Chapter 31 This was the first time Gu Mingyan had hung up on him...
Gu Mingyan spoke without any mercy. The moment her words fell, the banquet hall fell silent. Then, all eyes, whether inquiring, surprised, or looking forward to a good show, turned to Meng Xian.
Meng Xian's face flushed bright red instantly, and she almost lost her balance.
From childhood to adulthood, when had she ever been publicly humiliated like this?
In an instant, a mix of embarrassment, anger, and grievances overwhelmed her, causing her to tremble slightly.
Ding Manni silently took a few steps back, her mind filled with mixed feelings.
In the past, she might have felt indignant on Meng Xian's behalf, thinking that Gu Mingyan was bullying others. But recently, after several incidents, Ding Manni suddenly felt that Meng Xian might not be as detached from worldly affairs as she had imagined.
Just like today, why bother provoking Yun Qingqing for no reason?
Meng Xian was isolated and helpless, and she could feel the increasingly obvious whispers and pointing fingers all around her.
She knew that continuing the stalemate would only make her look even more foolish.
So, Meng Xian glanced one last time in the direction of Director Sun Mo, and, barely holding back the tears that were about to spill from her eyes, quickly walked toward the exit in full view of everyone.
Yun gently held a stack of cruise ship ownership documents, frantically calling for the system in her mind:
"Ahhhhh, System, did you see that?! What kind of domineering CEO behavior is Mingyan doing?! How can she be so cool?! Sister, kill me, waaaaaah..."
The system found itself surrounded by a barrage of compliments, with absolutely no room to interject: [...]
The next day, the sensational news that the eldest daughter of the Gu family had spent a hundred million yuan to help her friend and kicked the popular young actress Meng Xian off the cruise ship reached Ye Jinyan's ears without missing a word.
Ye Jinyan was instantly enraged and made a phone call.
Gu Mingyan and Yun Qingqing were getting beauty treatments at a top-tier beauty salon. The two lay comfortably on the treatment beds, their faces covered in expensive masks, enjoying the technician's gentle massage.
Just then, Gu Mingyan's phone, which was on the storage shelf, suddenly vibrated.
The technician respectfully handed her the phone. Gu Mingyan turned her head and noticed the words "Brother Jin Yan" flashing on the screen.
For some reason, the first reaction Gu Mingyan had upon seeing the note was not joy, but a frown.
She didn't even reach for her phone right away.
"What's wrong?" Yun Qingqing noticed her silence and asked with concern.
Gu Mingyan hesitated for a moment, her voice a little muffled: "Brother Jin Yan called me."
Upon hearing this unlucky name, Yun Qingqing couldn't help but curse inwardly, "That scumbag has come looking for me again."
But Yun Qingqing still pretended to be very concerned: "Since it's Young Master Ye, why didn't you answer?"
Gu Mingyan looked at the caller ID: "...I don't know."
She always felt that Ye Jinyan was calling at this time probably because of Meng Xian again.
A few months ago, or even a few weeks ago, Gu Mingyan would have been overjoyed to receive a call from Ye Jinyan, and would never have entertained such a jarring speculation.
But recently, as her contact with Ye Jinyan has decreased, Gu Mingyan's infatuation with him seems to have faded a little.
And those minor details that made her uncomfortable in the past resurfaced in her mind.
The timing of Ye Jinyan's initiative to contact her always seemed to be quite coincidental.
Either he has a project he's interested in that requires a large amount of working capital, or it's related to Meng Xian. Meng Xian has been wronged, Meng Xian needs resources... In the past, she was immersed in the satisfaction of "Brother Jin Yan needs me," only thinking that it was a sign of intimacy and trust.
Looking at it again now, detached from the situation, Gu Mingyan suddenly felt a prickling sensation.
Yun Qingqing seemed oblivious to her disappointment and continued to tease her in a lighthearted tone: "Young Master Ye must have heard about your conflict with one of his artists and was worried you'd be wronged, so he called to comfort you!"
Hearing this, Gu Mingyan felt even more heartbroken.
She smiled wryly: "How do you know he didn't hit her to stand up for Meng Xian?"
"No way, no way?" Yun Qingqing's eyes widened immediately, and she made an incredulous expression. "Would Young Master Ye really come to defend someone's girlfriend just because he has a good relationship with an artist in the company? Aren't the two of them a little too intimate?"
Before Gu Mingyan could answer, Yun Qingqing immediately waved her hand, "Don't worry, don't worry, Young Master Ye shouldn't be the kind of scumbag who cheats on his wife."
"Anyway, if it were me, I would definitely rush over to comfort you the moment I heard that you and Meng Xian had an unpleasant experience on the cruise ship. Then I would ask you if you were upset or if you needed any support, and arrange a romantic dinner or a trip to relax and shop. In short, I have to make our young lady happy!"
She spoke with great enthusiasm, her tone filled with an air of self-righteous favoritism and appreciation.
Gu Mingyan was stunned for a moment, and asked blankly, "Is this normal when a boyfriend and girlfriend are unhappy?"
She had been chasing after Ye Jinyan for too long, and in the long process of one-sided giving, she had forgotten what it felt like to be cared for and firmly protected.
Yun felt a pang of sadness, but she still insisted on finishing her lines: "Don't worry, if Young Master Ye likes you and cares about you, he will definitely do the same."
"Host," the system asked, puzzled, "Don't you dislike Ye Jinyan? Why did you speak well of him just now?"
“What do you know? This is called retreating to advance,” Yun said softly.
[A strategic retreat?]
Yun Qingqing: "You don't understand the intricacies of this. Rushing to speak ill of others is the worst approach."
“Mingyan used to be so infatuated with Ye Jinyan. If I keep belittling him, it will only make Mingyan think I'm biased, and she might even defend him instead. It's better to praise Ye Jinyan more and let Mingyan compare for herself and see how outrageous Ye Jinyan's attitude is.”
[How do you compare it yourself?] The system was even more confused.
"Let's see what happens next." Yun Qingqing stopped explaining and turned her gaze to her friend.
Just then, Ye Jinyan called a second time. Gu Mingyan, with a glimmer of hope that she herself was unaware of, pressed the answer button.
"Brother Jin Yan?"
Ye Jinyan didn't even bother with the most basic pleasantries, going straight to the point: "Gu Mingyan, why did you kick Meng Xian off the cruise ship? Don't you know how important that banquet on the cruise ship was to her?"
The faint hope in Gu Mingyan's heart, like a spark in the cold wind, was extinguished with a "hiss".
Sure enough, he wasn't there to comfort her.
Gu Mingyan suppressed the disappointment surging in her heart and said in a colder tone, "Why did I kick Meng Xian out? Has she forgotten what she did? She dumped the cake directly on Qingqing and mocked Qingqing for being ignorant in front of so many people. I didn't hit her directly; that was already showing mercy."
"Impossible!" Ye Jinyan retorted without hesitation. "Meng Xian is so gentle, how could she do such a thing? Are you misunderstanding her?"
He paused, as if suddenly realizing some crucial information, his tone becoming even more suspicious: "I heard that Director Sun Mo was also on the cruise ship yesterday. Gu Mingyan, tell me honestly, is it because you wanted to compete with Meng Xian for the role and were afraid that she would gain Director Sun's favor, that you made up this excuse to kick her off the ship?"
A sense of absurdity rushed to Gu Mingyan's head, and she felt like she was about to laugh out loud.
"Ye Jinyan, do you think I would do such a thing? Do you think I would resort to such despicable means to fight for a role?"
Ye Jinyan on the other end of the phone was silent for a while, seemingly realizing that his words had been too arbitrary. However, the superior attitude he had developed from being pampered and indulged by Gu Mingyan for so long made it impossible for him to lower his tone.
Instead, he said in an almost mocking tone, "Who knows? Sun Mo is a famous director whose films are all hits. Countless people are eager to join his crew. You might just be confused for a moment."
These words shattered Gu Mingyan's unrealistic hopes.
She suddenly remembered the scene Yun Qingqing had just described—
She whispered that if it were her, she would rush to comfort her immediately, patiently inquire about her grievances, and try her best to cheer her up.
Gu Mingyan was as disappointed as she had longed for that warmth.
So, in Ye Jinyan's mind, she was someone who would do anything for a role and had no basic morals.
Gu Mingyan pinched her fingertips and questioned in a strained tone, "Ye Jinyan! Do you even have a brain? You believe everything Meng Xian says, and you treat everything I say as an excuse? My friend was bullied, is it wrong for me to protect her? If Meng Xian had been wronged, wouldn't you have rushed over to stand up for her by now?"
Although Ye Jinyan felt that he and Meng Xian were the true love, he was still somewhat wary of Gu Mingyan discovering their relationship.
Helpless, he could only soften his tone and say, "Mingyan, why are you bringing this up again? I've explained it to you many times. Mengxian is a key artist that my company is cultivating. Damage to her image directly affects the company's interests, so as the boss, of course I will protect her. You need to be sensible and understand my position."
If this had been said in the past, Gu Mingyan would most likely have been appeased.
She would feel sorry for Ye Jinyan's hard work in managing the company, and would reflect on whether she was making a mountain out of a molehill. She would even take the initiative to accommodate his difficulties.
But today, listening to these repeated arguments, Gu Mingyan suddenly realized that these words were a bit too condescending and hypocritical: "The company's artists need to be protected, but what about me? Ye Jinyan, I'm still your girlfriend, why don't you protect me the same way you protect her?"
"I..." Ye Jinyan was speechless when asked the question, and a sense of guilt instantly welled up inside him.
He dared not dwell on the current topic any longer and immediately changed the subject, turning his attention to Yun Qingqing.
“Okay, even if you weren’t trying to steal the role from Meng Xian,” Ye Jinyan said, “then the whole thing started because of your friend Yun Qingqing, right? I know Meng Xian’s personality; she wouldn’t cause trouble for no reason. Yun Qingqing must have said or done something to provoke her first.”
He actually shifted the blame onto Qingqing again!
Gu Mingyan remembered that Yun Qingqing had just been speaking well of Ye Jinyan, and suddenly felt sorry for Yun Qingqing.
"Ye Jinyan, you've gone too far!" Gu Mingyan said, suppressing her anger. "I know Qingqing better than you do! She never provoked Meng Xian from the beginning; it was Meng Xian who came to humiliate her."
"I think you've been bewitched by Meng Xian. You believe everything she says. In your eyes, my friend and I are worthless, deserving to be bullied and unable to fight back, right?"
Ye Jinyan: "Gu Mingyan, look at you! You're yelling at me like this for the sake of your so-called friends. What kind of behavior is this? You've been corrupted by that Yun Qingqing!"
"Shut up." Gu Mingyan was completely enraged. "Qingqing has never said a bad word about you, and she was even speaking up for you just now! But what about you? Besides siding with Meng Xian and smearing me and my friends, what else can you do?"
Ye Jinyan: "I..."
"Let me tell you, I bought the cruise ship for Qingqing. Whoever Qingqing and I want to get rid of has to get rid of them!" Gu Mingyan took a deep breath. "Since you think Meng Xian is perfect and that I'm unreasonable, then we have nothing more to say."
"Gu Mingyan!"
Ye Jinyan wanted to say something, but there was no sound from the receiver.
He froze, staring incredulously at the blacked-out phone screen.
Gu Mingyan... how dare she hang up on him?
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