After Joining the Same Variety Show as My Arch-Nemesis - Chapter 3

Gu Jingxi was now sitting on pins and needles.

After Xiao Wenjun welcomed the Gu family and had them sit down, she asked Jian Lan to entertain them first while she and the auntie went into the kitchen to continue working.

So now, seated on Gu Jingxi’s left were the Gu couple, while seated on her right was Jian Lan.

Gu Jingxi was practically gritting her teeth over this. In her heart, she cursed Jian Lan countless times.

This Jian Lan was definitely doing it on purpose, right? She knew Gu Jingxi could not stand her, yet she had deliberately come to sit beside her just to disgust her!

But unfortunately, her parents happened to like Jian Lan especially much. Right now, they were warmly asking about Jian Lan’s recent situation, while Gu Jingxi could only sit there and smile along.

“Lanlan, how have you been recently?” Tang Yun looked at Jian Lan with concern.

Look at that. What kind of attitude did she have when her own daughter came back? And what kind of attitude did she have toward Jian Lan? Tsk. Whose biological mother was she, exactly?

Gu Jingxi complained inwardly while fiddling with the orange in her hand.

“Everything has been well.” That icy voice finally carried a trace of warmth. When facing the Gu couple, Jian Lan’s attitude was still quite gentle.

Gu Jingxi rolled her eyes.

“Where’s Old Jian? Why don’t I see him?” Gu Feng asked.

“My dad is handling some matters in the study upstairs,” Jian Lan replied.

As they spoke, footsteps came from the staircase leading to the second floor. Immediately after, Jian Lang’s cheerful voice sounded.

“Don’t rush me, don’t rush me. Aren’t I here now?”

Gu Jingxi turned her head to look at the capable-looking man coming down the stairs. Her eyes curved as she called out crisply, “Uncle Jian.”

“Aye! Xixi is back too.” When Jian Lang saw her, his face immediately lit up with joy. “You must have suffered out there.”

“No, no. Everything has been fine.” Gu Jingxi hurriedly waved her hands.

“You, ah, absolutely must not learn from Lanlan and only report the good while hiding the bad.” Jian Lang sat down on the sofa beside them.

Gu Jingxi laughed dryly and quietly glanced at Jian Lan, only to find that the other woman’s expression was calm and composed, completely unmoved despite having been named.

She had to admit, Jian Lan really was very good-looking. She clearly had a typical Eastern appearance, yet her brows and eyes were somewhat deep-set. This made people’s first impression of her extremely vivid, the kind that could not be forgotten even if one tried.

If only she did not target Gu Jingxi so much, that would truly be wonderful.

The two families chatted casually. Before long, Xiao Wenjun called out from the kitchen, “Dinner is almost ready. Old Jian, go get the wine.”

“Coming.” Jian Lang quickly answered, greeting everyone to sit at the dining table while taking out a bottle of red wine from the wine cabinet.

“Yo, isn’t that the bottle you’ve been treasuring? How are you willing to take it out now?” Seeing the wine in his hand, Gu Feng could not help teasing him.

“Go on, what do you know? This is to congratulate our Xixi for successfully winning the Golden Spirit Award Best Actress crown.” Jian Lang smiled and took the decanter, pouring the red wine into it.

“Tsk. When Lanlan won the Golden Spirit Award for Best Actress back then, I didn’t see you this happy.” Gu Feng looked disdainful.

“That’s different.” Jian Lang seemed completely unconcerned about whether Jian Lan was nearby or not. He merely smiled and said, “In any case, today is a happy day. Let’s drink more.”

“But only in moderation.” Xiao Wenjun and the auntie brought the dishes to the table. After Jian Lan distributed the bowls of rice she had served, everyone finally sat down properly.

“Eat something before drinking. You all may not care about your bodies, but the children are still young and still need to pay attention.” Xiao Wenjun shot a reproachful look at Jian Lang and Gu Feng, then picked up a piece of pork rib and placed it in Gu Jingxi’s bowl.

“Xixi, hurry and try it. Aunt Xiao made this for you personally.” Xiao Wenjun looked at Gu Jingxi and said with a smile.

“Mhm.” Gu Jingxi obediently went along and placed the pork rib into her mouth. The meat had been stewed until it almost melted the moment it entered her mouth, making her eyes curve. She said to Xiao Wenjun, “It’s delicious. I could never get tired of Aunt Xiao’s braised pork ribs.”

“Aye, as long as Xixi likes it. Hurry and eat more!” Xiao Wenjun immediately urged.

“Okay!” Ignoring Jian Lan, who was sitting beside her, Gu Jingxi replied with a bright smile.

Once the wine had breathed enough, Jian Lan got up and poured some for everyone one by one. Then Jian Lang raised his glass and said with a smile, “Let us celebrate Xixi’s successful win of the Golden Spirit Award Best Actress crown!”

“Cheers!”

The two families were perfectly harmonious, but if this scene were posted online, it would probably cause an uproar.

Everyone in the industry knew that the two families were old family friends.

But everyone in the industry also knew one other thing: Gu Jingxi and Jian Lan were pure, absolute arch-enemies.

The reason was simple. Jian Lan had debuted four years earlier than Gu Jingxi. When she was still in her senior year of university, Jian Lan had already begun acting. That period happened to be the golden age for young actors. It had to be said that Jian Lan had caught a good time. Coupled with her own solid professionalism and her perfectionist attention to performance details, she became explosively popular without any surprise. With a clean background and not even a single scandal to be dug up from the film crews she worked with, she became the benchmark for contemporary young actors for a time. Every drama she filmed became a hit, and after she consecutively won the three major domestic awards, netizens gave her a title that was not offensive at all.

Jian Shen.

And she was indeed qualified to bear that title. Even many veteran actors, when speaking of her, wore expressions of praise and gratification.

“She is truly, seriously acting.” That was the evaluation an old, national-treasure-level Best Actor gave of her.

However, perhaps even heaven envied talent. During one filming accident, Jian Lan’s eyes were injured. Her vision plummeted, reaching the point where, once she took off her glasses, she could not see anything clearly beyond ten centimeters.

The damage to her eyesight made her choose to leave acting and move behind the scenes to become a screenwriter.

This made many people sigh with regret, but Jian Lan herself did not seem to care what position she stood in.

Noble and upright, she was like a flower on a high peak, making people unconsciously look up to her.

Unlike Jian Lan, Gu Jingxi’s debut was full of twists and turns. Her appearance and Jian Lan’s could be said to be two extremes. If Jian Lan was a cold, otherworldly, exiled immortal who seemed untouched by mortal dust, then Gu Jingxi was probably Su Daji, who had crossed over from the Shang dynasty.

And her debut work also happened to be Fengshen. The role she played was naturally Su Daji.

Her acting skills were good, and she had indeed brought Su Daji to life. However, because of this one role, she fell deep into a storm in the entertainment industry. Some praised her acting skills, while others said she was born a vixen and was only suited to playing this kind of role.

Then there were even more outrageous, imagined accusations than calling her a vixen. This directly alarmed both the Jian family and the Gu family. The two families joined hands to suppress public opinion. After all, at that time, Gu Jingxi had only just graduated from university and was still a hot-blooded youngster. Who knew whether seeing those things would stimulate or hurt her?

But Gu Jingxi was just as she herself said—her heart was big enough. Regarding those imagined rumors online, she did not care at all. She acted when it was time to act, ate when it was time to eat, drank when it was time to drink, and was not affected in the slightest.

Her heart was so big that both families did not know what to say.

Until someone dragged her and Jian Lan out for comparison.

They said things like, “They clearly grew up together, but look at Jian Lan, a flower on a high peak. Then look at her, a coquettish vixen who only knows how to pose seductively.”

It was very simple to anger Gu Jingxi. Put her together with Jian Lan for comparison, and you would receive one furious Gu Jingxi.

But after seeing that comment, Jian Lan, who was usually like an old cadre and never went on Weibo except for work, rarely posted a Weibo unrelated to work.

Jian Lan V: No one should deny another person’s hard work.

It was clearly a statement made to clarify things for Gu Jingxi, but because it involved Jian Lan, and because the words had come from Jian Lan herself, Gu Jingxi instantly twisted it into something very strange.

Gu Jingxi V: No need to trouble Jian Shen. I am not worthy of being compared.

Good heavens. The moment that Weibo post went out, Fu Wen, as Gu Jingxi’s manager, had her blood pressure soar. That very day, she carried a stick all the way to the Gu residence and, right in front of the Gu elders, obediently gave Gu Jingxi a proper lesson.

“Do you have too much free time on your hands, replying to her message?! Even if you two have never gotten along since childhood, my dear little ancestor, look at how much hostility there is online right now. Do you think I’ve been too idle lately and insisted on finding something for me to do?!”

Gu Jingxi dared to guarantee that if Fu Wen had not also been a Sister who had watched her grow up, Fu Wen might have turned around and said:

“She’s useless now. Bury her.”

She was simply a living ancestor!

After urgent overnight PR and emergency rumor clarification, they finally managed to suppress the heat of the matter. But now, everyone who followed the two of them knew just how badly they did not get along.

Their two groups of fans tore into each other even more fiercely whenever they met, the kind where neither side showed any mercy.

And during Gu Jingxi’s three years in the industry, the two of them had never collaborated even once, which further confirmed the rumors that they were at odds.

But now, the two people who supposedly did not get along were sitting together and eating a family dinner. There was occasional laughter and conversation, though it was clearly not directed at each other.

As for the situation between the two of them, the parents of both families naturally knew it well.

But were these two really at odds?

The four adults, who saw through everything, remained silent and let the two of them make trouble on their own.

After everyone had eaten and drunk their fill, the two families sat and chatted. Gu Jingxi finally escaped the situation of continuing to sit beside Jian Lan. At that moment, she was being held by Xiao Wenjun for a warm, affectionate chat about family matters, while Jian Lan sat nearby, brewing tea for everyone.

“Xixi, do you have someone you like recently?” Xiao Wenjun suddenly asked.

No one noticed that Jian Lan, who was brewing tea, paused in her movements.

Gu Jingxi, however, froze for a moment. Then she shook her head and leaned coquettishly against Xiao Wenjun’s shoulder, smiling as she said, “No. Aunt Xiao, what are you saying? I’m so busy filming that I can barely keep up. How would I have time to date?”

Hearing this, Xiao Wenjun smiled, then said, “That’s good. I saw on television before that you were quite close with a male celebrity. I thought you had fallen for him.”

“Ah?” Gu Jingxi was stunned. After thinking for a moment, she said, “Ah, I remember now. That. It was purely because he came to rehearse scenes with me and find the right feeling for the role. Why would I like him? Filming is just filming.”

Hearing her answer spoken so frankly, Xiao Wenjun smiled. She glanced meaningfully at her own daughter, who was rinsing the tea set, but did not say anything.

“That’s good. The industry isn’t clean these days. If you like someone, it’s best to choose someone whose background you know thoroughly,” Xiao Wenjun said with a smile.

“Aiya, Aunt Xiao, I’m not a child anymore. I know what to do. You can rest assured.”

Gu Jingxi blinked playfully.

“Good. Aunt Xiao knows.” Xiao Wenjun exchanged a glance with Tang Yun not far away and nodded lightly.

At this moment, Gu Jingxi did not know that the two adults had reached an agreement on certain matters.

Nor did she know what was waiting for her.