Starlight Entertainment.
Inside the office, a completely flustered and exasperated Chang Li exclaimed, “Ning Xi auditioned and was cast as the second female lead!”
“Second female lead?” Ning Xueluo creased her forehead at the information. “Wasn’t she playing some random role in an unknown movie? When did she have time to audition for the second female lead?”
“I originally thought it was strange too, but after asking around, I found out it was after the auditions for the first female lead ended; the casting judges were leaving, and it just happened that they ran into Ning Xi. The moment they saw her, they immediately decided she fit the role of the second female lead. They only gave her one glance and it was decided like that! No wonder you feel threatened by her, what a schemer she is! Who knows who she had to seduce to get this role!”
There were some things Cheng Li didn’t dare say. Ning Xi’s looks were her best weapon; the fact that the casting judges decided on her with just one glance was not strange at all.
She thought back to when she had first signed Ning Xi as an artist. She had been prepared to nurture heer, but out of nowhere came Ning Xueluo.
On one hand, a new artist with no power or backing; on the other hand, an already famous celebrity with a strong and powerful family background. Anyone would know how to choose.
The entertainment industry was not a place where you could survive on beauty alone.
Ning Xueluo was displeased. “Even though she's not the first female lead, this is still a huge production!”
Chang Li could hear in her tone that she did not want Ning Xi to be cast in this role.
She felt conflicted. “I’m afraid it’ll be difficult to remove her. Our company invested a lot of money into this drama, and the boss is really happy after being able to secure the first and second female leads. If there was someone from our company who could replace her, that would be fine; however, everyone else has already failed the auditions. So there’s no good reason to remove her.”
Who knew what Ning Xueluo was thinking, but she suddenly calmed down and began filing her nails. She laughed. “Never mind. Since she wants to play the role of a fox demon, then let her! Playing a seductress who brings disaster really suits her!”
…
Ning Xi soon received a phone call from Chang Li notifying her that her casting in <The World> as the second female lead was confirmed. She was also told to properly prepare for the part.
In the movie <The World>, the first female lead was righteous, brilliant and courageous, and would help the male protagonist ascend the throne. Meanwhile, the second female lead brought calamity to the country and the people. She was treacherous and cunning, and was spurned by all. To everyone’s satisfaction, she would ultimately meet her end with the first female lead making her jump off a cliff.
Because it was such a character, it was unsurprising that Ning Xueluo wasn’t bothered to interfere with the casting.
Although Ning Xi had landed the role of second female lead, she still needed to complete her existing work. Today, she still needed to complete her existing work. Today, she still had a production she needed to run to. Her role was a husband-stealing vixen, and she only needed to film the last five minutes. Under the blistering sun, she would be surrounded by angry people and beaten violently for five minutes.
However, the reality of the film was that these five minutes actually took a little over two hours to complete, because the group of actors was inexperienced. Their expressions were not in sync, so she had to be hit repeatedly.
Returning home, Ning Xi turned on the television as she lay on the sofa, completely exhausted.
A new broadcast was on, and then a familiar person appeared on the screen.
Such flourishing beauty; such broad shoulders, a slim butt and long legs; such height and such ascetic temperament… who else could it be but Little Treasure’s father, Lu Tingxiao!
Lu Tingxiao appeared to be in the middle of a signing ceremony, and was shaking hands with several foreigners.
The host sounded very enthusiastic when introducing the successful collaboration between Lu Corporation and the Italian DR brand; entering the European market would possibly double the company’s stock value.
After watching for a while, Ning Xi finally realized that she had forgotten to give Little Treasure a call!
…
At the Platinum Palace.
The two elders of the Lu family had returned from overseas and the family of five were having dinner together.
The business deal the Lu Corporation had pursued for three years was finally sealed, making the old master very happy. He praised Lu Tingxiao very highly; even Lu Jingli got some compliments.
After he was finished, however, he brought up the most crucial issue.
That while work was important, his precious grandson took even more priority!
Master Lu: “Tingxiao, work is very important but you can’t just neglect Little Treasure. Since you will be less busy in the upcoming days, spend more time with Little Treasure!”
Madam Lu: “But if you’re really busy, then find someone to help you take care of him! Little Treasure is already so big, you should really consider finding someone!”
Master Lu: “Your mother is right!”
Lu Jingli gave his brother a meaningful glance. Look, our parents are starting again.
Lu Tingxiao focused on eating dinner, not uttering a single word.
Little Treasure held his father’s cellphone, not moving at all.
Thursday, February 23, 2023
Tuesday, February 21, 2023
15. YOU REALLY ARE MY SON
The next morning, Ning Xi was awakened by a low male voice coming from the living room.
Hearing footsteps behind him, Lu Tingxiao lowered his phone, and asked in a gentle tone, “Did I wake you?”
Ning Xi stared at the man in front of her, her eyes wide like copper bells.
Lu Tingxiao wasn’t wearing a shirt, so when she opened the door, the first thing she saw was his bare skin. The impact was too much.
She rubbed her nose. Thankfully, she hadn't embarrassed herself.
Lu Tingxiao didn't seem to have noticed her strange behavior, and calmly picked his shirt up from the sofa. As he buttoned it on, he said, "There's an emergency at work, I have to go. I'll have to trouble you to wake Little Treasure up."
"Oh, okay!" Ning Xi nodded and quickly went to do so.
But she didn't have to; when she turned around, she saw a soft and cute little Pikachu standing in the doorway. His eyes were staring intently at his father, Lu Tingxiao, and he appeared displeased.
"Little Treasure, go change your clothes," Lu Tingxiao ordered his son as he put on his coat.
The reply he received was the loud bang of the bedroom door being slammed shut.
Ever so merciless.
Lu Tingxiao: "..."
Ning Xi: "..."
Lu Tingxiao went to turn the doorknob, but it was locked. He looked at Ning Xi. "Do you have the key?"
Ning Xi awkwardly shook her head. "I do have one, but the key is also inside the room!"
Lu Tingxiao pinched the skin between his eyebrows, and said in cold, unfathomable tone, "I'll give you three minutes. If you don't come out, don't think you'll ever get to come here again."
Three minutes later, there was still no sound or motion behind the door.
"Get out here! If you're waiting for me to force you out, I won't be as nice as I am right now!"
There was still no movement.
That Little Treasure was really not giving his father any face.
Watching from the airlines, Ning Xi wanted to laugh, but didn't dare to. "I have work later, but it's no big deal if Little Treasure stays to play for a while."
Lu Tingxiao's expression was irritated and displeased as he took out his phone to make a call.
Ning Xi took a sneaky peek, and saw that he was calling a psychiatrist. She was at a loss for words. Wasn't it too extreme to call a psychiatrist for such a small matter like this?
Ning Xi coughed as she urged. "How about letting me try?"
Lu Tingxiao hesitated slightly before nodding.
Ning Xi pressed against the door and used a gentle, soothing voice. "Little Treasure, Auntie has to go to work so I can't take care of you. Follow your father home first, okay?"
There was still no sound from inside.
"How about this, we can exchange phone numbers so we can instantly contact each other? We can even video chat!"
Sounds of footsteps approached the other side of the door.
"If Auntie is late, the director will yell at me, our director is really mean. Auntie is so pitiful... wu..."
The door unlocked with a kachi sound and then opened.
Lu Tingxiao, who was already prepared to fight a long war, felt that he was dreaming. He stared at the woman standing beside him in bewilderment.
With just three statements, she had managed to coax Little Treasure into obediently coming out by himself.
If only he had known her when Little Treasure had locked himself in the attic the last time this happened. His entire family of four, all the butlers and servants, the psychiatrist, even a negotiation expert who had been hired as a last resort, had all been useless despite spending an entire afternoon trying to talk him out of the art. In the end, they broke the door down and the little kid ignored everyone for a whole month.
Ning Xi of course didn't know about any of this, and only thought the child was really obedient despite his tragic air. She picked Little Treasure up. Seeing his depressed expression, she was unwilling to scold him, and praised him instead. "Little Treasure is so obedient. Thanks, darling!"
Little Treasure appeared happier with the praise, and he silently gave her a note. On the paper, there was a string of numbers.
Ning Xi accepted the note. "Ah, is this your phone number? Alright, I'll save it, and when I'm not busy, I will definitely give you a call!"
Lu Tingxiao felt it a bit strange; Little Treasure didn't have a cellphone, so what phone number did he give her?
Using his height to his advantage, he looked at the note. That was his phone number.
You really are my son!
Hearing footsteps behind him, Lu Tingxiao lowered his phone, and asked in a gentle tone, “Did I wake you?”
Ning Xi stared at the man in front of her, her eyes wide like copper bells.
Lu Tingxiao wasn’t wearing a shirt, so when she opened the door, the first thing she saw was his bare skin. The impact was too much.
She rubbed her nose. Thankfully, she hadn't embarrassed herself.
Lu Tingxiao didn't seem to have noticed her strange behavior, and calmly picked his shirt up from the sofa. As he buttoned it on, he said, "There's an emergency at work, I have to go. I'll have to trouble you to wake Little Treasure up."
"Oh, okay!" Ning Xi nodded and quickly went to do so.
But she didn't have to; when she turned around, she saw a soft and cute little Pikachu standing in the doorway. His eyes were staring intently at his father, Lu Tingxiao, and he appeared displeased.
"Little Treasure, go change your clothes," Lu Tingxiao ordered his son as he put on his coat.
The reply he received was the loud bang of the bedroom door being slammed shut.
Ever so merciless.
Lu Tingxiao: "..."
Ning Xi: "..."
Lu Tingxiao went to turn the doorknob, but it was locked. He looked at Ning Xi. "Do you have the key?"
Ning Xi awkwardly shook her head. "I do have one, but the key is also inside the room!"
Lu Tingxiao pinched the skin between his eyebrows, and said in cold, unfathomable tone, "I'll give you three minutes. If you don't come out, don't think you'll ever get to come here again."
Three minutes later, there was still no sound or motion behind the door.
"Get out here! If you're waiting for me to force you out, I won't be as nice as I am right now!"
There was still no movement.
That Little Treasure was really not giving his father any face.
Watching from the airlines, Ning Xi wanted to laugh, but didn't dare to. "I have work later, but it's no big deal if Little Treasure stays to play for a while."
Lu Tingxiao's expression was irritated and displeased as he took out his phone to make a call.
Ning Xi took a sneaky peek, and saw that he was calling a psychiatrist. She was at a loss for words. Wasn't it too extreme to call a psychiatrist for such a small matter like this?
Ning Xi coughed as she urged. "How about letting me try?"
Lu Tingxiao hesitated slightly before nodding.
Ning Xi pressed against the door and used a gentle, soothing voice. "Little Treasure, Auntie has to go to work so I can't take care of you. Follow your father home first, okay?"
There was still no sound from inside.
"How about this, we can exchange phone numbers so we can instantly contact each other? We can even video chat!"
Sounds of footsteps approached the other side of the door.
"If Auntie is late, the director will yell at me, our director is really mean. Auntie is so pitiful... wu..."
The door unlocked with a kachi sound and then opened.
Lu Tingxiao, who was already prepared to fight a long war, felt that he was dreaming. He stared at the woman standing beside him in bewilderment.
With just three statements, she had managed to coax Little Treasure into obediently coming out by himself.
If only he had known her when Little Treasure had locked himself in the attic the last time this happened. His entire family of four, all the butlers and servants, the psychiatrist, even a negotiation expert who had been hired as a last resort, had all been useless despite spending an entire afternoon trying to talk him out of the art. In the end, they broke the door down and the little kid ignored everyone for a whole month.
Ning Xi of course didn't know about any of this, and only thought the child was really obedient despite his tragic air. She picked Little Treasure up. Seeing his depressed expression, she was unwilling to scold him, and praised him instead. "Little Treasure is so obedient. Thanks, darling!"
Little Treasure appeared happier with the praise, and he silently gave her a note. On the paper, there was a string of numbers.
Ning Xi accepted the note. "Ah, is this your phone number? Alright, I'll save it, and when I'm not busy, I will definitely give you a call!"
Lu Tingxiao felt it a bit strange; Little Treasure didn't have a cellphone, so what phone number did he give her?
Using his height to his advantage, he looked at the note. That was his phone number.
You really are my son!
Friday, November 25, 2022
14. YOU WANT TO SLEEP WITH ME BUT NOT MARRY ME?
With a face like she was about to cry, Ning Xi sat down obediently, like a student in class.
Lu Tingxiao rested his head in one hand. "Are you that scared of me?"
A late night Lu Tingxiao was much more unreserved than the daytime Lu Tingxiao, so he was even more dangerous.
Ning Xi shook her head like a rattle, but then nodded her head. "You're a king. Who wouldn't be afraid if you?"
Lu Tingxiao swirled the water in his glass, and said faintly, "So because other people are afraid of me, you are afraid of me? Then, all the other women want to marry me, but why don't you?"
This question nearly scared Ning Xi into falling off her chair. She thought she had already dodged this bullet during the day, but she was just too naive.
This question made her feel like a thousand knives were directed at her. How was she supposed to answer it?
Ning Xi raised a shaking hand. "Before I answer this question, can I ask a question first?"
Lu Tingxiao nodded. "Sure."
"Why me? Is it because Little Treasure is reliant on me? I think this is only temporary; wait until his emotions settle down, and it'll be fine. Even if he is always going to be like this, you don't need to... you don't need to force yourself..." Ning Xi earnestly advised and persuaded.
Lu Tingxiao lowered the glass in his hand and lifted his eyes to meet hers. "Miss Ning, I believe that I explained very clearly in the beginning: because you saved Little Treasure, I decided that I would repay you with my body."
This kind of explanation is so weird, it blinds me. There's no way I could accept this, alright? Ning Xi howled in her heart.
Ning Xi felt that she couldn't possibly get through to him if they persisted in this vein, so she could only put on an apologetic face and say, "Mister Lu, I really appreciate your intention, but I'm not a person who wants to get married, so..."
Lu Tingxiao furrowed his brow. "So you only want to sleep with me? And you don't want to marry me?"
"That's right...pah! No, no, no... I don't mean it like that!" Ning Xi was ready to just kneel before him. Can you not say such horrifying things?
"How regretful, I only accept sexual relationships with marriage as a prerequisite."
"Who would believe that..." Ning Xi could not help saying. Didn't you have a child outside of marriage?
Lu Tingxiao looked out the window with a slightly absent-minded expression. "Little Treasure was an accident. Even I don't even know who the mother is."
"..." Why did this sound so bad?
"Is it because you mind that I have a son?" Lu Tingxiao abruptly asked.
"Impossible!" Like Lu Tingxiao had said, if you cut open the brain of every woman who lived in the city, you would know they all wanted to be Little Treasure's stepmother. How could she mind such a thing!
"Then Why?"
Seeing his expression, she knew that Lu Tingxiao would not let her go until she answered the question.
Ning Xi raised her head and let out a deep breath. "Mister Lu, marriage isn't a game. Whether It's to repay me or for any other reason, we should at least get to know each other. Do you know what kind of person I am? Do you know my past?"
"The one I want to marry is the present you. Your past has nothing to do with me." Of course, this would be Lu Tingxiao's answer. It was as tyrannical and overbearing as it could possibly be.
Ning Xi's expression turned frosty. "Except to me, my past is a part of me. I can't cut out that part of me to marry you. Mister Lu, there is no point in being together with someone who follows different principles. I sincerely advise that you take back your ridiculous offer."
Her statement was followed by a cold silence.
Right when Ning Xi thought the other party was so furious from shame he was about to fly into a rage, Lu Tingxiao opened his mouth and calmly said, "I understand."
Ning Xi relaxed, and replied, "I'm going to bed then. Good night."
"Good night."
The man stared at her seemingly fragile silhouette; his gaze unfathomable like the ocean: the only thing unchanged was the boiling heat at the bottom of the sea.
A late night Lu Tingxiao was much more unreserved than the daytime Lu Tingxiao, so he was even more dangerous.
Ning Xi shook her head like a rattle, but then nodded her head. "You're a king. Who wouldn't be afraid if you?"
Lu Tingxiao swirled the water in his glass, and said faintly, "So because other people are afraid of me, you are afraid of me? Then, all the other women want to marry me, but why don't you?"
This question nearly scared Ning Xi into falling off her chair. She thought she had already dodged this bullet during the day, but she was just too naive.
This question made her feel like a thousand knives were directed at her. How was she supposed to answer it?
Ning Xi raised a shaking hand. "Before I answer this question, can I ask a question first?"
Lu Tingxiao nodded. "Sure."
"Why me? Is it because Little Treasure is reliant on me? I think this is only temporary; wait until his emotions settle down, and it'll be fine. Even if he is always going to be like this, you don't need to... you don't need to force yourself..." Ning Xi earnestly advised and persuaded.
Lu Tingxiao lowered the glass in his hand and lifted his eyes to meet hers. "Miss Ning, I believe that I explained very clearly in the beginning: because you saved Little Treasure, I decided that I would repay you with my body."
This kind of explanation is so weird, it blinds me. There's no way I could accept this, alright? Ning Xi howled in her heart.
Ning Xi felt that she couldn't possibly get through to him if they persisted in this vein, so she could only put on an apologetic face and say, "Mister Lu, I really appreciate your intention, but I'm not a person who wants to get married, so..."
Lu Tingxiao furrowed his brow. "So you only want to sleep with me? And you don't want to marry me?"
"That's right...pah! No, no, no... I don't mean it like that!" Ning Xi was ready to just kneel before him. Can you not say such horrifying things?
"How regretful, I only accept sexual relationships with marriage as a prerequisite."
"Who would believe that..." Ning Xi could not help saying. Didn't you have a child outside of marriage?
Lu Tingxiao looked out the window with a slightly absent-minded expression. "Little Treasure was an accident. Even I don't even know who the mother is."
"..." Why did this sound so bad?
"Is it because you mind that I have a son?" Lu Tingxiao abruptly asked.
"Impossible!" Like Lu Tingxiao had said, if you cut open the brain of every woman who lived in the city, you would know they all wanted to be Little Treasure's stepmother. How could she mind such a thing!
"Then Why?"
Seeing his expression, she knew that Lu Tingxiao would not let her go until she answered the question.
Ning Xi raised her head and let out a deep breath. "Mister Lu, marriage isn't a game. Whether It's to repay me or for any other reason, we should at least get to know each other. Do you know what kind of person I am? Do you know my past?"
"The one I want to marry is the present you. Your past has nothing to do with me." Of course, this would be Lu Tingxiao's answer. It was as tyrannical and overbearing as it could possibly be.
Ning Xi's expression turned frosty. "Except to me, my past is a part of me. I can't cut out that part of me to marry you. Mister Lu, there is no point in being together with someone who follows different principles. I sincerely advise that you take back your ridiculous offer."
Her statement was followed by a cold silence.
Right when Ning Xi thought the other party was so furious from shame he was about to fly into a rage, Lu Tingxiao opened his mouth and calmly said, "I understand."
Ning Xi relaxed, and replied, "I'm going to bed then. Good night."
"Good night."
The man stared at her seemingly fragile silhouette; his gaze unfathomable like the ocean: the only thing unchanged was the boiling heat at the bottom of the sea.
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