Chapter 11

◎But I Insist!◎

“What’s up, Little Yi? You look totally out of it.”

Yu You’an returned from the photo shoot buzzing with excitement. She practically skipped every two steps, humming a tune under her breath, as if she wanted the whole world to know how thrilled she was.

That elation cooled instantly when she spotted Chen Yi from afar. Half-sprawled over her desk, Chen Yi looked like a zombie shuffling through the motions.

Yu You’an was instantly concerned. “Are you feeling sick? Period cramps?”

Chen Yi shook her head. Her eyes were vacant, the striking pair that Yu You’an had admired since they first met now dull and lifeless, as if her very soul had been stolen away.

Yu You’an worried. “Stomachache?”

Chen Yi said, “No.”

Her voice was full of resentment. “My heart hurts.”

Yu You’an: “…”

It took her brain a moment to catch up.

With her razor-sharp gossip instincts, she glanced toward Xu Yan’s office.

“Does this have something to do with Chief Editor Xu?” Yu You’an ventured.

The mere mention of the name got Chen Yi fuming.

“Who else but her,” she snapped.

Yu You’an sighed inwardly.

“Little Yi,” she said, uncharacteristically serious. “Take my advice: don’t fall too hard in love.”

Getting in too deep, hanging all your emotions on one person—that was never a good sign.

Chen Yi nearly spat blood. “Who the hell loves her?!”

She wouldn’t love Xu Yan, no matter who else she fell for!

Yu You’an dismissed it as mere tsundere posturing.

She patted Chen Yi’s shoulder. Since it wasn’t time to clock in yet, she pulled up a chair beside her and, as a good friend, probed for details on what had happened.

Chen Yi hadn’t planned to spill to anyone, but with Yu You’an asking, she seized the chance to vent her frustrations.

“Is she nuts or what?” Chen Yi couldn’t wrap her head around it. “First she tells me to be her assistant, then she yanks it away.”

“What the hell does she want? Don’t our lives as office drones matter?!”

“Bosses can just flip-flop like that?!”

Yu You’an frowned. “Chief Editor Xu really shouldn’t have handled it that way.”

Chen Yi slammed the desk. “Right?!”

“And get this—she said I suddenly wasn’t suitable anymore!”

Fuming, Chen Yi snatched up her coffee cup and took a swig, only to get a mouthful of nothing but air. Yu You’an quickly cracked open a fresh bottle of mineral water and handed it over. Chen Yi took it with a thank-you, chugged a couple of gulps, and kept ranting.

Yu You’an listened for a bit before consoling her. “Little Yi, but isn’t this actually for the best? You didn’t want the assistant gig anyway.”

Chen Yi glared. “Me not wanting it is one thing—her changing her mind at the last second is another!”

The way Xu Yan treated her made Chen Yi feel like her very soul had been insulted!

Was she some kind of toy?!

Play with her when it suited, toss her aside when bored, then claim she wasn’t “suitable.”

She gritted her teeth hard. “Now I absolutely have to take that assistant job.”

Yu You’an: “…”

She truly hadn’t seen that coming.

“So what are you going to do?” Yu You’an asked.

That stumped Chen Yi.

Yeah, what was her plan? Xu Yan didn’t want her as an assistant—what could she do? Go home and tattle to Mom? No way, that was kid stuff. Chen Yi wasn’t that immature.

All she knew was that Xu Yan had never liked or respected her from the start. Fine then—she’d head straight into danger, consequences be damned.

Once she became the indispensable assistant Xu Yan couldn’t live without, she’d kick her to the curb and walk away with a smug wave. Let’s see if Xu Yan still acted all high-and-mighty then.

It was a beautiful fantasy, but reality was a harsh mistress.

Yu You’an’s question loomed large once more.

What was she going to do?

How could she make Xu Yan change her mind and take her on as assistant again?

Should she start a full-on “model employee” performance starting today?

Chen Yi pondered deeply.

Luckily, fortune favored the bold.

That very afternoon, HR dropped by with some news. Xu Yan’s previous assistant had quit, leaving only Lily as the main one, overwhelmed with work. After talking it over with Xu Yan, the company decided to pick an intern to help Lily out.

“Since this spot’s so hot, we’re doing eliminations,” HR explained. “We’ve got two newbies from layout and distribution who want in. Anyone from editorial want to throw their hat in?”

Before Chen Yi could process it, Yu You’an shoved her forward.

“Her, her, her! Chen Yi’s in!”

Chen Yi stumbled a couple steps.

HR eyed her, shock written all over her face.

“You want in?”

Chen Yi cleared her throat. “Yeah.”

“You too, You’an,” she added.

Yu You’an started to refuse.

Chen Yi whispered, “I know you idolize Xu Yan. Why not go for it? And don’t worry about me—there’s other competition anyway.”

Yu You’an got it and switched gears. “HR! Count me in too!”

HR jotted down the details on the spot, made the rounds to the other departments, and returned to Xu Yan’s office with a long list in hand.

The door clicked shut. HR slapped the list on Xu Yan’s desk and dove right in. “What’s the game with you and Chen Yi?”

Xu Yan was flipping through the photos the photography team had taken of Jiang Nanxi that day.

At the mention of Chen Yi, she tore her gaze from the screen and looked at HR.

“Hm?”

HR said, “You two are acting weird. First, I tell her to be your assistant and she balks. Then I check with you, and you say whatever. That’s basically saying you want her, right? You used to just straight-up reject people.”

Xu Yan protested, “I didn’t—”

HR waved her off. “Yeah, yeah, I know you—stubborn as ever.”

“I figured it was settled, even prepped the transfer paperwork for tomorrow’s process. Then you tell me Chen Yi’s a no-go, she doesn’t want it.”

“Fine, we pivot, I’ll pick the best from the company for you.”

“Guess what?”

HR jabbed hard at the list on the desk.

“Chen Yi signed up.”

HR smirked coldly. “You two teaming up to mess with me?”

Xu Yan blinked, then glanced at the list. Chen Yi’s name sat right there in the third row.

“She volunteered?” Xu Yan asked.

HR snorted. “What, you think I’m forcing a grown woman?”

“Xu Yan, never pegged you for caring this much about her.”

HR had jumped to conclusions, assuming Xu Yan’s special treatment stemmed from knowing Chen Yi was some big-shot heiress, just like she did. She’d always thought Xu Yan didn’t care about that sort of thing…

Who knew Xu Yan would have her day.

HR felt a touch of schadenfreude, like watching a goddess brought low.

“Here’s the deal,” HR rapped her knuckles on the desk. “Play it straight or pull strings?”

Xu Yan: “Normal process, of course.”

“Start selections tomorrow.”

She folded the list shut.

HR grinned at her. “Sure, straight-up it is.”

But deep down, she knew with Xu Yan’s attitude toward Chen Yi, things wouldn’t stay normal.

Chen Yi’s two-month internship was bound to keep her entertained.

HR wrapped up and left. Xu Yan sat in her chair, staring at the hundred-plus photos on her screen, unable to focus.

What was Chen Yi thinking?

Xu Yan couldn’t figure it out.

Hadn’t she said she hated the idea, didn’t want to be her assistant? So why sign up now?

Xu Yan lowered her gaze to her phone.

The Miracle icon sat in one corner of the screen.

Maybe that would give her a way to find out what Chen Yi was thinking.