Miss Beautiful C.E.O and her system-Chapter 644: Draft updating

An SUV crawled through the heavy traffic jam. Inside, Ling Qingyu impatiently blew at the strands of hair on her forehead as her hands idly caressed the steering wheel.

The copilot was a new face, while behind her sat the beautiful woman who had given her a headache to deal with.

She had no idea what went on in this woman’s mind, leaving her speechless as she shamelessly hopped into the vehicle, insisting that Spirit Fox should escort her home safely.

Hell, even if Ling Qingyu left behind a mess, her subordinates would handle everything perfectly, but this girl should have realized she had more means at her disposal.

Even if she had been a toy played with by powerful bosses, Ling Qingyu had made the mistake of underestimating other parties based solely on their identities.

Once they saw an opportunity, they jumped in without the slightest hesitation to secure their future.

"What’s wrong? Am I that bad in your eyes?" the woman asked.

Ling Qingyu sighed and shook her head. "No, you’re definitely beautiful and have high potential. It’s just a pity."

"A pity?" The woman chuckled. "Are you talking about the entertainment industry?"

"Yeah," Ling Qingyu admitted, intrigued and wanting to hear more.

"It’s because that world is even messier, full of unspoken rules that limit growth. So I thought, why not find a job myself? I feel insecure knowing my salary would rely on popularity and the favor of big bosses."

"Hmm, so you work as a waitress?" Ling Qingyu was puzzled, curious about how this girl’s mind worked. How was a waitress’s situation any different, especially in a bar overseen by a gang?

"Part-time. I also write online novels," the woman explained after noticing Ling Qingyu’s strange look. "Don’t assume this is all I can do. I haven’t even gotten my degree yet."

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"How about your parents?"

"I grew up in an orphanage."

"Sorry…" Ling Qingyu had nothing else to say.

"It’s alright. Life is tough, but at least it’s not unbearable."

"What’s your name?"

"Xiu Yanran."

"A beautiful name, to be honest," Ling Qingyu praised.

"How about yours?" Xiu Yanran asked, staring at her through the rearview mirror.

"Confidential. It’s best not to know." Ling Qingyu smiled, secretly laughing to herself. She had always wanted to say that. Now, she finally had the chance.

"I understand," Xiu Yanran looked away.

Speaking of which, this girl had the same name as Nalan Yanran, Ling Qingyu thought. "So, you’re working hard to study for the future?"

"Yes," Xiu Yanran nodded. "I’m not talented enough to survive on scholarships. To escape poverty, education is the only way."

Ling Qingyu didn’t comment. She neither agreed nor disagreed. Everything depended on perspective.

For Xiu Yanran, education might be the only springboard available for survival and growth.

"Why don’t you quit your job?" Ling Qingyu asked, understanding a few reasons why this girl had suffered unfairly.

"I can’t," Xiu Yanran answered helplessly. "Financial reasons are one thing. But if I insist on quitting, I’ll bring trouble to the dean and the orphanage. They know exactly where to target me.

"I started as a simple waitress. It was an act of desperation during the economic crisis. You don’t really get to choose. And I don’t think a bar and a restaurant are that different. My beauty caught the attention of malicious men, and you know what happened next."

Ling Qingyu sympathized and offered some comfort. "Would you mind describing it? Just out of curiosity. It’s fine if you decline, but I insist you share more—it might help relieve some stress and burden from your heart."

"I don’t mind. It’s nothing more than a beauty who had no choice but to succumb while trying to gain benefits in the process. Since I was going to serve a man anyway, I thought, why not? But it turns out I was too naïve—relying on others’ favor isn’t reliable at all. If you hadn’t intervened, I can’t imagine what my fate would have been, forced to serve multiple people."

"Only self-sufficiency and having multiple alternatives is the true king’s path. It applies to all walks of life—business, politics, everything," Ling Qingyu said.

In fact, this was the reason why no news ever surfaced. Most of the time, victims either accepted their fate and moved on or tried to gain something from it.

Sexual harassment cases in corporations and government offices only came to light when victims found solid backing to shield them from retaliation.

The logic of "why not report it earlier" didn’t work here. If they offended someone powerful, their careers and lives would be completely ruined.

Like Xiu Yanran, women sought stability and security. They didn’t dare gamble on resistance. There were surely many other hidden stories and experiences like hers.

Had the boss treated her well enough, Xiu Yanran might have continued with her plan and accepted her fate.

Perhaps she would have lain low, waiting for the right moment to take revenge. Of course, there were also those who fell into depression and ended their own lives, or were forced to do so.

Anyway, Xiu Yanran’s original fate had completely changed the moment she met Ling Qingyu.

"Yanran, can I call you that?"

"Of course."

"Listen, I think you’re already strong, and you don’t need my comfort. You might be confused about your future, but I can offer you a choice," said Ling Qingyu. "I have connections with someone in the entertainment industry. Given your potential, you’ll rise quickly as long as you have the heart to learn and work hard—and I have no doubt about your persistence."

"Then, wouldn’t I have to suffer the same unspoken rules?"

"The bosses and the people I want to introduce you to are women," Ling Qingyu explained.

"That doesn’t mean they’re any less terrifying than men," Xiu Yanran replied, shutting her up. "Sometimes, women treat their own kind even worse. In my experience, they might even sell their artists to satisfy the desires of powerful men because they know exactly what women have to offer."

Ling Qingyu and the operator beside her were speechless because, despite its extremism, Yanran’s words contained some truth.

After all, weren’t female leaders sometimes even more unscrupulous in exploiting their own gender? There was no need to look far—just below Country C, a certain airline, whose boss was a woman, had introduced bikini stewardesses.

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In Country A, a scandal involving a large prostitution network among politicians was headed by a woman.

Sometimes, having a female leader wasn’t necessarily better for women than having a male one. As long as the person in power lacked morals and standards, nothing would change.

"Well, don’t worry, I know her personally. What you’re worried about will not happen!" Ling Qingyu declared solemnly.

"Okay, I believe you. I don’t think you’d waste time on a nobody like me."

Ling Qingyu swallowed her original persuading words and wondered if this girl had done it on purpose.

Noticing the slight smile on Xiu Yanran’s face, Ling Qingyu shook her head. It wasn’t her loss. She believed Xiu Yanran would become another asset to Fan Xi and Ling Yunxiang.

"But I’m a newcomer, and my background isn’t clean… what if…" Xiu Yanran blandly pointed out her shortcomings as a matter of fact.

"You don’t need to worry about that. There are many ways to handle your concerns."

Afterward, Ling Qingyu exchanged contact information with Xiu Yanran. The intermediary was, of course, Athena, who would help the latter connect with Fan Xi.

She kept Fan Xi as a surprise for Xiu Yanran when the girl inevitably asked about her future boss.

By then, this girl might faint from overwhelming shock. From their conversation, which Ling Qingyu had subtly guided, she had learned about Xiu Yanran’s hobbies and interests. Hmmph, who told Xiu Yanran to trick her?

In fact, regarding the concerns of some workers affected by Spirit Fox’s confiscation, such outcomes would be avoided once another party, like Ling Qingyu, took over.

Although she was acting in the name of contributing merits to her wife, Ling Qingyu never played a game she would lose. The same logic applied to Xiu Yanran.

Xiu Yanran requested to be dropped off at the orphanage that had raised her, and Ling Qingyu gladly obliged.

Later, Ling Qingyu and another operator drove away in silence after seeing the girl returned to her former home with relief in the eyes. The former smiled bitterly after listening to Athena’s investigation into Xiu Yanran.

It turned out this girl was also a spy. Well, gangs had factional disputes. Likewise, Vermilion wasn’t safe from such dangers.

The opposition of the bar boss had its own insiders, one of whom had recruited Xiu Yanran as an informant.

Even without her involvement, Xiu Yanran would likely have thrived—and who knew how high she might have climbed?

According to Athena, the girl was in a dilemma, not wanting to betray the tree that had provided her shade, nor did she want to expose the spies.

Nonetheless, the boss’s ruthlessness had ultimately pushed her to make a decision. With Spirit Fox’s intervention, she seized the rarest of chances in a fleeting moment, shamelessly sticking with Ling Qingyu, whose behavior suggested some level of interest in her.

Ling Qingyu understood that if Xiu Yanran were given a platform and an opportunity, she would definitely be someone to be reckoned with.

Even now, Xiu Yanran had yet to reveal the identities of the spies to her, although Spirit Fox had already identified them through Athena’s efforts.

Shaking her head, Ling Qingyu didn’t feel much about a little girl’s manipulative moves. People were merely trying to survive.

"Sofia, what do you think of her?" Ling Qingyu inquired of her sole passenger.