My Wealthy Ex-Girlfriend Knelt and Begged Me to Come Back [Entertainment Industry] - Chapter 63

No one knew why the serious, meticulous President Qiu would ever do something like this…

Qiu Miaoran—making a blunder like this,

She seemed like nothing more than a pitiful clown.

At Qiushui Venture Capital Group, along with its subsidiary Qiushui Entertainment, every single person in online media channels and the PR department knew this would be a sleepless night.

The employees were forced into endless overtime, struggling to defend the company’s reputation, fighting desperately to prevent President Qiu’s complete “social death.”

PR staff had already purged the supertopics of every kind of CP content: Ji Chen x Ji Jiayu; Lin Qiaoxuan x Ji Jiayu; Chen Yiying x Ji Jiayu… any fanfic or video edit with the word “Yu” in it was reported, deleted, and 404’d in one sweeping campaign.

Some unrelated CPs even got caught in the crossfire, entire “food storage warehouses” of CP fans’ content wiped out overnight…

Only the Qiu Miaoran x Ji Jiayu tag, somehow, miraculously remained untouched.

【Wuwuwu what’s going on? I was just reading my fan content and now it’s suddenly 404??】

【Speechless… the entire supertopic square is empty. Did the higher authorities come to clean house?】

【Wuwuwu it must’ve been some antis reporting us… may those antis rot in hell! nmsl!!】

Just moments earlier, someone swore they saw President Qiu herself in the comment section—

【Help, did I just hallucinate or did I see the president of Qiu Shui Venture Capital comment here? [covers mouth]】

But that comment was deleted just as quickly. 🙂

#ThisMustBeAntisSeekingRevenge#

CP fans cursed in rage, dragging the antis’ entire family tree into their insults.

……

At this moment, Ji Jiayu had no idea what kind of drama was erupting in her CP supertopics.

All she knew was—after climbing the mountain for so long, drinking only a little water from the streams, she was starting to feel hungry…

At midday, the “toolbox” given by the program team, the little bamboo basket on her back, didn’t even have a single biscuit. She was about to starve.

Chen Yiying’s stomach growled loudly too.

Just then, the leading man, Film Emperor Yu, staggered a little and suddenly froze.

Chen Yiying, walking behind him, leaned closer and whispered, “What’s wrong?”

Yu Hu’s face went pale like paper. His lips trembled, index finger pressed against them with a “shh”—

“Don’t move.” He whispered.

Chen Yiying’s legs trembled so badly she nearly collapsed in fright.

“What happened?” Ji Jiayu whispered, moving forward with them. She followed Chen Yiying’s gaze and looked ahead.

Not far away, by a small stream, on the gravel bank, a water snake about as long as two human arms stretched out had its bloody maw wide open, swallowing a huge fish.

The fish was enormous, half its body already inside the snake’s mouth. The snake’s belly bulged grotesquely, looking even fatter than before…

The two in front were so terrified they couldn’t move.

Ji Jiayu silently stepped back.

Chen Yiying’s eyes went wide in panic, silently pleading for help—pull me with you if you’re going to run!

A real sister wouldn’t abandon me like this!!

Her legs were shaking as she looked up—only to see Ji Jiayu had somehow picked up a branch, snapped it, and turned it into a forked stick.

Without a word, Ji Jiayu circled through the grass toward the back of the stream.

The grass muffled her footsteps.

Yu Hu covered his mouth, frozen with fear, utterly confused. What on earth was Ji Jiayu doing?

Chen Yiying’s legs gave out and she crouched down.

The next second, a figure sprinted toward the stream bank.

Ji Jiayu pressed the “Y” shape of the forked stick onto the snake’s head, pinning it hard against the ground.

Chen Yiying: “……” My sister is too fierce.

Yu Hu: “……” So fast—what just happened in that flash?

Then they saw something even more surreal—

Ji Jiayu grabbed the snake by the tail, yanked it up, and began swinging it in circles.

The snake, two arms long, was spun like a “windmill,” its body whipping around in dizzying arcs, nearly vomiting the fish back out.

Truth was, Ji Jiayu had grown up in a terrible living environment: a damp, dilapidated ground-floor apartment with peeling walls, a heavy smell of mold, large rats, cockroaches, and once, even a snake crawling in through a corner crack…

Living in a place like that hardened her nerves.

“What are you two standing there for?” Ji Jiayu blinked, still swinging the snake. “Come help me.”

“No help, no dinner.”

【Water Snake: I was just out looking for food and now I’m getting BBQ’d. You sneaky little human, no honor, no skill, no martial ethics—wuwuwu…】

【Little Fish was so badass just now! Speed and strength both maxed! Whoever says she’s useless again, I’ll fight them!!】

【LMAO, Film Emperor Yu, a 1.8m tall man, shaking harder than Chen Yiying at the sight of a snake…】

【Two birds with one stone! Group B just got themselves a snake and a fish for free—jackpot! Hug Jiayu’s thigh, everyone!!】

【Who said Jiayu and Yiying are just marketing fluff and vases? Look at Jiayu’s moves. Face burning yet? Does it sting?】

……

Yu Hu’s legs were still trembling—obviously terrified of snakes.

But now that the danger was gone, Chen Yiying wasn’t as scared anymore.

She quickly came over. “We’re… eating this?”

“You don’t want to eat it, I won’t force you.” Ji Jiayu tilted her head.

But if they didn’t eat, they’d starve out here in the mountains.

Chen Yiying repeated in her mind—this isn’t a snake, it’s just a protein bar…

After enough self-hypnosis, she blinked. “Alright, let’s kill it then…”

Ji Jiayu waved her hand. “Teacher Yu, come help too…”

Yu Hu’s scalp went numb. He trembled forward. “Don’t you two have this under control already? I’m scared of these long worms…”

“What if it’s a protected species?”

“No idea…” Ji Jiayu dug out a knife from the toolbox.

“That’s why we need you here—if it is protected, then we’re accomplices.”

Yu Hu was stunned. Since when did Ji Jiayu have such a sharp tongue?

The cameraman edged closer, worried this talk would backfire. He coughed softly and reminded them:

“This one’s a local water snake. Edible… not protected.”

Soon, they dealt with the snake—plus salvaged the huge fish from its mouth.

By the stream, they gathered dry branches, lit a fire, and had a meal of grilled fish and snake.

They sliced part of the meat into thin pieces and used the program’s tools to cook.

Chen Yiying couldn’t cook, so she tended the fire, covering her nose from the smoke while watching Ji Jiayu season and flip the meat with practiced ease.

She gasped softly, “Wow~ Jiayu can even grill meat~”

“Mm,” Yu Hu helped slice,

“She can fry rice too. I ate it on another variety show—best fried rice ever.”

“What? I wanna taste Jiayu’s fried rice too…” Chen Yiying scratched her head shyly.

“I can’t cook at all, I’ll just be the helper and eat what you guys make…”

Ji Jiayu flipped the meat. Under these conditions, she stacked the cooked pieces onto one big plate, not caring about looks.

“Not knowing how to cook isn’t bad—it just means someone spoils you. Someone’s always cooking for you, so you just eat.”

“Hehe…” Chen Yiying giggled, muttering, “But what if my future partner hates my cooking?”

Through the smoke, Ji Jiayu glanced at her, calm. “If your future partner dislikes your cooking and refuses to eat it—

Then fire them.”

Just like she had fired Qiu Miaoran.

She used to cook for Qiu Miaoran, but Qiu was always too busy with work to eat.

Now, Qiu Miaoran wasn’t getting a single grain of rice from her. 🙂

The three enjoyed their lunch.

The wood fire added a smoky flavor, but the fish and snake were fresh, tender, even a little sweet.

The cameraman eyed his dry, tasteless ration biscuits, then looked at their BBQ feast, tears threatening to spill.

“Here.” Ji Jiayu, the hunter, handed him some grilled meat. “There’s plenty—we can’t finish it.”

The cameraman’s hands shook with joy.

They bagged the leftovers into three portions and stowed them in their baskets.

【Wuwuwu Jiayu’s too sweet… when she held out that meat to the camera, I’m pretending it was for me, hehe…】

【Shaa… why is this survival show making me drool?】

【I want Jiayu to feed me too. Forget the snake, just give me some fish~】

……

By evening, Teams A and B finally regrouped near the mountain top.

Team A arrived earlier thanks to better food and stamina.

In the camp’s center, on a stone platform, was a mission card.

Chen Yiying read it aloud:
“Congratulations to the warriors who arrived first. You’ve obtained one of the Three-Color Nuwa Stones. Collect all three to save the village! Besides the mountaintop, Nuwa Stones were also placed along the paths. Did you notice?”

Ji Jiayu picked up the dark-red stone from the platform, weighing it in her hand.

“We only got one, meaning… we missed the others on the way.”

“Right,” Yu Hu nodded. “There are only three stones. One here in camp, one on each group’s route. Luckily we arrived first, or we’d have lost.”

Half an hour later, Team B finally arrived: Wei Yinghou, Wang Lulu, and A-Yang.

They had nothing but moss, roots, and sour wild fruits to eat—half-starved to death.

Team A shared some meat with them.

A-Yang chewed, frowned. “What meat is this? How’d you get it?”

“Fish and water snake. All mixed together.” Yu Hu replied.

A-Yang spat it out mid-bite, gagging. “Ugh… gross…”

—Seriously? Starving, then insulting their food after eating it?

He realized how rude it sounded and tried to cover: “Sorry, just a bit nauseous.”

Ji Jiayu raised an eyebrow, reaching for the bag of cooked meat. “If it makes you sick, don’t eat. No need to force yourself.”

Who spoiled him anyway?

It wasn’t prepared just for him.

“Wait wait—” A-Yang clutched the bag, eyes wide, pitiful. “I’ll still eat… I’m too hungry. Thanks for bringing us some…”

Wei Ying and Wang Lulu also faltered at the mention of “snake meat,” but forced it down anyway. Conditions were tough—they should’ve been grateful instead of picky.

Forty minutes later, tents were pitched.

“Did you find any items on your way?” Yu Hu asked Team B’s Wei Yinghou, showing the red stone. “Like this?”

“Yeah,” Wei Yinghou, as team leader, pulled out a dark-green stone. “What’s it for?”

Yu Hu pocketed the red stone. “Important prop. We missed ours earlier.”

“Need us to send someone to help search?” Wei Yinghou offered.

Yu Hu hid the fact that these props would ultimately decide victory. No way he’d give the enemy more power.

“What?” Wang Lulu perked up. “Searching? A-Yang’s great at that. He found ours.”

Caught off guard, A-Yang forced a smile. “Yeah, I’m just… detail-oriented, I guess.”

Later, Yu Hu gathered A-Yang, Ji Jiayu, and Chen Yiying.

“Let’s retrace our path and search for the missed stone.”

“Sure.”

“But it’s already dark,” Ji Jiayu frowned. “Do you know the way?”

“Of course. My sense of direction’s excellent.” Yu Hu sketched a map on the spot.

The four, with flashlights and the map, set off.

The steep downhill path was even harder at night, flashlight beams bouncing.

They underestimated how hard it would be.

Halfway down, Chen Yiying slowed. “I… can’t go on…”

The others stopped.

Yu Hu coughed but said nothing.

“Tsk, so delicate,” A-Yang muttered.

Chen Yiying froze. She hated being treated as deadweight.

“I can’t… I’ll just head back alone so I don’t hold you up.”

“Fine, go back then,” Yu Hu said. No way he’d let the whole team quit halfway.

They walked on. Soon, drizzle began falling.

Cool drops brushed their cheeks.

Ji Jiayu caught raindrops in her palm, feeling the chill.

She suddenly remembered Chen Yiying’s unsteady steps when she left.

Rain, slippery slopes—was she safe alone?

“Teacher Yu, A-Yang,” Ji Jiayu called, “I’ll go back. It’s raining, getting dark—I’m worried about Yiying.”

Yu Hu handed her the map. “Take this. I know the way. The path’s straight, she should be fine.”

“Mm.”

Ji Jiayu took the map and turned back uphill.

She walked, and walked.

By her estimate, she should’ve reached camp already.

But she ignored one fact—her sense of direction was terrible.

She was drifting off course without realizing.

“Chen Yiying… are you here?” she shouted.

Her soft voice was swallowed by wind and rain.

The flashlight beam wavered.

The path grew wilder, the rain heavier, the ground slicker.

“Rustle—” rain drummed.

Her chest tightened.

An uneasy fear crept in.

She remembered what she had read online last night—

This mountain was only partially developed. Natural caves still existed, locals called them “Rabbit Holes.” Shallow, but deadly. Once trapped inside, without food or water, you’d starve to death.

“Careful not to step on a hole…” Ji Jiayu gripped the flashlight tighter.

“Chen Yiying… are you here?”

An echo faintly returned.

Ji Jiayu turned, took a few steps.

Rain drenched her bangs, stinging her eyes.

She brushed the hair aside—

But her foot slipped.

She tried to step back, but the muddy ground was too slick. Her body lurched forward uncontrollably.

“Bang!”

Wind roared past her ears.

She fell into a cave.

The fall caught her off guard.

She tried standing, but her left leg screamed with pain, shooting from her shin outward. She hissed sharply, gasping.

She must’ve hurt her shin bone…

She touched the wet ground. No blood smell, just rainwater.

She bent down, retrieved her flashlight. It had cracks in the lens but still worked.

Examining her leg, she saw no bleeding—but a huge bruise spread across her pale skin, blue and red veins spidering underneath.

Ugly, brutal. Maybe even a fracture…

Hopefully not. She still had a drama shoot coming up.

She felt for her phone—luckily zipped inside her jacket pocket. She powered it on, dialed the chief director. Busy tone. Tried another staff member—same.

No connection. Only half a bar of signal.

She breathed deeply, shone the flashlight upward.

The hole wasn’t deep—she could see the top.

Leaning against the wall, she squatted, hugging her knees, curling into a ball, rubbing her arms for warmth. Too cold…

Rainwater pooled at her feet, the cave chilling fast.

The flashlight flickered weaker…

Ji Jiayu shut her eyes. Darkness and cold swallowed her, pain gnawing her leg.

Despair pressed down—a feeling she knew too well.

So cold.

Her mind conjured an image—

Someone shrugging off a gray suit jacket, draping it over her, bending down to lift her up.

“Jiejie…”

No.

“Qiu Miaoran…”

If only the one who saved her in that car accident hadn’t been Qiu Miaoran—

Then she would’ve had a reason.

A reason to hate her.

To resent Qiu Miaoran.