The dinner gathering was drawing to a close, the private room filled with chatter and laughter.
Liang Jin’s phone buzzed with a new message—from an hour ago. She glanced at it and murmured, “Sorry,” before slipping out the door.
Zheng Yunzhi’s message was brief, but it was enough to send chills down her spine.
【Liang Jin, starting tomorrow, use the new script. It’s mostly the same as the original, just with a bit more screen time added for the female supporting role.】
She opened the script in her email and froze.
Zheng Yunzhi had written the script for 《Hong Kong Ballet》 back in his early days. It was told entirely from Zeng Zhi’s perspective—even the supporting role with the most screen time clocked in at just seventeen minutes.
Liang Jin skimmed through it, her hands and feet turning ice-cold.
Zheng Yunzhi had shoehorned in another swan dancer, one whose screen time nearly matched the female lead’s.
She called him up, but Zheng Yunzhi sounded impatient. “I’m doing this for the good of the movie… Liang Jin, it was Mr. Shen Junbang’s request over there. He said if anything goes wrong, they can swap you out anytime. Watch yourself.”
And the actress cast in this new role looked all too familiar.
Jiang Manyu.
~~~
“Speaking of which, the way Sister-in-Law chased after the Captain back then? We were so jealous!”
“Yeah, Wu Lin, you’re seriously badass—chasing him all the way from the Mainland to Hong Kong District…”
“With a girl that bold, Captain, you’re one lucky guy. Toast Sister-in-Law!”
Laughter and cheers filled the private room as the toasts dragged on—who knew what round they were on.
Liang Jin pushed through the door and immediately spotted the uneasy girl standing off to the side.
Wu Lin didn’t drink, but with the crowd egging her on, she’d asked her boyfriend, “Can I sub tea for alcohol?” Li Yibo had ignored her.
That was always why Wu Lin dragged Liang Jin out with her.
A pack of rowdy guys with no sense of boundaries, always pressuring her. It had been even worse back when Song Youhuai was around.
For all her tough talk and thoughtfulness in private, Wu Lin was soft as cotton—anyone could walk all over her.
That glass held at least four taels.
Liang Jin strode forward. “I’ll drink it for her.”
She snatched the glass from Wu Lin’s hand and tossed it back in one gulp.
Baijiu. It burned like fire.
Liang Jin’s tolerance was middling at best; her stomach ignited on the spot.
The guys froze at her sudden entrance, faces awkward. One of them said, “Liang Jin, they were toasting me and Linlin. What’s that supposed to mean?”
Liang Jin was already fuming, her brows arching. “What do I mean? Wu Lin doesn’t drink. Li Yibo, as her boyfriend, are you oblivious or just don’t give a damn?”
“It’s just one glass.”
Liang Jin laughed, her lips twisting. “If you’re not thrilled about it, find someone to drink it for you.”
Murmurs rippled through the room. Liang Jin turned to Shen Keye in the center, who met her gaze with hooded eyes, utterly impassive.
Wu Lin jumped in to smooth things over. “Come on, it’s nothing.” She squeezed Liang Jin’s palm and announced to the group, “I’ll have a beer instead. That cool?”
She glanced at Li Yibo, her lips curving into a gentle, innocent smile—like she was reassuring him.
Wu Lin poured herself a beer, but she really couldn’t hold her liquor. Two sips in, she choked and coughed violently, grabbing a napkin to wipe her mouth.
A few of the guys who’d been goading her earlier snickered. “Aw, looks like Sister-in-Law can’t handle it.”
“Captain, maybe call it off for Sister-in-Law.”
Li Yibo didn’t say a word. Wu Lin stubbornly reached for more when a voice cut through: “What’s with all the noise?”
It was Shen Keye.
The room went dead silent.
Shen Keye glanced around. “That all?”
Wu Lin stared into her glass. Li Yibo shot her an impatient look and said, “We’re heading to the villa later, Ah-Ye. You in?”
Shen Keye tilted his chin faintly. Lounging there with his legs crossed, his dark eyes drifted lazily to Liang Jin. “Big Beauty, you coming?”
The girl he’d singled out paused, meeting Shen Keye’s gaze.
He gave a faint smile.
Jiang Manyu and that intel flashed through Liang Jin’s mind, souring her mood.
She looked over at Wu Lin instead. Fresh off the drink, the girl’s cheeks were puffed out like she might hurl any second, her nose wrinkled, her face flushed an unnatural red.
Liang Jin sighed to herself and said firmly:
“I’m in.”
~~~
The rented Mong Kok Small Villa had three stories. The others were messing around in the living room while Wu Lin splashed water on her face in the bathroom. She was still woozy, her eyes red-rimmed as she whispered to Liang Jin, “Li Yibo’s got his reasons, you know? He’s the captain of the School Basketball Team—he has to keep things smooth with the guys for team spirit.”
With Li Yibo’s family background, if he’d really wanted to shield Wu Lin, none of tonight’s mess would’ve happened. He just didn’t care about her that much.
But Wu Lin was too smitten with Li Yibo. Everyone knew it, clear as day.
“Forget it,” Liang Jin said. One look at Wu Lin’s stubborn gaze told her there was no point trying to talk sense into her.
A group was playing cards in the living room. Liang Jin went looking for Shen Keye and learned he’d gone up to the second-floor balcony to take a call.
She told Wu Lin and hurried upstairs. She’d only reached the middle of the staircase when she heard a sharp “crash.”
It stunned everyone present, like a thunderclap out of nowhere.
Beside the sofa in the living room, Wu Lin had accidentally knocked her glass to the floor.
Li Yibo’s face darkened. In Cantonese, he snapped, “Wu Lin, are you doing this on purpose today?”
Wu Lin froze. The noise had already startled her, and she wasn’t used to hearing such fluent Cantonese. A sour ache bloomed in her chest. Her eyes burned from the alcohol, so she clamped her lips shut and crouched down to pick up the shards.
Liang Jin let out a cold laugh and hurried back down. She pulled Wu Lin to her feet. “Don’t bother picking it up. Leave it there—the housekeeper will clean it up later.”
Wu Lin protested, “I broke it.”
Li Yibo glared at Liang Jin’s icy expression, his own anger flaring. In a frigid tone, he said, “Liang Jin, what’s it got to do with you? Why are you sticking your nose in?”
He’d never liked Liang Jin, not for a day or two, but since she was his girlfriend’s best friend, he’d held his tongue. Tonight, though, she’d walked right into the line of fire.
Li Yibo sneered, “You really think you’re some big star already? The movie hasn’t even started filming, and you’re acting all high and mighty?”
Shen Keye had just finished his call and returned in time to catch the scene.
Liang Jin steadied Wu Lin, her cold eyes glinting with mockery, but she said nothing.
Li Yibo shot Wu Lin a glance and fumed, “And you—Wu Lin, always asking me all sorts of nonsense about Shen Keye. I was starting to think you two were the ones dating.”
He’d said the whole thing in rapid-fire Cantonese. When he finished, a heavy silence fell.
From the railing on the second floor, a young man leaned over and called down, “Li Yibo, I’m not dating her.”
Shen Keye gave Liang Jin a meaningful look before adding coolly, “If she’s such a pain, just break up with her.”
Wu Lin heard the word “break up” and gripped Liang Jin’s hand tighter.
Liang Jin sighed inwardly and suggested, “Let me walk you back to your dorm.”
Night had fallen outside. The bustling streets thrummed with the gritty allure of neon lights and revelry—a cold, indifferent clamor where cars flowed like rivers, making humanity seem so small.
Liang Jin glanced sideways at Wu Lin. She’d been holding it together earlier, but now she was crouched on the sidewalk, sobbing.
“So that’s why I keep telling you to break up,” Liang Jin said.
“I don’t want to.”
“I only came to Hong Kong University for him. I worked so hard to get here, and I finally caught up to him.”
Tears rolled down Wu Lin’s cheeks one after another. She’d wipe them away, only for fresh ones to spill. In the end, she couldn’t stop them.
Liang Jin crouched down and gently wiped her face. Wu Lin looked up and said, “It’s my fault. I’m so clumsy, I made him mad.”
“You’re not at fault,” Liang Jin replied. She wanted to tear into Li Yibo, but she knew Wu Lin still loved him.
The young woman sighed helplessly and pulled Wu Lin into her arms.
This stretch of Mong Kok was the busiest, and no taxis were in sight. Liang Jin had no choice but to text Shen Keye: Can you give us a ride back?
A moment later, he replied: 【I called Shao Xingyu to take her.】
~~~
Liang Jin stood under a streetlamp, a cigarette dangling from her lips as she waited for Shen Keye. When they’d gotten in the car earlier, Wu Lin had stopped crying but felt woozy. Liang Jin had pressed two hundred Hong Kong dollars into Shao Xingyu’s hand to buy some medicine. Young Master Little Shao refused the money, so she’d told Wu Lin to text her once she was back at the dorm.
“Leaving?”
Liang Jin turned at the sound of the man’s voice.
She tucked the slim cigarette into her pocket, her expression turning frosty. “They’re still playing?”
“Yeah.”
Liang Jin found it amusing. She leaned against the streetlamp and tilted her head. “You can give me that info now.”
Shen Keye stared down at his phone screen, his eyelids slightly lowered over cold eyes. “In such a hurry?”
Liang Jin replied, “Director Zheng messaged me—they added a new role. It’s for Jiang Manyu. She’s got just two scenes fewer than me.” Her tone dripped with sarcasm. “Boyfriend, did you know about this?”
The young man said nothing.
Liang Jin let out a cold laugh, the whole evening nothing but aggravation.
“I told Li Yibo to break up with Wu Lin.”
Liang Jin’s eyelids twitched. Her heart clenched suddenly. The young woman lifted her gaze. “What did you say?”
Remembering how heartbroken Wu Lin had been, sobbing her eyes out, Liang Jin felt a surge of anger. “Do you have any idea how much effort Wu Lin put in just to be with Li Yibo? And you told them to break up?”
Wu Lin would be devastated.
Shen Keye arched a brow, a pure, chilling malice in his eyes. “What’s that got to do with me?”
Liang Jin knew he had a point, but her tone grew urgent. “But if you just tell him, Li Yibo will definitely break up with Wu Lin.”
The young man replied coldly, “Liang Jin, Li Yibo just wants to sleep with someone.”
Liang Jin found the idea utterly ridiculous.
She had no clue where Shen Keye got the nerve to say such things to her.
The girl shot back, “Then what about you? What’s your angle?”
Liang Jin was growing irritated. She snapped, “What you feel for me is nothing but raw physical attraction. How is that any different from Li Yibo?” She looked utterly detached, her sharp eyes fixed on him, her voice like ice. “Shen Keye, wanting to fuck me—love. Does that thought get you off?”
The sudden bite of sarcasm made Shen Keye’s expression falter for a split second before he flashed a grin.
Shen Keye turned his gaze to Liang Jin, standing just a few steps away. Her cool, refined features burned with anger, but her vibrant energy was undeniably intoxicating.
With a cold scoff, a storm brewed in his pitch-black eyes. “What are you talking about?”
He closed the distance with slow, deliberate steps. The approach itself held no overt threat, yet it radiated danger and raw possession from every inch of his being. His tall frame loomed over her, enveloping her completely. He leaned down, his deep, magnetic voice a cold murmur at her ear. “Liang Jin, keep talking like that, and I might just fuck you for real.”