just happened to have a Class A ticket distributed by the boss, who gave it to me."

……

Hua Jiahui had no choice but to surrender, and threatened him by the way: "If you dare not come back, get someone to splash paint on your door!"

The long-lost vacation is approaching, but Qiushi can't book a hotel in his life.The price of Beijing's accommodation industry skyrocketed around the Olympic Games, and it was hard to find a room.In the end, he had no choice but to seek help from the travel agency he usually cooperates with, but he only booked one night at "Oriental X Yue" on August 8th.

Therefore, Qiu Shi simply went to IKEA on the second morning after arriving in Beijing.There, he saw a simple black steel frame bed, which looked very similar to the one he slept in the courtyard.Then he bought mattresses, quilts, pillows, and other useful things.Since he couldn't wait to make an appointment for IKEA's delivery service, Qiu Shi called the black car of "Pawjoer" at the door and dragged the large and small cardboard boxes directly to the "Zhenduo Mansion".

With a place to spend the night, Qiu Shi returned to the hotel to check out after leaving KFC in the afternoon.In the evening, he was alone in 2, Building 401, assembling furniture according to the instructions, and he was busy until late at night.After everything is installed, light blue plain sheets are put on, and the empty place suddenly becomes like a "home".

Looking at the scene in front of him, Qiushi suddenly remembered the midsummer afternoon when he secretly kissed Xu Minghai.At that time, I seemed to be only 12 years old, right?Qiu Shi smiled, feeling proud of that pitiful young man who didn't know the heights of the sky and the earth.

He got up and took a shower, then went to the balcony and opened the window.The beginning of autumn is coming soon, and the cry of cicadas becomes more and more sad and hopeless, while the moonlight seems to be thick as if it is about to flow down from the sky.

Qiu Shi looked at the White Pagoda in the distance, and smelled smoke for no reason.This faint smell carried him all the way back to the roof of the courtyard.Qiushi suddenly realized that August seems to be a month when accidents happen naturally.It always appears heavily in one's life, bringing the sweetness of love and the sadness of parting.

Early the next morning, Qiushi went to visit Zhou Yingying and Chen Lei.I haven't been back for so many years, but it doesn't look dilapidated at all.Qiu Shi asked someone for gold lacquer and a brush, and retrace the handwriting on it.And put phoenix rolls, almond cakes and dried meat in front of the monument.

"Mom, Uncle Lei, my son is here to see you." Qiu Shi stood quietly in the cemetery in the early morning, and said to the group photo of the two of them on the stele, "Back then our family planned to travel to Macau, but you left I was in a hurry and couldn't make it. Instead... I have been living and working in Macau these years. Mom, Uncle Lei, I am doing well, so don't worry."

The people in the photo smiled and listened to the talk of the returnees.

"Mom, I don't know what fate is, and I can't dig out the truth behind some chaos. I only know that I love Xu Minghai, but I have to run away..." Qiu Shi choked up, "Mom, I may not be able to find the truth in this life. I can't take 20 years to fall in love with anyone else. On the day we meet again, you and Uncle Lei don't blame me."

After returning from the cemetery, Qiushi didn't go anywhere, and stayed alone in 401 for a day. On August 8, he visited the Beijing Office of the Tourism Development Bureau.

Colleagues are very enthusiastic about him, although most of them only met once or twice during the annual meeting in Macau, and they usually communicate by phone and email.Qiushi brought them all kinds of snacks and souvenirs, and everyone took a break from their busy schedule to sit together in the conference room for afternoon tea and a small talk.

"Aqiu, if I remember correctly, you are from Beijing, right?" Frank, the person in charge of the office, inquired.

Qiushi actually doesn't know how to define who he is.He smiled and replied: "It is. I came to Beijing when I was almost 8 years old, and then I went to Macau to study in university. When I came back this time, I no longer knew many places."

"In recent years, Beijing has been different when you close your eyes and open them again. The pace is fast, the pressure is high, and the air is not good." Reunite with her and the baby."

"Boss, don't leave! If you leave, we will have no backbone!"

"Hey, Perth is a big village! Commonly known as Perth Village! Where can we come from here?"

"Frank, you are an old Beijinger who lives in the second ring road, why do you want to 'surrender to the enemy and treason'?"

The atmosphere became lively, and the chattering of colleagues made Qiu Shi feel more cordial.

And Frank just smiled and said: "Where is the lover, there is the home."

Originally, Qiushi planned to go to the Temple of Heaven before the park closed, but was dragged by his colleagues to "Da Dong" in Nanxincang to eat roast duck.In his impression, when it comes to Peking duck, it is either "Quanjude" or "Bianyifang".Unexpectedly, a new generation replaces the old, even ducks.

The well-known new roast duck in Beijing is really crispy but not greasy.Qiu used duck skin dipped in some cubes of white sugar and put it on the tongue, almost without chewing, it can be automatically removed.At the end of the meal, Da Dong's service staff came forward to ask how to deal with the duck racks, and the colleagues in the Beijing office asked the "guests" for their opinions.

"Aqiu, eat salt and pepper or make soup?"

"I think," Qiu Shi paused, then said with a smile, "Eat it directly."

Before I knew it, four days of annual leave had been used up.On the last day, Qiu Shi came to the Bird's Nest early, went through the security check with the surging crowd, and successfully found Area F under the guidance of volunteers.

When he sat down and looked at the various national flags fluttering in the arena, his heart was full of emotion. ?Qiu Shi thought of those two kids who had no tickets but sneaked into the gymnasium, the huge parachutes blooming in the air, and himself lying on Xu Minghai's lap.

"Hey, which country's flag is the one with the tree painted on?"

"Lebanon."

"The one who looks like a grand master?"

"Singapore."

"Where is the Grand Palace?"

"Cambodia."

"Hey Guozi, aren't you bullying me to study so you can't fool me?"

"Fruit..."

Qiushi felt that he was hallucinating, as if he really heard Xu Minghai calling himself.

"Fruit."

The sound seemed to come from the right.

Before Qiushi's brain issued a warning, his body turned around following the sound.

At the same time, the Olympic rehearsal fireworks suddenly rose, and the huge explosion followed by clusters of radiant lights bloomed over the bird's nest.

At such a moment full of gold and chaos, Qiu Shi was moved by the most familiar stranger who appeared out of thin air, and fell in love at first sight.