After Being Dumped by the Film Empress, My Acting Skills Soared - Chapter 57

Chapter 57

Shao Niannian was someone who always followed through on her word. On the night after their meal, she sat down with a pen, ready to write in her notebook. However, several times her pen hovered over the paper without leaving a mark.

She had so many wishes that she didn’t know which one to prioritize.

“But it doesn’t say there’s a limit to how many can come true, right?” Niannian rubbed her chin, spinning the pen between her fingers. “In that case, I might as well be a bit greedy and write a few more.”

Despite what she said, after a moment of deep reflection, she honestly wrote down the wish she wanted most in the world.

“Just like ten years ago, I hope to be with her.”

Although her first confession had failed, her intersections with Jiang Yan were becoming more frequent. Niannian felt that if she just persisted a little longer, she could make her dream a reality.

The shoot Jiang Yan invited Niannian to join was a promotional film for Mefeirios’s anniversary. However, the filming method was different from the usual; it was being shot in a vlog format.

“The core content of the vlog is experiencing the Mefeirios product line,” the director explained. “Since the products you endorse are mostly high-end, this experience includes a segment on the mountain tracks usually used for F1 racing team training. Specialized personnel will be there to guide you through the whole process.”

Perhaps because there were many outdoor activities today, Niannian’s makeup was light and focused on sun protection. Her thick hair was braided into a Dutch braid resting on one side of her face. The piercing sunlight forced her to shade her brow with her hand. “Is there anything to watch out for during filming? Like topics we shouldn’t bring up?”

“Don’t worry, Jiang Yan is familiar with all that.” The director waved his hand casually, then looked at Jiang Yan, who was standing to the side under an umbrella. “You can cue the flow yourself, right?”

“Yeah, I’m used to it.” Jiang Yan took over from the director and crooked her finger at Niannian, who was standing some distance away, signaling her to come closer.

Niannian obediently approached, waiting to hear Jiang Yan’s instructions for the upcoming activities. Instead of instructions, a candy wrapped in colorful plastic paper appeared in her line of sight.

“Have one?”

Looking at the familiar candy wrapper, a strange and hilarious image suddenly popped into Niannian’s head—Jiang Yan, acting as the “Cousin-Aunt,” snatching candy from Rong Xi.

Just by seeing Niannian’s hesitation, Jiang Yan guessed what she was thinking. She said helplessly, “This isn’t Rong Xi’s; I bought it myself.”

“Thanks.” Niannian took it. “I didn’t realize you liked sweets.”

“They’re alright.” Jiang Yan frowned slightly at the familiar remark.

Of course, she didn’t actually like these cloying things. If she did, she wouldn’t have been asked to verify her identity via video call by the friend she asked to buy them in Italy. The friend had argued righteously: “The world is full of wonders; who knows if there’s a hacker out there stealing accounts specifically to buy candy!”

The highlight of today’s shoot was test-driving a new car on the Mefeirios mountain circuit.

As Niannian entered the lobby with Jiang Yan, she saw a massive LED screen displaying aerial footage of the entire route. An infinity symbol $(infty)$ sprawled across the screen, with towering vegetation and hills forming the unique scenery of the track.

As the camera zoomed in, the details of the track became clear: steep slopes, a series of S-curves that would test the driver and navigator to the limit, the pull required for the uphill climb, and the braking power for the descent. It was a true test of the car’s performance.

“Welcome to Infinity.”

Before Niannian could even finish the introductory video or fully process the thrill of high-speed descent captured by the HD lenses, two tall, beautiful women walked out of the lounge. Both were wearing professional racing suits. The slightly shorter one was holding blueprints and looked much more gentle and approachable.

Jiang Yan seemed to know them. There was no awkwardness; instead, she stepped forward to shake hands, saying to the taller woman, “I heard you almost flipped the car during that race abroad?”

“That was Mina’s fault,” the tall woman replied unhappily. “But we overtook them on the straight in the end and brought back the first-place trophy.”

Niannian followed behind, her gaze moving between the two. She wasn’t sure how to introduce herself, so she waited politely for Jiang Yan to finish her greetings. She could tell the tall woman wasn’t purely Chinese; her Mandarin sounded a bit off. Up close, her features were extremely sharp and defined, more like someone of mixed heritage.

“Okay, my bad,” the shorter girl, called Mina, shrugged. “I didn’t expect the officials to adjust the track seven days before the race. My memory slipped while I was memorizing the map and giving directions. It’s mostly my fault we almost lost.”

“However,” Mina added, “it was an overtake on the curve, not the straight.”

The tall girl waved her hand dismissively. “My Chinese is bad.”

“…” Mina clearly couldn’t be bothered with her. She turned her attention to Niannian and extended a hand. “I’m Mina, a member of the Mefeirios team. And, well, I’m the navigator for this person next to me.”

“Laypeople usually call navigators ‘retrievers.’ But while dogs find things, we ‘retrieve’ the starting point shared with our partner.”

Niannian’s palm was enveloped by a surge of warmth, like fire. So hot.

Before she could even react or process the feeling, their joined hands were forcibly pulled apart. One force came from the tall, displeased woman opposite them; the other came from Jiang Yan.

Under the tall girl’s glare, Jiang Yan calmly pulled a tissue from her pocket and wiped Niannian’s hand over and over again.

Niannian: “?” This is getting weird.

“This is Shao Niannian, the colleague I told you about.” Jiang Yan naturally crumpled the used tissue and stuffed it, along with her hand, back into her coat pocket.

“This is Choris. She’s… a Sino-French mixed-breed hound.” Fierce and rowdy, a total pain in the neck.

Jiang Yan narrowed her eyes. Seeing Choris’s unfriendly gaze, she helplessly pulled Niannian behind her to shield her, then turned to Mina. “Please don’t involve innocent people in the drama between the two of you.”

Mina blinked innocently. “I can’t hear what you’re saying, Yan-yan.”

Jiang Yan: “…” Take your flirting back to the bedroom; stop harassing innocent third parties here.

Fortunately, the director was there to control the scene. Although he knew these moments couldn’t be edited into the final cut, the chance to witness this drama up close was rare.

“Okay, the project we’re experiencing today is the track outside the glass—our team’s exclusive track. The official name is ‘Infinity,’ but the local, easier-to-remember name is ‘The Figure Eight.'”

“Go change first, then we’ll take you down,” Mina said, raising an eyebrow at Niannian. As Niannian brushed past her, Mina caught her arm and whispered, “The dressing room doesn’t have curtains! Be careful.”

This time, Niannian had learned her lesson. She didn’t even stop to think about what Mina meant; she hurriedly pulled her hand away and, like a schoolchild, showed both hands to the already angry Choris. “See? She’s the one who grabbed me!”

After showing her hands, Niannian sprinted to catch up with Jiang Yan, who was already walking briskly toward the dressing room. She didn’t care that Mina and Choris had started arguing in French behind her.

Once inside the dressing room, Niannian realized what Mina meant. Aside from lockers for storage, the room was completely empty. And Jiang Yan, who had entered a step ahead of her, was already starting to undress.

Niannian was terrified: “!!!” This development is a bit outside my expectations!

“What are you standing there for? Aren’t you changing?” Jiang Yan took off her athletic jacket. Underneath, a low-cut, tight-fitting T-shirt accentuated her slender waist.

With just one glance, Niannian knew that in certain… areas… the gap between people couldn’t be described simply by genetics. Even if she had started drinking milk and eating papaya from the onset of puberty, she wouldn’t have caught up.

Niannian’s cheeks and earlobes turned bright red. She stammered for a while, almost wanting to turn and run. “Uh, well, maybe I should wait until you’re finished…”

“Come here,” Jiang Yan said, caught between laughter and tears. Didn’t she say she liked me? This is it? Such a good opportunity to be alone, and instead of taking it, she’s backing away. No wonder there had been no progress for ten years.

Jiang Yan couldn’t help but complain internally. Seeing that Niannian still didn’t move, she simply stepped forward, pulled her over, and reached out to unzip Niannian’s jacket. To her surprise, Niannian immediately grabbed her hand, her round eyes wide as she stuttered.

“N-n-n-no, what are you doing?”

“Are you going to take it off yourself, or should I help you?” Jiang Yan suppressed a smile, teasing with a straight face. “The appearance fees for those two outside add up to hundreds of thousands per hour. If you want to keep delaying and pay out of your own pocket, I don’t mind.”

Niannian: “!”

“I-I-I’ll do it myself, n-n-no need to trouble you…” Niannian obediently raised three fingers, swearing she would be good and take off her clothes.

Jiang Yan let go with a hint of disappointment and watched as Niannian moved like an ant at 0.25x speed. Every inch of the zipper took seconds. Once she finally managed to get the jacket off, Jiang Yan heard: “What… what’s next?”

Next…

Jiang Yan looked at her and smiled. “Next is, of course, taking off your pants.”

Did she really plan on driving with two layers of pants on? What kind of weather did she think it was? She’d get heat rash for sure.

Niannian: “!” I’m truly going to “thank” you.

This progression was so fast that Niannian doubted she was even awake. She reached out to secretly pinch her philtrum, only to see that Jiang Yan had already taken off her pants and placed them on a nearby rack. Those beautiful, powerful legs were even more impactful than her chest.

Niannian felt a buzzing in her ears. Her throat tightened, and an undeniable metallic taste of blood welled up. Feeling an itch under her nose, she instinctively reached up to touch it. When she looked down, her hand was covered in blood.

“…”

In the ensuing eye contact, Niannian felt that Jiang Yan was about to lose control of her facial expression.

Great. Niannian never expected that one day she would be the one to make a triple-crown Best Actress lose her composure.

This could be considered a qualitative leap—and a true “blood” sacrifice for “love.”