Chapter 56: I Don't Mind Having Another Adopted Daughter

For Liu Yifei and Dong Jie, Chen Siyuan sitting on the sidelines was like a heavy critical-hit aura.

As for Chen Kun, however, it was practically his day of crucifixion.

As the male lead, he had to take turns enduring the critical hits from two women.

It was an experience that felt both painful and wonderful.

Chen Siyuan still felt quite gratified.

Whether it was Liu Yifei or Dong Jie, their performances were vastly superior to those in the original timeline.

And he was the greatest contributor to this outcome.

Chen Siyuan turned his head to glance at Li Dawei.

At this moment, Director Li was glowing with health and radiating boundless confidence.

Apart from Dong Jie and Liu Yifei, the one who benefited the most from this version of *The Story of a Noble Family* was Li Dawei himself.

In this lifetime, Li Dawei would undoubtedly walk a much smoother path than he did in the original timeline.

Back then, quite a few critics had launched fierce attacks on *The Story of a Noble Family*.

This was because Li Dawei had heavily romanticized and beautified the romance within the story.

The original novel by Zhang Henshui was far more cruel than its television adaptation.

However, Chen Siyuan quite liked the current TV version of *The Story of a Noble Family*.

It maintained that ethereal, aesthetic feel.

No!

To be precise, it even surpassed it!

The costume and makeup design in this version of the drama was far more exquisite than in the original timeline.

The outfits for the main characters were all custom-made.

No matter which set of clothes you looked at, you could never find even a trace of cheapness.

It exuded sheer luxury and elegance!

It was worth mentioning that the female lead Dong Jie's wardrobe had suffered a few instances of damage.

This had once left Li Dawei quite displeased.

Actually, Li Dawei was a pretty decent guy to get along with.

A man of passion and character!

He and Chen Siyuan could hit it off and chat endlessly.

Many aspects that had been heavily criticized in the original timeline were modified following Chen Siyuan's persuasion.

"Dawei, congratulations. You're about to have a true masterpiece under your belt," Chen Siyuan said calmly, standing beside Li Dawei.

"Brother Yuan, when *The Story of a Noble Family* wraps up, I must properly drink with you and toast you a few rounds. Whatever I've achieved today is entirely thanks to Brother Yuan's support!"

Li Dawei hadn't let success go to his head; he still knew his place.

"You're being too formal with that kind of talk. We click as brothers, so there's no need to be so polite. If you want to drink, you don't even have to wait until the wrap party—let's go grab a drink right after work today!"

Hearing this, Li Dawei felt a wave of warmth. "Brother Yuan, my apologies, let's wait a couple of days instead. I have this stubborn obsessive-compulsive disorder; until the project officially wraps, I just can't set my mind at ease!"

"Then let's wait. It's only a matter of these few days anyway! Besides, as brothers, we'll have plenty of opportunities to drink together in the future!"

Despite saying that, as soon as Li Dawei finished his work for the day, he still called Chen Siyuan.

They didn't go to any lavish hotel, nor did they visit a bustling night bar. Instead, they randomly picked a roadside food stall tucked deep inside a Beijing *hutong*.

"Brother Yuan, bottoms up!"

***

Drinking bone-chillingly cold beer while eating piping-hot barbecued skewers, they savored the contrasting sensations of ice and fire.

"What's going on? Got something on your mind?"

With Chen Siyuan's sharp eyes, he saw right through Li Dawei instantly.

Li Dawei let out a long sigh. "Brother Yuan, once *The Story of a Noble Family* finishes filming, I'll finally be a director with a representative work to my name, but brother's heart aches!"

With that, Li Dawei took another large gulp of gloomy alcohol.

"Trapped by matters of the heart? Simple. Hand me your phone!"

Chen Siyuan said with a smile.

Li Dawei was momentarily stunned, but he still unlocked his phone and handed it over to Chen Siyuan.

Taking the device, Chen Siyuan first used his own phone to place a call to Dong Jie.

He instructed Dong Jie to come over to the barbecue stall right away.

Only after Dong Jie agreed did he pick up Li Dawei's phone and open the contacts list.

True to the rumors, pinned right at the very top was the phone number of Jiang Qingqing.

Seeing Chen Siyuan dial Jiang Qingqing's number, Li Dawei's hand reached out instinctively, only to drop back down powerlessly.

The phone rang seven or eight times before it was finally connected.

However, there was complete silence on the other end of the line.

Chen Siyuan smiled. These two were certainly interesting.

"Is this Jiang Qingqing?"

Chen Siyuan's slightly magnetic voice traveled through the radio waves straight into Jiang Qingqing's ears.

"Who are you? Why do you have Li Dawei's phone?!"

An anxious voice immediately rang out from the other end of the line.

"Li Dawei is in a bad state right now. Write down this address and hurry over here immediately."

With that, Chen Siyuan rattled off the address of the barbecue joint.

Before Jiang Qingqing could say another word, he hung up the phone.

"Brother Yuan, Qingqing and I have already broken up..."

Li Dawei wore a dejected expression, completely devoid of the high spirits he had shown on set earlier that day.

"People can remarry even after getting a divorce, let alone the fact that you two only broke up temporarily!"

Chen Siyuan gave him a look that clearly said, *Don't make me look down on you.*

Li Dawei looked somewhat conflicted and hesitant.

"Do you really want to walk away one day, filled with endless regrets, while calling out her name?"

Chen Siyuan administered a heavy dose of harsh medicine.

Li Dawei's eyes widened instantly.

As a director with artistic vision, he could already picture the scene!

A sudden chill washed over his entire body.

It felt as though he had been thoroughly drenched from head to toe by a large crate of ice-cold beer!

"Brother Yuan..."

"As long as Jiang Qingqing comes over in a bit, you are not allowed to let her leave. Understand?"

Chen Siyuan gave him a knowing look that any man could instantly comprehend.

Yet Li Dawei was still somewhat hesitant. "What if she doesn't come?"

***

"If she doesn't come, you go find her! Don't you know where she lives?"

Before Li Dawei could reply, Dong Jie had already arrived.

Her eyes lit up the moment she caught sight of Chen Siyuan.

She originally wanted to rush straight into his arms, but upon noticing Li Dawei's presence, she reined herself in.

Instead, she simply sat down next to Chen Siyuan, looking every bit like an obedient young bride.

"Godfather."

Li Dawei stared dumbfoundedly at Dong Jie, who was snuggled up against Chen Siyuan.

Were his eyes playing tricks on him? Or was he going deaf?

"You guys..."

A flood of past memories rushed back into Li Dawei's mind.

*Brother Yuan really knows how to play the game!*

"Once Jiang Qingqing arrives, Dawei, you need to take the initiative! Let me tell you, if you don't take this step today, I won't mind having one more goddaughter!"

Chen Siyuan flashed a devilish smile.

Even though Li Dawei knew Chen Siyuan was intentionally provoking him, a wave of fiery heat instantly surged through his entire body.

He didn't even dare to imagine that scenario!

Dong Jie had no idea what was going on.

Nor did she ask.

She remained exceptionally well-behaved.

Picking up a still-warm barbecued skewer, she gently fed it to Chen Siyuan.

Li Dawei was trembling slightly.

He truly couldn't dare to imagine if the woman about to walk through that door turned out to be Jiang Qingqing—would he drop dead right on the spot?

About half an hour after the phone call ended, the sound of anxious footsteps approached.

Chen Siyuan didn't turn around.

He only needed to look at Li Dawei's expression to know who had arrived.

Seeing Li Dawei frozen in place like a wooden stake, Chen Siyuan felt a slight ache in his teeth.

With a single reach, he pulled Dong Jie directly into his arms and planted an oily kiss straight onto her lips.

Li Dawei snapped out of his trance!

*I absolutely cannot let this happen!*

"Qingqing, come sit down!"

Li Dawei bolted upright from his seat, lunging forward to grab Jiang Qingqing's hand.

*Jiang Qingqing belongs to him!*

Jiang Qingqing was equally dumbfounded by this sudden display of initiative from Li Dawei.

She caught the intense, burning possessiveness gleaming within Li Dawei's eyes.

*Was this really the same Li Dawei she knew?*