"Honey, this paparazzi is really skilled!" The big dog gave a thumbs up and sincerely praised, "They took such beautiful pictures of you and me, and the atmosphere is amazing!"
While both Song Yanqi and Qi Xiang'an consider Su Yanxi their mortal enemy, Song Yanqi's methods are indeed childish and laughable compared to Qi Xiang'an's, resembling children playing house. However, if we disregard the methods and focus solely on aesthetics, Song Yanqi truly surpasses Qi Xiang'an!
The photos Qi Xiang'an hired to take were increasingly blurry. Whether it was intentional or Qi Xiang'an was simply unwilling to spend the money and the paparazzi he hired were incompetent, the images were so blurry and small that Bie Yunzong had no interest in collecting them.
For Master Bie, who has a penchant for beautiful women, "aesthetics" is probably the third most important "principle" after his wife and family.
The candid photos of Beicheng provided by Song Yanqi were exactly to Bie Yunzong's liking, and he liked them very much!
"Look at this one, and this one too!" Bie Yunzong shouted excitedly. Unable to hug his wife, he could only pick up his cat son and shake him around. "The composition and color scheme are so exquisite, they're absolutely gorgeous!"
These newly taken candid photos from the wrap party are Bie Yunzong's one pick among these pictures! The filming location was beautiful, the table for the celebration dinner was beautiful, and his wife, with her arm around his waist and smiling as she ate a cupcake, was the most beautiful of all!
Chapter 154
Song Yanqi wasn't secretly taking photos to gather evidence; in fact, he was practically giving them a super luxurious package of artistic portrait photography!
Despite not intending to catch the paparazzi, all that joy and delight he felt could be summed up in one sentence: Thank you, bro!
"Honey, forward this to me! I want to save it as my homepage wallpaper!" Bie Yunzong hugged his cat son and whine and acted coquettishly towards his wife.
The usually good-natured Nubi cat couldn't stand her dad's aimless wandering anymore and struggled to bite Bie Yunzong's arm.
Su Yanxi tenderly pried her husband's hand away, took the cat and stroked its fur, then glared at him with disdain and said, "You're almost strangling our son! The phone is right in your hand, why don't you just operate it yourself?"
After a belated "Oh," Bie Yunzong happily went to the side to save the image.
Su Yanxi, holding the cat, led Zhou Tong to sit in the living room: "Sis, why don't you rest a little longer? I'll have the driver take you home later."
“Okay. Anyway, since you’ve finished filming, Madam, I can relax for a few days too.” Zhou Tong sat down on the sofa generously. “We were just talking about Song Yanqi before we ate, and who would have thought that Song Yanqi would turn around and ‘surprise’ us like this.”
"Judging from the indignant wording in the whistleblower letter, Song Yanqi is really anxious." Su Yanxi smiled nonchalantly, pacing back and forth with her cat to aid digestion. "But thinking about it, it makes sense. I've become the villain who's two-timing, how could Song Yanqi not be worried?"
“There’s a red carpet and interviews at the film and television conference. I guess he was in such a hurry to report you to the organizers because he didn’t want to see you and Chen Yongyan attend together,” Zhou Tong speculated reasonably. Then he asked, “Speaking of which, how did Cai Yuyan’s friend refute the report on your behalf?”
“I’m not quite sure either. They probably found a seemingly legitimate reason, right?” Su Yanxi put the cat down and sat down, spreading her hands. “My brother and sister-in-law have friends all over the major TV stations. They can intercept any trouble for me. If Song Yanqi wants to take the route of reporting, it will be harder than climbing to heaven.”
Putting aside the content itself, any complaint related to Su Yanxi would never even get submitted to higher authorities. Any further complaints would simply be intercepted and rejected from the outset, just like this one.
Zhou Tong couldn't help but chuckle: "How wicked! Knowing full well that reporting it wouldn't work, they didn't even warn Song Yanqi, just letting him continue doing that useless work?"
"How bad?" Su Yanxi put on an innocent expression. "Once he realized it was useless, he could have just cut his losses in time, right? If he deliberately wanted to go against me, then he can't blame me for making him do useless work."
Su Yanxi leaned back comfortably on the sofa, revealing a relaxed and confident expression.
"He must be wondering now why the materials he's prepared for so long aren't working."
-Langfu
The only reason the report was rejected was that the evidence was insufficient to prove that artist Su Yanxi had engaged in any unethical behavior.
The seemingly insignificant phrase "not sufficient" left Song Yanqi bewildered, utterly bewildered!
This can't be right, can it? An 800-word whistleblower letter, plus more than 280 pieces of evidence, is still not enough to prove that Su Yanxi has committed any immoral acts?
"Damn it! What kind of feedback department is this? It's full of blind, good-for-nothing idiots!"
Song Yanqi opened the file package, suppressing his disgust for Su Yanxi, and scrolled through the pictures from beginning to end. The more he looked, the more convinced he was that his own report was correct, and that Su Yanxi was the problem!
This damn feedback section is also very problematic!
"Damn it, you blind bums!" Looking at the two people cuddling together in the picture, Song Yanqi felt disgusted and angry, and cursed incessantly, "These two figures are almost stuck together! Even like this, what nonsense is there in saying 'not enough'?"
"With such a bunch of blind men working up there, no wonder Su Yanxi dares to be so arrogant and presumptuous!"
Song Yanqi irritably lifted the ornaments and cosmetics on the table.
Fortunately, the hotel rooms were carpeted, so the fragile bottles and jars did not break.
"Not enough, not enough! They're already hugging each other, and it's still 'not enough'! If this keeps up, am I going to dig up photos of Su Yanxi and his sugar daddy in bed?!" Song Yanqi slammed his fist on the table in anger.
After finishing his rant, he suddenly paused, quickly clicked on any picture in the report, and after carefully examining it, he realized with a start: the evidence seems... indeed not sufficient.
Although there are many intimate photos of them with their arms around each other, hugging each other, and touching each other's legs, from another angle, it doesn't seem like solid evidence. If Su Yanxi really wants to deny it, she can still find plenty of excuses to use.
Song Yanqi was completely unaware that he was helping the feedback department staff to make their logic work. He unconsciously restricted his thinking, deliberately determined to completely clash with Su Yanxi on the issue of evidence collection and reporting!
He made up his mind; he was going to find more solid evidence!
Even if I can't find any bed photos, I must get some kissing photos!
Looking at the smiling face of that slut Su Yanxi on the computer screen, Song Yanqi had another idea: "With such a long holiday, you must be going out to date your sugar daddy, right?"
He hummed smugly, applauding his brilliant plan, and picked up his phone, dialing a number with practiced ease.
"Su Yanxi, Su Yanxi, you're lucky to have fallen into my hands!"
"—Hey, is this Zhang, the entertainment reporter from 'Wednesday Scoop'? Come over tomorrow, I have a big task for you!"
Before the film and television festival in mid-October, Su Yanxi had about two weeks of vacation.
During his time filming away from home, Su Yanxi missed many social events and banquets typical of the elite elite circles. Taking advantage of the holiday, Su Yanxi made sure to catch up on these missed social activities; in just three days, he hosted four meals out and two small dinner parties at home.
Chapter 155
Although social interactions within the elite elite circles can be quite boring, consisting mainly of discussing marriage and family, exchanging information about the latest luxury products, and sharing contact details for haute couture designers.
As someone who stands at the top of the social hierarchy among wealthy women, Su Yanxi naturally receives a lot of praise and adulation.
"Come on! We can only brag about it when we're out and about. But when we're actually in front of Madam Bie, who would dare to do that?"
The young husbands of wealthy families sipped fruit tea and ate macarons specially provided by other restaurants' kitchens, joking with each other without any airs.
"We can't compete! We really can't compete in anything!"
Surrounded by the crowd, Su Yanxi waved her hand shyly and said modestly, "Don't say that. We're all playing together, so why distinguish between you and me? Eating well and having fun is enough."
“Look at you, look at you,” the handsome man sitting next to Su Yanxi gently poked Su Yanxi’s cheek, “You are better at talking than all of us, and your words make people feel comfortable.”
The handsome man is the young mistress of the Zhao family, named Xu Zhongyi. He is the young husband of a wealthy family who gets along best with Su Yanxi in the entire circle of wealthy wives.
Those who can enter this small circle are basically "super-rich families" just like the others; these families either have business partnerships or have been friends for generations. Although the different family histories and internal styles lead to different ways of dealing with people, it does not prevent them from occasionally having meals together, chatting and discussing gossip and interesting stories inside and outside the circle.
The family with the longest history and the most stable development naturally stood at the top of the social hierarchy. However, Su Yanxi had never been arrogant like a big shot from a wealthy family, nor did she buy into other people's sycophancy.
He organizes gatherings at fixed times and locations with the aim of projecting a friendly image on behalf of other families, thereby coordinating with his older brother and sister-in-law's family who are "fighting" on the front lines of the business world.
To put it bluntly, people in the inner circle of wealthy families are people you can chat with casually, but not people you can get to know deeply.
Some of them have rather vulgar and boring ideas, and even Su Yanxi, who is good at socializing and likes to show a considerate image, sometimes feels that they can't get along.
The young mistress of the Zhao family who spoke earlier was a rare confidante of Su Yanxi within her small circle. Besides these purposeful gatherings, Su Yanxi would occasionally invite Xu Zhongyi to go shopping and have meals together.
"Still being modest?" Su Yanxi winked playfully at Xu Zhongyi. "I really like what you're saying now."
Su Yanxi's words made everyone burst into laughter. Xu Zhongyi was amused and gently nudged Su Yanxi with his elbow.
"Okay, okay, we both know how to talk!"
With a smile, Su Yanxi asked Xu Zhongyi in lip-reading: Can I stay later?
Xu Zhongyi pretended to cover his mouth to hide his laughter, and mouthed the words that only Su Yanxi, who was next to him, could see clearly: Okay.
After the party ended, Xu Zhong also stayed at another house a little longer, claiming she was "waiting for her husband to pick her up." Only after all the wealthy husbands had left did she ask them directly.
"Why did you ask me to stay? Is there something you want to say?" Xu Zhongyi chuckled. "It's not business, is it? That's none of my business."
"Of course not, I just wanted to chat with you about some gossip in the entertainment industry." Su Yanxi pulled Xu Zhongyi to sit down in the more secluded, soundproofed reception room. "Hasn't the Zhao family always invested in movies? As the young mistress of the Zhao family, you should know a lot of gossip in the film industry, right?"
"Hmm... what do you want to hear?" Xu Zhongyi hesitated, but finally admitted it with embarrassment, "You know my husband's personality. He's extremely controlling and has a serious case of male chauvinism. He doesn't let me get involved in business matters at all, and he rarely talks to me about work. I might not be able to tell you what you want to know."
As Xu Zhongyi spoke, he picked up his phone and glanced at the time, his expression becoming extremely flustered.
"Yanxi, just ask if you want to. If I know the answer, I'll tell you right away. If I don't know, I'll go home and ask around for you. My husband and I agreed to be home by 5:30. Even if we can use traffic as an excuse, we shouldn't delay too long—it's already past 5:20!"
In Su Yanxi's eyes, Xu Zhongyi was good in every way: she spoke well, had a good temperament, was good-looking, and had a good personality... the only problem was that the husband she married was not good!
Like Su Yanxi, Xu Zhongyi came from an ordinary family and married into a wealthy family. After marriage, she was loved by her husband and liked by her in-laws. But as the saying goes, every family has its own problems: if Su Yanxi was troubled by her husband's lustful nature, then Xu Zhongyi was troubled by her husband's obsessive possessiveness!
The young master of the Zhao family's possessiveness towards Xu Zhongyi is so terrifying that he can't distinguish between men and women, or even between left and right seats! This results in Su Yanxi and Xu Zhongyi rarely seeing each other, no matter how well they get along.
It wasn't that she didn't want to, it's just that Xu Zhongyi was really too difficult to ask out. Every time Su Yanxi called the Zhao family to find Xu Zhongyi, she felt like a homewrecker trying to steal him away.
"Alright, alright, then I'll get straight to the point." Su Yanxi skipped the unnecessary introductions and went straight to the point, "I just want to find out about Song Jinlan's background and his past in the industry."
"I did mention it briefly, but nobody paid any attention to me—I guess Song Jinlan isn't famous enough for them to care."
Not only did they ignore him, but one or two people who knew the inside story laughed mockingly, contemptuously calling Song Jinglan a "wanting to eat swan meat"!
Su Yanxi only wanted to find out about Song Jinlan's background, but he unconsciously smelled a lot of gossip that shouldn't have been there! He was very curious about what Song Jinlan had done to make those self-important and usually very polite rich ladies utter such contemptuous sarcasm.
Chapter 156
Xu Zhongyi couldn't give a specific answer, only telling Su Yanxi that "even if Song Jinlan won the Best Actor award, he would still be disliked in the industry"; as for the specific reasons, he would have to go back and inquire further.
Seeing that Xu Zhongyi was in such a hurry to go home, Su Yanxi felt embarrassed to keep him chatting any longer. After agreeing to talk things over at their next meeting, Su Yanxi saw Xu Zhongyi off.
Back home, Su Yanxi looked at the mess on the living room coffee table and sighed helplessly.
Just as he was about to call the servants to tidy up, a tall figure suddenly darted out from the stairwell leading to the underground garage.
"Wife!" Bie Yunzong jumped in front of his wife and made a not-so-scary face at her. "I'm back! Your party should be over by now, right?"
"Mmm."
Su Yanxi sat down on the sofa and rubbed her shoulders wearily.
"Just finished. I talked all afternoon and didn't get any useful information out of them. I'm exhausted though."
"Those guys are really good at talking; I almost spit out all my saliva from talking with them."
"Then let's not talk. If you can't get along, why did you invite them to your house for a gathering?" Bie Yunzong came up behind his wife with concern and started massaging her shoulders. "Honey, let me rub them for you."
"Because we need to cultivate relationships for our family. Our family and they are business partners and family friends. If we maintain good relationships in private, our business cooperation and mutual assistance can last a long time."
Bie Yunzong had a strong grip, and after only a couple of squeezes, Su Yanxi couldn't take it anymore and disgustedly slapped the stinky dog's paw away.
"Alright, alright, stop pinching. It was just sore and numb before, but after you pinched it, it'll be sore and painful now."
“Wife, you’re still part of our family—how come your personality is so similar to Mom and Dad, and my older brother and sister-in-law?” When his wife wouldn’t let him massage her shoulders, Bie Yunzong walked around the back of the sofa and sat down next to her. “They’re all the kind of people who are thoughtful and good at handling interpersonal relationships.”
"You still have the nerve to say that?" Su Yanxi poked Bie Yunzong between the eyebrows. "How many people are there in our family? Did you ever think before you listed them? You seem to be the only odd one out in our family?"