Chapter 108: Little Secrets
When Qiao Rubai said, “The moment she heard your name, she frowned and asked, ‘Where’s Mi Hongdou?’” Mi Hongdou, lying on the bed, listening, couldn’t help but tremble.
Qiao Rubai had felt it was unfair, someone dying and leaving others devastated, while others watched helplessly. She had been angry at Mi Hongdou’s seemingly casual attitude towards death and immersion, wanting to show her the consequences of her foolishness, to make her understand.
But now, the warmth and dampness in her palm, Mi Hongdou’s trembling, made her realize that her words had indeed hit hard. And she herself was also reliving that painful memory.
Hurting both herself and the other, what was the point? Qiao Rubai’s hand slid from Mi Hongdou’s eyes, the dampness absorbed by the blanket.
Silence.
Mi Hongdou, tears streaming down her face, opened her eyes, although she hadn’t been given permission.
“She…” Mi Hongdou tried to speak, but her voice was choked with sobs, the words barely audible.
Qiao Rubai couldn’t understand her, but she could guess.
“You had just been carried away in an ambulance, she saw it with her own eyes. But minutes later, when the police started taking statements, and your name was mentioned, she looked at me, confused, and asked where you were. I was stunned, I didn’t know if she was asking about your body, or about you, or if she even knew what she was asking. Before I could react, the officer calmly explained, ‘Are you asking about Mi Hongdou, who fell from the wires? We’ve confirmed her death, and her body has been taken away by the ambulance. As it’s an unnatural death, there will be an autopsy before the family can claim the body.’ He took her question literally and answered it.”
Qiao Rubai knew Mi Hongdou was looking at her, but she didn’t meet her gaze, instead looking through the gap in the curtains at Ji Junxin, who was still so innocent and naive in this life, and continued her story, her voice calm. “But I think… that wasn’t what she wanted to hear. She listened quietly to the officer, then, without saying a word, turned and walked away. The police were there to take statements, everyone was a witness, or rather, a suspect. She was supposed to give her statement, but she just walked away, and the officer, finding it strange, stopped her. I wanted to intervene, to explain, but before I could do anything, she looked back at the officer.”
Death was supposed to be the most impactful event. Mi Hongdou was the one who had fallen, her death horrific. But for Qiao Rubai, the most frightening moment that day had been Ji Junxin’s gaze when the officer grabbed her arm.
Qiao Rubai paused, her gaze shifting from Ji Junxin to Mi Hongdou.
“Do you know… what that look was like?” she asked, clenching her fists, the silk blanket wrinkling under the pressure.
Even with her blurry vision, unable to see Qiao Rubai’s expression clearly, Mi Hongdou could feel the heavy weight of her words. She tried to sit up, but her body was weak. Qiao Rubai, with just one finger, pushed her back down.
Mi Hongdou was forced to remain still.
“She turned around, her expression blank, her eyes empty, although looking at the officer, she didn’t seem to see anything, to feel anything. She was like a soulless doll… no, a broken, worn-out doll, about to fall apart. She looked at him with that empty gaze, and then, right in front of me… she fainted. The officer, still holding her wrist, didn’t even have time to react…” Qiao Rubai’s voice dropped, her eyes filled with an unseen fear.
Yes, fear.
That vivid memory, the scene replaying in her mind, Qiao Rubai felt like she was back there, the day Mi Hongdou died, the day Ji Junxin… broke.
Lost in her memories, Qiao Rubai fell silent.
And Mi Hongdou… if it weren’t for the tears silently streaming down her face, her still and lifeless form might have been mistaken for… death.
Ji Junxin, having waited outside the curtains, started to approach.
Qiao Rubai noticed.
She took a deep breath, pulling herself out of the painful memory, and glanced at Mi Hongdou, who seemed to have cried herself into a stupor. So, her attempt to deliver a slap in the face… had backfired.
“Hey, stop crying. Ji Junxin is coming.” Qiao Rubai nudged Mi Hongdou with her knee.
Mi Hongdou quickly wiped her face with her sleeve and sat up, peeking through the gap in the curtains.
Her vision blurred, but she could still see Ji Junxin slowly approaching.
“What… happened next…” Mi Hongdou grabbed Qiao Rubai’s knee, her gaze fixed on Ji Junxin outside.
“We went to the hospital. She was unconscious. The doctor said there was nothing physically wrong, that she probably fainted from shock, and she had a slightly sprained wrist. As for her mental state, they would have to wait until she woke up.” Qiao Rubai sighed and pulled her knee away from Mi Hongdou’s grasp. “That’s the end of the story.”
Mi Hongdou quickly grabbed her knee again. “And then?”
“And then… I arranged for the company to transfer a sum of money to your mother, along with your insurance payout, it should be enough for her to live comfortably for the rest of her life. But since we’re both back here now, that money is probably useless.” Qiao Rubai pulled her knee away again and moved towards the edge of the bed. “That’s it. We now share a secret, don’t tell anyone, you know the rules.”
To Mi Hongdou, this wasn’t the end of the story, it was just the beginning. If Qiao Rubai, like before, hadn’t acknowledged her rebirth, just hinted at it, it would have been fine. But she had said it, had… revealed those heartbreaking details… and now she wanted to leave without finishing the story? Mi Hongdou wouldn’t let her.
“Wait…” Unable to grab her knee, Mi Hongdou grabbed her sleeve. “Tell me the rest. I died, Ji Junxin was hospitalized, and then?”
Was she okay? What about my mother? …
So many things she hadn’t dared to think about since her rebirth, until today, when Qiao Rubai opened this Pandora’s box. Mi Hongdou realized that she still couldn’t let go of her past, she still wanted to know more.
Even if Qiao Rubai told her that she had been quickly forgotten after her death, Mi Hongdou still wanted to know if the people she cared about were okay. She wanted to know… was Ji Junxin okay?
But her hope was dashed.
Qiao Rubai, turning around, gently removed Mi Hongdou’s hand from her sleeve, her voice laced with displeasure. “And then? I don’t know.”
You don’t know?
Mi Hongdou was stunned, then grabbed Qiao Rubai’s clothes. “You don’t know? Why? Did something happen to Ji Junxin?” Qiao Rubai must be hiding something, Mi Hongdou’s tone accusatory.
Qiao Rubai heard the accusation. Even though she knew it was because of Mi Hongdou’s concern for Ji Junxin, she was still annoyed. Accusing me? You died and it’s my fault! And now you think I’m lying because I don’t know what happened next! You idiot! I can’t tell her about our murders yet, she’ll definitely give something away, and then I’ll alert the culprit and ruin everything!
Her earlier anger returned.
She roughly pushed Mi Hongdou’s hand away, her voice sharp. “I don’t know! Because after you died that morning, I also died that night! I even transferred money to your mother before I died! Ji Junxin was still unconscious in the hospital! You died first, so how would I know! Why don’t you just fly to heaven!”
She stormed out, leaving Mi Hongdou stunned and speechless, too shocked to even comment on Qiao Rubai’s dramatic outburst.
Although Qiao Rubai had seemed angry, Mi Hongdou instinctively felt that she wasn’t lying.
In one day… she and Qiao Rubai… both died?
Then… Ji Junxin in the hospital…
Mi Hongdou sat on the bed, the swaying curtain brushing against her face, unable to imagine Ji Junxin’s reaction when she woke up and learned about Qiao Rubai’s death.
Qiao Rubai angrily left Mi Hongdou. She knew she was just displacing her anger. She was actually angry at herself, for having rushed here to confront Mi Hongdou, only to be forced to relive that painful memory.
Her own death, Yang Lianyi’s injury, and… Ji Junxin waking up in the hospital, alone… Qiao Rubai couldn’t bear to think about it.
She was… jealous. Jealous of Mi Hongdou, who had died quickly, a fall from the wires, a brief moment of pain. Unlike her, who had been stabbed, slowly bleeding to death, watching as the person she loved took a knife for her, her fate unknown. Just a few hours apart, but Mi Hongdou’s death had been so much easier. And she hadn’t had to witness Ji Junxin’s devastation… It wasn’t fair!
Qiao Rubai left the bed, still fuming, and ran into Ji Junxin.
“What were you doing in there? For so long? What did you say to her?” Ji Junxin had been waiting anxiously. Qiao Rubai had told her not to follow, so she hadn’t, but after a while, she had started to approach, hoping to go unnoticed…
“Just… talking,” Qiao Rubai said, avoiding Ji Junxin’s gaze, her voice vague.
After telling Mi Hongdou the story, Qiao Rubai couldn’t help but think of Ji Junxin’s even greater devastation after her own death, alone and without comfort… The thought made her heart ache. And with Ji Junxin’s approach, the ache intensified. She didn’t even have the energy to look at Ji Junxin, let alone talk to her.
So, after her vague reply, and before Ji Junxin could ask any more questions, Qiao Rubai quickly said, “I… have something to do at the company, I have to leave.”
“Didn’t you just arrive? It’s a five-hour drive… You can’t drive ten hours in one day, can you? Can’t you leave tomorrow?” Ji Junxin was surprised. Qiao Rubai had been here for less than half an hour.
Ji Junxin’s concern warmed Qiao Rubai’s heart, but it also made her think of Ji Junxin in her previous life. Feeling uncomfortable, not wanting to show it, she shook her head. “It’s urgent. I have to go. I’ll visit you again next time. You know you get easily immersed in your roles. Don’t get too into character for the scene after the Empress’s suicide, it can be… problematic. Don’t listen to Director Pan, he doesn’t understand how much effort it takes for you to detach. Your earlier performance was good. If he’s not satisfied, just do a few more takes, he’ll eventually give up. Don’t sacrifice yourself for his camera, okay?”
Qiao Rubai needed some space to calm down, to bury those painful memories. She couldn’t bear to talk to Ji Junxin anymore, but she still remembered the purpose of her visit, so she gave Ji Junxin some earnest advice.
After Ji Junxin agreed, Qiao Rubai practically fled.
Mi Hongdou, stunned, sat on the bed for a minute or two, then composed herself. She had wanted to ask Qiao Rubai about her own death, but Ji Junxin told her that Qiao Rubai had already left. She ran out, only catching a glimpse of Qiao Rubai’s car disappearing in the distance.
A five-hour drive, for a visit less than half an hour long… It was unbelievable.
But Mi Hongdou knew that Qiao Rubai’s reason for leaving wasn’t the “company business” she had mentioned. She probably… couldn’t bear to look at Ji Junxin in this life, couldn’t bear to think about what happened to her in the previous one.
Mi Hongdou also couldn’t bear to think about it, so she understood Qiao Rubai’s escape.
She had almost cried herself into a stupor behind the curtains earlier, so even after composing herself, her eyes were still red.
When she came out, Ji Junxin immediately noticed, but before she could ask, Mi Hongdou asked about Qiao Rubai, and then, after Ji Junxin answered, she ran out.
Ji Junxin, worried, followed. She saw Mi Hongdou stop, staring at Qiao Rubai’s car until it disappeared, then turn around.
And then she saw Ji Junxin, standing a few steps away, looking at her thoughtfully.
Mi Hongdou, having just acknowledged Qiao Rubai as a fellow time traveler, felt a little guilty, but looking at Ji Junxin, her heart ached.
Mi Hongdou’s expression was complex, and to Ji Junxin, it was even more so. This was the first time she had seen Mi Hongdou cry… and it was clearly related to Qiao Rubai. But why?
Ji Junxin couldn’t help but ask, “What happened between you two just now?”
Mi Hongdou shook her head, her voice vague. “Nothing…”
Ji Junxin, having been brushed off by Qiao Rubai earlier, now felt brushed off by Mi Hongdou as well. She asked directly, “You were crying, and you say nothing happened?”
Mi Hongdou didn’t know how to answer. Perhaps this was another reason why Qiao Rubai had left so quickly?
Qiao Rubai, driving back, suddenly sneezed and frowned, asking the driver to close the window a little.
Ji Junxin’s direct question and Mi Hongdou’s silence, a silent refusal to answer…
Ji Junxin didn’t press further and returned to the set.
Mi Hongdou instinctively took a few steps after her, then stopped. Chasing after her wasn’t difficult, the difficulty was… she didn’t know how to answer Ji Junxin’s question. Could she say, I was crying because I was heartbroken for you, for your sadness after my death?
Of course not. So, she stopped. She needed time to think.
Ji Junxin, walking back slowly, listening for any sounds behind her, heard Mi Hongdou’s approaching footsteps and smiled slightly. But then the footsteps stopped… and Ji Junxin, pouting, quickened her pace!
My best friend and the person I like have a secret, what should I do? Urgent! Waiting online!
Ji Junxin was unhappy, but she didn’t feel she had the right to ask, so she could only return to the set, frustrated.
Director Pan beckoned her eagerly.
Well, filming might distract me, she thought and walked over.
“Hey, I saw Xiaomi’s eyes were red earlier, was she crying?” Director Pan asked anxiously.
Since when was Director Pan so gossipy… Ji Junxin hesitated under his intense gaze, then replied vaguely, “I think so. But in this scene, she just plays a corpse, she doesn’t even appear on screen, so her red eyes shouldn’t affect the filming, don’t worry.” Although annoyed about their secret, she still instinctively protected Mi Hongdou.
“Who’s worried about the filming?” Director Pan’s expression relaxed, and he pointed outside. “Go get her. I just realized, her red eyes… the Empress’s suicide scene earlier, it lacked something! If the Empress, while resolutely taking the poison, also had red eyes, a hint of reluctance, it would be perfect! Go get her, before the redness fades!”
“…” Ji Junxin looked at Director Pan, speechless. Were they all ganging up to tease her?
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