The Female Lead Talks Nonsense
The light in Yu Sui'an's eyes dimmed for a moment. Jiang Zhaolie panicked, at a loss for what to do. She opened her mouth to explain, but didn't know how, or where, to begin. She had never faced a situation like this, so for a moment she had no idea how to resolve it. With no way out, she could only glare at Xu Chun, the chief culprit who had stirred up the trouble.
Xu Chun, ever the one to enjoy the show, stood beside He Qingli watching the drama unfold. Sensing the glare, Xu Chun gave an innocent shrug and added fuel to the fire. “Zhaolie, how could you hide even something like this from Suisui? Your cousin is just a younger cousin in your family, not a lover. There's nothing improper about her—I don't know what you're so afraid of.”
“Unlike me. I tell Suisui everything—even if some distant relative of my dad's brother's son's wife had a nightmare in the middle of the night, I'd describe it to Suisui in painstaking detail, not hiding a single word.”
Jiang Zhaolie's temple throbbed. The words “little green-tea demon—go cool off somewhere” never made it past her lips in front of the cameras. Her face went cold. “But you cheated and broke Suisui's heart.”
Xu Chun's eyes went wide. “Are you saying the person I cheated with is your own cousin?!”
Jiang Zhaolie: “?”
She frowned. “What nonsense are you spouting now?”
Yu Sui'an couldn't help glancing over too, a flicker of curiosity in her gaze. Xu Chun clutched her chest in disbelief, her face full of hurt. “Zhaolie, I'm truly sad for Wanwan. You can refuse to believe me, but how could you disbelieve Wanwan? She's such a warm, kind girl, and she's your cousin—yet you ignore your bond as cousins and openly slander and smear her in front of the cameras. I think you're truly—snoring with your eyes open—completely muddled!”
“If Wanwan knew you were spreading rumors about her like this, she'd be heartbroken.”
Even Jiang Zhaolie wasn't dense enough to miss Xu Chun's meaning now. “You're saying the person you were caught cheating with...” she asked uncertainly, “was Wanwan?”
Truthfully, she hadn't paid much attention to the person Xu Chun was rumored to have cheated with online. When she first heard about it from Yu Sui'an, all she could think about was how to comfort Yu Sui'an, how to please her, and how to help her recover from the heartbreak as quickly as possible. She had assumed Xu Chun was just messing with her, but looking at the other woman's righteous expression, Jiang Zhaolie suddenly wasn't so sure.
After a moment's thought, she pulled out her phone and searched for that day's news.
She only typed a few characters before the internet helpfully suggested countless related search terms. Jiang Zhaolie clicked a link at random and carefully studied those few blurry photos for a long time.
The side profile did look a bit like Qiao Wan; the height and build matched too. She and Qiao Wan weren't close, which was why she hadn't recognized her at first glance. What gave it away was the string of beads on the other person's wrist—the first birthday gift her mother had given Qiao Wan.
Her mother had commissioned a master to make that bracelet; it was one of a kind in the entire world.
A silence fell. Even He Qingli, watching from the sidelines, felt secondhand embarrassment for the two of them. They'd spent all this time spreading rumors that Xu Chun was a cheater, only to discover the other party in the scandal was one of their own. Truly—a knife to the butt—an eye-opener.
When Yu Sui'an's initial disbelief gave way to faint bewilderment, her fans hurried to defend their idol. 【Shameless! She actually dared to make a move on her fiancée's cousin. Aren't you afraid of getting beaten to death?】
【Right? The cousin is still so young. She's just a child!】
Xu Chun's fans were utterly baffled. What the hell?
There was clearly nothing between them. You were the ones who insisted on pinning the blame on her. Now that everything's clear, you turn around and blame her instead? Xu Chun's fans were beside themselves with rage. They were few and far from eloquent, and no matter how they argued, they couldn't win. For a moment they nearly shut down completely.
Judging by the subtle shift in Jiang Zhaolie's expression, Xu Chun had her confirmation. Her confidence surged. She crossed her arms. “When we have time, let's sit down and have a good talk about compensation.”
Jiang Zhaolie looked confused. Xu Chun smiled faintly. “You've been going on all day on the show about how I cheated, how I had an affair, dragging my reputation and good name through the mud. Don't you think you owe me some damages for emotional distress?”
Yu Sui'an's fans were the first to pounce. 【A cheater still talking about reputation and honor?】
【Wasn't it just clarified? Xu Chun didn't cheat. It was all a misunderstanding.】
【Who knows if she was secretly involved with Jiang Zhaolie's cousin? You're not the people involved. What if this is just Xu Chun's way of clearing her name? What a brilliant move.】
Qiao Wan had never suffered such humiliation in her life. She immediately demanded that her family's company post a defense on Weibo. Her father, equally furious at seeing his daughter smeared, personally took action—using the company account to fire off several Weibo posts lambasting the rumor-spreading Yu Sui'an fans.
Qiao Group was a renowned pharmaceutical conglomerate, second only to Qin Group. Together the two giants controlled nearly eighty percent of the pharmaceutical market. An ordinary pharmaceutical company might claim ten percent of the market; Qiao Group and Qin Group split the remaining forty and fifty percent respectively. Their positions were unshakable.
Now Qiao Wan, heiress of a pharmaceutical empire, had been dragged for no reason into the filthy, sordid mess of the entertainment industry. President Qiao didn't hesitate. He immediately mobilized the company's legal team, determined to teach these fans a proper lesson.
The matter was escalating. A sheen of tears rose in Yu Sui'an's eyes. “It's all my fault,” she said softly, her delicate brows knitting with worry. “If it weren't for me, none of these people would have been dragged into this.”
Her eyes were red, her thin, petite figure radiating fragility. “If only I hadn't posted on Weibo that day, Sister wouldn't have been smeared by the media, and Miss Qiao wouldn't have been slandered by everyone. It's all my fault.”
The gentle, delicate white lotus wept like rain on pear blossoms—absolutely devastating. Jiang Zhaolie's heart nearly broke; she kept saying “It's not your fault” to comfort her. He Qingli couldn't take it anymore. “You're not the victim,” she said flatly. “What right do you have to say ‘it's not your fault’ on someone else's behalf?”
If crying after making a mistake was all it took to be forgiven in this world, she'd jump up right now and beat Jiang Zhaolie's head in. After all, she'd just cry a little and everyone would let her off the hook for her past mistakes.
For a moment, He Qingli was profoundly grateful the show was livestreamed. Otherwise, after Yu Sui'an's team worked their magic behind the scenes, who knew how the truth would be twisted by the time the episode aired. Sister Xu would surely be torn apart even worse by netizens—especially Yu Sui'an's fans—and then, unable to withstand public pressure, be forced out of the entertainment industry.
Jiang Zhaolie was already agitated, and the more she comforted Yu Sui'an, the harder Yu Sui'an cried. She stared at He Qingli. “What more do you want?”
He Qingli was so furious her soul nearly left her body. “What more do I want? Shouldn't you two be apologizing to Sister Xu right now, in front of everyone? Sister Xu is the real victim here, or do you plan to just laugh it off and let her swallow all this grievance for nothing?”
“You should be grateful she's still fine. If anything had happened to her, you two would be murderers!”
“I'm sorry.” Yu Sui'an lifted her tear-streaked face, full of guilt. “It's all my fault. I made you suffer, Sister.”
She was soft and fragile, utterly non-threatening, and her apology looked completely sincere. He Qingli felt an inexplicable tightness in her chest. Yu Sui'an's face gave her a huge advantage; even neutral commenters were speaking up to forgive Yu Sui'an on Xu Chun's behalf.
In that atmosphere, pressing the matter even a little would have made Xu Chun the unreasonable one.
Knowing this made He Qingli feel even more suffocated. She felt aggrieved on Xu Chun's behalf; she wanted to help, but this was already the best she could do.
Xu Chun gently reached over and patted the back of He Qingli's head, her lips curving in a faint smile. “Don't be angry.” Her tone was uncharacteristically gentle. “Good girl.”
Her clear, nimble voice flowed like a mountain spring. Soothed by Xu Chun's tone, He Qingli calmed down somewhat. She stopped speaking and handed the decision over to Xu Chun—whatever Xu Chun decided in the end, she would stand by her side.
After He Qingli sniffled and calmed down a bit, Xu Chun turned to Yu Sui'an with a smile; Yu Sui'an's eyes and nose were both red. “I believe this was an honest mistake on your part.”
The comments flooded with praise, and the atmosphere turned harmonious and warm.
“However, you two have caused no small damage to my personal reputation and career.” Xu Chun changed tack. “So I'll leave the final handling to my manager.”
She asked them sincerely, “What do you think?”
Neither of them spoke. Jiang Zhaolie wanted to retort, but Yu Sui'an gave her a light tug, so she could only shut her mouth. Yu Sui'an was cooperative. “That's fine. I'll tell my manager right now.” Then she let out a breath of relief and smiled faintly. “Thankfully the truth didn't come too late. I haven't lost Sister yet.”
The hypocritical, affected display made He Qingli furious. She couldn't resist a few digs. “What, were you hoping something would happen to Sister?”
Yu Sui'an's face fell at this, and she bit her lip lightly. “That's not what I meant.”
He Qingli wouldn't let it go. “Then what did you mean?”
She was so aggressive that Jiang Zhaolie instinctively shielded Yu Sui'an behind her, her expression unfriendly. “What's that supposed to mean?”
He Qingli gave a cold laugh. “How would I dare mean anything?”
Xu Chun's head was spinning. What did you mean? What did you mean? Were you three taking a Chinese listening comprehension test? She had no desire to stay with these two any longer, so she made an excuse and pulled He Qingli away.
On her way out, she muttered something under her breath. He Qingli couldn't help but prick up her ears and lean in, and heard the other woman sigh ruefully. “This won't affect my chances of marrying into a wealthy family and clinging to a golden thigh, will it?”
He Qingli: “???” Sister, what on earth is going on in your head? You're a wealthy family yourself!
Wouldn't it be better to recruit a well-behaved little wife to marry into your family?
With the main players gone, the viewers were still reluctant to leave their screens. 【This dating show is savage—when they tear into each other, they really go for it. Love it!】
【These three have done everything on this show except actually date.】
【The comment above—isn't the main cast tearing into each other in person way more entertaining than watching them date?】
He Qingli felt that meeting Yu Sui'an was truly Xu Chun's misfortune in this lifetime. She tried hard to help Xu Chun forget the earlier unpleasantness, but then Xu Chun got a call from her manager, so He Qingli had to let it go for now.
The manager was calling about a script. “The novel you read yesterday, ‘The Blackened Younger One, Please Be Gentle With Your Punishment,’ is getting a screen adaptation. They want to offer you the female lead.”
Xu Chun's expression turned strange. “This kind of melodramatic trash is getting adapted too?” And she was supposed to play the female lead—the cold, ruthless, domineering, utterly villainous, ice-cold coffin-faced CEO?
“If it's being adapted, they'll definitely change the name. The production team is currently calling it ‘Secret Crush.’”
Xu Chun: “???” That name was ridiculous.
But she wasn't interested. Never mind that the female lead's overpowering alpha aura didn't quite suit her—with that many kiss and bed scenes, the script would inevitably be butchered beyond recognition just to pass censorship.
That would be no fun at all.
Besides, novel-to-screen adaptations always came with some disillusionment. Especially this novel—melodramatic as it was, it had a massive readership. If the adaptation turned the whole drama into a pile of dog shit, that wouldn't be good for her career.
She opened her mouth to refuse, but the manager said, “The offer on the table right now is eighty million...” Before she could finish, a mighty “I'll take it!” rang out in the manager's ear.
“I'll take it, I'll take it,” Xu Chun said loudly. “When do I join the cast?”
If she'd hesitated even a second longer, it would have been disrespectful to the eighty million. That was eighty million!
“But there's one more thing I need to tell you in advance.” The manager paused. “The production team also wants to invite Yu Sui'an to play the second female lead.”
The manager figured Xu Chun would change her mind after hearing this. After all, just yesterday Xu Chun had told her she no longer had any feelings for Yu Sui'an, and if possible, she'd rather never see Yu Sui'an again for the rest of her life. All in all, the manager thought Xu Chun would turn down this script.
But before she'd even finished the thought, Xu Chun's excited voice came through. “That's great!”
“Isn't this the most unique opportunity in the world for settling scores under the guise of business?! Doing all sorts of things to their delicate white-lotus idol on the big screen, right in front of Yu Sui'an's fans, and humiliating her thoroughly—wouldn't that destroy both her body and her spirit?”
TL Note:
little green-tea demon (小绿茶精) = slang for a manipulative, fake-innocent woman.
a knife to the butt—an eye-opener (小刀剌屁股——开了眼了) = a crude joke meaning "now I've seen everything."
white lotus (小白花) = slang for a girl who seems sweet and fragile but is secretly scheming.
clinging to a golden thigh (抱金大腿) = slang for latching onto a rich or powerful patron for support.