The Beauty with Terrible Luck Falls in Love with a Ghost - Chapter 13.1

“Why is it all flowing back?!” Ling Mengwei exclaimed as if jolted awake, rushing back in quick strides. She lifted Zuo Lihua’s arm, which had an IV needle inserted, while frantically pressing the call button on the bedside with her other hand.

“Doesn’t it hurt? Why didn’t you press it sooner? There’s so much blood.” Seeming genuinely anxious, Ling Mengwei’s voice trembled with tears.

Ling Mengwei’s posture positioned Zuo Lihua’s head at the same level as her abdomen, and they were so close that Zuo Lihua’s cheek nearly brushed against the infant ghost clinging to Ling Mengwei’s belly.

Zuo Lihua leaned back tactically, and the little ghost seemed to intentionally avoid her too, climbing like a small monkey along Ling Mengwei’s waist to her back, using both hands and feet.

Ling Mengwei paused slightly, let out a soft hiss, adjusted her posture, and clutched her lower back.

“What’s wrong?” Zuo Lihua looked up and asked.

Ling Mengwei frowned. “Not sure, my back suddenly hurts.”

Zuo Lihua lowered her head, eyeing the wrinkled little ghost. “Could it be exhaustion? These days, lumbar disc herniation is affecting younger and younger people.”

“Oh, so I help you press the call button and hold your arm, and this is how you repay me, by cursing me?” The familiar banter eased Ling Mengwei’s tension, and she couldn’t help but laugh and scold.

“You should get a check-up.”

“Huh?”

“Since we’re at the hospital anyway, why not get a full physical exam?”

“No need. A junior just joined the company, and I need to help her get settled.”

Ling Mengwei and Zuo Lihua were from the same talent agency, they had met by chance there. Curious, Zuo Lihua asked, “A junior? Male or female?”

“Female,” Ling Mengwei sighed. “She’s not exactly beautiful, but she has a certain charm. How should I put it? She’s got potential to become popular. I’ll introduce you when there’s a chance.”

Zuo Lihua smiled. “I’m sure there will be an opportunity.”

Ling Mengwei averted her gaze and repeated, “Yes, I’m sure there will be.”

The nurse arrived quickly, replaced Zuo Lihua’s IV drip, gave a few instructions, and hurried off.

“Well, I should…”

“Take care on your way.” Zuo Lihua tilted her head and smiled at Ling Mengwei.

Ling Mengwei returned the smile.

The sound of footsteps faded into the distance outside the door.

Once sure that Ling Mengwei had left, Zuo Lihua picked up her phone, scrolled through her contacts, found a number, and dialed.

The call connected quickly, and a clear, cheerful male voice came through the phone.

“This is Zhang Shuo from Chengcheng Law Firm. How may I assist you?” His tone shifted to a softer one. “Classmate Zuo.”

On her end, Zuo Lihua chuckled. “Classmate Zhang, when calling a lawyer, it’s naturally to file a lawsuit.”

“Ah, I thought Classmate Zuo was asking me out for a meal. What a disappointment.”

“A meal isn’t as enticing as sending money.” As she spoke, Zuo Lihua idly fiddled with a loose thread on the blanket.

A low laugh came through the phone. “Well said, truly fitting of Classmate Zuo. So, long-time no see, old classmate, what kind of lawsuit are we talking about?”

“Well, I’ve been defamed. The specifics are all over the internet, with more details than I even know.”

“I understand,” Zhang Shuo said. “Since it wasn’t you, may I ask, why were you at the hospital in that video?”

“Accompanying someone for an abortion.”

“And who was that?”

“Ling Mengwei.”

There was a pause on the other end of the line. Two seconds later, Zhang Shuo’s voice returned, “Understood. I’ll take this case.”

After exchanging a few more details, Zuo Lihua hung up and accepted Zhang Shuo’s friend request on the messaging app. Zhang Shuo was her university classmate, now working at Chengcheng Law Firm as a top-tier lawyer. He had a penchant for harmless jokes but was fair and reliable in his work. Knowing him well, Zuo Lihua felt at ease entrusting the matter to him.

Clearing Ling Mengwei’s timeline was actually quite straightforward. After all, she wasn’t the one who was pregnant, and she had plenty of evidence to prove it. Once the evidence was laid out, it would be obvious who was lying.

The problem was, she couldn’t expose Ning Dongbang as a murderer. If pushed too far, he might kill her too. She couldn’t take that risk. For now, the best course of action was to pretend she knew nothing, stabilize the situation, and wait until she was fully prepared to confront him.

First, she needed to terminate her contract. She would start her own company. Her current agency had Huang Gu as one of its shareholders. The compensation for breaking the contract was one issue, but more importantly, she needed a source of income.

What else could she do besides being a celebrity? A nine-to-five office job was absolutely out of the question, it just didn’t suit her.

…Maybe she should just start her own company?

As soon as the idea crossed her mind, Zuo Lihua’s thoughts began to race.

A talent agency? No, she didn’t have that much money. Making movies? She had only acted in one film and had never studied directing, it would surely be a huge loss. An online shop?

That could work. Back in high school, she had partnered with a friend to sell porcelain. She could start small. Since she couldn’t go out much these days anyway, the worst-case scenario would be the hassle of shipping orders.

Zuo Lihua pondered, already picturing her living room piled high with delivery boxes and Han Hai’er buried among them, glaring at her with gritted teeth. It never crossed her mind what would happen if no one bought anything and the stock just piled up.

The background noise from the TV suddenly stopped, pulling Zuo Lihua out of her thoughts.

“What’s wrong?” she asked, turning to Han Hai’er, who was staring at her silently.

Han Hai’er’s lifeless eyes fixed on her expressionlessly. Though it wasn’t the first time she’d seen them, being stared at by those eyes still sent a chill down Zuo Lihua’s spine.

“?”

Han Hai’er parted her lips and silently mouthed something.

Zuo Lihua didn’t understand immediately. She tilted her head, thinking for a moment before it suddenly dawned on her.

The ghost was hungry.

What do you do when you’re hungry? Eat.

“Want to order takeout?” Zuo Lihua asked her.

Han Hai’er shook her head.

Zuo Lihua hadn’t expected to be refused. She blinked, staring at Han Hai’er pleadingly. “Fruit?”

She pointed to the fruit basket Ning Dongbang had sent, sitting by the bedside.

Han Hai’er turned her head away in disgust.

“Uh… pastries?” Zuo Lihua’s slender fingers then pointed to the mille-feuille cake next to the fruit basket, which Ling Mengwei had brought earlier.

Han Hai’er’s brows furrowed into a deep frown, looking even more disdainful.

Zuo Lihua: “…”

“Then what do you want to eat…”

Before she could finish her sentence, Zuo Lihua froze. Her eyes widened as she stared at Han Hai’er, who had suddenly closed the distance between them. Before she could speak, something pressed against her, her head was held in place, and then her lips turned cold.

Zuo Lihua’s entire body stiffened.

Well, damn. So “hungry” meant eating her!

As the kiss deepened and prolonged, Zuo Lihua gradually felt drowsy, her strength slowly ebbing away. Unconsciously, she had hunched over; if Han Hai’er hadn’t been supporting her, she would have already slumped softly onto the quilt.

Other than that, Zuo Lihua didn’t notice anything unusual.

Is this what it feels like to have one’s life essence absorbed?

Her consciousness began to scatter. In her daze, a pair of cool hands roamed over her body, seemingly searching for openings.

Zuo Lihua was startled and quickly grabbed the mischievous hand.

The icy touch gave her a moment of clarity, but it was soon swallowed by confusion.

Fortunately, after being caught, the hand ceased its mischief and obediently allowed Zuo Lihua to hold it, placing it over her heart.

A strong, steady heartbeat transmitted through bone, flesh, and clothing, one beat after another.

A thought rose in Zuo Lihua’s mind:

When the day comes that her life essence is completely drained, would she turn into that black, sticky, oil-like substance?

After an unknown length of time, Zuo Lihua was released.

She stared blankly, mouth slightly agape, as if unaware that she had regained her freedom.

Everything before her eyes was blurry and doubled.

Han Hai’er examined her carefully, then waved a hand in front of her face.

She was breathing out more than she was breathing in, as if on the verge of collapse.

She had accidentally absorbed too much.

Annoyed, Han Hai’er picked up the mille-feuille cake, peeled off the top layer of crepe, scooped some cream with her finger, and pressed it into Zuo Lihua’s mouth.

Upon contact with food, Zuo Lihua’s survival instinct made her smack her lips and swallow.

Her eyes immediately regained focus.

It was as if she had suddenly been released from a pressure point, she gasped for air in large, ragged breaths, and the mille-feuille was shoved into her hands.

She looked at the cake, then at Han Hai’er.

Han Hai’er gave a strained, insincere smile and said, “Eat something that’ll make you gain weight, unless you want me to drain you dry.”

Zuo Lihua wasn’t one for snacks, especially high-calorie, fattening foods, but she did enjoy the taste of cake. The only exception she made was for mille-feuille, though even then, she didn’t eat much. Yet now, as she looked at the cake in her hand, she strangely found herself craving it.

Had having her life essence absorbed altered her tastes? she wondered silently. She bit into the torn crepe layer, rolling the food on her tongue, and was surprised to find that compared to the cream, the crepe seemed bland and tasteless.

It was as if she had suddenly discovered the deliciousness of cake!

Zuo Lihua’s eyes lit up as she gazed at the mille-feuille, feeling as though a new world had opened up to her.

If she had known more about supernatural beings, she would have realized this was her subconscious survival instinct at work.

Seeing that she had recovered, Han Hai’er said, “Let’s order takeout.”

Zuo Lihua blinked. “But I thought you didn’t eat?”

Han Hai’er let out a questioning hum. “Hmm?”

Pretending not to hear, Zuo Lihua asked, “What do you want to eat?”

She had already opened the food delivery app on her phone and was browsing through restaurants. To her surprise, she found herself eager to try places she had previously scorned, like various bubble tea shops, roasted chicken joints, and crispy pork belly spots.

Han Hai’er leaned over, pointing at the screen with her finger.

The outer strands of her seaweed-like hair were broken and fuzzy, tickling Zuo Lihua’s chin.

A moment later, Han Hai’er finished placing her order and moved away.

Zuo Lihua glanced at the screen, it was a pizza from Pizza Hut.

Wanting something easier to digest, Zuo Lihua confirmed the order and then added something else for herself.

When the second IV bag was being replaced, the food delivery arrived.

The nurse glanced at what Zuo Lihua had ordered and reminded her, “Don’t eat anything too hard. Stick to easily digestible foods like millet porridge or steamed buns.”

Zuo Lihua nodded in agreement, pulled out some soy milk, and began drinking it.

Seeing this, the nurse said nothing more. After informing Zuo Lihua that she could be discharged the next day, the nurse left the room.