Chapter 55: Reconciliation

Qi Ming thought An Wen was really beautiful, even when she was crying.

Initially, he wanted to retaliate, but the words were stuck in his throat once he looked into her red and puffy eyes. “Let’s try once more,” he could only say.

He satisfactorily filled in the shoes of his role this time around, giving rise to an excellent take.

An Wen had been crying so much that she began to get a headache. With the support of her assistant, she walked to the side to be treated with a cold compress on the eyes. Qi Ming turned toward her direction, but he was instead met with a piercing glare from her assistant.

“Ah Ceng, what do you say about the way I treat An Wen?” asked Qi Ming to his assistant.

Confused, the assistant replied, “Brother Ming, don’t you really dislike her?”

“How did you know?” asked Qi Ming, puzzled.

“It’s too obvious. The both of you don’t really speak to each other apart from when you’re acting, and you’re not cast together in many scenes,” said the assistant.

Qi Ming never thought he had made it so noticeable. If the others could feel it, then surely she must have felt it as well. However, he realized that she had not really complained about it.

Lu Maner told him that An Wen was really terrible in acting, that the girl was merely supported by her sponsors. However, he sometimes cannot help but feel overshadowed by her when they were cast opposite of each other, feeling as though he needed her guidance to get into the right mindset.

He started doubting Lu Maner’s credibility, seeing as the girl in front of him was clearly outstanding and diligent.

“Ah Ceng, go and get An Wen a glass of milk tea,” Qi Ming instructed suddenly.

The assistant seemed to be startled by his words and asked in disbelief, “Brother Ming, are you trying to reconcile with her?”

“Go get it now!” said Qi Ming.

Even An Wen was surprised when being given the milk tea, but she did not forget to thank Qi Ming’s assistant.

Qi Ming was looking right at her. An Wen sent a nod in his direction and smiled gently.

This time around, it was Qi Ming who was taken aback. It was as though the glass of milk tea had resolved all the bad blood between them.

“An Wen is so easy to please,” said the assistant to Qi Ming.

Qi Ming looked at An Wen, who was reading the script while drinking the glass of milk, and thought to himself, ‘It’s not the case that she’s easy to please. She simply couldn’t care less.’

The two of them became friendly after the milk tea scenario. The number of poor takes reduced, and most of the scenes were completed just after one try. This had made Wu Yan grinning from ear to ear.

Qi Ming had the opportunity to understand An Wen better now that both of them were on friendly terms. There were numerous attractive actresses in the entertainment industry, but An Wen’s beauty, acting skills, and diligence were unparalleled.

She was only fifteen years old but she was more reliable and well-mannered than him. Qi Ming could not help but develop a great opinion about her.

One day, An Wen was playing an online game during her break. Qi Ming went up to her and said, “Do you need another teammate? Let the king show you his kingdom.”

“Alright, I’m almost done with this round.”

When the last game finished, she started a new one and Qi Ming tagged along.

“Lil Sis An, who’s this guy? Are you cheating on me?” Xia Wei asked in a cheesy voice.

“Have you no shame?” Ye Xiaoxing could not take it anymore.

“Ah Xing, are you jealous?” Xia Wei deliberately asked in an exaggerated Taiwanese accent.

“No, but I would like to drown your head into a tank full of vinegar to clean your dirty mouth,” Ye Xiaoxing also replied in a Taiwanese accent.

“That’ll fill his head up with so much vinegar, it’ll purify his brain too,” said Cheng Hanwen.

“Can vinegar really be used as a purifier, though?” questioned Xia Wei.

“My mum always cleans the pots with vinegar. That brain of yours is no different from a pot,” teased Ye Xiaoxing.

…

The other parties were still throwing insults at each other, but Qi Ming already realized who they were.

Those three were big names in the entertainment industry. One of them was a first-tier male star with a high degree of influence, the second was a nationally-adorned actress, while the third a first-tier experienced actor. Usually, Qi Ming had to greet them respectfully when they met up in person.

Was this how they interacted in private? Qi Ming was completely bewildered.