After Losing My Memory, I Was Targeted by the Obsessive Movie Queen [gl] - Chapter 60

Yan He’s brow gave a sudden twitch, and as if possessed, her finger tapped into the post.

It was a Weibo post published by Lu Youqing, explaining that she and the other lead of the movie were merely ordinary friends with no other relationship between them. The wording was concise—just a few brief lines.

Yan He checked the time it was posted; it was yesterday afternoon, seemingly before the time the two of them had run into each other.

Her memory drifted back to last night. Yan He’s chest felt heavy and suffocating. Looking around the familiar room and the familiar decor, a complex wave of emotion spontaneously welled up within her.

She had clearly been prepared to distance herself, yet with nothing more than Lu Youqing’s reappearance, she was entirely unable to restrain her underlying affection and feelings. The moment she saw Lu Youqing, she couldn’t stop her heart from fluttering, couldn’t stop herself from caring about her, couldn’t stop herself from longing for her.

Yan He felt she was truly ridiculous. All the effort she had made dissolved like smoke into thin air the moment she set eyes on Lu Youqing; she was simply incapable of not loving her this way.

Yet, she was still so angry—angry that Lu Youqing had used such a clumsy method just to make her reach out more, and angry that Lu Youqing had knowingly left her heartbroken while still failing to reject the physical contact of others.

She felt both angry and sorrowful, yet she had no way to truly harden her heart.

Yan He was nearly dying of frustration with herself. She logically knew she had to break up with Lu Youqing, but after living through the events of yesterday, her love for Lu Youqing uncontrollably surfaced anyway, acting like a drizzling rain in her heart that left a blanket of dampness over everything.

The rims of her eyes turned red once more. Yan He simply opted to lie back down on the bed and continue sleeping. Since she was still running a fever, everything she was thinking and doing right now was muddled anyway. She would just treat that kiss last night as a delusion brought on by the fever; right now, her relationship with Lu Youqing was still strictly that of an broken-up ex-girlfriend.

No, they were broken up, and she was currently in a state of being re-pursued by her ex-girlfriend.

When it came time to sleep that night, Lu Youqing still lay down right beside her just as she had before the breakup. Yan He said nothing, merely closing her eyes and pretending she had fallen into a heavy slumber.

The darkness of the night veiled her eyes, which in turn rendered her other senses exceptionally sharp. She could clearly hear Lu Youqing, who had initially lain a full person’s width away on the other side, shuffling toward her bit by bit. Her movements were so light that the friction of the fabric was entirely silent; Yan He could only perceive the delicate fragrance radiating from Lu Youqing turning increasingly rich.

Yan He was gripped by an inexplicable panic. Since she had no idea how she was supposed to face Lu Youqing yet, she could only match Lu Youqing’s progress by shuffling outward.

For every inch Lu Youqing moved toward her, Yan He shifted an inch outward, until she reached the absolute edge of the mattress. In the next fraction of a second—

Thud. Failing to pay attention, Yan He lost her footing and tumbled right off the bed, her body colliding hard against the solid wooden floorboards. Lu Youqing’s movements stopped instantly.

“A-He?” Caught in a panic, Lu Youqing sat up to assist her, but Yan He dodged her hands. Lu Youqing’s movements went entirely rigid, and she stared at Yan He, utterly at a loss.

“I’ll sleep in the guest room,” Yan He said as she stood up, coughing twice before walking out.

“Wait a minute.” Sitting on the bed, Lu Youqing lifted her eyes in the dim light to stare at Yan He’s halted silhouette, finally unable to suppress the bitterness in her heart as she spoke slowly.

“I’ll go instead.” Lu Youqing took a deep breath, trying her absolute best to keep her voice from carrying a sob, and stood up to leave the master bedroom.

As she walked away, her silk-soft long hair cascaded down, concealing the disappointment she couldn’t mask. Her nightgown, which barely covered her thighs, appeared radiant white under the moonlight.

Yan He lowered her eyes dejectedly, looking thoughtfully at the room after her departure. The air seemed to hold a residual trace of Lu Youqing’s perfume—every breath carried that delicate aroma.

Lu Youqing had applied a perfume that Yan He loved deeply today. Back then, when Yan He mentioned how much she adored the scent, Lu Youqing had stocked up on countless bottles. Even after the perfume was discontinued, she still purchased a massive supply at exorbitant prices.

Inhaling that faint aroma right now, Yan He’s heart didn’t feel as comforted as it once had; she merely felt as if a lump of cotton were stuffed into her chest, making breathing difficult.

Sitting on the bed, she covered her face and let out a deep, heavy sigh.

Life marched on. Yan He resumed her job hunt online, though she ceased looking for a new apartment. She added Lu Youqing’s contact information back, but used it strictly to send her a fixed monthly rental fee for staying in the villa. Although Lu Youqing refused to accept the money even once, Yan He eventually threatened to move out and look for another apartment if she didn’t take it, which finally forced Lu Youqing to start accepting the transfers.

Along with this came Lu Youqing’s relentless preparation of breakfast, lunch, and dinner for Yan He day after day, month after month. Even though Yan He never touched a single bite, she still insisted on preparing them. It felt as though the two were silently pitting their resolve against each other.

The dynamic between them began to undergo a total reversal.

Lu Youqing began to drastically reduce her professional commitments. The moment a film wrapped, she would rest at home for a very long interval. She avoided variety shows whenever possible, and the absolute instant any rumor connecting her to someone surfaced online, her studio would issue a clarification immediately. In contrast, Yan He had secured a new job and began to work frequent overtime, managing professional projects and rarely staying home. Lu Youqing had transformed into the one trapped in a bitter, endless wait.

The photography studio where Yan He worked frequently required night shifts. Every time Yan He dragged her exhausted frame back home, she would invariably catch sight of Lu Youqing sound asleep on the living room sofa. Initially, she assumed Lu Youqing had simply grown drowsy while reviewing scripts, but she later discovered that Lu Youqing was waiting up for her return.

Her heart felt as if it were being ironed over a fire, scorching blood flooding her pulse to ignite the feelings she could no longer suppress. She could no longer state clearly what her current emotions for Lu Youqing actually were, but every time she set eyes on her, and every time she noticed the array of changes she had made, Yan He’s heart couldn’t stop a sharp flutter.

She was waiting—waiting for Lu Youqing to ask for a reconciliation. Meanwhile, Lu Youqing was waiting for her to stop being so angry, waiting for the day she could truly accept her presence again.

Finally, on another rainy night, right after Yan He returned home from working overtime, she stumbled upon a thoroughly intoxicated Lu Youqing in the living room.

Seeing her, Lu Youqing didn’t maintain her usual silence. Instead, she stumbled blindly to her side. Wanting to embrace her but terrified that Yan He would turn furious, she settled for the next best option, yanking tightly on the hem of her jacket as she spilled a flurry of apologies and professions of love.

In the middle of that rainy night, her eyes pooled with tears, Lu Youqing resembled a solitary skiff that had lost all anchorage, drifting passively upon a churning sea. She could only helplessly clutch at the final shred of hope, desperate for Yan He to grant her even a fraction of an attentive glance.

Her affection was like an endless spring rain. Over the span of those six months, it had long since surpassed the point of restraint, and taking advantage of her muddled awareness, she cast aside all reservations to let herself give voice to the absolute entirety of her love.

Yan He found herself unable to speak. Her heart felt concurrently sorrowful and elated, like two fierce predators tearing ruthlessly at her chest.

She clutched Yan He tightly, weeping helplessly within her embrace. Yan He’s limp hand slowly lifted, before finally wrapping gently around her back.

Lu Youqing’s entire body went rigid. Filled with a sudden, overwhelming joy, she lifted her eyes to look at her, her trembling gaze pooled with moisture as it reflected Yan He’s form.

“A-He…” Finally unable to contain her surging affection, her mind went blissfully blank as she leaned in to kiss her.

Lips met, and the other woman’s breath flooded her senses. Yan He kissed her with an intense force, carrying the entirety of her accumulated rage and love—seeking a rebirth from the absolute ashes of their past.

Navigating all the way into the master bedroom, a room Lu Youqing hadn’t stepped foot in for six months, she collapsed onto the soft mattress. Above and beneath her was nothing but Yan He’s scent; held securely in her embrace, she lost all capacity for thought.

Yan He whispered a flurry of ruthless, excessive words against her ear, forcing her to voice a response to every single sentence. The burning intensity had already left Lu Youqing’s mind in a total blur; she was completely incapable of logic, able only to embrace Yan He as short gasps spilled continuously from between her teeth.

Suddenly, a few cool drops fell onto her cheek. Lu Youqing blinked her hazy eyes open, requiring a long while for her vision to clear. It was Yan He’s tears. Yan He was tenderly kissing away the physiological tears at the corners of Lu Youqing’s eyes, yet she herself had lost control, weeping until she resembled a completely broken soul.

A bitter ache filled Lu Youqing’s chest. She raised her arms to hold Yan He, pressing her downward to cradle her close against her chest, comforting her bit by bit.

Yan He and Lu Youqing reconciled, six months after their initial breakup.

During that half-year interval, neither of them had a good time. It felt as though they were tormenting both each other and themselves—clearly still harboring a profound love for one another, yet entirely unable to truly let go and take that step forward.

Lu Youqing was terrified that a single misstep would ruin all her progress, while Yan He simply had no idea how she was supposed to voice her thoughts.

On the very first day of their reconciliation, Lu Youqing immediately moved every single item from the guest room back into the master bedroom, using her belongings to systematically occupy and fill Yan He’s space bit by bit. It wasn’t until her clothes shared the wardrobe fifty-fifty with Yan He’s that the dreamlike, surreal quality of their reconciliation vanished completely.

As if desperate to compensate for the six months they had spent apart, they clung to each other tightly like a pair of twin flowers. Wherever Yan He went, Lu Youqing was bound to follow. They didn’t step past the threshold of the master bedroom for several consecutive days, relying entirely on their assistant to deliver their meals.

Once they were back together, they turned even more devoted to each other than before, and Lu Youqing became increasingly incapable of doing without her. She seemed to have realized completely just how deeply her past actions had wounded Yan He, and set about mending the damage she had caused bit by bit, cultivating beautiful flowers to bloom anew across Yan He’s barren heart.

No matter how late her work kept her each day, she would relentlessly send messages and call Yan He. Even when she traveled into signal-less mountains to scout locations, she would provide Yan He with notice well in advance. Before sleeping at night, she would initiate a video call with Yan He just to fall asleep to her image. Furthermore, she declined absolutely every professional commitment aside from her actual filming schedule, choosing instead to stay cooped up at home with Yan He every day. Her display of having her mind and eyes entirely filled with Yan He was something Yan He found immensely satisfying.

However, Yan He’s own work was far too busy. Sometimes, she was so swamped that she slept for only three or four hours a day for several consecutive days, leaving her physically and mentally spent—let alone having much time to spend with Lu Youqing.

Even though Lu Youqing had declined numerous commitments, the very nature of her career dictated that it was impossible for the two of them to stay together indefinitely. Sometimes, she would leave to shoot a film and not return for several months. Combined with Yan He’s high-intensity, high-overtime job, their communication was basically reduced to sending text messages.

Thus, Yan He resigned from her position, choosing to take a period of rest. Staying with Lu Youqing acted as her absolute best form of relaxation. Shifting her strategy, she decided to accompany Lu Youqing on her travels, intending to temporarily step into the role of Lu Youqing’s assistant during the interval before she looked for another job once she felt fully rested.

The turning point occurred after the wrap party for another one of Lu Youqing’s films. Lu Youqing had grown somewhat intoxicated, and Yan He had supported her to rest on the hotel bed. During this interval, Lu Youqing’s manager, Xue Yi, called her phone. Since Lu Youqing was drunk, Yan He answered the call on her behalf.

However, a mere fraction of a second before she exited the phone’s interface, her eyes caught a specific number appearing among Lu Youqing’s recent contacts—a sequence of digits she recognized with absolute clarity.

The number belonged to none other than the photography studio that had laid her off out of nowhere on the very eve of her start date.

Yan He was completely stunned. How could Lu Youqing possibly possess this contact information? Forgetting all respect for her partner’s privacy, her hands trembled as she tapped into the log.

What was far more terrifying than an exchange of calls was that the message interface was a total blank.

Yan He felt as though her heart had completely seized. A massive wave of pure terror crashed down upon her like a giant mountain, leaving her feeling entirely suffocated.

She stared at the deeply sleeping Lu Youqing on the bed. It was highly likely that their intense romance over this recent period had caused Lu Youqing to slacken her guard regarding her concealment, allowing Yan He to detect this anomaly.

Yan He exited the interface, placed the phone securely back on the nightstand, and stepped out of the room.

Shutting the door behind her, her hands shook violently as she dispatched a message to the company that had laid her off back then. Simultaneously, the memory of the landlord who had evicted her on the exact same day resurfaced in her mind.

The incidents back then had occurred far too suddenly, and because Lu Youqing had stayed relentlessly by her side immediately after, she had actually failed to perceive just how catastrophic of a coincidence it all was, submissively accepting reality just like that.

Stepping back to analyze it now, she realized everything had been veiled beneath a layer of deception.

She dispatched a message to that landlord living far across the ocean as well.

During the days she spent awaiting their replies, Yan He continued to accompany Lu Youqing without letting a single hint show on her face, acting as her most devoted fiancée and her most thoughtful assistant. Yet, with every single second of that wait, her heart was burning in agony. Lu Youqing smiled at her, kissed her with absolute tenderness, and whispered the most lingering, romantic sweet nothings against her ear while in bed—yet, she was concurrently capable of going to such lengths just to force Yan He to stay by her side.

If reality truly was like this, how was she supposed to face the person closest to her?

Poetically enough, the message from the company and the message from the landlord arrived on the exact same day. Both responses were evasive, beating around the bush and refusing to speak clearly, yet the moment Yan He demanded to know if Lu Youqing had contacted them, they began to frantically deny and defend the situation.

In that instant, Yan He knew the truth. She couldn’t stop herself from breaking into a laugh—a laugh that grew increasingly loud and increasingly desolate. It turned out that the partner who had shared her bed through countless passionate nights had actually executed so many things behind her back without her knowledge.

Throughout those countless days and nights where she had been completely infatuated with her, did Lu Youqing ever turn her back to her, secretly gloating, or perhaps mocking her for failing to detect a single thing?

She had nearly forgotten that Lu Youqing was an exceptionally gifted actress; playing the part of a wife who adored her was something she could execute with effortless grace. Could it be that during those countless moments she whispered sweet nothings to Yan He, she was actually laughing at how easily Yan He had handed over the entirety of her love?

Just how much truth and falsehood resided within the words Lu Youqing spoke and the actions she took?

Yan He’s entire body went cold, her heart feeling as if it had plunged into a glacial lake, pierced through by a thousand long swords until it was bleeding and raw. The sensation of being deceived was truly agonizing.

It turned out that absolutely everything that day had been within Lu Youqing’s total control. Could it be that she had never actually loved her at all, and that her absolute obsession with control simply wouldn’t permit a pet she had nurtured for so long to leave her side?

Lu Youqing truly viewed her as nothing more than a dog.

Yet, even a dog possessed its own dignity, and even a dog was capable of biting.

Yan He was determined to leave her. Lu Youqing was a lunatic—a completely selfish, predatory lunatic. She didn’t dare gamble on whether Lu Youqing had ever truly loved her; regardless, her existence amounted to nothing more than a pet Lu Youqing could discard at a whim.

She was actually still wearing the ring Lu Youqing had given her when she proposed—wearing this tiny, exquisite ring that symbolized the love between them.

How utterly farcical. What kind of ring could exist without love? She wrenched the ring from her finger and slammed it ruthlessly onto the floorboards.

Her first attempt to leave was detected by Lu Youqing. Lu Youqing locked the front door of the house, declined absolutely all her professional commitments, and spent every moment trying to explain things to Yan He, offering her apologies—but Yan He was no longer willing to believe a word.

Her second attempt to leave saw Lu Youqing track her all the way to the airport, ultimately dragging her back. Simultaneously, she changed the security code to the house’s front door and removed Yan He’s fingerprints from the system.

Her third attempt to leave saw Yan He get in touch with her old high school classmate, Wu Yu, begging her to help her escape. Wu Yu said they could take a minor path that had never been monitored before, flying out from an airport they had never used. Yan He followed her instructions.

Yan He began to learn how to feign compliance, pretending she had forgiven Lu Youqing. Lu Youqing’s mental state was already on the absolute verge of a collapse, leaving her entirely incapable of discerning whether Yan He was acting or had truly forgiven her. Believing that Yan He was no longer angry, she would kiss Yan He with immense joy, and Yan He would accept the gestures with equal compliance—yet, whenever Lu Youqing’s eyes were averted, Yan He’s gaze held nothing but a bottomless darkness.

Lu Youqing became increasingly attached to her, forcing Yan He to voice hundreds of vows promising she would never leave each day, while relentlessly wrapping her in kisses, refusing to stop until both of them were completely exhausted. She had even listened to Yan He’s instructions, removing the device clamped around her ankle.

Lu Youqing also gradually returned to work. During her first few commitments, Yan He made no transgressive movements at all, even proactively asking when she would return home and sending her a flurry of text messages. Lu Youqing completely lowered her guard, beginning to focus on her work with peace of mind.

And Yan He had been waiting for exactly this moment.

Qingcheng, one o’clock in the afternoon. The scorching sunlight kicked up waves of intense heat that swept across the city, and the bustling noise instinctively quieted down amidst the oppressive heat.

In the southern villa district, a black sedan tore out from the gates at full speed, the loud roar of the engine cutting a raw gash through the airtight air to pull in fresh oxygen, fighting for a fraction of a breath.

Yan He sat in the driver’s seat, her hands clutching the steering wheel before her in a vice grip. Her entire body shivered, her eyes fixed intently on the road ahead. Due to her extreme tension, her mind was on absolute high alert; the slightest hint of movement was enough to trigger a mental collapse.

The vehicle rapidly cleared the villa district, and the scenery on either side finally ceased to be a monotonous loop. The bustling streets brought Yan He a shred of comfort. She instinctively glanced at the rearview mirror. Seeing that no vehicle was tailing her closely, she couldn’t stop a deep, heavy breath from escaping her lips. Turning the wheel, she steered onto another road.

Yan He bit her lip, tearing open the recently healed scar on the corner of her mouth once more. The taste of rust flooded her mouth, the sharp pain restoring a shard of logic to her mind. Taking a few deep breaths, she calmed herself down and drove according to the road signs.

Perhaps because she was far too tense, her phone on the side suddenly gave a sharp notification, making her entire body shudder violently.

Wu Yu: [Yan He, did you make it out? Lu Youqing seems to have detected something. Hurry up and get over. Remember, it’s the western airport.]

[The moment you arrive, my people will be there to intercept you.]

She’s already detected it?

Yan He knit her brows, wiping the sweat from her palms. Right as she was preparing to use a red light to stop the car and reply to Wu Yu, her eyes flicked to the rearview mirror. The reflection that met her gaze left her entire body frozen solid.

A green light.

Yan He’s breath hitched, her body shivering violently. Almost entirely by instinct, she slammed down on the accelerator and sped forward.

How could she be this fast? I clearly took a detour…

Yan He’s brows knit tightly, her heart feeling as if it had plunged into a pool of ice water. Staring at the phone on the seat, as if a sudden realization struck her, she broke into a sudden laugh—it was impossible to tell what the emotion was, and her mind drifted into a daze for a fraction of a second.

And it was during this exact fraction of a second that she failed to register the truck surging in from the right. By the time awareness snapped back and she violently turned the wheel, it was already too late.

Crash—

A violent sound of collision erupted right beside her ear. She felt as though all her strength had been violently drained away, rolling heavily along with the vehicle as it slammed violently against the asphalt.

Blood. It was filled with blood. The scent of rust invaded every gap inside the cabin, saturating the ground. The passage of time seemed stretched into infinity—every single breath felt like an eternity. Yan He forced her remaining strength into keeping her eyelids open. Her vision was completely blurred by a crimson glaze, making it impossible to see anything clearly. The sounds outside the vehicle felt separated from her by a thick barrier; she could only catch the sound of blood dripping onto the ground—slow and agonizing.

The solid pool of red filling her vision was gradually consumed by a brilliant white light. She eventually pulled her lips into a self-mocking smile and closed her eyes, missing entirely the sound of a woman’s heartbreaking, desperate wails.