The Director’s Twisted Play

“Oh, really? Yet, I distinctly recall hearing music just now, and it was precisely the kind Xiang Qing enjoys.”

Gu Wei merely scoffed.

Caught in the act, she had no retort.

Shen Lanzhi’s calm, yet relentlessly pressing demeanor, provoked a mirthless laugh from Gu Wei.

Clicking her tongue, she abandoned all pretense of resistance.

She then whirled around, glaring at Xiang Qing inside the room, and barked out a curt command.

“What are you still gawking at?! Get out there and do your work!”

As if granted a grand pardon, Xiang Qing quickly ducked her head, swiftly darting between the two women and out of the room.

“My apologies, my apologies! I’ll get to cleaning immediately!”

Even as she fled the bedroom, she could still discern the conversation unfolding behind her.

“Gu Wei, I’m warning you, keep your distance from Xiang Qing.”

“Hmph, and who are you to tell me what to do? This is my home.”

‘These two formidable women are truly going to be the death of me.’

The oppressive atmosphere in the living room felt colder than an Arctic squall.

Clutching a feather duster, Xiang Qing retreated to a corner, doing her utmost to become as inconspicuous as possible.

It felt less like she was performing household chores and more like she was defusing landmines on a treacherous battlefield.

To her left, Shen Lanzhi, having claimed the strategic vantage point of the kitchen, meticulously polished an already immaculate glass countertop with a cloth.

Her seemingly gentle eyes, however, tracked Xiang Qing with the unwavering precision of a radar.

To her right, Gu Wei lay sprawled on the sofa, feigning preoccupation with official matters.

Though her phone screen glowed, her eyes, sharp enough to kill, glared intensely at both Xiang Qing and Shen Lanzhi from above the device.

‘Three individuals, a single, tense drama.’

Xiang Qing felt like the most unfortunate prop in this unfolding drama, susceptible to being dismantled and tossed into the fire by its two leading ladies at any given moment.

“Tsk.”

Finally, Gu Wei’s patience snapped.

She flung her phone onto the sofa with a resounding thud, the sudden noise nearly causing the feather duster to leap from Xiang Qing’s trembling hands.

“This is infuriating! I’m going to the company!”

Gu Wei abruptly sprang to her feet, her high heels clacking a furious rhythm as she stormed into the bedroom with an air of fierce determination.

Xiang Qing and Shen Lanzhi exchanged a swift glance, each discerning in the other’s eyes the profound relief of having narrowly escaped a catastrophe.

‘Excellent!’

‘That formidable presence is finally departing!’

A mere few minutes later, the bedroom door swung open once more.

Gu Wei emerged, now clad in a sharply tailored black suit, her hair elegantly swept into a high bun.

In her hand, she clutched an Hermès bag that unmistakably exuded exorbitant value.

Her entire demeanor projected an undeniable aura of power, making her appear every inch the formidable female CEO poised to acquire a rival corporation.

Reaching the doorway, she slipped on her high heels.

Before stepping out, she deliberately turned, casting Shen Lanzhi a look that clearly promised, ‘You haven’t seen the last of this.’

“Bang!”

The door slammed shut with a resounding finality.

‘Finally, the world was at peace.’

Xiang Qing exhaled a long, shuddering breath, feeling the crushing weight on her shoulders dissipate in an instant.

“Xiang Qing, did she frighten you?” Shen Lanzhi approached, tenderly stroking her head.

“Don’t be afraid; that’s just how she is.”

Just as Xiang Qing opened her mouth to speak, her phone buzzed with a sudden vibration in her pocket.

She pulled it out, and her eyes widened in utter disbelief.

Sender: Gu Wei.

Content: [Come down, buy groceries!]

‘She even has remote control capabilities?!’

Xiang Qing’s face instantly crumpled.

“What’s the matter, Xiang Qing?” Shen Lanzhi inquired, her voice laced with concern.

“N-nothing at all,” Xiang Qing managed a smile that looked more like a grimace.

“CEO Gu said… she’ll be returning for lunch, and asked me to pick up some groceries.”

Shen Lanzhi’s brow furrowed instantly.

“I’ll accompany you.”

“Oh, no, please don’t!” Xiang Qing quickly waved her hands in protest.

“Sister Lanzhi, your health isn’t great, and don’t you need your medicine and rest? It’s just a quick trip for groceries; I can manage it perfectly fine on my own, and I’m quite fast!”

She dreaded the thought of Shen Lanzhi following, fearing it would only ignite yet another bloody confrontation.

“You just rest well at home.

When I return, I’ll cook up something special for you!” Xiang Qing promised, patting her chest with conviction.

Shen Lanzhi considered her words, found them reasonable, and nodded in agreement.

“Then hurry back safely.”

“Alrighty!”

Feeling as though she had been granted a reprieve, Xiang Qing swiftly changed her clothes and burst out of the house like a whirlwind.

****

Yet, her innocence proved to be her undoing.

The moment she stepped beyond the community gates, a gleaming black Maserati materialized beside her, as silently as a specter.

The car window slowly descended, revealing Gu Wei’s impassive face, framed by dark sunglasses.

“Get in.”

Xiang Qing’s heart plummeted.

‘I’m utterly doomed.’

Trembling, she gingerly pulled open the car door and slid inside, so rattled that she completely forgot to fasten her seatbelt.

“C-CEO Gu, weren’t you heading to the company?”

“The company is hardly as vital as you are.” Gu Wei removed her sunglasses, turning her head to fix her gaze upon Xiang Qing, a playful smirk curving her lips.

“Quite the performance, wasn’t it? You had Shen Lanzhi completely placated with just a few words.”

Xiang Qing offered two weak, dry laughs, not daring to utter a word.

“Go on now.

The wet market is just up ahead; buy the ingredients for lunch.” Gu Wei gestured forward.

“Oh, right, okay.”

Just as Xiang Qing prepared to exit the car, Gu Wei’s voice halted her once more.

“Once you return,” Gu Wei paused, then delivered a veritable bombshell.

“You are to pursue a romantic relationship with Shen Lanzhi.”

“Huh?”

Xiang Qing was utterly petrified, body and mind frozen.

She instinctively dug in her ears, gravely suspecting she was experiencing auditory hallucinations.

“CEO Gu… what did you just say? I… I didn’t quite catch that…”

“I said,” Gu Wei’s voice edged with impatience, “I want you to pursue Shen Lanzhi, to date her, and to make her believe that you are utterly captivated by her gentle and virtuous facade.”

‘What in the world kind of scheme is this?!’

‘She wants me to essentially hand myself over to my romantic rival? Is this some twisted new form of role-playing?’

Xiang Qing cautiously regarded Gu Wei, her gaze filled with the wary suspicion one might reserve for a deranged individual.

“Um… CEO Gu, if I may be so bold as to ask… are your tastes somewhat… unconventional?”

She struggled to articulate her thoughts.

“It’s just… do you perhaps enjoy watching… watching your own person… with someone else… you know… while you observe from the side…?”

Gu Wei’s face darkened considerably.

She extended a finger and flicked Xiang Qing’s forehead, a light yet firm tap.

“What sort of utter nonsense constantly fills that little head of yours?!”

“Do I truly seem like the type to have a cuckold fetish?”

‘Xiang Qing nodded frantically in her mind: Yes! Absolutely!’

“Let me tell you, I’m about to orchestrate something truly grand.” Gu Wei’s lips curled into a smile once more, a wild and cruel expression.

“I intend to utterly dismantle Shen Lanzhi, psychologically.”

“I want her to first believe she has triumphed, to think you are utterly devoted to her, to believe she has finally bested me.”

“Then, when she is utterly submerged in the euphoria of victory, soaring to her highest point…”

Gu Wei leaned closer to Xiang Qing, her voice dropping to a low, conspiratorial whisper.

“I will then snatch you away, directly before her eyes.”

“Don’t you agree that witnessing her perpetually serene, deceptive face contort with a fury born of jealousy and anger would be an utterly exhilarating experience?”

A cold sweat instantly slicked Xiang Qing’s skin.

‘She understood now!’

‘This woman is no mere madwoman!’

‘She is the ultimate, evolved psychopath!’

‘What she truly relishes is not possession, but absolute destruction!’

‘I’m not some mere prey; I’m nothing more than bait! I’m the disposable tool she intends to use to lure Shen Lanzhi, only to then snap the fishing rod directly in front of the caught fish!’

‘Indeed, there is nothing more venomous than a woman’s heart! The ancients truly spoke no lie!’

‘This 52,000 in workers’ compensation is utterly insufficient to cover the cost of my very life!’

‘This absolutely necessitates additional workers’ compensation, mental distress compensation, and a high-risk occupation allowance!’

“Therefore,” Gu Wei’s voice abruptly yanked Xiang Qing back from her spiraling reverie.

Her cool fingertips delicately traced Xiang Qing’s jawline, eliciting an involuntary shiver.

“From this moment forward, you are to be utterly compliant with her every whim, to make her fall deeply in love with you, to render her utterly dependent on your presence.”

“The performance must be impeccably convincing.”

Gu Wei’s face drew even closer, her warm breath ghosting across Xiang Qing’s cheek.

“Should you botch this performance, or… allow her to discern any flaw prematurely…”

“I would not hesitate to let you experience firsthand the true meaning of ‘torment’.”

Xiang Qing remained rigid in the Maserati’s passenger seat.

‘She wants me to pursue Shen Lanzhi?’

‘And make the performance utterly convincing?’

‘This transcends mere workplace bullying; this is a mandate to infiltrate the enemy’s ranks as an undercover agent, only to ultimately detonate the bomb with my own hands, sacrificing myself to take them down!’

‘What did she mean by ‘utterly dismantling Shen Lanzhi psychologically’?’

‘And what about ‘kicking her down just as she reaches her highest point’?’

‘This woman doesn’t have a cuckold fetish; she desires a live-action rendition of ‘Empresses in the Palace‘! And she intends to be the sole director!’

‘So, I’m to be the ill-fated An Lingrong in this twisted drama, am I?’

“Do you comprehend?” Gu Wei’s impossibly beautiful face was now inches from hers, her voice imbued with an undeniable, imperious command.

Xiang Qing’s head bobbed frantically, like a pestle pounding garlic.

“U-understood…”