Chapter 251 - 249: Explanation

Chapter 251: Chapter 249: Explanation

[Wang Ming]: ?

[Wang Ming]: What’s going on?

[Jiang Xia]: Ahem, I think... we probably don’t need that many concept artists right now.

[Wang Ming]: ...

Old Wang was speechless. He was the one who had agreed to pull people into the group, and now he was the one saying they weren’t needed. The key thing was, Wang Ming didn’t believe his reason for a second.

The company was extremely short-staffed; they could always use a few more artists. Besides, they had a three-hundred-square-meter office. There was no way it was just for the few of them. ’Who’s he trying to kid?’

A friendship spanning more than a decade told him that Jiang Xia was definitely hiding something.

The others who saw this were just as confused, especially the two newcomers. Just a moment ago, they were welcoming the new member. How could one of them be kicked out in the blink of an eye? Looking at the chat history, she hadn’t said anything out of line.

Perhaps the only one secretly pleased was Shen Ying. Names like "Yuanyuan" often brought a beautiful woman to mind, and the fact that Wang Ming himself had invited her was rather intriguing. Now that she’d been suddenly kicked, Shen Ying didn’t know why, but she couldn’t help but feel a sense of satisfaction.

So, she secretly sent a message to her best friend.

[Shen Ying]: Yanwan, what on earth happened?

[Lin Yanwan]: I’m not too sure myself, but he must have his reasons for doing this. Let’s just wait and see.

[Shen Ying]: Okay!

Meanwhile, Wang Ming was also in a private chat with Jiang Xia.

[Wang Ming]: Old Jiang, can you not just fob me off with some random excuse? If there’s a problem, just tell me straight. You just kicked her without a word. You’re making me lose a lot of face here.

He was at a total loss. The girl was spamming him with private messages, but he had no idea what was going on and didn’t dare reply rashly. He just sent a quick message saying, "Don’t worry, I’ll ask what’s up."

[Jiang Xia]: It was my mistake. I thought you’d be bringing in a guy. Now you’ve gone and secretly invited a girl. What do you think Shen Ying will think?

Jiang Xia was a master of playing the victim. He adamantly claimed he was doing it for Old Wang’s own good. The underlying message was clear: since you like Shen Ying, you have to consider her feelings.

Seeing the reply, Old Wang’s breath hitched. He really hadn’t considered that. He didn’t have any feelings for the girl; he was just trying to help find a concept artist. He felt wronged for some reason.

[Wang Ming]: Shen Ying probably wouldn’t overthink it, would she?

[Jiang Xia]: It doesn’t matter if she overthinks it or not. From her perspective, the very act of you inviting another girl into the group is wrong.

He continued typing.

[Jiang Xia]: Think about it. She rejected you over the summer break, and now, as soon as you get to university, you’re hanging out with another girl. It’ll just make her think you’re a player. And girls generally don’t tolerate rivals. Even if she’s started to develop some good feelings for you recently, there’s no way that’ll ever grow into a real crush.

[Wang Ming]: Still, you should’ve told me before you kicked her. Sigh, how am I supposed to explain this to the girl now?

[Jiang Xia]: Simple. Just say we’ve already filled the concept artist position, and I didn’t communicate that to you properly at the start.

[Wang Ming]: Fine, I guess that’s the only way.

[Jiang Xia]: Old Wang, I’m telling you again, if you want to pursue Shen Ying, you need to stay away from the girls at the Central Academy of Fine Arts. Trust me on this.

There was one more thing he didn’t say: especially this girl named Zhang Yuanyuan.

[Wang Ming]: ...It’s not like I had any other intentions, okay?

After talking it over with his good friend, Wang Ming hesitantly opened his messages from Zhang Yuanyuan.

[Wang Ming]: Hey... I’m really sorry. They didn’t coordinate with me properly beforehand. The concept artist position at the company is already filled. My apologies.

[Zhang Yuanyuan]: Oh, it’s okay! As long as I know why I was kicked, that’s fine. At least it wasn’t a complete mystery.

[Zhang Yuanyuan]: So you really are a concept artist for the Cat and Mouse company. That’s pretty cool. I love that cartoon too. I’m studying traditional art, though. Can I ask you for advice on animation-related stuff in the future?

[Wang Ming]: Sure.

Old Wang, remembering what Jiang Xia had just told him, didn’t get too involved with her.

He didn’t expect, however, that Shen Ying would actually send him a private message. He couldn’t help but feel a flicker of joy.

"What happened just now? Why did Jiang Xia kick her? Didn’t you say you were seriously short on artists?"

Her question caught Wang Ming off guard. He didn’t know how to explain, and it took him a long while to carefully type out a reply.

"I just found out she studies traditional art, which doesn’t fit our recruitment requirements."

"Oh," Shen Ying replied.

But she felt something was a little off. How did Jiang Xia know her major wasn’t a match, and how did he kick her so instantly?

But there was no point dwelling on it now. After hesitating for a few seconds, she asked, "That person was a girl, right? Is she your classmate?"

"She’s a girl, but not really a classmate. We met in a big lecture class a couple of days ago."

After replying, it slowly dawned on Wang Ming. Shen Ying was so concerned about her gender... ’Could it be she’s actually starting to like me?’

"Oh, I see. By the way, you’d better work hard at the Central Academy of Fine Arts!"

"Mhm, I will."

However, after he sent that message, Shen Ying never replied. This left Wang Ming feeling insecure and anxious. ’What in the world did she mean by that?’

Back in the group chat, he saw Jiang Xia introducing the two newcomers.

He and Shen Ying were introduced with a single, simple sentence. But when it came to his own mother, he wrote a long paragraph, describing the project director as if she were the boss.

[Jiang Xia]: @Li Weiya, she is the overall head of our Cat and Mouse project team. She is also responsible for overseeing the company’s overall artistic quality and establishing our art standards and technical specifications. Simply put, Director Li is in charge of managing all company affairs, big and small.

[Jiang Xia]: However, Director Li isn’t in the Imperial Capital right now, so if you two have any issues, you can talk to me directly.

Seeing Ah Xia’s introduction, Li Weiya felt a deep sense of helplessness. But undeniably, there were certain advantages to what Jiang Xia was doing. A young boss could easily be looked down upon, so it was obviously more reasonable to let her handle certain matters.

She put down her phone and began to stare blankly out the window again. Now that she was done with her business here and completely free, she found that life seemed to have suddenly lost its passion. She always felt an emptiness inside.

With her son off to university, she was the only one left at home. She thought about asking her friends out for dinner, but one by one, they all had their own families to look after.

At this thought, she heaved a heavy sigh.

This was indeed her hometown, but after thinking for a long time, she realized there was nothing here worth staying for.

Perhaps it wouldn’t be a bad idea to take another trip to the Imperial Capital. She could visit Ah Xia and Ah Ming, and see what the company’s new office looked like.

She smiled silently to herself, then suddenly went back to her room and started packing.