Chapter 6

Since Ji Qingyuan had moved in, Zhu Xinyue had no reason not to go greet him.
She put in her contact lenses and went downstairs to see him.
"How's your foot?" Ji Qingyuan still remembered she had sprained it last night.
"Minor issue. The doctor said it'll heal with a week or two of rest." Zhu Xinyue half-leaned on the sofa, her gaze following Ji Qingyuan's back.
The agent quickly glanced at Zhu Xinyue, rubbed his palms together, and followed Ji Qingyuan into the kitchen.
Ji Qingyuan had lived in Lishan before, but after getting his own place in Tianze City, he mostly stayed at the villa closer to his company.
He was very familiar with the layout here, casually opening one of the smart refrigerators to find drinks for his agent. "Brother Hu, what would you like to drink?"
"Anything's fine. The guest follows the host's lead, I'll drink whatever you give me."
Ji Qingyuan handed his agent a bottle of mineral water, then took two bottles of the same flavored sparkling water from the fridge. He approached Zhu Xinyue and offered her one.
Zhu Xinyue didn't particularly like drinking soda, but out of politeness, she accepted the can Ji Qingyuan handed her. However, she just held it in her hand with no intention of drinking it.
Ji Qingyuan pulled the tab off his can, skillfully took the unopened sparkling water from her hand, swapped it with his opened one, and then opened the can he now held.
Zhu Xinyue clutched the sparkling water he had opened for her, looking up at Ji Qingyuan standing before her. Every move he made felt so natural and effortless, as if he had opened drinks for her hundreds of times before.
The chilled beverage, wrapped in the stifling air, condensed droplets on the can that trickled down her fingertips onto the shag carpet below.
Ji Qingyuan took a sip of his sparkling water and, noticing she was still staring at him, flashed a bright smile. He swept his bangs back and struck a deliberately handsome pose, joking, "Did you just realize how good-looking I am?"
Normally, this would make her blush and leave her speechless, but this time he saw a complex look in Zhu Xinyue's eyes, there was sympathy, sadness, appreciation, but notably absent was the shyness he knew so well.
The smile on Ji Qingyuan's face stiffened for a moment. His gaze shifted from Zhu Xinyue to his agent, Brother Hu, sitting on the other side. "Brother Hu, didn't you say you had something to discuss with Xinyue?"
Zhu Xinyue gripped the can, turned to sit properly on the sofa, and casually placed the untouched sparkling water on the coffee table.
Brother Hu scratched his head, looking across at Zhu Xinyue. "Miss Zhu, I was wondering if you might be interested in entering the entertainment industry?"
Zhu Xinyue thought to herself, just when I was feeling sleepy, someone brings me a pillow, what a coincidence!
In the novel, the original female lead also entered the entertainment industry, but her acting skills were so poor that she insisted on playing a couple with Ji Qingyuan. As a result, she was criticized by netizens and Ji Qingyuan's fans as a "resource princess" and an attention-seeker, not even qualifying as a mere "pretty face." Later, it was exposed that she had snatched the role originally meant for Jiang Rui, which attracted even more backlash.
With the original female lead serving as a contrast, the ambiguous relationship between the female protagonist Jiang Rui and Ji Qingyuan, both on and off-screen, became something to root for. Casual viewers and fans were much more accepting of the "Qing-Rui CP," and the support from their CP fans even surpassed that of their solo fans, propelling their careers to new heights.
Zhu Xinyue analyzed the situation objectively: once she entered the entertainment industry and became an actress, she and Jiang Rui would inevitably be placed on the same track. Resources in the entertainment industry are relatively fixed, and roles in film and television are unique, some get them first, others later. It's a single-lane track where only one person can pass at a time.
The original female lead, in order to act alongside the person she liked, pushed Jiang Rui aside and took the role. With her terrible acting, she ruined the character, the drama, and the audience's viewing experience. No wonder netizens criticized her.
But...
Subjectively speaking, Zhu Xinyue felt that since the original female lead had given her a chance to live again, no matter how much others criticized her, Zhu Xinyue would fiercely indulge and protect her!
So this time, she would fulfill the original female lead's wishes and show her that even without Ji Qingyuan, she could live a good life, not give up her life for him.
Zhu Xinyue looked up, met his gaze directly, and said with a smile, "To be honest, I've actually been an extra on a variety show before, but my acting was so bad they didn't give me any screen time."
Ji Qingyuan, sitting on the long sofa between them, relaxed with his left arm resting on the back of the sofa and his right hand holding a canned drink, chuckled upon hearing this, his expression saying, "Not surprised."
Brother Hu slapped his thigh, trying to put on a "regretful" expression but unable to hide his joy at having found a gem. The corners of his mouth drooped for just a moment before lifting high again.
"You just haven't found the right role. You and Young Master Ji have been childhood friends. Sign with our studio, and we won't treat you poorly."
Zhu Xinyue glanced at Ji Qingyuan as if seeking his opinion.
Ji Qingyuan set down his drink, a smile on his face. "I can't make this decision for you. This is your own career."
"Our studio is backed by the Jin Huan Group. We're all family here; we won't cheat you," Brother Hu said.
Zhu Xinyue knew full well they wouldn't cheat her, in fact, they would shower her with so many resources that people would call her a "resource princess."
"Send me the contract, and I'll think about it."
Ji Qingyuan raised an eyebrow, his gaze flickering toward Zhu Xinyue, a bright smile on his face.
"You've grown up. You've learned to think twice before acting."
Zhu Xinyue didn't respond, just lowered her head and smiled faintly.
There was a hint of bitterness in her smile.
Anyone who has ever worked a job or rented an apartment knows to read contracts carefully.
Not only would she read the contract herself, but she would also send it to someone knowledgeable in law for advice.
[Zhu Shilang: You want to enter the entertainment industry? No! Is this what you call bravely pursuing love? Do you know what a public figure has to face? Every little mistake will be seized and magnified. Can your personality withstand being judged by so many people? You...]
Zhu Xinyue looked at the long message on her phone screen.
She didn’t feel impatient because Zhu Shilang was being overly naggy. Instead, she could calmly observe, from a third-party perspective, how different people viewed “Zhu Xinyue” entering the entertainment industry.
From her brief interactions with Ji Qingyuan, Zhu Xinyue clearly understood that he treated her as nothing more than a slightly closer friend than an ordinary one. Those seemingly “ambiguous” actions were simply because they had grown up together and were accustomed to this kind of closeness.
In Ji Qingyuan’s eyes, perhaps “Zhu Xinyue” had no gender at all.
Ji Qingyuan and “Zhu Xinyue” were like that bottle of sparkling water he opened without considering her preference.
He didn’t care whether she would drink it or whether she liked it, because their dynamic had always been like this, he gave, and she accepted.
She always followed him with adoring, infatuated eyes.
Just like his fans.
If he truly cared about “Zhu Xinyue,” he would have weighed the pros and cons for her, just like Zhu Shilang did, instead of smiling and telling her to decide for herself, knowing full well she knew nothing about the entertainment industry.
Could he really not know who “Zhu Xinyue” was drawn to the entertainment industry for?
Zhu Xinyue felt like an outsider, observing everything with clarity.
The little sun that the original host adored was, in reality, a cold person.
This kind of outwardly warm but inwardly cold demeanor was all too familiar to Zhu Xinyue.
She happened to be the same kind of person and had mastered this act to perfection.
[Zhu Xinyue: Brother, I sent you the contract because I trust you, unlike Mom and Dad. Since we were kids, you’ve always been the one to support me and stand by me. I’ve thought it through clearly. If I don’t do well and get criticized, it’s only right because I don’t deserve the position. If I do well, I’ll have a clear conscience. If people still criticize me, it means they’re deliberately trying to smear “me.” No matter who “I” am, what does their criticism have to do with me?]
Zhu Shilang didn’t reply for a long time.
No news was the best news.
After all, this time, he didn’t outright demand that Zhu Xinyue return to the Zhu family, which meant he was considering her words and would have to deal with their father on her behalf.
Over the past few days, Zhu Xinyue had either been shopping online or going out to buy things, purchasing everything she had wanted but couldn’t afford in her previous life.
In the middle of her shopping spree, Zhu Xinyue received a file from Zhu Shilang.
[Zhu Shilang: I had the family’s legal team review it. There are some parts that need to be revised. Sign for no more than three years. Once the three years are up, you must return to Qingyang immediately.]
[Zhu Shilang: Jin Huan Group is managed by your brother Linyu. If you encounter any uncertainties at work, ask him for advice.]
Zhu Shilang sent her Ji Linyu’s contact card.
Zhu Xinyue, holding various shopping bags, sat in a restaurant at the mall and clicked on Ji Linyu’s contact card.
His profile picture was a scenic photo taken from under the shade of a tree, the lens aimed at the sky. Sunlight filtered through the lush green leaves, which looked so vibrant they seemed to drip with life. The sky was an impossibly brilliant blue, as if an entire season of spring had been captured in that single frame.
It perfectly matched her impression of Ji Linyu.
Zhu Xinyue sent Ji Linyu a friend request.
He was probably busy. It wasn’t until she had finished her meal and was on her way back to Pear Mountain that he accepted the request.
Zhu Xinyue pondered how she should approach this conversation with Ji Linyu.
Soon, she would be his employee, should she use the tone one would with a superior? But her brother was quite close to him. Would speaking too formally create unnecessary distance?
It would be foolish not to leverage personal connections. If she phrased it well, she might even get Ji Linyu to pull some strings and adjust her commission split. That shouldn’t be a problem.
[Zhu Xinyue: Linyu, are you busy?]
She sent a sticker of a kitten peeking out.
On the other end, Ji Linyu had just finished a business trip and was waiting in the departure lounge to board his flight back to Tianze City.
After adding Zhu Xinyue as a friend, he set her nickname to “Zhu Xinyue” and returned to the chat window, only to see her name alternating with “typing…”
He waited a moment before she finally sent those six words.
He had almost expected her to write a whole essay.
[Ji Linyu: What’s up?]
This was Zhu Xinyue’s first time negotiating her salary directly with the company’s top boss, especially one who was such good friends with her brother that she could even stay at his place. She wasn’t sure how to navigate the boundaries, so she decided to ease into it.
[Zhu Xinyue: I’m planning to sign with a studio under the Jin Huan Group and debut as an artist! From now on, I’ll be your employee! (So excited! .jpg)]
Ji Linyu’s eyelids twitched as he looked at the cute sticker she sent. He could almost picture how thrilled she was on the other end.
Was she really this excited just to be his employee?
Or was it because she was connected to him that made her so happy?
Ji Linyu tapped the input box: Didn’t you say you didn’t like me…
Wait, that sounded strange, as if he cared too much. He deleted it and started over.
Since she had made her stance clear before, he should treat her like any other employee.
[Ji Linyu: Work hard and do your best.]
Zhu Xinyue stared at the boss’s “do your best” message. The words she had prepared to cozy up to him were halfway typed, but she deleted them and started again.
His reply had completely derailed her train of thought. How could she hint at renegotiating her contract terms without sounding too money-driven? Bringing up finances directly would make her seem mercenary and leave a bad impression.
Should she appeal to their personal connection? But that connection was between Ji Linyu and her brother, it had nothing to do with her…
Ji Linyu thought their conversation had ended and was about to lock his screen when he saw “typing…” appear again.
He ignored it, locked the screen, and closed his eyes to rest.
His phone remained silent for a long time.
Perhaps she was discouraged by his indifference.
Ji Linyu’s Adam’s apple bobbed.
He was doing this to cut the knot, to keep his distance from her and not give her any false hope. He was right.
His phone vibrated once. Ji Linyu opened his eyes, it was a notification: bad weather might delay the flight.
He frowned.
Another new message from Zhu Xinyue popped up at the top of the screen. His brow relaxed slightly as he tapped into her chat window.
[Zhu Xinyue: I heard you’re returning to Tianze City today, brother Linyu. Can I pick you up at the airport?]
Ji Linyu chuckled softly.
Hah, the truth is out at last.