Shadow and Light: The Bride Who Clicks Her Way to Love-Chapter 297 - 310: Choosing a Dress

Over at the Blade Group’s product department, they quickly began to prepare a special edition with photos included.

Within the group, many were whispering, "Is Su Xingyu making this special edition to compete with Zhuang Heng? It’s said that there’s no first place in literature, and the aesthetic of photos is subjective; it’s hard to define good or bad. But if it’s quantified into sales figures, it’s pretty clear. Whoever sells more cameras wins."

Zhuang Heng obviously heard these rumors too.

She felt a bit anxious. Never mind that ordinary girl from the dance academy and Ouyang Yi, just Xia Ling alone has a tsunami-level influence. How many fans would do anything to support their idol?

She couldn’t help but say, "The ordinary edition without gifts and the special edition with gifts are priced the same. Anyone in their right mind would choose the special edition. This is just a small-minded mentality, nothing to do with Su Xingyu’s photos being good or bad, nor does it mean those photos can drive camera sales."

What she said seemed quite reasonable.

Even Yun Xi and a few other supporters found confidence in this point, attacking Su Xingyu and saying she was manipulative.

And Su Xingyu? Her response was straightforward.

She went directly to the product distribution department and asked them to raise the price of the special edition, including the gift’s cost.

The people in the product distribution department felt a bit troubled initially, "Isn’t this bad? We’ve already paid a substantial photo copyright fee to Cloud. We need to control costs strictly. Raising the price might result in earning less than the ordinary edition, making this event counterproductive."

"Counterproductive?" Su Xingyu retorted, "Do you not understand how much the brand’s intangible value is enhanced by having top stars like Xia Ling and Ouyang Yi for promotion? This is something money simply can’t buy. Besides, it’s not a loss, just earning a bit less, and it might not even be less! What if the sales explode? We’d make even more!"

What she said made a lot of sense, but the people in the product distribution department remained hesitant.

Su Xingyu pressed on relentlessly, "Do I need to go to Mr. Lu and have him give the order personally?"

The product distribution folks recoiled, "No, no."

Given the level of the matter, it wasn’t something that needed to disturb Lu Shifeng.

If Su Xingyu really went to Lu Shifeng, it wouldn’t be a matter of proper work discussions but rather a complaint.

Su Xingyu rarely wielded authority, but during special times, she had to take special actions. After receiving the product distribution department’s promise to raise prices, she left satisfied.

The head of the product distribution department reconsidered and still felt that the price increase was too significant and should be reported.

Though he didn’t dare to disturb Lu Shifeng directly, he privately found Lu Shifeng’s secretary Xie Jian and asked, "Secretary Xie, today Miss Su Xingyu came to us and said..."

He told Xie Jian about the price increase matter, seeking advice on whether to comply with Su Xingyu’s request.

Xie Jian had him wait a bit and then went to see Lu Shifeng.

At that moment, Lu Shifeng was in his office pondering a business deal, his tall and upright figure standing by the floor-to-ceiling window, his shadow elongated by the room’s sunset.

After hearing Xie Jian’s report, a faint smile emerged in his usually icy eyes, "A cornered rabbit will bite indeed; she’s smart and also very driven."

Seeing no displeasure in his tone, Xie Jian confirmed with him, "So, shall we let the product distribution department carry out as she wishes?"

"Let them proceed," Lu Shifeng said, "I’m also curious to see how far she can go when giving it her all."

Thus, the special edition camera’s price was indeed raised.

Su Xingyu responded to those gossipers with a smiling face, "I’m not competing unfairly with Miss Zhuang; the special edition’s price is higher than the ordinary one. Those who are willing to spend surely want those promotional photos. Yet for the ordinary edition, who knows if they are buying because of the camera or the photos?"

Zhuang Heng’s group was left speechless.

"Hmph, we’ll see!" Yun Xi was indignant but consoled Zhuang Heng, "Miss Zhuang, Su Xingyu’s special edition will definitely face a Waterloo! No one would be foolhardy enough to spend so much for just a few photos!"

Zhuang Heng nodded, "Indeed." But internally, she was filled with unease.

Many eyes focused on the sales of the two different camera editions, and the statistics would take a cycle to complete. Thus, undercurrents surged through the office, and even some troublemakers secretly started bets on whether Zhuang Heng or Su Xingyu would win.

The betting hadn’t concluded yet, and it was already the end of the year.

The atmosphere of the upcoming Chinese New Year diluted the tense atmosphere brimming in the office. Even Mr. Yang, who had been dispirited for days after that lecture, perked up and cheerfully announced to everyone, "The day after tomorrow, everyone should dress nicely; our entire group is holding the annual dinner!"

"Hooray!" The crowd cheered excitedly.

The year-end dinner is a tradition for many large companies, meaning everyone gathers for a meal to celebrate a year of hard work before the Spring Festival holiday.

It’s a joyful occasion and a moment many look forward to. Every year at Blade’s year-end dinner, there’s a raffle with generous prizes, ensuring everyone gets something, no wonder everyone was thrilled.

Su Xingyu, too, had a faint smile on her lips, not for the prizes, but because seeing everyone happy made her happy. Although Blade Group had a lot of competition internally and was not free from the intrigues and conflicts that all big companies faced, it was also a place full of hope and dreams, where everyone worked hard and devoted their youth. It was one big family.

She went back to choose her dress.

The annual event had a dress code: men in formal wear, women in evening gowns.

The walk-in closet was filled with a variety of outfits, from extremely simple to the gorgeously extravagant.

As she walked past each exquisite and expensive gown, she pondered that she shouldn’t be too flashy, which didn’t suit her usual nature, but she also couldn’t be too low-key. Now that everyone knew she was Lu Shifeng’s girlfriend, she had to dress appropriately, so as not to embarrass him...

Thinking, she got lost in her thoughts. 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

Behind her, a tall man walked over and gently embraced her, "What are you thinking? How can you be looking at clothes for so long?"

She relaxed and leaned into his arms, the faint masculine scent on him putting her at ease, "Thinking about what to wear for the gala in two days, Shifeng, do you think I should..."

She stopped herself halfway through the question.

Lu Shifeng asked, "What?"

Su Xingyu felt embarrassed. She resented her quick tongue, unwisely seeking his opinion.

This man, whose wardrobe of everlasting black, white, and gray had zero aesthetic understanding, the tyrant with a straight-man’s mind, could hardly offer any useful insights on evening gowns.