The two men shook hands politely. Layne thought he recognized Dixon when he spied the man earlier. Now, after Debbie's introduction, he suddenly remembered who the guy was. "Dixon Shu… So you're the new secretary general of ZL Group?"
He didn't know Kristina knew him. It had never come up.
Dixon smiled politely. "Oh yeah. I'm lucky Mr. Huo hired me. It's an honor."
After a few pleasantries, Layne took off. Debbie held Kristina's and Dixon's hands as they walked into the private room they booked. Jared already ordered. "Hey, you guys finally… Wait… Kristina?!"
Before he could finish his complaint about the long wait, he widened his eyes in shock when he noticed who was with Debbie.
"Hi, big guy. Long time no see," Kristina said to Jared, smiling gleefully.
Jared shot to his feet. He strode towards them rapidly and asked in disbelief, "Ain't that the truth? Tomboy went AWOL three years ago, and then you ghosted us too. Kasie and I were left alone here. We wondered if you ran off with Tomboy."
Right on cue, Kasie chimed in, "Inside voice, dude. What the hell… Oh my God! Kristina?"
Kasie had a similar reaction to Jared. Finally, the five old friends were reunited. It felt like a lifetime had passed since they were all together last. The girls kept hugging each other, and being happy that they finally saw each other face to face. They didn't sit down at the table until the two men persuaded them to. Not only that, they didn't care how loud they were being, either.
During dinner, Kasie discreetly shifted her glance between Dixon and Kristina. She didn't want to re-open old wounds, but she had to know. She whispered, "You're married now, right? When did that happen? What does your husband do? And more importantly, why weren't we at your wedding? I sent you chat requests on WeChat, but you didn't answer back. I was hoping you'd come to mine."
Kristina looked at the beer in her glass. "I'm sorry. I dumped that account a long time ago. My husband got transferred to Singapore. He just got back this year. He's thirteen years older than me."
'Thirteen years older…'
the other friends all exclaimed in their mind.
Kristina didn't want to hide anything from her old friends. She continued to fill them in on what happened since they last saw each other. "My mom wanted us to marry right after my graduation. I said no, but my dad needed money. Surgery is expensive…" She paused, recalling everything back then. Then she went on in a calm tone, "Of course, my mom wanted me to marry him because he's rich. My parents wouldn't stop hounding me, so eventually we tied the knot. But he's a really good guy. He treats me like a queen, so we're just like any other married couple." There was a hint of self-mockery and helplessness in her tone.
Maybe she was mocking herself, marrying a man 13 years her senior, and marrying for money.
When everyone quieted down, Kristina raised her head to look at Dixon, sitting opposite her. "I'm sorry I hurt you. But I'm living the dream. I married a rich man…"
The other three held their breath. This was the first time they heard them talk about why they broke up. And Kristina said it in such a calm tone. So the real reason was money. Dixon was too poor for Kristina.
"Kristina, I think you screwed up…" Debbie couldn't help but blurt it out.
Dixon smiled. He shook his head and said, "Tomboy, don't blame her. I was poor back then. I didn't know where my next meal was coming from."
Of course they knew how poor Dixon used to be. He was born in a poor village out in the boonies. His parents had relied on loans from the villagers so he could go to college.
Although Dixon was poor, he was proud. He never let Jared or Kasie float him cash, no matter how much they insisted. He was friends with them because he liked them, not because of what they could buy.
Dixon continued, "Kristina wasn't wrong. At least she didn't lie to me. It wasn't a bad breakup." In fact, this only motivated him to study harder. He didn't like being poor, and so he vowed to create a brighter future for himself.
Carlos had given him an advance of six months' wages after he came to work in ZL Group. That way, he could support his family and pay back the loan ASAP.
The CEO played his cards well. He knew what his employees needed and when they needed it. He was generous, so these talented employees would be loyal to his company forever.
Yes, Dixon did feel grateful to Carlos, like all employees of ZL Group. He would never betray him, and was loyal for life.
After listening to Dixon, Debbie sighed. She didn't press the issue. They both had moved on.
Kristina looked at Dixon with sincerity in her eyes. "I'm happy that you're Mr. Huo's secretary general now. I hope you find someone who is as good to you as you were to me."
Dixon nodded, accepting her blessing calmly. "Thanks. That's in the works. And congratulations on your marriage."
The other three exchanged glances with each other. They were taking it really well. It wasn't usual for two ex-lovers to wish each other well. Especially with no arguments, no mockery.
Luckily for Dixon, he started at ZL Group with an income of a million a year. That was why he wasn't embarrassed. He strove to do better, and he did. But they were both happy, and that was important.
An awkward silence settled over the room, but Jared popped that bubble. The tall guy playfully wrapped his arms around Dixon's shoulders and let out a deep sigh. "Hey, what about me? My wife's giving birth, and my wallet's empty."
Debbie rolled her eyes at him and exposed his lies bluntly. "Yeah, your wallet's empty, but your wife has at least eight figures in her account, right?"
As an obedient husband, Jared of course would give all his wages to his wife. Pretending to be angry, he glared at Debbie and complained, "Ha! You should know. Just because your husband runs a bank…"
Indeed, their bank cards were all issued by the financial institutions owned by ZL Group.
Kasie patted his shoulders to encourage him. She said playfully, "The Han Group is growing. Work hard, and you can own a bank like Carlos someday. When you grow up…"
"When I grow up? Blow me! Maybe if Damon and I saw eye to eye, we'd be doing better." Jared felt annoyed thinking of his brother. Jasper had given the company to the two brothers to run. Everything went well except that the two brothers could never agree on anything. Every employee of the Han Group knew the two brothers always solved their problems with their fists. Rarely did a brother emerge from a meeting without torn clothing, a black eye, or bloody lip.
The room erupted in laughter. They joked and bantered with each other like they used to do. After a while, their topic focused on Debbie again.
Debbie was putting a slice of pork tripe into the hotpot when Jared suddenly asked, "Your husband has a bodyguard tailing you. To make sure James doesn't try anything, right?"
"Yeah." Debbie didn't even bother to raise her head. She was drooling over the delicious food.
"You've got him dead to rights though, right? Why isn't he in jail?" Jared asked, obviously confused.
Debbie picked up a slice of duck tongue. When she was about to eat it, she thought of something and lost her appetite. She put down her chopsticks, glaring at Jared. "Why did you have to bring him up? Carlos had someone deal with Glenda and Stephanie last time. He donated one of Stephanie's kidneys. To stop Carlos from donating her cornea as well, James knelt in front of me and apologized."
Kasie was confused. "Didn't James do everything? Why did your husband punish Stephanie instead?"
