After Transmigrating into a Novel, I Became the Female Lead's Stepmother - Chapter 63

Zhao Ciying immediately shot her a cold glare without any regard for her feelings, then impatiently stared at her phone and said, “Hurry up and ask. Give me an answer as soon as you’re done.”

Her icy tone made Xu Chun feel as if her heart were being sliced by a knife. Darling, how can your 37°C lips utter such freezing words? Were all those past affections and love between us just fake? Xu Chun clutched her chest in despair, the love of a capitalist rich woman is indeed ruthlessly pragmatic.

Xu Chun kept dawdling, her face displaying more drama than the money in her pockets. The corner of Zhao Ciying’s lips curled into a faint smile as she asked sweetly, “Do you need my help?”

“No!” Xu Chun shuddered instantly before scurrying aside with her phone to consult Qin Yao. After a brief silence, Qin Yao gave her approval: “You can give it a try.”

“But it’s best to leave this matter to your mother later.”

Xu Chun caught the implication even people from ten villages away know my father is unreliable. Her face twitched. After thanking Qin Yao earnestly, she immediately called her grandfather. “Grandpa,” she cooed in an artificially sweet voice, “It’s been so long!”

Xu Jixian’s eyelids jumped at his granddaughter’s exaggerated tone. Instinctively, he asked, “Did you get into trouble outside?”

Xu Chun: “?”

“What? Can’t I just check in on you?” After exchanging pleasantries for a while under Zhao Ciying’s increasingly frequent glances she cautiously revealed her request. A long silence followed on Xu Jixian’s end. “It’s not impossible.”

“Have you asked your parents what they think?”

“Not yet, but Dad already cut ties with his elementary school buddies yesterday.” Seizing the chance, Xu Chun poured out her grievances, viciously badmouthing Yang Xingyan and his gang. As expected, Xu Jixian exploded in fury. “Those lawless scoundrels!”

Seeing how furious he was, Xu Chun quickly pretended to be understanding and comforted him. “It’s fine, Grandpa. After all, they’re Dad’s longtime friends and my elders. If they tease me and I get a little upset, it’s no big deal.” She lowered her eyelids slightly. “I’ve gotten used to it over the years anyway.”

“Just wait,” Xu Jixian’s temples throbbed violently. “I’ll get justice for you right now!”

With that, he unleashed a barrage of calls, berating his son relentlessly. Xu’s father, still groggy from yesterday’s drinking binge, could barely keep his eyes open. After Tang Shiyu, annoyed by the ringing, kicked him awake, he finally mustered the strength to answer the call.

Before he could even speak, a torrent of curses blasted through the phone. Xu’s father flared up, ready to snap back until his bleary eyes focused on the caller ID: two bolded characters reading “DAD.” He immediately fell silent.

Oh, it’s just Dad. Never mind then everyone gets scolded by their old man a few times.

He tried his best to focus and humbly listen to his father’s teachings. It wasn’t until he repeatedly promised never to associate with Yang Xingyan’s group again that Old Master Xu finally let him off with a warning: “You’d better keep your word. If I find out you’ve gone back on your promise, you can expect a taste of bamboo rod stir-fried pork when you come home!”

Xu’s father instinctively felt a phantom pain in his backside and quickly assured, “No, no, absolutely not, Dad. You can rest assured.”

After much persuasion, he finally managed to see his father out. Having just been scolded, he was now wide awake despite his hangover headache. He got up to pour himself a glass of hot water while his wife tidied up nearby. Sitting on the balcony chair, he reflected deeply for a long time. Half an hour later, he suddenly stood up. “Let’s join the ‘Tianyu’ project too.”

Tang Shiyu turned a questioning gaze his way. Xu’s father explained, “Dad agreed to help us. Zhao Ciying is joining too. If nothing goes wrong, Qin Yao and the Jiang family won’t miss this opportunity either.”

“With so many families and companies trying to get a piece of the pie, this project must be extremely lucrative. In that case, let’s use Dad’s connections to try our luck. Who knows? We might turn a bicycle into a motorcycle.”

After a pause, he added thoughtfully, “I don’t really care at my age, I’ve enjoyed most of what life has to offer. But Xu Chun is still young with her whole life ahead of her.”

Ever since that bastard Jiang Zhaolie broke off their engagement, her reputation had suffered, making her unpopular among society ladies. If he didn’t secure a substantial dowry for her, she might face even more disdain and bullying after marriage. Although he wouldn’t allow his child to marry into such a family, what if his daughter was stubbornly determined to do so?

After all, no one could stop someone love-struck.

Moreover, Xu Wei was growing up and would marry in a few years. Being more immature, she required even more attention. The more he thought about it, the more overwhelmed he felt. His current wealth wouldn’t be enough to support both daughters he needed to earn more to ensure his family’s future.

Tang Shiyu had originally wanted to participate in the project, but Xu’s father had been obsessed with mingling with Yang Xingyan’s crowd, even planning to hand over a major project to them. This had infuriated her to the point of considering giving up on her husband. To her surprise, he’d finally come to his senses today.

Their daughter was truly clever. Had she known earlier, Tang Shiyu would have had both daughters take turns crying in front of their father perhaps their family could have shaken off those bloodsuckers and prospered long ago.

But it wasn’t too late for her husband to repent. With mixed emotions, she agreed, “Fine.” Still, she couldn’t resist warning him, “But if you dare go back on your word, I’ll strike out on my own and start my own company.”

In all their years of marriage, Xu’s father had never heard his wife speak so severely. He immediately understood this was her final ultimatum and hurriedly admitted his mistake, placating her, “Yes, yes, you’re absolutely right, dear. I’ll do whatever you say.”

He raised two fingers and declared, “In the future, if my wife tells me to go east, I won’t dare go west. If she tells me to eat porridge, I won’t dare touch meat. Everything will be decided by my wife.”

Tang Shiyu rolled her eyes at him in exasperation. “Hurry up and get ready. We’re going out.”

Mr. Xu instinctively asked, “Where to?”

“Where else?” Tang Shiyu shot him a glance. “Of course to withdraw our investments from Yang Xingyan’s companies and make them return everything they’ve taken from me over the years.”

“Right!” Mr. Xu suddenly declared with heroic fervor, “That’s all money for my wife to buy bags, clothes and shoes!”

His smooth-talking left Tang Shiyu helpless. “We’ll have our hands full for the next few months,” she frowned. “The disputes with Yang Xingyan’s group, the Tianyu matter, and your cooperation project with the Jiang family each will take up huge chunks of our time.”

“Xiao Chun is working hard too,” Mr. Xu said as he stood up. “Right after finishing that variety show, she went straight into filming without any break.”

“I heard the filming conditions are extremely difficult, and she’s endured quite a lot.”

Tang Shiyu knew this well. She sighed softly, “That child has always been the type to charge ahead single-mindedly once she decides on something. No one can talk her out of it. The least we can do is not become her burden.”

Hearing this, Mr. Xu’s determination to earn more money grew even stronger in his heart.

After ending the call with her grandfather, Xu Chun spoke with Tang Shiyu for a few more minutes. Only after hearing her mother’s explanation did she finally feel relieved. As long as her parents firmly held onto Zhao Ciyin and Qin Yao, these two golden connections the possibility of their family going bankrupt should be negligible, right?

However, until everything was completely settled, Xu Chun still couldn’t fully relax. But there was nothing she could do to hurry things along now. Suppressing her anxiety, she reported to Zhao Ciyin: “My parents and grandfather have all agreed.”

“That’s good.” Having achieved her goal for this trip, Zhao Ciyin looked much more pleased. “Focus on your filming. I’ll take my leave now.”

“I’ll probably run into your parents this afternoon,” Zhao Ciyin said meaningfully. “I’ll have a good talk with them then.” For some reason, Xu Chun detected an ambiguous undertone in Zhao Ciyin’s emotionally ambiguous words.

Pretending not to notice anything, Xu Chun waved with exaggerated reluctance. “Then take care, President Zhao. See you another time.”

Zhao Ciyin gave her a deep look. “Mm.”

Zhao Ciyin came and went quickly. Watching her get into the car and drive away, Xu Chun finally let out a long sigh of relief. Then she buddy-buddy stopped a crew member to ask, “Big bro, about how long are we staying here?”

“Probably around twenty days or so.”

Xu Chun nearly fainted on the spot that long? By then that conference would be over, and Qin Yao and Zhao Ciyin would have left while she was still stuck here. The thought of possibly having to meet them repeatedly during this period nearly made her lose her breath.

Dazed and disoriented, she walked into the makeup room with her script. Maybe, she should fake her death first?

Of course, this was just her wishful thinking. Fortunately, they were quite busy during the conference, so their visits to the film set were few and far between. Over the next few days, Xu Chun gradually let her guard down and focused wholeheartedly on filming.

But this peace didn’t last long. The tranquility on set was shattered by a new wave of arrivals. Yang Xingyan stormed into the crew in a rage, his vicious eyes scanning the room before instantly locking onto Xu Chun with deadly precision.

The moment Yang Xingyan’s gaze landed on her, Xu Chun sensed it and turned to meet his eyes. Seeing his furious, murderous expression, she immediately understood what must have happened Tang Shiyu had clearly settled all their old and new grudges in one go.

Xu Chun’s guess was right. The past few days had been the most miserable period Yang Xingyan had endured since meeting Xu’s father.

That night over drinks, Yang Xingyan had assumed Xu’s father was just venting in anger, spouting a few heated words. But the next morning, just as he was about to sleep after a night of indulgence, his company’s pretty secretary called in a panic: “Boss Yang, it’s bad! Lawyers from Chairman Xu’s company are here!”

Exhausted and sleep-deprived after a long night, Yang Xingyan scowled irritably. “So what?”

He snapped at the secretary, “I don’t care if it’s just some lawyer even if the sky were falling, it can wait until I’ve slept!”

“But Boss Yang, Chairman Xu’s secretary said he’s withdrawing his investment from our company! They’re accusing us of falsifying reports and sent lawyers to discuss it!” As the secretary spoke, chaotic noises erupted in the background. Yang Xingyan’s head throbbed with fury. “What did you say?!”

How dare that bastard Xu do this? If it weren’t for their help over the years, would he even have gotten this far?

Too enraged to sleep now, Yang Xingyan sat bolt upright in bed. “Tell security to throw that lawyer out! From now on, no one from the Xu Group is to be let in!”

Just as he was raging, the secretary’s tearful voice came again, “Boss Yang, it’s worse the tax bureau is here too.”

Yang Xingyan’s heart dropped. He instinctively straightened up. “What do they want?”

“I don’t know! Boss Yang, you should come back to the company right away!”

Fuming and with a splitting headache, Yang Xingyan grabbed his car keys and rushed to the office. But not long after setting off, he was pulled over by traffic police, arrested for drunk driving, and detained for several days. Only yesterday, after spending a fortune to pull strings, was he finally released.

The same scenario played out at the other men’s companies. When they met up later and compared notes, they quickly realized this was all Xu’s doing.

Yang Xingyan had suffered the most among them and harbored the greatest resentment. He spat fiercely twice, “Spineless coward! He must have been whispering sweet nothings into Tang Shiyu’s ear!” Tang Shiyu had long disliked Xu’s association with them, and now that she finally had the chance, she would spare no effort to drive a wedge between Xu and their group.

The more he thought about it, the angrier he became. Unable to contain himself, he slammed the table hard, “Afraid of a woman? He’s no man at all!”

The others were also seething with anger and immediately joined in, hurling a torrent of abuse at the two, even dragging Xu Chun into it. Their words grew increasingly vile and crude until they had finally vented most of their pent-up rage. Only then did the group quiet down, “So what do we do now?”

“He’s well-connected. If he’s determined to make trouble for us, we don’t have the power or influence to win against him.”

“What does it matter how well-connected he is? We’re no pushovers either,” Yang Xingyan sneered. “Surely the few of us united can’t lose to just one man.”

Seeing their hesitation, Yang Xingyan pressed on, “Don’t forget, each of us is a business owner worth tens of millions, even hundreds of millions. Together, can’t we take down one measly Xu?”

After some thought, the others found this reasoning sound, “Then let’s kick him out and continue on our own.”

“Exactly. Without that Xu getting in our way, our business will soar to new heights,” Yang Xingyan said with a cold laugh. “He’ll regret this.”

Unfortunately, his grand vision for the future lasted less than an hour before major business partners began calling one after another, firmly terminating their contracts. Yang Xingyan wasn’t the only one affected within a mere hour, their thriving companies faced broken capital chains and teetered on the brink of bankruptcy.

Only then did panic truly set in.

The quicker-witted among them immediately made excuses to leave, then called Tang Shiyu to apologize and beg for mercy. They weren’t fools they knew only Tang Shiyu could orchestrate such a move. As for their old classmate, he had long been too smitten to see straight.

Yet when the call connected, Tang Shiyu merely said coolly, “I’m not entirely clear about this matter. You should speak to Old Xu directly.”

“Sister-in-law, this is no time for jokes. I know you’re the one who calls the shots at home and in the company.” But before he could finish, she interrupted, “I truly don’t know about this.”

Her words were deliberate and heavy with emphasis, giving the caller pause. Could Old Xu really be behind this?

That couldn’t be. Old Xu would take a knife for them, he’d never do such a thing.

Half-convinced, they called Old Xu, only to be met with a furious tirade. And within a single day, every financial lifeline to their companies was severed, forcing them to sell homes and cars in a desperate bid to survive.

Perhaps Tang Shiyu had spoken to those around him none of their acquaintances were willing to lend them money to tide them over. Their company was sizable, and even after selling their houses and cars, they couldn’t immediately cover such massive losses. To make matters worse, their company’s accounts were found to have issues, and all the responsible parties were summoned for questioning.

For a moment, the group felt their vision darken, nearly staggering from the shock.

Old Xu was truly ruthless! He didn’t even spare a thought for their years of friendship as classmates!

Was it really necessary just because they’d had too much to drink and said a few unkind words about his daughter?

Whether they understood or not, after severing ties with these so-called “loyal old friends,” Xu’s father realized just how much more peaceful his life had become.

No more exhausting himself cleaning up their messes, no more handing them undeserved profits out of obligation, no more swallowing losses just to spare their feelings. Within just a few days, he secured several major projects worth hundreds of millions. The net profit from just one of them surpassed his company’s entire annual earnings in the past.

At this moment, Xu’s father had an epiphany and smacked his own head in frustration, he had been a damn fool all these years.

Still seething over their disrespect toward his daughter, he launched a fierce retaliation against them. Years of grievances, old and new, would all be repaid transformed into his daughter’s dowry.

It was under Xu’s father’s relentless pressure that Yang Xingyan finally snapped, driven to desperation, and sought out Xu Chun at her film set.

His eyes locked onto Xu Chun, consumed by the thought even if he died, he’d drag someone down with him. If that bastard Xu wouldn’t let him live in peace, he’d make him suffer the pain of burying his own child!

Clutching a knife, he lunged only to be effortlessly subdued by Xu Chun’s bodyguards before he could even get close. Staring at his contorted face, Xu Chun’s eyelid twitched violently. As expected, any involvement with men brought her nothing but misfortune.

She glared at Yang Xingyan, then promptly called the police, sending him straight to jail.

He Qingli watched her with lingering fear, frowning before saying, “Maybe you should ask Sister Yang to assign you more bodyguards.” She added seriously, “I’m scared.”

Xu Chun laughed. “Why are you scared when I’m not?”

“This time, we were lucky everyone was around to protect you and stop that guy. But what if one day none of us are there?” He Qingli fretted. “What will you do then?”

The words instantly reminded Xu Chun of her past life, where she’d been stabbed to death by another Yu Sui’an. A shiver ran down her spine. She immediately dialed her manager and said gravely, “Sister Yang, can you hire me a Muay Thai instructor today? Right now. I want to learn some self-defense moves no, wait. Actually, get me instructors for every type of self-defense training available on the market.”

Her manager: “?” What sudden whim is this?

Unable to make sense of it, she asked directly. Upon learning that Xu Chun had been targeted by a vengeful rival from her family’s company, she took it seriously at once. “Leave it to me, I’ll handle the arrangements.”

Before the day was even over, Xu Chun received a “care package” from her manager: four additional bodyguards and a lineup of martial arts instructors both men and women standing in a row.

The sight of this imposing group, the women valiant and heroic, the men strong and muscular was so visually striking that Xu Chun couldn’t help but reflect: Why am I paying to suffer like this?

Hadn’t she endured enough hardship on set these past few days? Was her life really so comfortable now?

Just as she was seriously pondering this, the bodyguards, after brief introductions, immediately disguised themselves as staff, subtly forming a protective perimeter around her. Meanwhile, the instructors eyed each other warily before earnestly introducing their respective martial arts specialties and ranks.

The agent had put in a lot of effort; at least the words coming out of these people’s mouths sounded quite impressive.

Among them were even those who had fought underground abroad and had won championships multiple times.

Xu Chun couldn’t help but think, ” This is a bit too much, isn’t it, sister? She knows her own worth very well.”

Just as Xu Chun was pondering where to start learning, Zheng Yanran’s voice suddenly chimed in, filled with enthusiasm: “Oh? Xu Chun, are you here to choose a consort today?”

Xu Chun instinctively looked up and immediately spotted a stranger next to her. She stared at the person without blinking, making them feel a bit embarrassed. The stranger introduced herself, “Hello, I’m a reporter from Potato News.”

Potato News? Isn’t that the notoriously unscrupulous media outlet?

They could exaggerate any minor incident to the point of claiming the world was about to explode.Wait, hold on. Xu Chun’s eyes widened suddenly, and she instinctively glanced at Zheng Yanran.

Why did you bring someone from Potato News here?!

If they reported on her choosing a consort, wouldn’t that spread like wildfire across the country tonight?!

She remembered that the last time at the Qin family, it was this unscrupulous media that leaked the news about her rekindling things with Jiang Zhaolie. Yes, on the very day Jiang Zhaolie’s background was exposed, this media outlet slandered her for going back to him, and then she inexplicably got into serious trouble with Qin Yao.

Xu Chun could almost imagine the storm she would face if this unscrupulous reporter and media outlet got wind of today’s events.

In a flash, Xu Chun decided to establish a good relationship with the reporter. She put on a radiant smile and enthusiastically approached the female reporter, “Hello, hello! So, you’re from Potato News, it’s great to meet you!”

The female reporter’s eyes flickered as she shook Xu Chun’s outstretched hand. Once they released each other, she immediately took out her pen and notepad to jot down a line, “Surprise! A popular female star openly seduces a pure and righteous female reporter; is this a distortion of human nature or a decline of morality?”

After writing, she made sure to note Xu Chun’s current romantic interests, feeling a twinge of excitement in her heart.

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