Chapter 2 Overt and covert fighting
In the morning, He Sang rushed to the theater for rehearsal in a restless mood, and his parking space was occupied by Manli's BMW X5.
There were four major Qingyi (Qingyi) and four major Huadan (Hua Dan) actresses in this field, with He Sang being the most renowned. She was considered by the industry to be a once-in-a-decade super-dan actress, known as "the most beautiful actress in Hebei Province." The only other actress who could challenge her was the rising Huadan Cui Manli, but due to Liang Jishen's connections, she was outshined by He Sang and remained unwilling to compete openly or secretly.
He Sang went straight to the dressing room. Manli polished her nails without changing her expression. "It's Sister Sang. What can I do for you, my dear sister?"
"Take your car."
She scoffed, "If I don't open it, what can you do?"
"My parking space."
"You still think you're a pillar of the stage, but you won't be anymore soon." Manli was very proud. "The dean wants to talk to you."
He Sang didn't argue with her. He calmed down and returned to the lounge. Not long after, the dean came to inform her, "Manli will be the finale of Saturday's performance."
No wonder she is so arrogant.
He Sang looked at him in the mirror. The dean rubbed his hands, looking troubled. "You have a solid line foundation and are beautiful. You're always a hit in any play..."
The unspoken rule in this industry is that if you give up the second position, you will never be able to take the first position again. He Sang refused to give in, "I won't agree."
"Xiao Sang, please don't embarrass me. Manli is no longer the same as she was before. One of the top ten richest men in the city invested eight million in the theater for her. I have to satisfy her." The dean hesitated, "As for Mr. Liang San..."
"You know very well how powerful the Liang family's background is." He Sang slowly took off her earrings. "You hit him in the face. Go and explain yourself."
The dean sighed helplessly.
The name "Third Young Master" comes from the fact that the Liang family has three sons, and the man is the third oldest.
Liang Yanzhang's first wife died of complications during childbirth, and he divorced her five years later after remarrying. His current wife gave birth to Liang Jishen at the age of 19. The wealthy wives at the time were betting on whether Liang Yanzhang, who "loved to try new things", would have a fourth wife. However, Ji Xilan remained the principal wife for 30 years, and even though she was old and ugly, she still controlled Liang Yanzhang very much. The "deep love between Liang and Ji" became a legend in the upper class.
Rich families have many women and sons. They appear to be happy on the surface, but they are actually scheming behind the scenes.
In the afternoon, Manli was waiting in the corridor when a young girl came around to the front and offered He Sang a cup of chrysanthemum tea. "Sister Sang, was your spot stolen?"
This girl was the stand-in for the A-role. When He Sang accompanied Liang Jishen on a business trip, he left the opportunity to go on stage to her. She was grateful. Once during a tour, Manli mixed pepper into He Sang's lunch box, hoping to make He Sang allergic and embarrassed, but the girl exposed her mistake in person.
"Mr. Liang is rich and powerful. How can Manli's man compete with him?" She said timidly, "Unless—"
"Unless he has a new love." Manli leaned against the door and sneered, "Young men are very playful. Their love has a shelf life. When it expires, they need to find someone else."
The little girl was annoyed, "Which eye did you see the replacement?"
Manli was not to be outdone. "Mr. Liang flew to Paris two weeks ago and ordered a custom necklace from the brand called Eternal Love. Money isn't important to a rich man; the key is to be attentive to a woman." She looked at the necklace He Sang was wearing. It wasn't that necklace. "Sister Sang, I'm afraid your status as an official girlfriend is going to be downgraded."
He Sang ignored him and went downstairs with his bag.
After getting out of the elevator, she dialed Liang Jishen's number. It rang twice and he hung up.
No matter how busy the man was, he never neglected her.
Clearly, he was inconvenienced.
And avoid her presence.
On the way to the parking lot, He Sang's eyes caught sight of a Hongqi L5 driving at the corner of the alley. Liang Jishen, dressed in a suit, was sitting in the back seat, with a woman's face next to him.
She had the same cool and fresh look, with fair skin and straight black hair, and seemed to have just come from a shopping mall nearby.
She woke up instantly as if from a dream.
The romantic affairs in Liang Jishen's circle spread the fastest. Manli dared to squeeze her because she listened to the words of her financial sponsor and believed that she had failed miserably.
He Sang trembled and gripped the steering wheel tightly, feeling indescribably bitter.
——I don’t like you wearing makeup, it doesn’t suit you.
——Brother Shen, what do you like about me?
The man smiled, "I like your innocence."
Memories flooded back, He Sang slammed on the brakes, gasping for breath.
It turned out that everything she had was thanks to that woman.
Liang Jishen replicated the deep affection that he could not give to that woman on her, and it was never her that he could not forget or cherish.
He Sang walked into the house in a daze. The little girl's information also came in, "The theater has issued an announcement, you are going to play in Lust, Caution."
She responded tiredly.
"The lead actress in 'The Bund' is Cui Manli," the girl complained. "She has a wealthy sponsor. Please ask Mr. Liang to help her out."
He Sang was amused. As he laughed, tears welled up in his eyes. "Mr. Liang won't stand up for me anymore."
After she finished speaking, she hung up the phone and stared at the sycamore tree outside the window in a daze.
The 30th of every month is the day when Liang Jishen returns to the old house. The rules set by the Liang family for their three sons are unbreakable.
Although he did not make this relationship public, he did not deliberately conceal it. In the past, when He Sang called him, the nanny would answer the phone and politely call him Miss He.
But this night, it prompted me to shut down.
All the abnormalities foreshadowed the rift between her and him.
The man didn't show up until noon the next day.
There were two suitcases, one large and one small, standing at the entrance, and she did not greet him as usual.
Liang Jishen looked into the master bedroom, and a ray of light came through the half-open gap.
He stepped closer, and the door opened. He Sang stood in the sunlight, his whole body warm.
"Brother Shen."
He noticed that she was forcing a smile, "Are you worried about something?"
"I didn't sleep well." He Sang reached out to help him untie his tie. "Did you go back to the old house yesterday?"
The man said indifferently.
She froze, "Myself?"
Liang Jishen lowered his eyes to the burn on the back of her hand, "No."
He Sang's heart twisted violently.
He actually took that woman back.
In the past few years, he has seen a lot of romantic affairs, some real, some fake, but no woman could tie Liang Jishen down.
He Sang once thought that he was an exception, and even looked down on Xin Xin. He dressed like that woman and did everything he could to get close to him and curry his favor.
She was wrong, very wrong.
In Liang Jishen's world, there are no winners since that huge storm.
He Sang couldn't face the prospect of wasting time until he was completely fed up.
She looked up with a casual expression, "I'm planning to move out."
Liang Ji frowned deeply.
She thought to herself, "All the necklace and earrings you gave me are in the drawer. I don't want this apartment either. When you have time, we can transfer the ownership."
The man frowned even more.
"Brother Shen, I'm a little tired." He Sang stared at him and tried to smile. "You'll get a headache if you drink. The painkillers are by the bed. The shirts you'll wear this week have been ironed. There's seafood porridge in the thermos, just right for drinking."
Liang Jishen remained silent.
"You and Miss Song are a good match. In fact, I know that until now you have only loved her." He Sang turned around, his chest swelling with every breath. "I took her place, and now it's time to give it back to her."
While holding the suitcase, the man suddenly asked, "How did you hurt your hand?"
He Sang paused, touching the redness and swelling with his fingertips, "I accidentally burned it while making porridge."
Liang Jishen walked behind her and held her hand. He could imagine that she was full of joy in cooking for him, and a little disappointed and lonely during the long night.
"Have you applied the medicine?"
To make a living on stage, youth and flawlessness are the key. Even a strand of hair is precious, let alone a burn scar.
"I've applied it." He Sang was too greedy for his warmth and was reluctant to withdraw.
A flash of heartache flashed across Liang Jishen's eyes, "Why do you have to do this?"
Feeling the man's body temperature spreading from her fingertips to her internal organs, she couldn't help but choke up and said, "I won't do that again."
He didn't understand how much she hated his pity.
That compassion has nothing to do with love.
He Sang shook off his hand and rushed out.
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