Lady By The Pillow - Chapter 32

Chapter 32: The Truth Behind (Part 2)

“Officer, do you think I’ve been in this game for nothing?”

The nights in Jiangcheng are always windy. After the evening rain, the wet pavement reflected the neon lights of the bar street.

The scene was grotesque and blurry, impossible to distinguish whether it was the stars in the sky or the mud in the sewer.

In a black private car at the corner of the street, smoke hung in the air.

In the passenger seat, Wen Yi had her arms crossed, the neon patterns reflecting off her black leather jacket.

“I didn’t expect Wei-laoshi to be so busy with filming and still have time to visit a nobody like me. Should I feel honored?”

Wei Jiuqi had one hand on the steering wheel. Her knuckles and the back of her hand were marked with several scratches, left from recent action scenes. They looked particularly menacing under the streetlights of the night.

“Wen-laoshi, you should know why I came to see you.”

Wen Yi knew, but she certainly wasn’t going to admit it. “Oh? Do tell.”

Wei Jiuqi had no time for games. She turned to face her directly, her gaze sharp. “What will it take for you to stop?”

Wen Yi’s eyelid twitched. She dropped the pretense. “Why should I stop?”

Wei Jiuqi reminded her, “Spreading rumors is a legal offense.”

“Then go ahead and call the police on me, why don’t you?”

Wen Yi’s anger was ignited, and her tone turned sour. “I’m in this situation because of you, aren’t I? Wei Jiuqi, we’re both smart people. Why pretend? If you want me to stop, fine. Shi Qing leaves the Empress cast, drops all her endorsements, and goes home to rest for three months like me. Then I’ll stop. How about it?”

Wei Jiuqi’s eyebrows furrowed, and a storm brewed in her eyes. “So, there’s nothing to discuss?”

Wen Yi sneered. “Heh, Wei-laoshi, I have the goods. Whether we talk or not is up to me. Shi Qing pretends to be so noble, but she’s still a sugar mommy to a young man. Just you wait until I find out who he is. As soon as I find him, she can kiss her career goodbye.”

A young man.

This term brought some relief to Wei Jiuqi. It meant that Wen Yi still didn’t have any solid evidence. Otherwise, she would never have guessed that the person she was so desperately trying to find was sitting right in front of her.

“Wen-laoshi,” Wei Jiuqi said, a smirk on her lips. “You debuted before me, so I’ll call you ‘laoshi,’ but that doesn’t mean you have my respect. Leaving aside whether you have your so-called ‘goods,’ what if you did? Shi Qing’s team has already started their PR campaign and is suing the accounts that spread the HIV rumor. Tell me, when it comes to a court trial, won’t those accounts expose you to avoid legal responsibility?”

Wen Yi fell silent.

Wei Jiuqi continued, “I’ve heard that those marketing accounts and bots aren’t cheap. Wen-laoshi, you spent so much money to spread baseless rumors, and what if one of them outs you? What will the industry think of you then?”

Wen Yi’s eyes filled with resentment. “Wei Jiuqi, you made the first move. If I go down, you’re not getting away either. I’d like to see if my career gets ruined from exposing a story, or if a top actress like you gets ruined.”

Wei Jiuqi laughed, a cold glint in her eyes. “Then let’s expose the whole story, shall we? You won’t just be a person who paid for fake news to slander a junior colleague from the same company. You’ll also be exposed for trying to steal her role and having your boyfriend cause trouble for her at work, which led to her being hospitalized. What do you say? Should I release this information?”

“Wei Jiuqi, don’t think you can do whatever you want just because you won an award. Shi Qing isn’t good enough to take me down.”

“You’re wrong. It’s not her who wants to take you down. It’s me.”

“Is that so? It looks like she’s found a powerful backer. Who’s her ‘sugar daddy’ that he can mobilize your connections for her?”

Wei Jiuqi’s eyes narrowed, a deep chill seeping out. As she leaned forward, her dark aura pressed heavily on Wen Yi.

“I am her sugar daddy.”

The private car pulled away, disappearing into the night. As the night deepened, people started pouring out of the bars, hailing taxis to go home.

In an inconspicuous Mercedes, Wen Yi in the back seat was still stunned. The recorder in her hand kept replaying the last part of their conversation.

—Who’s her ‘sugar daddy’ that he can mobilize your connections for her? —I am her sugar daddy.

Does Wei Jiuqi have a strategy?

Yes, but not much.

For example, she knew to confront Wen Yi in person, but she didn’t expect Wen Yi to record her.

This was a result of her upbringing and her experience since her debut: bold and straightforward, always meeting things head-on. She never guarded against an opponent’s dirty tricks.

This is why Shi Qing didn’t want her to get involved—because she was too young and too direct. She believed that an upright person has nothing to fear, not realizing that hearts can be treacherous and a lie can become truth if repeated enough.

This personality, with its sharp edges, is liked by friends but also by enemies.

And yet, precisely because of the confidence her upbringing gave her, Wen Yi, even with the recording of “I am her sugar daddy,” didn’t dare to expose it just yet.

Behind Wei Jiuqi was not only the prestigious agency, First Emperor Entertainment, but also her mother, Wei Shu, a renowned director who dominated the Hong Kong film industry in the ’90s.

“What are you so afraid of? The one with nothing to lose is not afraid of the one who has everything to lose.”

Tang Bin was shaving his beard in front of the mirror, half of his face covered in foam.

Wen Yi tiredly threw her bag on the sofa, sighing. “It’s not that simple. I’m wrapped up in scandals now and don’t have many endorsements. Besides the company, who will help me? Targeting Shi Qing is one thing, since she doesn’t have a strong background. But if I target Wei Jiuqi, First Emperor Entertainment is a force to be reckoned with. Not to mention, she has a director for a mother.”

Tang Bin scoffed. “She’s been retired for half a lifetime. Why be afraid of her? Besides, I’m a director too, aren’t I? That movie you and Wei Jiuqi were competing for, you wouldn’t have been the female lead if I hadn’t pulled some strings for you.”

Tang Bin did have some connections, which was why Wen Yi was with him. But his circle was full of back-slapping and flattery, leading Tang Bin to have a distorted view of his own abilities. He thought he was invincible, always causing minor troubles and believing there would be no serious consequences.

This was Wen Yi’s point of contention with him.

“If you hadn’t targeted Shi Qing and sent her to the hospital in the first place, Wei Jiuqi wouldn’t be retaliating against us.”

Tang Bin’s hand stopped shaving. “What are you saying? That it’s all my fault now? Who was it that came back crying after not getting the Empress role? And who later said we needed to teach Shi Qing a lesson as her popularity grew? If you didn’t whisper in my ear all day, would I have stuck my neck out for you?”

Wen Yi was impatient. “But that depends on the situation. After I calmed down that day, didn’t I tell you that Shi Qing had a tough journey and if she could make a name for herself with this drama, it meant she had talent? Why didn’t you listen to that?”

“How am I supposed to know which of your words are true? I can’t stand to see my woman bullied. Is it wrong for me to stand up for you?”

“There are consequences to consider, even when you’re standing up for someone.”

“What consequences? What, you’re jealous because Shi Qing has a powerful backer in Wei Jiuqi now? I’m telling you, even if I don’t get any jobs, I can still ruin that Wei woman!”

With that, he quickly washed his face, leaving half his beard unshaved, and left.

Wen Yi’s mind was a mess. On one hand, her relationship with Tang Bin had indeed brought her comfort in both love and career over the past two years. On the other hand, Tang Bin’s reckless actions could very well squander all the hard work she had put in over the years.

Just as she was anxiously wondering when Tang Bin, this ticking time bomb, would explode, her eyes fell on the empty coffee table.

The voice recorder was gone! Tang Bin had taken it!

She instantly knew what he was going to do.

She called him, but he didn’t answer.

She sent him a text, but he didn’t reply.

Suddenly, Wen Yi’s mind went blank, her ears ringing as if she had stood up too fast from a crouch. After a vast expanse of white, all she could see was a hellscape of burning lava.

If the recording was exposed, it would only be Wei Jiuqi’s one-sided statement, “I am Shi Qing’s sugar daddy.” There was no substantial evidence, not even a staged photo. With First Emperor Entertainment’s PR capabilities, they could easily spin it as a joke.

But what about Wen Yi?

She would be seen as constantly trying to bait people into gossip, then brazenly putting a baseless recording online. What kind of person would that make her?

And through the entire chain of events, Tang Bin could walk away without a scratch.

He didn’t think about the consequences of his actions; he only considered the consequences for himself.

Wen Yi spent the most terrifying night of her career, tossing and turning. By dawn, her eyes were bloodshot like a spiderweb, and the dark circles under them were a deep black, as if she had witnessed a life from birth to death, or a landscape from desert to wasteland.

It was a long and painful night.

At 8 a.m., there was no movement from the marketing and entertainment accounts she usually worked with.

At 9 a.m., still nothing.

At 10 a.m., her phone finally rang.

It was Dou Qinwen.

“Wen Yi, come to the company now. I’ve sent someone to pick you up.”

Wen Yi didn’t dare to hesitate. She didn’t know what Dou Qinwen meant—did she find out about the recording, or did she simply have a new PR strategy for the rumors about her?

She got into the car in a daze and was taken directly to the general manager’s office.

The door was opened by Dou Qinwen. What kind of situation would require Dou Qinwen to open the door herself?

Wen Yi stepped inside and saw General Manager Zhu also standing there, along with Tang Bin, who was still wearing the same clothes from last night.

And in the general manager’s leather chair sat a woman she had never seen before.

Her naturally curly hair was tucked behind her ears, and a black turtleneck highlighted her long neck. A peacock-blue coat gave her a commanding presence. But what truly stood out was her face. With high cheekbones and deep-set eyes, her gaze seemed to cut through the thickest fog of a forest, sharp and piercing, almost seeing through a person.

Even without meeting her in person, how could anyone in the film industry not recognize that face?

Wei Shu.

Now that everyone was there, General Manager Zhu gave Dou Qinwen a look. Dou Qinwen stepped forward, placed a voice recorder on the office desk, and explained why Wen Yi and Tang Bin were summoned.

“This is the recording that Director Wei intercepted from the newspaper. It’s a recording of Wen Yi and Wei Jiuqi, but I believe both of you have already heard the contents.”

Wen Yi’s face went pale with fright. She quickly tried to explain, “Wen-jie, Director Wei, I did record this, but I didn’t send it. I just did it out of habit when Wei Jiuqi came to see me, to have something in my back pocket.”

Wei Shu simply smiled faintly, her voice calm but with the oppressive weight of a boulder. “You kept it in your back pocket… and it ended up at a newspaper?”

Wen Yi tried to explain further, but Tang Bin stepped forward. “Director Wei, although you’re a great director, this whole thing was started by your daughter. She was the one who came to us yesterday. What, a magistrate can set fires, but the common people can’t even light a lamp? Besides, I didn’t send it to the Hong Kong media. I leaked it on the mainland. No matter how long your arm is, you can’t reach me here, can you?”

As soon as he said that, General Manager Zhu’s face turned green.

Wei Shu quietly listened to him finish, her expression a mix of sharpness and amusement, as if she were watching dogs on the side of the road fight over a leftover bone.

“Tang Bin, I’m retired, not dead. Do you understand?”

She stared at Tang Bin impassively, her eyelids relaxed, her facial muscles calm, but her eyes held the profound and chilling stillness of a deep canyon.

Wei Shu’s eyes were famously well-known in the Hong Kong entertainment scene. It was rumored that anyone who could stand still for ten seconds under her gaze had the courage of a hero.

She had passed these eyes on completely to Wei Jiuqi. But on top of the “most possessive eyes in the entertainment industry,” Wei Jiuqi’s mother had the life experience of a professional who had clawed her way to the top.

Tang Bin felt his knees weaken. He avoided her eyes and said nothing.

Dou Qinwen quickly stepped in to ease the tension. “Director Wei, I didn’t handle this well. I’d told them about the risks before, but they didn’t stop, so I have to take some of the responsibility. But luckily, this recording was intercepted and didn’t get out. What would you like to do about this? We’ll cooperate.”

Wei Shu was concise. “Are there any backups?”

Wen Yi quickly shook her head. “No, Director Wei, you have to believe me. I brought it home yesterday and left it on the table. I don’t even know when he took it.”

Tang Bin, however, was not afraid at all. “Who knows if there’s a backup. Director Wei, since you’re here, let’s talk about a deal, shall we?”

Dou Qinwen closed her eyes in despair, and General Manager Zhu gritted his teeth and snapped, “Tang Bin, that’s enough.”

Wei Shu still had a faint smile. She asked, “What do you want to talk about?”

Tang Bin spoke with confidence. “I’ll stop, and Wei Jiuqi will stop too. But you have to clean up the mess she made. All my contracts with Shengqiao Entertainment have been terminated, and I have no jobs. I heard you’re planning a comeback to make a new movie. I believe my directing skills are not bad. How about considering me for the position of assistant director?”

Wei Shu didn’t even consider it. “I’ve seen your work. It’s all commercials. The camera work is flashy, the sets are chaotic, the characters are stiff, and you don’t know the difference between close-ups and long shots. I don’t think there’s any need for me to collaborate with you.”

To be criticized so directly by a veteran in the industry was a brutal blow to Tang Bin’s male ego. His face twitched.

“Fine. Then I guess I don’t need to hand over the backup of the recording either. You’re a great director, but that was decades ago. What does it matter how big your tree is? A praying mantis can shake a chariot, and every tree has its day when it falls.”

General Manager Zhu sternly rebuked him. “Tang Bin, you’re going too far!”

Wei Shu, however, wasn’t angry. Her sharp eyes narrowed slightly, with fine lines appearing at the corners.

She put her hand on the desk, thumb forward, and stood up. A storm seemed to gather around her.

“It’s true that I might fall, but who are the people in my circle? And who are the people in yours?”

Her smile disappeared. The lines on her face were sharp and clear in the office light. Every fine line around her eyes was a warning, and from her thin lips, words like hooks and chains sliced out one by one.

“Officer, do you think I’ve been in this game for nothing?”

Some people stand on a rock and think they’ve reached the mountaintop. They stumble and think they’re flying into the sky. They look through a well and think they’ve seen the whole world. They learn a few words and believe they’ve mastered all literature. They think they’ve achieved great success and are all-powerful, only to find in their mid-life, when their creative spirit is exhausted, that the true peak is still far above them, and the blue sky is a distant, unreachable dream. The people at the foot of the mountain mock those who climb, calling them fools for sweating and suffering. The people at the peak only sigh at the vastness of the clouds and the breathtaking scenery where light and shadow meet.

The person at the foot of the mountain will never see the view from the top. They will only step into puddles with every misstep, and day after day, they will wander between failure and self-righteousness, an endless cycle of self-inflicted misery.