Chapter 3: Master He — The paparazzi’s insight hasn’t become that bad.

?

His voice was very pleasant to hear, each word like a sizzling electric current that made Jian Yan’s heart numb.

She essentially didn’t care about what he said. The second he had begun talking, she had become captivated by his sexy voice and wanted to keep hearing him speak.

But after the man spoke his thoughts, he turned and left, causing Jian Yan to wake up from her bewitched state. God, what had she just been thinking? How did her thoughts become so perverted?!

She remained vexed for quite a while. The two sales staff members’ voices could be heard as they whispered behind her carelessly, their words floating to her ear.

“Ah! Master He returned?”

“Fantastic, I will have the motivation to go to work every day again!”

“…Don’t tell me your motivation to go to work isn’t the pay?”n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

“That superficial thing, how can it be mentioned on equal terms with Director He’s charm?”

Jian Yan’s eyes twitched slightly. That person just now, that person who had captivated her so much…was the famous Master He?

“Hey you, can you help me see if this sweater looks good?”

A girl’s voice came from her left. Jian Yan turned her head to the side to look. It was a very young girl. She must’ve just graduated and started working. On her body was the latest fashion trend, a knitted jacket with open slits in place of sleeves from HoneyBee. Its price was ￥468.

Even though it was a very average client, Jian Yan treated all of her clients equally favorably. She smiled at her and said, “It looks very good! Thick knitted sweaters are very fashionable autumn-winter apparel. White also goes well with everything, meaning it can be paired up with innumerable styles.”

The girl heard her critique and seemed very happy. “I also feel the same way.”

Jian Yan looked her over again and continued. “But this outfit is missing a little color. Please wait a moment.” Jian Yan walked over to the sales counter ahead of her and took a printed yellow silk scarf from the HoneyBee brand. “Silk scarves are an essential accessory this autumn and winter. It accentuates the tiny details and can create a large difference.”

She spoke as she wrapped the silk scarf around the girl’s neck. Afterwards, she conveniently turned a nearby full-length body mirror to show the girl her reflection. “What do you think?”

“Beautiful!” The girl touched the silk scarf knotted around her neck before she looked up to ask Jian Yan, “How do you tie this so nicely? I bought a silk scarf some time ago, but I was hopeless at tying it. I left it at home and never used it.”

Jian Yan said, “Lots of practice; with familiarity, you learn the trick.”

“Can you teach me?”

“Of course I can.”

The site manager watched from the side as Jian Yan taught the client how to tie the silk scarf and nodded in satisfaction. This new employee was pretty good.

?

At this time, He Xiu was sitting in his office and perusing Jian Yan’s CV. Work Experience… 「 Self-Employed 」. He smiled softly and set her CV down on the desk.

Professionally talented at fashion design, gorgeous looks, her family background also appeared to be pretty good——although the clothing she wore wasn’t luxurious, it also wasn’t a bargain. This kind of person, why did she come to a shopping mall to sell clothes?

He Xiu’s slender fingers tapped his desktop twice, his gaze falling back onto Jian Yan’s CV. Although she hadn’t been here for long, she was quite interesting.

He called Zhou Wen Wen’s phone line and told her, “That friend of yours that you recommended, have her stay in Fantasy Wardrobe.”

“Understood, Director He.”

Zhou Wen Wen hung up the phone and then told Jian Yan the good news.

?

In a flash, it was 11:30AM, and the first shift employees began to eat lunch. Because Jian Yan was new, the site manager specifically sought her out and had a veteran employee bring her to the dining hall. Starlight General Merchandise’s dining hall was the dining hall for all kinds of employees. The food was already pretty good, but the dining hall’s food definitely couldn’t compare to one’s homemade dishes. After eating one meal, Jian Yan resolved to bring her own lunch tomorrow.

Business in the afternoon proceeded very smoothly. Jian Yan naturally liked dealing with clothing, and when she saw clients come out of the changing rooms attired in pretty clothes, she would also be happy alongside them. Even though the site manager told her that she got off work at 5:00PM, as a workaholic, not working overtime did not sit well with her.

Jian Yan had to be dragged away at 5:40PM before she would leave the mall.

When she returned home, she passed by a small store. She drove her car through the drive-through and rolled down her car window, telling the lady boss, “One bowl of hot and sour soup, add extra chili peppers and pea shoots.”

“Got it!”

Jian Yan was a frequent visitor of this family store. The lady boss was very familiar with her preferences. It was just that pea shoots were expensive ingredients. Even if the lady boss gave her extra, it wasn’t much. Jian Yan looked at the sparse and fragmented pea shoots in her bowl and raised her eyebrow before paying the lady boss.

She still had some pea shoots at home, so she can just go home and add more in herself.

Carrying the delectable hot and sour soup home, Jian Yan opened her door to see Lin Zhen’s high heels. Lin Zhen had a key to her home, but she currently didn’t have any manuscripts to hand over. Why on earth did she come over?

“You’re back~?” Lin Zhen’s voice floated towards her from the living room. “Did you buy hot and sour soup? I can smell the aroma!”

Jian Yan switched her shoes for slippers and walked over to her. “I did, but I only bought a bowl for myself.”

“Tsk, stingy.”

Jian Yan placed the bowl on the table and asked her, “Why did you come here? I already turned in my manuscript.”

Lin Zhen said, “Does me coming over have to mean it’s for a manuscript? I can also… come to cadge a meal!”

Right when she finished saying this, her hand darted out with a devilishly lightning-fast speed towards the hot and sour soup on the table, but her hand was slapped away by Jian Yan. “Lin Zhen, don’t you feel very shameless, fighting over an employee’s ration?”

Lin Zhen calmly replied, “I’m very shameless.”

Jian Yan clicked her tongue before plopping down on the sofa to begin eating without even putting in more pea shoots.

Indignantly, Lin Zhen opened a take-out app and decided to also not order something for Jian Yan. “Oh, that’s right. Where did you go? You wouldn’t happen to have actually gone to sell clothes, right?”

Jian Yan’s mouth was full with hot and sour soup. Her pair of large eyes looked at Lin Zhen before she nodded. “Hesh.”

“…” Lin Zhen was silent for a moment. “Fuck, you’re really serious?”

“I’m someone who is always very serious.”

“…” Lin Zhen sunk into silence for a long time.

Jian Yan swallowed the mouthful of hot and sour soup. She ate her meal with relish, and in between spoonfuls, she said to Lin Zhen, “Today was my first day at work. I sold more than ￥60,000 worth of clothes. I believe that with my commission, I can eat another bowl of hot and sour soup.”

Lin Zhen would love to roast her, but she was in awe of her turnover. “You sold more than ￥60,000 worth of clothes??”

“Yes, I came across a big client. Very lucky.” Jian Yan happily grasped a pea shoot in between her chopsticks. “Right, I also caught a glimpse of Master He.”

“Holy shit!” Lin Zhen was outraged; she absolutely couldn’t restrain herself! “I will also sell clothes!”

“You can go buy clothes, and if you’re lucky, you might encounter him.”

“Master He doesn’t go to the mall daily. Oh, by the way, how is he in person? Is he very handsome?”

“He’s okay. His voice is very good to listen to.”

Lin Zhen sneered disdainfully at her before opening the laptop in front of her. “Now that you mention his voice, a concert is being aired tonight. I nearly forgot.”

Jian Yan’s mouth quirked up. She side-eyed Lin Zhen. “You can go home and listen to the concert. Why are you staying in my home?”

“Waiting for take-out.”

Jian Yan: “…”

As she prepared food to bring to work tomorrow, Lin Zhen’s take-out had already been delivered. Lin Zhen had ordered a large take-out box meal. When she opened it to eat, the entire room was filled with its aroma. It especially…whetted people’s appetite. Jian Yan grabbed a pair of chopsticks and a bowl and began to slowly walk towards Lin Zhen. Her hand darted out when Lin Zhen opened the container, only to be slapped away just as ruthlessly as she had done so to Lin Zhen earlier. “Not letting you eat.”

Jian Yan raised an eyebrow. She stood up to look at her. “Woman, the sofa you are currently sitting on is mine. The computer you are using is mine. The floor you are stepping on is also mine. Yet, you still actually dare to refuse me?”

Lin Zhen: “…………”

Teacher proves herself worthy of her creativity. She can casually grasp the personalities of all kinds of her characters! Hehehe.

“I’ll give you some, stop sickening me.” Lin Zhen pushed the fragrant dish towards her. “Weren’t you allergic to men? How come you understand your male characters so well then? And to even draw BL manhua? You should go draw Yuri!”

“How are two-dimensional and three-dimensional men the same?”

“Makes sense. After all, if your male leads were three-dimensional, it would be a little terrifying.”

“What’s wrong with my male lead? If he came to life, he would kill an entire street of men in a minute, okay?”

“Fine, fine, your male lead is the most handsome.” After Lin Zhen said this, she brought a chunk of beef to her mouth. “Oh, by the way, when you finish work tomorrow, can you help me buy a cake from the dessert store on the way home? As a Starlight General Merchandise employee, would you get a discount?”

Jian Yan stared coldly at her. “The dessert store is owned by Yu Zhi, not by CEO He.”

“Then what kind of benefits do you have?” Lin Zhen grimaced, preparing a few lines to mock her with when a sound came from the YY channel. “Ah! The concert’s starting!”

At her loud exclamation, Jian Yan shot a glance at the laptop screen before continuing to immerse herself in the food. The host’s opening remarks crackled through the speakers. They heard him say that this concert would continue until 11:00PM. Jian Yan blankly stared at the screen for a moment. “You don’t plan on staying here until 11:00PM, right?”

Lin Zhen said, “11:00PM is the conservative estimate. It’ll probably go on for longer.”

Jian Yan: “…”

Lin Zhen grabbed Jian Yan’s shoulders, her grip as strong as super glue. She looked into Jian Yan’s eyes with a coquettish look. “It’s not like the two of us didn’t sleep enough. What’s that horrible smell?”

Jian Yan jerked the pig trotters from her mouth and placed it aside.

?

9:40PM. He Xiu had each store supervisor take him on a tour of the store. This was the time that the female employees looked forward to every day the most for no particular reason. They simply wanted to drool over Director He’s handsomeness.

When he toured Fantasy Wardrobe, He Xiu saw that Jian Yan wasn’t there. He walked up to the site manager and inquired about what had happened. “That new employee, how do you think she did?”

The site manager said, “Ah, you’re talking about Jian Yan, right? She did pretty well. She has a high understanding of brand names and their corresponding price levels. She was also very clever. Today was her first day, yet her sales figure was the highest.”

He Xiu nodded. “I also saw what happened this morning. Although Mrs. Zheng likes to make things deliberately hard for people, she has always been very generous with her expenditures. She handled it pretty well.”

Having figured out the situation, He Xiu began making his rounds again. There were only a few customers left in the mall. He passed by many of them, and they all stopped to stare after him.

He Xiu had become accustomed to this a long time ago and no longer showed any signs of discomfort. Once he finished work, he received a call from his friend Tang Zheng. “Congratulations, Master He, you have another girlfriend. After collecting ten in total, wouldn’t you be able to summon Shenlong?”

He Xiu had been away at a branch office for two days and hadn’t been paying attention to the gossiping media, but he didn’t need to look to know. The paparazzi had probably made headline news that he was XXX’s boyfriend again. “This thing, even if you want to envy, you can’t.”

“Pei, my insight hasn’t become that bad.”

“You must’ve meant: the paparazzi’s insight hasn’t become that bad.”

Tang Zheng: “…”

“Did you call me just to hear me rebut you?”

Tang Zhen frowned. “I wanted to remind you not to forget about tonight’s concert!”

?

Author’s Note:

He Gou Dan brilliantly appears on the scene~! ??

[Chestnuts thanks several sponsors for feeding her their support. x ∞]

《?? 》

Notes:

1. cackles hysterically If you’re so innocent that this flies over your head, BL = Boys Love/Yaoi/Gay Male Relationship/Male Homosexuality/Slash/Shounen-ai/whatever euphemisms people use nowadays; Yuri = Shoujo-ai/Girls Love/Fem-Slash/Female Homosexuality/etc.etc. ?

2. Moonclipse’s comment: dead from handsomeness ;D. | Kiseki’s comment: could be from physical exhaustion~ I mean, if he’s the most handsome man on there, and Jian Yan has drawn BL manhua~~ hmm… ?

3. Moonclipse’s comment: mmhmm, who doesn’t like a good hunk… of beef? ?

4. Moonclipse’s comment: for those who don’t know, pig trotters are a chinese delicacy… basically she’s eating a pig’s feet. As much as I would like to make innuendoes… it smells bad ?

5. Reference to the Dragon Ball series. “(召唤神龙) zhào huàn Shén Lóng” is a phrase that originates from Japanese mangaka Toriyama Akira’s work 《 Dragon Ball 》. This expression means to “summon Shenlong” or “summon Divine Dragon.” Legend says that after collecting seven dragon balls (each ball had a specific number of stars on it, up to seven) dispersed in every single corner of the universe?, they would be able to summon the Divine Dragon, who will grant them one wish before sending the seven dragon balls apart again. On the internet, this is used to roast someone. This is also a play on words, as (十) Shí, which is 10 in Chinese, looks similar to (七) Qī, which means 7. In this case, Tang is subtly asking if He Xiu will find what he’s looking for with his 10th girlfriend. ?

6. Gou Dan (狗蛋) is a common, old-fashioned nickname. Traditionally, a poor nickname would be given to a child, as they were worried that if they called out the child’s real name, supernatural beings would be jealous and steal the child away prematurely. Thus, the author is blessing He Xiu with good health by adding a pet name to his actual name. ?