After Divorcing the Beautiful Richest Woman, She Fell in Love (GL) - Chapter 13

Jian Xiyan wasn’t a novice when it came to giving orders like this; intense market competition often involved keeping a close eye on opponents. However, people who could make Jian Xiyan use such a serious tone were few and far between.

Corporate rivals were easy to handle; once the name was given, Xu Liqing knew exactly how to proceed and to what extent. But Yan Shan was a minor starlet—regardless of her fame, she belonged to a different circle. Xu Liqing decided it was safer to clarify the details to avoid any misunderstanding that might ruin things.

“Yan Shan’s previous roles didn’t make much of a splash, and her commercial data is mediocre. Does she plan to use Jiang Wanru’s reputation to create hype this time?”

Everyone in the Jian family knew Jian Xiaomin was a hardcore fan of Jiang Wanru, and Xu Liqing was well aware. Jiang Wanru had to be protected, or Jian Xiaomin would surely cause a scene.

Jian Xiyan was exhausted. Even with two cups of coffee today, she couldn’t fend off the fatigue.

“There’s a fundamental difference between humans and steel…”

Someone’s words suddenly flickered in her mind. Jian Xiyan lowered her gaze, her lips curving slightly.

Xu Liqing, confused, asked curiously: “Xiyan, did you think of something funny?”

They were just discussing Yan Shan, an atmosphere that should have been serious and decisive. Jian Xiyan’s sudden shift was clearly a sign of daydreaming.

Jian Xiyan quickly adjusted, her gaze returning to its usual calm and steady state. “It’s nothing.”

She continued on the topic of Yan Shan: “Yan Shan is hell-bent on climbing the social ladder. She has no shortage of ambition, which is normal in any industry. However, her heart isn’t in the right place and her talent is limited, so she relies on underhanded tactics. This time, I had Fang Qiyuan do me a favor; I’m just afraid Yan Shan will take an inch and try to take a mile, never knowing when to be satisfied.”

Xu Liqing understood. The goal was to cut off Yan Shan’s delusions and stop her from latching onto them further. “But… why did you suddenly decide to help Yan Shan this once?”

Jian Xiyan’s fingers pinched her wedding ring, slowly and lightly turning it. Remembering a certain someone slamming the table and challenging her, she really wanted to roll her eyes.

“Consider it helping a friend with a favor.”

Xu Liqing tactfully stopped prying. “Understood. I’ll handle Yan Shan’s matters properly.”

Jian Xiyan originally wanted to add: Clear out the online topics about my ‘sweet marriage’ while you’re at it, to pave the way for the divorce announcement. But thinking of President Bu, she stopped turning the ring. After weighing the pros and cons, she decided to wait until she returned from her trip to consider those things.

Jian Xiaomin woke up late today. After going downstairs, she learned that both her sister and Lin Feiruo had already left. She had the servants bring her breakfast to the living room and chatted with Yu Shuyi, who was reading a book.

“Mom, why didn’t you wake me up?”

Yu Shuyi didn’t even lift her eyelids, clearly not wanting to see her daughter eating pizza with her hands. “Wake you up for what? Just to say goodbye?”

“Don’t be so blunt,” Jian Xiaomin took a sip of milk. “I could have given my sister a hug.”

Yu Shuyi finally looked at her. “Then just hug her twice when she gets back.”

Jian Xiaomin froze, her pretty eyebrows knitting together. “Mom, can you please stop with the cold jokes!”

Yu Shuyi waited patiently for her to finish breakfast and for her to return from rinsing her mouth and washing her hands. She set her book aside and asked patiently, “Xiaomin, when do you plan to go to the company?”

Jian Xiaomin’s face crumpled. “Can we not talk about such a depressing topic first thing in the morning? I was already hurt once yesterday trying to see Jiang Wanru.”

Yesterday, she had rushed excitedly to the film crew’s dinner location, only to find the area outside completely packed. It was full of fans who had rushed over after seeing news online, most of them there for Jiang Wanru. Jian Xiaomin had spent a lot of effort—and handed out some tips—to squeeze her way inside.

The result? Jiang Wanru wasn’t even there!

As if that wasn’t enough, she later heard it was a fake tip-off someone had intentionally leaked. Jiang Wanru had never planned to eat there at all. But the exposure was achieved, the fan effect was triggered, and someone managed to ride the wave of attention onto the trending searches.

Yan Shan’s name had appeared several times. She was even photographed standing by a large glass window, chatting familiarly with various stars and assistant directors.

Jian Xiaomin had been too angry to sleep last night, which was why she woke up so late today. She huffed as she opened her phone to show Yu Shuyi: “Look, this Yan Shan is absolutely disgusting! Not only is she leeching heat, but she intentionally wore such an exaggerated outfit. Who goes to a normal dinner dressed like they’re on a red carpet? So fake!”

Yu Shuyi frowned and corrected her in a low voice: “Xiaomin, don’t use such crude words.”

Nonetheless, she glanced at her daughter’s phone. The person in the photo was indeed dressed inappropriately for the occasion. Having had some intersection with the entertainment industry in her youth, she understood Yan Shan’s intent. “If you like Jiang Wanru, just focus on her. Don’t worry about what others are doing.”

“Of course I don’t want to think about them, but they all want to bask in Jiang Wanru’s light. I can’t just watch flies ruin a delicious honey cake.”

Yu Shuyi couldn’t refute that. Competitive sabotage and “stepping on” colleagues was indeed frequent in that circle. She herself had been affected before she even fully entered the industry; fortunately, Jian Shenyao appeared in time to shield her from the storm—which was another reason she retired so early.

Jian Xiaomin struck while the iron was hot: “Mom, let me go see Jiang Wanru for the next couple of days, okay? I’ll consider going to the company after my sister gets back from her trip.”

Yu Shuyi looked at her irritably. “It would be better if you left out the word ‘consider’.”

Jian Xiaomin stuck out her tongue, impressed by how well her mother knew her. But her mother saying that was essentially a tacit agreement to let her play for a few more days. She gave Yu Shuyi two big kisses and excitedly ran upstairs to change clothes.

“I need to go to the bank first. When I was buying things abroad last month, it kept flagging my spending as abnormal.”

Lin Feiruo probably never expected that the vast city of Shanghai wouldn’t be big enough to keep her and Jian Xiaomin apart. Not long after leaving the bank, she was thinking about finding a nearby place to eat when she was suddenly called out.

“Sister Feiruo!”

The voice came from behind, making Lin Feiruo bite her lip in a fright. Who else would call me that?

She froze, turning slowly to see a face that was 70% similar to Jian Xiyan’s appearing before her. Lin Feiruo gave a stiff twitch of her lips. “What a coincidence, Xiaomin.”

Jian Xiaomin suppressed a laugh and looked solemnly at her hands. “So your ‘short trip’ is actually a Shanghai city walk?”

Lin Feiruo could have tried to make an excuse—saying something came up and she postponed her trip—but she felt mentally drained. To keep telling lies to cover up previous lies felt pointless.

Jian Xiaomin patted her shoulder understandingly. “I get it. You just didn’t want my parents calling you back for meals.”

Lin Feiruo raised an eyebrow.

Jian Xiaomin gave a guarantee: “Don’t worry, I’ll absolutely keep your secret.”

She’s that easy to talk to? Lin Feiruo gained a new perspective on the Jian sisters. The older sister was generous, the younger sister was easygoing.

“But you should move your activities to a different area in the future. This bank has a direct partnership with the Jian Group; it’s very easy to run into their people here.”

Jian Xiaomin couldn’t be bothered to finish her own bank business either. Hearing that Lin Feiruo wanted to eat, she dragged her along. “Yesterday was your birthday and you wanted a private world with my sister. Today, I’m here to make it up to you.”

Lin Feiruo didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, yet she couldn’t refuse the enthusiastic invitation. Jian Xiaomin’s personality was the fiery opposite of Jian Xiyan’s “ice.” It seemed she couldn’t escape the “birthday” hurdle.

“Let’s not go anywhere too fancy. It’s too restrictive.”

Jian Xiaomin didn’t mind. “No problem. How about scallion oil noodles?”

Jian Xiaomin led the way to a very inconspicuous old shop. Most of the customers were elderly neighbors; they wouldn’t be easily recognized by the older generation.

“Sister Feiruo, I hope you’re happy every birthday, and that you and my sister are forever happy.”

Lin Feiruo clinked her glass against the girl’s, thinking: Can I just accept the first half of that blessing?

Jian Xiaomin wasn’t very hungry; she stopped eating after a bit. She didn’t rush Lin Feiruo, familiarly venting to her about yesterday’s events. Lin Feiruo wasn’t interested in Jiang Wanru, and she cared even less about Yan Shan. But Jian Xiaomin spoke with such righteous indignation that she had to offer the occasional “mm-hmm.”

Suddenly, a photo of Yan Shan was shoved in front of her face. “Look, isn’t this person incredibly fake!”

Lin Feiruo was forced to look. Yan Shan was wearing heavy makeup and a cocktail dress, leaning against a glass window with a complex look in her eyes. Anyone who didn’t know better would think she was on a professional photoshoot.

Lin Feiruo agreed with Jian Xiaomin: she was indeed fake. She nodded and gave a hum of agreement. Jian Xiaomin swiped through several more photos—all of them, without exception, were variations of “fake.”

“I don’t even understand why my sister won’t let me kick someone like this out!”

Lin Feiruo felt guilty and slightly ashamed, but things had already reached this point, and Jian Xiyan was a woman of her word. She didn’t want the two sisters to fight over it. “She’s just an insignificant role; she won’t affect Jiang Wanru much. If she actually had talent, she wouldn’t need to be so theatrical.”

Jian Xiaomin suddenly felt she had a point. In comparison, it made Jiang Wanru look more poised and deep. “That’s true. Yan Shan can’t even be mentioned in the same breath as Jiang Wanru.”

Lin Feiruo still felt physically uncomfortable seeing Yan Shan’s photos—a visceral sense of unease. She figured it was a lingering symptom from the original owner; this kind of bad person who tricks people’s emotions was truly an eyesore.

She subtly pushed the phone away, not wanting to see any more of Yan Shan. Jian Xiaomin sensed her repulsion and quickly pulled the phone back.

Lin Feiruo thought she had been too obvious and was about to explain, but then she saw Jian Xiaomin looking at her with excitement.

“Sister Feiruo, you absolutely hate Yan Shan too, don’t you?”