After Joining the Same Variety Show as My Arch-Nemesis - Chapter 4

As soon as Gu Jingxi returned from the Jian residence, she threw herself onto the soft sofa.

“Seriously, why did that deadpan Jian Lan come back too?” Gu Jingxi muttered.

“Aiyo!”

Tang Yun unceremoniously smacked her on the top of the head, making her cry out. Then Gu Jingxi saw Tang Yun looking at her with an unfriendly expression.

“No respect for your elders. Call her Sister.”

“I…” Gu Jingxi looked aggrieved.

“Hmm?” Tang Yun threw her a sharp look.

Gu Jingxi obediently shut her mouth.

“Sit properly. Mom has something to tell you.” Tang Yun walked over to the sofa beside her and sat down.

Gu Jingxi sat properly and looked at Tang Yun. “Mom, what is it? Why are you being so mysterious?”

“It has to do with you.” Tang Yun took the floral tea the auntie handed her, sipped it, and spoke calmly.

“Me?” Now Gu Jingxi became even more curious and quickly urged, “What is it?”

Tang Yun looked at her meaningfully.

This made Gu Jingxi’s heart itch even more. Holding the floral tea the auntie had handed her, she stared unblinkingly at Tang Yun with those amber eyes.

“Then I’ll say it.” Tang Yun cleared her throat.

“Say it, say it. I’m listening.” Gu Jingxi casually took a sip of her floral tea.

A sly smile flashed across Tang Yun’s face as she said, “Actually, you and Lanlan were engaged by me and your Aunt Xiao before either of you were even born.”

“Pfft!”

Gu Feng, who was standing nearby, seemed to have been prepared long ago. Who knew where he produced a handkerchief from, but he perfectly and precisely blocked the tea Gu Jingxi sprayed out.

“Cough! Cough, cough!” Gu Jingxi had no time to care whether Gu Feng had planned this in advance. She stared at her own mother with her eyes nearly splitting open, coughing so hard she could barely catch her breath. Even so, she still forced a sentence out of her throat.

“Cough, cough… You… cough… What did you say?! Cough, cough!”

Ms. Tang Yun sat upright. She even signaled to Gu Feng that he could remove the handkerchief before she looked at her daughter and said with a smile, “Your Aunt Xiao and I made an agreement before either of you were born. In the future, no matter whether the children we gave birth to were boys or girls, they would become one family.”

For a moment, Gu Jingxi wondered if she had not woken up yet, or if her alcohol tolerance had worsened. How could she have started hallucinating after only two glasses of red wine?

“I might be too tired. I’m going upstairs to sleep.” As Gu Jingxi spoke, she got up and prepared to go upstairs.

“Come back.” Tang Yun spoke leisurely.

Gu Jingxi’s whole face instantly collapsed. Then, with a sudden turn and sprint, before Gu Feng could even react, she plunged into Tang Yun’s arms.

“Wu, Mom, it’s not like you don’t know I don’t get along with her! Besides, what era is this already? A childhood engagement definitely doesn’t count, right?!” she wailed and struggled, trying to reject this reality.

Gu Feng glared at Gu Jingxi from the side, wanting to step forward and pull her out, but Tang Yun raised a hand to stop him.

Tang Yun reached up and stroked Gu Jingxi’s beautiful hair, smiling as she said, “Of course. This is a society ruled by law now. But Xixi, Mom hopes you’ll consider it.”

The moment her words fell, Gu Jingxi immediately lifted her head with a whoosh. Looking at Tang Yun, she nearly gritted her teeth as she forced out one sentence.

“Even if I, Gu Jingxi, die, I will never marry Jian Lan!”

Tang Yun looked at her meaningfully, then sighed. “Ai, alright. Since you don’t want to, I won’t force you. Just do as you see fit.”

After saying that, she let go of Gu Jingxi.

Gu Jingxi looked rather resentfully at this pair of parents who had arranged this so-called childhood engagement for her, then got up and said, “I’m going upstairs to rest first.”

After saying that, she turned and ran upstairs with quick thudding steps.

Only after she disappeared from sight and the sound of her bedroom door closing came from upstairs did Gu Feng walk over and sit down beside Tang Yun.

“Will this really be fine?”

Tang Yun lazily lay down on Gu Feng’s lap, her smile sly.

“Don’t you know your daughter’s personality? Has she ever cared about other people’s matters? If she didn’t care about Lanlan, could she have held a grudge all the way until now? Could even the slightest movement from Lanlan make her panic like soldiers startled by the wind?”

“Now that you put it that way, it does seem to make sense.” Gu Feng stroked the beard on his chin, quite agreeing with his wife’s words.

“And besides, the only one who hasn’t realized anything is Xixi. As for that child Lanlan…” Tang Yun narrowed her eyes.

“She won’t let go of our family’s little fool so easily.”

To Gu Jingxi, Tang Yun’s childhood engagement was no different from a thunderbolt on a clear day. It left her little heart frightened and uneasy for a long time. It was only at night, when a friend called to ask if she wanted to go out and gather, that she recovered somewhat.

Because she and Jian Lan were neighbors, many of their social circles overlapped. Only after specifically asking and confirming that Jian Lan would not be there did Gu Jingxi agree.

“Then that’s fine. Fu Hang will come pick you up later.”

After hanging up, Gu Jingxi finally moved herself into the walk-in closet and tidied herself up again, until the doorbell rang.

“Uncle Gu, Aunt Tang, hello. Is Xixi here? I’m here to pick her up for a gathering.”

Fu Hang’s cheerful voice sounded.

“Coming.” Gu Jingxi carried a small crossbody bag downstairs, her chestnut curls falling behind her. She had applied delicate light makeup to her face. Then, with practiced ease, she put on a hat, mask, and sunglasses at the entrance.

Fully armed, through and through.

Fu Hang clicked his tongue at the sight. “When I came over, my sister repeatedly ordered me to make sure I pressed your head down and forced you to disguise and protect yourself before going out.”

Fu Hang and Fu Wen were siblings. Fu Wen had opened a company in the entertainment industry and worked as a manager, while Fu Hang, because of his own interests, had chosen to become a producer and director. Compared with films and television dramas, he preferred making interesting variety shows.

“It’s not that serious.” Because she was wearing a mask, Gu Jingxi’s voice sounded a little muffled.

“Yesterday.” Fu Hang stared at her and expressionlessly spat out one word.

“Okay, shut up!” Gu Jingxi hurriedly spoke, then looked at the Gu couple and said, “We’re leaving!”

After that, without another word, she dragged Fu Hang out the door.

Fu Hang could not help laughing. After getting into the car, he still smiled and said, “My sister worked overtime until very late again yesterday. She also said that if you dare stir up any big news again, she’ll come to your door and beat you up.”

Gu Jingxi guiltily touched her nose, fastened her seat belt, and muttered, “I already know I was wrong. Who knew the domestic paparazzi would be so excited?”

“My dear Sister, you’re not some little newcomer anymore. You are now the Golden Spirit Award Best Actress.” Fu Hang started the car jokingly and drove Gu Jingxi away.

“Tsk, troublesome.” Gu Jingxi curled her lips.

“Where are we going?” Only after getting into the car did Gu Jingxi ask.

“It’s the Tian family’s eldest miss’s birthday. She called us over. You know, she’s like you and doesn’t get along with Sister Jian, so there’s no Sister Jian,” Fu Hang said with a shrug.

“Heh, with that stinky temper of hers.” Gu Jingxi sneered.

Her words had a double meaning.

Fu Hang glanced at her and did not say anything more.

For the Tian family’s eldest miss’s birthday, the location chosen was a private club. Many young masters and young ladies from M City had come to celebrate. After all, in terms of real estate, the Tian family still held quite a large share in M City.

When the two arrived, quite a number of people were already in the banquet hall.

“Xixi! You’re here!” The host of tonight’s banquet, the Tian family’s eldest miss, Tian Rao, immediately rushed over the moment she saw her.

Gu Jingxi subconsciously wanted to dodge, but failed.

She frowned imperceptibly, then said, “Raorao, get up. So many people are watching.”

Hearing this, Tian Rao instead hooked an arm around hers and pulled her inside.

“Aiya, Xixi, you have no idea how much I missed you.”

Gu Jingxi could only be forced to follow her, listening to Tian Rao chattering beside her while sending Fu Hang a look asking for help.

Fu Hang could only spread his hands at her, indicating that there was nothing he could do.

The Tian family’s eldest miss was famously spoiled and willful in their circle. Even they did not dare provoke her lightly.

As for Gu Jingxi, she had just won the Golden Spirit Award crown. Everyone knew that the Golden Spirit Award carried the most weight among the three major awards, because here, family background and education did not matter. Only acting skill did.

This made her unmatched in the spotlight for the time being. Seeing Tian Rao linking arms with Gu Jingxi and talking and laughing with her, many people began forming little schemes in their hearts. When they stepped forward to make conversation, seeing how intimate Tian Rao was with Gu Jingxi, a hint of gossip ignited among the crowd.

But compared with Tian Rao, Gu Jingxi’s expression was extremely formulaic. Although she had a smile on her face, one could still feel her distance.

“Ai, Xixi, do you have any plans next?” Tian Rao asked with a smile while linking arms with Gu Jingxi.

Gu Jingxi felt somewhat uncomfortable and wanted to pull her hand out, but the other party was holding on too tightly. She could only say, “No. It depends on what Sister Fu says.”

Joy appeared on Tian Rao’s face. Just as she was about to speak, she saw Fu Hang walking over with a phone in his hand.

“Xixi, my sister is looking for you.”

Hearing this, Tian Rao frowned and said, “If Sister Wenwen is looking for Xixi, why didn’t she call Xixi directly?”

Gu Jingxi’s expression stiffened. She quickly opened her handbag and took out her phone. Seeing the three missed calls on it, her vision nearly went black.

When had she switched her phone to silent?!

“Sorry, Raorao, excuse me!” Without caring about much else, Gu Jingxi hurriedly pulled her hand out of Tian Rao’s grip, took the phone from Fu Hang, and quickly walked outside.

Watching Gu Jingxi’s back, Tian Rao looked at Fu Hang with an unfriendly expression.

Fu Hang shrugged and spread his hands, showing that he had no choice either. Only then did Tian Rao let out a cold snort and leave.

As soon as Gu Jingxi walked out of the banquet hall, she quickly placed the phone by her ear.

“Sister… Sister Fu…” Gu Jingxi called with a bitter little face.

“Mm.” Fu Wen’s voice was very calm, with no trace of anger in her tone.

“Got away from Tian Rao?” Fu Wen asked.

Fu Hang came out at the right time and nodded at her. Gu Jingxi hurriedly said, “Got away.”

“That’s fine. Come to the private room on the third floor. Fu Hang knows where. I’ll wait for you here.” After saying that, Fu Wen hung up.

Gu Jingxi held the phone and blinked. Then she returned it to Fu Hang and said, “You called Sister Fu here too?”

“How could I? You know my sister has never looked favorably on the Tian family,” Fu Hang said, spreading his hands.

“Let’s go. We’ll see Sister Fu.” Gu Jingxi pinched the space between her brows.

“Mhm. After you.”

Led by Fu Hang, the two made their way to a private room on the third floor. When they pushed open the door, they saw a capable-looking woman in a dark suit sitting inside. Seeing the two of them, she merely lifted her eyelids.

“You’re here.”