The Charity Auction doesn’t start until seven in the evening.
Xia Yuan had just finished filming a promotional video at three o’clock, leaving her with four hours to spare, so she slumped into the car seat.
“Miss Xia, you have an acting training session in an hour.” Zhong Le hurriedly reported Xia Yuan’s schedule, as if she was late, this capricious young lady might run off to do who knows what.
If the young lady was fine, she would definitely get a lecture from Manager Lin Xin.
Xia Yuan stretched out her hand, looking at her shiny nails, “Got it, have you booked the makeup team for me?”
Zhong Le nodded: “Yes, the appointment is at five-thirty.”
Xia Yuan decided to get a manicure while doing her hair later: “Okay, wake me up when we get to the company.”
Seeing Xia Yuan obediently lying back and falling asleep, Zhong Le breathed a sigh of relief, exchanged a glance with Lin Qi, and they both smiled without saying a word.
Actually, Xia Yuan was quite easy to get along with on normal days. Her little princess temper, in the eyes of Zhong Le and Lin Qi, was quite endearing compared to those pretentious stars in the industry who never vented their frustrations on them.
It’s just that she was a bit too willful.
They found it hard to cope, after all, Xia Yuan entered the entertainment industry just for fun, looking for some amusement when she was bored.
Xia Yuan’s manager, Lin Xin, managed more than one artist, and for Xia Yuan, she just needed to fulfill her duties as a manager. The artist Lin Xin was most optimistic about was the recently signed Yu Jiajia, who was beautiful and vibrant. If she could grasp acting well, there was a chance she could make it into the top tier in time.
“Miss Xia, we’ve arrived at the company.”
Xia Yuan opened her dazzling peach blossom eyes, the corners slightly upturned, as if capturing all the stars in the sky.
Her voice carried the laziness of a nap: “Let’s get out.”
The car door quickly opened, and before Xia Yuan got out, she wanted to touch up her lipstick, but her usual lipstick wasn’t in her bag.
She then remembered that it seemed to be still with Meng Xiyue.
She didn’t mind, having plenty of lipsticks, she picked another one and touched up her makeup in front of the mirror.
After a bit of application, Xia Yuan pursed her lips, looking at the red in the mirror, she felt something was off: “How does it look?”
Her lips were a rich, full red.
Zhong Le blushed slightly, “Mmm, it looks beautiful.” Indeed, it was beautiful, or rather, Xia Yuan’s lips were beautiful. With the red lipstick applied, they were even more kissable.
Perfect for kissing, and for sucking.
Xia Yuan finally closed her mirror and stopped fussing, but in her heart, she felt that the lipstick Meng Xiyue applied was the most perfect. She decided to ask her to apply it again next time.
The entertainment company Xia Yuan joined was arranged by Xia Ke, and she signed the highest-level contract, granting her a great deal of autonomy.
Only the senior management knew Xia Yuan’s true identity. To everyone else, she was just a newcomer with an S-tier contract. Especially the other newcomers in the acting class, who secretly harbored all sorts of malicious speculations about Xia Yuan.
Speculations like she was being kept by a sugar daddy, who was a big-bellied bald man, and so on…
Xia Yuan had only attended the acting class twice because she was busy auditioning with Director Li. The company provided her with special treatment, teaching her individually.
Thus, this acting class was the first time Xia Yuan met with her fellow newcomers.
When Xia Yuan entered the acting studio, the acting teacher hadn’t arrived yet, and the newcomers had formed several small groups.
As soon as she walked in, she became the center of attention.
Xia Yuan was beautiful, pampered from a young age, her exposed skin smooth and pale, her delicate features effortlessly exuding a charming allure.
Her bold and beautiful eyes carried a hint of arrogance.
A beautiful woman, especially in the eyes of other newcomers eager to make a name for themselves in the entertainment industry, instantly set off alarms.
“Xia Yuan, you finally came to class. The teacher has covered a lot of material these past few days. I’ll give you my notes later to catch you up.”
Looking at the woman who approached her, speaking as if they were close, with an unmistakable bitchy tone, Xia Yuan looked down and asked, “Who are you?”
Xia Yuan, standing at 168 cm, was wearing high heels, making her about 175 cm tall, while the woman who approached her wore flat shoes.
Xia Yuan easily looked down at her.
Yu Jiajia, who was 163 cm tall, stiffened her face, looking up at the high and mighty Xia Yuan, unable to suppress her jealousy.
Then, she giggled, “Xia Yuan, we share the same agent. We met last time at Sister Lin’s place. You might have been too busy to notice me then.”
“Let me introduce myself, I’m Yu Jiajia.”
Xia Yuan didn’t care about the other person’s name and responded indifferently, “Got it.”
Yu Jiajia continued her awkward chat, “Sister Lin said that your schedule is fully booked recently, unlike me, with no scripts to work on, I can only come here to hone my acting skills.”
As soon as she said this, the looks directed at Xia Yuan were filled with envy, and everyone also became aware of Xia Yuan’s identity.
The gold-digger, an S-class newcomer.
The acting coach entered.
Xia Yuan took off her high heels, and even then, she was still half a head taller than Yu Jiajia, giving her a glance, “You indeed need to polish your acting skills.”
That exaggerated and pretentious demeanor, scheming against her, trying to make her an outcast, Xia Yuan was no fool.
However, she rarely bothered to engage.
Such petty isolation tactics were something she stopped playing with back in high school.
Xia Yuan always had her own group of followers, and plenty of fake friends, but she wasn’t fake with everyone.
At the very least, to win her favor, one had to satisfy her.
For instance, Wang Xuan, although not fond of her, had put in the effort to please her, and Xia Yuan wasn’t stingy in returning the favor.
Yu Jiajia watched Xia Yuan, who naturally stood in the front row, unable to control the twisted expression on her face.
Just because she clung to a wealthy patron, she acted so high and mighty.
Even her own agent, Lin Xin, was extremely polite to Xia Yuan. Once, the agent accidentally revealed that the scripts she picked were the ones Xia Yuan had passed on.
Initially, she was grateful to her agent for such great opportunities.
But with that revelation, Yu Jiajia felt a mix of shame and resentment.
Especially since the agent also warned her not to provoke Xia Yuan.
Yu Jiajia’s resentment grew even deeper.
An hour of acting class quickly came to an end, and thanks to instructions from above, Xia Yuan’s class was uneventful.
After class, Yu Jiajia approached her again: “Xia Yuan, I’m really sorry, but I have to attend a Charity Gala tonight, so Sister Lin might not be able to look after you this evening.”
Yu Jiajia had specifically inquired and found out that there was only one invitation to the Charity Gala, which her agent had given to her, meaning Xia Yuan definitely couldn’t attend.
As for the wealthy man she was involved with, he would surely bring his official wife, not her, a mistress who couldn’t be seen in public.
Yu Jiajia was looking forward to seeing Xia Yuan’s frustrated expression, but her face showed nothing.
Instead, the remaining newcomers, upon hearing Yu Jiajia’s words, quickly gathered around, showering her with compliments.
Yu Jiajia looked proudly towards Xia Yuan, only to see a retreating figure; she was convinced that the other had fled in panic.
The ‘fleeing’ Xia Yuan, upon leaving the acting studio, was quickly approached by two assistants.
There were still three hours until the gala.
＊
After finishing her work, Meng Xiyue checked the time and saw that there was nearly an hour left before the charity gala was to begin.
The dress she was to wear to the gala had already been placed in the resting room of her office by her female secretary.
She changed into the black knee-length dress, adorned her slender swan neck with a diamond necklace, and applied lipstick in front of the mirror. Meng Xiyue preferred light makeup; her makeup was just right, and her hair softly draped over her shoulders.
After making sure everything was in order, Meng Xiyue left her office.
“Dudu…”
The phone rang a few times before being lazily answered: “I’m still getting my hair done, Meng Xiyue, come pick me up at XX.”
Assistant Li, who had just heard, glanced at the president, who exuded a cool and indifferent aura, and remained silent.
He remembered that the president had rushed through her work this afternoon so she could leave work so much earlier.
He guessed that the president did this so Miss Xia wouldn’t have to wait too long.
Unexpectedly, the other party was still getting her hair done.
From Assistant Li’s perspective, all he could see was Meng Xiyue looking indifferent, her beautiful slender fingers resting on her phone.
Her voice was as elegantly clear as ever: “Okay.”
Lacking sufficient data to analyze the BOSS’s mood, Assistant Li decided to act like a wooden mannequin that could only breathe.
About half an hour later, they arrived at the address Xia Yuan had mentioned.
Xia Yuan was on the phone again, this time drying her freshly done nails.
A calm voice came through the earpiece: “I’m here.”
Xia Yuan: “I’m still getting my nails done, I’ll be ready soon.”
“Miss Xia, you have ten minutes. It takes twenty minutes from here to the charity gala, and I don’t want to be late.”
Xia Yuan grumbled: “Alright, I won’t make you late.”
Why doesn’t Meng Xiyue ever catch her hints?
After hanging up, Xia Yuan was full of complaints in her heart and turned to the manicurist: “How much longer?”
Manicurist: “Miss Xia, one more minute.”
Sixty seconds passed quickly, and Xia Yuan barely had time to admire her new nails before she hurried out.
A black, unassuming sedan was parked at the door.
After speaking briefly with two assistants, Xia Yuan got into the car.
Upon entering, she saw Meng Xiyue by the window, dressed in a black suit, sitting upright.
Elegant, ascetic.
Meng Xiyue glanced indifferently at Xia Yuan as she entered the car, then quickly looked away and said, “Drive.”
Xia Yuan leaned in: “Meng Xiyue, look at my new nails, do you think they look good?”
Even Xia Yuan didn’t notice that her voice carried a hint of ingratiating tone.
Her pale fingernails were adorned with several small diamonds, making her already fair and slender fingers look even more delicate and tender.
The other party was still fidgeting with her fingers as if playing the piano. Under the dim light of the rear seat lamp, it added a layer of mysterious allure.
Xia Yuan was still feeling smug.
Meng Xiyue looked up at her.
Xia Yuan immediately withdrew her hand and behaved, but after a few seconds, she asked again, “So, do you think it looks good?”
Her tone was quite dissatisfied. She was so excited to share, yet the response she got was so cold.
It was just a little delay on her part.
Meng Xiyue withdrew her gaze from the slightly puffed cheeks of the other party, a clear sign of an impending temper. To avoid trouble, she said, “It suits you well.”
The annoyance in Xia Yuan dissipated instantly, and she looked at Meng Xiyue with a smile, “Don’t be mad, next time I definitely won’t delay your time.”
Since Meng Xiyue showed weakness, Xia Yuan thought she should also apologize.
Meng Xiyue thought.
She wasn’t angry at all.
*
Twenty minutes later, they arrived at their destination.
As soon as they got out of the car, they ran into Li Ting and Ding Yaoyao who had just arrived.
Li Ting frowned upon seeing Xia Yuan, whose every hair seemed to exude elegance, while Ding Yaoyao subconsciously tightened her grip on Li Ting’s arm.
Upon seeing Ding Yaoyao wearing a white dress of the same color as hers, Xia Yuan snorted and her gaze instinctively fell on the other’s belly, ready to step forward and sarcastically congratulate her.
She had already planned it out; her tone would be sarcastic, and then she would turn and leave.
After all, Uncle Li and Aunt Li wouldn’t let Ding Yaoyao enter.
As for Li Ting, seeing him being intimate with Ding Yaoyao, she felt surprisingly calm, devoid of the previous resentment and bitterness.
Li Ting saw Xia Yuan’s expression and subconsciously thought she was looking for trouble, frowning and scolding, “Xia Yuan, don’t make a scene.”
Xia Yuan suddenly realized that she was still somewhat unwilling. After all the years of friendship since childhood with Li Ting, he could be so ruthless.
The last bit of childhood affection seemed to vanish with that rebuke.
“President Li, Miss Xia is my companion today.”
Seeing Xia Yuan stunned, Meng Xiyue spoke up.
Xia Yuan quickly regained her composure, took Meng Xiyue’s arm, and nodded to Li Ting: “I just came to say congratulations.”
After saying that, she elegantly left with Meng Xiyue, heels clicking.
Li Ting watched Xia Yuan’s retreating figure, feeling as if something was slipping out of his control.
Then he thought he might be overthinking it. Xia Yuan liked him so much, how could she suddenly stop liking him?
He had seen too much of playing hard to get.
…
As soon as they entered the venue, Xia Yuan said, “Thanks for saving the situation just now, otherwise I might have lost my temper again.”
Meng Xiyue, with her light gaze, saw that Xia Yuan’s eyes were clear of any gloom and said, “Don’t mention it.”
Hearing this, Xia Yuan thought:
Meng Xiyue is treating her like one of her own.
