A Washed-up Movie Queen's Divorce Strategy [Rebirth] - Chapter 27

The rain in the mountains came in waves—arriving quickly and leaving just as fast, yet showing no signs of stopping. In this weather, Ji Chenli’s production couldn’t work. Since the crew was backed by a massive benefactor who wasn’t short on cash, waiting a day or two didn’t matter. But Han Xinyuan’s group was different; every day delayed was a day of overhead, especially with guests whose appearance fees were practically calculated by the hour. They couldn’t afford to wait. Consequently, the reality show crew next door headed out to film in the rain as soon as the downpour lightened in the afternoon. Apparently, they were searching for some rare mushroom—a local specialty.

Ji Chenli lay comfortably in her warm, large bed at the hotel. When Feng Cai told her about this, she laughed with schadenfreude. Forget mushrooms—even if it were diamonds, Ji Chenli wouldn’t go up the mountain to dig in this weather. With the ground covered in dead branches, rotting leaves, and mud, she figured the audience must be truly bored to love watching this kind of reality show.

However, Ji Chenli’s comfort didn’t last long. Ming Yan lived right across from her, and Ming Yan loved excitement. She couldn’t stand being alone and loved to chat and gossip. Since Han Xinyuan was away, she had no choice but to seek out Ji Chenli.

“Chenli, do you want some strawberries? They were just flown in from Japan.” Ming Yan entered Ji Chenli’s room carrying a bowl of fresh white strawberries glistening with water droplets. It wasn’t early spring yet—hardly strawberry season—and seeing a bowl of white strawberries like this made Ji Chenli feel the sting in Ming Yan’s wallet on her behalf.

“Too cold. Give them to Han Xinyuan.”

“I saved a bowl for her already. These were brought specifically for you,” Ming Yan smiled, placing the fruit bowl on the small coffee table in front of the sofa.

“Ming Yan, if you have something to say, just say it. There’s no need for this.” Ji Chenli had been dealing with the Ming family for years and understood them somewhat. Excessive politeness often masked an ulterior motive—especially since Ming Yan’s fawning was practically being shoved in her face.

“Hehe, as expected, Sister-in-law knows me best.” Ming Yan grinned. “Sister-in-law, you’ve been cooped up in the hotel since yesterday. Aren’t you bored?”

Ji Chenli said, “I’m not.”

“…But I am!” Ming Yan wailed. “If I’m not let out soon, I’m going to suffocate!”

Ji Chenli laughed. “The door opens outward and no one is stopping you. Why don’t you just go?”

“Going out to play alone is pathetic…” Ming Yan’s thin eyebrows slanted into a pout. “Chenli… Sister-in-law… let’s go for a walk…”

Ming Yan was two years older than Ji Chenli, yet she shamelessly acted spoiled toward her. Even if Ming Yan didn’t find it gross, it gave Ji Chenli enough goosebumps to make her skin crawl. “No, if you want to go, go yourself. Why do you have to drag me along?”

“I’m just… afraid you’d be bored… all alone in the hotel…”

Ji Chenli couldn’t help but laugh. “You’re the one who’s bored, right?”

Ming Yan didn’t feel embarrassed at being exposed and became even more relentless in pestering Ji Chenli. Unable to withstand the annoyance, Ji Chenli finally agreed. “Just for one hour, okay?”

“Mhm! Yes, yes!” Ming Yan nodded vigorously like a puppy.

“Fine,” Ji Chenli sighed. “Where to?”

“I’ve asked around! Xinyuan and the others still have activities at the foot of the mountain; they won’t be heading up so soon. Let’s go watch the fun!”

The moment she heard “Han Xinyuan,” Ji Chenli lost interest. She regretted her loose tongue for agreeing, but Ming Yan pushed and shoved her out the door. The rainy day was damp and cold, the chill seeping through Ji Chenli’s thick down jacket into her bones. She couldn’t help but shiver, regretting it even more.

What did I do to deserve this? Instead of staying in a warm bed, I’m out here suffering in the rain.

Ming Yan, likely having been cooped up too long, was delighted the moment they stepped out. Wearing a raincoat and holding an umbrella, she stomped in the rain like a child. She even attempted to walk on the muddy road in stiletto boots until Ji Chenli ordered her to change into durable but clunky rubber boots.

Of course, Ming Yan wouldn’t go out with just Ji Chenli. Her bodyguards, assistant, and manager all followed. Feng Cai, fearing Ji Chenli might be bullied, came along too. What was supposed to be a walk for two turned into a grand procession.

Ming Yan was long used to this kind of spectacle. She treated the people behind them as if they were transparent and spoke only to Ji Chenli. Fortunately, the reality show’s filming site wasn’t far; they reached it after thirty minutes of trekking through the mud.

When they arrived, Han Xinyuan was rolling around in the mud of a paddy field. Apparently, it was a “warm-up” round before the mushroom hunt. Several guests were tethered with bungee cords, running from one end of the field to the other; they had to use their mouths to bite off lollipops hanging at the far end without using their hands to complete the task.

Ji Chenli couldn’t tell which round they were on, but the guests and the cameramen were covered in mud as if they were made of it. Even their faces were caked. If not for Han Xinyuan’s long hair tied back in a ponytail, Ji Chenli wouldn’t have been able to distinguish her at all.

A light rain was falling, and a gust of wind blew by now and then. Ji Chenli felt cold even while wearing a raincoat and a down jacket on the embankment, let alone those rolling in the mud. Recalling the time she jumped into the freezing lake over and over, Ji Chenli sighed. In this industry, if you don’t do these things, there are plenty of people lining up behind you waiting for the chance. Everyone was trading their lives for money.

However, Ji Chenli did admire Han Xinyuan somewhat. She had assumed Han Xinyuan was just a wealthy lady here to play a bit and leave, but now she saw her in the mud with a group of men—her desperate fighting spirit was unmatched by any of them. The mud on her face made it difficult to even distinguish her features.

Finally, the segment finished. A male guest won the race by a narrow margin. Assistants waiting nearby with towels and hot water immediately wrapped their bosses up to warm them. Several temporary tents had been set up nearby, and the mud-covered guests hurried inside to change and get warm.

Confused, Ji Chenli asked Ming Yan, “With Han Xinyuan’s background, why would she choose to come out here and suffer like this?”

Ming Yan smiled slightly. “You’ll understand when you’ve been pointed at and called a ‘vase’ (eye candy).”

Ji Chenli had never been called a “vase.” She probably had a bit of talent for acting; though she wasn’t classically trained and had switched from editing to acting halfway through, she adapted quite well. She had even earned a reputation for good acting through several “vicious woman” roles. Thus, she couldn’t empathize with the feeling of being called a vase. But…

“If people insult Ming Lang, does she just let them? Blacklisting, using water armies to hype ‘unrivaled beauty,’ or ‘outshining everyone,’ and then releasing press releases about having a good personality and character—I know about these things, don’t tell me you don’t.”

“Hype… only works if Xinyuan is willing…” Ming Yan smiled bitterly. With Han Xinyuan’s proud personality, having people insult her behind her back would make her sick with rage, yet she’d have to maintain a front of being magnanimous. She disdained the petty games other minor stars played to compete for attention.

Ji Chenli looked at Ming Yan, seemingly understanding the motive for this trip. “Ming Yan, you didn’t bring me here just so I’d change my view of Han Xinyuan, did you?”

“Sister-in-law, listen to me,” Ming Yan said earnestly. “Right now, my sister sincerely only wants to be with you. It’s not a solution for you and Xinyuan to be at a standoff like this. I know you like my sister in your heart, too. You guys…”

“Who says I like her?” Ji Chenli sneered through her hand. “Your sister and I had an agreement long ago to divorce once this movie is finished. What, did she not tell you?”

Ming Yan was in disbelief. Her eyes widened, and it took a while before she asked, “Wait… is this for real?”

“Of course it’s real. Absolutely certain.”

“But my sister said…”

“What your sister says is her business. Ming Yan, you know as well as I do that I was the one who forced her to marry me in the beginning. Now I’ve realized that ‘forced fruit isn’t sweet.’ Instead of wasting time on me, you might as well go persuade your sister with that logic.”

“…” Ming Yan just wanted to slap herself. Why was she meddling? She knew the relationship between these three was complicated, but she hadn’t realized it was this complicated.

Ming Yan said regretfully, “Chenli, I really just wanted to help this time…”

“I know,” Ji Chenli said. “Is there anything else? If not, let’s head back.”

Ming Yan indeed wanted to help, but she was helping Ming Lang. Ji Chenli felt no need to accept her gratitude.

“Then… let’s go back…” Ming Yan said dejectedly.

“Wait!” Han Xinyuan emerged from the tent in clean, fresh clothes. She seemed to have washed her hair; though it was just a quick rinse and there was still some mud in the strands, it was much cleaner than before. “I’ll head back with you.”

Ming Yan asked, “Aren’t you still recording?”

“No. The guide said the mountain is dangerous in this weather.”

“Then…” Ming Yan looked at Ji Chenli. “Then…”

Ji Chenli laughed; it seemed she had given Ming Yan quite a scare. “Let’s go together, then.”

“Great!” Ming Yan brightened up again. Regardless, this counted as progress.

However, on the way back, it was Han Xinyuan who chatted with Ming Yan. At first, Ming Yan tried to include Ji Chenli, but Ji Chenli remained indifferent. After being rebuffed a few times, Ming Yan didn’t dare try to include her anymore and stuck to chatting with Han Xinyuan.

Upon returning, Ming Yan was utterly perplexed. She remembered Ji Chenli being quite well-behaved and easy to get along with. Although she had gone too far with “that thing” later, she had saved Han Xinyuan’s life. While Ming Yan was a bit dismissive of the method, life was obviously more important than anything else. At a time like that, forget marriage—even if Ji Chenli had wanted the entire Ming family, Ming Lang probably would have agreed. Thus, while Ming Yan held some internal contempt for Ji Chenli, she didn’t hate her to the extent Xie Qinglan did.

But… the difference after the marriage was too great! With that sharp tongue, Ming Yan could barely keep up.

No wonder they say women are fickle. Ji Chenli had the nerve to ask if Ming Lang had changed, when she was clearly the one who had changed the most!

Ji Chenli took a bath that night, thinking she could finally have a comfortable sleep. But when Han Xinyuan knocked on her door in the middle of the night yet again, Ji Chenli truly hit a breaking point.

“Miss Han, aren’t you tired of this?” Ji Chenli asked helplessly.

“Can we talk?” Han Xinyuan smiled.

“No, between us,” Ji Chenli gestured to Han Xinyuan and then herself, “what is there to talk about?”

“Talk to me about Ming Lang,” Han Xinyuan said with a somewhat lonely smile. “I haven’t seen her in a long time.”

“…” Ji Chenli said speechlessly, “Can we talk about someone else? Do you have to annoy me?”

Regardless, Ji Chenli let Han Xinyuan into the room.

Ji Chenli leaned against the bed, half-asleep, while Han Xinyuan prattled on about how she and Ming Lang were childhood sweethearts and how Ming Lang promised to protect her forever. It actually worked quite well as a lullaby.

Ji Chenli thought: I really don’t love Ming Lang anymore. Hearing about her first love stories, my heart doesn’t even flicker. I even want to laugh.

Just as Ji Chenli was about to drift off, the bed suddenly began to shake violently. She snapped her eyes open and realized the entire room was swaying.

“Is it an earthquake?”

“It’s an earthquake,” Han Xinyuan said with a serious expression, the melancholy from before vanished completely. She decisively grabbed Ji Chenli—who hadn’t reacted yet—and ran for the door. “I’ll go get Ming Yan. You get out quickly!”

But when she opened the door, the hallway was already packed with a panicked crowd. It was a sea of black hair, and terrified screams filled the corridor. The hotel had only two emergency exits, and the stairs were less than a meter wide. They were on the seventh floor; getting down now was impossible.

“It’s too late!” Ji Chenli dragged Han Xinyuan back inside. By now, the building had been shaking for over twenty seconds. Huge cracks were appearing in the walls, and a collapse was imminent.

Dust cascaded from the ceiling, and the world swayed left and right. Ji Chenli only had time to grab a half-finished bottle of mineral water from the table before pulling Han Xinyuan into the narrow gap between the bed and the corner of the wall.

“But Ming Yan is still—!” Before Han Xinyuan could finish, the ceiling collapsed, burying them both in darkness.

In the second she was struck, Ji Chenli cried out in injustice. This is not the rebirth I was promised! What kind of joke is it to die right after being reborn? And why is there an earthquake everywhere? This timing is absolutely unscientific…

The saying that rebirth is like having a “cheat code” is a total lie…

However, she had forgotten that this year was a year of frequent earthquakes in the country, and in more than one place.

In C City, Ming Lang was dozing at her desk in the middle of the night when she felt a sudden jolt. She snapped awake with a buzzing pain in her head. She looked to the west; a bolt of lightning streaked across the sky as if tearing a hole in the night.

Ming Lang’s heart was pounding violently. she felt that something had happened.

“President Ming! Something happened!” The usually smiling assistant entered Ming Lang’s office with a panicked expression. “There was an earthquake at Songhu Mountain! Magnitude 7.2! The epicenter is right near the Second Miss!”

Ming Lang’s heart constricted sharply. “Get the plane ready. Now!”

“But the flight permit—”

“Immediately!”

“…Yes.”

Ming Lang collapsed into the sofa, her fingernails digging deep into her flesh.

Why is it today… why is it today?

Why is everything falling apart… why!?

Chenli, Chenli… you absolutely cannot… again…