The teenage girl stood before the teacher, who was a head taller, seemingly fearless, with a hint of anger on her face at having her secret exposed.
Her eyes were red, as if she were fighting back tears. Her fingers clenched tightly, her body trembling slightly from the effort.
“Zhao Xuan, who do you think you are? I’m warning you—stay out of my business.”
With that, she swept her hand down, grabbed the backpack from the ground, and slung it over her shoulder—a clean, sharp move.
…
Standing before the camera, the director couldn’t help but feel surprised.
He had expected this action to be a bit challenging for Jiang Tian, but he hadn’t thought she could handle it so well.
Whether it was camera presence or movement, there wasn’t a single flaw. It was as if the girl before him truly embodied Su Zhuang.
Director Tang, who had raised his hand high, ready to call “Cut,” slowly lowered it again.
…
In the shot.
Zhao Xuan frowned, showing clear dissatisfaction yet an unavoidable sense of disdain.
“If you’re going to ruin yourself because of your mother, then I can only say you’re a coward. Su Zhuang, I thought I could think highly of you, but I was wrong.”
The man’s eyes were cool, revealing a sharp edge.
The lines of his face were strong, carrying an uncompromising accusation.
This made the girl walking ahead pause in her steps.
She lifted her head and met Zhao Xuan’s eyes.
…
Outside the scene, the director, assistant director, and the other actors watching couldn’t help but hold their breath.
Everyone knew that the award-winning actor Gu had a powerful presence and that his scenes were hard to match. They were prepared for Jiang Tian to be unable to handle it, but surprisingly, the young girl lifted her eyes.
She stared directly at him.
Not a trace of distraction in her gaze.
Her presence was strong.
“You were wrong about me? What right do you have to be wrong about me? Just because you’re my so-called uncle? Heh, Zhao Xuan, you really are disgusting~ I’m saying this for the last time—my business is none of yours!” The girl transitioned from initial anger to clear sarcasm and finally to utter disregard.
Her eyes and lines blended seamlessly, perfectly portraying the emotional shifts.
Tang Jiang immediately called, “Cut!”
He ran over excitedly, “Great, excellent, done in one take! Amazing! Jiang Tian, you’re a natural at acting. Keep performing like this, stay steady, and you’ll be fine.”
Looking at Tang Jiang’s beaming face, Jiang Tian couldn’t help but feel a bit dazed.
Suddenly, she remembered her past life three years ago. After finishing a scene back then, Director Tang had also run over and told her she was a natural at acting—but only for silly, sweet roles.
Who would have thought that after a second chance at life, just because of her face, everything had changed.
But Jiang Tian wouldn’t blame fate.
Instead, she was grateful for her face and for her past self, who had never given up honing her skills even in adversity.
She smiled and nodded, “Thank you, Director.”
“Alright, good. Go rest for now. We’ll start the next part soon.”
“Okay.”
Jiang Tian carried her backpack to the break room, unscrewed a bottle of mineral water, and was about to drink when the door opened and someone walked in—none other than Gu Jinyan.
Oh, right—she was currently using Gu Jinyan’s break room. The space under her feet was still his.
From the moment Gu Jinyan entered, his full attention was on Jiang Tian. But due to a certain pride, since she wasn’t looking at him, he didn’t intend to look at her either.
After all, the award-winning actor’s dignity still had to be maintained in private.
Still, he found a way to start a conversation, “Your acting today wasn’t bad. I didn’t expect that. I remember you weren’t much of an actor before?”
“…Cough, cough, cough…”
…
Hearing this, Jiang Tian suddenly coughed guiltily, her eyes darting around, afraid Gu Jinyan would see through that she wasn’t the original Jiang Tian.
She frowned.
Placing the water bottle on the vanity, she said dismissively, “There are many things you don’t know. Did you ever imagine that one day I’d be completely indifferent to you?”
Gu Jinyan: “…”
Fine, he shouldn’t have cared too much about this woman.
She truly took an inch and asked for a mile.
Yet he couldn’t stop a sour feeling from bubbling up in his chest.
“It’s because you want to look at someone else again and again, isn’t it?”
Jiang Tian was puzzled, “What does the award-winning actor mean by that?”
The award-winning actor also felt a bit guilty and angry, “You know what I mean. Don’t forget our agreement.”
Jiang Tian happened to see Lu Xin passing by outside the break room. Then, looking at the subtle expression on Gu Jinyan’s face, she raised an eyebrow, seemingly understanding something.
She smiled, “Are you… jealous?”
Gu Jinyan’s face darkened.
“I… what do I have to be jealous about?”
Jiang Tian had no intention of letting him off. She smirked and walked over, step by step closing in on Gu Jinyan, forcing him to retreat. With a grin, she said, “If you’re not jealous, why are you so nervous? And why do you keep targeting Lu Xin? Do you think there’s something going on between him and me?”
Gu Jinyan: “……………… What nonsense are you talking?”
Hearing this, Jiang Tian straightened up and smiled at Gu Jinyan, “Good that you know it’s nonsense. For these three months, no interference, don’t forget.”
With that, she placed the water bottle on the vanity and turned to head back to the set to work.
Gu Jinyan stared at the woman’s departing figure, utterly bewildered. After a long while, he let out an angry laugh.
…
Jiang Tian and Gu Jinyan had different scenes and different wrap times. But to maintain their couple image, they specifically waited for each other to finish before riding back together. On the surface, they acted sweet and affectionate, but once in the car, they shot cold glances at each other.
Throughout the drive, the two could barely stand the sight of each other.
Back home, they didn’t even bother pretending. They weren’t willing to eat together.
Gu Jinyan ate in the dining room, while Jiang Tian had her meals brought to her room.
After eating, they each closed their doors and went about their own business.
Once work was done and they slept, the next day they repeated this same strained coexistence.
The funny thing was, online, their relationship was described in the most fantastical terms, as if they were an ancient, unmatched sweet couple.
Even their occasional confrontational glances were written as flirtatious exchanges, as if they were flirting.
Jiang Tian & Gu Jinyan: “…”
One day, after wrapping up, it was already 2 a.m. She had been filming night scenes, and Gu Jinyan hadn’t been feeling well lately, so she didn’t make him wait for her. Cheng Fang had gone back home due to family matters, so after finishing work, Jiang Tian had to drive back to the villa herself.
Having filmed for twenty hours straight, Jiang Tian’s last meal had been at 3 p.m. that afternoon. Now, she was starving.
When she got back, the servants were already resting. Jiang Tian didn’t like troubling others, so she could only frown and head to the kitchen to make something to eat.
Looking at the spotlessly clean stove, she couldn’t help but twitch her lips.
She used to be able to cook a couple of dishes, but later, due to busy work and Cheng Fang taking good care of her, she hadn’t cooked for herself in years. Now, suddenly having to make a meal, she wasn’t sure if she could manage.
Gu Jinyan didn’t like leftovers, so the servants hadn’t kept any dinner. Opening the fridge, there were no instant noodles, but there were some fresh noodles.
Jiang Tian frowned even more. She turned on the gas stove, poured water into a pot, and brought it to a boil. Just as she was about to add the noodles, a male voice suddenly came from behind.
“Add some salt to the water and put in more noodles. Make enough for me too.”
Jiang Tian turned around and saw Gu Jinyan: “…”
Frowning, she followed his instructions and looked for salt.
Seeing the seasoning in two small containers, Jiang Tian frowned, “Which one is salt? Which one is sugar? Why do they look the same? Shouldn’t sugar be coarse? Is salt this coarse too?”
Gu Jinyan: “…”
He looked at her oddly. He had to admit, the previously arrogant and domineering Jiang Tian now puzzling over which container held sugar and which held salt had a strangely contrasting cuteness.
Gu Jinyan suppressed the smile at the corner of his mouth and pointed to the salt.
Casually, he asked, “Can’t cook?”
“Cough, cough… Who said I can’t? I just… didn’t expect there to be coarse salt.”
Then, with a shaky hand, a whole spoonful of salt went in.
Gu Jinyan: “…”
“Adding a whole spoon of salt—do you plan to eat the noodles with just salt?”
“If it’s just for seasoning, why add salt?”
As soon as Jiang Tian asked this, she wanted to slap herself. Okay, even she now doubted whether she ever knew how to cook.
Gu Jinyan glanced at her, utterly speechless, but not impatient. He walked over, took the spatula, noodles, and salt from Jiang Tian’s hands.
After sorting things out, he poured out the water in the pot, boiled fresh water, added a small amount of salt, then put in the noodles.
He explained, “Adding salt is to keep the noodles from sticking and to make them more elastic and tasty. Also…”
He looked at Jiang Tian, “Were you planning to eat plain noodles like this?”
Me: “…Just something simple to fill the stomach is fine…”
Hearing this, Gu Jinyan shot her a disdainful look, clicked his tongue, then turned to the fridge, took out tomatoes, eggs, and some other seasonings.
He tied on an apron, washed everything, and placed them on the cutting board.
One hand held the tomato, the other held the knife.
Swish, swish, swish—a few cuts, and the tomatoes were neatly and beautifully sliced.
Then, he beat the eggs, poured them into a non-stick pan to make an omelet, took it out, and sliced it neatly.
Next, he stir-fried the tomatoes into a sauce, added the sliced omelet, stir-fried a bit more, then turned off the heat. He drained the noodles, topped them with the tomato and egg mixture, and done.
With his long hands, he placed two plates of tomato and egg noodle sauce on the dining table. Jiang Tian was dumbfounded.
She truly hadn’t expected the lofty award-winning actor Gu to know how to cook.
Not only that, his knife skills were meticulous, the presentation was beautiful—it was a feast for the eyes, nose, and taste buds.
What’s more, the man wearing an apron and bustling around the kitchen looked rather handsome~
Just then, her stomach growled twice. Jiang Tian felt a bit embarrassed and secretly glanced at Gu Jinyan. Seeing he wasn’t looking at her, she relaxed and sat down, trying her best to control her hunger-driven hands and eat with an elegant posture.
Gu Jinyan smiled slightly at the corners of his mouth.
After taking a couple of bites, he frowned, feeling a bit nauseous, and hurried to the kitchen sink. He wanted to vomit but couldn’t.
Jiang Tian was startled and quickly went over, asking with concern, “What’s wrong with you?”