Getting Lu Shifeng settled, the rest are just minor issues.
Even though all the recruitment companies had previously rejected her, she still had a friend — Cang Er.
She logged into the photography forum and sent him a private message, asking if their magazine was hiring lately.
Cang Er quickly replied: [Come on, hurry up and come! It just so happens we're heading to Iceland for a diamond ad, and if you come, you can go with me. I'm not very confident with the photographer we're using this time.]
Su Xingyu smiled a little: [You trust me? I've never done commercial photography.] Commercial photography is different from regular photography; it can be considered another field altogether, where everything from composition to lighting has its unique requirements and needs to be very precise — there's no room for carelessness at all. Even a very good news or landscape photographer may not manage commercial photography.
But Cang Er said: [I believe in you.]
He wondered where this blind trust came from.
Su Xingyu's smile grew a little wider, but regretfully typed: [I'm not up to it, could you help see if there's another position? Just a regular employee would do. I'm 20, haven't graduated from college, can start as a clerk or assistant.]
Cang Er seemed a bit stunned: [20, are you still in school?]
Su Xingyu said: [Dropped out.]
Because of that nightclub incident, the school really expelled her. By now, she didn't want to delve into whether it was an accident or if someone was behind it. Anyway, she didn't like that major — it was business management, a fallback she was put into after her university entrance exam didn't go well. She'd been forcing herself to stick with it.
Cang Er, being very discreet, didn't ask any more questions, simply replied: [The standards here are high, with your condition, you can indeed only start from a junior position. Are you in S City?]
Su Xingyu: [Yes.]
Cang Er: [We at Cloud Media have two magazines in S City, one is "Cloud", the other is "Illusion Dream", I can recommend you to "Cloud", it's a great environment.]
Su Xingyu was a bit surprised. She hadn't expected that Cang Er was actually at Cloud Media?!
That's the top fashion magazine in the country!
All luxury brands take pride in appearing in that magazine, and all major celebrities also take pride in being featured in it!
Being able to work at "Cloud" is the dream of everyone in the fashion industry. People would go to great lengths for an internship there, and now Cang Er was so straightforwardly recommending her to "Cloud"?!
She was taken aback: [Who, who, who the heck are you?!]
What kind of person could have such influence?!
Cang Er mischievously sent a laughing emoji: [Guess.]
And then followed up with another message: [Well, that's settled. If you don't want to be a photographer, you could be a photography assistant. Someone like you doing clerical work is simply a waste of talent.] He also sent her an address.
Su Xingyu looked at the address, her brows slightly furrowed.
The address seemed familiar, and after taking a closer look, she realized it was right across from the Blade Group Headquarters! Just a street away! Does this mean she might bump into Lu Shifeng just going out for lunch? She was already downcast having to face that deadpan face at home every day, she couldn't bear the thought of seeing it both at work and at home.
She bit her lip and asked Cang Er: [That address is inconvenient for me, where's "Illusion Dream"?]
Cang Er sent a facepalm emoji: [Are you nuts? You're passing up a place like "Cloud" that people would laugh in their sleep to get into, just to go to "Illusion Dream"? Don't say I didn't warn you, "Illusion Dream" is a new magazine under our group, who knows how long it will last. It's not as high-end as "Cloud", it's aimed more at general young people.]
Su Xingyu replied: [It's okay, I just want to support myself, I'm not picky.]
Cang Er was so vexed he felt like scratching the wall: [You're really not picky, it's more like you're destroying my reputation! If people found out, they'd think I can't even get someone into "Cloud" and have to send them to "Illusion Dream"! Embarrassing!]
Su Xingyu sent a smiley face: [Alright, I know you're the best, but I really have my reasons.]
[Reasons, reasons! Always reasons!] Cang Er seemed unhappy, [With your talent, you could easily be a senior photographer at "Cloud", what's the reason that you insist on going to "Illusion Dream" to be a small-time staff?]
Su Xingyu sent a wry smile emoji.
Cang Er complained for a bit, but still resignedly sent her the address for the "Illusion Dream" magazine, which was also in a high-end commercial area in the city, though thankfully not right next to the Blade Group Headquarters.
Su Xingyu thanked her and the next day, after tidying herself up, went to "Illusion Dream".
Cang Er had already spoken to "Illusion Dream" on her behalf. After stating her name, HR swiftly completed the onboarding procedures for her. "Photography assistant, right?" HR ushered her into an office filled with various photography equipment, pointing at a man amidst the pile of equipment, "You'll be helping Ling Weilong, he's short-handed here."
Saying that, they raised their voice, "Ling Weilong! You've got a newbie!"
The man among the equipment looked up, about in his twenties, with rugged facial features and faint stubble on his chin, wearing a well-tailored black work outfit, giving off a somewhat rugged appearance.
He glanced at Su Xingyu, appearing very impatient: "Newbie? I don't need one!"
After speaking, he lowered his head again to adjust the camera lens.
HR was persistent: "This is a company assignment." Saying that, they pushed Su Xingyu forward, "This young lady is quite good, she can lend you a hand. All the other photographers have so many assistants, while here it's so deserted, and you always need the model team's help to set up and carry equipment for each shoot, don't you find that inappropriate?"
"And you think she'll be appropriate?" Ling Weilong was even more impatient, sizing up Su Xingyu from head to toe, then sneered at HR, "She looks like she doesn't have two ounces of meat on her, how can she carry the big lights or tripods? Get out, don't create more chaos for me."
HR sighed, feeling a bit frustrated. Ling Weilong was their best photographer here, but also notoriously difficult to deal with.
He was accustomed to working solo — or rather, due to his straightforward and often abrasive working style, he'd managed to offend every potential partner, so had no choice but to work alone. But this naturally led to many inconveniences, as many tasks that shouldn't require the photographer to do in person, he ended up doing, greatly wasting efficiency and causing complaints from the collaborating model teams.
HR had long wanted to assign him a partner.
All the previous experienced lighting technicians and photography assistants from renowned schools couldn't get along with him. Now with a quiet-looking young lady like this, maybe Ling Weilong would take a liking to her?
However, it seemed like they'd miscalculated.