Chapter 22: Woman Number One

Chapter 22

At night, Bai Yin lit a scented oil lamp and sat in a luxurious bathtub with massage function. The ripples of the water circled around her as she extended her milky white arm to stir up the foam on the surface and lightly blew it away.

Her phone lay on the water table beside the tub, with Sun Lili's messages pouring in one after another:

"Song Anti issued an apology statement, but it's useless. Everyone is still criticizing her."

"It is said that the production company of 'Ni Chang' is preparing to recast the leading actress."

"Several heavyweight brands that Song Anti endorsed have issued statements, saying that they have terminated their contracts with her."

"This time, Song Anti's downfall is quite thorough!"

Bai Yin glanced at her phone screen, unperturbed as she had expected all of this. In this era where everyone loves to gossip, public figures should be cautious with their words and actions, or else any mistake they make will be blown out of proportion. Song Anti's downfall was due to her arrogance and lack of intelligence.

Bai Yin was enjoying her bath when she heard the sound of the front door opening downstairs, followed by the familiar footsteps of a man. There was no one else but Chen Huaixiao.

However, Chen Huaixiao had not been home for some time now. Most of the time, he stayed in the private living room on the top floor of Canxing Media, and on weekends, he would go racing for two or three days. For him, this house was like a hotel for occasional rest.

Bai Yin could tell that Chen Huaixiao really didn't like her, but she didn't care about that anymore. Chen Huaixiao saw her as a source of occasional pleasure and relaxation, and she saw him as a tool.

Their marriage was a matter of mutual benefit.

As Bai Yin was about to get up, she heard a creaking sound, and the sliding door of the bathroom was pushed open!

Bai Yin was startled and quickly sat back in the bathtub, piling the foam in front of her.

The man walked in without any expression on his face. In the misty water vapor, his black bathrobe looked elegant and refined. He came to the edge of the tub, hung his bathrobe on the hook without any hesitation, and stepped into the bathtub.

Bai Yin felt the water level rising and almost reaching her nose, so she sat up higher and leaned against the wall.

The bathtub was very large, like a hot spring pool, and even with two people in it, it still felt spacious.

It had been almost two or three weeks since they last saw each other, but Chen Huaixiao didn't even say hello and was now "face to face" with her without any hesitation or awkwardness.

Bai Yin reached out for the bubble bath and squeezed out a lot of white foam to avoid any unnecessary embarrassment between them. "Don't be polite."

"This is my home. Why should I be polite?" The man's muscular arms were resting on the edge of the bathtub, and his smooth muscle lines were beautiful. He raised an eyebrow and looked at her.

Her skin was white and translucent. She had tied her hair into a cute bun, and a few black strands of hair were wet and dripping around her temples. In the misty water vapor, her stunning features exuded a lazy vibe.

However, the red mark on the left side of her face was still visible.

Chen Huaixiao reached out and held her chin. "Does it hurt?"

Bai Yin saw the sympathy in his eyes and moved closer to him, coquettishly saying, "It hurts so much."

Bai Yin was an expert in using a soft voice to act cute.

"You have always been strong. In high school, when the big sister bullied you, you beat her up so badly that no one dared to mess with you." Chen Huaixiao's voice was calm. "But now you've taken this slap yourself, ruining Song Anti's pure image. Why are you pretending to be pitiful?"

Bai Yin rolled her eyes.

As expected, nothing could escape Chen Huaixiao's notice.

He knew her too well.

How could she let herself be bullied for no reason?

"If you already know, why bother asking?" Bai Yin moved away slightly and said coldly, "I won this battle beautifully. Do you have a problem with that?"

Chen Huaixiao didn't know what was wrong with him. Since watching the video in the afternoon, he had been unable to calm down. Fịndd new updates at novelhall.com

Bai Yin had chosen to marry to secure her position in the Northern City, even betting her future, and now she had endured this slap when she could have easily avoided it.

Who knew if she would betray him, sell him out or even leave him for her own interests tomorrow.

The thought of the possibility made Chen Huaixiao feel like a trapped beast in a cage, struggling to break free.

Bai Yin noticed Chen Huaixiao's cold expression and understood it somewhat.

Chen Huaixiao didn't like women who were calculating, and she had become exactly the type he hated the most.

"Chen Huaixiao, you've known me for a long time. Is it really necessary to be so angry?" Bai Yin stood up elegantly, stepped on the water with her fair toes, walked to the shower area, took a casual shower, wrapped herself in a bathrobe, and walked out.

Chen Huaixiao didn't stop her, his gaze following her leaving figure.

The pool was filled with a pleasant fragrance, invading his nostrils.

Chen Huaixiao picked up a rose petal and squeezed it tightly in his palm.

He didn't know what was wrong with him.

He felt trapped.

Bai Yin changed into a nightgown and sat in front of the vanity mirror, using a boiled egg to roll over the red mark on her left cheek.

She looked at the main hall of the Ming Dynasty Palace and step by step... walked towards the darkness without light.

...

The audition ended, and the set was silent.

Everyone was immersed in Bai Yin's performance, as if the woman who made a pact with evil and turned into a demon had just appeared before them alive.

Bai Yin is Yan Huan!

The few female stars who had just been dissatisfied were now all writing "bow down" on their faces.

Pick any random extra on the set, and they all had this kind of acting ability. They... felt embarrassed to compete for the leading actress position again.

"Director, forget it. I'm afraid I can't play the female lead."

"Me too. I'll tell the company that I voluntarily withdrew."

The female stars left with embarrassment.

The assistant director saw the situation and quickly stopped them. "Don't, don't, don't, try again."

With such a precious gem in front of them, the female stars knew they couldn't surpass the acting skills of the extras from earlier, so they all declined.

The assistant director sighed, "It's not easy to find someone at the last minute. We finally found four, and they're all not satisfactory."

Zhao Xun frowned and just stared at Bai Yin.

Bai Yin felt like she had caused trouble and was afraid that Zhao Xun would be angry and take away the lead dancing position that she had fought so hard for. She apologized to Director Zhao and quickly left.

In the dressing room, Qiao Xinqi heard that Director Zhao had been irritable all afternoon and no one dared to provoke him.

Most likely because of Bai Yin's performance just now.

She sneered, "If she offends these female stars who have powerful backers, Bai Yin can kiss her career goodbye."

Bai Yin was too lazy to bother with her and began removing her makeup by herself.

"She drove away Song Anti, and now she's causing trouble again. She's like a disaster, a bad omen. Do you think Director Zhao is blind? Just wait and see, soon enough, she'll be the one leaving."

A dancer came to her defense: "It wasn't Bai Yin's choice to go up there, Director Zhao made her. If she offended those few, can you blame Bai Yin?"

"You think she's innocent? Song Anti was a victim of her scheming."

Rolling her eyes, she approached Bai Yin. "Isn't that right?"

Bai Yin couldn't take it anymore and stood up, grabbing her collar. "Qiao Xinqi, don't think I don't know the dirty tricks you're playing behind my back."

"What dirty tricks am I playing?"

"Even if I leave, I can still drag you down with me. Would you like to try?"

The two were too close, Bai Yin's cold expression making Qiao Xinqi's scalp tingle and goosebumps rise on her back.

She instinctively felt that she couldn't afford to provoke this woman.

"Director Zhao is coming."

Qiao Xinqi pulled away from Bai Yin, a cold sneer on her lips as she watched the show.

Bai Yin took a deep breath, preparing her words in her heart.

If Director Zhao really decided to fire her in anger, how should she respond?

Soon, Zhao Xun walked in, accompanied by the assistant director, producer, and the dance director Li He.

Zhao Xun looked serious as he addressed Bai Yin: "Bai Yin, this is a difficult decision. 'Nishang' is a big budget film, and every decision I make is responsible to the investors and everyone on the production team."

"Director Zhao, I understand."

Bai Yin was extremely upset. This was the opportunity she had fought for so hard.

"Although you're an unknown newcomer, the producer and I agree that you're worth taking a risk on!"

She looked at Zhao Xun in astonishment. "Director Zhao, are you saying...?"

"Do you want to play the leading role in 'Nishang'?"

Not only was Bai Yin shocked, but the other dancers and extras around her were stunned as well.

For such a big production, the leading role was usually given to a famous actress with a large following.

Zhao Xun was daring enough to use a newcomer!

Qiao Xinqi was thunderstruck, falling back into her chair with her nails digging deep into her palms.