Chapter 47: I have a story to tell you.

Jiang Xiao knocked on the door. After a moment, Zhou Xiulin opened the door with a serious expression. His face visibly softened when he saw her.

The couple entered the room in silent agreement, neither of them speaking.

Jiang Xiao looked around the room, trying to figure out what had just happened. What could make Mr. Zhou so angry? Unfortunately, there were no clues.

Zhou Xiulin was dressed in casual attire, looking neat and tidy.

Seeing Jiang Xiao observing, he cleared his throat. “Didn’t we say we were going to rest? Why did you suddenly come up?”

Jiang Xiao smiled and teased, “I was just about to rest when Little Bean Sprout told me that there’s a little fox here with his dad!”

A hint of a smile tugged at the corner of Zhou Xiulin’s mouth. “How long have you been here?”

“Just happened to run into Jin Shuyan.” She raised an eyebrow and looked straight at Zhou Xiulin.

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Zhou Xiulin’s arms tightened around her. “What does it matter how good she is?”

Jiang Xiao gazed into the night for a moment. “Miss Jin has been overly indulged.”

“I’ve put an end to her thoughts,” he said in a deep voice. “I won’t tolerate her just because she’s a girl and young.”

Jiang Xiao turned around, resting her forehead against his. “I believe in you.” Leaning against his chest, she brushed her fingertips over his shirt, recognizing his familiar scent. She softly sniffed, detecting a faint hint of women’s perfume.

This scent, Jiang Xiao had just smelled it on Jin Shuyan.

“Xiao Xiao, no matter what, we can’t be too kind-hearted. This applies to work as well. You shouldn’t let your artists have too much freedom. The relationship between artists and managers is mutual. You need to explain to them that they should seek good projects, but at the same time, they must adhere to the contracts between you.” What he at least wanted was for her not to suffer any grievances.

Jiang Xiao was touched.

Zhou Xiulin curved his lips. “What did you come up here to tell me?”

“I’ll go back home tomorrow. Little Bean Sprout wet his bed at kindergarten today, he’s in a bad mood and cried.”

“Cried?”

“Feeling embarrassed, especially in front of Duoduo. Fortunately, he didn’t say it, but he doesn’t want to go to school.”

Zhou Xiulin laughed heartily a few times. “Mumu can be too mature sometimes, but deep down, he’s still a child. It’s rare to see him shed tears.”

Jiang Xiao playfully slapped him. “I changed my flight reservation.”

Zhou Xiulin chuckled and shook his head. “You’re here to inform me of the outcome. It seems that in your heart, Zhou Simu is still the most important.”

Jiang Xiao hesitated for a moment, her expression tense. “No, it’s not like that. The time we can spend with Simu is limited. In the future, when he grows up, he’ll have to leave us and live his own life. But you’re different. We still have several decades ahead of us.”

Zhou Xiulin hadn’t expected her to say such words. His heart felt incredibly soft. “I know.”

The matter with Jin Shuyan passed by. Jiang Xiao didn’t inquire further about what had happened between them. As she had said, she believed him. No matter what he did or said, she believed in him.

Jin Shuyan’s incident was over. Jiang Xiao didn’t pry into the details of what happened between them. As she had said, she believed him. No matter what he did or said, she trusted him.

Jin Shuyan’s incident passed by. Jiang Xiao didn’t inquire further about the details of what had happened between them. As she had said, she believed him. No matter what he did or said, she trusted him.

Director Jin brought his daughter over. When Liang Yue learned about her daughter going to find Zhou Xiulin, she became extremely angry. Director Jin persuaded her and prevented her from going to the hotel to pick up Shuyan. At this moment, she saw Jin Shuyan, and even her good temper couldn’t be held back.

“Why are you so foolish? Yan Yan, Zhou Xiulin is not the only man in this world.”

“But I only like Zhou Xiulin.”

“You! What’s good about him that you make such a fuss? He already has a son!”

“Mom, the media says that, but have you seen that child? When has the Zhou family ever announced the child’s matter to the public? And who is the child’s mother? It’s a scam!” She was completely flustered.

Liang Yue was left speechless by the questions. “Yan Yan, if you continue like this, we’ll send you abroad.”

“Mom, why don’t you understand me! I’m your only daughter, why can’t you try to see things from my perspective?” Her tears couldn’t be stopped from falling.

Just a moment ago, she had gathered her courage to confess to Zhou Xiulin. But what kind of answer did she receive.

He said he had someone he liked.

She didn’t believe it.

He said, “The person I like is my wife now, the woman I love for the rest of my life.”

She was stunned, unable to speak, as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over her head.

He had really gotten married and had a child! And she had shamelessly pestered him.

Liang Yue’s chest hurt from anger, and for a while, she couldn’t catch her breath, her body swaying. Director Jin quickly supported her, “Yanyan, how could you speak to your mother like this?”

Jin Shuyan bit her lip, “I’m sorry, Mom. I’m just upset. I like someone, but he doesn’t like me back, and it’s hurting me.”

Liang Yue took a deep breath and waved her hand, “Go reflect on yourself. Making such a fuss over a man, it’s not decent at all!”

Director Jin patted her back, “Alright, don’t be angry. Yanyan was just temporarily confused.”

Liang Yue’s eyes turned red, “We’ve protected her too well.”

Director Jin sighed, “Zhou Xiulin is quite ruthless too. When I went there, Yanyan was crying in the corridor. One of his assistants was with her.”

“Who?”

“Someone we’ve met before, now she’s a manager named Jiang Xiao.”

Liang Yue’s gaze tightened, and she grasped his hand tightly, “What did she say to Yanyan?”

“Don’t get worked up. When I went there, Yanyan was crying, and Miss Jiang didn’t do anything, just stood by.”

Liang Yue’s expression was complicated, “Shen Ge, I…”

Director Jin didn’t say anything, “Alright, you’re tired too. Get some rest. We’ll talk about it tomorrow if there’s something.”

Liang Yue shook her head, “I’m afraid…” She clenched his clothes, finding it hard to speak, “Shen Ge, Jiang Xiao, she’s not someone else, she’s my daughter. I never told you before, but when I was twenty, I met a painter. We fell in love, and when I was twenty-one, I gave birth to a daughter, that’s Jiang Xiao. I only recognized her recently. These years, I never told you, I’m sorry…”

Director Jin narrowed his eyes, a clearly visible line appearing in his eyes. He looked at his wife, knowing her for twenty-six years since they met. “We’ve been married for so many years, and I’ve always known you had something on your mind. Wanwan, do you know why I had you change your name back then? I hoped you could start anew.”

Tears rolled down Liang Yue’s cheeks drop by drop. “Jiang Xiao entered the entertainment industry because of me. She wanted to find me… I thought she wanted to get back at me, but when I saw her last time, I realized she didn’t. Shen Ge, what should I do?”

Director Jin sighed, “Do you know that her relationship with Zhongbei is not ordinary?”

Liang Yue’s face turned instantly stunned, and her anxious throat went dry.

Director Jin spoke slowly, “A few days ago, there were photos of them dining together every day.” He took out his phone and showed the pictures. “The news hasn’t been released, but someone from that side sent me the photos.”

Liang Yue flipped through the pictures, seeing the smiling faces of the two. Jin Zhongbei was someone prominent in the industry, counted on the fingers of one hand. “You mean, the two of them… No, Xiao Xiao wouldn’t do that!”

“Jiang Xiao once applied for a position as Zhongbei’s assistant.” Director Jin didn’t tell Liang Yue that during this time, Zhou Xiulin had quietly withdrawn several projects they had been working on together. Having experienced the ups and downs of the entertainment industry for many years, he couldn’t miss the signs. He didn’t know whether Zhou Xiulin’s sudden change was related to Jiang Xiao. Still, he could sense that this girl wasn’t so simple.

With just a sentence, the temperature in Liang Yue’s entire body cooled instantly. Her worst fear had come true! “No, I need to talk to Jiang Xiao.”

“Don’t be nervous.” Director Jin comforted her, “We don’t really know what’s going on yet. Let me talk to Zhongbei first, gauge his response. Wanwan, the kids are grown up now; they have their own choices.”

Liang Yue gave a bitter smile, “Debts accumulated in one’s youth must be repaid. If it needs repaying, I’ll be the one to do it. I don’t like it when they’re harmed, especially Yanyan. She truly knows nothing.”

Director Jin embraced her, “Don’t worry, nothing will happen.”

The next day, Jiang Xiao and Zhou Xiulin flew back to Jin City from B City. Zhou Xiulin had given Jiang Qin two days off, allowing him to continue enjoying his youth in B City.

They arrived at the airport ahead of time, waiting in the VIP lounge. Jiang Xiao planned to browse the duty-free shops to see if she could find any gifts. Considering the airport’s high media presence, she hadn’t invited Zhou Xiulin to accompany her.

B City Airport was bustling with people.

After a round of browsing without finding a suitable gift, Jiang Xiao was about to head back when her phone rang.

It was Xu Jiaren’s assistant calling.

She quickly answered, “Hello?”

“Jiang Jie, a Weibo influencer posted a message this morning, saying that Jiaren got the lead role in ‘Changting’ because you bribed Liang Yue.” The assistant’s voice grew smaller as she continued, “Several Weibo influencers have already reposted it. Jiaren’s recent Weibo post now has over ten thousand negative comments.”

Jiang Xiao’s face darkened, “How is Jiaren doing now?”

“She… She’s resting.”

Jiang Xiao chuckled lightly, “Tell her that this isn’t true. I’ll handle this matter. It’s probably a case of rival studios using fake online accounts.”

The junior assistant trembled slightly, “Jiang Jie, should the studio issue a statement?”

“No need. There are plenty of these incidents, and the more you explain, the more tangled it becomes. You go ahead and handle it. Tell Jiaren that since she’s taken on this film, she should focus on understanding the script, which is more important than anything else.”

“Alright. Then, Jiang Jie, you take care.”

Jiang Xiao quickly went online to search for the news and found that several Weibo influencers were discussing this matter around seven in the morning. Surprisingly, the blame was directed at her, not Xu Jiaren.

The insinuation was that she, as a manager, manipulated things behind the scenes, bribed people in private, engaged in malicious competition, and over the years, stole resources from her own artists.

As she read, Jiang Xiao couldn’t help but smile. The entertainment industry really wasn’t lacking in storytellers.

Creating something out of thin air, they did it quite impressively.

This wasn’t the first time she had been criticized, but it was the harshest so far.

The astrologer did say that she wouldn’t have a smooth year and would encounter some tricky situations. It seemed the astrologer was right; this year was truly a rough one for her. Song Yiwen, Xu Jiaren—each one of them had come at her. It seemed she had been too lenient with them.

Back in the lounge, Zhou Xiulin was about to call her.

Jiang Xiao smiled faintly at him, “Mr. Zhou, I’ve also made it into the news.”

Zhou Xiulin’s tone was still calm as he listened, and he replied with a shallow smile, “They’re investigating.”

Jiang Xiao’s voice was soft, tinged with a hint of disappointment, “Why would I use Liang Yue’s connections? If I wanted connections, I’d use my husband’s connections.”

Zhou Xiulin reassured her, “Don’t worry—”

Jiang Xiao held his hand tightly, her voice resolute, “Don’t worry about this matter. It involves me and Liang Yue, so I’ll handle it myself.” She cleared her throat, “Xiulin, once this matter is over, there’s a story I want to tell you.”

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Sansukini: Feels so hypocritical to care about your daughter now when you didn’t even check how she is for more than 20 years.

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