Qiao An'an cowered in her room, trembling at the incessant pounding on the door outside.
While she was on set filming, an unidentified, slightly stout woman had stormed into the makeup room with a group of people. Without any explanation, she had been forced to the ground and beaten.
"Qiao An'an, you shameless woman, how dare you seduce my fiancé!"
Qiao An'an was stunned by the assault. Her freshly done hair was a mess, and her scalp throbbed painfully. Worse, they had tried to strip her clothes off to take compromising photos and expose them.
Clutching her costume tightly, Qiao An'an curled into a ball.
She resisted their pulling and shouting for her assistant. "Are you dead? Come over here and pull them off!"
Her assistant was already petrified and frozen in place.
"Who dares to step forward and help!" the plump woman glared menacingly at the surroundings.
Seeing her demeanor, the assistant didn't dare to move closer; in fact, she retreated further, afraid of getting involved.
She was assigned to Qiao An'an by the company. The company paid her, and she had no intention of offending these people for Qiao An'an.
With no one coming to Qiao An'an's aid, the plump woman grew rougher.
She only stopped kicking when she grew tired and found a chair to sit down. Her followers also watched with glee, as if watching a show.
"I thought she was supposed to be beautiful, but she's nothing special!" the plump woman looked down at the bruised and battered Qiao An'an with disdain.
"I have no quarrel with you, why are you doing this to me!" Qiao An'an struggled to sit up after a long while. She glared at the plump woman, wishing she could pounce and tear her apart.
"Why? It seems I haven't taught you enough! This little vixen doesn't even know what she did wrong!" The plump woman extended her fleshy hand and cruelly pinched Qiao An'an's chin.
Qiao An'an yelped in pain. "Who knows who you are!"
The plump woman arrogantly raised her head, and one of her followers immediately announced loudly, "Before you stands Miss Fang Zhi'en, the daughter of the Hongji Group!"
"Miss Fang is the fiancée of the Third Young Master Qi, and his future wife!"
Hearing this, Qiao An'an finally understood the reason for the beating.
Damn it!
She cursed under her breath.
That pervert Qi Zhao actually had his fiancée come looking for her!
"Now you know why you're being beaten, don't you?" Fang Zhi'en said contemptuously.
"Miss Fang, you've misunderstood, I didn't..."
*Slap!* Before Qiao An'an could finish speaking, she was slapped again.
Qiao An'an covered her face and glared at Fang Zhi'en indignantly.
"You still dare to argue! I know everything about your sordid deeds!" Seeing that Qiao An'an remained unrepentant, Fang Zhi'en sneered and took out a stack of photos from her bag.
As the photos scattered on the floor, Qiao An'an's face grew paler.
They were photos of her being abused by Qi Zhao, many of them revealing and even explicit. How did these photos end up in Miss Fang's hands?
"Aren't you curious how I got these photos?" Fang Zhi'en smirked coldly. "I've seen plenty of women like you. You'll throw yourself at any man for money!"
"You don't know this, do you? I found that room for him, and it was filled with cameras. I could see everything you did!"
Qiao An'an's face turned even whiter upon hearing this.
It was bad enough to be tormented by that pervert Qi Zhao, but to have it broadcast live to someone else! Qi Zhao was a pervert, and this woman named Fang was no saint either!
This was simply a nightmare.
"Tell me, what do you think people will think of you if I release these photos?"
"Won't your mask of purity crumble to dust?"
Qiao An'an trembled uncontrollably, whether from fear or anger, she didn't know.
Seeing her fear, Fang Zhi'en's face lit up with triumph. She leaned down and whispered in Qiao An'an's ear, "In the eyes of the Third Young Master, you're just a plaything! Don't expect anything more!"
Despite Qiao An'an's mistreatment, no one around dared to speak up.
This was because Miss Fang had recently donated a sum of money to the film crew, effectively buying their silence.
Qiao An'an, who was usually so feisty, was already unpopular. Many people even gloated and some even took out their phones to record her miserable state and share it with friends.
Qiao An'an's current misery was directly proportional to her previous arrogance.
After teaching her a lesson, Fang Zhi'en left haughtily.
Qiao An'an slumped to the ground, weeping silently.
One moment she was a pampered young lady, the next she had become a laughingstock. Such a drastic fall was unbearable for her prideful nature.
"Qiao An'an, are you alright?" the director asked, as if he had watched enough of the drama. "If you can't continue, I'll have to replace you."
Qiao An'an had a scene coming up where she had to chase and fall. Normally, the crew would have placed padding to make it look like a fake fall. But given the current situation, she would likely have to suffer.
Qiao An'an lowered her eyes, suppressing her anger. "Director, I can do it!"
She pushed herself up from the ground and limped towards the makeup mirror. "I might need some time to touch up my makeup."
"No need, I think you look fine," the director interrupted her. "Your character is supposed to look like this; it makes it more authentic."
The director's words were met with soft laughter from the surrounding crew.
Qiao An'an clenched her fists tightly, unwilling to be kicked out of the crew just like this.
After the recent hardships, she had finally come to terms with reality. The moment Qi Zhao stopped answering her calls, she knew she no longer had any special privileges.
If she refused to act, she would never have a chance to make a comeback.
She couldn't lose this role.
So, she endured the pain and went to the set, gritting her teeth and running desperately forward.
"Cut! You're being chased, running this slow looks too fake!"
"Cut! Pay attention to your expression, do it again!"
"Cut! You fell too soon!"
"Cut! No, the camera is blocked, again!"
And so, the director called cut repeatedly, and Qiao An'an fell again and again. After more than ten takes, they barely managed to pass.
By the time filming wrapped up, Qiao An'an was covered in bruises.
Her assistant approached with iodine to treat her wounds, but Qiao An'an didn't even flinch.
Such endurance was rare.
Unfortunately, Qiao An'an hadn't seen the full picture. Since the Third Young Master Qi's fiancée had come looking for her, how could she possibly allow her to remain on set?
This Miss Fang was indeed ruthless.
She made Qiao An'an complete her scenes. Only when filming was finished was she notified that she had been removed from the crew. Her role would be taken by someone else. In essence, all the suffering and hardship Qiao An'an had endured was in vain!
When Qiao An'an received the notice, her eyes rolled back, and she fainted.