Chapter 209

"Mm-hmm, go ahead and get back to work."

Gao Qiaochun watched as Niugaki left with a light, brisk gait and a straight back, his heart a complex mix of emotions.

How he wished he could respond with the same refreshing, unbridled spirit as Niugaki.

But having been in the industry at Midnight Publishing for over five years, his performance had been at the bottom every single year, making him practically a famous "invisible man" and "tail-ender" in the editorial department.

His superiors didn't think much of him to begin with.

On top of that, he had elderly parents and young children at home, and his monthly mortgage and car payments were like two shackles tightening around him.

Although he had a lifetime employment contract and wouldn't be easily fired, if his superiors caught him in a conflict with an author, wouldn't that just give them leverage and even more reason to make his life difficult?

Looking at Niugaki Shoji, on the other hand, although he was just an intern editor who had only been on the job for a few months, his performance had already surged to the upper-middle tier of the department; he was a rising star with a limitless future in everyone's eyes.

With good performance comes confidence; even if he was occasionally sharp with his words, no one cared, and it was even seen as "having character."

But he couldn't do that...

Life had long since worn down his edges, and swallowing his pride had become almost an ingrained survival instinct for Gao Qiaochun.

He let out a sigh so soft it was barely audible, his fingers unconsciously rubbing the worn, peeling edge of his notebook.

Forget it, being scolded by an author was still better than being pointed at and scolded by his boss...

Seeing that this frustrating meeting had finally ended, Gao Qiaochun dragged his slightly heavy footsteps back to the open-plan editorial office area.

Just as he stepped into the area, Yoshida Zhiren, an editor with more seniority and better performance, stood up with a grin, threw an arm around his shoulder, and laughed in a voice loud enough for half the office to hear, addressing the few colleagues who looked up:

"Hahaha, Gao Qiaojun, there was quite a commotion in the meeting room just now. Were you having another 'passionate exchange' with an author? Don't tell me it was you again?"

Gao Qiaochun's face stiffened; he wanted to break free, but he was held tighter, so he could only offer a sheepish, apologetic smile.

"Haha... y-yes, it was."

Yoshida Zhiren laughed even more heartily, as if he had heard some brilliant joke.

"I knew it was you!"

"That's truly incredible, getting roasted once a day on average, Gao Qiaojun. How did you achieve this 'accomplishment'?"

"I've been in this industry for so many years, and I've found you're truly something else."

"You always manage to precisely attract these 'gifted' authors."

"I'm really curious, what secret do you have that lets you keep encountering these 'treasures'? Teach me, won't you?"

Beads of sweat seeped from Gao Qiaochun's temples as he stammered:

"Th-this... I-I don't know either."

Yoshida Zhiren seemed to hear something even funnier and patted him on the back.

"You don't know? And yet you can still encounter them so consistently?"

"It seems you really do have a special talent in this regard."

"If this talent for 'attracting weirdos' could be converted into performance metrics, you'd definitely be the undisputed number one in our editorial department!"

Some editors nearby heard this, and although they felt Yoshida's words were a bit excessive, a few couldn't help but let out a snicker.

Those laughs were like thin needles pricking Gao Qiaochun's back.

His face turned pale, and the cold sweat on his forehead increased.

Just then, a cold voice cut in.

"Yoshida-kun, have you finished all your work? You have so much free time to pull Gao Qiaochun aside for idle chatter?"

The person speaking was Gao Qiaochun's superior, the leader of Editorial Group 2—Miyagi Heyu.

He sat in the group leader's seat, looking over with an expressionless face.

Hearing this, Yoshida Zhiren immediately reined in his exaggerated smile and put on a look of slight respect.

"Haha, Boss, I would have forgotten if you hadn't reminded me; there's still an author waiting."

"Thanks for the heads-up, Boss, I'll head over right now."

Saying this, he finally released Gao Qiaochun, straightened his shirt collar, and walked quickly toward the meeting room.

Gao Qiaochun's tense shoulders relaxed slightly, and with gratitude, he gave a quiet nod in Miyagi Heyu's direction.

Miyagi Heyu's expression remained cold; he just glanced at him, said nothing, and returned his attention to the computer screen in front of him.

Having received this silent rescue, Gao Qiaochun didn't dare show too much, so he kept his head down and walked quickly back to his workstation in the corner, which was piled high with manuscripts awaiting review.

After sitting down, he moved the mouse to wake the computer from sleep mode.

He entered his password, and the desktop lit up.

He mechanically processed a few emails from authors urging him for progress updates and replied with some template-style platitudes.

Just then, a new notification popped up on the company's internal communication software.

【The author you scheduled, 'Natsume Chikage', has arrived at the front desk and is waiting in the lobby.】

Gao Qiaochun glanced at the time in the bottom right corner of the screen—3:37 PM.

When a publisher's editor meets an author, it can take thirty to forty minutes at the shortest, or two to three hours or more at the longest.

If things went smoothly, he might be able to finish before getting off work.

He looked at the name "Natsume Chikage" and prayed silently: I hope this author isn't like that glasses-wearing guy from earlier, a "hot-tempered" person who's hard to handle...

Gao Qiaochun rubbed his face hard, as if trying to rub off the bad luck from before, then picked up his usual notebook and a pen and stood up to head toward the lobby.

Arriving at the spacious and bright reception lobby, Gao Qiaochun's gaze searched instinctively.

The next moment, his line of sight was involuntarily and firmly captured by a figure on the sofa in the lobby's lounge area.

It was a young man wearing a private high school uniform.

Just a silhouette was enough to make him look so handsome that one would never forget him.

Gao Qiaochun could swear he had never seen a male in reality with such outstanding features; he was even more dazzling than many magazine models.

And right now, this young man was being "pestered" by Uta Ayaka, a female editor from Editorial Group 3 who was known for her good performance and sharp eye.

Uta Ayaka's cheeks were slightly flushed as she sat on the single sofa next to the young man, her body leaning forward slightly, her tone carrying a rare enthusiasm.

"Hello, are you here to submit a manuscript?"

The young man—Natsume Chikage—nodded slightly.

"Yes."

Uta Ayaka's eyes brightened even more as she followed up:

"May I ask if you have an appointment in advance?"

"If not, I happen to be free right now and can help you take a look at your manuscript!"

Natsume Chikage answered calmly.

"I already have an appointment."

Uta Ayaka was slightly taken aback.

"May I ask which editor you have an appointment with?"

"Gao Qiaochun."

The smile on Uta Ayaka's face froze for a moment, then revealed a subtle expression.

"... Him?"

Gao Qiaochun only then reacted from his daze, realizing that this young man, who was so dazzling he didn't seem like a mortal, was actually the author who had an appointment with him.

He hurriedly straightened the somewhat wrinkled hem of his shirt and walked up quickly, his voice carrying his usual, slightly uncertain hesitation.

"Um... excuse me, are you Natsume Chikage-sensei?"

Natsume Chikage turned his head upon hearing the voice.

Seeing the middle-aged man in front of him with a weary face, a somewhat timid demeanor, and thinning hair, he nodded.

"I am Natsume Chikage. And you are?"

Gao Qiaochun hurriedly squeezed out a smile and bowed slightly.

"I am Gao Qiaochun..."

"Since you've already arrived, let's head to the meeting room now..."

"Wait a second." Uta Ayaka suddenly stood up, pulled Gao Qiaochun aside, and lowered her voice, "Senior Gao, let's discuss something. How about you let me take this author?"

Gao Qiaochun's face stiffened as he stammered:

"Th-this... that wouldn't be in line with the rules, would it? After all, Natsume-sensei made an appointment with me first..."

Uta Ayaka glanced quickly at Natsume Chikage, who was sitting quietly where he was, put on a professional, sweet smile again, but lowered her voice even further.

"Rules are just rules, and it's not like there haven't been precedents in the company for editors to transfer authors between each other."

"Besides, this author looks so young, and he's a high school student... I'm afraid the quality of the manuscript might not be ideal. It might end up wasting a lot of your time and only end in regret."

"I happen not to be very busy today, so I can help you share the burden, Senior."