“Did you file a leave request?” the editor-in-chief said. “Without a leave request, that’s unauthorized absence. Three of those and you’re fired outright. Besides, you don’t know anything and can’t do anything. Why are you even in the magazine department? Do we look like a garbage dump?”
Liang Shi: “…”
“Editor-in-Chief.” Liang Shi frowned, about to push back, when the person next to her tugged at her sleeve, signaling her to stay quiet and not butt heads with the boss.
But just those two words set the editor-in-chief off. “What? Think I said something wrong? If you don’t want to stay in the magazine department, transfer to another one, and you won’t have to listen to my unpleasant words. Even if you’re the group CEO’s daughter, if you don’t work hard in the magazine department, you’re out on your ass!”
Liang Shi: “…”
Her patience had reached its breaking point.
She’d worked in the professional world before. When she was young and fresh out of school, she’d endured every kind of terrible situation.
But those were about grueling workloads or senior colleagues conspiring to make her life miserable, making her fetch coffee and drinks and run errands.
Once she grew up and changed positions, she’d learned to stand up for herself and hadn’t been publicly named and screamed at like this since.
It was obvious this leader was using work as a pretext to vent her own frustrations.
Liang Shi had always despised people like that.
The colleague next to her meant well, and besides, it was Liang Shi’s first day and her own conduct had been slightly questionable.
In a moment of panic, not knowing who to ask for leave, she’d just slipped out, assuming she could make it back before work resumed.
So she took a deep breath and held it in.
But then the editor-in-chief said, “I just asked you a question. What’s your take on this issue of magazine topics? Are you deaf? Can’t you hear me? If that’s your attitude, then get out now. The magazine department doesn’t keep dead weight.”
Liang Shi: “…”
She fixed her gaze on the editor-in-chief. The woman, just past forty, had her hair slicked back, thin lips, and an acid tongue.
“What? Don’t like it?” The editor-in-chief scoffed. “I thought you were supposed to be so talented, waltzing into Dongheng with that fake diploma. And this is it? What’s wrong with me criticizing someone who knows nothing? If you don’t understand, learn. Don’t play hooky on day one.”
“First.” Liang Shi couldn’t hold back. She stood taller than everyone in the room, her gaze sweeping coolly over the crowd. Her voice was calm and level, yet carried a natural air of authority. “I apologize for leaving today without filing a leave request. I’m new here and didn’t have that awareness. That’s on me.”
“Second, apart from that, I don’t see what I’ve done wrong. Whatever my credentials are, the fact that I’ve made it into Dongheng and into this department must mean I have something to offer. As a leader, shouldn’t you be identifying new employees’ strengths and putting them to use for your team? I’m fluent in foreign languages, proficient in Photoshop, and capable of accompanying interviews, writing interview pieces, and assisting with photography. You never asked me anything and dismissed me outright based on my diploma. Isn’t that rather shortsighted of you?”
Everyone exchanged glances, trembling inwardly.
Their eyes all said the same thing: The new girl is taking on the editor-in-chief already?
They actually thought the editor-in-chief was being a bit dense.
A newcomer parachuted in was obviously connected to someone. Just assign her a desk and some menial tasks. Keep her around at minimal cost, no big deal. Instead, the woman had to make a public scene and go out of her way to target the girl. Really low.
Sooner or later, she was going to hit a wall.
Those in the know, however, could understand. This editor-in-chief’s previous magazine had parachuted in a new editor-in-chief, bumping her down to deputy. So after jumping ship to Dongheng, she especially loathed people with connections and parachute hires.
On top of that, at such a critical juncture, she’d been on edge for days, just needing an outlet.
The new girl had walked straight into the crossfire.
It would be interesting to see who won.
The editor-in-chief’s eyes went wide. “Shortsighted? I’ve been in magazines for nearly twenty years. My eye for people has always been sharp. Do I need a newbie to teach me how to do my job?”
“Then why haven’t you been able to settle on a topic?” Liang Shi countered lightly.
Her expression remained even throughout. The look she leveled at the editor-in-chief held a touch of coldness, yet wasn’t overtly aggressive. Even so, her presence was unmistakable. “As the editor-in-chief, shouldn’t your responsibility be to coordinate? As far as I know, the planning team presented you with five topics, and you rejected every single one. But the reasons you gave were ‘nothing new,’ ‘been done before,’ ‘not good.’ You never specified what wasn’t good. You just demanded everyone keep revising, keep changing, without even offering a single direction for adjustment. Are you sure you’ve thought this through? Have you respected your planning colleagues’ creativity? At this rate, the magazine could be going to print and you still wouldn’t have a topic settled. The pages will run blank.”
Everyone in the room gasped.
They all looked at Liang Shi with admiration, their eyes saying just one word: Warrior.
Finally, someone had said what they’d been too afraid to say for days!
“What kind of nonsense is that!” the editor-in-chief exploded. “If you’re so capable, you come up with the topics then?! The topics they brought were garbage to begin with. They showed zero professionalism. At this rate, the magazine running out of content is inevitable. But what does that have to do with me? You’re all incompetent! The planning team can’t produce topics, the editorial team’s articles are a mess, and the advertising team, backed by Dongheng, can’t even land ads that match our magazine’s vision. This kind of magazine is bound to fail, because the staff can’t deliver!”
Everyone’s face changed.
She was literally cursing them all to their faces.
But for the sake of the Dongheng name, for the high salaries here, no one dared speak up.
Right now, whoever opened their mouth would be the nail that stuck out and would surely get hammered down.
So all eyes turned to Liang Shi, waiting to see if the new girl dared to keep pushing.
Hearing the editor-in-chief’s words, Liang Shi smiled.
“What the hell are you laughing at!” the editor-in-chief snarled.
Calmly, Liang Shi said, “I’m laughing at you.”
Editor-in-Chief: “…”
In the tense atmosphere, someone accidentally let out a laugh.
Then several others caught Liang Shi’s deadpan joke and pressed their hands over their mouths, giggling softly.
The editor-in-chief’s sharp gaze swept over them, and they all fell silent at once.
Liang Shi said, “Do you know what your behavior looks like right now?”
She spoke each word deliberately: “Impotent. Rage.”
“You’ve pushed all the blame onto your subordinates and cast yourself as the innocent party. But you were the one who rejected every proposal. You’re not even part of this magazine’s target demographic, yet you’re making authoritarian judgments based on your own taste. How could you possibly select the right topic? You couldn’t even run this magazine properly. I think the person who should leave the magazine department is you.” Liang Shi smiled, a hint of charm in it.
“You!” the editor-in-chief sputtered. “You’re just a new—”
Before she could finish, Liang Shi cut her off. “Yes, I’m new. But I know that a leader should listen to diverse opinions, observe more, and respect others’ work. If you were truly a competent leader, even if your subordinates handed you a pile of garbage, you could make it shine again. Instead, you’re here putting your subordinates down and elevating yourself by attacking others. Do you deserve to be a leader? What are your skills, exactly? Screaming at people? Or using the new girl as a punching bag for your anger?”
She asked in a level voice, but the editor-in-chief’s expression shifted at her words, teeth grinding as she glared.
“I’ve worked in this industry for nearly twenty years. Do I need some greenhorn outsider to tell me what to do? Do you understand magazines? Do you know how to make a magazine?”
“In 1867, America published the first fashion magazine, Harper’s Bazaar, the world’s earliest women’s fashion publication. It focused on clothing at first, then gradually expanded into beauty, leisure, jewelry, and other fields. Mainland China published its first fashion magazine, Fashion, in 1980. By the twenty-first century, print media entered its golden age. But with advancing technology, print rose and fell in less than thirty years. Now numerous print publications have shut down. We’ve entered the new media era, where digital magazines circulate far more than print. So what conventions are you still clinging to? Do you think making a magazine is just about having ideals?” Liang Shi said it all without a trace of emotion, then turned the question back on her.
She hadn’t known that much about magazines before, only what she’d picked up from being in the industry. But before starting at Dongheng, she’d done her homework, studying the history of magazines and the challenges they currently faced, and she’d formed her own thoughts.
Now she laid them out.
“Haiwei Jewelry launched its own publication in short order and became a top-tier industry magazine. Do you think their editor-in-chief got there by constantly crushing their subordinates and making them stay up all night revising topics?” Liang Shi continued.
“Yes, maybe you were once an excellent magazine professional. But the times are changing. You want traffic, readership, sales, and the idealism of a magazine person. Shouldn’t you be balancing all that yourself? If you can’t and you push everything onto your subordinates, what’s the point of having you as editor-in-chief? So you can collect a paycheck while screaming at people? Is this Dongheng’s working environment?”
Her string of rhetorical questions left the editor-in-chief speechless.
The floor was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
Furious, the editor-in-chief hurled a stack of A4 paper at her. Liang Shi dodged smoothly without a change in expression.
The pages fluttered down like snow, scattering across the floor.
Liang Shi looked at her and continued. “Also, if I had magazine experience, I’d have replaced you directly. I would have parachuted in as head of the magazine department instead of settling for a small clerk position.”
“Hah.” The editor-in-chief cursed, “Then you’re nothing but a goddamn nepotism hire! What’s there to be proud of? If you’re so great, push me out. What’s all this hot air for? If you can’t back it up, get back to work. You think strutting in here makes you look impressive? If you were the CEO’s daughter, why didn’t you parachute straight into the CEO’s office!”
“I came to the magazine department voluntarily,” Liang Shi said. “But I’m here to work, not to be personally attacked. I believe every colleague here feels the same. We all have self-respect and can accept criticism. But I want you to understand: criticism and verbal abuse are not the same thing. As a leader, you have no right to attack your subordinates. You’re violating the dignity of every person in this room.”
