9. There's a problem with the female lead.
◎Alliance or ulterior motives?◎
Jian Liyun didn't answer her, but instead took the spatula from her hand, "I'll fry the fish, you—"
She paused, seemingly gritting her teeth, "Go to the living room and keep your dear sister company."
The marinated fish pieces were placed in the oil pan and sizzled.
Another stove was simmering fish head soup. Yan Sui opened the pot lid. "She's not my good sister. Never mind, I'll stay in the kitchen. The soup is almost ready. I'll add the cabbage and tofu."
Jian Liyun's complexion finally improved.
After adding the ingredients, Yan Sui lowered her voice, "Li Yun, try not to talk too much while we're eating."
What does this mean? Did Jian Liyun interrupt their lunchtime chat?
The future Best Actress's expression instantly turned ugly again.
Yan Sui noticed this too, and she patted the other person's back reassuringly, "You just need to focus on filming, leave everything else to me. You still need to be careful when talking to Lu Shutian, otherwise you'll be in trouble later if you say the wrong thing."
Although Yan Sui really makes Jian Liyun angry very easily, she always manages to appease Jian Liyun in the end.
"Isn't this also a kind of talent?" the system exclaimed.
“What talent, system?” Yan Sui had to respond to the system in her mind, “You’re able to add talent points to me now? Then I’ll add combat power. If the male lead dares to get close to or use Li Yun again, I’ll punch him away.”
[No, host, I was just saying that offhand.]
After no further communication, Yan Sui watched Jian Liyun skillfully fry the fish, and then recalled that the original novel didn't actually mention much about Jian Liyun's cooking skills.
She initially intended to test the waters, but she never expected the other person to cook so well.
Jian Liyun placed the fried fish on a plate and nudged Yan Sui with her elbow, "Take the fried fish and fish soup over there, and I'll stir-fry some tomatoes and eggs."
Yan Sui did as she was told. As soon as she brought the dishes to the dining room, she saw Lu Shutian sitting on the living room sofa not far away, looking on expectantly.
"Sister," Lu Shutian said in a soft, sweet voice, "it smells so good."
Yan Sui smiled gently, "These are just some home-style dishes. We didn't prepare many ingredients here, so there are only two dishes and a soup for the three of us. Please excuse us, Miss Lu."
Lu Shutian had already stood up and walked over. "How could that be? Wow, this fish soup is so milky white, it must taste delicious! And this fried fish, the color is just right. You're amazing."
Yan Sui pulled out a chair for Lu Shutian. "Li Yun did most of the cooking. Please sit down, Miss Lu."
Five minutes later.
The three sat around the dining table, looking at the three dishes that were still steaming hot.
"Miss Lu, please make do with this," Yan Sui said with a smile.
Lu Shutian quickly waved her hand, "No, the food is very plentiful." She picked up a piece of scrambled eggs with tomatoes and put it in her mouth, "Mmm, delicious!"
Yan Sui breathed a sigh of relief. "That's good."
Jian Liyun didn't say a word the whole time. She seemed to be staring at the plump grains of rice in the bowl, but in fact, her peripheral vision was entirely focused on Yan Sui.
Yan Sui now looks a lot like she did back then.
It was the morning after Yan Sui came to her house, when she was sitting alone on the sofa, smiling and looking out the window at the scenery.
From the perspective of facial expression management, Yan Sui's smile was just right, flawless, just like the expression she made when chatting with Lu Shutian.
Polite, gentle, and impeccable.
But it also represents indifference and alienation.
Yan Sui didn't want to get any closer to Lu Shutian, a fact that made Jian Liyun feel good.
Yan Sui can only be Jian Liyun's agent.
Jian Liyun restrained her expression and calmly picked up a piece of fried fish. Just as she put it in her bowl, she heard Yan Sui's voice.
"Be careful of the bones when eating fish, Li Yun. The fish we caught by the river have a lot of small bones."
Just as Jian Liyun agreed, she heard Lu Shutian's voice, "Sister, you went fishing? Was it fun?"
"It's a bit boring, since you can't do anything else while fishing."
Jian Liyun's lips curled up almost imperceptibly. This little liar.
They clearly shared many honest thoughts while fishing.
But since she wasn't the one being deceived, Jian Liyun let it go.
Lu Shutian also picked up a piece of fried fish, picking out the bones while starting a new topic, "By the way, I just watched half an episode of one of your TV dramas in the living room. Your acting is really good, Senior Jian."
Just now you were calling me by my full name, and now you're calling me "senior"?
Jian Liyun sneered inwardly, but nodded slightly on the surface, "Thank you."
Yan Sui chimed in, "Although my Li Yun has acted in many works since her debut, Miss Lu, you have gained a lot of attention right from your debut. It's really enviable."
Lu Shutian was a little embarrassed, "No, no, I was just lucky."
As she slowly ate the fish, Lu Shutian seemed quite envious. "But you two have such a good relationship. Most of the relationships I've seen between artists and their managers are...cold and distant."
How could anyone be like Yan Sui and Jian Liyun, who can go out and play together, fish together, and live together?
Yan Sui smiled slightly: "No matter what kind of relationship we have, as long as it allows the artist to have a better future, that's fine."
Lu Shutian agreed, "Yes, speaking of which, we might meet again in the future."
Yan Sui's alarm bells went off, but before she could reply, Lu Shutian continued, "I saw the list of guests that variety show is planning to invite, and not only am I on it, but Senior Jian is on it too."
After finishing her rice, Yan Sui ladled out a bowl of fish soup.
"We did have prior contact with this project."
Hearing Yan Sui's affirmative answer, Lu Shutian was excited, "Really? I'm really looking forward to it! Speaking of which, this is Senior Jian's first time on a variety show."
Jian Liyun remained silent, keeping in mind Yan Sui's instructions to her.
As expected, Yan Sui immediately changed the subject, "But we probably won't be participating in this project."
Lu Shutian frowned. "Why?"
Yan Sui couldn't reveal her true intentions at this point, so she made up a story based on the current situation: "The production team contacted me and said that the recording of the show would be postponed. But Li Yun has a work schedule to arrange later, so she won't have time to record the show then."
After receiving news that the show's recording would be postponed, Yan Sui had already guessed what was going on.
After she, the only outsider, arrived in this world, before she and Jian Liyun could even take any action against anyone, this original plot point was already changed, which can only mean one thing—
Other important characters in this world have changed, altering the plot.
Lily had told Yan Sui about this situation before: either the protagonist is reborn, or the protagonist's consciousness awakens.
The prime suspects are the female lead, Lu Shutian, and the male lead, He Chenyu.
Before Yan Sui could even confirm who it was, Lu Shutian had already come to her door.
The fact that this person could find her and Jian Liyun's current location so accurately, and that he was clearly trying to get close to them, strongly suggests that the female lead has changed.
Yan Sui couldn't be sure whether the female lead was friend or foe, so she had to make sure that her words were perfectly confidential.
It's true that Jian Liyun's absence from the variety show doesn't fit the original storyline, but if the reason for her absence is that the show itself was postponed, then it's understandable.
Lu Shutian looked both regretful and indignant. "Oh, so that's how it is. It's all He Chenyu's fault!"
The male protagonist's name appeared.
Yan Sui's right eyelid twitched. She saw Jian Liyun put down her chopsticks and ask, word by word, "What happened to him?"
Yan Sui sometimes really suspected that the male lead had put some kind of spell on Jian Liyun, otherwise why would Jian Liyun care more than anyone else when it came to anything related to him?
Lu Shutian looked angry and wanted to complain, but after opening her mouth, she couldn't utter a single syllable for a long time.
After a long while, she coughed lightly, as if she had remembered something.
"Senior Jian, you've worked with He Chenyu before, right?"
Jian Liyun hummed in agreement, "I've acted in two films."
Lu Shutian hesitated for a few seconds before saying, "The reason why the recording of this program was postponed is because something happened on his end."
The male lead never got into any trouble in the original story.
Yan Sui immediately became very alert and asked, "What happened on his end?"
Lu Shutian suddenly put down her chopsticks and apologized to Jian Liyun with her hands clasped together, "Senior Jian, I know you've worked with him before. I'm just telling the truth, please don't mind."
Yan Sui finally got to speak this time, "Li Yun won't mind. In fact, we should thank you. Knowing the inside story in advance allows us to avoid certain risks."
Lu Shutian bit her lower lip lightly, and her voice became much softer: "Although He Chenyu has not officially debuted yet, he has already filmed two film and television works. The actors he has worked with are all very talented people like Senior Jian. The scripts for those two dramas are very good, and the investment funds are sufficient. It can be said that they will become popular as soon as they are broadcast."
Yan Sui thought to herself, "Of course, he's the male lead. In these old-fashioned romance novels, the male lead always has access to the best resources."
With such great resources, even a dog could become incredibly famous if fed them.
After a pause, Lu Shutian continued, "To be able to promote a newcomer so strongly, his background must be extraordinary. But rather than extraordinary, it's more accurate to say that the He family he belongs to is capital itself. The He family protects the information of the younger generation very well, but there are no secrets in our circle. He Chenyu..."
"He is the youngest son of the He family, who is the most beloved son."
Yan Sui looked surprised: "He's got quite a background. Then why did the problem arise on his end?"
In fact, Yan Sui, who had read the novel, already knew all of this.
Therefore, Yan Sui couldn't understand the male lead and female supporting character in the original novel. The male lead already had such a powerful background, yet the female supporting character still eagerly helped him fight for resources, while the male lead didn't lack that at all.
Lu Shutian took a deep breath. "He has fallen out with his family. His eldest brother and second sister are both experiencing health problems. The He family wants him to go back and take over, but he refuses and insists on entering the entertainment industry."
So the Ho family stepped in.
Yan Sui frowned slightly; something was wrong.
In the original novel, He Chenyu's eldest brother and second sister have virtually no screen time.
Why did they both suddenly get sick?
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