Chapter 15 Violet "Be prepared to be played to death by me..."
Indulge in a night of passion.
Zhuang Yan was called back by Wei Yikai to discuss business and left at seven in the morning. Ji Jiazhen was a light sleeper, so she woke up when he got up and couldn't fall back asleep, so she simply went back too, arriving at Hengrui at almost nine o'clock.
The entrance door was right next to the elevator, so the moment the door opened, Ji Jiazhen was face to face with Wen Siyu.
He leaned against the wall, head tilted back, the back of his head against the wall, eyes closed, his figure appearing particularly lonely under the cold light.
Ji Jiazhen watched him silently, stood in the elevator for a while, then stepped out just before the doors were about to close.
The sound of the heel hitting the marble was quite crisp, and it was at this moment that Wen Siyu opened his eyes.
Ji Jiazhen stood calmly opposite him, arms crossed, without saying a word, just staring at him.
Wen Siyu looked visibly exhausted, with dark circles under his eyes, bloodshot eyes, and a shallow crease under his eyes, as if he hadn't slept all night.
"You came back quite early."
His voice was hoarse, with a tremor in his throat, and his eyes shone with a silent light.
Ji Jiazhen knew his words were sarcastic, but she unusually didn't argue back.
How long are you going to stand here?
Wen Siyu's gaze slid down her face, noticing the wrinkles at the hem of her shirt.
She usually pays great attention to her appearance and would not allow such sloppy wrinkles to appear on her shirt, but he knew very well where those wrinkles came from.
He reached out and clenched the piece of fabric in his hand, gripping it so tightly that his knuckles turned white. His fist trembled with force as he ripped off a button from her collar. The collar drooped precariously, and the button bounced a few times on the ground, its final resting place unknown.
Ji Jiazhen did not stop Wen Siyu's actions. His hand continued to exert force, causing her to stumble forward a step, and she had to support herself on his arm to maintain her balance.
The position remained frozen for a long time, during which he stared into her eyes, his gaze devoid of warmth.
cold.
"When you do it with him."
It means that I was standing right here while you were doing it with him.
As soon as he finished speaking, he loosened his grip, revealing a pitifully wrinkled patch on the hem of his clothes, making it impossible to see the original marks.
That would be best.
He lowered his eyes and stared at that spot, then his gaze gradually moved up to her pale neck.
If only the marks on her clothes could be transferred to her body, preferably in the most conspicuous place, preferably where everyone could see them, preferably where everyone would know that they were left by him.
But she wouldn't allow him to do that.
pity.
Ji Jiazhen, unaware of what Wen Siyu was thinking, still rested her hand on his arm and asked, "Feeling better now?"
She thought he was venting his anger by acting like that.
Wen Siyu didn't answer; instead, he asked, "How long has it been since you last checked the trending topics?"
Ji Jiazhen released him, her expression indifferent, seemingly not very interested in what he had to say. She rubbed her wrist a couple of times and turned to open the door.
"Did you have time to check your phone while you were doing this?"
The fingerprint unlocking success notification sounded, the door opened, and she walked in on her own, taking off her high heels without closing the door.
Wen Siyu stared at her back for two seconds, then followed her and slammed the door shut.
Ji Jiazhen poured herself a glass of hot water. Her skin was dry and her throat was rough after being in air conditioning all night. She sat down on the sofa while drinking, put a cushion behind her back, and propped her legs up on the other side of the sofa. Wen Siyu sat down right there.
He sneered, "I don't know. I didn't do it. Why would I have time to answer a call when I don't have time to check my phone?"
"They keep calling, one after another. Can you stop if you don't answer?"
As she spoke, she unlocked her phone, not paying much attention to the trending topics because she knew they had little to do with her. After all, her last public appearance was at Tingun's offline event, which was half a month ago.
Wen Siyu guessed that she was looking at the trending topics, so he didn't reply to her and focused on watching her reaction.
Ji Jiazhen's gaze shifted from lazy and casual to focused and serious, glancing at him with a furrowed brow in the middle, before unconsciously sitting up straight.
The top trending topic: "Sacrifice" by Huayao Pictures.
There are two reasons why this topic went viral: first, the film rights to "Sacrifice" were sold; second, the rights were sold to an unremarkable small company.
Ji Jiazhen switched his phone screen from trending topics to his browser to search for the background of Huayao Pictures.
Suddenly, a voice came from the other end of the line, "Wang Qiao's role has been decided internally, Li Zhuorong, right?"
She looked up, her voice serious but tinged with wariness, "How did you know?"
"After sleeping with him for one night, do you think this guy surnamed Zhuang can help you get this role?"
Ji Jiazhen didn't speak, but her calves tightened as Wen Siyu grabbed her legs and pulled her forward. She tried to kick away, but her other leg was also pinned down by his arm. With no other option, she leaned forward and tried to push with her hands. This action conveniently made it easier for Wen Siyu. He reached her waist with his other hand, moved it up her back, and then lifted her up forcefully.
The sudden feeling of being lifted into the air made Ji Jiazhen exclaim in surprise.
"Wen Siyu!"
The next second, the person was sitting steadily on his lap.
Her heart was still reeling from the difficult move she had just made, and it was pounding in her chest. She was furious, her chest heaving with anger. After taking a deep breath, she slapped him across the face with a loud "smack".
"What are you doing!"
It's burning hot, and the pain is quite noticeable.
She used all her strength in that slap, and Wen Siyu's face quickly turned red, with a clear finger mark visible.
He smirked, grabbed Ji Jiazhen's wrist with one hand and pulled her behind her back. Unable to move her hands, she shouted at him again.
"open!"
Wen Siyu grabbed the back of her head with his other hand, forcing her to lower her head. He kissed her lips with a fierce intensity, sucking hard on her lips, while his hands tightened around her, preventing her from breaking free.
Ji Jiazhen felt a sharp pain in her lips and stared intently at him, but he was so engrossed in the violent kiss that he had already closed his eyes.
She bit his tongue, and the pain made Wen Siyu open his eyes and look at her closely. He saw her distinct eyelashes and kissed her more and more deeply, entwining with her passionately.
Feeling the bloody taste spreading in her mouth, Ji Jiazhen pulled her teeth back, thinking that Wen Siyu would finally give up.
But he was crazier than she imagined.
He kissed her even though his tongue was bitten and bleeding, as if he had no pain receptors.
Ji Jiazhen showed no mercy or pity. She then bit his lower lip, his tongue still bleeding. His lower lip was also bitten and cut, the blood staining her lips. She couldn't stand the metallic taste and gradually reduced her strength.
She stopped struggling, her hands and neck relaxed, and she just stared at him with her eyes open, her brows furrowed and her eyes filled with complex emotions.
The more I look at him, the less I understand him.
Wen Siyu stepped back two centimeters, his forehead touching hers. The teeth marks on her lower lip were deep, and a drop of blood hung there, unable to flow down, but it was very conspicuous.
He continued to stare at her intently, his eyes filled with ruthlessness, and licked away the drop of blood with his tongue. Ji Jiazhen saw this and her heart trembled for no reason.
"Did you even think of me for a second when you were with him? You answered my calls, let me hear you climaxing on him, what do you take me for?"
here we go.
His campaign began.
The relentless questioning was accompanied by violent fighting and bloody entanglement.
This is Wen Siyu's anger and resentment.
Ji Jiazhen fully understood.
"I told you that if you want to play with me, you have to break up with other people, and you turned around and started kissing someone else. I told you that you can't bring other men to this house, and you had the guts to bring them and run right into my nose. Now that I've heard that, what's next? Make me see the scene? Should I tell you the password to the room upstairs, so you can bring someone to sleep in my bed next time, huh?"
He was still suppressing his temper, speaking through gritted teeth in a very low voice.
Ji Jiazhen's eyelashes trembled slightly as she silently endured Wen Siyu's questioning.
"Have I never even entered your sights, or are my words just bullshit to you? In your eyes, I'm not even as good as a dog!"
His emotions were completely released in those words; the last sentence was almost shouted out, and the hand on the back of her neck tightened and trembled involuntarily.
Ji Jiazhen blurted out in denial: "No."
Wen Siyu took a deep breath, the veins on the side of his neck bulging from his suppressed emotions. He spoke in a low voice, his tone surprisingly humble and ingratiating.
"You provoked me first, you kissed me first, and you said it wasn't that easy, so why are you targeting only me? Ji Jiazhen, you're unbelievable."
As he spoke, he turned his head away from her, and Ji Jiazhen felt a weight on her shoulder as Wen Siyu's forehead rested on her shoulder.
She realized she had gone a bit too far.
But she won't back down voluntarily; she won't admit she's wrong. After all, it was a matter of mutual consent, one willing to give and the other willing to receive.
"Wen Siyu, don't be such a sore loser."
Wen Siyu's voice came from her shoulder, muffled.
“Ji Jiazhen, if I couldn’t handle this, I wouldn’t have waited for you at the door all night. If I couldn’t handle this, I should have made you take your things and get out of this house, or burned this place down.”
After he finished speaking, the room fell silent.
They breathed in unison, the thin air flowing between them, exhaled by her and inhaled by him.
Wen Siyu rested his forearm on his leg, his forehead against her shoulder, and stray hairs tickled her neck.
Ji Jiazhen asked, "So, are you still going to play with me or not?"
As the weight on his shoulders gradually lifted, Wen Siyu looked up at him. He had calmed himself down and his eyes returned to normal, flashing with a sharp light.
"Now it's up to you whether you want to play with me or not."
He leaned back, all traces of his wounded and dejected appearance gone. His hand moved upwards inch by inch, his thumb gently tracing her cheek, lingering for a moment on a small brown mole on the side, before suddenly gripping her chin with force.
"I've acquired Huayao Pictures, and I've bought the rights to 'Sacrifice' for 90 million. I can replace the actors, and I can replace the director. Your birthday is in four days, and I was originally planning to give it to you as a gift."
"..."
"Now, I've changed my mind. If you want Wang Qiao, then come find me."
He tightened his grip and pulled her forward with force. "The same way you found Zhuang Yan, come find me. Do you understand?"
Ji Jiazhen was forced to tilt her head slightly and look at him with a frown.
The involvement of money made this already impure relationship even more complicated. Wen Siyu not only pursued her romantically, but he also wanted to use his capital to force her to submit.
Do you regret going to see him yesterday?
Ji Jiazhen raised her hand and pried open his fingers one by one, freeing him from his restraints. She relaxed her stiff neck and looked at him with an arrogant gaze.
"Wen Siyu, the word 'regret' does not exist in my dictionary."
She placed her hand on his lower abdomen, leaned forward, and whispered, "I didn't just look for him for the role; I really want to sleep with him."
Wen Siyu twirled a strand of her hair between his fingers. "Don't speak too confidently. I'll slowly teach you how to write the word 'regret' in this game."
Ji Jiazhen smiled mischievously. She reached out and placed her thumb on the teeth marks on his lower lip, applying pressure with great precision, causing the already dried area to bleed again.
"I'll wait."
*
November 17th is Ji Jiazhen's birthday, and every year this day is bound to cause a sensation. All sorts of weirdos rush to jump on the bandwagon, posting photos with captions, calling her "sister" or "little sister," and as soon as they say "Happy Birthday," the topic immediately trends on Weibo. Netizens exclaimed: Wow! You two are so close!
This kind of drama is common in the industry. Some people will pretend to be friendly and reply to everyone to save face. Ji Jiazhen is the type who wants to be on bad terms with everyone. Not only does she not reply, but she will also ask "Who are you?" if she encounters someone she doesn't like.
Birthdays are inseparable from parties, and Fang Chengmu is the kind of person who comes running like a dog smelling poop at the mere mention of those two words. Two days before her birthday, he called Ji Jiazhen, saying that he would take care of the birthday party and make sure everything was arranged perfectly for her.
Ji Jiazhen didn't react to this because she received a call from someone else on the morning of her birthday.
From: Duan Qiyin, whom she had completely forgotten.
She was picking out her clothes for the evening when she received the call. She hung up three times because it was an unfamiliar number. On the fourth call, she couldn't stand it anymore and answered. But when she heard Duan Qiyin's voice, she hung up again.
This happened twice. She got annoyed, answered the phone, and scolded him for two minutes before asking him what was wrong.
The voice on the other end was the same as always, "Happy Birthday."
Ji Jiazhen was utterly shocked. "Duan Qiyin, are you sick? Have you even been to the hospital? You've blacklisted me and you still dare to call and wish me a happy birthday? How can I be happy to hear your voice?"
"It doesn't feel like you've been sidelined this past month; it feels like I've been sidelined."
She knew he was acting crazy again and couldn't be bothered with him. "I'm hanging up now."
"Do me a favor tonight, and I'll apologize to you afterwards. I'll compensate you double for the resources you lost this past month."
Although Duan Qiyin was a big shot, he always kept his word. The double compensation was too tempting, and Ji Jiazhen was tempted, but still put on an impatient look: "What kind of help?"
"Come back to my old house with me for a meal."
He spoke casually, but Ji Jiazhen was shrewd; she knew the food wasn't so easy. The mere mention of the "old mansion" conjured up eight hundred palace dramas in her mind.
"I can't go unless you explain it clearly. Who knows what kind of monsters or demons are waiting for me in your house?"
Duan Qiyin's laughter came through the receiver, low and deep, "My family elders want to introduce me to potential partners, but I need to bring someone back to stop them from doing so."
"So you're taking me back to pretend to be your girlfriend? Wouldn't that be you taking advantage of me? You've been eyeing me for so long, I'm the one who's at a disadvantage. You have to compensate me three times over before I'll go."
Duan Qiyin readily agreed, "I'll pick you up at four o'clock this afternoon."
After hanging up the phone, Ji Jiazhen hung up the champagne-colored slip dress she had planned to wear that evening and took out a white satin long dress from the right side.
"He who takes a man's money is bound to him." Having accepted Duan Qiyin's favor, she naturally had to play along. People of his grandmother's age would certainly prefer a lady from a respectable family, so she would dress in a dignified and elegant manner.
At four o'clock sharp, Qi Yin appeared downstairs at her house, dressed smartly, and stood next to the car to open the door for her.
Ji Jiazhen wore only a diamond-patterned shawl over her long dress, which only served an aesthetic purpose and did not block the wind at all. However, she has walked the red carpet out of season many times and has filmed summer scenes in winter, so she has developed a physique resistant to the cold. This bit of cold is nothing to her.
The car door opened, but she didn't rush to get in. Instead, she stood in front of Duan Qiyin and made a three-point agreement with him.
"I have a dinner party tonight, and you have to see me off by nine o'clock at the latest."
Duan Qiyin raised his hand to adjust her shawl, which had slipped down her right shoulder a little, and said, "Let's talk in the car."
Ji Jiazhen insisted that he finish speaking while still standing there.
"You agree first."
He stepped to the side to block the wind coming from that direction. "It doesn't have to be nine o'clock. We can leave after we finish eating, before eight o'clock."
"I'll only treat you as my girlfriend in name only, helping you fend off unwanted attention. There's no possibility of any physical contact beyond that, and you can forget about getting any verbal favors."
"OK."
"I'm only pretending for a few hours. After nine o'clock, we'll still be enemies. This matter must not be spread. If it affects my fishing trip, I'll be the first to smash up your house."
Duan Qiyin mentally reviewed her words, a smile playing on his lips, and asked her in return, "Are we enemies?"
Ji Jiazhen lifted her skirt and got into the car, her voice drifting slowly over, "Not really, you're an animal, not really human."
Duan Qiyin remained unfazed, having long been accustomed to her words.
After getting in the car, he turned the air conditioning up a bit, but Ji Jiazhen turned it back down the next second.
She retorted with the text message he had sent her last time: "You think you're so capable? If you are, then stop pretending. It's not as cold as it was when you hid me away."
A short laugh escaped Duan Qiyin's nose, as if he were laughing at her, but also at himself.
"I didn't know you knew Wei Yikai's nephew, you're not as capable as me."
Ji Jiazhen turned to look at him and snorted coldly, "I didn't know you had a stalking fetish."
After saying that, she put her arm on the center console, leaned closer to him and asked, "Did you hire someone to follow me 24 hours a day, or did you put some kind of tracking device on me?"
Duan Qiyin chuckled at her imagination, "Zhen, after three years in America, you've become even more naive."
She understood that was a roundabout way of calling her stupid.
"You're more cunning than me."
Duan Qiyin glanced at her, his tone flat, and listed her faults, "You always think about the beginning but not the end, you always do whatever you want and act recklessly. Do you know how many eyes are watching you? Do you know how many paparazzi blackmail I have received? Did you think you would be safe after leaving the country? If I hadn't bought those photos, the public opinion would have come back, and you would have no hope of making a comeback in this lifetime."
Ji Jiazhen listened, then turned her head to look out the window.
So the stack of photos she saw in Duan Qiyin's study last time weren't taken by him, but bought by him.
"If the news gets out that you've been seen with Wei Yikai's nephew on several occasions and that you stayed overnight at Huyin Mountain Villa, the trending topics will be about how you used your position to climb the social ladder. Zhen, it's good that you're ambitious and want to climb the ladder. You're smart, and you should use your intelligence in the right place. If you put even a little bit of your wariness towards me onto other people, I wouldn't have to be cleaning up your messes all the time."
Ji Jiazhen remained quiet, neither refuting his words nor arguing with him, and blinked very infrequently.
Did you think she listened to what you said? Did you think she started to reflect on her carelessness?
Of course not.
She won't regret what she's done, but she will reflect on the things that have caused her losses.
During the three minutes of silence, a thread ran through her mind, connecting the past and the present, and finally condensing into a cold question.
"Duan Qiyin, you can buy photos and suppress news, so why did the rumors about me being kept by a sugar daddy stay on the trending topics for so long?"
Ji Jiazhen looked at him, her eyes devoid of warmth.
Duan Qiyin is right. She was short-sighted and arrogant, to the point that she only belatedly asked this question today.
"Back then, you never even considered protecting me, did you?"
This wasn't a question; she spoke with certainty, even though Duan Qiyin hadn't answered yet, she was already convinced.
Duan Qiyin didn't expect her to remember this. Just then, the car stopped at a red light, and he slowly began to speak.
"It's not that I don't want to protect you, it's that someone wants to ruin you."
*
The incident happened suddenly that year, and the winds of public opinion changed overnight. The night before the news broke, Ji Jiazhen was attending the wrap party for the film crew.
She filmed that movie for more than half a year. The subject matter was completely different from her previous works. She wanted to use that role to complete the transition of her career. She devoted all her energy and effort to it for those six months. In order to be on set, she didn't leave the mountains for two months.
That was also her most powerful year; she swept away all obstacles during her rise to power, making her virtually invincible.
In such a situation, it's hard for a person not to become complacent and overconfident.
Young, beautiful, proud, and arrogant.
This is Ji Jiazhen at the age of twenty-two.
The entire crew attended the wrap party, and as the female lead, Ji Jiazhen drank quite a bit.
Back then, her alcohol tolerance wasn't as high as it is now; she'd get a little tipsy after just a few drinks. But she was so happy that even when she was drunk and her legs were weak, she'd still go from table to table and drink.
While she was drinking with a group of staff, the director pulled her aside and said there was a more important table over there, and she should go drink there first.
Then she was led into a private room where she met some people and others she didn't recognize. The director introduced them to her, saying that this person was the producer, that person was the production company, and so on—basically, everyone who had invested money.
She was already so drunk that her mind was blank. She would drink with whoever raised their glass to her, completely ignoring one question: it was just a wrap party, so why would these people come?
By the end of the wrap party, she was so drunk that she couldn't walk on her own and even standing up was difficult.
She didn't know how much she had drunk, nor how she got home. She had ingested too much alcohol and fell into a deep sleep the next afternoon.
At that time, the internet was in an uproar, and even her phone number was exposed, with her phone being bombarded with calls from unknown numbers.
The topic is trending high:
#Chi Chia-Chen's sugar daddy/sugar baby
With pictures and videos, it seems to be beyond doubt.
In the video, she is drunk and being half-embraced and half-carried by a man in an intimate manner. She seems to be a bit temperamental, struggling to break free a couple of times before finally getting onto the man's back.
The trending topics said the man was a film producer, and that same man was also a producer of the film for which she won the Best Actress award. Rumors spread like wildfire, and everyone began to suspect that the two lead actresses had questionable backgrounds.
Photos from the wrap party have also surfaced, including a high-resolution image of her toasting in a private room. The table is filled with people, both young and middle-aged. Her haters are going wild again after seeing the photos.
Some people have been digging into her past since her debut, uncovering the scandals her former company fabricated against her, claiming she was bisexual and had a girlfriend outside the entertainment industry.
Then two other trending topics also surged up:
#Is the Best Actress just sitting there or is she asleep?
#Suitable for both men and women, young and old
Ji Jiazhen was so angry she almost vomited blood. She immediately smashed her phone because she didn't know the producer at all, and also because of the inexplicable rumor that his girlfriend was Xu Yanning, who was his father!
They imagined out all sorts of things from a few normal photos of best friends.
Hearing the noise of the phone being smashed, Sister May rushed in and told her not to answer the phone or go out. Her hands were also busy, repeatedly dialing a number.
Ji Jiazhen asked her, "Who are you calling?"
May paused for a moment, "President Duan."
"He's not answering?"
"I've been trying to call since this morning, but the phone has been off the whole time."
Ji Jiazhen had a bad feeling; he never turned off his phone.
The topic remained trending, and Duan Qiyin didn't call back until the next day. He didn't reassure her or say he would take care of it. Instead, he unusually suggested she go abroad to avoid the storm, and he sounded quite tired.
She asked him what he meant, but he didn't answer.
"Duan Qiyin, do you think you know whether that trending topic is true or false, even if others don't? Even if there are rumors about being kept by someone, it's my dad who's being kept by you! I don't even know that so-called producer!"
Only three words came through the receiver: "I know."
"You know why you don't handle it!"
There was a rustling sound coming from the other end, and the next second Duan Qiyin replied, "Something came up, I'll hang up now."
Ji Jiazhen was on the verge of losing her temper, but with her future at stake, she forced herself to calm down and think about what happened before she lost consciousness and the people she met.
Her head was throbbing terribly. In a flash, she remembered that a man had indeed repeatedly asked her to drink with him last night, asking if she wanted him to take her home.
It seems to be that producer.
She pulled out the photos and videos again and looked at them, but the more she looked, the more something seemed off.
That's just not right.
The man's back view looks familiar.
His build, the watch on his left wrist, his walking habits—they all looked exactly like that bastard who just hung up on her!
She had a gut feeling that this was him, so she called again, but the phone was switched off.
I can't get through.
The insults continued for several days. Duan Qiyin didn't return the call, and Ji Jiazhen didn't call him again.
The insults continued for nine days. Ji Jiazhen tortured herself by scrolling through the comments for those nine days, and there were all sorts of insults directed at her.
His acting skills, once praised for their talent and brilliance, have now become dull and exaggerated.
A body achieved through strict diet and long-term exercise is said to have been shaped by injections and liposuction.
That face he was most proud of was criticized for looking stiff from plastic surgery.
She also saw many long comments from fans who had turned against her.
Four years of youth, and this is what I got in return.
Despondency and self-doubt are inevitable.
May contacted the producer, who was willing to clarify the situation, but Ji Jiazhen's state of mind gradually changed over the past few days.
So at the clarification meeting, she fulfilled Duan Qiyin's wish and said, "I want to retire from the entertainment industry."
After that, he went to the United States alone.
*
The air conditioning was blowing so hot that it felt like he was drowning in the thin air. Ji Jiazhen felt like he was having trouble breathing, so he opened a crack in the car window.
The car turned a corner, and she finally caught her breath from the shock of Duan Qiyin's words.
"It's not that I don't want to protect you, it's that someone wants to ruin you."
She knew that her sharp edge over the years had offended many people, and countless others wanted to bring her down, wishing she would fall into a ditch and never recover. But she remembered Duan Qiyin's helplessness three years ago.
He couldn't outdo the people who wanted to ruin her.
Who wants to bring me down?
She heard her own voice, which even trembled slightly.
Duan Qiyin avoided eye contact, deliberately refusing to give her a definite answer, but said something that sent chills down her spine: "You'll see it soon."
After saying that, Ji Jiazhen saw a villa not far away, or more accurately, a small estate.
Duan Qiyin's family wealth was far greater than she had imagined, which made her even more uneasy. Who was it that even he was powerless to help?
Ji Jiazhen's legs went weak when she got out of the car, but luckily the person who came to greet her helped her. Duan Qiyin glanced at her, then walked to her side and let her take his arm.
He whispered in her ear, "So nervous?"
Ji Jiazhen glared at him. "I was thinking about the person you mentioned."
There's no need to be afraid.
"You make it sound so easy."
Before they went up the stairs, Qi Yin said something to reassure her: "They wanted to bring you down, but you still made a comeback, didn't you?"
Someone opened the door for them, and the indoor lights instantly flooded in, dazzlingly bright, and a warm feeling wafted over. The people inside were all dressed in thin clothes.
To maintain the convincing facade of being his girlfriend, Ji Jiazhen was led inside by Duan Qiyin's hand.
His elderly mother sat in the center of the sofa; although she was old, there was no gray hair, and she was very energetic. Next to her sat what was probably his mother; the upper half of her face resembled his, and she had a good demeanor but a sharp edge.
Neither of them seemed like an easy person to deal with.
Ji Jiazhen thought that Duan Qiyin would probably have to give her a very formal introduction, since his two elders acted like an empress dowager and an empress dowager. After marrying into his family, she might have to pay her respects to these two in the morning.
He said it very casually, simply pointing at her and saying, "Ji Jiazhen."
That's it.
“My maternal grandmother, I call her Grandma.”
Ji Jiazhen obediently greeted her grandmother.
"Ms. Duan, this is my mother."
She greeted her as "Auntie," and Duan Lan smiled at her, but the smile was just a slight upturn of the corners of her mouth; there was no real joy in her eyes.
Ji Jiazhen has a keen intuition for judging people; she felt that Duan Qiyin's mother definitely didn't like her.
The old lady kindly invited her to sit next to her, but she was unsure whether to go or not. At this moment, Duan Lan stood up and spoke to Ji Jiazhen, but his eyes were on Duan Qiyin.
"Young lady, is it convenient for me to have a private chat with you for a few minutes?"
Duan Qiyin called out "Mom," his voice carrying a hint of disapproval.
Duan Lan smiled at her and said, "Can we chat for a bit?"
Ji Jiazhen couldn't say no, but before leaving, she pinched Duan Qiyin's arm hard.
Duan Lan took her to the greenhouse on the west side, where many flowers and plants were grown, blooming brightly even in winter, indicating that he had spent a lot of money on them.
Ji Jiazhen, mindful of social etiquette, casually complimented it as "good-looking."
"I take care of these flowers myself. They usually bloom in spring and summer. They are beautiful, but they are quite delicate and difficult to grow."
"Plants are all quite difficult to grow."
Duan Lan glanced back at her, her eyebrows raised, and Ji Jiazhen shrugged. "As far as I'm concerned, all the animals I raised have died."
"Qi Yin also loves growing flowers. He grew one a few years ago. I heard it was more delicate than my flowers. It couldn't stand the heat or the cold, and he couldn't even look at it. He even had a fight with his family over that flower. He was unwilling to throw it away when I asked him to."
Ji Jiazhen was completely unguarded with her, not giving a second thought to the subtle nuances in her words, and not even listening carefully. He even asked naively, "He also grows flowers?"
Duan Lan was amused by her, and picked up a leaf that was about to fall, so she simply spoke her mind.
"Have you adapted well to life in the US these past few years?"
Ji Jiazhen stammered, "You..."
The elegant woman in front of him reached out and plucked a flower, then turned around and tucked it behind Ji Jiazhen's ear.
"You left in such a hurry back then, I didn't even have a chance to see you one last time."
Ji Jiazhen licked her dry lips, unable to process Duan Lan's words for a moment, "You... already knew about me."
So it turns out that the delicate flower Duan Qiyin was referring to was her.
"There was a year when he absolutely refused to let me go to his house, saying it was inconvenient. If I remember correctly, that was the first year he took you in."
This happened earlier than Ji Jiazhen had imagined; it meant that Duan Qiyin's mother found out about her almost immediately after they met.
"The following year, he suddenly told me that he wanted to start a media company. I disagreed, as the family business did not allow him to be distracted by other things. But he didn't listen and still invested in your company."
"..."
“He went to great lengths to promote you and even secretly took some of my connections. At that time, he had just taken over the company and hadn’t settled in yet. He was trying to do two things at once, and I scolded him quite a bit.”
"..."
"You're not exactly a peace of mind either. I often see your scandalous news. Twice he almost couldn't suppress it, and I had to pay to settle it for him."
As Ji Jiazhen listened, she tried to recall which two times the woman was referring to, but she couldn't remember because there were simply too many.
“I have always taught him that investments must yield returns, and things that cannot generate profit should be ended as soon as possible. He has spent far too much time and energy on you, and you have clearly not given him any response. I cannot watch him make the same mistake again and again.”
Ji Jiazhen vaguely guessed how things would turn out, and the answer to the question she had asked in the car gradually became clear in her mind.
“Son, I’m sorry about what happened three years ago. I just wanted him to cut his losses in time. Don’t blame him for not helping you back then. I locked him in the house and confiscated his phone.”
Ji Jiazhen's chest heaved, but she remained clear-headed and asked her, "What is the truth of the matter? Is the person in the photos and videos Duan Qiyin?"
"yes."
There was a bell in her head that suddenly started to ring after hearing the affirmative answer.
"The producer is just a front; he's the one who actually picked you up."
"Why would that producer cooperate?"
Duan Lan chuckled: "Kid, no one would turn down money."
Therefore, the person who wanted to ruin her was Duan Qiyin's mother.
It's not her hater, it's not her rival, but this person who has no conflict or direct contact with her.
Because the other party was his mother, Duan Qiyin was powerless to do anything about it.
It's not that he didn't want to protect her, it's that he himself was in a precarious situation.
As Ji Jiazhen looked at Duan Lanyun's calm and composed face, her heart began to churn. Standing in the greenhouse, she felt a chill that went straight to her bones.
The most devastating blow of her 25 years of life was delivered by her, and then today, it was spoken of in a nonchalant tone, as if it were nothing.
She said she was sorry, but she didn't think she had done anything wrong at all.
"You want him to cut his losses, so you're using me as a scapegoat. I deserve it, right?"
She stared at Duan Lan expressionlessly, her face, though lightly made up, still exuding aggression.
"You don't want to make a losing deal, you don't want to make an investment that won't pay off, you want him to pull back from the brink, but what about my three years? My career was severely damaged during its peak, I wasted seven years of my life, my youth wasted in America, tell me, who will bear my losses? Or in your eyes, only your time is precious."
Duan Lan, as expected of Duan Qiyin's mother, was someone who could silence him completely. Under these circumstances, her expression remained unchanged, and she replied in a flat tone: "I did not consider your feelings in that matter, and I also underestimated Qiyin's feelings for you. I did not expect you to be able to make a comeback, and I did not expect that he would dare to bring you back to see me today."
She added, "He's not young anymore, and the old lady's biggest wish is to see him get married. Over the years, she's introduced him to many girls who are well-matched with him, but he's only interested in you."
Ji Jiazhen chuckled, her sarcasm palpable. "His feelings for me? You think your son is a sentimental person? You think my comeback is because of him?"
Duan Lan didn't say anything, but her expression clearly said, "Isn't that right?"
“Then remember this: I made my comeback on my own merits. All the resources I have since returning to China are due to my own efforts. Duan Qiyin has not given me any benefits and instead has blacklisted me for a month. I will get back every script and endorsement I lost during that month.”
Ji Jiazhen ripped the flower off her ear, squeezed it into her palm, crushing the delicate petals beyond recognition. Two drops of sap clung to her hand. She threw it to the ground and stomped on it.
"Don't you want him to waste his time on me? Then you'd better make him give up on me today and cut all ties with me. Otherwise, I'll find ways to play with him in the future, make him love me to death, and I'll repeatedly trample on his ridiculous sincerity, make him suffer unbearable pain, and let him experience what it means to be heartbroken."
She moved her foot away and looked at the many flowers on the ground that had been crushed to pieces.
"Just like this flower."
Duan Lan remained silent, but her expression was no longer indifferent, and her brows furrowed slightly.
Before leaving the greenhouse, Ji Jiazhen left her a message.
"I have a terrible temper and a bad personality. I'm especially petty and vindictive. I'll make you regret what you did three years ago until you sincerely apologize to me."
But I will absolutely not accept it.
Duan Qiyin stood outside the greenhouse the whole time. He knew Ji Jiazhen's personality and Duan Lan's personality. He knew that if the two of them started talking, they would most likely argue. So he waited there and listened to the whole conversation.
Ji Jiazhen almost bumped into him when she pushed open the door, but she didn't even glance at him and walked forward. He followed closely behind, grabbed her arm, and pulled her into the elevator.
Duan Qiyin reached out and pressed the button for the third floor. Ji Jiazhen, who was standing to his side and slightly in front of him, surprisingly didn't shake his arm.
"You heard everything?"
"..."
"Either cut all ties with me from today and make up for everything you owe me, or be prepared to be played to death by me."
Duan Qiyin remained silent. After the elevator doors opened, he led her into the study and slammed the door shut.
"It's impossible to break it."
Ji Jiazhen pushed his shoulder to make him let go, and walked to the desk by the light coming in through the window. She leaned against it and said, "Make a list of all the investors and brands that have come to me this month. I need to see the list tomorrow."
He nodded and said okay, completely losing the crazy drive he used to have to go against her.
"I'd like to apologize on her behalf."
Ji Jiazhen's eyes were full of determination. "Your apology is bullshit. I want her to tell me herself."
Duan Qiyin was still standing by the door. He reached out and turned on the study light, then walked up to her.
The moment the light hit, Ji Jiazhen's emotions were laid bare. Duan Qiyin then noticed that her eyes were red and swollen, like damp ground during the rainy season. She wasn't crying, but she was definitely overwhelmed with emotion.
She rarely showed such vulnerability, and Duan Qiyin panicked, reaching out helplessly: "Zhen..."
Ji Jiazhen raised her elbow to stop him, turned her back to compose herself, and as the mist in her eyes cleared, she saw a row of photos on the bookshelf, including group photos and solo photos.
Her hand hovered in mid-air for a long time before she walked over, picked up one of the photo frames, stared at the person in the picture, and asked Duan Qiyin, "Who is this?"
Duan Qiyin stood behind her and saw the photo over her shoulder. "My brother."
"Younger brother?"
Half-siblings.
Ji Jiazhen kept looking at the photo. She remembered that Duan Qiyin's parents had divorced long ago, and he had almost no contact with his father.
"This younger brother isn't related to your mother by blood, is he?"
"He adopted her as his godson."
She nodded. "I've never asked you before, who is your father?"
After a two-second silence, Duan Qiyin replied, "Wen Qinsheng."
She raised her hand and put the photo back. The frame was level with her, and the person in the photo was looking straight ahead. From this angle, it looked as if he was looking directly at her.
Ji Jiazhen's lips curved into a smile from an angle that Duan Qiyin couldn't see.
The person in the photo looks familiar, yet not quite.
His face is more youthful, his demeanor more reserved, and he looks younger.
Probably.
Sixteen or seventeen years old.
Wen Siyu.
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