The Cold CEO Chases His White Moonlight - Chapter 10

Ji Zhiwei stood up as well.

Gu Yunhui had thought she would at least try to persuade her to stay, maybe even act a little coquettish.

If Ji Zhiwei had just said the words, given how late it was, Gu Yunhui would definitely have stayed.

At the end of the day, she just wanted to see the girl show some vulnerability.

But outside of the bedroom, Ji Zhiwei was stubborn to a fault as if Gu Yunhui had ever truly mistreated her. She kept every thought carefully hidden, forcing her patron to guess.

Well, Gu Yunhui wasn’t going to play that game. Too much trouble.

She glanced back at Ji Zhiwei, giving her one last chance.

Ji Zhiwei only managed a strained smile. “Sister Yun, be careful on your way.”

That restrained, obedient look irritated Gu Yunhui to no end.

With a loud slam, Gu Yunhui stormed out.

The sound reverberated in Ji Zhiwei’s mind, leaving the room in deafening silence.

Just like that, Gu Yunhui was gone.

She had been so frantic to find her earlier, yet now she wouldn’t even stay. What could possibly be so urgent in the middle of the night that she had to leave so decisively?

Ji Zhiwei stood silently by the door, unable to decipher Gu Yunhui’s intentions, her emotions tangled.

Less than two minutes later, the door swung open again.

Gu Yunhui and Ji Zhiwei locked eyes, the air instantly turning awkward.

“Move,” Gu Yunhui snapped, still fuming, in no mood to deal with this tight-lipped girl.

She pushed Ji Zhiwei aside and went upstairs to grab her things.

By the time she came back down, Ji Zhiwei was still standing in the same spot by the door.

Just looking at her made Gu Yunhui feel suffocated, annoyed.

“Go to bed. Don’t you have class tomorrow? What are you standing around for?”

“Ah! I’ll go now.” Like a robot obeying a command, Ji Zhiwei mechanically turned to leave.

Her small figure looked lonely, desolate.

Gu Yunhui stood at the door, watching until Ji Zhiwei had disappeared upstairs before finally leaving.

Ugh, what an infuriating girl.

The next day, likely from exhaustion, Ji Zhiwei overslept again.

By the time she checked her phone for updates, public opinion had completely shifted.

Ye Pingsheng had released the full audition footage, along with the scriptwriter’s notes, proving that the photo had been taken out of context Gu Yunhui had merely been a last-minute stand-in “extra,” and the two had simply been rehearsing their lines.

The comments under the Weibo post were now overwhelmingly praising Ji Zhiwei.

[“This girl’s acting is seriously amazing! I loved Sinan’s character in the original novel, and she brought her to life perfectly!”]

[“As a book fan, I’ll just say it that so-called future Best Actress’s face doesn’t even suit Wen Ran, let alone Sinan. She’s just forcing it.”]

[“If even the book fans are happy, who am I to complain? The girl’s performance was explosive.”]

[“Someone drop her Weibo handle! I want to follow her now so I can brag about being an OG fan later, hehehe.”]

[“+10086. Also, what’s her secondary gender? Her face is so cute, but she seemed so cool while acting. And her chemistry with the ‘extra’ was off the charts, I ship it.”]

[“She’s an alpha, our school’s beauty queen. Of course she’s stunning. Last year’s queen was Song Lingying, you know.”]

[“Oh, from Film Academy? No wonder she’s so good. Ngl, Song Lingying doesn’t even compare is it okay to say that?”]

[“Am I the only one wondering why she’s playing Sinan instead of Wen Ran?”]

[“Did you even read Director Ye’s post? She saw potential in her, thought she could handle it, so she gave her Wen Ran’s role.”]

【Who’s going to play Nasinan? I can’t really accept anyone else’s face now. The young actresses in the domestic industry just aren’t up to par, and a top-tier star wouldn’t stoop to play a mere third female lead.】

【Wait for the official stills. As I said before, trust Director Ye’s judgment.】

Ji Zhiwei let out a sigh of relief, feeling a faint sense of joy welling up inside her.

Originally, she had taken up acting because of a promise and also because she didn’t know how to do anything else.

But having her performance recognized felt surprisingly good.

She reached into her pocket, touching the pendant she kept there, gently stroking it twice. It almost seemed to radiate warmth, as if it had come alive.

Maybe she really was suited for this path of acting.

The school forum had quieted down too. The rumors about her having a sugar daddy had vanished without a trace, including the photos of her kissing Gu Yunhui that day.

It was as if the whole incident had never happened. The forum was now buzzing about today’s anniversary celebration.

Wait a minute. Today’s anniversary celebration.

Ji Zhiwei froze for half a second before pulling up her calendar and double-checking the date.

Finally, she gave up resisting the truth, she had spent the entire previous day in a daze, wasting it completely.

She hadn’t gone to the short film rehearsal.

She hadn’t done her student council work.

And of course, she hadn’t attended class, though that was the easiest to make up for.

Ji Zhiwei hurriedly got herself ready, skipped breakfast, and hailed a cab to rush back to campus.

Before arriving, she texted her roommate to let her know she was fine and replied to Meng Yu, who had spammed her with fifty or sixty messages, assuring her that everything was alright.

She then opened the short film’s group chat and apologized to everyone.

No one responded.

Ji Zhiwei had a bad feeling.

She hurried toward the studio. Along the way, people who recognized her asked if she was okay.

“I’m fine, really. Do you know where the ‘Revival’ team is rehearsing?” she replied hastily, brushing past one of the questioners.

Two classmates exchanged glances, their expressions slightly complicated. “Room 103. But, maybe you shouldn’t go there.”

“I heard Li Yansong was the one who leaked your photos. Just be careful.”

With Ye Pingsheng’s confirmation, those who knew Ji Zhiwei chose to believe her and offered an extra word of caution.

Li Yansong had a poor reputation anyway. Though the forum had been loud, few actually believed him.

“Got it.” Ji Zhiwei noted the warning and quickened her pace.

Not far away, the alpha she had ignored earlier looked visibly disappointed but didn’t dare to follow her.

So the rumor about her being pre-selected for the role had also come from Li Yansong. Ji Zhiwei pondered this as she walked.

There was some history between them mostly unrequited feelings on his part, coupled with her being somewhat “out of his league.”

She had never imagined he would go this far.

Disgusting.

By the time Ji Zhiwei reached the short film team, Li Yansong was in the middle of final rehearsals with the rest of the cast.

Ji Zhiwei glanced over and saw another girl in her role, someone she didn’t recognize, probably a junior.

So, they hadn’t replied because they’d already found a replacement?

A flicker of irritation passed through her.

But considering she had indeed skipped two days of rehearsals especially the most crucial ones right before the performance she couldn’t really complain.

She decided to wait until they finished this run-through, then talk to the organizer. If they really didn’t need her anymore, she’d just drop out. It would still count as experience.

Originally, this short film was meant to catch the attention of agents or directors anyway.

Now that Ji Weiyi had Departing Li and the audition video released by Director Ye, she didn’t need this short drama anymore.

But Li Yansong didn’t seem inclined to let her off so easily.

“Oh, if it isn’t our illustrious campus belle? Still shameless enough to come back, huh?” he sneered the moment he saw her.

A girl who had previously spoken up for Ji Weiyi stood nearby, unable to bear the sight of Li Yansong’s behavior.

“Were you the one who posted those photos?” Ji Weiyi ignored his taunts.

“Hmph. You won’t find any proof. Ye Pingsheng never said you didn’t have a sugar daddy. Kissing that woman so passionately, don’t tell me there’s nothing between you.”

Li Yansong puffed himself up with righteous indignation. Ji Weiyi refused to be with him but was fine with that woman? What kind of logic was that?

Since he had dragged Gu Yunhui into this, Ji Weiyi wasn’t about to back down.

“I told you, it was for the audition acting requires it. Are you seriously blaming me for doing it well?”

“Bullshit. Like I’d believe that. You’re just corrupting public morals.” Li Yansong continued his tirade.

Ji Weiyi gave him a once-over, scoffed, and didn’t bother engaging further.

“Um, Weiyi… Look, you should still come back and perform. There are three hours left, and we haven’t made many changes these past two days. There’s still time.” The team leader shot a glance at Li Yansong before approaching Ji Weiyi.

Ji Weiyi didn’t respond.

“Please, I’m begging you.” The leader clasped her hands together in a pleading gesture.

“He was the one who wanted to kick me out and brought in this underclassman, right?” Ji Weiyi pointed at Li Yansong.

The temporary lead actress lowered her head.

She was only a sophomore. She had indeed memorized the script for Restoring Glory and was eager to take part in this short drama, hoping to replicate Song Lingying’s path to success.

But her performance was lacking not just in timing, but in acting skills as well.

The disappointment from the surrounding classmates was painfully obvious, though no one dared to criticize her outright, given Li Yansong’s volatile temper.

Li Yansong didn’t even spare a glance for the “little sister” he had brought in.

Realizing what Ji Weiyi was implying, he flew into a rage.

“You have no right to do this! If you kick me out, who’s going to replace me? I exposed her for the greater good!”

“Sorry. If it weren’t for your so-called ‘justice’ taken out of context, Weiyi wouldn’t have been dragged into that mess online, and we wouldn’t be dealing with the issue of replacing actors.” The team leader shook her head.

“Your role is just a supporting one, we could even cut it entirely. You can leave now.”

She then turned to the temporary lead actress.

Blushing with embarrassment, the girl apologized to the group before running off the stage.

Li Yansong had hoped to use this opportunity to catch the attention of directors.

Many renowned directors and entertainment companies would be attending the school festival.

“You can’t do this! I have the Yan family backing me! They’re second only to the Big Four!” Li Yansong finally played his trump card.

The Yan family… Yan Kexin. So the person who took those photos was also from the Yan family.

Ji Weiyi wasn’t very familiar with the Yan family, only knowing they were an old-fashioned, conservative clan.

“I don’t care if it’s the Yan family or the Li family, this school isn’t a playground for the privileged. If you don’t leave now, I’ll call the principal.” Ji Weiyi had experience and understood the limits of powerful families better than Li Yansong.

Li Yansong wasn’t even a Yan by name. Even if the Yan family had eight hundred hands, they wouldn’t bother lifting a finger for him.

She was a Ji, and the Ji family hadn’t done much for her either.

Li Yansong’s face flushed red with fury.

No one paid him any attention. Cursing under his breath about how his family would deal with these classmates, he slunk away in humiliation.

Just before leaving, he overheard the person in charge leading the students and Ji Zhiwei in a mutual apology, which infuriated him so much that he stumbled and fell.

No one helped him up, everyone avoided him as if he were a plague.

Within three hours, the scriptwriter had cut Li Yansong’s scenes, replacing them with a more logical plotline. The changes were minimal, involving only a few lines of dialogue, and everyone adjusted quickly.

The anniversary performance went smoothly. Ji Zhiwei had gained a bit of fame the previous day, and by the end of the event, several entertainment companies had handed her their business cards.

She accepted them all, planning to review them carefully later.

She had upset Gu Yunhui the night before, and today, Gu Yunhui hadn’t summoned her.

Still, she wanted to return to the small villa, it was where she felt at ease.

Especially since someone she didn’t want to contact kept bombarding her phone with messages.

Pushing open the door, Ji Zhiwei was surprised to see Gu Yunhui standing in front of the fridge, her expression unreadable.

And in her hands, the leftover food Ji Zhiwei had forgotten to throw away.

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