Taking Advantage of Her Vulnerability [Entertainment Industry] - Chapter 9

After Lin Xu finished speaking, she felt the atmosphere around her become extremely awkward… She looked at Wen Ling and then at Liang Mei; the former was expressionless, while the latter shot her a glare.

“Wen Ling-jie, I…” Lin Xu wanted to apologize, but she felt that saying more might only make it worse.

Liang Mei effectively changed the subject: “Rongqing, why didn’t you pick up when I called you?”

Gu Rongqing: “?”

Looking at Gu Rongqing’s “When did you ever call me?” expression, Liang Mei suddenly felt a surge of irritation. What is up with the people around Wen Ling?

Wen Ling suddenly pulled Lin Xu toward the interior of the restaurant, looking back at Liang Mei. “Sister Liang, coming?”

Liang Mei gave Ji Chenxi a nod, and without even looking at Gu Rongqing, she sat down at Wen Ling’s table. She truly didn’t want to deal with Gu Rongqing right now. If it weren’t for this divorce, she really wouldn’t have known that the beautiful and talented Movie Queen Gu could have an EQ (emotional intelligence) this low!

When she first met Gu Rongqing, she thought she was just “cold and elegant.” Later, during the marriage with Wen Ling, she assumed Gu Rongqing simply didn’t love her. Now? She felt Gu Rongqing was either a total “scumbag” or simply devoid of emotion!

Wen Ling and Lin Xu ordered a massive spread. When the dishes arrived, Liang Mei was stunned. It wasn’t that she couldn’t eat spicy food, but she hadn’t expected them to order this much.

Sichuan Boiled Fish, Boiled Pork Slices, Mao Xue Wang (spicy duck blood curd), Fuqi Feipian (sliced beef and ox tripe in chili sauce), and Mouth-Watering Chicken.

So, you ordered the Boiled Fish AND the Boiled Pork? Are you turning heartbreak into an appetite?

In reality, Wen Ling loved spicy food. Most people from East City have a high tolerance for spice, whereas people in the capital generally only handle mild heat. Gu Rongqing, however, essentially couldn’t eat spice at all. Consequently, for all these years, whenever Wen Ling ate with Gu Rongqing, she abstained; she only indulged when she was alone or back in East City.

Gu Rongqing walked over and saw Wen Ling eating with gusto. She wondered: Wen Ling can eat spicy food? And she looks like she’s enjoying it?

“Rongqing and I are heading back first. Take your time,” Ji Chenxi said, her arm draped over Gu Rongqing’s shoulder. She was slightly taller than Gu.

Liang Mei rolled her eyes internally. She hadn’t been familiar with Ji Chenxi before, and this was their first real interaction, but she found this arrogant display of “claiming territory” incredibly annoying.

“Safe travels, Teacher Ji. I still have things to discuss with Rongqing.” Liang Mei felt she had made herself clear enough. Surely Rongqing wouldn’t fail to take the hint?

“Then, Chenxi, you go back first.”

Ji Chenxi looked reluctant. She glanced at Liang Mei and then said to Gu Rongqing, “How about I wait for you outside?”

The moment Ji Chenxi said that, Liang Mei felt like she was going to explode! She stood up abruptly. Both Wen Ling and Lin Xu’s attention was drawn to her. She ignored Lin Xu and looked instead at Wen Ling’s calm face. She wondered: Just how much has Wen Ling been tortured by Gu Rongqing to be this calm??

Liang Mei took a deep breath, her tone toward Ji Chenxi becoming blunt. “Teacher Ji, Rongqing is my artist. Her schedule should be arranged by me, right?”

Ji Chenxi wanted to say something else, but Liang Mei cut her off. “Furthermore, regarding my artist’s safety, can Teacher Ji take full responsibility?” Liang Mei thought to herself: Going back with you, Ji Chenxi, is exactly what’s unsafe! Your reach is getting a bit too long.

Ji Chenxi clearly understood. She smiled, but spoke directly to Gu Rongqing: “Your manager is certainly overbearing toward you.”

“I’ll be going then, Rongqing.”

Hearing the hidden meaning in Ji Chenxi’s words, Liang Mei thought: No wonder you haven’t managed to win over Gu Rongqing after all these years. You overthink everything; Gu Rongqing probably didn’t even understand what you meant. Now she was actually curious: How did Wen Ling manage to win her over?

Once Ji Chenxi left, Liang Mei pulled Gu Rongqing down to sit. As soon as they sat, she felt a gaze fixed on her. She looked over and saw Lin Xu staring at her with eyes full of admiration.

“Sister, you are actually so cool~”

“That was Ji Chenxi! Movie Queen Ji!” After hearing the exchange between Liang Mei and Ji Chenxi, Lin Xu genuinely thought the manager was cool. Even though she was a fan of Ji Chenxi, now that she had calmed down and observed Ji Chenxi’s behavior toward Gu Rongqing, she found it a bit too domineering for her liking.

Liang Mei felt a bit buoyed by the praise. She brushed her hair back and arched an eyebrow at Lin Xu. “What? Are you charmed by me?”

Liang Mei was the mature, “big sister” type. When she chose to be flirty, Lin Xu couldn’t handle it; the girl’s face turned bright red instantly.

“Why are you flirting again? Didn’t you have something to tell me?”

The atmosphere was shattered by Gu Rongqing again. Liang Mei turned to her, feeling a twinge of regret for making her stay.

“Pfft… Hahaha!” Wen Ling couldn’t help but burst into laughter. She had never seen this side of Gu Rongqing before—so inadvertently blunt.

“Hahahahaha!” Liang Mei didn’t think it was funny at first; she was actually a bit annoyed. But seeing Wen Ling laugh and then seeing Gu Rongqing’s bewildered expression, she too felt that Gu Rongqing was quite cute.

Gu Rongqing: “?”

Gu Rongqing didn’t understand what they were laughing at, and Lin Xu didn’t either, still busy being flustered from the flirting…

“Liang Mei, what exactly is the ‘business’?”

“That… we should eat a meal together?” Since she didn’t actually have any pressing business, Liang Mei didn’t know what to say.

“I just… ate my fill.”

“You can’t eat spicy food.” Wen Ling looked at Gu Rongqing. “You barely ate anything just now. Let’s order some non-spicy dishes.”

Gu Rongqing indeed hadn’t eaten much, but after Wen Ling spoke, the question in her heart came out: “Don’t you also not eat spicy food?”

Hearing this, Lin Xu said in surprise, “Wen Ling-jie can’t eat spicy food? Is there anyone from East City who doesn’t like spice?”

Gu Rongqing froze. She looked at the table full of chili-laden dishes and thought of how Wen Ling had been eating with such enjoyment just a moment ago…

So Wen Ling actually loves spicy food?

Seeing Gu Rongqing’s confusion, Liang Mei felt helpless. She couldn’t resist saying, “It’s because you can’t eat it.”

Wen Ling felt a bit self-conscious at those words. The reason she usually didn’t eat spice was indeed for Gu Rongqing—the woman couldn’t handle even a tiny bit. Wennuan took after her and couldn’t eat spice either, so whenever Wen Ling had a craving, she could only sneak a few bites by herself.

Gu Rongqing looked as if she couldn’t believe it. Liang Mei suddenly understood why Wen Ling had divorced her; living long-term with someone this beautiful but completely lacking in romantic awareness must be incredibly difficult.

The group didn’t revisit the topic. Liang Mei ordered two light dishes for Gu Rongqing. They finished the meal in silence and returned to the hotel.

Wen Ling’s room was a double on the third floor; Gu Rongqing was in a suite on the fifth. The four of them shared the elevator. Wen Ling and Lin Xu got off first.

As they stepped into the hallway, Lin Xu nudged Wen Ling. “Wen Ling-jie, is Movie Queen Gu always like this?”

“Like what?”

“Always this… oblivious to romantic gestures?”

Wen Ling didn’t answer. Lin Xu tactfully dropped the subject.

Meanwhile, back in the suite, Liang Mei sat on the sofa with a dark expression, staring at Gu Rongqing.

“What’s wrong?”

“What’s wrong with me?” Previously, looking at Gu Rongqing’s calm face, Liang Mei thought it was just her being rational. Now? She wondered if Gu Rongqing was “too rational,” to the point of having zero social awareness.

“Rongqing, don’t you think today was a bit awkward?”

“Awkward? Who was awkward?”

Liang Mei took a deep breath, telling herself: She’s my artist, I must endure! But it was getting hard. “I don’t know if Ji Chenxi was awkward, but the three of us certainly were.”

“Rongqing, what exactly are you thinking?”

“Nothing…” Gu Rongqing said, sounding a little wronged.

“Do you like Ji Chenxi?”

Hearing the question, Gu Rongqing frowned, her eyes filled with confusion. “Chenxi and I are friends. Why would I ‘like’ her?” Then she added, “Wen Ling asked me before if I was together with Chenxi.”

“And what did you say?”

“I asked her: ‘Why would I be with Chenxi?'” Gu Rongqing had an expression that said I don’t know what you and Wen Ling are thinking, which left Liang Mei feeling a sense of defeat. How was she supposed to communicate with this woman?

“So you don’t like Ji Chenxi?”

Gu Rongqing thought for a moment and answered, “I don’t.”

“Then what about Wen Ling? Do you like her?”

Gu Rongqing didn’t answer immediately. She fell into deep thought. After a long while, she said, “I don’t know…”

Liang Mei suspected Gu Rongqing probably did like Wen Ling, but she was just too slow and stubborn. She tried a different angle. “So, do you dislike Wen Ling?”

“I don’t dislike her.” This time, Gu Rongqing answered almost without thinking.

“Then that means you like her, right?” Liang Mei felt she was finally reaching a conclusion.

“…”

Gu Rongqing didn’t answer again. Liang Mei surmised that Gu Rongqing truly didn’t know if she liked Wen Ling or not, but at the very least, she knew she didn’t like Ji Chenxi.

“Then do you know how much Wen Ling likes you?” Gu Rongqing didn’t answer. Liang Mei, feeling frustrated again, asked: “How did Wen Ling win you over in the first place? Why did you marry her?”

Did Wen Ling like her? Gu Rongqing felt that the Wen Ling before the divorce did. The Wen Ling who pursued her back then did too. It was Wen Ling who made her feel cared for. She hadn’t refused Wen Ling’s pursuit, and she hadn’t refused her proposal. She thought they were doing quite well.

“But she doesn’t like me anymore.”

Liang Mei was so frustrated she almost laughed. She said crossly, “Look at the things you do. If I were Wen Ling, I would have divorced you a long time ago, too!”