After Divorcing the Scummy Alpha Movie Queen, I Became Extremely Popular - Chapter 13

“Tan Jizhu, let’s get a divorce.”

After finishing her speech, Tan Jizhu bowed deeply to the audience and stepped down from the stage. The host came up to transition the segments, teasing Tan Jizhu and Chen Shidong. He mentioned that when Chen Shidong won the award last year, she was the youngest recipient in the history of this category. Although Tan Jizhu was the same age as Chen Shidong was last year, her birth month fell later in the year, making Tan Jizhu the new record-holder for the youngest winner.

After the jokes, the host summarized the day’s awards ceremony, and the event drew to a close.

Luo Jingyun’s consciousness seemed frozen in that previous moment. She had waited through the entire ceremony, yet she hadn’t heard a single word of personal gratitude from Tan Jizhu.

As if needing to confirm she hadn’t missed anything, Luo Jingyun asked Julie beside her, “Sister, did Jizhu mention my name just now?”

Julie noticed something was wrong with Luo Jingyun and took her hand. “Jingyun, Jizhu was probably just too nervous. Besides, you two are so close; she’ll surely tell you personally tonight. And you know Jizhu—she doesn’t like making her private life public.”

Luo Jingyun didn’t respond. If Tan Jizhu hadn’t mentioned that “most important person” at the end, she could have lied to herself that Tan Jizhu simply didn’t want to put their privacy in the public eye and might thank her properly in private. The irony was that Tan Jizhu had spoken out; she had publicly named her most important person.

Only, that person wasn’t Luo Jingyun. Tan Jizhu had even recently taken the initiative to discuss her privacy on social media for that person’s sake.

The awards ceremony officially ended, and the highly respected seniors in the front rows began to leave. Julie pulled Deng Mei over to Luo Jingyun’s side. “Jingyun, Jizhu’s crew is having a victory banquet later. Let’s go together.”

“I’m not going.” Luo Jingyun stood up decisively and repeated, “I’m not going.”

“Jingyun, Jingyun!” Julie called out several times, but Luo Jingyun did not look back. Her silhouette was filled with resolution as she left the venue.

Julie grumbled slightly, “Oh, what is Jizhu doing? She didn’t even mention Luo Jingyun in her acceptance speech.”

Guided by her instincts as a manager, Deng Mei tried to save face for Tan Jizhu. “It’s… maybe… she categorized Luo Jingyun among the ‘friends and family’ and ‘solid supporters’?”

“Why don’t you just say she categorized Luo Jingyun as a fan?”

“…” Deng Mei gave up the struggle. “Jizhu was indeed out of line today. But Luo Jingyun loves her so much; if Jizhu just coaxes her a little, they should be able to make up, right?”

Julie looked toward the direction where Luo Jingyun had departed. She had a feeling that this time, things might not go the way they used to.

Luo Jingyun left the venue and took a taxi back to her home. Standing in this villa where she had lived with Tan Jizhu for three years, she couldn’t help but recall every bit of their life together.

In the kitchen, she had experienced her first time cooking, nearly blowing up the house. Tan Jizhu had told her not to touch the stove again and to just make things like vegetable salads. In the study, she had read scripts with Tan Jizhu and helped her run lines. And in the bedroom, they had shared those deep, soul-stirring exchanges.

Even though they had lived here for a while, Tan Jizhu’s belongings in the villa were still pitifully few.

Perhaps Tan Jizhu had never considered this place her home. Otherwise, why would she have gone to Chen Shidong for help when Tan Jing needed a new place to stay?

Luo Jingyun had only known Chen Shidong’s name for a few days, but this person occupied the majority of Tan Jizhu’s life history.

With a self-torturing mood, Luo Jingyun opened her social media apps. The trending searches were filled with Tan Jizhu and Chen Shidong.

#TanJizhuBestActressWinner

#ChenShidongTanJizhu

#TanJizhuSpeechThanksChenShidong

#ChenShidongIsTanJizhusGoal

#TanJizhuYoungestAwardWinner

Clicking on the comments below, a crowd of fanatical CP (couple) fans were posting wildly, congratulating them for going from a dilapidated rental apartment to the very peak of success.

Through Tan Jizhu’s recount from a few days ago and the content in the comment sections, Luo Jingyun roughly pieced together their history. Tan Jizhu and Chen Shidong were senior and junior in university. Because they were from the same place, Chen Shidong often helped Tan Jizhu out, and it was Chen Shidong who introduced Tan Jizhu to the entertainment industry.

After both graduated, Chen Shidong invited Tan Jizhu to rent a place together, and they maintained a “cohabitation” lifestyle. Later, Chen Shidong became an overnight sensation, and Tan Jizhu met her through filming. Only then did the “cohabitation” end.

Luo Jingyun had never experienced living with someone else like that. She didn’t understand how just living together for a period could cultivate such an unforgettable bond—to the point where Chen Shidong became the goal Tan Jizhu chased and her most important person, even making strangers online ship them as a couple.

The PR stunt she and Tan Jizhu had recently performed to handle the “affair” scandal had, in the eyes of those CP fans, become nothing more than a transparent cover-up.

She thought that as long as she gave her heart, she would get the result she hoped for. However, years of giving had not brought the sweet fruit of life, but rather endless pain.

If not for today’s events, Luo Jingyun would have only thought that Tan Jizhu didn’t love her; she hadn’t expected that Tan Jizhu’s heart was already firmly occupied by someone else, and that she would announce this fact to everyone at the highly anticipated awards ceremony.

Perhaps everything she had done was not a beautiful memory for Tan Jizhu, but rather a shackle that imprisoned her.

It was time to bow out.

To help herself settle her resolve, Luo Jingyun dialed Lu Qiu for a video call.

“Wait, wait, my daughter is calling.” The call connected, and Luo Jingyun heard a rustling sound before Lu Qiu appeared on the screen. Lu Qiu asked, “Yun-Yun, what’s wrong?”

“Why are you calling so late?”

Although Jiang Xian didn’t appear on screen, Luo Jingyun still heard her voice.

“Mommy…”

Hearing the grievance in Luo Jingyun’s tone, Lu Qiu pressed, “What happened?”

“Mommy, I want to divorce Tan Jizhu.”

“What?” Jiang Xian also appeared on screen, both their expressions filled with extreme shock.

Jiang Xian asked, “Didn’t you say before that after the Houtu Awards, the two of you were going to perform a bidirectional lifelong marking? The ceremony is over now, so why the divorce?”

Lu Qiu picked up Jiang Xian’s phone and pointed at it. “Look at this.”

The two had likely seen tonight’s trending topics and roughly knew what had happened.

Understanding the situation, Lu Qiu confirmed, “Yun-Yun, are you sure? Don’t tell us you’re not divorcing again after we’ve handled everything for you.”

“Yes, I’m sure. I won’t go back on it. I’ll tell Tan Jizhu when she gets back.”

Jiang Xian caught the loophole in the words. “So you haven’t told Tan Jizhu yet.”

“It doesn’t matter. I don’t want to be entangled with her anymore. With some people, no matter how much effort you put in, you can’t make them look at you. For these three years, I’ve been like a joke.” Luo Jingyun said self-mockingly, “She doesn’t like me anyway; she’ll definitely agree to this proposal with both hands.”

“…” Lu Qiu and Jiang Xian were silent for a moment before saying, “Fine. You signed a prenuptial agreement, so it shouldn’t be difficult to handle.”

Luo Jingyun nodded. “I didn’t film much after marriage. Almost all the money was earned by Tan Jizhu; let her have it all.”

Jiang Xian didn’t object. “Fine, our family has plenty of money anyway, we don’t care about that little bit.”

“We will have the divorce agreement drafted on our side; you two just need to sign it when the time comes.” As Lu Qiu spoke, she tapped on her phone. “So, what are your plans for later? Do you want to go abroad for a while to clear your head?”

“I plan to continue acting.”

Lu Qiu glanced at Jiang Xian. “Go find some acquaintances and introduce some resources to Jingyun.”

“No need!” Luo Jingyun stopped her two mothers. “I was too willful before, so I’ve decided to work hard on my own from now on!”

Lu Qiu analyzed the situation. “Alright, if you’ve made your decision, leave the other matters to us. The variety show Journey of the Cultivating Heart that I recommended to you before has already been signed, and filming starts in a few days. It wouldn’t be good for your reputation if you didn’t go. Besides, it’s not the kind of show where you go to enjoy yourself; it shouldn’t count as a ‘resource’ handed to you.”

“Yes, I will attend that one on time.” Luo Jingyun didn’t hesitate. For an artist like her who had been out of the spotlight for several years, relying on a “hardship” variety show to return to the public eye was the best choice.

Lu Qiu and Jiang Xian were very satisfied. “Good, it’s right to have that awareness. You’re still young; hurry up and strive for your career now. What does Tan Jizhu matter? With your conditions, is it possible you won’t find someone better?”

Luo Jingyun didn’t answer, only giving a bitter smile.

Having planned her future, Luo Jingyun’s heart was unusually calm. She sat quietly on the sofa, waiting for Tan Jizhu to come home—just like every other night she had waited for her during these three years.

After an unknown amount of time, the villa’s security door was opened from the outside.

Luo Jingyun looked toward the door and said calmly, “You’re back.”

Tan Jizhu walked over and sat on the sofa opposite Luo Jingyun, explaining, “The crew had a victory banquet; it ran a bit late.”

“Mm.”

Tan Jizhu continued, “The director knows Senior Shidong, so she also attended the banquet. If you see photos of us in the news, please don’t misunderstand. Many people at the banquet can testify for us.”

“Mm.”

Tan Jizhu had expected to spend a lot of effort explaining things to Luo Jingyun, but she didn’t expect the other party to accept it so readily. Was Luo Jingyun truly accepting it, or was this a smokescreen, intending to settle accounts tomorrow?

Having played so many characters, Tan Jizhu was best at scrutinizing roles, but she suddenly couldn’t understand the Luo Jingyun before her. Why was Luo Jingyun’s tone suddenly so cold? Why was there a sorrow permeating her entire being?

Tan Jizhu remembered her previous agreement with Luo Jingyun: to perform the bidirectional lifelong marking after the Houtu Awards. The time had come, so why didn’t Luo Jingyun mention a single word about it?

Fine, she would take the initiative herself.

“We…”

“We…”

The two of them spoke at the same time.

Tan Jizhu understood, thinking Luo Jingyun couldn’t hold it in anymore. She nodded and said, “You go first.”

Luo Jingyun looked up and stared directly at her, her eyes devoid of any emotion. She spoke calmly:

“Tan Jizhu, let’s get a divorce.”