16 – Sprinting Towards Social Death
Looking at the empty interface with only various news notifications, Xu Ni immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
Thank goodness he hadn’t accepted.
Then again, what normal person would respond to such a friend request?
Last night, she had been so sleepless and angry that her rationality had completely abandoned her. Without a second thought, she had sent him a bunch of messages meant to mess with him. Surely the WeChat friend request wouldn’t display everything she wrote, right?
It should… hide some of it, shouldn’t it?
What had she even said in the end?
Probably something insulting…
Xu Ni scratched her head and couldn’t help but sigh deeply.
Why was her journey to snag a rich guy so plagued with misfortune!
Just as the elevator was about to arrive, Xu Ni frowned again. Wait, had he actually seen her request and rejected it, or had he never even seen it in the first place?
If he hadn’t seen it…
Xu Ni narrowed her eyes, hatching a plan.
Why not just go with the flow and use this alternate account to test him out?
Who knows, maybe through chatting, she could fish out some information that would help her cause…
No time like the present.
Xu Ni immediately entered that string of numbers again and sent a new friend request.
This time, she didn’t dare to write nonsense. Besides, if there were too many friend requests on WeChat, the earlier ones would automatically be cleared. She could just pretend nothing happened, right?
The elevator doors opened.
As she walked, Xu Ni typed: “Patient’s family member, Dr. Fu, please accept.”
After all, he was a doctor. Surely he’d have a bit of compassion in such situations, right?
With the message sent, Xu Ni put away her phone and hurried out of the hotel toward the company.
When she reached the office floor, she saw a few assistants peeking around curiously. Xu Ni walked over and asked, “What are you looking at?”
As soon as the assistant saw her, she immediately said, “Director Xu, the actors have arrived today and are inside signing contracts.”
Xu Ni’s brow furrowed.
She wasn’t even here, and the actors were already being finalized?
Seeing Xu Ni’s silence, the assistant understood the frustration and helplessness of being manipulated by capital. “But it’s still that actress who was late and didn’t show up last time. She came early today, and Mr. Zhao is inside talking with her.”
Xu Ni hummed in acknowledgment and pushed the door open.
The office wasn’t small, but Xu Ni immediately spotted the slender, long-haired figure sitting next to Zhao Yang. Dressed in a thin, warm-colored dress despite the weather, she looked delicate enough to be blown over by the wind.
When Zhao Yang saw Xu Ni, he immediately waved her over. “Come meet the actress. Get to know her properly.”
As he spoke, the actress turned around.
In that instant, the atmosphere grew subtly tense.
The person smiling serenely at that moment was none other than Xu You Yi.
Xu Ni inwardly sneered with contempt. What a coincidence.
So the one who had stood her up and acted like a diva that day was also Xu You Yi.
Now, it was as if the words “fated enemies cross paths” were stamped right on her forehead.
Without changing her expression, Xu Ni walked over and sat opposite Xu You Yi, crossing her legs casually as she glanced at the woman. “This investment isn’t exactly small. Is this the kind of unknown talent that capital is spending resources to push?”
Even when promoting someone, there were limits to how forcefully you could do it.
Having worked in this industry for so long, Xu Ni could recognize most actors by name. But Xu You Yi wasn’t famous at all—she hadn’t even heard of her before.
Zhao Yang felt Xu Ni’s words were too harsh and shot her a disapproving look. “Xiao Xu fits the female lead role in this drama perfectly. What matters is the performance and acting skills, isn’t it?”
Xu Ni nodded and turned to Xu You Yi. “Are you from a talent show background? Or a model?”
Xu You Yi smiled. “From a talent show. I’ve taken acting classes before.”
Xu Ni: “So you haven’t really acted much before?”
Xu You Yi pursed her lips: “I’ll work hard.”
“If I hired everyone who said they’d work hard, what would happen to all those dedicated actors out of work?”
“…” Xu You Yi’s expression clearly darkened for a second.
Zhao Yang slammed the table and stood up: “Xu Ni! Whether you’re satisfied or not doesn’t matter! The contract is already signed. You’d better direct this drama properly and not make a fuss.”
Xu Ni tapped the table and smiled: “What fuss am I making? Looking forward to working together.”
He truly hadn’t expected Xu Ni to change her tune so abruptly.
“You… huh?” Zhao Yang’s prepared speech got stuck in his throat.
Most directors in the industry had tempers—after all, they were considered artists, eccentric and stubborn. Many would refuse to budge if they weren’t satisfied. But Xu Ni…?
“Since the cast is finalized, I’ll go handle the other arrangements.” Xu Ni stood up. When she reached Xu You Yi’s side of the table, she paused: “I’m very strict, Miss Xu. Be prepared.”
Xu You Yi smiled gracefully: “Alright.”
Xu Ni left.
Zhao Yang muttered: “Both surnamed Xu, but their personalities are worlds apart. Xiao Xu, don’t worry. If she upsets you, don’t hold back. We can talk about anything.”
Xu You Yi didn’t explain her relationship with Xu Ni, merely curving her lips: “No problem.”
She had indeed debuted through a talent show.
Her family wasn’t poor before—they were comfortably middle-class. Her adoptive parents both worked in reputable companies with good salaries. They nurtured her artistic talents from a young age and sent her to an arts university. Later, she leveraged her looks to join a talent show. With her sweet and obedient demeanor, she gained many fans. Over a year after her debut, she hadn’t had many opportunities to transition.
Unexpectedly.
Her biological parents found her!
They turned out to be a wealthy family in Jinggang!
These were conditions her adoptive parents couldn’t provide. Of course, she didn’t hesitate—she immediately embraced her biological parents. But soon after, she learned that her parents had also adopted a girl around her age and raised her as their own daughter for over twenty years. How could she possibly feel balanced about that?
After raising her for so long, there must be feelings involved.
She couldn’t let an outsider steal what was rightfully hers. Hostility was only natural.
So…
Xu You Yi narrowed her eyes as she watched Xu Ni leave.
—Just wait and see.
After two days of intense meetings and extensive preparations.
The script reading sessions for the actors also began.
Xu Ni threw herself completely into her work, busy to the point of losing track of day and night.
Although she usually seemed carefree, she never slacked off when it came to work.
By the time she finally took a break.
She hadn’t slept for over thirty hours.
Just as she was dozing off while sitting, her phone dinged.
Xu Ni jolted awake, downed a cup of iced Americano, and opened her phone.
It was a message from her alternate WeChat account.
She groggily tapped into it.
A new chat window appeared from an unfamiliar contact.
The name was kean.
Xu Ni instantly snapped awake.
Wasn’t this the account she had applied to add hundreds of times—Fu Guidu’s account?!
He accepted it??
It had been three days since her last request.
Today happened to be Friday.
Xu Ni immediately regained her composure.
She remembered inviting him to the lingerie show, which was scheduled for tonight.
She had almost forgotten this major event amidst her busy schedule.
Xu Ni rubbed her temples and quickly opened the chat window, typing a message: “Hello.”
Just sent it out.
Xu Ni withdrew with a hint of doubt and went to her own profile page.
That glaring username seemed longer than her life: aaa Advertising Media Action Blockbuster Director…
Oh no.
She forgot to change her username!