The Wind Heard Her Confession - Chapter 1: A Blinding Crush part 3

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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“It’s a very innovative idea.” The manager nodded in approval. “However…” he paused slightly before continuing, “I’ve looked at your résumé. Your highest education only shows high school—did you not attend any specialized institutions for training?”

This question instantly silenced the room.

Chi Ye sat quietly, his brow furrowed deeply.

Derivative Product Design

As soon as she saw his movement, the department manager secretly drew a big red cross on the ‘Lin Yuran’ written on the pages beneath his hand.

Lin Yuran’s expression stiffened slightly for a moment before she turned to look at Chi Ye.

Third Middle School was one of the top schools in the country, and it held the title of being the best among fifteen elite high schools across the province. The top hundred students in the entire province were all from Third Middle School, making it known as an elite institution where only merit mattered, money and connections had no effect whatsoever.

In truth, Lin Yuran’s situation wasn’t unique; rather, it was more accurate to say that the system itself was flawed. The leaders and wealthy parents used their connections to shove their children into the prestigious school, but because they didn’t enter through merit, their lack of preparation rendered them unable to keep up with their peers.

Once, Lin Yuran had been the number one student in both her honors class and the entire grade at Third Middle School, which made her the number one student in the entire province.

With such outstanding grades, it was truly embarrassing for Lin Yuran to now be asked about nothing but her high school education when meeting her old classmates.

Although Lin Yuran had already taken the college entrance exams this year and earned admission into Tsinghua University, the highest academic institution within the nation, she would not officially enroll until late August. Therefore, according to current standards, her educational attainment was indeed limited to high school.

Lin Yuran gave an awkward smile. “Indeed, my highest educational attainment is only high school. However, I’ve been studying art since elementary school, which amounts to 11 years of education. After graduation, although I didn’t pursue further studies at a higher institution, I have always worked in related fields and thus haven’t lost any skills.”

Though Lin Yuran never received formal education from a university, she had attended art classes during her summer and winter breaks since grade school. She also studied under a renowned professional artist since middle school, who recognized her talent and poured his life’s knowledge into teaching her. During her senior year, she trained intensively with a focus on drawing, and even enrolled in the best art studio in the city.

She could be considered well-rounded in terms of artistic training, possessing a strong foundation in her field.

She paused briefly, glanced at Chi Ye, then turned her gaze toward the manager of product design, speaking without arrogance or submissiveness, “Those of you working in game development should understand that in some industries, talent will always trump hard work.”

“But it’s also impossible to succeed solely on talent without putting in effort.”

The supervisor retorted. 

“How do you know I didn’t work hard?” Lin Yuran lifted her chin slightly and said, “There’s no need to turn this job interview into a debate on effort versus talent. The results of one’s efforts are what employers care about; a graduation certificate from a prestigious university is one kind of result, while excellent market feedback is another. Your company needs someone who can create licensed merchandise, so which type of ‘result’ matters more? Adults who have already entered the workforce should be able to tell.”

After these words landed, silence engulfed the room.

No one spoke for half a minute.

Lin Yuran raised an eyebrow after waiting slightly longer before asking, “Do you have any other questions?”

The supervisor turned his head toward the two men sitting in the middle, waited for another half-minute, then said when no one responded, “That’s all for today’s interview. We’ll announce the results within a week, so please wait patiently at home.”

Lin Yuran stood up from her seat, “Thank you, looking forward to hearing from you soon.” She pushed open the door and walked out.

After Lin Yuran left, the director of derivative product design let out a small sigh and said regretfully, “The market for mystery boxes is becoming saturated; there’s only a handful of IP that have made a name for themselves these past few years. This industry is very reliant on design concepts, and this young woman has some unique ideas with her Mr. Night, Panda Hua-zi, and Rebellious Rose. All three became instant hits upon release, especially Panda Hua-zi which gained immense popularity overseas and greatly promoted our country’s traditional culture. He IP Ran·Ran is still fairly new, but it’s steadily gaining momentum, making it quite the dark horse recently. There’s potential for it to become one of the leading IPs in the industry. She only has a high school education, what a pity!”

The room remained silent.

A few seconds later…

“D**n, this girl isn’t here seeking partnerships, she came here to steal souls!” Qin Lang suddenly broke the frozen atmosphere as he leaned back in his chair, watching Chi Ye with a playful grin. “Can we hire based on looks alone? This girl sure knows how to stand out, I’ve never seen anyone with such pale skin that’s also so dewy, not to mention those shoulder-length silver locks framing her fox-like eyes, which seem to pierce right through you with every glance. Her amber eyes hold water, giving off an impression like…”

Qin Lang closed his eyes and thought for a moment before giving a very apt comparison: “Like a snow fox.”

At this, Chi Ye’s eyebrows lifted slightly.

Qin Lang continued to ramble without a care. “This girl’s outfit today, coupled with her silver hair… normally such a look would be too flashy for most people, but on her face, it actually creates a sense of ease instead; truly marvelous! I almost lost my soul just now.” He paused briefly, then added, “And her speech earlier was also way too confident!”

Chi Ye turned to glance at him, voice calm as he asked, “What do you have to do with any of these matters?”

“I’m just curious about this small matter, okay?” Qin Lang gave him a sly grin. “Besides, there are matters that concern me here, aren’t they? Didn’t we say we’re going to release our team’s mascot merchandise? Am I not allowed to check over the designs?”

Chi Ye ignored him, turning his gaze back to the profile form in front of him.

Qin Lang asked, “Didn’t you go to headquarters for a meeting? Why’ve you returned already?”

Chi Ye didn’t respond immediately. After a short while, he stood up and walked towards the door.

Behind him, Qin Lang called out, “So, you only interviewed one person?”

“Who cares?”

With arms crossed, Qin Lang stared at the heavily closed door. “How intriguing!”