Who Needs a CEO? I Choose Stardom

Chapter 27: Chapter 25: What a Simpleton

"President Wang who?"

Ni Bingyan was furious. Despite her usually good temper, her tone soured.

The body’s previous owner had never been interested in these things, and she hadn’t had a chance to learn about them yet. Plus, Chen Zhiwen didn’t even give a full name. ’How the hell am I supposed to know who he is!’

"How many President Wangs do we have at our company? Never mind. Judging by your tone, you don’t know. I’ll get to the bottom of this and call you tomorrow."

Ni Bingyan had no choice but to agree.

She wanted to ask around, but it was too late. Everyone was already asleep, and she didn’t want to bother them. She would just have to tough it out until morning.

She cared about her work more than anything. This was the role of the second female lead—a part she could have only dreamed of in her past life, and a character she truly liked.

The contract was signed, the character bio was written, and she had already memorized half her lines. And now, they were suddenly saying she might be replaced!

Nothing could be more crushing.

’What kind of monster smashes someone’s rice bowl!’

’What did I ever do to deserve this?’

She clenched her fists, wanting to punch something to vent her frustration. But not wanting to make too much noise and disturb the others, Ni Bingyan channeled her anger into three full sets of sit-ups before finally collapsing onto her back, panting.

As she lay there, tears began to stream down her face.

It wasn’t that she wasn’t strong. It was just that when she was alone, she felt a good cry would make things a little more bearable.

With her work ethic, it wasn’t as if she’d never had a chance to play a second female lead before. It was just that every time, for one reason or another, the role would be snatched away from her by someone else.

Back then, she had no connections. People could walk all over her, and she could only swallow her pride. The next time they met, she would have to plaster on a smile and act subservient.

That’s just how the world has always worked.

Often, no matter how hard you fight, you can’t compete with someone who was simply born into the right family.

You could find ways to improve most things, but your family background was something you couldn’t change.

Rather than being bitter and resentful, seeing the whole world as an enemy, it was better to adapt to society and do the best she could within her power.

The ancestors of those people with powerful backgrounds had to struggle to get where they were, so there was no reason to feel things were unfair.

It wasn’t as if she had no connections now, but her family’s influence was limited to the restaurant industry. Since she hadn’t even figured out where this attack was coming from, telling her family would only make them worry for nothing.

She understood the logic, but her heart still ached with resentment. It just wasn’t fair!

Her earlier contentment had vanished without a trace, her mind consumed by a single question: who on earth had she offended?

If she had to name someone she’d offended, the person with the most reason to be angry with her was probably Jiang Sheng, whom she had just dumped. But he wouldn’t do something so classless.

’Or could he be a two-faced hypocrite?’

’Offering her resources with one hand while stabbing her in the back with the other, using underhanded tactics to force her to come back to him?’

’That kind of ridiculous plot only happens in novels. What real-life president has that much time on his hands? It’s not like he’s lacking for women, and it’s not like I’m the only one he has to have.’

But after racking her brain, she couldn’t think of anyone else. Human nature was complex and fickle; she was starting to feel unsure.

She tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep, and instead just worked up a sweat. Ni Bingyan sat up in frustration. Just as she was about to unzip her tent to get some air, Peng Huan came running over, her legs clamped tightly together.

"Sister! Sister! Paper, paper, paper! Quick, quick!"

Seeing her face contorted and flushed red, her mouth mumbling something unintelligible like an incantation, Ni Bingyan didn’t have time to think. She quickly threw on some clothes and scrambled out of the tent. "What’s wrong, Sister Huanhuan?"

"Paper..."

When nature calls, it calls. After years of following film crews, there were bound to be times without a toilet in the wild. This sort of thing happened all the time, so Peng Huan wasn’t particularly embarrassed. It was just incredibly uncomfortable, and she was afraid that if she spoke too loudly, she’d lose control and make a fool of herself.

Once she was out of the tent and saw Peng Huan’s posture, Ni Bingyan finally understood what was happening. She quickly grabbed her backpack, slung it on, turned on her flashlight, and went to support her.

With so many people, the communal toilet paper had gone missing. Out of all the girls, only Ni Bingyan had carried a large backpack up the mountain, fully prepared with all sorts of necessities. Besides, it was the middle of the night and they were in the wilderness—it wasn’t safe to be alone. Peng Huan’s choice had been a very wise one.

It just went to show that, despite being a bit of a naive blockhead, her little sister was extremely reliable when it counted.

"Sister Huanhuan, don’t be embarrassed. Here, take this paper."

Ni Bingyan lit the way with her flashlight. After leading them down a couple of terraced patches of earth, she pointed to a field of man-high sorghum for Peng Huan to relieve herself.

Peng Huan was in no state to be modest. She snatched the paper and disappeared into the sorghum.

Ni Bingyan obediently stood guard. She kept her back to Peng Huan, shining the flashlight in front of herself and occasionally making a small noise to remind her friend she wasn’t alone, hoping to keep her from getting scared.

Peng Huan found it amusing, but she was too busy taking care of her personal business to say anything.

After a few awkward sounds, Peng Huan quickly emerged from the sorghum field. She waved a hand in front of her nose and said frankly,

"Too much beer. Sorry about that! And sorry for dragging you out here with me."

Seeing that she was all right now, Ni Bingyan just gave a soft hum of acknowledgment and started walking back, lighting the way with the flashlight.

"What’s the matter with you?"

Having just come from the darkness, Peng Huan’s night vision was excellent. Gazing at a beauty under the moonlight should have been a pleasure, but she didn’t expect to see that the beauty’s eyes were red, a clear sign she’d been crying. That, combined with the heavy, depressing aura around her, made Peng Huan ask at once.

The crew had been celebrating tonight, and everyone was happy. Logically, there was nothing to cry about.

If no one had asked, she might have just endured it and let it pass. But as soon as someone did, especially a close friend, the grievances in her heart burst forth like water from a broken dam, and she couldn’t help but pour it all out.

"Director Chen just called. He said my next project is probably going to fall through."

After they had become good friends, they had discussed their upcoming work plans. After all, she had promised to bring Peng Huan home for some delicious food, so naturally, they had to compare their schedules.

"What do you mean? Isn’t your company the investor? How could it fall through?"

Most projects fell through due to a lack of funding. Ni Bingyan’s company was very strong, considered one of the giants of the industry, and Director Chen’s films were highly profitable. Generally speaking, it was impossible for one of his projects to be canceled.

"The movie isn’t being canceled. They might replace me."

She was the one being cut.

Ni Bingyan feigned a casual air, waving the flashlight for Peng Huan to follow.

It was her habit to cry in secret when she was alone; to say even this much in front of someone else was a rare show of vulnerability.

"How is that possible? Whose idea was it?"

Peng Huan was stunned, but she quickly tried to console her. "Don’t panic. The fact that Director Chen called you personally this late means that things aren’t set in stone yet."

They were both industry veterans; her judgment was sound.

"He said he’d find out who’s causing trouble and tell me tomorrow. I’m just a little upset right now, I’ll be fine by morning. Anyway, there are plenty of other jobs out there. As long as I work hard, I won’t be out of work. And if they terminate the contract, they’ll have to pay me a penalty for breach of contract. When you think about it, I’m the one who comes out ahead."

As she spoke, she seemed to successfully talk herself out of her misery, and the disappointment in her voice vanished.

"So you’ve been backstabbed, and you don’t even know who did it?"

Peng Huan was left speechless.

’This naive blockhead!’

’It’s one thing to hole up and cry by yourself when something goes wrong, but her ability to bounce back is almost too good. Just how much has she been hurt to develop a personality like this?’

’We were only a few tents away, why didn’t she come ask for my help?’

’What’s the point of crying?!’

’If crying solved problems, what would you need friends for?’

If nothing else, she had plenty of connections in the industry.

Ni Bingyan felt wronged, too!

’I’m so honest and I always keep a low profile in everything I do. I really can’t think of who I could have offended!’

Hating someone enough to ruin their job couldn’t be the result of some minor grudge.

Peng Huan didn’t waste any more time on comforting her. She had already whipped out her phone and was furiously making calls.

Thanks to the roaring success of the potato sales, the cell tower was still active, so they didn’t have to wave their phones around searching for a signal like they did when they first arrived.

Knowing her friend’s personality, Ni Bingyan didn’t bother with pleasantries and just waited quietly for her to ask around.

While Ni Bingyan was crying out of anger, somewhere else, Bai Jian was also crying until her eyes were swollen.

"Auntie," she sobbed, "he humiliated me like that... WAHHH... I can’t just let this go..."