She mistook the wrong person

After boarding the bus, Ophelia glanced at her phone.

She found a message on facebook.

She had been too focused on quickly sorting out the marriage certificate just now, without paying attention to the messages on her phone.

She tapped to open it and found a text from "Connor".

She had just parted ways with him, so why was he messaging again?

Ophelia took a look.

"Just arrived, where are you? Have you left already? If you're busy, we can schedule another meeting time."

Ophelia felt puzzled. Hadn't she already met "Connor"? Why was he sending such a message? And looking at the time, it was half past four.

But at that time, wasn't she at the Civil Affairs Bureau with "Connor"? How could there be such a inexplicable message? Did he send it to the wrong person?

Ophelia replied with a text, "Didn't we just meet?"

Shortly after, she received a WeChat message, "I didn't see you, Miss Xia!"

Ophelia became even more confused. How could this be? They clearly met, and they even got the marriage certificate together. How could he say he didn't see her? Then who was the person she got the marriage certificate with?

As Ophelia thought about this, she started to feel a bit scared.

Could she have mistaken someone else for him?

The person she got the marriage certificate with wasn't the "Connor" she knew on WeChat, right?

To confirm this, Ophelia deliberately sent a tentative message, "I got delayed with something, let's meet next time?"

"Okay, I won't be late next time!" came the reply. 

After reading such messages, Ophelia was certain that she had mistaken someone!

So...

Did she just drag a stranger to get a marriage certificate?

Heavens!

What a mess!

Ophelia felt like her head was spinning!

...

Ophelia arrived at the office feeling downcast.

When she got to the office, a colleague approached her anxiously: "Hey, where have you been? Anna was just looking for you!"

Hearing that Anna was looking for her, Ophelia quickly composed herself and went to the office.

Inside the office sat a mature and serious-looking woman. As she watched Ophelia approach, her expression turned slightly stern. "You know how things are in the company right now. Why are you running around everywhere? I can't find you when I need you."

The woman before her was Ophelia's senior in college. Back in her sophomore year, Ophelia had met Anna, who was starting her own magazine. At that time, Anna's new magazine desperately needed manpower, so Ophelia had come to help out.

After graduating from college, Ophelia had started working here, only to find that the magazine's development was really bad, and it was on the brink of collapse.

As Ophelia observed Anna's anxious demeanor, she inquired, "Is something urgent?"

Anna sighed upon looking at Ophelia. "You know the situation with our magazine. We simply can't keep it going..." She furrowed her brows. "Our finances are in a particularly difficult situation right now! Without new funds injected, we might... really have to shut down!"

Ophelia was well aware of the situation. She hadn't received a salary in six months and had even dipped into her savings from college to support it... but it still couldn't alleviate the magazine's plight.

Seeing Ophelia's silence, Anna continued, "If you speak to Andrew, perhaps he could help us!" Ophelia's expression changed abruptly at the mention of Andrew's name, her tone becoming resolute. "Anna, I have no connection with Andrew, and I won't go to him!"

Perceiving Ophelia's firm stance, Anna grew puzzled. "What happened between you and Andrew? Weren't you childhood sweethearts? How did things end up like this?"

Ophelia became even more adamant. "Andrew and I broke up a long time ago. There's nothing between us anymore!"

Anna sighed. "Andrew's family holds considerable influence here. If he lends a hand, it could help us tide over this crisis!" She glanced at Ophelia again. "But since you don't want any emotional entanglement with Andrew, I'll respect your decision!"

Ophelia took a deep breath, trying hard to compose herself. "Actually, there's still a glimmer of hope here at the magazine. We just need to land a big scoop!"

Anna shook her head. "But how can we possibly come across any big scoops right now?"

"I have a lead on a story. I'd like to investigate it further. Who knows, it might lead somewhere!"

Anna seemed to recall something, looking at Ophelia with curiosity. "Are you talking about that hot new celebrity, Robert?"

Ophelia nodded. "Yes, I've always felt there's something fishy about him!"

Anna seemed skeptical. "Many people are chasing after news about Robert. But have you seen any significant news about him lately? Even the top paparazzi haven't uncovered anything major. I think you might be wasting your efforts!"

Ophelia glanced at Anna. "I want to give it a try. If I can't find any other leads within a week, then we can think of something else!"

Anna nodded. "Alright, go ahead then!"

After Ophelia left, Anna's expression changed abruptly, anger seeping in. "Was it so difficult to just contact Andrew? Why did she bring up Robert? As if his news is so easy to chase after!"

Feeling a bit annoyed, Anna dialed a number, her tone immediately turning gentle and respectful. "Is this Andrew? I'm Anna, the editor-in-chief of the magazine..."

After leaving Anna's office, Ophelia checked Robert's profile.

Robert was a rising star, initially obscure, but skyrocketed to fame two years ago after starring in a period drama.

It could be said that any news related to him would be a headline.

He had always portrayed himself as a sunny and gentle guy, but... Ophelia just couldn't believe it!

The reason was simple. When she was chasing a story before, she happened to encounter Robert, who shamelessly flirted with his fans!

Such a scumbag, Ophelia couldn't see him as a sunny and gentle guy at all!

However, it was strange that no media outlet could uncover his dark past. This made Ophelia particularly curious: either Robert's PR was too strong, or he was just too good at disguising himself.

And if she could dig up some dirt on Robert, it would definitely revive the magazine.

After researching the material, Ophelia realized that most of the staff had already left the magazine office. Glancing at her phone, she noticed it was already seven o'clock.

After tidying up the documents, Ophelia left the magazine office.

As she reached downstairs, a car blocked her path. Upon closer inspection of the person in the car, wasn't it Connor, the man she got the marriage certificate with today?

Looking at him, Ophelia was surprised. "What are you doing here?"

Connor asked calmly, "Are you surprised to see me?"