After Rebirth, I Became My Ex's "White Moonlight" - Chapter 46

Cheng Siyu thought she must be going crazy. Recalling her previous life, she suddenly felt an urge to take revenge on Ji Yun. She wanted to treat Ji Yun exactly how Ji Yun had treated her in that past life—to commit infidelity, so that when Ji Yun called her, the only sound on the other end would be the panting of her and another woman.

After all, no one had ever cared whether she lived or died, had they?

The kiss ended. Aside from the two of them, no one noticed what had occurred in that corner.

Cheng Siyu picked up the remaining sweet wine on the table and downed it in one gulp. It was very sweet—so sweet that her throat felt bitter. At that moment, two teardrops slid from the corners of her eyes; she must be drunk.

The next morning, the alarm on the table rang. Cheng Siyu sat up from the bed with a heavy, groggy head. She looked at the clothes and plastic packaging scattered across the floor, vaguely remembering what she had experienced.

“How did you sleep last night?”

A seductive, low voice came from behind her. Cheng Siyu turned her head to see Xi You’s incomparably beautiful face.

“It was alright,” Cheng Siyu replied, turning back to meet her gaze. It felt as if something had quietly shifted during the night.

At the very least, she wasn’t being treated as a substitute this time, was she? She smiled to herself. Since when had she started setting the bar so low for herself? Was it because of Ji Yun? Forget it; Cheng Siyu stopped thinking about it.

“When does your contract with Xiyu expire?”

“Two years.”

Cheng Siyu’s maximum contract term was two years because she would graduate by then. Ji Wanli was also happy to accept this; he didn’t want to see his daughter getting too close to someone of the same sex, and he feared Cheng Siyu might develop feelings for Ji Yun because of it.

In her previous life, Ji Yun had also been intentionally or unintentionally taking revenge on him. Almost every day, news of Ji Yun entering and leaving hotels with different women could be found in the gossip columns.

“I’ll wait for you.” Xi You sat up in bed at some point. The muscle lines on her arms were fluid, and there were faint red scratch marks on her shoulder—likely left by Cheng Siyu the previous night.

Cheng Siyu said nothing. She looked at the clock, then picked up her clothes from the carpet and put them on.

“You’re just leaving like that?” Xi You asked, watching her.

“Yes. Otherwise, it will be hard to explain to my manager.” Cheng Siyu put on her coat. Her voice was flat, without any fluctuation, though her gait was slightly unsteady, perhaps because of the previous night.

“Using me and then leaving… how heartless.” Xi You’s voice drifted from the headboard. She had thrown on a jacket at some point. Cheng Siyu turned back to meet her eyes, feeling that the Xi You of now didn’t seem like the same person from last night.

“Then should I… ask you for something?”

Cheng Siyu’s understanding of the industry rules was incomplete. In her previous life with Ji Yun, she thought they were more like a couple, except that she provided her body and Ji Yun gave her money.

“Pfft. How do you manage to be so cute and yet so inscrutable at the same time?”

Xi You walked to her side, reached out, and refastened the bracelet onto Cheng Siyu’s fair, reddish wrist.

“Go on then. I look forward to next time.”

After returning to her own room, Cheng Siyu lay back on the bed. The alcohol from last night hadn’t fully broken down yet; her head ached. The marks from last night’s indulgence remained; she felt uncomfortable.

Just then, the phone beside her rang. A familiar melody filled the room—it was Ji Yun calling.

“Hello?” Cheng Siyu answered. She felt her voice was wrapped in a layer of hoarseness from the unexpelled alcohol.

“Not up yet?”

“Mhm.”

“I wanted to tell you, I’m going to a banquet today. I’ll probably meet a lot of big stars,” Ji Yun’s voice came through the phone.

“Congratulations.” Cheng Siyu tried her best to make her voice sound slightly joyful.

“You have to work hard too. I want us to win an award together!”

“There will be a day for that.”

Cheng Siyu’s voice didn’t betray any specific emotion. She didn’t actually look forward to that day. She knew that Ji Yun’s suppressed nature would begin to rebound once she gained status—promiscuity, lovers everywhere, and rebellion against her father would all start from that point. Although it might just be Ji Yun’s natural growth trajectory, Cheng Siyu selfishly thought that if Ji Yun didn’t have such high status, perhaps things would be a little better.

“Yeah. I miss you so much. Today I saw two young actors in a relationship; they were so sweet with each other,” Ji Yun’s voice became wilted. “You never take the initiative to call me. Do you have someone else out there?”

Yes, last night I was in someone else’s bed, Cheng Siyu desperately wanted to throw those words out, but her rationality held the high ground. It wasn’t time for a showdown yet. She simply replied, “No. Because I know you’ll call me, I’m always waiting for your call.”

Ji Yun was stunned for a moment on the other end. Cheng Siyu rarely said sweet things to her, and hearing it now made her heart skip a beat.

“Okay. I miss you so much. When you finish filming, come visit me on set. I see so many actors in the crew have people visiting and even staying overnight.”

Ji Yun’s voice sounded shy. Hearing this, Cheng Siyu only said faintly, “There will be time.”

After hanging up, Cheng Siyu stared at the crystal chandelier on the ceiling, finding its glare exhaustingly bright.

A moment later, the alarm rang again. Cheng Siyu sat up and changed into her clothes for the film set.

Two months passed quickly. On the day filming wrapped, Cheng Siyu received a long-awaited phone call.

“Xiao Yu, your father misses you very much. He wants you to come back for the New Year.”

Cheng Siyu initially wanted to refuse, but after weighing her options, she felt she had to go back once. Some things were better severed completely right now.

“Okay. I’m at the studio, I’ll head back once I’m done filming.”

“Good. Our Xiao Yu is a big star now, able to earn her own money.” The stepmother’s flattering words held a kind of hypocritical shrewdness.

Cheng Siyu didn’t respond further. After hanging up, she looked at the thick layer of white snow piled outside the filming location, a hint of resolution appearing in her eyes.

During these two months, aside from filming the variety show, Cheng Siyu had spent all her time at the hotel and the set. Since the day Qi Yan had made her accusations in the hospital room, there had been no further interaction between Jiang Shizi and Qi Yan. Even when news of Qi Yan’s new rumored romance broke, Jiang Shizi remained indifferent, showing no reaction.

The last time Cheng Siyu and Ji Yun had met was when Cheng Siyu was recording a new episode of Little Ones. At that time, Ji Yun had come to visit Qi Yan on set and naturally ended up in Cheng Siyu’s bed.

“Siyu, what are you thinking about?”

At this moment, Jiang Shizi also walked out from the set and stood beside Cheng Siyu, staring blankly at the falling snow with her.

“Nothing. It’s almost the New Year; time to go home,” Cheng Siyu replied. In her memory, this was an incredibly ordinary day. The streets outside would be filled with the atmosphere of the New Year, yet she could only stay alone at her and Ji Yun’s home, trying to find a glimpse of Ji Yun in the Spring Festival Gala programs, only to discover her in the gossip headlines the next day.

“Having a home to go back to for the New Year is a good thing,” Jiang Shizi remarked. Her own family had cut ties with her the day her mother broke off their relationship; they hadn’t been in contact for several years.

Cheng Siyu understood that she and Jiang Shizi were practically the same kind of person. She said calmly, “Some homes are worse than having none at all.”

“True.” Jiang Shizi seemed to remember something and nodded. The liveliest Spring Festival in her memory was the first year she was with Qi Yan. The two of them had traveled together to a small village far from the city to watch fireworks and light firecrackers.

“Aren’t you and Ji Yun spending it together?”

At Jiang Shizi’s question, Cheng Siyu paused, then replied, “She has someone more important than me.”

In her previous life, no matter how busy Ji Yun was, she would never miss the chance to meet Ji Yan on the first day of the Lunar New Year.

That was the first time Jiang Shizi saw a look of hurt and shock in Cheng Siyu’s eyes. But in a flash, a smile returned to her face.

Cheng Siyu didn’t like to smile. Only when she encountered people or things she disliked would she use a fake smile as a substitute for an answer. In truth, only she herself knew whether she was happy or not.

“It’s so cold. I’m going back. Be careful not to catch a cold.” After speaking, Cheng Siyu patted Jiang Shizi’s shoulder, pushed open the glass door, and walked back inside.

The day after filming wrapped, Cheng Siyu got into the car heading back to the Cheng family home. Looking out the window, she only felt a vague sense of sadness.

She didn’t choose to go directly to the Cheng house. Instead, relying on her memory, she walked to the place where she and Lin Shuyu used to live.

the old buildings had long since been demolished, and the small shops on the street had changed hands many times. Only the street lamp that had stood outside her door during her childhood remained lit.

In the years after her mother left, she had never set foot there due to fear and resentment. But in her previous life, by the time she wanted to revisit the old place, it had already been torn down, leaving only this street lamp.

Her resentment toward her mother had long since dissolved with time. If she herself had experienced the collapse of her family, the imprisonment of relatives, and the betrayal of a husband, she wouldn’t have been able to raise a daughter still in swaddling clothes either.

She just still felt sad—it turned out that her childhood self hadn’t been a sufficient reason for her mother to firmly choose to live.

Looking at the flickering street lamp with its aging circuits, Cheng Siyu finally reached out and touched it, as if comforting her childhood self. Then, she set off on the path back.

Cheng Siyu checked into a hotel room not far from her old residence. This way, she could use the distance of the hotel as an excuse to leave the Cheng family home early.

However, she also knew that this would be the last time she ever went there.

The next day:

“Sister! Mom, Dad, Sis is back!”

After not seeing her for several months, Cheng Hanyi’s appearance had matured significantly, and he had grown much taller. Previously, he had been half a head shorter than Cheng Siyu, but now he was about the same height; it looked like he would be taller than her in the future.

“Oh, the big star is back? Quick, let us see.” The voices of visiting relatives came from inside the house. The next second, Cheng Siyu was surrounded and ushered inside.

“We were just talking about you! Now we can only see you on TV.”

Her stepmother took her hand with a flattering air and turned to chat and laugh with the relatives. To Cheng Siyu, such a scene was… a bit excessively lively.

Cheng Wuxing also came out of the kitchen at this time. “Xiao Yu is back? Sit down and catch your breath. Dad’s cooking will be ready soon.”

Such gentle words, filled with fatherly love, were things the once-ignored Cheng Siyu had never heard. She understood that everything now was merely based on her special role as a celebrity.

“Sigh, what have you been busy with lately? I heard you mention having a boyfriend last time; why didn’t you bring him home to see us?”

The stepmother brought it up as a casual joke. The shocked voices of the relatives followed: “Xiao Yu has a boyfriend? Why haven’t we heard you mention it on TV?”

“Xiao Yu’s job is special; she can’t talk about it.” Only then did the stepmother unhurriedly cover her mouth, her eyes showing a feigned shock at having accidentally revealed a big secret.

Cheng Siyu suddenly felt that the woman was better suited for acting than she was. If she weren’t limited by family life, she would probably be an actress of “Best Actress” caliber.

“He’s busy with work, so he didn’t come with me,” she replied in a flat tone.

“I see. How is that person’s family? I see on TV that you celebrities can get in touch with many rich people, isn’t that right?”