Chapter 21

"Though I don't know what you're trying to do... I do have someone to recommend. You might not be able to stand her personality, though."

"Who?"

"...Vill-V."

Volume One: Ling: Fuck It, I'm Going All Out with You!

The next day.

The moment Ling got up, she noticed her older sister looking dazed and sluggish, with faint dark circles beneath her eyes.

She hopped in front of her sister and gently touched Sakura's forehead.

"Are you okay, Sis?"

Not very. Both Elysia and her little brother were poisonous. Yesterday, she had merely sent a little report on her phone.

Then An Yu had solo-killed her in her dream that night. He really was his sister's brother—revenge never waited overnight.

"Ling..."

Sakura's voice was especially hoarse. She hurriedly took a sip of water to moisten her throat.

"I'm fine. I just had a nightmare."

Ling carefully studied her sister's expression before decisively saying, "I'm not going to work today. I'll stay home with you."

"Don't be ridiculous." Sakura gently shook her head. "You just found this job. How can you take leave on your first day?"

You got hired through connections. Did I pull those strings for nothing?

Ahem. Sakura paused, then casually asked, "By the way, is An Yu... at your company too?"

Ling instinctively recalled the man from yesterday, her eyes carrying a hint of contentment. Thinking that she could slack off and look at handsome guys while working in the future made her job seem a little more promising.

"Don't get too close to him."

Sakura's voice suddenly turned serious.

Ling tilted her head. "Why?"

She thought her senior was quite nice. At the very least, he had told her who the boss was. Otherwise, she might have been given a hard time before even starting work.

Sakura hesitated for a moment. "...He used to be my coworker. He's very petty."

Elysia was too, though Elysia's pettiness came off more like the innocent liveliness of a young girl—more like acting spoiled.

Ling blinked furiously. Petty? That kind of gossip-filled description only made her more curious.

Sakura flicked Ling's forehead and offered no further explanation.

"Go to work already. You'll be late."

After all... this was just company gossip she had heard. She and An Yu were not close, even though they had indeed worked at the same company in the past.

An Yu really was not exactly clean, but there was nothing much to criticize about that. Back when Reson Studio had not gone independent, it had been part of Anti-Entropy—and Anti-Entropy itself was not clean either.

Anti-Entropy and Schicksal were both international organizations that had transitioned from arms dealing. It was impossible for them not to be involved in some shady business.

"I'll be careful around Senior!"

Careful when talking to Senior, careful when getting along with Senior, careful when digging up gossip!

Ling silently added in her heart.

After confirming that her sister was physically fine, Ling happily bounced off to begin her first day at work. She had even imagined countless scenarios.

For example, the handsome Senior An Yu personally showing her around, or a gentle supervisor patiently guiding her...

But—

Reality was not a novel, and the workplace was especially harsh.

"This is the new employee. Xiao Li, take this newcomer under your wing." The supervisor, his beer belly protruding, assigned the task in a flat tone.

Looking at the exhausted-looking auntie before her, Ling's heart went cold. Shouldn't Senior An Yu have been the one guiding her? Why was it some auntie?

And the supervisor's belly looked huge. Ugh, a beer belly! Not handsome or dashing at all.

"Forget it. What's done is done. Time to work!" she encouraged herself.

While slacking off at noon, Ling stood by the water dispenser, lost in melancholy.

"Having trouble adapting to the workplace?"

A familiar voice came from beside her.

An Yu crouched nearby, filling a cup with scalding water. Then he shook it so the milk tea inside would dissolve more evenly.

"Senior!"

Ling suddenly shouted.

An Yu was startled by the sudden enthusiasm. What was wrong with this girl?

Still, he flashed a refreshing smile. "I'm here. How does your first day at work feel?"

He really was feeling refreshed today. His older sister had slept in, her voice tired. After opening her door and confirming several times that she merely seemed sleepy from staying up late watching dramas and reading novels yesterday—

He ordered takeout and came to the company. Even the sky looked bright to him.

Whether his sister stayed up watching dramas or reading novels... anything was fine. As long as she had regained a bad habit she loved, that was enough.

Ling sighed. "It's not quite like I imagined."

It felt like going back to when she studied alongside her sister in university, except it was even less free than university. At university, she could stay in her dorm, lie on her bed, or even sit on her desk in whatever sprawled-out position she liked.

"Work is always like this. You'll get used to it."

After preparing his milk tea, An Yu did not plan to chat much longer. He turned and prepared to leave.

"By the way, Senior, do you know Sakura?"

Seeing An Yu turn to leave, Ling—who had intended to cautiously probe into her sister's past through work—did not have time to think any further.

Sakura? An Yu's thoughts spun rapidly. Who was Sakura? Judging from the name, she seemed to have some connection with Ling.

"I don't," An Yu said, shaking his head.

Ling puffed out one cheek. So either her sister or An Yu was definitely lying to her.

Who was it?!

"Where did your sister work before?" An Yu asked.

"Anti-Entropy."

"Oh." An Yu nodded. "No wonder you could come here right after graduation. You got in through connections too, just like me."

He instantly understood. How could a freshly graduated student possibly work here? He had also met a teacher in university, then slipped into Anti-Entropy's little circle—Tesla, and Uncle Old Yang...

Oh, and the boss too, though that was more of a friendship. They had met through street racing.

He had skipped ten years of struggle in one go!

"I did not get in through connections!!!"

An Yu's matter-of-fact tone made Ling's little face flush red, like an irritated hamster.

"I'm a fresh graduate with four years of work experience!"

"Four years of work experience!!!"

She deliberately stressed the words, repeating them again and again.

"I get it. Anyway, I don't think I got in through connections either."

An Yu shrugged.

What was wrong with getting in through connections? Do not think of work as something so lofty. As long as someone was willing to learn, nobody was useless. Getting in through connections only meant a senior had paid their tuition... except for useless people who knew nothing and were unwilling to learn.

Ling puffed up both cheeks, looking as though she were about to fight An Yu. She had four years of work experience! Four years!!!

During those four years of university, she had not even taken one proper trip. What gave him the right to dismiss all her effort with a single sentence about getting in through connections?!

"If it wasn't through connections, why did you, a fresh graduate, choose our Reson Studio?"

An Yu became interested. He was in no hurry and simply stood there, ready to tease the young girl.

"Because my sister recommended it, and I happened to pass the interview. I have four years of work experience!!! And I'm still a fresh graduate!"

Ling gritted her teeth and emphasized it once more. She had gotten here entirely through her own excellence! Not because her sister had pulled strings!

"Why did your sister recommend this place?"

An Yu continued questioning her.

"Because Reson Studio is excellent!"

Ling answered loudly, their conversation even drawing the attention of others nearby.

An Yu chuckled, pointed toward the fire escape beside them, and headed to a spot where they would not easily be overheard.

Only after confirming that no one around was eavesdropping did An Yu slowly explain.

"I'll tell you why. Reson Studio is a subsidiary of Anti-Entropy... and Anti-Entropy is a place that values personal ties. If there isn't much difference in ability, we've always favored relatives and acquaintances when hiring."

"So even if you score eighty, you can still beat someone who scores ninety. Don't be sad, because that at least means you scored eighty."

Ling fell silent for a moment, her slender fingers clenching tightly for the sake of all her effort.

She decided to go all out against An Yu!

Volume One: Sirin?

But she could not beat him. Half a minute later, Ling sniffled with reddened eyes.

"Senior, you're not gentlemanly at all."

How awful. Her entire first impression of him had vanished completely. Her sister had not lied—An Yu had to be petty!

"Keep it up. Don't let your sister's favor go to waste."

An Yu slurped his milk tea, and the scent of Xiangpiaopiao began to spread through the corridor.

"I did not! Get in through connections!!!"

Ling emphasized it again and again, but her voice had grown much weaker.

She muttered miserably, "You're awful."

An Yu did not continue the conversation. His phone chimed, and after checking it, he saw that the boss had asked him to go downstairs and pick up a package. He casually replied with an okay.

It was an easy errand. Ling was left standing alone, stomping her foot in frustration.

The courier was right downstairs outside the company, with an angry-looking girl standing beside him. The situation seemed deadlocked.

"Hey, little girl, is this your package?" the courier asked helplessly, stopping her.

"First! I'm not a little girl! Second! This is my little sister's package, so why can't I take it?"

The girl instantly bristled like a cat whose tail had been stepped on.

An Yu glanced over, originally not intending to meddle.

But the girl before him had long gradient-colored hair hanging down to her ankles, golden eyes blazing with obvious fury. Her outfit and temperament...

"Sirin?"

What an accurate cosplayer. Should he take a photo with her and send it to the company group chat?

Wait, was this an actual person in costume?

"I didn't expect anyone here to recognize me—"

Sirin instinctively brushed aside the hair before her forehead, prepared to see who had such good judgment. But when her gaze landed on the man's face, her brief elegance instantly shattered.

"Traitor!"

Damn An Yu. But after giving him a quick once-over and seeing their difference in build, Sirin calmed down.

She should have brought Bella, Aurora... and the others with her. She could not get revenge alone.

Ah, right! Her little sister was here. Ever since she was young, she had been simple-minded and incredibly strong!