The Movie Queen And Her Rival Just Went Public! - Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Upon hearing this, Su Cancan’s face instantly drained of color, turning a heartbreaking, pale white.

Doubt, disappointment, and anger mixed in her eyes.

Liu Yi-Min sighed silently. Su Cancan entered the industry in the same year as her and was her first artist. After years of being together, they had witnessed each other’s growth and transformation, having long surpassed a typical colleague relationship. Seeing Su Cancan like this, even the most cold-hearted person couldn’t remain unmoved.

She handed over her phone, her voice softening as she said helplessly, “There’s really no way to push back this time.”

Mr. Qian, Qian Wei-Yi, the aspiring entrepreneur who had pursued her for half a month at the film academy to sign her.

A subtle bitterness spread from Su Cancan’s mouth, reaching her limbs and bones. The entertainment company, once unknown, now had a voice in the entertainment circle. She wouldn’t take credit or boast, but the fact was it was achieved because of her; she fed this group of people.

No, a bunch of ungrateful wolves.

Su Cancan gave a self-mocking smile, her eyes red, her hands tightly clenched into fists. She stood still and asked, “What if I insist on not signing?”

As a seasoned manager, Liu Yi-Min could usually give the most accurate answer to an artist’s question in the shortest time, but knowing Qian Wei-Yi, she hesitated.

Xiao Ke’s eyes darted between the two: “Sister Liu, will Mr. Qian dissolve our team?”

Liu Yi-Min nodded, confirming her guess, and looking tired: “Dissolving our team is minor. The company grew bigger, and his ambition grew with it. If he targets us and just says the word, no company will ever want us again. As for Cancan, Cancan will definitely be set up by him…”

Su Cancan could tell Qian Wei-Yi was dead set on making her cling to this opportunity and leverage the publicity. She had seen a few of his threatening messages already. He was very good at manipulating people, knowing that she couldn’t give up her dream of being an actress and even less could ignore the team’s livelihood, so he directly laid out his cards to force her to choose.

She quickly reviewed her connections. Her family’s business had nothing to do with the entertainment industry, and over the years, she had signed all her commercial and financial contracts to the company for management, completely blocking all her retreat routes.

Reflecting on this, Su Cancan felt only sorrow. She, who had always followed her heart, couldn’t beat capital and could only become a “prisoner.”

Two pairs of eyes behind her stared, waiting for her final answer.

When not in front of her, Liu Yi-Min felt she could be ruthless and force Su Cancan, but seeing her like this, Liu Yi-Min knew she couldn’t do it. She was the one who accompanied Su Cancan through her low point. Shen Luo-Yan’s sudden takeover of the role and the malicious smear campaign were like thorns stabbing into Su Cancan’s heart. Liu Yi-Min deeply empathized with how difficult that period was. Therefore, even if Su Cancan insisted on not accepting, she wouldn’t have any complaints.

After a long pause, Su Cancan slowly spoke, her voice very soft.

“Reply to Qian Wei-Yi.” She paused briefly, swallowing the excessive saliva, “I’ll take it.”

She’ll take it?!

Xiao Ke and Liu Yi-Min both showed exaggerated expressions. Xiao Ke was overjoyed to save her job, while Liu Yi-Min was utterly incredulous. Was she really willing to swallow her pride and film a dating show with her arch-nemesis?

Liu Yi-Min thought her ears must be malfunctioning: “Are you really going to accept?”

Su Cancan said, “Yes, I’ll take it.”

A tear rolled down her cheek, melting into her clothes and creating a dark circle. She murmured, “Do I have any other choice…”

Liu Yi-Min couldn’t bear to face Su Cancan, so she turned away and sent a message to Qian Wei-Yi. After the other party, satisfied, forwarded the contact information for the production team, he didn’t forget to mock her a couple of times. She ignored him, focusing on coordinating with the production team.

The decision to take this variety show stirred up a storm in Su Cancan’s heart. No, since she first heard about it, if the main character was someone else, she could still rationally analyze and advise, but it just had to be her, and she had to be with the person she most hated in this life.

Large raindrops fell, making a non-stop, crackling sound.

After a long while, and a long period of silence, Su Cancan’s mind cleared a little. She reached for her phone on the desk. Xiao Ke, nimble, had already cleaned up the mess on the floor and stood by. Seeing this, she proactively picked up the phone and handed it over.

Su Cancan hooked up the corner of her stiff mouth: “Thank you.”

Xiao Ke shook her head.

Unlocking the phone, the upper right corner of several social app icons showed a red ’99+’. It was nothing more than “concern” from people in the industry and judgments from netizens. Su Cancan clicked into Weibo without hesitation and switched accounts.

Sleeping Volcano—her secondary account created six years ago. In the early days without fans, she used this account to boost her data. It was never found out, so she kept using it. Now, she occasionally posts daily life and chats with a passionate fan she met before.

Calling them a passionate fan wasn’t meant to be disrespectful. That person had been following her for six years, consistently reposting, liking, and commenting for six years. They were the first to buy any endorsements or business, regardless of the amount. Even their ID was her birthday, 19970615.

Sure enough, they had sent her a private message two hours ago.

Su Cancan lowered her gaze and replied.

The signing is still confidential, and casually disclosing it would not only risk her identity being exposed but also lead to a lot of trouble. Su Cancan didn’t answer whether she accepted or not. To this friend she had never met, she only expressed the doubt lingering in her heart.

The other party was busy with work, and Su Cancan didn’t expect an instant reply. Just as she was about to exit the chat page, a new message notification lit up. She clicked on the dialogue box again.

The netizen’s few words sparked a new train of thought for Su Cancan. Anyway, everything she did recently was met with criticism. Since she’d be acting regardless of who she was paired with, why not seize the opportunity to earn a hefty sum? She could also meet Shen Luo-Yan and openly give her a hard time—killing many birds with one stone.

They didn’t chat for long, and there was no reply from the other side. Su Cancan guessed they had gone back to work. Lackluster, she scrolled through the entertainment rankings.

The male idol who had just posted a breakup apology a while ago was exposed with a new relationship. Fans were publicly condemning the paparazzi for disrespecting people’s privacy. She pulled the corner of her mouth, couldn’t help but let out a sneer. What kind of scoop was this? The matter of him having a “three-person meeting” was still being suppressed. Talk about making a mountain out of a molehill.

Finding it boring, Su Cancan was about to put down her phone when Liu Yi-Min’s voice and a WeChat notification sound rang simultaneously.

“Cancan, the FOR U contract is here. I’ve forwarded it to you.”

Liu Yi-Min dared to say that the FOR U production team was the most bizarre she had ever dealt with. When asked about the filming period, they replied it would be centered around her artist; the filming location was up to them; and they even allowed them to name their own remuneration.

It was… as if they were desperate to give away money?

She repeatedly suspected if a trap had been set for them. The contract was sent over. She read through it; it was a standard contract, but the figure in the signing amount column was simply too large. Before she could send a message to confirm, the other side sent a new version.

Only one number was changed: the ‘one’ before the seven zeros was changed to a ‘two’.

“Huh?” Su Cancan clicked on the document and scrolled until a string of numbers caught her eye. She enlarged the font, pressed her finger on the screen, and counted carefully, exclaiming in a Taiwanese accent, “Holy moly, twenty million? Is the production cost of a dating show this high now? Check if I signed a contract or a bond of indenture.”

Liu Yi-Min looked at Su Cancan: “I can’t guarantee anything, but they said, if it’s not enough, they’ll add more.”

Su Cancan paused for a few seconds: “I can briefly sell my soul.”

She crossed her arms: “But not my body. I’m not filming any X-rated movies.”

Their eyes met, followed by silence and a simultaneous shake of their heads.

Su Cancan hesitated: “Ask for more details. You know, if my grandpa heard I sold my body for twenty million, he would beat me to death.”

“Understood.” Liu Yi-Min knew what she meant. Her fingers flew across the small keyboard. Distracting herself, she asked: “Are you feeling better now?”

Su Cancan’s face slumped, and she remained silent for a long time. She only mumbled when Liu Yi-Min finished editing the message, pressed send, and looked at her.

“What can I do? I’ve cried, I’ve done what I could. Go and tear off Qian Wei-Yi’s face? Then he’d fire all of you, and I’d have to support you. What a loss.”

“But to be honest, I’m still reluctant. But I’ve been a coward for so long, avoiding it for so many years, it’s time for a conclusion. I’ve actually thought about it: would I have definitely won Best Actress if I had acted in that role back then? Not necessarily. It’s just the mental hurdle.”

Her tone suddenly shifted, and Su Cancan pouted: “Of course! I still really hate Shen Luo-Yan, and I hate despicable capital maneuvers!”

The fact that she could openly talk about the past suggested a change in Su Cancan’s attitude. Liu Yi-Min’s index finger paused over the spacebar. After a moment of blankness, a new idea abruptly popped into her mind. Because it was so wild and stimulating, the blood surging from her heart was unusually vigorous. She desperately tried to suppress this terrifying thought, but her mouth wouldn’t listen, and the words slipped out.

“Cancan, if I didn’t remember wrongly, your contract with Stellar is only for seven years.”

Liu Yi-Min was reminding Su Cancan, but this matter couldn’t be publicized or discussed openly. She turned to look at Xiao Ke’s reaction.

Xiao Ke was earnest and couldn’t participate in discussions about Su Cancan’s work. She was sitting in a chair playing a matching game. Feeling the burning gaze fixed on her forehead, she slowly raised her head, her large, innocent eyes clear and bewildered.

“Is it fun?”

A statement devoid of emotion floated out. Xiao Ke thought she had missed something major. Ignoring the swiftly running time bar at the top of the screen, she frantically turned off the screen to apologize.

Su Cancan was enjoying teasing Xiao Ke when Liu Yi-Min dropped a bombshell.

“Don’t be busy laughing. The production team requires you and Shen Luo-Yan to share a bed during filming…”