A Pair of Evil Women's Love - Chapter 1
Chapter 1
“What job can you get that will bring you money faster than marrying Zhang Fan?”
Fu Yilan endured the noisy chattering from her headphones as she made her way toward the A-City TV station, a giant building thirty meters away.
The suitcase’s wheels scraped the ground, the sound grating.
“You’re an omega. What’s the point of not getting married? Zhang Fan is an alpha! His family is rich, and he’s talented and good-looking. How many people would beg for such a good opportunity? You just don’t know what’s good for you…”
“I’m here,” Fu Yilan said. The clean, bright windows of the office building clearly reflected her simple outfit.
Just a few days ago, the entertainment industry was something she couldn’t even dream of. “Is there anything else you want to say?”
“What do you mean? Where are you? You! You get on a train and come back right now! Fu Yilan, you ungrateful wretch! You’ve been living off me your whole life…”
The receptionist handed her a form to register, and the staff member opened the security gate, gesturing for Fu Yilan to enter the elevator. “Did you take the subway here?”
“I’m number 56,” Fu Yilan replied to the staff member. “Where should I put my luggage later?”
“Yilan? Are you listening to Uncle?” A middle-aged woman’s voice on the phone grew louder. “Fu Yilan, what do you want? This is your father’s debt. Are you just going to run away?”
The staff member pointed to the headphones on Fu Yilan’s head. “You have to turn in your phone. It’s a closed set during the shoot. You’ll get your phone back after it’s over. You should let your family know so they don’t worry.”
The voice on the other end: “Yilan? Yilan? Fu Yilan! You—”
Fu Yilan hung up the call, took off her headphones, turned off her phone, and handed it to the staff member.
The elevator doors on the 23rd floor parted, and a huge pink poster burst into view.
“Where are you from?” the staff member asked, looking Fu Yilan up and down as they walked. “Your looks are great. Do you have any special talents?”
Just as Fu Yilan was about to answer, the staff member took another call.
“Yes, I’ll contact Fu Haitang. Okay,” she said, and after hanging up, she muttered to her phone, “Fu Haitang, Fu Haitang. A person with connections who just joined the station and is already a team leader…” She realized Fu Yilan was still listening and changed her tone. “Right, where was I?”
Fu Yilan replied, “I don’t have any special talents.”
“Just relying on your looks?” The staff member turned her head and scanned Fu Yilan. “Just relying on looks won’t last long for a girl group.”
Fu Yilan nervously clenched her fists.
“You’re the last trainee to check in,” the staff member said. “Come with me to sign the contract first, then we’ll start filming the first episode right away. Someone will take you to eat after the filming is done.”
Inside the conference room, a giant banner read “First Girl Group Auditions.” Fu Yilan was given a contract that was over thirty pages long. It took her half an hour to read it carefully.
After signing the contract, Fu Yilan was taken directly to the filming set.
As the doors opened, a wave of sounds and visuals crashed into her.
The high ceilings, the dark environment, and the large lights on the stage lit up the area. Trainees were gathered, and everyone’s eyes were on the triangular seating arrangement.
“A pyramid structure. The top position must be the center position, right?”
“Hey, you smell so good. What kind of suppressant do you use?”
“Don’t touch me. I’m an alpha!”
“Ah! You’re an alpha? My bad!”
“Have you guys chosen your seats? Hurry up.”
“Your figure is so great! Are you an omega? I’m an alpha! Can we exchange contact info?”
“Have you seen the mentors?”
“Yeah! I heard they are—”
“Oh, how should I choose a seat? Which class are you going to?”
“They’re here! Another person is here!”
“Hey, that one—so pretty!”
[…As Fu Yilan walked into the studio, she attracted a lot of attention. There were 99 trainees in total, and most were already seated. The seats were arranged in an inverted triangle, with 18 seats in the first row from the bottom, 16 in the second, 14 in the third, 12 in the fourth… up to the very top, where there was one empty throne. This was the undisputed center position.
It only belonged to the first place trainee.
Among the pink-and-gold-edged seats, Fu Yilan’s eyes were fixed on the highest, all-gold throne.
“What company is she from?”
“So pretty! She must be an omega!” The whispers spread.
Everyone else was an artist belonging to a certain entertainment company, gathered in groups of three or five. Only Fu Yilan was all alone, with no friends and no background.]
“What are you looking at?” a voice interrupted Fu Haitang’s observation.
Fu Haitang quickly pulled the curtain shut, temporarily forgetting the words in her head that were happening simultaneously on stage, and followed the person who spoke.
“You’re Fu Haitang.” Ren Qing, the head of the planning team, was a few ranks higher than Fu Haitang. She was a capable female alpha. “From the planning team?”
Fu Haitang: “Team leader of Planning Team B.”
“I’m Ren Qing, your supervisor. The filming is about to start, come with me. Team B has a lot to manage.” Ren Qing’s last sentence was pointed.
Fu Haitang had a reputation for having connections within the station. Many people probably didn’t expect her to be in the hardest and most exhausting Team B. Fu Haitang smiled, pretending she didn’t understand, and left the backstage with Ren Qing.
Fu Haitang followed Ren Qing. “99 trainees, including 33 alphas, betas, and omegas. Over sixty of them will debut. They are from Huan Yu Entertainment, He Yi Film and Television, Ji Feng Entertainment… The information is all there, so take a look. After the filming is over, I’ll decide on the general direction for editing.”
At noon, Fu Haitang stood behind Ren Qing. It was her first time in the studio.
Dozens to hundreds of people were crowded around. Dozens of cameras were set up, pointing at the front of the studio. A few cranes were suspended, capable of 365-degree recording without blind spots.
The pages in her mind turned again, and Fu Haitang’s gaze was uncontrollably drawn to Fu Yilan.
“So pretty.”
“Yeah, she looks like an omega.”
“Oh my god. She’s so skinny, her waist is so thin! So thin, yet her chest…”
“Look, so many alphas are looking at her. Did they smell her pheromones?”
“After we’re sorted into classes, everyone will train with betas and alphas. And then… they’ll be wearing less clothing and sweating.”
“Hey! What are you thinking? You… you wanna start a pervy party?”
“Am I… am I wrong? You were just staring at an alpha!”
“I’m a beta, and I only like betas!”
Looking at Fu Yilan, who was eager for the C position, Fu Haitang finally connected the person in the book with the one in front of her. She laughed to herself. It had been almost two months since she’d awakened, and this was the first time she’d seen the protagonist, Omega Fu Yilan, from the book.
Two months ago, Fu Haitang fell and accidentally realized she was a minor character in a book. She was now working for the villainous family in the story. Since she was the villain’s foot soldier, her task for a long time would likely be to help the female villain, Gu Jingjing, bully the female protagonist, Fu Yilan.
According to the book’s synopsis, Lu Jing was the male protagonist alpha. He was engaged to Gu Jingjing, but his heart had always held a cherished childhood friend and first love, who was Fu Yilan.
Lu Jing came from a good background. He debuted as a boy band member in Country H when he was a teenager and was now a big star at less than 25 years old. He was one of the mentors for this show, and this was the starting point of the two protagonists’ reunion.
(Fu Yilan has appeared.) Fu Haitang typed and sent the message.
The other end quickly replied: (Ahhh! The protagonist O has finally appeared! How is she? Is she okay? Wuwuwu, my host, my host!!)
The system was sobbing. Fu Haitang, who had read some novels, was surprised to find out the system was a person after waking up from a car accident.
According to the system, it came to this world to find its host but bound the wrong person. This was why Fu Haitang unexpectedly awakened.
“Camera to the left.” Fu Haitang put away her phone, pressed the intercom, and communicated with the director. “Director Fang, what do you think of Gu Jingjing? She’s an artist from Qiong Yi Tian Di. She seems to have a good sense for the camera.”
Director Fang: “Who are you under?”
Ren Qing glanced at Fu Haitang. Fu Haitang turned off her intercom and explained with a smile, “I’m also doing this for the show. I heard Gu Jingjing has a big background. It might be good for the show to promote her.”
Ren Qing teased her, “How do you compare? Do you have a bigger background, or does Gu Jingjing?”
Fu Haitang avoided the question, checked her watch, and said, “It’s time for the mentors to enter.”
(Miss Gu, Teacher Lu is about to enter.)
On stage, Gu Jingjing took her eyes off Fu Yilan. She glanced at her watch. After being reminded by Fu Haitang, her eyes lit up as she looked toward the entrance.
[The mentors take their seats.
The whole place screams!]
Ren Qing was about to turn and remind Fu Haitang, but Fu Haitang seemed to have a premonition. Before the screams erupted in the studio, she covered her ears without even looking up.
Fu Haitang: “What’s wrong?”
Ren Qing: “Have you ever been on a talent show before?”
“No,” Fu Haitang shook her head. “This is my first time on set.”
Ren Qing: “First time on set, and you already have planning authority. You should know that rookies who’ve been on the team for half a year are still fetching coffee for their seniors.”
“Even if it’s just fetching coffee, it’s for the smooth running of the work,” Fu Haitang said with a smile. “No job is too small. We’re all colleagues.”
Ren Qing said sarcastically, “You’re young, but you’re quite slick.”
Fu Haitang smirked.
The trainees’ first performance was to be evaluated by the mentors, who would grade and sort them into classes. The 99 trainees were divided into nine classes—A, B…I—each with 11 people, ranked from highest to lowest skill.
Among the 99 people, there were experienced artists who had already debuted, amateurs who had never received any training, and new trainees from large entertainment companies who were looking for an opportunity.
Therefore, there was a huge disparity in the trainees’ abilities. Only seven of the 99 people would make it into a group. The trainees in the lower-ranked classes had a higher chance of being eliminated in the first round.
(Is it her turn? Is it her turn?)
Fu Haitang yawned and casually replied to the system’s message, (Not yet.)
(It’s been two hours! Don’t tire out my protagonist O! Can’t you let her rest?)
Fu Haitang massaged her temples: (I’m just a planner. I don’t have the authority to stop the filming.)
Fu Haitang sent the message and put away her phone.
Ren Qing teased her, “Texting your significant other?”
“No,” Fu Haitang gave a short laugh, pondered for a moment, and then said, “It’s three o’clock. I think the mentors look a little tired. How about we take a ten-minute break for a tea ceremony?”
Ren Qing looked at her watch and then walked over to the chief director and said a few words.
Many trainees in the monitors were dozing off. The hours-long filming was boring, and Gu Jingjing had long since given up.
“I’m so tired!” Gu Jingjing rested in a corner. “What are you doing? Didn’t I tell you I needed a break?”
Fu Haitang lowered her head and said, “My position is too low. I don’t have a say in the station.”
“You—” Gu Jingjing was furious and fanned herself with her hand in frustration. More than a month ago, Gu Jingjing had gotten Fu Haitang, who had applied to be a driver for her family, into the TV station to help her get into the group. She didn’t expect Fu Haitang to be so useless.
“If my parents and brother couldn’t find out about this, I wouldn’t need a useless person like you!” Gu Jingjing vented her anger freely.
“Fu Haitang, Teacher Lu is in the backstage lounge. There’s a staff lounge there that can be used for trainees to touch up their makeup…”
Before Fu Haitang could finish, Gu Jingjing got up and left quickly. “Why didn’t you say so earlier? I’m going to find my Brother Lu now!”
The sound of her hurried footsteps faded.
After she was gone, Fu Yilan let out a sigh of relief and walked out from the corner. A pair of red-soled black high heels came into view. She looked up and met a pair of eyes that were smiling but not smiling.
Fu Haitang stood with a folder tucked under her arm, looking at Fu Yilan.
Fu Yilan’s expression didn’t change, only her eyebrows rose slightly as she met Fu Haitang’s gaze.
“You’ve signed a non-disclosure agreement. You should know the consequences of leaking confidential information from the station,” Fu Haitang said. She didn’t expect her first confrontation with the protagonist to come so soon.
But helping a trainee meet a mentor in private was a serious offense. If it was exposed, Fu Haitang would lose her job at the TV station. She would then lose her value to Gu Jingjing and wouldn’t get paid by the Gu family.
One wrong step and everything would be lost.
The staff member who had her sign the contract today had mentioned a new planner with a powerful background.
Fu Yilan’s gaze went from top to bottom, finally settling on Fu Haitang’s work badge. She remembered the name—the one they called the person with connections.
“I don’t know you,” Fu Yilan said, and then she walked around Fu Haitang to the other side.
Fu Haitang: “Stop!” After yelling, Fu Haitang felt a little nervous.
“Miss Fu,” Fu Haitang said as her high heels made a crisp sound on the floor. Her attitude changed, and she smiled gently, persuading her. “Please keep this a secret for me, can you?”
Fu Yilan turned around, looking a little confused. “Isn’t Miss Haitang’s business known to everyone? What do you want me to keep a secret?”
Known to everyone? Fu Haitang slowly chewed on those words, then realized something, and she suddenly smiled. “Are you talking about the connections?”
Fu Yilan didn’t like to smile. “Isn’t that right?”
People who like to use rhetorical questions have a common trait—they’re stubborn!
In other words, they need to be taught a lesson!
“Fu Yilan, you should know that rookies who’ve been on the team for half a year are still fetching coffee for their seniors,” Fu Haitang said. “With your personality, aren’t you afraid I’ll make things difficult for you?”