After I died, they cried in the live studio

Chapter 20: Tit-for-tat, undercurrents surge

"What do you mean by my current situation? I'm just unlucky temporarily!" Lin Juanying interrupted the assistant with a roar, "And this skirt, it's as ugly as something sold at a street stall, can't you be more careful? I used to wear custom-made dresses when I walked on the red carpet, but now look, you've made me look like this!" She said as she pulled the skirt hard, as if she wanted to vent all her dissatisfaction on the clothing.

Lin Juanying was cursing vigorously when she suddenly caught a glimpse of Sang Shuwan's exquisite face and the expensive makeup equipment behind her. Her makeup was exquisite, her clothes were elegant, and she seemed to have her own aura. Her voice stopped abruptly, and jealousy and envy intertwined in her eyes. Her lips opened slightly, but she was speechless for a moment. She could only stand there blankly, her breathing became rapid due to anger and embarrassment. Sang Shuwan just stood there quietly, watching all this with cold eyes, without saying a word, but it seemed that there were thousands of words in this silence.

In this dressing room illuminated by bright lights, filled with the scent of powder and invisible smoke, Lin Juanying was like a proud but wounded peacock, shrouded in the shadow of scandal, but still trying to intimidate others with her remaining majesty. She crossed her arms, her well-maintained arms were tense due to the force, her fingers tightly clasped her upper arms, and her joints were slightly white. Her eyes were full of contempt and suspicion, like two cold rays of light, looking Sang Shuwan up and down wantonly, and then those sharp words were like poisoned sharp blades, pouring out from her slightly upturned mouth with bright lipstick on: "What level of little star are you? I have been in this entertainment industry for many years, and I have seen all kinds of storms. I am very familiar with all the channels and programs, but how come I have never seen someone like you on them? But look at your outfit, and the senior makeup artist following you. How can you be treated like an unknown person? This is too unreasonable."

Sang Shuwan raised his head slightly, with a faint smile on his face. The smile was like a ripple on the calm lake, seemingly gentle but not reaching his eyes. He just pulled the corners of his mouth politely and said, "My position in the entertainment industry does not need to be defined by a few lines. I am not interested in hanging around on the screen all day to attract attention and earn traffic like some people do. I only care about whether I can appear in the most perfect state when I really need to show myself." As he said, Sang Shuwan glanced at Lin Juanying intentionally or unintentionally, and there was a hint of deep meaning in his eyes, like an undercurrent quietly surging under the calm sea. "It's like, someone once struggled in this circle, and fortunately, with the full help of others, she was able to stand out and have countless flowers and applause, but she not only did not know how to be grateful, but for her own selfish desires, she used all means to frame the former benefactor and trampled on all the hard work and efforts of others. Do you think this kind of person is very hateful?"

Lin Juanying's face changed slightly, but she still pretended to be calm and raised her voice to refute: "Who are you insinuating here? Don't think you are so noble. Who can tell the truth about things in this circle?"

Sang Shuwan's eyes were fixed on Lin Juanying, watching her face gradually become ugly. Her cheeks, which originally looked fair due to makeup, now had an unnatural blush, as if someone had poked a hidden scar. Sang Shuwan then continued to speak slowly, "She thought she had done it perfectly, and thought that by bringing others down, she could stand at the top forever and enjoy wealth and glory. But she forgot that there is a saying in this world, 'It's not that there is no retribution, it's just that the time has not come yet.' All evil deeds will eventually have retribution come upon her."

At this moment, the atmosphere in the dressing room seemed to be tightly grasped by an invisible big hand. The air became heavy. Everyone stopped what they were doing and their eyes wandered between Sang Shuwan and Lin Juanying. However, Sang Shuwan seemed not to be aware of the oppressive atmosphere. She reached into her exquisite handbag calmly. The material of the handbag shone with a delicate luster under the light, which complemented her elegant movements. She took out a black card from it. The black card surface reflected a low-key and luxurious light under the light, as if silently showing Sang Shuwan's financial strength and confidence.

Sang Shuwan handed the black card to the staff member who was packing up her makeup tools and was afraid to make a sound, and her tone was as calm as if she was talking about today's weather: "Use this card to settle today's makeup expenses." Seeing this, the makeup artist at the side hurried forward, bent down slightly, respectfully took the black card with both hands, her eyes full of awe, and said softly: "Miss, I'll take care of it right away, please wait a moment." His humble attitude was in sharp contrast to his attitude towards Lin Juanying.

Lin Juanying's eyes were immediately attracted by the black card. Her eyes widened instantly, and a hint of surprise flashed in her eyes. The surprise flashed through her eyes like a flash of lightning, briefly breaking the arrogance on her face. Then she was full of jealousy and anger. Jealousy was like a poisonous snake crawling in her heart, gnawing at her reason, and anger was like a surging tide, instantly drowning her. Her face flushed red, as if she had been slapped hard. The bright red quickly spread to her ears, and then turned into blue-black in an instant. The color was just like the oppressive dark clouds before the storm, dull and terrifying. Her lips trembled slightly, and she wanted to say something to refute, but she found that her throat seemed to be choked by something, and she couldn't spit out a word. She knew very well in her heart that Sang Shuwan's words were talking about what she had done to her former agent, and this black card was like a sharp blade, piercing straight into her proud and vain heart.

The air around them seemed to freeze, leaving only the sound of Sang Shuwan calmly handling the payment. The "beep" sound from the card machine was particularly clear in the silent dressing room, as if it was a death knell in Lin Juanying's heart. Lin Juanying could only stand there, suppressing her inner anger and the shame that was about to burst out. Her hands unconsciously clenched into fists, her nails deeply embedded in her palms, but the sharp pain could not dispel the anger in her heart at all. Her body trembled slightly, like a leaf swaying in the wind, and her former pride and confidence had long disappeared without a trace.

"Do you think you can scare me like this?" Lin Juanying finally squeezed out these words from between her teeth, but her voice became hoarse with anger.

Sang Shuwan turned his head slightly, with a trace of pity in his eyes, "I don't mean to scare you, I just want you to understand that the evil cause you once planted has now begun to bear fruit."

"Hmph, I won't sit there and wait to die. Let's wait and see." Lin Juanying said gritting her teeth.

At this time, Lin Juanying's assistant Xiaolin hurried forward, rubbing her hands nervously in front of her, with a flattering smile on her face and a trembling voice: "Sister Ying, don't be angry, there is no need to argue with her, we have more important things to do." Then she turned to Sang Shuwan and said: "Miss, do you think there is any misunderstanding? We are all in this circle, we will see each other sooner or later, why make it so unpleasant." Sang Shuwan glanced at the assistant and smiled gently: "This is a grudge between her and me, it has nothing to do with you, you'd better not interfere."

However, Lin Juanying shook off the assistant's hand and said angrily: "What do you know! Shut up!" The assistant was so scared that he dared not say another word and silently stepped aside.

Sang Shuwan ignored them and fixed her makeup in front of the mirror. Her calm and composed appearance made Lin Juanying furious. At this moment, Lin Juanying felt mixed emotions, including resentment towards Sang Shuwan and unwillingness and helplessness towards her current situation. She knew that the feud between her and Sang Shuwan had just begun, and what awaited her in the future would be more unknown challenges and tortures.

Lin Juanying tried to suppress the turbulent waves in her heart and tried to maintain her calmness on the surface, but her slightly trembling body still betrayed her panic. She thought to herself that she must not let Sang Shuwan defeat her so easily, and she must find a way to reverse this unfavorable situation. However, her mind was in chaos, and the coping strategies that she had come up with seemed to have disappeared now, leaving only endless anger and unwillingness surging in her heart.

She looked at Sang Shuwan's calm face, and she was so angry that her teeth itched, but she could do nothing. "I will make you pay a heavy price for what you did today." Lin Juanying swore fiercely in her heart, with a resolute light flashing in her eyes. But this light seemed so powerless in the current predicament, like a candle that was about to go out in the dark, and could be swallowed by the desperate darkness at any time.

But right after Lin Juanying said this, she began to feel abdominal pain. Her originally arrogant expression was instantly distorted, the blood color on her face was gone, beads of sweat rolled down her forehead, smudged her delicate makeup.

Lin Juanying stood up, and suddenly she covered her stomach with her hands, a look of pain on her face. Her brows knitted, her lips trembled slightly, her face turned pale, and beads of sweat appeared on her forehead.

"Sister Ying, what's wrong with you?" the assistant hurriedly stepped forward and asked, with a hint of panic in his voice.

"My stomach hurts so much..." Lin Juanying said with difficulty, her body curled up involuntarily, and her hands tightly covering her stomach.

Sang Shuwan was secretly pleased when she saw this scene. She opened the door of the dressing room and walked out.

"Lin Juanying, this doesn't feel good, does it?" Sang Shuwan leaned against the door frame and said coldly. Her eyes were full of ridicule and the pleasure of revenge, and the corners of her mouth were slightly raised with a hint of contempt.

In the bathroom, the light was gleaming. Lin Juanying lay beside the toilet in a mess, her face as pale as paper, cold sweat pouring out of her forehead and sliding down her cheeks. Her makeup had long been washed away by sweat and tears. Her body was shaking violently, her hands tightly clutching her stomach, and her painful moans echoed in the small space.

(End of this chapter)