Chapter 60: Wifey, I Want a Hug
Chapter 60: Chapter 60: Wifey, I Want a Hug
"So, you in or not?"
Jiang Xia stated his terms, then looked at Shen Ying with a hint of a smile.
For a student in this day and age, 300 yuan was a decent amount of money. After all, Jiang Xia’s own monthly living expenses were only 200 yuan. The job was easy, too—something she could finish just by spending a little time online. It was practically free money.
The thing was, Jiang Xia just didn’t have the extra energy to promote his own animation right now, and Lin Yanwan had to focus on voice acting. It made more sense to outsource the work. Besides, in his past life, Shen Ying had been a real estate agent, so this kind of work was right up her alley.
"I’m in!" Shen Ying agreed on the spot. She loved surfing the web anyway, and now she could earn some pocket money doing it. Only a fool would say no.
"Alright. I’ll send you the materials another day. We’ll also need to find some time to sign the contract."
"We have to sign a contract?" Shen Ying’s eyes went wide. "For a temp like me, a contract shouldn’t be necessary, right?"
Jiang Xia wagged his finger and explained, "Comrade Shen Ying, you need to recognize one fact. The external promotion will be done using the company’s account. While I’m not handing you any classified documents, you’re not allowed to make private deals, use it for commercial purposes, or leak company information. Therefore, a binding contract is necessary."
Shen Ying was taken aback, staring at him suspiciously. "You’re not going to sneak some tricky clauses into the contract, are you? Something that’ll make me owe you eighty or a hundred thousand yuan."
Jiang Xia couldn’t help but laugh. "You’re Yanwan’s best friend. Why would I trick you for no reason? Besides, Old Wang is also a member of our team. You’ll both be signing the same standard contract."
Hearing this, Shen Ying finally relaxed. ’He wouldn’t trick his own best bro, would he?’
"Hey, hey, wait a minute, Old Jiang. When did I agree to join?" Wang Ming said, startled.
"Didn’t you say so yourself? That you’d help me with key animation after the college entrance exams are over. If you want to become colleagues with Shen Ying sooner, you can start now. Otherwise, when we have employee meetings in the future, it’ll be hard for me to share company secrets with an outsider like you," Jiang Xia said with a grin.
"Fuck!" Wang Ming shot him a vicious middle finger.
’Why do I feel like I’ve been forcibly tied to Jiang Xia’s pirate ship?’
"You mean, you’re actually planning to start a company?"
"Isn’t that obvious? I’m planning to do just that. I’ll register the company first, and once the college entrance exams are over, we can officially start operating."
Shen Ying subconsciously clicked her tongue. ’My best friend’s boyfriend seems to be for real. Starting a company now... won’t he become a big boss or something in the future? If I join now, doesn’t that make me one of the founding members?’
After lunch, they all went back to their respective classes. Wang Ming found Jiang Xia and said, "Old Jiang, give me a copy of the storyboards and character designs you’re working on."
"What’s up? The exams aren’t even over yet. You just can’t wait to be colleagues with Shen Ying, can you?" Jiang Xia teased.
Wang Ming pouted. "That’s not it. I just want to practice in my spare time and get familiar with the overall art style of your work."
Normally, someone new to animation like him should start as an in-betweener or a secondary key animator to learn the ropes quickly.
But *Cat and Mouse* was simple, for one. For another, Jiang Xia was severely short-staffed, so there was no need to be too picky about roles. In any case, he would be checking everything in the end.
"Go ahead and draw. Just ask me if there’s anything you don’t understand."
Jiang Xia smiled and handed over ten pages of storyboards. He didn’t expect Wang Ming’s first attempt to be perfect, but the guy had won the Best Animation Creativity Award in college in his past life. His talent was undeniable.
Wang Ming nodded. He had seen many of Jiang Xia’s key animations and felt that drawing these simple cartoon characters shouldn’t be a problem.
A little later, Lin Yanwan came to Class 6 and called Jiang Xia out.
"What’s wrong, babe?"
She pulled a few dozen yuan from her pocket and said, "This is the lunch money Yingying asked you to give to Wang Ming. She said it’s better to be clear about money and that she doesn’t want to owe him a favor."
"Why didn’t she give it to him herself?" Jiang Xia was stunned.
"Do you think Wang Ming would accept it if Yingying gave it to him? It would just make things awkward. She even said that if he doesn’t take it, she won’t ask him to get her lunch anymore. It seems Yingying can sense that Wang Ming has feelings for her."
Jiang Xia glanced instinctively at Wang Ming. "What does Shen Ying think about it?"
"I don’t know."
Lin Yanwan shook her head and continued, "She didn’t say, but I get the feeling she doesn’t want to be in a relationship right now. Still, there’s hope for Wang Ming. I can tell Yingying treats him differently than other guys."
Jiang Xia nodded lightly, then suddenly grinned mischievously. "Wifey, I want a hug."
"Are you crazy? Look where we are," Lin Yanwan chided.
"Don’t worry, class hasn’t started yet, and no teachers are watching." Jiang Xia opened his arms and shamelessly moved in for a hug.
Lin Yanwan glanced back at the teachers’ office, then gave him a quick, shy hug. The sight broke the hearts of many boys in Class 6.
"Alright, I’m going. Remember to give the money to Wang Ming."
"Don’t worry. Mwah~"
Jiang Xia grinned and blew a kiss, then walked over to Wang Ming’s desk. He saw him engrossed in drawing key animation frames based on the storyboards. His work was looking pretty decent.
"How’s it coming along?"
"Not bad, but Tom’s expression could be a bit more exaggerated." Jiang Xia took his pencil and sketched a few lines on the paper, making Tom’s milk-stealing grin look even more devious.
"You’re the master. By the way, which part of the story am I drawing right now?"
Jiang Xia thought for a moment and said, "Tom steals some milk, and Jerry tries every trick in the book to sneak a drink, so Tom does everything he can to stop him."
"But he can’t stop him in the end, right?"
"Of course not. The eternal conflict between Cat and Mouse is the theme of this cartoon."
"I’m really curious how you come up with so many interesting plots in that head of yours."
"That’s the professional quality of an outstanding animator."
Jiang Xia smiled mysteriously and casually tossed the few dozen yuan for lunch that Shen Ying had given him onto Wang Ming’s desk.
"Shen Ying asked me to give this to you. It’s the lunch money she owed you."
Wang Ming’s face paled, and he stammered, "Old Jiang, wh-wh-what does she mean by giving me this money? She really didn’t have to."
Jiang Xia sighed. "Don’t overthink it. She’s not doing this to draw a line between you two. On the contrary, she truly sees you as a good friend. If you don’t accept it, then you might not even be able to be friends anymore."
"Is... is that right?" Wang Ming looked doubtful.
"Trust me, you can’t go wrong. There’s still plenty of time. Besides, you two will be colleagues soon. Won’t you have more opportunities than anyone else?"
Old Wang’s eyes lit up. ’He’s got a point.’