Chapter 63

Chapter 63

The room was a mess, filled with the owner's rage. Everything movable within sight had been smashed to pieces, like someone had ransacked the place.

And the person throwing things around the room was none other than Quan Mingjun, whom fans described as humble and polite.

He was the same star who'd been the center of attention, oozing confidence on audition day.

"Young Master Quan, please calm down. It wouldn't hurt to ask Mr. Qu again, would it?" the bewildered agent advised, wiping the fine sweat from his forehead.

But the young master wasn't listening and kept going until everything was destroyed.

He was panting, face red, still furious.

The agent sighed, a headache already starting.

The artist he managed had a great family, good looks, and his own connections—everything was good except for his explosive temper. He'd blow up at the slightest thing, a typical spoiled rich kid's temperament.

Originally, Director Zhao's new film had already locked Quan Mingjun as the second lead. Everything was set; all that was left was to go through the motions of the audition. But who would have thought a dark horse came out of nowhere?

Who the hell is this newcomer, Song Nian? How did he get Director Zhao to dig in his heels like that?

"Alright, you're a grown man. Stop throwing a fit."

Just then, a male voice came from behind as Qu Liang pushed the door open.

"Bro! Didn't you promise this role was mine? I even hinted to my fans. This is so embarrassing!"

Quan Mingjun pouted and stepped forward, acting like a spoiled kid.

"Yeah, it was supposed to be a done deal, but who knew Director Zhao would be so stubborn?"

Looking at his younger brother, Qu Liang was also troubled by this issue.

Actually, Director Zhao first reached out to Qu Liang, hoping he'd play the lead.

Wanting to boost his brother's career, he'd suggested bringing Quan Mingjun onto the crew.

He also quietly let it slip that they were real brothers, both using stage names and keeping it private. Since the male lead and second male lead in the drama were also brothers, he argued that using this as a selling point in the future publicity would yield twice the result with half the effort.

But unexpectedly, with Qu Liang's arrangement, everyone else in the crew had already agreed, yet Director Zhao refused to give in. In the end, he only reluctantly agreed to give the younger brother a chance to audition.

Just when they thought the role was his as long as he didn't mess up the audition, out of nowhere Song Nian showed up and won Director Zhao over.

Having seen Song Nian's audition performance in person, Qu Liang admitted that he was indeed very suitable for the role, but as a brother, he was also biased.

"Didn't our family invest in this script? You're the male lead, Brother. We could just withdraw the investment and quit. Can't that even threaten that Zhao guy?" Quan Mingjun was still unconvinced.

"Do you think I haven't mentioned that?" Qu Liang replied irritably.

If the nice approach didn't work, they'd play hardball. If it weren't for threatening to pull the investment, Director Zhao would've already ignored everyone and cast Song Nian long ago, instead of dragging this out for over two weeks.

In the end, the stubborn Director Zhao still gave Song Nian the green light.

The only thing he could do now was freeze the funds and stop anyone from signing the contract.

"Is there really no other way!? Brother, you have no idea how many people in the industry are waiting to see me make a fool of myself!"

Word must have gotten around. The thought of being humiliated like this made Quan Mingjun furious, and he shook Qu Liang's arm desperately.

"Who does Song Nian think he is? Isn't he just some inexperienced newcomer? Can't you lean on his company?"

"It's tricky. If I remember correctly, his backer is Li Yanchuan."

Qu Liang, who had connections in the business world, rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

Li Yanchuan?

Hearing that name, Quan Mingjun froze on the spot, half-deflated.

After all, who in the industry didn't know the reputation of Li Yanchuan? If you dared to offend him, even nine lives wouldn't save you.

But then he thought again, and he suddenly had a plan.

"Brother, do you even want to do this movie?"

"Me? It's whatever. I mainly agreed to give you a hand."

Hearing this, a sly glint flashed in Quan Mingjun's eyes. He leaned in and whispered a few words in his ear.

As he listened, Qu Liang's furrowed brow gradually relaxed, and he nodded thoughtfully:

"Then do it your way."

After a pause, he added:

"But don't go too far."

Otherwise, if they offended Li Yanchuan, neither of them would come out unscathed.

"Don't worry, brother. In these arranged marriages, there's no real love. I don't believe he'll step in."

Quan Mingjun waved his hand dismissively, brushing off the warning.

————

After receiving the news that he had passed the audition, Song Nian was excited for days. Even going to the company for extra classes felt invigorating.

According to the production team, all the main roles would be confirmed before signing the contracts all at once.

Since he had already received the audition results directly from the director, he didn't find it strange.

He had a lot fewer gigs to run during this period. As long as he finished the last brand event this morning, he could focus on preparing to join the crew.

The morning's event schedule was packed, and Song Nian was so busy he didn't even have time to check his phone. He handed it to his assistant Xiao Sun to hold onto.

— Lately, there had been too many appearances, and the company had finally relented and assigned him an assistant.

Somehow, while on stage, his heart suddenly started pounding. It felt like a bad premonition, extremely unsettling.

This strange feeling was fleeting, vanishing soon after.

Was it just his imagination? Song Nian pressed a hand to his chest to calm himself, but since he was still at the event, he didn't dwell on it and continued working.

During the final interactive session with the audience, Xiao Sun, in the audience, suddenly looked flustered, frantically waving to get Song Nian's attention.

But with the dense crowd and loud noise at the scene, Song Nian couldn't notice his gestures, making Xiao Sun so anxious that he quickly pushed through the crowd to move closer to the stage.

But before he could reach the stage, an accident occurred.

Without any warning, a full water bottle was hurled toward the stage, cutting through the air and striking Song Nian squarely on the forehead.

Pain spread instantly, and a large bump swelled up. Water splashed all over him, droplets streaming down his cheeks. Song Nian was drenched, his vision going dark.

When his sight returned, he touched his forehead in bewilderment, momentarily unsure whether he should be distressed by the pain or upset at being hit.

He was visibly frozen, standing there dumbfounded.

The assistant gasped, jumped onto the stage, wiped his face with a tissue, and took off his jacket and draped it over Song Nian.

"Who did that?!"

The bodyguards nearby were startled and quickly surrounded Song Nian, looking around for the culprit.

The perpetrator was a young girl below the stage. She looked fairly young, and instead of fleeing, she shouted at Song Nian:

"Get out of the production, you nepotism hire! What right do you have to steal our idol's role!"

Clearly, she wasn't alone. After she yelled, others around her joined in.

All at once, the already chaotic scene turned even messier. Shouting, shoving, begging, and onlookers crowded around, with the security guards barely able to contain the situation.

A quick glance showed that those attacking Song Nian seemed to be mostly young girls, looking indignant as if they were getting revenge for someone, forcibly blocking the way to prevent him from leaving.

"Brother Song Nian! This way!"

Thanks to the security guards, they barely squeezed out a path to leave. Seeing Song Nian still stunned, Xiao Sun grabbed him and bolted.

The chaos gradually faded behind them. Only when it was quiet did Song Nian snap out of it.

He swallowed hard and asked, "What happened?"

Why were those girls so hostile toward him?

"It's a long story. Let's get out of here, bro."

As they raced toward the underground parking lot, the assistant called the driver, telling him to get there earlier.

Before the call could connect, a car that had just entered the parking lot suddenly drove toward them, pulling sideways to block them.

Thinking it was the same group, Xiao Sun threw his arm out to shield Song Nian.

To his surprise, the door opened, and stepping out was Li Yanchuan's driver.

"Mr. Song, Chairman Li sent me to pick you up and get you out of here."

He opened the car door for Song Nian.

Even as he sat in the back seat of the car driving away from the chaotic mall, Song Nian was still in a daze.

The chill seeped into his skin, pervasive, impossible to ward off despite the car's air conditioning being turned up high. Recalling what had just happened, he pulled the jacket tighter around himself, hand trembling slightly, body shivering uncontrollably.

—If the bottle had hit a bit closer to the center of his face, the consequences would have been unthinkable.

"What exactly... happened?"

His voice trembled as he asked, the words heavy.

The assistant gulped and handed him the phone, his voice strained: "Brother, maybe you should check the trending topics online first."

Song Nian stared blankly as he took the phone, and the moment he unlocked it, messages flooded in.

Among them, five missed calls and dozens of messages from Li Yanchuan.

The latest two were very short—just two sentences:

"Don't look at the trending topics."

And, "I sent the driver to pick you up. Wait until we get home and we'll discuss everything."

Though Li Yanchuan had said that, to understand what was going on, Song Nian still tapped into the trending topics with trembling hands.

The first thing he saw was a topic tagged with a "hot" explosion icon:

#BREAKING: Quan Mingjun's Role as Second Male Lead Snatched by a Newcomer#

Inside the topic, a gossip account claimed, citing an insider source, that Director Zhao's new film had originally cast Quan Mingjun as the second male lead, but a newcomer surnamed 'S'—backed by family connections—had stolen the role.

The post also disclosed that this newcomer had recently starred in a popular project, presumably aiming to rise further by stealing the role.

As netizens speculated whether the news was true, a sharp-eyed user spotted a reply from Actor Qu himself on Weibo.

Last night, someone asked Qu in the comments if he would star as the lead in Director Zhao's movie. Despite rarely being active, he surprisingly replied, "Not sure."

That comment was highly suggestive. Though his involvement was practically confirmed without an official announcement, his sudden 'uncertain' response seemed to corroborate the gossip account's rumors.

In the eyes of bystanders, it looked like a classic case of an actor unwilling to bow to the production's shady dealings, to the point of refusing to act.

This immediately sparked a larger uproar. Netizens were convinced of the rumor's truth, and some amateur detectives had already identified the newcomer with the surname 'S'.

Without a doubt, it was Song Nian.

Because he was the only one who matched all the characteristics, especially as one of the actors who auditioned for the second male lead role.

Instantly, all attacks focused on Song Nian.

In particular, Quan Mingjun's fans started calling for justice for their idol.

The group that had surrounded him at the event earlier was exactly these fans.

In no time, public opinion exploded, the topic trending higher. Song Nian became the target of public outrage, despised as a nepotism hire who used his connections, his reputation tanked overnight.