After being targeted by the crazy NPC,I Ended Up Calling the Shots - Chapter 19
Chapter 19: Extreme Drought (2 )
After finishing her noodles and sipping the broth, Jiang Song opened 69 Local to look for a job.
Earlier that morning, right after buying water, she had asked a clerk at the water station if they were hiring, only to be met with a sharp eye-roll.
Unexpectedly, there was actually a job posting on 69 Local for the Tap Water Group’s headquarters.
The position was Assistant to the CEO. The requirements included a master’s degree or higher, an age between 20 and 28, a height between 165 and 170 cm, attractive facial features, an outstanding demeanor, high stress tolerance, and being on call twenty-four hours a day…
The requirements were steep, and Jiang Song scoffed at them. However, the moment she saw the salary—over 100,000 yuan a month—she suddenly felt they weren’t quite so unacceptable after all. Besides, this was the conglomerate that controlled all water resources. If she could get in here, her chances of getting water coupons would definitely be much higher than on the outside.
Jiang Song immediately put together a resume and sent it over, packaging herself into a flawless image that met every single requirement to perfection.
She received a reply very quickly, inviting her for an interview that afternoon. Jiang Song agreed right away.
In the afternoon, she found some cosmetics at home and did her makeup in a style that looked pure and pretty yet still sharp and capable. Then, she put on the only standout outfit in her closet.
At three o’clock sharp, Jiang Song arrived at the entrance of the Tap Water Group. Living up to its reputation as Wu City’s largest monopoly conglomerate, it stood right in the city center, its towering floors soaring into the clouds as a landmark building for the entire city.
Jiang Song entered the lobby and asked at the front desk, “Hello, I’m here for an interview.”
“Take the elevator over there to the 19th floor.”
Standing inside the elevator, Jiang Song mulled over her interview talking points, thinking about how she could sweet-talk the interviewers into keeping her on.
When the elevator doors slowly slid open, Jiang Song saw a long line already formed—all of them applicants.
Every single young woman was dressed to the nines, holding resumes in their hands and pacing back and forth to ease their nerves.
Jiang Song found a seat and sat down quietly. She began searching online for ways to take out a loan. Based on her experience in the previous round of the game, the difficulty of surviving in an instance only increased day by day. The water shortage would only grow more severe from here on out, so she needed to rapidly stockpile large amounts of water within a limited timeframe.
As Jiang Song browsed various platforms looking for reliable loans, a young woman walking past caught a glimpse of her screen and let out a sneer, assuming Jiang Song was the vain, materialistic type. Jiang Song paid her no mind, staying completely absorbed in the loan application process.
“Next, Jiang Song.”
A staff member called out her name. Jiang Song tapped “Confirm” on her phone, stood up, and walked into the interview room.
The room was spacious. Sitting behind a long solid-wood table were three interviewers, all dressed in sharp suits and looking to be in their forties or fifties. Jiang Song couldn’t tell which one of them was the group’s CEO.
“We’ve reviewed your resume. It’s very impressive and basically meets all our criteria. Now, could you tell us why you want to join our company?”
Jiang Song answered with a smile, “Because the industry your company operates in is currently developing steadily and holds a leading position. At the same time, I deeply identify with your company’s development philosophy, and I believe that in such an environment, there is certainly an outstanding team worth working alongside and learning from. The assistant position you are recruiting for requires handling all manner of affairs for the CEO. I have three years of relevant work experience, which aligns closely with your company’s needs. Those are the reasons I chose your company, and I hope to join the team here and create value for the enterprise.”
The interviewers nodded, seemingly quite satisfied with Jiang Song’s response. Having been steeped in the great dye vat of society in the real world for so long, pulling off this kind of polished corporate spiel was effortless for her.
Jiang Song successfully passed the first round of interviews. Tomorrow morning, the CEO would personally conduct the second round.
After the interview ended, Jiang Song headed home. Along the way, she saw quite a few beggars. Most of them had shriveled skin and emaciated frames, stretching out their hands to beg whenever they saw someone. Yet most passersby avoided them with looks of disgust, and some even cursed at them outright.
“Get lost! Damn it, I’m broke as hell myself every single day—where would I get money to give you?”
Seeing how fierce the man was, none of the beggars dared to step forward. Just then, Jiang Song happened to walk past, and they immediately swarmed toward her.
“I don’t want money—just give me a little water to drink, please, I beg you.” The beggar’s hair was a tangled mess, completely matted together. He licked his lips, refusing to back down.
“Asking for that is way more excessive than asking for money,” Jiang Song replied, somewhat speechless.
Perhaps seeing that she was a lone young woman with no companions around, the beggars gradually grew bolder, pressing closer and closer to Jiang Song. Some even started reaching out with their hands.
Jiang Song kicked away the person trying to grab her bag, her expression deeply displeased. “Scram! I’ve already called the police.”
Her phone screen displayed the call log to 110, scaring the surrounding beggars into scattering in every direction.
Taking advantage of the opening, Jiang Song immediately bolted toward home. It was still only the early stages of the game, and the social order hadn’t completely collapsed yet, yet these beggars were already this brazen. She couldn’t imagine what kind of chaos would erupt outside once the water shortage grew even more severe.
When Jiang Song passed by a sporting goods store, she ducked inside and bought a golf club—something like this would come in pretty handy for self-defense.
That evening, Jiang Song contacted the young boy she had met in the morning to ask if he had any extra water coupons. His reply was that a batch would come in the day after tomorrow. Jiang Song told him to hold onto all of them for her, and he agreed.
In the afternoon, Jiang Song had cashed out around 100,000 yuan from various loan platforms. To avoid any unexpected mishaps, she planned to spend as much of this game round inside her rented apartment as possible.
Just to be safe, however, she needed to reinforce the place. Jiang Song immediately contacted a repairman and scheduled an appointment for the next day.
Day two of the game.
Jiang Song woke up early and headed to the Tap Water Group. The interview was at eight-thirty, and the two young women who had passed alongside her yesterday had already arrived ahead of time.
The three of them waited outside the CEO’s office for ten minutes before a staff member finally called them inside.
The three sat side by side in their chairs. Across a desk from them, a tall man in a sharp suit sat in the opposite chair. His demeanor was composed and stern; merely sitting there without saying a word, he radiated an overwhelming sense of pressure.
His face looked as though it had been meticulously sculpted by God himself—deep-set eyes, a high-bridged nose, a smooth, sharply defined jawline…
Sitting up in shock from one’s deathbed—that man was actually Shen Tingsi?!
“What the hell.”
How could he be here?
Jiang Song’s exclamation drew Shen Tingsi’s attention. The very next instant, their eyes met—one filled with shock and confusion, the other ice-cold and ruthless.
Jiang Song swallowed hard, ready to bolt at a moment’s notice, yet Shen Tingsi slowly shifted his gaze away, his emotions so steady it was as if they had never met before.
