My Paranoid Girlfriend Asks Me to Be Her Kept Woman (Rebirth) - Chapter 3

“I won’t fail.” Lin Yi turned on the faucet, cupped the flowing water in her hands, and splashed it onto her cheeks.

She needed to prepare herself first. A tough battle was coming soon.

“Then how do I collect them?”

Wuming: “Your heart will guide you. When the time comes, you will naturally know.”

Lin Yi washed her face clean, then carefully applied skincare products from the side. Her cheeks had not yet become sunken from illness. They were full of collagen, plump and bouncy. After a good night’s sleep, her complexion visibly looked rosy and healthy. A simple skincare routine made her skin glow with radiance.

She called out to Wuming twice in her mind, wanting it to explain what “when the time comes” meant, but there was no response. Shaking her head, she felt that strange emptiness and knew Wuming had already left.

Lin Yi didn’t have time to dwell on the information Wuming had brought. She grabbed a makeup brush and quickly applied a natural-looking makeup look, finishing with a glossy lip glaze. The person in the mirror was stunningly beautiful, practically glowing.

The bathroom door opened. Lin Yi peeked out from behind the doorframe, looking into the room. Seeing no one, she walked out with a trace of disappointment.

—Well, that makes sense. We’re not that close yet. I troubled her all night last night; it’s only natural for her to leave.

She tried to rationalize it for Zhao Qi in her heart, but an inexplicable sense of grievance still surged up without reason.

“What’s wrong? Why are you pouting?”

Zhao Qi walked in from the balcony, holding her phone.

“You’re still here?” Lin Yi said in pleasant surprise.

Zhao Qi raised an eyebrow. The corners of her lips curved slightly with a hint of a smile, and her aura softened considerably.

“You wanted me to leave?”

“No!” Lin Yi immediately denied.

She couldn’t even think about wanting her to leave.

Zhao Qi tossed her phone onto the table and walked past Lin Yi.

“Drink more water after waking up. You should go to the hospital for a check-up if needed. I’ll borrow the bathroom.”

Lin Yi stared blankly at Zhao Qi. When the woman passed by, she obediently stepped aside to let her into the bathroom.

Just as Zhao Qi was closing the door, she gripped the handle and turned to look at Lin Yi beside her.

“How am I supposed to go out without washing up?”

The door slowly closed in front of Lin Yi. Her face instantly flushed bright red.

—Was… was her expression that obvious?

**

By the time both of them had freshened up, it was just past nine in the morning.

Knock knock knock. A knock sounded at the door. Lin Yi’s heart tightened — they had arrived.

“Hello, guest. Room service.”

Zhao Qi sat on the sofa playing with her phone, doing who knows what. Lin Yi took a deep breath, stood up, and pulled the door open.

“Hello, we are from X Entertainment. Do you know about last night’s incident where senior executives of your company gathered to take drugs?”

“I heard you were at the scene as well?!”

“I heard you were taken away by the company executives! Did anything happen?!”

The entertainment reporters who had caught the scent of a story swarmed forward. Lin Yi stood blocking the doorway, a cold smile flashing across her lips as she spoke innocently:

“What are you talking about? I came back very early last night.”

The reporters outside sized up the person standing in the doorway. Her pink hair fell softly, her eyes were large and bright, and she looked at them with an innocent, slightly dazed expression, clearly unaware of what was happening. Her clothes were neat, her complexion glowing and healthy — she didn’t look like anything had happened.

The crowd hesitated. Had they received false information? Jianming Entertainment Media’s crown prince, Li Junhao, was clearly not here. Was there any point in reporting this?

While they were hesitating, someone hiding behind the crowd shouted, “Is Li Junhao in there?! I saw someone in the room behind you!”

Lin Yi gripped the door tightly. “How could he be here? You’re mistaken.”

Seeing there was a story, the reporters became even more agitated and started shouting over each other.

“Is Li Junhao hiding inside?”

“What is your relationship with Li Junhao?”

“Does he know the police are trying to contact him for a urine test?!”

“Someone exposed that last night at the Wind Snow Club, your company’s executives were openly taking drugs in public! Do you have anything to say about this?!”

Lin Yi’s petite body blocked the doorway, her expression unchanged.

“I don’t know anything about what you’re saying. I returned very early last night. The hotel has surveillance cameras. I don’t know what happened afterward.”

The reporters at the door clearly didn’t believe her and tried to push their way inside, causing a commotion.

“The police are here!!!!!”

Someone suddenly shouted. Everything fell silent in an instant.

Two police officers pushed through the crowded reporters, took out their badges, and said, “Miss Lin, someone reported you. Please cooperate with our investigation.”

The reporters, who had been like jackals smelling blood, grew even more excited. Lin Yi lowered her head slightly to hide the cold smile on her lips. “Please come in.”

The reporters secretly followed behind the police, cameras clicking nonstop, clearly unwilling to miss the headline news.

Zhao Qi stood leaning against the wall with her arms crossed, her expression unfriendly. “Have you taken enough photos?” she asked in a deep voice. “Who gave you permission to take pictures?”

Only after taking quite a few shots did the reporters realize there was a cold, ice-like beauty in the room??? Where was Li Junhao???

The police also reacted at this point and scolded them, “Who allowed you to take photos? Get out!”

The reporters who were driven out stared at each other as the door slammed shut. After a moment, someone cried out in shock, “Inside! Inside is the Zhao family’s youngest daughter! The legendary Zhao Qi!!!”

“Zhao Qi!”

“Zhao Qi?”

“Zhao Qi……”

The reactions varied, but everyone shivered in unison as they recalled Zhao Qi’s shocking actions.

At seventeen, Zhao Qi was in her final year of high school at Chengnan High School. As the youngest daughter of the Zhao family, she had three older brothers. The eldest inherited the family business, the second entered politics, and only the third was a good-for-nothing playboy.

That year, the third brother, Zhao Chengzhi, threw a billion yuan at a small flower in the entertainment industry named Tang Tang to propose marriage. Afterward, he was slapped in the face when Tang Tang claimed it was “sexual harassment,” leading to his imprisonment.

Due to the bad publicity, Zhao Chengzhi was sentenced to ten years in prison and was condemned by the entire nation, while Tang Tang rose to become a symbol of a woman who dared to stand against powerful families.

Just when everything seemed settled, Zhao Qi posted a ten-million-yuan bounty online seeking clues about Tang Tang and Zhao Chengzhi’s interactions. With money as motivation, someone eventually came forward — a witness who had been bribed by Tang Tang.

The witness confirmed that Tang Tang had set a trap to seduce Zhao Chengzhi, then deliberately turned against him, sending him to prison!!!

The Zhao family’s morale soared. After the negative impact caused by Zhao Chengzhi, their stock prices had plummeted across the board and the second brother had been suspended. Now they launched a counterattack. Not only did they get Zhao Chengzhi out, the second brother was promoted, and the Zhao family’s businesses rose even higher thanks to the public’s compensatory attitude. All of this started because of Zhao Qi!

And what did Zhao Qi do at that time? She filed lawsuits against all the media outlets and netizens who had slandered them online, demanding not only apologies but also compensation for emotional distress. Because the case involved major entertainment industry secrets, it received huge media coverage.

In the end, it was proven that Zhao Chengzhi had been wronged. The court ordered the media companies to apologize and pay compensation. Netizens who had spoken wildly online also apologized and paid compensation one by one.

At the time, all the media outlets hung their heads in defeat. Zhao Qi earned the nickname “The Nightmare of the Media.” Later calculations showed that not only did she recover the ten million bounty, she likely gained another thirty million in compensation. Just when the media were preparing to secretly target Zhao Qi, she suddenly disappeared from Huai City. It was said she had been sent abroad to study by the Zhao family. She didn’t even take the college entrance exam. The compensation money was used under the Zhao family’s arrangement to establish a public interest legal aid fund to popularize legal knowledge and help those in need.

After that, no one could say much, and the matter died down.

No one expected Zhao Qi to have returned!

The media personnel who had dealt with her back then could never forget that face — it was a nightmare. That was why they recognized her immediately today.

The people outside scattered like frightened birds, each secretly making their own calculations.

Inside the room, however, the two police officers smiled, their attitudes very polite.

“Miss Lin, thank you for your report. Are you alright?” asked the slightly chubby officer on the left.

Their station had received a call from Lin Yi late last night reporting that senior executives of Jianming Entertainment Media had gathered at Wind Snow Club to take drugs. Following the lead, they uncovered a drug interest group in the entertainment industry! Everyone at the station was excited and about to apply for arrest warrants to catch the big tiger headed by Jianming Entertainment Media. But this morning, they received an anonymous report about drug use and suspected prostitution at the Marriott Hotel. When they saw the address…

Well! Wasn’t this the same address as the other reporter?

The station chief quickly sent them over, afraid something might happen to the informant, Miss Lin. Sure enough, someone had malicious intentions!

The chubby officer stroked his chin, thinking. The anonymous reporter was hiding their identity — could they be connected to the “big tiger”?

Lin Yi smiled, her expression becoming more sincere.

“I’m fine. I accidentally ingested some hallucinogens last night. Under her care,” Lin Yi glanced toward Zhao Qi, “I’m okay now.”

Zhao Qi had been observing the interaction between Lin Yi and the police. Hearing that Lin Yi didn’t say her name, her brows twitched slightly.

“Who is this lady? Is it necessary for her to come back to the station with us?” the slightly shorter officer asked, seeking approval from the chubby one.

“Miss Lin, you’ll need to come with us to the station for a urine test and to give a statement as a witness about what you saw. You may also need to testify in court if necessary.”

“If this lady was at the scene at the time, it would be best for her to come with us for investigation as well.”

Lin Yi looked at Zhao Qi apologetically. She had dragged the woman into this.

She had deliberately not mentioned Zhao Qi’s name earlier to avoid involving her. After all, this was her own business.

“This matter has nothing to do with her. Yesterday, I used the excuse of going to the bathroom to touch up my makeup, escaped from there, and called to report it. Afterward, the effects of the hallucinogens nearly made me collapse at the bathroom door. She was the one who saved me.”

The chubby officer nodded in understanding. “Then please come with us now, Miss Lin.”

A trace of amusement flashed in Zhao Qi’s heart. So she didn’t want to implicate her. Her heart stirred, and she spoke without thinking.

“I’ll go too.”

“I may be able to provide some clues to the police.”