Five days later, Jingbei Airport.
Lin Chaochao’s parents had been waiting early for their daughter. The Lin family was from Rongcheng—her father was a history professor at Rongcheng University, and her mother was the head of the obstetrics and gynecology department at Rongcheng Women’s and Children’s Hospital. Today, the old couple had specially arranged their time off to come pick up their daughter.
Lin Chaochao had been raised well from a young age. Her parents never interfered with her decisions—as long as it was the right thing, they would support her. This included her decision to return to China to develop her career, which she had thought through carefully.
The moment she saw her parents at the airport, Lin Chaochao cried tears of joy. The people she could only see through video calls every day were now standing right before her. It had been over a year since she’d been back.
“Mom, Dad, I’m home.” Lin Chaochao hugged her parents tightly.
Mother Lin said, “It’s good that you’re back. Let’s go home.”
Her mother held her arm, and her father carried her suitcase for her.
Before she returned, Mother Lin had hinted on the phone that she wanted to give her daughter a welcome-home gift. But Lin Chaochao never imagined it would be a house.
Although the space was a bit small, the location was excellent—convenient transportation and easy access to everything.
When the family of three arrived home, Lin Chaochao saw that everything in the house had been carefully selected by her parents, and she felt especially blessed.
The family of three enjoyed a warm reunion dinner together. In the evening, her parents had to rush back because they had work the next day. “Chaochao, take care of yourself. Call home if anything comes up. Don’t worry too much about work.” Her old father gave his earnest advice.
After seeing her parents off and taking a shower, Lin Chaochao lay in bed and called her childhood best friend, Su Jiani. “Little Su Su, I’m back.”
At that moment, Su Jiani was still busy socializing at the dinner banquet of the provincial photography exchange conference. The two chatted briefly, agreed to meet up when she returned, and hung up.
Lin Chaochao then opened her computer, searched for Huo’s Jewelry, took a look at their designer recruitment information, submitted her resume, and considered that one major task done. The long flight had left her somewhat tired, so she went to bed early.
Lin Chaochao’s resume was impressive—a design graduate from a top American university, fluent in four foreign languages: English, German, French, and Japanese. She had been selected as an outstanding student representative to participate in royal jewelry design in the United States, and had subsequently worked for two years at a renowned American design firm. She was confident those last two points gave her a significant advantage.
Lin Chaochao had grown up in Rongcheng and had only occasionally come to Jingbei when traveling with her parents on business trips, so to her, this city was somewhat unfamiliar.
However, Lin Chaochao had a very strong ability to adapt—otherwise, she wouldn’t have been able to stay abroad for several years.
The next morning, Lin Chaochao decided to go out and explore. She first went to the supermarket to buy some daily necessities.
Then she went shopping at the mall. After all, it was still summer in China, so she planned to pick up a couple of new outfits. The pace of being alone was fast—she finished in no time.
She searched online and found that the drive from her home to Huo’s was only half an hour—quite good indeed. It was clear how thoughtful her parents had been when buying her the house.
After grabbing a quick bite to eat outside, she returned home, put her things away, and opened her computer to check if she had received a reply email from Huo’s. Sure enough, big companies worked fast—it read: “Please come in for an interview tomorrow at 10 a.m.”
Lin Chaochao seemed to have anticipated this, her mood perfectly calm. She gently closed her laptop and spent the rest of the afternoon cooped up at home, tidying the place and scrolling through her phone.
The next day,
Lin Chaochao got up right on time. Mindful that first impressions mattered, she chose to wear a knee-length black skirt paired with a teal-blue blouse with flared sleeves, tying the collar into a bow shape. She slipped on a pair of mid-heel shoes, applied a touch of light makeup, and pulled her hair back into a low ponytail—elegant and composed. Looking at herself in the mirror, she nodded in satisfaction, grabbed her documents, and set off.
She had plenty of time, so she planned to grab breakfast first before taking the bus to the Huo Corporation. It wasn’t that she was being stingy—she simply wanted to slowly get to know the city. Twelve stops in total, half an hour’s ride.
The sun was bright, and Lin Chaochao was in high spirits. Standing in front of the Huo Corporation building, she tilted her head up to gaze at it for a moment, silently cheering herself on.
The front desk receptionist told her to go to the 12th floor to prepare for the interview. Lin Chaochao took the elevator up to the 12th floor. She saw a few other people already seated in the waiting area and greeted each of them before sitting down at the edge.
The girl next to her was named Haili, a graduate of Jingbei University A-Campus, highly accomplished in her own right. She found Lin Chaochao quite likable at first sight and politely struck up a conversation: “I heard the Huo Corporation is only hiring two designers this time. I wonder if we’ll make it.”
“Just do your best—that’s all we can do. But Huo Corporation really is the best platform in the country,” Lin Chaochao replied courteously.
Haili went in first and didn’t finish until fifteen minutes later. When she came out, her expression seemed relieved and relaxed. A few more people went in after her, and finally, it was Lin Chaochao’s turn.
“May I ask why you chose to return to China to develop your career?” Interviewer A asked.
“No matter how good it is abroad, it’s ultimately not home. The Huo Corporation has been at the forefront of the fashion industry in recent years, attracting many outstanding designers, and your company’s business philosophy aligns well with my own. That’s why I chose to come back and develop my career here.”
“I heard that Miss Lin participated in the jewelry design for the royal family of the United States?” Interviewer B asked.
“Yes, as a senior-year student representative, I was fortunate enough to take part.”
“Could you show us some of your previous design sketches?”
Lin Chaochao took her design sketches out of her bag and handed them over. The concepts were ingenious, the color combinations striking, and the overall arrangement fresh and novel—truly excellent work.
All three interviewers were very satisfied and told her that results would be announced within three days, asking her to wait for the notification.
When Lin Chaochao came out, the other interviewees had all left. She was confident she could land this job. As she was waiting for the elevator to go downstairs, the adjacent elevator opened, and two men walked out.
One of them was Huo Nanting. Their eyes met, and both were startled by the other’s sudden appearance—neither had expected to run into each other here. Seeing Lin Chaochao dressed so differently from their first encounter made Huo Nanting’s eyes light up.
Lin Chaochao spoke first: “What a coincidence. I didn’t expect to run into you here.”
Huo Nanting responded politely as well: “Hello, I didn’t expect it either. Are you here to…”
“Oh, I came for an interview,” Lin Chaochao continued.
“Wishing you success. I have something urgent to attend to, so I’ll be on my way.” Huo Nanting gave her a nod and indeed left in a hurry. His grandfather had summoned him to discuss some important company matters—after all, he was about to take full control of the Huo Corporation.
Leaving Lin Chaochao standing in place, she watched the man in a black suit—imposing and distinguished, with a tall, upright posture and steady footsteps. Lin Chaochao thought to herself, why is he here? Could he work here too? What a coincidence. This was their second meeting.
The elevator arrived, and Lin Chaochao went downstairs, exiting the Huo Corporation building. She hailed a taxi to head home.
On the other side, after Huo Nanting met with his grandfather, he instructed his assistant to bring him today’s interview list, and from it, he found that familiar face.
Lin Chaochao, 27, graduated from the top Chelman Jewelry Design Institute in the States, employed at… Huo Nanting stared at this resume for a full five minutes. Those who knew him well would understand that Huo Nanting was not one to waste time on meaningless matters—unless he had other intentions.
As for this interview, Huo Nanting did not intervene based on uncertain thoughts, because he knew that such an outstanding talent would surely succeed in getting the job. He would simply wait quietly for the beauty to arrive.
Huo Nanting focused on his own affairs. He had just successfully closed a cooperation deal in the States, and recently the company had taken on many more orders. These past days had been busy.
Sure enough, on the third day, the HR assistant personally called to inform her: “Congratulations, Miss Lin Chaochao, you have successfully passed the Huo Corporation interview. Please come to our company on the 7th to complete your onboarding.”
The 7th was the following Monday, and today was Thursday. She wasn’t surprised about successfully getting the job, but she still shared the good news with her parents right away, then called her childhood friend Su Jiani. As it happened, Su Jiani had landed in Jingbei that morning, and the two agreed to meet at a bar that evening.