Chapter 3: The Fallen Heiress
It can be said that the lives of Zhou Huichang and Zhou Huiguang, siblings, were ruined, directly or indirectly, because of her.
When she had just finished the Miss Hong Kong pageant, although she was only the runner-up, her brilliance was not overshadowed. A large group of wealthy tycoons and playboys who chased the results of beauty pageants every year openly and secretly made bets on who would win her favor. This was only because she had received special treatment from Ms. Zhuang of the TV station. If it were an ordinary girl without any backing, such coveting would not be described by the lenient term "pursuit" used by the Hong Kong media, but rather by the more vulgar and straightforward term "cutter".
However, she was never the beloved general whom Miss Zhuang had once doted on but who had squandered her potential. She was merely a backup plan that Miss Zhuang found after being heartbroken by her beloved general. Coupled with the fact that her biological mother had been abandoned by her wealthy husband, for a long time, "fallen heiress" was the nickname she was used by her haters and gossip-loving people.
In her past life, Li Sishi naturally couldn't stand this insult. Once she had the opportunity to marry into a wealthy family, she immediately stopped caring about Miss Zhuang's favors. Instead, like that beloved general who gave up her career for love, she wanted to terminate the contract. Holding the breach of contract fee given by her boyfriend, she went to confront Miss Zhuang and bluntly stated that she didn't want to be a backup plan anymore.
How did Miss Zhuang respond to her at that time?
Recalling that day, after hearing her almost "betrayal" remarks, Ms. Zhuang didn't say much. She simply took out a new contract from her desk drawer, and the terms on it were significantly better than the old one.
“Your contract was about to expire anyway, so this is a new contract I’ve prepared for you. If you stay, you’ll be the future senior sister,” Miss Zhuang said. “But if you want to leave, I won’t stop you.”
Her eyes held a hint of disappointment and loss, but it was precisely that look that stirred my emotions: at the television station, Ms. Zhuang was always known for her domineering and autocratic ways; if I could make Ms. Zhuang suffer a setback, many people might praise me behind my back for being "sharp"...
So, harboring secret feelings that were almost like revenge and venting, she ultimately did not accept the new contract. Instead, she shamelessly declared that her boyfriend, Mr. Zheng, treated her like a precious jewel, and that the two had even reached the stage of discussing marriage. Soon she would be able to marry into a wealthy family and enjoy a life of luxury, no longer having to work hard all night long.
Looking back now, I realize how incredibly foolish I was.
In the end, Ms. Zhuang didn't make things difficult for her, nor did she ask for a penalty for breach of contract. She simply let her fulfill the contract's deadline and record some relatively lighthearted variety shows before leaving.
Fang Di's decision to release the people surprised many people at the TV station.
It's probably a compensatory mentality—although he's a backup option, in Ms. Zhuang's eyes, many people don't even qualify as backup options.
Not only the people at the TV station, but even Li Sishi herself thought so at the time.
After all, compared to Huang Qianyan, the main actress who used to get everything she wanted just by frowning and crying, and who was able to smoothly terminate her contracts even though she owed several acting roles, it's not too surprising that the backup actress gets this kind of preferential treatment.
Later, people said that Qianyan and Sishi had used up all of Miss Zhuang's last bit of tenderness.
Unfortunately, both of them met the wrong people, which is truly regrettable.
At the time, I thought I had escaped the constraints and foolishly believed that I could meet a good person and stay with them for life. Little did I know that this so-called "good person," who was different from all the unscrupulous rich men, was actually black-hearted.
If he didn't accept her overt kindness, he would resort to underhanded tactics: he stole his cousin's design draft, then framed her for plagiarism during the competition, and then helped her out of the situation as a savior without expecting anything in return, making her believe that he was a truly good person.
Then, he secretly instructed gang members to kidnap her in a plan to rescue her, but his cousin, who had heard about it, stopped him. So he had his cousin's legs broken, and then pretended to avenge her and his cousin, eventually tricking her into his hands.
As for her cousins who were implicated, one had to change majors to continue her studies while bearing the infamy, and after graduation, she became one of the many ordinary people in the office building; the other inherited the family business with a limp and spent a mediocre and ridiculed life in a small tea restaurant.
How could she not hate him when she finally learned the truth years later?!
Now, having survived a calamity and been reborn, and seeing her loved ones still alive and well after all the suffering, Li Sishi was filled with emotion and resolved never to repeat their mistakes.
Moreover, she must also strive to cherish all those who loved her sincerely in her past life, but whom she had betrayed in her ignorance at the time.
Compared to the undercurrents in Li Sishi's heart, Zhou Huiguang's heart must have been stirred with considerable turmoil the moment he looked up and saw her clearly after changing his shoes.
However, remembering that the girl before him, who looked like an angel descended from heaven, was his cousin, and that it wasn't the old days of facilitating marriages between cousins anymore, he calmed down: no matter how beautiful or stunning she was, she was still his sister. He could only hope that this cousin wouldn't treat him like his own sister had.
Is your younger brother bossing you around and bullying you at will?
"Hey, snap out of it?" Zhou Huichang patted him. "Even though my cousin is prettier than the actresses on TV, you don't have to be so stunned, do you?"
"How much better are you than me? We are twins who grew up together, so Zhou Huiguang naturally knows everything about his older sister. "You only talk about others and not yourself. You usually keep these snacks to yourself and won't let me have a bite, but as soon as your cousin comes, you take them all out."
"If I were to take out your money, which is like a bottomless pit that never stops once it starts talking, would there be anything left?"
Zhou Huichang didn't care about anything else at this point and immediately started playing around with her younger brother.
"Alright, your aunt and cousin are still here, you two are being rude!" Aunt Liang Shao'e said as she brought out two dishes, calling out to Zhou Jiayun, "Go to the kitchen and bring out the soup for me."
"No, no, Changchang and Guangzai are very lively, and Sishi and I both like them very much." Zhou Jiaxian glanced at her daughter and noticed that she no longer had the impatient attitude she used to have towards other children. Instead, she was watching Zhou Huichang and Zhou Huiguang play with a smile in her eyes. So she quickly responded and then stood up, "I'll help you."
"No need, you just got back. Sit down and rest. Dinner will be ready soon." Liang Shao'e deftly placed the dishes on the table and turned to walk back into the kitchen.
According to my uncle Zhou Jiayun, after receiving the notification from the police, he immediately closed the downstairs tea restaurant for a day and discussed with Liang Shao'e the arrangements for the mother and daughter and a welcome banquet.
When Li Sishi's taste buds touched the slow-cooked soup, which was full of the warmth of home cooking, she was momentarily overcome with an urge to shed tears as the steam rose from the surface of the soup.
"What's wrong? Is the food not to your liking?" Liang Shao'e, who was sitting directly opposite, looked over.
Her sister-in-law is said to have settled in Annam with a wealthy man for many years. Judging from the appearance of the mother and daughter, they have delicate skin that can only be achieved by being raised in a pampered environment. Therefore, this niece must have been used to eating good food since she was a child.
Although she had tried her best to buy the ingredients, in this last-minute rush, she could only put together a meal that was slightly better than their usual home-cooked meals. There were no delicacies, only a large plate of famous roast goose in the center of the table and steamed grouper on the side, which could be considered substantial main dishes.
"No, the soup and food were delicious. I was just a little tired, so I didn't have a good appetite for a while."
In her past life, she faced this large table of dishes
He would look disgusted and complain about how oily and greasy this and that made his mother and uncle's family very embarrassed.
Aside from being exhausted and having no appetite after several days of staying out, she was also overly pampered at the time and couldn't get used to such rich and meaty dishes—later, when she found out that this meal was something her uncle's family usually couldn't afford to eat, she was too embarrassed to apologize...
Looking back now, she realizes that in her past life, she was constantly, intentionally or unintentionally, pushing away those who loved and cared for her little by little.
Hearing Li Sishi's answer, everyone else clearly breathed a sigh of relief.
It's clear that both sides are cautiously discussing everything about each other and want to maintain a good relationship.
Even though there's a saying that it's easy to meet but difficult to live together, when it's decided to live together, most people's thought is to try to get along peacefully so that both sides are comfortable and at ease.
After dinner, Zhou Huichang told Li Sishi the same room arrangement as in their previous life: the house had two large rooms and one small room. Zhou Jiayun and his wife would live in the master bedroom, she and Li Sishi would live in the second bedroom, Zhou Jiaxian would live in the remaining small room, and Zhou Huiguang would temporarily be the "living room manager" on the sofa in the living room.
“I have no objection, but Sisi and Guangzai…” Zhou Jiaxian said cautiously when she heard about this arrangement.
This room was left by Zhou's maternal grandfather. When the two siblings were young, Zhou's maternal grandfather and grandmother lived in the master bedroom, she lived in the second bedroom, and Zhou Jiayun lived in a small room converted from a storage room. Later, Zhou's maternal grandfather and grandmother passed away and she went to Annam, and Zhou Jiayun rearranged the room allocation.
"It's okay, my cousin and I get along very well. If we share a room, we can even have some private conversations at night," Li Sishi quickly said, which made Zhou Huichang unable to help but show a smug smile in front of her younger brother.
These two siblings are quite obsessed with looks. Even though she wasn't exactly nice to them in her past life, they always tried to please her, bringing her anything good to eat or anything fun to play with.
And yet I find them annoying...
“I have even less objection. I can’t imagine how comfortable it is to move from a small room to a ‘big room’!” Zhou Huiguang then slumped onto the sofa.
“I think you’re not comfortable with being a director, but rather you think it’s convenient for you to sneak out at night to play!” Zhou Jiayun said.
"If all you do is hang out with those shady friends, I'd be at ease if your grades were half as good as your sister's," Liang Shao'e added.
"I've said it so many times, Lok and the others aren't bad people..."
Seeing that Zhou Huiguang's protests were drowned out by his parents' scolding, Zhou Huichang smiled sheepishly and led Li Sishi into their room.
"Dad knew you and Aunt were coming back, so he contacted a friend this afternoon to order a bunk bed. It might not be delivered until tomorrow or the day after. Can I share a bed with you for now?" Zhou Huichang asked as she packed.
"As long as you don't mind me crowding you, that's fine," Li Sishi said with a smile.
"No, no, I'm so happy!" Zhou Huichang said hurriedly, then stopped Li Sishi's outstretched hand that wanted to help, "I've got it done quickly, you sit down and rest for a bit!"
Unable to dissuade her, Li Sishi had no choice but to sit down on a chair and look around the familiar yet unfamiliar room.
Zhou Huichang, who had almost finished tidying up, looked up and saw Li Sishi staring intently at a swimsuit poster of a beautiful woman on the wall. She immediately explained somewhat embarrassedly, "This is Yan Yingyi, the newly crowned Miss Hong Kong. I usually like designing clothes, so I buy swimsuit photos and posters of Miss Hong Kong to use as models..."
Following her guidance, Li Sishi glanced at the drafts on the table and nodded: "They are beautifully drawn."
"Really? My mom has never liked me doing these things, she thinks I'm wasting my study time. It's rare for someone to approve of my hobby, and Zhou Huichang, who already had a high opinion of her pretty cousin, liked her even more. She immediately said that she had also taught herself a little sewing, and asked Li Sishi to pick out a few patterns so she could go out and buy fabric to make them for her tomorrow."
"Look, I made this dress myself, but unfortunately I have to wear the school uniform all the time, so I can only wear it during holidays..." Zhou Huichang twirled around to show off her dress, then looked at Li Sishi with a happy expression, "Yan Yingyi has recently acquired the nickname 'A-Liang,' but in my opinion, you are much prettier than 'A-Liang'!"
"She's a tomboy, and that nickname is only given to her by others to comfort her!"
Hearing this, Li Sishi chuckled: Speaking of which, Yan Yingyi's nickname "A-Liang" did indeed come about after she won the championship. Some people were dissatisfied, thinking she was too boyish and lacked traditional feminine beauty, and therefore thought she wasn't pretty. Then, some people comforted her by saying she was very pretty, and that's how the nickname spread.
In her past life, Li Sishi was somewhat resentful of this unconventionally beautiful senior; now, having gained more experience and "reunited" with her, she can truly see why this senior is so admirable.
Because, in the current entertainment industry, there is a lack of this unique androgynous aesthetic.
This is also the main reason why Yan Yingyi's later film career was able to go very smoothly: in addition to being talented, she also has a unique characteristic that other beauties lack, which makes it easy for her to leave a deep and unique impression on the audience.
In this forgetful world, beautiful women are easy to find, but memorable "unique features" are hard to come by.
However, she is not a beauty without her own unique characteristics—in fact, it could be said that her unique characteristics are far more likely to win the hearts of audiences in this era than those of many other beauties.
Because from the very beginning of her career, she has been a representative of the "ethereal and fairy-like" type, perfectly matching the trend and aesthetic of "pure and innocent girls" that the port city has always admired.
Some people combined her English name "May" with...
And her surname "Lee" was also given her a nickname that was earlier and more widely known than "the fallen heiress": Beautiful.
Looking at the poster on the wall that read "Miss Hong Kong Pageant 18," Li Sishi, reborn into this life, secretly made up her mind: three years later, this crown, symbolizing glory, will definitely not be chosen by anyone else!
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