Chapter 29 Never

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「 Yan Wen, don't lose your temper. That will be a big blow to the company. You know how much I've invested in her. You should support my work.」He was going to use the same excuse again. If he could, he would keep both Yan Wen and Jiang Lingyun.

「 Then we have nothing to talk about. 」Yan Wen scoffed.

「 No! Okay, I'll settle the matter. But you must promise me that you'll marry me.」

Yan Wen replied,「 Oh then you'd better settle it fast. 」

When Jiang Lingyun found out about this, she would never let Bai Zhexuan go. Then...

She anticipated the day they would turn against each other.

While he had managed to contact Yan Wen and had spoken to her about the marriage, her distant attitude made Bai Zhexuan uneasy.

He drove to Jiang Lingyun's condo and stared at the elevator for a long time, not pressing the button.

He had no idea what to say to Jiang Lingyun!

Eyes red-rimmed and swollen, Jiang Lingyun turned away when she saw Bai Zhexuan, 「Why are you here? Leave me to my own fate!」

Bai Zhexuan could not bear to watch her cry.

He could not help but comfort her. 「Don't cry, it's bad for the baby, Lingyun... I came today to let you know that I've found a solution.」

「What solution?」 Jiang Lingyun looked up from his arms, her eyes full of hope.

「You need to go into hiding for a while and have the baby. Once things get better and everyone has forgotten about what happened, I'll help you pave the road to becoming the greatest actress.」

Jiang Lingyun froze. She realized that Bai Zhexuan was abandoning her and grabbed onto his arm. 「Never. I worked hard to get to where I am, I won't back down. I'm not Yan Wen, I won't let you push me around.」

「I still have your child in my belly. If you do that to me, I'll tell the media everything. When it comes down to that, we'll see who ends up in a worse situation.」

Jiang Lingyun was ruthless. She was not going to lose to anyone. She was prepared to go down with the ship when she seduced Bai Zhexuan.

「Lingyun, that's not what I meant. There's no other solution besides that one. I've already contacted Yan Wen, she's willing to marry me to redirect the news. But only on the condition that you leave the company. I have no other choice.」

「Yan Wen again!」 Jiang Lingyun was incensed but on thinking about it, she had to keep her hold on Bai Zhexuan. 「How can you still believe what she says? Even if you marry her, what do you get? Do you think she will inherit from the Yan's? Don't forget, you told me before that they don't care about her well-being.」

「Calm down.」

Jiang Lingyun shoved Bai Zhexuan's hand away. 「How do you expect me to calm down after what you said... Zhexuan, I can't lose you. If you want me to leave the company, I might as well die!」

She ran to the balcony as she said so. 「It's your choice. Live with me in love or marry Yan Wen grudgingly!」

「Come back here, don't do anything stupid.」 Shocked. Bai Zhexuan could only nod. 「You're the one I love. Of course, I want to be with you.」

「Really?」 Jiang Lingyun had only meant to scare Bai Zhexuan and had not been planning to jump. Once she got the answer she wanted, she stepped away from the balcony.

「Don't scare me like that. Everyday is headache-inducing to me now. I've been racking my brain to figure out how to protect you and our baby. Any choice I make is for you.」 Bai Zhexuan sighed. He did want the Yan inheritance but Jiang Lingyun was right, there was no guarantee that they cared about Yan Wen.

If he abandons Jiang Lingyun, he would regret it for the rest of his life.

「Zhexuan, I trust you so you must trust me too. What can't we face if the three of us are together?」 Jiang Lingyun hugged Bai Zhexuan, the corners of her mouth turning upward.

Bai Zhexuan was not so sure that the matter could be solved so easily. Sitting on the sofa, he said, 「Getting you the supporting role in 'Time' was to increase your chances for the best actress fight. Now, that it's been thrown into a mess thanks to the video, the nomination will be affected. I will send a representative to meet with the panel and see what can be done.」

「I will leave the best actress nomination to you. But for Yan Wen, you must do exactly as I say. Otherwise, she'll destroy both you and Grand Entertainment.」

「But...」

If Yan Wen staged a successful comeback, based on her influence in the industry, she would be able to regain her status quickly. Jiang Lingyun would be pushed out of the top actress spot in Grand Entertainment.

「You mustn't allow Yan Wen to stage a comeback. She will definitely tale revenge and I won't be able to protect our child if that happens.」 Jiang Lingyun continued speaking. 「She must continue to stay away. No more chances after this show. After two or three years, she'll be completely passé.」

「If she climbs up to the top actress spot in Grand Entertainment, who knows what she'll do!」

Jiang Lingyun's words were not unreasonable. To protect Jiang Lingyun's reputation, Bai Zhexuan had used Yan Wen repeatedly. If Yan Wen successfully staged a comeback and regained her former popularity, she would ignore him and bring his and Jiang Lingyun's name to prominence again. That would be extremely difficult to fix.

「Okay, I'll listen to you.」

「Completely freeze Yan Wen out. No shows, no advertisements. Sooner or later, she will disappear from the entertainment industry.」

Jiang Lingyun leaned on his chest and said coquettishly, 「This way, the three of us will be happy. I'm doing this for you.」

Bai Zhexuan remained silent, his mind actively planning. If he abandoned Yan Wen, he would completely cut her off and she would never have a chance to put herself forward. He would have to block all her options.

Bai Zhexuan made the decision to let Yan Wen be Jiang Lingyun's stepping stone. The next morning, he sent a note on behalf of Grand Entertainment informing the production team to stop filming Yan Wen's scenes without including any explanation.

Yan Wen watched as Director Chen's expression darkened while Xia raged.

「I'll return to the office to assess the situation. There is no need to delay the production.」 Yan Wen said evenly.

She had suspected that Bai Zhexuan might pull this stunt: using the company name if he was unable to persuade her to withdraw from the show. It was probably Jiang Lingyun's idea.

「I will adjust the filming schedule and await your return.」 Director Chen knew that Yan Wen had probably encountered some opposition. In this industry, there was always someone pulling the strings.

Yan Wen and Xia left the studio and hurried back to the office.

「Yan Wen, I did a check. Bai Zhexuan stayed the night at Jiang Lingyun's condo yesterday. They're up to their tricks again.」 Xia continued furiously. 「If you hadn't met Jiang Sui-an, your life would have been ruined by Bai Zhexuan.」

Yan Wen had been used and lied to by them. Without her, Jiang Lingyun would never be where she was today.