Can I reduce this paragraph using the past continuous and the conjunction “When”?

Question

Here's the paragraph:

I worked in the bank for a specific period of time in the past. One day my wife and I knew each other. Of course, that day was during or within that period of time.

Can I simply say this sentence to give the same meaning?

I was working in the bank when I met my wife.

I know that continuous tenses express a specific period of time (ex: working for an hour or a couple of hours continuously and without interruption or stopping). Can they express that I worked in the bank for months or years as I did in that sentence? Is using the past tense after "When" gives the same meaning of "One day"?

Answer 1

Yes, your sentence expresses the same meaning as the paragraph. "[Past continuous A] when [simple past B]" means that B happened during A.

Note that you should say "One day my wife and I met each other." Knowing someone is a process that occurs over time; it is odd to say that it happened one day.

Answer 2

Use the past perfect continuous for the time you spent before you met your wife.

I'd been working in the bank for six months, when I met my wife.