Chapter 8

“Nuonuo, remember that difficult client? He actually asked about hiring you before. But you know how it is. As your boss, I couldn't just let you go.”

“Things are different now. I've called him. He says you can start tomorrow if you'd like.”

10

And that was how I found myself at a new company, still a little dazed.

The difficult client's name was Ethan.

An actual English name. He said everyone in fashion needed one.

The moment he saw me, he pointed a peach-pink manicured finger at the mountain of clothes behind me.

“You. Sort that lot by color, season, and style.”

Before I could get a word out, I'd plunged into a whole new life of being worked like a horse.

I didn't get a chance to catch my breath until the end of the working day.

Then Ethan swept over again.

“Don't stand around. The new models are nearly here. Go meet them!”

After a relentless day, I was finally released at ten that night.

So tired I could barely see straight, I staggered up to him.

“Ethan, I don't think I can manage this job—”

He cut me off.

“You there. What was your name again?”

“Ye Nuonuo…”

“Not that. Your English name.”

“Vivian…”

“Right. Vivian, you've worked hard. Here's today's overtime pay. It's Fashion Week season, so things are a little hectic. Bear with us.”

I stared at the thick wad of cash.

My eyes lit up.

Six times the normal rate!!!!

Even better benefits than Jiang Chenghuai's company!!!

Who had time to mope now?

Hello, new job!!!

Jiang Chenghuai wasn't having nearly as much luck.

The day he received the divorce agreement, he drank himself senseless. In a fit of drunken impulse, he drove to Sheng Xinghe's company and punched him without a word.

Then he kept hitting him, roaring, “Sheng Xinghe, I treated you like a brother, and you went after my wife!”

Sheng Xinghe didn't hit back.

He wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and gave a cold smile.

“Jiang Chenghuai, you've been cheating on her for a year. What gives you the right to accuse me?”

“When did I cheat? People at work were saying Yanshuang got her job through connections. I only started commuting with her to help stop the rumors! Staying at her place was convenient. Buying her things was a favor to an old classmate. There's nothing improper between us!”

“Were they wrong? What qualifications does Xu Yanshuang actually have? Her overseas master's degree was nothing special. Her only experience was a short stint in accounting. You dropped her straight into the finance secretary's position. If that isn't using connections, what is?”

Jiang Chenghuai had no answer.

Sheng Xinghe's smile grew colder.

“Do you know why Nuonuo had to ask me to pretend to be her husband?”

“Because a male manager was sexually harassing her.”

“And while that was happening, her husband was busy protecting another woman. She had no choice but to ask someone else for help.”

Jiang Chenghuai stood as if struck.

Pain tore through his chest.

How badly must someone as delicate and proud as me have been hurt, for me to endure it all without telling him?

He was desperate to see me, to admit he'd been wrong and beg my forgiveness.

But he never got the chance.

On his way to find me, he was stopped by the police for drunk driving.

His blood alcohol level was 230 milligrams per 100 milliliters. He received a three-month prison sentence.

I knew none of this.

I only noticed how surprisingly quickly the divorce went through. Jiang Chenghuai didn't even have to appear at the Civil Affairs Bureau.

The day I received my divorce certificate, I was given a new assignment.

I would organize a Fashion Week event for a little-known designer.

Once again, I'd be dealing with the same fashion magazine editors in chief.

I was so nervous my legs felt weak.

Ethan tried to reassure me.

“Vivian, let your ability smash their preconceptions!”

But as it turned out, preconceptions weren't so easy to smash.

They still thought I was unprofessional.

Fortunately, there was a cocktail party that evening.

I took a glass of wine and thought about going over to break the ice, but I had no idea how to start.

Then Ethan came up beside me.

“Vivian,” he murmured, “do you know the quickest way to get closer to someone without putting them off?”