After Reuniting, My Beautiful Ex-Lover Fishes for Me Every Day - Chapter 16

Chapter 16: Beauty

After everything he had been through, Wei Changli had significantly restrained his aggressiveness. Hearing the artist’s interrogation, he didn’t snap back but instead gave a faint “I’m sorry.”

The yellow-haired man opposite him, however, had no intention of letting him off. He leaned against the makeup table with his hands in his pockets: “I’m sorry? You didn’t feel sorry when you were peeping at me!”

Wei Changli felt a sense of eternal injustice; he was merely curious about who this person making a scene was. He had no urge to “peep” whatsoever.

However, having no desire to cause trouble, he turned back to continue his makeup in silence.

Yellow-hair was relentless. Wei Changli’s indifferent attitude particularly incensed him. His bleached eyebrows knitted together as he suddenly banged on the table: “Who are you? Why are you so arrogant?”

Wei Changli shot him a look and said coldly: “Are you quite finished?”

The yellow-haired man, likely used to being coddled, had never seen such a sharp and cold gaze in his career. He froze instantly.

His eyes darted around as he tested the waters uncertainly: “Are you Zhai Wo from Hexing?”

Wei Changli: “I am not.”

“Then what are you being so high-and-mighty with me for!”

Yellow-hair relaxed, turning even more overbearing. Within that arrogance was a high-altitude sense of boasting: “A nobody like you dares to give me attitude? Do you even know who I am!”

It was a case of “enemies meeting on a narrow path.” Based on the man’s words, Wei Changli guessed that this was likely the Global Entertainment artist Tao You mentioned who was fighting Hexing for billing.

The makeup artist nearby couldn’t take it anymore and spoke up: “Regardless of who is who, are we doing the styling or not?”

Since he wasn’t the lead of the commercial, the yellow-haired artist decided Wei Changli was a powerless, easy-to-bully underling. The makeup artist was even less worth mentioning—how dare a lowly service worker tell him what to do?

Already frustrated from failing to secure the top billing, the yellow-haired man grew angrier the more he thought about it. Driven by boredom, a desire to cause trouble, and a subtle jealousy of Wei Changli, he decided to use these “eyesores” as punching bags to vent his spleen.

He took a half-step toward Wei Changli’s table, chin raised, and kicked the table leg hard with his foot.

With a loud clang, the bottles and jars used for makeup toppled over, followed by a chaotic rolling sound. A glass bottle crashed onto an open highlighter palette, crushing the powder into fragments and spilling shimmering dust all over the table before falling to the floor and shattering. The gel-like liquid inside gurgled out.

The makeup artist panicked and stepped forward to salvage the items, but the yellow-haired man stood in her way with his hands in his pockets, whistling and blocking her from cleaning up.

The girl wasn’t one to be messed with either; she cursed him out with a clear “idiot,” shoved him aside, and began straightening the fallen items.

The yellow-haired man was stunned by the curse, but quickly spat back even filthier words. Verbal abuse wasn’t enough to satisfy him; he suddenly raised his hand and swung it hard toward the makeup artist’s face.

Smack!

Hearing the sound, the makeup artist instinctively closed her eyes. After a few seconds, she realized she was unharmed.

She opened her eyes to see an exasperated Wei Changli holding the yellow-haired man’s wrist with one hand, shielding her behind him.

The yellow-haired man’s soft, pampered arm was no match for the grip of someone like Wei Changli, who had practiced martial arts and combat since childhood. He immediately let out a pained, tearful cry: “Ahhh! It hurts!”

The others in the dressing room, who had intended to stay out of it, finally crowded around. Tao You squeezed through to the front, crying out for Wei Changli to let go.

Wei Changli frowned and shoved the man back against the messy table, saying in an undeniable tone: “Clean this up.”

The yellow-haired artist rubbed his aching wrist, trembling as he pulled himself up by the table edge. He glared at Wei Changli, then looked around at the crowd, his face flushing between blue and white. He roared: “What are you all just standing there for! Didn’t you see how he bullied me? Do you all not know who I am? I am Gu Hanxiao from Starlight Global! Who among you can afford to offend me!”

As soon as he spoke, the crowd, which had been watching the drama, fell completely silent. They exchanged glances—a mix of indignation and helplessness.

There was nothing for it; Young Master Gu’s name was infamous in the industry. Not only did he have a close relationship with the head of Global Entertainment, but he was also frequently taken out to dinner by various directors. He was a “resource hire” that no one dared touch.

Tao You couldn’t bear it and hurried to Gu Hanxiao’s side. She was mild-tempered by nature; standing next to this arrogant boy, she seemed to shrink.

Apologizing, she said: “I’m sorry, Hanxiao. Our person here was disrespectful and offended you. I apologize on his behalf. Please, please don’t be angry… Look, Zhai Wo is still stuck in traffic and we don’t know when he’ll arrive. Why don’t you get your makeup done first? Shoot the first set of photos first. Let’s not damage the harmony between us.”

Hearing this, Wei Changli clenched his fist, realizing Tao You was giving up a set of shots to Global. He grabbed Tao You’s arm and said coldly: “Youzi, don’t give it to him.”

Tao You squeezed his arm weakly and said: “It’s fine, don’t worry about it. Let me handle this.”

Wei Changli shook his head, leaned in, and whispered in a voice only the two of them could hear: “Don’t drag Hexing into this. I’ll solve it myself.”

Tao You looked at Wei Changli with worry, feeling bitter in her heart. This kid really had a clash of fates with Global Entertainment; first he provoked a “Great Buddha,” and now he had offended a “Little Ghost.”

Once Gu Hanxiao had revealed his identity, his arrogant aura flared up again. He swayed his head with his chin tilted high, looking at Wei Changli with utter fearlessness.

Wei Changli asked him very calmly: “Tell me then, how do you want to settle this?”

“Settle?” Gu Hanxiao adopted a smirking face, blowing upward at his yellow bangs. “Are you admitting defeat? Haha, I thought you were so tough. Where’s that arrogant look from a moment ago? Did the dogs eat it?”

Wei Changli stared at him for two seconds, then suddenly laughed.

When he laughed, he seemed like a completely different person. He exuded a lofty contempt and disdain cultivated through years of being pampered in the Wei family. The corners of his mouth curved into a beautiful arc, but his sharp eyes held no warmth—like a bloodthirsty predator locking onto its prey.

Gu Hanxiao felt inexplicably cold under that gaze, his neck involuntarily shrinking.

Wei Changli took a few steps closer, backing Gu Hanxiao into the corner of the makeup table, and whispered a sentence into his ear.

In an instant, Gu Hanxiao’s face changed drastically. He looked as if he had seen a ghost and tried to flee in a panic, but Wei Changli easily grabbed him by the back of his collar.

His expression was cold: “Can you tell me now? How do you want to settle this?”

“Let go of me! You maniac, let go!”

No one understood the turn of events. Just as everyone was confused, the closed doors of the dressing room were suddenly pushed open from both sides.

Several bodyguards in black and security personnel in suits led the way, followed by various collaborating partners, surrounding a tall man as he entered.

Gu Hanxiao was so startled by this display that his voice failed him. He flailed his arms like a little chick to break free from Wei Changli and ran frantically toward a glamorous woman. He grabbed her sleeve, his eyes rimmed with red, and said:

“Sister Wen! There’s a maniac here bullying me! Kick her out!”

The woman Gu Hanxiao called “Sister Wen” was Feng Wen, the gold-medal manager Global had assigned to him. She had been outside communicating with the brand manager about upgrading Gu Hanxiao’s status. It was almost a done deal, but then something happened.

Gu Hanxiao’s reputation within the company was already poor. Feng Wen hadn’t wanted to take on this “hot potato” for fear of ruining her own reputation, but since the boy was a “subject of key observation” for President Shen, she had to double as a nanny while performing her managerial duties.

This commercial shoot was a fantastic opportunity for exposure. Feng Wen hadn’t expected Gu Hanxiao to be so embarrassing. She could only clear the air awkwardly: “This is Global’s Hanxiao. He’s quite timid, so he’s easily bullied… My apologies for the joke.”

The PERME brand took this centennial celebration very seriously. The representative they sent was David Gardner, the eldest son of the chairman at the European headquarters. He had distinct Caucasian features: a high nose, deep-set eyes, meticulously groomed blonde hair, and eyes like the sea.

Wei Changli looked at him; he couldn’t tell if it was because he was generally face-blind toward foreigners or for some other reason, but the man looked familiar.

David’s age was hard to tell, perhaps around thirty. He wore a vintage suit and held a silver cane inlaid with a sapphire. He looked both serious and stylish. The cane was uniquely designed, with a raptor carved at the head and the sapphire set as the bird’s eye.

The man looked at Gu Hanxiao, then at Wei Changli, then suddenly narrowed his eyes and spoke in broken Chinese: “The lead… not here yet?”

Now it was Tao You’s turn for her hair to stand on end. She explained the situation to David and offered a string of apologies.

David listened patiently with narrowed eyes, then suddenly pointed a large hand accurately in Wei Changli’s direction: “Then him. Step in.”

This time, everyone’s expression changed. Especially Feng Wen; she bit her red lip in difficulty: “Sir, the contract says…”

David raised his palm to interrupt her. He leaned on his cane and watched Gu Hanxiao for a moment before saying: “Styling… scary.”

I’m… scary?!

Gu Hanxiao’s pupils shook. His arrogant flame was instantly extinguished, and he stood there frozen as if struck by lightning.

Wei Changli, who had already been saying goodbye to the job in his head, also hadn’t expected the situation to turn out this way. He cast a silent glance toward Tao You.

Rather than letting the rival take the spot, Tao You was naturally more willing to keep the “fat water” in their own fields. Besides, Mr. David had spoken. So, she nodded to Wei Changli.

The two made eye contact briefly in the air. Wei Changli understood. The corners of his lips curved slightly as he stepped in to cut off Feng Wen, who was still trying to salvage the situation. He politely extended his hand to David: “Hello, I am Wei Changli.”

David stepped closer, carefully appraising Wei Changli’s looks with his eyes. Then he extended his own hand and commented: “Oriental… beauty.”

Having lived in the Wei family for many years, Wei Changli was quite adept at handling such scenes. However, he didn’t quite agree with the title “Oriental Beauty.” Those words were a bit of an overstatement for him.

At the very least… it should be someone like him.

The cold, beautiful face inexplicably surfaced in Wei Changli’s mind again. Coming back to his senses, he gave a sudden, faint smile, sat upright in his seat, and asked the makeup artist to redo his makeup.

After David left, the previously aggressive Gu Hanxiao completely wilted, likely shaken to his core by the blunt word “scary.”

Feng Wen was on the phone beside him, her expression looking extremely harried. After hanging up, she looked at her artist with disappointment, her eyes containing hidden anger.

Gu Hanxiao leaned listlessly in the makeup chair. Suddenly, as if coming back to life, he sat bolt upright and shot several “eye daggers” at Wei Changli—full of hatred, anger, and a hint of fear.

The makeup artist noticed his gaze. During a break in applying makeup, she couldn’t help but ask Wei Changli curiously: “What did you say to that kid just now? He suddenly acted like he was terrified.”