The server poured a cup of tea for each of the three individuals and then departed.
“What should I do? I’m a bit nervous,” Hu Yingying said.
Hu Yingying was also a newcomer with very little experience. Participating in this kind of formal interview for the first time made nervousness inevitable.
Furthermore, the man was just that handsome.
“It’s fine, it gets better after doing this a few times. If you’re really nervous, just bury your head in taking notes,” Sister Ling comforted.
Hu Yingying nodded her head.
Xian Qingshan pushed open the door and entered exactly on time.
He himself was far more vivid than his photos on the internet.
He had a lean figure and wore a finely tailored, light-gray cashmere sweater paired with black trousers. His facial features carried a distinct Oriental character—especially that pair of eyes, which, under the soft light filtering through the paper windows, looked like they held a pool of serene amber. He gave a slight nod toward Xie Sui, his posture polite and impeccable.
“President Xian,” Xie Sui stood up, taking the initiative to speak first.
“Mr. Xie, I have long looked forward to meeting you.”
Xian Qingshan’s voice matched the person, crisp, cool, and steady.
The interview began, with topics revolving around his academic background and why he crossed over from a finance major to open an entertainment company. Xian Qingshan answered them all one by one.
The interview went more smoothly than imagined.
During the mid-session break, the server replaced the tea with a newly brewed batch. White mist rose curlingly, separating the two of them.
Sister Ling and Hu Yingying went to the restroom together.
Only he and Xian Qingshan were left in the tea room.
Xian Qingshan gently blew on the tea in his hand and took a sip.
Xian Qingshan suddenly lifted his eyes, those amber-colored eyes landing on Xie Sui’s hand as it wrote: “Before me, you interviewed the boss of Yiyuan Capital.”
Xie Sui: “That’s correct.”
Xian Qingshan picked up the thin-walled porcelain cup, watching the tea leaves floating and sinking inside. “He is very famous. I have always been curious about this person, but unfortunately, I’ve never been able to meet him in person. I wonder how Mr. Xie managed to get him to agree?”
Xie Sui gave a light laugh. “Just unremitting invitations. I suppose he saw us chasing after him relentlessly, grew unable to tolerate it anymore, and agreed.”
This sentence was riddled with loopholes, and Xie Sui didn’t expect to successfully hoodwink him with it.
Sure enough, Xian Qingshan let out a brief smile and said nothing, but clearly didn’t believe a word of what he said.
“I am rather curious instead, how someone of President Xian’s status would also accept an interview from a small company like ours.”
Xian Qingshan: “If I said it was also because of your relentless badgering, would you believe it?”
Xie Sui: “No.”
Xian Qingshan: “It’s simple. Originally, I didn’t have much interest, but after seeing Yiyuan Capital, I developed some curiosity toward you guys instead.”
This answer was well within Xie Sui’s expectations.
“However,” Xian Qingshan shifted the topic: “Now I’m starting to become interested in you as a person.”
Xie Sui looked toward him with perplexity.
“Any interest in entering the entertainment circle? With your looks and build, the money it brings in would certainly be far more than what you have now.”
Xie Sui: “I’m sorry, I temporarily have no plans to enter the entertainment circle.”
Xian Qingshan had a face full of pity. He pulled out a business card and handed it to Xie Sui: “Don’t waste your own advantages. If you change your mind any day, you can contact me.”
Xie Sui smiled as he accepted it. “Based on my understanding, one can’t really survive in the entertainment circle without some background.”
Xian Qingshan: “That’s true indeed. But you probably don’t need to worry.”
Xie Sui: “Why?”
Xian Qingshan took a sip of tea and said slowly, “With Min Shihong backing you up from behind, what are you afraid of?”
Hearing this name, the warmth in Xie Sui’s eyes faded away bit by bit.
At this moment, Sister Ling and Hu Yingying returned.
The moment she stepped in, Hu Yingying complained that the layout here was intricately labyrinthine, and it took them ages to find the restroom.
Xian Qingshan gave an apologetic smile. “My apologies for causing trouble for everyone. I happen to have some incense that was just blended yesterday. This incense has a mind-soothing effect, and I think the results are quite good. Take some back and try it out.”
Hu Yingying’s face turned completely red, and she hurriedly waved her hands. “No, President Xian, I wasn’t targeting you, I meant this shop.”
Xian Qingshan gave a faint smile. “I am the one who opened this place.”
Hu Yingying: “Ah?”
On the way back, Hu Yingying and Sister Ling admired the exquisite incense boxes in their hands, chattering and discussing all the while.
Sister Ling praised: “It smells so good, my mood improves the moment I catch a whiff of it.”
Hu Yingying echoed: “And I didn’t expect him to be so gentle and handsome in person, he especially has that kind of refined, scholarly temperament.”
Refined?
He was clearly a big-tailed wolf who was highly adept at disguising himself.
Xie Sui kept looking out the window, keeping silent.
This person had obviously investigated him beforehand; he actually brought up Min Shihong. He wondered if these two also had some sort of connection privately.
Min Shihong, Xie Sui’s stepfather.
Xie Sui’s father, Xie Yongsheng, had passed away from lung cancer. In less than a month, his mother, Wen Wanyan, remarried, wedding Min Shihong.
Thinking of these two individuals made Xie Sui’s mood turn even worse.
“Brother Xie Sui, what’s wrong with you? Your complexion doesn’t look very good,” Hu Yingying asked.
Xie Sui: “It’s nothing, just a bit of motion sickness.”
Sister Ling said worriedly, “I happen to have brought some motion sickness patches. Put one on and see, it’ll make you feel a bit better.”
Xie Sui: “Thank you, Sister Ling.”
The article about the international student delivering takeout had generated a massive amount of attention and discussion, gaining a lot of traction and followers for the public account.
Zhao Shang struck while the iron was hot, seeking out a new social topic regarding young people living in cramped quarters.
“This time we will focus on the youths living in cramped spaces within the city. We’ll look for those young people living in non-standard partitioned rooms, basements, or small-sized apartments,” Zhao Shang’s voice carried a full drive. “Particularly those who have just entered the workforce, earn meager salaries, have barely anything left after paying rent, and bear immense living pressure and loneliness.”
“I think we can dig deep into their living conditions as well as their psychological plights.”
Zhao Shang said, “I have a candidate here.”
Zhao Shang showed the materials to the colleague next to him. “This person, his work isn’t going very smoothly, and his relationship with his family is also tense. He has almost no social life and his mood is extremely low. I feel like we can unearth a lot of resonance points from him.”
It was at this moment that Xie Sui pushed open the door and walked in.
He was a bit tired and wanted to go back and rest very badly.
The people in the office saw him and immediately began exchanging pleasantries: “Hey, Brother Xie Sui, how did your interview go? Was it smooth?”
Xie Sui smiled. “It was quite smooth.”
Hu Yingying enthusiastically chimed in from behind: “You guys have no idea, President Xian himself is super handsome and super gentle, the photos couldn’t even reflect a tenth of it!”
Someone teased: “Fawning over a handsome guy again. Is he really that handsome?”
Hu Yingying said, “Of course, Sister Ling, hurry up and show them the photos.”
“Damn, he really is quite handsome.”
“There’s video too, and his voice sounds nice as well.”
Xie Sui did not participate in the discussion. He packed up his things, intending to go home and rest for a bit, but then recalled what Yan Shuzhi had said a few days ago.
Doing this will make people hate you.
Xie Sui dismissed the thought of going back.
At this time, Zhao Shang walked over. “Brother Xie Sui.”
Xie Sui looked at him. “What is it?”
Zhao Shang: “When we were discussing just now, you weren’t here. I have a candidate for the next article, take a look.”
Xie Sui gave a mocking smile. “Stop pretending.”