6:20 PM.
The evening sunset rippled like waves across the sky, gradually shifting from deep orange to light blue, draping the entire city in a misty veil.
Click—!
Walking out of the company entrance, Lin Shen decisively pressed the shutter, using his phone to capture this beautiful scenery.
So the sunset was this beautiful?
Lin Shen's heart was filled with emotion.
After resigning, he didn't feel the wild joy he'd imagined, just a sense of relief and relaxation.
So relaxed that he even felt somewhat lost.
What should I do from now on?
Leave Shanghai, this city of bright lights and wine, and return to his hometown to lie flat?
Or travel the world?
Lin Shen pondered this question all the way home, while passing by red dots shown on Lowde.
[Obtained 10,000 industry funds!]
[Obtained 10,000 industry funds!]
…
Finally, Lin Shen arrived at a basketball court near his residential complex.
Most of the people playing basketball inside were high school students, with occasionally a few uncles showing off their hook shots.
Standing outside the court were adults.
Some were parents accompanying their children, others were office workers who'd just gotten off work.
They wore full business attire with jackets draped over their arms, eyes full of envy and appreciation, but after taking a phone call, they'd turn and hurry away.
Inside the court were dreams; outside were real life.
Lin Shen had also joined his department's basketball team in college, but hadn't touched a basketball since starting work.
Now, he felt his hands itching to play.
"Just got off work, brother?"
At this moment, a middle-aged man in a suit approached Lin Shen, offering him a cigarette and making conversation.
"Want to join in? I see that court is missing two people."
"Sure. I don't smoke, thanks."
Lin Shen waved off the middle-aged man's cigarette, then together with him, they pretended to be casual passersby walking to the court, picked up a basketball that had bounced off the rim, and somehow naturally joined the shooting group.
Men are such strange creatures.
You don't speak, I don't speak, and everyone doesn't even know each other's names.
But once enough people gathered, someone would casually shout "Want to play?" and everyone would respond.
"Sure."
"Then Curry, Fat Uncle, Skinny Uncle and I are one team, Grandpa, Handsome Guy and these two students are the other team, okay?"
"Yeah, I'm not very good, go easy on me."
"No problem, none of us are good, just playing for fun."
Playing for fun?
Lin Shen thought he'd encountered a casual game, but everyone had their specialties.
Either they were incredibly accurate from three-point range or lightning-fast on drives, making him feel awkward.
At first Lin Shen was a bit reserved, mainly responsible for passing and moving beyond the three-point line, setting screens to create scoring opportunities for others.
The middle-aged man who'd talked to him was quite active. Although his suit somewhat limited him, you could tell from his various between-the-legs dribbling moves that he'd definitely been skilled at basketball.
He'd just been worn down by life and years.
"Brother, take a shot."
The middle-aged man passed the ball to Lin Shen, then signaled others to clear out for an isolation play.
"Don't just pass anymore, give it a try."
"…"
Lin Shen hesitated a bit—after all, he hadn't touched a ball in so long, his technique was definitely rusty.
But the movements carved deep in his memory still came out instinctively.
Lin Shen held the ball, lowered his center of gravity, took a step left to deceive the defense, then switched to a crossover moving right and drove hard to the basket.
When the opposing defense caught up, he did another between-the-legs dribble, pulled up for a jump shot.
The ball swished cleanly through the net.
"Beautiful!"
The middle-aged man couldn't help but applaud.
"Nice one, young man! You've been hiding your skills!"
"Thanks."
Lin Shen smiled modestly, unconsciously clenching his fists.
He really hadn't expected a week of exercise to have such good results!
Lin Shen felt like he'd returned to those carefree college days, relying on his physical attributes to go toe-to-toe with these high schoolers.
Even at the end, inspired by the moment, he went for a dunk!
Clang—!
Unfortunately, the ball hit the rim and bounced out.
"Holy shit!"
Seeing Lin Shen in his dress shirt and pants actually touch the rim, everyone's faces showed astonishment.
Was this guy playing dumb?
Obviously not.
Even Lin Shen himself hadn't expected his jumping ability to be higher than in college!
This made him incredibly excited inside.
The 50% exercise effect boost wasn't just reflected in weight loss, but also in physical fitness!
This Fitness app really was amazing!
"Brother! Impressive!"
When the sun set and the basketball players gradually dispersed, the middle-aged man found Lin Shen, handed him a bottle of water, and introduced himself with a smile.
"I'm Zhang Guodong, what's your name?"
"Lin Shen."
"Let's play together again when you're free."
Zhang Guodong waved at Lin Shen.
"I have something to do, so I'll head out first. See you around!"
"Sounds good."
Lin Shen watched Zhang Guodong leave while taking a phone call, then took a refreshing deep breath.
He hadn't expected the first thing he'd do after resigning would be playing basketball!
But it felt so good!
Without financial pressure, he could do whatever he wanted!
"Woohoo!"
Lin Shen spread his arms wide and cheered again, unable to fully express the incredibly liberating sense of freedom in his heart no matter how he vented.
This was living!
After returning home, Lin Shen showered first, then boiled two corn cobs for dinner.
While eating, he sat at his computer desk and moved all work-related content to the same folder as backup.
Finally, Lin Shen exited all the random group chats on WeChat, completely bidding farewell to his working life.
"It's over!"
Lin Shen stretched, and at this moment Xu Lei happened to send a friend request.
After accepting, he casually clicked into this bespectacled girl's WeChat Moments, and his eyes immediately lit up.
It was full of various refined lifestyle photos, with glamorous outfits that made her look like a completely different person from work.
Black stockings + long legs + atmospheric side profiles + luxurious dinners.
Very socialite-like.
Indeed, a contrast.
Lin Shen's lips curved up slightly. Just as he was about to exit WeChat, Xu Lei immediately sent a message.
[Xu Lei: Brother Shen! Can you share your weight loss secrets? I saw you lost so much weight, I'm so envious!]
[Lin Shen: You're not even fat]
[Xu Lei: How am I not fat? Look!]
[Xu Lei: Photo.jpg]
Lin Shen's expression froze, because what Xu Lei sent was a photo of her pinching her own black-stockinged thighs.
Her plump thighs looked extremely sexy wrapped in black stockings.
This was truly unexpected for Lin Shen.
Sending this kind of photo right after adding as friends?
This Xu Lei was quite skilled…
Lin Shen typed back.
[Lin Shen: Eat less carbs, exercise more, and most importantly, persist]
[Xu Lei: Thanks for Brother Shen's advice! I'm pretty lazy and need someone to supervise me. Want to work out together next time?]
[Lin