Money 7%

Jiang Tangmian was busy picking out clothes in a luxury boutique. Only when her sales associate went to fetch more items did she finally sit down in the lounge area, sipping tea and nibbling on delicate pastries.

She still loved the feeling of shopping in person—what a wonderful life.

Thinking back to what Susan had mentioned that morning about the new drama’s female lead, Mu Xi, Jiang Tangmian realized her impression of this character from the original novel wasn’t particularly deep.

She vaguely remembered that, after gaining some fame from a minor web drama two years ago, Mu Xi had gone on a spree of liking posts and clout-chasing online, with her agency orchestrating hype and snarky PR campaigns.

With this multi-pronged approach, Mu Xi had swiftly risen to become a second-tier trending starlet.

According to the original author’s setting, Mu Xi debuted with a doll-like face that endeared her to audiences, winning her countless fans and so many commercial endorsements that she could barely keep up.

But then, the plot took a sharp turn. The popular starlet suddenly got cosmetic work done, stubbornly ruining her signature doll face with injections, transforming it into a generic, sharp-featured influencer look. Though she became more refined, she lost all the unique charm that had set her apart.

Mu Xi.

While waiting for her sales associate, Jiang Tangmian grew bored and typed the name into her phone’s search bar.

It turned out that, in her current timeline, Mu Xi had already had her face done. In the videos, the starlet’s expressions looked stiff and unnatural.

Luckily, her agent’s insistence on fighting for top billing gave them a perfect excuse to replace her as the lead—an excellent turn of events.

“Clang—!”

Suddenly, the sound of shattering glass came from the VIP lounge nearby, followed by a flurry of commotion. Jiang Tangmian looked up, peering through the gap.

She saw that the person sitting in the center of the sofa was none other than the very actress she’d just been searching for—Mu Xi.

With her sunglasses on, Jiang Tangmian covertly observed Mu Xi, curious to dig up some gossip.

It seemed Mu Xi’s assistant had broken a teacup. Mu Xi helped apologize, appearing genuinely warm and approachable in private.

So it was the agency stirring up trouble; Mu Xi herself, just as the rumors said, didn’t put on any celebrity airs—even with her assistant—

Before Jiang Tangmian could finish forming her conclusion, the situation took another turn.

She nudged her sunglasses higher, trying to rein in her gaze. This was definitely some juicy gossip.

Jiang Tangmian quietly pulled out her compact folding phone and opened the camera.

She gradually zoomed in, and soon only Mu Xi and her assistant were in the frame.

Mu Xi’s smile remained, but her lips seemed to be mouthing curses at her assistant—a stark contrast to her sweet, innocent public persona, leaving Jiang Tangmian genuinely surprised.

Mu Xi beamed, and seeing no one else around, her words lost none of their venom. “Where did you just go, sweetheart? ^^”

The assistant, barely out of school and looking every bit the green intern, was caught off guard by the question. “Sis, I didn’t go anywhere.”

Mu Xi, still smiling as she held her teacup, replied, “^^ You went to the bathroom to badmouth me, didn’t you?”

The assistant was even more flustered, quickly denying it. “How could I, sis!”

Mu Xi’s voice, though sweet, was laced with menace. “Whether you badmouth me in the bathroom or use a Weibo alt, if the company catches you, you’ll be fired, you know? ^^”

Jiang Tangmian: …

Even from several meters away, Jiang Tangmian could feel the chill radiating from Mu Xi, let alone that poor intern.

Mu Xi continued encouragingly, “But you did a great job acting clumsy just now ^^. Next time, maybe I can recommend you for a bit part with the company ^^.”

The assistant bowed at a ninety-degree angle in a panic. “Thank you, Sister Mu Xi, thank you.”

Mu Xi took a delicate sip of tea. “You know what to do later, right? Make it look as natural as possible ^^. Sis believes you’ll do great ^^.”

Jiang Tangmian’s brow twitched—she had a bad feeling.

Sure enough, while the sales associates bustled in and out, Mu Xi’s assistant quietly slipped several items into her bag.

Jiang Tangmian couldn’t bear to watch any longer. After a moment’s thought, she called over her own sales associate.

She explained the situation simply, offered to cover the cost herself, and asked the store not to make things difficult for Mu Xi’s assistant or call the police.

She also handed over her business card, asking the staff to discreetly slip it into the assistant’s pocket at an appropriate moment.

In Jiang Tangmian’s view, any problem that could be solved with money wasn’t a real problem. If today’s small gesture could pull that young person back from the edge, so much the better.

Having settled everything, Jiang Tangmian quietly left the scene in ten-centimeter bright blue heels, her merit and name hidden away.

Dressed head-to-toe in brilliant blue and slender stilettos, she looked like a little blue peacock escaped from the zoo—dazzling, flamboyant, and attracting every gaze.

She stood on the bridge admiring the view, unaware that someone upstairs was watching her.

Not far away, a man’s gaze was deep and penetrating, as if he could see straight through to a person’s soul, yet there was a distance about him that kept others at bay.

He slowly raised his glass, the amber liquid catching the dim light and shimmering seductively.

He took a slow sip, the signature smoky oak flavor of the exclusive whisky spreading across his tongue, followed by a lingering sweetness that was hard to forget.

Just like that charming woman he’d just seen—black polka-dot stockings, a bright blue dress suit.

If she were a glass of whisky, what would she taste like?

A faint smile curved at his lips. As the last drop slid down his throat, he set the glass down, a fleeting glint of wild, wishful satisfaction in his eyes.

…

“Look at this!”

Back at the office, Jiang Tangmian couldn’t wait to share the secretly recorded video with Susan—a piece of gossip she’d just stumbled upon in the luxury store.

Susan took one look and immediately exclaimed that this popular starlet was shameless, demanding Jiang Tangmian send her a copy. Next time her ex-husband tried to argue, she’d throw this video in his face.

Clearly, Mu Xi was out of the running. Susan was a bit worried. “With character like that, who knows what kind of scandal she’ll blow up with next.”

Jiang Tangmian agreed wholeheartedly. “Exactly, sis. Even though our trashy costume drama didn’t have much investment, just look at how stingy Mu Xi is—if she gets caught up in a tax scandal or something, we can forget about ever airing this show.”

“Mhm, right. Anyway, after the male lead change, our reputation is already…” Susan hesitated.

“Already what?”

Jiang Tangmian arched her brow slightly. “People are saying there’s something going on between me and Gu Yanxun?”

Susan knew the truth, but some of the gossip accounts were so outrageous she couldn’t even scroll through them. She just forwarded everything to the company’s legal department to draft warning letters.

But nowadays, these gossip accounts were so used to lawsuits they didn’t care about legal threats at all.

Jiang Tangmian didn’t care about the rumors, but she was still indignant. “These days, everyone’s living in a giant ‘sex-brain’ environment!”

“Sex-brain?” Susan had seen the new term online but hadn’t quite grasped its meaning, so she quickly searched for it.

Jiang Tangmian opened her computer and explained, “It’s like when Jiang Media signed Gu Yanxun, everyone outside kept speculating whether I had some special relationship with him. That’s exactly the kind of stereotype ‘sex-brain’ refers to.”

She continued, “For example, if I wear a nice outfit today, people will ask if I’m dressing up for someone special. But I just want to look good for myself, not for anyone else—just for my own mood…”

Susan finally understood and chimed in, “Yes, yes! When I cut my hair short, the stylist asked if I’d been dumped, or if my boyfriend liked short hair. But this short hair is just for me!”

Jiang Tangmian sighed, “Good horses are common, but true talent scouts are rare. Anyway, there’s nothing between me and Gu Yanxun—real gold fears no fire.”

“By the way.”

Susan opened her computer, ready to project the screen. “As soon as the news about the female lead change in ‘Solemn Oath’ went out, several companies sent over info on their new talents. Let’s see if there’s anyone suitable.”

The xianxia novel “Solemn Oath” was built around two strong leads saving each other. The female lead, Luo Zhanmei, was a rare cool-headed heroine in today’s TV market.

Betrayed and abandoned by her sect, Luo Zhanmei refused to trust anyone again. Only after repeated trials by the male lead, Shen Tianchou, did their two broken hearts slowly come together.

Jiang Tangmian flipped through several profiles, her aesthetic sense growing weary.

Until the next one—a self-introduction from an overseas company.

“Hello, everyone. My name is Chi Zhaoying, height 168 cm, weight…” The name alone snapped Jiang Tangmian to full attention.

Chi Zhaoying.

Perfect—the original novel’s heroine. They were saved.

In the original, Chi Zhaoying was not only a native Huaxia, but also the face of the overseas girl group X fire. She had made her debut as center thanks to her outstanding looks and abilities in an international audition.

Her natural, striking features and the tenacity unique to Huaxia women had carved out a path for herself as a powerful, independent woman—one that no one else could rival.

In the version Jiang Tangmian had read, at a certain New Year’s concert, group visual Chi Zhaoying and domestic idol Gu Yanxun brushed past each other, leaving a deep impression on both.

Later, when Gu Yanxun was filming a variety show abroad, he happened to meet Chi Zhaoying again, and the two became friends.

By the time the public caught on, the “Zhao-Guo CP” had quietly gained momentum, and their interactions were all but official.

Who could have guessed that Jiang Tangmian, the story’s “vicious supporting actress,” would be the one to throw a wrench in their romance?

Now, the plot had circled back to the point where the fated meeting of the leads was inevitable.

Jiang Tangmian pieced together the timeline, though it was still a bit scattered.

Currently, the X fire girl group had hit a bottleneck, and Chi Zhaoying, encouraged by her agency, was shifting her career focus back to China.

As for her acting skills, the self-intro came with a special period drama audition video Chi Zhaoying had filmed.

In the video, she was the sword-wielding, crimson-clad Luo Zhanmei.

To Susan, Chi Zhaoying was the only choice for the role.

This time, no matter the cost, the production team would finalize Chi Zhaoying.

Whether it was Gu Yanxun and Chi Zhaoying, or Shen Tianchou and Luo Zhanmei—

Everything that belonged to the original male and female leads would now be guarded by Jiang Tangmian, the “vicious supporting actress,” herself.

Just then, Jiang Tangmian’s phone lit up—a text message from an unfamiliar number had arrived.