Fighting For My Wife With Myself After Being Reborn - Chapter 2

The nanny van sped down the road.

The car’s audio system played soft, soothing music, but the expressions of the people inside were varied. Xiao Lin, sitting in the very front, was as quiet as a mouse, not daring to make a single loud movement.

The junior assistant huddled in the passenger seat, trying her best not to get sucked into the “asura field” of the back seat.

God help me, how can someone unleash an ultimate move with zero-frame startup? How am I supposed to dodge that? The assistant forced a weak smile, considering whether she should just yell for the car to stop and jump out—it would be better than enduring this agony.

However, Jiang Rui was not as angry as they imagined. When Shen Huaixu refused to attend tonight’s gala just to go on a date with her girlfriend, Jiang Rui actually felt a sense of “as expected” salvation.

The sentence “Shen Huaixu will obediently attend the gala” was a paradox in itself.

“Fine, you don’t have to go, but I have one condition.” Two “hissing” gasps of shock rang out in the van. Jiang Rui mercifully ignored them, her slender fingers tapping on her arm as she waited for the response from the person sitting in the very back.

Shen Huaixu was still in a silent standoff with the coffee she had bought sometime that morning. She didn’t really want to answer Jiang Rui’s question, but before she had parted with Huai this morning, she had promised Huai that she would be obedient.

“Did you tattle on me to Huai?” Shen Huaixu didn’t want to make Jiang Rui happy too soon. Before answering the question, she threw a new one back at her.

Jiang Rui glanced at Shen Huaixu indifferently. “I simply gave a factual report of your work situation from last week.”

Shen Huaixu mocked her, “I didn’t realize you had changed to a new boss.”

Jiang Rui ignored her foul attitude and repeated her previous question, “So, are you going to go to the gala obediently, or are you going to agree to my condition?”

The word “obediently” was pointedly emphasized by Jiang Rui. To Shen Huaixu, it felt less like a warning and more like a provocation, which annoyed her immensely.

She raised her beautiful eyebrows, preparing to spray her venom, but before she could, she remembered Gu Yinghuai’s words again.

—Listen to Jiang Rui properly, okay?

So, Shen Huaixu reluctantly retracted her fangs. She pulled the brim of her baseball cap lower, not wanting to see Jiang Rui’s victorious expression, and asked, “What condition? Let’s hear it.”

Jiang Rui smiled. She knew she had gambled correctly.

“Come with me to R&B this afternoon to film a commercial,” Jiang Rui said.

Shen Huaixu let out a cold snort. “You were digging a pit waiting for me to jump in, weren’t you?”

Jiang Rui didn’t deny it, only saying, “It’s a very simple commercial. It won’t take up too much of your time.”

“It better not.” After saying that, Shen Huaixu stopped paying attention to Jiang Rui. She opened her phone and began acting spoiled with Gu Yinghuai on WeChat.

Don’t Want to Work: 【QUQ Huai, Jiang Rui is bullying me!】

Refuse Overtime: 【Pat pat, what happened? I’ll help you hit her back [Eager to try.jpg]】

Don’t Want to Work: 【She’s so mean! Not only did she threaten me, she assigned me extra work [Bunny crying.jpg]】

Refuse Overtime: 【What did she threaten you with?】

Don’t Want to Work: 【She threatened that if I don’t go film a commercial obediently this afternoon, she’ll add more announcements for me tonight QUQ】

Shen Huaixu began to distort the truth. Regardless of whether Jiang Rui had said it or what the actual facts were, she dumped the entire blame on Jiang Rui.

As for herself? She was, of course, the pure, innocent little white flower who was being bullied in the workplace by Jiang Rui and needed the rescue of the Sailor Moon, Gu Yinghuai.

How could Gu Yinghuai not know that Shen Huaixu was distorting the truth? But Shen Huaixu was her girlfriend; girlfriends were meant to be coaxed, not reasoned with.

Make her happy first; everything else was secondary.

Refuse Overtime: 【That’s so mean! Pure capitalist behavior! Unforgivable!】

Don’t Want to Work: 【(Nods) (Nods) This kind of behavior must be strictly punished.】

While Shen Huaixu was pretending to be good, Jiang Rui also opened WeChat to notify her old friend that they would arrive at R&B on time that afternoon.

The old friend was moved to tears, thanking Jiang Rui for saving the day.

Jiang Rui: 【No need for words of thanks, give me something practical.】

Li Xinxin: 【Hmph, you realistic woman.】

Li Xinxin: 【Don’t you want to expand Shen Huaixu’s business scope? Coincidentally, I know a producer for a certain variety show. They are looking for studio observers lately. I can help you get in touch.】

Jiang Rui: 【1】

Jiang Rui: 【Send the detailed info to my email.】

Li Xinxin: 【1】

The two women, who possessed no emotions but plenty of career drive, ended the conversation decisively after reaching an agreement.

Shen Huaixu, in the back seat, was still typing. Jiang Rui didn’t even need to think to know she was definitely talking bad about her to Gu Yinghuai.

Childish. Jiang Rui rolled her eyes quite ungracefully.

The nanny van stopped in the underground parking lot.

Xiao Lin stayed in the car, while the junior assistant, carrying her bag, was the first to get out. She trotted to the back to pull open the door for Shen Huaixu.

“Thanks,” Shen Huaixu whispered her thanks as she pulled up her mask, then followed Jiang Rui into the elevator to the filming location.

The studio was still undergoing final touch-ups.

The theme for this shoot was quite intricate, requiring many decorations. The staff needed to carefully place various props where they belonged.

As soon as Jiang Rui appeared, a staff member immediately led them to the dressing room to prepare for the upcoming shoot.

The makeup artist was their old acquaintance, Lily.

Lily was delighted. Ignoring Shen Huaixu’s “death stare,” she gave her a high-energy, warm hug. “This is great! I love doing styling for people like Huaixu the most.”

Shen Huaixu tried her best not to look too stiff. “I’d rather the makeup artist be a bit more composed…”

“You should be glad it’s me today. There’s a whole pile of monsters outside waiting to eat you up.” Lily glared at her and gave her a playful punch on the shoulder. “Go sit in the chair. Time is short; we have to hurry.”

Shen Huaixu shrugged and pulled out the chair at the vanity, waiting for Lily to apply her makeup.

An hour later.

Shen Huaixu appeared in the studio wearing a pure white satin gown.

Her black hair was lightly curled and lazily pinned at the back of her head.

A pair of exquisitely designed jade earrings hung from her small earlobes, and a classic, elegant jade necklace sat on her slender, long neck. Under the lights, the gems shimmered with a liquid glow, as green as if they were dripping.

Her already striking features looked even more noble against the backdrop of the jewelry. Tucked beneath her thick eyelashes, her silver-gray eyes were cold to the extreme.

Jiang Rui swore she heard several unmasked gasps and whispered praises within just a few minutes.

“I used to think she was just a ‘retouching monster’…”

“Don’t even start. I used to say she photoshopped her face to look too small, but did you see just now? I suspect her face isn’t even as big as my palm.”

“Her eyes really are silver-gray. I always thought she was wearing colored contacts…”

“So beautiful, Teacher Shen…”

Jiang Rui silently curled her lips.

Yet another group of people deluded by Shen Huaixu’s beautiful face.

Heaven knew that Shen Huaixu was just a woman with nothing but a pretty face and a heart that was ten parts cold.

She never felt happy because she won the affection of others. The love of fans couldn’t compare to the flow of money in her bank account, not to mention the malicious comments from haters.

In Shen Huaixu’s world, there was only her and Gu Yinghuai.

But that’s fine, Jiang Rui thought. At least having a stable inner core counts as a merit.

Ignoring the hushed admiration and the frequent glances cast her way, Shen Huaixu stood calmly under the lights, cooperating with the photographer’s requests and providing the corresponding movements and expressions.

The filming process went smoother than imagined.

Even Jiang Rui had to admit that Shen Huaixu at work was mesmerizing.

Whether it was her exquisite face with its touch of coldness or those unusual silver-gray eyes, she firmly captured the hearts of the photographer and everyone present.

Not to mention Shen Huaixu’s outstanding expressive ability.

She could always provide the feedback the photographer wanted perfectly, earning endless praise.

“Wrap it up, wrap it up!”

After the last photo was taken, the photographer happily announced that everyone could finish work.

The staff cheered, and even the noise of packing up the props sounded joyful.

Jiang Rui was just about to go forward to greet her “money tree,” but someone beat her to it.

“Um… Teacher Shen, is it convenient to take a photo together?” A few staff members wearing ID badges hovered near Shen Huaixu, asking quietly.

Jiang Rui didn’t have much of an impression of these staff members; she only remembered the one speaking had seemingly mentioned her name while receiving them.

Xiao Lin? Xiao Li? Or Xiao Chen?

In short, if Jiang Rui couldn’t remember the name, it was even less likely that Shen Huaixu would.

Thus, even from a distance, Jiang Rui could see that Shen Huaixu’s deep gray eyes were filled with massive confusion.

But Shen Huaixu quickly adjusted.

“Sure,” she agreed with a smile.

“That’s wonderful!” The girls happily took turns taking photos with Shen Huaixu. Throughout the process, she showed no signs of impatience, smiling sweetly in every photo with a proper, graceful expression.

“Thank you so much! We won’t disturb Teacher Shen’s rest then.” After taking the photos, the staff waved goodbye to Shen Huaixu with smiles.

Shen Huaixu responded with a formulaic smile.

The moment they left, she immediately dropped the smile and looked expressionlessly at Jiang Rui, who was walking toward her, accusing: “You’re too slow.”

“Didn’t you handle that quite well?” Jiang Rui teased her. “It’s a waste for you not to be an actress with those acting skills. Interested in taking on an extra job?”

Shen Huaixu lifted her skirt and walked toward the dressing room, giving Jiang Rui a half-smile. “Oh? Is that so? I don’t mind, I’m just afraid you won’t be able to handle it.”

Jiang Rui snorted, understanding the meaning behind Shen Huaixu’s words.

Wasn’t it just dating? Which star isn’t dating in secret? It’s not a big deal.

Jiang Rui closed the dressing room door with little interest.

Sigh, I thought I could trick Shen Huaixu into being an actress.

Actresses make so much money…

“Oh my, I was wondering where you went. It turns out you’re hiding in the pantry slacking off.” Jian Yulan pushed open the half-closed door of the pantry. Her colleague, Gu Yinghuai, was sitting on the sofa, smiling tenderly and sweetly at her phone.

“Chatting with your girlfriend again?” Jian Yulan plopped down next to Gu Yinghuai. “Speaking of which, you use a celebrity’s selfie as your avatar to chat with your girlfriend every day—doesn’t she get jealous?”

“Um…” Gu Yinghuai’s eyes flickered slightly. “She said it’s fine.”

“Mm-hmm? I’m maintaining a skeptical attitude. By the way, are you coming to the group dinner tonight?” Jian Yulan remembered the task the department head had given her.

Gu Yinghuai’s cheeks turned pink. “I have a date tonight, so I’m sorry.”

Jian Yulan smirked. “With your girlfriend, right?”

Gu Yinghuai nodded. “Yes.”

Jian Yulan stretched and stood up. “Alright, I’ll let you off this time, but remember to come next time. I’m going back to my station now. See you later.”

Gu Yinghuai smiled softly. “See you later.”

Ding-ding.

The phone screen lit up. Gu Yinghuai looked down and opened the message.

Don’t Want to Work: 【I’m downstairs at your company~】

Don’t Want to Work: 【[Image.jpg]】

Gu Yinghuai clicked on the picture. Shen Huaixu was sitting in the cafe downstairs from her office. The baseball cap on her head blocked most of her face, but Gu Yinghuai could still see Shen Huaixu’s smiling eyes in the shadows.

Refuse Overtime: 【Wait ten minutes for me.】

After sending the message, Gu Yinghuai closed the pantry door with a smile and left.