After Divorcing the Scummy Alpha Movie Queen, I Became Extremely Popular - Chapter 19

Luo Jingyun, I really didn’t expect you to be this kind of person.

“Park Soo-ah!” Luo Jingyun called out her choice.

Liu Yuqi froze for a split second before announcing, “Alright! Congratulations to Jingyun and Soo-ah on successfully forming a team!”

Park Soo-ah walked to Luo Jingyun’s side. “Jingyun, thank you for choosing me.”

“Hey, it’s no big deal.” Luo Jingyun stood with Park Soo-ah, waiting for the others to finish their pairings.

Liu Yuqi continued the process. “Jizhu, I see you’ve already stepped out from the line. Are you eager to choose your teammate?”

At some point, Tan Jizhu had put a step of distance between herself and the others. Noticing the camera focus on her, she straightened her clothes, took a few more steps forward, and said, “Then I’ll choose Senior Shidong to be in my group.”

“Alright, congratulations to Jizhu and Shidong on their successful pairing!”

Chen Shidong walked over to Tan Jizhu, and the two stood together on the side of the successful teams.

Taking advantage of the idle moment, Chen Shidong said to Luo Jingyun, “Jingyun, congratulations on taking first place. As expected, young people have more active minds; my thinking was too boxed in, and I exhausted myself just picking fruit.”

“I just got lucky this time. Maybe I won’t get first next time.”

“True, competitions are unpredictable; it’s never certain who will win or lose. Next time, our group will work hard to surpass yours.”

Luo Jingyun gave an awkward but polite smile. “Mhm, let’s work hard together.”

Finally, this awkward conversation ended, leaving Luo Jingyun feeling utterly speechless. She felt that Chen Shidong should have been gloating as a winner, yet previously, Shidong had reminded her to focus on her career. Now, she was talking about healthy competition. No matter how she looked at it, the woman didn’t seem like a villain.

Either Chen Shi Dong’s acting was superb, or she was just a “silly sweet” simpleton.

Forget it—whatever her personality was, it didn’t matter. Luo Jingyun felt that as long as she didn’t join Tan Jizhu in causing trouble, she could coexist peacefully with the woman.

While they chatted, the other four also finished pairing up. Liu Yuqi announced, “It’s getting late. Everyone can head to the prepared accommodations to rest. We will continue in our teams tomorrow.”

Staff members led the eight of them to their living quarters. It was a large courtyard with four houses in the middle. The quality looked subpar, but it wasn’t as bad as Tan Jizhu had feared—there were no pigs living on the first floor with humans on the second.

“The layout of these houses is the same. Two people per room. Everyone, please choose freely.”

Although there was no explicit rule that they had to stay with their teammates, everyone naturally chose to room with their partners.

Park Soo-ah came over. “Jingyun, let’s stay in that one.”

“Sure.” Luo Jingyun dragged her large woven bag toward the room.

The interior of the room was bare. There were only three pieces of furniture: two wooden bed frames that looked like they were rotting, and a table with four legs of different lengths. It was a pure “battle-damaged” aesthetic. Luo Jingyun finally understood the literal meaning of “four bare walls.”

“Jingyun, which bed do you want to sleep on?”

Luo Jingyun shook her head. “Is there even a point in choosing? They’re both equally trashed. Forget it, you pick one, and I’ll take what’s left.”

Park Soo-ah compared them carefully. “You sleep on this one; it’s further from the door, so it’ll be warmer.”

“Thanks.” Luo Jingyun didn’t think there was a difference between the two broken beds. She pulled out her sleeping bag and a small blanket from her woven bag to cushion the wooden boards, regretting that she hadn’t brought a full bedding set. If she had known it would be like this, she would have carried it over her head if she had to.

“Sigh, if I’d known, I should have let my Mommy air-lift a softer mattress to me.”

Park Soo-ah said, “If you think the bed is too hard, I can give you, my padding.”

“No, no,” Luo Jingyun waved her off quickly. “If you give it to me, what will you sleep on? We should observe the surroundings; maybe we can borrow some soft mats from the villagers later.”

“It’s okay. When I was training abroad, I’d sometimes be so tired I’d just sleep on the floor. I’m used to it.”

“…” Mentioning this made Luo Jingyun feel awkward. Earlier, when the girl greeted her, she had pretended to recognize her despite not knowing her at all, only to be exposed on the spot.

“You… you’re an idol who debuted abroad, right?”

“Yes.”

“Have you acted in any TV dramas or movies?” Luo Jingyun knew a bit about the idol profession and knew they mainly focused on singing and dancing, with fewer opportunities for acting.

“I haven’t acted in any, but my group filmed many MVs. Some of them have plots, so you might have mistaken those for series.”

Park Soo-ah’s words served as an escape for Luo Jingyun, saving her from having to explain away her earlier polite lie.

“So that’s how it is.” Luo Jingyun smiled. “It was too rushed earlier. Let me give a more comprehensive self-introduction now.”

“My name is Luo Jingyun, 24 years old, an Omega. I’ve acted in some dramas before. Though I don’t have a representative masterpiece yet, I can be considered an actor.”

Having said that, Luo Jingyun friendlily extended a hand.

Park Soo-ah stopped what she was doing and shook Luo Jingyun’s hand. “I’m Park Soo-ah, 25 years old, a Beta. I trained abroad for four years and have been debuted for seven years as a member of the group ANGEL.”

Calculating the time Soo-ah spent abroad, Luo Jingyun remarked, “Hey, that means you went abroad at 14 and stayed there for 11 years. That’s way too hard.”

“Well, no matter how tough it was, it’s in the past now.”

Luo Jingyun had heard about overseas training systems—packed schedules and extreme hardship. She definitely wouldn’t have survived it, so she sincerely admired Park Soo-ah’s persistence.

“That’s amazing. Will you still do group activities after filming Journey of the Heart?”

“None of us in the group are renewing our contracts. From now on, I’ll be developing my career domestically.”

Luo Jingyun nodded. “It’s better to be back. After all, the food is better at home.”

Releasing their hands, the two chatted while tidying up. Talking about the future of the show, Luo Jingyun patted her chest and promised, “Just follow me from now on. Sister Yun will cover for you!”

Park Soo-ah pursed her lips and smiled. “Speaking of which, Sister Yun, it seems I’m one year older than you. Even if we use ‘Sister,’ you should be calling me that.”

Luo Jingyun countered, “Tsk, you said it yourself, it’s only a one-year difference.”

“I wouldn’t dare say that to the older members in my group. They care a lot about age; even if you’re born in the same year, those born in the second half have to call those from the first half ‘Sister.’”

“’Sister’ isn’t just about age; ‘Sister’ is a vibe! Since I’m covering for you, I’m definitely the sister.”

Park Soo-ah didn’t argue further with Luo Jingyun’s twisted logic. She laughed, “Then Sister Yun, can I ask why you chose me as your teammate? I thought…”

Realizing she might be overstepping, Park Soo-ah stopped herself.

“You thought I would choose Tan Jizhu, right?” Luo Jingyun finished the sentence for her.

“I…”

Tired from cleaning, Luo Jingyun sat on the edge of the bed. “Oh, no need to hide it. The hot searches have been up for so long; you’d have to be a caveman not to see them.”

“I know many people think that way—that two people who just filed for divorce appearing on the same show means one of them still has lingering feelings. Given my past behavior, everyone thinks that person is me. But I’m absolutely not!”

“Because of Tan Jizhu, I’ve delayed my career for a long time. Joining this show is purely a chance to get back into the public eye and continue my career. I only found out later that Tan Jizhu was also joining, but even knowing that, there was no need for me to quit such a rare opportunity because of her, and certainly no need to team up with her on the show.”

Park Soo-ah nodded. “So that’s how it is.”

Luo Jingyun continued, “As for why I chose you, it’s because you took the initiative to help me.”

“Just because I helped you?”

“What else? Among the other guests besides Chen Shidong and Tan Jizhu, I don’t know anyone. You not only helped me but also let me know your name. Of course, I chose you.”

Park Soo-ah looked up. “Jingyun, don’t worry, I definitely won’t hold you back!”

At the moment of choosing, Luo Jingyun had indeed considered picking Chen Shidong just to annoy Tan Jizhu. But then she thought—that would still lead to interactions with Tan Jizhu. That narcissistic jerk might even think she was still interested and was trying to grab her attention by choosing Chen Shi Dong.

So, Luo Jingyun chose Park Soo-ah, who had proactively helped her.

Perhaps Park Soo-ah was naturally kind-hearted and simply wanted to help; or perhaps she had seen the hot searches and felt Luo Jingyun had some buzz right now, trying to get more screen time by helping her.

Regardless of the reason, from the current results, Luo Jingyun had genuinely benefited. Therefore, she decided to team up with Park Soo-ah, which would also make it easier to help the other girl get more screen time. If Park Soo-ah helped her just for exposure, she would get what she wanted too. If, after observing for a while, she found Park Soo-ah was truly a good person, she could even have her two Mommies give Soo-ah some resources later.

In short, Luo Jingyun wouldn’t mistreat those who were good to her.

Luo Jingyun patted the other’s shoulder. “Soo-ah, don’t worry, I’ll definitely do my best to carry us to victory!”

With that, Luo Jingyun stood up to head outside. “Alright, I’m going out to call my mom.”

Stepping out of the room, Luo Jingyun started a video call with Lu Qiu and Jiang Xian to report on her workload for the day.

Jiang Xian asked concernedly, “Yun-Yun, how was filming today? Are you tired?”

“So tired, so tired,” Luo Jingyun intentionally played up the misery. “After getting off the plane, I took a green-skinned train and then a motor-tricycle. My butt is sore from sitting.”

Lu Qiu offered a timely warning. “Usually, you’re chauffeured everywhere. Now you know how hard it is.”

“I know, I know!” Luo Jingyun continued, “I helped pick apples later. Those apples were so heavy, they nearly killed me. But the villagers all praised the apples I picked for being big and red, and I even got first place.”

She had picked barely over half a basket of apples, yet in Luo Jingyun’s telling, it sounded like the labor of moving mountains.

Hearing this, Lu Qiu felt heartbroken as well. Forgetting the lecture, she asked hurriedly, “Yun-Yun, if it’s that tiring, then don’t continue. Just come home.”

“Yeah, what if you collapse from exhaustion?”

Luo Jingyun said quickly, “Oh, I already promised the director I wouldn’t quit halfway.”

Jiang Xian comforted her, “Don’t worry about the liquidated damages; we can afford to pay.”

“It’s not about the money! I’m doing this for my career! You guys nagged me when I wasn’t working, and now that I am, you want me to come home. Stop flip-flopping, okay!”

“Alright,” Lu Qiu said. “Yun-Yun, if you don’t want to participate anymore, just tell us. We will come to pick you up immediately.”

“Relax, I’m really fine. Hanging up now, going to sleep.”

After hanging up, Luo Jingyun took a deep breath. The mountain environment was untainted by modern technology. If you breathed deeply, you could smell the scent of plants carried by the wind, and the sky was filled with stars from light-years away.

Living in a place like this when she got older wouldn’t be a bad choice.

Luo Jingyun stretched, then immediately cut that thought off. She was only 24, in the prime of her life. It was too early to be planning for retirement.

Right now, the most important thing for her was to work hard and make something of herself to show her two Mommies. And also, to let that narrow-minded bastard Tan Jizhu know that Luo Jingyun was not to be trifled with!

“Whoa!” Turning around, Luo Jingyun saw the very person she was just bad-mouthing standing right behind her.

“Tan Jizhu, why do you walk without making a sound?”

Tan Jizhu didn’t speak. She just stared at Luo Jingyun with a cold, deathly gaze. The latter felt a bit creeped out by the stare. “You… why aren’t you saying anything? You’re like a ghost.”

Could it be that she had accidentally cursed Tan Jizhu out loud just now and was overheard?

That shouldn’t be right. Tan Jizhu had been inexplicably sniping at her all day. Now was a perfect chance for revenge; there was no way Tan Jizhu would pass up an opportunity to snap back.

“Tan Jizhu?” Luo Jingyun waved a hand in front of the other’s face. “Are… are you okay?”

Seeing that the other still had no reaction, standing there as if possessed, Luo Jingyun took two steps back, preparing to slip away.

“Luo Jingyun.”

The moment she turned, Tan Jizhu finally spoke.

“I really didn’t expect you to be this kind of person!”