I Will Never Submit to Miss Grim Reaper - Chapter 58

After saying goodbye to Marisa and Pipi, my work in the afternoon became much simpler. I basically sat down, played on my phone, and typed. When my eyes got tired, I would watch the young men and women on the stage in the middle of the exhibition. When guests arrived, I would introduce them to the website’s activities and history.

In any case, the owners of Yae-Do and Honeydew didn’t hire me here to sell books. Their original intention was to “promote” the Loli editor and promote the website, using my appearance to increase the website’s popularity.

In simple terms, today I played the role of a “mascot,” and selling books was just a side job.

Once I understood this layer, I felt at ease and began to slack off.

I have to say, the treatment here is really good.

If it were some more “capitalist” bosses, they might make the employees in charge of the store go out and promote, or wear all sorts of strange clothes to attract attention, squeezing out all their labor value.

When I just graduated from college and entered the workforce, I encountered many bosses like that.

Being a “waiter” is the basic job for every graduate without a background, qualifications, poor family conditions, and no school placement. Almost everyone’s first job is either working in a factory or being a shop assistant or waiter, or becoming an apprentice at a roadside barbecue stall, and I was no exception.

I have worked as a waiter in many shops, from clothing stores to food stores, and even toy stores. I’ve seen all kinds of bosses.

There are demanding bosses who complain as soon as a little dust appears on the floor, saying, “How can you not even maintain cleanliness? What’s the use of you?” There are bosses who impose strict monthly sales targets and threaten to deduct bonuses if you don’t meet them. There are bosses who demand that your phone be on at 12 o’clock at night, and you must respond to their messages immediately. They can call you back to work on holidays, but you won’t get paid overtime.

I remember a long time ago, I worked as a waiter in a convenience store for a month. On the first day, the boss asked me to memorize the retail prices of everything in the store because he didn’t have a card machine here. If there were any mistakes in pricing or discrepancies in the accounts, I would be responsible for the store’s losses.

So… compared to all kinds of eccentric bosses, I really feel that helping Honeydew with their booth at the comic convention is very, very relaxing. There are no demands at all, and they pay really well.

I can just sit there, each book and merchandise has a price tag. If customers want something, I hand it to them to let them check the price, scan the code, and make their payment. Moreover, many customers at the comic convention seem a bit “socially anxious” to me. When I ask them what they want to buy, they blush and say they just want to browse. Then, within a minute, they scan and pay for the products. Most of the time, I don’t think I even serve as a “mascot,” I’m just standing there as a backdrop.

It’s just like the few display boards at the entrance of the neighboring store that sells body pillows…

Although I know that this kind of work isn’t available every day – both Honeydew and Yae-Do mainly focus on their online presence, and events like these comic conventions can’t happen every day. Even if they wanted to do it, marketing like this with a “Loli editor” is only necessary once, and I doubt anyone would be interested the second time.

Plus, tomorrow is the last day of the comic convention, and there will definitely be fewer people than today. The easy job of “sitting from morning to evening and earning 1000 yuan per day” probably won’t be available.

So, it’s better to stay grounded and focus on my writing.

“Nuo’er, how do you feel?”

At around 5:30 in the afternoon, as the classic song “Beautiful Lies” played on the stage at the comic convention center, the Yae-Do boss, Lu Xinjian, and the editor-in-chief of Honeydew, who had been gone all day, walked over to me. Lu Xinjian looked in a good mood, and without saying a word, he handed me a bottle of “Enjoyment Edition” cola. “Those weird uncles didn’t give you a hard time, did they?”

“No, they didn’t.”

I took the cola and honestly said, “I sold… um, about 51 books?”

“That’s impressive. Ai Luodi only sold 30 books yesterday.”

The editor-in-chief of Honeydew looked over at Ai Luodi, who was snacking and playing with her phone on the side. “Ai Luodi, you should learn from others.”

Ai Luodi mumbled, “Mm…”

“I was actually doubting whether she was really 18.”

The editor Tuzi walked over and said, “After observing for a day, I can confirm that the little one here has experienced a lot and has a mature mentality, not like a child.”

I wasn’t a child to begin with!

I quietly put the Enjoyment Edition cola into my rabbit backpack.

Well… I’ll take it out of the fridge and celebrate when my novel gets recommended.

And, if I have to go on a trip next time, I’ll definitely remember not to wear these overalls with suspenders…

As I was packing up, I noticed the suspender straps on my overalls, silently thinking to myself.

I had seen these pants at the supermarket and bought them without much thought because they were cheap. I didn’t feel anything special when I put them on in the morning, but it wasn’t until I had been working here all day that I realized – this kind of clothing is very inconvenient to wear in far-off places, especially in areas with crowded bathrooms. Taking them off is particularly inconvenient.

In places like this comic convention, girls have to wait in line to use the restroom, and the wait can often be around ten minutes.

Due to physiological differences, girls take several times longer on average in the bathroom than boys, which leads to long lines outside the women’s restroom in crowded situations.

I also noticed another issue, and that is that there are a lot of cross-dressers at this comic convention…

Don’t ask me how I know.

“So, is she my responsibility or should I consider her as Ai Luodi’s?”

As we were packing up, the editor Tuzi asked the editor-in-chief.

“AI Luodi is responsible for her book from Yae-Do, and you are responsible for the new book from Honeydew, right?”

The editor-in-chief seemed indifferent, “It’s not a conflict, and besides, after the new website goes live, Yae-Do and Honeydew will have two different domains, they’re just sharing the database.”

The editor Tuzi hesitated for a moment, “Alright then.”

“Okay, let’s leave it here for today. Nuo’er, give me your payment code.”

In front of the store, at the request of the Yae-Do boss, I took out my phone and opened my payment code.

*Beep* I scanned it, and Lu Xinjian quickly transferred a thousand yuan to me.

“Received.”

Seeing the “Alipay payment received: 1000 yuan” on my phone screen, I nodded politely to the Yae-Do boss with a sense of joy.

“It’s 5:30. Let Nuo’er go back first.”

He patted my shoulder and gestured for me to go downstairs with him. Lu Xinjian told Ai Luodi and the editor-in-chief, “It’s not safe for a girl to be alone outside. I’ll escort her.”

“Why don’t you just drive and drop her off directly?”

The editor-in-chief suggested, “To avoid any issues on the way.”

“No need.”

I quickly waved my hand, “I came here alone by taking the bus, so going back alone is perfectly fine.”

“Alright, then, Old Lu, you can take her to the bus station.”

“Sure thing.”

Yae-Do’s boss, Lu Xinjian, glanced at my rabbit backpack behind me, “Is everything packed up? Nothing left behind?”

“Everything’s packed.”

I gestured by turning my body to indicate the backpack behind me and the phone in my pocket.

“Alright, if you find you’ve left something behind when you get back, just tell your editor.”

Seeming to treat me like a child, Lu Xinjian grabbed my arm and led me towards the staircase.

“Wait here for a moment, I’ll go to the garage to get the car.”

After parting ways with the man at the ground floor entrance of the convention center, I walked to the underground parking exit on the side and soon saw a somewhat old car driving out.

“Come in, I’ll take you to the bus station.”

“Thank you.”

I opened the rear car door and got in, sitting in the back seat obediently.

Lu Xinjian in the front hesitated for a moment, “How about I just take you all the way home?”

“No, really, it’s not necessary.”

Thinking about the possibility of a certain grim reaper waiting for me in my room at night, I used a somewhat assertive tone, “I’m used to living alone.”

“Alright.”

Seeing that I was so insistent, Lu Xinjian reluctantly rolled up the car window.

“Um… Yin Nuo’er, your name is Yin Nuo’er, right?”

As we drove towards the bus station near the convention center, Lu Xinjian spoke tentatively, “I got a call from the hospital just now. My daughter… my daughter is recovering very well. She might be able to leave the intensive care unit tomorrow or the day after. Could you… could you come to the hospital tomorrow or the day after to visit? We all want to meet you.”

At the end, as if realizing it might not be appropriate, this dad added, “Of course, if you’re not willing, it’s okay.”

Sitting silently in the back seat with the image of a certain grim reaper in my mind, I stayed quiet for a while.

“I’ll try my best.”