Chapter 2

[August 9, 2017, Heavy Rain

The day they brazenly moved into this house, that man trampled my admission letter underfoot. I didn’t care about that worthless piece of paper. Besides, after so many people had stepped on it, I had no desire to pick it up. Later, I didn’t even know where that piece of paper had ended up.

Lu Wu, how stupid.

I don’t know where she found that piece of paper and brought it back. Nor do I know what she did to conceal the footprints on it so thoroughly that they were almost impossible to see.

When she came to find me, her eyes were filled with guilt. What did she have to feel guilty about? After all, you were smiling so happily at the dinner table.

What a hypocrite, Sister. (Crossed out)]

……

Although Ren Zhong had said she wouldn’t be able to manage Cheng Yuan’ai’s schedule anymore, she still called that evening while having dinner to check on her.

“You haven’t been drinking, have you?”

Cheng Yuan’ai had just finished showering. With a small bedside lamp switched on, she was lying in bed browsing her tablet. Hearing the question, she replied listlessly, “No.”

There was a great deal of noise on Ren Zhong’s end of the call. It was unclear where she was having dinner.

“Good. I left in such a hurry this afternoon that I forgot to tell you something. Tomorrow morning, you need to catch the earliest flight to Mocheng. You previously did a shoot for that watch brand, and they need you to do an additional outdoor shoot.”

Before Cheng Yuan’ai could say anything, Ren Zhong quickly added, “Don’t worry. This is the only job left on your schedule before your dating show begins.”

“I’ve settled things with the company. All they wanted was to snatch a few scripts away from you anyway. Besides, now that you’re…”

“Forget it. That’s all. Tan Meng will come pick you up tomorrow morning. Don’t stay up late tonight, don’t drink, and don’t go looking at any of that nonsense…”

Cheng Yuan’ai took a deep breath, closed her eyes briefly, and said helplessly, “I’m not sick.”

Ren Zhong paused for two seconds, seemingly remembering something. She parted her lips, but found herself unable to speak.

“Ren Zhong, I’m not planning to do anything.”

Perhaps sensing her friend’s concern, Cheng Yuan’ai remained silent for a long moment before speaking slowly. At her right hand, the tablet had somehow switched to a video, and loud, grating music suddenly began playing.

Ren Zhong said nothing more. Only when they were about to hang up did she quietly offer a few words.

“Have fun.”

–

Early the next morning, before her assistant Tan Meng had even arrived, Cheng Yuan’ai, who was a light sleeper, had already gotten up and finished washing up.

Standing in her walk-in closet, she glanced around and casually picked up a fitted black undershirt. Just as her fingers were about to reach for the neatly arranged row of suits beside it, Cheng Yuan’ai paused.

Instead, she changed into a casual jacket.

Though she still couldn’t seem to stray from black.

The loose black hoodie hung comfortably on Cheng Yuan’ai’s body. As usual, she hadn’t done ​read the original at bailiantales.com​much with her hair, leaving it to fall casually down her back.

She looked at herself in the full-length mirror, thought for a moment, then reached up to retrieve a pair of sunglasses from a high shelf.

The oversized frames concealed half her face, but they still couldn’t hide the faint air of aloofness surrounding her, warning strangers to keep their distance.

Tan Meng unlocked the door and entered. Before she could even head upstairs, she saw that Cheng Yuan’ai was already dressed and coming down.

She couldn’t help staring at Cheng Yuan’ai’s casual outfit in surprise.

Tan Meng had been working as Cheng Yuan’ai’s assistant for a year or two now. Back then, Cheng Yuan’ai hadn’t been quite so… so old-fashioned. Her wardrobe consisted of the same few lifeless suits, which she wore over and over again. Only when she occasionally attended red-carpet events and the brands required it would she change into something different.

Having grown accustomed to seeing Cheng Yuan’ai dressed in those dreary suits, looking so lifeless all the time, Tan Meng was startled by the sudden change. Without the suits, Cheng Yuan’ai seemed much more relaxed, even carrying a faint trace of youthful innocence. Only then did Tan Meng realize that although Cheng Yuan’ai was approaching thirty, she certainly didn’t look it.

She was tall and slender, with a lingering youthful softness about her features.

It was as though time had never left any mark on Cheng Yuan’ai. She still gave off the same impression she had back then.

If only Cheng Yuan’ai would put away those suits and never pick them up again.

Cheng Yuan’ai came downstairs and handed her suitcase to Tan Meng.

Coming back to her senses, Tan Meng took the suitcase and placed the breakfast she had bought on the dining table.

“Teacher Cheng, I checked the traffic conditions on my way here. There’s no congestion on the way to the airport right now, so we have time to finish breakfast before leaving.”

As Tan Meng spoke, she opened the beautifully packaged breakfast container.

A warm, appetizing aroma spread through the room. Cheng Yuan’ai glanced at the food but had little appetite.

“You can eat it.” Cheng Yuan’ai turned to pour herself a glass of warm water. “I ate rather late yesterday, so I’m not hungry yet.”

Tan Meng froze for a moment, remembering the hangover medicine Ren Zhong had personally stuffed into her bag the previous evening.

She bent down, intending to search for it, but then glanced at Cheng Yuan’ai a few more times. No matter how she looked at her, Cheng Yuan’ai didn’t seem hungover.

She silently pushed the hangover medicine back to the very unauthorized copybottom of her bag and began packing away the breakfast on the table.

“Then let’s head out first.” Tan Meng walked ahead of Cheng Yuan’ai and opened the door. “Teacher Cheng, I couldn’t get a ticket for the same flight as you, so I might arrive a little later.”

“Teacher, you…”

Cheng Yuan’ai stepped outside and adjusted the sunglasses perched on her nose.

“It’s fine. Once you arrive, head straight to the hotel. You can come over after I finish filming.”

“O-okay.” Tan Meng nodded quietly, while inwardly screaming with excitement.

Teacher Cheng was so easy to work with!

Before becoming Cheng Yuan’ai’s assistant, Tan Meng had worked for quite a few celebrities, both famous and obscure. From unknown, bottom-tier entertainers to wildly popular young actresses on television, the hardships she’d endured were too numerous to recount.

On the surface, everyone seemed pleasant and easy to get along with, but the reality was usually quite different. Cheng Yuan’ai, however, was the exact opposite. According to outside rumors, she had a cold temperament, tolerated absolutely no mistakes, and was extremely difficult to work with. Supposedly, countless assistants had been driven away by her.

Yet when Tan Meng finally began working for her, bailiantales.com trembling with apprehension, she discovered that Cheng Yuan’ai was nothing like the rumors suggested.

Cheng Yuan’ai was indeed rather cold by nature, but she was also surprisingly oblivious in many respects. Sometimes, when someone made a mistake that everyone else considered irreparable and extremely serious, Cheng Yuan’ai seemed completely unaffected, as though she couldn’t sense the gravity of the situation at all.

At first, Tan Meng had been delighted by this. It wasn’t until later that she realized how dangerous this trait could be.

After one red-carpet event, Cheng Yuan’ai was unexpectedly followed by an obsessive stalker fan, and no one noticed anything unusual the entire time.

It wasn’t until Ren Zhong suddenly visited Cheng Yuan’ai late one night to have a drink with her that she discovered a figure lurking in Cheng Yuan’ai’s room. Only then was the intruder found.

Later, Cheng Yuan’ai admitted that she had previously seen notes the person had deliberately left inside her home, but she hadn’t taken them seriously.

It was almost as though she had been deliberately waiting for someone to come and hurt her.

Ren Zhong had flown into a terrible rage. She shouted at Cheng Yuan’ai for ages, repeatedly replaced the people working around her, and stayed by Cheng Yuan’ai’s side around the clock.

Only after Cheng Yuan’ai gradually relented and promised to tell Ren Zhong whenever anything happened did Ren Zhong slowly begin to relax.

Tan Meng turned to glance at Cheng Yuan’ai. Remembering how Cheng Yuan’ai had [bailiantales.com]told her to secretly sign up for the dating show without letting Ren Zhong know, she still felt shaken.

But after having dinner with Ren Zhong the previous evening, she had begun to understand a little.

The company would never allow someone of Cheng Yuan’ai’s caliber to participate in such a lowly dating reality show. Given Cheng Yuan’ai’s status and market value, appearing on a program like that would practically be beneath her dignity.

Therefore, it was best that nobody other than Cheng Yuan’ai herself knew about it.

Their van traveled smoothly all the way to the airport without encountering any traffic.

Tan Meng checked the suitcase one last time before sending it off to be checked in. By the time she returned, it was almost time for Cheng Yuan’ai to board her flight.

“Oh, right. Teacher Cheng, is there anything you’d like to eat after filming? There are several good restaurants near the hotel, and the hotel itself has a few dishes that should suit your tastes…”

“You can arrange it. Just keep the food light.”

Tan Meng nodded. “Okay.”

–

After a three-hour flight, Cheng Yuan’ai arrived in Mocheng just as the city was beginning its workday.

Buses and subways were packed with commuters heading to work, while clouds of hot white steam rose from streets and alleys throughout the city.

Sitting in the car the brand had sent to pick her up, Cheng Yuan’ai stared silently out the window at the scenery passing by, lost in thought.

The understated black car crossed a long bridge spanning the river. Just as the river disappeared completely from Cheng Yuan’ai’s view, the car suddenly pulled over to the roadside.

Confused, Cheng Yuan’ai glanced toward the driver in the front seat.

She saw him holding a crumpled tissue, his hand trembling as he raised it to wipe the cold sweat from his forehead.

Cheng Yuan’ai frowned, her heart giving a startled jolt.

Had they hit someone?

Just as the thought crossed her mind, the car door on the other side was suddenly opened from outside.

The first thing to enter the car was a pair of slender, fair calves beneath a light-blue, ruffled, figure-hugging skirt. Next came a cascade of long, wine-red curls as the woman settled into the seat with her back toward Cheng Yuan’ai.

Finally, the car door slammed shut with a bang.

Cheng Yuan’ai caught a faint scent coming from the woman, a fragrance reminiscent of Pu’er tea and green tangerine.

With another person squeezing into the cramped car, the interior seemed even more crowded. There appeared to be less air to breathe, and the atmosphere grew somewhat stifling.

Yet even after the woman had gotten into the car, the driver made no move to start the engine.

An eerie silence settled over the vehicle.

Cheng Yuan’ai didn’t understand what was happening, but she had no intention of urging the driver to hurry.

In the past, when she had filmed various magazine advertisements, some brands had arranged for one car to pick up several people at once to save time.

Of course, ever since Cheng Yuan’ai became wildly popular, particularly after winning her Read on BaiLianTales Best Actress awards, she had practically never encountered such treatment again.

Cheng Yuan’ai tugged at the hood covering her head and frowned slightly.

She remembered that this particular brand wasn’t quite so stingy… or rather, so economical.

“Why aren’t we driv…” The woman beside her finally noticed that the car hadn’t started moving. She looked up from her phone in confusion, glanced around the strangely silent vehicle, and abruptly stopped speaking.

She lowered her head and quickly began swiping through her phone again.

Hearing the woman’s voice, Cheng Yuan’ai instinctively glanced in its direction.

The woman’s long, wine-red curls slipped forward as she lowered her head, preventing Cheng Yuan’ai from seeing her face.

But just as Cheng Yuan’ai was about to withdraw her gaze and wait for the driver to offer an explanation, the elegantly dressed, alluring woman suddenly raised a hand to brush the hair away from her ear.

A faint blush spread across one side of her face, reaching all the way to the tips of her ears, yet her expression remained perfectly composed.

“Ah, I’m sorry. I got into the wrong car.” Her voice was soft and calm, carrying the refined poise of a mature woman.

She naturally tucked the loose strands behind her ear, then gracefully opened the door again, already leaning halfway out of the vehicle.

Only then did the driver in front finally recover from his shock. He stammered a response.

“N-no, it’s fine.”

Cheng Yuan’ai alone remained silent.

She stared blankly at that half-familiar face, completely lost in a daze.

Then, almost in an instant, she reached toward the woman without even realizing what she was doing, grabbing the hand that was about to disappear outside the car.

Her grip was so tight that her knuckles turned white. Clutching the woman’s hand, she dragged her grip upward until her fingers locked around that slender wrist.

Cheng Yuan’ai’s eyes reddened, and she practically spat out the name through gritted teeth.

“Lu. Wu!”