After Being Dumped by the Film Empress, My Acting Skills Soared - Chapter 66

Chapter 66

Shao Niannian’s ballroom dancing skills were truly abysmal. She stepped on Jiang Yan’s feet several times in a row. However, with so many media representatives present, neither could afford to let their emotions show too clearly. Otherwise, there was no telling how the press would spin their relationship.

In response to Niannian’s question, Jiang Yan, who had been maintaining a polite distance, slowly leaned in closer. She allowed Niannian to keep her hand on her shoulder as she continued to lead her in clumsy, staggering steps around the edge of the dance floor.

Jiang Yan deliberately tilted her head, flaunting the two completely different earrings on her lobes, before leaning intimately against Niannian’s ear. “You handed it to me yourself.”

“Who knew you were so unruly when drunk? You straddled me and insisted we exchange earrings. You even demanded a kiss, and wouldn’t let it go until…”

“Stop, stop, stop, stop…!”

Before Jiang Yan could finish, Niannian’s ears had turned crimson. Taking advantage of the other’s distraction, she jerked her hand back from Jiang Yan’s shoulder and clapped it over Jiang Yan’s mouth. She leaned in close, looking exhausted and aggrieved. “Fine! I… I remember how the exchange happened now! There is absolutely no need to narrate the scene back to me!”

It was mortifying.

With her mouth covered, Jiang Yan’s eyes crinkled with laughter; she was clearly enjoying this.

Both of them were hot topics in the entertainment industry. Jiang Yan was a triple-crown Best Actress with a private life filled with countless scandals; a paparazzo could fulfill their half-year quota just by breaking one story about her dating life. Shao Niannian, on the other hand, was a rising star known as one of the “Four Great Vases” due to her breathtaking looks and wildly inconsistent acting.

The reporters on-site had originally planned to just snap a few promotional photos and post them on Weibo. According to the guest list, no one expected any major “tea” tonight. Just as the paparazzi were beginning to drowse, propping their eyelids open and preparing to bolt as soon as the banquet ended, they were suddenly jolted awake by the sight on the dance floor during the final song.

“Holy crap! Is that Jiang Yan and Shao Niannian dancing at the edge of the floor?”

“You’re finally awake? If you’d slept any longer, I’d have finished my draft.”

“Wait, why are they together? I thought their only collaboration was ten years ago. Do they even have a connection?”

“You don’t get it. Jiang Yan went to Wen Jing’s set recently as an acting coach. Her acting is undeniable, but her going as a coach? Shady. A woman who films two movies a year but changes three girlfriends in that time goes to a remote mountain set to ‘coach’? If she didn’t start a romance, she wouldn’t be the legendary player Jiang Yan.”

“D*mn, those rumors were true! Jiang Yan had a change of heart for Shao Niannian on set, and Miss Wen, consumed by love-turned-hate, bought a bunch of black PR to ruin her.”

The two women at the center of the storm appeared indifferent—or rather, both were using the “fake couple contract” to mask their own thoughts, rationalizing all intimate behavior in public. In the process of brainwashing themselves, they successfully convinced themselves that whatever they did was just “acting.”

Even at the edge of the dance floor, it was impossible not to draw attention.

Li Yuan, who usually avoided such segments, stood nearby with a dark expression, his gaze fixed on Jiang Yan. Beside him, President Huang said mockingly, “You don’t recognize the one dancing with Niannian? That’s the little girl from the Jiang family.”

“Come to think of it, they probably haven’t officially met before tonight. Niannian has hated banquets since she was a kid.”

Li Yuan glared at Huang, his lips pressed tight, silent but fuming.

In the coastal region—and even extending to the capital—there was only one “Jiang family.” Jiang Yan’s background had been the subject of endless speculation, but Li Yuan didn’t need to guess. He had seen her before; he had even given her red envelopes when she was a child.

His dark mood wasn’t because Niannian liked women and hadn’t told the family; it was primarily: Why did it have to be Jiang Yan?

Seeing Li Yuan’s sour face, Huang decided to hold back his jokes. He patted Li Yuan’s shoulder. “Children have their own fortunes… With that face, you look like you’re about to sue the entire Jiang family into bankruptcy.”

“Let me remind you, anyone over eighteen is an adult. Our country’s laws don’t have a precedent for parents defending the ‘right to free love’ for adults.”

“You’re delusional.” Li Yuan brushed Huang’s hand away irritably. He set his wine glass on a table, pulled out his phone, and began furiously typing a message to his wife, reporting everything he had seen and experienced tonight.

Mainly, he was snitching to Mrs. Shao: Your twenty-five-year-old daughter is dating behind our backs.

Li Yuan wasn’t the only one excited. Paparazzi were tapping away at their phones, typing two hundred words a minute without bothering to spellcheck, pairing photos of the two with wild speculation to get the strange relationship trending.

However, before the drafts could be approved, they were intercepted by the higher-ups. “It’s too obvious. Use initials.”

The paparazzi were indignant. “If we use initials, people will complain and ask which ‘nobodies’ we’re talking about. They’ll say we’re afraid of the drama.”

“And this is Jiang Yan and Shao Niannian! How do we get traffic if we use initials?”

The editor, nursing a headache from a just-ended phone call, looked up at a WeChat group he had been dragged into. Great. He took several deep breaths and messaged his subordinates: “Mention it subtly. Add some keywords, but do NOT name them directly.”

The paparazzi quickly caught on. “Are they planning to drop a bombshell themselves tonight?”

Damn. If they didn’t grab the traffic now by posting a “blind item,” there would be no room for them once the official announcement broke. They stopped arguing and began posting on entertainment accounts using specific keywords.

“Tea tonight, time TBD. A certain super A-list Best Actress ‘J’, who has both die-hard fans and many scandals, is with a rising starlet ‘S’ who is a favorite among mothers. Hint: Their recent collaboration was ‘unofficial’~ they stayed on the same set!”

When multiple entertainment accounts post at once, it’s either a real scoop or a massive marketing play. The comments were wild with guesses, but two fandoms suddenly went quiet.

In Jiang Yan’s official fan group, someone accidentally shared the gossip. The silence was broken by the first brave soul: “So… do we have a new sister-in-law?”

A flood of “+1” messages soon filled the screen. Fans waited anxiously, looking at the clues that pointed directly to Jiang Yan. They wanted to grab the paparazzi by the collar and scream: “Just leak their ID cards at this point! These ‘blind items’ are just hurting innocent bystanders! Is there any point to this life anymore?”

Niannian’s fans (Nian-fans) shared the sentiment: “What is the point of this life? Why has our family’s ‘jade cabbage’ been picked by an outsider?”

“Maybe the cabbage threw itself at her?” one Nian-fan joked, choosing to lay flat in resignation. Looking at that face, how could anyone bear to scold her? Jiang Yan might be a “scumbag” in love, but the two of them standing together looked so good that even a stray dog would call them a perfect match.

While the internet was in an uproar, the entertainment accounts and the two subjects were already trending. Within a short time, “Yan-Nian” CP fans were “selling candy” in the quiet battlefield like street vendors: “These two are mine! My ship is real!”

As for the subjects themselves, the dance ended. Jiang Yan had a new understanding of Niannian’s dancing. She said sincerely, “In all my years, this is the first time I’ve met a dance partner like you.”

Niannian: “I’m sorry… I told you I couldn’t dance.”

“Minor issue,” Jiang Yan said. “Next time someone asks you to dance, tell them you already have a fixed partner.”

“After all, you don’t have to pay me when you step on me. If you step on others, you’ll have to pay their medical bills,” Jiang Yan said seriously. “It’s not cost-effective to end up paying money just for a dance.”

“…”

Despite the banter, they didn’t forget business. They needed to release promotional photos on Weibo after the banquet. Jiang Yan, as the official brand spokesperson, had to do this per her contract. For Niannian, these photos were proof that she could now access high-tier brands, an invitation for other brands to come negotiate.

“I’ll drive you back after the shoot?”

Niannian frowned. “Will it be very late?”

“Hard to say.”

Only then did Niannian remember her poor father who had brought her. She scanned the hall and finally found Li Yuan in a small crowd. She moved toward him but stopped abruptly, remembering the things she was hiding.

“What’s wrong?” Jiang Yan noticed her hesitation. “Gao Hui said someone brought you today. Since our shoot might take a while, it’s not fair to keep them waiting. I’ll take you back; let them go home first.”

Niannian’s eyelid twitched nervously. She gave a forced “Mm” and replied, “I can’t see him right now. I’ll send him a message!”

Niannian turned away to hide her screen and sent a flurry of exclamation marks.

—“S.O.S! Mr. Li!” —“!!! Emergency! My pants are on fire level of urgency!”

Li Yuan, who had been seeking comfort from his wife, had just been shut down. “Niannian is twenty-five, not five. If you’re bored, go walk the dog, farm, or fish. Don’t bother me with this crap!” “If you interrupt my scriptwriting with one more trivial thing, I’m sending you to handle overseas firm business! I’ll have Old Huang transfer you! You’re annoying!”

Just as the unloved Li Yuan felt the world was empty, he received a message from the daughter who had “backstabbed her father all her life.” It was a screen full of exclamation marks.

Unless he was an idiot, Li Yuan knew exactly what this meant. It was a plea to help her maintain her “persona”—a little white flower with no background.

Li Yuan: “When you need something, it’s ‘Daddy, Daddy, Daddy.’ When you don’t, you ignore me.”

Li Yuan: “Heh.”

He finally saw the truth: of the four people in the family group, he was the most redundant.

Niannian: “?” I really didn’t cause trouble tonight! Who else messed up and got me caught in the crossfire?