Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation
Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Jiang Zhi’s sleep quality that night went down the drain.
Winter’s early phase was now over, meaning there would soon be a further drop in the overall temperature. Jiang Zhi’s condition wavered like a dying flame the colder it got. For the rest of the day, he was stuck in bed, completely sapped of energy to even get on his feet.
In the Floating Hall’s bamboo garden, the teapot on the table was swapped one after the other as the patience of Hua Yue Entertainment’s vice president slowly whittled away.
“Why isn’t Director Jiang here yet?”
His secretary responded from behind. “Sir, I’ve just received a call from Director Jiang’s assistant. Apparently, he’s down with a cold today, so he’ll be arriving later than usual.”
Apart from Bao Guang and Tian Xing, which were entertainment firms owned by the Xue and the Luo family respectively, Hua Yue Entertainment was the next largest media outlet throughout the entire nation. Jin Song was the name of the vice president who was currently awaiting Jiang Zhi’s arrival. Coincidentally, he was also the younger brother of said company’s chairman, Jin Lei.
At the age of 35, he was still a fairly attractive man. Jin Song’s name was well-known throughout the entertainment industry for two reasons. Firstly, he was a man of great skill, and second, he was extremely popular with the ladies due to his good looks.
After sitting around doing nothing for half an hour, Jin Song’s face contorted in dissatisfaction. “This Jiang Zhi fella’s got balls to waste so much of my time.”
Beside him sat a girl, an extremely gorgeous one at that.
“President Jin.” She spoke with a velvety soft voice as she handed him a cup of steaming hot tea. “Relax. Have some tea first.”
Her name was Su Chan, one of Hua Yue’s many artists. She belonged to one of the nation’s ethnic minorities, hence explaining her exotic appearance. Still, her unique background didn’t stand in her way of being as graceful as any other lady from the imperial capital. Her one-of-a-kind blend of looks and mannerisms made her stand out in her workplace which was pretty much oversaturated with a sea of beauties. Surprisingly, she had started out as a stunt double in martial arts flicks. It was merely 4 years after her debut that she was able to make it as the youngest movie star in Hua Yue’s history.
Jin Song’s face slowly eased up. As his phone rang, he walked away from the table to answer it.
“Have the ones I picked all signed their contracts with us?”
The person on the other end of the line replied, “Tang Yinyin and Fang Zhi went off with Bao Guang Entertainment.”
Both of them were ex-Tian Xing artists, and ever since the major scandal had broken out, which inevitably resulted in their share prices spiraling out of control, many artists were seeking refuge in other safer companies like Bao Guang.
Tian Xing Entertainment would be continuing down a slippery slope for quite a while before making any recovery. Well-established artists who had severed ties with the company could, in theory, set up independent studios of their own, but for the most part, the remaining artists had no choice but to resort to joining the ranks of ex-rival companies like Bao Guang or Hua Yue. Such a situation turned into a free-for-all between the large corporations where they would even resort to snatching artists deemed to possess potential from each other.
One couldn’t not mention Bao Guang Entertainment’s boss, Xue Baoyi, when speaking of this matter. That man was acting like a school bully in the industry. Raised like a prince in the imperial capital, everyone, even those from unrelated sectors, had to bow down to him as there was the prospect of profit to consider.
Jin Song was getting more riled up the more he thought about his rival. “That b*stard Xue Baoyi! I’m gonna kill him someda-”
“Cough! Cough, cough! Cough…”
His monologue was interrupted by the faint sound of coughing that seemed to come from behind. Turning around, the vice president ended his spiteful speech. “I’ll talk about this afterward!”
Hanging up the phone, Jin Song quickly switched his facial expression and greeted his guest with a beaming smile.
“Welcome, Director Jiang. We’ll talk inside.”
Jin Song bowed respectfully and gestured with his hands toward the room, his eyes never once looking away from Jiang Zhi’s face.
Jiang Zhi entered the room pointed out by the Vice President. Taking off his outer coat, he passed it to Ah Wan who retreated to a corner upon receiving it. For the rest of their session, Ah Wan kept his eyes on Jin Song. For some reason, he felt something amiss with the way this man eyed the young master. Something was off and Ah Wan didn’t like it.
“Su Chan, pour Director Jiang a cup of tea.” Jin Song pulled a chair and plopped down right beside Jiang Zhi.
Su Chan, as instructed, got out of her seat and lifted a teapot with her jade-sculpted fingers. With barely audible footsteps, she floated gracefully like a feather over to Jiang Zhi’s side. However, just as she was about to pour the honored guest some tea, Jiang Zhi placed a lid over his teacup.
Coughing softly, Jiang Zhi’s complexion was sickly-pale, which made his cherry-like lips stand out even more. “My throat’s rather sore. I’ll pass.”
Su Chan’s hand, which held the teapot, stiffened up, but a smile remained on her face. Acting as if she was unaffected by Jiang Zhi’s unexpected rejection, she returned to her seat quietly.
Jin Song produced a contract from his bag.
“We’ve already had the draft prepared. For now, there have been no issues here on my end.” He pushed the ten-or-more pages of printed paper toward Jiang Zhi. “Please look through it and feel free to tell me if there’s anything you’d like to add to it.”
The purpose of this appointment was to conclude their contract.
Jiang Zhi had picked Su Chan as the main heroine of his new film. He did so because of her reputation in the film industry as well as her experience and capability on set. However, neither side of the contract cared too much about profit. This film was a colossal project and was undoubtedly going to receive multiple awards upon its release. The only thing stopping them from proceeding further was this single piece of contract.
The great director didn’t even glance through the contract before pushing it back toward Jin Song.
The smile on Jin Song’s face faded away. “What do you mean by this?”
Jiang Zhi calmly lifted his eyelids, revealing his deep, dark pupils that seemed almost like an abyss. With an unreadable expression, he responded to Jin Song’s question with yet another question.
“Do you not know about my relationship with Xue Baoyi?”
‘Crap, he must’ve overheard what I said just now.’
Jin Song leaned back into his chair and scanned Jiang Zhi’s face. His lips curled up slightly into a smile as he asked with an inquisitive expression. “What about it?”
A beast in human clothes.
This phrase was what most people used to describe the vice president of Hua Yue Entertainment.
“What do you think?” Jiang Zhi shot back with a question lazily.
‘What relationship?’
It was rumored that Xue Baoyi and Jiang Zhi was having a homosexual affair behind closed doors.
It made sense, considering how attractive Jiang Zhi was and all… Jin Song pulled a cigarette out of its box and passed it toward Jiang Zhi. “Director Jiang, I urge you to think this through seriously. You won’t find another person as suited to this role as Su Chan here.”
Jiang Zhi didn’t move even an inch in his seat when the vice president offered him the cigarette. “I don’t smoke,” he replied. Raising his hands, Ah Wan stepped forward immediately to hand him a name card alongside a pen. Scribbling a phone number on the back of the card, Jiang Zhe continued, “Regarding the compensation, do contact this lawyer.”
Jiang Zhi pushed the card toward Jin Song and set the pen down onto the table. Getting up from his seat, he wiped his hands clean before leaving. Ah Wan, after picking up the pen, left with his young master.
Jin Song glanced at the doorway where Jiang Zhi was now slightly bent over as he coughed relentlessly. A small patch of his snowy-white skin was exposed as he did so. No doubt, it was even more refined than a woman’s skin.
His sickly state only made him more alluring.
So this was the Jiang family’s rumored sick-beauty. He was indeed like what Jin Song had heard others describe him as—the man who ran short of breath after taking a mere three steps and would burst out coughing after five. His face was truly more enchanting than a model’s, even after applying all the makeup in the world.
“Vice President Jin.” Su Chan yelled out.
Jin Song’s eyes turned away from the doorway. “This Jiang Zhi…” He tapped his cigarette lighter on the table at a consistent pace.
Knock, knock, knock, knock…
Suddenly, his fingers stopped moving, and silence descended upon the room.
“No wonder that spoiled brat fell for him.”
Jiang Zhi really was prettier than an actual girl.
Jiang Zhi bumped into Xue Baoyi, the social butterfly, the moment he stepped out of the bamboo garden. This man had just grown out of his crew cut when he dyed it ash grey, just like an old geezer’s hair. The only thing that set him and any old fart aside was his handsome, chiseled face.
Xue Baoyi was here to play around for the night. Seeing his best bud hanging around this place, he gleefully called out to him. “Brother Zhi! Brother Zhi!!!”
Jiang Zhi took a glance at the man.
“Fool.”
Xue Baoyi’s enthusiasm was met with an ice-cold barrier.
“…”
‘How painful it is to be rejected!’
“So, who pissed who off now?”
Jiang Zhi ignored the fella.
Ah Wan peered at Xue Baoyi. Silently, he thought that the young master wasn’t as bad as he made him out to be. Apart from his short fuse, his vicious tongue, and his arrogant pride, he was pretty protective of those he supposedly cared about. Yeah sure, he would lash out at Xue Baoyi, calling him a fool and all that, but at the same time, he was not ready to allow anyone else to throw shade at his friend.
Hm, this may be his only redeeming point.
Ah Wan was forced to listen to the young master’s harsh remarks about him day in and day out, but he felt confident that if the day came where a fight broke out between him and some other guy, Jiang Zhi would come dragging his weak body, ready to defend him.
A car awaited them just outside the Floating Hall’s gates. Qiao Nanchu’s phone call came, which Jiang Zhi answered before they set off.
“Where are you?”
“Outside, discussing a deal.” Jiang Zhi replied.
“Are you done?”
“It broke down.”
Jiang Zhi tossed a marshmallow into his mouth. ‘That insolent fool Xue Baoyi!’
“Are you interested in some info I got on the professional runner?” Qiao Nanchu asked.
Jiang Zhi remained silent. Throughout the call, he fiddled with the marshmallow container. Closing the lid and toying with its lock, a loud click could be heard over the line from time to time. A short while later, Jiang Zhi placed the glass container down and finally responded. “I’m coming over.”
He hung up the phone and gave Ah Wan a new order. “Go get Xue Baoyi over.”
Jiangfeng Mansion.
It was already 9 am and the sun was peeking out from behind the grey clouds. The temperature was near freezing and yet, the all-season begonias in the mansion had already started blossoming.
“You’re here again?” The old security guard looked through the window and greeted the young girl standing outside.
She nodded her head. Both sides of her cheeks were redder than usual due to the cold winter wind.
The old man eyed the large canvas bag she was toting and asked with a friendly smile, “Are ya’ giving food to Mister Qiao?”
She nodded once more with a smile on her face. The girl then removed the bag from her shoulders and handed it over to the old guard.
“Mister Qiao is home today. Would you like to go up and meet him?”
She shook her head. From her coat pocket, she took out a piece of scrap paper on which she wrote on.
“No. Thanks for handing it over to him.” She retrieved a small lunchbox from the canvas bag and through the window slit, she reached in and placed it on the guard’s table. “This is for you. Some homemade braised chicken feet and shredded chicken. Please have some.”
“Oh, I see you’ve prepared some for me too.” The old man had a face full of wrinkles when he smiled. “Thanks a bunch, young lady. Mind if I ask yer’ name?”
She flipped over to an unused side and wrote down her name.
“Wen Baiyang.”
So, her name was Wen Baiyang. Baiyang as in the poplar tree.
Both Jiang Zhi and Xue Baoyi owned real estate here at Jiangfeng Mansion too, however, they rarely passed by this place, and of the times that they did drop by, they would always only be at Qiao Nanchu’s place.
Even so, the old man somehow managed to remember these two.
“Welcome back, Mister Jiang and Mister Xue.” He opened up the gate barrier. “Are ya’ both heading toward Mister Qiao’s place?”
Xue Baoyi answered in place of Jiang Zhi. That Mister Jiang was always a pain to get close to. Mister Xue, on the other hand, seemed to be quite a friendly guy.
For the sake of convenience, the old security guard handed the bag which was dropped off by Wen Baiyang over to the duo. “This is Mister Qiao’s stuff. A young lady dropped it off for him. It’s some good stuff, I can tell ya’ that. Would you mind passing this over to Mister Qiao?”
Xue Baoyi reached his arm out from the car window. “Gimme that, then.”
The old man handed the package to Xue Baoyi.
As soon as the bag entered the car, his nose wrinkled up instantly. ‘Hot d*mn! Smells delish!’
Three minutes later, before they had even gotten to his doorstep, Qiao Nanchu could already hear Xue Baoyi’s noisy babbling.
“Hey! Open up!”
Qiao Nanchu pulled the door open.
Without warning, Xue Baoyi rushed through the door like a madman. “Qiao Nanchu, you rascal! You think you can hide your mistress from me!?”
“Hide, my ass!” Looking at Xue Baoyi who still had his shoes on, Qiao Nanchu gave him a feisty kick as punishment for soiling his carpet. “For God’s sake, take your shoes off!”
Xue Baoyi wriggled out of his shoes while waving the bag in front of Qiao Nanchu’s face. The man was clueless as to why he was acting that way. “Hmph, look at this! I have solid evidence to back me up! Don’t even think about running away this time.”
“What evidence?” Qiao Nanchu glanced at the bag as if it was nothing before handing Jiang Zhi a pair of disposable indoor slippers.
“A girl sent this over.” Xue Baoyi raised an eyebrow as a menacing smile spread across his face. “Come on, admit it. Let’s all put on our big boy pants. Since when did you start having this girl around?”
The old man back home had always set Qiao Nanchu as a bar for Xue Baoyi to reach. He was always yapping about abstinence before marriage too, just like how Qiao Nanchu was doing so. Hmph! So much for abstinence!
Qiao Nanchu stared right back at Xue Baoyi, unamused. “You think I’d act like you?”
“…”
To hell with these virtues! There was no end to the lectures about virtue this and virtue that by those senile old b*stards! Xue Baoyi removed a pink lunch box with a cartoon character on its cover that was obviously made for a schoolgirl from the canvas bag. “Then, explain to me, what in the world is this! You’re a tough nut to crack, aren’t you?”
Qiao Nanchu looked blankly at the lunch box before snatching it out of Xue Baoyi’s grubby hands. Ignoring his ghastly cries, he stored the box into the refrigerator. “She’s my stepmother’s daughter. I’ve been footing the bill for her education for quite some years now. She’s still a young girl, don’t you dare mess with her.”
Whoa!
A memory surfaced in Xue Baoyi’s mind. “You mean the one you brought out from Barley Hill 5 years ago?”