Hating Her, While Still Having to Address Her as Mother - Chapter 8

Chapter 8: Shen-Xin Blossoming~

Chapter Brief: A Smile that Topples Cities~

On the day Jian Yu joined the production, the roads inside and out were packed so tightly that not even water could trickle through.

Many frantic fans were even screaming at Jian Yu’s car license plate: “Shen-Xin blossoms, the Wei-smile topples cities!”

Even though Kevin was wearing sneakers today for easy movement, Jian Yu could practically see Kevin’s toes curling with secondhand embarrassment inside those shoes.

Watching Kevin struggle to keep a straight face, Jian Yu sighed, “Just laugh if you want to. Don’t hold it back.”

At Jian Yu’s words, Kevin couldn’t suppress it anymore and burst into loud laughter, complaining between gasps: “…No, seriously, what era is this? Who still uses such a low-brow cheer slogan?”

“Hahahahahahaha! Jiang Shenwei’s fans are way too creative!” Kevin twitched with laughter while pulling out her phone to search for the slogan’s origin.

Sitting behind them was the new junior assistant. The previous one, who had caused trouble after the “Starry Night” event, had already been fired by Kevin.

It was strange; Jian Yu’s assistants never seemed to last long. It was like some sort of hex—they were replaced one after another. It wasn’t that Jian Yu was dissatisfied, but Kevin always was.

The newly recruited assistant sat in the back and whispered weakly, “Actually… apparently, that slogan was thought up by Jiang Shenwei’s fansite administrators in her early days… a few veteran fans came up with it when she first debuted. Because it has special meaning, they’ve used it until today.”

Kevin turned around to glance at the assistant. “Oh, not bad. HR finally hired someone decent. Your search speed is quite fast.”

The assistant replied softly, “Um… I didn’t Baidu it. I guessed.”

This seemingly ordinary sentence made Jian Yu and Kevin exchange a look of mutual understanding. Kevin, sharp-tongued as ever, turned back to the assistant for a rapid-fire Q&A:

“What day is it today?” “Thursday.” “What kind of Thursday?” “Crazy Thursday!” (A KFC meme) “Who says these green beans are old?” “These green beans are great!” (A viral video reference) “Triple-fold!” “Every side has a face!” (A Huawei phone ad reference) “When is Jiang Shenwei’s birthday?” “January 6th!”

…

The rapid-fire session between Kevin and the assistant ended in a long, deafening silence.

Kevin skillfully dialed HR, beginning a “friendly” greeting.

She started with: “What were you thinking? Does the company pay you to sit around and eat for free?! How many times has this happened? Hiring Jiang Shenwei’s fan club leader to be Jian Yu’s assistant—how many times is this now?!”

The call ended with Kevin’s colorful “standard Chinese” and warm regards: “I… you… your brain has—”

Kevin let out a long sigh and hung up dejectedly. She grabbed the iced Americano next to her and handed it to Jian Yu with resentment.

Jian Yu: “…” Wait, why is it that when she’s angry, she hands the drink to someone else?

The terrified assistant in the back tried to defend herself: “Teacher Yu, Sister K, I really will work hard. I didn’t come here to spy; I’m really here to work. My liking for Teacher Jiang… was a long time ago.”

Jian Yu waved her hand and patted Kevin’s shoulder. “It’s fine, no big deal. I think the girl seems nice; let her stay.”

“But—”

“I’m about to join the crew. If we can’t find a suitable replacement quickly, it’ll be a headache. Since she got hired, it means she meets the criteria in other aspects. I can’t fire her just because she likes Jiang Shenwei.”

“Holy— Jian Yu, you’re truly full of universal love and mercy. Have you considered that she might poison your food? What then?”

Jian Yu smiled at Kevin. “We live in a society ruled by law.” She looked at the assistant with a relaxed expression. “A legal society. No need to worry.”

The words were meant for Kevin, but also served as a subtle warning to the assistant. The assistant nodded frantically like a hamster. “I really will work hard! Please give me time to prove myself, Teacher Jian, Sister K.”

Just as she finished, the van stopped. They had arrived.

Jian Yu put on her Prada sunglasses and habitually ran her hand through her hair, sweeping it back from her forehead. “Right then. Before that, what you need to do is—”

The bodyguard opened the door. Jian Yu’s long legs stepped out. Amidst the deafening noise, not a single person was shouting her name.

The crowd surged forward, faces pressing in, phones shoved close, squeezing the path to a minimum.

Before that, as Jian Yu’s assistant, what you need to endure is a situation where you are not respected and not treated as a human being.

The assistant was nearly flattened into a pancake. Before she could adjust, a cup of scalding hot Americano was suddenly splashed through the crowded gap.

The assistant was standing right near Jian Yu. The liquid was aimed not just at Jian Yu, but would have hit her as well.

But Jian Yu’s well-defined hand grabbed her before she could be caught in the crossfire, pulling her aside to dodge the liquid together. The strong hand let go as soon as the “disaster” was averted.

Jian Yu’s movements were clean, agile, and composed, showing no sign of shock.

However, the assistant was clearly shaken. She hadn’t realized that Jian Yu’s actual situation was even worse than she had imagined. Even though Jian Yu had a “bad reputation,” she was still a star with loyal, “die-hard” fans. Everyone knew the name Jian Yu. But seeing it today, she realized that not everyone has the stomach to handle this kind of “negative-fame” traffic.

Once they were inside the building, Jian Yu said: “The trending search from last night might affect things for the next few days.” She slowly took off her sunglasses. “In the future, you can bring an umbrella when we go out. Just pretend it’s raining.”

The assistant’s face flushed red. She didn’t know why, but she had been saved by her favorite idol’s arch-rival, who was now calmly joking with her.

She felt ashamed. Standing there, she stammered, “Teacher Jian! My name is Li Kui. It’s not the ‘Kui’ from the outlaw Li Kui, it’s…”

“The ‘Kui’ from sunflowers, right?” Jian Yu’s tone was soft, quite unlike the cold image reported by the media.

“Yes… I wanted to say, not all ‘Gingers’ (Jiang fans) are like that. Some people really go too far! But even so, Teacher Jian!” Li Kui stood straight and gave Jian Yu a formal bow. “Even so, what my former fellow fans did was wrong. Please forgive them!”

Jian Yu sighed silently. Li Kui was nervous, worried Jian Yu would be annoyed. But Jian Yu wasn’t. She gently patted Li Kui’s head. “Liking someone is not a shameful thing. You don’t need to apologize on behalf of anyone.”

Jian Yu’s gentle words made Li Kui’s eyes well up. Oh no, what do I do? I’m about to switch sides and become her fan!

Jian Yu told her to look up. “Just focus on your work seriously. Don’t worry about anything else.”

“Yes, Teacher Jian!” Li Kui responded with all her might, nearly saluting and shouting “Yes sir!”

The volume of Li Kui’s voice startled the rest of the crew. Jiang Shenwei and the others, who were chatting nearby, glanced toward the source of the noise. Jiang Shenwei offered a silent smile.

Once everyone was present, Director Zheng began explaining the script details, character relationships, and set arrangements. Then, they began rehearsals. Director Zheng had a specific style: before filming officially started, he allowed plenty of time for actors to familiarize themselves with each other’s personas so they could enter the “state” quickly once the cameras rolled.

This was Jian Yu’s first time officially collaborating on a project with Jiang Shenwei. Script readings and rehearsals were, after all, very different.

The vibrant Jiang Shenwei stood before her—not in loungewear or private clothes, but dressed as Shen Manci. Even though the cameras weren’t on yet, her concentration was as serious as if they were.

Jian Yu realized something for the first time.

Voice, appearance, tone, scent—they all reflect a person’s emotions and colors. The character Jiang Shenwei portrayed vividly signaled: My voice falls for you, my appearance mourns for you, my tone softens because of you. Everything was like a warm ocean, enveloping you completely.

How could someone simply stand there and become the character? Just by standing there, she was Shen Manci of Jizhou.

Before taking her cue, Jian Yu—as herself—couldn’t help but sigh in her heart. Yes, it’s only natural to be attracted to and dazzled by such a person.

Forget Li Kui; even after years of sharing a bed, holding hands, hugging, and kissing Jiang Shenwei—after countless moments of intimate physical blending—Jian Yu was still captivated by the radiant Jiang Shenwei on set.

When Jiang Shenwei finished her lines, her gaze turned toward Jian Yu, sparkling with cleverness and expectation.

At this moment, Jian Yu finally understood why Jiang Shenwei felt she was perfect for the role of Su Zhixi. Was she not also a rebellious, self-centered child?

Beneath the surface of envy, jealousy, and hate, her feelings for Jiang Shenwei were as complex as Su Zhixi’s for Shen Manci. Behind extreme admiration was an intense pride and a love that demanded she surpass her, occupy her, and pull her down from that high pedestal!

Jian Yu took a step forward. From this step onward, she was no longer the canary Jiang Shenwei kept hidden in private.

She would become the bird that flew wing-to-wing with her. She wanted to fly very, very high. She wanted to see the scenery that Jiang Shenwei saw.

The winds of Jizhou seemed to blow across her face. Li Kui stood frozen. Because of the extraordinary chemistry between Jiang Shenwei and Jian Yu, she felt as if the winds of Jizhou were surging with majestic power right there in the Qinhai studio.

The story of Shen Manci and Su Zhixi was coming to life.