After Her Death, They Begged for Forgiveness - Chapter 8

The dressing room fell into a brief silence.

Song Guanjin’s agent felt a mix of frustration and disappointment. The lead actress was right there, approachable and without any airs, yet Song Guanjin had merely greeted her and left it at that.

At that moment, only the two actors were present, a perfect opportunity to chat more and become more familiar. But it had slipped away.

The staff members expressed their thanks to Jiang Ruo one after another. Jiang Ruo responded with a subtle nod and a gentle smile, her warm and radiant expression reminiscent of morning light spilling over a lake.

Song Guanjin placed the paper bag containing the coffee on the dressing table and also stood up to thank Jiang Ruo.

After expressing her gratitude, Song Guanjin belatedly recalled her agent’s earlier advice and added, “This is our first time working together. I look forward to your guidance.”

Jiang Ruo’s smile deepened, like ripples shimmering across the surface of a lake. She turned to Song Guanjin, paused for a moment, and asked, “Hello. If I remember correctly, you’re Guanjin, playing the role of Li Shu?”

Song Guanjin nodded, listening as Jiang Ruo’s gentle voice continued, “Li Shu isn’t an original character from the novel At Sea, which makes portraying her even more challenging. You’ll need to work hard, Guanjin.”

Song Guanjin didn’t quite understand the distinction between a character not being from the original novel and the difficulty of portraying her after all, the director had already provided her with the script.

Nevertheless, she nodded agreeably and said, “Of course. I’ll be sure to seek guidance and learn from the more experienced actors.”

Jiang Ruo was momentarily taken aback but maintained her friendly smile. “Let’s improve together,” she replied.

The lead actress’s approachable demeanor put everyone in the dressing room at ease, and the atmosphere quickly grew more lively.

Song Guanjin glanced at the small groups gathered around Jiang Ruo and breathed a quiet sigh of relief. She thought to herself, At least no one is bothering me. Otherwise, I’d have to figure out how to respond politely and appropriately.

Soon, the actors had all arrived.

Since it was only a script reading, the makeup was done quickly. As she sat there, Song Guanjin felt the eyebrow pencil pressing against her brows with a slightly heavier touch than usual.

The script reading turned out to be even more tedious than she had anticipated.

As a supporting character, her lines were limited, and she spent most of the time quietly listening to the other actors deliver theirs.

After observing for a while, Song Guanjin concluded: Jiang Ruo’s status in the crew was nothing short of stellar.

The director and other key creators treated Jiang Ruo with the utmost respect, frequently seeking her opinions. If Jiang Ruo was dissatisfied with any aspect, it was promptly changed.

Song Guanjin understood this perfectly.

She had long since grasped the operating rules of the human world. As the heiress of the Xu family, Jiang Ruo had brought substantial investment to the production, effectively acting as the crew’s financial benefactor. It was only natural that she be treated with reverence.

“Miss Jiang is truly accomplished and talented at such a young age. Not only does she have a sharp eye for business investments, but her delivery is full of emotion, and her acting is nothing short of mesmerizing,” the director praised Jiang Ruo after the script reading concluded, prompting a chorus of agreement from others.

Anyone with a discerning eye knew that Jiang Ruo was the future successor of the Xu family. Currying favor with her could only bring benefits, not drawbacks.

Jiang Ruo maintained her spring-like smile, though a sense of unease stirred within her.

She had initially thought that only the plotlines related to Xu Bingqi had deviated from the original trajectory. It had never occurred to her that even the supporting cast of At Sea had undergone changes.

The name “Song Guanjin” was not supposed to appear in this drama.

But there were just too many things happening during this period, and she never expected the plot to go awry at such a minor detail. By the time she realized it, it was already the eve of entering the production set.

Jiang Ruo thought of the butterfly effect.

A butterfly flapping its wings in Brazil could trigger a tornado in Texas, USA, weeks later.

This matter, including the issue with Xu Bingqi, needed to be resolved as soon as possible.

Moreover, Jiang Ruo had a feeling that these two seemingly unrelated incidents might be connected somehow.

After all, it was clear at the hospital entrance that Xu Bingqi and Song Guanjin knew each other.

Jiang Ruo lowered her gaze, her raven-feather-like eyelashes trembling slightly. In the end, she made a decision and signaled her assistant with a glance.

“Director, if it’s convenient, could you stay for a moment?”

Seeing the director pause briefly before quickly walking over, Jiang Ruo smiled with satisfaction.

“The actress for the fourth female lead isn’t quite fitting for the role. I have a better candidate in mind. What do you think?”

The director smiled knowingly. “Please tell me the name of the actress you have in mind.”

Jiang Ruo gave the director the name of the actress originally written in the novel’s plot and inadvertently noticed the subtle change in his expression.

“Is there a problem?” The smile on Jiang Ruo’s lips faded. “If there’s an issue, I can help resolve it.”

The director hurriedly looked up. “Of course not, I’ll issue the notice right away.”

Only after confirming that Jiang Ruo had no further suggestions did he bow slightly and leave the script-reading room.

Once outside, the director let out a long sigh of relief.

Having worked in the industry for decades, he could clearly sense that Jiang Ruo’s gentle demeanor was merely a soft veneer. In reality, this adopted daughter of the Xu family was decisive and assertive, a person with strong convictions.

But why would someone like her care about the casting of a minor supporting role?

During the script reading, Song Guanjin had indeed been aloof, not flattering Jiang Ruo like the others. But Jiang Ruo didn’t seem like the type to care about such a minor character.

The director couldn’t figure out the underlying reason.

He shook his head, feeling that he should be even more cautious around Jiang Ruo in the future. Otherwise, he might find himself replaced one day without even knowing why.

Still, it was a pity about Song Guanjin. During the audition, her performance had been far better than the actress Jiang Ruo wanted to replace her with.

But he had seen plenty of unknown actors being replaced, so the director merely sighed and set aside his limited sympathy.

Song Guanjin soon received the news that she had been replaced.

Thus, the shocked cat demon experienced the human feeling of unemployment for the first time.

“But the contract was already signed. Why am I being replaced?”

Song Guanjin looked at her agent in surprise, then added as if she had just thought of something, “And I passed the check too. I’m not intellectually impaired.”

“Before the script reading, I even memorized all my lines, and there weren’t any mistakes during the reading itself.”

Song Guanjin felt like crying but had no tears, as if all her previous efforts had been in vain.

She had failed before even getting started, and now she truly understood what that felt like.

In contrast, her agent remained much calmer. Such incidents were all too common. Although being kicked out of a major production was unfortunate, there was nothing to be done about it.

Fortunately, even though Song Guanjin was still relatively unknown, she was exceptionally beautiful. Losing this opportunity didn’t mean she couldn’t land other roles.

“Let’s try for other projects. There might be more suitable roles out there.”

Song Guanjin stared blankly at the script, her entire being immersed in a near-stagnant silence.

She had to admit that she actually held expectations and passion for acting.

Moreover, having blended into crowds for so long without being discovered wasn’t that proof of her natural talent for acting?

The thought of such talent being buried made a heavy gloom settle in Song Guanjin’s chest.

Her agent glanced at her with concern, but Song Guanjin wasn’t the only struggling artist under her management. She had many other unfocused, mediocre performers to handle, so after offering a few words of comfort, she left to attend to other matters.

Song Guanjin sat quietly alone from dawn till dusk, only snapping out of her daze when her stomach growled with hunger.

Listlessly, she checked her phone and realized it was already past eleven o’clock.

Heartache was inevitable, but Song Guanjin decided to eat first and return to her sorrow afterward.

To compensate for the misery of her day, she resolved to visit a highly-rated barbecue restaurant nearby.

Inside the barbecue shop, Xu Bingqi, who had already placed her order, was growing bored until she spotted Song Guanjin trudging into the shop, looking utterly dejected.

Like a rain-soaked, homeless kitten.

What a coincidence, Xu Bingqi thought silently.

Not being particularly sociable, she hesitated over whether to greet her.

If there were more people around, it might not matter, but at this hour, with only the two of them in the shop, it was far too conspicuous.

Song Guanjin’s gaze drifted vacantly around the room as she searched for a suitable spot. After a quick scan, her eyes landed on a slightly dim corner illuminated by sparse lighting.

It seemed like the perfect place to eat alone and quietly nurse her emotional wounds.

But it appeared someone was already there.

After a moment of observation, Song Guanjin realized the person looked somewhat familiar.

She walked toward the corner and confirmed that the familiar woman was indeed Xu Bingqi.

Xu Bingqi sat quietly, her features delicate and cool her brows elegant, her nose bridge high and straight, like a meticulously detailed ink painting.

So Song Guanjin quickened her pace.

“Sister Bingqi.”

Hearing the slightly plaintive call, Xu Bingqi sighed inwardly, there was no pretending not to see her now.

“What’s wrong? Did something happen?”

At the sound of Xu Bingqi’s concerned voice, Song Guanjin poured out her grievances, recounting how she had been replaced in her role.

Xu Bingqi wasn’t very familiar with the twists and turns of the entertainment industry. “But didn’t you already sign the contract?”

“It didn’t matter. I was still replaced. They said I wasn’t suited for the role.”

For a moment, Xu Bingqi wasn’t sure how to comfort her.

She thought of the plot of the novel Favoritism: The Beloved Charmer and recalled a vague fragment she hadn’t paid much attention to before.

The role in On the Sea that Song Guanjin had landed probably wasn’t meant to be hers in the original story.

But the novel Favoritism didn’t bother detailing minor incidents like a supporting character’s role being recast, leaving Xu Bingqi uncertain whether this was following the original plot.

After a moment of reflection, Xu Bingqi chose to soothe Song Guanjin’s feelings. “It’s the production team’s poor judgment, they failed to recognize a true gem.”

Tears welling in her eyes, Song Guanjin shook her head firmly. “Maybe during the script reading, they sensed I’m not good at acting. I’ve never acted before.”

Xu Bingqi gazed at Song Guanjin, whose radiance rivaled the stars, and thought that her looks alone were more than enough for her to be a star. He thus refuted, “Definitely possible.”

Xu Bingqi pondered further. The Sea was undoubtedly the breakout hit of the following year Jiang Ruo had risen to fame because of it. Missing out would indeed be a pity.

But aside from The Sea, there was another dark horse drama that year, a low-budget production with high returns. Before it aired, no one had high hopes for it, and Xu Bingqi remembered that the casting process for that series had taken a very long time.

The only downside of that dark horse drama was that shortly after it aired, the lead actor ended up in prison.

The entire series was banned.

If Song Guanjin auditioned for it, she might just land the role.

Xu Bingqi turned to Song Guanjin and said, “There’s another series I have my eye on.”

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