"Your ideas are a bit too cliché. I've personally seen several of the architectural styles you mentioned in Asia. "
Chou Ping's face turned slightly embarrassed. This plan was rushed out overnight, and many elements were indeed copied.
"Young man, do you think the pyramids are miracles in architectural history, and the Great Wall of China, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon—aren't these miracles too?"
Chou Ping nodded.
Stephen continued, "With today's technology, these buildings can be easily replicated, and the cost involved is less than one percent of the original."
"Over the years, many imitations of these buildings have been made, but how many do you remember?" Chou Ping awkwardly shook his head.
"If you, an architect, can't remember, how can you expect ordinary people to remember? If a building doesn't give people a wow factor, what's the point?"
Stephen's words left Chou Ping feeling inadequate; indeed, the boss is still the boss.
"Of course, each place has its own architectural style. We need to follow the customs and habits of that place.
Why not add some innovation on the existing basis, making the building not only impressive but also perfectly integrated with the environment?"
At this point, Stephen smiled slightly, "Certainly, I can see some innovative elements in your plan. Overall, it's not bad, with a lot of room for improvement. Young man, I have high hopes for you!"
The meeting with Stephen could be considered a failure if you skip the polite words at the end.
Stephen had other appointments, so after saying this, he hurriedly left, and Sarah also walked out of the office.
Chou Ping, feeling a bit down, took out the external hard drive, walked out of the conference room.
Back at his desk, Chou Ping opened his phone.
There were two missed calls and an unread message on the phone. Chou Ping had set it to silent mode during the meeting.
Chou Ping didn't have many friends in the U.S., and they knew his working hours. He wondered who would contact him during his working hours.
Upon checking, Chou Ping raised his eyebrows. The calls were from Kailin.
Two missed calls—was something urgent?
Chou Ping opened the unread message, and the short lines made him break into a cold sweat.
"It's impossible!"
Chou Ping quickly opened the contacts and called Kailin.
The first call went unanswered. Chou Ping quickly dialed again.
"Kailin, please don't do anything foolish. Money can be earned again, but if you lose your life..."
At this moment, the call was connected, and Chou Ping's face brightened.
"Kailin, where are you? I'll come find you right away!"
"Sir, may I ask if you are Kailin's relative or friend?"
"Yes, yes, I am. Where is Kailin now?"
After hearing the response on the other end, Chou Ping's phone slipped from his hand.
Muttering, "Dead? Just like that?"
Chou Ping picked up the phone again, "Where is she now? I'll come over immediately."
After hanging up, Chou Ping looked at the text message Kailin had sent him.
Chou Ping didn't expect that these few lines would be Kailin's farewell.
"Chou, I'm sorry. I think I have no face to see you again. Instead of living with endless regret, I'd rather use my life to repay..."
Although Chou Ping didn't know exactly what happened, it was certain that it was related to the money he had entrusted to her. Something must have gone wrong.
Chou Ping remembered the night before when Kailin mentioned giving up her current job to work in Chicago. He also recalled her excitement upon learning that he was willing to entrust the money to her. She was a girl full of hope for the future, and now that hope had turned into despair.
"This silly girl, you know how easy that money came for me. You didn't need to go to such lengths!"
The cycles in front seemed like a beautiful dream to Chou Ping, and now that he had awakened, why did this have to happen in reality?
Chou Ping didn't even take a leave, rushing out of the company. He didn't care about the consequences of inexplicably skipping work. The worst consequence would be losing his job, but compared to a life, what did a job matter?
In the hospital, Chou Ping saw Kailin covered with a white sheet from head to toe. The doctor suggested lifting the sheet for a brief farewell, but Chou Ping couldn't muster the courage to do so. Kailin had reportedly jumped from a building over a hundred meters high.
After leaving the hospital, Chou Ping didn't return to the company but took a taxi back to his apartment.
Chou Ping felt a heavy cloud over his mind. All he could think about were scenes from these cycles. Gradually, images of other people faded, leaving only those belonging to Kailin.
The first meeting, Kailin sitting in the corner of the bar, sipping a light green Matador cocktail.
Chou Ping pretended to be a fortune teller, exposed himself after two sentences, paid the bill, and hastily left, successfully extracting some basic information from Kailin.
The second time, using the obtained basic information, Chou Ping got more details, laying the foundation for a successful conversation the third time.
The third time...
If he hadn't approached her, perhaps by now Kailin would have been in Chicago, starting a new job?
Just as she had said, she might have worked diligently there, gotten married, had children, and lived a full life.
Chou Ping's emotions were complicated. He collapsed onto the bed, pulling at the sheets and blankets in frustration. After a long while, he fell into a deep sleep with his clothes on.
In his dreams, Chou Ping faintly heard a cold, emotionless, mechanical voice: "Time restarts. Forty-eight hours. Even in death, an immediate restart is guaranteed!"
In the morning, sunlight shone on Chou Ping's face through the window, and he woke up with a smile on his face.
He had a beautiful dream. In the dream, Kailin hadn't died, and the supposed jump from the building was just a joke.
Bang!
Accompanied by a crisp sound of glass breaking, Chou Ping was abruptly awakened.
"What the hell, who disturbed my beautiful dream!"
Chou Ping looked towards the window, dumbfounded. Where was the bulletproof glass he had installed? Why did it break again?
At this moment, Chou Ping's thoughts were in disarray. Was time restarting again?
Chou Ping suddenly lowered his head. He remembered that he hadn't changed his clothes last night. Indeed, the clothes on him were different now.
Chou Ping quickly got up from the bed, hurriedly put on his shoes, stumbled out of the room.
Bang!
Due to excessive force, Chou Ping fell, but he didn't care about the pain, quickly got up, and continued running towards the kitchen...