Chapter 50 p1
There was a reason Xin Yao rushed off on her first day of being in a relationship, without even properly talking to her girlfriend.
After more than a month of waiting, there was finally a breakthrough in her mission.
Liu Nuan Nuan, the system, after spending countless hours online, had finally managed to arrange a meeting with Ying Xi, the elusive fan club president.
Posing as an important fan in Li Xu’s VIP fan group, Liu Nuan Nuan had created a fuss, claiming that the 1314 T-shirts she had purchased from Li Xu’s brand were all defective.
She demanded a solution, threatening to return the merchandise and expose the issue online.
It was a serious matter, and the fan club administrators rushed to appease her.
Liu Nuan Nuan, seizing the opportunity, insisted on speaking directly with Ying Xi, the president, even flying back to China specifically for the meeting.
After all, Ying Xi was still officially the president of the fan club.
Finally, pressured by Liu Nuan Nuan’s persistence, and wanting to avoid negative publicity, Ying Xi, who had been MIA for months, agreed to the meeting.
They met at a quiet, private cafe in the city center.
Xin Yao arrived first.
Despite her current infamy, she was still a celebrity and didn’t want to be recognized by Ying Xi too early.
So, she was bundled up in a hat, scarf, mask, and sunglasses, despite the warm weather.
Ying Xi arrived shortly after, a soft knock on the door announcing her arrival.
Xin Yao took a sip of her coffee and called out, and the door opened.
A beautiful young woman with long, black hair and a gentle, quiet demeanor entered the room.
But it was clear that she wasn’t doing well. The dark circles under her eyes, her pale face, her slightly dazed expression, all hinted at a deep exhaustion, both physical and emotional.
What had happened to her?
And why had she suddenly disappeared two months ago?
This young woman was Ying Xi, the fan club president Xin Yao and Liu Nuan Nuan had been searching for.
The same Ying Xi who, in Xin Yao’s previous life, had been brutally murdered in a cold, dark alley.
The same Ying Xi who, in this life, might suffer the same fate in just a few weeks.
Ying Xi walked over to the table and sat down opposite Xin Yao, her voice soft and slightly distant.
“Hello, Miss Wang.”
Xin Yao nodded, not bothering with pleasantries, her own voice clear and steady as she pushed the menu towards Ying Xi. “What would you like to drink?”
“Anything is fine,” Ying Xi shook her head, not even glancing at the menu. “I don’t mind.”
She seemed to be barely holding herself together.
So, Xin Yao didn’t get straight to the point, instead making small talk, trying to gauge her emotional state.
Ying Xi, however, seemed distracted, her responses perfunctory, her gaze unfocused, not even questioning Xin Yao’s suspicious attire.
She didn’t seem particularly interested in resolving the issue with the defective merchandise.
She didn’t even recognize Xin Yao, the subject of her online hate, sitting right across from her.
The system cackled.
[You’re officially irrelevant.]
Xin Yao: Nonsense. Even bad publicity is publicity. I could post a single message online and it would go viral.
Xin Yao could easily guess the reason for Ying Xi’s distress.
The original owner had believed she was Li Xu’s only girlfriend, only to be dumped when he found a wealthier, more influential partner.
But Ying Xi’s existence proved that he had been cheating on her all along.
The bastard had been two-timing them, then, after securing his position with the heiress, had discarded them both.
And like the original owner, Ying Xi had probably been unaware of the other woman’s existence, believing herself to be Li Xu’s only girlfriend.
Until the recent scandal, when she had learned the truth about Li Xu’s other relationships.
It must have been devastating for her.
But there had to be more to it than that.
Unlike the distraught Ying Xi, Xin Yao was in a good mood today, eager to finish the meeting and get back to her girlfriend.
Having observed Ying Xi long enough, she decided to drop the pretense.
As Ying Xi sat there, lost in thought, Xin Yao removed her mask, hat, and sunglasses, her long hair cascading down her back, her face revealed in the soft light.
Ying Xi looked at her, then took a sip of her coffee.
They stared at each other in silence, the air thick with tension.
Then, Ying Xi’s eyes widened in recognition, her face paling.
“Xin Yao? It’s you!”
She quickly understood.
“You set me up! You were the one in the group chat, pretending to be that rich fan!”
“This is a trap! What do you want from me? You’re so devious!”
She grabbed her bag and turned to leave, as if wanting to escape.
Xin Yao, who hadn’t even said anything yet, raised an eyebrow, watching her go, then spoke, her voice soft yet firm.
“You know about the fan club’s fundraising activities, right? Do you know what it’s called when you encourage fans to take out loans and invest in your idol? It’s called illegal fundraising.”
“Have you graduated from university yet? Or do you want to stay a student forever?”
Her words, seemingly casual, stopped Ying Xi in her tracks.
She turned around, her eyes wide with shock and fear.
“What are you talking about?!”
“I don’t understand,” she said, her voice trembling, her face pale, turning to leave again.
Xin Yao held up her phone.
“Think carefully. Do you want to tell me, or do you want to tell the police?”
“Do you really think I’d be sitting here, so calmly, if I didn’t have proof?”
“Or do you want to go down with Li Xu?”
She did have some evidence.
But Li Xu was cunning and careful, his actions meticulously planned, leaving no trace.
The evidence she and Nuan Nuan had found wasn’t enough to convict him. He would easily weasel his way out.
She needed more, and Ying Xi was the key.
Her words were a bluff, a mix of truth and lies, designed to intimidate Ying Xi.
And Ying Xi, young and naive, her mental state fragile, was easily swayed by Xin Yao’s confident demeanor.
Her forehead beaded with sweat, her fingers clutching the doorknob, turning white.
Finally, she walked back to the table and sat down, defeated.
“What do you want?”
By sitting down, she had implicitly admitted her involvement in the fan club’s illegal activities.
Xin Yao smiled.
But looking at Ying Xi’s pale, exhausted face, she remembered the news report from the original owner’s memories.
This young, beautiful woman had died in a cold, dark alley.
Had it been snowing that day? Xin Yao couldn’t remember.
But it must have been cold.
And there had to be more to Ying Xi’s current state than just the scandal.
Li Xu, having secured his position with the heiress, had wanted to sever all ties with his past, including Ying Xi, who knew too much.
He had dumped her shortly after the news of his affair broke, and to make matters worse, she had just discovered she was pregnant.
The timing matched. The child would be about two months old now.
Xin Yao’s eyes softened with a touch of sadness.
“You’re pregnant, aren’t you? Li Xu’s child?”
Ying Xi, still reeling from the shock of being exposed, looked up at Xin Yao, her face paling further.
She was speechless.
But Xin Yao’s words had been a statement, not a question, her certainty leaving no room for denial.
But she hadn’t told anyone!
Ying Xi finally found her voice.
“How did you know? What do you want from me?!”
Xin Yao sighed. “How I know isn’t important. The question is, does Li Xu know you’re pregnant?”
“You’ve broken up, haven’t you? Do you think he’ll let you keep the child?”
“Of course he will!” Ying Xi, tormented by Li Xu’s betrayal, their breakup, and her unexpected pregnancy, had forgotten to ask how Xin Yao knew about their relationship. Tears welled up in her eyes, her voice defiant. “I told him! He said he’ll marry me!”
Still believing Li Xu at this point?
Xin Yao sighed. “You’re so naive.”
Ying Xi’s tears spilled over, her voice choked with emotion.
“Naive? You have no right to call me naive! You’re the other woman! If it weren’t for you, he wouldn’t have broken up with me!”
“Firstly,” Xin Yao raised an eyebrow, “I’m also a victim in this. Don’t direct your anger at another woman who’s been hurt. Blame the man who cheated on both of us.”
“Secondly, while it’s not necessary to establish a timeline, it might be helpful. I started dating Li Xu six years ago. What about you?”
“You’re a junior in university, 21 years old. Six years ago, you were 15. Li Xu hadn’t even debuted yet. You didn’t even know him, did you?”
Xin Yao’s words stunned Ying Xi into silence.
Like many others, she had believed Li Xu’s lies, thinking Xin Yao was the one pursuing him.
She had thought she was the famous actor’s only girlfriend.
And now Xin Yao was telling her they had been together for six years?
What?
Ying Xi’s expression faltered. She had hated Xin Yao, and now she realized she was the one who had interfered in their relationship?
And she had been accusing Xin Yao? How dare she?
Xin Yao, seeing her distraught expression, shook her head.
“He’s been two-timing us all along, using me for connections, using you for money. Now that he has Mo Yuwei, he has both, so he’s discarding us both.”
“How pathetic.”
“I’m not letting him get away with this. And I need your help. You must have some evidence that could ruin him, don’t you?”
Xin Yao’s words made Ying Xi’s mind race, her emotions a tangled mess of love and hate. She wanted to refuse, but before she could speak, Xin Yao lifted her sleeve, revealing the scar on her wrist.
In the dim light of the cafe, the scar, long and deep, was a stark reminder of her pain.
Ying Xi’s eyes widened in shock.
Xin Yao’s voice was calm and even.
“Li Xu tried to kill me.”
“He knew I was emotionally vulnerable, so he pressured me, hoping I would kill myself. He could do that to me, after all these years, do you really think he’ll spare you?”
“If the fan club’s illegal activities are exposed, he’ll throw you under the bus. Just like he dumped me after finding a richer girlfriend. He discards people he no longer needs.”
“But now, with a child, you’re even more of a threat to his image, his career, his future.”
“So, he won’t just try to kill me. He’ll try to kill you too.”
Xin Yao leaned closer, her eyes, their black and white contrast stark, fixed on Ying Xi’s face.
“Why should we die, while he gets to live?”
The scar on Xin Yao’s wrist, and her words, had terrified Ying Xi.
She had simply fallen in love with the wrong person. How had it escalated to murder?
Compared to this, her unexpected pregnancy seemed insignificant.
This was a society ruled by law. How could Li Xu do such a thing? How dare he?!
Xin Yao, seeing her disbelief, leaned back in her chair, a cold smile playing on her lips.
“Li Xu is a monster. He’s capable of anything to get ahead.”
“Ying Xi,” she sighed, “you can recover from a broken heart, but some mistakes are irreversible. You have your whole life ahead of you. Don’t throw it away.”
“Do you think I’m making this up? I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t know something.”
“Ying Xi, the night is dangerous. And dark alleys, without lights or cameras, are even more dangerous. One day, you’ll notice that the streetlights and security cameras in the alley near your home are broken.”
She grabbed Ying Xi’s hand, pressing her business card into her palm.
“My contact information. Call me then. It’s not too late.”
Ying Xi stared at the business card, tears streaming down her face, her lips trembling.
It was still early, only 10:30 am, when Xin Yao left the cafe.
The meeting had left her feeling uneasy.
But as she stepped outside, the fresh snow crunching beneath her feet, she thought of the previous night, of Xu Jingyu.
Of her girlfriend. A smile touched her lips, her heart lifting, her steps quickening as she hurried back to the hotel, eager to see her.
But as she reached the hotel, she was intercepted by Meng Wanqing, who was lurking in the hallway, her arms laden with DVDs.
Xin Yao, startled by her sudden appearance, exclaimed, “What are you doing?!”
Meng Wanqing, her legs numb from squatting, jumped up and ran towards Xin Yao, her eyes shining.
“Yaoyao, you’re back!”
Seeing her eager expression, Xin Yao instinctively took a step back. “What’s this about? What are you up to?”
Meng Wanqing grinned, patting the DVDs in her arms.
“Good stuff. Interested?”
A question mark appeared above Xin Yao’s head.
Meng Wanqing leaned closer, her voice a conspiratorial whisper. “Horror movies. Wanna watch?”
Xin Yao took a large step back. “Are you crazy? No way! Why would I want to torture myself?”
“Xin Yao!” Meng Wanqing’s voice was filled with mock disapproval. “As an actress, how can you say that?!”
“Can you guarantee you’ll never be cast in a horror movie? What will you do then? Run away? Are you even a professional?”
“You have to practice! Build up your courage!”
Her words, despite their absurdity, struck a chord with Xin Yao, making her hesitate.
She was a dedicated actress, after all.
Meng Wanqing, seeing her hesitation, clasped her hands together, her eyes pleading.
“Please, Jiejie! I need to practice! I can’t watch horror movies alone! I’ll die!”
Xin Yao finally relented, her brow furrowing slightly.
“But I can’t either! I’m terrified of horror movies! How about… we ask Xu Jingyu to join us?”
“Eww!” Meng Wanqing shuddered. “Watching a horror movie while staring at Xu Jingyu’s ice-cold face? That’s even more terrifying!”
Her girlfriend being insulted made Xin Yao pause, then she patted Meng Wanqing’s shoulder, a smile playing on her lips.
“I finally understand why Xue Ning says you’re lucky to be alive.”
In the end, they did invite Xu Jingyu.
They were planning to watch the movie in Xin Yao’s room. When the doorbell rang, Xin Yao went to open the door.
The cool air from the hallway wafted into the room as Xin Yao saw the figure standing outside.
She was tall, dressed in a simple black dress, her long, dark hair cascading down her back, the color accentuating her pale skin.
She looked like a creature of ice and snow, her presence chilling.
It was Xu Jingyu.
But the moment she saw Xin Yao, her cold, aloof demeanor melted away, her eyes shining with warmth and affection.
Like ice melting in the sunlight.
Before they were together, their interactions had been casual and easy.
Now, on their first official day as a couple, their relationship suddenly more intimate, more significant, Xin Yao felt a sudden shyness, unable to meet Xu Jingyu’s gaze.
But even as she blushed, her eyes lowered, she couldn’t tear her gaze away.
They stood there, at the doorway, their eyes locked, the air between them thick with unspoken desire, as if they were about to kiss.
But they didn’t, the unspoken intimacy of the moment broken as they finally looked away, remembering Meng Wanqing’s presence inside.
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