My Ex’s White Moonlight Omega Has a Crush on Me - Chapter 31.2

Suddenly, with a clatter…

With a few heavy coughs, Ji Tanyue’s dagger fell from her hand and landed at Chao Wan’s feet.

The woman’s cheeks were flushed with a sickly redness, yet her expression was weary and ashen.

Her long hair veiled her face as she weakly let her hands fall.

Once her guard was down, the frail and exhausted look allowed a sense of brokenness to subtly take over her entire being.

Chao Wan felt a sudden pang in her heart.

This was the person she had betrayed.

Yet, this was also the gentle woman who, on a stormy day, had pressed a warm beef pancake into her arms.

“My lady…” Chao Wan murmured softly, bending down.

As her forehead touched the ground, tears silently fell, dampening the floor.

She thought that from the moment she chose to follow Han Yun, she had entrusted her entire life to her.

But she had failed this woman, even turning against her, seeking her death.

A disloyal dog like her deserved to die.

Chao Wan didn’t know that, even as she knelt in repentance, Ji Tanyue had already wiped away the deliberately feigned tears at the corners of her eyes.

She pretended to cough a few more times, her gaze shifting to the person prostrate below the couch, now completely transformed.

Contempt and disgust.

“Come here,” the woman’s voice remained frail, but the corners of her lips curled into a high, mocking smile.

Unaware of any danger, Chao Wan ended her formal bow and obediently straightened up.

Her eyes brightened, faintly holding a glimmer of hope for forgiveness.

But suddenly, her neck was seized in a deathly grip.

She had no time to react.

Cut off from air, Chao Wan’s face flushed red, her throat emitting choked, painful whimpers as she weakly gasped for breath.

With a derisive laugh, Ji Tanyue stared intently at her, eyes bloodshot and tinged with madness.

“Betray me…” she whispered, her smile deepening, “Even you… betray me?”

The hand gripping her neck was icy cold, the force so great that blue veins faintly surfaced.

Jiang Tang, watching from the side, felt a chill run down his spine and averted his gaze.

He was grateful he had chosen the scene before the assassination attempt; otherwise, faced with such a situation… he probably wouldn’t even be able to manage his expression, let alone improvise.

Glancing at Chao Wan, Jiang Tang felt a sudden pang of pity.

Teacher Ji’s professionalism was well-known; tomorrow, there would surely be marks on this one’s neck, which might affect her schedule.

But only Chao Wan knew that while Ji Tanyue’s grip looked terrifying, it actually left a slight gap from start to finish, allowing her to barely breathe.

Chao Wan had no experience filming such intense scenes, and her vision was already blurring with tears.

To outsiders, this scene appeared as if she were truly on the brink of death, fragile under the woman’s choking grasp.

Time seemed to stand still in that moment. Staring into Ji Tanyue’s crimson, crazed eyes, she grew slightly dazed.

Remembering her character Ying’s personality, she hurriedly used both hands to pry at Ji Tanyue’s fingers, struggling.

But then, an irresistible force lifted her up.

Her vision spun, her clothes were tugged into disarray as Ji Tanyue pressed down on her, long hair cascading, hands firmly gripping her neck.

A soft, chilling sensation brushed against her face, like the sinister flicker of a serpent’s tongue.

Chao Wan met Ji Tanyue’s eyes.

Within them lay madness, hatred, and…

obsession.

In Ying, Han Yun saw herself.

The self who was manipulated and powerless.

How could the self she had painstakingly rescued from the mire betray her?

“I won’t allow you to betray me… I won’t allow it.” The obsession faded as Ji Tanyue’s long lashes trembled slightly, her usually gentle and dignified face twisting with emotion.

Two streams of tears suddenly traced down her pale cheeks, desolate and profoundly vulnerable.

She chuckled deliriously, making no move to wipe her tears, gradually straightening up.

She tugged on Chao Wan’s collar, pulling her close.

In an instant, Chao Wan was pressed tightly against the woman, her heart racing wildly with fear and pain.

At this moment, she felt as if she had truly become Ying.

She didn’t want the princess to cry for her because the assassination attempt tonight was entirely her own mistake.

Cheng Lou watched intently.

Suddenly, she raised an eyebrow slightly, visibly surprised.

Even Jiang Tang and Ruan Rou hadn’t expected this, their gazes drawn to the scene.

Chao Wan bit her lip, tears welling in her eyes, the terrifying red marks still visible on her neck.

Yet her expression was one of remorse and apology as she tentatively, boldly reached out to touch the woman’s delicate face.

This hand, just hours ago, had gripped a cold dagger and plunged it without hesitation into the chest of a high-ranking court official.

Now, it trembled with fear as it wiped away Han Yun’s bewildered tears.

Even though, moments ago, the tyrant had nearly erupted in rage, intent on ending her life.

Ying’s voice choked with sobs, “Don’t… don’t cry.”

Though she urged others not to cry, her own tears had long since fallen.

The young guard, still in her tender years, must have been terrified by the night’s events, her voice trembling with fear.

But she did not flee, nor did she seek revenge against the venomous woman who had nearly killed her.

Instead, with a heart still innocent and unreserved, she enveloped Han Yun completely.

She abandoned the cold dagger of betrayal and, with a gentle hand, wiped away the tyrant’s fragile tears.

She had never forgotten that it was Han Yun who had pulled her from the mud.

That day, the woman beneath the umbrella had appeared to Ying like a deity.

Even if the woman were scorned by the world and cast down from her pedestal, Ying would always remain her unwavering shadow.

Whether trampled upon or ignored, used or pitied, Ying was content to be Han Yun’s most loyal dog.

A shadow should follow closely, and a dog must never anger its master.

“I will never betray you again,” Chao Wan murmured, her eyes slightly red as she gazed steadfastly at the frail woman.

She stepped back and kowtowed deeply on the bed.

From then on, black or white no longer mattered, her life had belonged to this woman long ago.

The name Ying existed solely for Han Yun.

The set fell into silence.

Behind the viewfinder, Cheng Lou nodded slightly.

She exchanged a glance with Ruan Rou and noticed the other woman smiling back in affirmation.

This was not in the script. Clearly, Chao Wan had improvised actions she believed suited Ying.

Her performance was still raw, but it made Cheng Lou’s eyes light up.

This was exactly how Ying’s character should be.

Fierce and ruthless as a wolf to the outside world, yet willingly retracting her fangs before Han Yun, discarding the “conscience” instilled in her, holding no grudges, and living only for her master.

Because, in Ying’s still-immature mind, Han Yun was her conscience.

Cheng Lou didn’t call “cut,” wanting to see what other sparks the two could ignite.

Unaware, Chao Wan rested her hands on her forehead, belatedly feeling the heat rise in her cheeks.

Since “cut” hadn’t been called, she couldn’t stop, but she couldn’t think of any other direction for the scene either, leaving her frozen in place.

Suddenly, a weight settled around her neck.

Ji Tanyue embraced her, catching her off guard, and pressed her into her arms.

“!” Chao Wan’s ears flushed crimson, her mind going blank.

They were on camera, and there were others on set…

“Don’t move yet,” Ji Tanyue whispered into her ear, her voice so soft only the two of them could hear.

“After this, there’s a fade-to-black scene.”