The Cold CEO Chases His White Moonlight - Chapter 23

Ji Zhiwei felt her vision darken as a buzzing sound filled her ears. In an instant, she could no longer feel anything.

She didn’t know how she had left the small villa.

She hadn’t even had time to process Gu Yunhui’s words.

Her mind, before it could even think, was immediately overwhelmed by emotion—as if protecting her.

Yet her instincts had already reacted.

Stumbling and swaying, Ji Zhiwei wandered through the neighborhood like a lifeless shell, her heart gnawed by ants and torn by knives, the pain so intense it made her breathing convulse.

So there was something worse than rejection.

So it wasn’t love, nor even affection just her own wishful thinking, just Gu Yunhui’s flawless performance.

So their relationship was worse than that of a patron and a kept bird her family had wronged Gu Yunhui.

So those so-called harsh words had been the truth all along.

This infatuation, from beginning to end, had been nothing but a joke starring a pitiful clown.

She walked for who knew how long before collapsing to the ground.

She had never realized that the person who had so tenderly called her “Gardenia” harbored hatred in her eyes.

Or perhaps she had deliberately avoided and forgotten all the things that had hurt her.

Like how Gu Yunhui would often stand her up, promising to come only to toy with her, arriving late or breaking the promise altogether.

Like how Gu Yunhui had humiliated her in intimate moments.

Like how Gu Yunhui never remembered her birthday, her sensitive periods, or how swamped she was with schoolwork.

There were too many details like this.

How blind must she have been to overlook them all?

Ji Zhiwei clutched her chest, truly struggling to breathe.

There lay a heart that had just been pierced.

Gu Yunhui’s words were like a slow execution, slicing away piece after piece of her sincerity without mercy.

Then casually tossing them into the trash just like her attitude toward Ji Zhiwei.

She had played the perfect patron solely to exact revenge on the Ji family.

To make Ji Zhiwei suffer, to humiliate her, and then,

To cast her into the abyss.

Ha.

Gu Yunhui had won.

She had succeeded.

Without lifting a finger, she had shattered Ji Zhiwei completely.

Not a single tear fell from Ji Zhiwei’s eyes.

So it wasn’t her eyes that had been blind, it was her heart.

All those memories of “love” she had cherished had been nothing but an act.

And just then, her phone rang, the familiar tone piercing through the silence.

Ji Zhiwei trembled as she pulled it out. Even at the lowest brightness, the screen still stung her eyes.

[Yun: The crew’s on break today, right? Did you go home?]

Reading those seemingly caring words, the dam holding back her tears finally broke.

[Gardenia: No, I’m studying with the crew.] It took her several minutes to type out that one sentence long enough for Gu Yunhui to send a question mark.

She didn’t want to see Gu Yunhui anymore, let alone reply.

But she was just a plaything, the kind meant for revenge, the kind devoid of any affection.

What right did she have to throw a tantrum and ignore her?

[Yun: Turn around.]

Ji Zhiwei whipped her head around and saw the face she had once longed for day and night, the face she now never wanted to see again.

Her phone clattered to the ground as Ji Zhiwei forgot to cry.

Gu Yunhui frowned. She had been on a call with an acquaintance earlier.

At some point, she thought she heard the front door unlock and footsteps in the hallway.

But with her headphones on, the sounds had been faint.

By the time the call ended, the house was still empty.

Yet Ji Zhiwei was here in the neighborhood.

Had she heard, or hadn’t she?

Or had someone bullied her? There was that spoiled brat the investor had forced into the crew, who knew how they got along.

“What’s wrong with you? Why are you crying like this?”

Gu Yunhui wasn’t entirely sure, but seeing Ji Zhiwei cry made her feel inexplicably agitated.

“Why aren’t you going home? What are you doing running around the neighborhood?” Suppressing her irritation, Gu Yunhui walked over and pulled Ji Zhiwei up from the ground.

Ji Zhiwei lowered her gaze, mustering courage from somewhere deep inside.

Suddenly, she took two steps forward, forcing Gu Yunhui to retreat, and called out in her usual affectionate tone, “Sister Yun.”

She caught a fleeting glimpse of disgust.

And in the depths of those seemingly tender eyes, there was truly not a trace of love.

She had her confirmation. The words Gu Yunhui had just spoken to someone whoever it was were the truth.

As for what she said to Ji Zhiwei, it had always been nothing but forced lies.

“Mm, let’s go back.” Gu Yunhui felt goosebumps rise on her skin.

If Ji Zhiwei had overheard what she’d just said, this reaction was far too strange.

Could she really be acting? Gu Yunhui told herself she was overthinking it.

After all, why should she care whether Ji Zhiwei was hurt by those words?

Wasn’t it the truth? Sooner or later, she would have to deal with Ji Zhiwei. Otherwise, why would she have kept her around for so many years?

It wasn’t as if she liked the girl.

Gu Yunhui dragged Ji Zhiwei back home.

Ji Zhiwei’s face was pale, but her expression was blank, as if the person who had just been kneeling on the ground, sobbing uncontrollably, wasn’t her at all.

All Ji Zhiwei could think about was escape.

She was scared. She didn’t dare to love anymore. And she certainly didn’t dare to stay by Gu Yunhui’s side.

She was afraid she might lose her resolve and continue clinging to Gu Yunhui.

She was afraid that foolish heart of hers would keep beating for her.

In the end, she should have stuck to the golden cage’s rules from the very beginning trading her body for money, not giving away her love.

But Gu Yunhui had indulged her, letting that affection continue to eat away at her heart.

From the very beginning, Gu Yunhui had done it on purpose, hadn’t she?

Keeping her affection alive, only to hurt her with it later.

Staring at Gu Yunhui’s retreating figure, Ji Zhiwei realized for the first time, how could someone so demonic ever have good intentions?

And besides, even as a distant relative, Ji Zhiwei had heard of the Gu family’s reputation.

Cold-blooded, heartless, valuing profit over reason, and certainly not family.

Any kindness they showed was nothing but an act.

“Go wash up. You’re filthy.” Gu Yunhui shoved the still-dazed Ji Zhiwei into the bathroom.

Inside, Ji Zhiwei finally let out a sigh.

What had she been doing these past four years?

Looking back, her memories consisted of nothing but her studies, her life and Gu Yunhui.

For Gu Yunhui, she had turned down so many opportunities. And in the end, all it had brought her was a joke.

Ji Zhiwei took longer than usual in the shower, but Gu Yunhui said nothing.

She only noticed that Ji Zhiwei was quieter than usual.

When they got down to business, Ji Zhiwei remained cold and distant, completely devoid of her usual sweetness.

And then, halfway through, the girl started crying again wrenching, heartbroken sobs that were painful to hear.

“You don’t want this?” Gu Yunhui was taken aback.

Even if she didn’t like Ji Zhiwei, she had never forced her like this before, had she?

“No! I-I just don’t feel well.” She still wanted to be with Gu Yunhui. Was she that pathetic?

“Then just say so.” Gu Yunhui rolled her eyes and pulled away.

“After all these years as lovers, do you really think I’d force you?”

But Ji Zhiwei only cried harder at those words.

“Did I hurt you?” Gu Yunhui couldn’t stand Ji Zhiwei’s tears. She leaned down, intending to comfort her.

“No, it’s not that. I’m sorry.” Ji Zhiwei avoided her touch, curling into the blankets instead.

Gu Yunhui’s temper flared up in an instant, and she just walked away like that.

Ji Zhiwei collapsed onto the bed, unsure of what she had just done.

She didn’t want to like Gu Yunhui anymore. This wasn’t just a matter of unrequited feelings.

But how could years of secret affection vanish overnight?

Though her mind told her to hold back, her body’s instincts remained unchanged.

Ji Zhiwei cried until her tear ducts ran dry before slowly getting up and quietly making her way to the study.

She entered the room where Gu Yunhui had spoken those words, hoping to find more evidence to crush her lingering hopes.

In the past, she wouldn’t have dared to step into Gu Yunhui’s room, afraid of losing favor or provoking her.

But today, she couldn’t care less. Whether she was scolded or “punished,” it didn’t matter Gu Yunhui had never loved her, only hated her.

After searching for a while, she actually found something.

A file.

Inside were several photos of her and Gu Yunhui.

Some showed them embracing, others with Gu Yunhui holding her arm. The backgrounds ranged from this small villa to high-end venues only accessible to the upper class.

Had today’s events not happened, Ji Zhiwei would have thought Gu Yunhui kept these photos as mementos, as proof of affection.

But, if Gu Yunhui hated the Ji family and had despised her from the very beginning.

Then were these photos meant to be deliberately posted on the Film Academy’s forum or the internet someday?

After all, putting herself in Gu Yunhui’s shoes, if Ji Zhiwei wanted to hurt someone close to her, she might use the same method.

No need to act personally. Just sell the information to the gossipmongers, the envious, those who wished her harm.

The news would grow wings on its own, and others’ words would be the ones to destroy her.

These photos were likely stored by Gu Yunhui for the sole purpose of fueling rumors about her being a kept woman in the future.

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