That evening, as Wen Dongrong went to bed, he received a scornful look from his wife. Chen Ru had overheard him secretly watching TV through the bedroom door.
“A few English words defeated you?”
Wen Dongrong nearly spat blood.
“I was balancing work and rest, what do you know? Besides, that TV was—”
Chen Ru didn’t care to hear what it was, and Wen Dongrong swallowed his unfinished words.
Fine, she didn’t want to listen? Then he wouldn’t say!
Wen Dongrong’s temper flared. He scrolled through his contacts, hesitating to disturb Old Li, who might not handle the shock at his age. Instead, he chose a younger contact.
He texted Deng Shangwei, asking if he watched the drama: “Wen Ying’s scripted drama aired tonight, you know?”
Deng Shangwei replied instantly, “Yeah, I know! Brother-in-law, you watched too?!”
Deng Shangwei wasn’t surprised, clearly in the know already!
Wen Dongrong’s jealousy could fill a vat of spicy-sour noodles. He meant to brag to Deng Shangwei, but now he was the one outdone. Before he could say something to save face, Deng Shangwei sent another message.
“The books we picked last time are ready. I’m heading back to my hometown tomorrow. Wanna come, brother-in-law?”
The books Wen Dongrong had chosen at the bookstore for the rural school donation.
Wen Dongrong sat up in bed, typing furiously. He started with “Of course I’m going,” then deleted it, opting for a more reserved tone: “Tomorrow’s Saturday, I’ve got nothing else, so I’ll go with you.”
But there were still so many words to memorize.
And going meant spending money, not just effort. This month’s pocket money, barely warm in his hands, would be gone.
Wen Dongrong’s heart ached. He wanted to knock on Black-Heart Cotton’s door. Why should he bear this alone when the family’s richest could sponsor? It was like scraping oil off a skinny chicken leg!
Before he got out of bed, Chen Ru returned from washing up.
“Where are you going?”
“Nowhere… I’m heading to the countryside tomorrow. Can you get to your tutoring class alone?”
“I’m not a three-year-old who can’t find the way!”
Wen Dongrong shrank back. Chen Ru didn’t care, assuming he meant visiting their old hometown.
Wen Dongrong’s love for showing off was hereditary. He probably wanted to bring Wen Ying’s grandma to visit neighbors or relatives. As long as he didn’t throw money at ungrateful relatives, Chen Ru didn’t care where he went!
The next morning, breakfast was unusually calm. Chen Ru didn’t mention the screenwriter issue. Wen Ying gave Wen Dongrong a look, and while Chen Ru fetched chopsticks, he shook his head, “I haven’t found a chance to tell your mum. You hold off too.”
Fine, someone else was taking the blame, so Wen Ying wasn’t in a rush.
After breakfast, the family went their separate ways. Wen Dongrong and Deng Shangwei went to donate books in the countryside, Chen Ru went to work overtime, and Wen Ying went to Xie Qian’s for a study group.
Zou Weijun was also out, working overtime, according to Liu Auntie.
As soon as Wen Ying arrived, Liu Auntie grabbed her hand, “Your script is great! We all watched last night. Where did you find that male lead? He’s so handsome!”
“The male lead is Yun Chen, a Taiwan actor. The script wasn’t just me, it’s mostly Teacher Zhang Guangzhen’s work. Did Xie Qian and Aunt Zou watch?”
Liu Auntie nodded, “They watched, both of them, from start to finish with me.”
Aunt Zou was so supportive.
Xie Qian too, so warm.
Wen Ying couldn’t imagine Xie Qian watching a drama!
Smiling foolishly, she looked up to see Xie Qian coming downstairs.
Her smile made him pause, turning his face away, “Is Wang Shuang late?”
“Nope, not late!”
Wang Shuang rushed in, panting.
After watching Princess’s New Clothes last night, he slept early but dreamed all night. In the dream, he and Li Mengjiao were on set, her as “Xiao Meng,” him as the villain, watching her and Yun Chen get cozy… chaotic, illogical dreams made him oversleep.
Li Mengjiao arrived even later than Wang Shuang.
She burst in, announcing she had a dream last night.
Wang Shuang’s eyes widened, heart pounding with shock or anticipation, but her dream had nothing to do with his.
“I dreamed I won Best Newcomer Award!”
“Wen Ying got Best Screenwriter.”
“Yun Chen was amazing, winning Best Newcomer and Most Popular Male Actor.”
After the premiere, Li Mengjiao’s relatives praised her, making her giddy. She dreamed of her and the creative team sweeping domestic TV awards, feeling invincible, now recounting her dream with a proud, hands-on-hips grin.
“…”
This girl dared to dream big!
Wen Ying thought she was doomed. Sure enough, Li Mengjiao got two extra test papers that day.
Li Mengjiao: Damn, dreams and reality are opposites!
But not entirely. After two episodes, Princess’s New Clothes had fans raving online.
First, the show was engaging, with a gripping start, excellent costumes, props, and production that didn’t skimp on quality.
Second, Li Mengjiao’s acting surprised viewers. Not professionally trained and just a teenager, many doubted her skills, but she proved herself. Regular viewers found her performance passable, while fans, with their idol bias, went wild, seeing her passable acting as 100% perfect!
Third, though Wang Shuang wouldn’t admit Yun Chen was handsome, he undeniably wowed female viewers.
“Within three minutes, I want all this man’s info!”
“How was such a handsome guy unknown before?”
Forum posts split evenly between Li Mengjiao and Yun Chen.
Not that Li Mengjiao was fading, but male actors naturally had an edge with idol drama audiences, mostly female. Young girls found Yun Chen handsome, and older viewers like Liu Auntie and Wang Shuang’s mum agreed. If he didn’t get famous, it’d be unjust.
Viewers knew Li Mengjiao but not Yun Chen, so the station got tons of calls about him.
Director Fan walked with a swagger.
This was exactly the impact he wanted for Princess’s New Clothes!
Manager Guan and Liang Dan were frustrated.
Li Mengjiao was one thing, but where did Yuan Fenghui find this male lead?
With Hunan TV’s co-productions with Taiwan, they dug into Yun Chen’s background. Before Princess’s New Clothes, he was indeed obscure, only a magazine model.
Yuan Fenghui not only cast him as the lead but signed all his mainland contracts before the broadcast!
Yuan Fenghui was cunning and sharp. How did she judge who’d become a star?
Manager Guan thought of Zhang Yangning, who jumped to Tianjiao, feeling a vague unease.
