Chapter 6
Chapter 6
Guilty conscience.
Feeling very guilty.
On the opening day of the Craftsmanship Exhibition, at the entrance of the shopping mall, when Shu Yao saw Chen Ye walking into the revolving door from afar, there were only these two words in his mind.
He looked like he'd taken some time off from work to come here today. He was wearing a tailored suit that outlined his slender figure. His legs, wrapped in his suit pants, looked longer than her life.
She originally thought that from the moment they got off the subway, they would become two strangers scattered across this huge city.
But I didn't expect that, like the butterfly effect, that one time of wearing the same clothes would actually lead to an endless chain reaction.
The nonsense I told my mother last night kept replaying in my mind.
Shu Yao comforted himself that although the Red Art Museum was located on the top floor of the shopping mall, there were so many shops in the mall. Maybe he just came here to eat?
Thinking of this, Shu Yao became much calmer.
Shu Yao didn't see Shen Ye until he walked into the exhibition hall after the elevator went up.
It was a false alarm.
The lighting in the exhibition hall is soft. On the red display cloth in the display cabinet on the right, there are pieces of filigree inlaid works, which emit golden light under the light.
The contrast between gold and red creates a sense of elegance and luxury.
But there were not many reporters in the exhibition hall, and some even looked like they had no interest at all. They leaned against the wall and fiddled with their mobile phones, obviously just there for a symbolic presence.
But among them, Lin Ruiyang is an outlier.
He was carefully photographing every exhibit. When he looked up and saw Shu Yao, his expression was obviously stunned, but he quickly returned to normal.
He greeted her with a smile, but there was a wariness in his eyes.
"Yaoyao, why are you here too?"
The editor-in-chief gave her the topic of Treasure Notes, which probably made Lin Ruiyang dissatisfied, so he was a little nervous.
Shu Yao explained calmly, "I just came here to take a look out of interest. I don't write about this topic."
"Oh." Lin Ruiyang said, "I didn't expect you to be interested in these handicrafts."
Shu Yao didn't respond to his words, but just said "hmm" softly.
At one o'clock sharp, the opening ceremony officially began.
After the curator's guided tour, except for a few reporters who sat on the floor in the exhibition hall and started writing articles, most people left directly.
Niche skills, unknown craftsmen.
It doesn't seem worth the effort to report it.
Seeing the curator talking to the director, Lin Ruiyang did not disturb them, but his eyes followed them.
Shu Yao thought for a moment and then offered a reminder: "Filigree inlay is a relatively niche art. There are many topics that could be raised for this exhibition. I don't think you need to dwell on interviews."
"You think I can't get a date?"
"It's not that you can't get an appointment, it's that Jiang An never accepts interviews from anyone."
Lin Ruiyang snorted disdainfully: "That kind of talk is just an excuse for you inexperienced journalists to cover up your incompetence. With me, there's no one I can't get a date with."
In fact, this was indeed the case before.
Although Lin Ruiyang's writing skills are average, he has strong social skills and a wide network of contacts. As a journalist, this is an undeniable advantage.
Thanks to his efforts, he was able to successfully schedule interviews with many difficult subjects, such as last week’s mural restoration master Mr. Zhong.
Therefore, it is understandable that he was so confident.
Seeing that she was silent, Lin Ruiyang thought she was convinced by him, and taught her earnestly:
"Artists are all aloof, especially a fledgling artist like this who hasn't been tempted by fame and fortune. But people are like that. As long as you promise them something sweet, no one will be unmoved. Who knows, they might even beg for an interview in the future."
Respect the fate of others.
Shu Yao told himself in his heart.
After waiting for the director to leave, Lin Ruiyang immediately walked towards the curator.
Shu Yao couldn't hear what the two were saying. She only saw the smile on Lin Ruiyang's face gradually fade and finally disappear without a trace.
Clearly, he had hit a wall.
Shu Yao put the ticket in her hand into her bag and turned to leave.
Little did she know that as she walked out the door, curator Zhou Mei's eyes fell on her back.
"That person is..."
Lin Ruiyang didn't understand why Zhou Mei's attention was suddenly diverted. He nodded and said, "Sister Mei, this is my colleague."
"Your colleague?" Zhou Mei asked curiously, "What's his name?"
"Shu Yao." Lin Ruiyang joked, "Sister Mei, why are you so interested in her? Do you two know each other?"
"I don't know him, but he looks a little familiar."
"Oh." Lin Ruiyang brought the topic back to the topic, "Sister Mei, what did I just say? Would you like to help me communicate it?"
"Ruiyang, it's not that I don't want to help you, but Jiang An really doesn't accept interviews. Not to mention interviews, even the staff at the museum who contacted me don't know what he looks like."
"Sister Mei, you are not lying to me, are you?"
"Why would I lie to you? We've known each other for so long, I'll definitely help you if I can, but this time I'm really powerless."
"Then can you give me his contact information?"
"Aren't you putting me in a difficult position? If this gets investigated, will I still be able to do my job?" Zhou Mei's phone vibrated. She glanced down and said hurriedly, "It's just started. I have a lot to do here. Let's talk next time."
At this point, anyone with discerning ears could hear the rejection implied in these words.
Lin Ruiyang could only force a smile: "Okay, I'll treat you to a meal next time."
Zhou Mei waved and left.
The more Lin Ruiyang thought about it, the more uncomfortable he felt. He clenched his right hand, which was hanging by his side, and the veins on the back of his hand were visible.
After the blow, my thoughts became clearer.
After working together for more than two years, she had a more or less understanding of Shu Yao's personality. She seldom made comments on matters that had nothing to do with her.
Then why did she swear so confidently just now that Jiang An would not accept his interview?
He gritted his teeth and chased after him.
Fortunately, the shopping mall was quite large, and Shu Yao was still standing at the elevator entrance waiting for the elevator.
Lin Ruiyang ran up to her, panting slightly, and asked, "Do you know Jiang An?"
Shu Yao nodded: "I guess so."
Lin Ruiyang's attitude gradually softened: "Can you help me contact him? Yaoyao, I've already promised the editor-in-chief that I must complete the interview this time."
"I'm sorry, Xiaolin, I can't do this."
The two of them didn't have much overlap in their work, and there was nothing they needed to ask of each other, so Lin Ruiyang didn't expect that Shu Yao looked gentle but was so decisive in refusing.
"You can't do it, or you don't want to do it?" Lin Ruiyang's face darkened and his tone was sarcastic.
Shu Yao didn't care: "I can't do it, and I don't really want to do it."
This sentence completely ignited Lin Ruiyang's anger.
"I was wondering why you didn't just say it during the meeting." Lin Ruiyang sneered, "So you're here to laugh at me now?"
"I didn't mean to make fun of you. I just warned you, but you didn't believe me at all, did you? And then you believed me when I warned you during the meeting? You'll just think I'm being disrespectful to the editor-in-chief and questioning your abilities."
"Shu Yao, don't act like you don't care all day. After all, don't you want the position of branch editor too? If I can't complete the topic, you can step on me to get it."
"I would like to, but I will get promoted on my own merit."
"Ability? What ability do you rely on?" Lin Ruiyang looked her up and down and said sarcastically, "Oh yes, I heard that the bosses of Chuiyu Technology are all men. With your face and figure, you might be able to get an interview with them. Then this position will definitely belong to you. Anyway, this is not the first time you have done this kind of thing. Everyone knows about your relationship with Mr. Chen-"
Shu Yao didn't get angry. She took out her cell phone from her bag expressionlessly and called Mr. Chen.
“Beep, beep—”
As the phone rang, she looked up at Lin Ruiyang with a calm gaze and a calm tone:
"What's the matter? Don't just tell me, talk to Mr. Chen too. I'm curious about who is so close to Mr. Chen."
Lin Ruiyang's expression changed instantly. Before Mr. Chen answered the call, he rudely tried to snatch the phone from Shu Yao's hand.
Shu Yao tried to avoid the hand, but accidentally, the back of her hand hit his face, and with a "pa" sound, it was like a slap in the face.
No one answered the call, and the phone screen fell into darkness again. The surroundings seemed to be paused. Lin Ruiyang was confused, and Shu Yao instinctively froze in place.
Did she hit someone?
But I have to say, it feels a bit cool.
"Ahem."
Suddenly, a cough was heard from the side.
Shu Yao looked in the direction of the voice.
Chen Ye stood about three meters away, with his right hand in his pocket, looking at the two of them expressionlessly, while the assistant who had just coughed was covering his mouth with an embarrassed look on his face.
Not only did he hit someone for the first time in his life, but he was actually seen by Shen Ye.
And I wonder if he heard what Lin Ruiyang said just now. Will he believe it?
When Shu Yao was lost in thought, Lin Ruiyang finally reacted. His left cheek flushed red, and he pointed at Shu Yao angrily: "You dare to hit me! I will sue you to death!"
He tilted his head to glance at the "witness": "Brother, you saw it all! Help me testify! This crazy woman dared to hit people!"
Didn't get the response I expected.
Shen Ye asked the assistant beside him calmly: "Huangshan, did you see it just now?"
Huang Shan straightened his back and said, "No, I only saw a man insulting a girl."
"What a coincidence." Chen Ye sneered, "Me too."
"You guys!" Lin Ruiyang's expression froze for a few seconds before he suddenly realized, "You know each other, right? Okay!"
He pointed to the surveillance camera overhead and said, "It's such a big mall, so there's no need to worry about not having evidence."
"It's broken." Shen Ye reminded coldly.
Lin Ruiyang scoffed, "You say it's bad? You own this shopping mall?"
Shen Ye moved his neck, took a Bluetooth headset box from his assistant’s hand with his right hand, and threw it to the upper left corner unexpectedly.
"Bang——"
He used so much force that the earphone box and the monitoring case fell to the ground together, and the camera inside was also scattered all over the place.
Chen Ye acted as if nothing had happened, and said with an indifferent smile: "It's broken now."
“…”
Although he had long known that Chen Ye was the kind of person who could not be restrained by rules, Shu Yao still couldn't help but be shocked when he saw it with his own eyes.
She instinctively looked around, fearing that the security guard would drag out such an arrogant person, but she found that the security guard was standing a few meters away and had no intention of coming forward.
She changed her mind and remembered, oh yes, this shopping mall seems to be the Shen family's property?
There's no need to round it off, it really is run by his family.
Lin Ruiyang's face turned red and white. Although he didn't know the identity of the man in front of him, he knew he was not someone to be trifled with from the way he was dressed and the fact that he had an assistant with him. Moreover, facing this man who was over 185cm tall, he was at a disadvantage in both height and size.
In the end, Lin Ruiyang gritted his teeth, said nothing, and punched the elevator down button as fast as his hand could.
His figure disappeared behind the elevator door.
As for Shu Yao, the feeling of guilt overshadowed his anger.
She pretended to smile calmly: "What a coincidence."
"Yeah." Chen Ye tilted his head and said something to his assistant, who quickly went down from another elevator.
Shu Yao picked up the broken pieces on the ground and threw them into the trash can. He then held up the dented earphone case and said, "I'll pay for the surveillance camera and the earphone case."
"No need." He took it and put the earphone box in his pocket. He looked calm and glanced at the closed elevator door. "Who is he?"
"Oh." Shu Yao smiled and explained, "My colleague."
"Why are you arguing?"
"There was a conflict at work." Shu Yao said vaguely, "It's okay."
The elevator went up extremely slowly. It finally arrived and Shu Yao hurried in.
Shen Ye followed closely behind.
There were only the two of them in the elevator at first, but after going down two floors, there were more people and they tacitly stopped talking.
Shu Yao was squeezed into the last row, leaning against the wall, her arm only about a fist's distance from him. She could even smell the faint scent of lemon mint on him.
It doesn't look like perfume, I don't know if it's the fragrance of clothes or what.
The smell was fresh and cool, forming a sharp contrast with the man next door who was covered in cigarette smoke. Shu Yao unconsciously moved towards him.
Finally, the elevator reached the ground floor and the crowd filed out.
The two walked out of the elevator side by side, and Shen Ye spoke again: "I seemed to hear that you wanted to interview the boss of Sudden Rain Technology?"
"Ah?" Shu Yao shook his head firmly, "No, I don't want to."
Shen Ye: “…Oh.”
Shu Yao hesitated to speak: "You even heard this, then the rest is also..."
Shen Ye: “No.”
Shu Yao: "You don't have to lie to me."
"I didn't lie to you." Chen Ye was still arrogant. "I'm very busy. If I have to listen to all that nonsense, my ears might have to go to the ICU."
Outside the door, the spring breeze blew towards me, but the weather was extremely gloomy. The sky in the distance was like ink, gray and hazy.
Shu Yao took a deep breath. Even though Chen Ye's words made her laugh from the bottom of her heart, her heart was still heavy, as if it was pressed by a dark cloud.
Lin Ruiyang's disgusting words just now did make her angry, but she felt more powerless.
Not long ago, she also heard some rumors that some reporters had connections with the leaders of the headquarters, and she didn't know what means they used, so they were promoted to senior reporters so quickly.
She felt that the other person was referring to her, but because no one was mentioned by name, if she pointed it out, others would think she was taking it personally.
As for this inexplicable rumor, she could not prove it herself, nor did she want to.
I can only try my best not to care.
But can ignoring rumors make them disappear? No, they snowball, growing bigger and bigger, and even becoming the truth in some people's minds.
His breathing became uncontrollably rapid, and Shu Yao felt that he urgently needed a channel to vent his frustration.
A black Rolls-Royce slowly stopped in front of me.
The car window was open, and in the driver's seat was Shen Ye's assistant.
Seeing Chen Ye open the back door, Shu Yao clenched his hands and blurted out:
"Um... do you still need someone to walk your dog?"
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