Work Text:
Finding any way to avoid work to slack off and somehow evade punishment was one of Qingque’s most impressive accomplishments.
Be it sneaking out during work hours to play a few games of Celestial Jade and ‘forgetting’ to finish her tasks on time, leaving it for some other poor obedient worker to deal with, or challenging a coworker to a few matches with the loser picking up her work (matches in which she would often top the scales in her favour, just to be sure) she almost never had to worry about her work load.
Her second most impressive accomplishment was her inexplicable ability to get on the Master Diviner's bad side and live to tell the tale.
Which was the exact predicament she found herself in now, all but strapped to a chair in the Master Diviners office with a not-so-small stack of papers to file away.
She had barely managed to slip out of the Commission's offices to Cloudford for her daily dose of slacking off in the form of Celestial Jade matches and a cup of tea or two when she was stopped by a very angry looking Fu Xuan. The Master Diviner's arms were crossed, her weight shifted to one leg and an aura of pure ire radiating off of her tiny stature in violent waves.
“And where are you going?” She questioned, her displeasure painfully evident in her tone.
“I uh, I was-“
“Don’t answer that,” Fu Xuan cut her off with a finger. “I already know the answer. You’re coming with me. Seeing as you have so much free time, you wouldn’t mind helping me out, hm?” She left no room to argue.
And that was why she was filing old paperwork in the Master Diviner’s office.
“Ugh,” Qingque stretched her arms high above her head and cracked her stiff shoulders before deflating back onto the table. Her cheek pressed to the wooden desk, staring soullessly into space. The mountain of files was finally finished, allowing her a much needed — and deserved! — break.
Her gaze wandered the room a moment. It was as immaculate as it always was. Fu Xuan always kept everything impossibly tidy; not a single book out of place or speck of dust on anything.
She turned her neck more to the side to gaze up at Fu Xuan sitting at her own desk, her face partially hidden behind her hand resting in a fist against her forehead. Her eyebrows were furrowed and her lips pulled taught in a look of laser focus and concentration. She idly tapped the end of her pen on her jaw in a steady, unwavering rhythm Qingque was dying to break.
“You’ll get wrinkles if you keep that face up,” Qingque taunted, not moving her face from where it sat on the desk. Her arms dangled loosely at her side, swinging slightly to keep the blood flow.
No response.
Qingque pouted. She didn’t particularly enjoy being ignored. “You’re getting ink on your face.” Still no response. Not even so much as a glance.
She huffed, turning her face away from the woman, staring at the door. It would be so easy to just quietly get up and make for the door. She finished the paperwork she was told to do! Surely that meant she was free to leave now, right?
Decidedly, Qingque stood, pushing her chair back audibly. She looked back. Nothing.
She started to walk for the door, making sure her shoes clicked against the floor with each step. She looked back again; nothing.
She put her hand on the door handle, turning it and opening the door. She looked back at Fu Xuan again. The woman hadn’t moved.
Qingque looked back at the open door, just as her jade abacus gave a little ping! to let her know she had gotten a text.
Chengjie : why didn’t u come to the games parlour today??
Qingque: got caught. Why?
Chengjie : a cycrane went crazy and crashed into one of the Celestial Jade tables! It caught fire!
Image received (1).
Chengjie : look! And it’s the table u always use. Pretty lucky you weren’t here today.
Pretty lucky indeed.
Qingque blinked a few times at the image of a burning cycrane among the wreckage of what used to be her favourite gaming table. If she had been sitting there when it happened…
Swiftly, she closed the door, turning back around to face the pink haired woman still sitting at her desk. She had finally moved, holding a piece of paper with the hand that used to be holding her pen so she could read it without moving the fist resting against her forehead.
The Diviner stood in front of her desk, looking down at the blank papers in front of her. Slowly, she raised her hand up, levelling it with Fu Xuans forehead and giving her a hard flick.
“Ow- hey!” That finally got the Master Diviner to react. Her hands went up to cover her wounded head, blinking indignantly at her assailant. “What was-“
“‘Help you out’, huh,” Qingque held her abacus up for Fu Xuan to see the image sent to her. A flush of pink tinted her face and she crossed her arms, looking away to the side. Qingque looked at her smugly.
“Crime is not my department,” she replied stubbornly.
“And you call me the slacker! I don’t think that’s what the Matrix of Prescience is supposed to be used for.”
“I have no idea what you are talking about.”
“Right, right,” Qingque hopped up onto the desk, sitting with her legs over the side, kicking them idly. “And that’s why you just so happened to coincidently be in the exact spot I would be passing through, at the exact time, and coincidentally had aaaallll that paperwork that had to be filed, despite the fact you never leave paperwork unfiled, on the exact day that cycrane would malfunction… pure coincidence, right?”
Fu Xuan remained silent, but by the deepening of the blush on her cheeks, Qingque couldn’t help but let her smugness grow.
“Tooootally a coincidence and definitely not you intentionally choosing today of all days to pretend to be swamped with work?”
“I-I’m not pretending! I am swamped with work!” Fu Xuan gawked, turning to finally look at her, her blush still very visible against her pale skin, her lips in a small pout. Qingque couldn’t help the little butterflies in her stomach. It was a provocatively adorable display.
“Mhm mhm, and that’s why your paper is blank,” she tapped the blank paper on the desk with one finger, smirking like she had just won the best match of Celestial Jade of her life. Though, she had to admit this was almost better.
Fu Xuan quickly gathered up all the blank sheets of paper, tossing them in the garbage and kicking the bin under her desk. “Wh-what paperwork!? I was just finishing up. It-it’s getting late! You-you’re dismissed! Don’t you slack off again tomorrow, or-or they will be an even worse punishment!”
Qingque snickered, jumping off the desk and landing on her feet. “Yes, Master Diviner!” She made her way to the door, leaving the Master Diviner’s office with a soft click of the door.
She may not have got to enjoy the fun of playing games during work, but she did get to enjoy the fun of teasing the Master Diviner. That was arguably, just barely, better.