Chapter 59

"Director Yang." A young woman in a camel-colored coat entered. She was tall with bright red lips, and her smile was quite charming.

"Is Tongtong here?" Director Yang smiled at the newcomer. "Please sit."

Zhao Wantong sat down on the empty chair and turned to look at Yan Xi: "So this is the Miss Yan who has made countless female netizens jealous?" Her tone sounded friendly, but her eyes narrowed, carrying an underlying arrogance.

Tsk, wasn't she implying that if it weren't for the confession incident yesterday afternoon, no one would know who Yan Xi was? Yan Xi smiled faintly, "I didn't expect things to get so out of hand and become such a spectacle."

Director Yang pretended not to know anything, and after Yan Xi finished speaking, he turned to Zhao Wantong. "Tongtong, after discussing with several of our teachers, we all agree that your hosting style would match better with Teacher Qian Lin. She will be mentoring you from now on."

Zhao Wantong maintained a forced smile and complimented Qian Lin in front of Director Yang. However, everyone in the station knew that as long as Shen Xingyan was around, Qian Lin would never become the number one host of the station. There was once someone like Li Jiayu who could compete with Shen Xingyan, but after Li Jiayu's switch to another network and subsequent suicide, Shen Xingyan became the undisputed top host. Qian Lin, five or six years older than Shen Xingyan, could only serve as her supporter.

Zhao Wantong had been a host at the station for three years, yet she lost out to a newcomer who had only joined a few months ago. Was her hosting ability not as good as that of a complete rookie?

Having worked at the station for many years, Director Yang could see that Zhao Wantong was putting on a friendly face, but inside she was clearly dissatisfied. However, Shen Xingyan didn't think highly of Zhao Wantong and only wanted to take Yan Xi under her wing, so what could they do?

She only had herself to blame. With her constant media stunts, she never bothered to build good relationships with her seniors. Now that she wanted to gain favor, she had to see if anyone was willing to take her in.

After informing them of the final decision, Director Yang told them to go back and prepare. He wasn't interested in witnessing any more verbal sparring.

And sure enough, as soon as Yan Xi and Zhao Wantong left the office, Zhao Wantong immediately exploded.

"I really envy you, Miss Yan. You have a good family background, you're beautiful, and you have a wealthy and influential boyfriend," Zhao Wantong said, a half-smile on her lips, "They say a man who finds a good wife can avoid struggling for ten years. I guess it's the same for women—we need to find a powerful man to boost our competitiveness."

"You're absolutely right, Miss Zhao," Yan Xi smiled and responded, "Not only do we need an impressive boyfriend, but a good family background too. That way, we don't have to struggle. Instead of having to use all sorts of means to get things that others can't even dream of, I just need to give a little nod to get them. I do feel a little guilty about it, though."

"Miss Yan, you really speak your mind," Zhao Wantong sneered. She had never met someone so shameless.

"Speaking plainly is one of my strengths," Yan Xi touched her face casually. "I heard that overthinking can make you age faster. Do you think there's any truth to that, Miss Zhao?"

Zhao Wantong had dealt with petty people before, but Yan Xi's audacity was on another level.

Still, she could only swallow her frustration, "Heh."

Yesterday's sudden confession incident had left her skeptical. Just as the station was preparing to train new hosts, Yan Xi suddenly had two wealthy suitors, and it caused a huge stir online. How could there be so many coincidences? Whether it was hype or not, she wanted to use this incident to lower Yan Xi's favorability with the public. She had considered all possibilities, but the one thing she hadn't anticipated was how impressive Yan Xi's boyfriend's family background was.

With such a powerful boyfriend, why wasn't Yan Xi preparing to be a rich wife at home instead of competing with her for a hosting spot at the station?

At the station, people worked hard for fame and fortune to marry a good man. Yan Xi, on the other hand, was running around with the cameramen, working in the wind and rain, and often eating late meals. After hosting several programs, she still didn't have the same buzz as being known as Yuan Yi's girlfriend.

So why was she so determined to be a small host at the station? Was she crazy?

The two stood before the elevator, neither pressing the button as if the first one to do so would lose.

"Miss Yan, you seem very confident in your good luck. Is your wedding with President Yuan coming up soon?" Zhao Wantong laughed, covering her mouth. "Don't forget to invite me to your wedding. I'd love to catch some of the good luck."

Ah, so she was mocking her for having a rich boyfriend but not necessarily being able to marry into the family?

"That depends on my boyfriend's performance. I'm still young, and I don't want to rush into the graveyard of marriage," Yan Xi sighed. "They say a woman is at her prime at thirty-one. I'm not even twenty-five yet, I'm still a budding flower, so it's too early to think about marriage."

Zhao Wantong, who was approaching thirty: ...

Even though Yan Xi didn't say anything directly insulting, Zhao Wantong couldn't help but feel angry.

"Women are meant to marry eventually. Always thinking about having fun? How will you be a wife or a mother?" Zhao Wantong's tone changed, "But as long as you have money, you don't need to worry about those things. By the way, I almost forgot to ask, have you dealt with those rumors online? Those netizens are really twisted, tarnishing your reputation like that. No wonder President Yuan was so angry and sued them for defamation."

"He's usually fine, but he can't stand seeing people badmouth me. As soon as he sees people insulting me, he blows up. This morning, he told me we have to trace the source of those rumors online to prevent me from being unfairly harmed," Yan Xi sneered inwardly. Anyone can show disdain for others, right? She could not only show disdain but also shamelessly flaunt her relationship. Let's see who can't handle it.

Zhao Wantong's face changed slightly, and she didn't want to argue with Yan Xi anymore. She hurriedly pressed the elevator button and left as soon as it arrived.

"Ha," Yan Xi entered another elevator, unaffected by the encounter.

People who can remain unmoved by sarcasm are saints. She, however, was petty and vengeful. Anyone who mocked her, she would disgust. Her mother had once told her that women shouldn't lose face, but neither should they be too proud or aloof.

People like Zhao Wantong, if you swallow your anger the first time, it only makes them more arrogant. The best way to deal with shameless people is to be even more shameless than them.

"Teacher Shen," two people walked out from around the corner—it was Shen Xingyan and her assistant. The assistant was shocked. "I didn't expect Zhao Wantong, who usually acts so cute and naive in front of fans, to be so calculating behind the scenes. And that Yan Xi looks soft and easy to bully, but her words are quite blunt. Teacher Shen, do you think having someone like her as a mentee will cause trouble for you?"

"Trouble? What trouble could there be?" Shen Xingyan smiled instead. "I'm starting to like Yan Xi more and more."

She liked this type of person—someone who would be shameless when needed. It reminded her of her younger days.

Meanwhile, online discussions were still lively. Although Yuan Yi had sent legal letters to several marketing accounts spreading rumors and forced them to delete defamatory posts, he didn't stop the ongoing rumors about his and Yan Xi's relationship. In fact, he secretly hired a team of online commenters to sway public opinion, making people believe how perfectly matched he and Yan Xi were.

However, the public was not so easily manipulated. Even though the online army was strong, they couldn't change everyone's minds.

A person who claimed to be a fortune-teller came out and said that while Yuan Yi had an impressive status, his face didn't match well with Yan Xi's. Their relationship would be like flowers without fruit. Meanwhile, the man who confessed his love to Yan Xi and failed, had a face that was much more compatible with hers. If they got married, it would definitely be a loving marriage until they grew old together.

Some netizens supported this theory, but most others felt the fortune-teller was just talking nonsense. The couple was perfectly fine, and yet he insisted on claiming they weren't suited. Wasn't this just causing trouble for no reason?

As a result, the so-called "fortune-teller" was fiercely criticized by righteous netizens and was close to crying and admitting his nonsense.

Occasionally, one or two netizens would speak up: "Am I the only one who thinks President Yuan looks like he could be a domestic abuser in the making?"

Whether the others had seen it or not, or didn't dare to comment, such statements quickly disappeared without much attention.

The most important things in the "Operation Love Pursuit": 1. Be shameless. 2. Stay shameless.

After closing the webpage that teaches how to chase after girls, Yuan Yi called Zhang Wang.

Zhang Wang, who was sunbathing on the beach with a beautiful woman, felt a bad premonition when he saw Yuan Yi calling him.

"Zhang Wang, I want to ask you something. How can I turn a fake couple into a real one?"

"Yuan Xiao'er, Yuan Er Ge, you're really playing around," Zhang Wang took a deep breath, "Do you think I'm so bored that I'd play fake couple games with women?"

"That doesn't matter. I just wanted to ask your opinion," Yuan Yi's voice was calm, and then he added, "Although most of your ideas are unreliable."

"Any man would just confess directly. You go up to Yan Xi and say, 'Hey, beautiful, I want to date you, do you agree?' and that's it," Zhang Wang said in frustration. "Why waste so much time on this?"

"That's too frivolous and doesn't show enough respect," Yuan Yi frowned. "Forget it, I'll ask someone else."

"You're complaining about me being frivolous and still asking," Zhang Wang laughed and scolded, "With the way you're dragging this out, when will you ever win someone over?"

Yuan Yi hung up the phone, opened WeChat, and hesitated for a while. He found a cute and obedient kitten sticker and sent it to Yan Xi.

Yuan Xiao'er: "Where are you planning to go this weekend?"

This weekend...

Yan Xi saw Yuan Yi's message and recalled something she had intentionally forgotten these past few days. Wei Xiaoman's fiancé hadn't bothered her since his last request, and she hadn't seen anyone mention Wei Xiaoman's serious illness in their class group chat.

Yan Xiao Xi: "A university classmate is getting married, but I don't know if I should go."

After sending the message, Yuan Yi didn't reply immediately. Yan Xi put down her phone and began fiddling with her newly bought succulent. Not long after, Yuan Yi called her.

"Just now my secretary came in, and I signed a document."

Yuan Yi's voice was clean and steady, which made Yan Xi feel a desire to speak her mind. "She once did something wrong to me, and now she's seriously ill, not knowing when she'll pass away..."

"Do you still hold a grudge against her?"

"No."

"Are you still friends with her?"

Yan Xi smiled lightly. "No."

After years apart, there was no real animosity or connection left between her and Wei Xiaoman; it was just a ridiculous chapter in her past.

"You said her wedding is at Changfeng Hotel?"

"Yes."

"Yan Xiao Xi, since you can't decide, why don't I help you make the arrangements this weekend? How about that?"

Yan Xi pinched the soft leaves of her succulent and smiled faintly. "Alright."