The Vicious Female Supporting Character Goes Viral After Her Masks Drop During the Talent Show - Chapter 40

Zhong Yan turned her head and saw that Lu Tingshen had his hand on the armrest, his fingertips grazing the door-lock button.

“Open the door.” Zhong Yan’s voice had turned completely cold.

Lu Tingshen didn’t respond, nor did he press the button.

She had tried to speak to him reasonably, but he wouldn’t listen. She didn’t know what kind of madness had taken hold of him now. Not wanting to waste any more time, she leaned over to press the button herself. But just as her fingertips were about to reach it, her wrist was caught in a firm grip.

Zhong Yan glared at him. “What are you doing?”

“It’s late and quiet outside. It isn’t safe for you to go back alone.”

“Then tell your driver to move!”

“…We aren’t finished talking. You can’t leave yet.”

“What else is there to say?”

“…I won’t allow the engagement to be broken.”

Zhong Yan was on the verge of a breakdown. She took a deep breath, squeezing out the last drop of her patience. “Then explain it clearly. Exactly why can’t you break it off?”

Lu Tingshen’s expression flickered with something strange. He looked as if he wanted to speak but hesitated. After a long silence, he turned his face away, refusing to look at her.

“…There is no ‘why.’ You were always meant to marry me.”

“Excuse me?” Zhong Yan scoffed. That wasn’t a reason; it was an excuse.

Instead, Lu Tingshen questioned her. “Why do I have to explain? You’re the one violating the agreement. You should be the one explaining why you’re so hell-bent on breaking up with me!”

“I told you a long time ago! It’s because I don’t like you. I can’t marry a man I don’t love.”

“You—!” Lu Tingshen’s face flushed with anger.

Zhong Yan couldn’t understand why he was so upset. Since he refused to answer her questions directly, she concluded that he was holding onto the engagement because she was somehow profitable to him—a sordid reason he was too ashamed to admit.

Deciding there was no point in further conversation, she tried to wrench her hand away. Lu Tingshen, fueled by his own stubbornness, refused to let go. The more she struggled, the tighter he gripped. He was so strong that Zhong Yan felt as if her bones might snap.

Just as she was about to overcome her disgust and bite his hand, the roar of an accelerating engine tore through the silent night.

A white van suddenly lunged out from the darkness, speeding past and swerving to a stop directly in front of the Rolls-Royce, blocking its path completely. The black and white vehicles faced off on the empty road.

The sudden turn of events made Zhong Yan stop struggling. The white van looked incredibly familiar.

A moment later, Yan Shi stepped out of the van. He ran through the light drizzle to the door beside Zhong Yan and knocked hard on the window. His expression was anxious, yet held a stern warning for the car’s owner.

The moment she saw Yan Shi, Zhong Yan breathed a massive sigh of relief. Good boy! I didn’t dote on him for nothing. His timing is perfect!

With someone there to back her up, her defiance returned. “Lu Tingshen, let go of me right now!”

Sensing her shift in attitude, Lu Tingshen gripped her even tighter. He shot a glance at Yan Shi through the window before turning back to Zhong Yan, his eyes twisting with anger. “Let go? So you can run to him? Zhong Yan, exactly how many men are you entangled with?”

“Are you insane?”

The pain in her wrist caused her temper to flare. “I’ll be entangled with as many men as I want! It’s none of your business!”

Yan Shi couldn’t hear the specifics of the argument, but he could hear their rising voices and see the man refusing to release Zhong Yan. His dark eyes turned cold, like a blade of winter steel. He pulled out his phone, dialed three digits, and pressed the screen against the window for them to see.

“Release her,” he shouted sternly, “or I’m calling the police!”

Everyone in the car heard him.

Zhong Yan smiled and stopped struggling. She tapped on the glass with her free hand to signal Yan Shi to go ahead and call them. Then, she turned to Lu Tingshen with a cold sneer. “By all means, don’t let go. We’ll just wait here for the police. Maybe a trip to the station will help you clear your head.”

Secretary Wen also heard Yan Shi. He was worried and didn’t want the situation to escalate. He opened the partition window and whispered, “CEO Lu,” as a reminder for him to calm down.

Lu Tingshen didn’t let go, nor did he unlock the doors. He simply stopped arguing and turned his head away in silence. Secretary Wen understood immediately. Lu Tingshen didn’t actually want the police involved; he was just too proud to back down in front of a romantic rival.

A competent secretary doesn’t just do work; he reads the room. Secretary Wen reached over and pressed the unlock button on the driver’s side.

“Miss Zhong, my apologies. You may exit the vehicle,” Wen said.

The moment the lock clicked, Yan Shi pulled the door open. He reached in, pried Lu Tingshen’s hand off her, and pulled Zhong Yan out of the car.

The drizzle continued to fall. Using his height, Yan Shi used his arm to shield Zhong Yan’s head as he escorted her to his white van.

Through the rain-streaked window, Lu Tingshen watched her walk further and further away under another man’s protection. He narrowed his eyes and clenched his fists so hard his knuckles turned white. He would never allow what belonged to him to leave his reach.

“Contact the Zhong family for a meeting,” Lu Tingshen told Secretary Wen. “The sooner, the better.”

The date for the formal engagement had to be set now.

By the time Zhong Yan sat down in Yan Shi’s van, only the hem of her skirt was damp; she was otherwise dry. She looked at Yan Shi, who was standing outside carefully tucking her voluminous skirt into the cabin.

His black T-shirt was soaked through, clinging to his frame and outlining the lean muscles beneath. The rain had flattened his styled hair, sending droplets down his handsome face and into his collar.

Zhong Yan wanted to tell him to get in, but as she reached down to help with her skirt, she realized she was still holding the core of the apple she had finished. Yan Shi saw it and held out his hand.

“I’ll throw that away for you.”

Zhong Yan felt a bit embarrassed—it was something she had been chewing on, after all. “No, it’s fine. I’ll do it. Get in the car before you catch a cold.”

She moved to step out, but Yan Shi pressed her back into the seat with one hand. “Give it to me,” he said. His voice was gentle but left no room for argument. “It’s raining. Stay inside.”

Afraid he would catch a chill if they argued, she handed him the apple core. Yan Shi closed the door, blocking out the rain. He walked to a nearby trash can, disposed of the core, and hopped into the driver’s side. The vehicle immediately sped away from the scene.

The van was well-stocked. Yan Shi pulled a towel from the back to wipe himself down. Since his T-shirt was ruined, he reached for a spare black shirt but paused halfway. He pulled his hand back and simply draped the towel over his shoulders.

Zhong Yan noticed his hesitation and closed her eyes. “Go ahead and change. I won’t look. Don’t get sick from the air conditioning.”

With her eyes closed, she couldn’t see the tips of Yan Shi’s ears turn red. “Okay,” he whispered.

In the darkness, she could only hear the quiet pitter-patter of the rain and the soft rustle of fabric. “Thank you for today,” she said. “I’m lucky I ran into you.”

The rustling stopped. “Actually,” Yan Shi confessed, his voice slightly awkward, “it wasn’t a coincidence.”

“I saw you get into that car, so I waited nearby. I didn’t mean to pry into your privacy… I was just worried that man would give you trouble again.”

He looked at her tentatively. “If I offended you, I apologize.”

Zhong Yan smiled softly. “Yan Shi, I told you—you are a friend and family I trust. There is no such thing as ‘offense’ between us.”

Relieved, Yan Shi gave a quiet nod.

Zhong Yan expected him to ask about her relationship with Lu Tingshen or why they were fighting, but he remained silent. She felt that since he had helped her so much, she owed him an explanation.

“That man is CEO Lu of Dingming Entertainment. We are old acquaintances. We have a disagreement over some private matters, which is why we often argue.”

Yan Shi didn’t ask, not because he didn’t care, but because he cared too much. He couldn’t ask with the simple curiosity of a “normal” friend. Every time she called him “family,” he was happy, yet a small, dark corner of his heart felt a sense of loss—a restless, greedy frustration.

He knew she wasn’t just “acquaintances” with that man; there were clearly emotional entanglements. He hesitated for a long time before choosing his words carefully.

“…Can it be resolved?” he asked. He didn’t want to see that man near her ever again.

Zhong Yan shook her head. “We can’t reach an agreement.”

Yan Shi’s heart sank, but then she added calmly, “But since we can’t agree, there’s no longer any need to try.”

He turned to look at her. Zhong Yan was staring out at the rain, lost in thought. The passing streetlights flickered across her face, blurred by the raindrops on the window. He couldn’t tell what she was thinking.

Back at the dorm, An Tao had been waiting anxiously. She saw the rain starting and grew worried. Xia Meng had come back in a bad mood and buried herself under her covers immediately.

An Tao went to the stairwell, where the window offered a clear view of the base’s back gate. She leaned against the frame, letting the cool, damp night air hit her face as she waited. Other trainees passed by and stopped to join her, curious about what had happened to Zhong Yan.

Finally, the sound of a car driving through puddles echoed through the night. A white van pulled up.

“Hey! Is she back?” one trainee asked.

“Wait… isn’t that the Host’s car?” another added in confusion.

The whisper spread, and soon the window was crowded with curious heads. They watched as Yan Shi got out first, using his jacket as an umbrella to shield Zhong Yan as he escorted her from the car and safely into the building.