BDB Chapter 12

Jiang Rao really didn’t know anything.

Not only was she not Jiang Tang, but she also wasn’t the original owner.

Even if the original owner had been here, it wouldn’t guarantee that she had watched every drama Jiang Tang had starred in, nor could it guarantee that she recognized every actor in those shows.

She had already booked her plane ticket online the day before. Since she estimated that handling the property deeds would take at least three to five hours, she scheduled the flight for the afternoon.

After lunch, Jiang Rao got into the car heading to the airport. Midway through the ride, her phone rang.

As soon as she answered, her manager, Sister Wang, bellowed through the receiver, “Where are you right now? Are you in City Z? Don’t tell me you’re really in City Z?”

Jiang Rao fell silent for a moment. “What’s wrong?”

Her lack of denial was an admission.

Staring at her computer screen, showing a dozen windows with the same set of photos, Sister Wang was on the verge of losing it. “Is spicy hotpot that good? You’re a famous actress in a hit drama right now, and you’re eating at a roadside stall? Did you even watch how you were eating? Have you forgotten about your figure?”

“And that extended Lincoln you were in—whose car was that? Are you in a relationship? Are you seriously ignoring your image because you’re planning to marry this guy?”

Listening to her manager’s increasingly hysterical voice, Jiang Rao could easily imagine how anxious Sister Wang must have been.

So, after mentally replaying her manager’s questions, she replied, “The spicy hotpot tasted good. It was the most fragrant on that street, so I chose it. As for whether I paid attention to my eating manners—I didn’t. Regarding my figure, I think health is the foundation of everything. I’m a bit too thin, so gaining weight might be good for me. Lastly, the Lincoln wasn’t mine, I’m not in a relationship, and I have no plans to marry that man.”

Everything she said was true.

She and the male lead were still in a fake marriage. Though they had occasional interactions, none of them were pleasant. No one in the world could call that “dating.”

As for marriage, it was even more impossible. Although the original owner had registered the marriage with the male lead, the identity she represented was Jiang Tang’s.

And since bigamy was a serious crime, it was impossible for her and the male lead to get married.

Hearing this, Sister Wang felt as though a lump of blood had stuck in her throat, unsure whether to swallow it or spit it out.

She had used a questioning tone, but she was really venting! Who needed answers to those questions?

“Health is the foundation of everything? What kind of revolution are you waging as a celebrity? Let me ask you one thing—you’ve spent half a year without taking on any new roles, and now you’re completely letting loose. Are you planning to quit acting and leave the industry?”

Jiang Rao pressed her lips together. “Not planning to—at least, not for now.”

Sister Wang conveniently ignored the “for now” part. Just as she was about to arrange a face-to-face meeting to talk things over, a shadow suddenly blocked the bright fluorescent light above her.

“There’s work for you from the higher-ups. Head to the general manager’s office.”

Startled, she swallowed her anger.

“I’ll call you in half an hour,” she said, before hanging up.

By now, Jiang Rao’s vehicle was nearing the airport.

Staring at the disconnected call, she thought about sending a message saying she was about to board her flight. But when she noticed that the call had come from a landline, she dismissed the idea.

As for texting Sister Wang’s mobile, unfortunately, her current phone, though identical to Jiang Tang’s, had been a secondary purchase from Madam Bai.

It only had numbers saved for the Li family and the Jiang family—no one else’s.

When the vehicle arrived at the airport, Jiang Rao took the elevator up from the parking garage to the main hall. She had already suspected that the news, which had made Sister Wang so worked up, would have reached the fans too. But when she saw the crowd rushing toward her, she still froze for a second before reacting.

This era’s fans were no different from the ones she had seen in airport greeting videos on Weibo. Some held banners, some cheered and shouted. Sadly, their excited screams and blushing compliments were directed at her because she was now playing as Jiang Tang. After snapping out of her brief daze, Jiang Rao maintained a calm demeanor.

But while she stayed composed, a voice from the crowd was anything but calm. “Green tea bitch! Plastic surgery freak with too much makeup!”

The moment those words were spoken, the previously noisy hall suddenly fell into a brief silence.

Such fan reception events were generally organized by local fan clubs. During the process, there were screenings and selections to determine the final participants. However, no matter how strict the screening was, it couldn’t prevent haters from disguising themselves. Amidst a group of loyal fans, there was always the chance of a hater slipping through.

The image described by the hater was neither of the original owner nor of her. Throughout the encounter, Jiang Rao’s expression remained unchanged.

When she saw that the hater, who had just caused a commotion, was being detained by security, she no longer worried about her safety. Just as she was about to proceed along her planned route to the check-in and elevator, she heard the hater’s voice again.

“Caught in a night out with the sugar daddy; it must have been easy to climb to the top with all that accompanying and sleeping around, right?”

Jiang Rao finally reacted but merely turned her head with a calm expression. “From which year are you counting the accompanying and sleeping around?”

The hater responded with agitation, “Of course, from the year you debuted!”

“And do you remember how old I was when I debuted?”

This time, the hater didn’t answer. However, the fans who had been following Jiang Rao spoke up.

“Fourteen!”

“I started following you back then. Your acting in ‘Wrong Love for a Lifetime’ was really amazing!”

“My Tang at fourteen was so beautiful as a painting!”

…

With the voices of the fans chattering in her ears, Jiang Rao smiled. “Fourteen, huh…”

She looked at the boy spouting obscenities. “Defamation can get you imprisoned. But before you end up in prison for this, why not familiarize yourself with Article 236, Paragraph 2 of the National Criminal Law?”

With that, she turned and stepped onto the elevator.

The flight was unusually on time. Jiang Rao breezed through check-in and security, quickly turned off her phone, and boarded the plane.

She hadn’t anticipated that fans uploading airport videos to Weibo would catapult Jiang Tang’s name to third place on the trending list.

She found out about it only after she landed.

Similarly, the person who called to inform her was still Sister Wang.

“You just landed? No worries, just listen to me. I’m going to read you some of the comments from netizens.”

“Netizen 1; Even with such a blurry video, I can still see how beautiful my Tang is… That one doesn’t count. Next.”

“Netizen 2; Following now. Jiang Tang is simply amazing. I can’t understand how she accurately recited the specific location of that criminal law. Could it be that she studied criminal law privately? …That one doesn’t count either. Next.”

“Netizen 3; Support Tangtang in suing that hater. Spreading lies is easy, but they’ll regret it for the rest of their life! Let them spend a few years in prison and truly repent! That one doesn’t count… Anyway, I have something serious to tell you.”

“What is it?”

“The company has lined up a role for you. It’s a film about human trafficking, called Yanyan. The audition is in three days. If you get the part, you’ll be the lead actress, Yanyan.”

Jiang Rao stopped in her tracks. “I already said I wasn’t taking any roles recently.”

“This was arranged by the company’s upper management, and the contract has already been signed. If you breach it, you’ll only be liable for damages.”

“Then I’ll compensate.”

She hadn’t signed the acting contract.

She hadn’t signed the casting contract either.

She had no reason to pay for decisions made by others.

Sister Wang was silent for a moment. Jiang Rao only heard the faint clicking of a mouse on the other end of the line.

After a while, Sister Wang spoke up. “I’ve sent you the materials. Review them and decide if you want to take the role.”

By the time she got home, it was around five or six in the afternoon.

Jiang Rao seemed indifferent about everything, but she was quite stubborn. Once she decided something, it was hard to change her mind.

However, since her conversation with Sister Wang that afternoon, for two or three days straight, she found herself encountering related topics everywhere.

The TV she casually turned on was focused on issues of women and children trafficking.

When she went downstairs to eat, she overheard the servants discussing the customs of their hometown. In the midst of their conversation, they excitedly mentioned how, in some remote villages, one could buy a wife for just a thousand yuan.

It was during this time that Sister Wang called again. “Have you thought about it? The audition is tomorrow. Will you come or not?”

“I don’t…”

Before she could finish her refusal, a sharp pain struck her head.

“I’ll come.”

…

The February wind was chilly.

After answering a report from his subordinate, Li Jueyan gave a slight acknowledgment. “Got it. I’ll be at the audition tomorrow.”

The cold wind blew in, but he felt no chill.

He couldn’t believe that Jiang Tang, who would be playing a woman trafficked to the mountains, could still have that heavy makeup that only makeup remover could take off?

…

Author’s Note: “Jiang Rao: It’s all a trap!”

[Note] Criminal Law, Article 236, Paragraph 2: Engaging in relations with a girl under fourteen, whether consensual or not, is considered sexual assault.

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