Chapter 12 – Behind the Golden Curtain
The three-month partnership turned Xiao Xi's life into a corporate hurricane.
Gu Yanzhou's team executed the plan with the chilling precision of a military operation. The once-empty, easily manageable schedule of the D-list actress overflowed instantly:
exclusive magazine talk shows,
high-end fashion photoshoots,
and lucrative sponsorship deals with companies surprisingly affiliated with Gu Yanzhou's massive conglomerate.
The public saw a brilliant, dedicated star rising from the ashes, backed by powerful, legitimate resources.
Xiao Xi adapted flawlessly, using her 'Charm of Persuasion' skill to turn standard interview questions into viral soundbites, maintaining a carefully curated image of humble professionalism mixed with sharp wit.
But in the shadows, the backlash was building.
Lin Yueran's gentle, golden smile grew perceptibly colder with every one of Xiao Xi's magazine covers.
"She's stealing everything that should've been mine," Lin hissed to her hapless agent in a private dressing room, her voice tight with suppressed rage.
Lin Yueran was still popular, but she was now undeniably playing second fiddle to the 'Comeback Queen.
' "I was the protagonist! I was meant to shine! Get me an exclusive too, I don't care how.
Get me the backing of someone bigger than Gu Yanzhou."
Lin's agent wrung his hands.
"Miss Lin, Gu Yanzhou is one of the world's most powerful CEOs. There is no one bigger."
Lin Yueran merely glared, her eyes burning with the envy that the System had warned Xiao Xi about.
Meanwhile, in the controlled environment of Gu Yanzhou's temporary office near the set, the CEO was personally overseeing every detail of Xiao Xi's new brand identity.
He watched her work, testing the limits of her dedication.
It was long past midnight.
She was hunched over a script, practicing lines for a new commercial shoot, her voice a low, steady murmur. Gu Yanzhou put down his tablet, the light reflecting in his pensive eyes.
"Do you even rest, Xiao Xi?" he asked, a touch of genuine concern in his voice.
It wasn't the voice of a business partner; it was the voice of a fellow survivor.
She didn't look up, her focus absolute.
"Rest is for people who don't have revenge plans."
He chuckled softly, a rare sound in the austere office.
"And what exactly is yours?
To be a national superstar?"
Xiao Xi finally lifted her head, meeting his gaze.
Her eyes were deep, serious, reflecting the city lights.
"To rewrite the story that killed me.
Every word of it, Mr. Gu.
I won't let fate decide my ending again."
For a heartbeat, silence filled the room, thick with the weight of shared, unspoken knowledge—the betrayal, the fire, the truck accident.
He saw the same cold, burning clarity in her eyes that he saw in his own reflection.
It was the absolute commitment to never being a victim again.
Gu Yanzhou leaned back in his chair, a profound understanding passing between them.
He wasn't just working with an actress; he was working with an equal, a fellow refugee from the ruins of a failed timeline.
Neither of them noticed the System flickering faintly on Xiao Xi's internal display—a subtle, digital measurement of their collective power to alter the world:
[Timeline deviation: 28%. Deviation accelerating due to Prime Variable collaboration.]
Gu Yanzhou nodded slowly.
"Then let's write ourselves an epic, Xiao Xi. One where the victims become the villains."
He had initially planned to use her as a distraction, a shield.
Now, he found himself genuinely fascinated, driven to see just how high this 'cannon fodder' could fly.
The revenge was no longer just about his lost empire; it was about protecting this unpredictable, compelling ally who had defied death just like he had.