As for why Chen Nuo was chosen to be part of the four-person group serving the school board member...
The reason was simple: among the selected students, these four were the best in English.
Not to mention the class leader; to be the class leader in Jinling No. 8 Middle School, one must at least be a student of good character and academics. Du Xiaoyan was also a given; someone who would spend time on night classes, given the school culture at Jinling No. 8, was clearly an ambitious person.
The unfamiliar girl was the English class representative from another class.
As for Chen Nuo...
Embarrassingly, Chen Yanluo relied on cheats for all other subjects.
But his English results were extremely good.
Because... he actually knew English!
In his previous life, before he died, he could even hold his phone and curse out the president of M Country!
"Actually, all four of you are just backups," Director Zhang said seriously. "The school board member has her own secretary and assistant and doesn't need you to do much else. However, by explaining a bit about Jinling No. 8 Middle School, the board member can also learn more about the school through you. That's why you were selected to participate in her reception tasks. Besides, not all four of you will be staying; it will be two out of four! Eventually, two will be chosen."
Seeing the puzzled looks and glances exchanged between the students in front of her, Director Zhang slowly added another condition.
"The school board member's identity is different; she's a major capitalist from abroad. And she has proactively offered very generous conditions. The selected reception staff will be responsible for attending to her during the summer vacation, and this job comes with pay. The school board member's personal office has allocated a specific budget. Each person will get a hundred dollars a day as a subsidy."
Upon hearing this, the three other students were stunned, then couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.
Even Chen Nuo was somewhat taken aback.
A hundred dollars a day, that's three thousand a month.
Well, if weekends are excluded, it would still be over two thousand a month.
This was 2001!
In Jinling City, an average office worker's monthly salary would not exceed a thousand dollars!
For example, at Jinling No. 8 Middle School, the basic salary for a teacher was just about eight hundred dollars a month.
Paying a teenager over two thousand a month?
Well, one can only say... money talks.
Aside from Chen Nuo, Du Xiaoyan, the class leader, and the other girl all couldn't help but get pumped up!
Two out of four!
"Actually, even if you are selected, don't be too nervous. The school board member's status is special, and ordinarily, you wouldn't have many chances to interact with her since she's a major capitalist from abroad. Day-to-day, you'll mostly be liaising with the school board member's assistant, so there's no need to be too tense. Oh, that school board member is about fifty years old. I have met her once; she is a lady whose every action and word is very serious. Especially you, Chen Nuo! You had better rein in your frivolous demeanor."
Director Zhang went on with the instructions, and at the end, couldn't help but single out Chen Nuo for a word of caution.
Chen Nuo laughed, "Director Zhang, can I forfeit now? I'm not really interested in this job."
"What?" Director Zhang's face suddenly changed, then she turned to Worker Liu. "How did you communicate this?"
Worker Liu's expression wasn't good either. He quickly pulled Chen Nuo aside to talk.
"Oh, for heaven's sake! Please don't screw this up for me!" Worker Liu pleaded in a low, anxious voice.
"I wasn't involved to begin with. You all never asked me; you just called me here."
"How was I supposed to know! But your name is on the list agreed upon by the school and the education company. I'm just notifying based on the list…" Worker Liu said with a downcast face. "Chen Nuo! I'm responsible for this task, please don't screw me over! The interview was set for four people, and it needs to be four people! If one is missing, how am I supposed to fix this process on the fly? Chen Nuo! You, you, you… Can't you just do me this favor? Wasn't it me who covered for you that time in Yanbian? And about your sister's matter, wasn't it my sister who handled it for you? Look, my sister and I have helped your family out a lot, right? Can't you just do this for me? Even if you're not interested and don't want to do it, can't you just go through the motions? As for the interview, if you don't want the job, you can just pretend to perform poorly so they don't choose you, isn't that alright?"
Seeing Chen Nuo remain silent, Worker Liu became desperate, gritting his teeth and whispering, "Hey! About that supermarket card last time, I didn't even make a fuss over it, did I? You've got some nerve! A 500-yuan supermarket card for the interview! And there was only 100 yuan and 80 cents left on it for me! Brother, you can't treat people like that!"
Chen Nuo gave a sheepish smile.
"Uh… okay, okay, I'll go."
Afterward, Chen Nuo and the other three followed Director Zhang.
A Buick business van carried Director Zhang, Worker Liu, and the four students away from No. 8 Middle School, heading for a high-end hotel in the downtown area.
The school board member was currently staying at the hotel.
Chen Nuo was relieved that the hotel was not the same one where Lu Xixi had stayed before.
After they got out of the van, a young female staff member came out from the hotel lobby. She was also from the education company, responsible for staying at the hotel to serve the school board member. This young professional greeted Director Zhang with a very professional and respectful attitude.
"Director Zhang, the school board member is resting and can't see you. Her assistant asked me to take the candidates for the interview first," she said.
Director Zhang seemed a bit disappointed at not being able to meet the school board member, but she quickly nodded and turned to Chen Nuo and the others, giving them a few instructions.
"Follow her. This is Ms. Chen from our company; she'll take you for your interviews. We'll wait for you here in the lobby. After the interviews, the same van will take you back to school."
Chen Nuo was relaxed, whereas the class leader seemed a bit nervous, muttering under his breath, "One hundred a day, one hundred a day…"
Du Xiaoyan and the other girl seemed a bit more focused, starting to tidy their hair in the elevator's mirror.
"You don't need to be very nervous," Ms. Chen said with a smile. "The school board member won't see you today; her assistant will conduct the interview. I've interacted with her; she's quite nice."
The elevator reached the fourth floor of the hotel, which housed the leisure center.
Ms. Chen led the four of them into the leisure center's entrance, where hotel staff immediately came to greet them. After exchanging a few words with Ms. Chen, they let the group in.
They came to a hallway, where Ms. Chen stopped.
"Next are the interviews. You'll go in one by one. Turn the corner down the hallway; it's the last room. The rest of you wait here. Don't be nervous, just answer whatever they ask you, and keep a relaxed attitude."
Ms. Chen appeared to be in her twenties, not much older than Chen Nuo and the other students. Moreover, it was evident she was accustomed to reception work, as she was very personable.
"Decide among yourselves who will go first."
Chen Nuo didn't speak.
The class leader hesitated. The two girls looked at each other.
All three students had the same idea: it seemed disadvantageous to go first. They wanted to wait for the first person to come out so they could inquire about the situation inside, the questions asked, and get a chance to prepare.
But…
"You won't have the chance to share information. After each interview, the student will leave through another stairway in the hallway that goes down to the lobby, so there's actually no difference in the order. I would suggest you go in sooner rather than later."
With that, the unfamiliar girl raised her hand first.
The kids hadn't yet learned the cutthroat tactics common in an adult's workplace.
After one person went in, the other students offered a few words of encouragement, like "Good luck."
Chen Nuo found a sofa to sit on and pulled out his phone to continue playing Snake.
Ms. Chen watched the nervous class leader and Du Xiaoyan, then glanced at the indifferent Chen Nuo, feeling a bit curious.
Shortly after, Ms. Chen's phone buzzed. She checked it and then said, "All right, who's second?"
"Me!" Du Xiaoyan stood up, adjusted her hair and clothes, and confidently strode down the corridor.
A few minutes later, Ms. Chen received another message on her phone.
"The third one?"
"You go, class leader," Chen Nuo said with a smile.
The class leader, who had been nervous enough to want to use the restroom, immediately jumped up, nodded at Chen Nuo, and briskly walked in.
Once the class leader went in, it took a surprisingly long time without any further messages.
After a full half hour, Ms. Chen started to feel restless.
"Why is it taking so long?"
Chen Nuo looked up at her, shrugged, and continued to play Snake.
Finally, Ms. Chen's phone buzzed again, but after seeing the message, her expression turned a bit strange.
"Um... Chen Nuo, right? Could you wait a little longer? Her assistant is dealing with something else right now. Just hang on for a bit."
"Can I give up?" Chen Nuo put away his phone. "I could just forfeit. I wasn't really interested anyway."
Ms. Chen's face instantly turned pale. "You can't do that!"
Chen Nuo said with a laugh, "Being an assistant, and an assistant to an assistant at that, serving people... it isn't really my cup of tea."
"Chen Nuo, this is a great opportunity to learn and grow. Plus... the stipend is quite generous."
"I earn my own money with part-time jobs," Chen Nuo replied languidly.
Ms. Chen, somewhat helpless, looked around and said with a wry smile, "Chen Nuo, no matter what, could you at least finish the interview? I'm responsible for overseeing this... If you leave now, how am I supposed to explain it later? I'm just an employee too; please don't make things difficult for me."
After thinking it over, Chen Nuo said, "Alright then."
And so, they waited another full half hour.
Finally, a text message popped up on Ms. Chen's phone, leaving her with an odd expression.
"Um, Chen Nuo, the location for the interview has changed. Follow me."
"Ah? Man, this is so complicated."
Following Ms. Chen out of the hallway, they arrived at the hotel's fitness center.
"The first room inside," Ms. Chen said, standing by the couch at the entrance. "I'll wait for you here."
How bizarre!
Chen Nuo frowned and stepped inside.
The first room was a fitness studio. Chen Nuo approached the door, took a deep breath, and pushed it open...
And then...
He saw a...
Peach.
The fitness studio's floor was made of fine wooden planks. The walls were mirrored, complete with training bars.
In the center of the room, on a yoga ball, lay a figure, back facing the doorway where Chen Nuo stood. The body on the yoga ball was positioned in a "bent, knees folded, body arched, buttocks up" pose!
An almost perfect curve, tightly encased in a fitted exercise outfit.
Especially from Chen Nuo's vantage point.
From where Chen Nuo stood, he could perfectly see that round, exquisitely proportioned… peach butt!
"Holy shit!" Chen Nuo was frozen in shock.
"Had enough of a look?" The blonde girl on the yoga ball turned to glance at Chen Nuo, beads of sweat on her forehead. "Close the door."
Chen Nuo's face looked as if he had seen a ghost.
"Niveer? Holy shit! How on earth did you find me?"
"Hmph, liar!" Niveer stood up from the yoga ball and then adopted a flying pose on a yoga mat. "Chen Yang, right? Do you know I searched through all of Hong Kong for people with that name? Only then did I confirm you had tricked me."
Chen Nuo fell silent, furrowed his brows, closed the door, then simply grabbed a yoga mat, sat down cross-legged on the floor, and quietly watched the woman in front of him stretch her wondrous figure.
"Kathmandu, Wilson's hotel. I went to inquire about your check-in time, and then I checked the list of all male travelers who entered Kathmandu within forty-eight hours!" Niveer gritted her teeth, looking at Chen Nuo. "It took so much effort to finally track down a little liar like you!"
Chen Nuo sighed. "Didn't we agree never to see each other again in this lifetime? You agreed to it back then."
"Oh, I've changed my mind. I'm a woman, and women are fickle, you know!"
"…"
Suddenly, Niveer turned around, then bent down, her eyes holding a strange allure as she stared intently at Chen Nuo.
Then...
This girl, with her curvaceous, unrestrained, and fiery figure, began to crawl towards Chen Nuo on the floor, on all fours, like a cat!
This pose, to a man's eyes, was simply a foul!
Especially since this little wildcat's eyes seemed to have hooks in them!
Chen Nuo's heartbeat began to accelerate.
Crawling up to Chen Nuo, Niveer gave a slight smirk. Her face, slightly flushed from the yoga, with a few beads of sweat on her forehead, made this fitness beauty look even more energetic, even more tantalizing at that moment!
Raising her left hand, she opened it gently, and a small object fell from Niveer's palm.
It was a tiny wind chime from Kathmandu, tied with a chain.
Niveer held one end of the chain, and the wind chime in her hand made a crisp, tinkling sound.
The woman, like a lazy cat, pressed against Chen Nuo's body. That hot, explosive figure pressed against Chen Nuo's arm.
Even more outrageously, she actually leaned on Chen Nuo's shoulder and deliberately spoke in a low, magnetic voice.
"I've reserved this fitness center… there are still two hours left…"
"???" Chen Nuo leaned back, his eyes wide as he looked at Niveer.
But the girl actually took the chime on the chain and fastened it directly around her slender neck, securing the clasp.
With her gentle movements, the bell around her neck emitted a clear and pleasant sound.
"How about it? Two hours is enough for us to do many, many, many… many things! I'll just wear this bell, okay? Later… when the time comes… the louder the bell sounds, the more it means you like me, okay…?"
GLUG!
Chen Yanluo swallowed hard.
Who could withstand this?!