The Scummy Alpha Who Transmigrated Into a Book Was Tricked by the Actress Omega - Chapter 18

As they approached the entrance of the film set, the noise grew louder. Just like last time, Yan Xunzhen instructed the driver to park at the lot behind the set. Once the surrounding clamor died down and there were fewer people coming and going, Du Zuilan obediently finished the last bite of her breakfast.

Yan Xunzhen glanced at the time, it was almost eight o’clock, still early.

Du Zuilan neatly folded the script spread across her lap. Before getting out of the car, she graced Yan Xunzhen with a gentle smile, her attitude shockingly warmer than before. “Thank you. I’ll head off first,” she said.

Yan Xunzhen was momentarily entranced by her smile, blinking twice before snapping back to reality. A faint smile curved her phoenix-like eyes. “No problem.”

This was great.

Du Zuilan no longer saw her as an enemy. Sincerity and genuine effort in getting along with the female lead had clearly paid off.

At this thought, Yan Xunzhen suddenly remembered the candy placed beside the breakfast bag.

She had brought it for Du Zuilan but forgotten to give it to her.

Yan Xunzhen parted her lips and said to the driver, “Wait for me a moment.”

Then, she opened the car door, stepping out with one perfectly poised foot. The crisp sound of her high heels made Du Zuilan, who had only walked a few meters away, turn back to look.

Yan Xunzhen’s fishtail dress shimmered like flowing waves, making her entire figure glow. “Du Zuilan,” she called.

“Here’s today’s candy for you,” Yan Xunzhen said, holding out a small round candy in her palm. “Make sure you don’t get low blood sugar.”

Despite it being spring or summer, Du Zuilan’s fingertips were icy as she lightly took the candy from Yan Xunzhen’s hand. The touch felt like a soft, fuzzy paw gently scratching at her heart. Yan Xunzhen instinctively wanted to curl her fingers but forced herself to hold still.

Du Zuilan clasped the candy in her palm, her eyes crinkling slightly. “Thank you. I won’t.”

Yan Xunzhen cleared her throat and continued, “Well, you go ahead with your work. I’ll head to the company later.”

Du Zuilan nodded but paused before turning away. Her lowered lashes lifted, fluttering lightly like delicate feathers. Her expression was one of pure innocence mixed with a hint of curiosity. “By the way, is this candy matcha-flavored? I think I smell a bit of tea fragrance.”

Yan Xunzhen hesitated. She had asked her assistant to buy candies in flavors she liked, so she replied, “It shouldn’t be. The candy is either strawberry or lychee flavored.”

But matcha? There was indeed a faint tea fragrance in the air, though it didn’t quite match the bitterness of matcha.

Wait, the candy was tightly wrapped. How could there be any scent unless Du Zuilan was referring to Yan Xunzhen’s pheromones?!

Yan Xunzhen’s words abruptly cut off, nearly biting her tongue. Her fair and radiant face suddenly flushed red.

It was as if a seasoned, worldly courtesan from a story had been teased into blushing by an oblivious scholar.

Yan Xunzhen pressed her teeth against her tongue, forcing herself to look away from Du Zuilan’s dewy eyes. Mumbling, she said, “Maybe they bought matcha by mistake. I’m really sorry.”

Du Zuilan shook her head, still wearing that guileless expression, her lips curving slightly. “It’s fine. I actually quite like this tea-like scent.”

Yan Xunzhen’s fingertips pressed into her palm, taking a moment to regain her composure. A faint blush still lingered on her cheeks.

The two of them had just stood in front of the car, with no one else around. After a moment of quiet, they suddenly heard rustling noises and normal conversation coming from the car that had just parked beside them.

Both were startled and instinctively turned their heads to look at the vehicle.

It was a luxury car comparable in price to Yan Xunzhen’s, with a sleek and understated design in deep black. The window was slightly rolled down, revealing a woman with chestnut-colored long hair and round eyes. Her lips were pink, and her expression was a mix of amusement and feigned anger as she playfully bit the neck of the person beside her.

Then, with a “snap,” she opened the car door, her face flushed red as she stepped out, like a rabbit that had bitten someone and then gotten shy about it.

The woman noticed Yan Xunzhen and Du Zuilan, her round eyes widening in surprise as she took a step back and pulled the other woman out of the car.

The woman inside had black hair tied up with a simple wooden hairpin, a few loose strands falling beside her slender neck. Her face wore a gentle yet helpless smile.

She was stunning, and her face was incredibly well-known, belonging to the highly acclaimed actress Tang Ying.

“Miss Tang Ying?”

The woman with the gentle smile nodded, her voice elegant yet approachable: “Yes, that’s me. Hello, are you Miss Du Zuilan?”

Du Zuilan straightened up and replied earnestly, “Yes.”

The woman beside Tang Ying chuckled and tugged at the actress’s sleeve. Tang Ying’s tender gaze settled entirely on her: “No need to be so formal. Just call her Tang Ying.”

“B-but I’m inexperienced, I can’t address a senior so casually.” Du Zuilan began, but the rabbit-like woman interjected with a smile, “Really, it’s fine.”

Tang Ying wrapped an arm around the woman’s waist and said softly, “Mm. Just call me Tang Ying. This is my wife, Yu Tutu. I listen to her.”

Yu Tutu, who had been pretending to be angry earlier, couldn’t hide the smile on her face.

She glanced at the quiet woman behind Du Zuilan, a flicker of surprise crossing her expression so fleeting it might have been Yan Xunzhen’s imagination before asking, “And this is?”

Du Zuilan replied, “Yan Xunzhen, she’s, my friend.”

Tang Ying said, “CEO Yan? Hello.”

Yan Xunzhen laughed lightly. “No need for such formalities.”

She was inwardly delighted Du Zuilan had referred to her as a friend. Her joy solidified further as she observed the couple before her. Scouring her memories of the novel’s plot, she became even more certain: these two had no presence in the original story.

It was rather strange. No matter how much the butterfly effect flapped its wings, it shouldn’t have affected events before Yan Xunzhen’s appearance Tang Ying had been famous for years, which was completely different from the original novel.

Setting the question aside for now, she noticed Yu Tutu’s dimpled smile as she said to Du Zuilan, “Zuilan, may I call you that? I watched your performance as Liang Xiao before. I’m actually a fan of yours.”

Du Zuilan’s slender frame looked as if it might topple in the wind, yet she stood straighter than anyone. Hearing this, she couldn’t help but smile. “Of course you may.”

Yu Tutu continued, “This morning, while browsing through Ah Ying’s press releases, I came across some smear campaigns against you. It made me so angry! So, if you don’t mind, I can have Ah Ying help you deal with them in a few days!”

Yan Xunzhen suddenly froze.

Like fireworks suddenly ignited, a bang exploded in her mind, scattering fragmented memories that floated piece by piece in her consciousness.

With a smack, Scumbag A slammed the PR documents her subordinate had brought onto the table.

“Who told you to handle her PR immediately?!”

The subordinate froze for a moment before hurriedly explaining, “Miss Du’s new drama has already finished filming. Her spot on this variety show was practically guaranteed, but then that,”

Scumbag A roared, “Who told you to arrange PR for her?! I already said I want her to come begging to me first!”

“She thinks success will come that easily? No way! Anyone who dares to help her can get fired along with her!”

“Zuilan, just give me a kiss, and I’ll take care of it for you, alright?”

“Don’t push your luck! Useless, you’d be nothing without me.”

Yan Xunzhen’s forehead and chest throbbed with sudden pain. She raised a hand to press against her aching brow, taking a moment to pull herself out of these chaotic flashes of memory.

In the original novel, Du Zuilan had also faced a crisis of public opinion and PR.

But her crisis hadn’t come at this time, and she had almost no one to help her. She endured a long period of online harassment and malicious comments. It wasn’t until she proved herself with undeniable talent and outstanding work winning over the public that her fans united to clear her name, finally seeing some results.

Now, however, things had diverged from the book again. Not only was she involved, but a mysterious, inexplicably appearing award-winning actress had also stepped in.

Du Zuilan paused, her expression neither the ecstatic joy of an ordinary person hearing their idol would help them nor the distrustful, ungrateful skepticism one might expect. Instead, she seemed thoughtful, speaking first: “Thank you, Sister Tutu and Sister Tang Ying. But I’m not entirely sure about the details of the press release yet. Could you give me a little time to understand it better?”

Yu Tutu’s dimples appeared faintly as she smiled. “Of course.”

Her gaze inadvertently flickered toward Yan Xunzhen, who stood nearby with a slight frown, seemingly lost in painful memories. A trace of suspicion finally flashed across Yu Tutu’s face.

This expression, much like Yan Xunzhen’s furrowed brow, was subtle enough to go unnoticed if one wasn’t paying close attention. So Yan Xunzhen merely took two deep breaths, steadying her racing heart, and smiled. “Thank you, Actress Tang. But actually.”

Yan Xunzhen’s expression grew earnest, tinged with inquiry. “Junyan’s entertainment subsidiary also has a PR department. These past few days, they’ve been handling, a conflict that arose between Zuilan and another matter.”

“If possible, could we first discuss your approach with me?” Yan Xunzhen smiled. “That way, we won’t end up releasing identical or worse, contradictory statements and make a joke of ourselves.”

Only after speaking did Yan Xunzhen realize her hands were clenched tight.

But it wasn’t from nervousness about speaking to Tang Ying. It was because, in all the days since she had transmigrated into this world, she had gone from addressing Du Zuilan as “Miss Du Zuilan” to simply “Du Zuilan” but this was the first time she had called her by such an intimate name.

She stole a glance at Du Zuilan’s delicate, fair face, relieved to see no obvious resistance. The tension in her own brow which had made her look stern eased, revealing the striking confidence beneath her radiant beauty.

Tang Ying pondered for a moment before asking, “When Miss Yan mentions ‘another matter,’ are you referring to the issues involving Ruiwang and Tianneng?”

Yan Xunzhen and Du ZuiLan both turned their gaze toward her.

Yu Tutu, still holding onto Tang Ying’s arm, watched as her dimples slowly faded. She glanced sideways at Tang Ying’s expression before finally speaking up on her behalf:

“If you have time this afternoon, we can sit down and discuss it in detail.”

“But what I want to say is the true person in charge of Tianneng isn’t actually at Tianneng.”

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