Wen Ying made it sound easy, but how could it possibly be that simple? A promotional plan capable of moving the brand’s decision-maker wasn’t something you could churn out by casually working until midnight. It was the accumulation of Wen Ying’s talents and experience across two lifetimes.
With enough talent and impeccable vision, it was like water in a well: once full, it naturally overflowed. Of course Wen Ying wasn’t going to tell Li Mengjiao, Xiao Mei, and the others the truth. She had to keep up her mysterious and unfathomable act so everyone in the company would continue to respect her.
The ultimate move Wen Ying unleashed today was genuinely formidable.
When the news reached Tianjiao, the whole company was stunned.
“They got the endorsement.”
“Getting the endorsement is normal, but… Little President Wen also sold the brand a promotional plan and earned this much!”
Wen Ying’s office door carried no title plate. She had parachuted into the Shanghai branch, and the company still hadn’t settled on a uniform way to address her.
“Teacher Xiao Yu” was what outsiders called her, mostly for politeness. It didn’t feel right inside the company.
Calling her by her first name seemed disrespectful.
Calling her “sis”?
She was still so young!
Once an employee blurted out “Little President Wen,” the nickname spread like wildfire.
It was perfect.
After all, Wen Ying was a shareholder and currently in charge, so “President Wen” made complete sense. Adding “Little” in front simply made it sound more affectionate.
By the time Wen Ying returned to the company, she had already been promoted to “President Wen.” When the news that she had secured the endorsement for Li Mengjiao reached Rongcheng, Yuan Fengwei wasn’t surprised.
But the promotional plan? Even Yuan Fengwei hadn’t seen that coming.
“I knew you’d find a way to get Mengjiao the endorsement, but I never imagined you’d do it like this. It was a masterstroke, completely undercutting them. You’ve bullied Xu Mei terribly this time. She rang me in tears, begging me to look after her in future.”
Xu Mei had even learned to fake-cry with little “boo-hoo” sobs. It gave Yuan Fengwei quite a shock.
Wen Ying sounded perfectly innocent. “If I don’t bully Xu Mei, Jiaxin will bully Li Mengjiao instead. Shall I ring the brand now and tell them we’re pulling out?”
“…On second thoughts, let’s keep bullying Xu Mei.”
Yuan Fengwei instantly changed tack and teased Wen Ying. “When I sent you to sign the deal, I was actually a bit worried you wouldn’t have the heart to go head-to-head with Xie Qian’s company.”
Wen Ying’s reply was resolute. “Business is like war. Friends are friends, business is business. I’m not going to go easy on anyone!”
Heh, Teacher Yuan really underestimated her self-control.
Let alone the fact that Xu Mei was merely an artist under Xie Qian’s label. Even if Xie Qian himself had turned up today, Wen Ying wouldn’t have shown mercy… Well, actually, if Xie Qian had been there in person, she wouldn’t have needed to hold back on purpose. That would have been an insult to his ability.
Besides, Xie Qian’s empire was huge. Why would he personally escort Xu Mei to an audition?
When Wen Ying saw that the person accompanying Xu Mei was Jiang Youjia, she swung the butcher’s knife without the slightest hesitation.
“Mhm, I knew I hadn’t misjudged you.”
Yuan Fengwei brushed it off with a couple of remarks, then mentioned the plan Wen Ying had sold. “You wrote the proposal yourself, but the brand data and sales figures came from company resources. Don’t forget we take a cut, alright~”
Rules were rules. Yuan Fengwei didn’t care about the money, but Wen Ying had used company resources. If they didn’t set the precedent now, other employees might follow suit, doing private jobs with company information, and the team would fall apart.
Wen Ying had no objection.
Even if Tianjiao took its share, 12 % would come straight back to her anyway.
…
Wen Ying returned to Tianjiao like a conquering hero, while Jiang Youjia slunk back defeated.
Xie Qian didn’t blame Jiang Youjia in the slightest. Losing to Wen Ying was nothing to be ashamed of. It was only natural.
“You lost Xu Mei one endorsement deal, so you’d better secure her another of the same level. Otherwise it won’t just be your year-end bonus on the line.”
Xie Qian could be so ruthless!
Jiang Youjia thought sourly: all of Xie Qian’s tenderness had probably been reserved for that unscrupulous little hamster Wen Ying.
She wasn’t wrong.
Xie Qian really was thinking about Wen Ying.
Jiang Youjia hadn’t seen the full proposal, but the single line “the first lipstick every girl needs when she comes of age” had already struck him right in the heart.
After shooing his annoying cousin-in-law out of the office, Xie Qian opened the safe.
Growing up wasn’t just about receiving your first lipstick, after all.
The two little voices battling inside him finally settled the fight.
Xie Qian was still terrified that his hamster might attract the attention of bad people and get hurt, but the emotions he had suppressed for so long were like churning magma. Every time he forced them down with reason, the eventual eruption grew stronger, until now it could shatter the rationality he prided himself on.
He hadn’t even been at the brand meeting today.
Yet from the scraps Jiang Youjia and Xu Mei brought back, Xie Qian could perfectly picture a certain hamster shining brilliantly.
Her eyes must have been sparkling.
Her smile must have been genuine.
She was wise, so she had been utterly confident.
In the end, Xie Qian couldn’t stop himself from calling her.
“Congratulations on your victory. Tianjiao has the endorsement now, so we’re not competitors any more, right?”
“Of course not. I was only joking before, haha~”
Xie Qian took a deep breath. “Let’s have dinner tonight. I’ll book a restaurant, just the two of us. I’ve prepared a gift for you, and there are some things… I want to say to you in person.”
On the other end of the line, Wen Ying froze for a good seven or eight seconds before stammering her agreement.
“Why another gift? Didn’t you already give me one? And what is it you want to say? Can’t you say it over the phone?”
Wen Ying sounded nervous.
It made Xie Qian nervous too. “You’ll know tonight when we meet.”
“W-well, alright then.”
…
Wen Ying hung up and her heart was still racing.
She wasn’t stupid.
Before, she had never dared to think about romance. Then Xie Qian revealed his feelings first, and all the emotions she had been suppressing surged forward uncontrollably.
In her previous life, Xie Qian had been her white moonlight.
The gap between them was too great. She had seen herself as a mere fan and him as her male god and idol.
In this life she had shamelessly befriended him to save him, sat next to him for three years, been through so much together. Her feelings towards Xie Qian had long since changed without her noticing.
Once she could no longer lie to herself, her mind worked at lightning speed.
Xie Qian said he was booking a restaurant, had prepared a gift, and had things he wanted to tell her in person.
Was Xie Qian… about to confess properly?!
In an instant, Wen Ying felt as though her whole body was on fire.
If, if he really was going to confess, how on earth should she respond?
Reject him outright?
Pah, pah, pah! Why would she reject him!
Accept immediately… would that be too eager?
While Wen Ying was lost in her tangled daydreams, someone knocked on her office door and snapped her out of it.
“Come in.”
The door opened. Li Mengjiao poked her head round. “Wen Ying, dinner together tonight? Wang Shuang says it’s his treat. He has loads of questions for you. Hey, why is your face so red? Is the air-con broken?”
Wang Shuang really knew how to pick his moments!
Wen Ying refused at once. “I’m busy tonight.”
Li Mengjiao’s eyes spun. “Why? Got a business thing?”
Wen Ying waved her away. “None of your business. Tell Wang Shuang to treat another day.”
“Oh…”
Scary Wen Ying was back today.
Li Mengjiao quietly closed the door and relayed the refusal to Wang Shuang over the phone.
“Then I’ll have to go and bother Xie Qian instead.”
Wang Shuang would only do that as a last resort. Xie Qian was too clever and always made him feel stupid.
Of course Wen Ying was clever too, but Wang Shuang felt her cleverness was still within normal human bounds. Xie Qian’s was beyond them.
Two minutes later Wang Shuang rang back. “Wen Ying says she has a business thing, Xie Qian says he already has plans. Both turned me down.”
Wang Shuang sounded deeply aggrieved.
Li Mengjiao’s eyes lit up. “Is it possible the “business thing” Wen Ying mentioned is actually meeting Xie Qian, and the person Xie Qian has plans with is Wen Ying?”
Wang Shuang doubted her deductive skills. “They often meet, sure, but why wouldn’t they let me come… oh, you mean they’re secretly going on a date!”
What was the need for secrecy?
The gaokao was over, they had their university offers.
Xie Qian and Wen Ying could date openly now!
Li Mengjiao grew thoughtful. “They’re that desperate to ditch us third wheels? That’s not normal. We always thought they’d been secretly dating for years, but neither ever admitted it. Could it be—”
Could it be that for the whole three years of senior high, they really had been “more than friends, less than lovers”?
Good grief, those two were champions at holding back!
Now the exams were finished.
They had their university places.
Even the strictest parents wouldn’t stop their eighteen-year-old kids from dating.
Li Mengjiao trembled with excitement. “I’ve got it! Tonight Xie Qian is going to confess. It must be! No wonder Wen Ying’s face was so red!”
Aaaaaaargh! All the shippers were wrong. Wen Ying and Xie Qian hadn’t been in a secret relationship for three years. They’d been mutually pining in silence, never quite breaking through that last layer!
Li Mengjiao wanted to do the splits right there in the corridor for everyone to see!
As the head of the CP fandom, she was about to witness a historic moment~
Just thinking about it made her lose control. The silly girl rushed to the bathroom, splashed cold water on her face, then bounced back and knocked on Wen Ying’s door again.
“What now?”
Li Mengjiao cleared her throat. “Since you’ve got that business thing tonight, how about letting Sister Kiki do your makeup? I don’t mean anything by it, I just don’t want those business people to underestimate you because you look too young.”
Makeup?
Wen Ying touched her face.
Youth was her greatest asset. Even she thought her skin was amazingly smooth. When she pictured facing Xie Qian tonight looking even more flawless, she couldn’t refuse Li Mengjiao’s suggestion.
“Mm, I’ll ask Sister Kiki.”
Li Mengjiao’s grin nearly split her face. “Great, great! Let Sister Kiki go all out. Oh, and the company bought a load of new outfits recently. Loads of styles, most still unworn. Why not pick one while you’re at it?”
Wen Ying suspected Li Mengjiao had guessed something and wanted to glare at the idiot, but her heart was pounding so hard that her eyes were soft and watery. She had zero intimidating power and couldn’t stop Li Mengjiao bouncing around like an overexcited puppy.
Good heavens, she really was so nervous!!
