Chapter 63: Nephew, Go Ahead and Jump

“By the way, what should we do now about the arrest warrant you asked me to issue?” Zhen Yuqi deliberately chose her words—“you asked me to issue”—waiting to see Sinan’s reaction. If this damned sleazy man replied, “It’s not my business, you’re the one who issued it,” then Zhen Yuqi would take another approach, maybe even involve his mother as a means of self-preservation.

There was some risk to that, but Zhen Yuqi felt she was already in the thick of it—Jiang Yaowen would certainly be ten times harder to deal with than Sinan’s mother, wouldn’t he?

Sinan, confronted so directly, wore a wonderfully complex expression, his mouth half open, unable to respond. In theory, of course he had to distance himself from it, lest he be skinned alive by his parents when he got home. The problem was, Sinan was still preoccupied with trying to show off in front of her—a sleazy little scheme he’d had since he invited her to dinner.

His face shifted through several shades, then he simply froze on the spot. Instinctively, he knew the arrest warrant couldn’t be enforced. This was a matter of national judicial procedure; if it were carried out it would be aboveboard, but the trouble and complications it would bring could be even greater.

“Why so quiet? That night you asked me to dinner, I rearranged my own schedule just to accompany you, and weren’t you so angry and passionate then?” Zhen Yuqi pressed closer, tightening her grip.

At this point, Sinan had no way out. His true nature began to show, and he blurted out loudly, “Don’t push everything onto me! Weren’t you just as eager? Didn’t you say it was aboveboard, that the prosecutor’s perspective demanded the arrest?”

Zhen Yuqi wasn’t hurried; she just wanted to hear him say it, to confirm his character and intentions. Now it seemed Sinan’s sleaziness no longer mattered—he simply couldn’t bear the pressure, nor did he want to.

With Sinan like this, his mother shrinking away was almost a foregone conclusion. Zhen Yuqi could already anticipate the fallout, so now she was absolutely determined to take action—there was no need to waste any more words with this empty pillow.

Having decided, Zhen Yuqi forced a wounded smile, nodded, and said, “You’re right, it’s my fault, my mistake for trusting the wrong person. Fine, as long as you’re happy. I’ll take responsibility myself. Goodbye.”

With those words, Zhen Yuqi turned to leave.

Sinan felt even more humiliated, and in his flustered state, he lost composure and shouted, “Stop pretending to be the good guy! You’re no saint yourself, don’t think I don’t know what you’re up to. You’re caught between me and Qu Changfeng—what are you after? Isn’t it obvious?”

Zhen Yuqi’s face darkened as she walked away, itching to turn around and slap him.

She held back, and only calmly turned to say, “Yes, I have those intentions—so what? You haven’t married, I haven’t married, Qu Changfeng is single too. What’s wrong with shopping around, making friends, seeing who’s the best fit? I, Zhen Yuqi, keep myself clean, not like you. At worst, I’m just wandering the supermarket aisles, browsing the goods. You, on the other hand, crawl out of the cesspit, clean yourself up, and pretend to be a perfumer.”

“You…!” Sinan, agitated, realized he’d said the wrong thing and stopped abruptly, sweat appearing on his forehead.

Zhen Yuqi smiled, “Thank you for the compliment. I really don’t deserve those words. Compared to you, I am pure.” With that, she walked away.

Sinan stood there, stupefied.

A moment later, a mature male voice sounded quietly, “Don’t just stand there like a fool. The woman’s gone—find another, it’s not like there aren’t any. But you’ve gotten yourself into trouble. If I’m not mistaken, she’s already off to expose your dirt, and you’re still standing here?”

The speaker was Sinan’s father, Si Tai. Sinan snapped out of his daze and whispered, “Dad, how should we handle this?”

Si Tai replied calmly, “For now, I don’t know either. If Jiang Yaowen were a woman, you’d have some wiggle room, but he’s not. If I’m right, Zhen Yuqi will soon be stirring up trouble with him, but you’re out of luck. Call your mother, see what she says.”

“Okay.” Sinan nodded hurriedly…

Feng Chenchen had been chatting with Liu Yuan, determined not to let her go. With malicious intent, she planned to get Liu Yuan drunk and tempt her into signing the contract on the spot. If Liu Yuan joined the film’s preparations, everything afterward would go much smoother.

To that end, Feng Chenchen was even willing to revise the script, promising Liu Yuan the sole starring role. “Solo performance” meant Liu Yuan would be both the first and only lead—the script would be adjusted to a female perspective, essentially telling the story of a female stallion in disguise, showing off everywhere she went.

Of course, given the differences between male and female psychology, some values would need to be adjusted, especially to better reflect female perspectives.

Liu Yuan’s acting ability could handle complex, multifaceted characters with ease; as the conversation went on, she began to find the script interesting. It wasn’t much of a challenge for Liu Yuan—the appeal was in the solo performance and the different investment circles.

If the solo performance succeeded, the aura would be especially strong. But the risk was, if it failed and no big male stars were involved to soften the blow, it would be a total disaster. Angelina had done similar things before.

Based on that, Liu Yuan was interested but remained noncommittal.

So Feng Chenchen decided to show off her own prowess. As the conflict between Sinan and the “Little Horse” was beginning, she deliberately brought Liu Yuan over to watch the farce unfold.

Feng Chenchen fancied herself as Little Horse’s spokesperson, so the better Little Horse performed, the more face she gained.

Unfortunately, Feng Chenchen’s attempt to show off failed—Liu Yuan remained unimpressed, which drove Feng Chenchen crazy.

Liu Yuan glanced sideways at Feng Chenchen, thinking maliciously, You think I know nothing about power? I knew he was impressive back when you were still tangled up with the fourth-rate playboy Ye Gongmin. You just got luckier, used your wits and agility to grab onto a big leg.

After her internal monologue, Liu Yuan kept her composure, refusing to commit or accept Feng Chenchen’s attempts to get her drunk. She took a sip of champagne and said, “I’m somewhat interested. But I can’t decide yet—I’ll have to discuss it with my agent. I always have offers coming in, so scheduling and prioritizing is an issue.”

“Is that even a question? Besides me, what big director would dare offer you a solo lead?” Feng Chenchen pressed.

“A solo lead is attractive but also risky—you know that, right? When you were doing runway shows for major brands during sensitive release periods, didn’t you always bring along two second-tier models? Don’t tell me that wasn’t just in case you needed someone to take the fall if things went wrong,” Liu Yuan replied.

Feng Chenchen’s face reddened a bit, but she brushed it off, “Of course there’s risk, but Liu, who isn’t living on the edge, licking the knife?”

Liu Yuan paused.

Feng Chenchen continued, “Solo performances are risky, but the difficulty is comparatively less for women. Even though I’m not fully in your circle, I know men don’t like to spend money going to the cinema—they’d rather download a pirated video and savor it slowly, especially the hardcore homebodies. Women are the opposite; they don’t have the patience to savor things, but many want to pay to go to the cinema and support it. When they go, even if the men aren’t interested, they’ll buy tickets anyway—two at a time. That’s the male economy. Ni Feihong considered this when she was at her peak. I remember she said: Looking at concerts from the nineties to now, the main buyers are women, driving countless roses and snack sales. Rely on men alone and you’d flop—they’d just buy a pirated CD and collect the whole concert.”

Liu Yuan knew all this, but her gaze was still uncertain. It was a mutual test—Feng Chenchen, a semi-outsider, having such insight, made her seem more professional, increasing the odds of successful collaboration.

After her internal monologue, Liu Yuan remained noncommittal, pointed ahead, and said, “Let’s walk over there—I’ll introduce you to someone.”

…