The Lost Lamb's Trap - Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Stars

Duan Jiayang’s breathing became a little erratic. Everyone was focused on her, and her tightly pursed lips looked more like she was trying to hold back a laugh. Just moments ago, Duan Jiayang had made a big claim, and now going to the office with Lin Ke would be a loss of face. Plus, she simply didn’t want to go.

Duan Jiayang took out her phone and showed it to Lin Ke. “It’s after work hours. I have a date, so I don’t have time to discuss this with you.”

Lin Ke looked at her phone screen. The background was a photo of Duan Jiayang herself, wearing a pink Japanese cherry blossom kimono, with wooden clogs on her feet and a white fan in her hand, standing at an angle to the camera. He Xiao was wearing a blue kimono, sitting on a rock. This photo was taken during a trip to Japan last year.

“Fine.” Lin Ke’s gaze briefly scanned the screen. Her attitude wasn’t forceful, and she agreed. As she turned, the white strap on her ankle formed a graceful arc, making one wonder what it would be like to put a small bell on her ankle.

Everyone subconsciously breathed a sigh of relief, looking at Duan Jiayang as if she were a god.

Duan Jiayang picked up her Chanel bag and left elegantly. As she walked out of the company, feeling the cool evening breeze, she also felt a sense of triumph.

With only a short distance left of her journey home, Duan Jiayang suddenly remembered her date with Lan Yao. She quickly told the driver to turn around, and feeling it was impolite, she sent a message to Lan Yao. Lan Yao replied that she was still in a meeting at the company and asked her to wait a little.

Duan Jiayang went to a bubble tea shop next to the company to wait. Bored, she scrolled through her phone, looking at new jewelry. A silver leopard ring caught her eye, and she was debating whether to buy it when Lan Yao’s car arrived.

“Sorry to keep you waiting,” Lan Yao said as she opened the car door.

Duan Jiayang hadn’t been paying attention to the time. “I just got here.”

Lan Yao closed the car door and suddenly smiled.

Duan Jiayang saw the smile and felt it was strange but didn’t think much of it, continuing to think about the ring from the back seat.

They went to a French restaurant for dinner. The lighting was bright, a pianist in a black suit played a gentle tune, and the environment was elegant, overlooking the city’s neon lights.

Later, they went to the theater to watch a performance. Duan Jiayang insisted on paying, but while her eyes enjoyed the visual feast, her ears couldn’t understand anything. She was uninspired and struggled to stay awake.

Lan Yao drove her home and asked if she had time, saying she wanted her help choosing makeup on the weekend. After returning home, Duan Jiayang took a shower, changed into her pajamas, lay in bed, and exchanged goodnight messages with Lan Yao.

It was a good night, except for the dreams she had later.

In her dream, there were only goats and pigs. The goats and pigs sat in her family’s latest CEO car, a goat’s hoof propped against its cheek, questioning her, “You tell me, what’s the connection?”

Duan Jiayang woke up with a splitting headache, as if she had drunk two ounces of strong liquor that had burned her brain.

Her state was not good when she went to work in the morning. Duan Jiayang spent an hour at home putting on makeup before leaving.

The company has a mandatory check-in system, three times a day. Duan Jiayang had found it novel and checked in a few times at first, but later, when she realized her salary was the same whether she checked in or not, she stopped, and was often late for work.

Today, she was on time. Her colleagues in the office just assumed she was in a good mood. In contrast, the newly appointed Director Lin, holding a document bag, entered the room right on time, nodding to them and saying, “Good job today, everyone’s on time. I feel a bit of pressure now.”

The tense atmosphere in the office dissipated by half. A few colleagues who hadn’t slept all night came back to life. Yang Ruiqi quickly added, “Good morning, Director.”

“You too,” Lin Ke smiled.

Duan Jiayang was in a bad mood, but she had good eyesight and saw the name on the document: Duan Jiayang.

Director Lin opened her office door and looked at her, saying, “Don’t forget.”

Those simple three words jogged the collective memory of the department. Their heartbeats rose and fell. They wanted to say the director had a sense of humor, but they also felt her smile didn’t reach her eyes.

Duan Jiayang didn’t enter the director’s office all morning, seeming to be in opposition to her. But just because she didn’t go into the office didn’t mean Lin Ke wouldn’t come out.

In the afternoon, Lin Ke came out of the R&D department and didn’t return to her office, standing behind Duan Jiayang’s cubicle to watch. A shiver ran down Duan Jiayang’s spine. She couldn’t find the mouse cursor on the screen, and her fingers held the mouse, sliding it around for a long time.

Lin Ke’s gaze was on the web page she was browsing. Duan Jiayang also followed her gaze. The headlines were all about: goats, pigs, cars, a boar not eating fine food, Lin Ke, America… Does that mean Lin Ke doesn’t eat Duan Jiayang?

“Have you ever thought that a boar and a car might actually have a connection?”

Lin Ke’s voice was clear and cool. When she got serious, it had a certain alluring magnetism, like cherries pickled in a strong, mellow liquor—sweet and tempting, yet with a涩, astringent aftertaste.

Duan Jiayang was a little curious.

“For example, the zookeeper drives a car to take the pigs to the slaughterhouse,” Lin Ke said, folding her arms. “But this car should ideally be a convertible.”

“This brings us to the dimensional relationship of the various parts of the convertible’s body, including length, width, height, and wheelbase. Do we choose a streamlined design or a MINI’s rounded lines…”

“…”

Lin Ke was like a head teacher, leaning on the desk and asking, “What about the sheep? Do the little sheep also get sent to the slaughterhouse together?”

Her analysis was brilliant, leaving everyone in the office dumbfounded. It sounded logical at first, but then it became impractical. Everyone could tell Lin Ke was joking, except for Duan Jiayang. Her face flushed. If she had to say something, she could only say who would use a convertible to transport livestock? They all use tractors.

Duan Jiayang’s attitude was stiff. She was unwilling to step into that office door.

That door seemed like a passage. If Duan Jiayang walked through it, she would move from a messy adolescence into the world of adults. And in that adult world, she and Lin Ke would meet again, adapting to the rules of society with different identities. Duan Jiayang would be dominated by the other person and have a leash tightened around her neck.

She couldn’t tell if she wanted to be stuck in the messy past or if she wanted to endure the discomfort and reconnect with the coffee-filled mug in the office. The overall feeling was that she didn’t want to forget the past. Duan Jiayang was squirming uncomfortably and couldn’t take a step.

Duan Jiayang sat at her desk, holding the mouse, experiencing the feeling of being controlled by someone in a position of power, which made her think of a phrase: I never thought this is what the future would be like.

Lin Ke said, “Come in with me.”

Lin Ke walked in front of her, entering the office. Duan Jiayang dragged her body, as stiff as if her limbs weren’t working together. She shuffled her feet repeatedly at the doorway, like someone dragging in mud on a rainy day, before finally entering the office.

Lin Ke held her file. The seal was open, and it was obvious that it had been read. Duan Jiayang clenched her fingers tightly, a wave of heat washing over her.

Lin Ke said, “Your work experience is surprisingly rich.”

Duan Jiayang was mortified.

Lin Ke sat up straight, her fingers interlaced.

Duan Jiayang spoke directly, “Are you going to keep pestering me?”

Lin Ke leaned her arm on the armrest, her expression slightly puzzled. “Don’t misunderstand. We made it very clear last time. There are no ties, it’s over.”

“Liar,” Duan Jiayang looked directly at her. “You came to my department to be my superior, and you say there are no ties and it’s over? Do you think I’m stupid?”

Lin Ke’s expression was serious. “Did I harass you? Did I use my position to ask you to do anything in my office? I’ve been calm and composed in front of you. Being able to handle things this calmly, what would you call it if not being over?”

Duan Jiayang lowered her eyes. It was true that avoiding someone was a form of evasion.

The office was very different from the previous director’s, filled with her personal style. The desk was replaced with an off-white one, the sofa with a greenish-blue one. It was a bit bigger than before, and there were several small white sheep cushions on it. White and green, little sheep eating green grass.

The cactus on her desk with its hedgehog spines was in excellent condition, with a red flower blooming between its spines. A pot of jasmine was on the windowsill, and the unique scent of jasmine wafted in with the breeze. This was the source of Lin Ke’s fragrance, not a perfume she had specially sprayed.

Lin Ke’s desk was piled with documents. She said, “I just finished reading your file and also consulted with your former director.”

Duan Jiayang asked, “What will it take for you to move out?”

Lin Ke pursed her lips, as if hinting for a kiss.

Duan Jiayang gritted her teeth, wanting to call her shameless.

Lin Ke’s fingertip swept over the document. She said very seriously, “Let’s talk about work. After all, we’re in the office.”

She said it in a way that made it sound like Duan Jiayang was trying to seduce her.

Duan Jiayang found it funny, even funnier than her work experience.

A few years ago, when she first joined the company and was involved in projects, every project she was on failed. The projects went south so quickly that her father ruthlessly kicked her out of the company.

At that time, her father was still entangled with another woman. That woman tried to curry favor with her by bringing her to her own studio, but after two or three months, the studio almost couldn’t stay afloat.

Later, her father had a change of mind. He thought she had some special skills, so he arranged a position for her called “Risk Analyst.” But her actual work wasn’t about financial consulting, investment advice, or tax planning. Her father gave her a little money every day to specifically buy the stocks of his rivals. If there were two stocks he was unsure about, he would have her buy the other one.

He also explicitly forbade her from buying their own company’s stock.

Duan Jiayang worked for a year without understanding anything, completing her tasks like a witch every day.

Later, a very bizarre incident happened. Someone informed Duan Litian that the companies he had Duan Jiayang buy stocks for had hired high-ranking monks and masters to launch a metaphysical attack against him.

Duan Litian always felt it was ominous, and Duan Jiayang wasn’t actively “casting spells” as she was often slacking off. He could only invite a few other companies to dinner for a secret truce and arranged for Duan Jiayang, a high-achieving language major, to be trained at the grassroots level.

But when Duan Jiayang put on the work uniform in the workshop, it was a completely different story. Her delicate skin made her look like a joke in front of the machines, especially since they knew she was the boss’s daughter. The masters were afraid to teach her, not worrying about the machines being scrapped, but about her getting injured.

Duan Jiayang was unconvinced. She started learning from scratch in the workshop to weld circuit boards. The moment she held the tool and melted the solder wire, the smell of rosin made her feel sick and she constantly wanted to vomit. After two days of feeling dizzy, the master’s grandson had already soldered an LED heart lamp that could run in several modes, while none of her solder points were usable.

She was quite useless.

Finally, she was assigned to the design studio to draw car designs. She was quite enthusiastic at first, learning how to draw and model every day. When others went to eat, she didn’t, using her mealtime to study. She even went home and stayed up late to continue her bitter struggle.

One time, she was so tired she submitted a cartoon drawing. The director still looked overjoyed and praised her for finally having a new insight into 3D modeling and virtual simulation, which was worth encouraging.

Duan Jiayang still didn’t understand what he meant, but she knew that it didn’t matter whether she came to work or not.

To everyone, she was just a useless rich girl, and her only advantage was being a pretty, useless rich girl.

It was embarrassing. Duan Jiayang had gone through a lot at a young age.

Duan Jiayang didn’t want to talk about work, and she especially didn’t want Lin Ke to make fun of her. Tearing off the facade would only reveal how miserable her life had been these past few years. She grabbed her file and put it away so Lin Ke couldn’t touch it.

Lin Ke pursed her red lips, letting her do as she pleased.

Duan Jiayang understood Lin Ke’s hint, but she suddenly had a flash of inspiration. She said, “Then why did you leave the office…?” Her expression was suspicious. “Are you going back to America?”

Lin Ke didn’t hide it, just gave a soft smile. “I’m not going back to America. If I’m not a director, I’ll move up again, maybe become a general manager in the R&D department?”

Duan Jiayang understood. It was endless. She clenched her fists. Lin Ke said, “If you don’t like me as a general manager, we can talk again, and I’ll change my position. It’s just…”

Lin Ke’s phone rang. It was from the department next door. She turned off the screen, got up from her chair with her phone, not getting any closer. She straightened out the wrinkles in her clothes and, like any ambitious employee discussing a promotion, continued, “It’s just that the higher the position, the more greed there is. At that point, I’ll want more.”

“You were so amazing in America, winning competitions and awards. Wasn’t it easy for you to get more there? You were doing so well, so smart in school. Why didn’t you go somewhere else and become a CEO? Why bother with me!”

Duan Jiayang said, “Go back!”

As long as Lin Ke didn’t go back to America to develop her career, she wouldn’t believe anything she said. In some moments, she had a knack for being stubborn.

Lin Ke couldn’t help but smile. “Alright. Do you really want me to spell it out so clearly?”

“Yes, it’s true. I worked hard every day in a foreign country, strived to be the best, and reached for the clouds… it was all…” Her gaze was deep. “For today, for you. So you knew all about what I was doing abroad? You were paying attention to me.” She said, “I thought you never paid attention to me, and on the day I came back, I was prepared for you not to recognize me in the crowd.”

“You were holding a sign with the name ‘Lin Ke’ written on it, raising it above your head, as if you were labeling yourself as Lin Ke’s property. That scene was truly exciting. In the crowd, I just wanted to rush over and hug you. On the way back, I couldn’t stop looking at you.”

“I used to imagine how Jiayang would say my name when she grew up and became an adult. When her lips moved, would it be enticing or sexy?”

Shameless!

Duan Jiayang gritted her teeth.

Lin Ke pondered for a moment. “It should also sound nice to call me Director Lin at the company.”

Every time Duan Jiayang called her name and cursed her, it would stimulate her nerves. Her eyes seemed to be asking: Can you handle this, with what I’m saying?

After she finished smiling, she turned to look at the documents on the table. Her tone became flat and serious without any transition. “I’ve gone through all your old documents and revised them for you. Except for the goat and pig designs, you should review and revise the rest according to the notes. Submit it to me within this week.”

Duan Jiayang grabbed the documents and stormed out. She was stopped again. Duan Jiayang glared at her fiercely. “What now?”

“Just one more thing.” Lin Ke approached step by step, her gaze falling on Duan Jiayang’s lips. Duan Jiayang felt a sudden lack of oxygen, desperately wanting to leave. Lin Ke’s finger landed on her lips first. The heat of the touch made Duan Jiayang’s heart pound. She wanted to push her away and tell her to behave, but her movements were restricted by the documents in her arms.

Lin Ke pressed her finger down firmly and said, “Next time you come to my office, you don’t have to be in such a hurry. You can take your time applying your lipstick and blotting it slowly.”

A few minutes later, Duan Jiayang came out holding the documents. She slammed them on her desk. Yang Ruiqi was startled by the sound and carefully turned a page. Duan Jiayang’s messy, unreadable, and un-revisable work had all been corrected. There were even notes on which books to consult for research, and even instructions on how to use SolidWorks and Alias Automotive, a complete fool-proof tutorial that was more detailed than anything you could buy.

The colleagues watching were baffled. They had expected the two to have a big fight, using their status to pressure each other and cause a scene. But… the director helped revise the documents and guide the direction, which seemed quite peaceful.

Director Lin came out of the office, holding a meeting book, and went to the R&D department for a meeting. She asked two colleagues to help, and her smile was gentle and clean. When a colleague helped her carry a document, she would say thank you and didn’t put on airs.

“…The director is quite considerate.”

“Duan Jiayang, what happened in the office?”

Duan Jiayang, Duan Jiayang lowered her head and pressed her lips together firmly, only she knew.

Lin Ke’s entire demeanor exuded one phrase: a cultured scoundrel.

Jiayang, how do you think I’m playing the role of a cultured scoundrel?