"You—!" Xiang Mingyue couldn't resist being teased, and Su Yanxi's face twisted in anger. "I, I've at least worked hard to make my own way in the world! You, this kept woman, what right do you have to talk about me like that?"
Xiang Mingyue then noticed Su Yanxi's car—it was actually a black Bentley!
The iconic "B" emblem, resembling an eagle spreading its wings, truly pierced Xiang Mingyue's heart. His voice unconsciously rose as he pointed at the million-dollar luxury car and chuckled maniacally.
"Years have passed, and you... you're even driving a Bentley now? Su, you've got some nerve! You must have been getting a lot of kickbacks from your sugar daddy all these years, haven't you?"
Xiang Mingyue was mocking him, but in reality, his eyes were practically bleeding with envy.
Su Yanxi found it amusing and replied in a light tone, "It's just a means of transportation, why are you so surprised?"
On this trip, Su Yanxi did not change her luxury car and designer bags, nor did she intend to create a low-key and frugal image.
Firstly, there's no need. He obtained everything through legitimate means, so instead of hiding it and arousing suspicion, he'd rather be open and honest, showing his true self to the public.
Secondly, he had anticipated that someone would become enraged. Why would he avoid having the rare opportunity to witness his arch-enemy's fury?
"I'm surprised?" Xiang Mingyue gritted his teeth and stubbornly argued, "I'm laughing at your unprofessionalism! Who comes to the film and television base to audition in a private car? Everyone comes in a van!"
"We know you've never been on set before, so we didn't provide you with a car. It's really embarrassing. So many years after graduation, you've never even been on set once. It's ridiculous!"
Although Xiang Mingyue's words were not very sarcastic, they were all true. As a top student at Beicheng Film Academy, Su Yanxi had indeed never been in a film crew.
While her classmates were busy filming TV series and movies, desperately accumulating experience and resumes, Su Yanxi disappeared without a trace, vanishing as soon as her senior year internship began.
For art school students whose blossoming period is short, Su Yanxi's behavior is both unbelievable and highly inadvisable.
"Yeah, laugh if it's funny."
Su Yanxi wasn't angry and calmly continued the conversation.
"I didn't join any productions before because I hadn't found a drama I liked. Now that I have, why didn't I come?"
"Red Flower" will definitely be a well-made TV series, which is very suitable as the first salute on my road to comeback.
"Hmph." Xiang Mingyue rolled his eyes dismissively. "A comeback? More like a debut! Someone who has never had a serious work to his name dares to talk about firing the first salute!"
The two mortal enemies looked down on each other, separated to the left and right, and left from the two exits of the D parking lot.
Lin Xiaohai couldn't help but turn around and look at Xiang Mingyue's back as he walked in the opposite direction. He muttered to himself, "Madam, he's going the wrong way. The audition is in Area A, and he's heading towards Area E."
"Ignore him."
Su Yanxi kept an eye on the time and unconsciously quickened her pace.
"Hurry up and go to the audition location to register. I heard they give out numbers in the order of registration. Let's try to get one of the earlier ones so we can leave a stunning impression on the judges."
"Also, be careful later, don't call me 'Madam' in front of outsiders; otherwise, you'll have to explain to those meddlesome people."
"Okay, husband—" Lin Xiaohai stopped abruptly halfway through his sentence and asked, "Then what should I call you?"
"Whatever. Su Su, Yan hope, or Brother Yan Xi are all fine. Call me by familiar names and don't use honorifics. I won't shy away from my married status, but let's avoid trouble if possible and not drag other families into this."
"Alright, then I'll call you Brother Yanxi!"
Lin Xiaohai readily agreed, and followed Su Yanxi with his bag, feeling extremely pleased that he could get closer to the young mistress.
Because of that "brother," Lin Xiaohai felt an even greater sense of mission! The more he thought about it, the more suspicious Xiang Ming seemed, and he alertly reminded Su Yanxi.
"Brother Yanxi, that guy with the red-eye was so aggressive just now, could it be that he's already pulled strings and pre-selected the actors?"
Su Yanxi clicked her tongue lightly, explaining to Lin Xiaohai with a hint of helplessness, "No. This is a TV series invested in by CCTV, using a top-notch production team; the casting process will definitely be strictly controlled, and no one will be allowed to tamper with it."
"Unless someone like me has connections and influence from other companies."
If Su Yanxi wanted to, he could easily get the lead role through his connections, without having to go through all the trouble of auditioning at the film studio and competing with others.
Lin Xiaohai had previously advised the young mistress not to work so hard, saying that using connections was a safer option than anything else—it would save her a lot of trouble.
Unfortunately, the young mistress was always aloof and proud, and disdained to play those underhanded tricks.
"Don't worry about it. Didn't I tell you? I have 100% confidence."
Su Yanxi patted her young male assistant on the shoulder, both to give Lin Xiaohai confidence and to encourage herself.
When he first arrived in Beicheng for university, he encountered shady dealings because he had no connections or support. Now he has transformed and been reborn. He is no longer the weak and easily bullied Su Yanxi, and naturally he does not want to become the kind of person he hated and despised the most.
"I want to win the lead role fair and square."
The two walked for almost ten minutes before finally bypassing a film and television area and arriving at the audition location.
The audition venue was divided into two areas: the front area was the registration and waiting area, where participating artists would register their names and submit their resumes and receive a number tag. The back area was the audition performance area, which was tightly closed, with staff guarding the area to prevent anyone from entering.
Su Yanxi received number 13. Since it's unknown how many people can get in at one audition, it's hard to say whether this number is considered high.
"The number is so unlucky..."
Lin Xiaohai held the number plate, his face full of worry.
"Arriving early doesn't seem to be an advantage, does it? If I come later, I might be able to find out the audition script and prepare in advance..."
Chapter 4
"You're dreaming." Su Yanxi poked her male assistant on the forehead. "There will definitely be multiple scripts or themes. How can we let anyone easily leak the test questions?"
"Acting skills are subjective. Even if you know the script in advance, you may not be able to bring out the charm that the judges want."
The audition wasn't supposed to start until 10:30, and Su Yanxi was getting bored while waiting. She was looking for nearby cafes on her phone when she answered a phone call.
"Hello, is this my cousin? What's up?"
He subconsciously circled around, looking for an open space where he could receive good sound.
"Oh... okay, okay, no problem, I understand."
The phone call didn't last long. By the time Lin Xiaohai followed with his bag, Su Yanxi had already hung up: "Madam, what's wrong?"
"It's my cousin calling. She said she took my aunt for a medical check-up today and asked me to pick up the necklace another day." Su Yanxi dialed Bie Yunzong's family number. "It's nothing, I'll just tell your young master."
The moment the dial tone sounded, Su Yanxi's sharp ears picked up a familiar musical prelude.
"—What is that?" He jumped, straining his ears to search the direction from which the ringing was coming, looking around curiously. "This music..."
It's a Christmas song by the Japanese band Backnumber.
His dating anniversary and his wedding anniversary are on the same day—Christmas Eve. Whenever they reminisce about their past relationship, the first thing that comes to mind is always this light and dreamy Christmas song. So, Zongxi and he are perfectly in sync and have both set this song as each other's exclusive ringtone.
Su Yanxi didn't even have time to make a phone call; she just wanted to see who else happened to like this song.
Before he could search carefully, he was stopped by staff members who quickly stepped forward.
"Sir, outsiders are not allowed to enter this area."
Su Yanxi only noticed the "No Entry" sign when she stopped and bowed to the staff to apologize: "I'm sorry, I didn't see the sign."
Su Yanxi was gentle and had a truly exquisite appearance. The staff's initial impression of him skyrocketed, and they waved their hands to hang the sign in a more conspicuous place.
"It's alright, it's alright, the sign was just too well hidden. You're here for an audition, right? Go rest in the waiting area for a bit, it'll be starting soon."
Su Yanxi smiled and agreed, then turned around and asked Lin Xiaohai to give two mints to the staff before leaving.
When he picked up his phone again, the receiver was already playing the second round of the busy signal in English.
“…This guy,” Su Yanxi clicked her tongue in exasperation, “he’s not answering the phone again.”
"Again—?" Lin Xiaohai complained on behalf of the young mistress, "Why is the young master like this? He disappears every day?"
"Who knows where he's been stealing chickens and dogs." Su Yanxi tapped the only pinned message on WeChat and typed, "Forget it, I'll just send a WeChat message. Whether he sees it or not is up to him."
Lin Xiaohai pursed his lips and didn't say anything more. The two brothers carried their things and headed towards the coffee and beverage shop next to the film and television area.
They were completely unaware of the conversation the staff member was having with another person after turning around: "Young Master, I've already reminded those two outsiders to leave. Do you have any other instructions?"
In the lounge, just four or five meters away from the previous entrance, Young Master Bie, dressed in casual yet trendy luxury, snorted coldly.
"No."
In the backlit scene, Young Master Bie's face was obscured by shadows. The staff members lowered their heads, not daring to look up and examine the young master's expression closely, but could only judge from his tone that he was in a bad mood.
The staff member crossed his arms in front of him, awaiting the young master's command. He nervously held two mints in his palm, wondering if his handling of the situation had displeased the young master.
Bie Yunzong picked up his phone, seemingly glancing at the time: "You can go now. Just pretend you didn't know anything about what happened earlier."
Bie Yunzong's cold words perfectly portrayed the image of an aloof and heartless young master from a wealthy family.
But in reality, all his vulnerability and bad mood stemmed from the large "Dear Wife" note on the call screen after it was disconnected.
Waaah.
Bie Yunzong wanted to cry.
He actually hung up on his wife's phone!
Author's Note:
Don't be a puppy: What should I do if my wife suspects me of cheating on her after I hang up this phone call?
Don't do anything about it, your wife is already suspicious!
03# I'm secretly watching my wife, and I'll protect her!
Bie Yunzong went to great lengths to make this trip to the film and television city.
For his wife, he could get up early, skip breakfast, drive alone to this remote suburb, and even after intense mental preparation, painfully hang up the phone call from his beloved wife.
Bie Yunzong knew his wife's personality all too well—she was like a snow lotus from the Tianshan Mountains, a flower on a high mountain, extremely self-reliant and extremely proud. She insisted on doing everything herself and didn't want anyone else to interfere with her plans.
Once Su Yanxi learns of his whereabouts, she might misunderstand his intentions, thinking he's trying to help her get in through connections or pull some dirty tricks.
"Honey, to avoid you misunderstanding me, I'd better not answer this call, so you can hear the background noise and realize I'm at the film studio too."
Bie Yunzong hid in the lounge and began to confess to the beautiful photos of his wife on his phone.
"Honey, I love you the most! I will never do anything you don't like; so you have to trust me, I will use my own methods to help you pass the audition."
Bie Yunzong disdained any underhanded tactics. Rather than disdain, it was more accurate to say he had absolute confidence in Su Yanxi; he firmly believed his wife could pass the audition based on her own merit!
Just because you don't engage in shady dealings doesn't mean others won't resort to crooked methods.
I heard that my darling wife was scammed by someone with ulterior motives seven years ago because she had no connections or backing. Now that she wants to return to the entertainment industry, I mustn't let that happen again!
Chapter 5
"Wife, I'll protect you!"