E-Ladies: Navigating the Wired World-Chapter 68 - Episode 68 Attending Another Companys Annual Party
Chapter 68: Episode 68: Attending Another Company’s Annual Party for the First Time
Chapter 68: Episode 68: Attending Another Company’s Annual Party for the First Time
What should I wear to the year-end party?
Zhou Xueyin thought it over and over again. Although Li Jiniang and Yao Shanshan both had evening gowns for cosplay, they were too grand and probably not quite right for the occasion.
But even if there was a suitable one, she might not be able to pull it off…
Forget it, I’ll just pick out a suit from the mall.
Zhou Xueyin looked down at herself and knew that any evening gown would look like a child stealing an adult’s clothes. Better to just buy a decent looking suit.
Over the weekend, Zhou Xueyin went to Ya Rui’s Japanese restaurant. There weren’t many people at the magazine office anyway; having it here was just perfect.
As soon as she entered, Zhou Xueyin was stunned; everyone was dressed very casually. Sitting on tatami mats, it was like a tea party.
As a result, she was dressed way too formally and stuck out like a sore thumb.
“Sorry, sorry! I forgot to tell you, no need to dress formally… My bad, my bad.” Ya Rui, holding a little pot of sake, came out grinning to greet Zhou Xueyin.
“Sister Ya…” Zhou Xueyin couldn’t help but give a wry smile at the slightly tipsy Ya Rui. How on earth was she going to run a year-end party in that state?
“Xiaohua, get Yinyin one of our company’s T-shirts! Such a nice suit, don’t get it dirty!” Ya Rui called out to her assistant.
Zhou Xueyin changed into a T-shirt custom-made by Fashion Xinrui, and sat down awkwardly in the middle of the crowd, not sure what to say.
“You’re Zhou Xueyin? I’ve heard a lot about you, and today I finally see you in person! I’m Shen Yajing!” A girl with curly hair and glasses approached Zhou Xueyin, giggling drunkenly.
“You’re the legendary Shen Yajing! I should be the one saying I’ve heard a lot about you! I admire the speed at which you process images!” Ya Rui had mentioned before that they owed thanks to Shen Yajing’s quick work for Luo Jing’s case.
“Don’t be offended, okay? Although it’s called a year-end party, it’s really just a company gathering to relax, eat Japanese food, and drink tea,” said a slightly plump woman, approaching with a glass of orange juice, “Hello, I’m Wang Xin.”
“You’re Sister Wang Xin? Hello, hello!” Zhou Xueyin immediately stood up and shook hands with her respectfully, “Sister Ya told me that you were so dedicated you went into labor only after proofreading the last punctuation mark! I really admire that.”
“Oh, she’s exaggerating! The proofreading was done a long time ago. I just happened to break water at the office…” Wang Xin said with an embarrassed smile, “It’s nothing, really… No big deal…”
It seemed that Fashion Xinrui was mostly female-dominated. And while the women were drinking alcohol, the men were drinking juice.
Only after asking did she find out that they were all “guardians,” ensuring that their colleagues could get home safely; hence, they drank only juice every year.
“Cough, cough! I have something to say now!” Ya Rui, using a sake bottle as a microphone, spoke out loud, “Oh right, let me introduce a special guest: Zhou Xueyin!”
Zhou Xueyin stood up again, bowing in all directions, “I am Zhou Xueyin, and honestly, I don’t know why President Yu invited me over.”
“Thanks to you! Our December, January, and February issues’ sales increased by 50% compared to the same period last year!” Ya Rui excitedly explained, “You have to know, in today’s declining print media, achieving this is really a miracle!”
“No, no, no, it’s really because of your magazine’s quality. We didn’t do much…” Zhou Xueyin modestly replied. After all, it was a mutually beneficial arrangement: their sales had increased, and the website’s traffic had gone up too. It wasn’t just one party’s achievement.
“Don’t be modest. Have you seen your website’s data? You’ve even been included in the Alexa rankings!” Wang Xin’s eyes gleamed as she looked at Zhou Xueyin.
“Ah? I haven’t really paid much attention. But now that you mention it, I feel like the website might need to expand again.” She had been so busy with advertising that she had forgotten to check the backend data.
“Just switch to a bigger server!” shouted a boy in a checkered shirt, sitting on the tatami.
“You paying?” Zhou Xueyin joked.
“Can’t offer money, but I can introduce you to reliable suppliers,” the man in the plaid shirt said with a smile.
“Sure, let’s talk privately later!” Although she wasn’t very convinced, she didn’t want to ruin his dignity.
“Speaking of advertising fees, Zhou Xueyin has brought us a lot of advertisements; our magazine’s sales have increased significantly!” Ya Rui became excited again, “Oh right! The group’s 3L asked if you are willing to join our group too?”
“3L?” Zhou Xueyin didn’t understand the sudden acronym.
“That’s Li Lingli, we all call her 3L…” Ya Rui was indeed drunk, spilling the company’s “top secret” information. freeweɓnovēl.coɱ
“Join your group? Let’s forget about it. Our forum is still too small… Don’t want to drag you down when we haven’t grown yet…” Zhou Xueyin had no current intentions of belonging to any group, especially since there were only four of them.
Although the content they produced looked good, it was also the result of the four of them working hard together.
If they were to belong to a group, the company would no longer bear the Zhou name; she couldn’t make decisions on her own anymore.
“It’s quite good not to join a group…” Ya Rui whispered into Zhou Xueyin’s ear, “Once you join a group, what you say doesn’t count anymore…”
Indeed, both of them had the same thoughts. However, Ya Rui was naive and thoughtless in her younger years; when a big group extended an olive branch, she agreed without thinking.
As a result, the magazine had no say anymore; everything had to be approved by those above, and sales slid downhill.
This year was truly lucky, having met Zhou Xueyin and her team; otherwise, the magazine might have had to cease publication by the end of the year.
After they finished discussing serious matters, it was all about drinking and chatting.
Shen Yajing kept complaining to Zhou Xueyin about Chen Musheng, who had already resigned.
Complaining that he always thought the grass was greener on the other side, even though he was doing an easy job under her, he still felt his salary was too low and wanted to try his luck elsewhere.
Now, he was working overtime into the night every day and was constantly being scolded. His QQ Space was full of negative energy, and he had even considered returning at one point, but there was no chance anymore.
Thinking about it, she felt he got what he deserved. He had the opportunity to refine his skills but chose to slack off, and still he was discontented and covetous. Now that he’s in a higher-paying job, what good does it do? Isn’t he still being scolded every day for lacking skills?
During their chat with Ya Rui, they learned that not only had Luo Haojun been unable to survive in Beijing’s media circle, but he also failed in Shanghai and Shenzhen, and even in second-tier cities’ media circles.
Everyone knew he was a habitual plagiarist, and nobody would hire him.
With no options left, he returned to his hometown and got a job at the local newspaper, living a life of idle existence.
It was only during the chat with the plaid-shirted man that she learned he was Cui Hu. The server recommendation he promised earlier had also been shelved because of his previous unreliable seminar recommendation.
However, there was no doubting Cui Hu’s expertise; if she needed anything in the future, she could still look him up.
After the tea party ended, everyone went their separate ways.
Snow began to fall from the sky, and Zhou Xueyin stood on the street corner, taking a deep breath. She always knew that starting a business was hard and tiring, but she never thought it could also be fun in its own right, meeting all sorts of people, encountering a variety of social affairs. Perhaps that’s the pleasure of entrepreneurship.
