After A Secret Marriage With The Trending Queen - Chapter 56

Chapter 56

Ye Qin’s work had been temporarily suspended. The company gave her a “vacation”—nicely put, but truthfully, it was a soft freeze—saying they’d slowly work to clear her name once the commotion died down.

Clear her name? Ha, Ye Qin sneered. So, her parents had become a stain on her life.

Anyway, all she did now was eat, drink, and sleep. It was an idleness, a void, a leisure she hadn’t experienced since her debut.

There were many things she didn’t want to think about, preferring to keep them sealed deep inside her mind, lest a tiny crack easily swallow her whole and instantly shatter the emotions she had temporarily managed to stabilize.

Shen Lu wasn’t having an easy time either. In the almost month since the incident, she hadn’t left the house, living a dazed, zombie-like existence. She ordered takeout for meals, watched TV, and when she got tired, she slept. She paid no attention to the outside world. Because her phone had been bombarded and nearly crashed by media calls, Shen Lu simply changed her number. Only her family knew the new one. The quiet had been a relief these past few days; no one was looking for her, no one was bothering her.

At ten o’clock that morning, a knock came at the door. Shen Lu hadn’t ordered food, so she thought maybe someone had forgotten their key again. However, when she opened the door, the person standing there was Tan Xueying.

Shen Lu could hardly believe her eyes, but she didn’t show much surprise. She had become resigned to too many things lately. “Is something wrong?”

“Can I come in and sit down?” Tan Xueying asked.

Shen Lu pursed her lips. Since she was already beyond redemption, she had nothing to fear. She shrugged, maintaining her blank expression. “Come in.”

Tan Xueying stepped in first, walking ahead of her. Shen Lu looked left and right, confirmed no one was around, and closed the door.

“What would you like to drink?”

“No need,” Tan Xueying said, sitting down uninvited. She looked up at Shen Lu. “You’ve changed a lot these past few days.”

“I have,” Shen Lu gave a bitter smile. “Anyone going through this wouldn’t remain unchanged, would they?”

“I came to see you today for one thing: come work at my studio. I’ll give you a generous salary, two or even three times what Ye Qin paid you.”

“Why?” Shen Lu paused, her eyes now scrutinizing Tan Xueying with suspicion. “What good am I to you? Or do you just need a pawn like me to use against Ye Qin?”

“Shen Lu!” Tan Xueying snapped at her. “Do you really think I’m that kind of person? You weren’t like this before. Have you forgotten?”

“Yes, I was naive and easy to fool before. So, do you think I’d accept your so-called high salary and further confirm the rumors about me?” Shen Lu’s tone was aggressive, but it was a normal outpouring of emotion.

“I genuinely like you. Seeing you like this makes me feel awful, which is why I want to…”

Before Tan Xueying could finish, Shen Lu interrupted her.

“Enough. Then let me ask you one question: Is this whole incident with Ye Qin related to you?”

Tan Xueying moved her lips but remained silent.

Shen Lu lost her patience, standing up. “Please leave. Now.”

“Shen Lu, don’t be like this, but I never intended to drag you into it. Shen Lu, you have to believe me…”

Finally, she managed to get Tan Xueying out. Shen Lu let out a sigh and leaned against the door, almost wanting to laugh in anger—laugh at her past self for being so gullible, and laugh at how absurd and sordid this whole thing was.

She just felt so tired. Everything was tiring, and this industry was exhausting. She wanted to walk away and never come back.

After the incident, her mother had tried to contact Ye Qin, but Wang Lin had blocked her, refusing to let them meet. Her mother and father were just ordinary corporate employees; if a major celebrity refused to see them, they were completely helpless. They couldn’t help their daughter with this.

Shen Lu made up her mind. She planned to leave for a while, clear her head, and go somewhere no one knew her to cleanse her soul. She would return when she had sorted out her feelings.

Upon hearing this, her mother broke down at home that day. “Lu Lu, don’t abandon your father and me! I won’t let you go!”

“Yes, dear. Your mother’s right. Everything will eventually be resolved. How can we let you just leave like this?”

Shen Jing, on the other hand, was rather carefree. “Well, I’m unemployed now anyway, so how about you take me with you to wander? You’d have a free bodyguard and driver. It’s not safe for a girl to be out alone.”

“Shen Jing, if you’re not going to help talk your sister out of it, don’t encourage her!” Shen Mother scolded.

Shen Lu finished packing her suitcase and ruthlessly shot him down. “Shen Jing, you stay home obediently. Mom and Dad need you. I don’t want to bring a burden with me.”

“Sis, you… you’re rejecting me? That’s heartbreaking,” Shen Jing said, looking pained.

“Alright, everyone, please stop trying to convince me. My mind is made up. If I stay here in this muddled, aimless state, I’ll go crazy. Just let me go out and have some quiet time alone.” With that, Shen Lu pulled her suitcase and headed for the door.

Her mother quickly rushed forward and grabbed her. “Are you really determined to leave?”

Shen Lu forced out a rare smile. “Mom, how old am I? Are you still worried?”

Her mother pouted. “Of course I’m worried. Don’t you know ‘a mother worries when her child travels far’?” She pulled a credit card from her pocket. “Take this. Don’t let yourself go without while you’re out there. Come home when you’ve sorted things out.”

Shen Lu stared at the credit card for a long time but didn’t take it. “Mom, I have enough money. You don’t need to see me off.” She opened the door and walked out quickly.

“She really just left,” Shen Mother said, standing at the door and looking out, her face etched with loneliness.

Arriving at the airport, Shen Lu pulled her hat low and put on her mask. The rumbling of her suitcase wheels echoed on the floor. Along the way, airport staff were taking down Ye Qin’s advertising posters from the billboards, some even throwing them directly on the ground to be trampled like trash. Passing travelers didn’t notice, and no one cared.

The thought made Shen Lu feel even worse. With Ye Qin’s proud nature, seeing this would surely hurt her deeply. She was a person who was supposed to be strong and radiant.

Tightening her grip on the pull handle, Shen Lu forced herself to look away and keep moving. While waiting for her flight, she occasionally overheard girls discussing Ye Qin-related topics, mostly laughing them off, treating the matter as a harmless joke.

The pure white civil airliner’s wings sliced through the sky, leaving two long corridors of white clouds. Shen Lu arrived at her final destination: Lhasa Gonggar International Airport.

The sky here was exceptionally blue, the clouds incredibly white, and the land vast, expansive, and boundless. The people here had pure, clean smiles. Standing on the Roof of the World, with her feet on this land, Shen Lu’s mind also became clear.

During her time here, Shen Lu went to many places alone—praying, making pilgrimages, and the like. Her troubles lessened significantly.

She still thought about everything concerning the other person, still felt sad, still felt heartache. Despite this, she couldn’t stop the longing.

She felt the same way.