After the Agreement, the Aloof Movie Queen is Chasing Me All Over the Internet - Chapter 63

Late at night, a few days later, the film crew finally packed up.

“Has anyone seen An Dongling? You know, the girl with glasses and the long fringe!”

Zhou Yue had spent the entire day searching for An Dongling to no avail. Lugging her heavy bag, she frantically stopped staff members to ask. In her pocket, she even had a sachet of pasta sauce; she’d specifically built up a sense of mystery about this “Italian pasta” to tease An Dongling and cheer her up. They’d agreed she would treat her, but now the girl was nowhere to be found!

A staff member, eager to get home, brushed her off impatiently. “Who? I don’t know her. How can I help you find someone if you don’t even use their character name?”

Zhou Yue was frantic. She quickly blurted out the character name a minor role with only two or three scenes, but Zhou Yue remembered it perfectly.

The staff member thought for a moment. “Tsk, that background extra? She finished her scenes days ago! Why are you asking about her now?”

The words hit Zhou Yue like a bucket of ice water, chilling her to the bone.

What… Finished… she finished her scenes ages ago…

That couldn’t be right. An Dongling had been on set every day! If she’d finished, shouldn’t she have gone home long ago?

Zhou Yue was close to tears. “Are you sure? She’s been here at the set every single day!”

The staff member, losing all patience, shoved Zhou Yue aside. “I told you, she’s finished! How should I know where some peripheral extra is?”

Zhou Yue stumbled, her back slamming hard against a wall. The momentum sent her bag crashing to the ground, the zip bursting open and scattering her belongings everywhere.

An identity card, medical records, and… an insurance policy?

A terrible feeling washed over Zhou Yue. Ignoring the pain in her back, she lunged for the insurance policy as it fluttered in the wind, kneeling under a streetlamp with trembling hands to read it.

In the centre, it read “Life Insurance Policy.” The company logo was a blood-red smear, and the beneficiary listed was… An Dongling’s mother?

A wave of cold surged up her spine, making her teeth chatter. An Dongling… surely she wouldn’t…

There was no time. Zhou Yue gritted her teeth, snatched up the medical records, and frantically thumbed through every page. Finally, on the last page under the diagnostic notes, she saw an emergency contact address written by hand.

It was an alleyway. Secluded. Dangerous.

Zhou Yue forced her racing heart into submission. With shaking fingers, she called Du Yaozhi.

“Zhizhi, where are you?! Something’s happened to An Dongling!”

In a cramped, damp corner of a back alley sat an old car. The air was thick with the smell of dust and rusted iron. An Dongling lay tossed in a corner, her hands bound behind her back and tape over her mouth. She struggled relentlessly, muffled whimpers escaping her throat.

“Behave yourself!” The man guarding her kicked a nearby bin with a deafening clang. An Dongling only struggled harder, trying to ram her shoulder against a metal rack behind her.

“Damn it, still moving?” The man grumbled, pulling out his phone to start a video call.

A few seconds later, Xu Wanxin’s face appeared on the screen, the background showing the abandoned factory in South City.

“An Dongling, I suggest you save your energy.” Xu Wanxin’s voice crackled through the speaker, dripping with undisguised contempt. “Don’t think President Li likes ‘personality’ types like you. Stop dreaming. To him, you’re just a fresh little toy.”

Xu Wanxin continued, “If you help me get through this crisis, I’ll be happy to ‘look after’ that dying mother of yours, won’t I?”

Xu Wanxin looked smugly into the camera, with Qin Qian standing beside her, fanning the flames. “Exactly. It’s just one trip to see President Li. What’s there to be afraid of?” Qin Qian added. “Worst case scenario, you just don’t come back.”

An Dongling snapped her head up, glaring at the screen. Even with her mouth taped, the hatred in her eyes was enough to sear through the glass. She knew she had to play her part well now.

“Glaring at me? What right do you have to glare at me?” Xu Wanxin scoffed, swirling a champagne flute. “To be able to negotiate this deal for Huasheng—for me, is your good fortune. Do as you’re told, and your family might suffer a little less.”

An Dongling’s breath came in ragged gasps, her chest heaving. She stopped struggling, but her gaze turned unnervingly cold. The guard brought the phone closer.

In that split second, An Dongling lunged with all her might, slamming her forehead into the man’s wrist! The phone flew from his hand, spinning through the air, and the image of Xu Wanxin on the screen became a dizzying blur.

In that brief moment of chaos, An Dongling found a sudden burst of strength. Using the inside of her bound wrists, she violently rubbed away part of the tape from her mouth, creating a gap just large enough to speak.

Her voice was hoarse but crystal clear, her words like frost-tipped nails. “Xu Wanxin.”

“You are pathetic.”

“Don’t think you can save yourself with such filthy tactics. Kidnapping me to beg Li Rongjin for help is nothing more than a final, desperate struggle!”

“Huasheng is riddled with holes and scandals! You’ve cheated so many innocent artists; it’s only a matter of time before the truth comes out. No amount of cover-up will work!” An Dongling roared. “And you, Xu Wanxin, are Huasheng’s biggest scandal! You are a stain on the world!”

There were no pleas for mercy, only bloody truths. She struck right at the core of Xu Wanxin’s vanity, the one place she couldn’t bear to be touched.

“You! You bitch! Shut up!!” On the other end, Xu Wanxin flew into a rage, her refined face contorting. “Beat her! Beat her until she learns how to speak! Smash her mouth! Then get her in the car and send her to Li Rongjin immediately!”

The man snatched up his phone, rolled up his sleeves, and approached An Dongling with a cruel grin. “Hear that? Miss Xu wants you to learn a lesson!”

An Dongling watched coldly, her eyes dark beneath her fringe. She felt the raised pattern on the sole of her shoe, ready to strike back at any moment.

But just as the man’s hand was about to fall.

A tiny, sharp intake of breath, loud enough to be heard in the silence, came from the half-open back gate. The man spun around.

“Let her go!”

There stood Zhou Yue, clutching a rusted half-length iron bar, her chest heaving with a mix of terror and fury.

An Dongling’s eyes widened. “Zhou Yue??? What are you doing here?? Run!” She didn’t care if she lived or died, but Zhou Yue absolutely could not be dragged into this.

“I’m not leaving!” Zhou Yue shouted, her eyes swimming with tears. She held up her phone. “I’ve recorded everything! I’ve caught you in the act, now let her go!”

Zhou Yue glared at the men, her body shaking uncontrollably, yet she didn’t take a single step back. She immediately prepared to call the police. The men’s faces changed—there was another one they’d missed?!

“She’s calling the police!” someone yelled.

Men emerged from the shadows. Zhou Yue swung the iron bar wildly, the rust leaving red marks on her palms as she forced the first man back. But she had no training; in the panic, someone kicked her behind the knee. Her leg gave way, and she collapsed as the iron bar clattered away. Her phone was snatched and smashed against the wall, the screen shattering into a spiderweb.

Zhou Yue fell to the ground in pain. An Dongling was consumed by a white-hot rage, her glasses crunching beneath her feet. “Don’t touch her!!!”

In that moment, she felt the knife hidden in her shoe. Just as she was about to move, there was a loud thwack. Both girls were knocked unconscious with an iron bar and tossed into the boot of a car.

“Miss Xu, we’ve got them both,” the lead man reported.

Xu Wanxin didn’t even look up. “Mm. Who was the other one?”

Qin Qian squinted at the screen. “Miss… it doesn’t look like Du Yaozhi?”

“Heh.” Xu Wanxin sounded entirely sure of herself, as if she’d calculated everything. “It doesn’t matter. Du Yaozhi will come.”

“Have them watch them closely. Deliver ‘the item’ to that man, and make sure nobody escapes.” Xu Wanxin gave her final orders from the second floor of the factory, a cold smile on her face. “I’m preparing something big.”

“Du Yaozhi… just you wait.”

**

The roar of an engine tore through the night air in South City.

Du Yaozhi gripped the steering wheel so hard her knuckles turned white as she sped through the streets. The Jing Luo crew had just started their New Year break; Xiao Yu had returned with a freshly spayed Qingbao, and all was peaceful. Everyone was happily packing to go home, until Du Yaozhi received the call from Zhou Yue.

Zhou Yue had said something was wrong. By the time Du Yaozhi called back, the phone was off. A cold despair crawled up her spine. Both of them were caught up in this. Not just An Dongling, but Zhou Yue too…

She had already sent people; she had moved as fast as she could… and yet, this was the result?! Du Yaozhi forced herself to breathe deeply, but her hands on the wheel were shaking. Pain, fear, and madness spread through her. She slammed the accelerator, venting her emotions through the speed of the car.

Back at the set, chaos had erupted. Gong Lin’s breath was coming in short gasps. “An Dongling’s phone GPS was stationary in the South City industrial zone for two hours. The final movement before the signal died was incredibly fast… like they were put in a car.”

Du Yaozhi forced herself to speak. “Call the police. Now.”

“Du Yaozhi, I’m here. Don’t be afraid.”

Shen Qing’s voice suddenly came through the phone cool and steady like jade, anchoring Du Yaozhi’s crumbling spirit. Hearing that reassuring voice, Du Yaozhi’s throat felt inexplicably tight. “Shen Qing”

“Nothing can happen to them.” Du Yaozhi took several deep breaths, steadying herself.

Shen Qing said firmly, “Nothing will. I promise you.”

“I’m on my way. I’ll be there in thirty minutes,” Shen Qing added, her cool tone full of comfort. “Stay calm for me, alright?”

“Alright.” Du Yaozhi adjusted her breathing and gripped the wheel, choosing for the first time to put her full trust in Shen Qing.

The car entered South City and approached an abandoned factory. As the pitch-black building came into view with scattered flickers of light, Du Yaozhi gritted her teeth, her tyres screeching over the gravel. Ignoring all obstacles, she crashed into the ruins of South City, threw the car door open, and charged in.

“Xu Wanxin, come out! I dare you to touch them!” Du Yaozhi’s voice was resolute, echoing through the empty factory.

“Whether I dare or not isn’t up to you, is it?” Xu Wanxin emerged slowly from the shadows, looking triumphant.

Qin Qian lowered her head and whispered, “Miss… there’s been no word from President Li.

should we check?”

Xu Wanxin snorted, dismissive. “Why would I need word? When the time is up and he’s finished with her, it’ll be my turn to use her.”

Du Yaozhi suppressed her rage, her hands clenched. “Xu Wanxin, what do you mean by that?” Finished with her? Using her?!

“My, Miss Du is quite impatient, isn’t she?” Xu Wanxin laughed. She clapped her hands, signaling someone to open the warehouse door. “Since you asked, I’ll be merciful and let you see.”

The warehouse door groaned open, and the lights inside flickered to life.

Zhou Yue lay in a pool of blood, her clothes soaked red, with a blood-stained dagger lying nearby. An Dongling was kneeling beside her, her own clothes torn and tattered. She was sobbing, tearing a relatively clean strip of fabric from her own clothes to press against Zhou Yue’s wound. “Zhou Yue! Zhou Yue! Don’t die, I beg you!”

Du Yaozhi’s pupils shrank. Her heart felt as though it were being crushed by an invisible hand. How… how could this happen?

Du Yaozhi charged forward like a madwoman, desperate to save them, but she was immediately surrounded by men who had been lying in wait. The glare of searchlights and cameras was blinding, making it impossible to see Zhou Yue’s face clearly; she could only see An Dongling’s uncontrollably shaking shoulders.

“Film a video, Du Yaozhi. Film a video, and I’ll save her.” Xu Wanxin leaned against a crossbeam, arms crossed, a victor’s smile on her face. Her tone was light and malicious.

Du Yaozhi’s eyes were blood-red as she cried out while reaching for Zhou Yue, “Xu Wanxin, you’re insane!”

“Insane? Don’t you love acting, Du Yaozhi? Then act now.” Xu Wanxin took two steps forward, looking down at her with pure mockery. “Admit to everything—all your ‘black material,’ acting like a diva, being disrespectful to seniors, bullying colleagues… and ‘deliberately framing Xu Wanxin’ for it all.”

“What do you say?” Xu Wanxin looked down from her high vantage point.

Du Yaozhi looked at Xu Wanxin’s smug face, at the menacing masked men surrounding her, and the cold lenses of the cameras. She hated her. She bit her lower lip so hard she tasted blood.

What was a ruined reputation? What was being misunderstood by the whole world? If it meant Zhou Yue lived, what did any of that matter?

Du Yaozhi was on the brink of despair. She took a deep breath, ready to speak.

But the hand pressing against Zhou Yue’s wound paused for a split second.

Wait a minute… This blood… why does it smell like ketchup?

An Dongling was weeping hysterically, begging Du Yaozhi to save Zhou Yue, saying she was slipping away. But Zhou Yue, lying “dying” in the “pool of blood,” suddenly gave Du Yaozhi a quick wink.

How does this girl still have the energy to wink?

Du Yaozhi suddenly understood.

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