The next day, in the office of the Head of Drama Purchasing at the Penguin Innovation Building.
"Big Brother, if Mom and Dad scold me when we get home later, you have to put in a good word for me. Your little sister won't forget your kindness!" Gong Yan pleaded pitifully.
Gong Cheng glanced at his sister. "Forget Mom and Dad—I'm the one who wants to scold you!"
Gong Yan was Gong Cheng's younger sister. After graduating from college, and under intense pressure from their parents, she had gone to great lengths to pass the civil service exam and land a secure job at the Administration for Industry and Commerce. She had become a proud public servant.
But no one had expected her to quit after just four months, claiming that life there wasn't what she wanted. Now that their parents had heard the news, they had given her an ultimatum: she had to go home tonight and face the music!
Feeling guilty, Gong Yan had run to her brother's workplace. There was no way she dared go home alone right now. Her big brother had always been her rock, ever since they were children. She hoped he'd come through for her this time, too!
"Go home first. I can't help you with this. You were way too impulsive this time. How many people would kill for a civil service job in the capital? You just quit without even discussing it with the family. If you weren't my sister—if you were my younger brother—I'd take a belt to you!" Gong Cheng said irritably.
Gong Yan protested, "You don't understand, Big Brother. The office politics were so complicated, and the atmosphere was incredibly oppressive. If I'd stayed there much longer, wouldn't you be worried your little sister might get depressed?"
Gong