When the Heartthrob Meets the Cold-Hearted Ex - Chapter 2

As night fell, the lights still blazed brightly atop the tallest office building in City C.

Xu You, the lead artist, finished her draft and headed straight to the boss’s office, laptop in hand.

“Boss, the spring outing special outfits are ready. Please take a look.”

Su Yang sat behind a sleek black desk, its vast surface making her appear even more slender. Under the studio lights, her shadow stretched long, adding a touch of fragile beauty.

She took the laptop, examined the screen for a moment, and nodded in approval of her lead artist’s work. But before Xu You could relax, Su Yang tapped the character’s headpiece on the screen.

“Add a bit more shimmer effect here.”

Xu You clenched her jaw, pulled the laptop back, and immediately started adjusting while muttering under her breath.

“What kind of bizarre taste is this? Our game is supposed to be traditional Chinese-themed, yet we have to make everything so bling-bling every single time? And the players just eat it up.”

As the second-largest shareholder of Qianhe, she was the only one bold enough to complain to the boss’s face.

Su Yang remained unfazed. Her gaze drifted over the words “vibrant and dazzling” on the official website before zoning out briefly.

Meanwhile, Xu You worked swiftly, her fingers flying across the keyboard, her mouth still running.

“Oh, by the way, we’ve received several more interview requests from media outlets. Still rejecting all of them?”

The screen dimmed into standby mode. Su Yang tapped the keyboard without looking up. “All rejected.”

Her calmness only made Xu You more anxious. “Look, since Tangtang launched, we’ve turned down over twenty media requests five just this month. Some might say you’re keeping a low profile, biding your time. Others will call you arrogant, burning bridges left and right. What if?”

“There are no permanent friends, only permanent interests.” Su Yang’s words cut Xu You’s rant short.

Xu You laughed in exasperation. “Do you charge by the word or something?”

[Do you talk so little because you’re billed per word?]

The remark seemed to flick a switch, softening Su Yang’s usually indifferent expression.

“Send a spring gift set from Tangtang to every media contact who reached out. Tell them we’ll collaborate when the opportunity arises. And you’ve been working hard lately. Besides the year-end bonus, I’ll give you an extra performance package.”

The sudden shift left Xu You momentarily stunned. Though she grumbled, “As if I needed you to tell me, it’s already done. Why does an artist have to handle so much?”

Inside, she was overjoyed: Well, since Boss Su actually strung more than five words together today, I’ll handle that magazine visit tomorrow myself.

When Xu You entered the meeting room, Tang Yeran was lounging casually at the far end of the table, posture relaxed yet upright. His light brown hair was neatly tied back, save for a few stray strands playfully brushing against his fair neck and ears, giving him a soft, harmless aura.

It made Xu You feel slightly guilty about what she was about to say until she realized there was no reason to feel guilty at all.

“Yi Feng,” as one of the largest magazines in the country, may have missed this collaboration opportunity, but having its second-in-command personally deliver the rejection was already giving the other party considerable face.

“Miss Tang.” Xu You put on a professional and polished smile, placing the exquisitely packaged Tangtang Spring Outing merchandise on the table. Just as she was about to recite the well-rehearsed polite rejection script, she unexpectedly bumped into Tang Yeran, who had suddenly turned around.

The small mishap caught Xu You slightly off guard. She had thought that after staring at her boss’s face all day, she had long since become immune to beautiful women. Apparently, her composure still needed work.

That brief hesitation cost Xu You the chance to speak first.

“Director Xu.” Tang Yeran pulled her chair back half a step, readjusting to a polite social distance.

“I know what you’re about to say, but I’d appreciate it if you could hear me out first before making your final decision.”

Before Xu You could react, Tang Yeran had already slipped a document into her hands.

“Director Xu, as you can see, since its launch five months ago, Shining Tangtang has consistently ranked among the top three in user growth across major gaming platforms.

“However, on mainstream social media sites like Dayan and P Station, its video views and likes haven’t even cracked the top ten annual games.

“This means that your current user growth primarily relies on the existing player base of dress-up and romance simulation games. Without a breakthrough marketing angle to attract external traffic, this base will soon hit its ceiling.

“Look here while Tangtang’s user growth over the last two months remains strong in comparison, it’s already showing a rapid decline relative to previous months.”

The words struck directly at Xu You’s biggest concern lately. Her smile carried a hint of reluctance. “Honestly, I understand your points, but our CEO Su… has her own considerations.”

Seeing Xu You waver, Tang Yeran pressed her advantage without giving her room to hesitate.

“I think I can guess some of CEO Su’s concerns. She left a high-paying job at Storm Entertainment, the world’s largest gaming company, to return home and start her own business her ambitions surely extend beyond developing just a romance dress-up mobile game.

“Given Tangtang’s refreshing performance in the market, your upcoming projects might involve some confidential details that can’t be disclosed yet.

“If that’s the case, you needn’t worry. We’re willing to sign a targeted NDA with your company, and all interview drafts will be reviewed by you before publication.

“Our focus can center on Qianhe Studio’s creative environment and the founder’s remarkable journey. This way, we can generate buzz for your company and upcoming games without revealing any core secrets.”

The argument hit home. If not for a sliver of remaining rationality, Xu You might have agreed on Su Yang’s behalf right then and there.

Just as she was wrestling with her thoughts, a cool, composed voice approached from a distance.

“Miss Tang, you certainly have a silver tongue. With eloquence like yours, you shouldn’t just be an editor, you could set up a fortune-telling stall.”

Hearing the voice, Tang Yeran didn’t rush to turn around. Her expression remained unflappable, though faint finger marks now creased the documents in her hands.

Xu You was the first to snap out of it. “Lao Su, what brings you here?”

“Just taking a walk, passing by.” Su Yang answered Xu You’s question, but her gaze remained fixed on that back of the head covered in light brown hair.

The joke was rather lame Su Yang’s office was on the 18th floor, a full five stories away from the conference room. How exactly does one “take a walk” all the way here?

The atmosphere in the room turned awkward, and Xu You wisely chose to stay silent.

Meanwhile, Tang Yeran quickly composed herself and turned to face Su Yang head-on. Those delicate features, just as she remembered, always seemed veiled in frost. But compared to the pure indifference of the past, there was now an added layer of mockery in her expression.

“Pleasure to meet you, President Su.”

She didn’t extend her hand, and judging by Su Yang’s demeanor, neither was she inclined to shake hands.

Su Yang gave a slight nod and seized the earlier topic. “To be honest, when you guessed my thoughts earlier, you were about seventy to eighty percent right. Miss Tang, do you think you’re very impressive? That you understand me so well?”

The sarcasm in her words was palpable, even to Xu You. Yet Tang Yeran remained unfazed, her expression neutral and composed.

“You flatter me, President Su. I was merely making a simple analysis based on the general psychology of young entrepreneurs, using the information from your profile.”

“My past experiences, those records aren’t complete.” Su Yang glanced at the thick stack of documents on the table, her cold smirk vanishing as quickly as it appeared.

“Since Miss Tang loves analyzing so much, why don’t you analyze whether I even want to collaborate with your magazine?”

As she spoke, Tang Yeran had already gathered the documents from the table. “I know President Su has always been an ambitious and decisive person, someone who knows exactly when to make the choices most beneficial to her career whether it was leaving for an internship in the U.S. or resigning to return and establish Qianhe.”

The conference room door opened again, concealing Tang Yeran’s slender figure.

“I’ll await your good news.”

For half a minute, the conference room was utterly silent. If a pin were dropped at that moment, the sound would have been deafening.

“Hey, stop staring. She’s already gone.” The strange tension dissipated, and Xu You finally regained his usual liveliness, waving a hand in front of Su Yang’s face.

Su Yang looked up, giving Xu You a slightly aggrieved look that inexplicably sent a shiver down his spine.

“Hey, hey, hey, don’t look at me like that.” Xu You rubbed the back of his head, trying to lighten the mood. “Actually, what Miss Tang said earlier, I think.”

“No personal matters during work hours.” Su Yang tossed out the words and strode out of the conference room without a backward glance.

Xu You watched his boss’s retreating figure, only snapping out of it after a long moment: Wait, what I was about to say was strictly business!

Su Yang locked herself in her office for two hours, sending out three work emails in rapid succession and scheduling tasks for every department up to the week after next.

Everyone knew that when President Su was in work mode, she became ruthlessly efficient, serious, and almost robotic.

But today, her intensity was downright terrifying.

A new employee from the modeling team clutched a stack of documents that needed the boss’s approval, pacing outside the chief producer’s office for ages, too afraid to knock.

When Xu You passed by, he saw the nervous, hesitant girl he had personally recruited.

“Just give those to me. Go handle something else.”

The girl looked as if she had been granted amnesty, leaving Xu You alone to knock on Su Yang’s office door with the documents in hand.

Su Yang had just completed what would normally take her a full day’s work in just two hours. Now she leaned back in her executive chair, looking somewhat drained.

Hearing sounds at the door, she couldn’t be bothered to look up. “Just leave it on the desk,” she said.

Xu You approached and set down the documents, pulling up a chair beside her with an intrigued expression.

Sensing the movement, Su Yang turned her head to see the familiar face and relaxed slightly. “If you’ve got questions, just ask.”

Xu You feigned innocence. “I’m just passing by to deliver some documents. No questions here.”

Su Yang choked up. “You’re really not going to ask about my current?”

Xu You glanced pointedly at the wall clock. “No personal matters during work hours.”

Su Yang:…

With a swift motion, she shut down her computer and stood up, grabbing her coat with determined energy, only to be stopped.

“And where do you think you’re going?”

“Playing hooky.”

“Hold on.”

Su Yang stood rigid as a pine tree, waiting for the other to initiate the conversation she wanted.

Xu You pulled out a few marked pages from the stack of documents and shoved them into Su Yang’s hands. “Sign these first, then you can play hooky.”

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