The Vicious Female Supporting Character Goes Viral After Her Masks Drop During the Talent Show - Chapter 23

After sending those annoying fellows away, Lu Ting-shen closed the lounge door, shielding them from the outside noise. The room instantly fell quiet, chilled by a sudden tension.

Zhong Yan chose a seat as far away from him as possible. She remained silent, waiting for him to speak first.

Lu Ting-shen noticed the distance she had placed between them. A flash of displeasure crossed his eyes, but he said nothing. He simply sat down opposite her, separated by the coffee table, maintaining a measured distance.

“I will handle the matter regarding Tian Jingyu,” he stated.

Lu Ting-shen was no fool. He had clearly understood the subtext of the performance Zhong Yan and Xu You had just put on. Although her methods were somewhat unorthodox and lacked hard evidence, he chose to believe her this time.

Zhong Yan gave a faint, disinterested “Oh.”

How Dingming chose to deal with Tian Jingyu was not part of her plan. If Dingming wanted to do a good deed, that was fine by her, but she wasn’t going to offer him any gratitude for it.

Seeing her cold attitude, Lu Ting-shen added, “…The fact that Dingming was heavily promoting her previously was the idea of Lu Ming-qiu, the Director of the Artist Department. As you know, I’ve only just taken over as CEO; I haven’t had the time to look into such trivial matters.”

“You don’t need to explain your company’s internal affairs to me.”

Zhong Yan had no idea why he was telling her this. As her coldness persisted, Lu Ting-shen began to feel a twinge of anxiety. Does this woman really not understand why I’m explaining myself to her?

“Zhong Yan.” He leaned forward slightly. “I think there might be some misunderstandings between us.”

“Misunderstandings?” Zhong Yan was baffled. “What misunderstandings?”

As far as she was concerned, they were perfectly clear on where they stood.

Lu Ting-shen suppressed his growing impatience, keeping his tone as gentle as possible. “During my years abroad, we rarely kept in touch. I know you feel I neglected you, and you hold a grudge. As for me, I had misconceptions about you as well. I believe what we lack is communication.”

Zhong Yan found this increasingly bizarre. “What exactly are you trying to say?”

He had claimed to want to discuss something she was interested in. So far, she hadn’t heard a single word that interested her.

Lu Ting-shen sighed, unsure if she was genuinely dense or merely playing hard to get. During the time he was waiting outside, he had reflected on the situation.

Zhong Yan used to be obsessed with him. Now, she was dead-set on breaking the engagement, distancing herself, ignoring him, and even flirting with other men right in front of his face. He concluded that because he had been too cold in the past, she was heartbroken but unable to let him go—so she was using these “push-and-pull” tactics to get his attention.

Once he “rationalized” it this way, his mood softened significantly. He hadn’t exploded when Xu You interfered earlier precisely because he thought she was in a difficult position. Women need to be coaxed, he thought. He believed that if he showed her a bit of tenderness, she would eventually come running back.

With this thought, his gaze softened further. He decided to make a concession.

“I wanted to say… regarding my previous decision to break the engagement… I admit I was a bit impulsive,” he said earnestly. “Regarding the marriage, I think we should take some time to get to know each other better before making a final decision.”

Zhong Yan froze for a second. Then, as if she had just heard a piece of terrible news, her expression darkened instantly.

“…Brother, you weren’t impulsive at all. I think your previous decision was incredibly wise.”

“Zhong Yan, don’t speak out of spite. I am giving you a chance,” Lu Ting-shen said seriously.

Zhong Yan was stunned. Giving me a chance? She almost wanted to laugh at the sheer absurdity of it. As expected of a male lead—always so insufferably confident.

She straightened her posture and looked at him solemnly. “Lu Ting-shen, I am speaking to you quite calmly. There is nothing for us to ‘get to know.’ I don’t need you to give me a chance. Let’s just break the engagement immediately, okay?”

“Nothing to get to know?”

Lu Ting-shen let out a short, dry laugh, as if her words were the height of ridiculousness.

“I didn’t know you joined a survival show; I thought you had vanished and nearly called the police. I didn’t know you were ‘Zhong Yan’ the songwriter; I had to lower myself to ask Origin Point for information just to contact you. Ha! Imagine the industry’s reaction if they found out the CEO of Dingming had to go through a middleman just to talk business with his own fiancée? I’d be a laughingstock.”

As he spoke, the gentleness he had been trying to maintain evaporated, replaced by a harsh edge. “Zhong Yan, do you still think there’s nothing to learn about each other?”

He was angry. He hadn’t blamed her for hiding her identity. He had come personally to see her perform, endured her flirting with another man, shown her tenderness, and made concessions—so why was she still being so cold and heartless? There had to be a limit to playing hard to get. He frowned at her, hoping she would stop this tantrum.

Zhong Yan nodded slowly. “Oh. I see now.”

Finally, Lu Ting-shen thought. She understands the effort I’ve put in for her.

But Zhong Yan merely gave a cold, expressionless sneer. “You suddenly regret breaking the engagement because you found out I’m ‘Zhong Yan.’ You realized I have ‘utility value,’ so you’re trying to pull a ‘white wolf’ scheme—getting something for nothing.”

“If I become the CEO’s wife, there’s no reason for me not to cooperate with Dingming, right?”

Lu Ting-shen’s eyes widened. He was speechless for a long moment before he uttered in disbelief, “Is that really how you think of me?”

“How else should I think?”

To Zhong Yan, everything he had just said sounded like a list of complaints. He was complaining that her hidden identity made him look bad in front of Origin Point and cost him both face and profit.

Lu Ting-shen’s face gradually turned a deep shade of crimson. His rare spark of genuine affection had been dismissed as mere greed. He felt a mixture of fury and shame, as if his lofty pride were being ground into the dirt under her heel.

“Zhong Yan… you… you are simply unreasonable!”

Lu Ting-shen stood up abruptly, his patience finally snapping.

“Why so angry, CEO Lu? Did I hit a nerve?”

Zhong Yan stood up as well. “If Dingming wants to cooperate with ‘Zhong Yan,’ then show some sincerity and talk business. But if you’re looking for a free ride through a marriage contract, then we have nothing left to say.”

She walked toward the door, pausing only to throw one last sentence over her shoulder.

“Lu Ting-shen, our engagement is destined to be broken. If we end it now, we can still part on decent terms, and there’s still room to discuss a partnership. I hope you think it over carefully.”

“Destined?”

Zhong Yan didn’t answer. She pushed the door open and walked out.

The Escape

When Yan Shi arrived in a hurry, he happened to see Zhong Yan emerging from the lounge. From inside the room came the low roar of a man’s voice.

“Zhong Yan! We aren’t finished yet! Who gave you permission to leave!”

Zhong Yan’s expression was grim. Hearing the shout, she didn’t even pause. When she saw Yan Shi, she quickened her pace toward him.

“Producer Yan, is it time for the assembly?”

After all the performances were finished, all the trainees had to gather for the “Producer” to announce the results of the eight matchups and reveal the individual vote counts for all 100 trainees. The performances were indeed over, but it wasn’t quite time for the assembly yet.

Before Yan Shi could even answer, Zhong Yan provided her own. “Good. I’ll go with you right now.”

She shot him a meaningful look and gave his sleeve a tug, pulling him away. Yan Shi understood instantly: she wanted to get away from this place. He immediately complied and led her away.

They reached the stairwell, a safe distance from the lounge. Yan Shi stopped and looked down at her.

“Are you alright? Do you feel unwell anywhere?” he asked guiltily. “I’m sorry… I only just found out that you fainted…”

As the “Producer” of the show, he had spent the entire evening moving between the stage and the backstage waiting area. It wasn’t until the filming ended that he heard from the staff about her collapse. He had rushed over immediately.

Zhong Yan gave him a smile. “Don’t worry, I’m fine now. Besides, why are you apologizing? I should be thanking you—you arrived at the perfect time.”

Talking to Lu Ting-shen had been so infuriating she felt her low blood sugar was turning into high blood pressure. Looking at Yan Shi’s pleasant, handsome face, she felt her vitals returning to normal.

Recalling the shout from inside the lounge, Yan Shi’s brow furrowed with a mix of hesitation and displeasure. “That man just now… was he bullying you?”

On his way to the lounge, he had heard that both Xu You and the CEO of Dingming were on-site and had gone to see her. Yan Shi knew Xu You’s voice; that low roar clearly wasn’t him. That left only the CEO of Dingming.

Dingming… Dingming again. He loathed Dingming, but he hadn’t expected Zhong Yan to be entangled with them as well.

“He wasn’t exactly bullying me; he’s just annoying,” Zhong Yan sighed, lowering her eyes. When she looked up, she saw Yan Shi’s frown deepening. Thinking he was worried about her, she gave him an easy smile. “But it’s fine now. I’ve sent him packing.”

Yan Shi’s expression remained serious. He looked at her intently and said, “If you run into trouble, come to me. I will help you.”

He hadn’t wanted to have anything more to do with Dingming, but if Zhong Yan needed him, he still held a trump card against them—even if playing it meant “sinking the boat” and risking everything.

Zhong Yan gave his shoulder a light pat. “Thanks a lot.”

The CEO’s Obsession

Deep into the night, Lu Ting-shen left the filming site with a dark face, drove home in a dark mood, and went to bed feeling utterly gloomy. He tossed and turned, eyes closed but mind racing.

His brain repeatedly replayed his conversation with Zhong Yan. Just as his breathing would grow heavy with anger, an image of her on stage in that red outfit would uncontrollably flash before his eyes. His breathing slowed, but his heart felt even more bitter and tangled.

She had ignored him, misinterpreted him, and insulted him with such coldness. By all rights, he should have called the Zhong family immediately and ended the engagement on the spot.

And yet, he hadn’t. He didn’t want to.

Lu Ting-shen felt like he was going crazy. He sat up, threw back the covers, and pulled open the heavy curtains. It was nearly dawn, but the CBD of the city was still a sea of flowing lights. He stepped out onto the balcony, leaning against the glass railing as the humid summer wind blew over him, staring out at the bustling night.

After an unknown amount of time, he went back inside, picked up his phone, and dialed a number.

“Yes, CEO Lu,” his secretary’s voice answered.

“First thing tomorrow morning, contact Zhang Jing. I want to personally finalize Dingming’s partnership in managing the debut group for Best Girls.”

The debut group would have a limited activity period of one and a half years. During that time, the members’ management would be entirely in the hands of the operating company.

Hmph. Zhong Yan thinks she can escape me?

As long as Dingming secured the management rights, she wouldn’t be able to lift a finger without him for the next eighteen months. Lu Ting-shen didn’t believe for a second that he couldn’t win her over in a year and a half.