After Being Dumped by the Film Empress, My Acting Skills Soared - Chapter 55

Chapter 55

The words of the girl’s mother were incredibly piercing, sounding both sharp and dull in the open space. They were, without a doubt, a trampling of the girl’s self-esteem; words that seemed light as a feather transformed into sharp blades, shattering the few remaining links between them.

Shao Niannian found it hard to understand what kind of parents could say such things, but clearly, the stark reality was standing right before her eyes.

Li Sui, too, showed a rare display of anger and sadness. After finishing packing her things in the classroom, she didn’t say a word upon coming out.

“Sorry for taking up so much of your time.” Niannian lightly tugged at the strap of Li Sui’s backpack, pulling her to the side. “Let’s go this way. No one is cooking at home at noon, so we’ll eat before heading back.”

“Where are we eating?” Li Sui looked at Niannian listlessly. It was only then that she suddenly noticed there were two extra people in their group.

Frowning, Li Sui looked curiously at Jiang Yan and Rong Xi standing in front of them, then gestured toward Niannian. “Who are these two?”

“I don’t recall you having a friend who’s already married with a kid old enough to attend Sanyun?”

Rong Xi, held in Jiang Yan’s arms, rolled her eyes. “Who’s her daughter? Don’t go claiming relationships randomly.”

“A colleague.” Niannian was at a loss for words. She adjusted her hat, genuinely unsure how to introduce Jiang Yan to Li Sui.

Niannian was worried that some unflattering secrets might slip out of Li Sui’s mouth. Just as she was hesitating on how to introduce the two, Jiang Yan took off her sunglasses and rested them casually on her hat.

Once Jiang Yan’s face was revealed, many things became self-evident.

Li Sui, who had been speculating in her head, reached a sudden realization the moment she saw Jiang Yan’s face. She turned to pat Niannian’s shoulder and leaned into her ear. “The posters pinned up in your room have come to life? Ah, and it’s the ‘domestic life’ version?”

“…Don’t talk nonsense!” Niannian reached out to cover Li Sui’s mouth, but the agile youngster dodged her.

Li Sui blinked at Jiang Yan, her curiosity fully piqued. After pondering for a moment, she let out a soft “Ah!” of recognition. “I remember where I’ve seen you before!”

“Your photo is among the school’s past outstanding graduates.”

Jiang Yan nodded. “That must have been ten years ago.”

“Yeah, ten years already.” Li Sui grabbed Niannian’s arm and whispered, “Now that you can see the real person, I guess I don’t need to bring you the Outstanding Graduate Register for the school anniversary this year, right?”

It was the same every year, yet every year Niannian made Li Sui bring it. And she only ever wanted the one from the year Jiang Yan graduated. To that, Li Sui could only say—don’t be too ridiculous.

“Shut up!” Niannian scrambled to cover Li Sui’s mouth. In her panic, she caught a glimpse of Jiang Yan’s smiling face and felt her own behavior was a bit odd, which made her feel even more guilty.

“You probably didn’t drive here, right? If not, you can just take my car. I’ll send you guys back after lunch.”

Before Niannian could reply, Li Sui accepted on her behalf. “Sure, that would be perfect.”

“Thanks, Sister Jiang Yan.”

Looking at Li Sui, whose mood had gone from cloudy to sunny in a single second, Niannian was about to grab her to ask a few questions when she felt a weight in her hand. She didn’t catch Li Sui; instead, Li Sui had naturally tossed her backpack to her.

Her own sister had already trotted off happily after the other woman.

Shao Niannian: “?”

By the time they got into the car, before Niannian could even speak, Li Sui and Jiang Yan were already chatting about God-knows-what.

Rong Xi, sitting in the child seat in the back, pulled a candy out of her school uniform pocket and handed it to the silent Niannian.

“This!” The fruit candy Rong Xi handed over was wrapped in simple rainbow plastic; there was no brand logo or indication of the flavor.

“Thanks, Xixi.”

Niannian rarely rejected a child’s kindness. She looked down, unwrapped the candy, and let the slightly melted sweet roll onto her tongue. The taste that spread across her taste buds wasn’t the chemical sweetness she had expected.

For a sugar-lover like Niannian, it was a bit light, but the taste was good; a faint lychee fragrance emerged at the end.

Rong Xi’s eyes curved slightly as she asked excitedly, “Is it good?”

“It is.” Niannian replied with a tone used for coaxing children. “What brand is this? I’ll go buy some later so I can share it with Xixi next time!”

“Ah, I don’t know,” Rong Xi shook her head. “Mom brought it back. I have to ask Mom to know what brand it is.”

The packaging on the candy tin was in flowery Italian. For Xixi, who barely recognized Pinyin, being able to trace the letters was the best she could do.

In the passenger seat, Li Sui was exceptionally talkative today. Many of her questions were directed toward the acting industry—despite having a family member in the profession, she acted like she knew nothing.

“The crew my sister was with recently must have had a pretty hard time, right? I saw some related videos during my training; it looked like you guys were in the middle of nowhere!”

“Does it feel different filming with someone you know versus a complete stranger? Does ‘falling in love through acting’ actually exist?”

“For rich people like you to play ordinary people with no money, power, or influence, how do you empathize?”

“…”

Li Sui had many questions, and some of them sounded rather amusing. If it had been Jiang Yan’s usual temper, she would have slammed on the gas and told the person to get out of the car.

But this time, Jiang Yan didn’t do that.

Strangely, she was even able to calmly answer questions she normally wouldn’t want to bother with. During the drive from the school to the restaurant, Jiang Yan glanced at Niannian and Rong Xi through the rearview mirror several times.

She looked at Niannian more often.

Watching her made Jiang Yan’s mood lift a few notches. Her answers to Li Sui became lighter, and her long, slender fingers tapped rhythmically against the leather steering wheel cover. Even the candy Niannian had praised received a few extra glances from Jiang Yan.

The atmosphere in the car was unexpectedly harmonious. By the time they reached the restaurant, it was peak lunch hour. There were no private rooms available, so they had to settle for a seat by the window.

“Just order whatever you want. Desserts and drinks are self-service, so what do you want to drink?” Jiang Yan gestured for Rong Xi to sit down and helped the little girl put on a bib.

“Apple juice, and a Portuguese tart for dessert.” Rong Xi skillfully flipped through the menu and started ordering big dishes. She eventually looked at the steaks, but was finally drawn to the golden fried fries. She flipped to the kids’ menu page and began agonizing between the A, B, and C sets.

Li Sui, playing with her phone, looked at her sister who hadn’t sat down yet. A mischievous idea struck her, and she winked at Niannian. “I don’t need to tell you what I like to drink, right?”

“Um…” Niannian had the recurring illusion that everyone in the world could see right through her.

As Jiang Yan moved, Niannian followed, as if she had turned on an “auto-follow” mode.

The woman walking in front of her was tall and slender; even a simple branded camisole looked like a piece of high fashion on her.

No. It was just Jiang Yan herself. From the very beginning, she was something meticulously designed by heaven. That was why she could charm the masses, why countless people rushed toward her only to fail or leave heartbroken—and yet, there were always new people who couldn’t help but fall in love.

A pure, beautiful, and heartless sculpture. Once those exquisite features were carved, she was destined to never be ordinary. Moreover, this beautiful carving possessed emotions and desires; she could move and she could think.

Just the posters in her room were enough to make Niannian infatuated; how could she resist the living, breathing person?

If someone were to ask Niannian, “What’s bad about Jiang Yan?”

She would probably answer very seriously: “The fact that she doesn’t like me is very bad!”

Unfortunately, that was a point that seemed hard to change. She doubted anyone had the courage to step forward and force Jiang Yan to change it.

After that failed confession, Niannian could sense that Jiang Yan was avoiding her slightly—or perhaps not, since they lived in completely different social circles anyway. Consequently, Niannian’s movements became slow, exceedingly slow, for fear that one wrong move would push Jiang Yan too far. Not only would she be unable to move forward, she might even lose the kind of relationship where they could sit down and eat together.

“Niannian?”

“Shao Niannian.”

Jiang Yan’s voice was deep. Sometimes when she first woke up, it sounded smoky, but other times it was quite bright. When she drawled out a name, it unconsciously carried a hint of tenderness, like birds flirting.

Like a student caught daydreaming in class, Niannian snapped back to reality to find a plate full of cakes and small desserts in front of her.

“Is this enough?”

“Enough… enough, right?” Niannian let out a soft “Ah.” “Am I eating all this by myself? Is it a bit much?”

“I’m asking you if this is enough for the four of us.”

“…”

Clutching the plate, Niannian didn’t dare speak out of turn again. Truly, my mistake.

Fortunately, Jiang Yan didn’t seem to mind. Instead, she swept away the coldness of their recent interactions and took the initiative to talk to Niannian.

“Have you picked up any new work lately?”

“Not yet.” Niannian answered promptly, more serious than when she answered her homeroom teacher. “I haven’t heard of any new arrangements from Sister Hui yet.”

She had no work from the company, but she did have that side job… However, now wasn’t the time to bring that up. Niannian treated it as if she hadn’t accepted it and selectively skipped over it. She thought Jiang Yan was just making small talk because she ran out of topics, but Jiang Yan’s next words nearly made her drop the plate in her hands.

“Check with your manager. If you’re free these next few days, I happen to have a shoot that needs a co-star. The director was being picky and couldn’t choose anyone, so he asked if I had a recommendation.” Jiang Yan acted casual and natural as she said, “I sent your profile to the director, and they thought it was good…”

“If you have time, you can come with me the day after tomorrow.”

“Wha—What?” Niannian froze on the spot. Before she could process what Jiang Yan meant, the woman in front of her had already walked far ahead.

Niannian didn’t rush to chase her. Instead, she very calmly replayed Jiang Yan’s words in her mind. Then, she resolutely placed the plate of desserts on a nearby table and took out her phone…

She was ready to download the National Anti-Fraud Center app.

This must be a new type of scam, right? Otherwise, this whole day was just too surreal.

Even as she thought this, Niannian obediently sent a message to Gao Hui: “Sister Hui, I think… I’ve picked up another side job for myself.”

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