Who Needs a CEO? I Choose Stardom

Chapter 42: Chapter 38: There Are Always Villains Who Want to Harm Me

Duanmu Li was really not good at telling stories.

If anyone else had told it, even without dramatic flair, it wouldn’t have been as dry and tasteless as an overcooked, boiled chicken breast!

But Ni Bingyan didn’t mind.

"The year I got back from the military, my dad got cancer. I wanted to save him, so I started looking for work everywhere. I didn’t have a degree, and the skills I had weren’t suited for civilian jobs. In the end, I relied on my driver’s license to become Brother Wei’s assistant, responsible for driving him to and from film sets and doing odd jobs."

It was rare for Duanmu Li to be so talkative, so Ni Bingyan didn’t interrupt her.

"In the end, I couldn’t save my dad."

She drove steadily, as if telling someone else’s story.

"I was still young back then. I saw my brother and my mom worrying so much they couldn’t even eat. When I asked them what was wrong, I found out that not only had we spent all our money, but we also owed a lot to friends and relatives. Forget a grand funeral, we couldn’t even afford a burial plot for my dad."

She trailed off.

’Her father had died in agony, and as his daughter, she couldn’t even give him a proper burial. That kind of pain would probably stay with her for the rest of her life.’

"That’s when Sister Liu, who happened to overhear me on the phone with my family, offered to lend me some money. She was always good to me, but that time, she was a real lifesaver."

The story was cliché, but the person in it must have experienced a rollercoaster from despair to hope to still remember it so vividly after so many years.

"I don’t like being indebted to people, so I wanted to do something for her. She was reluctant, but eventually, she asked me to help her find out who Brother Wei’s mistress was."

’So, that’s what was happening behind their loving facade.’

’You really can’t trust the public personas in the entertainment industry.’

’Especially the "devoted husband" persona. Eight out of ten are probably fakes.’

To repay Liu Yi, Duanmu Li did it.

As the assistant in charge of driving, it was very easy for Duanmu Li to track Wei Hang’s movements.

Before long, not only had she found the mistress’s home address and identity, but she’d also gone above and beyond, uncovering Mistress Number Four, Number Five, and Number Six.

"Later, I found out she already knew about the main mistress. She only told me to investigate so I wouldn’t feel bad about the debt."

She probably hadn’t expected the others to be discovered. Liu Yi likely didn’t anticipate this "pleasant" surprise either.

"Then Sister Liu gathered the evidence and asked for a divorce."

’She thought she was being cheated on with one woman, but it turned out to be a whole crowd. She had been barely holding it together, but this was the last straw.’

"But Brother Wei absolutely refused and kept harassing her."

No wonder she immediately ran over when she saw the two of them arguing. She was probably afraid Sister Liu would be at a disadvantage.

When you’re desperate, even a single straw is precious, and what Liu Yi had given her was far more than that.

"That’s also why I couldn’t keep working for Brother Wei."

Duanmu Li parked the car at Ni Bingyan’s door and looked at her seriously. "This is the kind of disloyal person I am."

To be fair, aside from his questionable private morals, Wei Hang was actually good to his staff. The fact that she had paid off the debt from her father’s cancer after just a few years of working for him was proof of that.

Ni Bingyan fell silent.

She now understood why Duanmu Li had specifically told her this story.

From an employer’s perspective, if you’ve done something shady, you certainly don’t want your assistant to expose you. Any boss with skeletons in their closet wouldn’t dare hire an assistant with a track record like that.

But from her own moral standpoint, all she could think was, ’Well done!’

’A jerk who wants novelty but can’t bear to part with his wife and kids deserves to be punished. Why should he get to have it all?’

’Being his wife doesn’t mean you have to be a saint with a halo.’

From the perspective of a fellow woman, she felt that neither Liu Yi nor Duanmu Li had done anything wrong.

Besides, Duanmu Li had only told his wife the information; she hadn’t sold it for money.

"Don’t worry. If Sister Wei was okay with you coming to work for me, she definitely knew the whole story. If it’s not an issue for her, I’m not going to find fault with it. Also, if I ever do something bad, you have to expose me without mercy. But I don’t want you to sell the story for money. I want you to send me straight to jail to spend the New Year!"

Ni Bingyan pondered for a moment before saying this.

She was an open person and didn’t mind that her assistant had done such a thing, but she would mind if someone close to her sold her out for personal gain.

If she committed a crime, she wanted to be punished by the law, not backstabbed by someone she trusted.

Her words made Duanmu Li laugh. She gripped the car keys tightly, then decisively closed the car door, leaving with a "I’ll pick you up tomorrow morning, remember to have your suitcase ready," before driving away.

Having done a good deed and getting to know each other better in the process, they were both in high spirits.

After Duanmu Li left, Ni Bingyan took a comfortable bath, packed her suitcase while humming a song, and then went to bed smelling wonderful.

But the next day, just past six in the morning, while she was washing the dishes after breakfast, a call came from her manager.

"Are you up?"

Hearing the strange mood in her voice, Ni Bingyan replied, dazed, "I’m up. What time do you think it is?"

Anyone else might have thought she was being sarcastic, but from what Wei Shuojie knew of her, she was just stating a fact. Hearing the clatter of dishes in the background, she probably had even finished breakfast.

"Sigh, you’re up, but I haven’t even slept yet! I need to tell you something, but don’t panic, okay?"

Wei Shuojie yawned. It had been a long night for her.

"What is it?"

Since they signed the contract, they had never faced a crisis. This was the first time.

Hearing her speak so gravely, Ni Bingyan instinctively straightened her back.

"It’s a small matter, so relax. As for the details, you can check Weibo later. I’m swamped right now, so just make sure you remember what I’m about to tell you."

"Ah! Oh! Okay, okay, go ahead!"

Ni Bingyan couldn’t find a notebook anywhere, so she just hit the record button.

"Xiao Li is with me, so you don’t have to worry about her. I’ve already arranged for your leave from the film set, and you don’t need to go to the variety show for now. From now on, listen to my arrangements. Don’t go to the set, don’t accept any interviews, don’t answer calls from strangers, and absolutely do not post on Weibo or your Moments. Just treat it as a vacation and rest at home. Leave the rest to me, got it?"

Realizing the gravity of the situation, Ni Bingyan agreed without hesitation. "I’ve got it. Don’t worry about me. You go handle your business!"

"Okay, I’ll contact you when I have a spare moment."

Everyone has their own area of expertise. When it came to acting, Wei Shuojie probably wasn’t even qualified to hold her shoes, but when it came to crisis management, forget Ni Bingyan—the vast majority of managers in the industry couldn’t compare to her.

It was normal for celebrities to face crises; the more famous they were, the more crises they faced. The two of them had long been mentally prepared.

When they signed the contract, they agreed that when it came to choosing scripts, Ni Bingyan would have the final say, but when it came to crisis management, Wei Shuojie would take the lead.

No matter how anxious she felt, she had to trust her partner. Although that was a bit difficult for them as a newly formed alliance, she would try her best, just as Wei Shuojie was trying her best to handle the matter and cause her as little trouble as possible.

After hanging up, Ni Bingyan quickly opened Weibo’s trending topics.

Riding on the Best Actor’s fame, the topic #WeiHangNiBingyan had shot directly into the top three on the trending list.

Following that, #WeiHangCheats, #NiBingyanTheMistress, #NiBingyanPrenatalCheckup... it was enough to make one’s head spin!

She randomly clicked on one. The photos were shockingly clear, despite being taken late at night. Who knew what kind of high-tech camera the paparazzi were using.

Under last night’s circumstances, Wei Hang had remembered to wear a big, dark mask, but she was used to going out like a normal person. After all, she wasn’t a top celebrity or a big star; she didn’t have that many impulsive fans.

So, there were pictures of her leaning down at the hotel entrance to talk to someone in a car, and pictures of her at the hospital, walking beside Wei Hang...

’The photographer was a real talent. They should consider hiring him to shoot romance dramas. He’d be a godsend for actresses who have to deal with co-stars who like to use their tongue during kissing scenes.’

’Just look at this god-tier photography!’

They were clearly more than a meter apart, but the photo made it look like she was nestled against Wei Hang. She had been serious the whole time, but the pictures somehow made it look like they were chatting and laughing.

She opened her official Weibo account, which her former company used to run and her current manager now handled. Pinned to the top wasn’t a lawyer’s letter, but a police report receipt.

At three in the morning, the moment Wei Shuojie saw the trending topic, she had taken a familiar lawyer to the police station and filed a report against that paparazzi account.

The paparazzi was probably asleep and didn’t delete the post in time. In just one night, that exposé had garnered nearly 200,000 reposts and comments, and screenshots were flying everywhere!

’He’s probably going to jail for some re-education.’

The instigator wouldn’t get off easy, but being caught in this undeserved disaster, Ni Bingyan was still furious!

She couldn’t go out and earn money during this prime time; she could only stay at home and fume.

She didn’t know if the cover she just shot would be pulled, if the movie she’d accepted would be canceled, or if she could still appear on those two variety shows...

The series of potential consequences was just exhausting to think about.

’I just hope Sister Wei is capable enough!’

If she didn’t give her enough trust right at the start of their partnership, their future work would probably be difficult. So, even though Ni Bingyan was anxious enough to jump out of her skin, she could only wait.