Chapter 13

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Chapter 13: The Encounter

It had barely been a few days since news of Song Xian’s marriage broke, and the department was already in an uproar again. He Xiaoying struggled to crawl out from under her desk chair, wobbling as she turned to Song Xian and asked, “She mentioned me yesterday, didn’t she?”

So it was Jiang Liuyi who picked up the phone yesterday?

Crap.

She’d said all kinds of awful things about Yu Cai—added extra spice, even. Would Jiang Liuyi think she was just some gossipy loudmouth?

Utterly despairing, He Xiaoying deeply regretted not passing out from the shock just now. Maybe they should swap lead interviewers after all… she was quietly contemplating this when Song Xian said, “She did mention you.”

Forget it. Maybe she should try fainting again—who knew, maybe it’d work this time.

She was wallowing when Song Xian continued, her tone steady as ever: “She said you seemed reliable. That’s why she agreed to the exclusive.”

He Xiaoying froze for two seconds, then came back to life in an instant. “Seriously?”

Song Xian turned slightly and looked at her. “Seriously.”

He Xiaoying immediately beamed with pride. Everyone knew Song Xian never lied—if she said it, it had to be true. Their coworkers, already curious from overhearing snippets, quickly crowded around asking what was going on. He Xiaoying’s tail practically wagged with glee.

“Secret,” she said smugly.

Across from her, Wu Ying tossed over a file folder, which He Xiaoying caught without missing a beat. She decided to stop playing coy and announced, “It was when I called Song Xian over the weekend—Jiang Liuyi answered.”

“You talked to Jiang Liuyi on the phone?”

“Is her voice really that nice?”

“…”

He Xiaoying nodded solemnly. “Seriously, her voice is amazing. You all missed out. No wonder she’s in the arts—she could totally make a career out of singing too!”

Song Xian didn’t say a word as they gossiped around her. He Xiaoying turned to her mid-sentence and asked, “Come to think of it—Song Xian, do you like sleeping in?”

Prompted, Song Xian looked up and replied, “Only sometimes.”

He Xiaoying leaned in, brimming with mischief. “Is it because Jiang Liuyi comes home exhausted?”

Song Xian gave it a moment’s thought… and didn’t deny it.

The rest of the team immediately erupted into playful jeering. That was when Director Ye’s voice cut through the chatter from behind them: “Do none of you have work to do?”

The crowd scattered at once like startled birds. He Xiaoying sat down quickly, just in time to see Director Ye step up to Song Xian’s desk. The two had never gotten along particularly well, though ever since Song Xian’s marriage, Director Ye’s attitude had noticeably softened.

Now, standing there in front of her desk, Director Ye hesitated for a moment before asking, “I heard your wife is Jiang Liuyi?”

Song Xian nodded, cool and composed as ever.

Director Ye gave a silent yes in her heart, though her expression remained completely serious. It’s Jiang Liuyi—good. Someone so outstanding… then Song Xian definitely wouldn’t be looking at anyone else. It’d be easier to work with her now.

Satisfied, she turned and walked off.

He Xiaoying poked Song Xian’s arm. Song Xian closed the document she was working on and turned to her, just in time to hear the question: “You and Jiang Liuyi really only knew each other for two months?”

“Mm,” Song Xian replied, opening the next file and getting back to retouching.

But He Xiaoying wasn’t done. “Then why did you two get married?”

Song Xian paused briefly, then said, “We were a good match.”

Their lifestyles, their pace, the way they gave each other space—it all felt right to her. She especially liked Jiang Liuyi’s voice. And she didn’t mind—at all—that Jiang Liuyi might have mistaken her for someone else.

He Xiaoying had heard that answer before, usually from people reluctantly pushed into blind dates by their parents. But did Song Xian need that? Did Jiang Liuyi?

They were both young, beautiful, with enough admirers to circle the city twice. Jiang Liuyi even had money. None of this sounded like two people who’d settle for “good enough” and just… get married.

It didn’t make sense. Something about that logic just didn’t add up.

She’d rather believe the two of them had fallen in love at first sight—drawn in by each other’s looks, leading to a whirlwind marriage. When Song Xian heard her theory, she lowered her gaze and smiled faintly. “Something like that.”

At the very least, Jiang Liuyi had agreed to marry her because of her appearance.

He Xiaoying clapped her hands. “See? That makes sense!”

I knew it, she thought, thoroughly pleased with herself. She started pulling together the materials needed for the upcoming interview and occasionally turned to ask, “Is there anything your wife doesn’t want us to bring up?”

Song Xian shook her head. “I’m not sure.”

He Xiaoying frowned.

A while later, still unsatisfied, she turned back again. “How sensitive can the questions be?”

Without missing a beat, Song Xian pulled a sticky note from her desk, jotted something down, and handed it to her.

He Xiaoying blinked. “What’s this?”

“Her number,” Song Xian said. “If you’ve got questions, ask her directly.”

He Xiaoying: …

Across from them, Wu Ying burst into laughter behind her screen. He Xiaoying glanced over and tapped her pen against the desk. “What’s so funny?”

Wu Ying replied, “Did you see Meixiu’s official account?”

He Xiaoying pulled up Meixiu’s official account the moment she heard that. Sure enough, they’d just announced their next interview feature—Zhang Susu. The post even invited followers to submit small questions for her, with a promise to randomly select one or two from the comments to include in the magazine.

It was a standard engagement tactic. The so-called “randomly selected questions” would only appear in print, so fans who submitted them usually pre-ordered a copy in hopes of seeing their question chosen.

Zhang Susu wasn’t some unknown model—she was fairly well-known, with a sizable fanbase. Within minutes, Meixiu’s comment section was packed with fans. The questions were wildly varied, and the buzz was higher than any of their past announcements.

[Wait, am I seeing this right? Meixiu’s next issue is featuring Susu?]

[Heard it’s a solo feature—our Susu is killing it, Plus Plus Plus!]

[Wanna ask what type of person Susu likes. Not saying anything, just… sis, I volunteer.]

Yu Cai scrolled through the post on her phone. Each refresh brought dozens of new comments, and the like count had shot past a thousand in no time. She casually bought a promotion slot.

A nearby photographer said, “Yu Cai, looks like our next issue’s heating up. The higher-ups just said the early buzz is already exceeding expectations!”

No kidding, Yu Cai thought. Did they really think she couldn’t tell how high the traffic was? When had any of their previous promotions ever gotten this kind of traction? 

She had to admit—Man Tong did have some commercial instinct. Starting a celebrity feature column wasn’t a bad move. These days, public figures were nothing like before. They had massive, far-reaching fanbases, and they weren’t entertainers whose performances could be nitpicked. These were genuine artists, with undeniable talent. 

And if they happened to be good-looking on top of that, the fan count skyrocketed.

What a pity.

Yu Cai had originally wanted to invite Jiang Liuyi. If she’d managed that, the internet would’ve exploded by now.

But Jiang Liuyi didn’t do interviews.

Yu Cai sighed. The photographer next to her glanced over. “What’s wrong? Still upset the editor-in-chief refused to buy a trending spot?”

They’d just had a fight over that. Yu Cai had pushed for purchasing a hot search—after all, landing Zhang Susu was a major headline. The engagement on Weibo alone made it clear how much buzz there was. Wouldn’t a trending tag boost their visibility even more?

The editor-in-chief had shot her down, saying all the budget had gone to securing Zhang Susu. There wasn’t anything left.

Yu Cai had snapped, “So stingy. Absolutely stingy.”

The photographer chuckled. “Come on, don’t be mad. Even without a trending tag, we’ve got next issue in the bag. No way Man Tong can top this.”

Yu Cai turned her head. “Who’d Man Tong get for their issue?”

The photographer said, “I heard it’s a lawyer. I asked a friend to check—totally unknown, no major accomplishments, just won a case recently. That’s why Man Tong invited them.”

Only then did Yu Cai feel fully at ease. “Why haven’t they announced it yet?”

“Probably too embarrassed,” the photographer scoffed. “The person they got isn’t even on the same level as ours. Announcing it now would just backfire. No doubt about it—we’ve got next issue’s sales rankings in the bag.”

Yu Cai nodded. Even if it wasn’t locked in, it had to be. She had personally vouched to the editor-in-chief for bringing in Zhang Susu. And the magazine had poured a ton of money into landing her. If sales didn’t deliver, the editor would probably want to skin her alive.

Thinking of that, Yu Cai decided to take out an extra layer of insurance. She figured it was time to bring her sister in for a little public engagement. Picking up her phone, she said, “I’m going to step out and make a call.”

The photographer said, “Don’t go too far—Zhang Susu’s arriving soon.”

Yu Cai waved her off. “Got it.”

She took the elevator down, and as she called Yu Bai, she glanced across at the neighboring studio—Man Tong’s designated space, its oversized logo hanging prominently on the wall.

Jiang Liuyi had just gotten out of the car and was following the location Song Xian had sent. The sun blazed overhead, and a light sheen of sweat formed on her forehead. She raised a hand to shield her eyes from the glare and, through her fingers, spotted the familiar logo in the distance.

The parking lot was still a good distance away. Just as Jiang Liuyi spotted the studio logo, her phone began to ring and buzz in her hand. She answered the call—Song Xian’s voice came through. “Are you here yet?”

“Almost downstairs,” Jiang Liuyi replied.

Song Xian glanced at the traffic around her. “I’m stuck in a bit of traffic, probably need a few more minutes. If you don’t want to head up yet, there’s a milk tea shop downstairs—you can wait there.”

Jiang Liuyi looked up and, sure enough, saw the milk tea shop nearby. The heat was stifling, practically scorching. Sitting down for a bit didn’t sound bad. She agreed, “Got it. Do you want anything?”

Song Xian liked fruit-based iced drinks—not a fan of anything too sugary. She said, “Pineapple slush.” Then turned to ask, “What about you?”

He Xiaoying, who was driving, nearly jerked the wheel. Jiang Liuyi was buying her milk tea? She could brag about this in the office for a year.

Trying to keep it together, she smiled and said, “I’ll have whatever Miss Jiang’s having.”

As if she had the right to choose—anything Jiang Liuyi bought was a blessing.

Song Xian said coolly, “Then the same as mine.”

While still on the phone, Jiang Liuyi stepped into the milk tea shop. She ordered two pineapple slushes and an iced coffee, then took a window seat where she had a clear view of Man Tong’s photography studio across the street. After sitting down, she ended the call and glanced at her phone—there was a new message from Lin Qiushui, about the collaboration with Yu Bai.

Lin Qiushui had brought it up a while ago: Yu Bai was holding an art exhibition and wanted her to compose a piece to accompany it as background music. 

Lin Qiushui had said, “Yiyi, if not for her, then at least for me. Yu Bai helped you a lot back then. Remember when your father got drunk and came after you? She took the hit for you and ended up in the hospital for over a week. Later, she also stepped in to help with things at the company. Now she’s asking about a collaboration—I really couldn’t bring myself to say no.”

Jiang Liuyi had stayed silent for a long time before finally replying, “If you accept it, I’ll only handle it professionally.”

Lin Qiushui had said, “Professionally is fine.”

Now Lin Qiushui was asking when she’d be free—she wanted to set up a brief meeting.

Jiang Liuyi glanced at the time and replied, “Let’s talk about it later.”

Lin Qiushui asked, “Got plans this afternoon?”

Jiang Liuyi: “With my wife.”

Lin Qiushui glanced sideways at Yu Bai, who was standing by the window on a call. She felt a twinge of awkwardness before replying, a few seconds later, “That’s nice.”

Just as Jiang Liuyi read the message, she saw Song Xian emerging from the parking lot. Picking up the three chilled drinks she’d ordered, she headed over to meet her. Around the corner, Yu Cai was still on the phone with Yu Bai. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught a familiar figure slipping past the entrance to Man Tong’s studio.

She frowned, rubbed her eyes, thinking maybe she’d imagined it.

Was that… Jiang Liuyi who just went in?