After the Harem Novel’s Female Lead was Spoiled by the Comments - Chapter 14

At this point, clinging to winning or losing no longer had any meaning.

Besides, Yan Qingwen did not regret using her marriage as a bargaining chip, because at the very least, that bargaining chip was still in her own hands, not someone else’s.

“If you regret it, we can get divorced,” Yan Qingwen said.

Under the cold white light, Wen Hebai’s eyes grew dim and deep. Suddenly, she revealed a meaningful faint smile.

“Other than not listening to your advice back then and causing trouble, there has never been another decision that made me regret it.”

Yan Qingwen was slightly surprised. She had not expected Wen Hebai to actually regret that matter.

Of course she knew what Wen Hebai was referring to.

It was something that happened when they were eighteen.

At that time, Wen Hebai had already stepped into the entertainment industry. However, because the Wen family had never really approved of their dignified young lady becoming an actress, she had hidden her identity. Everyone treated her as a small artist discovered by a talent scout, and because of that, she witnessed the unknown dark side of the entertainment industry.

This had a great impact on her, who had been protected by her family since childhood. She discovered that the entertainment industry was not as beautiful as she had imagined. All that glamour and brilliance came with a price.

But she also knew very well that everything she saw had been deliberately shown to her by the Wen family so that she would give up on entering the entertainment industry.

Her late-arriving rebellious phase made her develop a defiant mentality. The more her family refused to let her do something, the more she wanted to do it.

Perhaps the Wen family’s attitude in handling the matter had been too forceful and self-centered. Or perhaps after arguing with Yan Qingwen, her restless heart had nowhere to settle, making her urgently want to go against everyone in order to find a sense of existence.

While filming, she got to know a group of stunt performers. Seeing them risk their lives to show off crazy stunts, she suddenly developed a desire to seek thrills.

So that group of stunt performers took her racing through the city center late at night, speeding down empty streets where there were almost no people.

She liked the feeling of adrenaline soaring. It seemed that only this way could she stop feeling the emptiness inside her heart.

And then—she was caught by the police.

She did not dare let the Wen family know, so she asked Yan Qingwen to come bail her out.

Ever since they had quarreled at Yan Qingwen’s eighteenth birthday coming-of-age banquet, Yan Qingwen had not seen her for a long time. She had not expected that the next time she saw Wen Hebai would be at a police station.

No matter what, Yan Qingwen still got her out in the end and suppressed the news, preventing the next day’s headlines from being filled with the scandal of “Wen Family Heiress Races Through the Streets at Night and Ends Up at the Police Station.”

“This is the first time, but it will also be the last,” Yan Qingwen said, looking at this childhood friend who had somehow become very unfamiliar. It was her warning.

Wen Hebai stiffened her neck and said nothing.

Out of their many years of friendship, Yan Qingwen patiently advised her, “Street racing and disturbing the streets are illegal. They brought you to do something illegal. What good kind of people could they be? Don’t associate with them anymore.”

Wen Hebai was irritated by her attitude and tone, which were just like those of her father, brothers, and sister. In a fit of anger, she said, “Mu Rong and those other second-generation wastrels street-race too, and no one cares about them.”

“Only wastrel second-generation heirs would use him as a standard.” Yan Qingwen’s expression was serious. “There are many ways to pursue excitement. You don’t have to choose an illegal method that can easily endanger your own life and hurt innocent people.”

Wen Hebai’s face alternated between green and pale after being scolded. She spoke somewhat recklessly.

“When did you become so long-winded? Did you start liking standing above others and self-righteously lecturing them after you began taking over Yan Corporation?”

The moment the words fell, she realized she had said the wrong thing. After all, she was the one who had taken the initiative to ask Yan Qingwen for help. Yan Qingwen did not owe her anything. She had no right to comment on whether Yan Qingwen was acting high and mighty.

Sure enough, she met Yan Qingwen’s icy gaze.

She opened her mouth to speak, but Yan Qingwen had already gotten into the car and said, “Since you don’t have the patience to listen, I won’t say anything again. You’d better handle your own matters yourself. I won’t deal with them for you a second time.”

After that, Yan Qingwen truly never interfered in her affairs again. Whenever she heard news of Wen Hebai, her reaction was also extremely cold, as though their eighteen years of friendship had been crushed into pieces in the silent night along with those words.

Wen Hebai wanted to say that she regretted it, but Yan Qingwen never gave her the chance.

Not long after, the police caught a group of street racers, and that group dragged her into it, wanting to use her identity to force the Wen family to protect them.

Only then did she learn that those stunt performers worked on film sets during the day, but at night, they became street racers who robbed passersby. After meeting her and learning her identity, they had deliberately set up this entire scheme, wanting to use the Wen family as their protective umbrella.

Because she had not participated in any of it, she naturally was not punished in the end. But that incident dealt her a huge blow. She sobered up all at once and walked out of her decadent state.

After having a serious, heartfelt conversation with her family, her father, brothers, and sister finally agreed to let her continue acting and would no longer interfere. But likewise, she could no longer ignore her responsibilities as a member of the Wen family and act willfully.

She was admitted into a drama academy, studying while filming. After graduating, she began learning business management at her family’s film and media company.

She never hid her identity again, so her acting career over the years had been smooth sailing. Privately, people even jokingly called her the “little princess of the entertainment industry.”

Her family background brought her advantages, but she also suffered backlash because of it. Some people were purely jealous of her good birth, some did not acknowledge her acting skills, and some disliked her way of doing things… In short, she attracted many haters.

The street racing incident was also exposed by that group of street racers from back then. Even now, it was still treated as black material and often brought up by haters to scold her.

—

Facing this “I regret it” after so many years, Yan Qingwen showed no excessive emotion aside from a little surprise.

Wen Hebai did not hope that Yan Qingwen would change her opinion of her because of this. She stood up, pushed the bowl full of black sesame paste forward, and said, “It’s getting cold. Eat it!”

Was this not also a way for her to take the initiative to give herself a way out?

Yan Qingwen picked up the bowl. Her gaze landed on Wen Hebai’s head. The bandage she had wrapped for her that night had already loosened, and Wen Hebai’s hair was messy too.

After taking a sip of the tasteless black sesame paste, Yan Qingwen said, “Go ask Aunt Lan to help you fix the gauze and bandage again.”

Wen Hebai said, “It’ll loosen again when I shower and sleep later anyway. It’s fine.”

Yan Qingwen had long since stopped meddling in her business. Hearing this, she did not comment further.

Wen Hebai supported herself against the desk, trying to find a topic. “Why did you go downstairs earlier?”

Yan Qingwen paused and said, “Nothing.”

“Tell me! Don’t you feel uncomfortable leaving something unfinished when you originally wanted to do it?”

“Weren’t you going out to eat a midnight snack?” Yan Qingwen glanced at her.

Hearing her say this, Wen Hebai knew the chance to make her calm down had come. She hurriedly said, “I changed my mind. I think what you said, Wife, makes a lot of sense. If even I don’t cherish my own body properly, then who else would care about me? So I realized my mistake, reflected deeply on it, and decided to stay home properly to recover.”

Yan Qingwen: “…”

Could this person’s acting skills have been trained this way?

After another spoonful of black sesame paste went down, Yan Qingwen finally said unhurriedly, “That’s good. I originally went downstairs to tell you that if you were hungry, you could ask Aunt Lan to make you an easy-to-digest midnight snack. Since you’ve said that, there’s no need to prepare a midnight snack anymore.”

Wen Hebai froze, then widened her eyes. “Wait—weren’t you refusing to let me eat a midnight snack?”

Yan Qingwen looked up at her. “When did I say I wouldn’t let you eat a midnight snack?”

Wen Hebai was speechless. After a long while, she gritted her teeth and said, “You win.”

Yan Qingwen gave her a professional smile.