The Wind Heard Her Confession - Chapter 1: A Blinding Crush part 2

Hello, Bunnyyy here~
I will be translating this novel ‘The Wind Heard Her Confession’, and I will be splitting the chapters into 2-4 parts, depending on how long each chapter is. Please give it lots of love~

Thank you~

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“Of course, RanYe has their own merchandise and released a few mystery boxes before, but they didn’t make much of a splash,” Xu Jianwei explained. “If they can’t develop it internally, partnering with popular IP creators for limited collaborations is a good choice; it’s a win-win situation.”

Lin Yuran finished lunch and had some work to take care of, so she lowered her head and turned on her phone, searching for RanYe Entertainment on Baidu.

She scrolled through the screen briefly. The company was established just six years ago, yet it had already produced quite a handful of popular games. Lin Yuran wasn’t a gamer herself, but she recognized many of these titles from her colleagues’ conversations—the Infinite Showdown series, Dawn Breaker, Ultimate Contract, Dream of Daylight, Chasing Light, etc., all extremely well-known within the industry.

Impressive, Lin Yuran thought silently.

She turned off her phone, took out her lipstick from her purse, and carefully touched up her lips using the mirror on the passenger side door—it was time to take this interview seriously.

Then she remembered something important that she’d neglected earlier. “Oh no! We were rushing out too quickly, I forgot my résumé.”

“Don’t worry.” Xu Jianwei rolled down the window and began backing up her car, “I’ve already printed out your résumé.”

After she parked, Xu Jianwei let out a breath of relief, checked the time on her watch, and said with a smile, “It’s just about one o’clock.”

Lin Yuran unbuckled her seat belt, and Xu Jianwei handed her a file folder from the back seat. “Here’s your résumé. I’ll wait for you here.”

“Not bad. Finally did something reliable,” Lin Yuran accepted the file folder. “I won’t need my backpack, I’m off.”

“Good luck!” Xu Jianwei gave her a cheering gesture. “The glory and riches of my sisterhood rest upon your shoulders now.”

Lin Yuran flashed a confident smile at her before closing the door.

As soon as she stepped into RanYe’s grand hall, she was stunned by the massive statue in the center of the room. It must have been some popular character from a game, as Lin Yuran stared blankly for a while, feeling inexplicably familiar.

She looked around, inwardly marveling—this company deserved to be called a big name; everything before her eyes could no longer be described as merely visually stimulating, but rather, it was practically a visual shock.

The entire environment of the hall seemed to embody the physicalization of the dreamscapes woven by the creators. The black floor and walls of varying shades perfectly complemented each other, giving depth and texture to the space. The large expanses of black extended the boundaries infinitely, while the low light aesthetic enveloped the building structure within an energy field that seemed to emanate from another world.

Plants, metals, and various game characters blended seamlessly with each other, blurring the line between reality and virtuality. It was as if one had broken through the barrier of dimensions to step into another world.

After briefly admiring the scenery, Lin Yuran walked toward the front desk. “Hello, I am the manager of Beijian Studio, here today for an interview regarding collaboration.”

The two receptionists stood up promptly, smiling warmly.

One of them, a young woman, asked softly, “May we ask if you’ve passed the initial round of online screening?”

Lin Yuran responded honestly, “No.”

“No? That’s not good…”

After listening to Lin Yuran introduce himself, the older receptionist who was sitting next to her paused from typing on the computer and interrupted her colleague, asking, “Excuse me, ma’am, may we confirm that you’re indeed from Beijian Studio?”

Lin Yuran was slightly taken aback but answered, “Yes.”

The receptionist approached Lin Yuran immediately, gesturing with her hand to lead him somewhere. “Please follow me.”

As they ascended to the third floor together, the receptionist requested Lin Yuran’s résumé, informing her she could wait in the break room until her name was called.

A significant number of people were waiting in the break room; it seemed they were all fellow candidates, some of whom looked familiar to Lin Yuran. However, they merely recognized each other vaguely and had never interacted before, so she didn’t greet them.

After waiting nearly an hour, Lin Yuran was about to fall asleep on the sofa when her name finally rang out.

Lin Yuran woke herself up and walked with confidence into the interview room.

The interview room was simple; a long black table divided the space into two distinct areas, behind which sat three people each holding a card displaying their position and name before them. The Art Director, Jin Ling; the Supervisor of Derivative Products, Zhang Xin—these two were acceptable interviewers for such a role, but the man sitting between them, Captain of the Wolves, Qin Lang, seemed rather unrelated to the position at hand.

There was another empty seat at the center of the long table, upon which rested a card bearing only one name: Chi Ye.

Upon seeing those two characters, Lin Yuran’s heart skipped a beat. Such unique words would rarely appear together, making it unlikely they shared any commonality.

Staring blankly at that name for several seconds, Lin Yuran began her brief self-introduction, “I am the manager of Beijian Studio, Lin Yuran. Ran·Ran is the IP created by our studio.”

The Art Director lifted his hand, gesturing for her to sit.

Lin Yuran naturally took a seat on the white chair beside the long black table.

The Supervisor of Derivative Products spoke up, “We’ve all looked over your résumé, but we have some questions.”

“Please ask your questions,” Lin Yuran said with a smile.

The door behind her suddenly opened, and all three interviewers stood up as they saw the newcomer walk in. Lin Yuran also stood up and turned to look back, only to be stunned by a tall figure that walked right in front of her field of vision.

The man’s gaze was cold and unfathomable; his glance swept across the room, his long legs stirring a powerful wind accompanied by a faintly fresh woody scent mixed with a touch of soap as he approached.

He strode toward the long table and sat down at the vacant seat behind it. The other three also took their seats once again.

Seeing that Lin Yuran was still standing, the director gestured for her to sit down. Her lashes fluttered slightly as she stared at the man before her, momentarily unable to react.

The man dressed in a sharp black suit with a neat Windsor knot tie, yet his imposing aura wasn’t restrained by these formal attire. He sat calmly, his expression cool and distant, filled with disdainful arrogance, contemptuousness, and unconstrained audacity.

A scene briefly flashed through her mind:

A young boy dressed in a strict blue and white school uniform, yet his demeanor remained unbridled and unrestrained.

“Designer Lin, please take a seat,” the manager of the merchandise design team prompted.

Lin Yuran blinked and returned to reality, then sat back down on the chair.

The manager began her questioning, “From what I see, you designed a series called ‘Panda Hua-zi’ that combines elements of our national treasure, the giant panda, with intangible cultural heritage elements. The market response has been quite favorable; can you tell us about your concept for this product?”

Lin Yuran gathered his focus, returning a smile. “Young people today love collectibles, but they’re often disinterested in intangible cultural heritage. By combining elements of both trends, we can make it easier for young people to understand and appreciate our country’s cultural heritage. Panda Hua is based around the subject of our national treasure, the giant panda, and uses the perspectives and techniques of contemporary youth to preserve and develop our traditional culture, allowing it to once again shine in this age of diversity while also educating young people on the importance of cultural confidence.”