Chapter 477: All Over
Translator: Larbre Studio Editor: Larbre Studio
Xu Xiyan knew that Yang Qiong, the famous martial arts actress, had won the poll. The votes for Yang Qiong were double the votes for Xu Xiyan; it wasn’t even a close contest.
The lead female role had definitely gone to Yang Qiong, so why was Ma Haodong congratulating her now?
“Nope! That Yang woman cheated, they caught her vote spamming and disqualified her. You were second in the poll, which means you’re the real winner!”
“What? Are you sure?”
Xu Xiyan felt sorry for Yang Qiong: the actress was popular enough to win the poll, fair and square. Why did she have to cheat and risk it all?
News of Xu Xiyan winning the lead female role for “Root of Evil” quickly spread throughout the entertainment industry—along with the less-than-savory news about Yang Qiong cheating on the poll.
Many in the industry were envious of Xu Xiyan. They were quick to point out that she did not deserve the starring role, that she had only gotten lucky because her competition had messed up.
One man’s luck was another man’s misfortune…
Zhao Ruiqi was inside an apartment, kneeling beside Xu Xinrou’s feet and sobbing her eyes out. “Ms. Xinrou, I know I messed up. Help me, please! Save me!”
Xu Xinrou was furious. She smashed her tablet and gave Zhao Ruiqi a vicious kick. “You useless piece of trash! I told you to drug Jing Xi, but what did you do? You slept with Mr. Li instead because you thought it would be a shortcut to fame and success!”
She had carefully planned for Xu Xiyan to be defiled by Mr. Li. The reporters would catch them in bed, and Xu Xiyan’s reputation would be ruined forever. But that wasn’t what had happened.
Xu Xiyan had not only escaped unscathed, she had gotten lucky and landed a starring role!
The reporters had caught Zhao Ruiqi sleeping with Mr. Li instead, and everyone was now talking about the scandal. Huang Guoqiang had booted her from his show as soon as he heard about it.
“That wasn’t my intention! I spiked her drink, I swear, I don’t know why we swapped places. When I woke up, the room was full of reporters, and I had no idea what was going on. It was an accident! Ms. Xinrou, please, you have to believe me! If you don’t help me, it’ll be all over for me.”
Zhao Ruiqi did not have anyone backing her; she had relied solely on sucking up to Xu Xinrou, who had kept her baited with small favors and rewards. Xu Xinrou had been keeping Zhao Ruiqi around to use as a scapegoat at the crucial moment.
But before that could happen, Zhao Ruiqi had destroyed her own reputation and future. Not even Xu Xinrou could help her now.
Xu Xinrou had ordered Wen Li to spread the rumor that Jing Xi was sleeping with Mr. Li, but the reporters had caught Zhao Ruiqi and Mr. Li in bed and the rumor had died a quick death.
Jing Xi’s reputation had not suffered in the slightest. On the contrary, the fake rumor had actually helped boost her popularity: everyone was now looking up her name on internet search engines.
The internet was full of comments condemning Zhao Ruiqi for her shameless act. Everyone wanted her to drop out of show business.
A large number of netizens rallied behind Xu Xiyan, who appeared to be a victim of Zhao Ruiqi’s mess. Others did not particularly care one way or another; they were only joining the discussion for the juicy drama.
[Zhao Ruiqi? Who? Ew, what a shameless woman!]
[She’s ugly and flat as a runway. She’s a total nobody. She must be desperate, she sold her body and dignity just to get ahead!]
[Disgusting! She tried to smear the reputation of my darling Xixi, and it backfired on her. Serves her right!]
[Yang Qiong’s even worse, she tried to cheat on the poll. Ugh! Jing Xi totally deserves to be the leading lady for “Root of Evil.” Can’t wait to see her performance!]
[If Jing Xi doesn’t become famous after this, then there is truly no justice in this world [Like] [Like] [Like]]
[Eh, I think this is just a PR stunt for “Root of Evil” and “Red Sleeved Beauty.” The directors probably planned the whole thing!]
[I heard that Ni Yun will be composing and performing the theme song for “Red Sleeved Beauty.” It’ll be Ni Yun’s first classical-style song, I can’t wait to hear it!]
[Hey guys, did you hear? Ni Yun just released a new single!]
…
Chapter 478: Secret Romance
Translator: Larbre Studio Editor: Larbre Studio
[I downloaded it as soon as it was out! It’s amazing! I’m going to the record store later to buy a physical copy for my collection.]
[I’m so in LOVE with Ni Yun’s songs! You HAVE to watch the music video, it’s sooo romantic!]
Xu Xiyan scrolled through the comments: the gossip surrounding the two TV shows had turned into a discussion about Ni Yun’s new song.
According to the statistics on music streaming sites, 1.28 million users had listened to Ni Yun’s new song “Maybe” within 12 hours of its release. The number of downloads hit a record high, and the song immediately rose to the top of the New Release chart.
The song also generated a record number of comments and reviews on the internet.
[It’s soooooooo good!]
[I love Ni Yun’s songs, gotta collect them all…]
[Hey, did any of you notice there’s actually a female lead in Ni Yun’s MV this time around? This is new, none of his other MVs have a female lead!]
[Who’s the leading lady in the MV? She’s so pretty!]
[Is that Jing Xi and my prince Mu Chenguang in the MV?]
[I watched the MV, and now I really want to be part of a super dreamy romance!]
[Ni Yun actually chose Jing Xi to be the leading lady in his MV? Wow, she must have earned a ton of brownie points in her previous life to be so lucky. What did she do, save the world or something?]
…
The popularity of the “Maybe” MV shifted all interest in Jing Xi and Ma Haodong to Jing Xi and Ni Yun instead.
One reporter tried every trick he could think of to get her to spill the beans on Ni Yun, but Xu Xiyan deftly side-stepped all of his question. The enigmatic Ni Yun was now even more elusive and mysterious.
Xu Xiyan privately wondered whether she had, as the netizens had suggested, saved the world in her previous life. That was the only explanation for her miraculous luck in this life: what had she done to deserve her chance to meet Huo Yunshen?
She had been the first person to listen to the song “Maybe.” As soon as the song was released to the public, Xu Xiyan immediately shared the song on her Weibo.
She listened to the beautiful melody and the irresistibly magnetic voice, and saw, with her mind’s eye, Huo Yunshen’s stoic face and charming eyes.
Oh, he was truly a real-life Prince Charming, and it felt wonderful to be in a secret romance with him!
Xu Xiyan was in such a good mood she immediately agreed when Fang Xiaocheng asked if she wanted to meet up.
The two of them met up in the private room of a BBQ restaurant. Fang Xiaocheng gaped at the food Xu Xiyan had ordered: there was enough to feed a party of seven or eight. She asked, “Is it payday for you? What’s with all the food?”
Xu Xiyan had ordered enough food to cover the entire table, and had even asked the waiter to uncork a bottle of red wine. She was determined to get happily drunk with her friend. “I don’t have to wait until payday to treat a good friend to a meal, do I?”
She laughed and added, “I can’t help it. I’m in a good mood today.”
“Yes, I can tell. A woman nourished by love is like a flower in full bloom,” said Fang Xiaocheng with a teasing smile.
She deliberately put on an exaggerated thinking face as she asked, “Oh wait, I seem to recall someone sobbing their eyes out not so long ago, wailing about her broken heart and swearing to never fall in love again for the rest of her life. Gee, who was that, I wonder?”
Xu Xiyan blushed. She covered her warm, tomato-red cheeks with her hands as she shot Fang Xiaocheng a Look. “Okay, that’s enough. Don’t ever bring that up again, I’m warning you.”
The pork belly sizzling on the BBQ grill was now fully cooked, and the two women dug in. Xu Xiyan chewed on the grilled meat as she said, “Orange, do you remember the first time we ate barbecue? I still remember the taste. I told myself then, I need to work hard and make a ton of money, enough money to afford to eat barbecue every day.”
“I remember. Back then, I had no idea your life had been so difficult that you’d never tried barbecue before. I mean, you were from the wealthy Xu family, for goodness sake.”
Fang Xiaocheng picked up a piece of grilled meat with her chopsticks and placed it in Xu Xiyan’s bowl.
Xu Xiyan lifted her wine glass and clinked glasses with Fang Xiaocheng. She threw back her head and downed her wine.
The red wine had a bitter aftertaste, and it burned her throat a little, but Xu Xiyan was filled only with sweet, treacly happiness. “Well, all my dreams and wishes have come true. This is the life I’ve always wanted. From now on, I won’t have to be jealous of you and Dazhi, ever again.”
…
Comments (63)
richxrach
That new release by Ni Yun must be the song wherein the music video was recorded in Zstan and Jing Xi is the music video’s female lead 😍💕 Xinrou, you wanted to destroy Jing Xi’s reputation but you end up boasting her popularity 😜😂
Baby_RTJ
yes he is… oh my gosh! daddy dimples will really do everything for xi baby 🥰🥰🥰
Neechan
Daddy Dimples new song was released! ❤️. He may have planned it to release on the day it was announced that Jing Xi will be the new female lead actress in “Root of Evil” movie to help boost more her popularity since she is the lead in his music video too. Daddy is helping mommy to pave her way to stardom 😍