I Love Her Because She’s Dim-Witted And Filthy Rich - Chapter 39.2

9:00 PM, a Chinese restaurant.

Duan Bainian looked at He Aizhi across from her, feeling a surge of inexplicable panic.

Because her work ended early, she had changed her ticket from tomorrow morning’s train to tonight.

Before she had even left Shijiazhuang, she received a call from He Aizhi asking when she would be back in Beijing and saying she wanted to talk.

Duan Bainian sat upright and smiled. “Is something the matter, Auntie? A sudden, temporary meeting like this is a first.”

He Aizhi placed some food in Duan Bainian’s bowl with her chopsticks. “Let’s eat first. There’s no rush; we’ll talk after dinner.”

Duan Bainian smiled. “Thank you, Auntie.”

When they were mostly finished, He Aizhi wiped her mouth. “Has work been going smoothly lately?”

Duan Bainian also put down her chopsticks. “It’s quite good. Busy some days and free others; there’s a good balance.”

He Aizhi smiled. “In a while, ‘Shadow’ will start filming. You won’t have this kind of free time then. You might even have to spend Chinese New Year on set.”

Duan Bainian’s tone was gentle. “Being busy is a good thing. There are so many newcomers in the entertainment industry; if you aren’t busy, someone else will be busy in your place.”

He Aizhi agreed. “That’s true. This industry replaces the old with the new so quickly… Oh, how have you and Baron been lately? Will you still have time to accompany him when you get busy?”

Duan Bainian lowered her eyes, her expression unreadable. “Being an actor means being apart more than together; it’s common. He’s also considered half a member of the entertainment industry, so he should be able to understand.”

He Aizhi smiled. “Bainian, how do you think I have treated you?”

Duan Bainian was surprised that He Aizhi would ask such a question, but she answered seriously. “Auntie, you have treated me very well. Whether it was helping me pay the contract termination fee or helping me secure various resources later, I am very grateful.”

He Aizhi nodded. “I believe I haven’t been bad to you; I’ve tried to help you whenever I could. So now, I also have a favor I’d like to ask you to help with.”

Duan Bainian spoke hesitantly, “Auntie, please say it.”

Only then did He Aizhi unhurriedly take the stack of photos from her bag and gently push them toward Duan Bainian. “Take a look at these.”

Duan Bainian took the photos and looked, her heart instantly racing like thunder.

Duan Bainian picked up her glass to drink water and hide her reaction. After a moment, she put the glass down and smiled. “Auntie, what do you want to say?”

He Aizhi stared at Duan Bainian for a moment and smiled. “You are much more composed than my cowardly daughter.”

Duan Bainian was surprised. What did He Aizhi mean? Had she already talked to Su Miao? Did Su Miao admit it? Or had she found an excuse to gloss it over like last time?

Uncertain of the current situation, Duan Bainian didn’t know how to respond, so she simply remained silent.

He Aizhi: “Bainian, you really are excellent. Although we haven’t known each other long, I can see that you are meticulous and handle matters far better than Su Miao. Coupled with your beauty and solid acting skills, it’s only a matter of time before you become a star.”

Duan Bainian curled her lips slightly. “Auntie, you flatter me.”

He Aizhi continued, “You have a resilient temperament. A person like you, even when facing difficulties, can survive at the bottom and find opportunities for a new life. But…”

He Aizhi paused, her tone changing. “Su Miao is different. She has always been quite useless—both in terms of survival skills and psychological strength… very weak. She is only suited for the ordinary path taken by regular people. If you force her to tread a small path, the thorns along the way will kill her.”

Duan Bainian’s smile became increasingly forced. “Auntie, if you have something to say, please say it directly.”

He Aizhi was silent for a moment before saying, “I hope you can stay away from Su Miao’s life.”

Duan Bainian gripped the corner of the table tightly, her fingertips turning white. “Auntie, can you be a bit clearer? I don’t quite understand why I should stay away from Su Miao.”

He Aizhi laughed, sounding as if she were mocking Duan Bainian’s feigned ignorance, yet also sounding self-deprecating.

“Bainian, I don’t dislike homosexuality. However, that doesn’t mean I can accept my daughter being a lesbian. If you were to spend the rest of your life with another girl in the future, I would sincerely bless you. But now, I’m sorry…”

The layer of paper was finally pierced.

Duan Bainian made a last-ditch effort. “Have you already talked to Su Miao about this? What did she say?”

He Aizhi took out her phone and played a recording.

“We are just friends. It’s not the kind of relationship you’re thinking of!”

“She… she said she likes me and wants to date me, but I didn’t agree! What happened in the photos was just me playing around with her before. How could I possibly date a woman?”

“In the future, I will be careful about my distance from her. I won’t let people misunderstand again!”

Duan Bainian was in disbelief. “Su Miao said that?”

He Aizhi put away her phone. “Can you not recognize Su Miao’s voice?”

Duan Bainian kept her mouth shut and didn’t answer.

He Aizhi let out a long sigh. “See, she is just that cowardly and irresponsible. When I questioned her, she lied to me because she was afraid of me being angry, saying you were the one pestering her, instantly washing her hands of the whole thing. Think about it: with such an irresponsible person, do you really have the courage to spend a lifetime with her?”

Duan Bainian clutched her stomach. Perhaps the food from earlier had gone cold; her stomach was beginning to cramp in waves.

She thought, Su Miao is a child after all. What kind of result can come from dating a child?

He Aizhi’s tone was so gentle, and her words seemed to be considering her perspective, but… her heart felt more and more bitter, until the bitterness converged into a dense, overwhelming pain.

She forced back the tears that were about to fall. “I understand, Auntie. Please draft the contract termination papers recently. Let me know when you’ve prepared them, and I’ll go to the company to sign.”

He Aizhi pursed her lips. “I’m sorry, Bainian. I never thought I would one day play the villain. I’ll have my assistant handle the termination contract. To compensate you, I will also give you a lead role in a major production and two first-line brand endorsements.”

Duan Bainian forced a smile. “No need, Auntie. You’ve already helped me a lot over these past six months.” She stood up. “If there’s nothing else, I’ll be going. Goodbye, Auntie.”

He Aizhi: “Alright, be careful on the road.”

Duan Bainian nodded. The moment she stepped out the door, her tears finally came flooding out.

Duan Bainian returned home just after midnight.

A notification from Weibo mentioning her popped up. Clicking it, she saw it was a post Su Miao had made at 00:01.

【Happy Birthday! @DuanBainian The gift will be given to you a bit later!】

Duan Bainian froze for a moment before realizing it was likely a scheduled post Su Miao had set in advance.

That fool probably didn’t know she had already been “broken up” with.

Su Miao’s proud voice echoed in her ears: “A surprise is only a surprise because of the sense of mystery. If I tell you in advance, what’s the point?”

Unfortunately, she wouldn’t be able to wait for that surprise.

—

On the other side, Su Miao was completely bewildered.

She had first waited until midnight to post her birthday wishes for Duan Bainian on Weibo, but after waiting half an hour, she received no reply.

Thinking Duan Bainian hadn’t logged onto Weibo, she tried sending a WeChat message, but why wasn’t she replying to that either? Duan Bainian usually didn’t go to sleep early.

So she made a phone call, but to her surprise, the phone showed it was constantly “in another call.”

Su Miao immediately felt guilty.

It was because she was worried Duan Bainian would be angry when she gave her the “preventative shot” that she was being so proactive with the Weibo post, WeChat messages, and phone calls—trying to butter her up a bit so Duan Bainian would be less angry later.

But with not a single reply, her already unsettled heart became even more panicked.

Su Miao was truly anxious and tossed and turned, unable to sleep. Since she had only eaten a few bites of dinner, she felt her stomach was empty.

She checked her phone: 1:34 AM.

She hadn’t originally wanted to go downstairs for food, but she was so hungry that she put on her pajamas, turned on her phone’s flashlight, and groped her way downstairs in the dark.

Reaching the living room, Su Miao turned on the lights. To her surprise, someone was sitting on the sofa without making a sound.

Su Miao was nearly frightened out of her skin. Seeing who it was, she started complaining, “Mom, why didn’t you turn on the light! And it’s almost two in the morning! Why aren’t you in your room sleeping? What are you doing sitting here!”

He Aizhi still had traces of tears on her face that she hadn’t had time to wipe away. She smiled at her daughter. “I just got back from outside and was just about to go up to sleep.”

Su Miao was a bit confused. “What were you doing that made you come back so late? Does the company have that much work to do?”

He Aizhi didn’t answer. She stood up and went upstairs. “Eating in the middle of the night isn’t good. Go back to your room and sleep early.”

Su Miao gave a response, went to the kitchen to get some bread, ate a few bites, and went back to her room.

With things on her mind, Su Miao didn’t sleep soundly all night and woke up before six in the morning.

She checked her phone; Duan Bainian still hadn’t replied to her.

But maybe she just fell asleep, she thought.

After breakfast, Su Miao took a taxi to Duan Bainian’s apartment.

This was her plan.

First, give the gift to make Duan Bainian happy. While she was in a good mood, she would then give her the “preventative shot,” saying that in order to hide things from her mother, she had said some inappropriate things.

That way, Duan Bainian should be too embarrassed to get angry at her, right?

Even if Duan Bainian got angry, she would just play the “shameless” card, and surely everything would be fine! Hehe.

She hadn’t expected that Duan Bainian wouldn’t even give her the chance to give the gift.

Su Miao knocked on the door for quite a while before it opened.

Finding it was her, Duan Bainian made a move to close the door.

Su Miao panicked and squeezed through the crack in the door. “What are you doing!”

Duan Bainian’s face was indifferent. “What are you here for?”

Su Miao said anxiously, “I’m here to give you a birthday gift. Didn’t you see the Weibo post and the WeChat messages I sent you?”

Duan Bainian: “No need. Go back.”

Only then did Su Miao realize that Duan Bainian’s current behavior was different from her usual moods, but no matter how much she thought about it, she couldn’t figure out how she had offended this person.

“What’s wrong? Are you angry?”

A flash of surprise crossed Duan Bainian’s eyes. She frowned slightly. “Didn’t your mom say anything to you when she got home last night?”

Regarding the Weibo post last night, it could be explained that He Aizhi hadn’t reached home yet and hadn’t spoken to Su Miao. But it was already the next morning; He Aizhi should have said something to her by now.

Su Miao was full of confusion. “Say what?”

Duan Bainian finally realized that Su Miao actually knew nothing at all.

Duan Bainian gave Su Miao a slight push toward the exit. “We have already broken up. For the specifics, go ask your mother.”

Su Miao was dazed. “Ask my mom? My mom came to see you?”

The only answer she got was the sound of the door slamming shut.

Su Miao quickly knocked again. “Duan Bainian! Make things clear to me!”

But her hand started to ache from knocking, and the door did not open.

Instead, she drew out the neighbor from next door. “Why don’t you make a phone call? Maybe they aren’t even home. It’s early morning, and your knocking is noisy for everyone around.”

Su Miao said softly, “She is home.”

The neighbor found it strange. “If she’s home, why isn’t she opening the door for you?”

Su Miao opened her mouth but didn’t make a sound.

Exactly. She was clearly home, so why wouldn’t she open the door?