As expected of the female lead, her looks were truly top-tier. No wonder in the original story, she could make the male lead, supporting male characters, and even the villain fall for her.
Yun Manyin was somewhat cold toward Lu Siyuan. Last time, he had gone to the bar but hadn’t saved her, and she was still holding a grudge over it. No matter how much Lu Siyuan apologized afterward, she refused to forgive him.
Lu Siyuan, burdened by guilt over the incident, was now entirely focused on trying to please her and earn her forgiveness when he saw her.
Watching her brother act like such a lovesick puppy, Lu Wanmian felt a sense of frustration at his lack of backbone.
Yun Manyin was a financially supported student funded by the Lu family. Her birth family was deeply unfortunate—a gambling father, a weak and incompetent mother, a good-for-nothing younger brother, and a shattered life of her own.
Despite her family’s misfortune, her academic performance was outstanding.
When she was in her third year of middle school, Lu Wanmian’s parents went to the school to sponsor underprivileged students. They immediately took a liking to her—beautiful and academically excellent—and began sponsoring her from then on. They even arranged for her mother to work as a well-paid housekeeper at the Lu residence.
Yun Manyin and Lu Siyuan began to cross paths more often. They went to school together, and their relationship grew increasingly close. Later, when Lu Wanmian’s parents died in a car accident, Yun Manyin stayed by Lu Siyuan’s side for a while. In his pain and loneliness, he came to see her as his salvation and emotional anchor, and he began to harbor a secret crush on her.
He doted on and supported Yun Manyin unconditionally. After she graduated from university and wanted to enter the entertainment industry, he poured money into promoting her. Thanks to his efforts, Yun Manyin became a popular celebrity within just a year.
However, while Yun Manyin spent Lu Siyuan’s money, she also maintained an ambiguous relationship with the male lead, causing Lu Siyuan’s relationship with him to deteriorate until they became mortal enemies, fighting to the death.
At the thought of this, Lu Wanmian couldn’t help but roll her eyes inwardly.
This female lead was a textbook green tea bitch.
Yun Manyin, in turn, quietly sized up Lu Wanmian. She had always thought Lu Siyuan would never find his sister again in this lifetime, but unexpectedly, he had actually managed to bring her back.
A flicker of crisis stirred in her heart.
Before, although she was a sponsored student, the Lu family had treated her extremely well, like a biological daughter. The servants also regarded her as the young miss of the house. Now that Lu Wanmian had returned, the title of the Lu family’s young miss belonged to her instead. Yun Manyin felt a vague sense of loss, as if something that was hers had been snatched away.
Lu Siyuan had no idea what she was thinking. Believing she was happy for him for finding his sister, he excitedly introduced her to Lu Wanmian: “Mianmian, this is Yun Manyin, the one I mentioned to you before. She’s my good friend, and Mom and Dad both adored her when they were alive.”
Although Lu Wanmian wasn’t pleased inwardly, she still greeted her warmly on the surface: “So you’re Sister Manyin! I’ve seen the dramas you’ve acted in—your acting is outstanding, truly a first-rate performer. I’m your fan, you know.”
That was what she said, but inwardly she was sneering: Her acting is terrible. In every drama, she has the same expression. Even a corpse actor performs better than she does.
Yun Manyin, believing her acting was genuinely impressive, beamed with joy at the compliment: “So Mianmian is my fan! Then I’ll give you an autograph later.”
Lu Wanmian smiled and nodded: “Sure.”
Once she got the autograph, she’d sell it online and make a quick buck.
Yun Manyin took out a gift and handed it to Lu Wanmian: “Mianmian, this is a little welcome gift from me. I hope you like it.”
Lu Wanmian took it, opened it, and saw a cheap bracelet worth less than a thousand yuan inside.
She laughed inwardly. Ha!
Her brother poured big money into supporting her, yet her welcome gift was this cheap—what a miser.
After silently mocking her, Lu Wanmian feigned delight and said, “Sister, the bracelet you gave me is so pretty, it looks really expensive. I love it, thank you.”
With that, she slipped the bracelet onto her wrist and showed it off to everyone.
The crowd eyed the cheap bracelet, clicked their tongues, and cast disdainful glances at Yun Manyin.
Feeling their contempt, Yun Manyin’s face flushed with embarrassment.
In truth, this bracelet was a gift from one of her fans, which she had grabbed on a whim to give to Lu Wanmian. She had assumed it would just be a formality, never expecting Lu Wanmian to flaunt it in public and humiliate her—what a miscalculation.
Still, this showed that Lu Wanmian was a fool who didn’t know quality when she saw it.
She had heard that Lu Wanmian had been abducted by traffickers as a child and sold to a very poor family, so it was no wonder she lacked discernment. That was fine—it would make her even easier to fool later.
Lu Wanmian noticed the condescending look Yun Manyin gave her, as if she were a simpleton, and narrowed her eyes. This woman loved playing clever games. She wanted her to think she was naive and easy to manipulate—that way, she could lull her into complacency and advance her own plans.
Standing nearby, Lu Siyuan had no idea what Yun Mengyin and Lu Wanmian were each thinking. He only noticed the unfriendly stares directed at Yun Manyin, and his handsome face cooled a few degrees as he stepped in to defend her: “Yinyin’s gift is wonderful. It’s not about the price—what matters is the thought behind it. And since Mianmian likes it, that makes it perfect.”
With him putting it that way, no one dared to give Yun Manyin a cold shoulder anymore, and they all smiled in agreement.
Yun Manyin’s embarrassment was dissolved by Lu Siyuan’s intervention, and only then did she grace him with a kinder expression.
Seeing his goddess warm up to him, Lu Siyuan was overjoyed, his gaze at her filled with infatuation.
His groveling demeanor was too much for Lu Wanmian to stomach, so she tugged at his sleeve and said, “Brother, I don’t know any of these guests. Why don’t you introduce me to them?”
Lu Siyuan snapped back to attention and nodded. “Alright.”
He took Lu Wanmian’s hand and patiently introduced her to the important guests, who all greeted her warmly in turn.
Watching Lu Wanmian surrounded by admirers like the moon encircled by stars, with Lu Siyuan’s every thought and glance fixed on her, a flicker of jealousy passed through Yun Manyin’s eyes.
In the past, whenever the Lu family hosted a banquet, she had always been the center of attention, and Lu Siyuan’s eyes had been on her alone. Now that Lu Wanmian had returned, everything had changed.
She remembered that she had a film coming up that still needed Lu Siyuan’s investment. She couldn’t afford to keep him at arm’s length any longer—she needed to find a way to reconcile and win back his attention.
She scanned the room and spotted a servant carrying a tray of drinks heading her way. Her eyes glinted, and she quickly stepped forward, pretending to accidentally collide with the servant. The impact was slight, but she let out a cry of “Ah!” and spun in a slow, theatrical circle before tumbling to the ground. The servant, knocked off balance, sent the drinks on the tray crashing down, splashing all over her.
The commotion drew everyone’s attention, and they all turned to look. Yun Manyin, putting on her acting skills, clutched her calf and wore a pained expression.
The servant was startled and hurriedly apologized, “Miss Yun, I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to bump into you.”
Yun Manyin glanced at her, then lowered her head and said pitifully, “It was an accident, I don’t blame you.”
As she spoke, her eyes welled up, and tears slid down her cheeks, looking utterly fragile and pitiful.
Lu Siyuan’s heart ached for her. He immediately abandoned Lu Wanmian and strode forward, scolding the servant: “You blind fool, how dare you bump into Miss Yun! Someone, drag her away and fire her.”
Two bodyguards immediately stepped forward to drag away the servant, who was crying and begging for mercy.
“Wait!”
A voice suddenly came from behind.