Chapter 387

The next day, Jiang Xin, exhausted, intended to rest, but her agent stormed in.

"Lao Jiang, big job coming."

"Oh no, let me sleep a bit longer."

Jiang Xin pulled the blanket over her head, ignoring him, but the agent yanked it back down.

"Stop sleeping—Feng Xiaogang wants you for his movie."

"Huh?"

Jiang Xin, eyes still closed, snapped them open: "Who did you say?"

The agent glanced at the marks on her body, then pulled the blanket back over her.

"Get up first—I'll explain everything."

Jiang Xin reluctantly got up. The agent went to the living room, sighed at the mess from the party and classes, and began silently tidying up for her.

After a while, Jiang Xin dressed, her hair disheveled, and dragged the agent down to sit.

"Lao Yan, what's going on?"

Jiang Xin's agent was Yan Langruo, formerly an actress herself, but she hadn't made it, so she switched to behind-the-scenes work.

At the time, Jiang Xin met her on a set, they got along well, and she wasn't satisfied with the agent Hai Run assigned her, so they teamed up and brought Yan onto her team.

Previously, Yan had been nothing more than an executive agent—almost like an assistant.

But after "Invisible Forces" became a huge hit last year, Yan worked hard and helped Jiang Xin firmly secure the subsequent benefits, greatly boosting her status and fame.

Jiang Xin, who already had a close personal relationship with her, believed Yan was capable and fully supported her rise to become her official agent.

Because of this, though they'd only known each other a short time, Jiang Xin trusted Yan completely—so much so that Yan had a key to her home and could come and go freely, and was utterly unfazed by her private life.

"You know 'Non-Stop 2,' right?"

The agent skipped small talk and got straight to the point: Feng Xiaogang was making 'Non-Stop 2,' with Ge Daye and Shu Dazui reprising their lead roles.

But the new supporting male and female roles were targeting Sun Honglei and Jiang Xin, both of whom had exploded in popularity from "Invisible Forces."

Hearing this, Jiang Xin understood—it was already the fourth project considering pairing Sun and her.

"Invisible Forces" had been wildly popular, and not just any hit—it had truly launched careers. Now Sun Honglei was among the highest-paid male TV actors; Jiang Xin wasn't far behind, her fees having multiplied several times over.

As a result, many projects wanted to ride the coattails.

LeTV had previously tried pairing them for "Battle at Shama Town," but negotiations fell through—they only used Sun Honglei.

Other companies like Hai Run and Yi An had also considered it, but no suitable roles materialized. No one expected Hua Yi to move first—with 'Non-Stop 2,' a blockbuster film.

Seeing Jiang Xin's excitement, the agent cautioned: "Don't get too optimistic—it's still uncertain whether you'll get the part."

Jiang Xin looked at her agent in confusion, who then explained further.

"Non-Stop 2" was appealing to Jiang Xin, but it was also attractive to Hua Yi's other artists.

Rumors said Hu Jing, Yao Chen, Hu Ke, and Luo Haiqiong were all vying for it, and even Hua Yi's internal team wasn't sure whether to cast Sun Honglei or Zhang Hanyu.

"Sun Honglei is more popular and has old ties with Xinbaoyuan, but Zhang Hanyu has a close personal relationship with Feng and is one of Hua Yi's own—it's hard to say."

"If Sun Honglei takes the role, your chances of being paired with him are higher. If Zhang Hanyu takes it, you're probably out."

Jiang Xin calmed down: "So my chances are slim?"

"Then you need to find a way to fight for it."

The agent looked at Jiang Xin, still a bit dazed, and pointed to the kiss mark on her collar.

"Get that guy to call Hua Yi—half the effort, double the result."

Jiang Xin was speechless: "Did you not wake up this morning? If it were Yi An's project, he could speak up—but why would Hua Yi listen to him? Everyone knows Feng Xiaogang was humiliated by him—doesn't he hold a grudge?"

"Still better than us just sitting here panicking."

The agent said: "Even if Hua Yi doesn't work out, at least you can talk to Sun Honglei. If he gets cast, and he strongly recommends you, maybe you'll make it."

"Non-Stop" isn't just any film—it's a major director's hot project. Even as a supporting role, it could benefit you more than starring in one or two ordinary movies.

The agent sincerely hoped Jiang Xin would seize this opportunity.

Yi An might be great, but many are watching it—Jiang Xin might not win out. Besides, doing a Hua Yi film won't stop you from competing for Yi An's resources later. Ten birds in the forest are worth less than one in hand—when you have a chance, grab it.

"Let me think."

Jiang Xin hesitated—she could ask Yan Li for help with Yi An's project, maybe even offer more favors. But Hua Yi would likely require Yan Li to spend a favor, and that meant something entirely different.

"First, ask the company—they can at least lend a hand."

Jiang Xin planned to start with Hai Run, feel out the situation, and only then turn to Yan Li if needed. The agent agreed—it was sensible. If it worked, great; if not, both sides pushing would make it more secure.

They tidied up at home, then drove to Hai Run to seek help from senior executives.

As soon as they entered the company, Jiang Xin ran into Li Xiaoran, who wore a mask and looked worn out. Seeing Jiang Xin, she nodded briefly and hurried away.

"Did she just greet me?"

Jiang Xin looked at her agent in confusion; the agent was equally puzzled: "Probably."

"Did she take the wrong pills?"

Jiang Xin couldn't help but comment—public rumors claimed she and Sun Li were fighting for the top female spot, so everyone assumed they hated each other.

But in reality, their relationship wasn't great, but not terrible either.

It was mainly professional rivalry and conflict, no personal grudge—just incompatibility, not enmity. Otherwise, Jiang Xin would never have considered joining "Empresses in the Palace."

Can you imagine Wang Ou playing a supporting role to Hu Siyan? She'd starve before she'd do it.

To some extent, their conflict was forced—partly competition over career resources, partly a power struggle between two factions behind the scenes.

Yes, Hai Run's artists were divided into factions.

Hai Run's artist management resembled the old Chengtian model: under Chang Jihong's team were Sun Li, Jiang Wenli, Liu Huohua, Wang Luodan, and others.

These artists were all personally cultivated by her; though their contracts were with Hai Run, her influence was extremely strong.

Now, Chang Jihong's contract with Hai Run was about to expire, and rumors said she might leave. When she did, many followers would likely go with her, possibly repeating the old pattern of Wang Jinghua and Hua Yi.

Of course, Hairun wasn't foolish—it had long prepared a backup, signing other artists besides Chang Jihong, such as Jiang Xin, Guo Tao, Tong Lei, Zhao Zihui, Lian Yiming, and others.

Thus, Hairun's artists were roughly divided into the Chang faction and the non-Chang faction.

After Jiang Xin's huge success in *The Hidden Story*, her fame surged, making her the representative of the non-Chang faction, and she was pushed to challenge Sun Li, the Chang faction's representative.

If Sun Li, Wang Luodan, and others left Hairun with Chang Jihong, Jiang Xin would immediately ascend to Hairun's top female star.

If Jiang Xin and Sun Li's conflict was purely professional with little personal animosity, then her rivalry with Li Xiaoran was both personal and professional.

First, Jiang Xin's rise threatened Li Xiaoran's position at the company; second, their acting styles somewhat clashed; third, both had blunt, straightforward personalities.

Well, Jiang Xin was clueless and lacked restraint; Li Xiaoran wasn't much better, and carried a touch of arrogance.

One was brainless, the other prickly—they already disliked each other, and with competing interests, they could never get along.

Before quarreling with Sun Li, Jiang Xin would meet her and, regardless of her true feelings, maintained a friendly facade.

But with Li Xiaoran, since Jiang Xin joined Hairun, aside from some initial interaction, they later went their separate ways, and eventually ignored each other completely; when in the mood, they'd exchange barbs—this was commonplace.

Precisely because of this, seeing Li Xiaoran in a good mood suddenly made Jiang Xin deeply uncomfortable—she even suspected the woman was setting a trap for her.

The agent glanced around and whispered, "I heard she's gotten into trouble—something serious. Even Boss Chang and Boss Liu stepped in and couldn't fix it."

Jiang Xin thought of the rumors circulating in the company: "Is it about her ex-boyfriend?"

She'd heard from company insiders that Li Xiaoran had a boyfriend who, after their breakup, kept harassing her and tormented her badly; this had negatively impacted her career over the past two years.

"Probably."

The agent glanced at Jiang Xin and whispered a warning: "Be careful yourself—if your guy did the same thing, with his influence, you wouldn't even be able to film a single scene."

"Heh."

Jiang Xin gave a bitter laugh: "I'd love for him to keep chasing me, but he'd probably forget me the moment he turned away."

Yan Li wasn't the kind of man who couldn't live without a woman—at least not without her.

Other people's affairs were none of her business, let alone those of an enemy; if she didn't gloat over Li Xiaoran's misfortune, that was already being decent.

She and her agent went on to chat with Hairun's executives, using *Empresses in the Palace* as leverage: if Hairun helped her secure the lead role in *If You Are the One 2*, she'd play a supporting role for Sun Li.

This was, in a sense, helping Sun Li raise her status—a small card Hairun could use to retain Sun Li as Chang Jihong prepared to leave.

As for whether this would affect Jiang Xin's own chances of becoming Hairun's top female star, frankly, she didn't care much.

Compared to being top star, she valued tangible resources more—and what Hairun could offer her fell far short of what Yan Li could.

In fact, Jiang Xin still stayed at Hairun only because Hairun planned to go public; seeing how Hua Yi Stars had profited massively, she wanted to taste the sweetness of being a celebrity shareholder.

After negotiations, Jiang Xin was reasonably satisfied with the attitude expressed by Hairun's executives, so she took her leave.

As she walked out, she ran into a Hairun producer, who immediately grabbed her and refused to let her go.

Jiang Xin sighed inwardly—this producer had a war-themed drama and was desperate to cast her as the lead.

Because she had better options and the role was too similar to Cui Ping, she feared being typecast and turned it down; yet the producer never gave up.

"Don't rush to refuse. Here's the deal—I've invited an actor to dinner. You come too—just help me take a look. We'll chat about the script, and if you still say no afterward, I'll accept it and stop bothering you."

This producer had once hired Jiang Xin before she became famous, and they had a decent relationship; she couldn't refuse too harshly, so she agreed.

And the actor the producer had invited was Qin Hailu.