Can't Hide My Love for You - Chapter 3

The TV drama invested in by Lu Qing was officially announced shortly after the promotional posters were shot; Cheng Yixin was not included in the cast.

Although Cheng Yixin had not revealed her involvement to her fans, “insider leaks” were already flying across the internet.

“The original female lead for this show was Cheng Yixin. According to a friend of mine who was on set, she acted like a huge diva on the day of the shoot and just walked out. How can people still support a star with no professional ethics? Disgusting.”

“I heard she had to pay millions for breach of contract. Her financial backer must be loaded for her to be so reckless. Tsk tsk…”

“She has a sugar daddy? I heard she used to be a high-end escort. Who knew? Her backer has a weird taste for plastic faces.”

“Wow, I don’t understand the world of the rich. Cheng Yixin’s ‘surgical’ face has been debunked so many times, yet her brain-dead fans still praise her ‘god-tier’ beauty. LOL.”

Listening to Cheng Yixin read the forum screenshots with dramatic flair, her assistant Xiao Yu couldn’t take it anymore. “Sister, stop reading. These people just believe whatever rumors they hear.”

“Don’t you think it’s interesting?” Cheng Yixin laughed instead of getting angry. Or rather, she was numb. “Nowadays, as long as people add ‘it is said’ or ‘a friend says,’ it becomes the truth. And a bunch of people actually believe it.”

When she first debuted, seeing such ridiculously fake “revelations” would make her want to grab a keyboard and smash it over those keyboard warriors’ heads. Now, she was used to it—she could even chuckle. As a public figure, if you don’t learn to look past it, you won’t survive.

“Some people only want to believe what they want to see,” Xiao Yu said. “Those hateful anti-fans would probably believe it if someone said you had a sex change.”

“How tragic,” Cheng Yixin lamented, casually closing the screenshots.

Since entering this industry, Cheng Yixin had maintained a clear mindset: as long as it’s a job, there will be setbacks. As long as she had a clear conscience, she didn’t need to care what others said—especially baseless rumors with no evidence.

“Sister Xin, how about this dress for tonight? The color is subtle, so you won’t outshine the host at the birthday party.” Xiao Yu brought over a champagne-colored evening gown for her to look at.

Tonight was the birthday banquet for the daughter of the Feng Group. It was a private event, meaning many “rich second-generation” heirs from the same business circles would attend. Cheng Yixin disliked the circles of these pampered socialites, who often looked down their noses at everyone, but she couldn’t skip it given the company’s relationship with the Feng Group.

As the “pillar” of the company, she was arranged to attend to gain more exposure. Who knew? Perhaps a future collaboration would come from it.

“That one will do,” Cheng Yixin picked one at random.

The banquet started at 7:00 PM. When Cheng Yixin arrived at 6:30 PM, she was technically on the later side; the vast hall was already filled with people. Everyone was impeccably dressed, standing in small groups with wine glasses, perfectly mimicking the “high society” scenes from movies.

She even spotted several faces she recognized from the screen.

If you wanted to know the juiciest gossip in the entertainment industry, you asked the insiders. Some celebrities maintained a “single diamond bachelor” image while actually having children. Some fans shipped a couple so hard they went mad, while the actual stars were homophobic.

Assistants were not allowed to accompany guests at such events, and since Fang Yuhan had other business and couldn’t make it, Cheng Yixin had to navigate the venue alone.

Following Fang Yuhan’s instructions, she located Feng Xinlan in the center of the hall. She waited until the people around her finished their pleasantries before walking over to greet her.

“President Feng, hello.” Cheng Yixin adopted the well-behaved manner she used with elders. “I am Yixin.”

Feng Xinlan turned to see her and fully faced her. “I remember you. Yuhan mentioned you would be attending tonight. I was actually looking for you.”

Facing the company’s ultimate boss, Cheng Yixin felt a bit nervous, even though Feng Xinlan appeared kind. Feng Xinlan was in her early forties but looked much younger due to meticulous maintenance. However, the life experience settled in her features and the hidden sharpness in her gaze gave her an aura of natural authority.

“Looking for me?” Cheng Yixin was somewhat flattered. “President Feng, please let me know if there’s anything you need.”

“It’s like this: my niece heard you were coming and wanted to take a photo with you. I wonder if that’s convenient?”

Feng Xinlan’s niece was the protagonist of tonight’s banquet, Feng Siqi, daughter of the current Chairman of the Feng Group.

“Of course it’s convenient, President Feng,” Cheng Yixin nodded.

“I’ll have someone find you later then. Go ahead and enjoy yourself.”

Cheng Yixin had planned to make a symbolic appearance and slip away early, but after Feng Xinlan’s request, she could only wait to be summoned.

To kill time, she greeted the familiar faces in the room and then sat down on a sofa in the lounge area, waiting for the banquet to officially begin. A waiter brought her a plate of cookies. To stay camera-ready, actresses had to maintain their figures, and Li Wenjing usually monitored her diet strictly. High-sugar, high-calorie snacks were usually off-limits. Since her manager wasn’t here, she felt a sudden craving.

Cheng Yixin picked up a cookie and took a bite.

The first thing she noticed was that it was too sweet. She liked sweets that weren’t too sweet, but most commercial desserts were overpowering. It was so sickly sweet she immediately regretted eating the whole thing, eventually washing it down with a sip of a non-alcoholic cocktail.

From the lounge, she quietly observed the guests. The “rich second-gen” types were easy to spot—they practically looked at people through their nostrils with an insufferable air of arrogance. There were also wealthy heiresses attending with their “pretty boy” dates, who waited on them hand and foot.

Almost no one was alone.

Suddenly, her gaze landed on someone. In the middle of the crowd, she stood out instantly. She was exceptionally tall and lean, wearing an eye-catching, slim-fit white suit while talking to someone who looked like a manager.

Even from a profile view, it was clear she was a beauty. Compared to the others, she was a breath of fresh air, which piqued Cheng Yixin’s interest.

Perhaps her gaze was too intense, as the woman suddenly looked in her direction.

The moment she saw the woman’s face, Cheng Yixin confirmed she didn’t know her and felt a wave of embarrassment for being caught staring so openly. Just as she was about to pretend to look at the scenery, the woman gave her a polite smile and a slight nod—a silent greeting.

That simple gesture instantly dissolved Cheng Yixin’s awkwardness. Quite polite, she thought.

“Hello, Ma’am. Would you like a drink?” A waiter carrying wine approached.

Cheng Yixin handed him her empty glass. After taking a fresh drink and thanking him, she paused and asked, “Do you know who that lady is?”

The waiter followed her gaze and quickly replied, “Yes, that is President Chi.”

“President Chi?”

“President Chi, Chi Yi.”

The moment the name “Chi Yi” was mentioned, Cheng Yixin knew exactly who she was.

During her three-month long-distance relationship with Lu Qing, she had heard Lu Qing complain about Chi Yi constantly. She didn’t know how their conflict started, only that Lu Qing hated her and had said more than once that Chi Yi had a character problem.

Chi Yi owned a shopping mall where items were not only overpriced but also of poor quality. When she couldn’t squeeze any more profit from the mall, she set up a charity foundation to harvest money from well-meaning donors, only to squander the funds on herself.

As for her personal life, she maintained a respectable facade while actually being incredibly messy. She dated both men and women, tossing them aside with a “breakup fee” once she grew bored. Apparently, there were often young girls crying their eyes out downstairs at her company.

In short, she was an utterly rotten, hypocritical woman.

—This was everything Lu Qing had told her, rambling about Chi Yi’s “scandals” more than once. If it had been mentioned only once or twice, Cheng Yixin might not have cared, but Lu Qing had droned on like a monk reciting sutras. It was impossible to forget.

With the lesson learned from Lu Qing, Cheng Yixin decided it was best to stay as far away from such a person as possible. The interest she had felt before knowing Chi Yi’s name vanished instantly.

The banquet soon officially began. Surrounded by friends, Feng Siqi took the stage to give a short birthday speech, followed by the entrance of a massive cake. The usual proceedings followed: cutting the cake and pouring the champagne tower. Throughout it all, Cheng Yixin stood on the periphery, choosing not to crowd in. She didn’t know Feng Siqi and couldn’t bring herself to be as overly familiar as the others who rushed forward to flatter the host.

As the atmosphere peaked and then slowly settled, Cheng Yixin returned to the lounge area to wait for President Feng’s summons. Once the photo task was done, she could go home.

“Oh? Isn’t this our Sister-in-Law?”

Cheng Yixin turned to see several young men with wine glasses approaching. One looked slightly familiar, though she couldn’t place him. With their arrogant “I own the world” expressions, she didn’t need an introduction to know they were playboys.

“What ‘Sister-in-Law’? Sister Qing was just playing around with her, and you actually believed it?”

She remembered now. These were likely Lu Qing’s lackeys.

The group of heirs sat down on the sofa opposite her, looking at her with feigned interest. “Hey, since you broke up with Sister Qing, why not get with me? I don’t mind second-hand goods. Whatever Sister Qing paid you, I won’t lowball you.”

“How about 200,000? If that’s too little, I can add more. If that’s still not enough, I can even pay by the month, hahahaha!”

Cheng Yixin looked at them and felt so angry she almost laughed. She remained silent, her smile cold. She was afraid that if she spoke, she would just end up beating them to a pulp. If she did that, tomorrow’s headline would be: “Cheng Yixin Outed as Lesbian, Assaults Man, and Detained.”

When facing people with such low character, even speaking a single word felt like lowering her own standards. She stood up to leave, but one of them got annoyed and grabbed her arm. “What are you doing? Playing the ‘pure girl’ with me? People like you might be called ‘stars,’ but in reality, aren’t you just for sale?”

Cheng Yixin gripped her glass, her anger reaching its breaking point. Just as she was about to shake off his hand and retaliate, a woman’s voice cut in.

“Director Chen’s family upbringing is truly eye-opening.”

“How can a man in his twenties still speak with such idiotic rhetoric, as if his brain never finished developing?”

The face of the man, Chen Fei, turned from white to green. Others in the lounge area began to take notice and look over.

“Chi Yi, what I say to her is none of your business!”

Chi Yi simply smiled, her eyes cold. “In this place, you have no right to say that.”

“Miss Cheng is a guest invited by Siqi. If you want to ruin this birthday party, you should think about whether the money in your account is still enough for you to squander.”

At that moment, the gaze of Chen Fei’s father shifted toward them. The moment the spoiled son met his father’s eyes, his bravado vanished. His companions quickly “forced” him away, giving Chen Fei a way to retreat.

After they left, Chi Yi looked at her, her face showing clear apology. “I’m sorry. A few flies affected your mood. Please don’t take it to heart.”

Chi Yi spoke as if she were part of the hosting party. Cheng Yixin didn’t quite understand why being harassed on the Fengs’ territory was any of Chi Yi’s business. However, she was still grateful to Chi Yi for intervening; otherwise, she really might have ended up on the trending searches tomorrow.

After a brief thank you, Cheng Yixin didn’t say much else to Chi Yi, even though the other woman seemed interested in chatting. In this kind of environment, it was better to keep to oneself.

A while later, perhaps due to Chi Yi’s influence, Director Chen brought his son over to apologize. Watching Chen Fei bow ninety degrees in a reluctant apology made Cheng Yixin feel a little better about the disgusting encounter.

Compared to unprincipled, spoiled heirs, the first generation of wealthy businessmen cared much more about face and reputation.