Chapter 12 – Who Gave Him Permission to Catch Feelings?

Jiang Wan shared her idea with the director—and got rejected.

The director said, “That doesn’t really count as acting cute, does it? Based on your script, the two of you are already happy together. You begging him not to leave is something he would agree to anyway. If you want to act cute, it has to be over something he’s not initially willing to do. Then after you pout or say something like ‘Pretty please?’ he gives in. That’s more like it.”

Jiang Wan fell silent for a few seconds, then asked, “So as long as it’s something he doesn’t want to do, and I say ‘please’ or something like that, it counts?”

The director nodded.

Yeah, more or less.

Rejected, Jiang Wan slouched her way back to sit in front of Shang Gubai, looking even more miserable than before.

Not just because her attempt to game the script had failed.

Something even scarier had happened.

The system pinged her with a warning.

【Host, data indicates that during your recent acting performance, Shang Gubai’s affection level toward you increased significantly.】

Jiang Wan: “???”

What the hell?! That’s terrifying.

Why!?

All she did was act with him for like two minutes and the guy already caught feelings?

This man’s immersion discipline is seriously lacking!

Who gave him permission to fall for her so easily just from acting?!

People like him should never go into acting!

Jiang Wan had zero interest in masochistic relationships—Shang Gubai was definitely not her type.

This couldn’t go on.

She had to think of a way to make him hate her.

Jiang Wan calmed herself down and asked in a falsely casual tone, “So… any thoughts on the script?”

Shang Gubai had already returned to his usual lazy demeanor. He shrugged and said, “You’ve got more experience with acting. I’m just a layman, so I won’t throw in useless suggestions. I’ll go along with whatever you say.”

Then he added one condition, “I’ve got only one request—no crying scenes. I seriously can’t cry on cue.”

Just what she was waiting for.

“Deal.”

Jiang Wan lifted her head and stared into his eyes, confirming, “You’re sure you’ll follow my lead on everything?”

—

Once Jiang Wan finished writing the script, it was time to rehearse.

The moment Shang Gubai took the script in his hands—

His surprise was obvious. He didn’t even try to hide it. After reading a bit, he couldn’t help but burst out laughing.

In the end, he said, “Interesting.”

Seeing that he didn’t reject it, Jiang Wan let out a huge sigh of relief.

They exchanged a glance and smiled. Agreement reached.

Because the script was short and to prevent the audience from seeing too much behind-the-scenes rehearsal, they were allowed to temporarily pause the livestream before practicing.

Jiang Wan turned to the camera. “Bye-bye!”

【Bye! See you later!】

【Wahhh Jiang Wan’s close-up against the camera just now—stunning enough to make me jump!】

【So Jiang Wan rewrote the script? What are they going to perform? Can I please take a peek?】

【Who else saw that moment Jiang Wan and Shang Gubai smiled at each other and just knew they were plotting something shady?】

【Still got an hour and a half to go—I’m dying here!】

…

Jiang Wan and Shang Gubai ran through the scene once to get into character.

Next step: memorizing lines.

Once both had memorized everything and rehearsed a few times, they’d be ready to go on stage.

But now, trapped in a small room together—

With the system’s earlier warning in mind, Jiang Wan couldn’t help but feel awkward whenever she looked at Shang Gubai.

So she decided to step out for a bit and grab some water.

And that’s when she overheard Jiang Qi and Song Yanyan arguing.

Jiang Wan stood by the door and listened for a bit. Soon enough, she understood what was going on.

Jiang Qi and Song Yanyan were the only pairing where both members were trained actors.

That was where the conflict stemmed from.

Shilan and Shang Gubai both knew they weren’t professionals, so they followed their partner’s lead without issue.

But Jiang Qi and Song Yanyan both had strong opinions.

So naturally, they clashed over the script.

The story they were working with was basically a localized remake of The Gift of the Magi.

Song Yanyan felt it was too cliché—the twist was predictable and uninspired.

Jiang Qi thought that with such little time, they wouldn’t be able to come up with anything better. So it was better to focus on delivering strong emotions rather than plot.

Crack—

Jiang Wan was in the middle of snacking on some sunflower seeds she picked up from the snack table near the water cooler.

That sound drew attention.

Both of them turned to look at her.

Jiang Qi had actually already noticed her eavesdropping. Now, he just asked outright, “What do you think? Who’s right?”

Jiang Wan raised an eyebrow, then slowly pointed at herself with her index finger.

Me?

Song Yanyan looked at her too but didn’t say anything.

The livestream chat blew up with laughter.

【LOL the pressure just landed right on Jiang Wan’s shoulders】

【Hahaha Jiang Wan’s probably thinking: “Great, should’ve minded my own business!”】

Jiang Wan didn’t think it was that complicated.

She clarified their concerns again.

To Jiang Qi: “You think there’s not enough time to write a new script and memorize it, right?”

He nodded.

To Song Yanyan: “You don’t want to do something too overused or predictable, right?”

She also nodded.

Jiang Wan grinned.

She raised one finger. “I have a terrib—uh, I mean great idea.”

She turned to Jiang Qi, all excited. “Why not just reenact that time you tried to confess to someone and got stood up?”

Jiang Qi: “…Which time?”

“You know, when you planned to confess, but the girl never showed.”

Jiang Wan didn’t even notice how Jiang Qi’s face was darkening. She just kept going, animated: “You can tweak the script a little based on your keywords. Like, the next day you run into the girl who ghosted you, and you confront her. The two of you argue fiercely.”

“Then it turns out to be a misunderstanding. You said to meet at the library, but your school had two libraries. And then you make up.”

This story fit Song Yanyan’s criteria—less cliché and more character-driven. It also worked for Jiang Qi—he wouldn’t need to memorize a whole new script from scratch.

【She really went for that story?!】

【LMAO Jiang Wan just casually rubbed salt, chili, and Sichuan pepper into Jiang Qi’s wound】

【Seriously—flavorful as hell, but only Jiang Qi knows how spicy it really is】

【But honestly, this might not be a bad idea. It feels like Jiang Qi never got over that experience. Maybe giving himself a perfect ending through acting could help him move on for real】

【Look, his expression changed—from pure annoyance to actual contemplation. She might’ve hit a nerve】

After Jiang Wan finished explaining—

Song Yanyan nodded. She was okay with it and looked to Jiang Qi for his thoughts.

Jiang Qi’s gaze landed on Jiang Wan’s face, full of complexity.

Finally—

He gave a tight, humorless smile and said, “It’s a good story. You’re a good writer. And a good… ac-tress.”

That she could bring up such a memory so casually…

He couldn’t tell if it truly meant nothing to her, or if she had already forgotten.

Forget it.

It didn’t matter.

Whatever she thought—it had nothing to do with him.

She wanted to see it?

Then he’d perform it.

Just for her.