Chapter 4: A Desperate Proposal

On the verge of being rejected outright, Zhou Ruoyu, in a flurry of anxiety, slammed her hand on the table, calling out to the female HR manager who was about to end the meeting. Startled by the sudden shout, the HR manager was visibly taken aback. She looked at Zhou Ruoyu, who had risen to her feet, and was about to advise calm, understanding that the company held all the valid points in this situation. However, the next moment, the black-haired loli on screen did not throw a tantrum. Instead, her expression shifted to a distressed “＞＜” face, and she began waving her hands frantically, stammering. “I’m so, so, so sorry! My current appearance is completely beyond my control; it’s not a case of falsifying my resume! I… I genuinely adore Dragon Feather Group. I’ve prepared extensively for this position and truly wish to join your esteemed company. Please, just grant me this one opportunity. I… I can still…”

The black-haired loli explained with palpable nervousness. The reason was simple: this opportunity was simply too precious. Dragon Feather Group was, after all, the leading internet enterprise in Lihua City.

She had invested so much effort, feeling utterly confident about securing this position. To lose this chance due to such an unforeseen accident felt truly unbearable.

‘After all, what if she reverted to normal tomorrow?’

‘But… but it seemed that nothing she said now would make a difference!’ The boss, it appeared, was extremely rigid when it came to personality. ‘Setting aside the question of whether he was homosexual, he wouldn’t even utter a polite phrase like “Go home and await our news.” He had rejected her on the spot. What possible reason could she offer to make him hire her now?’

The black-haired loli anxiously lifted her gaze. After a long moment, a sparkling lightbulb in her line of sight finally captured Zhou Ruoyu’s attention. The girl fell silent for a moment, then… with a “what if” mindset, she silently pressed a mental button.

[Ding-dong! Detecting that the rookie host is seeking assistance. Based on the rookie host’s current situation, this prompt offers the optimal solution: Propose to the Dragon Feather Group boss to become their commercial spy. Approach the boss of Dragon Feather Group’s biggest commercial rival, Tatsumi Group, and provide Dragon Feather Group with business secrets! Executing this prompt will grant you a Newbie Gift Pack. Refusing this prompt will result in being blacklisted by all HR departments in Lihua City, facing starvation~]

…Listening to the words spoken in the impish, childish voice that echoed in her mind, Zhou Ruoyu nearly choked.

‘No, no, no, no… this isn’t… this can’t be a suggestion a human would come up with?! Tips for Success, what kind of tips are you even giving me?!’

‘Are our definitions of “successful people” wildly different, w-w-w-w-wah…’

‘A c-commercial spy?! Asking a freshly graduated university student like me to do something like that is simply too much!’ ‘Zhou Ruoyu couldn’t even keep the vocabulary words for tomorrow’s dictation a secret when she was an English class representative in elementary school, let alone be a spy…’

‘I absolutely cannot do it!’

‘And if I actually say this, will I really be hired?’ ‘Zhou Ruoyu felt that such a suggestion would only make people think she was out of her mind.’ ‘W-w-w-w-wah… but the prompt also said that if she didn’t comply, she’d be blacklisted by all the HR departments in the city on the spot? Directly from graduation to unemployment?’

‘No, that won’t do…’ ‘The latter consequence is clearly far more severe than the former!’ ‘The black-haired loli doesn’t want to starve to death—!’

Thus, Zhou Ruoyu took a deep breath. She weighed the options repeatedly in her mind. Finally, she decided: ‘Forget it… being considered a chuunibyou is better than starving to death!’ ‘Anyway, saying it doesn’t mean I have to go through with it! I’ll just say it!’

“Hmph~”

The black-haired loli suddenly drew in a breath. Having finally steeled her resolve, she was just about to utter the outrageous words provided by the outrageous prompt. However, the female HR manager in front of her awkwardly spoke first:

“U-um… Miss Zhou, could you please sit down first? Your… your underwear is showing… a little…”

“…Ah—!”

Zhou Ruoyu glanced down. She then hastily tugged her oversized hoodie further down, managing to conceal her men’s underwear. The girl’s face immediately flushed crimson. She obediently sat down on the spot, her legs trembled uncontrollably from sheer embarrassment.

“Cough, cough… U-um, it’s, it’s fine, Miss Zhou. Not too much was showing… your top covered it. Um… we truly appreciate your enthusiasm for joining our company. Um… how about this? We’ll conclude today’s interview here. We’ll give it some more thought, and if any other suitable positions arise, we’ll certainly consider contacting you.”

The female HR manager lightly coughed twice. After uttering a string of polite pleasantries, she prepared to close the meeting. However, just then, Zhou Ruoyu, who had been looking down, hastily spoke up in a soft voice:

“U-um… I… I have another proposal! I can approach your company’s biggest competitor, the boss of Tatsumi Company, and act as a commercial spy for your company!”

“Tat… Tatsumi Group?!”

To Zhou Ruoyu’s slight surprise, after she blurted out her utterly outlandish suggestion, the female HR manager opposite her didn’t focus on the “commercial spy” aspect, which Zhou Ruoyu herself thought sounded like madness. Instead, her attention was fixed on… Tatsumi Group.

On the other end, the female HR manager stared, utterly stunned, at the black-haired loli who seemed to have made an unshakeable decision. After a long moment, she mechanically turned her head to look at her boss beside her…

Gu Jiachen, Chairman of Tatsumi Group. Six months prior, he had secretly acquired over seventy percent of the shares in their rival company, Dragon Feather Group. Now, he was, in fact, the boss of both Dragon Feather Group and Tatsumi Group!

This…

The female HR manager awkwardly tried to alert Zhou Ruoyu to something. However, Gu Jiachen, with a grim expression, shook his head, seemingly warning her not to take any action. The HR manager felt a cold sneer flash in Gu Jiachen’s eyes, and her entire body instantly froze in place, utterly unable to move.

After a long moment, Gu Jiachen stroked his chin. He sighed inwardly. ‘Not only has this commercial spy found their way right to me,’ he mused, ‘but they’ve even ‘self-destructed’ by revealing their intentions, completely unaware of the truth…’

‘This naive young woman, fresh out of society, hah… she’s truly making me not know whether to laugh or cry.’

Gu Jiachen was a man who deeply abhorred betrayal. This was especially true for someone actively trying to approach him with malicious intent. Although, in his eyes, Zhou Ruoyu’s appearance was rather delicate and cute, it was regrettably clear that this individual was no easy target.

A hint of revulsion entered Gu Jiachen’s tone. Then, from off-screen, he spoke up:

“The boss of Tatsumi Group? You mean Gu Jiachen? Did I hear that correctly? You’re saying you want to approach Gu Jiachen, the boss of Tatsumi Group, to provide our Dragon Feather Group with business intelligence from him, acting as our company’s commercial spy?”

“Uh… Gu…”

‘Gu Jiachen?’

‘Oh my god, that’s right, the boss of Tatsumi Group is Gu Jiachen!’