Chapter 113

“The role changed. It’s not the female lead’s senior sister anymore.”

In the afternoon, at the agreed time, the company van came to pick Lin Yuewei up for the audition. To her surprise, Chen Xuan was in the car too. As soon as Lin Yuewei got on, she told her about it.

Chen Xuan said, “I only just got the notice too.”

Lin Yuewei nodded. “So is this role more or less screen time than the last one?”

“A little more, I think. It’s better than the previous one; that’s what the production side told me.”

Lin Yuewei hadn’t had any objections to begin with, and now she had even less. A role like this was basically just there to get some face time; the shooting cycle was short, the money came quickly, and she could build up a bit of acting experience. As for whether the show’s ratings were good or bad, that wouldn’t be pinned on her anyway; it all depended on the male and female leads to carry it. Pure upside, no downside.

So she said, “Okay.”

Sitting in the car, with a decent stretch of road ahead, Chen Xuan gradually got chatty. “The fifth female role they’d arranged before got stuffed with someone at the last minute. Just a try-the-waters type. She wanted one of those pretty vase roles that doesn’t need any acting.”

“Mm.” These weren’t important roles, so there was no script before the audition. Lin Yuewei only knew the previous character was some domineering, overbearing XX beauty who was responsible for making trouble for the heroine in the early stages, serving as a pretty sacrificial victim. Losing her was fine.

Along the way, Lin Yuewei learned what role she was auditioning for now. The male and female leads went through all kinds of hardships before they could end up together, and the new role was one of those hardships; a villain with only a few episodes of screen time. She didn’t die in the usual cliché way from talking too much at the end, either; the ending was actually rather tragic and beautiful.

Compared with a pretty-vase sacrificial role, the new one was much better.

This audition was different from her last one, when she’d gone alone. Having an agent by her side made her feel much steadier, and production staff even came out to greet them, asking them to wait in a private room.

Only then did she remember to ask, “Sister Chen, how come you had time to come with me to the audition?”

Chen Xuan took a sip of water and said casually, “I was free anyway, so I might as well make the trip.”

Lin Yuewei raised a brow.

Chen Xuan clicked her tongue. “You brat.”

Lin Yuewei stuck out her tongue.

Chen Xuan told the truth. “First, I really did have time. Second, I know the director. I’ll take her out for a meal later and ask her to look after you a little.”

Lin Yuewei said touchedly, “Sister Chen, you’re too good to me.”

Chen Xuan rubbed her arms, laughing. “Now I’ve got goosebumps. Stop it.”

Lin Yuewei poured her tea and water, massaged her shoulders, and beat her legs. This time Chen Xuan didn’t refuse. She stared at the tabletop, lost in thought, and Lin Yuewei quietly left her alone.

A staff member came over to knock on the door and called Lin Yuewei’s number.

Outside the audition room, Chen Xuan patted her shoulder. Lin Yuewei steadied her breathing and went in.

The director, screenwriter, assistant director, producer, and a few investors were all there. When Lin Yuewei’s gaze landed on the person standing at the very side, she paused slightly. That person wasn’t looking at her; only after sensing her attention did she lift her eyes. Her expression was faint.

Lin Yuewei performed a scene with intense emotional upheaval, her throat and spirit both taking a beating. When she bowed in thanks, she swept her gaze across the faces in front of her. The director was smiling, seeming rather satisfied; the screenwriter showed no expression.

As for that person, she lifted her hand and brushed the back of her thumb under her chin.

The director asked Lin Yuewei’s name once more and made a mark on the paper in front of her.

Lin Yuewei withdrew.

“Has the cast for this drama been decided already?” Lin Yuewei felt that Ji Han’s appearance here probably wasn’t a coincidence, especially since she was clearly an agent yet was seated together with people from the production side. Once they were out of sight of others, she asked Chen Xuan.

Chen Xuan said, “The leads are set. The female lead is XXX, the male lead is OOO.”

Lin Yuewei found the name XXX a little familiar, so she searched online and sure enough found the company she was signed to. It was the same company as Shao Yasi’s. She casually flipped through Weibo too, and as expected, there were fans of XXX cursing out her agent; the agent’s name was Ji Han.

Thanks to Shao Yasi, Lin Yuewei had an instinctive sense of danger toward Ji Han. She felt that wherever Ji Han was, there probably wouldn’t be anything good.

Seeing her nervous expression, Chen Xuan asked, “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.” Lin Yuewei hadn’t wanted to say it at first, but then she thought Chen Xuan had been in the industry for so long that maybe she really did know something. So she lowered her voice and asked, “Do you know Ji Han?”

Chen Xuan immediately frowned. “The one from Fengyuan? Why are you asking about her?”

Seeing her reaction, Lin Yuewei felt this person probably really did have some issues. She said, “I just saw her in there.”

Chen Xuan narrowed her eyes and warned her, “Stay away from her.”

Lin Yuewei: “……”

Why did that sound so familiar?

A flash of inspiration suddenly struck her. “Is her private life a mess too?”

Chen Xuan blurted, “How do you know?”

That was how Lin Yuewei knew where the familiarity came from. Last time she’d said Qu Xuesong was like this too. This time, though, she didn’t quite believe it. From the brief glance she’d gotten before, the woman looked dangerous, but not like that kind of person.

Seeing Lin Yuewei’s hard-to-describe expression, Chen Xuan remembered the mistaken intelligence about Qu Xuesong from last time and felt a little sheepish. “Last time I was blinded by my own brain. If you don’t believe me, I won’t make any absolute claims this time. I’ll just give you two examples; you can judge for yourself.”

Lin Yuewei made a gesture of attentive listening.

According to Chen Xuan, Ji Han was quite mysterious. More than ten years ago, she was almost a dark horse that burst onto the management scene out of nowhere, entering the entertainment industry’s field of vision with startling speed. She then turned two artists into stars in rapid succession, and her own value rose with them. She was impossibly capable; no one knew where all her connections came from, but there was almost no one she couldn’t get in touch with. If Lin Yuewei’s old program kept going and made a version of The Agent 101, Ji Han would absolutely debut in the C position without any suspense.

Lin Yuewei clicked her tongue, thinking Chen Xuan was exaggerating too much. “Was it really that serious?”

Chen Xuan shrugged. “It was. I watched her rise. Back then, no one outshone her. She even founded her own studio and signed several artists under her, making a huge splash.”

Lin Yuewei remembered that she was now attached to Fengyuan and said, “That’s not right. Doesn’t she not have a studio now?”

Chen Xuan rolled her eyes at her. “Listen to me finish, will you? Young people, so impatient?”

Lin Yuewei zipped her lips shut.

“Just when Ji Han was at the height of her fame, one thing got exposed. Guess what it was?” Chen Xuan, unusually gossipy, deliberately held back.

With no context at all, Lin Yuewei couldn’t guess, so she opened a search engine on her phone and typed: Ji Han…

“……” Chen Xuan snatched her phone away and gave the correct answer. “She was dating an artist from her studio. Not only that, she was juggling two relationships. Both of those artists were women, and back then same-sex marriage still wasn’t legal. If not for the internet not being as developed as it is now, the whole country would’ve been eating that gossip up. But the print media gave her plenty of face too, especially since one of the artists was from Hong Kong. The Hong Kong press ran huge features on it; the whole thing made a massive stir that year.”

Lin Yuewei: “……”

Chen Xuan said, “Why aren’t you asking me what happened after that?”

Lin Yuewei shut her jaw and said, “What happened after that?”

Chen Xuan said, “Her studio was cooperating with a friend’s company, but they were still independently run. After that blew up, the impact was terrible. That friend took the opportunity to step in and invest in her studio; later on, maybe there were conflicts, or maybe she just didn’t want to work for someone else. In any case, she gave up that studio and moved to Fengyuan as vice president. Now a small company at Fengyuan is thriving in her hands. Tell me, isn’t she formidable?”

It was too thrilling. Lin Yuewei couldn’t help grabbing a handful of sunflower seeds from the dry snacks on the table and passing some to Chen Xuan and Wang Yuanyuan. “Couldn’t it have been a misunderstanding?”

Chen Xuan cracked a sunflower seed between her teeth, the kernel popping neatly into her mouth. “Ji Han never clarified it from beginning to end. If it were a misunderstanding, she could’ve denied it, right?”

Lin Yuewei muttered to herself, “So she’s a habitual offender.”

Chen Xuan: “What was that?”

Lin Yuewei shook her head. “Nothing.”

This woman was too dangerous. Shao Yasi would definitely get stripped down to nothing and still help count the money after being sold.

Chen Xuan said leisurely, “I heard she’s signed two more female artists under her now; one of them is the lead in this drama. I wonder if history is going to repeat itself.”

That was like adding another stone to Lin Yuewei’s worried heart.

“Anyway, you’re absolutely fine under my care.” Chen Xuan said.

Lin Yuewei looked at her with a complicated expression. In the end, she still didn’t say anything. Besides praying that heaven would bless Shao Yasi and that Shao Yasi would seek her own fortune, what else could she say?

That evening, Chen Xuan treated the director and the others to dinner. With Chen Xuan’s connections, a role this small was basically just a formality for Lin Yuewei. If nothing unexpected happened, the part would be hers. Lin Yuewei looked around; once everyone had arrived and taken their seats, Ji Han was nowhere to be seen, and she couldn’t help feeling slightly disappointed.

Chen Xuan bumped her hand under the table. Lin Yuewei gathered herself and focused on dealing with the people in front of her.

***

Lin Yuewei was dropped off at the neighborhood gate, then picked up by Gu Yanqiu’s car and taken home. She flopped onto the sofa and didn’t move at all. Schrödinger swished his fluffy tail across her face again and again, but Lin Yuewei still gave no reaction.

Gu Yanqiu had to work overtime in the study tonight. After asking Lin Yuewei whether she was free, she went upstairs on her own.

Speak of the devil.

Shao Yasi: Are you free to take a call~

That entrancing little wave.

Lin Yuewei lazily opened her eyes, which had been narrowed to slits. After seeing the sender’s name, she immediately replied: [Yes!]

Shao Yasi: You’re free, then you’re free. Why the exclamation mark ﹁_﹁

Then a call came in.

The moment she answered, the tone of Shao Yasi’s voice made Lin Yuewei’s hair practically stand on end.

Shao Yasi said shyly and conflictedly, “Someone confessed to me. What should I do? Should I accept them?”

Lin Yuewei was nearly in despair. “Is it Ji Han?”

Shao Yasi said, “How do you know?”

Lin Yuewei said coldly, “Probably because you’re the only one who doesn’t know she has designs on you.”

To Lin Yuewei’s surprise, Shao Yasi even sounded a little happy. “Then what she said about liking me for a long time was true?”

Right now Lin Yuewei wanted nothing more than to crawl through the internet cable and drain the water out of her brain while shouting in her ear: Wake up!

Lin Yuewei said, “Don’t you think she’s too old? Thirty-two this year, or thirty-three?”

Shao Yasi was clearly already about to fall in love. In a sweet voice, she said, “It’s okay. She’s ten years older than me, but she looks pretty young.”

The more Lin Yuewei listened, the more hopeless she felt. She didn’t like slandering people without evidence, especially after Qu Xuesong; the entertainment industry was full of truth and lies that were hard to distinguish, and aside from the parties involved, probably no one knew what the truth was. But she had no choice. With a cold voice, she punctured Shao Yasi’s pink bubble. “Don’t you know she’s got a prior record of dating one of her own artists? And she was even juggling two relationships; in the end, she ruined her own studio because of it.”

Shao Yasi said in shock, “Huh? No way?”

Lin Yuewei said, “Whether it’s true or not, go ask her yourself. She’s such a crafty old fox; don’t let her fool you.”

Shao Yasi’s attitude was still pretty good. She believed Lin Yuewei more or less, and after hearing her out, she said obediently, “Okay, then I’ll ask her.”

But it was not hard to hear the disappointment in her voice.

“Wait.” Lin Yuewei stopped her before she could hang up.

“What else?”

“When did she confess?”

“An hour ago.”

“When I went to the audition today, I saw her there. It was the drama where another artist under her management is the female lead. When did she confess to you? Your crew is in M City, right? It takes several hours to fly from Yanning. She was in that city in the morning accompanying another person, and then she came to confess to you at night?”

“...I understand.”

The call finally ended. Lin Yuewei pressed her temples and buried her face in Schrödinger’s long fur, inhaling a few times to refill her energy.

That was all she could say.

Even the closest friends should keep some distance; it was up to Shao Yasi to make her own choice.

She suddenly felt terribly tired. Moving her arms and legs felt like lifting weights; she dragged her leaden limbs upstairs one step at a time and knocked on the study door.

Gu Yanqiu looked up from behind the desk, fixing her with a steady gaze. She lifted one beautiful brow slightly; her gentle, composed eyes held a calming warmth.

She was unique in Lin Yuewei’s world.

Lin Yuewei walked over and sat in her lap, burying her face in Gu Yanqiu’s shoulder.

Gu Yanqiu held the mouse with one hand and gently patted her back with the other. “What’s wrong?” she asked softly.

“Unhappy.” Lin Yuewei pulled the hand holding the mouse away and wrapped it around her waist.

“How come you’re unhappy? Hmm?”

“No reason. I’m just unhappy. Don’t ask me.”

“Alright, I won’t ask.”

Lin Yuewei shifted around in her arms, as if her sitting position was wrong and she couldn’t get comfortable. In the end, she blamed the chair. “The chair’s too small. Get a bigger one.”

“Then I’ll buy a new one tomorrow.”

Gu Yanqiu adjusted her grip and carried her from the chair to the sofa, where there was more room. In the wider space, Lin Yuewei settled more comfortably in her arms.

“What exactly happened?”

Leaning against Gu Yanqiu’s shoulder, Lin Yuewei rested for a while before intermittently telling her what she’d learned today; in the end, she was still worried Ji Han might do something harmful to Shao Yasi.

“I remember she’s a few months older than you, isn’t she?”

“Yeah, but she’s got no common sense.”

“Someone without common sense has their own path to walk. You can’t keep supporting her through life forever.” Gu Yanqiu stroked her hair. After wrapping up filming, Lin Yuewei’s hair had grown out a bit and was now past her shoulders. The new growth wasn’t permed or dyed; it felt soft and smooth, very pleasant under the hand. Gu Yanqiu couldn’t help kissing the side of her neck through her hair, then whispered in her ear, “I’m going to get jealous.”

When Lin Yuewei heard the first half, she still felt a little melancholy; by the second half, she pinched her wrist and chided, “Can’t you be serious for once?”

“I am being very serious. I really will get jealous. You care more about cats than you do about me; you care more about your friends than you do about me too.” Gu Yanqiu bit her earlobe with some resentment and said, “I’m really jealous.”

Lin Yuewei wasn’t prepared for that move; she jolted in Gu Yanqiu’s arms.

Gu Yanqiu’s heart couldn’t help but stir, and she laid Lin Yuewei back on the sofa.

Lin Yuewei grabbed her sleeve. Her eyes were soft with wateriness; she was both expectant and nervous, but she still teased her on purpose. “What are you trying to do?”

“Whatever you think I’m trying to do.”

Gu Yanqiu lowered her head and kissed her.

This wasn’t the first time Lin Yuewei had been pressed down on the sofa. She naturally looped her arms around Gu Yanqiu’s shoulders. It was the same few moves, and it felt pretty good; she was happy to enjoy herself for a while.

But today was a little different. Lin Yuewei felt the situation developing beyond control, and halfway through she called for her to stop. Gu Yanqiu didn’t stop; she kept going.

In the end, it was Lin Yuewei who used force to make her stop.

“Hey, what’s gotten into you?” Lin Yuewei pushed against her shoulder as it pressed down on her, anger showing on her face.

Gu Yanqiu’s eyes were faintly red at the corners; there was an indescribable message written all over her gaze.

Lin Yuewei, who understood the implication: “……”

Her eyes darted left and right. “I haven’t showered yet.”

Gu Yanqiu said, “Then go shower now?”

Lin Yuewei asked, “Aren’t you working overtime?”

Gu Yanqiu looked at her steadily. “We can do it tomorrow too. I’m used to finishing things ahead of time.”

Lin Yuewei: “……”

No more excuses, then. So be it. It was almost time for her to go back to work anyway; they should leave behind some different kind of beautiful memory.

Schrödinger let out a “meow” as Lin Yuewei stuffed him into his little bed and tucked the blanket in properly. Then she rushed back out and shut the bedroom door as well. Schrödinger quickly realized who had “cruelly” shut him outside; at once, he felt like the cat life was hopeless. Father didn’t love him, mother didn’t cherish him; he was just a little cabbage growing in the dirt.

The little cabbage started scratching at the door outside: screech, screech, screech.

The stern father was unmoved; the gentle mother was in the bathroom showering and couldn’t hear a thing.

When she came out, Lin Yuewei listened for a moment and asked Gu Yanqiu, “Is it still there?”

Gu Yanqiu was just about to say no when the door began screeching again. Lin Yuewei fished a pair of silent earplugs out of the drawer, and they worked pretty well. After Gu Yanqiu went in to shower, Lin Yuewei sat on the bed with both freshly washed hands hanging outside the covers, slowly filing her nails with a nail buffer.

After she finished filing them, she scratched her own face with them; only after feeling that they were nicely rounded did she put the clippers away with satisfaction.

Gu Yanqiu still hadn’t come out. Lin Yuewei opened her notebook to review. Although she wasn’t very interested in the materials Jiang Congbi had given her, she still approached it as research and summarized some techniques from that footage and other materials, writing them all down in her memo.

After going over it in her head once, Lin Yuewei opened her eyes and went to wash her hands again in the bathroom; she’d just touched her phone, and phones have bacteria.

Then she sat back down obediently in place and waited with bated breath.

The sound of water in the bathroom stopped.

Lin Yuewei withdrew her gaze and forced her expression to look very calm.

Gu Yanqiu was calm too, even if the hand tucked behind her back was trembling slightly. The two sat side by side on the bed and looked at each other; both of them had a touch of shyness in their eyes. Lin Yuewei cleared her throat. “Turn off the light?”

Gu Yanqiu slapped the switch off at once, looking very eager.

Lin Yuewei: “……”

A figure rushed toward her in the dark. Lin Yuewei dodged nimbly, then caught Gu Yanqiu’s wrist with a backhanded pull. Gu Yanqiu’s body reacted on instinct; just as she was about to fall, she hooked the hand that was grabbing her and pressed down on the numb spot. Lin Yuewei hissed and let go. Gu Yanqiu’s path was completely thrown off by the exchange; her shoulder slammed heavily into Lin Yuewei’s shoulder with a solid thud. If it had been any faster, the bone might have cracked.

Both of them sucked in a breath at the same time.

Gu Yanqiu suppressed her voice, faintly angry. “What are you doing?”

Lin Yuewei said in surprise, “What are you doing?”

Gu Yanqiu said, “Don’t you know what I’m trying to do?”

Lin Yuewei shot back, “What are you trying to do?”

Gu Yanqiu said with perfect righteousness, “I want to make you happy.”

Lin Yuewei: “……”

Gu Yanqiu had gotten a taste of it last night and found it hard to let go; once the need in that area came up, her brain fogged over a little. She lectured Lin Yuewei, “I finally got Schrödinger out of the room, and you still went and created trouble for yourself.”

“Who created trouble for who?” Lin Yuewei’s shoulder still hurt. “Who was the one who lunged like a hungry tiger and then crashed right into me?” She flexed her wrist too; the tendon that had been pressed kept jumping, and the pain was secondary. It was just so irritating. If Gu Yanqiu hadn’t struck first in the dark, could she have been this passive?

“If you hadn’t grabbed my hand, would I have hit you?”

“And now you’ve got the nerve to argue?”

“I…” Gu Yanqiu remembered the main issue. “Fine, this one counts as my fault.”

“What do you mean counts? It was your fault to begin with.” Lin Yuewei felt utterly wronged. First her numb point got pressed, then her shoulder got slammed into. What had she done wrong? “Did I start this?”

Lin Yuewei was on the verge of exploding, and Gu Yanqiu didn’t want to make a bigger scene. “Alright, then it’s my fault. You pulled me once, and I pulled you once. We’re even.”

“How are we even? You also hit my shoulder.”

“Force is mutual. When I hit you, didn’t you also… Fine, fine, it’s my fault. I repent.” Gu Yanqiu kept yielding, smoothing down Lin Yuewei’s bristling hair little by little.

This didn’t involve a third party, so once they’d talked this far, it was basically over; they weren’t bored enough to pick a fight just for fun.

They were quiet for a moment. Lin Yuewei’s breath brushed Gu Yanqiu’s face as she leaned in. “Can we continue?”

“Yes. Let’s continue.”

There was a rustling sound in the dark, followed by the whoosh of grappling movement. Gu Yanqiu struggled free of the arm that had been tangled with hers in a scissor hold and snapped on the bedside lamp.

She hadn’t expected that Lin Yuewei would refuse to yield even in this kind of matter and would insist on getting the upper hand.

Lin Yuewei sat up, tucking back the loose hair by her ear, one hand holding the blanket in front of her chest. She met the gaze of the determined Gu Yanqiu.

At the same time, the same thought flashed through both of their minds: this is going to be difficult.

Author’s note:

I’m going to consult a famous fanfiction writer in a bit and see how this problem should be solved; I’ll have the answer tomorrow ﹁_﹁

Tomorrow’s the opening bell; last chance to place your bets. Buy in and don’t regret it. Cast your precious vote for the kid you support.

I’m voting for the Imperial Palace first. Charge!