Panda Cub – Chapter 9

by Little Panda

Romantic Debt

This damn soft spot for damsels in distress.

Early the next morning, Jing Dan woke up and stretched luxuriously on the bed. She opened her eyes and stared blankly at the ceiling, wanting to laze in bed a little longer.

Suddenly, she bolted upright and turned to look toward the door.

She remembered—wasn’t she drinking with Aunt last night? What happened after? Did she fall asleep?

She looked down and saw her own short, plump black paws. She blinked.

Not only had she fallen asleep, she’d transformed back into her most comfortable true form…

Her aunt was drinking alone in misery, and she’d just fallen asleep beside her, cozy and content?

Now fully awake, Jing Dan smacked the bed in frustration, then dove forward and buried her entire head under the covers, angry at herself.

How could she be so heartless?

Was Aunt okay? Nothing happened to her, right?

She scrambled off the bed, jumped down, and waddled out the door in a hurry.

The entire hall was silent. Aunt wasn’t up yet?

Since she wasn’t up, and Jing Dan didn’t dare knock on her door to ask, she had no choice but to hop onto the sofa and lie there waiting for her, her mood heavy as she began to mull things over.

She’d lived with Aunt off and on for quite a few years now, and she’d never seen her look so lost and desolate as last night.

Ding—

Lost in thought, Jing Dan startled at the sound, even her cowlick quivering. Then she realized—her phone, left here last night, was ringing.

She opened it and found a message from He Ying.

【He Ying】: Are you awake? Did you sleep well last night?

Reading this, Jing Dan blinked, not quite understanding why He Ying would go out of her way to ask if she’d slept well.

But thinking back on last night—even though she’d opened up about Aunt’s situation, she had to admit she’d actually slept quite well…

【Jing Dan】: Good.

The moment her phone buzzed, He Ying knew the reply had come.

She tapped it open. Sure enough, it was that person. Seeing the curt “Good.” with its period, He Ying rolled her eyes in exasperation.

This person really did sleep well.

Thinking about how she’d been ditched last night just so Jing Dan could go home and sleep, He Ying felt a surge of irritation. No one had ever treated her like that before!

It wasn’t that He Ying was full of herself—it was simply that before Jing Dan, she’d always been the one doing the rejecting. She’d never been the one left behind!

She let out a helpless laugh. Why was she even bickering with a kid like that? They might look about the same age, but she was old enough to be the other’s grandmother. She’d just treat it as doting on a junior.

Tallying the balance in her account, she sighed softly. Rather than worrying about how that kid was doing, she’d be better off figuring out how to earn more money!

Other demons had it easy—one mouth to feed, or a clan with savvy businessfolk to handle things. Their lives were carefree and comfortable. Not her. If she were truly on her own, she could live quite well. But no—a whole troupe of hungry mouths trailed behind her!

At this thought, He Ying’s sigh grew heavier. She was a demon—why did she have to work so hard to earn money! Why did art cost so much!

While she was still fretting over how to feed her dance troupe, Jing Dan had already set the phone aside and looked up at Jing Shiyue with concern.

But Jing Shiyue’s expression was perfectly normal, the same as always, with no trace of last night’s desolation. Seeing her like this, Jing Dan found it even harder to ask—if she brought it up and stirred up painful memories, what then?

Jing Shiyue came downstairs and casually patted her head, raising an eyebrow. “What? Don’t you have work today? You’re still hanging around here instead of getting ready.”

Jing Shiyue naturally knew why she was waiting. But that matter wasn’t something she could discuss with her. Better to let her stay busy and not overthink things.

Jing Dan let her pat her head, secretly relieved that she seemed genuinely fine. She nodded. “I’ll go get ready right now!”

“By the way, this place is pretty far from the company. Should Aunt get you an apartment nearby?” Jing Shiyue asked.

Hearing this, Jing Dan thought it over. The human world was full of surveillance cameras now, and using demon power came with plenty of concerns. Having a place nearby would mean she wouldn’t have to travel all the way back here.

But she was also a little reluctant to leave that bamboo grove not far away…

“Then… go ahead and prepare one,” Jing Dan said, somewhat torn. Better to have it ready—she’d have a place to use if needed.

“All right, go get busy. I’ll handle this,” Jing Shiyue said.

Jing Dan nodded. A flash of white light, and she was upstairs.

After changing clothes upstairs, she came back down to find Jing Shiyue gone. She touched her head and decided not to overthink it, heading straight out.

By the time she arrived at the company, Hu Tu was already there, sprawled in her office drinking coffee, looking like she’d had the life force sucked out of her. The look she gave Jing Dan was downright resentful.

Jing Dan ignored her, poured herself a glass of milk, and treated her like thin air.

“Hey,” Hu Tu called.

Jing Dan finished her glass, seemed to develop a taste for it, and reached for a second.

“Jing Xiaodan!” Hu Tu raised her voice.

Jing Dan glanced at her leisurely. “What is it?”

“Nothing. But did you really just pretend you couldn’t see me standing right here?!”

She was fuming inside. Was this panda blind? Or was she deliberately playing blind? What sins had she committed in a past life to end up with a demon like this!

Hearing this, Jing Dan ignored her again.

Hu Tu: “…”

Forget it. She must have owed her in a past life.

“Last night—did you rack up some romantic debt¹?” Hu Tu said darkly.

She’d been woken up by a phone call first thing this morning, and it was about Jing Dan’s business, no less. She’d rushed over without stopping—only to arrive and find Jing Dan hadn’t even shown up yet!

Jing Dan stared at her, full of question marks. Romantic debt? Her?

“Don’t compare me to you.” How could she possibly have romantic debt! She kept herself so clean and proper—what kind of rumors was Hu Tu spreading!

Hu Tu rolled her eyes so hard they nearly got stuck. “What do you mean, ‘don’t compare me to you’? If you didn’t rack up romantic debt, then why is there a woman outside who chased you all the way to the company?”

And looking utterly haggard, at that—like someone heartsick and in desperate need of a comforting embrace.

Hu Tu clicked her tongue. Her damn soft spot for damsels in distress.

Jing Dan froze. A woman had come to the company? Then it clicked—last night. Was it the woman she’d rescued?

“Where is she now?”

“The small conference room.”

Jing Dan went straight to the conference room and found the woman sitting primly inside.

It was indeed the woman from last night. She hadn’t even changed her clothes.

As she entered and drew close, the heavy smell of alcohol hit her. This person must have rushed over without even freshening up.

“Hello,” Jing Dan spoke first.

The seated woman leapt to her feet the moment she saw her, nervously tugging at her clothes, looking timid.

Jing Dan: “…”

She glanced at herself, a flash of doubt crossing her mind. Was she really that intimidating?

“P-President Jing, hello.” The woman blurted it out, seeing her expression change.

Seeing how nervous she was, Jing Dan didn’t say more. She sat down on one side of the sofa and gestured for her to speak.

The woman had no choice but to sit as well, her face betraying panic.

“President Jing, I had to come find you.” The woman introduced herself: “My name is Zuo Miaotong. I’m an actress. The people from last night were the producer and director of the drama I was auditioning for. I offended them last night, and it’ll be nearly impossible for me to stay in this industry now.”

And she wasn’t stupid, either. From the look Xu Zhihuan had given her last night, she knew Xu Zhihuan didn’t like her. Offending those directors might leave a sliver of hope, but offending Xu Zhihuan? She feared she’d never work in entertainment again.

Jing Dan’s fingertips rubbed together as she looked at the woman’s pleading face. “What do you want to say? Get to the point.”

She’d acted because she couldn’t stand what was happening. Now that this woman had sought her out, she didn’t want to drag things out without getting to the heart of the matter.

Zuo Miaotong took a deep breath. “President Jing, I know you’re good friends with President Xu. Could you please put in a word for me with her? Ask her to let me go. I really need to stay in this industry. I need to earn more money!”

She suddenly burst into tears, covering her face in a picture of utter despair.

She needed to survive in this industry, but it was full of things she couldn’t stomach. It was driving her mad!

Jing Dan watched her cry quietly but told her the truth: “I’m not close with President Xu. Last night was only the second time I’ve met her.”

That woman was simply too forward—second meeting, and she acted like Jing Dan already belonged to her.

Zuo Miaotong stared up at her, stunned. They weren’t close? But last night, Xu Zhihuan’s behavior had seemed like a clear declaration of ownership.

Looking at her, Jing Dan recalled what He Ying had said—that this industry was too superficial, that too many things had rotted away.

A contemplative look entered her eyes. For a place this rotten, there were still so many people throwing themselves forward, one after another.

“President Jing, please, I’m begging you. I really need this industry.” Zuo Miaotong’s eyes were red. She’d fought so hard to get where she was—finally gaining some recognition, right at the point where her career was taking off. If she got blacklisted now, she’d lose everything!

Looking at her red-rimmed eyes, Jing Dan waged an internal war.

This was a human matter. Should she get involved? Did she even have the power to change the status quo?

She was just a panda demon who didn’t fully understand the rules of the human world. Could she really change anything?

In that instant, she suddenly thought of the cold, detached look in He Ying’s eyes when she’d said the industry was rotten to the core.

She refocused and looked at the woman gravely. “I can’t speak to President Xu on your behalf. But you could consider coming to our company. Here, I can guarantee what happened last night won’t happen again.”

That was right—she might not be able to change the big picture, but since she had a seat at the table now, she could do her best to create a better environment for herself.

Zuo Miaotong blinked at her words, then frowned. Last night, it was her agent who’d arranged for her to go there—which meant the company had intended for her to obtain resources that way. Combined with her behavior last night, the company would probably drop her.

But Jing Dan’s company had only been established a few days ago…

“All right! As long as you can guarantee there won’t be what happened last night, I’ll follow you and work hard!” Zuo Miaotong’s face was set with determination. Her old company was already impossible to stay at anyway—might as well take the gamble!

She did want to stay in this industry and let more people see her, but she wanted to earn it the right way—not by selling her body!

Looking at her resolute face, Jing Dan suddenly found the drive and direction to run the company better.

She wanted more people to be able to pursue their dreams without hesitation.

The author has something to say:

Bear·Idealist·Cat wants to start a career.