There was a consensus in Lin City.
Of Shen Yanci’s arrogance, one part was the Shen family’s fault nine parts were blamed on Xu Mian.
The day Shen Yanci won Best Actor, everyone thought the person he would propose to would be Xu Mian.
So when, under the spotlight, Shen Yanci went down on one knee and Lin Xiaoxiao across from him covered her mouth in shy delight the entire entertainment circle of Lin City was shaken.
For a moment, the trending searches were flooded:
【Top Agent Xu Makes a Wedding Dress for Someone Else】
【A Sudden Love Can’t Beat a Childhood Sweetheart】
【Agent Xu’s Years of Devotion Go to Waste】
Facing the cameras, Shen Yanci smiled with effortless charm.
When reporters asked.
“May we ask, Best Actor Shen, there have been rumors that you and Xu Mian were originally a couple. Why then did you suddenly propose to actress Lin Xiaoxiao?”
Shen Yanci smiled gently at the camera. “I think everyone has misunderstood. Mianmian and I have always been in a professional partnership. From beginning to end, I’ve only ever treated her as my younger sister. Rumors outside are a mix of truth and fiction I hope everyone can distinguish between them.”
That very night, news broke that Shen Yanci’s management contract with Qingyou Media owned by him and Xu Mian had expired and would not be renewed.
When Xu Mian saw the news, she was standing in the president’s office of Qingyou Media.
She stood before the floor-to-ceiling windows, looking down at the busy traffic below.
Her best friend and secretary, Li Jiaojiao, looked at her anxiously, fury rising in her chest. “What does Shen Yanci mean? Kicking away the ladder after crossing the river? Without you paving the way back then, would a fresh college graduate have had such a smooth path to where he is now?”
Xu Mian said nothing.
Li Jiaojiao was livid. “And what’s this about proposing to Lin Xiaoxiao? You and Shen Yanci clearly already”
Before she could finish, the office door was pushed open.
Shen Yanci walked straight in. Li Jiaojiao was about to storm over and curse him out when Xu Mian stopped her.
“Jiaojiao, step out first. I’ll talk to him.”
Li Jiaojiao stood there, grinding her teeth.
Talk?
What was there to talk about?
Everyone knew Xu Mian was as if bewitched by Shen Yanci whatever he said went.
Back when he had just graduated and suddenly decided to pursue a celebrity dream, it was Xu Mian who accompanied him to countless talent shows. Later, when he encountered casting couch advances, the executive who tried to prey on him was old enough to be his grandmother.
Shen Yanci had been so disheartened he wanted to return to a regular job.
It was Xu Mian who used her family’s resources to pave a bright road for him.
For five years, Qingyou Media had only one artist Shen Yanci. The entire company revolved around him, tailored specifically for his career.
Xu Mian had given five years of her youth.
Li Jiaojiao had always thought Shen Yanci would use the Yulan Awards stage to publicly announce that he and Xu Mian had long since registered their marriage.
Instead.
This?
Furious to the point of losing reason, Li Jiaojiao stormed out. If she stayed any longer and looked at that scumbag, she might tear him apart.
With her departure, the room fell silent.
Shen Yanci casually took out a cigar.
“You saw the news?”
Xu Mian remained by the window. “Mm.”
“Newly crowned Best Actor, coupled with a proposal announcement my market value has soared. The buzz is explosive. It’s good for the company. Good for me.”
Xu Mian stayed quiet.
She knew Shen Yanci’s plans didn’t stop there.
He took a drag of his cigar. Through the curling smoke, he said slowly, “Lin Xiaoxiao is a childhood friend. She asked me for some exposure. I wouldn’t refuse her. We’re already legally married—no matter what outsiders say, you’re still Mrs. Shen. So there’s no need to mind the gossip.”
Xu Mian still didn’t speak.
Shen Yanci, who treasured his public image so much, would only go this far for Lin Xiaoxiao.
But she knew there was another move coming.
After a few seconds of silence, he said, “There’s one more thing. I want to tell you.”
“All these years, you’ve handled my contract. You’ve done well. I never brought up increasing the split. Of course, there was no need what you earned before can count as thanks for helping me rise. From now on… I want to go independent.”
Xu Mian knew.
This was his real purpose.
The company’s profit split had always been fifty-fifty.
Back then, she hadn’t cared the company was created for him. But Shen Yanci had said that outside agencies usually split seventy-thirty. As a fresh graduate, some contracts were even ninety-ten.
That wasn’t untrue.
And he had benefited.
A marriage certificate had turned that fifty-fifty split into a family matter and tied the capable Xu Mian to his side.
She hadn’t minded.
Over the years, she had quietly pushed from behind as his value soared. She never mentioned the split because every cent the company earned, she deposited into another account under his name.
She never told him.
And never thought one day he would use it as an excuse to leave.
After a long silence, Xu Mian asked, “Have you thought it through?”
“I have.”
She nodded. “Alright. As long as you’ve thought it through.”
He knew very well that he was the company’s only artist. If he left, it would become an empty shell.
Yet he still chose to leave.
When Xu Mian signed the dissolution agreement, she slipped the divorce papers in with it.
Shen Yanci saw them.
He was silent for a moment.
Then he asked the same question she had just asked him. “Have you thought it through?”
Who wouldn’t hesitate?
The once-awkward college boy had become a superstar adored by millions, with a smooth road ahead. Who would willingly let go?
But Xu Mian would.
“I have.”
His pen touched the paper. “If you need anything in the future, come to me. After all, we were husband and wife. Though the gratitude I owed you for helping me back then has been repaid through the profits over the years, I still thank you.”
He knew very well without Xu Mian, he wouldn’t be who he was today.
But he also had his own ability.
Otherwise, no matter how capable Xu Mian was, she couldn’t have lifted him.
In the end, it was his destiny.
Xu Mian finished signing and folded the divorce agreement away.
Li Jiaojiao burst back in, eyes red, glaring first at Xu Mian, then viciously at Shen Yanci.
“Shen Yanci, you’re not human!”
“Xu Mian gave you her whole heart! When you were being dragged off for casting couch exploitation, who smashed a wine bottle and rushed up to protect you?”
“All these years, who handled the negotiations outside? Did you ever once show up? Who stood in front of you?”
“You’ve been married to Xu Mian this long, yet you’ve always told the public she’s your sister, letting everyone think she was pathetically chasing after you! You claimed to be busy and never fulfilled your duties as a husband! Do you deserve her?!”
“Now that everything’s smooth and you’re about to sit firmly at the top, you say you’re leaving! You’re going to ruin Xu Mian ruin this company!”
Xu Mian held Li Jiaojiao back.
Holding the divorce agreement in her hand, she looked at Shen Yanci calmly.
“President Shen, the mountains are high and the waters long. Take care of yourself. If we meet again someday, let’s pretend we were never acquainted.”