Chapter 12: You Have Talent, I Have Means

Director Zhang didn’t respond to that remark. He watched her down bottle after bottle with an impassive expression before finally picking up his own glass.

“All right, I won’t waste any more words—the role of the third male lead goes to your artist.”

“Thank you,” she said softly, snatching her bag from beside her. “I’ll have someone come by tomorrow to sign the contract.”

Having said that, she pushed open the door, steadied herself against the wall, and staggered out. Her stomach churned violently; she was barely holding herself together.

As she was about to leave, she unexpectedly ran into Qian Qian Song.

But Qian Qian didn’t notice her. The slapping mark on her cheek was concealed beneath makeup, and she was boasting to her friends.

“Brother Zhou is spoiling me more and more. I told him I was going to have a drink with the director later, but he forbade me. He even said he’d make that scoundrel who laid a hand on me today apologize in person. Hmph.”

“You’re better off not going. Those directors and producers are all lecherous. Sometimes when they put their hands on my waist, I dare not refuse. President Shen really cares about you, though I wonder when he’ll get divorced. He’s done all this for you; it can’t be much longer.”

“Yeah, it’s getting close. Last night when he left marks on me, he said his wife was boring and wouldn’t let him do these things. I don’t know what people are pretending to be after marriage. No wonder men can’t be faithful—it’s their own fault.”

“Qian Qian, I heard her wife has a pretty powerful background. You should be careful and not cross the line.”

Qian Qian rolled her eyes, clearly ignoring the warning. Her mind was entirely fixed on making that scoundrel pay dearly.

She was determined to hand that scoundrel over to a few directors obsessed with wine and women and let them humiliate her mercilessly.

Tang Yuan stood nearby, feeling her stomach churn even more.

She casually pushed open the bathroom door and vomited into the sink.

Staring at her lifeless reflection in the mirror, her eyes reddened slightly.

She looked utterly disheveled.

Quickly, she turned on the cold water and washed her face vigorously.

Yet the burning sensation in her stomach persisted. After vomiting three more times, she finally felt a bit better.

Women in the Tang family always had poor tolerance for alcohol. After all, they were raised according to the standards of the doddering plant, never allowed to be taken out drinking.

These three bottles were highly potent, the burning sensation traveling from throat to stomach, unbearably painful.

Her whole body reeked of alcohol. She certainly couldn’t go home like this.

She lowered her lashes, clutching her stomach, then suddenly spotted a familiar face in the mirror.

It was Yan Sheng Fu.

She hastily removed her hand from her stomach, lowered her head to wash her face again with cold water, then looked back at him, composed.

“I got the role of the third male lead.”

Yan Sheng, wearing a hat, stood still, wanting to reach out to steady her, but his hand froze in midair.

She had once said she hated physical contact.

He lowered his lashes and said in a hoarse voice, “You don’t have to do this.”

The overhead light in the bathroom was harsh, but even under such unforgiving illumination, Tang Yuan looked beautiful. Her eyes were moist, and her smile was vivid.

“I told you I’d take good care of you. Yan Sheng, this is what you deserve. You have talent, I have means; we’ll definitely make it big.”

His Adam’s apple bobbed as his hand finally reached forward, gripping her arm to steady her.

“Mm.”

Tang Yuan always maintained boundaries with other men, striving not to lean on them.

But the aftereffects of the alcohol surged, blurring her vision. As she nearly stumbled leaving the KTV, she almost fell.

Opposite the KTV stood a luxury hotel. Mo Xie’s car was parked outside, and he had just stepped out.

He was there to meet with a collaborator.

But then his gaze lifted and caught sight of a tall, well-built man supporting a woman as they exited the KTV.

They had all known Tang Yuan for many years and instantly recognized her.

He frowned, thought for a moment, and called Zhou Shen.

“Zhou, I think I just saw Tang Yuan with some unfamiliar man. They seemed pretty close.”

Zhou Shen, now back at the company, paused his typing. “You must be mistaken.”

Mo Xie thought it over and agreed.

The Tang family’s rules were strict; Tang Yuan would never be caught embracing a stranger like that.

Throughout their years of marriage, whenever she came to pick up Zhou Shen, she never allowed male staff near him.

Everyone once joked that for Zhou Shen, she guarded her purity like a jade.

Mo Xie smiled wryly. “Maybe I was mistaken. If Tang Yuan could do that, you wouldn’t still be wearing green hats after two years.”

Zhou Shen frowned as he ended the call, a thought weighing on him.

*

Tang Yuan’s stomach ached, and her head throbbed.

When she got into the car, she staggered and bumped her nose against Yan Sheng Fu’s chest, the pain turning sour.

Yan Sheng placed her in the passenger seat and adjusted it to a comfortable position.

Her cheeks were flushed as she reminded him, “Don’t forget to go to Fenghua and sign the contract with Director Zhang tomorrow morning.”

“Mm, first I’ll take you to get your stomach washed.”

She closed her eyes, sweat breaking out from the stomach pain. “Sorry to trouble you.”

At the hospital, after the lavage, her face was pale. Leaning against a nearby bed, she looked bloodless.

The doctor warned, “Drink less next time. If you get a gastric perforation, the pain will be all yours.”

She forced a smile. “Thank you.”

The doctor sighed, assuming it was just a quarrel between a young couple.

Tang Yuan, smelling of alcohol, leaned against the bed and sent a transfer to Chen Meng, asking her to bring fresh clothes.

She couldn’t go home reeking of alcohol. Though Zhou Shen didn’t care about her, the servants would undoubtedly gossip.

If she returned smelling of liquor two days in a row and caused a scene at the Tang family, she’d have to kneel at the ancestral hall.

Chen Meng arrived with new clothes. Seeing how pale Tang Yuan looked, she guessed what had happened.

“I swear, Zhou Shen is such a bastard—giving his mistress such a good endorsement while his own wife can only get a third male lead role and nearly drinks herself to death! Fifteen years—you’ve known each other for fifteen whole years. How could he be so heartless?”

Tang Yuan didn’t want to vent her anger in front of Yan Sheng Fu and coughed a few times. “Meng Meng.”

Chen Meng took a deep breath and grit her teeth. “Fine, I won’t say more! But if you ever soften because of Zhou Shen again, I’m cutting ties with you. You, a proud young lady, cook every day and do everything at home for him. If he had any conscience, he wouldn’t treat you like this.”

Tang Yuan raised her hand to rub her forehead. “Stop it.”