Superior

The next day.

When Tang Yao woke up, she had a slight headache, a lingering effect of staying up late. However, after sitting by the edge of the bed for a moment, she felt better.

She was young, after all.

Tang Yao threw off the thin blanket and got out of bed, then stretched her arms upwards with a yawn.

Her already shapely, voluptuous figure became even more prominent as she stretched.

Then.

She looked at the completed short manga on the desk, a smile appearing on her face.

That was fast. She finished it in one night. Although it was a pre-existing work from her past life used for transition, this speed was clearly abnormal.

Could it be... that her drawing skills and the original owner's skills had somehow merged?

That seemed impossible.

Maybe it was just a good state?

Tang Yao tilted her head, unable to figure it out. She could only give up for the time being and glanced back at the upper bunk.

Tang Xun was long gone, her blanket neatly folded.

She walked out the door.

As expected.

Breakfast was ready.

Tang Xun had already changed into her loose school uniform and was sitting on the sofa looking at her phone. Her shoulder-length hair was tied up in a high ponytail. One had to admit... when someone is beautiful, they can get away with anything. Even this loose, old-fashioned school uniform looked exceptionally good on her, appearing youthful and full of energy.

At the same time, it didn't look overly childish.

After all, the two were sisters.

Like her own sister, she was very tall and had a great figure, with curves that were completely adult-like.

"..."

Meanwhile.

Hearing footsteps, Tang Xun put down her phone. She first looked up at her sister with a strange expression, then immediately stood up and walked in front of Tang Yao, reaching out to wipe away the faint traces at the corner of her eyes. "Hurry up and wash up. I'll do your makeup, and then we'll head to school."

"Eh... you should go to school first."

Tang Yao's expression stiffened. She politely declined, "I'm not used to it."

"..."

Tang Xun looked at her sister. Although it wasn't obvious, her expression seemed to ask, 'What are you talking about?'

"I've given up. Your sister's only goal now is to make money, understand?"

Tang Yao's face flushed as her sister stared at her. She knew that the sudden change was difficult to explain, so she could only force out an explanation, pat her sister's shoulder, and then turn and run towards the bathroom as if fleeing.

Tang Xun watched her sister's retreating back, then turned to look back at the bedroom. She thought about what she had seen that morning, the manga drafts on the desk, and the strange, extremely impactful drawings of heads... balloons. She pursed her lips lightly.

Was she really under too much pressure?

Meanwhile.

After Tang Yao finished washing up and changed her clothes, she stood in front of the bathroom mirror, looking at the fair and delicate face reflected there with some helplessness.

While human adaptability was beyond her comprehension.

She still had some principles she adhered to...

It was just that these principles were difficult to explain.

Troublesome.

It even felt more troublesome than taking a bath, as she was already used to bathing...

But it seemed she would have to get used to the latter as well.

After all, the initial phase of questioning life was over, and now it was time to face reality...

What else could she do?

Run out to the street and throw a tantrum at the heavens, begging them to send her back?

That wasn't realistic.

Moreover...

Tang Yao gently covered her heart. She truly only wanted to make money now, because as soon as she got home and faced that girl outside, the strong desire to make her life better couldn't be suppressed at all.

In fact, it couldn't be suppressed from the moment she arrived, otherwise, she wouldn't have been able to move on so quickly.

A kind of residual effect?

...It didn't matter.

"Anyway, whether I have a sister or not, I need to make money. It would be too strange to be poor and destitute after getting a second chance at life, right!"

Tang Yao pressed her chest slightly, as if making a firm resolution, and muttered to herself. Then, her tone shifted, and she looked down at her chest. "Hey, why does it feel a bit tight? Do I need to buy a larger size... Pfft!"

Bah!

What was I thinking, letting my mind wander like that!

Money! Money! Money!

Don't get any big ideas!

Tang Yao lowered her hand and patted her cheeks forcefully. After tidying up her thoughts, she walked out of the bathroom and returned to the living room.

Tang Xun didn't force her to put on makeup, only occasionally looking up at her sister with a strange gaze.

Tang Yao pretended not to see it.

After breakfast and cleaning up the mess.

Tang Xun went to school, while Tang Yao took a deep breath and opened the door to leave home… but before she left, she thought about it and returned to her room to find a kraft envelope, bringing the original manuscript with her.

Ten AM.

Wenxin Hall.

The big comic Editorial Department.

If yesterday the editorial department was deserted, today it was a madhouse.

Because the editor-in-chief was back.

And the printing deadline for this week's magazine was also approaching.

"Qiao Yunming! Is that collaborative manga still not ready? How many times have I told you!? It's important! That's very important! If you want big comic to go bankrupt and get yourself fired, just say so!"

"Coming, coming, the manga artist ran into some issues with the storyboards…"

"Deal with it immediately! I must see the original manuscript this week! Absolutely!"

"……"

As Tang Yao entered, she heard the familiar roar.

At the editor-in-chief's position in front of all the workstations, a man in his early forties, wearing glasses, with extremely prominent eye bags, and looking somewhat hungover, was roaring.

In front of him, a man in his thirties was sweating profusely, constantly explaining something.

The former was the editor-in-chief of big comic, Ding Yilong.

Although Tang Yao didn't really want to say it, that saying—every boss is incompetent, otherwise they wouldn't need subordinates; subordinates are there to do the work their bosses don't understand.

But unfortunately, the boss in front of her was indeed incompetent.

It wasn't that he didn't understand anything, but he was more skilled in administrative work… Of course, most editors in the editorial department preferred to call him a master of drinking parties, a tool for flattering superiors, and a ruthless report robot.

Perhaps he had other shining points that his subordinates hadn't discovered, but considering his terrible personality, no one was interested.

And clearly.

His mood was very bad right now.

Because the sales of big comic had been declining recently. The objective reason was the impact of the Internet, especially the rise of the mobile internet… On the other hand, it was because the quality of the magazine's recent serialized works had been continuously dropping.

The former, Editor Ding, was powerless to solve the first problem, so he could only focus on the latter.

His solution was to deal with the editors who liaised with the manga artists.

After all, in a way, he was a pure person. He wasn't interested in manga. Although he could understand storyboards, stories, dreams, and the future of manga artists, none of it mattered.

All he cared about was sales. As long as the magazine's sales were good and the reports looked good, allowing him to account for himself, he was easier to deal with than anyone.

However, if sales were bad, the reports looked bad, and the responsibility fell on him, then he became the nightmare of the entire editorial department.

And clearly, the current situation was the latter. Perhaps he had been reprimanded by his superiors in yesterday's meeting.

That's why his expression was so foul today.

Also.

Tang Yao saw an unexpected person, Kang Ming, the young, balding man she had hosted yesterday.

He was currently standing not far from the editor-in-chief's desk, standing like a lackey.

Because the editor-in-chief was too busy yelling at the editors.

At the same time, Kang Ming heard footsteps and turned his head slightly. Upon seeing the angel-like girl from yesterday, his eyes suddenly lit up.

However.

Before he could feel a little relieved.

On the other side.

"Tang Yao!"

The editor-in-chief's roar sounded again.

Tang Yao walked over expressionlessly, passed Kang Ming, and stood on the other side.

The other editors cast sympathetic glances at her.

"Where's Shao Changqing's manuscript?"

Ding Yilong looked at the pretty, expressionless girl standing before him, anger surging in his eyes. "The deadline is almost here. Don't let it be a chaotic mess like last time. You should know I have no interest in playing growing-up games with you! If you can handle it, bring me the manuscript! If you can't, just leave. I don't know why HR assigned you to the male magazine editorial team, but I'm not HR. This is your last chance..."

"Editor-in-chief, allow me to state a few things first."

Tang Yao took a deep breath and calmly interrupted. "First, I don't know how HR made the assignment, and I have no right to inquire. Please don't act like I have connections. Second, I already urged him yesterday, and as expected, I'll be going out again later to urge him. I'll do my best to retrieve the manuscript. Even if I can't, I've prepared alternatives. What happened last time won't happen again, please rest assured.

Third, editor-in-chief, I should have mentioned Teacher Shao's issue to you. I request that you inform the relevant department to stop scheduling so many miscellaneous signing events and activities for him. He's already the type who likes to mingle everywhere, but you said we need him to fully leverage his visual appeal... I implore you not to forget that the essence of a Manga Artist is to draw manga, not to run around for sales events, yet you say sales are the most important part.

He also complained to me yesterday about having too many events!"

Seeing Tang Yao explain things so methodically, Ding Yilong didn't calm down. Instead, the anger in his eyes became even more apparent, perhaps because he felt his authority was challenged, or for some other reason. "Are you questioning me? Or is this my problem!?"

"I wouldn't dare. I'll go urge him again later."

Tang Yao shook her head and continued, "Comparatively, I think the editor-in-chief should pay more attention to Teacher Ou Congquan. He's currently drawing completely erratically and completely ignoring my opinions. I suggest you contact him personally..."

BANG--

Before she could finish speaking.

Ding Yilong slammed his hand on the table, startling Kang Ming and directly cutting off Tang Yao's words. He seemed to have finally lost his temper and roared, "I was about to bring that up! And you beat me to it! Teacher Ou complained to me yesterday! Said you've been harassing him, completely clueless yet bossing him around! I told you to solve Shao Changqing's problem! Teacher Ou is just a side issue! A stepping stone for you! And you can't even get the basics right! You're useless!

There are problems with Teacher Ou's drawings! Are you saying you understand manga better than him!? Do you know which work has the highest sales for Big Comic? Do you know the impact of Girl, Boy, and Sword going on hiatus for a week?"

Tang Yao was slightly taken aback, then took a deep breath. "Editor-in-chief, have you... actually read Ou Congquan's work?"

"The issue isn't whether I've read it! It's me asking you! Do you understand manga better than Teacher Ou!?"

"..."

Tang Yao stared at the furious editor-in-chief before her, her chest rising and falling slightly. She decided to shut her mouth and say no more.

Useless sales robot!

Just you wait!

"Self-important! Nothing more to say, is that it!?"

On the other side, Ding Yilong's anger intensified. "From now on, you are forbidden from visiting Teacher Ou! You only need to deal with Shao Changqing! I'll consider assigning him to someone else later, and about the manga award..."

Before he could finish, Tang Yao interjected, "Teacher Tang, who agreed to contribute to the manga award, replied yesterday that he had to decline due to too much work."

Ding Yilong's eyes widened, veins bulging on his forehead. "What--

"But I've contacted a very talented Manga Artist. I've already reviewed their work."

Tang Yao, not letting him continue his outburst, added, "I think it's even better than Teacher Tang's work. I'll give it to you for review later."