Is This How the Entertainment Industry Works? (GL) - Chapter 30

“If you don’t come, I’ll go to your house,” Zhao Baoshang threatened.

Yan Zhen still hadn’t fully recovered from the shock. “Lo… Love Gu?”

“Mhm.”

“How could you have been infected by a Love Gu?”

Zhao Baoshang frowned. “The bottle broke.”

“Why did the bottle break?”

“I don’t know. When I checked, the insect was already gone.” She added, “It must have crawled into my body. You have to take responsibility.”

Yan Zhen replied tremulously, “I… I’ll take responsibility.”

Zhao Baoshang was satisfied. “Then come over now.”

Yan Zhen miserably washed her face, packed her bag, and ran over. As soon as she reached the door, Zhao Baoshang pulled her inside, pressed her by the shoulders against the wall, and kissed her.

“Wait—” Yan Zhen struggled.

Zhao Baoshang pulled back slightly, her eyes tinged with a vivid red. She asked with extreme displeasure, “What is it?”

“My mouth hurts,” Yan Zhen said indistinctly.

A vein throbbed on Zhao Baoshang’s forehead. “What exactly are you trying to imply?”

“Nothing.” Yan Zhen pushed Zhao Baoshang back and reminded her, “That’s not how you counter a Love Gu.”

“Then how do you solve it?”

Yan Zhen slipped out of Zhao Baoshang’s embrace and ran to the sofa. “Normal toxins can be fought with other poisons, but Love Gu are different. You need to find the ‘Mother Gu’.”

She looked at Zhao Baoshang.

“I don’t have a Mother Gu,” Zhao Baoshang stated.

Yan Zhen nodded. “As expected. That makes it even harder.”

Zhao Baoshang walked over and pulled her back to her side. Yan Zhen asked, “How do you feel right now? Do you have a headache? Do you feel weak?”

Zhao Baoshang ignored the questions.

“Do you feel a tightness in your chest? If you do, you must tell me,” Yan Zhen asked with a face full of earnestness.

Zhao Baoshang, who originally only wanted to kiss, was caught up in Yan Zhen’s nervousness. Seeing her “little fan’s” good intentions, she felt she couldn’t let them go to waste. She pulled Yan Zhen down to sit on the sofa and answered, “I’m alright.”

Yan Zhen breathed a sigh of relief. “Then it’s just the early stage of the infection. That’s good.”

Zhao Baoshang didn’t respond.

“When did the Love Gu act up?” Yan Zhen asked.

Zhao Baoshang leaned back and said, “About half an hour ago.”

“Were you thinking of anyone at the time?”

At that time… Zhao Baoshang recalled the moment, and her face suddenly turned bright red. “No!”

Yan Zhen shot her a suspicious look. “Did you eat anything? Or see anything?”

“No,” Zhao Baoshang snorted.

“That’s very strange,” Yan Zhen murmured.

Zhao Baoshang’s face soured. “What’s so strange? If it weren’t for you, would I be in this weird state?!”

Yan Zhen hurried to explain, “I’m not saying you’re strange, I’m talking about the symptoms.” She pondered for a long time but couldn’t figure out the logic behind it.

“Is there a solution?” Zhao Baoshang asked.

Yan Zhen shook her head sheepishly. “My medical skills are lacking.”

“Then come here,” Zhao Baoshang commanded.

Yan Zhen sensed a strong crisis and warily scooted a bit further away.

Seeing this small movement, Zhao Baoshang said ominously, “Don’t forget who is responsible for me being infected with this Love Gu.”

Yan Zhen fell silent.

Zhao Baoshang continued to press: “I’m suffering to death right now, yet the culprit doesn’t want to take responsibility.”

Yan Zhen’s heart twinged. That’s right. The Eldest Princess is in this state because of me. How can I act so heartlessly? I’d be no better than a beast.

She engaged in deep self-reflection. After reflecting, she made a confession: “I will take responsibility.”

Zhao Baoshang pressed coldly, “How will you take responsibility?”

Yan Zhen calculated. “I will refine an antidote as quickly as possible, but refining Gu takes a long time—at least three months.”

“And what am I supposed to do for these three months?”

“A Love Gu is a living thing. Although it acts up irregularly, as long as you vent your… desires when it happens, you’ll be fine.” She added, “In short, I will definitely take responsibility.”

“Fine.” Zhao Baoshang’s mood improved instantly. “Since you’ve said so—you have to be even more obedient in the future.”

Yan Zhen nodded.

“I must be your first priority. If I call you, you have to come immediately. Do you understand?”

Yan Zhen nodded again.

“If I want to kiss you, you can’t resist,” Zhao Baoshang added.

Yan Zhen hesitated for a moment but finally agreed. Zhao Baoshang was extremely satisfied. She didn’t know why she was so happy, but those few promises made her feel like her heart was blossoming.

She leaned in close to Yan Zhen, reached out, and carefully pulled her into her lap, cradling her like a precious treasure. Yan Zhen pressed her hands against Zhao Baoshang’s shoulders, giving a slight push, but she didn’t dare resist with force.

“Be good. You have to listen.”

Zhao Baoshang’s hand stroked up Yan Zhen’s thigh; her palm met soft, attractive skin everywhere. Ever since Yan Zhen told her her kissing technique was bad, she had borrowed resources to study carefully. Now was the time to use that knowledge.

She touched Yan Zhen’s waist, felt the cool metal of the button, unzipped her pants, and continued to touch and squeeze.

She squeezed for two or three minutes.

Yan Zhen looked confused. She looked down at Zhao Baoshang with clear eyes. “Zhao Baoshang, why aren’t you continuing?”

Zhao Baoshang froze. Continuing what? Is it not over? There’s more?!

Zhao Baoshang gritted her teeth. Did the picture book I read only have the first half?

Yan Zhen held Zhao Baoshang’s hand and asked, “Do you feel better now?”

Zhao Baoshang looked blank. Yan Zhen, seeing her expression, made a bold guess.

“You still don’t know how to do it?”

Zhao Baoshang’s gaze instantly turned fierce. “How could I not know?!”

“Then why—” …don’t you keep going?

Before she could finish, there was a clack as the door opened. Both women looked over. The sound of clicking high heels approached, and a woman walked in.

As the woman was about to change her shoes, her eyes met theirs. She naturally saw the two of them in a compromising position on the sofa. The air went still.

“…Xiao Shang?” The woman was dumbfounded.

Zhao Baoshang reluctantly got off Yan Zhen and called out, “Mom.”

It’s actually the Eldest Princess’s mother?! Yan Zhen was shocked. She looked at Zhao Baoshang and then at the woman’s face. They were indeed mother and daughter.

In the Great Feng Dynasty, the Empress had passed away early, and the Princess had always envied children who had a mother’s love. Yan Zhen felt moved that her wish had finally been fulfilled in this life.

Zhao’s mother walked in and asked aggressively, “What are you two doing?”

“Nothing. Just practicing a scene,” Zhao Baoshang introduced. “This is my friend.”

Yan Zhen greeted her, “Hello, Auntie.”

Zhao’s mother’s aura softened. “Oh, practicing a scene.” She smiled. “You gave me a fright. Carry on, then. I’m going upstairs to change.”

Zhao’s mother went upstairs. Yan Zhen turned and asked Zhao Baoshang, “How is your body?”

“A bit better,” Zhao Baoshang said.

“That’s good. If it happens again, just call me. I’ll head back now.”

“Mhm. I’ll see you out.”

Zhao Baoshang saw Yan Zhen to the courtyard gate. As Yan Zhen walked away, she looked back. Zhao Baoshang stood in the sun in a simple T-shirt and trousers; under the light, she looked as pure as an immortal, but her features were so gorgeous they seemed to hook one’s soul. Yan Zhen quickly looked away, not daring to stare.

After returning home, Yan Zhen calculated Zhao Baoshang’s fate again. She couldn’t find the cause or process of the Death Calamity, but she found something else—it seemed Xu Fengmei had been to Zhao Baoshang’s house today.

No wonder the Love Gu acted up, Yan Zhen realized.

The next day, Tang An drove a black Buick through the wet market, squeezing through the busy district to pick up Yan Zhen.

“We’re filming the MMV commercial today. You need to prepare.”

“Prepare what?” Yan Zhen asked.

“Prepare for battle, of course,” Tang An smiled kindly. “Don’t think winning the championship makes you safe. The schemes in the workplace are much harder to guard against.”

“I understand.” Yan Zhen went back to her room and grabbed several talismans.

Tang An brought her to the company’s photography base and pointed the way, letting Yan Zhen handle it herself. Yan Zhen found the room and walked in. The woman in charge of the shoot wore a fedora; she had exaggerated lipstick and a downward-sloping mouth, looking like someone difficult to deal with.

Upon seeing Yan Zhen, she asked directly, “Why is your mouth swollen? Don’t you know that every detail of your face will be exposed on camera? You knew we were filming today—what on earth were you doing yesterday!”

Yan Zhen touched her mouth. Her lower lip was indeed a bit sore; it was likely bitten by Zhao Baoshang yesterday.

The photographer said, “I don’t care about your private life, but I expect you to respect your work.”

“I’m very sorry. It was a lapse on my part,” Yan Zhen said.

“This isn’t something an apology can fix.” The photographer turned on the lights and made a call.

A moment later, two more people arrived. Yan Zhen recognized them—they were contestants from Global Supernova, Della and Alin. Della and Alin had visible smiles on their faces. Alin even shot Yan Zhen an unfriendly grimace.

Yan Zhen asked, “Wasn’t this commercial supposed to be just me?”

The photographer replied, “Originally, yes. But you have no advantage in appearance, and your work attitude is perfunctory. This commercial needs selling points, so these two are here to ‘set the tone’.”

“Setting the tone” was just a nice way of saying they were there to push her aside. Anyone with eyes could see the photographer was intentionally making things hard for Yan Zhen. Even if her lip wasn’t swollen, she would have found another reason to let Alin and Della join. Furthermore, it was common knowledge that Alin and Della had a grudge against Yan Zhen from the competition. It would be a miracle if they didn’t hog the spotlight, let alone “support” her.

A staff member nearby looked at Yan Zhen. He knew she was a contestant who constantly turned danger into safety; he wondered what kind of miracle this champion would create in the workplace.

Yan Zhen, however, was used to such things. She wasn’t angry. Instead, she said casually to the photographer, “Then let’s ‘set the tone’ well. I’ll go put on my makeup first. A pleasure collaborating.”

A mocking smile appeared on the photographer’s face. “A pleasure collaborating.”