An Juexiao’s life had been extremely turbulent lately. Right after graduation, she secured a supporting role in a new film by a renowned director, but on the day she was supposed to join the set, she received unfortunate news.
“Your role has already been replaced. Go back.” The busy casting director spoke to An Juexiao without even facing her directly, not sparing her a glance, clearly treating her as insignificant as dust.
An Juexiao froze when she heard this. This was already the third time. Her role had been taken again!
She tried to make one more effort to fight for the hard-earned role. “Director Wu, but wasn’t my role already decided by the director? I’ve even taken the costume photos, and I came today to join the set.”
Hearing this, Director Wu gave her a sidelong glance. Although he finally looked at her directly, the look was far from friendly.
With an arrogant smile, he said, “Are you trying to use the director to pressure me?”
“I…” An Juexiao was momentarily stunned after being accused like that.
“Let me tell you, for a minor role like yours, I can replace it whenever I want. Of course…” Director Wu dragged out his words, his gaze traveling over An Juexiao’s well-proportioned figure before his expression turned suggestive. “If you’re willing to offer some compensation, arranging another role for you isn’t impossible.”
His implication was obvious. An Juexiao’s expression changed, a shadow falling over her fair face, her slender fingers curling into a fist.
She had heard senior students talk about casting couch practices before, but she never expected to encounter it herself today.
Her rosy lips pressed together lightly, and two firm words came out.
“In your dreams.”
“If you’re not willing, then forget it. There are plenty of young girls who are.” Director Wu sneered.
To be fair, there were all kinds of beauties in the entertainment industry, sexy and glamorous, pure and cute, ethereal and elegant, but very few like An Juexiao who combined both heroic charm and softness.
Especially with her bold brows and wide peach blossom eyes, she carried an added allure.
Thinking this, Director Wu suddenly felt it would be a pity to miss out on her, so he decided to add another incentive.
“Didn’t the company you signed with go bankrupt? If you’re willing, I can also introduce you to an agency. As for future resources, of course there will be plenty.” Director Wu felt his offer was sincere enough, no freshly graduated girl would refuse. His greasy hand boldly reached toward An Juexiao.
A sharp glint flashed in An Juexiao’s eyes. She did not dodge. Instead, she decisively raised her arm and slapped his hand away.
A crisp “smack” rang out from the contact.
The commotion drew the attention of others on set.
Unhurried, An Juexiao said loudly, “Keep those resources you use to deceive young girls for your own coffin fund!”
Her words sparked whispers among the people around them.
“Is Director Wu bullying a newcomer again?”
“Looks like he finally picked the wrong person.”
“He deserves it. Throwing his weight around to take advantage of small actors all day, but the moment he sees someone with status, he bows and scrapes like a lapdog.”
An Juexiao did not hear much of the discussion. She did not want to stay there even a second longer. After rejecting Director Wu, she turned and left without looking back.
But just as she rounded a corner, she ran into someone she knew. Seeing the other person’s eyes light up and a provocative smile appear, An Juexiao let out a sigh.
Troubles never come singly.
“Well, well, isn’t this our top student?” The girl, dressed head to toe in designer brands, was followed by three assistants, creating quite an imposing presence like a big star.
In reality, she had just graduated too and was An Juexiao’s classmate.
An Juexiao glanced at Xin Yan indifferently, not intending to respond to the provocation. She averted her gaze and moved to leave, but Xin Yan would not let her miss the chance to mock her.
Like an arrow released from a bow, Xin Yan rushed toward her and arrogantly blocked her path.
An Juexiao found her movements oddly familiar, that frantic urgency resembled middle-aged women scrambling for discounted goods in a mall.
At the thought, An Juexiao could not help but laugh.
“What are you laughing at!” Xin Yan’s eyes widened angrily.
An Juexiao and Xin Yan had long-standing grievances. In An Juexiao’s view, most of it was simply the other party being unreasonable.
For example, a boy Xin Yan confessed to had bluntly said he preferred someone like An Juexiao. When they first entered school, there was some ridiculous campus beauty ranking. Xin Yan had originally been in the lead, but An Juexiao later overtook her.
As a result, Xin Yan did not resent the person in first place, she resented An Juexiao, the one who surpassed her and kept her down.
Later on, An Juexiao continued to outperform her year after year, winning scholarships and often being used as an example by acting teachers, praised for her insight and strong comprehension. None of this had anything to do with Xin Yan, yet in her eyes, An Juexiao was competing with her in everything.
Xin Yan sneered, “You can still laugh after losing your role, looks like only someone as thick-skinned as you could manage that.”
An Juexiao glanced at her, lifted her chin, and said, “Snatching roles by relying on a man and still acting so arrogant, when it comes to thick skin, you are no better.”
“What, not convinced?” Xin Yan raised her chin. “So what if you had good grades, were favored by teachers, and even got recommendations, you were still pushed out by me without any effort.”
“My boyfriend dotes on me. I liked your role, and he got it for me with ease.” Xin Yan wore a smug expression. “Oh right, I heard the company you signed with went bankrupt?”
She clicked her tongue. “Are you some kind of jinx in your past life?”
Faced with Xin Yan’s provocation, An Juexiao remained extremely calm. “The Yangtze’s waves push the previous ones forward. While your sugar daddy boyfriend has not replaced you yet, you should hurry and grab more roles.”
“You!” Xin Yan choked with anger, her weak spot had been hit squarely.
Because what An Juexiao said was true. Although she had a so-called boyfriend now, in reality she was just a kept canary, and she herself had climbed up by pushing someone else out.
Satisfied at the sight of Xin Yan flushed with anger, An Juexiao added lightly, “As a classmate, let me remind you, remember to take care of your health. Accompanying your ‘boyfriend’ is physically demanding, and also high risk.”
Xin Yan was so furious she could not speak, only glaring at An Juexiao.
The tension between them instantly became razor-sharp, as if they might start fighting the next second, but the atmosphere was interrupted by a soft laugh.
“Pfft.”
An Juexiao and Xin Yan both turned to look. The person who arrived was Huo Mingze, the investor of this television drama. He was considered handsome and wealthy, but what truly caught An Juexiao’s attention was the man beside him.
Even in silence, that man exuded a powerful presence. His figure was tall and upright like a peak, his facial features sharply defined, his beauty as if carefully sculpted into a precious work of art. Simply standing there, he possessed an irresistible magnetism.
As if sensing An Juexiao’s gaze, the man looked back at her. His eyes were dark and profound, carrying a calm, detached air. Embarrassed, An Juexiao shifted her gaze away, avoiding eye contact.
Yet she was not sure if it was just her imagination, it seemed he was still looking at her.
Meanwhile, Xin Yan instantly changed her expression as if performing a magic trick, greeting him with a radiant smile. “Brother Huo, what brings a big shot like you here?”
Having found a new target, Xin Yan naturally stopped bothering An Juexiao, who was finally able to leave with ease.
The path she took happened to be the direction Huo Mingze and his group had come from. She softly said, “Excuse me.”
In the narrow corridor, An Juexiao brushed past them. When she passed the cold-faced man, curiosity got the better of her and she raised her head to take a few more glances. The man was very tall, lean yet strong, and the slightly open collar revealed a particularly alluring Adam’s apple.
Xin Yan interpreted An Juexiao’s glance as flirtation and quietly stretched out her foot to trip her.
Caught off guard, An Juexiao lost her balance and was about to fall, but the man steadied her firmly.
A faint scent of cologne and a voice that stirred the heart came at the same time. “Be careful.”
Almost making a fool of herself, An Juexiao blushed, lowered her eyes, and did not dare look at him again. After repeatedly thanking him, she hurried away.
“An Juexiao?”
She paused and turned back, but the man who had held her gaze had already been pulled away by Huo Mingze.
An Juexiao tilted her head in confusion. Did that man just call her name? But she did not know him. Logically, a man as outstanding as him should have been unforgettable to her.
She thought about it for a few seconds, but truly had no impression of him. So perhaps she had been too angry and imagined it.
After leaving the set, her quick steps gradually slowed. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, then pressed a hand to her chest and leaned against the wall.
Ah, so infuriating!
Really, truly infuriating!
Although she had appeared calm and in control the whole time, in reality she had been seething with anger. She simply refused to lose face. All her frustration and grievance had been forcefully suppressed, sustained entirely by her acting.
Standing there, she slowly crouched down, burying her head lightly in her arms.
From afar, she looked like a small ball, pitifully curled up in a corner.
Around the set, many glamorous actors came and went, surrounded by assistants and reporters. It was as if no one saw An Juexiao, as though she were invisible. Of course, if the person crouching there today had been a celebrity, things might have been different.
“Hey, hello.”
Hearing the voice, An Juexiao looked up, revealing a pair of reddened eyes as she looked at the young girl in front of her.
“Our Sister Su asked me to give this to you. She also told me to pass on a message, life always has its ups and downs, there is no hurdle you cannot get through.” The girl handed her a pack of tissues.
An Juexiao followed the direction the girl pointed and saw that the “Sister Su” she mentioned was actually Su Lanxue.
Su Lanxue debuted with a major film directed by a renowned director, a high-budget production. Her debut was already the peak others could only dream of, and now she was a popular rising star with abundant resources.
Unexpectedly, she turned out to be such a thoughtful person in private.
An Juexiao nodded with a choked voice, then said listlessly, “But my life is more like downs, downs, and more downs… still, thank you to Sister Su and to you.”
The girl was amused by her words. When she went back, she quietly whispered a few things into Su Lanxue’s ear, probably relaying what An Juexiao had said. Su Lanxue laughed along, then gave An Juexiao a gentle smile before entering the set, surrounded by assistants and trailing reporters like stars around the moon.
An Juexiao wiped her tears, then stretched out her hand and doodled on the ground, drawing a silly smiling face. She looked at her drawing with satisfaction, patted her knees, took a deep breath, and stood up to leave.
A moment later, a tall and upright figure walked out from the set. His gaze swept the surroundings, as if searching for someone. Finally, his eyes settled on the ground near the entrance, on the smiling face drawn in the dust by a finger.
Clearly wanting to cry, yet still trying to make herself smile.
Huo Mingze followed him out and patted the absent-minded Gu Zhanran. “Caught your interest?”
Gu Zhanran stared at the ground and said calmly, “An old acquaintance.”
An Juexiao returned home in low spirits.
Home was actually a place she shared with a close friend. After all, for fresh graduates like them, buying a home in Beicheng was nothing short of a fantasy.
When she entered, she saw an extra pair of men’s shoes on the floor and immediately knew her friend’s boyfriend was over. It seemed her plan to find someone to drink with and get completely drunk was ruined.
Carrying a grocery bag, An Juexiao went back to her room alone.
After a few drinks and some snacks, her mood did not improve, instead it became even worse.
Especially Xin Yan’s mocking words before she left, they stung deeply. She lost the role not because she was incapable, but because she had no backing.
All of this made her feel increasingly wronged. From the next room came the very timely sounds of pleasure.
An Juexiao fell silent.
“Waaah!” Fueled by alcohol and fresh irritation, she suddenly burst into loud sobs.
As soon as she cried out, the noise next door stopped abruptly, as if startled.
But An Juexiao was no longer aware of anything. She was immersed in her own sorrow, gulping down several more mouthfuls of alcohol as the fumes rushed to her head.
“Why!”
“How can a few words take away the role I worked so hard for!”
“The company I joined went bankrupt right away, like I wanted that! How am I a jinx!”
“I, An Juexiao, swear that one day I will become a big star, a huge star, scripts lining up every day begging me to act! I will have one assistant for eating and drinking, one for dressing and styling, one for travel! The moment I step out, a whole football team will follow behind me, full of grandeur!”
“Boyfriend? Ha, some pot-bellied bald old man dares to call himself a boyfriend? Pah! In the future my boyfriend will definitely be a super handsome guy, a young heartthrob! Yes, a young heartthrob! When I make it big, I will keep a hundred young heartthrobs, performing chest-breaking stone acts in front of me every day!”
After rambling about many wild dreams, her tone suddenly shifted and she began reciting poetry.
“Heaven rewards the diligent and the determined! The time will come to ride the wind and break the waves, to hoist the sails and cross the vast sea!”
In the next room, two pairs of eyes met in the darkness.
“What is wrong with her?”
“Ahem, Xiaoxiao is just like this, when she gets drunk, she likes to recite inspirational poetry.”
From next door came another line—
“How much sorrow can one have? Like a thigh nowhere to be found.”
“The road is long and far, I will search high and low for that thigh.”
The two people were instantly mortified.
Her roommate muttered, “Well, searching for a thigh is kind of inspirational too… right?”
An Juexiao recited poetry for about ten minutes, filling herself with motivational “chicken soup,” then collapsed into sleep from exhaustion.
In her dream, she finally had a thigh of her own, extremely thick and golden, a crispy fried chicken drumstick.