Substitute Lover [Entertainment Industry] - Chapter 62

“Apologize.”

Song Baiwei looked coldly at Song Yuan, trying to appear stern. “Didn’t my brother teach you manners? Is this something you should ask?”

Song Yuan was the only daughter of Song’s eldest son. Song’s father had her in his old age, and the whole family pampered their youngest daughter, afraid that she would be unhappy. This child was usually a bit spoiled, but fortunately, she was good at flattering people and had never been scolded by her family.

The Song family was mainly involved in real estate, while the Ji family was in the entertainment industry. Even if the assets of the two families were not much different, when mixing in the circle, one should not offend people casually. This was something she should understand.

Moreover, that person was Ji Fan.

Song Yuan looked unhappy.

If it weren’t for wanting to take this opportunity of truth or dare to inquire about Jiang Cha’s thoughts for her aunt, why would she have been so persistent in asking? It didn’t matter to her what Ji Fan and Jiang Cha did, whether they were divorced or had no feelings for each other.

She was clearly considering Song Baiwei.

As a result, now her aunt was asking her to apologize?

“It was just a game…”

Before she could finish her sentence, she heard Song Baiwei say coldly, “Apologize. I’m counting down from three, three, two—”

Song Yuan coughed lightly, gritted her teeth, and bowed her head, “Sorry.”

Song Baiwei said, “Be more sincere.”

Song Yuan then knelt on the long sofa like a bunny, and said softly, “I’m sorry, Ms. Ji.”

Ji Fan raised her head from Jiang Cha’s shoulder, propping up her chin.

Her eyes, which had been out of focus, gradually came into focus.

She finally recovered.

Ji Fan glanced at Song Yuan and simply shook her head, “She’s just a child.”

Her complexion was really bad, pale excessively, and her eyes were also vacant, looking inexplicably lost and disoriented, as if all her strength had been drained, yet her back was still straight.

Ji Fan’s thick long hair covered the side of her face, and only a few standing lamps were lit on the dining table, like fireflies, the light was dim, and from a distance, her features and expressions were a bit blurred, so it was difficult to see any major abnormalities.

But Jiang Cha was right beside her.

Every frown of hers, Jiang Cha could see.

Ji Fan became even more silent.

She was originally born very beautiful, and sitting there quietly with her eyes lowered, she didn’t interact with others very much. In the cold night, perhaps because she was too white and too thin, this sickly appearance seemed lonely and desolate.

“What happened just now.”

Jiang Cha turned her head, her expression softened, and she frowned slightly.

Ji Fan said lightly, “Headache. You know.”

Jiang Cha couldn’t help but ask, “It hasn’t gotten better after so long?”

Ji Fan lowered her eyes, her long eyelashes covering a moment of fatigue, and didn’t answer.

“What was wrong with Ms. Ji just now?”

“Yeah, what happened?”

Jiang Cha explained, “She caught a cold a few days ago and has had a headache. It might be because the night wind on the top floor is too strong and the temperature is too cold.”

A circle of people around were shocked by the sudden situation, and when they heard this, they finally understood.

That made sense.

So they saw her face looking bad just now because of a headache.

She probably didn’t take the jokes seriously.

Rich people are often indifferent, and once people have money, there are many things they can easily get, so why would they cling to one person wholeheartedly? Among the upper class that everyone knew in the circle, their wives at home were just decorations, and they could do whatever they wanted outside.

Many media-reported loving couples were just a facade.

Maybe it was the same for Ji and Jiang, and they wouldn’t care about a few jokes they made.

“Headaches are like that, you can’t be exposed to the wind.”

“Xiao Jiang, you have to be more considerate and take good care of your Ms. Ji.”

“Drink some ginger soup or something.”

Jiang Cha was stunned and looked at Ji Fan.

She still had no expression.

Song Yuan felt her heart tremble and couldn’t help but say, “Are you still angry?”

Ji Fan said indifferently, “I’m not angry.”

Song Yuan didn’t understand the situation and seeing that everyone was just sitting there, she didn’t know what to say for a while, so she said, “Then, shall we continue?”

“…….”

Everyone was silent.

Could they continue like this?

Who knew Ji Fan would actually say, “Continue. You continue asking, ask whatever you want.”

“Aren’t you feeling unwell?” She looked at Ji Fan timidly, “Or should we go back to your room to rest for a while?”

“No need. Continue.”

Several people who had just drafted a draft to find an excuse to slip away had just gotten up and had to sit down again.

Song Yuan was isolated and helpless. The excitement she had at first to pursue thrills was long gone: Ji Fan was giving her a cold shoulder, and her aunt not only didn’t support her but also made her apologize – okay, then there was no need to ask sensitive questions.

“Favorite animal?”

“I don’t know. I like them all.”

“Favorite vegetable?”

“I like them all.”

“Favorite movie?”

“Many.”

“Do you like my aunt’s movies?”

“I like them.”

Jiang Cha was a little impatient.

Ji Fan frowned too, “Is that all you want to ask? The ones you asked just now were pretty good, why don’t you continue?”

Song Yuan: “?”

Asking those questions again? Are you looking for a scolding?

She’s not sick.

Only then did she realize how difficult it was to be a host: how to ask questions in order to balance the explosive points and the scale, it was really a technical skill. She wanted to continue to play dumb, but Ji Fan was still staring at her, so Song Yuan had no choice but to cough lightly and said,

“Then I’ll ask something more exciting.”

What to ask?

Are you sincere about Ji Fan?

No.

What if Jiang Cha said “no”, and the other one would explode again.

Do you like my aunt?

No.

No matter what the answer was, both sides would be embarrassed, and in the end, it would still be her who got scolded.

“Ask. Aren’t you going to ask something exciting?”

Ji Fan lifted her eyelids and said coldly.

Several people looked at her and thought to themselves, it was a good thing they braked in time just now. Song Yuan was so tactless, the other party didn’t say no on the surface, but in the end, she offended her anyway.

“Ask.”

Song Yuan twisted her fingers together.

She was in a dilemma, gritted her teeth, and asked boldly,

“What color is your underwear?”

“Pfft—”

Someone had just taken a sip of water and almost choked on it.

Ji Fan: “…”

Song Baiwei sighed softly and then pinched her finger under the table, frowning and looking at her disapprovingly.

“Cough, sorry, I was wrong, let’s change the question.”

Jiang Cha, however, stared at the lie detector, staring intently, her eyes never blinking, “White.”

Green light.

Jiang Cha frowned, looking a bit puzzled, just as she was about to say something, Ji Fan suddenly stood up, her voice out of place, overly cold, “You continue.”

Ji Fan stood up, slung the black suede bag beside her seat over her shoulder, and turned to leave the circle.

She was tall, wearing a black dress, blending into the night, her cold white slender neck and the cold light on her earlobes flashed past.

This black dress was very picky, exquisite and elegant, and every detail was carefully crafted. It was a custom-made style that fit the body, and if any part of the body was not perfect enough, it would cause the temperament to not be able to support it, and instead be overwhelmed by the dress.

But Ji Fan was wearing it just right.
Only, she seemed too cold and lonely.

“Won’t Ms. Ji play a little longer?” someone asked.

Ji Fan didn’t answer and walked forward on her own.

“Ms. Ji has a headache, she should go back to rest.”

“The night wind here is strong, the temperature is low, it’s cold and damp, people with colds should pay attention to keeping warm.”

“Yes, yes.”

Ji Fan didn’t say anything, and her attitude made people a little uncomfortable. She had already reached the glass door that separated the terrace from the indoor restaurant, but the few people behind her still didn’t get a reply, so they had to find reasons for her themselves.

Jiang Cha suddenly stood up.

She swept her long hair behind her ear and said softly, “You all continue, I’ll go see her.”

Jiang Cha followed her at a distance, feeling inexplicably uneasy.

The interior was very quiet. A seven-meter-high glass wall separated the terrace from the hotel’s indoor restaurant. There were only a few waiters standing in the restaurant, and no one was sitting. The dim orange pendant lights cast a dim light, outlining the figure of the person in front.

Jiang Cha followed her inside.

The corridor was covered with a light gray soft carpet, and walking on it, the footsteps were soft and almost silent.

The person in front heard her movement and paused, as if about to turn around.

Jiang Cha stopped in place, held her breath slightly, and quietly looked at her.

For a moment, the other person continued to walk forward, extremely silent, as if the momentary pause just now was just an illusion, she didn’t seem to intend to say anything to Jiang Cha.

In the elevator, they were speechless.

In the small, enclosed space, at this time of night, there were actually quite a few people. Jiang Cha followed behind Ji Fan and was squeezed at the elevator door, with people behind her. She happened to be standing face to face with Ji Fan. Jiang Cha awkwardly lowered her head, and the warm breath from her gentle breathing fell on the other person’s white and slender neck.

One second.

Two seconds.

Ji Fan’s eyelashes fluttered, and her gaze fell on the dark gray mirror of the elevator.

The shadows of the two people were clearly so close.

Yet they were no longer within reach.

••••

Ding dong, the elevator stopped at the 11th floor.

Ji Fan’s room was at the end of the corridor, and Jiang Cha didn’t know how many doors separated them, only knowing that after getting out of the elevator, they were completely in different directions.

One left, one right.

Jiang Cha walked towards her room, but there were quiet footsteps behind her.

1101.

She arrived.

The deep red wooden door was tightly closed, and a metal nameplate for her room hung on the door. Jiang Cha lowered her head to find her room card, but paused.

“Jiang Cha.”

The person behind her called out to her.

The voice was neither loud nor soft, with a hint of imperceptible urgency. Jiang Cha stopped, not walking forward, but also not turning around, just standing there quietly, waiting for what came next.

“Don’t you have anything to say?” Ji Fan turned around, her voice a little hoarse.

Jiang Cha remained silent, saying nothing.

In the long corridor, each door was tightly closed, the space empty and long, lit only by a few dim wall lamps, the light dim and suffocating.

Jiang Cha stood at the door, a soft copper wall lamp next to her illuminating her side profile. She was wearing a simple white chiffon shirt and a black short skirt, with a slender waist and long legs, her jet-black hair was very soft, and it was scattered around her waist.

She turned her head and looked at Ji Fan quietly.

At that moment, the light illuminated her eyes.

Her eyes were full of alienation and guard.

Cold and icy.

Ji Fan looked at her quietly for a moment, then leaned closer, grabbed her wrist, and leaned close to her ear, frowning: “No feelings anymore?”

Jiang Cha lowered her eyes, her expression indifferent: “I don’t know.”

Ji Fan was stung by her indifferent attitude. She gritted her teeth and asked softly, “You don’t know?”

Jiang Cha felt the grip on her wrist loosen slightly, immediately pulled her hand away, and slipped into the room. Her heart was in turmoil, and she couldn’t make sense of it. Seeing Ji Fan approaching, she instinctively dodged, as if it were a stress response.

This woman Ji Fan, sometimes pitiful, sometimes only made her want to run away.

She frowned, about to close the door, but the door was pushed open with force, and the other person squeezed in with her, then pushed her against the corner, gently cushioning her head with her palm for fear of her hitting it.

Then her lips were blocked.

She bit her lower lip hard.

Jiang Cha was startled for a moment and tried to push her away, but felt a heat on her collarbone.

It was tears.

Warm tears.

Jiang Cha was stunned.

Ji Fan touched her waist, moving upward, wanting to grasp her tightly, crush her, and swallow her whole, but her hands were contradictorily not really forceful, restrained, gentle, and tender.

Her fingertips caressed gently, over and over, with a teasing meaning that couldn’t be explained, from her waist up.

Jiang Cha trembled violently, frowned, and pushed her hard. But Ji Fan still tilted her head slightly, her breath hot, pressing against her as she kissed her deeply.

Jiang Cha began to bite her tongue, but for some reason, she didn’t dare to use force this time, it didn’t seem like a rejection, it was more like a gentle tease, one after another, not painful, but rather like a gentle flirtation.

Ji Fan let go of Jiang Cha and looked at her in slight surprise.

Jiang Cha’s fair side profile was flushed, she pushed her away and said coldly, “Get out.”

Ji Fan lowered her eyes, her long eyelashes stuck together, wet. She turned her head aside helplessly, wiping her eyes with her fingertips, tears hanging on her eyelashes, she didn’t want to look at Jiang Cha.

Jiang Cha wiped the water on her lips with her index finger and frowned, “What do you want.”

“…….”

“I told you not to touch me, what are you doing now, do you want a divorce?”

Seeing her so cold, Ji Fan felt a pain in her heart and opened her eyes blankly.

“Is that how you feel about a divorce?”

Ji Fan gritted her teeth, her eyes were red, and a tear fell heavily. “Is this what you call liking? It’s been so short, it’s too cheap, isn’t it?”

Jiang Cha felt inexplicably angry, she trembled and said, “What do you know?”

She was so angry that her whole body was trembling, her fingers trembled as she unbuttoned three shirt buttons, and pulled her collar open, revealing the straps of her white and slender shoulders.

Black.

Jiang Cha’s cheeks were flushed, but her eyes were still cold and icy, only the wateriness at the corners of her eyes weakened her momentum.

Jiang Cha lowered her eyes and said softly, “The lie detector is not accurate at all.”