Jian Yang was, of course, well aware that these things didn’t mean much to Guan Ciyan. But… wasn’t Guan Ciyan giving them to him to make him feel grateful?

Why did he have to say things so plainly? What was he after?

Jian Yang’s brain cells were running low. “I… get it.”

But his eyes, nose, and ears all spelled out: I don’t get it.

Guan Ciyan didn’t say much, just patted his head. “Go on.”

The pros and cons were analyzed. Though the issue wasn’t resolved, Jian Yang had a rough idea in his mind. As he was about to leave, he hesitated for a moment and said to Guan Ciyan, “Thank you.”

Guan Ciyan gave a nonchalant smile, making a soft sound. The moonlight outside the window fell, illuminating the wistfulness rising in his eyes.

Jian Yang didn’t understand that smile. Confused, he left, his mind replaying Guan Ciyan’s words over and over. Then, he suddenly sat up in bed.

“This bastard is really that generous?”

Would he really let him ask Guan Jingyu for help in contacting Wen Ye?

Could this be a trap?

The next morning, Jian Yang got dressed and headed out. Uncle Zhang chased after him with two small European-style bread rolls. “Leaving so early again, young master?”

Jian Yang bit into a roll as he put on his coat, speaking unclearly, “I’m off, Uncle Zhang.”

The driver yawned in his seat. “Young master, you sure have a strong work ethic.”

Jian Yang corrected him, “This isn’t work ethic. It’s just a life doomed to toil.”

Who wants to go to work?

“But weren’t you responsible for Sir’s travel arrangements before? Didn’t he leave early?”

“Of course not. Sir only goes to the company after getting plenty of sleep. And he has multiple drivers. I only handle a few routes. How could I possibly memorize all the traffic conditions everywhere?”

“Traffic conditions?” Jian Yang was puzzled.

“Yeah. Especially the routes Sir frequently takes—when traffic jams start, which shortcuts are faster, what time rush hours begin and end. It all has to be memorized.”

“Oh.” Jian Yang muttered, “No need to wake up early, barely any time wasted on traffic… Being a boss is the way to go.”

Driver: “Exactly.”

Then the driver glanced at him. “But young master, you are my boss now.”

Strange. It didn’t feel like he was a boss at all.

Jian Yang gave an awkward laugh. More and more people were calling him “young master” now. He was getting used to it.

Last night, Director Xu had informed a few confirmed actors to meet up and discuss their thoughts on their roles. It would help them get familiar with each other and their characters, and if anyone wasn’t a good fit, they could be replaced before contracts were signed. The meeting was in the same building where auditions had been held, just on a different floor.

The venue had just been set up when Jian Yang arrived.

In the empty room, a low round table was placed in the center, with a few pages of character bios laid out at each seat. It was a simple setup, but despite the rush, it didn’t feel messy. Director Xu hadn’t arrived yet, so a junior staff member asked Jian Yang which role he was auditioning for and led him to a seat.

Jian Yang couldn’t bring himself to say he was auditioning for the lead role. He just replied, “I’m too early. I’ll wait on the side for a bit.”

He sat on the couch, repeatedly convincing himself with Guan Ciyan’s words: I didn’t lie. I didn’t promise anything.

“Hey, why are you so early?” Director Xu walked in yawning, clearly not having slept well either.

Jian Yang, sporting dark circles under his eyes, said, “A little nervous.”

Director Xu: “Same here.”

“Director Xu,” Jian Yang hesitated. “If, in your professional opinion, you think I’m not suitable, don’t force it.”

“What are you talking about? I’d never ruin my own project.”

Jian Yang let out a long breath of relief. He was worried Director Xu might compromise just because of his background.

They continued talking in depth, and Jian Yang gradually relaxed. Once the other actors arrived, they exchanged introductions and started discussing the characters.

Jian Yang became more and more engaged. A golden gleam lit up his eyes as ideas kept popping into his head. The atmosphere heated up, and the discussion started feeling more like a lively hot pot gathering.

Bang—

The door burst open.

A junior staff member apologized anxiously, “Sorry, Director Xu, I couldn’t stop them.”

Fan Mei strode in with Jian Buqing.

Their agent followed at the rear. “Director Xu, why weren’t we invited to this discussion? If that’s the case, our Qingqing won’t be participating next time.”

Jian Yang’s smile hadn’t even faded yet. It froze on his face.

Fan Mei shot him a glare but didn’t pay him any further attention. Jian Buqing followed closely behind her, dressed in a modern Chinese-style coat. His features carried an air of traditional opera artistry, making him naturally elegant. However, his arrogant, holier-than-thou demeanor was off-putting. He clearly looked down on Jian Yang, standing behind Fan Mei with a pitiful expression, his eyes red as if he had just cried.

Their agent quickly walked ahead of Fan Mei, pulling out a chair for her.

“I heard Director Xu’s movie from last year is about to hit theaters?” Fan Mei took out a contract and placed it on the table. “I brought Qingqing over for a visit. If Director Xu is willing, your movie can get prime weekend slots in theaters. And as for Jian family cinemas, well, you can imagine.”

“Director Xu should know, Jian family cinemas make up more than half of the theaters nationwide. If you don’t need this, that’s fine.” Their agent tactfully spoke the inappropriate words on Fan Mei’s behalf.

“Wu Lai,” Fan Mei snapped at the agent. “Who told you to speak? Director Xu’s experience alone is enough to feed you for a lifetime.”

She handed the contract to Director Xu.

Jian Yang’s grip on the script tightened abruptly. The sharp edge of the paper cut a small slit on his index finger, but he didn’t care. His golden eyes narrowed, locking onto Director Xu.

Director Xu looked at the contract, his brows furrowing slightly. Then he reached out to take it, raising his head with a polite smile.

“Mrs. Jian, let’s talk in my office.”

Jian Buqing panicked. He had persuaded Fan Mei to use the theater’s screening schedule to make a deal with Director Xu—not only to drive Jian Yang out of the production but also to completely humiliate him. But now, Director Xu was actually protecting Jian Yang.

“Mom, it looks like Director Xu doesn’t think much of our cinema. He prefers my little brother,” Jian Buqing said.

Jian Yang’s expression darkened the moment Director Xu took the contract. His eyelids drooped slightly, his golden eyes dimmed, and the corners of his eyes even sharpened with a hint of coldness. He stood up and walked straight to Fan Mei and Jian Buqing.

“Let’s talk outside,” he said.

Jian Buqing, hot-tempered and relentless, refused to back down. “And who’s this young master, personally coming for an audition? Mom, look at him.”

Jian Yang shifted his gaze to Fan Mei, his tone as cold as Guan Ciyan’s. “If you want to know which family’s young master I am, come outside with me.”

Fan Mei’s expression wavered slightly.

Jian Buqing tugged at Fan Mei’s sleeve. “Mom!”

Fan Mei patted his hand. “There might be future colleagues here. Be good, you still have to get along with them.”

Director Xu took the opportunity to open the door, leading them to the meeting room while discreetly sending a message to Wei Wei for backup. It was three against one—Jian Yang was at a disadvantage.

Once the outsiders were gone, Fan Mei reverted to her role as a mother. “Your brother already told you to come home. Why didn’t you? Do you know what a great opportunity you’ve missed?”

Taking the offensive first?

Jian Yang hadn’t even spoken yet, and they had already claimed the moral high ground. No wonder the original Jian Yang had been so obedient.

Too bad—he wasn’t someone who cared about morality. PUA tactics wouldn’t work on him.

Jian Yang spoke lazily, “What does that have to do with me? Even if there’s a benefit, it still belongs to the Jian family.”

Jian Buqing was stunned. “What are you saying? Are you trying to make Mom furious?”

Jian Yang: “If she dies, I’ll attend the funeral, but I won’t be giving out red envelopes.”

(Little Whale Smiling.jpg)

Fan Mei hesitated. The old Jian Yang had always been obedient, accepting whatever was said to him. Did he have a new backer now?

“Yangyang, if you can’t catch Guan Ciyan’s eye and want to choose someone else, I won’t object, as long as they can help the Jian family. But you cannot enter the entertainment industry. You and your brother look too similar—there can only be one of you in the industry, or else there will be too much competition for resources.”

“You’re right.”

Fan Mei had just started to smile when Jian Yang continued, “Then I’ll be the one to enter.”

“Yangyang,” Fan Mei’s tone turned delighted instead of angry. “Do you have a better opportunity? Tell Mom, and I’ll help you judge if it’s good enough.”

Jian Yang grinned. “What does it have to do with you? The benefits are mine—what does it have to do with the Jian family? How interesting.”

Fan Mei seemed unable to process her youngest son’s sudden change in attitude. She continued, “I’ve had people looking for you these past few days but couldn’t find you. Jian Yang, is someone hiding you away? Or… are you just lying to me?”

Jian Yang had been away from the Jian family for several days, and everything had been peaceful. He had assumed the Jian family hadn’t taken his departure seriously, which was why they had left him alone.

But now, it seemed like Guan Ciyan had been deliberately concealing his whereabouts.

Huh… That bastard actually did a good deed without leaving his name.

Jian Yang momentarily lost focus.

Jian Buqing took his silence as guilt and suddenly shouted, “Mom! He wasn’t kicked out again, was he? Last time, he got taken to a hotel by Guan Ciyan and was thrown out afterward. This time, did he sleep with someone again just to get a minor role from Director Xu? My god, how embarrassing! Mom!”

Jian Buqing stomped his foot and turned to Fan Mei, his clothes swaying slightly with the movement, making him look delicate and pitiful—enough to evoke sympathy from any man.

Jian Yang found it annoying. A grown man whining and crying… “Mama’s boy, haven’t been weaned yet?”

Fan Mei also looked at Jian Yang suspiciously. “After all this talk, who exactly are you with?”

Jian Yang hesitated. He didn’t want to bring up Guan Ciyan. Even though Guan Ciyan allowed him to use his name, he hadn’t specified how far that permission extended. He didn’t want to cause unnecessary trouble.

But Fan Mei wasn’t easy to fool. Her tone turned both disdainful and angry. “Jian Yang, tell the truth. Were you thrown out again? Useless thing.”

Useless. Good-for-nothing. Stop looking so pathetic…

Jian Yang froze. Those were Guan Ciyan’s words.

Guan Ciyan scolded him almost every day—more bluntly and cruelly than Fan Mei.

Yet, at this moment, Jian Yang had never felt more humiliated and uncomfortable.

When Guan Ciyan insulted him, it was as if he was trying to straighten out a crooked tree—but not too forcefully, for fear of snapping it in half.

And every time he scolded him, he made up for it with something else. The first time he called him poor, he personally pinned a blue diamond brooch on him.

A sudden warmth spread in Jian Yang’s chest.

Facing Fan Mei, he said, “Go ask Guan Ciyan then. He won’t let me quit acting.”

“You’re such a great actor,” Jian Buqing sneered. “If Guan Ciyan really valued you, why did he let you leave the hotel with a fever the next day? Lying to me is one thing, but lying to Mom? Do you have no shame?”

Jian Buqing turned to comfort Fan Mei. “Mom, don’t be mad. I’ll make sure to prove myself.”

“You don’t believe me anyway,” Jian Yang sighed dramatically. “Say a few words and you get mad. Go home and plant sweet potatoes or something.”

Fan Mei had run out of patience. “Jian Yang! I’m telling you, you won’t be acting in this drama. If you dare to use the Jian family’s name to scam people outside, your father will make sure no crew dares to hire you. Withdraw now and let your brother take the role, and I’ll let this slide. If you don’t, I’ll act as if I never gave birth to you. If you die on the streets, no one will claim your body.”

“Ridiculous!”

She picked up a cup from the table and hurled it at Jian Yang.

Jian Yang twisted his waist—dodged.

Missed.

Jian Buqing immediately followed up, throwing the water from his own cup at Jian Yang. Jian Yang had dodged the first, but the second came too fast. The water splashed into his eyes, stinging painfully, making tears fall uncontrollably. His golden pupils blurred instantly.

He underestimated them. A two-on-one fight wasn’t looking good.

Then he would just settle for how much he could win.

Jian Yang grabbed Jian Buqing by the collar and started knocking the cup against his head.

Bang— “For splashing me.”

Bang— “For splashing me again.”

Bang— “For splashing me again.”

Like knocking on a wooden fish, each hit had a steady rhythm.

Jian Buqing shrieked like a rubber chicken and ran around the room. “Mom! Mom…!”

“Young master! I’m here!”

The door burst open.

The driver rushed in, followed by a group of black-clad bodyguards who swiftly filled the small room.

Jian Yang heard one of the bodyguards mutter in a low, gruff voice, “Move over a bit, I don’t have space to stand.”