Chapter 10: I, Ling Qiong, Send Money! (10)

Although the makeup was thick, Ling Qiong still recognized that person as Lu Wenchi.

The male lead rushed in, startling the audience and causing a commotion.

The person on stage saw it too; he seemed to recognize the male lead and also noticed the assassins pouring in at the entrance.

Amidst the chaos, the actor on stage suddenly shielded the male lead, then fell injured from the stage.

The platform wasn’t high, but a fall like that was bound to hurt.

There was no visible protection below the stage; the actors had to fall hard.

This scene had already been shot twice, but neither take was approved.

So before Ling Qiong arrived, Lu Wenchi had already fallen twice.

Now it was the third time.

Ling Qiong watched as Lu Wenchi fell from the stage. The director called “Cut!”—not to approve, but to say the male lead had made a mistake and needed to redo the scene.

This scene kept being reshot, so Lu Wenchi had to repeat the fall over and over.

The more Ling Qiong watched, the angrier she became. Such an adorable boy, yet he was being so mistreated.

[Dear, if you want to change the target character’s fate, drawing cards can solve it.]

“Can’t I just get him into the crew with capital?”

[Dear, it’s not recommended.] Flashing advised her, [Even if you invest, you might fail.]

Ling Qiong understood instantly.

The core mechanics of the game wouldn’t change.

In the end, you just have to spend.

Cursed game designer!

Flashing continued to persuade her, [And bringing capital into the crew isn’t as cost-effective as drawing cards. Think about it, with a hundred consecutive draws, you might get a great opportunity, but if you invest, how long will your money last?]

Ling Qiong: “……”

She felt it was just trying to make her spend, but it seemed to make some sense.

Ling Qiong glanced toward Lu Wenchi. Despite so many retakes, he showed no dissatisfaction, always carrying a hint of caution with everyone. He cherished this opportunity.

Even for a character whose face was concealed by heavy makeup.

Ling Qiong counted her money, and finally decided—to draw.

Adorable boys must be cared for!

Ling “Piggy” Qiong, on impulse, opened the homepage and started drawing cards.

The process was simple: one card after another flashed with messages like “You didn’t win,” “Keep trying, luck is just around the corner,” “Rest a bit and try again,” all designed to catch the eye.

Who wrote these messages?

Were they trying to infuriate players?

After fifty draws, nothing.

A hundred draws…

A hundred and fifty…

Forget it, give up.

This was a trap.

But since she’d started…

With card draws, once you begin, you find you can’t stop.

After investing so much, you don’t want it all to go to waste, so you keep drawing.

Ling Qiong, filled with rage, drew nearly two hundred times before finally pulling a “Blazing Sun” card.

The card’s image was familiar—it was a shop outside the film studio she’d seen when she came in.

…

“Cut!”

“What’s going on, what’s going on? Who told you to fall from there? Didn’t you remember what I just told you?” The director roared through his megaphone.

“Do you even know how to act? Who brought you in?” The director charged up to Lu Wenchi, shoving the megaphone in his face and yelling.

“Sorry, director,” Lu Wenchi apologized, head bowed.

Lu Wenchi hadn’t made many mistakes; each time it was the male lead needing a retake.

So the director’s shouting at Lu Wenchi was really meant for the male lead.

But since the male lead was sent in by the investors, the director couldn’t confront him directly, so he vented on the scapegoat.

Everyone present, including the male lead himself, understood this.

But no one said a word.

Lu Wenchi could only stand there and take the abuse.

What else could he do? He was just a minor extra, transparent as air.

“I’m telling you, if you can’t act, don’t waste our time—”

The director’s megaphone was pushed aside as someone forcibly stepped between him and Lu Wenchi.

The next moment, the megaphone was snatched and turned on the director: “Director, if a scene keeps needing retakes and you can’t even tell who’s at fault, what are you doing as a director? Maybe you should change careers?”

The girl’s voice wasn’t forceful—almost soft and gentle. Just hearing it, one might think she was an obedient girl.

But the content of her words was anything but polite.

The director snapped back, furious: “Who are you?!”

“How did you end up here…” Lu Wenchi recovered from his shock and grabbed Ling Qiong.

The director called for the stage manager, “Who is she? How did she get in?”

This flashy, well-dressed girl clearly wasn’t crew.

The actors and directors of the team had a general impression of everyone; she was definitely not among them.

Before the stage manager could answer, Ling Qiong smiled faintly and spoke first, “Wish you a pleasant life—may your lousy drama make the infamous list.”

She tossed the megaphone back to the director, took Lu Wenchi’s hand, and walked off. “We’re done acting. Let’s go.”

Lu Wenchi: “……”

Director: “???”

Others: “……”

…

Dragged out by Ling Qiong, Lu Wenchi was hit by the wind, and his stalled mind finally started up again.

“What are you doing?”

“He insulted you like that, and you could just endure it?”

Lu Wenchi replied in a low voice, “I have no choice… Just getting a part is already lucky.”

His company wouldn’t give him resources, and Sister Mei was always scheming to trade him for something better.

This role, too, was earned through his own efforts.

Someone like him—no background, no support, unwilling to compromise—is always at the bottom.

Being scolded by the director was nothing.

Lu Wenchi didn’t want to discuss this with Ling Qiong; she, pampered and privileged, never lacking anything, how could she understand…

Of course, he didn’t blame her.

After all, she was standing up for him.

In such circumstances, unless interests were involved, who would take a stand for no reason?

With the director offended so badly, even if he returned, his minor role wouldn’t matter.

Lu Wenchi went to a nearby public restroom to change clothes, but the makeup on his face posed a problem.

“Here,”

Ling Qiong placed a bottle of makeup remover on the sink.

Lu Wenchi paused, then thanked her softly, “Thank you…”

He washed his face clean, droplets of water hanging from his hair, trickling down his cheeks and into his collar.

Perhaps the eye makeup was hard to remove; his eyes were a little red from scrubbing.

The boy in the mirror was handsome, but it was a subdued beauty, lacking any sharpness, somewhat faded.

“Why did you suddenly come looking for me?” Lu Wenchi wiped his face as he walked out with Ling Qiong.

“If I hadn’t, you’d have kept getting bullied.”

Lu Wenchi said, “This industry is fiercely competitive, full of unspoken rules. People at the bottom getting bullied is normal.”

Bootlicking the powerful, investors above all.

That’s reality.

“From now on, I won’t let you be bullied again.” Since she’d decided to care for him, she would do it properly! Isn’t it just raising a paper character?

Lu Wenchi was surprised, “You?”

Ling Qiong nodded vigorously, “Yes, me.”

Lu Wenchi didn’t know how to respond, guessing this heiress was acting on a whim.