Substitute (2)
The atmosphere in the office froze for a moment. Just as Xie Xun wanted to say something, Tang Ruanqing took out a bright red invitation card from his drawer and handed it to Xie Xun. “Next Wednesday is my engagement to the Jing Family’s Third Miss. You are welcome to attend.”
“You are engaged?” Xie Xun took the slightly hot, bright red invitation card. The golden words on it made him feel a little sarcastic. “It’s Jing Xuyan, the daughter of Shi’an?” As if he wanted to be certain, he asked again.
Shan Yatong’s eyelashes fluttered as he suddenly stood up and said to the three men, “I’ll go to the bathroom.” With that said, he smiled apologetically at them. However, when he reached the door and opened it, he stopped in his tracks.
The girl standing at the door with a bright smile didn’t seem to have expected Shan Yatong to walk out like this. The smile on her face froze for a moment before she quickly and naturally walked past him. “Brother Ruanqing, I’m here. Are you surprised?!”
Jing Xuyan was very beautiful. She knew how to do makeup and dress up, but her demeanor also carried an arrogance of a lady. Xie Xun looked at Jing Xuyan and his heart skipped a beat. Jing Xuyan’s eyes were actually like that person’s. He tightened his grip on the invitation and his heart was filled with mixed feelings.
Shan Yatong stood at the door and blankly stared at Jing Xuyan. There was even a sense of nitpicking in his eyes. He smiled mockingly and leaned against the door gracefully. Looking at the sweet smile on Jing Xuyan’s face, he rubbed his chin. Suddenly, he recalled what that woman had said before she jumped off the building. She cursed and hated him. But wasn’t that man living well? Now that his industry had expanded from domestic to international, he was a prominent figure in the upper echelons of the industry. What was wrong with that?
Lu Fan felt that there was something wrong with the line of sight behind him. He turned his head and saw Shan Yatong leaning against the door with an elegant smile. Outside the office door that wasn’t closed, several employees were watching the gossip from afar. Was this person deliberately letting the people outside watch the show?
Seeing Lu Fan looking at him, Shan Yatong smiled at him. He turned around and left the office. Lu Fan unconsciously pushed his glasses. Was it his imagination? He felt that that smile was rather horrifying.
“Brother Ruanqing, was that artist just now Shan Yatong?” Seeing that the person standing at the door had left, Jing Xuyan curled her lips and said, “I feel that this artist seems to be very arrogant. Isn’t he just a little more popular?” When she first saw him, her intuition told her that he didn’t like her. This kind of intuition made her dislike him.
Xie Xun looked at Lu Fan with a smile that wasn’t quite a smile. As a manager, it was always unpleasant when one of his artists was to be criticized.
“Miss Jing, why do you think he’s arrogant?” The corners of Lu Fan’s mouth curved upwards. He was clearly smiling, but it made people feel a little cold. “Do you want Yatong to do a 90 degrees bow to you? Didn’t you just walk over by him?” He pushed his glasses. “Isn’t Miss Jing’s behavior considered disrespectful?”
Jing Xuyan’s expression was a little ugly, but from the looks of it, he was probably Tang Ruanqing’s most capable subordinate. Furthermore, she had indeed said something wrong earlier. She endured it and didn’t refute it, but she coldly glanced at Lu Fan.
Tang Ruanqing didn’t seem to hear Jing Xuyan’s complaints or Lu Fan’s retort. He just smiled and said to Jing Xuyan, “Why is Xuyan here? I didn’t receive a call from the reception desk.”
“Brother Ruanqing, don’t be angry. I’m the one who told the reception desk not to tell you.” Jing Xuyan’s smile was very good. “I just wanted to surprise you. Did I disturb your work?”
“No, we just finished talking.” Xie Xun put the glaringly red invitation into his pocket and left the office with Lu Fan. The smile on Xie Xun’s face faded the moment he left the office. He threw out two invitation cards from his pocket to Lu Fan. “These are for you and Shan Yatong.”
Lu Fan looked at the invitation in disgust and put it away expressionlessly. “I’m going to prepare Shan Yatong’s suit for the premiere.” Without looking at Xie Xun’s reaction, he turned around and left. That woman was now acting like she was the mistress of the Tang Family. Although he could read her expression, she wasn’t a smart person. How could Tang Ruanqing marry this woman? Was it because of the Jing Family’s foreign market or because of those eyes that looked like Jing Anjue, or both?
Xie Xun looked at Lu Fan’s back. Lu Fan seemed to be in a bad mood. He turned his head to look at the door behind him. That woman was nothing more than a substitute. A living person would never be able to beat a dead person in his life. This Miss Jing might never know, in her entire life, that she was just a substitute for a man. Thinking about it, it was rather sad.
Some people said that love was a battle, and both sides were losers. In fact, this was the wrong idea. People who treated love as a battle didn’t understand true love. How could there be a winner or loser in true love?
Looking around at the staff members who were emitting the vigor to gossip, Xie Xun rubbed his nose. Whether she was a substitute or not, what did all this have to do with him?
It was just who deserved who was unlucky, who was happy, who was frustrated, and who was proud.