Chapter 259: Everyone Has Their Own Agenda (Part 10)

“Don’t be so excited, my uncrowned king,” Cheng Yongxin turned her face and gently pushed Panpan away to avoid being suffocated by her strong body odor mixed with perfume. “I have other things I need your help with.”

“No problem, Cheng Cheng baby.”

“I hope you can help the transmigrators train their life secretaries.”

Panpan was immediately choked up.

“What did you say? Let alone training, how could they possibly let me get close to their maids?”

“Of course, it’s not the kind of training you imagine. Didn’t Ding Ding say so too? Many transmigrators complain that their life secretaries don’t know how to be interesting. To put it simply, they don’t understand what they are saying. Actually, to put it bluntly, it’s a generation gap, but this generation gap is not measured in decades, but in hundreds of years. So this is your breakthrough point. The transmigrators will be very happy to have someone give their maids a subtle ‘translation,’ so that their maids can have a qualitative leap.”

“Let me think, you mean, a magazine for maids?”

“Exactly.” Cheng Yongxin patted Panpan’s head and handed her a pastry.

“I made it myself, try it. Although the Senate is very afraid of the emergence of a figure like Catherine the Great among the life secretaries, a life secretary who is similar to a modern young woman is impossible for those transmigrators not to be tempted by. Even the Executive Committee would not dare to openly offend the transmigrators.”

Panpan chewed on the pastry and nodded continuously.

“Culture is not actually such a dogmatic thing. Just like many people don’t know the real meaning of some folk activities, but they like them and are willing to do them. Then, whether they really understand it or not, we can get the reaction we want—that’s enough.”

“It should be feasible. I remember that although you Chinese people are not necessarily religious, many girls like to have their weddings in churches and have a good impression of the Christian church, even if they don’t understand it, they find it romantic.”

“To your analogy.”

Panpan took a sip of Kvass and said, “I think I understand why you hate Du Wen so much: she has pushed most of the transmigrators to our opposite side.”

“Yes, women’s rights are not actually such an aggressive thing. I don’t ask chauvinistic men to change their beliefs. That is their freedom. If you have to have some kind of name, you often get nothing in this difficult initial stage. So, the first step is to instill a belief in the maids.”

Cheng Yongxin smiled at Panpan: “We want to tell them, leave your gentleness to the Chief, and leave your shrewdness to the Chief’s enemies. Those men want a maid who conforms to their fantasies, and we will give them one. When they find that their maid has grown into a perfect helpmate, what do you think they will think? And if one day, other men harm the interests of their maids, which side do you think they will help?”

Panpan laughed heartily. “I will look forward to that day, Cheng Cheng baby.”

“Before that, I have a private matter I need your help with.”

“Go ahead, Cheng Cheng baby, I will definitely help.”

“My maid, I hope you can take her to the editorial department and let her practice how to be a media person, and more importantly, how to be a good girl.”

“That’s not difficult. But when it comes to being a ‘good girl’ and a ‘good wife,’ I know nothing about housework, nor do I understand Chinese zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting. Speaking of which, aren’t you the most suitable person for this kind of thing?”

“No, no, no, she is very good at housework, you don’t need to teach her anymore. I am too artistic and too quiet. There is no shortage of such women in this time and space. And you are an American girl—I have always admired your independent and straightforward style, and you are also influenced by Chinese culture. I want her to follow you and know how a straightforward and lively modern woman should treat men correctly, or rather, how to tame men.” Cheng Yongxin giggled. “This is also the content of the ‘training’ for maids that I asked you to help with. Starting a magazine is a big deal, it won’t be so fast. Let’s start with my maid.”

Ji Xin got off the small train at the Gaoshanling station. The neat platform was sparsely populated. Gaoshanling was a key control area, and naturalized citizens entering this area had to have a special pass.

The place he was going to was the most heavily guarded “red alert zone.” On the land ruled by the Senate, only two places enjoyed such treatment: “STC and the first-level controlled material reserve” and “the Great Library.”

And the Great Library was a word that most often appeared in the work and life of the transmigrators. The transmigrators would mention or see this word almost every day in their conversations and on documents. “Apply for materials from the Great Library,” “The Great Library must have relevant materials,” but most transmigrators didn’t even know the specific location of these two institutions.

The location of the Great Library was at the foot of a certain mountain in Gaoshanling. This place faced the sun and was sheltered from the wind, and the terrain was relatively high and dry. Along the mountain, there was a row of reinforced concrete cave warehouses. Tunnels were dug into the mountain to store books and materials.

Outside the cave warehouses, there were rows of two-story brick-and-wood buildings forming tightly guarded courtyards, surrounded by high walls, hedges, and trenches. Soldiers of the Lingao Garrison patrolled day and night. There was even a permanent fire brigade here, equipped with a self-flowing well and pumps and hoses dismantled from the holy ship.

Ji Xin was quite familiar with the Great Library: because the teaching activities of Fangcaodi itself required a large amount of teaching materials, the publishing working group set up in the Great Library had the routine task of selecting and editing various teaching materials. As a counterpart, Ji Xin often came here.

He showed his ID card and passed through three checkpoints without difficulty, entering the office area of the Great Library. Here, the shade was dense, and as far as the eye could see were high red brick courtyard walls and small buildings one after another. The courtyards were full of flowers and trees, and the environment was quiet. Besides the chirping of birds, it was silent all around, making one wonder where one was.

Following the path that Cheng Yongxin had told him on the phone, Ji Xin walked for a while, passed through a narrow passage, and found a hidden small garden in the Great Library. The small garden was decorated with a rather petty-bourgeois sentiment. Small potted plants, self-made small decorations, and rattan European-style tables and chairs under the shade of the trees made Ji Xin feel as if he had returned to the old time and space in a trance.

“Welcome to my secret garden.”

Hearing the voice, Ji Xin turned his head and was immediately stunned.

Before the meeting, he had not imagined their encounter. According to his usual cautious habit, he had reported his meeting to Yu E’shui and at the same time inquired about the other party’s specific situation. Director Yu had described to him a petty-bourgeois white-collar worker who had walked out of the old world, who, relying on her sharp tongue, picked on her colleagues’ mistakes, and was just short of saying that she was a self-satisfied and brain-dead Jinjiang woman who thought she could charm a bunch of princes and dukes.

But the Cheng Yongxin who appeared in front of Ji Xin was not like that at all.

This is not to say that she was very ordinary or anything. On the contrary, she was dressed up.

A modified Hanfu made of obviously fine silk, short in the front and long in the back, with a charming back that showed off her beautiful legs. Because the weather was too hot, even the female transmigrators rarely had long hair, but she had a thick bun, with a silver hairpin from Zizhenzhai inserted obliquely. The elegant silver color was not ostentatious, but the carving was very low-key and luxurious.

Of course, Ji Xin would not admit that he was stunned for a moment—it was rare to see a female transmigrator dressed like a classical style from a fashion magazine, anyone would be dazed.

“Isn’t this dress beautiful? My life secretary modified it. The tailors in Lingao just don’t understand what effect I want. Shangxiang is much more skillful.”

Ji Xin came back to his senses, coughed awkwardly, and his eyes drifted to Cheng Yongxin’s bun.

“Isn’t it hot with such long hair in Lingao?”

Cheng Yongxin blinked.

“Oh, you mean this. It’s fake.”

Then, she pulled out the silver hairpin and took off the thick circle of hair with a casual gesture. Ji Xin immediately found that it was something similar to a huge rubber band.

“This is a little trick for urban women. Isn’t it convenient! However, I don’t have many left. I hope I can live in a place further north in the future. Lingao is really too hot.”

Cheng Yongxin casually put the fake bun back on a small bag, inserted the silver hairpin, and her movements were so fast that Ji Xin felt a little confused.

“Please sit down. Black tea or Kvass? Kombucha or salt soda are also available.”

“Black tea is fine.”

Cheng Yongxin made a gesture backwards, and a life secretary also wearing a modified Hanfu came over with a tray. A complete set of peach blossom and water fine porcelain tea set, a plate full of beautiful pastries, plus the life secretary standing quietly not far away, such a grand reception made Ji Xin feel a little embarrassed for a while.

Cheng Yongxin was satisfied with this result. She had inquired about Ji Xin through various channels beforehand and knew that he had been living alone for a long time, had no life secretary, and was definitely not gay. And she also knew that Ji Xin usually avoided all opportunities to show his face, and had also refused the opportunity to take up an important position at the beginning, willingly sinking into being an obscure teacher at Fangcaodi. He was a person with no ambition. He had no woman in his daily life, lacked a sex life, and also looked down on the crudely made maids from the General Office. It seemed that what he liked in his heart was still a woman under the modern aesthetic view.

Such a man with a high heart but also a loser is easily dazed by a radiant woman and thus easily manipulated—just like Yang Xinwu at the beginning—she had persuaded him with almost no effort.

What a pity! She thought bitterly, Xiao Zishan had ruined her plan. Although she didn’t know what Director Xiao had said to Yang Xinwu, she also knew from Sun Shangxiang’s inquiries that the change had happened after Transmigrator Yang went to see him. This seemingly mediocre director of the General Office actually had such a great influence among the transmigrators. Even a person with no strong opinions like Yang Xinwu would first seek his opinion.