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RT, some time ago a friend recommended this book to me; I found it really good. I wonder if anyone else has read it. Since we’re both working professionals, I think it’s necessary to learn more about it. I’ll share some chapters if no one else has read it yet. Chapter 1: As soon as the car turned onto the East Third Ring Road at the intersection with Guanghua Road, Hong Jun realized something was wrong. The lanes on the East Third Ring Road from south to north have been blocked and turned into a parking lot; it’s impossible to reach the airport within half an hour under any circumstances. Driver Xiao Ding had just found a gap in the traffic and moved the car into the inner lane, then turned to Hong Jun and said, “Boss, it seems tough. It’s possible that your boss will have to wait for us this time.” ” Hong Jun sat in the back seat without saying anything. It was Xiao Ding’s responsibility to get to the airport as quickly as possible. He was preoccupied with his own thoughts, feeling somewhat annoyed that he had gone and eaten at Linda’s ‘fast food’ place. Hong Jun has been working as a salesperson for over a decade, and he has been the sales director at the current company, ICE, for nearly three years. He really likes this American software company; he feels that ICE gives him a sense of achievement, and these days he is experiencing a great sense of fulfillment as a result. The client, Hezhi Group, is finally here after much anticipation – the $1.7 million software contract is about to be finalized! ICE has never signed a contract of this size in China before, and in Hong Jun’s opinion, contracts of this magnitude are extremely rare throughout the Asia-Pacific region as well. However, Hong Jun was well aware that the immense sense of fulfillment and satisfaction he was feeling now was not solely due to the contract with Hezhi Group. Having been in sales for so many years and having experienced countless wins and losses, Hong Jun has already become feeling tired and indifferent; winning just one contract doesn’t excite him at all. What really made Hong Jun unable to contain himself was the fact that he was finally about to be officially recognized in his position. Hong Jun has been serving as ICE’s lead representative in China for almost a year now; from initial enthusiasm and a desire to achieve results quickly, he has now begun to feel somewhat anxious. Every time I hear that the word “agent” is supposed to be removed, it turns out to be just rumors that fade away quickly. But this time is different; this time he is truly going to be put in his proper position. Hong Jun’s boss, Pete Branson, the vice president in charge of Asia-Pacific operations at ICE, is coming to Beijing. Tomorrow, right away, everything is ready. First, there will be the official signing ceremony between ICE and Hezhi Group, followed by a press conference held by Pete and Hong Jun to announce to the media and the industry that Hong Jun has been officially appointed as the head representative of ICE’s office in China. These days, Hong Jun has been thinking about the Hezhi project. He keeps hearing a voice in his head saying, \"It’s too smooth going; could it be…\" In the past, whenever he reached such a final stage of a project, he would hear that voice in his head, but this time the voice was louder and more urgent. Hong Jun has thought through the Hezhi project from start to finish many times; he can’t think of any flaws or any details he might have missed. He had no choice but to comfort himself by thinking that this is just the way people are: they always hope their wishes will come true, but when that happens, they wonder, \"Is it really that good?\" Then they force themselves to find reasons why those wishes might end up unfulfilled. Just now, around noon, Hong Jun heard that sound in his office once again. He was forced to ponder once more: was Hezhi’s project really foolproof? Suddenly, through the gap between the blinds on the floor-to-ceiling windows, he saw Linda’s familiar figure passing by in the corridors of the main office area, moving swiftly like a cloud. Then, there was a gentle knock at the door. As soon as Hong Jun said the word “please,” before he could even say “come in,” Linda pushed the door open and entered, closing it behind her. Linda smiled, went over to Hong Jun’s desk, fiddled with the name card holder on it, and asked Hong Jun, \"What are you doing by yourself? It’s almost time to eat.\" ” Hong Jun said casually, “It’s nothing, just thinking about some things.” ” Linda’s corners of her eyes and mouth turned up as she said, “It’s better to think of me then.” Have you decided what to do for lunch?” Hong Jun replied absentmindedly, “What can there be to decide? I need to go pick up Peter in a bit. ”Indeed, Hong Jun’s top priority today is to go to the airport to pick up Pete. Linda laughed and said, “It’s still early for that.” How can we keep waiting like this? How about we go to your place now? ” Hong Jun was taken aback; he looked at Linda, whose creative ideas always managed to bring him novel experiences. A mysterious expression appeared on Linda’s face as she said softly, “I miss you.” “I want to treat you well. Do you want it?” Once again, that strange voice echoed in Hong Jun’s mind, and he couldn’t get it out of his head. Hong Jun felt that he couldn’t go on like this any longer; he needed to relax completely. Hong Jun sat in his high-back leather chair, swaying slightly back and forth with it; his right hand unconsciously moved the mouse of the black IBM laptop on the desk. He looked at Linda’s face, and the expression in her eyes made him forget about that voice immediately. He nodded. Hong Jun and Linda walked out of the office; as they got up to pack their things, she picked up the phone on the desk and dialed driver Xiao Ding’s mobile number. Once the call was connected, she said to Xiao Ding, “Ding, it’s me.” I need to go home to get some things; wait for me downstairs. ” Hong Jun lives between the East Third Ring and the East Fourth Ring, in several high-end apartments that were completed less than a year ago. Hong Jun sometimes wonders why he bought this three-bedroom, two-living-room, two-bathroom apartment in the first place. It’s a typical case of someone who ended up becoming a landlord by speculating on real estate, and since he is both the landlord and the only tenant, it feels quite awkward to live there alone. Sometimes he analyzes and thinks that it was this big house that caused him to quickly become involved with Linda. Sometimes he himself would get confused as to whether it was he who seduced Linda, or rather he who fell for Linda’s tricks. Hong Jun walked from the bed to the floor-to-ceiling window and looked at the view outside. Beijing in August is truly like an oven; the rain that people have been waiting for for so many days seems to be playing tricks on them. Every time, after much anticipation, dark clouds gather as if a storm is about to break, but it seems like heaven is related to all car wash owners – it only rains a little each time, resulting in just mud spots on the cars without any other effect. Sometimes it’s even simpler: when the wind picks up a bit, it blows away the clouds that have just been created, leaving not even a trace of those mud-like spots behind. In summer, people long for rain, just as Hong Jun used to look forward to clients signing contracts with him. This customer is like rain – one always looks forward to its arrival; several times it seemed like it was really going to come, but then there was no news again. Fortunately, this client, Hezhi Group, has finally arrived for real; they definitely won’t be blown away by any distractions anymore. That thought crossed Hong Jun’s mind again: would something go wrong at the last moment? He became anxious immediately; Linda’s effect as a hallucinogen was becoming weaker and weaker, allowing him to escape that sense of unease and anxiety only for a short time