The Male Lead's Sister Reborn (GL) - Chapter 27

Outside Shen Xizhou’s office.

His assistant cautiously pushed open the door and whispered to the room, “Young Master Shen, there’s a call coming in…”

A large pen holder flew out from inside the room, hitting the door with a loud “thud.”

Then came Shen Xizhou’s raspy and resentful voice: “Get out!”

Assistant: “It’s a call from your father.”

The room fell silent instantly. After a long pause, Shen Xizhou said dejectedly, “Bring it in.”

The head of the Shen family’s current generation was Shen Xizhou’s father, Shen Bo.

Shen Bo had called the assistant because Shen Xizhou’s phone had been turned off for the past few days; he simply wouldn’t answer anyone.

On Weibo, Shen Xizhou’s follower count was plummeting. Trolls and onlookers were constantly cursing him. He had logged on once and was so disgusted he immediately logged out.

No matter how powerful the Shen Group’s corporate team was, the family came from a traditional business background and didn’t understand online public opinion. The team was still stuck in the phase of blindly banning accounts.

Banning accounts is an extremely stupid and arrogant tactic. There are so many marketing accounts and influencers out there—you aren’t the owner of Weibo, how could you possibly ban them all? The more you ban, the stronger the public backlash, and the further Shen Xizhou’s negative reputation spreads.

Furious, Shen Xizhou had fired his own PR team and wanted to collaborate with a famous external PR firm.

However, once those PR firms saw the situation, no one wanted to get involved in such a controversial mess. Furthermore, Shen Xiruo had already put out word in the industry: anyone who took this job was setting themselves against Qingcheng Entertainment.

So now, Shen Xizhou was helpless against the online public opinion. His team was fired, he couldn’t find a partner firm, and he was at a total loss. He had huddled in his office for two days, not daring to go home or answer any calls.

But when Shen Bo called personally, he truly didn’t dare not answer.

“Dad.”

“Xiaozhou, why is your phone off? Your mother wants you to come home for dinner.”

Shen Bo’s voice was steady as usual, as if he knew nothing.

“Mhm, I’ll be back.” Shen Xizhou forcibly suppressed the pain in his tone.

“I already know about the internet business. As a boss, you have to learn how to handle this kind of public sentiment in the future. Also, that little star… what was her name, Qian something?”

Shen Bo spoke calmly, as if making small talk, but Shen Xizhou knew that his father’s calm absolutely heralded a storm.

Thinking of Jiang Qian, Shen Xizhou’s emotions were very complicated. On one hand, he remembered the pure girl with bright eyes he saw that day; her image even lingered in his dreams and memories as if he were under a spell.

On the other hand, he loathed Jiang Qian for publicly blackening his name, wishing he could lock her up and teach her how to behave.

Thinking of this, Shen Xizhou said carefully, “Her name is Jiang Qian, a minor celebrity. She’s very close to Shen Xiruo. Father, I heard a rumor, though I don’t know if it’s true… She and Shen Xiruo might be involved with each other.”

There was a long pause on Shen Bo’s end before a slightly amused voice came through: “Really? Now that is interesting. My rebellious daughter… even when she sponsors a little star, she doesn’t follow the usual path.”

Shen Xizhou stopped talking and listened quietly.

After a moment of reflection, Shen Bo said, “Don’t worry about this matter, I’ll solve it for you. Meanwhile, I need to find something for your sister to do, so she doesn’t lose her ambition to idle pursuits.”

Shen Xizhou only said, “I’ll do as you say.”

After hanging up, Shen Xizhou slowly curled his lips into a smile in his empty office. Once his father took action, everything would become simple. However, to control this group, he still had to learn his father’s methods.

Jiang Qian, Shen Xiruo, you two poisonous women, just you wait.

Jiang Qian’s drama was halfway through its broadcast, and the level of discussion had reached national proportions. On one hand, the public was condemning Shen Xizhou, sparking discussions on various social phenomena. Everyone was rushing to voice their opinions, and while doing so, they inevitably watched Jiang Qian’s drama for material.

On the other hand, the drama was truly good. As an idol drama, it was sweet and melodramatic, making it addictive. Most ordinary viewers were just interested in the show, at most commenting that the female lead was beautiful.

Meanwhile, Jiang Qian had finished packing and was ready to move.

She truly had very few belongings. She sold or threw away most of her old things, keeping only two suitcases for her more expensive clothes and shoes. There was also a small suitcase entirely filled with her professional books.

Although she was an actress in her previous world, she wasn’t formally trained. She had started as an extra and worked her way up step-by-step. Now that she had such a great learning opportunity, she had to seize it; reading more and practicing more was the proper path.

The classmate who always picked on Jiang Qian stood at the dorm door. Seeing her stuffing books into the suitcase one by one, she mocked, “Yo, your grades were usually just average, why are you suddenly acting hardworking? In today’s society, acting depends on talent. If you want to make money, you have to throw away those old-fashioned books first. Jiang Qian, maybe you just don’t understand how to make money?”

Jiang Qian glanced at her. It was true that the original owner’s grades were a bit poor, but it wasn’t this girl’s place to complain, especially since her own grades were at the bottom—much worse than the original owner’s.

She silently pulled out a small box, opened the lid, and placed it on the table.

The classmate leaned in to look. Her eyes widened into O-shapes when she saw the logo on the box and the unicorn-shaped necklace inside.

This, this, isn’t this the limited edition from that famous European ‘Blue Blood’ high-end brand! A necklace with only 200 pieces worldwide!

“This… this must be fake! How could you possibly get this? That famous actress wore one to a fashion show and was praised for her wealthy persona. You? God, I don’t believe it!”

Jiang Qian said casually, “There’s an anti-counterfeiting tag on it, you can check it yourself.”

The classmate obviously couldn’t actually check the tag. Seeing Jiang Qian’s calm and indifferent attitude, she knew it must be real.

A total defeat! She had just mocked her for only knowing how to study and not knowing how to make money, only to find out that Jiang Qian had already surpassed the stage of “making money.” She was using a necklace with only 200 pieces in the world! This was something many wealthy people in the country couldn’t buy even with cash! And she just left it casually on a somewhat shabby dorm table—the whole room was practically lit up by this little thing!

The classmate covered her face and ran away crying.

Jiang Qian dragged her three suitcases and picked up the gift box Shen Xiruo had given her. She glanced at it, her lips curving, and carefully tucked the box into her inner pocket.

She dragged and carried the three boxes downstairs. By the time she reached the school gate, the moving truck she had called had arrived. She had called this truck herself without telling Shen Xiruo. She planned to handle the move entirely by herself today and pay Shen Xiruo a formal visit in the evening to surprise her and show off her capability!

Before long, the moving truck entered the community. There wasn’t much stuff, so the driver helped carry it into the elevator and left. Jiang Qian swiped her card, pressed the floor, went up, opened the door, and dragged the boxes in.

“Huh?” Why did it seem like someone was inside? There were sounds.

She initially thought a thief had broken in, but the whole house was filled with the aroma of food. Jiang Qian, who had been working hard all morning, was stopped in her tracks by the scent.

She sniffed hard and said happily, “Where did this little thief come from! Why are they stewing ribs in my house!”

She changed her shoes and walked into the kitchen. Sure enough, she saw Shen Xiruo in an apron standing before the stove. Shen Xiruo had a slim figure, and the apron perfectly outlined her graceful waist. The house-filling aroma of food, paired with her exquisite figure, made for a dreamlike scene.

Jiang Qian crept up, reached out, and gently hugged Shen Xiruo’s waist from behind.

Ah! This amazing feeling! These curves are so easy to hug!

She hugged her for a moment, tilted her head, and said to Shen Xiruo, “How come you came over today?”

Shen Xiruo glanced at her. “I knew you were moving today. Quite brave of you, trying to keep it from me.”

Jiang Qian stuck out her tongue and giggled. Shen Xiruo put the stewed ribs on a plate and placed the pot under the water.

“It needs washing, right? Let me, let me!” Jiang Qian forcibly snatched the pot from her hand. She looked around but noticed there was no dish soap on the counter.

“Mhm…” In a moment of desperation, she ran out to open her suitcase and brought back a bottle of shampoo.

“Sigh!” Shen Xiruo let out an exaggerated sigh on purpose. She leaned down to open the cabinet and took out a bottle of dish soap.

Jiang Qian, who was about to squeeze shampoo into the pot: “…So there was some at home after all.”

By the time she finished washing the pot, Shen Xiruo had already started the seafood soup in a stew pot; she was very efficient. Jiang Qian stood by with a smile, occasionally swallowing her saliva.

Shen Xiruo spoke to her slowly: “Why did you hide it from me? You insisted on not letting me help you move?”

“Because… well, I wanted to move in by myself and give you a surprise.”

“Alright, alright, I know. Qianqian is super capable. You arranged everything yourself today; I only came over to help you with the ‘Housewarming’ (Nuanfang).”

“Hahahaha…” Jiang Qian laughed a bit guiltily. “Nuanfang” sounded so suggestive.

“In my hometown, we have a tradition. On the first day of moving, you must cook a meal in the kitchen, and there must be fish. They say this brings ‘surplus every year’ (Niannian Youyu). This custom is called ‘Nuanfang’ (Warming the House).”

Shen Xiruo explained while professionally plating the dishes.

Jiang Qian felt even more guilty—what kind of “yellow waste” was her head filled with! The custom Shen Xiruo was talking about was very proper! It’s just “Warming the House” (Nuanfang), making a meal—it’s not “Warming the Bed” (Nuanchuang)!

Shen Xiruo brought the food to the table. Sure enough, there was a steamed sea bass right in the center, surrounded by several side dishes and soup.

Her expression was gentle. Looking at Jiang Qian through the warm steam of the food, she said, “Qianqian, this is the first meal you’re eating in your new home. Make a wish.”

Jiang Qian also smiled. Through the water vapor, Shen Xiruo’s face was blurry and warm.

“Then I wish that the person eating this meal with me will be happy and joyful forever.”