Chapter 497: Chapter 497

Pausing briefly, Jian Xia’s gaze fleetingly passed over Su Yingxue, who stood beside the vice director, and her lips curled into a faint smile. However, that smile seemed to carry a hint of sarcasm as she directly spoke, "Or do you think Miss Su, being the young lady of the Su Group and an artist under the CK Corporation banner, means you find her face more important than Miss Zuo’s?"

As soon as she finished speaking, an individual resembling a junior assistant quickly approached Jian Xia and started whispering in her ear.

Su Yingxue noticed the assistant’s subtle glance at herself, and for reasons unknown, her heart skipped a beat, filling her with a sense of ominous foreboding.

For a moment, nobody spoke on set, though everyone was aware of Jian Xia’s identity, which took many who were unacquainted with Jian Xia by surprise.

They might not know Jian Xia, but it didn’t mean they hadn’t heard of her.

After the assistant finished talking, Jian Xia’s expression turned somewhat ugly, but then, as if thinking of something amusing, she looked up again at the people opposite her, her eyes full of scorn—mockery aimed at Vice Director He and Su Yingxue. She said bluntly, "I’m already aware of the incident earlier. Honestly speaking, Miss Su’s role is dispensable, and as for that investment, the Su Group can very well withdraw it. Have you forgotten that besides being a popular Actress, Miss Zuo is also friends with President Lu of the CK Corporation, oh... and Miss Zuo is a good friend of mine as well. Vice Director He, you are an employee under me, do you really intend to cross swords with my friend?"

Upon hearing Jian Xia’s words, the vice director’s face went through several changes, turning now green, now white, a spectacle indeed.

She indeed intended to shelter Su Yingxue, having received numerous favors from the Su Family, and as an ambitious person, she would not openly clash with the director otherwise.

The most important thing was that the Su Family had specifically instructed her to take good care of Su Yingxue in the crew, and she believed that Su Yingxue, being the young lady of the Su Family and her parents the chairpersons of the Su Group, had better prospects than just an Actress with no substantial background. However, she had forgotten that although the Su Group invested in this drama, it was just a minimal investment; Huayi Media was the primary investor in this series, followed by various other companies promoting their products. Su Group had only gained a small opportunity to invest later on.

Especially now, as Jian Xia looked at her with an amused smile, she belatedly realized that to Huayi Media, the Su Group amounted to very little. Moreover, even though Yuqing had no background, Yuqing was Lu Jingchen’s first love, and although Master Lu was married now, it seemed he still had a good relationship with Yuqing. At least as of yesterday, Lu Jingchen made quite a spectacle by sending food and drinks to everyone on the pretext of visiting Yuqing, signifying the good terms between her and Master Lu.

In An City, the CK Corporation nearly monopolized half of the economic development, and countless people wanted to forge relations with Master Lu.

The vice director now felt the ominous premonition growing clearer in her mind, her face becoming even paler.

Last night, because of the matter concerning Su Yingxue, the chairman of the Su Group had someone deliver a bank card to her with several hundred thousand yuan on it, saying it was to ensure she took good care of Su Yingxue, which influenced her heated confrontation with the director today.

Jian Xia distinctly noticed the vice director’s changing expressions, her eyes brimming with irony. She was certainly aware of the vice director’s antics, having turned a blind eye to them until now.

After leaving the set, Lu Jingchen took out his phone, where he had already installed a tracking app on Song Qiao’s phone. Whenever he wanted to know her whereabouts, he simply checked his phone.

This was purely because after Song Qiao had disappeared last time, taken away by Chu Munan, he had done this to ensure he could find her should she ever run away from home again.

It didn’t take long before the phone displayed Song Qiao’s location.

Seeing the displayed location, Lu Jingchen’s eyes darkened, and he sat silently in the car for a few minutes before Cai Zhijie started the vehicle.

Half an hour later, the car stopped outside a hotel. Looking up at the lavish decor of the five-star establishment, Lu Jingchen didn’t seem pleased.

He looked down again at the map coordinates displayed on his phone, confirming that this was indeed where Song Qiao’s phone was located. ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ 𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭•𝔣𝔦𝔯𝔢•𝓷𝓮𝓽

Smoothly steering the wheel, he drove the car to the hotel’s entrance where the doorman promptly came forward to help open the door. Lu Jingchen stepped out and handed his keys to the doorman, who then drove the car away to park it.

The hotel lobby’s decor was simple and modern but did not lack a sense of luxury, making it clear that its patrons were wealthy and noble.

This hotel was called "Zhi Nian", its name both literary and profound. It had only been opened in An City for a few years, but it had risen rapidly to become one of the most prestigious hotels in An City, a first choice for many celebrities, corporate executives, and wealthy tourists.

Moreover, Lu Jingchen knew that the shadowy owner of the hotel was Chu Munan!

Lu Jingchen didn’t head directly towards the elevators or the front desk; instead, as soon as he entered the lobby, he stopped and looked around before dialing a number.

The phone rang for a while, almost reaching the point of automatic disconnection, when a voice at last came from the other end, "Hello?"

Lu Jingchen’s expression was somber, as if containing anger, his voice sounded even more indifferent, "Where is she?"

The man on the phone paused, immediately recognizing Lu Jingchen’s voice and couldn’t help but sneer, "President Lu, what are you saying? I don’t understand!"

Yet, Lu Jingchen had no intent to skirt around the issue, speaking directly, "Chu Munan, don’t play dumb with me. Where is Song Qiao? She’s still my wife, after all. It doesn’t seem appropriate for you and my wife to meet in a hotel, does it? Tell me where she is!"

For a moment, Chu Munan on the phone was taken aback.

He hadn’t expected Lu Jingchen to know that he had brought Song Qiao to the hotel.