After Rebirth, I Became My Ex's "White Moonlight" - Chapter 55

Shen Moxu spoke, her tears falling again like a string of broken pearls.

“You—you aren’t. You belong to yourself.” Cheng Siyu, having regained her composure, wiped away the tears with her fingers. With the alcohol from last night’s binge not yet fully metabolized, she could only speak somewhat incoherently, “It’s okay, it’s okay.”

“Siyu, thank you.”

The next second, Shen Moxu threw her arms around Cheng Siyu’s neck and finally burst into loud, unrestrained wailing.

Cheng Siyu had experienced similarly helpless moments. She gently patted Shen Moxu’s shoulder, letting her cry freely, though she remained tense at every moment, fearing that Shen Moxu might impulsively try to jump again.

The death of her mother when she was ten had left a massive shadow on her soul. When faced with the death of people or living creatures, Cheng Siyu always felt an overwhelming sense of dread.

Specifically, when that golden retriever died right in front of her, she had buried it in the garden through her tears and sworn a tearful oath: I won’t keep them anymore. Never again.

However, she felt no sense of dread regarding her own death; instead, there had been a fleeting moment of relief. At that time, she had actually looked forward to seeing her deceased mother, wanting to tell her about these past years—to tell her that life had not been good since she left.

“Siyu, I’m so sad. Why did it have to be my sister? Or why did it have to be Qin Xiangqing?”

Shen Moxu’s voice grew increasingly faint. Cheng Siyu could only offer comfort, saying, “It’s not your fault. It’s not.”

Once Shen Moxu’s emotions had stabilized slightly, Cheng Siyu pulled her into the room and poured her a glass of warm water. After handing it to her, she poured one for herself.

Between the hangover and the emotional upheaval, she felt white spots dancing before her eyes, as if she might faint.

Just then, the phone in her pocket rang. she pulled it out; it was Xi You.

“Do you still remember our date at noon?” Xi You’s gentle, inquiring voice came through the phone.

Only then did Cheng Siyu remember the agreement they made yesterday when parting—to make up for half of yesterday’s missed date today. She rubbed her hair and explained in a low voice, “I’m sorry, something happened to a friend. I can’t go. It’ll have to be next time.”

Xi You’s mild voice replied quickly, “Alright, it’s fine. Beautiful things always require some twists and turns.”

Taking advantage of Shen Moxu staring blankly at the floor, Cheng Siyu turned her back and whispered a question, “Can you help me check someone?”

“Who?”

“Qin Xiangqing.”

“Hmm? So sudden?”

“We’ll talk on WeChat.”

“Okay. One more thing.” Xi You’s voice suddenly paused. A flash of confusion crossed Cheng Siyu’s eyes as she asked:

“What is it?”

“Your voice sounds very beautiful right now.”

Cheng Siyu froze, then hung up the phone. She had long known that Xi You had this sort of frivolous streak.

After the call ended, Cheng Siyu turned back to look at Shen Moxu. She felt that Shen Moxu had still been full of spirit when they spoke on the phone a few days ago, but in just two short days, she had become as despondent as a withered flower.

“Do you want to eat something?” Cheng Siyu stroked her hair, asking tentatively. Shen Moxu looked at her for a long time before finally responding with a single word.

“Okay.”

The moment she lifted her eyes, a teardrop slid down her cheek.

This was the first time Cheng Siyu had seen Shen Moxu like this. The Shen Moxu who used to be good at joking and bantering seemed to have vanished overnight, replaced by a numb husk.

“It’s my treat today,” Cheng Siyu said in a light tone. Shen Moxu cooperated by forcing a smile.

After briefly explaining the situation to Xi You on her phone, Cheng Siyu opened a delivery app. It was then that she saw a news notification about Ji Yun being hospitalized after a late-night car crash while speeding.

The headline was as sensational as ever: “Shocking! Rising Starlet Suspected of Being Distraught Over Love, Drives Off a Cliff.”

Cheng Siyu clicked in and skimmed it briefly before exiting. She and Ji Yun shouldn’t have started anything in the first place.

By now, Ji Wanli must have told her about the contract. Would she hate her? If she hates me, then let her. In this life, she is innocent because she knows nothing, but in the previous life, wasn’t I—who gave my all only to be kept in the dark as a body double—even more innocent?

At least her life was a bit better than mine; at least I didn’t do that with someone else right in front of her face, did I?

Recalling that afternoon, she only felt a wave of nausea.

Let it be. They were even. She and Ji Yun should never have met in the first place; otherwise, they wouldn’t have wound up like two wires tangled together so chaotically that they both became hopelessly distorted by the time they were pulled apart.

Thinking this, Cheng Siyu exited the news page. Simultaneously, Shen Moxu finally managed to turn on the phone she had tossed aside.

This phone was a specific brand that Shen Moxu had bought because Qin Xiangqing endorsed it. Looking at the wallpaper of herself and Qin Xiangqing, Shen Moxu smiled, feeling only the irony of it.

There were several missed calls from her sister on the phone, but not a single one from Qin Xiangqing. In this moment, Shen Moxu suddenly saw clearly: it turned out that what Qin Xiangqing had said before—that the two of them were in a purely financial relationship—was true.

She also suddenly understood: Why had her sister flown into such a rage when she found out Qin Xiangqing was with her? Why did the corners of Qin Xiangqing’s mouth lift involuntarily when she knew Shen Moxu was arguing with her sister because of her?

It turned out that from beginning to end, she was the only one kept in the dark. Numb with pain, Shen Moxu opened WeChat, blocked both Shen Zhinian and Qin Xiangqing’s accounts and phone numbers, and then let the phone slip powerlessly from her hand to the floor.

“Siyu, I have nowhere to go.”

“I’ve been looking at apartments lately. We can rent a place together,” Cheng Siyu responded comfortingly.

“Okay,” came Shen Moxu’s exhausted voice.

Just then, there was a knock at the door; the food had arrived. Cheng Siyu smoothed her messy hair and went to open the door.

She had ordered soy milk and small cakes. She forgot where she had read that sweet things make people feel better, and in her memory, Shen Moxu had zero resistance to desserts.

To keep the room from being so quiet, Cheng Siyu turned on the television, only to unexpectedly see the first news item: Ji Yun’s car accident.

Looking at the report, the situation seemed quite serious; it only mentioned she was being resuscitated in the ICU. After seeing that there was currently no immediate danger to her life, Cheng Siyu pressed the button to change the channel.

“Little Ji had a car accident. Aren’t you going to see her?”

Cheng Siyu was placing the delivery bag on the table when she heard Shen Moxu speak. She paused for a moment, then opened the bag and replied calmly.

“We broke up.”

“Why?” Shen Moxu looked up at Cheng Siyu, seemingly trying to find a trace of sadness or heartache in her eyes, only to find they were filled with nothing but indifference.

“Incompatibility,” Cheng Siyu answered simply, stuffing the still-warm soy milk into Shen Moxu’s hands.

…

This was the fifth day since Ji Yun had been reborn. She had spent the last few days reading everything about Cheng Siyu in this life.

What made her feel lucky was that in this life, Cheng Siyu had not been imprisoned by her as she was in the previous life, eventually dying in an accident. But what made her sad was that the Cheng Siyu of this life did not love her the way the previous one had.

She had her own life, her own films and television shows, her own programs, the characters she played, and many fans. She was no longer just Ji Yun’s Cheng Siyu.

But what did it matter? At least they were both still alive now, and she still had a chance to pursue her again. Perhaps she was just temporarily at odds with her and would come back later?

At this thought, hope flared in Ji Yun’s heart. But when she looked at the TV, what she saw was a news segment titled: “Ji Family Heiress Bullies Cheng Siyu on Set, Violently Ripping Her Bracelet Apart.”

Looking at the time, it must have happened when she argued with Cheng Siyu because of Xi You.

Watching the footage of her suspected bullying of Cheng Siyu on set, she wondered: Could Cheng Siyu have wanted to break up with the “her” of this life because of this?

It wasn’t like that, she thought. She had to find Cheng Siyu and explain.

“Siyu, I need to see Siyu.”

Muttering to herself again, Ji Yun ignored her physical condition and tried to get out of bed. She had to explain to Cheng Siyu.

The wounds on her body began to burst their stitches and bleed. The commotion woke Ji Yan, who had been sleeping nearby.

“Xiao Yun, what are you doing?” She hurriedly pressed the call bell, and two bodyguards rushed in to strap Ji Yun to the hospital bed.

Once things had finally quieted down, Ji Yan saw Ji Yun still murmuring Cheng Siyu’s name and looked at the news still playing on the TV. She guessed that Ji Yun was agitated because of the report.

“Actually, my uncle told me that before she broke up with you, she had already been involved in rumors with several other girls,” Ji Yan said to Ji Yun. She intended to use this to make her stop being obsessed with finding Cheng Siyu, but upon hearing this, Ji Yun only nodded for a few seconds before becoming even more agitated.

“It’s not like that. She wouldn’t. I have to find her. It’s me—I’m the one who wronged her. I owe her.”

Ji Yan probably hadn’t expected Ji Yun to be so deeply in love with Cheng Siyu, so she stopped trying to persuade her.

“Your dad said once you’re fully recovered, you can go wherever you want.”

Hearing this, Ji Yun stopped struggling. She just stared at the white wall, recalling something, and then said coldly,

“He isn’t my father. I don’t have a father like him.”

“How can you say that about Uncle? He’s the one who’s been making all the arrangements since you were hospitalized, even specifically hiring people to take care of you.”

Ji Yan thought the current Ji Yun was still the same person who would be moved to change her ways by such small matters.

“If he were good to me, would he have gotten involved with his assistant? And then, while my mother was dying, would he have been at a hotel with that male assistant?”

“You…”

Ji Yun’s words stunned Ji Yan. After a long silence, she finally managed to say, “You knew?”

“You knew too? Then why didn’t you tell me?” Ji Yun’s emotions flared up again. The straps binding her strained against her movements, creating a series of metallic clattering sounds.

“I… I did it for your own good,” Ji Yan said guiltily, then opened the door and walked out of the ward.

As the sound of the ward door closing reached Ji Yun’s ears, she realized helplessly that Ji Yan had known everything long before she did. Yet, she had been able to speak in front of her about how good her father was to her mother and how good he was to her.

In that moment of realization, she finally understood: Ji Yan was not at all like she had imagined.