After Kissing the World-Weary Female Supporting Character [Transmigration] - Chapter 39

Perhaps the fervor of youth, once ignited, is difficult to extinguish. After crying, Gu Zhu mustered up her spirit again. She not only faithfully delivered homemade cookies, cakes, and other delicacies to Ji Ruyue regardless of the weather, but she also watched all the interviews of her romantic rival, Song Xingzi. After deciding that Song Xingzi was a simple and harmless ‘little white flower,’ she even had lengthy exchanges with her about Ji Ruyue’s preferences.

Although every indirect confession ended in failure, Gu Zhu was not discouraged; she became more resilient with each setback. Based on her conversations with Song Xingzi and her own preconceived notions, she firmly believed that the ‘little white flower’ was merely being coerced, and that Little Boss Ji would eventually tire of this game of cat and mouse and turn her attention to the person who truly mattered!

Relying on this conviction, Gu Zhu successfully became the second walking snack vendor on the set of Deep Palace Chef Queen. However, it wasn’t until the crew welcomed their first set visit that she realized firsthand that the woman, Song Xingzi, had been lying to her! Thoroughly! Treating her like an idiot.

As filming progressed in an orderly fashion, the crew of Deep Palace Chef Queen officially opened up the set for visits and journalist interviews. Soon, several major domestic media outlets would conduct a joint group interview with the main cast. The reporters were arranged by the staff and waited together for the arrival of the lead actors.

Song Xingzi had only accepted two interviews in total: one was blocked by Ji Ruyue, and the other by Lin Shu. This was genuinely her first time facing the ‘long guns and short cannons’ of the media by herself. Although she had the mind-reading ability at her disposal, she inevitably felt a little nervous.

Sigh, so useless. Why is she acting like a rookie on her first bridal sedan? So scared? But I guess I can understand. She’s only been an extra before, so she probably hasn’t experienced this. Forget it, forget it. Since you’re not a bad person, I’ll reluctantly give you a few pointers.

Gu Zhu watched Song Xingzi walk with an awkward, uncoordinated gait, pulled her arm, and whispered, “No guts. It’s just a set visit interview. Just watch what Tao Le and the others say later. Don’t be too nervous, and just don’t spoil anything.”

“Mhm, mhm, thank you, Big Eyes! I’m not scared!”

Song Xingzi flashed a brilliant smile at Gu Zhu. Gu Zhu’s heart was simple. Although she was exposed to the entertainment industry early on and knew about the dirty deeds, these matters, like reports of rare disasters on TV, felt distant to her. She was also very well protected by her Best Actress elder sister, so she was able to maintain her innocence and principles.

Song Xingzi liked interacting with people like that; it wasn’t exhausting.

“Oh, good that you’re not scared. You should stand in the center with Tao Le and the others.” It’s a pity Little Boss Ji isn’t here, otherwise, based on the ranking, I should be able to stand next to her.

If Gu Zhu didn’t have a crush on Ji Ruyue, Song Xingzi would probably like the young girl even more. Hearing Gu Zhu’s thoughts, Song Xingzi nodded, agreeing, and headed toward the Emperor and the handsome young Prince.

Seeing that the lead actors had arrived, the reporters vied with each other to hand over their microphones, naturally focusing on the male and female leads. Song Xingzi and the actor playing the Emperor each took two or three microphones before the reporters moved on to others, with the most microphones going to the popular hotshot, Tao Le.

The initial questions were mainly about the series itself, covering plot adaptation, issues concerning book fans versus series fans, and costumes and props. Over time, Song Xingzi had learned to control her mind-reading ability, filtering out unnecessary noise. She focused on the male lead’s answers, slightly rephrasing them, and her responses were considered satisfactory.

When the questions about the TV series were mostly done, the reporters’ attention shifted to the actors themselves. They first asked the Emperor and the Prince for their opinions on the female lead, then the topic was brought to Song Xingzi.

“It is reported that this is the first time Ms. Song has taken on a leading role since her debut four years ago. Why did you choose Fang Miao, whose image is so different from your previous roles?”

“This? Actually, I’m not that different from Fang Miao,” Song Xingzi smiled sweetly. “How should I put it? My previous persona was basically based on my appearance. But once too many press releases were sent out, I was only offered ‘White Lotus’ roles. But I’m actually quite cute, hehe, and I’m very good at cooking. I feel I still have many similarities with Fang Miao.”

Song Xingzi had decided long ago to use this series to gradually shift her public image. Since someone had extended an olive branch to her, wouldn’t it be a shame not to seize the opportunity?

“Is that true? Or is this a new journey for you after terminating your contract?”

“It’s true!” Tao Le interjected. His image has always been that of a sunny, handsome youth. Not only does he gossip about the Star-Moon couple privately, but he also often scrounges meals from Song Xingzi on set, so he naturally stepped up to support the chef. “Xingzi’s cooking is super, super, super delicious! All the cooking scenes are real, and we have to snatch the food from the pot every time! Lin Ge, isn’t that right?”

The actor playing the Emperor smiled slightly and took the cue. “That is true. Xingzi is sometimes quite lively and is a hidden food connoisseur. She really suits the role of Fang Miao.”

“We hear it was Starlight’s CEO who had the keen eye to discover Ms. Song, and Little Boss Ji is also involved in this series. Does Ms. Song have anything she’d like to say to her benefactor?”

Song Xingzi was momentarily stunned, then smiled sweetly. “Little Boss Ji is a very excellent person. She’s the kind of person who shines! Everyone will definitely love her character!”

“Is Little Boss Ji preparing to enter the entertainment industry? Can you conveniently reveal the role Little Boss Ji is playing?”

“That’s a secret,” Song Xingzi turned, winked at Ji Ruyue in the shadows beneath a tree, “But you can interview Little Boss Ji later and ask her, right, Little Boss Ji?”

Under normal circumstances, an artist would not show too much intimacy towards their boss, as it could easily lead to misunderstandings, especially when one party is particularly powerful.

The reporters were stunned for a moment, then cautiously hesitated, unsure whether they should point their microphones towards Little Boss Ji. Little Boss Ji’s reputation for being difficult to serve was as notorious in the entertainment circles as it was in the finance sector: countless media outlets have been shut down and countless reporters have lost their jobs just for saying one wrong thing…

However, Ji Ruyue had been sleeping well recently and was in a good mood. She nodded to the reporters, gave an “OK” sign, and then continued to look down at her documents.

Gu Zhu had felt deceived since Song Xingzi started claiming her previous image was merely a persona. Now, seeing the interaction between Song Xingzi and Ji Ruyue, she felt even more disbelief, her anger soaring.

She’s been lying to me? Didn’t she say she was a forced canary in a cage? What the hell, is this a little white flower? Is this the little white flower who told me she wanted freedom? So, she’s been treating me like an idiot?? How can Little Boss Ji be so nice to her? Sob, sob, sob, she has no heart…

The angrier Gu Zhu thought, the angrier she got. However, the interview was still ongoing, and she had to control herself to avoid losing composure in front of the cameras.

Standing next to her, He Ya witnessed everything and smiled contentedly.

Loyal dogs are prone to turn dark when they’ve suppressed themselves for too long. Hurry up and make your move, Big Eyes. I’ll seize the opportunity.

Gu Zhu’s change of heart was unknown and uncared for by Ji Ruyue. Mu Yu’s scenes were almost finished, and the plan Ji Ruyue had devised for Song Xingzi was nearly complete. Both women’s intentions coincided: they both wanted to use this series to complete the image transformation. However, Song Xingzi still needed to master some basic skills that the original character had, so with her scenes about to wrap up and not much else to do, Ji Ruyue also put the task of teaching Song Xingzi English on the agenda.

“Come, sit down,” Ji Ruyue said, pointing to the sofa, to Song Xingzi, who was in a white nightgown. “Did you buy your big red slippers yourself?”

“Yes, yes, aren’t they pretty!”

As Song Xingzi spoke, her round toes, exposed to the air, wiggled playfully up and down. Hehe, Ji Ji is finally starting to notice what I wear. This is a good sign! I believe it won’t be long before she realizes how wonderful I am!

Ji Ruyue stared at the bright, vibrant green floral print on the big red slippers, feeling like her eyeballs were about to be blinded by the brightness. She replied faintly, “They’re okay. Don’t wear such attractive slippers out. The public might not accept what you like. Change slowly.”

The ‘country bumpkin’ nodded earnestly. “Mhm, mhm, I think so too.”

“I found you an online tutoring class to learn English. Remember to attend,” Ji Ruyue was unfazed, having long grown accustomed to Song Xingzi’s different-from-normal way of thinking.

“Ah! How will I follow along? Isn’t Ji Ji going to teach me?” Song Xingzi had long imagined Ji Ruyue teaching her English, with her lying on the bed and Ji Ruyue sitting next to her, teaching her to read sentence by sentence in a cool, slightly magnetic voice.

The difference between this ideal and reality is too great, isn’t it???

Song Xingzi was unhappy. Without intimate tutoring, how could their relationship progress? If they kept ‘boiling the frog in warm water’ every day, the frog would die before it was fully cooked! When will she give up on the jerk male lead and jump into my pit?

Ji Ruyue frowned. “You want me to teach you?”

She had considered teaching herself, but she had never done such a thing, and the effect and speed would certainly not be as good as a professional teacher.

“If I study online, no one will supervise me all the time, nor will they be able to find where I’m studying poorly. Even if I learn well, I’ll only be able to repeat basic phrases! It’s not good at all! It’s a waste of time and ineffective. I’d rather not learn at all! Anyway, anyway, I don’t want to be a big star.”

With her long-held fantasies shattered, Song Xingzi spoke more passionately, turning her back on Ji Ruyue, swinging her big red slippers, and muttering.

“Just say you want me to teach you directly. Why are you throwing a tantrum?”

Ji Ruyue sighed, got up, and sat down next to her. Song Xingzi propped up her head, glanced at her, and mumbled, “Hmph, you just think I’m troublesome! And you want me to become a big star! You’re a liar!”

“A liar?”

“Yes, I’m talking about you. You promised before to let me be myself, and now you’re handing me off to someone else. Soon you’ll completely cast me aside!” And then eagerly go looking for the scumbag male lead! I hate it, I hate it so much!

“You need to learn the basics first. If you can’t even say the phonetics, how am I supposed to teach you? Hmm?”

Ji Ruyue looked down at the sulking Song Xingzi, her voice trailing suggestively. Song Xingzi’s face instantly flushed crimson. She quickly buried herself in a throw pillow, muttering, “Fine, I’ll believe you this one time. You have to teach me later.”

Ji Ruyue nodded. “Okay.”

She had never seen Song Xingzi shy before and found it a little amusing. She couldn’t help but reach out to pinch her cheek, wanting to gently knead it, but the person was currently lying face down, so Ji Ruyue couldn’t reach. On a whim, she gently pinched the soft skin on the back of her neck.

Song Xingzi’s body subconsciously stiffened. Ji Ruyue’s hand was ice-cold and comfortably cool in the fully air-conditioned room, but the touch of her icy fingertips brought not coolness, but a surge of tingling sensation that traveled along the dense nerves of her skin to her brain.

Aahhhhhhh! Ji Ji’s hand is too comfortable! I can’t take it, if this continues, I’ll go into heat!

“Turn around? You’ll be stifling yourself.”

Aahhhhhhh! I’m truly gone. Fox Sis, I might not be able to control myself. Not only do I want to go into heat toward a human, but she’s also a woman!

“No turning, no turning,” Song Xingzi felt like her whole body was about to explode. She muffled out, “Ji Ji, you go to sleep first. I… I’m embarrassed.”

Ji Ruyue let out a pleasant laugh and reached out to gently stroke Song Xingzi’s hair.

Truly childish, and truly cute.

“I’m leaving then. Remember to study.”

“I know!” Song Xingzi answered, quietly raising her head. Seeing the person actually walking toward the bedroom, she sat up, hugging the pillow, but feeling a bit empty inside. She paused for a moment, then lightly patted her own cheek.

Snap out of it! You’re here to save Ji Ji! To save her from that scumbag Li Yebai! Not to sleep with her! How can you have such dirty thoughts! How is that going to lead to a sweet relationship with Ji Ji!

As soon as there was any actual progress, Song Xingzi, who was “100 points in romantic theory, 0 points in romantic experience,” panicked.

In her panic, Little Song Zi completely forgot who was the one routinely employing a thousand layers of romantic tactics on Ji Ruyue, counting and calculating every day to make Ji Ji fall in love.

The daily little interlude quickly passed, and a new day began. The shy Song Xingzi, who felt her toes curling up with embarrassment, arrived at the set alone to start a new mission.

As soon as she arrived, she saw Gu Zhu standing at the door with her arms crossed and a dark expression.

“Song Xingzi! Come here for a minute!”

Wait a minute, why does this scene feel so familiar?

Thinking this, Song Xingzi went over as instructed.

“What’s wrong, Big Eyes?”

“Do you really want freedom?” You lied to me, lied to me, lied to me! Bad woman! Shameless! Let’s see how you answer me now? You’ll definitely pretend to say yes and continue treating me like an idiot.

Hearing the hidden context, Song Xingzi internally made the ‘Erkang hand gesture’ (a gesture of shock/protest): Wait a minute! For the record, except for the first day when I joked with you and struck you down once, I haven’t said anything like that since! You can’t blame me based on your imagination…

Song Xingzi knowingly asked, “What freedom are you talking about?”

Big Eyes, you’re like a little fool, you can’t even tell something so obvious. Is this what happens when you’re blinded by unrequited love?

Gu Zhu’s face grew even darker. White Lotus, Green Tea Bitch! Treating me like an idiot! Too much!! And I actually thought she was innocent and wanted to take care of her!

“Do you or do you not like Little Boss Ji? Can you be direct?”

“Yes, I like her. Everyone knows that, but Little Boss Ji doesn’t like me right now. I really didn’t lie to you about that. I only wanted to joke with you before because what you said was so amusing. But I didn’t expect you to keep pursuing it so persistently, and so foolishly. I’m also pursuing Little Boss Ji, so…”

Gu Zhu: “You think I’m wrong?” Damn it, that’s too much! Holy cow, that’s too much! Everyone knows you two are together, and you still say things like that to deceive me?

“I didn’t mean that,” Gu Zhu’s assumptions were too rampant, and Song Xingzi couldn’t keep up with her thought process.

“Fine, I know. You just wait!”

With that, Gu Zhu stormed off like a gust of wind, fueled by anger.

Song Xingzi: Wait a minute! Finish what you’re saying, Big Eyes! Why are you always so silly? When I tell the truth, you don’t believe me, but when I lie, you do, and then you turn around and blame me…

So difficult. Although I finally met someone even dumber than me.

Song Xingzi shook her head and walked helplessly into the makeup room to prepare for the day’s filming.

Ji Ruyue also had no scenes this morning. Mu Yu’s character was, in fact, about to be killed off, so the focus of these days was on the struggles in the imperial harem and the slight stirrings of romance between Fang Miao and the Prince.

Tao Le’s character, the Prince, is dashing and talented, loving only food and beautiful women. He frequently visited the Imperial Kitchen as soon as Fang Miao entered the palace to beg for food, and even asked the Emperor multiple times for her hand in marriage. Even after Fang Miao became a consort, he remained devoted and often helped her out, making him a famous ‘devoted second male lead’ in the world of novels.

The scene to be filmed today is where the arrogant and domineering Princess Yongle (played by Gu Zhu) discovers that Fang Miao, even after becoming a consort, is still meeting with the Prince. As a sister who dotes on her brother, how could Li Chang’le tolerate this? Unwilling to tell the Emperor and make him sad, she brings a group of palace maids and eunuchs to discipline Fang Miao after the Prince leaves.

“Kneel!”

Gu Zhu said sternly, instructing the palace maids and eunuchs to force her to the ground.

Song Xingzi: This scene feels familiar too? Why am I being forced to the ground again? My knees hurt from kneeling. Big Eyes told me to ‘just wait.’ Is she talking about this? Is she going to be like a villainous female supporting character and deliberately call for endless retakes (NGs) until my face is swollen?

Song Xingzi looked at the people coming over, her thoughts wandering, her mind drifting, and her eyes looking dull.

“Cut! Cut, cut, cut! What’s wrong, Song Xingzi?” Zhao Yu frowned and coarsely criticized, “You’ve been insulted without cause by Li Yongle, and in your own palace, with no one to help you. You should be confused, angry, and unwilling to accept this! Why are you spacing out? Did you steal a train last night? Take it from the top!”

“Kneel!”

With another “thump,” Song Xingzi felt that her knees would be bruised before Gu Zhu even managed to slap her face.

Trying to concentrate, Song Xingzi put herself into the scene, glaring at Gu Zhu with confusion and anger. “Princess Yongle, even arrogance must have limits! Forcing your way into my palace and treating a consort like this without distinguishing right from wrong is going too far.”

“Going too far? Heh heh heh,” Gu Zhu blew on her fingertips. Going too far, my a*! Why didn’t you think it was going too far when you were lying to me? Is it fun to treat me like an idiot?*

“Who did you meet today? What did you say? Must this Princess remind you one by one? Hmph, slap her mouth!”

The palace maid immediately stepped forward, but Gu Zhu became unhappy again. She frowned, pushed the palace maid away, and stepped up herself. “Get lost. How can such a fickle woman be worthy of the Emperor brother? It’s more satisfying if I do it myself.”

If I could hit you openly, I really want to beat you into a pig’s head! Gu Zhu flashed an elegant yet deranged smile at Song Xingzi.

No way!! Is Big Eyes really going to hit me? Isn’t this going to swell my face? Crap, listen to me, Big Eyes! You can’t convict me based on your imagination!

Song Xingzi screamed internally, her eyes showing helplessness and fear.

She could use spiritual power to protect her face so that the slap wouldn’t hurt Gu Zhu, but the slap definitely needed to look red to be effective. Not to mention, given how angry Gu Zhu was, her face would definitely swell up after a single slap. If her face showed no reaction, it would be too unnatural.

Song Xingzi was caught between a rock and a hard place, and then the slap came, whistling through the air.

Gu Zhu used all her strength. In her shock, Song Xingzi subconsciously turned her head. With a sound of “Pa,” the big, fat slap landed on Song Xingzi’s chin.

Ah—crap, it hurts so much, sob sob sob, it really hurts. Big Eyes is too vicious. If that slap landed on my face, wouldn’t it swell up like a steamed bun dough?

“Cut! Cut, cut, cut! Song Xingzi, why did you dodge? And your expression is wrong! You should be angry, wanting to argue, not caught between a rock and a hard place! I wouldn’t know what to think was going on between the two of you!” Having two retakes  in a row, Zhao Yu’s mood deteriorated sharply, and his tone couldn’t help but become agitated.

“I’m sorry, Director Zhao, I was a bit out of it,” Song Xingzi swallowed her bitter resentment. She couldn’t understand why Zhao Yu couldn’t see that Gu Zhu was deliberately hitting hard, and instead found fault with her.

How dare she call for two retakes? Foolish, truly foolish! I checked; Little Boss Ji isn’t here today, and I’m standing with my back to the camera. As long as I perform the action, I can hit you as many times as I want to vent my anger! What is this? This is karma! You White Lotus! You’re making me so angry!

Song Xingzi, who heard Big Eyes’ thoughts loud and clear: I might never recover… She wants to hit me and scold me…

“Are you ready? Take it from the top!”

Gu Zhu pushed the palace maid away and stood in front of Song Xingzi herself. She sneered and delivered an extremely loud slap to Song Xingzi’s face.

“Smack!”

This time, the big, fat slap landed squarely on Song Xingzi’s face. Song Xingzi kept her expression steady, hoping Big Eyes wouldn’t be too vicious and would stop after two hits.

However, two slaps were certainly not enough to appease Gu Zhu, who had been suppressing her anger for so long. She took a step forward, her left foot tripping over her right, and with a “smack,” she fake-fell to the ground.

Song Xingzi: No way! She can do that too? When the scene is over, I’ll let you try falling for real! She’s so shameless, hurting the enemy a thousand times while self-inflicting eight hundred.

“Cut! Cut, cut, cut! Gu Zhu, what’s wrong with you now? Can’t you even walk straight? Take it from the top!” Gu Zhu’s fall looked very severe on camera, so even though Song Xingzi’s face was turning red, Zhao Yu didn’t suspect Gu Zhu was deliberately calling for retakes. He just impatiently told them to start over.

“Director Zhao, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to,” Gu Zhu struggled to get up, but she felt somewhat relieved inside.

Shameless White Lotus, deceiving my feelings! What I’m doing is mild! Hmph!

There are already red marks on my face, so can I protect it with spiritual power now? It shouldn’t be noticeable, but my reaction needs to be accurate later. I’ll worry about why Big Eyes suddenly went crazy after this.

Song Xingzi’s fingertips twitched slightly, and spiritual power flowed through her meridians, forming a small shield on her face. This not only exempted her from pain, but if Gu Zhu used too much force, it would hurt Gu Zhu as if she were hitting a wooden stake.

Of course, even if Gu Zhu told people, no one would believe her, Song Xingzi chuckled inwardly. She then thought of Gu Zhu saying she was venting her anger because Ji Ji wasn’t here, and she thought miserably: It’s a good thing Ji Ji isn’t here, otherwise, she’d definitely get angry, although I don’t understand why she cares so much about my body.