One Year After Her Sister-In-Law Was Widowed - Chapter 64

Xiao Shuangyu sat on the shuttle bus headed for Haicheng.

The ripple effect of Ji Zhuozhou’s search for her had not yet vanished. Even on the bus, there were people who intentionally turned back to look at her, then raised their phones to snap a quick, candid photo, sending it off to God-knows-who.

Xiao Shuangyu did not grant them even a fraction of her attention; in fact, she had been this way for several days.

She didn’t ask the people on the road why they were looking at her, didn’t question the instigators who had been following her for days, didn’t wonder how Ji Zhuozhou had obtained her photo, and didn’t notice that among the photos being circulated were surveillance screenshots.

After all, Ji Zhuozhou was the General Manager of Huarui; it wasn’t strange for her to have the one-inch ID photo Xiao Shuangyu had submitted when she joined the company.

Perhaps, if she had noticed, she would have assumed the surveillance footage was obtained the same way.

She didn’t think Ji Zhuozhou would have any candid photos of her daily life; after all, she had never seen Ji Zhuozhou take any—let alone a photo of them together.

As for why she didn’t suspect the show’s promotion team? They were just random people plucked to participate in a program, not big-name stars. The production team wouldn’t bother promoting them individually.

Besides, they were only just going to start filming. It would be a while before the broadcast began; they would likely wait to see how the filming went before starting any promotion.

Xiao Shuangyu leaned against the bus window, gazing at the street scenes that were both unfamiliar and yet had grown somewhat intimate over the past few days. Her heart felt inexplicably empty.

She suddenly found herself thinking about that giant puppy plushie.

Ji Zhuozhou had left in such a hurry—would she have simply left it behind? Would she have found it useless and cumbersome and thrown it away?

She knew that once a gift is given, it’s done; how it’s handled is up to the recipient and has nothing to do with her anymore, but she couldn’t help but wonder.

No matter how much affection Ji Zhuozhou performed, those things were disposable to her—whether it was a plushie, or Xiao Shuangyu herself.

Perhaps Ji Zhuozhou’s hurried departure was for a new blind date?

That had even less to do with her. She shouldn’t think about it.

She closed her eyes, intending to catch up on some sleep.

A series of messages from Wan Qiyan arrived, making her phone vibrate repeatedly.

Xiao Shuangyu eventually opened her eyes to check.

Wan Qiyan: Face-face, have you set off? What time do you arrive? You must tell me when you get there, tell me when you meet up with the others, tell me when your phone is confiscated—basically, tell me everything!

Wan Qiyan: Ugh, so annoying. Can I really not go? Can’t the show make an exception for a guardian to accompany you? My little kid is leaving home for the first time!

Xiao Shuangyu silently watched Wan Qiyan gradually take liberties with her before finally interrupting.

No.

I’m on the bus, just left Su County.

Leaving Su County meant entering the borders of Haicheng, though it was still a long distance from the city center.

Seeing that she had replied, Wan Qiyan stopped teasing her and chatted lightheartedly for a bit. Finally, she told her not to be nervous—worst case scenario, she’d be eliminated early and they could go out and play.

Wan Qiyan was, after all, still pursuing her studies abroad; she wouldn’t be staying much longer before she had to leave again, and who knew when she’d return next.

While Wan Qiyan hoped Xiao Shuangyu would stay as long as possible and win a championship to bring her glory, she truly didn’t want her to feel too much pressure.

Xiao Shuangyu knew these words were purely meant to comfort her.

She fell silent for a moment before replying with a simple “Okay.”

In a separate small group chat, A-Nan and Nie Siyu’s high-speed train had already left Nancheng. They would arrive in Haicheng in about an hour.

The timing on both sides was similar. Xiao Shuangyu would likely arrive a bit early. They had already decided where to eat lunch; once they arrived, they just had to head toward the restaurant.

A-Nan and Nie Siyu chattered away about the food they wanted to eat, notably avoiding any mention of the show they were about to join.

It seemed they, too, were afraid she would feel nervous being alone.

Xiao Shuangyu followed their lead in the conversation, not taking the initiative to mention anything.

That included the matter of Ji Zhuozhou.

All three of them knew Ji Zhuozhou had come to find her, but none of them knew that after she told them Ji Zhuozhou had left, the woman had actually stayed—staying right next door to her.

And then, she had left hurriedly last night.

A new message arrived.

Surprisingly, it was from Ji Zhuozhou.

Sailboat: Is Face-face going to the production set today? I have some urgent business and might not be able to see you off, but I will come to see Face-face as soon as possible. Wait for me.

She didn’t click into the message. She read the entire thing through the notification on the lock screen.

She did not reply.

Xiao Shuangyu successfully met up with A-Nan and Nie Siyu at the pre-determined restaurant.

The food was delicious, and all three of them were full of praise.

Xiao Shuangyu even took a photo of the dishes and sent it to Wan Qiyan, earning a howl of jealousy and a demand for the name and address of the shop.

She briefly mentioned Wan Qiyan’s situation to the other two, telling them how Wan Qiyan had eaten five meals in less than a day when she first returned from abroad, which earned her a synchronized look of shock from both.

However, Wan Qiyan was slightly better now; while the number of meals remained a mystery, at least they weren’t all full-course dinners.

They chatted like this, and eventually, the topic turned to her gland, asking about her recovery.

Xiao Shuangyu hadn’t told them that on the day Ji Zhuozhou came to find her, she had also released pheromones, nor did she mention that she had torn off the gauze and switched to a scent-blocking patch that same day.

Ji Zhuozhou’s pheromones hadn’t affected her much. The faint throbbing in the back of her neck had gradually subsided after the deed was done, and she didn’t feel any discomfort.

The small incision near the gland had healed, leaving a scar so faint it was hard to see without looking closely. It would likely disappear entirely after a while, so she hadn’t used gauze since then.

She could be said to be completely fine, but she had to tell them over and over again because they kept asking out of worry.

Xiao Shuangyu simply showed them the back of her neck. To the naked eye, it looked smooth and clean; indeed, nothing could be seen without close inspection.

The gland wasn’t protruding or swollen, and that scar was just a tiny dot. The entire back of her neck was flat.

Having seen it with their own eyes, the two finally relaxed.

Once filming started, they would be under closed management, but surely, they wouldn’t be forbidden from seeing a doctor if they got sick, and the production team would have medical staff nearby just in case.

It was safe, but they clearly wanted to ensure she was truly okay.

She hoped so too, otherwise, it would be quite a hindrance if she had to go to the hospital during filming because of this.

However, this action also revealed a slight color difference on the back of her neck to the two of them.

Xiao Shuangyu had run off to Qiong Province and then to Yicheng; both places had intense UV rays, and she had tanned quite a bit. But because she wore a scent-blocking patch on her neck every day, that spot was noticeably paler than the rest.

But then again, all three of them had gone to Yicheng. Even with her tan, Xiao Shuangyu still looked pale, while the other two didn’t fare as well.

Nie Siyu, in particular, was nearsighted and hated the sun; she had been fully geared up every day, yet after a few days, she was just as dark as A-Nan, who had been completely defenseless.

A-Nan immediately started laughing about how they had all tanned right before filming and wouldn’t look good on camera.

But they weren’t there to show off their beauty; they were there to showcase their music.

They laughed it off.

As they were talking, Ji Xunxia sent them her best wishes, telling them to get a good ranking so she could give them a raise when they got back.

Nie Siyu, being practical, asked how much of a raise, only to be sent a “don’t ask” emoji and told it depended on their performance.

This kept the group busy gossiping for a long while.

Having eaten and drunk their fill, they stood up and headed toward the meeting point designated by the production team.

The meeting point was an abandoned old school building.

There were more contestants than imagined. Adding in the staff, it felt like people were swarming everywhere.

Between registration and dormitory assignments alone, the sun had already set by the time things settled down.

Both Xiao Shuangyu and Nie Siyu were Alphas, so the two were assigned to the same dorm. A-Nan, being a Beta, went to the Beta dorms upstairs, and the three were temporarily separated.

The dormitory was also an old school dorm—a crowded eight-person room. Washing up meant going to the communal sinks on each floor, and the showers were outside as well.

It was clear the production team had put effort into redecorating the three floors they occupied; everything was painted clean and pretty, decorated with items from the show and sponsors. It truly looked like the polished scenes one sees on TV.

But that didn’t necessarily mean the living conditions were great.

Evidently, not everyone thought so.

From somewhere next door, a commotion broke out. Someone was cursing, calling the place a dump and demanding to move, while others tried to persuade them otherwise.

Most of the people here were independent musicians; their personalities were inevitably vivid and prominent. It wouldn’t feel right if there wasn’t some noise.

Xiao Shuangyu didn’t pay it much mind. She had just finished putting her things away when she saw Nie Siyu jump down from the top bunk. “It’s been so long since I’ve been in school. Staying in a dorm like this is actually quite a novel experience.”

Xiao Shuangyu looked back at Nie Siyu and nodded in agreement.

From the moment they stepped into the dormitory building, cameras had been pointed at them—including right now, inside the room.

Xiao Shuangyu was somewhat unaccustomed to it.

Before long, A-Nan ran down and called them to go to dinner. She patted her chest and whispered that someone in her dorm had just thrown things and threatened to leave, which had been terrifying.

Nie Siyu immediately locked eyes with Xiao Shuangyu, both pairs of eyes sharing the thought: Talk about luck. She then patted A-Nan’s shoulder. “Stay safe.”

A-Nan was small; so far, they hadn’t seen anyone smaller than her. Nie Siyu was genuinely worried that if a fight broke out, someone might swing A-Nan around like a weapon.

The next day, official filming began.

Every band saw for themselves the performances and strength of the other twenty-three bands. Before the competition had even started, the rivalry had already taken root in everyone’s hearts.

After dinner that evening, the production team called each band in for interviews one by one.

When the interview ended, Xiao Shuangyu stood up to follow A-Nan and Nie Siyu out, but she was suddenly stopped by the director, who asked her to stay behind alone.

A-Nan and Nie Siyu immediately turned around and asked, “We’re in the same band, why only keep her?”

The director said it was a special interview and that he wouldn’t eat her, telling them not to worry.

The two left, looking skeptical.

Xiao Shuangyu was about to sit back in her previous spot when the director quickly stopped her, saying it wasn’t here.

She followed the director across more than half the school grounds to a small, separate building on the other side. She had already clenched her fists, prepared to make a run for it if anything felt wrong.

Before that could happen, the director turned around at the door. “Go on in.”

After saying that, the director left immediately. Xiao Shuangyu was stunned for a moment, only to see the door in front of her swing open, revealing a familiar figure inside.

It was… Ji Zhuozhou.

Xiao Shuangyu instinctively took half a step back.