The Host Has Fallen for the Second Female Lead Again - Chapter 9

Zhuo Xi walked in front of Ji Chanhan, her posture suggesting she was drunk. After a few steps, she suddenly stumbled backward.

Ji Chanhan quickly dodged out of the way. Zhuo Xi fell directly to the ground, and her foot, in its high-heeled shoe, twisted.

Ji Mingxiao couldn’t help but gasp. It looked painful. Zhuo Xi’s expression twisted for a moment but was immediately composed.

On the screen, Zhuo Xi propped herself up and sat on the ground, saying something to Ji Chanhan. Although there was no sound, Ji Mingxiao could guess from her expression that she was likely playing the victim.

She even reached out her hand in the end.

Then, after a silent three seconds, Ji Chanhan simply walked around her and left.

Ji Mingxiao almost laughed out loud.

[Fu Youzheng: Well done.]

[Ji Chanhan: I thought you liked her?]

[Fu Youzheng: Would you like someone who tries to cuckold you? And I’m starting to question her sexual orientation.]

[Ji Chanhan: You women are so much trouble.]

Around nine o’clock the next morning, Zhuo Xi called. Ji Mingxiao immediately started recording.

“What’s up? No filming today?”

“Youzheng, I accidentally sprained my ankle yesterday. It hurts like hell. They said I’d have to rest for over a week,” Zhuo Xi’s voice was full of a hint of grievance.

Ji Mingxiao was silent for a few seconds. “Injured while filming?”

“Yeah.”

Ji Mingxiao couldn’t help but roll her eyes. This woman really had no shame.

“Didn’t they say a stunt double would be used for all the difficult scenes?”

“I just… sprained it while walking.”

“You should be more careful,” Ji Mingxiao said, turning in front of her full-length mirror. “Are you at the hotel?”

“Yeah.”

“I’ll come find you.”

“Huh?” A hint of panic entered Zhuo Xi’s voice.

“I’m in Y City. I just got here last night, hoping to surprise you, but it looks like you’ve surprised me instead.”

Zhuo Xi’s breathing became a little hurried, a clear sign she was hiding something. Ji Mingxiao raised an eyebrow, thinking that besides the incident with Ji Chanhan, something else must have happened.

“What’s wrong, you’re not happy?”

“Of course I’m happy! You’re so busy, yet you came to visit. You should have told me ahead of time so I could prepare. What if my schedule was full?” Zhuo Xi quickly said.

“Then I’ll just watch you film. It’s no big deal,” Ji Mingxiao said, grabbing her bag and heading out. “So, you’re at the hotel?”

“Yes, are you coming over now?”

Ji Mingxiao thought she heard a sound from the other end. “Is there something going on over there? I think I heard a strange noise.”

She glanced at her watch; it was 8:53 AM.

“Nothing,” Zhuo Xi laughed. “If you’re coming, of course I need to get ready.”

Ji Mingxiao’s lips twitched. “Have you had breakfast? Do you want me to bring some over?”

“I haven’t. I’m craving some soup dumplings.” Ji Mingxiao noticed Zhuo Xi’s voice sounded a bit more excited.

“They only seem to have pork-filled ones around here. Aren’t you afraid of gaining weight?”

“I’ve lost a lot of weight filming lately, so it’s fine if I have a little meat.”

“Alright.” Ji Mingxiao hung up, thought for a moment, and sent a message to Ji Chanhan, asking him to get her the surveillance footage.

Ji Chanhan sent back a person’s phone number.

[Ji Chanhan: Talk to my assistant.]

Ji Mingxiao quickly got in touch with Ji Chanhan’s assistant, bought some breakfast, and went to Zhuo Xi’s hotel.

When she arrived, Ji Mingxiao immediately saw someone walking ahead of her whose back seemed very familiar. As the person was about to enter the elevator, Ji Mingxiao quickened her pace and slipped inside just before the doors closed.

Xi Ruan.

They exchanged a look.

“We meet again,” Ji Mingxiao said, pressing a button before glancing at her. “Which floor?”

“Fifth floor,” Xi Ruan stood in the corner, looking a little uncomfortable. “Thank you.”

“You know me,” Ji Mingxiao stated definitively, noticing her expression growing even more rigid.

“Yes.”

“So why were you running when you saw me?”

Xi Ruan clenched her fingers for a second, then looked at Ji Mingxiao. “I just don’t want to get too involved with anyone associated with Zhuo Xi.”

“Then why are you her stunt double?”

Xi Ruan looked at Ji Mingxiao again, frowning. “The pay is good.”

“If you debuted yourself, the money would be even better.”

Xi Ruan stared at Ji Mingxiao, her brows furrowed. “The money’s enough. I don’t want to be in the spotlight.”

The elevator doors opened. She bowed to Ji Mingxiao. “Goodbye, Ms. Fu.”

With that, she scurried out.

Ji Mingxiao felt a little speechless. Her evasiveness was just too obvious.

Zhuo Xi was on the ninth floor. When she arrived, the room had been tidied up, and the window was half-open, making the room a little cold.

“Why is the window open?” Ji Mingxiao asked, placing the food on the table.

“To air out the room, it was too stuffy.”

“I thought you were afraid of the cold,” Ji Mingxiao said, already guessing what had happened. “Come on, let’s eat.”

They ate in a slightly awkward silence.

Ji Mingxiao noticed Zhuo Xi’s attention wasn’t on her. She felt her previous suspicion was basically confirmed, and now she just had to wait to go back and watch the surveillance footage.

She took a sip of milk. “What’s wrong? You seem distracted.”

“Nothing,” Zhuo Xi shook her head. “I probably just didn’t sleep well because my ankle was so painful last night.”

“Why didn’t you call me yesterday?”

Zhuo Xi pursed her lips, lowered her head, and poked at a dumpling with her chopsticks. “I originally planned to tough it out and didn’t want to worry you, but in the end, I just couldn’t help it.”

“You don’t need to hold back,” Ji Mingxiao said, tapping the table. “I was thinking of taking you out for a walk, but now it seems we’ll have to stay in the room. What do you want to do?”

“Let’s watch a movie.”

“Okay, sitting on the bed will be very comfortable.”

Although Zhuo Xi was still smiling, her smile was a little stiff. “I’ll have someone change the sheets later. I was so sweaty last night; they’re probably dirty. You know what? You could go out and buy a couple of milk teas for us. The one I want doesn’t deliver.”

She looked at Ji Mingxiao. “Would you do that for me?”

“Of course, I’ll do whatever you want today.” Ji Mingxiao glanced at the bed, a cold smirk forming in her mind.

She really couldn’t wait.

Ji Mingxiao left the room and checked her phone. Ji Chanhan’s assistant had already sent the surveillance footage to her email, with the subject line marked [Warning: Shocking Content].

Like boss, like employee.

She found the milk tea shop Zhuo Xi mentioned and sat down to watch the footage. At 11:30 PM the previous night, Yuan Qian, the male lead of the show, entered Zhuo Xi’s room. He left at 9:05 AM. The assistant had even helped fast-forward the footage in the middle, only showing the original speed when Yuan Qian entered and exited the room, and even specifically zoomed in on their faces to make sure Ji Mingxiao could see clearly.

How considerate.

[Ji Mingxiao: Thank you. I hope the hotel can keep it a secret that someone requested the footage.]

[Ji Chanhan’s Assistant: Don’t worry, I’ve already taken care of it.]

“System, what kind of person with a holier-than-thou attitude and a screw loose would want to win this person over with love? This person is definitely not lacking in love,” Ji Mingxiao said, saving multiple copies of the video before putting her phone away.

On the other side, the assistant was excitedly describing the chaotic situation to Ji Chanhan.

“CEO, what do you think Ms. Fu will do after she sees this?”

“She’ll probably keep holding back for now, then find the right opportunity to expose it for maximum profit. That woman is truly vicious.”

Support The Host Has Fallen for the Second Female Lead Again