CHAPTER 175: CHAPTER 177: CAMERA REVIEW

Lu Shifeng agreed.

In his view, walnut pastry is just walnut pastry, it doesn’t matter who delivers it—Zhuang Heng is nothing special.

Seeing this, the fire in Su Xingyu’s heart subsided a bit, yet her waist was still sore. She supported her waist with one hand, carried the walnut pastry with the other, and slowly made her way downstairs. After traversing a long distance back to the photography center, she had just set the walnut pastry on her desk when Anna called her, "Xingyu, where did you go? Hurry to the meeting room; the meeting has already started!"

It’s already started? Su Xingyu was shocked. She glanced at the computer screen’s time; it was only 1:40. "Wasn’t the meeting supposed to start at two?" she asked.

"It was supposed to," Anna said, "but Miss Zhuang has something to do this afternoon, so Mr. Yang pushed the meeting forward. Anyway, hurry up; just now, Mr. Yang didn’t look too happy when he noticed you weren’t there."

Zhuang Heng again!

Su Xingyu felt like she was cursed to clash with her for eight lifetimes, but there was nothing she could do. Taking the camera test data she had prepared in the morning, she headed to the meeting room. The discussions had already commenced. When she entered, everyone’s gaze turned towards her.

Su Xingyu said, "Sorry, I didn’t know the meeting time was changed. I’m late."

Across from her, Yun Xi fiddled with the notebook on the table, sneering, "Didn’t know about the time change? Who would believe that? Anna already sent out a group text notification; I think you did it on purpose."

Group text notification?

She instinctively reached for her phone, realizing she hadn’t brought it. It likely fell in Lu Shifeng’s office during their earlier tussle; neither of them heard it through the intense tussling. Thinking of that incident at noon, pain welled up deep within her, and her face burned with embarrassment. She dared not draw attention, bowing her head as she sat in an empty seat.

Zhuang Heng glanced at her. Her usual graceful expression was slightly unsightly but was well concealed.

She noticed that Su Xingyu had changed her outfit from the silk dress she saw her wearing when delivering the walnut pastry to Lu Shifeng’s office earlier. It could only mean that something happened between Su Xingyu and Lu Shifeng after her departure...

This realization made Zhuang Heng’s jealousy blaze fiercely, wishing she could tear Su Xingyu apart immediately.

She picked up her teacup, masking her thoughts with a sip and putting on a gracious smile: "It’s all my fault. I needed to photograph an important set this afternoon, thus inconvenienced everyone with the meeting change; it’s not Xingyu’s mistake." In reality, only she knew; it wasn’t about any important photograph. She witnessed the scene in Lu Shifeng’s office at noon and didn’t want Su Xingyu and Lu Shifeng staying too long together, so she maneuvered to have the meeting advanced!

Sadly, Su Xingyu was still late coming down.

Did she really miss the text or was it intentional?

Zhuang Heng’s gentle tone left people impressed. Xia Ranran was the first to speak, "How could it be Miss Zhuang’s fault? You’re always the one considering others. If it wasn’t something really important, you wouldn’t do this. Besides, we all managed to come early for the meeting, except the newcomer who joined just three days ago can’t? Is the newbie busier than us?" she said, glancing sideways at Su Xingyu.

"Ranran, say a bit less." Fang Luohua chimed in, trying to calm the situation.

At the head of the conference table, Mr. Yang coughed slightly: "Alright, alright, let’s all say less. Our department consists mainly of photographers; we each have our own tasks, so variable timing is common. Miss Zhuang has an engagement this afternoon, let’s quickly get to the main topic. Where did we leave off?" Though others might not know Su Xingyu’s background, he had an inkling; someone having the privilege of being personally recommended by Xie certainly has connections. He couldn’t afford to have someone get upset in his department, causing trouble for everyone later!

Seeing Mr. Yang’s stance, Zhuang Heng simply smiled, saying no more.

Her façade was always impeccable; though she initiated the sudden meeting drama, nothing tainted her, and her tolerance for Su Xingyu only made her appear even more noble and gracious.

Even Mr. Yang couldn’t see anything amiss.

He looked at the meeting agenda and addressed Su Xingyu, "We were just talking about the new camera testing issue; your timing is fortunate, as everyone else has shared their analysis, and it’s your turn now."

Su Xingyu lowered her head, flipping through her test report, and began her detailed briefing: "The camera we’re testing is best suited for daytime outdoor shots, with moderate sensitivity, where normal handheld use has little focus drift. The lens aperture range is considerable; however, distortion is significant at the far end..." Her voice softly resonated in the meeting room.

Many nodded with approval; the test report was thorough, covering all aspects of the camera while providing very unbiased technical conclusions. They were beginning to look at this newly joined star photographer with fresh eyes, appreciating the comprehensive report which even many veteran photographers had not matched during earlier discussions.

Su Xingyu concluded her report by summarizing: "That’s all."

Mr. Yang nodded, "Very good." He initially worried that Xie Jian had brought him a slacker, but turned out she was truly a skilled photographer. Someone as capable as Su Xingyu could have been recruited through normal procedures, even without pulling strings. He graciously asked her for her overall conclusion, "What’s your final take?"

What Su Xingyu had shared thus far were single aspect ratings that needed a summarized conclusion.

Thus, Su Xingyu continued, "This camera lacks innovative technology, only combining several widely-used existing techniques on the market. I recommend narrowing the default lens aperture range to alleviate the distortion issue at the far end and enhancing some manual modules. Otherwise, at this price point, it’s too expensive." If it were up to her, she wouldn’t spend the money.

This statement elicited a cold laugh from Yun Xi, "If you don’t know how to improve it, then stop tinkering and making pointless comments. Hah, I thought you were knowledgeable."

Su Xingyu frowned, glanced at her, but found many other photographers in the meeting room showing expressions of disapproval. "Where did I go wrong?" she asked.

At the other end of the table, Zhuang Heng shared a restrained smile.

Xia Ranran gazed at her with admiration, "Miss Zhuang, why don’t you tell this newbie where she went wrong?"

Thus, Zhuang Heng explained gracefully, "Xingyu, as a one-star photographer, you’ve done very well." Her tone was condescending, like an expert guiding a clueless novice, "But what you should pay attention to is, this camera is aimed at ordinary consumers, not someone like you who is a professional photographer; it doesn’t need overly precise parameters..."