The Scumbag A Really Doesn't Want to Become Famous [Entertainment Circle] - Chapter 6
It was just empty talk, Professor Jiang. You’re magnanimous and won’t hold it against me, right?
Professor Jiang, you didn’t hear anything just now, did you?
It wasn’t what you think, I was just rehearsing lines with my junior.
What a mess.
After a brief moment of blankness, countless excuses flooded Yu Youqing’s mind. But since she already knew they were just excuses, she didn’t dare voice them in front of Jiang Musheng.
Was there anything more mortifying than this? Absolutely not.
Yu Youqing moved her lips, only to realize they no longer obeyed her, she was utterly speechless.
Especially when she saw Jiang Musheng walking toward her, she instinctively took a step back.
That step brought her closer to the chilly air outside, and she immediately shivered.
Jiang Musheng: “…”
“Am I that terrifying?”
In those few short seconds of silence, Jiang Musheng had already closed the distance between them.
Out of sheer guilt, Yu Youqing shook her head vigorously and blurted, “No, no, of course not!”
Jiang Musheng was naturally five or six centimeters taller than Yu Youqing, and with her higher heels adding to the height difference, combined with the innate, pressuring aura of an alpha, Yu Youqing felt like she was being looked down upon literally and figuratively.
She panicked.
Yu Youqing knew she was being a little strange. Logically, after her rebirth, her temperament should have been tempered. Even when Liang Yitang and Zhao Guili had mocked her, she had managed to laugh it off.
But before her rebirth, Yu Youqing’s personality could only be described as problematic.
In three words: utterly spoiled.
She had risen to fame at a young age, barely in her teens, and the success had gone straight to her head. She hadn’t done anything illegal, but her personality had been insufferable, she couldn’t tolerate the slightest grievance. Back then, she was the company’s biggest cash cow, so no one dared to rein her in. Whatever she did, it didn’t matter, she was popular.
Looking back, Yu Youqing admitted she had been a handful, unable to stomach even the tiniest slight. She couldn’t even recognize veiled insults, reacting like a firecracker at the slightest spark. In hindsight, she realized her younger self had been overwhelmed by fame, using her temper as a shield.
Later, all of that became ammunition for scandals, meticulously crafted by Zhao Guili and her team, turning Yu Youqing’s reputation as black as charcoal.
So now, standing before Jiang Musheng with zero confidence, Yu Youqing felt that spoiled, bratty side of herself threatening to resurface.
No, no, no! You’re a reborn woman now! Don’t mess this up! No one likes a petty drama queen!!
“I’m just a little cold,” Yu Youqing steadied herself, not daring to meet Jiang Musheng’s eyes. Instead, she fixed her gaze on Jiang Musheng’s collarbone.
Damn, how many fish could swim in those collarbones?
Her thoughts were still wandering when warmth suddenly enveloped her.
To her shock, Jiang Musheng had draped a coat over her shoulders and upon closer inspection, wasn’t that her own cashmere coat?
Jiang Musheng, noticing Yu Youqing’s stunned expression, said calmly, “I saw it left in the venue. Is it yours?”
Freezing just moments ago, Yu Youqing was so moved by Jiang Musheng’s timely kindness that her eyes nearly welled up. She immediately handed out a “good person” card: “Professor Jiang, you’re so kind!”
Jiang Musheng: “…”
One moment she was complimenting her on her beauty, the next she was giving her the “nice person” rejection.
Yu Youqing didn’t notice much of this. Standing near the edge, she was genuinely freezing. Shivering, she tried to wrap the coat tighter around herself when she noticed Jiang Musheng was still only wearing a dress.
Truly·beauty that moves people to action.
Yu Youqing paused, “Aren’t you cold, Teacher Jiang? Maybe you should!”
Jiang Musheng: “I’m not cold.”
Yu Youqing could only repeat, “Teacher Jiang is so considerate of juniors.” In terms of debut seniority, they were actually similar, just moving in different circles with little overlap.
But one should always be modest.
Jiang Musheng glanced at Yu Youqing and said slowly, “Otherwise how could I live up to your high praise?”
“Huh?”
Yu Youqing froze for a second before realizing,
Ahhhhhh!
So Jiang Musheng had heard everything she said!
How could she ever show her face again after being overheard making such cringey chuunibyou remarks like “how do you know Teacher Jiang wouldn’t want me?”
In Jiang Musheng’s ears, it probably sounded like she was publicly declaring “Jiang Musheng likes me,” didn’t it?
Yu Youqing’s face, already flushed from the cold wind, turned completely crimson now.
Too embarrassed to remain in Jiang Musheng’s presence, she lowered her head in mortification, muttered a goodbye, and ran through the wind toward the waiting van outside.
At least now with the coat covering her moonlight dress, she wouldn’t attract as much attention.
This embarrassment lingered even as Yu Youqing lay in bed that night.
What exactly did Jiang Musheng mean?
Was she making conversation with her, or teasing her?
Impossible. Jiang Musheng barely knew her. Then why did Jiang Musheng give her the coat.
It was just a casual gesture, just casual. When big shots help nobodies, do they need reasons? No, that’s all it was. Don’t overthink it.
Her appearance naturally sparked considerable discussion on Touchbo.
The next day, Tiantian came to her saying, “Ignore all that nonsense, don’t look at it sis, it’ll just upset you. This is just part of your comeback journey, you, sis, are you even listening?”
She noticed Yu Youqing spacing out, gaze fixed on the now perfectly pressed dress.
Tiantian asked, “Sis, what should we do with this dress now?”
The dress came from Jiang Musheng, so logically it should be returned. But when the assistant delivered it, they’d clearly said it wasn’t Jiang Musheng’s size, obviously she had no use for it.
However, designer dresses like these are usually only loaned to celebrities, gifted exclusively to top-tier actresses or brand ambassadors. Those without sufficient status must dutifully return them.
Yu Youqing wasn’t a spokesperson and lacked the clout. Even though she looked stunning yesterday, the brand hadn’t claimed her.
“Return it,” Yu Youqing snapped out of her thoughts. “Contact Moly about it.”
Tiantian nodded and went to make the call, only to return speechless with shock.
Yu Youqing looked up, “What, did they yell at you?”
Tian Tian shook her head vigorously, “No, Moly told me the dress doesn’t need to be returned because Teacher Jiang bought it. It wasn’t sent by the brand.”
Yu Youqing: “?” What did that mean?
Tian Tian said, “Why would Teacher Jiang buy a dress that’s not her size? Should we clean it and return it to her?”
Yu Youqing wasn’t narcissistic enough to think Jiang Musheng had specially prepared this dress for her.
She recalled Jiang Musheng’s previous interview wasn’t there talk about Jiang having a white moonlight? Maybe it wasn’t just PR after all?
So when Jiang Musheng saw her wearing this dress, she probably wasn’t looking at Yu Youqing, but seeing her white moonlight through her.
Now everything made sense.
“Let’s not pry into Teacher Jiang’s affairs,” Yu Youqing patted Tian Tian’s hand. “You’re too young to understand. If I get another chance to meet her, I’ll definitely ask for her contact to return the dress.”
That day at the event, she’d fled in such a hurry that returning the dress was the last thing on her mind.
Tian Tian nodded vaguely, “Aren’t you moving soon? How’s the house hunting going?”
“Don’t even ask.”
The topic immediately darkened Yu Youqing’s mood. Her previous apartment had been rented by Zhao Guili under the company’s name with the company covering half the exorbitant rent, it had been easily affordable.
But now the company had stopped payments, and with no gigs coming in, she couldn’t possibly afford it. After her rebirth, she’d immediately terminated her contract, making relocation urgent.
Otherwise, her bank balance wouldn’t last till next month before she’d be drinking the northwest wind.
Seeing her distress, Tian Tian asked, “Are your requirements very high? I can help look.”
“Just needs good privacy, decent space, and reasonable rent,” Yu Youqing said.
She’d already resigned herself to temporary hotel stays when, three days later, Tian Tian excitedly announced, “I found the perfect place for you!”
“It’s in the famous luxury neighborhood, Yijing Garden. A three-story standalone villa with rent three times cheaper than your current place!”
Yu Youqing eyed her suspiciously, “Are you being scammed? There’s no way a standalone villa goes for that price.”
“It’s real! First-time rental too. It’s co-living three floors with the first floor as common area. Landlord and tenant each get one floor, completely separate.”
“Co-living?” Yu Youqing considered, “Is the landlord female?”
“Yes, but it’s practically like living alone. The agent specifically mentioned the landlord barely stays there maybe two or three times a year. Isn’t it a steal?”
Yu Youqing: “Sounds too good to be true.” It reeked of scam since when did such luck come her way?
Tian Tian: “We’ll know if we check it out, right?”
With skepticism, Yu Youqing viewed the property in the morning and signed the contract by noon.
It was exactly as described, if she didn’t seize this bargain today, it’d surely be gone tomorrow!
The apartment had excellent natural lighting and a great layout. She lived on the second floor, and the landlord never came home. She could handle everything directly with the property manager without needing to communicate with the landlord at all.
Yu Youqing was glad she had packed everything from her old place before moving, so when the moving company arrived in the afternoon, it was a quick and seamless transition.
For the next week, she had nothing scheduled, so she stayed home watching movies. True to form, the mysterious landlord never showed up.
At first, Yu Youqing was a bit reserved, avoiding the living room most of the time.
But after a week without any sign of the landlord, she happily set up a small hotpot in the living room one evening, sipping wine while binge-watching dramas.
After a few drinks, she flipped channels and landed on an entertainment news program.
It was a prime-time show that summarized and commented on the latest celebrity gossip. The screen behind the host displayed footage from the charity gala’s red carpet, showcasing various female stars, before finally freezing on the moment Jiang Musheng arrived.
The camera work was sharp, it captured Jiang Musheng’s glance in her direction, followed immediately by the scene where Yu Youqing draped her coat over Liang Yitang’s shoulders.
The host then cut to a montage of netizens’ reactions, with sensitive keywords blurred out.
Yu Youqing squinted at the screen, struggling to hear clearly, so she turned up the volume.
“To everyone’s surprise, long-absent actress Yu Youqing has suddenly reappeared in the public eye. Netizens speculate that her act of kindness toward Liang Yitang was actually a ploy to catch Jiang Musheng’s attention. Some even claim she stole the moonlight dress originally intended for Jiang Musheng though she has yet to respond to these allegations…”
“Respond? Respond to the nonsense you want to hear?” The alcohol was hitting hard now. Yu Youqing swayed as she stood, her vision blurring, but the words on TV rang clear. She mimed holding a microphone near her lips, raising her voice childishly, “I won’t! Let it eat you up! Let it eat you all up!”
For rising stars, such harsh criticism might sting, but for someone like Yu Youqing, who had already been through it all, it meant nothing. She might as well argue with the haters head-on.
“Hmph.” She kept her eyes glued to the screen, scoffing. “Let me tell you!”
She didn’t notice at all when the front door quietly opened.
“So what if Teacher Jiang noticed me? What’s it to you? That moonlight dress was given to me by her who’s stealing what? Shallow! That dress suited me perfectly. Even if, even if Jiang Musheng’s so-called ‘white moonlight’ showed up, could she possibly wear it better than a star with flawless figure management?”
Muttering to herself, she twirled as if still wearing the gown, amused by her own antics. She lifted an imaginary hem, bowing slightly, a strand of hair brushing against her fair, slender neck. Softly, as if asking no one in particular, she whispered,
“Who were you really looking at that night?”
Her or the “white moonlight” the entire internet was obsessed with?
The program cut to an ad for a trending idol’s new song, but just then, a cool, detached voice answered.
“You.”
Yu Youqing looked up suspiciously and froze completely when she saw Jiang Musheng standing at the entrance.
She must be dreaming. This had to be a dream.
If she just closed her eyes, this nightmare would be over!
Yu Youqing squeezed her eyes shut and opened them again, only to find Jiang Musheng staring at her like she was an idiot.
Yu Youqing: “???”