The character Jiang Tian was referring to was another supporting role in the drama—the campus belle, who was bold, glamorous, and had a perfect face with an elusive aura. She was the highlight of the entire series, yet very few actresses could pull off the role.
Tang Jiang scoffed at her audacious request. “You sure know how to pick.”
A nobody, not even searchable on social media, and she dared to ask for such a role.
But Jiang Tian was fearless.
“I know you haven’t found the right person yet, but I guarantee no one else can play this role better than me.”
“Heh, that’s interesting,” Tang Jiang chuckled. This was the first time he’d seen such a confident actress. Of course, it was also the first time he’d seen a minor character show up on set dressed so stunningly that she outshone the leads.
“Then why should I give you a chance?”
“Because…”
Jiang Tian blinked, then leaned close to Tang Jiang’s ear and whispered a few words. Tang Jiang’s expression changed dramatically as he glared at her.
Jiang Tian shrugged. “I just want an opportunity. If you’re not satisfied with my performance, Director Tang, you can replace me anytime. And I’ll still keep my mouth shut.”
“…”
Tang Jiang’s expression was grim.
After a long moment, he finally nodded in agreement.
Jiang Tian smirked, her eyes full of cunning, and patted Tang Jiang’s shoulder. “Actually, sometimes it’s not a bad thing to have someone else know. At least I can discuss and explore things with you.”
With that, she excitedly walked into the dressing room to change, leaving behind a conflicted Tang Jiang.
And…
The man who had been sitting next to Tang Jiang the whole time, ears perked up the moment he heard the name “Jiang Tian.” His lips curved into a deeply ironic smile.
…
Jiang Tian went into the dressing room and changed into a school uniform.
Since there was no makeup artist, she had to do her own styling. Thankfully, she had some experience as an assistant, so a simple look was no problem for her.
She tied up her wavy hair, wiped off the lipstick, and replaced it with a lighter shade. However, she didn’t remove the color from her brows. The bold red eyeshadow and dark, graceful eyebrows, paired with her sharply defined features, accentuated the unique aura of the girl in the mirror.
Jiang Tian looked at her reflection, raised an eyebrow slightly, and lowered her gaze. In an instant, her expression shifted from confident and bold to languid and alluring.
Pleased, she snapped her fingers and left the dressing room, only to be stopped by someone who grabbed her, turned her around, and pinned her against the wall.
“Jiang Tian, have you really stooped so low just to get my attention?”
His gaze lingered on Jiang Tian for a few seconds, struck by how stunningly glamorous she looked. It was still the same face, but her aura was completely different.
Her fair skin seemed to have a magnetic pull, drawing people in. There was no overly strong perfume scent on her, just a faint, fresh fragrance. Her features were sharp and distinct, a far cry from the timid, submissive persona she used to project.
Jiang Tian looked up, her eyebrow arched, exuding a mix of allure and nonchalance.
It was only then that she realized who this person was—the scumbag she had kicked out this morning?!
And after getting a clear look at his face, Jiang Tian remembered exactly who he was.
In her past life, he had been a film emperor who retired from the spotlight early to work behind the scenes as a powerhouse.
According to the system, this should be the scumbag male lead in this world’s tragic novel system.
Her fiancé in her current identity.
Gu Jinyan.
Jiang Tian was already tall, and with her seven or eight-centimeter heels, she was nearly 180 cm, just a little shorter than Gu Jinyan.
“Chasing me all the way here, I’ll give you credit for that. Gu Jinyan, whatever our relationship was in the past, from now on and forever, we have nothing to do with each other. You take your broad road, I’ll cross my single-plank bridge. Got it?”
She pushed away the hand pinning her, straightened up, and walked off.
“…”
Gu Jinyan stared at his now-empty hand, his expression odd.
If he remembered correctly, this scheming woman had drugged him yesterday, climbed into his bed, and tried to tie herself to him.
And today…
The renowned actor’s expression darkened.
It felt like he’d been used and then dumped.
Jiang Tian returned to the set. Tang Jiang’s expression was still grim, but he kept his word. The scene was almost ready, and it was clear that Tang Jiang took this role seriously.
In her previous life, Tang Jiang had struggled to find the right actress for the role of Su Yu. He had left the scenes empty for nearly half a month until a moderately famous and talented actress, Zhao Xiying, stepped in and saved the show.
However, the role still didn’t achieve the perfection he had envisioned—something he had lamented to Jiang Tian after getting drunk once.
But now, with the transmigrated Jiang Tian, all those imperfections would be eliminated.
The scene for the audition was this: Jiang Tian, playing Su Yu, receives a love letter from the academic prodigy she secretly likes. However, due to family circumstances, Su Yu has already lost her chance to take the college entrance exam. Not wanting to hinder the boy’s future, she painfully turns him down.
The story was simple, but the key lay in the actress’s grasp of Su Yu’s inner turmoil and the subtle expressions she needed to convey.
Most importantly, this audition had no other actor to perform alongside—the only prop was a love letter. Jiang Tian had to perform alone, facing an empty space.
“Ready, Action!” Tang Jiang called out.
The girl in front transformed her proud demeanor into something else entirely. Her eyelids lowered slightly, her eyebrows arched a bit, and the corners of her mouth held a faint smile. Leaning back in her chair with her legs crossed, she looked both languid and captivating.
Her slender fingers lightly tapped the heart-shaped envelope on the table, then picked it up, swaying it as she glanced at it.
Her beautiful eyes shifted, landing on the empty space before her as if she were looking at the shy boy standing there.
A soft, dismissive chuckle escaped her lips.
“A love letter? People still send these nowadays?”
Mockery, disdain, contempt!
The girl suddenly stood up, her tall frame leaning slightly forward over the table. Even though there was only empty space in front of her, Jiang Tian’s performance made it seem as if the boy handing her the letter was right there.
In front of that imaginary person, Jiang Tian folded the envelope in her hands over and over. Unseen by anyone, her long lashes lowered, hiding the pain and reluctance in her eyes. Even her fingertips, touching the letter, seemed to force themselves to let go with immense effort.
She tucked the envelope into the boy’s chest pocket, her gaze lingering for a second—filled with reluctance and sorrow. But when she looked up again, her expression had changed completely.
“Such an old-fashioned thing. I don’t like it at all. Is this all the academic prodigy has in his head? Or do you think I, Su Yu, would like something so outdated? Or maybe…” Her tone trailed off as she looked at the boy before her, a slight lift in her voice. “…someone as outdated as you?”
The corners of her mouth trembled slightly as she spoke in her usual confident, disdainful tone. Yet the smile on her face made one’s heart ache.
It was like a lotus seed wrapped in honey.
Bitter enough to numb the tongue.
The girl turned away disdainfully and sat back down, crossing her long legs. She chatted and laughed with her classmates behind her, but the laughter never reached her eyes. There was a hint of languor and distraction in her expression. Only after the boy left did she glance back, her beautiful eyes lingering. In an instant, her eyes reddened, tears welling up. She wanted to cry but fought desperately to hold them back, refusing to let them fall.
…
The scene ended.
And the set fell silent.
Only when Jiang Tian smoothed her hair and forced back her tears, standing up again, did applause suddenly break out.
It was Gu Jinyan who started it.
After a long moment, Tang Jiang finally snapped out of it.
He, too, began to clap.
Praising her endlessly.
“Excellent, absolutely excellent! The attention to detail was flawless, the performance was smooth from start to finish without a single hitch. Even the timing with the nonexistent counterpart was perfectly calculated. Your sense of the camera was spot-on. Perfect! It’s like I’m seeing the real Su Yu.”
Tang Jiang was beyond excited.
Jiang Tian raised an eyebrow and smiled. “So, does that mean… I passed?”
“Passed! Absolutely passed!” Tang Jiang turned to the assistant director and shouted, “Find someone who can play the naïve sweetheart immediately and replace all of Jiang Tian’s scenes. The supporting female role Su Yu is now cast to Jiang Tian. Print out all of Su Yu’s scenes and give them to Jiang Tian.”
Tang Jiang’s voice echoed across the set.
Everyone immediately started bustling around.
Jiang Tian finally let out a sigh of relief.
Everything had gone smoothly.
However, when she looked up, she met Gu Jinyan’s half-smiling, half-mocking expression.
“Not bad acting. Much more sophisticated than the performances you put on in front of me. Even I couldn’t tell what was real or fake—was that genuine emotion?”
Genuine emotion, my foot!
Could this great film emperor, Gu Jinyan, stop acting like he was always in a drama?
Did he really think she had channeled her “unrequited love” for him into the role and poured her heart into it?
Jiang Tian flicked her hair back, smiling sweetly and charmingly. “Thank you for the compliment, Film Emperor. It was all just pretense—anyone can do that.”
Gu Jinyan: “…”
Was she saying that everything she had done toward him before was just pretense?
…
Since the role had just been finalized, even though Jiang Tian repeatedly insisted she was ready to start immediately, Tang Jiang, wanting to ensure the best outcome, decided to let her spend a couple of days familiarizing herself with the crew.
Today was the first day of filming, and as per tradition in the industry, Tang Jiang, as the director, treated the entire crew to a meal at Haitande. This was a common practice in the entertainment world—a way to enjoy a good meal before diving into the tough months of filming ahead.
Jiang Tian’s stunning performance today had caught many people’s attention. Those who had been in the industry for years could tell that once this show aired, Jiang Tian was bound to gain a solid foothold in the entertainment world. Add to that her exceptionally striking face, and it would be hard for her not to become popular.
The entertainment industry was full of comings and goings, with new stars emerging one after another every year, and fresh faces appearing constantly.
For a moment, the veterans in the crew felt a mix of emotions.
But Jiang Tian was remarkably bold and straightforward. No matter who came to toast her, she drank without hesitation.
The only person she didn’t get along with was Gu Jinyan.
She wouldn’t even glance in his direction.
Cheng Fang politely declined offers from colleagues to drive them home and helped the heavily intoxicated Jiang Tian leave.
Along the way, she couldn’t stop complaining about how much Jiang Tian seemed to have changed in just one day.
She also had no idea that Jiang Tian’s acting skills were this good, or that she had even memorized Su Yu’s lines.
As they waited by the roadside for a taxi, a black Bentley SUV pulled up.
The door opened, and it was Gu Jinyan.
“I’ll take her. You, go with Lulu in the car behind. He’ll take you home.”
Gu Jinyan forcefully took Jiang Tian from Cheng Fang’s arms and helped her into his car.
By the time Cheng Fang processed what had happened, he was already gone, leaving her standing there in a daze.
What kind of act was this?
The great Film Emperor Gu had taken Tiantian away?
Then she suddenly remembered—last night, when she called Jiang Tian, she thought she had heard Gu Jinyan’s voice in the background.
Jiang Tian and Film Emperor Gu?
What exactly was their relationship?