Chapter 734: Jiaojiao 14

With that, Old Cai picked up his medical kit and left. He was actually quite pleased. Scum like Ye Rong and Yuan Sheng should have been dealt with long ago.

Now that they were down on their luck, Old Cai was nothing but happy. Why would he possibly toil away for them?

Therefore, Old Cai shirked all responsibility. No matter what anyone asked, he claimed ignorance—and in truth, he really didn’t know anything.

That morning, when Chen Jiao got up to practice her fundamentals, Tan You sent her the video. Seeing them in such a flustered state filled Chen Jiao with glee.

She was stretching one of her legs, her torso pressed flat against the yoga mat. "Serves them right. They had it coming."

Tan You: "Ye Rong and Yuan Sheng are managing to keep their composure, more or less. But Zhang Ping’s life is now on a countdown. He’ll definitely come begging you today. What’s your plan?"

Chen Jiao: "Didn’t we already settle this yesterday? Reparations. I’ve thought it through now. Instead of letting Ye Rong and the others keep those people around to hurt more innocents, I’d rather take them over and have them do some actual good."

"At least I genuinely want to do some good, unlike Ye Rong and his crew, who are rotten to the core."

Hearing her just call them "bad" over and over again, Tan You couldn’t help but frown. "Your vocabulary is a little pathetic. Starting today, you’ll read for an extra two hours every day."

Chen Jiao pouted and was on the verge of protesting, but she held her tongue. She wasn’t someone who couldn’t recognize good intentions. Tan You was doing this for her own good, not just pretending to help while seeking personal gain. Chen Jiao could see that much clearly.

Tan You was a little surprised. She hadn’t expected the little slacker to actually comply without protest.

Chen Jiao saw Tan You’s expression and shifted her position. "I know I shouldn’t take your kindness for granted, and reading more really is beneficial. It’s just... I can’t bring myself to do it. The moment I pick up a book, I get drowsy."

Tan You raised an eyebrow. "It’s fine. If you can’t read it, I can convert it into an audiobook. You’ll get the information one way or another."

Chen Jiao suddenly sat up on her knees and draped herself over the armchair where Tan You was sitting. "Teacher, don’t you have that... *zap* ability? Why don’t you just give me a little *zap zap*, and then everything will be imprinted in my brain?"

Tan You tapped her on the head. "In your dreams. Get back to your stretches. Nothing worth having should come too easily, or you’ll just get lazy."

Chen Jiao grumbled, "Fine, fine. I knew you were the strictest teacher. But if I fall asleep while reading, don’t you go blaming me."

"I won’t blame you," Tan You said, flicking her fingers. "There are always ways."

Chen Jiao shivered involuntarily. She believed that when her teacher said there was a way, there was *definitely* a way. She just couldn’t imagine what kind of torture awaited her.

Around eight o’clock, Chen Jiao arrived at the film set on time. She had a lot of scenes today and had been running around nonstop since she got there. Between makeup, filming, touch-ups, and memorizing her script, Chen Jiao hadn’t had a moment to rest.

But around ten o’clock, a motorcade of seven or eight cars suddenly pulled up outside the film set, and nearly thirty people got out. Leading the pack were Ye Rong and Yuan Sheng, followed by Zhang Ping and their various lackeys.

And every single one of them, without exception, was decked out in a suit, vest, and sunglasses. The whole spectacle was quite intimidating.

Chen Jiao froze. Looking at their getups, she felt her toes curl with secondhand embarrassment. She enjoyed being the center of attention on stage, but in her real life, Chen Jiao really didn’t need this kind of spectacle.

The moment she saw the formation, Chen Jiao knew they were here for her. ’This is so awkward. Others might think this looks impressive, but I just find it incredibly cringey.’

Ye Rong, Yuan Sheng, and their group strode in as if they owned the place. They pushed aside crew members, scanned the area to locate Chen Jiao, and then marched purposefully in her direction.

Chen Jiao, who was sitting on a small stool, hesitated. Her first instinct was to flee. ’Getting involved with gangsters like these will just drag my name through the mud for no reason.’

Unfortunately, Ye Rong, Yuan Sheng, and their entourage moved too quickly. Before Chen Jiao could even get up, they were already standing before her. The actors, crew members, the assistant director—everyone on set had stopped working and was now staring in their direction.

Chen Jiao took a deep breath, not forgetting to complain to Tan You in her mind: "Now I think I understand what it means to be so embarrassed you could cringe a castle out of the ground."

"These people are so... over-the-top..."

Tan You replied: "To save their own skins, they’ll do anything. What does losing a little face matter? You could even call them adaptable. You need to stand firm. Don’t give in and go soft on them."

"Don’t worry, I won’t," Chen Jiao replied, clenching her fists. "I’m not some goody-two-shoes."

With that, Chen Jiao’s spine went ramrod straight. She stared directly at Ye Rong and Yuan Sheng before her, her gaze finally shifting to land on Zhang Ping.

When their eyes met, Zhang Ping flinched. He stole a glance at Ye Rong and Yuan Sheng ahead of him, then looked back at Chen Jiao on her little stool. His knees went soft, and he looked like he was about to drop to the ground.

Yuan Sheng saw this from the corner of his eye and shot Zhang Ping a sideways glance. Zhang Ping immediately straightened up, as if that spineless weakling just now hadn’t been him at all.

The situation was now strangely delicate. Chen Jiao sat alone in her chair, facing thirty-odd large men, every one of them taller and more built than she was. And yet, she was the one who held the upper hand. No one could tear their eyes away from her.

Liu Fu started to come over to ask about the situation, but Chen Jiao waved him away. "This is a personal matter. I won’t drag the film crew into it." Then, turning to the men, she asked, "Are you gentlemen looking for me?"

Ye Rong glared at Chen Jiao, his eyes exceptionally vicious, as if he could intimidate her with his gaze alone. But Chen Jiao met his stare without flinching, refusing to show any fear. She knew that if she showed any weakness now, people like Ye Rong would just take a mile for every inch she gave.

As they continued to lock eyes, Chen Jiao’s expression slowly turned ruthless. She subconsciously channeled her character, the female lead of *Prison Tyrant*. Chen Jiao had never been able to grasp this feeling before, but now, she seemed to finally be getting a handle on it.

Observing the scene, Tan You gave the Beauty System a mental signal. The Beauty System immediately started recording the look in her eyes. Even though this wasn’t for a real take, her current state was the best Tan You had ever seen.

Ye Rong was surprised that Chen Jiao could actually stand up to his glare. In fact, the longer they stared, the more ferocious her own gaze became, as if she wanted to rip him to shreds.

Seeing things were going poorly, Yuan Sheng stepped forward and interjected, "Miss Chen, we’ve come today to offer you our sincerest apologies."

Chen Jiao shot Ye Rong a final glare, then turned her attention to Yuan Sheng. "What exactly happened between us? What could you possibly have to apologize to me for?"

Yuan Sheng’s expression froze. ’Wasn’t she just some eighteen-year-old girl? How can she be so slippery?’ Little did he know that before she came to the set, Chen Jiao had rehearsed with Tan You at length, determined not to let Yuan Sheng lead her around by the nose.

Yuan Sheng glanced at the cast and crew members nearby, then looked back at Chen Jiao. "Miss Chen, would it be possible for us to speak somewhere more private?"