Deliberate Possession [Entertainment Industry] - Chapter 88

Chapter 88: Retaliating

It was already afternoon when they arrived at the film set.

Jiang Yumian accompanied Jing Xiaoyan for lunch and was now watching her put on makeup. There was no need for her to return to the company today; it would be closing time by the time she got back. So, she stayed with Jing Xiaoyan, sticking to her every step of the way.

In the car, Jing Xiaoyan had mentioned going to talk to her father herself, but Jiang Yumian disagreed. She didn’t want Jing Xiaoyan to meet her father alone.

Either don’t meet, or she would be there.

She also had the weekend off. She didn’t need to film the variety show or go to work, so she planned to stay and accompany Jing Xiaoyan for these two days.

Jing Xiaoyan held the script, which she had already read several times, her peripheral vision constantly on Jiang Yumian’s face.

She was a little distracted. Fu Leyi had to call her twice before she heard her.

Fu Leyi held Jing Xiaoyan’s hair. “Like this.”

Jiang Yumian shifted her gaze from her phone to Jing Xiaoyan. “Done?”

Jing Xiaoyan nodded slightly. “Done. This is my last scene. We’re almost finished filming.”

Jiang Yumian was confused. “Finished filming?”

Didn’t she say the day before yesterday that it would take a few more days to finish?

Seeing her bewildered look, Jing Xiaoyan suppressed a smile, acting as if she had just remembered to tell her. “Oh, one scene was too bloody to film, and it wouldn’t be allowed to air even if it was filmed, so we decided not to film it. There were also a few scenes that Director Liu suddenly wanted to add a while ago—romantic scenes—to generate tears and traffic, but I thought it was completely unnecessary, so I kept putting it off until now. In the end, Director Wu decided not to add them. After all, it’s not a romance film, and filming them might draw criticism from the audience.”

The male lead had already finished filming. What romantic scenes were they going to film?

Hearing Jing Xiaoyan say this, Jiang Yumian’s eyes lit up. Her happiness was clearly written all over her face. “So, you’ll be finished after filming this afternoon?”

Seeing her delighted expression, Jing Xiaoyan was satisfied. She proudly held up one finger to her.

“Not this afternoon, but within an hour. It’ll be done.”

Seeing her so smug, Fu Leyi pressed her forehead. “You weren’t here yesterday. I heard the crew was swamped. Director Liu and Director Wu were arguing non-stop. The reason you can be so relaxed is that Director Wu insisted on not adding the scenes, and finally quieted down after bringing up Jiang Yumian.”

Jiang Yumian frowned slightly. “Does that mean Director Liu can’t shoot a film without the main characters dating?”

She finally asked, “Was it Zhang Yan who asked to add them?”

Jing Xiaoyan gave her a thumbs-up. “So smart. Anyway, whatever the case, it’s best that they weren’t added.”

Jiang Yumian twitched her mouth. Forget it. Jing Xiaoyan was about to finish filming, and she was in a good mood, so she wouldn’t bother with them for now. “Let’s go. We’ll head back after you finish filming.”

She decided to sit there and hold the fort today. She didn’t believe that Jing Xiaoyan wouldn’t be able to finish filming with her there.

The scene was at a school. Jiang Yumian sat on the chair where Jing Xiaoyan rested. The filming location was bustling. She didn’t go over to disturb them, scanning for Director Liu’s figure.

As if sensing her gaze, Director Liu rubbed his neck and turned around, meeting Jiang Yumian’s eyes from afar. He jumped in fright. It was too late to hide because Jiang Yumian was waving at him.

He reluctantly walked over, constantly reviewing in his mind whether he had done anything to offend her recently.

Before she could speak, Jiang Yumian said directly, “Director Liu, I heard you wanted to add a few scenes. Can I take a look?”

Although she didn’t want to dwell on it, Jiang Yumian still wanted to see the script and what kind of scenes were added.

Director Liu’s eyes lit up. So she was here to add scenes for Jing Xiaoyan. He quickly agreed. “Yes, yes, yes! I’ll go get the script right away.”

Jiang Yumian smilingly took the script he handed her and opened the first page.

Jiang Yumian’s eyes darkened slightly. She smiled falsely. “Why would high school students have a kissing scene? Is this scene after graduation from the college entrance exam?”

Director Liu was stunned for a moment. “Oh, that. Because one dropped out, and the other just graduated.”

Jiang Yumian gently tapped the script with her finger, looked up, and smiled at Director Liu. “Actually, this part doesn’t matter, does it? The important plot isn’t here. You mainly want Jing Xiaoyan to contribute her on-screen first kiss?”

Director Liu completely failed to notice the coldness in Jiang Yumian’s eyes, and silently gave Jiang Yumian a thumbs-up. She understood him!

Jing Xiaoyan’s on-screen first kiss—that would be a huge talking point!

Staring at the thumbs-up in front of her, Jiang Yumian really wanted to chop off his finger. She suppressed her temper and flipped to the next page. The more she read, the colder her eyes became.

She tightly composed her face, closed her eyes, and took a breath, continuing to ask, “Why is there a sex scene? I remember the female lead in this drama only held hands with the male lead once. Is this scene a flashback? Just to show how deep their feelings are?”

Director Liu smiled apologetically. “There’s a context to this. It’s not entirely a sex scene. The male lead is rebellious during adolescence, just out of curiosity. He wants to try but is also very innocent. In the end, he just took off his clothes and didn’t go through with it. He’s very respectful of his girlfriend.”

“Don’t tell me you’re doing this just to show his respect and affection for the female lead. How despicable. They were completely undressed, and he even touched her. Is that respect? This drama is not a romance film. The male lead is just the catalyst for the story’s development. Why would you make Jing Xiaoyan film this useless sex scene? To grab attention and traffic?”

“Even if it were a romance film, wouldn’t the male lead’s persona be criticized for being so vulgar?”

Director Liu was sweating. Jiang Yumian had said it all. What could he say?

Jiang Yumian let out a cold “Hmph,” her face cold, a complete change from her previous attitude. After two seconds of silence, under Director Liu’s nervous gaze, she slowly tore up the few pages of the added script.

Director Liu looked away. He had celebrated too soon.

He really thought she was here to add scenes for Jing Xiaoyan. When he brought the script over, he was already thinking that Jing Xiaoyan must have told Jiang Yumian. He figured the sex scene would probably be deleted, but it wouldn’t matter even if it was deleted; there were still other scenes. But Jiang Yumian didn’t even look further and just tore up the script.

Jiang Yumian stared at him indifferently, her voice cold. “Who asked you to add these scenes?”

Adding scenes so close to the end of filming, especially kissing and sex scenes—did he think Jing Xiaoyan was an idiot? That was no benefit.

Director Liu swallowed, not daring to speak, tacitly admitting that he added them himself.

Jiang Yumian threw the shredded paper into the trash can and stood up. “Are you going to tell me, or should I help you tell me?”

“1”

“2”

“…”

Hearing her counting, Director Liu anxiously said, “I’ll tell you, I’ll tell you! It was Zhang Yan! Him! He called me and transferred a million yuan to me.”

Jiang Yumian wasn’t surprised. She nodded slightly. “Mhm. Time and reason.”

Director Liu looked hesitant, but finally braced himself. “It was the day he returned from your variety show filming. As for the reason, he just said it was because he liked Jing Xiaoyan, and his family elders also wanted them to be together, so he wanted to have more intimate scenes with her, to foster their relationship…”

Jiang Yumian frowned. “Family elders? Whose family elders?”

Hearing her suddenly derail the topic, Director Liu couldn’t help but say, “Are you interested in gossip too? Of course, both families.”

He thought that since Zhang Yan was already the male lead, adding some intimate scenes was reasonable, and he could earn a million yuan easily. Only a fool would refuse.

If he were the only director for this film, he would have made the decision with a wave of his hand. There wouldn’t be all this trouble.

Jiang Yumian sat down again. Zhang Yan wanted to add scenes of this magnitude simply to leverage the attention of netizens, create rumors with Jing Xiaoyan, and take advantage of her during filming.

Did he really think Jing Xiaoyan would pay attention to him and fall for him this way?

She truly didn’t know where he got his confidence.

Their genders weren’t even the same, and he still wanted to pursue Jing Xiaoyan.

Jiang Yumian let out a cold “Hmph.”

She glanced at Director Liu standing at the side, impatiently saying, “What are you still doing here? Don’t you need to shoot the scene?”

Director Liu sighed in relief and ran away. The script was torn up, so be it. He hadn’t counted on filming those parts anyway. As long as Jiang Yumian didn’t mess with him, he was fine.

Jiang Yumian frowned, feeling angry. She kicked the trash can next to her to vent, then bent down and set it back upright herself.

Her gaze fell on Jing Xiaoyan, who was surrounded by staff and filming.

That rascal.

She had initially thought it was some kind of complicated scene, but it turned out to be this kind of dirty stuff. Jing Xiaoyan would definitely refuse.

So, even if she wasn’t here to hold the fort, Jing Xiaoyan definitely wouldn’t film this. That rascal must have known they would finish filming today and deliberately kept it a secret until now.

Half an hour later…

The desserts and hot milk tea that Jiang Yumian ordered arrived. She had Xiao Feng and a few staff members distribute them to everyone.

There was also a large wrap-up cake.

As soon as Jing Xiaoyan finished filming and received the red envelope from the director, Jiang Yumian had them cut the cake for everyone to share, and then immediately took Jing Xiaoyan away to remove her makeup. She didn’t stay for the wrap-up dinner or anything.

Jing Xiaoyan had never finished a film so quickly. After removing her makeup and changing clothes, she was immediately pulled into the car by Jiang Yumian.

It was Jiang Yumian’s car, driven by Xiao Zhang, whom she had called an hour ago, and who had just arrived.

Jiang Yumian sternly said, “Xiao Zhang, drive.”

Xiao Zhang: “Okay.”

The car quickly started moving.

Jing Xiaoyan watched the imposing Jiang Yumian cautiously, asking tentatively, “Are you… angry?”

She had taken less than ten minutes to change and remove her makeup, being hurriedly pulled out by Jiang Yumian.

Jiang Yumian took a deep breath. “Yes.”

Jing Xiaoyan looked confused, asking uncertainly, “Angry at me?”

Jiang Yumian pursed her lips, shaking her head. “No.”

Jing Xiaoyan was about to ask when she heard Jiang Yumian say sinisterly, “How about I directly cremate Zhang Yan, and then castrate Director Liu and cut off his hands?”

Hearing this, Jing Xiaoyan understood that she knew everything. She suppressed a smile, quickly gave a thumbs-up, and went along with her words. “I think that’s good, but Director Liu isn’t a good person either. Why not cremate him too?”

Jiang Yumian pursed her lips. “Dying so easily is too cheap for him.”

Jing Xiaoyan’s eyes were smiling. She moved closer to Jiang Yumian, leaning against her. “Then is it too cheap for Zhang Yan?”

Jiang Yumian frowned. “Because his existence on this earth makes me sick.”

He was truly too annoying!

Jing Xiaoyan finally couldn’t hold back and let out a soft laugh. She reached out and hugged Jiang Yumian. “Alright, don’t think about it. I’m not that easily manipulated by them. I was just disgusted.”

“If murder wasn’t illegal, I… Hmph!” Jiang Yumian was so angry that her teeth itched. She waved her fist, gritting her teeth.

Jing Xiaoyan found her angry look endearing. She rubbed her cheek, her eyes curving as she looked at her.

Jiang Yumian took a deep breath. “It suffocates me to think that I can’t touch them right now.”

Jing Xiaoyan had just finished filming. They couldn’t have the director and actor both collapse in disgrace, or Jing Xiaoyan’s hard work would be in vain.

Not being able to take major action now didn’t mean they couldn’t trip them up. Jiang Yumian had already arranged for people to investigate. She was going to investigate these two people thoroughly!

She held grudges, especially grudges. She would remember Jing Xiaoyan’s grudges even more clearly.

Seeing that her eyes were red, she must have been extremely angry. Jing Xiaoyan hugged her, gently patting her, and coaxed her softly, “Don’t underestimate me. I’m not just good at acting.”

Saying that, she leaned in close to Jiang Yumian’s ear and quietly told her, “I’ve already retaliated.”

Her way of speaking was like coaxing a child. Jiang Yumian pouted, shrinking into her embrace, but she was still very receptive.

She asked curiously, “How did you retaliate?”

Jing Xiaoyan cleared her throat, deliberately leaving her in suspense. “You want to know?”

Jiang Yumian looked up, her gaze full of reproach, wanting her to speak quickly.

Jing Xiaoyan glanced at Xiao Zhang, who was focused on driving in the front, and pointed at her own face.

Jiang Yumian instantly understood and quickly kissed her cheek.

“Tell me quickly. I want to see how you vented your anger for me. Oh, I mean, how you vented your anger for yourself.”

Jing Xiaoyan was amused by her. She took out her phone from her pocket, still holding Jiang Yumian in her arms, and opened the phone in front of her.

“I’ll show you something.”

Jiang Yumian saw her scrolling through her album and quickly tapping on an image containing four people.

She asked curiously, “Who is this with Director Liu?”

“The one on the left is his wife, the one next to her is his son, and the other is his son’s girlfriend.”

Jing Xiaoyan pointed to the phone to introduce them, then began to explain. “That day, when we were filming on set, his family came over. They wanted to get his son’s girlfriend an opportunity to appear on camera, so we met. I found her a role as a female hooligan. The screen time is probably about a minute, but it will definitely be cut.”

Jiang Yumian was a little confused. “And then?”

Jing Xiaoyan pointed at the photo. She had said enough. She should analyze it herself.

Jiang Yumian blinked. “Stop beating around the bush. Just say it directly.”

“One of Director Liu’s cheating partners is right here.”

Jing Xiaoyan grabbed her hand and pressed it directly onto the phone, pointing at that person in the photo.

Jiang Yumian opened her mouth, dumbfounded. Wow…

As expected, the gossip from the film set is the juiciest and most exciting.

Jing Xiaoyan proudly raised an eyebrow. “When he goes back today, it’ll probably be his last day home.”

Because he might not have a home anymore.

Jiang Yumian reviewed it. So the father cheated on his son, and the son’s girlfriend cheated on the mother.

She quickly asked, “You mean his family knows now?”

Exciting!

Jing Xiaoyan nodded. “I specifically chose the wrap-up day to expose it, so he wouldn’t be in a bad state and affect my filming.”

Jiang Yumian smiled. “That’s awesome!”

She really wanted to pull up a stool, sit at his doorstep, and eat sunflower seeds.

But soon, she remembered the other person. Her happily smiling face instantly dropped. “What about Zhang Yan…”

Jing Xiaoyan sighed. “Actually, he used to be quite nice, but now he’s too full of himself, incredibly narcissistic. If someone hands him a bottle of water, he thinks they like him. He’s overly arrogant, and his character isn’t great either.”

Hearing Jing Xiaoyan’s only compliment and then stopping, Jiang Yumian’s initial excitement quickly faded. She absently picked at her arm.

Knowing Jiang Yumian’s hostility toward Zhang Yan, Jing Xiaoyan pinched her cheek. “I blocked him and didn’t deliberately investigate him. I don’t want to know anything about him, so I handed it over to Sister Guan.”

“Sister Guan said that the news about him trying to force kiss and sex scenes would spread. Even though those scenes weren’t filmed, and there’s no proof, as long as I don’t deny it and don’t help clarify, fans aren’t stupid. They’ll figure it out. Although his career might not completely collapse, his public reputation is probably gone this time.”

Jiang Yumian sat up, a little worried. “Won’t that affect your movie?”

Jing Xiaoyan waved her hand casually. “His screen time was already minimal, maybe about ten minutes, interspersed throughout the plot. It’s not a big deal. The only reason he’s called the male lead is because of his star power.”

Jiang Yumian felt better, but she was still annoyed about Zhang Yan. “He seems to be retiring from the industry soon anyway, so this probably won’t affect him much.”

Jing Xiaoyan smiled. “This is different from retiring cleanly.”

A few seconds later, she suddenly said, “Being blacklisted is also different from voluntarily retiring.”

With this reminder, Jiang Yumian quickly got out of Jing Xiaoyan’s arms. She sat up straight, blinked, and thought: Blacklist him?

She really hadn’t thought about that.

Seeing Jiang Yumian’s confused reaction, Jing Xiaoyan deliberately sighed. “I forgot. Our little CEO Jiang believes in giving people a second chance. Should we give him one?”

Jiang Yumian frowned, quickly reaching out to interrupt her. “Give him what chance? I’m not being a good person today. What second chance?”

She had tolerated him several times already. She was just thinking about how to blacklist him.

However, based on Director Liu’s words, Zhang Yan and Jing Xiaoyan’s father must have some connection. Her father probably approved of Zhang Yan pursuing Jing Xiaoyan. Otherwise, where would Zhang Yan get such confidence to chase Jing Xiaoyan so mindlessly?

But she just couldn’t understand. Why was this Zhang Yan so confident that he could win Jing Xiaoyan over?

That kind of self-confidence was irritating.

When Jing Xiaoyan pursued her initially, her confidence was very endearing. She was also convinced that she would definitely win her over.

Jiang Yumian was stunned, blinking. She stared at Jing Xiaoyan’s face, thinking for a long time. Her eyes flashed. She understood!

Her initial fondness for Jing Xiaoyan, though naive, wasn’t heavily restrained. She showed it very clearly and even let her kiss and hug her. Although she verbally said no, she wasn’t very resistant, which gave Jing Xiaoyan confidence.

But Zhang Yan…

What was his reason?

Jiang Yumian frowned slightly, loosely grabbing Jing Xiaoyan’s ear. She asked in a low voice, “Did you do something that made Zhang Yan think you liked him?”

Being asked this out of the blue, Jing Xiaoyan’s body shook a little. “Don’t disgust me with that question… I didn’t show anything.”

Jiang Yumian leaned closer to her, looking serious, deliberately squinting her eyes. “Really?”

Jing Xiaoyan nodded emphatically. “Really. Other than handing him a bottle of water, giving him a lunch box, and a cup of milk tea, there was nothing else.”

Jiang Yumian squeezed her earlobe hard, her voice cool. “You remember that clearly?”

Jing Xiaoyan grabbed the hand pinching her ear, looking innocent. “That’s because he was disgusting me.”

Without Jiang Yumian having to ask, she explained directly, “I gave him water because the director handed it to me, and I casually gave it to him. He then said I was afraid he was thirsty, so I must like him secretly.”

“I gave him the lunch box because I hardly ever ate the boxed lunch on set. That was the first time, and he saw it and wanted to join in. To get away from him, I gave him the lunch box I was holding and left immediately to order takeout myself. But he actually said I specially gave it to him because I was afraid he was hungry.”

“As for the milk tea, heh… I treated the entire crew. He came over and said I ordered his favorite flavor, saying I liked him.”

Just as she finished speaking, a “Pfft” sound was heard.

Xiao Zhang awkwardly cleared his throat, trying hard to hold back his laughter. “Ahem, I’m sorry, pfft. You, you continue talking.”

He really couldn’t hold back his laughter. He really didn’t mean it.

Jiang Yumian rubbed her forehead.

“So speechless…”

As the victim, Jing Xiaoyan twitched her mouth. “I’m speechless too. I told him I was pursuing you, and he said I was unclear about my own heart.”

Jiang Yumian covered her face, speaking with a complicated expression. “Does he really have no emotional intelligence at all?”

She quickly answered her own question. “Forget it, he really doesn’t.”

Having filmed one episode of the variety show, she had long figured out that he really had no self-awareness.

Being Zhang Yan’s manager must be incredibly difficult. No wonder he was retiring. If he didn’t retire soon, his manager’s blood pressure would probably explode.

Thinking about it, Jiang Yumian almost laughed at herself.

Why was she jealous of an idiot?

She couldn’t understand. Did people like this really exist? Zhang Yan looked quite normal, so why was his mind… so hard to describe?

Jiang Yumian took a deep breath and rubbed Jing Xiaoyan’s ear. “It must have been hard working with him.”

Jing Xiaoyan nodded. It really was not easy for her.

“Mianmian, we’re home.”

Jing Xiaoyan poked Jiang Yumian’s arm.

Jiang Yumian snapped out of her thoughts, shifted her gaze from her phone, and got out of the car to go home together.

Jing Xiaoyan actually had work scheduled for the next two days, but she asked Sister Guan to push it back. She wanted to rest for two days after finishing filming, and Jiang Yumian was also resting.

Jing Xiaoyan cut up a plate of fruit and sat down next to Jiang Yumian, seeing her busy with her laptop. She casually said, “Mianmian, a slow-paced variety show invited me to be a guest for one episode.”

Jiang Yumian was reading a document sent by Yin Xiangyu, her attention half-withdrawn. Thinking about what Jing Xiaoyan said, she turned to look at her. “Which variety show? Do you know anyone there?”

“The lifestyle variety show you and Mumu went to. There are two artists I know well. Their director probably saw me cooking on the show and wants me to show off my skills there too.”

Jing Xiaoyan answered quickly. After being on the variety show, she had received invitations from other shows, but Sister Guan had rejected them all. She wanted to decline this one too, but since Jiang Yumian had also been on it, she was tempted to go for fun.

“Oh, you mean that show. It’s just for mutual flattery.” Jiang Yumian ate a piece of cantaloupe, putting her attention back on the screen. She continued, “If you’re looking for something new, you can go once. It’s good for increasing public appeal.”

Jing Xiaoyan waved her hand. “Forget it. I won’t go if you’re not there. My mouth can’t praise others against my conscience.”

Finding it difficult to focus, Jiang Yumian closed her laptop, put it aside, and thought seriously about Jing Xiaoyan’s words. “You should listen to Sister Guan’s opinion first. If she thinks you should go, then go once.”

Jing Xiaoyan shrugged directly. “Impossible. She completely advises against me being on variety shows.”

After saying that, she paused and quickly looked up at Jiang Yumian.

Seeing her staring at her, Jing Xiaoyan opened her mouth to explain. “The main reason I agreed to film this show was because Chu Qianyun begged me to, plus fans wanted me to be more active, so I…”

Jiang Yumian interrupted her, exposing her directly. “Why don’t you just say it’s because I was on the show too, so you agreed to come?”

Jing Xiaoyan licked her lips. “I was afraid you’d say I wasn’t focused on work.”

Jiang Yumian got up and hugged her. “It’s fine to focus on me too.”

Being pressed into the sofa, Jing Xiaoyan smiled, holding onto her tightly.

Jiang Yumian lay on her chest, hesitating for a while, then suddenly said, “I have to go on a business trip on Tuesday.”

Jing Xiaoyan blinked. That was a bit sudden.

Just as she was about to ask where she was going, she heard her say, “With Yin Xiangyu.”

Jing Xiaoyan: “Hmph.”

Hearing that she was unhappy again, Jiang Yumian got off her. She asked knowingly, “Are you jealous?”

Jing Xiaoyan moved her lips, wanting to say something, but couldn’t.

She didn’t want Jiang Yumian to go on a business trip, and even less did she want her to go with Yin Xiangyu, but she couldn’t interfere with her work.

Jiang Yumian smiled. “It’s with a person in charge at Yin Xiangyu’s company, not with her.”

Jing Xiaoyan looked down at her. “You’re deliberately annoying me.”

Jiang Yumian kissed her face. “Yes, but I wanted to say that I can’t be with you on Tuesday and Wednesday. You can go film a variety show while I’m gone.”

Jing Xiaoyan spoke in a muffled voice. “I won’t go. I have other work.”

Jiang Yumian was a little curious. “Why are you always so busy? What kind of work is it?”

It felt like if she wasn’t dating her, Jing Xiaoyan would never rest.

Jing Xiaoyan pursed her lips and stared at her. After a few seconds of silence, she finally spoke, her tone a little wronged. “Don’t talk about work when we’re resting. You should spend time with me.”

After saying that, the hand hugging her moved, reaching around to her back.

Jiang Yumian subconsciously arched her back. Her gaze fell on Jing Xiaoyan’s tense face. She had been busy with work since she came back and had indeed forgotten to spend time with her. She hadn’t noticed Jing Xiaoyan’s mood.

A burning palm caressed the skin on her back. Jiang Yumian stabilized her breathing. Her long eyelashes trembled. She grabbed her shoulder and kissed her.

Neither of them was willing to back down.

In the end, Jiang Yumian turned her head away first. She glanced at Jing Xiaoyan, who was close to being completely undressed, and let out a soft breath. She lowered her head and helped her straighten her messy clothes.

Her gaze fell on Jing Xiaoyan’s flushed cheeks. Jiang Yumian caught her breath. “Let’s go back to the room first.”