Lu Yuezhi very much liked Xiao Luyan’s occasional “little tantrums” that differed from her usual demeanor. They brought out more subtle and authentic emotions. This made her feel that Xiao Luyan was no longer the bright moon hanging high in the sky from the past, but rather real, tangible human warmth.
That night, the leaders from the Cultural Heritage Bureau had indeed taken turns pulling her aside to chat quite a bit. Many topics involved Deyounian, and Lu Yuezhi could tell their intentions weren’t really directed at her.
Seeing Xiao Luyan’s sleepy appearance, she completely lost the urge to share. Those conversations could be recounted anytime and weren’t that important.
Yet she was reluctant to leave right away. It had been a long time since they had been able to spend such quiet time alone together. Even if she was about to fall asleep, Lu Yuezhi still thought Xiao Luyan looked so beautiful.
Xiao Luyan had thought she would talk about some social pleasantries. She could roughly guess what topics those kinds of interactions would cover, but she still wanted to hear Lu Yuezhi say a few words.
The content didn’t matter; it was just a habit to listen to her chatter. Or perhaps, it was simply a desire to keep this person around a little longer.
Xiao Luyan realized what she was thinking and pursed her lips.
Unexpectedly, Lu Yuezhi said nothing more and kept urging her to go to sleep. Xiao Luyan stared at her fixedly for a moment, seeing only the usual smile.
She felt a bit annoyed but couldn’t think of anything else to say, so Xiao Luyan slowly closed her eyes.
She had thought that once she closed her eyes, Lu Yuezhi would leave. But the weight pressing on the edge of the bed didn’t change for a long time.
She was still there.
Xiao Luyan inexplicably felt happy for a moment and couldn’t help but open her eyes again. She wanted to ask why she wasn’t leaving, but instead, she accidentally got burned.
The infatuation in Lu Yuezhi’s eyes was much more obvious than before, as if she only dared to let loose once she thought Xiao Luyan couldn’t see. That gaze, practically nailed to her face, sparked fireworks everywhere it passed, just like the warmth of her palm.
Lu Yuezhi hadn’t expected Xiao Luyan to counterattack out of nowhere and hadn’t had time to hide it.
She felt a bit shy and slightly averted her eyes. “Go to sleep. Good night.”
In truth, besides good night, she really wanted to kiss Xiao Luyan on the forehead. But doing that out of nowhere would probably get her kicked out, right?
She reined in her thoughts, not letting her little ideas slip out through her eyes. She thought again that Xiao Luyan was sleepy now and definitely wouldn’t notice.
As she comforted herself, she suddenly heard a soft laugh, as if her thoughts had been instantly seen through.
Lu Yuezhi looked up and saw Xiao Luyan with her lips slightly curved, watching her with a half-smile.
She swallowed and reluctantly said it again: “Luyan, good night.”
Only then did Xiao Luyan close her eyes again. “Good night.”
Lu Yuezhi tucked the blanket tightly around her and quietly retreated, closing the door without making much noise.
The room fell into complete silence, but Xiao Luyan chuckled softly.
She leisurely turned over and wrapped the blanket tighter around herself. She was still sleepy, but it felt like her veins had been infused with abundant energy.
She slept soundly through the night. The next day, when Xiao Luyan woke up, she felt full of energy—not at all like someone who had been working overtime continuously for a long time. But she didn’t have much time to properly thank the person who had provided her with that energy boost; she had to rush off to Deyounian again.
Lu Yuezhi had received an email from Trans the night before, learning that he had already rushed back to Sea City but wouldn’t have time to meet recently. She immediately knew it must be because the project issues hadn’t been resolved yet, which made her even more worried.
Trans had also asked her some ideas about shooting cultural artifacts, mainly following up on the topics they had discussed last time. She had thought there would be no follow-up after that exchange, but unexpectedly, Trans brought it up again.
After discussing it, there was no further response, so she couldn’t guess why Trans had raised those topics. She wondered if perhaps he wanted to help Su Yiqui find some inspiration.
Though that made her a bit uncomfortable, the thought of being able to help alleviate Xiao Luyan’s difficulties made Lu Yuezhi not mind too much. If her perspectives and ideas could help Su Yiqui find a breakthrough, it might greatly reduce Xiao Luyan’s pressure.
Still, she couldn’t help but ask one more time: “Luyan, is there anything you need my help with?”
Xiao Luyan was about to put on her coat and turned to look at her, her expression quite serious.
Lu Yuezhi smiled. “Anything in life or work is fine.”
After thinking for a moment, Xiao Luyan surprisingly said, “If there is, I’ll tell you.”
Unlike her past clear rejections, this time she left some room. Lu Yuezhi knew she wasn’t just saying it to brush her off, and she felt happy inside.
Today’s communication meeting would also be attended by Trans. Relaying messages through Su Yiqui was no longer suitable for the current urgent situation.
Xiao Luyan had no time for small talk with Trans and got straight to the point. “This opportunity is extremely crucial. If we still can’t satisfy Madam Li, it will very likely be formally rejected.”
At that point, the nature of the matter would be completely different.
Su Yiqui’s expression was grave, and she didn’t look optimistic.
Trans was already aware of the current situation and knew how difficult it was. But he remained much calmer than the others. “Let’s first see Madam Li’s attitude. If it still doesn’t work…”
Everyone looked at him.
“Then we’ll have to scrap everything and abandon the original concept.”
This meant that all of Su Yiqui’s previous work would be completely negated—not just a waste of time, but also a blow to her face.
But Trans didn’t care about that; his focus was entirely on the creative results.
“Send it out as soon as possible. Don’t waste time waiting and speculating.”
After the email was sent, the entire project team fell into a silent wait.
No one knew how long they would have to wait, and they feared the feedback wouldn’t meet expectations. The one under the most pressure was undoubtedly Xiao Luyan. Aside from meetings and necessary communication, she barely spoke, lost in deep thought.
Three days later, Madam Li’s opinion finally arrived.
When Su Yiqui saw the email, her brows furrowed instantly.
“President Xiao, what do we do next?”
Xiao Luyan’s expression was even worse. This time, it was a formal rejection. In other words, Madam Li had fundamentally rejected their previous creative direction.
No one had the mind to feel down right now; hurriedly adjusting their ideas was the key. But what exactly would count as innovative? For the first time, Xiao Luyan felt at a complete loss and instinctively thought of Lu Yuezhi.
This was an area she wasn’t proficient in, especially the creative process, where she couldn’t compare to top photographers. Although Su Yiqui was talented, she had hit a creative bottleneck. Perhaps some fresh blood could bring new inspiration.
Trans spoke first. “Since the previous style was wrong, it means our original concept direction was mistaken.”
He looked at his prized disciple. “Sue, do you have any new ideas?”
Su Yiqui admitted frankly, “Not at the moment.”
She had ideas, but most were adjustments and improvements based on the original direction. Coming up with a completely different style wasn’t something she could do on the spot.
Upon hearing this, Xiao Luyan’s thoughts gradually took shape.
How about letting Lu Yuezhi give it a try?
Su Yiqui’s plan had already been completely rejected anyway, and there was no better replacement in the short term. It was a last-resort gamble; whatever results Lu Yuezhi produced wouldn’t carry much pressure.
Trans suddenly said, “President Xiao, I have a candidate I’d like to recommend.”
Xiao Luyan’s heart tightened, and River’s name jumped into her mind. If this opportunity was snatched by River first, then Lu Yuezhi would fall behind.
She smiled faintly. “Who is it?”
Trans’s eyes showed appreciation. “A young photographer from my studio. We’ve collaborated for a few years, and her skills are very good. This year, we upgraded our partnership, and recently she’s had many novel ideas about shooting cultural artifacts. I think she could give it a try.”
If Su Yiqui’s plan hadn’t been entirely scrapped, Trans wouldn’t have considered parachuting River into the project. But with no way out now, they had to try everything.
It really was River. Xiao Luyan knew Trans’s recommendation wasn’t made lightly. For her to be put forward at this time meant her abilities were definitely solid.
But…
Trans thought she was hesitating and added, “Conveniently, she’s also in Sea City, so timing won’t be an issue at all.”
Xiao Luyan was startled. “She’s from Sea City too?”
This made it even worse! This person even shared the same background as Lu Yuezhi; in the future, probably only one of them could come out on top.
“I don’t object.” Xiao Luyan considered for a moment. “But I also have a candidate to recommend.”
This wasn’t the best time for competing to push people in and grab credit; anyone recommended now was expected to save the day. Trans was naturally interested. “Who?”
“Lu Yuezhi.”
As soon as Xiao Luyan said it, many people’s expressions changed slightly.
Everyone at Deyounian knew about Lu Yuezhi’s relationship with her. For Xiao Luyan to openly recommend her own newlywed wife to the project went against her usual style.
Xiao Luyan had always kept work and personal life strictly separate and disliked nepotism. She herself hated relying on family connections, yet now she was blatantly pulling Lu Yuezhi in.
Trans paused. “Lu Yuezhi?”
Xiao Luyan generously admitted, “She’s a photographer and my wife.”
Then, Xiao Luyan briefly introduced Lu Yuezhi’s professional background, including her studio and the Cultural Heritage Bureau project she had participated in.
It sounded impressive, but insiders knew her actual achievements were quite limited.
Especially the photography team members, who had mostly worked on major projects with Su Yiqui. Compared to them, this Lu Yuezhi truly had no proven track record worth trusting.
Trans showed no disdain but didn’t agree immediately either. “For such an important project at such a critical moment, isn’t letting her join too risky?”
Xiao Luyan didn’t want to miss this opportunity easily. She did have selfish motives and didn’t want Lu Yuezhi to lose her chance. But it wasn’t entirely selfishness; she had seen Lu Yuezhi’s works and witnessed firsthand her insights into shooting cultural artifacts. She believed Lu Yuezhi had the talent for it.
“We’ve indeed reached a point where we don’t have many options left,” Xiao Luyan said with a calm smile. “Of course, we need more talented people to show what they can do.”
Trans turned to Su Yiqui. “What’s your opinion?”
Whether it was River or Lu Yuezhi, having either come to the rescue would be a silent blow to Su Yiqui. But River was at least from the studio, so if they needed to save face later, it could barely be framed as a team effort.
Lu Yuezhi was different. She had no fame and was Xiao Luyan’s person. If she succeeded, the implications would be entirely different.
Xiao Luyan was also pondering how to persuade her if Su Yiqui disagreed.
Su Yiqui wasn’t easy to deal with and had a bit of arrogance from her talent. But she did have real ability; it was just bad luck that she hadn’t won Madam Li’s favor this time.
Xiao Luyan had prepared in advance. No matter what Su Yiqui said, she would fight with all her might to secure this opportunity for Lu Yuezhi.
Regardless of how Lu Yuezhi ultimately performed, she at least needed to get a seat at the table.
Moreover, Lu Yuezhi had recently kept asking if there was anything she could help with. If she knew about this chance, she would definitely be thrilled.
Thinking of those eyes that always watched her attentively, Xiao Luyan felt a warmth in her heart.
Her lips curved slightly as she prepared to face Su Yiqui’s rejection.
Unexpectedly, Su Yiqui just sighed. “I don’t object.”
