Xia Zixuan looked at the newcomer in surprise and said, "Xia Jing, why are you here?"
Chen Xiaoyong looked at the newcomer and immediately smiled, feeling relieved that she finally had some backup.
"Brother, why can't I come?" Xia Jing said with a sweet smile as she walked up to Xia Zixuan. Seeing Liang Xiaoyuan, she sarcastically remarked, "You're here too?"
Liang Xiaoyuan and Xie Sangyan stared at the two in shock. Xie Sangyan's expression was filled with terror. Connecting this to Chen Xiaoyong's presence, it seemed the truth was about to surface. Only Shen Tong still looked at Xia Zixuan in confusion.
Xia Zixuan seemed to have guessed the whole story. He called her aside and asked coldly, "Did you tell her to do this?"
"Yes," Xia Jing replied, still smiling brightly, though her eyes couldn't hide her malice.
"Do you know that doing this has harmed the company's interests?" Xia Zixuan said sternly.
"I just couldn't stand her. Seeing Lu Heng like that every day made me hate her more and more. I wanted to cut her into a thousand pieces, to make her disappear from this world. What else could I do?" Xia Jing turned to glare at Xie Sangyan, who was being held by Liang Xiaoyuan. "She already has a man who loves her, yet she still keeps Lu Heng hanging!"
Xia Zixuan's sharp profile became even more severe. "You've harmed the company's interests this time. What should I do about it?"
"Brother, just help me handle it. I know you don't do anything without benefits. I can help you deal with your wife. How about that?" Xia Jing proposed a deal: "Besides, I believe Lu Heng will definitely turn a blind eye to this! Then you won't have to deal with it either."
Xia Zixuan tacitly agreed, turning to sit down and saying, "I'll handle this matter. That's all, meeting adjourned." He stood up and left.
Xia Jing deliberately passed by Xie Sangyan, bumping her chair and letting out a light snort before leaving. Chen Xiaoyong happily followed Xia Jing's footsteps out the door.
"I won't be responsible for any trouble you cause in the future," Xia Jing said, looking at the woman before her with disgust. She had only asked her to collect information, but it had caused so much trouble. "My brother is not someone to be trifled with. It's best not to cause any more trouble, or you might end up completely destroyed!"
"Yes, yes, if you have any instructions in the future, I'm at your service anytime," Chen Xiaoyong said with a fawning smile.
"I don't think we need to meet again unless necessary," Xia Jing said before walking away without looking back.
The tense atmosphere in the meeting room dissipated very slowly. Shen Tong realized that this incident probably had something to do with Xia Jing, and she might have instructed Chen Xiaoyong to do it. Whatever the reasons, it was all because of Xie Sangyan. Shen Tong looked up to see Liang Xiaoyuan gently comforting Xie Sangyan. Their intimacy bothered Shen Tong, but she had no standing to say anything.
She left the meeting room dejectedly, feeling very low, and went to the studio.
Chen Xiaoyong still maintained her arrogant demeanor. Shen Tong couldn't help but speak up, "What deep grudge do you have against Xie Sangyan that makes you hate her so much? Or is it simply your jealousy at work, unable to stand someone being better than you? There are so many celebrities more famous than you, why do you specifically hate her?"
"Who told her to act all pitiful and half-dead every day? She's just cheap! She wants every man in the world to see her fragility and protect her! Isn't it enough to have so many men around her already?" Chen Xiaoyong said venomously without any reservation.
Shen Tong didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Dealing with such a jealous artist, she bluntly exposed her, "Aren't you just jealous that she has so many men around her?"
"Ridiculous, me jealous of her? I'm prettier than her, why would I be jealous?" Chen Xiaoyong scoffed.
"Hmph, isn't that the case?" Shen Tong said coldly.
"I just can't stand her! I'm not jealous of her at all! Everything she has is obtained through sleeping her way up, I just can't bear to see it," Chen Xiaoyong said hysterically.
"You say everything she has is obtained through sleeping her way up, do you have any evidence? Even if she got all this, at least she paid a certain price to get it. What have you paid? Hard work and diligence? In this entertainment circle, there are countless people who work harder than you! Moreover, you're not even that hardworking! Beauty? In this industry, plastic surgery can make people prettier than you! So what right do you have to be jealous of her? If you're not satisfied, you can also sleep your way up to get advertisements, movies, TV dramas, get everything," Shen Tong glared at Chen Xiaoyong and said fiercely, "I don't want to see such incidents happen again! No matter if you have someone backing you up or not, don't anger Xia Zixuan again, or you'll face the consequences yourself!"
After a long silence, Shen Tong spoke again, "Let's go! Otherwise, we'll be late for filming. Today is the last day of shooting."
"Good! CUT!" The director exhaled a long breath, then excitedly said, "We've finished shooting our drama!"
The whole set erupted in joy, "Yeah! We've finally wrapped up!" Shen Tong was also overjoyed, hugging Su Xiao and jumping, "We've finally finished! We can watch it when it's broadcast!" She turned and hugged another person, jumping continuously, then ran over to the director saying, "Everyone has worked hard! Thank you for your hard work, director!"
The director also dropped his usual serious face, smiling at Shen Tong and saying, "You're really a good girl." Shen Tong smiled shyly.
Su Xiao stood motionless with his cold face, seeming to have a hint of red creeping up, his ears also slightly red, his eyes following Shen Tong. Seeing this, Chen Xiaoyong's excited smile slowly drooped, her eyes unclear as she stared at the two of them, she always felt that Su Xiao had something special for Shen Tong, but she had no evidence.
"Su Xiao, how do you think I did in the filming?" Chen Xiaoyong asked.
"Hmm." Su Xiao unexpectedly responded, almost making Chen Xiaoyong scream with excitement. It seemed her persistence had paid off, at least he was willing to respond to her now. She thought he didn't have anything special for Shen Tong after all.
Little did she know that all this was because of something someone said one night, that to become famous, one needs to build relationships.
"By the way, why don't we go have a good meal today?" the director suggested excitedly.
"Okay!" Everyone agreed in unison. After eating boxed meals for so many days, they could finally have some better food!
"Where should we eat?" someone asked.
"Let's rent an entire floor at the food street, so everyone can have a good time," the director said generously.
Shen Tong's pocket vibrated. Seeing who it was, she was genuinely surprised. She quickly crouched down in a quiet place to answer the phone, "Hello? Liang Xiaoyuan?"
"I have something to talk to you about, come to the company," Liang Xiaoyuan said bluntly, without his usual gentleness.
"Okay," Shen Tong agreed promptly, understanding in her heart what he wanted to talk about.
She ran back to the director and said, "Director, I have an urgent matter to attend to, I might not be able to join. Is that okay?"
"How can we be missing you, little Shen? No, no, of course not," the director said with a smile, unwilling to let her go.
"But director, I really have something to do," Shen Tong looked troubled, then suggested, "How about this, I'll handle my business as quickly as possible and try to come back. What do you think? Is that okay?"
"Then you must come back! If you don't, I'll run off with your two artists!" the director joked, but there was expectation in his tone.
Shen Tong had to come back because they might meet again in the future, and it wouldn't be good to refuse then. She repeatedly said, "Definitely, definitely!"
After saying goodbye to Su Xiao and Chen Xiaoyong, she took a taxi straight to the company.
Shen Tong arrived at the company. As soon as she pushed open the door and stepped into the office, she saw Xie Sangyan hunched over the desk, shaking slightly, seemingly sobbing. Liang Xiaoyuan was sitting beside her, constantly comforting her in a gentle voice, "It's all over now, it's okay." He was also lightly patting her back, looking worried. Both seemed not to have heard the sound of her entrance.
Shen Tong stood awkwardly in place, not knowing whether to advance or retreat. She thought sourly that she should have knocked before entering.
She silently turned to close the door, intending to leave, when Liang Xiaoyuan spoke up, "Wait, I have something to say to you." Shen Tong stopped in her tracks, watching as Liang Xiaoyuan then lowered his head to speak gently to Xie Sangyan, "You stay here for now, call me if anything happens."
Xie Sangyan seemed not to have heard, still crying with her head down.
The two came out together in silence. Liang Xiaoyuan's face was grave, as if holding something back. After a long while, he finally spoke sternly, "Shen Tong, please manage your artist properly!"
His confrontation with her today wasn't purely out of anger towards Chen Xiaoyong, but also anger towards Shen Tong. He was truly angry. Although he clearly knew they were on different sides, he was still shocked by her words and suggestions. He wasn't sure if the person before him was really the one he knew.
Shen Tong looked at him in shock, startled by his tone. She kept telling herself to stay calm, but when she opened her mouth, her voice turned cold, "I'm sorry for what happened today. On behalf of my artist, I apologize to Director Liang."
"Apologizing is useless now. I just hope you can manage your artist well and not let such things happen again. Sangyan can't withstand such torment from you all," Liang Xiaoyuan said, dissatisfied with Shen Tong's indifference. He didn't understand why Shen Tong could still be so reasonable when she was clearly in the wrong.
Shen Tong was furious. "You all?" When had she been involved in this? He hastily lumped them together. Indeed, he lost his cool whenever it came to Xie Sangyan's matters. He didn't even trust her. She let out a cold laugh and said, "Then please ask your artist not to be so easily caught with weaknesses."
Liang Xiaoyuan's eyes widened in shock. He hadn't expected Shen Tong to become so cold. His tone turned harsh, "Shen Tong, which artist doesn't have a past? Unless someone deliberately digs it up, it won't come to light."
"Then this person with ulterior motives might not necessarily be my artist, right?" Shen Tong said, "She was just instigated by someone else, wasn't she? Although I admit she did dislike Xie Sangyan before."
"Calm down!" Liang Xiaoyuan shouted.
"Then please Director Liang calm down first, and we can talk. Director Liang always loses his composure when it comes to your artist's matters," Shen Tong said sharply, her face seeming to carry a mocking expression.