Ex-Wife, Please Respect Yourself! - Chapter 3

“Sis, wake up. It is time for dinner.”

Cheng Luo had fallen into a very deep sleep. After being shaken awake, she sat on the bed for a long while to collect herself. She had not expected to dream about the first time they met. Even now, the phantom thumping of her heart from the dream felt real.

But only after living together did Cheng Luo realize that while the Ice Beauty’s body was warm, her heart was cold. She gave a bitter smile but quickly pulled herself together, refusing to let herself drown in the atmosphere of the past. Although she had a failed marriage, she had an incredibly adorable daughter. Looking at it that way, things were not so bad.

“Sis, the car is waiting downstairs. We need to go eat.”

Cheng Luo nodded. “Let me change my clothes. These are all wrinkled from sleeping.”

The mountains were cold at night. Cheng Luo wore a black coat that reached her calves, crossing her arms over her chest to keep the wind from blowing the coat open.

“It is freezing!” Cheng Luo jogged all the way from the car into the restaurant, stomping her feet continuously to try and warm up. She stood in the lobby waiting for her assistant to park the car, as she did not know which private room they were in.

Though the restaurant was in a remote location, the environment was excellent. People moved through the lobby almost silently. The only sound came from a television on the wall. Now that she had thawed out, Cheng Luo watched the television advertisements with boredom.

“This is an incredible bargain! Everyone, please call our purchasing hotline at xxxx.”

“Alright, returning to our hot news channel. Recently, there has been a high volume of discussion regarding Zhai Qing, the CEO of Qingfeng Technology, who is rumored to have good news regarding her personal life.”

Cheng Luo’s vacant eyes suddenly narrowed as she focused intently on the news.

“A netizen reported seeing Zhai Qing at a romantic restaurant. She sat alone for a long time before another person finally arrived. Surprisingly, it was the daughter of a well-known real estate tycoon who recently returned from studying abroad. The two appeared to be a perfect match.”

“Sis? Sis, what are you looking at?” The little assistant had been standing beside her for a while, but Cheng Luo had not noticed at all.

“Oh! You are here.” Cheng Luo tried hard to erase the images that had just flashed through her mind: two people sitting across from each other, one tenderly serving food while the other looked on with a face full of sweetness.

Cheng Luo felt as if her throat were blocked. She could not say a word, and a familiar bitterness spread through her heart. So, she already had someone new. It was not that she did not know how to be tender; she just was not tender toward Cheng Luo.

Fine. If she has someone new, then she has someone new. Once Zhai Qing remarries, Cheng Luo will definitely have to fight for custody of their daughter. Cheng Luo thought to herself, finding humor in her own misery.

Just before entering the private room, Cheng Luo quickly adjusted her state of mind. By the time she opened the door, her face wore its usual smile. “I am not late, am I?”

“No, no. The director has not arrived yet.”

Most of the people present were significant cast members. Cheng Luo recognized half of them from the first project. The one who had just spoken was Jiang Wei, who played her best friend in the drama and with whom she had a good relationship. Since the last wrap-up, the two had stayed in touch and met up occasionally, trending toward becoming real-life best friends.

After greeting everyone, Cheng Luo sat in the seat Jiang Wei had reserved for her so they could chat easily.

“So, how does it feel to be the female lead?” Jiang Wei asked gossipingly. She was not a professionally trained actress and had been in the industry for three or four years, only ever reaching the level of a third female lead.

“The pressure is immense,” Cheng Luo said honestly.

Jiang Wei nodded in agreement. “I feel the same. I am satisfied being a third or fourth lead. I do not have to carry the show, the pay is decent, and I can gain some fans just by showing my face.”

Cheng Luo knew her friend had a laid-back personality and did not say much more. Jiang Wei was someone who could not live without her phone, and it was not long before she opened it to check the trending searches, terrified of missing any gossip.

“Hey, is this Zhai Qing really that popular? The trending search tag has exploded.”

Cheng Luo had finally forced herself to forget about it, only to be reminded again so soon.

“Look, wait! The romance between her and the real estate heiress is fake? Why is the news reporting such nonsense? It is just confusing the public.”

Cheng Luo nodded, but then she suddenly snapped her head up. “What? It is fake?”

“Yes, Zhai Qing posted a clarification on her own Weibo. She said she was waiting for someone else that day but was stood up. Not wanting to waste the money spent on the meal, she invited the heiress over to discuss business.”

Cheng Luo leaned over to look at Jiang Wei’s phone. It was exactly as she said. Zhai Qing’s Weibo profile picture was a simple photo of the sky, and her only post was the clarification.

“I did not expect a big CEO would get stood up and still be stingy about the price of a meal.”

Cheng Luo glanced at the date of the report and suddenly realized something. The person who had stood her up that day seemed to be herself. It had been the Mid-Autumn Festival, and Zhai Qing had called her to suggest having a reunion dinner together. Thinking that Nuo Nuo would be there, she had agreed. However, she had to attend an event at the last minute and did not go.

Cheng Luo nearly took the phone into her own hands to look closer. She scrolled through the leaked photos but did not see Nuo Nuo anywhere. Furthermore, did one really go to a romantic restaurant for a reunion dinner? She was a bit puzzled.

“Since when did you become such a gossip? A few days ago, you said you did not even know her when you two were trending together. Why do you care today?” Jiang Wei looked at her strangely.

“Oh, I am just looking.”

Jiang Wei watched her. Despite what she said, Cheng Luo’s eyes never left the screen. She even began scrolling through the comments.

“I cannot believe it. The leak was at eight, and the clarification came out at eight-oh-five. That speed!” “Who understands? I had not even finished reading the news before the clarification was out.” “Also, this happened back in August. It is almost October now and it is only just leaking. Is it because her popularity has been high lately?” “Speaking of which, this PR is a bit too fast. Does anyone find it strange?” “The person above is being a conspiracy theorist again. The clarification was just one sentence. How long does it take to think of that? It was fake to begin with.” “Exactly!”

Cheng Luo finished reading the top comments and then pulled back, speaking formally. “Fine, keep reading for yourself.”

Jiang Wei: “Did you not bring your own phone?”

A short while later, the director and his group arrived. First, they introduced everyone. Then the director expressed his high expectations for the drama, specifically placing his hopes on Cheng Luo and telling her to perform well.

Cheng Luo picked up her glass and said seriously, “I will definitely put forth my greatest effort to complete this work.” After saying that, she drained the glass in one go.

The director clapped in satisfaction.

At the dinner table, it was always the same: boasting and drinking. Before long, the atmosphere grew heated as they drank glass after glass. Cheng Luo rarely drank, and her tolerance was so low that one glass made her stumble. By the time it was over, she had only had one glass, yet she had to be supported by her assistant as she walked out of the restaurant.

“Sis, I am going to go get the car. Can you stand here for a moment?”

Cheng Luo leaned one hand against the wall and nodded. Her face was flushed with an unnatural redness. She did not even bother to button her coat as the cold wind whistled into her chest. She could not help but shiver, which cleared her head slightly.

“Villain calling! Villain calling!”

Her phone’s special ringtone sounded. Cheng Luo slowly fished out her phone and said with a thick tongue, “Hello! Who is it?”

“Have you been drinking?” The voice on the phone sounded a bit weary. “Is your assistant with you? Have her make you some sobriety soup.”

Cheng Luo could only think in a straight line. She lifted her moist eyes and looked around, answering loudly, “She is not here!”

“You went out drinking alone? Where are you right now?” The tone on the phone carried a trace of anxiety.

Cheng Luo looked up again. “In the mountains!”

“Send me your location. Stand exactly where you are and do not move. I will have someone—”

Before Zhai Qing could finish, a voice belonging to a stranger suddenly came through the phone. There seemed to be some pushing and shoving, and then the call was abruptly disconnected.

She tried calling back several times, but no one answered. Zhai Qing then dialed another number. “Help me book the fastest flight to X City.”

As soon as Jiang Wei came out, she saw Cheng Luo with her head against the wall and her arm raised high holding a phone. She quickly helped her button up her coat and put the phone back into her pocket. A few minutes later, the assistant drove up. Jiang Wei helped her into the car and then returned to the hotel herself.

At three in the morning, Cheng Luo was woken up by a knocking at the door. Her head was still groggy when she woke up, and she moved through the dark to open the door. She thought her assistant needed something, but when she opened the door, a windblown woman stood before her. Her face was as pale as a ghost, and she was wearing a black trench coat.

“You, why are you here?” Cheng Luo stood dazed.

Zhai Qing looked her up and down sharply. She seemed fine and did not look like she had been kidnapped.

“Let us talk inside.” Zhai Qing pushed Cheng Luo into the room without allowing any refusal. She made her sit on the sofa, walked around the room once, and finally brought over the slippers Cheng Luo had left in the bedroom.

When Cheng Luo saw what was in her hands, she realized she had gone to the door without shoes. No wonder her feet were so cold. She then watched as Zhai Qing leaned down in front of her and placed the slippers on the floor.

Cheng Luo hid the slight disappointment in her heart and hugged her legs to her chest on the sofa. “What did you come here for?”

“Look at your phone yourself.”

Cheng Luo realized she should check her person, but she could not find it. She did not know where she had tossed it. Zhai Qing pulled out her own phone to show her over a dozen missed calls that did not go through and an earlier record of a two-minute conversation.

Cheng Luo began to understand what had happened. Although she had forgotten what she had said on the phone, seeing the other woman rush all the way here made her feel a bit complicated. She said awkwardly, “Sorry, I drank too much and forgot.”

“You said you were alone in the mountains, then a stranger’s voice appeared and the call cut off,” Zhai Qing reminded her.

Cheng Luo rubbed her nose in embarrassment. “It was a cast dinner. They were all people I know.”

“People you know? And that makes it okay to get dead drunk late at night?”

Cheng Luo hated her condescending lectures and shot back, “I did not ask you to come.”

Zhai Qing realized she was being a bit harsh again and stopped lecturing her. Instead, she placed her hand on Cheng Luo’s forehead. The temperature beneath her palm was clearly feverish. “Where is the thermometer?”

“I do not know.” Cheng Luo watched with a sense of longing as Zhai Qing pulled her hand away. The cold sensation had felt very comfortable.

Zhai Qing ushered her into the bedroom and told her to wrap herself in the quilt and not come out. Cheng Luo was already hot, and being under the quilt made it even more uncomfortable. She left half her body exposed as she watched Zhai Qing busying herself outside.

When her temperature was taken, it turned out she really did have a fever. Fortunately, the hotel was equipped with medicine. After a short while, Zhai Qing came in with a glass of warm water and medicine. “Take the medicine and go to sleep.”

Zhai Qing had found some medicine from somewhere, several capsules in total. Cheng Luo looked at her with a bitter face. She naturally had a narrow throat; swallowing capsules was slow and made her feel like she was choking. It took her a long time to finish a dose of medicine.

“There is no powdered medicine left. You will have to take these for now.”

Cheng Luo had to swallow them one by one. At some point, Zhai Qing placed a hand on her back, rubbing it back and forth to help her. By the time Cheng Luo finished the medicine, she was full from the water. She leaned against the headboard, spiritless. At that moment, a hand patted her head.

“Very good.”

For some reason, she felt as if Zhai Qing were treating her like Nuo Nuo, using such a gentle tone. As the medicine began to take effect, Cheng Luo forced her heavy eyelids open to look up. She discovered that since Zhai Qing had arrived, she had not even had time to take off her coat. Her body showed unmistakable exhaustion. On an impulse, Cheng Luo spoke.

“Do not go. Stay for the night.”