Void Jigsaw Puzzle

Guo Ling held the wine glass and slowly walked towards the man and woman.

With the dim light in the bar, he confirmed their appearance again.

Ever since he was suddenly laid off by the company a few months ago, he never thought that he would see them again one day, let alone in this bar called "Relax".

There are hundreds of bars in Leyouting, why this one?

Could it be that they are also here for Old Man Liu’s three things?

The changing light and shadows caused by his movement were quickly projected onto the table of the two people.

The man turned his head alertly, his expression first annoyed, then immediately changed to surprise and embarrassment.

"Guo...Guo Ling..."

The woman opposite him then noticed the man's reaction and looked up at Guo Ling.

Unsurprisingly, she let out a low cry of surprise.

"why you?!"

Guo Ling smiled slightly, swirling his glass. "Mr. Pengju, Mr. Du, how are you? It seems the company's financial situation has improved. What did you say when you fired me? We had to tighten our belts... And now? You're all free to come to the bar for a drink."

Zhang Pengju sighed and shook his head: "If you are not deliberately speaking in a sarcastic way, then you really don't know..."

Du Yiying also lowered her head and said nothing.

Guo Ling was stunned. As he got closer, he realized that even in this dim environment, he could see that the two men's expressions showed an unconcealable haggardness.

He turned his head to look at his own table, only to see Zhong Chenmu clinking glasses with Old Man Liu and Fan Ting while holding the soda water he had been drinking for half the night. He thought, "They don't need me for now, so why don't I sit here and see what they are up to?"

So he dragged a chair over and sat down at the table, then asked, "Do you mind?"

Zhang Pengju shook his head, raised his glass towards Guo Ling, and unconsciously pursed his lips. He already had a bitter face, and now he looked even more grimy.

Guo Ling also raised his glass and clinked it with his, and they both took a small sip.

"You're not taking me? No! Do it again!"

Du Yiying protested and extended a hand holding a wine glass.

So the three of them touched each other again.

Guo Ling noticed that both of them were drinking whiskey.

"Tell me, what good thing happened to you two bosses? And you say I don't know anything about it?" Guo Ling said with a grin.

In fact, from the expressions and behavior of the two people and what Zhang Pengju said just now, he had roughly judged that their situation might not be very good, but he still wanted to hear them say it with his own ears.

If you have something unhappy, tell me and I will be happy...

Zhang Pengju and Du Yiying glanced at each other, and it was Zhang Pengju who answered, "We were both fired."

Du Yiying gave a helpless smile: "How is it? Mr. Guo, are you happy?"

"Hahahahaha! I'm so happy!"

This was Guo Ling's true inner reaction. However, after being processed by his vocal system after decades of being in society, what came out of his mouth turned into a brief exclamation.

"what?"

There was also an expression of disbelief on his face.

"The company's performance dropped by 70% in just one quarter. Alas..." Zhang Pengju sighed.

"what?"

This time, Guo Ling's expression was not acted, he was genuinely surprised.

When I left, the company was still operating out of People's Square in the heart of the city! How could performance plummet so dramatically in just a few months? And they even laid off two crucial positions: the Vice President of Business and the Head of Human Resources?

Du Yiying looked at Guo Ling's expression and asked, "It seems you haven't found a job yet, right?"

"I'm already this old. If I look for a job, who would want me? So, I might as well stay at home. After all, if one person is well fed, the whole family will not be hungry."

"Ah? I remember you have a wife and children." Du Yiying is in charge of human resources and is very familiar with the family situations of the former company's executives and key employees.

Guo Ling replied in a low voice: "Lost contact..."

"I'm sorry..." Du Yiying raised her glass and took a sip apologetically: "Many people in the company also have this situation..."

At this time, Zhang Pengju said: "In the past few months, almost all companies have been laying off employees. No industry is doing well. We feel that the entire society seems to be collapsing. It feels like there is no momentum to drive it back up. The years in our memories have become a golden age that can never be reproduced..."

Guo Ling was stunned.

Indeed, in the past few months he had not been looking for a job, nor had he paid attention to outside news. Every day he simply ate, slept, exercised, and studied Pierce's "incomplete civilization" theory from various channels. At the same time, he racked his brains to think about how to find a wife, children, and parents.

If it is true as Zhang Pengju said, is Wuming City really going downhill?

He had no direct evidence, but when he thought about the people in Leyou Pavilion having fun as if there was no tomorrow, it seemed to make sense.

Knowing that tomorrow will be worse and there is no hope for the future, why not enjoy life while we can?

He suddenly thought again, during this period, more and more people joined the Prophet Society, and Pierce also happened to change its purpose and slogan. Is it just a coincidence?

Guo Ling's heart tightened, he gripped the wine glass and took a big gulp of white wine.