I Deduce the Female Lead Likes Me [Transmigration into a book] - Chapter 8: Internship
The so-called internship was essentially standing in the art gallery exhibition hall and giving explanations. If you encountered a customer with purchasing intent, you’d approach them, which was no different from sales.
Kou Shuang needed to prepare beforehand to avoid being caught unprepared and unable to persuade customers. Fortunately, the gallery had already written the explanations, so she just needed to memorize them.
The reason they were hiring so urgently this time was that Chunsheng Gallery had leased its exhibition space to the local leg of a touring charity exhibition. However, the organizers of this touring exhibition weren’t particularly reliable and only provided the materials very late. The gallery, in desperation, hired Kou Shuang without hesitation because she had good academic qualifications and a pleasant demeanor.
Kou Shuang received the materials at 2 PM the day before. To memorize everything without staying up late, Kou Shuang didn’t touch her phone from afternoon until evening.
When she arrived at the exhibition hall on Monday, Lux looked at Kou Shuang’s attire, smiled, and said: “Alright then, I don’t need to find you clothes.”
Lux was that good-looking HR guy who seemed to manage and do everything.
Kou Shuang asked: “Is there anything else I need to know?”
Lux then led her backstage, where she saw the legendary boss.
The boss was a bit plump, with a very artistic long hairstyle, and was currently eating noodles with his head down. Seeing Kou Shuang enter, he quickly stood up, extended his hand, and said: “This must be the art student from National University, right? Welcome, welcome. I’m Chunsheng’s boss, just call me Old Chun.”
When Old Chun smiled, he looked like a Maitreya Buddha, and his words were very approachable. Although his age was apparent, he gave off a feeling of not needing to be too formal.
Kou Shuang shook Old Chun’s hand and said: “Hello, I’m Kou Shuang.”
Old Chun said: “Don’t be too restrained. We’re just agents for the touring exhibition. Whether the artworks sell depends on their own exhibits. You’re an intern, lunch is provided, and there’s no commission. Is that okay with you?”
“No problem.”
“Some customers are difficult and ask tricky questions. If our pre-written explanations don’t cover it, just improvise. Coming from the National University Art Department, you’re more than capable of fooling ordinary people,” Old Chun said. “There’s nothing else to explain.”
“Oh, right, what do you want for lunch? I’ll have Lux buy it. But don’t order anything too complicated; lunch break is only twenty minutes.”
Kou Shuang smiled and said: “Braised chicken with rice, please.”
This was officially her first day of work, and Kou Shuang still found it somewhat unbelievable.
After 9 AM, people gradually started coming into the exhibition hall. Most people who came to art exhibitions were quiet and self-disciplined. Occasionally, if they had a purchasing intent, they would directly approach Kou Shuang, so Kou Shuang didn’t need to put in much effort.
Kou Shuang breathed a long sigh of relief. She had thought she’d need to be extremely vigilant, rushing to anyone who looked like they wanted to buy. Instead, she just needed to stand there, acting like a little fairy, waiting for opportunities to come to her.
For a niche art exhibition like this, most visitors were knowledgeable, so Kou Shuang’s explanations weren’t needed too often.
Another weight lifted from Kou Shuang’s heart. She had memorized the explanations perfectly and feared tricky questions, as she wouldn’t be able to effectively feign expertise.
Peace was destined not to last. As it approached lunchtime, a middle-aged man wearing sunglasses rushed in.
He was literally jogging in… The man was burly and looked somewhat menacing. After entering, he took off his sunglasses, looked around, then headed straight for Kou Shuang.
Kou Shuang’s heart sank, thinking: He’s not here to cause trouble, is he!
The next second, she heard the man lower his voice and ask: “Which is the most expensive painting here?”
He then asked: “After buying it, will the money really be donated to a Project Hope primary school?”
His cautiousness was in stark contrast to his appearance, giving him an inexplicable cuteness.
So, was this a big brother in sunglasses who wanted to support the nation’s education system?
“Excluding operational costs, all funds will be donated to Project Hope primary schools. After the touring exhibition, the fund flow will be displayed on the event’s official website. You are welcome to check it then,” Kou Shuang said with a smile.
The middle-aged man rubbed his head and said: “Alright then! Show me your most expensive painting!”
Kou Shuang led him to the most valuable painting in this exhibition. “This is it. It’s priced at 420,000 yuan, and it’s a posthumous work by the late Taiwanese writer Jiushisan. The artistic technique of this painting is very novel, and there’s no shortage of imitators today…”
Kou Shuang was halfway through reciting the explanation when the man waved his hand, interrupting her.
The man turned to look at Kou Shuang and said: “I don’t understand all that. I just have one question: Are these paintings real? I’m spending money, but I don’t want to buy a fake painting to hang at home and lose face!”
Kou Shuang was stunned and said: “This… it should be real.”
“Should?!” The man immediately flared his nostrils and glared, looking quite formidable: “Aren’t you working here? How can it be ‘should’?”
Kou Shuang felt a little scared of such a crude man and explained: “All the paintings here can be verified on the official website and are authorized for sale by the original artists or their relatives. Their legitimate source can be guaranteed.”
“So it’s real then?”
“…” Kou Shuang said nothing.
The man looked at Kou Shuang’s name tag and said: “Kou Shuang, National University Art Department… Oh, if you can find National University students to be interns, it must be real! You cultured people are much more capable than me!”
The man laughed heartily and said: “Please wrap it up for me. I’ll take it now.”
Kou Shuang’s heart sank a little, but she still smiled and said: “I’ll go backstage to wrap it for you.”
She felt a sense of déjà vu, like when she first started working and was tricked by an old accountant into signing off on problematic documents.
When she went backstage to explain the situation to Old Chun, he was very happy and said: “You sold the hardest one on the first day! You’re really good!”
Kou Shuang quickly explained: “It’s not my credit; the customer wanted to show their generosity. The original intention of the touring exhibition is good.”
Old Chun went out and brought the painting in. As he was wrapping it, Kou Shuang watched from the side and suddenly remembered something. She asked Old Chun: “By the way, are these paintings all real? That customer just asked me.”
“What did you say?” Old Chun glanced at Kou Shuang.
Kou Shuang said: “I said it could be checked on the official website, and then the customer looked at my name tag and didn’t pursue it. Is the reputation of the National University Art Department that useful?”
Old Chun smiled and said: “You can check everything on the official website; let him check. As for the National University Art Department… I was in a hurry to hire, but I also looked at qualifications, which represents professional competence. If you weren’t from National University, I might not have hired you.”
Kou Shuang felt a little guilty hearing Old Chun’s words, because she herself was the one lacking professional competence… If she hadn’t been unable to get into the magazine, she wouldn’t have come here.
With guilt in her heart, Kou Shuang naturally didn’t dare to continue the topic. She carried the painting out, and the black-sunglass-wearing man paid with his card and left with the painting, truly decisive.
Afterward, she did encounter a few particularly difficult individuals who specifically asked niche questions that Kou Shuang, despite cramming an entire night’s worth of art history, couldn’t handle. She realized that this group was probably pretentious literati trying to show off.
She tried her best to respond politely, rambling about various artistic movements and schools, and surprisingly, she actually managed to fool them. One by one, they looked at Kou Shuang with admiration. When Kou Shuang asked if they wanted to buy paintings, they immediately disappeared.
Kou Shuang shook her head.
Lux occasionally appeared in the exhibition hall. Hearing this, he smiled at Kou Shuang and said: “It’s tiring, isn’t it? You often encounter people like this who actually don’t understand anything. But you’re quite good at fabricating things, and your psychological resilience is good; you don’t panic at all. You’re suited for this.”
Kou Shuang smiled and said nothing.
Inwardly, however, she was grumbling: When the company did its year-end summary, and the boss questioned me, I still had to talk smoothly, smiling as I shifted blame. That’s where the general’s demeanor was forged, I guess.
Lux patted her shoulder again and said: “Look, isn’t that your friend? She’s been staring at you for a long time.”
Kou Shuang followed the direction Lux pointed and, to her surprise, found… Song Muxue.
“Song Muxue!” Kou Shuang was a little happy. She jogged over to Song Muxue and said: “Why are you here?”
Song Muxue tucked her hair behind her ear and said: “I said I’d come see your internship.”
Song Muxue spoke concisely and was dressed in professional attire, looking very much like a lawyer. Her hair hadn’t been ruined by a salon; it was naturally smooth. The upper part was straight, but the ends had a subtle curve, resting perfectly on her chest.
Kou Shuang’s gaze unconsciously fell on Song Muxue’s hair ends, and she thought incongruously: Is it because her chest is too big that her hair is forced into that shape?
Song Muxue said: “If you’re not busy, can you explain things to me?”
Kou Shuang was startled and said: “Okay.”
Anyway, there weren’t many people right now.
She took Song Muxue from the first painting in the exhibition, meticulously reciting the script. In fact, this was her first truly proper explanation job today.
Fortunately, the explanations were well-written, clearly stating the era, meaning, and historical significance of the exhibits in a few words. Kou Shuang recited them as if she were a true expert, earning a compliment from Song Muxue: “You’re knowledgeable about both ancient and modern times.”
Song Muxue’s praise was not easily earned. Kou Shuang savored the compliment, feeling undeserving but too embarrassed to say that none of it was her own writing.
Song Muxue was a good listener. Besides nodding in appreciation, she didn’t say much. Kou Shuang led her from painting to painting, finally reaching the empty spot in the center, where the man with sunglasses had bought a painting.
Song Muxue asked: “Why is this exhibition space empty?”
Kou Shuang explained: “This painting was just sold, and we haven’t had time to replace it with a painting of similar value.”
“How much?”
“420,000.”
“Then your prices aren’t that high.”
Kou Shuang smiled and said: “Maybe not high for a wealthy person, but it’s more than enough for Project Hope. No one can expect a charity art exhibition to sell Qi Baishi, right? But that big brother just now was really rich. He came in, went straight for the most expensive one, asked ‘Is it real?’ and then left.”
Hearing this, Song Muxue turned to look at Kou Shuang and said: “Then, did you verify that painting?”
Kou Shuang was stunned and said: “It… it should be real. I didn’t look closely, but the organizers are quite reliable, you know.”
Song Muxue nodded and said: “Alright then, as long as you’re clear.”
The two finished touring the exhibition hall; it was already past 1 PM. Song Muxue looked at her watch and said: “I have to go. You continue your internship.”
“Leaving already?” Kou Shuang was a little bewildered.
Song Muxue said: “I ran out during my internship lunch break. Seeing that you’re well and haven’t been swindled, I’m relieved.”
For some reason, Song Muxue was always particularly sensitive to the names Sun Jiawen and Lu Renjia. An alarm bell kept ringing in her heart, as if something was about to happen. Her intuition had always been accurate since childhood, especially concerning impending bad things. This time, the feeling was exceptionally strong, impossible to ignore, so she had no choice but to come and investigate personally.
But Kou Shuang looked happy, with no sign of anything unusual. Song Muxue repeatedly confirmed with Kou Shuang if everything was reliable. After getting a positive answer, she couldn’t say much more, only reminding her: “Be careful when dealing with people; don’t always decide who to trust based on looks.”
Kou Shuang grinned and said: “Then I’ll definitely trust you the most!”
Not only because of her looks, Song Muxue could be considered the most trustworthy person in this world. If anyone in this world would absolutely never do bad things, it would be Song Muxue.
Out of blind trust in the female lead, Kou Shuang said this.
Song Muxue looked at the other person’s smiling face, and her heart subtly stirred.
At this moment, she wasn’t thinking of anyone else. She simply felt that Kou Shuang’s current appearance was much more pleasing than when they were at odds.