After Saving My Cannon Fodder Omega - Chapter 15

Friday, 9:00 AM sharp.

Chi Wei, having finished her task and ready to submit her draft, stood in the Design Director’s office yawning incessantly. Her eyes were bloodshot and watery, and the dark circles around them were so bruised-looking it seemed as if she’d just been punched in the face.

“Did you climb out a window last night to go pick a fight?” Chi Tu commuted with their eldest sister; today they had left thirty minutes earlier than usual, and he never expected his little sister to look like this after just one night.

Chi Wei was so sleepy she could barely keep her eyes open. She shook her head tearfully: “No, I just pulled an all-nighter.”

“No way?! You’re not even twenty-three yet—an all-nighter makes you look this bad?” Chi Tu didn’t know whether to laugh or cry; he practically couldn’t believe his eyes or ears. He remembered when he was twenty-two or twenty-three, an all-nighter left him more spirited than if he’d slept.

Chi Wei felt she had undersold it and added: “Actually, more like two all-nighters? It doesn’t matter. Anyway, I’m about to collapse. Here’s the draft; I’m going home to sleep.”

Chi Tu waved her off: “If I’d known… I… alright, go home.”

Chi Wei bowed: “Thanks, Brother.”

Chi Tu shook his head helplessly. Seeing his sister nearly walk head-first into the glass office door, he raised his voice to warn her: “Careful! Watch where you’re going! Call Uncle Jin to pick you up! Don’t drive yourself!”

Her reaction delayed by exhaustion, Chi Wei raised a hand and waved: “Got it, I know.”

Leaving the office, Chi Wei stood nearby and rubbed her aching eyes again. She stood still for two seconds to gather her strength, then sprinted off, disappearing from the sight of Chi Tu and Chi Yu behind the transparent glass doors.

Chi Yu was clearly startled by her sister’s appearance, but since she wasn’t her direct supervisor, she had no reason to call her in for questioning on a whim. She walked into her brother’s office full of suspicion.

Chi Tu’s Friday morning schedule was fixed; he didn’t need to attend the morning meeting. Seeing his sister enter, he offered a tentative greeting: “CEO Chi?”

Chi Yu glanced at him and walked straight to the desk to sit down.

While Chi Tu didn’t have a meeting to attend, Chi Yu certainly did. Seeing her settled in, Chi Tu thoughtfully opened the design draft his sister had submitted: “CEO Chi isn’t busy today?”

“A few moments won’t hurt.” Chi Yu glanced at the papers in Chi Tu’s hand. “Let me see.”

Chi Tu handed over the printed draft. “I told you she belongs in my department.”

Chi Yu glared at her brother but said nothing. She didn’t have much technical expertise in design, but she knew the market like the back of her hand. After looking for a while, she critiqued: “Not bad. Too late for New Year’s, let’s launch for Spring Festival.”

Chi Tu was surprised: “Spring Festival? Isn’t Spring Festival already set? Let’s do Valentine’s Day.”

Chi Yu nodded nonchalantly, appearing a bit distracted: “Fine. You… you didn’t scold her just now, did you? She looked like she was crying when she left.”

Chi Tu let out an “ah,” remembering his sister’s red, watery eyes. He explained with a smile: “How could I bear to scold her? That was from her own all-nighter—wait? CEO Chi, I didn’t realize you cared about Little Sister so much behind her back.”

Chi Yu heard her brother’s snide remarks every other day. Initially, she would give verbal warnings, but after so many times, she was too lazy to speak. She simply pointed her index finger at Chi Tu, meaning: Watch your year-end bonus!

Chi Tu immediately pursed his lips, performed a practiced “zipping his mouth” gesture, and then pressed his palms together to beg for mercy.

Exiting the company, Chi Wei climbed straight into the business van waiting at the door. She adjusted the seat back, wrapped herself in a blanket, and started sleeping immediately. This nap was a race against time.

There were less than three hours until her scheduled lunch with the girls. Having stayed awake for over twenty-four hours, she had to maximize every second of rest.

What had truly kept her awake for over twenty hours wasn’t just the design draft. For an inspiration-based person like Chi Wei, drafts were usually completed in one breath based on feeling, requiring little polishing.

Instead, it was what she did afterward: she went down to the workshop in the basement of her house and personally handcrafted the first physical prototype of the finalized design.

Now, that four-carat pink diamond ring—which had cost her dark circles and red eyes—was held warm against her. It was tucked in the inner breast pocket of her coat, not in a ring box, but sealed in a tiny transparent poly bag.

Following Chi Wei’s instructions, Uncle Jin drove slowly and pulled up across from the reopened Xuan’s Tavern. He waited for the appointed time before turning around to wake the dead-tired Third Miss.

Inside the seven-seater van, there were only the sleeping Chi Wei and Uncle Jin. Uncle Jin was a long-time employee of the Chi family, in his early forties, a Beta, and an exceptionally steady driver. While Chi Wei slept, he didn’t dare look at his phone. Bored, he checked the time occasionally and looked at the tavern across the street.

Xuan’s Tavern wasn’t large in scale, but its reputation was significant, and the recent scandal had caused quite a storm. Outsiders might have thought it was a massive disaster, but to those in the know, it was just “one of those things.”

—While the owner was out of town, it was leaked that there were quality issues with the oil used. However, a close look revealed the so-called “partnership” was just a contract signed by the person in charge of purchasing without the owner’s signature. It just so happened that the person in charge was also surnamed Xuan.

Anyone who has done business understands that the “leak” was just a frame-up. But in the catering industry, while skill is key, any doubt regarding ingredients has a massive impact.

Uncle Jin had driven for the Chi family for nearly twenty years. Though he didn’t understand business, he’d heard plenty of talk. He understood the tavern’s situation clearly. Recalling the bustling scenes he’d seen in the past and comparing them to the current desolation, he couldn’t help but feel a bit sentimental.

—Business, owners, whatever; in his view, it was better to be a steady driver. At least it was stable.

Three hours passed in a blink. When Uncle Jin woke Chi Wei, she felt as if she had only just closed her eyes.

“Is it twelve o’clock already?” Chi Wei yawned and stretched her legs, tears streaming down from the corners of her eyes. Whenever she was exhausted and lacked sleep, she would cry uncontrollably like this.

Feng Zhi, Xie Yueyue, and Ming Rui had already arrived as planned. Three expensive sports cars were parked neatly in front of Xuan’s Tavern. While dabbing her eyes with a tissue, Chi Wei replied to the group messages: “I’m here, I’m here, right across the street. Coming now! Go in and wait for me. The private room number is the one I sent above, or you can just give them my name.”

Three periods immediately popped up under her voice message.

The three of them got out of their cars simultaneously, exchanged glances, and stepped into the tavern together.

Chi Wei was still wiping tears. Taking advantage of the time it took for Uncle Jin to pull a U-turn, she quickly whipped out her cushion foundation and pounded it onto her dark circles. They weren’t too heavy but couldn’t be completely covered, though she looked much better than she had in Chi Tu’s office.

Chi Wei’s hair wasn’t long, so tying it didn’t make much difference, but since she’d slept in a rush, a lock at the back was sticking up. She turned her head in the mirror and simply pulled out an indigo hair tie, gathering it into a tiny “sprout” at the nape of her neck. The front wasn’t long enough to tie back, so it fell loosely to the sides, creating a sort of effortless beauty.

Getting out of the car, Chi Wei took three steps in two, entering the tavern with a radiant face and tear-dampened lashes, only for the smile to freeze.

She had expected the tavern would be thin on customers, but she hadn’t expected it to be this empty. The main hall, which in her memory was always packed, didn’t have a single table of customers!

Could it be that they were the only customers this afternoon? She should have invited more people.

Chi Wei shook her head in regret. Seeing her movement, the nearest server approached with a smile: “You must be Director Chi, right? Your private room is on the second floor. This way, please.”

Chi Wei was stunned by the title for a second, then smiled and followed her up to meet her sisters.

The three who had arrived early were chatting, but they all froze when Chi Wei appeared with her dark circles. Chi Wei thought that after not seeing each other for a day and a half, everyone would miss her. She hadn’t expected this reaction. She sat down in the empty seat, confused: “Did you order? Why the ‘seen a ghost’ faces? Am I not pretty today?”

Ming Rui was the first to smile: “You’re pretty. How could you not be? With your looks, you’d be a beautiful ghost.”

Feng Zhi burst out laughing: “You really know how to flatter.”

Xie Yueyue laughed too: “Sister Ming is telling the truth. Sister Chui’s baby face might be a bit fleshy, but it’s definitely invincible.”

Chi Wei hated it most when people teased her about her chubby cheeks. She immediately rolled her eyes at the three of them: “Say one more word and I’m talking back! I’ve given you a warning, so don’t go acting like a sore loser later!”

Fearing Chi Wei would expose her own secrets, Feng Zhi quickly changed the subject: “I ordered the chopped chili fish head you love. I thought you said you were tired of Mapo Tofu so I didn’t order it. See if you want to add anything else?”

Chi Wei waved her off, knowing Feng Zhi was an expert at ordering; there was no need for superfluous additions. She turned to the server waiting by the door: “Is your boss in today?”

Xie Yueyue answered for her: “No, Boss Xuan said she has things to do and isn’t at the shop.”

“Huh?” Chi Wei was dumbfounded. “How do you know?”

Xie Yueyue pulled out her phone: “I asked. She said she’s busy today and won’t be here at noon, but hopes we enjoy our meal.”

Chi Wei snatched Xie Yueyue’s phone and scrolled through their chat history, discovering they had added each other on Wednesday night.

What was going on? Why did Xuan Nian add Yueyue on WeChat too? Did the mother-in-law push everyone who wanted to book a table to Xuan Nian? But why add her so late at night?

And! Why was Xuan Nian chatting with Yueyue in that kind of tone! And replying so fast!

“Sister Chui?” Xie Yueyue noticed Chi Wei’s face change and hesitantly reached out for her phone, but Chi Wei dodged.

Two phones of the same model were placed side-by-side. Chi Wei frowned, looking at the conversation filling the screen on the left and the chat window on the right that was half empty.

Then, she operated both hands simultaneously, opened the emoji panel, selected the exact same emoji, and with trembling fingers, sent them both at the same time.