novelraw Chapter 23: Cool
Chapter 23: Cool
11th floor, break area.
“Over here, over here.”
As soon as Tang Yao walked in, Li Xue waved her over with a soft smile.
Tang Yao looked toward her. As always, this big sister looked stunning today—flawless makeup, a mature outfit: crisp white blouse on top, a pencil skirt that barely held in her shapely curves in the middle. Classic black-and-white combo.
Below the hemline, her long, shapely legs were wrapped in sleek black stockings, showing off those flawless lines to the max.
Seriously long… and the proportions are perfect.With those heels? Straight-up model-level.
…Black stockings. Instant win.
Tang Yao was letting her mind wander as she pointed toward the vending machine again.
But before she could walk off, Li Xue stood up first, jogged over, and hooked her arm through Tang Yao’s.
“Don’t buy bread. I made your portion today. Come on.” “Huh?”
Tang Yao was a little surprised. She had been fed once before, but she didn’t expect Li Xue to bring her food again.
“No ‘huh’. Take this lunchbox.”
After pulling Tang Yao into a seat, Li Xue handed her a bento and opened her own. She picked up a piece of crispy sweet and sour pork and held it out.
“I tried making a dish I’m not familiar with—see if it tastes okay.”
“Mmm… yummy.”
Tang Yao opened her mouth and accepted the bite, cheeks puffing out as she chewed the crispy, juicy pork. Her review was immediate and positive.
Because first and foremost, you always give emotional credit to someone feeding you.
“Good. Try another one. This one tastes even better.”
Sure enough, hearing her reply made Li Xue even happier. She looked like a doting mom as she picked up another piece and offered it again.
“You already brought me lunch.”
Tang Yao accepted the second bite, then opened her own box and mumbled,
“Why do you keep stuffing me?”
“Clearly, you don’t know—watching you eat makes people happy.”
Li Xue lifted her chopsticks and wiggled them lightly.
“No matter how pretty someone is, without a little everyday vibe, they’ll come off as untouchable. Even if you sit down with them, it feels like they’re miles away. You’re that type.If you hadn’t performed that mysterious ‘space bar teleport trick’ in front of me back then, I’d probably still think you’re some goddess who doesn’t eat mortal food.Your whole vibe is just so clean. It’s intimidating for someone like me, who’s been through the wringer. If not for that string of accidents, I probably wouldn’t have gotten close to you.”
“Never heard that theory before.”
Tang Yao took a few more bites, then looked up and replied with her mouth full:
“And I don’t think I’m untouchable at all. That kind of person doesn’t even exist.Also… I’ve been through some crap too, you know.”
“That’s what they mean by ‘physician, heal thyself’—or ‘can’t save yourself while saving others’.”
Li Xue looked at the puff-cheeked girl in front of her, all cute like a squirrel, and continued:
“You’ve got no self-awareness.”
“……”
Tang Yao gave her a playful glare, but halfway through, she lost steam. After all, she was still holding a lunch made by this big sister.She could only pout and stare at Li Xue—it looked more like pouting than being mad.
Li Xue felt her heart melt. With a face like that, she could eat three bowls even without any side dishes.
The two of them had a delightful lunch together.
Tang Yao went to grab drinks as usual. When she came back, Li Xue was already cleaning up, totally radiating that housewife energy.
“Thanks, but are you really okay cooking for two by yourself?”
Tang Yao handed her one of the bottles and sat down next to her.
“It’s fine. I don’t have much to do when I get home anyway. Cooking is my one true hobby.”
Li Xue took the drink and shook her head with a smile.
“And making food for you makes me happy.”
“Then I suggest you try part-time nannying.”
Tang Yao joked.
“Like it’s that easy.”
Li Xue shot her a glance.
“I only want to cook for you.”
“That’s so sweet.”
No way was Tang Yao not touched.She took a sip of green tea, screwed the cap back on, then bent forward to rest her snowy white chin on it.
“In this materialistic, heartless world, only big sisters like you still feel warm~”
“……”
Li Xue’s teasing expression faded at those words. She asked softly:
“Did your Editor-in-Chief pressure you again?”
She had, of course, heard about the trouble stirred up by Mr. Ou.Even their shoujo manga team had mangaka affected—though not as badly as the ones in the male-oriented department.Still, the manga award and website launch involved everyone.
“No, that was just me being dramatic.”
Tang Yao knew she misunderstood and clarified:
“Besides, the backlash just started. Right before I came to lunch, Editor-in-Chief Ding got called out of the office. Probably in a meeting about the manga award.”
“I think I saw Vice President Zhao heading in earlier… that explains it.”
Li Xue nodded slightly, remembering something.
“Sounds like it’s pretty serious.”
“Mainly bad timing. The company seems to really care about the award and the online launch. Then this whole thing blows up—it must be a nightmare for whoever’s in charge.”
Tang Yao laughed:
“Good news is, Editor-in-Chief Ding told me himself that I, a hopeless, bottom-tier editor, won’t be handling that star mangaka anymore. So hey, silver linings.”
At that, Li Xue looked at her side profile. Something shifted in her expression—a hint of softness.
“Actually, I read the latest The Girl, the Boy, and the Sword… just now.”
“Hm?”
“It sucked. I couldn’t follow Mr. Ou’s logic at all. I follow most of our internal works, even the male-targeted ones, so I really get where the readers are coming from.Like, what is that plot? What’s he thinking? I almost threw the magazine out.”
“Right?”
“But… I’m still an editor. So I calmed down and read it again. Then I saw that AORI at the end—and I started to feel like maybe it was intentional.Like… is next chapter gonna flip everything? Is the ‘embodiment of malice’ that so-called hell avatar in the story? Did she cause it all?I started to feel a sliver of hope.”
“Ah… that.”
“So, that tagline—you came up with that, right? Is there really a twist coming?”
“If it’s up to Mr. Ou, no. It’s gonna keep being trash.”
“Then what made you write that tagline?”
“Professional responsibility, I guess. Maybe some sympathy too…I just felt bad for the readers.”
Tang Yao said casually:
“It just popped into my head, so I added it.”
Li Xue looked at her, now understanding something. She smiled lightly:
“Liar. You probably already knew his plan.And you’ve got backup ideas too…But what if Mr. Ou really does stick to his original trash plan?”
“That’s not my problem. He brought it on himself.All I did was write a sentence. He can draw whatever he wants.”
Tang Yao straightened up and stretched a bit.
“If he still won’t wake up after pulling that trash move and getting that much backlash, he can go f*** himself.I’ve done my part as an editor, and the readers’ anger has been delivered loud and clear.”
“Knew it.”
Li Xue smiled warmly and leaned over to bump her shoulder against Tang Yao’s.
“You’re really cool, you know that?”
“Eh?”
Tang Yao blinked in surprise and quickly leaned away, suspicious.
“What’s with the random compliment? And cool?”
“Because you earned it.”
Li Xue leaned in close again, shoulder to shoulder, her voice meaningful:
“Now I kinda believe that gacha game with bishoujo girls you told me about might actually work.I also finally get what my relative meant when they said, ‘investing in people.’”
Doing your part and leaving the rest to fate.
Taking responsibility no matter what.It sounds easy, but it’s hard to pull off.
Li Xue was 27 by lunar age—pushing 30. Which meant she’d been grinding at this company for nearly a decade.
She’d seen coworkers come and go like a revolving door. She’d seen all kinds of editors.Even though shoujo manga wasn’t as hot as the male-targeted stuff, her team still had plenty of chaos.
She’d seen too many people who didn’t just lack a sense of boundaries—they didn’t even know what boundaries were.
When Mr. Ou dropped that disaster of a plot twist—considering his fame—if one of her own editors had been in charge, they probably wouldn’t have even dared try to talk him out of it more than once.One blow-up from a famous mangaka would’ve sent them running.
He was a flagship author in a top-five magazine, after all. Not some rando in a no-name zine.
But Tang Yao? She kept trying till the very end.
And once it became clear that things were beyond saving—that the author was being stubborn and the boss was clueless—most editors would’ve just thrown in the towel.Screw the consequences. Screw the readers.But not Tang Yao.
She still did whatever she could, within her limits, to soften the impact.
That tagline—did it help?
Yes, it did.
Li Xue knew that once the initial rage faded, readers would notice it.And with that would come a sliver of hope—or at least self-soothing.
It would help them get through the next two weeks.By the time the next issue dropped, it wouldn’t even matter how Mr. Ou drew it.
After two weeks, readers would cool down, lower their expectations.Even if Mr. Ou kept churning out garbage, they wouldn’t be as hurt. They’d be more likely to accept it.
Sure, the series would tank in the rankings.But at least for now, this issue gave readers a soft landing.
Tang Yao did that—not for Mr. Ou, not for herself—but just for the readers.
She did her duty as an editor: the bridge between reader and mangaka.When the creator went rogue and started hacking people down, she handed the readers a tiny little shield.
Even if it was made of paper.
And honestly? In that kind of chaos, staying true to yourself, thinking about the readers, and doing something within your control—even if it’s just scribbling in a corner?
That really is cool.
Li Xue finally realized why she felt like she’d known Tang Yao for years—even though it’d only been a week.
It wasn’t looks.It wasn’t personality.
Even without her drop-dead beauty and irresistibly cute vibe,Li Xue would still like her.
Because this girl—no matter what she looked like—was someone with boundaries. Someone who took responsibility.
And with someone like that, you never have to worry they’ll screw you over.
“You’ve got a good eye.”
Meanwhile, Tang Yao blinked again, then finally caught on. Her fair face broke into a bright smile as she grabbed Li Xue’s arm:
“I’ve already finished 80% of the game’s proposal!As for the manga—I’ve drawn the opening storyboard too.So get hyped!Oh, and make sure you introduce me to that investor.”
“……”
Li Xue let out a helpless sigh and smiled wryly:
“I was just making conversation…Honestly, Tang Yao, I really don’t think you should be risking so much—”
Tang Yao was about to reply when her phone buzzed in her pocket.
A call.
She fished it out, checked the caller ID, and frowned slightly—but answered it.
Li Xue sat right next to her and could hear—It was Ding Yilong. Sounded like he was calling her back to the editorial office.
The call ended quickly.
“Sorry, Miss Li—I’ve gotta go.”
“Mm.”
Li Xue nodded and reminded her:
“If anything happens, make sure to tell me. And if you need help, don’t hesitate to ask.”
“Got it. Bye-bye!”
Tang Yao nodded, got up, and headed toward the exit.
But just as she reached the door, she paused, then turned back and walked over to Li Xue again.
Li Xue raised her porcelain chin, a little surprised.
“What is it?”
“Almost forgot… you look amazing.”
Tang Yao glanced around—there were still two people in the corner of the break room—so she leaned down and whispered like a sneaky thief:
“But I didn’t get a chance to take notes today.Can you wear the same thing tomorrow?”
It was her request, after all.Had to give a proper compliment.
Totally not because she wanted to see it again.
“……”
Li Xue looked at the sneakily blushing girl in front of her, nearly laughing out loud.She rolled her eyes playfully:
“What are you so scared of? Fine, fine—I’ll wear it again tomorrow just for you.”