Chapter 230: Playing a Good Hand Badly

Meanwhile, in the office building of *Ming Pao*, Jin Yong and Pan Yue Sheng sat face to face, with a copy of *Fengyun Daily* and *Sing Tao Daily* on the desk.

Jin Yong, wearing glasses, glanced back and forth between *Fengyun Daily* and *Sing Tao Daily*. After a long while, he shook his head and sighed, "What a pity, what a waste…"

"I never expected that the queen of the newspaper industry would make such a blunder. *Sing Tao Daily* might have high sales today, but it will be tough moving forward," Pan Yue Sheng also lamented.

Pan Yue Sheng was astonished when he learned about the sudden revamp of *Sing Tao Daily* and the news of the new agency. He never imagined that Hu Xian would make such a foolish decision.

Indeed, in his opinion, Hu Xian's actions were foolish! His first thought was that Hu Xian might be in trouble.

And sure enough, upon seeing the latest version of *Sing Tao Daily*, although it had significant changes and slightly improved quality compared to the old version, it was still evident that the newspaper had been poorly handled.

As the saying goes, "It's not fear of not knowing goods, but fear of comparing goods." Comparing *Sing Tao Daily* with *Fengyun Daily*, the difference was clear. The final issue of *Sing Tao Daily* might be a high card, but it was played so badly that it had the effect of a three! No wonder he said Hu Xian had lost her way. If it weren't for his consideration of Hu Xian being a woman, he would have given a harsher critique.

"Hehe, Yue Sheng, this also indicates that Hu Xian is under too much pressure, surrounded on all sides. It's understandable that a woman like her would lose her footing. If it were us, we might not do any better," Jin Yong said with a smile.

Pan Yue Sheng nodded silently. 

Indeed, if anyone should be blamed, it's the immense power of the Jiuding Newspaper Group!

…

In the afternoon, after lunch and a nap, Xia Yu woke up to find that it was already 2:40 PM. Considering he had to go for the interview, he got up and headed to Jiuding Newspaper Group.

Just as he was about to enter the company, Xia Yu suddenly felt a whiff of fragrance. A woman with an alluring figure rushed past him, mumbling, "So unlucky, even the bus broke down. I should have taken a taxi. Thankfully, it's not time yet…"

Mumbling to herself, Xia Yu saw the woman had entered his company, asking the receptionist about something.

Xia Yu walked in, and the receptionist greeted him respectfully, "Good afternoon, boss!"

The woman who was inquiring stiffened, slowly turning her head. Seeing Xia Yu with a bodyguard, her mouth slightly opened, and her expression appeared somewhat dazed. However, her extreme beauty made her seem adorably cute in Xia Yu's eyes.

The woman appeared to be around 20 years old, very beautiful, tall, probably around 1.7 meters. She wore a short-sleeved white shirt and a lady's business skirt. To describe her in one sentence: an angel's face with a devil's body. This contrast made her stand out.

Xia Yu stared for a moment before casually averting his gaze, asking淡淡地问道:"你有什么事吗?"

The cute woman blinked her big, sparkling eyes, looking around before realizing Xia Yu was speaking to her. She fidgeted and nervously said, "Boss, I'm here for the interview."

Perhaps due to her nervousness, she directly addressed Xia Yu as "boss," which made Xia Yu chuckle inwardly. This cute woman had some charm.

What caught Xia Yu's attention more was her voice, which was soft and sweet, somewhat like the voice of Lin Jie from Taiwan in later years. However, her natural way of speaking did not seem forced.

Xia Yu thought, "This woman must have done a lot of good deeds in her past life to become like this in this life!"

Glancing at his watch, Xia Yu smiled and said, "You're lucky. Even though the bus had a problem, you're not late."

Hearing Xia Yu's words, the cute woman's face turned awkward, realizing her mumbling had been overheard. She shyly bit her lip, her cheeks flushing with two spots of red.

"Take her to the waiting area."

Xia Yu nonchalantly averted his gaze, nodded to the cute woman, and instructed the receptionist. He then walked with Yan Wenhan towards Yan Wenhan's office.

"Wenhan, is everyone here yet?"

As soon as Xia Yu saw Yan Wenhan, he immediately asked.

"I just checked, and there's one more to come. The others are already waiting in the reception room."

"Boss, here are their resumes."

Yan Wenhan reported, handing over a stack of resumes to Xia Yu.

Xia Yu took them and casually remarked, "The last one should have arrived as well. I saw someone at the entrance, so she must be the one who hasn't come yet."

"Oh, alright!"

Yan Wenhan was surprised by the coincidence but quickly responded.

"Let's go to the small meeting room."

Xia Yu then led Yan Wenhan to the small meeting room where the interviews would be held this afternoon. Conveniently, the small meeting room was next to the reception room.

As they passed by the reception room, Xia Yu took a glance inside and was somewhat stunned to see that all the people waiting were young and beautiful women.

Xia Yu retracted his gaze without lingering and continued walking. After entering the small meeting room, he looked directly at Yan Wenhan, who started feeling uneasy. Xia Yu asked, "Wenhan, are all the interviewees women?"

"Yes, I even filtered out some. These are the best ones."

Yan Wenhan answered seriously.

Seeing Yan Wenhan's earnest response, Xia Yu felt a bit speechless and clarified, "I'm hiring a secretary. I'm looking for genuine skills, not just pretty faces. What's with this?"

Yan Wenhan understood now, his face reddening. He hurriedly explained, "Boss, they all have real skills. If you don't believe me, check the resumes."

"Are you sure?"

Xia Yu asked pointedly, his eyes filled with doubt. Yan Wenhan hadn't misunderstood his intention, had he?

Moreover, Xia Yu couldn't believe that there were so many talented and attractive young women in this era. 

Not that he was prejudiced, but given the social environment in Hong Kong at that time, it was already impressive to finish high school, let alone university. The chances of a young woman completing university were slim, requiring not just personal effort but also a wealthy family.

Unconvinced, Xia Yu reviewed the resumes, which were around ten in total, and finished quickly.

However, after reading them, Xia Yu cleared his throat to hide his embarrassment. Despite his initial concerns, the resumes showed that all the women were university graduates. In that era, it was rare to find university graduates, especially among women.

Moreover, their resumes were impressively written, proving that Yan Wenhan was telling the truth.

It seemed he had misunderstood!

"Xia Yu decided not to dwell on the awkward topic and said lightly, 'You can have them come in one by one.'"

Yan Wenhan, aware of the boss's discomfort, pretended nothing had happened, lowered his head, and respectfully replied, "Alright, I'll arrange it."

Yan Wenhan then left to arrange the next interviewee.

Soon, a well-dressed beauty knocked and entered. She felt nervous under Xia Yu's scrutinizing gaze. Although Xia Yu was young, she knew who he was, and the pressure was intense.

"Please start with a self-introduction."

Xia Yu, leaning back in his chair, said expressionlessly.

"Hello, my name is Huang Hui…"

The woman named Huang Hui took a deep breath and began her introduction. Initially nervous, she soon calmed down, with her speech becoming more coherent and her confidence shining through.

Xia Yu nodded in approval. After Huang Hui finished her introduction, Xia Yu began questioning her. Huang Hui answered skillfully, and Xia Yu noted down his impressions and scores.

After the questioning, Xia Yu glanced at her resume once more and gave Huang Hui a warm smile, saying, "The interview is over. Please wait for further notice."

"Alright!"

Although Huang Hui was disappointed not to receive a definite answer, she did not show it. Instead, she gave a sweet smile and left the small meeting room with graceful steps.

The next person was immediately arranged by Yan Wenhan to enter.

One after another, the interviews continued, and Xia Yu's paper was filled with notes.

"Come in!"

Hearing a knock, Xia Yu called out without looking up. After a few seconds, he looked up and couldn't help but raise his eyebrows in surprise. It was the cute woman he had encountered at the reception.

Seeing Xia Yu looking at her, the cute woman seemed to recall the earlier awkward moment. Her innocent and adorable face displayed a hint of an innocent expression.

Xia Yu looked through her resume and found out her name was Li Qian, she was 21 years old, a graduate of Hong Kong Chinese University, and had a major suited for a secretarial position.

Moreover, Li Qian was an academic achiever with exceptional language skills, fluent in English, French, German, and Spanish, making her an excellent fit for the role.

Her strong language abilities, combined with her major in Chinese, made her the most capable among the candidates.

But Xia Yu wondered if her

 resume was too good to be true!

"Please introduce yourself in French, English, German, and Spanish."

Xia Yu said with a hint of a smile, addressing Li Qian in fluent French.

Hearing Xia Yu speak so fluently, the cute woman, Li Qian, was slightly shocked. Her mouth fell open, and she blinked at Xia Yu.

She was amazed that Xia Yu could speak French, causing her to momentarily zone out.

Noticing Li Qian's distraction, Xia Yu raised an eyebrow. This Li Qian seemed to have a different way of thinking!

"Please!" 

Xia Yu raised his voice, bringing Li Qian back to attention.

Seeing Xia Yu's strange look, Li Qian's face showed a slightly innocent expression, becoming nervous. She nervously pinched her skirt and began her introduction.

Seemingly snapping into professional mode instantly, her expression became serious. Her previously innocent and cute demeanor vanished, making Xia Yu raise an eyebrow, suspecting she might have been acting earlier. Her current demeanor was much more fitting for a top student!

However, he did not dwell on it, as Li Qian's introduction was underway.

"My name is Li Qian, I am 21 years old, and I graduated from Hong Kong Chinese University…"

Li Qian's voice remained soft and sweet, resembling a baby's, making even Xia Yu, despite his composure, feel affected.

Xia Yu, proficient in various languages, listened as Li Qian seamlessly switched between French, English, German, and Spanish, speaking fluently in each language.

After her introduction, Xia Yu began questioning her in different languages. Li Qian answered fluently each time.

After the Q&A session, Xia Yu asked the still-cute Li Qian to wait for further notice.

As he watched her alluring figure leave, Xia Yu thought, "I didn't expect her to be a top student. Her appearance is so deceptive that without knowing her, one might think she's just a pretty face."

"The most outstanding candidate among those interviewed, Huang Jiahui, can't compare to her. I wonder if anyone else will surpass her. If not, I might end up hiring her, and that could be troublesome in the future…"

After completing the remaining interviews, Yan Wenhan came in and quietly waited as Xia Yu pondered.

"Hmm…"

After a long time, Xia Yu exhaled deeply, finally making up his mind. He said to Yan Wenhan, "Wenhan, let's go with Li Qian."

Yan Wenhan was surprised, realizing it was the same Li Qian who had almost been late and whom the boss had encountered earlier.

He had made special inquiries about her while waiting outside and found her to be quite unique. He was surprised that the boss had chosen her. Did the boss prefer this type?

Noticing Yan Wenhan's reaction, Xia Yu guessed his thoughts and rolled his eyes. He could only say that he selected her based on her ability.

However, he was too lazy to explain. Forcing an explanation might seem like trying to hide something. Yan Wenhan would understand in time.

"Alright, boss. I'll announce the results."

Yan Wenhan said as he started to leave.

"Wait, Huang Hui will also be hired as your secretary."

Just as Yan Wenhan was about to leave, Xia Yu called him back and added.

Yan Wenhan was surprised, confirming the boss was serious. He wanted to refuse but eventually nodded, saying, "Alright!"

He was indeed overwhelmed with work and needed help, but being married, he was uncomfortable with adding another female secretary. Nonetheless, since the boss had spoken, and this was his concern, he had to agree.

"Go ahead!"

Xia Yu waved his hand, sending Yan Wenhan off. He thought about Li Qian again, her characteristics too striking and her impression too deep.

"Let's hope this doesn't backfire…"