Chapter 37: Younger Puppy-Like Guy

  As soon as Ye Xian returned to the hotel, she started looking up information about Workpce Storm.

  She wouldn’t have been bothered—until she found out… the female lead was Cheng Jingshu.

  Talk about enemies meeting on a narrow road.

  Ye Xian cracked open a bottle of Yakult and started binge-watching the drama at double speed.

  The plot followed a poor young woman who, after graduating from university, moved alone to a big city and began working from the very bottom. She faced numerous hardships and setbacks, but with the help of the male lead, eventually grew into a capable and successful white-colr worker.

  This kind of female-centric workpce drama usually does well in the market. With Cheng Jingshu—who had just won a prestigious Bai Yun award—and a strong male lead, the show initially saw high ratings when it aired.

  But gradually, ratings plummeted, and audience feedback took a nosedive.

  Why? Ye Xian quickly figured it out.

  Though the show cimed to be about “empowering female comebacks,” in reality, it was filled with petty drama, emotional abuse, and exhausting melodrama.

  Especially the male lead’s toxic second female—Ning Xiner. She was born into a prestigious family, brilliant and ruthless, and relentlessly tormented the female lead because she liked the male lead.

  Threats, snder, scheming—she used every dirty trick in the book, and worst of all, they all worked.

  She repeatedly made the female lead cry, constantly drove wedges between the lead couple, and successfully caused setback after setback.

  The frustrating plot made viewers boil with rage.

  Where was the promised triumphant comeback? The satisfying revenge arcs?

  Where was the sweet romance?

  What was this nonsense? Watching this show was nothing but a test of patience!

  Soon enough, fans flooded the show’s official social media with compints, demanding that the second female lead be written out of the show—otherwise, they’d stop watching altogether.

  But Ning Xiner pyed a critical role in the plot. She couldn’t just be written off so easily.

  Fortunately, Workpce Storm was a weekly show, filmed using a rolling production model that had become popur in recent years. This allowed producers to tweak the storyline in real time based on viewer feedback to prevent narrative colpse and recover ratings.

  To salvage the situation, the writers decided: if they couldn’t remove Ning Xiner, they’d at least give her a new romantic arc. That way, she wouldn’t keep interfering with the lead couple.

  The new character Ye Xian was auditioning for was just that: Gu Chen, a wealthy young heir who falls head-over-heels in love with Ning Xiner and persistently pursues her—a cssic “younger puppy-like guy.”

  The production team had already posted casting details online. The open audition would be held in three days at the Sunshine Media Building.

  Requirements: Age no older than 22, clean and delicate appearance, well-defined features, and prior acting experience.

  Although this was a small role—barely even a named supporting part—and although she wasn’t exactly fond of Cheng Jingshu as the female lead, this opportunity was crucial for Ye Xian. It was her first real chance to step back into the spotlight and rewrite her public image.

  She had to get it.

  After all, even small roles can shine brightly.

  —

  Three days ter, at the Sunshine Media Building.

  Inside the first-floor audition hall, the director, producer, and screenwriter of Workpce Storm were all seated below the stage.

  On stage, a young male actor was giving it his all.

  “Wan’er, will you accept my confession? Please, believe me—I truly love you!”

  The actor dropped to one knee, holding the actress’s hand tightly, his eyes filled with hope and urgency, longing for her response to his passionate love.