Wish to Get Rich But Wear a Scumbag A - Chapter 13

Qi Xingwan chuckled. “Are you planning to build a golden statue for Yan He?”

Gu Ye: “Huh?”

“She claims she bumped her head while getting up in the middle of the night and damaged her brain.”

Knowing Yan He’s temperament, if she had truly hit something, she would have had the offending object smashed to pieces that very night.

Qi Xingwan was certain she hadn’t heard any noise that night, making the story utterly implausible.

Unless Yan He had knocked herself unconscious with the impact, but even such a severe collision would have left a mark.

Gu Ye hissed softly, a hint of glee in his voice. “Which hospital? Did they sign a critical condition notice?”

Qi Xingwan sighed. “She’s still alive. Bouncing around like a spring.”

Gu Ye: “Not dead? Then why did you text me…?”

Qi Xingwan: “Academic inquiry. Can a minor head injury cause amnesia or personality changes?”

“Impossible. She’s faking it,” Gu Ye said, exasperated. “I thought you were an award-winning actress? Can’t you tell she’s acting?”

Recalling Yan He’s bizarre behavior these past few days, Qi Xingwan felt a headache coming on. “I can tell, but…”

But she wasn’t acting all the time. Occasionally, she would revert to her old self—the castrated version.

“But what?” Gu Ye gripped his phone tightly, his tone sharp. “Qi Xingwan, I’m warning you, don’t become a lovesick fool like your mother!”

“It’s nothing. Is there any way to inquire about the Yan Family’s hereditary medical history?” Qi Xingwan paused. “I suspect she might have dissociative identity disorder.”

“Dissociative identity disorder?! Hold on, let me ask around. I thought you weren’t going to file for divorce? I have a backup of the evidence of her assaulting you.”

“I’m afraid I can’t divorce for now. The Cheng Family relies on the Yan Corporation’s financial support, and divorcing now would offend Chairman Yan. Besides, even without Yan He, they’d just sell me to another Alpha.” Qi Xingwan spoke with a flat tone, delivering the cruel truth. “A big star, right? The Cheng Family suddenly acknowledged my mother just for this day.”

Qi Xingwan’s Omega mother was the Third Miss of the Cheng Family, the youngest daughter cherished by the family head since childhood. Of course, that was before she eloped with her beloved.

Blinded by love, the mother severed ties with the Cheng Family, seeking only to spend her life with her lover.

The cliché of “Don’t underestimate a young man in poverty” played out in reality at the Cheng Family’s New Year’s banquet. Before her siblings and elders, the Alpha declared those words and whisked away the pampered Third Miss.

Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river; the old man returns, leaning on his cane, sighing in lament.

The Alpha had started several businesses, each ending in failure. He never managed to achieve the satisfying “revenge” narrative he had imagined.

Frustrated by his lack of success and tempted by those around him, he turned to gambling and then drugs, eventually landing himself in prison.

With such a disgraced and incompetent Alpha husband, the once-celebrated Third Miss Cheng became the laughingstock of high society, the subject of idle gossip at dinner parties.

It wasn’t until Qi Xingwan made a name for herself in the entertainment industry that the ridicule began to subside. The Cheng Family relatives suddenly remembered they had a younger sister and secretly resumed contact.

Qi Xingwan neither initiated nor rejected these overtures, maintaining a polite distance to avoid offending anyone. However, her mother, who had finally regained some dignity, was overly enthusiastic, sometimes appearing desperate to please.

Qi Xingwan tried to reason with her, but her mother insisted she was paving the way for her daughter’s future, acting in her best interest. She also reminisced about how kind her own father had been to her in the past, regretting her youthful foolishness that had hurt her family.

In the end, her mother’s arguments sounded reasonable enough. Qi Xingwan let her have her way, knowing she was too busy with work to properly care for her mother. Having family around to keep her company seemed like a good thing.

Last year, Qi Xingwan won the Best Actress award, catapulting her to national fame.

After the celebratory banquet, she turned down several engagements to rush home.

Her mother called, saying there was an urgent matter at home: her never-before-seen maternal grandfather wanted to acknowledge his youngest daughter and granddaughter, bringing them back into the Cheng Family.

Gu Ye, hearing this, didn’t know what to say. “You—”

“I’m fine,” Qi Xingwan replied. “Yan He hasn’t been acting up these past few days. Thanks for looking into the genetic disease. I’ll treat you to dinner another time.”

“Forget it. That bastard watches you like a prisoner. If you ask me, you should knock her out, chop her up, and dump her in the sea! I’m hanging up now.”

Qi Xingwan: “……”

Last time they spoke, his criminal methods were limited to stuffing someone in a sack and beating them up. Now he’d jumped straight to murder. Her friend was becoming more of an outlaw every day.

Beep… beep… beep…

“Hello? Sister Hong,” Qi Xingwan answered her manager’s call. “Yes, I’ve read the script. Please schedule an audition with the director for me.”

“An audition? Miss Yan agreed to let you take on another role?”

“Mm-hmm.” Qi Xingwan searched for information on the upcoming variety show while talking on the phone.

Bringing a ticking time bomb onto a live variety show meant she needed to be even more prepared.

If Yan He could keep up the act, all the better. But if not, Qi Xingwan wouldn’t sink with her. She wouldn’t mind using the opportunity to ride a wave of publicity and increase her leverage.

She had no intention of spending her life with an overbearing and volatile Alpha, but she only had one shot. Even the weakened Cheng Family was beyond her individual strength to challenge.

Despite receiving confirmation, her manager remained uneasy. “Xingwan, are you absolutely sure Miss Yan supports this? Even though the company won’t have to cover the breach of contract fees, repeated cancellations will offend people—”

“Sister Hong,” Qi Xingwan interrupted coldly, “don’t you want me to start working sooner? I don’t know if Yan He or someone else from the Yan Family has said anything to you. You’re my manager, and since you’re only handling me, you need to be prepared to take risks.”

“Of course, you’re a veteran in the industry and don’t need me as a client. If you think the risks outweigh the rewards, you can drop me now.”

“Sigh… Of course I want you to start working sooner. I’ll arrange the audition right away. Just focus on preparing for the upcoming variety show.”

“Thank you, Sister Hong~” Before hanging up, Qi Xingwan softened the tense atmosphere with a touch of sweetness.

She had originally been just one of many artists under Hong Rong’s management, with only her executive manager Zhong Yi focusing solely on her.

After the celebration banquet, the company, citing her elevated status, assigned Hong Rong, their top manager, to focus solely on Qi Xingwan. Zhong Yi, meanwhile, was temporarily reassigned to manage a newly promoted girl group.

On paper, Zhong Yi received a promotion and a raise. However, the girl group’s large roster and complex dynamics, coupled with the need to coordinate with other members’ managers, turned Zhong Yi into a spinning top, stretched thin and unable to give Qi Xingwan the attention she needed.

Hong Rong, while overly cautious, wasn’t otherwise problematic. Her only flaw was her extreme fear of Yan He, the arrogant and volatile second-generation scion, who was so afraid of attracting trouble that she refused to even pursue lucrative opportunities.

Qi Xingwan collapsed onto the sofa, feeling utterly drained.