Smile Code (Lost Laughter) 失笑 - Zhu Le 祖乐

22

Jealousy is an instinct even for those without emotions.

After several consecutive outdoor activities, Gu Yi's relationship with Liang Daiwen was about 10% progressed, and she had gathered a lot of material for jokes. She, who was afraid of heights and terrified to the point of breaking down, had also encountered a ridiculously handsome guy. She felt like a gardener, with her garden recently yielding a bountiful harvest. On the day they returned from the escape room, she unabashedly stared at Liang Daiwen in the elevator, from the first floor to the 14th, carefully considering who was more handsome-the young boy from the escape room or Liang Daiwen. Even the faceless man seemed to have a face after being stared at by her, and he returned a smile with 200% of the attack power. Gu Yi flinched for a second before the elevator door opened. She followed behind him, saying, "Is this how you scare off female ghosts?"

"Fight poison with poison. She always wants me to react, so I'll compete with her."

Gu Yi seemed to catch a hint of a joke. Liang Daiwen, once a cold and sharp-tongued person, now seemed like a warm but still sharp-tongued person-like an artificial intelligence having gone through an upgrade. After they got off the elevator, Liang Daiwen suddenly turned back and asked, "Why were you staring at me just now?"

"I was thinking about which one of you, the priest or you, is more handsome."

Liang Daiwen turned around, swapping positions with Gu Yi, who was leaning against the door. Was he going to corner her?

He slowly spoke, "Don't compare me to others."

"What, did you find someone else more sexy, more charming, more humane?"

"How do you know I'm not sexy?"

He said this and opened the door, walking inside. Gu Yi stood at the door, her blood rushing to her head-too many flirtatious words could be deadly. Would the insurance company cover that?

Gu Yi, who hadn't received her year-end bonus, felt a bit tight on money even for going home. Actually, there wasn't much to enjoy about staying at home. Since Uncle Yun and her mother moved in together, she had never felt at ease. Despite moving a few times, her mother still kept her room, so she stayed in there, sleeping, playing games, and turning her mother's commanding style into jokes. She had enough material for jokes this year, to the point where she didn't want to go back.

Unfilial.

The atmosphere at the office before the New Year was filled with a lack of motivation, except for Jacqueline, who remained steadfastly working hard, insisting that the content department pre-schedule Q2's advertisements and content. Pony's last article had great data, and they even secured a collaboration with a domestic diamond ring brand-Gu Yi couldn't figure out how that distorted view of love was part of the deal, until she saw the slogan for the diamond ring: "Matching is the best proof of love."

Jacqueline hadn't let Gu Yi off the hook, asking her to redo a previously rejected topic, breaking it down into four parts, one for each week, and putting it on the front page, in deep collaboration with a Japanese brand. Beauty brands were the biggest spenders, and this client was especially fond of topics about thirty-year-old independent women. With Women's Day approaching, they had a seven-figure budget, clearly an opportunity to get Gu Yi a raise.

So they had higher expectations of her. Gu Yi rubbed the back of her head-was Jacqueline considered an ally?

The intern with the eyebrow ring came up to her again: "Jacqueline really values you."

"Isn't that supposed to be the case? I researched a lot for this topic." This was true-while Liang Daiwen was doing push-ups in the living room, she remained unmoved, sitting at the coffee table working on the drafts. The two were physically just a step and a half apart, and Gu Yi, holding a pen, made minor adjustments, all while seemingly working Liang Daiwen into the bedroom-she deserved to be single.