“Yes.”
A moment later, footsteps sounded.
Yu Linglong, who had been eavesdropping outside the door, quickly turned and headed toward the elevator, afraid she would be discovered.
When she reached the elevator, the doors had already opened, but Yu Linglong did not hurry inside. She waited until Long Yuan’s assistant came out of the office and walked over before stepping into the elevator.
After the doors closed, Yu Linglong took the initiative to speak. “Come to think of it, I only know that you’re Long Yuan’s assistant, but I don’t know your name.”
A-Wei had not expected her to speak to him first. After a slight pause, he said hesitantly, “Miss Yu, you can just call me A-Wei.”
“A-Wei? Is your surname Wei?” Yu Linglong asked with a smile.
Seeing her beautiful smile, A-Wei was momentarily dazed. He shook his head and said, “No. My real name doesn’t sound very nice. Young Master Long used to call me ‘hey,’ and eventually it became A-Wei.”
“So that’s where it came from.” Yu Linglong smiled.
After a brief pause, she feigned curiosity. “A-Wei, who is Auntie Ya?”
At those words, A-Wei’s body stiffened. He put on a stern expression and said seriously, “Miss Yu, were you eavesdropping outside the door again?”
Sure enough, this assistant cared about her safety!
His warning last time had not been a coincidence!
Perhaps she really could get something out of him!
Yu Linglong hurriedly explained, “I wasn’t eavesdropping. I was waiting outside for you because I wanted to ask whether Long Yuan had been eating properly. I just happened to overhear you.”
A-Wei’s expression grew complicated, and he warned her even more sternly, “Miss Yu, you really shouldn’t do this again. Whether you’re doing it out of concern for Young Master Long or not, that kind of behavior is dangerous.”
Yu Linglong looked somewhat wounded. “…All right. Actually, I just wanted to know whether Long Yuan would give away the food I personally cooked for him again. You saw it yourself—the last time I brought him a meal, he passed it on to that man named Li Zixuan.”
At that, A-Wei’s expression became complicated. He seemed unsure how to respond.
Yu Linglong took in every subtle change in the assistant’s expression. He must be heartbroken to see how deeply she loved Long Yuan, only to receive no affection in return, right?
Men who secretly loved their master’s woman were always the type to imagine themselves tragic lovers!
She would make him pity her even more. Then it would be easier to coax information out of him!
“So who exactly is Auntie Ya?” Her voice was already tinged with tears. “Is she another woman Long Yuan has taken a fancy to? I thought getting rid of Jiang Yonghe would be enough. Who knew he’d find someone else…”
“That’s not how it is,” A-Wei immediately said.
Yu Linglong looked as though she was about to cry. “Then what is it? Who exactly is Auntie Ya? When Long Yuan talks to her on the phone, he sounds so excited, yet he’s so cold whenever he’s with me, his fiancée.”
A-Wei looked torn.
When the elevator reached the first floor, he said, “In any case, don’t ask anymore. The less you know, the better.”
With that, he suppressed his emotions and walked out of the elevator first.
Yu Linglong watched the assistant’s retreating back and dropped her act.
It seemed that getting information from this assistant would require her to make him pity and cherish her even more.
…
After leaving the sanatorium, Qi Huan drove Jiang Youli to Starlight Entertainment. Before getting out of the car, Jiang Youli said, “Now that we have a lead regarding your younger brother, I’ll do everything I can to help you find him during this period. It would be best if we could locate him before our wedding. I hope that on such an important day for you, your younger brother can be there to witness it in person.”
Qi Huan gazed at her. “No, Little Li’er. I want to find him before your birthday banquet and bring him to your party.”
Jiang Youli smiled. “That would be even better.”
She waved. “Bye-bye. We’ll video chat tonight.”
“Mm. Talk to you tonight.”
After watching Jiang Youli enter Starlight Entertainment, Qi Huan withdrew his gaze. “Cheng Jing, find my younger brother within half a month using this lead about the matchmaker. You may use any of the Qi family’s resources, including my Twenty-Four Solar Terms Bodyguards hidden nearby. Can you do it?”
Cheng Jing replied firmly, “Yes.”
Qi Huan did not say much more. He only said, “Good. I trust your abilities.”
After speaking, he closed his eyes and furrowed his brows slightly, seemingly deep in thought.
…
Not long after Jiang Youli returned to her office at Starlight Entertainment, Ye Ying called.
“Boss, there really is a powerful figure behind this actress, Tong Zhouzhou. I’ve sent you the information on that person.”
“All right.”
Jiang Youli set aside her work and opened the file Ye Ying had sent her, reading through Tong Zhouzhou’s information.
The results of Ye Ying’s investigation were nearly identical to what Chen Wang had told her.
It seemed that all the scandals about Chen Wang available online had indeed been fabricated and spread by that powerful figure.
Tong Zhouzhou had been forced to break up with Chen Wang back then.
And Chen Wang had not cheated on her with his assistant, either.
At present, this so-called powerful figure already had one human life on his hands.
What Jiang Youli did not know was how much more blood that person had shed behind the scenes.
Jiang Youli closed the file and called Liang Shenggui. “Uncle Liang, I’ve decided to cast Chen Wang as the male lead of The Aspirations of Qingyun.”
Liang Shenggui was clearly delighted. “Excellent! I truly think Chen Wang is the perfect choice. Since you agree, then it’s settled!”
After hanging up, Jiang Youli leaned back leisurely in her office chair.
Now all she had to do was wait for Dafeng Entertainment to jump into the fire pit on its own—to choose Yang Yufan, whom she had arranged for them, as the male lead, work tirelessly to finish filming the series, and then end up unable to release it!
…
Over at Dafeng Entertainment, Chairman Yu received a personal call from Long Yuan asking who would play the male lead in the upcoming new series, Soaring to Great Heights.
“We haven’t decided yet. We’re planning to choose between Yang Yufan and Zhou Zerui.”
“Who does your daughter want to choose?”
Chairman Yu was taken aback by the question. Realizing what Long Yuan meant, he replied, “Linglong supports choosing Zhou Zerui.”
Wondering whether Long Yuan had specifically called to back his daughter, Chairman Yu asked nervously, “Young Master Long, do you want me to follow Linglong’s opinion and choose Zhou Zerui as the male lead of Dafeng Entertainment’s new series?”
“No. I’m only reminding you to conduct a proper investigation. Don’t choose an actor who will later cause the series to become unreleasable,” Long Yuan said.
Chairman Yu hurriedly replied, “I understand. My son has already gone to investigate the backgrounds of both male stars. We absolutely won’t let The Soaring Rise become embroiled in a scandal and die before it even gets off the ground!”
“If it does blow up, Dafeng Entertainment can expect to go down with the series.”
After issuing that warning, Long Yuan hung up.
Just then, Chairman Yu’s illegitimate son, Yu Hongtu, entered the office. He also told Chairman Yu what he had discovered about Yang Yufan and Zhou Zerui.
“Dad, see? I told you we shouldn’t choose Zhou Zerui. He bullied students at his school back when he was studying, and even ended up in juvenile detention. After he entered show business, he assaulted a director too. Although he later paid to hush the matter up, people in the industry still steer clear of him.”
“Yang Yufan is different. He has a genuinely excellent reputation in the industry. Whenever he joins a production, he treats everyone with kindness and courtesy, works diligently, and never arrives late or wastes the crew’s time. Most importantly, he’s never had any scandalous rumors with a female star!”
