Chapter 174

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Chapter 174: A Well-Staged Performance

“You lousy extra-tier big sis, how could you drink yourself into this state? Seriously, so lame!”

Ye Xiao stood with her hands on her hips, looking at Jiang Shuyan with speechless disapproval.

Jiang Shuyan was just too drunk. Even with enhanced strength, Ye Xiao’s small frame couldn’t possibly move her somewhere else.

Left with no choice, Ye Xiao called Jiang Shuyan’s best friend.

Not long after, the friend arrived.

“You guys shouldn’t go back to that rental place. I’ll arrange for Sister Shuyan to stay somewhere else—you don’t need to worry about it.”

After helping Jiang Shuyan onto the large hotel bed, Ye Xiao spoke slowly to her friend.

“That might be for the best… I was really scared when Shuyan got taken away…”

As she spoke, she cast a glance at Ye Xiao.

But honestly, what scared me more was you people.

That Bao guy only brought two bodyguards—but you showed up with three van loads of goons. Terrifying.

Of course, she could only think this silently. No way she dared say it out loud.

Ye Xiao didn’t pay any more attention to the friend. She sat beside Jiang Shuyan and gently held her hand, then said softly:

“Lousy extra-tier big sis… What am I supposed to say to you? Always causing me trouble. Good thing nothing bad happened.”

Jiang Shuyan didn’t respond. The jostling from the trip to the hotel had made her even dizzier—she couldn’t hear a word Ye Xiao said.

But somewhere in the fog of her mind, Zhou Xinyuan’s words still lingered faintly.

That line—“A once-in-a-lifetime casting couch.”

It echoed again and again in her mind, impossible to shake.

Even now, she looked dumbfounded and dazed, gazing blankly at Ye Xiao beside her.

She couldn’t tell who was beside her anymore, but some deep part of her subconscious knew—she was safe.

The one who could protect her was right here, watching over her.

If the casting couch really could only happen once in a lifetime… then Jiang Shuyan hoped the one she gave that to was the person now guarding her side.

—

“Um, Miss… where did you go? We’re about to toss that fat pig into the Binjiang River. What do you think?”

“Toss him into Binjiang?”

Ye Xiao couldn’t help but recall the case Liu Nanxi once investigated—wasn’t that Liao Jin guy dumped in the same river? Maybe this crew did that too.

“No rush. That scummy fat pig’s still useful to me.”

“Understood.”

Ye Xiao hung up, then called another person—Ouyang Qing.

She didn’t have many contacts. The only two people she really knew were Ouyang Qing and Jiang Shuyan.

Though she didn’t particularly like Ouyang Qing, she was conveniently useful now.

And Ouyang Qing had a weakness in Ye Xiao’s hands.

That day, Chairman Xu, trying to curry favor with Ye Xiao, had sent her a video—him and Ouyang Qing “playing poker.”

Ouyang Qing had no idea such a video existed. But this alone was enough leverage to force this C-list celebrity to cooperate.

“Hello? Who is this?”

“Hehehe… Trash-tier. Having a good few days lately? Time to pay for offending us.”

Ouyang Qing was momentarily confused by the voice—but then suddenly remembered the encounter with Ye Xiao and Jiang Shuyan the day after the charity gala.

“What are you talking about? If there’s nothing else, I’m hanging up.”

She tried to play dumb and quickly hang up, slightly panicked.

“If you hang up now, who knows? Tomorrow, everyone in the industry might be watching your poker skills on full display. You wouldn’t want them all to know how experienced and talented you are at playing, would you?”

Ye Xiao spoke lazily, as if this whole thing wasn’t important. Truthfully, Ouyang Qing wasn’t the only option—if she threw some money around, plenty of people would happily do the same job.

“…What do you want me to do?”

Ouyang Qing gave in. Better to obey than have her career destroyed.

Though she was only a C-lister now, with the right publicity or a few resources, there was still a chance for a comeback.

Three years ago, after all, she’d gone viral from a fake relationship with that idol actor Bao Ye had paid 150 million yuan to hire.

To clean up Jiang Shuyan’s reputation, they had to first destroy the man responsible for ruining it.

If he became irredeemably disgraced, then nothing he said would be taken seriously by the public.

A fire needs many hands to stoke it. Then Jiang Shuyan could come forward and add fuel to the flames—without being the main instigator.

Otherwise, if the enemy retaliated, she’d be the first to take the full hit.

Bao Ye was now in their hands. What happened next was entirely up to Ye Xiao.

“Meet me at Warehouse No. 56 on Binjiang Road later.”

That warehouse had been recommended by Gu Tingyuan’s men as a place to keep Bao Ye locked up.

When Ye Xiao arrived, she saw the so-called big-shot director, Bao Ye, lying on the ground, half-dead, bruises all over his face.

“Wow. You guys really didn’t hold back, huh?”

Ye Xiao clicked her tongue in amazement.

“We just wanted to help vent your anger, Miss.”

The group’s leader said respectfully.

“Clean him up later, then take him to a decent restaurant. He’s a director, right? Let him star in a good little drama.”

“Miss, isn’t this a bit much? I checked his phone—he’s basically a pig, but somehow lucked into bedding tons of starlets. I’ve seen some of them on TV—really famous ones! Why not just leak these videos and be done with it?”

“You think you’re clever?”

Ye Xiao’s sharp gaze locked onto the man, her voice cold.

“Not at all, Miss.”

Ye Xiao didn’t just want this scumbag to die—she wanted to restore Jiang Shuyan’s name.
Not blow up half the industry in the process.

If they released those videos, it’d be an open declaration of war—burning bridges with half the entertainment world.

Ye Xiao still didn’t even know who was really behind this fat bastard.

The enemy was in the shadows, she was in the open.

If the other side decided to strike back, she wouldn’t be able to defend in time.

That was why she didn’t even let Jiang Shuyan be the lead attacker in exposing Bao Ye—it was all about diverting attention, making it look like Shuyan had little to do with it.

Soon, Ouyang Qing arrived. When she saw the miserable state Bao Ye was in, she was completely stunned.

Even he had been beaten to a pulp—she was just a small-time celebrity who relied on Bao Ye’s influence to survive.

She had originally harbored some ideas—like getting the poker video back from Ye Xiao.

But now?

Ye Xiao’s influence in Binhai was clearly terrifying.

Even a man like Bao Ye was completely at her mercy.