After Divorcing the Scummy Alpha Movie Queen, I Became Extremely Popular - Chapter 3

“Please stop throwing your tantrums regardless of the occasion.”

Even though Jiang Xian had spoken softly enough, Luo Jingyun still heard those words over the phone.

Beyond their three years of marriage, plus the time spent pursuing her, Luo Jingyun had been chasing Tan Jizhu for five years. In those five years, Luo Jingyun had heard many rumors, especially in the last two years as Tan Jizhu’s fame grew.

Luo Jingyun had heard many people say that Tan Jizhu did not actually like her. They claimed Tan married her only because Luo had helped her through her most difficult times; that she was using her kindness as a way to demand repayment—otherwise, with Tan Jizhu’s ability, she surely could have paid back the money within a few years.

When she first heard these things, Luo Jingyun was furious. She insisted on finding out exactly who was spreading such talk and making them apologize to her face. That was until she heard similar words from the mouth of her own Omega mother, Lu Qiu. She was so angry she went home and picked a fight with her.

“Yunyun, can’t you see that Tan Jizhu doesn’t love you at all?”

“Mom! How can you say something like that? If even you don’t support me, who will?”

Lu Qiu looked peaceful, simply speaking the truth. “Yunyun, it’s not that Mama doesn’t support you. But have you ever seen love in Tan Jizhu’s eyes?”

“I…” That question truly stumped Luo Jingyun. She was an only child, and both of her mothers had given her one hundred percent of their love while she was growing up; she knew what love looked like.

But she had never seen a similar emotion in Tan Jizhu’s gaze.

Seeing the hesitation in Luo Jingyun’s eyes, Lu Qiu pressed her advantage. “You gained her gratitude by giving her financial help, but what she feels for you is only gratitude.”

Luo Jingyun denied it. “Didn’t you always tell me that love takes many forms? Perhaps Jizhu just isn’t used to the change in our relationship yet. It’ll be fine after a while; she’ll definitely transform her gratitude into love.”

Lu Qiu did not argue further. She smiled faintly and said, “Then Mama wishes for that day to arrive soon for you.”

Luo Jingyun also looked forward to the arrival of that day.

However, three years had passed since their marriage, and aside from a single official announcement post on the day they wed, Tan Jizhu had never mentioned her in public again.

Other couples in the entertainment industry either went on variety shows together, posted public birthday wishes, or were photographed eating out or traveling together. But such things never happened between them. Even when reporters held microphones directly to Tan Jizhu’s face to ask questions related to her, Tan Jizhu would only say it was a private matter and refuse to answer in public.

Since Tan Jizhu wouldn’t speak, Luo Jingyun would take the initiative to share when she was asked during events. She would talk to reporters about her daily life with Tan Jizhu, mentioning which restaurant they recently visited or where they traveled. But after Tan Jizhu found out about these interviews, she became extremely dissatisfied, saying sharply: “Luo Jingyun, I hope you won’t discuss such matters in public in the future.”

Luo Jingyun immediately asked why. Tan Jizhu said it was because she didn’t want to become an actress who relied on scandals to create hype.

Her passion for acting was one of the things that attracted Luo Jingyun to Tan Jizhu. She admired how Tan Jizhu was willing to put in so much effort for what she loved. So, to avoid making things difficult for Tan, she stopped talking about their relationship in interviews.

To some extent, this also made things easier for Luo Jingyun. The truth was, there was very little of their daily life she could actually share. Tan Jizhu was always on set filming; as soon as one project wrapped, she headed straight to the next. Even during brief breaks, she would seek out professional teachers for further studies to refine her acting.

Luo Jingyun had once suspected that “studying with a teacher” was just an excuse and that she was actually cheating. However, after an investigation, she found that Tan Jizhu really was just studying.

Though there were things she hadn’t said explicitly to Tan Jizhu, she hoped from the bottom of her heart that Tan would make some gesture—even if it was just holding her hand in public or setting aside more time to be with her.

Perhaps Tan Jizhu just isn’t very good at expressing herself, Luo Jingyun made excuses for her. Once again, she chose to believe that Tan Jizhu would fall in love with her; it was just a matter of time.

After all, this time Tan Jizhu had promised to grant her a lifetime mark. Even though there were conditions, it was enough to make Luo Jingyun feel joyful.

Thinking of that condition, the smile that had just begun to curl on Luo Jingyun’s lips fell away.

The Houtu Awards were the most important awards in the current film industry, and the judges were extremely strict experts. Regardless of whether you were male or female, Alpha, Beta, or Omega, everyone competed for a single “Best Actor/Actress” award; they would never split the awards into multiple categories just to “dilute” the honors. Additionally, this was a major year for film with many excellent works registered. As a newcomer with little seniority, Tan Jizhu’s competitiveness was not very high.

Should I use my connections to manipulate the award?

The dark thought was suppressed by Luo Jingyun the moment it cropped up. Whether she could even pull it off was one thing, but if Tan Jizhu or her two mothers found out, they would absolutely be furious.

When she had introduced resources to Tan Jizhu before, the other woman had been very angry, saying she didn’t want to be a “nepotism hire” who got in through the back door. She claimed it was not only an insult to her profession but also an insult to her character. Since then, Luo Jingyun stopped handing resources directly to Tan Jizhu, instead giving her the chance to audition—whether she was selected or not depended entirely on Tan Jizhu’s own strength.

Furthermore, her two mothers had taught her from a young age that possessing more money and power than the average person was not for oppression, but for helping others.

With this in mind, Luo Jingyun decided to trust in Tan Jizhu’s strength.

After lying in bed until noon, Luo Jingyun ordered takeout. While she was eating, Jiang Xian sent her the results of the investigation—it was a very “appetizing” piece of data to read.

After dawdling until the afternoon, the room decorators arrived. She gave a general description of how she wanted the room designed and left the rest to the professional team.

She headed to the location where Tan Jizhu was filming. Before arriving, she called Zhu Li to have someone come and pick her up.

Zhu Li asked in surprise, “Jingyun, why are you here?”

Tan Jizhu was currently filming a historical drama, and many of the filming locations had poor environments. Zhu Li was well aware of this young miss’s temperament and hadn’t expected her to visit in person.

“Well, Jizhu said she was too busy to take leave, so I came to see her.”

Zhu Li nodded, having roughly guessed this outcome.

Luo Jingyun followed Zhu Li inside, carefully avoiding the obstacles on the ground while looking around at the surroundings.

“Sister, your filming environment is really too poor. Is this the smell of someone’s pheromones? Why does the air in here feel like it stinks?”

Lines appeared on Zhu Li’s forehead. “Haha, I’m a Beta, I can’t smell it.”

“Sigh, Jizhu’s working conditions are truly arduous.”

“Well, the road to success is always bumpy. If she can produce a brilliant work, it’ll be worth it.”

Luo Jingyun curled her lip. “Hmph, it’s clearly just suffering for the sake of suffering.”

“…” Zhu Li was speechless. She spoke as if coaxing a child: “Jingyun, the scene Jizhu is filming now is quite important. I don’t know how long it will take; you might need to wait for a while. If you think the smell here is bad, how about I take you to Jizhu’s trailer?”

“Never mind, I’ll wait here. Opportunities to watch Jizhu act don’t come often.”

“Alright, then you wait here by yourself. I have some things to take care of.” Although Luo Jingyun was willful, she was an actress herself after all and knew the rules of the set. Zhu Li felt somewhat at ease about it.

“Go ahead, Sister.” Luo Jingyun sat quietly in a spot out of the camera’s view, admiring Tan Jizhu’s performance. On set, there was no sound other than Tan Jizhu reciting her lines.

Many people had asked Luo Jingyun why she fell for Tan Jizhu, even her two mothers, Lu Qiu and Jiang Xian. And Luo Jingyun’s answer was always the same: because once she saw Tan Jizhu acting seriously, she fell for her completely.

Initially, Luo Jingyun’s entry into the entertainment industry was purely on a whim, done with a play-around attitude. Her family background was privileged enough that as long as she didn’t break the law, her mothers would support her in whatever she did. Though it might sound pretentious, her wealthy family background had caused Luo Jingyun to lose her sense of direction in life. She never saw acting as something important; if she was happy, she’d film for a few more hours, and if she wasn’t, she’d pack up and go home immediately.

Only when she saw Tan Jizhu preparing seriously did she realize that a person could have a clear goal in life. From then on, she made being with Tan Jizhu her life goal and worked hard to achieve it.

While Luo Jingyun was daydreaming, a scene finished filming. The actors went to rest temporarily while the props and floor management teams began changing the set. Luo Jingyun walked up to Tan Jizhu and called out, “Jizhu!”

Seeing who it was, Tan Jizhu’s face remained expressionless as she simply asked, “Why are you here?”

“I had nothing to do at the hotel, so I came to watch you film.”

“You’ve filmed before, what is there to see?”

“I just wanted to see you.”

Sitting down in her chair, Tan Jizhu picked up her script and said, “I have to prepare for the next scene. I don’t have time to keep you company.”

“Then can I just sit next to you and watch you?”

Tan Jizhu slammed the script onto her lap. “Luo Jingyun, I want to be alone for a bit. Can you please not disturb me?”

“Oh, okay then. You go ahead and be busy.” Luo Jingyun was unhappy, but since it was almost their wedding anniversary, she didn’t want to fight.

Since Tan Jizhu didn’t need her company, Luo Jingyun decided to find something to do for herself. She found the director of the crew. He knew Jiang Xian and immediately took Luo Jingyun into a trailer upon seeing her.

Luo Jingyun got straight to the point and gave him a copy of the information Jiang Xian had investigated. After the director finished reading, he immediately called the producer, and the two quickly reached a decision. Luo Jingyun was very satisfied with the result and returned to the set in high spirits.

Dozens of staff members were moving back and forth on the set, and the whole place was a mess, yet Luo Jingyun quickly located Tan Jizhu in the complex environment.

Not only were this person’s pheromones a crisp bamboo scent, but her whole being was also as tough and upright as bamboo. Paired with her historical costume for the show, Tan Jizhu looked like a stunning ink-wash landscape painting.

However, before Luo Jingyun could properly admire this masterpiece, an annoying ink blot in the frame caused her mood to plummet.

Sun Kexin was standing next to Tan Jizhu, their heads huddled together as if looking at something.

Jealousy surging, Luo Jingyun strode over to Tan Jizhu and Kexin. Those two were busy researching something and didn’t hear her approaching. Angry, Luo Jingyun stomped her foot, which finally drew their attention.

Sun Kexin spoke first. “Luo Jingyun? You really can’t spend a second away from Teacher Tan, chasing her all the way to the set.”

“I came to the set to see my wife. Do you have a problem with that?”

“Luo Jingyun! Can you improve your attitude!” Tan Jizhu interrupted their confrontation. “Sun Kexin has a scene with me next; she’s just here to run lines with me in advance.”

“Does running lines require your heads to be together and your faces to be touching?”

Sun Kexin’s smile was somewhat provocative. “Luo Jingyun, you’ve misunderstood. Although I like Teacher Tan very much, I won’t use public office for private gain or use filming to pursue someone. That would be too unprofessional.”

Using filming to pursue someone—that was indeed something Luo Jingyun had done. She took a deep breath and was about to organize her words to retort when Tan Jizhu spoke again.

“Luo Jingyun, please stop throwing your tantrums regardless of the occasion. This is a film set, a place where many people work.”

“Jizhu, she was the one who provoked me first!”

“She was just telling the truth. Did she say anything wrong?”

“I…”

Luo Jingyun wanted to say more, but the director’s voice boomed through the megaphone across the set: “All units attention, we’re filming the next scene now.”

Tan Jizhu felt she might have spoken a bit too harshly, but she wasn’t very good at comforting people. She only said, “Alright, we need to continue filming. Just sit here quietly.”

Sun Kexin followed Tan Jizhu away. Before leaving, she gave a provocative smile from an angle where Tan Jizhu couldn’t see. Luo Jingyun was so angry she knocked over the chair next to her. She took two steps forward wanting to argue with the other woman, but worried it would affect Tan Jizhu, so she had no choice but to let it go.

Luo Jingyun comforted herself internally: Anyway, the director and producer have already seen that data. That Sun Kexin won’t be showing up in this crew tomorrow!

By the time the filming was finished, it was past ten at night.

Tan Jizhu didn’t find Zhu Li immediately, so she walked to her rest area and saw Luo Jingyun asleep leaning on Zhu Li’s shoulder.

Seeing her come over, Zhu Li whispered, “Finished filming? Luo Jingyun fell asleep, and I didn’t dare wake her, so I couldn’t go find you right away.”

Tan Jizhu nodded to show she understood.

“Luo Jingyun,” she walked up to her and lightly shook her shoulder. “Luo Jingyun, wake up. Filming is over; we’re going back to the hotel.”

Luo Jingyun slowly woke up, her eyes instantly clearing the moment she saw Tan Jizhu. “Jizhu, you’re done with today’s scenes.”

“Yeah, let’s go back.”

Luo Jingyun checked the time. “It’s so late! We’ll be back just in time for our anniversary!”

They returned to the hotel together. After saying goodbye to Zhu Li, Tan Jizhu walked toward her room. Upon opening the door, a path of red rose petals stretched from the entrance to the bedroom. In the living room, a large banner read “Happy 3rd Wedding Anniversary to Tan Jizhu and Luo Jingyun!” Beside it were decorations of clouds and bamboo—clearly Luo Jingyun’s handiwork.

“Is it pretty?”

“Yes, it’s pretty.”

Luo Jingyun took out her phone. “Jizhu, today is our wedding anniversary. Let’s take a few photos and post them online.”

“Don’t. I don’t want my privacy to become public gossip.”

“Then I’ll take a few photos to keep for myself. Is that okay?”

“Yes.”

After taking the photos, Luo Jingyun wrapped her arms around Tan Jizhu’s waist and kissed her. What followed needed no explanation; their highly compatible pheromones made everything happen naturally.

In the heat of passion, Tan Jizhu was no longer so cold, and words she couldn’t usually say could be spoken now.

“Jingyun, Sun Kexin and I were really just running lines today.”

Luo Jingyun shook her head and said, “Shh. At a time like this, don’t mention others.”