The Married Ice Queen Is a Little Sweet - Chapter 1

“Love is a light, so beautiful.”

An energetic female voice drifted from the car radio. Zhu Minxi’s hand, currently removing her makeup, couldn’t help but tremble slightly. Her mind automatically replaced the lyrics with a meme she had just seen a supporting actress post in the production group chat: Love is a light, so green it makes you panic.

“Please change the channel.”

Hearing this, the driver immediately switched to a different station. The warm yellow reading light remained on as a fresh, melancholy indie intro slowly flowed through the carriage. The assistant sitting in the passenger seat looked up into the rearview mirror at the serious woman behind her, a look of hesitation on her face.

“Sister Zhu, were you okay just now?”

“I’m fine.”

Once the music changed, Zhu Minxi continued her movements with the small mirror she carried, acting as if nothing had happened.

“Is Sister Qiao angry?”

The assistant’s voice dropped lower, appearing somewhat fearful.

Zhu Minxi had just finished attending a wrap party for a melodramatic, “youth-pain” idol drama. It had proven that transitioning from a girl-group idol to an actress was no simple feat.

On the day she graduated from the drama academy, she had collected a colorful fistful of hotel room cards along with her audition notices. One room card corresponded to one audition notice, covering almost every four and five-star hotel in the city.

Of course, it would have been more comfortable if the people handing out the cards weren’t greasy, middle-aged male directors winking at her in private.

To an outsider, it might have looked like she was a hospitality management major.

The “unspoken rules” of casting in the acting circle were common knowledge by now.

Coincidentally, the clean, beautiful face in the mirror was slightly flushed from alcohol. The corners of her eyes were red and her brows were arched; with just a light smile, she could exude a look that was both innocent and seductive.

A pure aura, charming features, and a fiery figure.

As a former member of the Goddess girl group, every aspect of her fit the aesthetic standards most favored by those “unspoken rules.”

In the corner of a trash bag lay a lonely room card that a director had just handed her.

Qiao Yan had seen the whole thing. After Director Li secretly stuffed the card into her hand, Qiao Yan had turned and left the set with a cold face, without leaving a single word behind.

Qiao Yan was her manager and also her girlfriend of three years.

Putting away her makeup tools, Zhu Minxi felt a bit irritable. This was likely going to lead to another fight.

It felt like only a month had passed since their last argument, which was also triggered by another director hinting at a sexual quid pro quo. Having been a manager in the entertainment industry for many years, Qiao Yan was intimately familiar with these rules and always hoped Zhu Minxi would quit the industry early.

However, this was her dream. Having finally climbed halfway up the mountain, how could she easily compromise because of other people’s faults? Furthermore, a year ago, Zhu Minxi had already quit Goddess—her debut group—because of Qiao Yan.

The two had a massive fight over it. Qiao Yan accused her of being vain and loving superficial glory. Zhu Minxi hadn’t argued back at the time; she did indeed love the stage and being the center of attention. Those rounds of applause and bouquets of flowers were things she had earned through hard work and sweat.

She was just surprised that if Qiao Yan hadn’t said it out loud, she would never have known the other woman harbored so much dissatisfaction. Back in university, Qiao Yan had claimed to support her.

Seeing her silence, Qiao Yan assumed she was admitting guilt. In a fit of rage, Qiao Yan spoke without thinking, questioning if she was willing to climb into a director’s bed just to get famous. Zhu Minxi had slapped her on the spot.

Managing artists was Qiao Yan’s job; did she really think all artists were that despicable?

Although Qiao Yan apologized later, Zhu Minxi understood that the woman ultimately loathed her staying in the entertainment industry.

“Sister Zhu, are you going back to the company or the apartment?”

“Where is she?”

Knowing that Qiao Yan was giving her the cold shoulder, Zhu Minxi decided she should explain things in person. At the same time, she couldn’t help but feel a sense of weariness. Qiao Yan’s personality was such that once she got angry, she preferred cold wars, which left Zhu Minxi at a loss. She would rather have a big fight like last time.

“Sister Qiao said she still has work and went back to the company first.”

It was the expected excuse. Zhu Minxi closed her eyes and leaned tiredly against the headrest of the backseat, hesitating whether or not to call Qiao Yan.

While she was debating, her phone rang, breaking her indecision. It was a call from the former group’s youngest member, Yu Sheng.

“Hello.”

“Sister Minxi, come to Jinhe quickly! During rehearsal just now, I saw your Qiao Yan hooking up with Shi Xiaoxiao!”

“Huh?”

Stunned for a moment, Zhu Minxi found Yu Sheng’s voice distorted by the signal. Coupled with the fact that the other girl was uncharacteristically aggressive, she didn’t quite understand what was being said for a second.

“What do you mean ‘huh’? Get over here now!”

Yu Sheng hung up the phone.

Afterward, Zhu Minxi received a “burn after reading” message on her social app. Pressing and holding for five seconds, she saw a blurry photo. Two women were extremely intimate, hugging in a stairwell. One of them, she would recognize even if she turned to ash—it was Qiao Yan, who had just left the set claiming to be at the office.

The other one also looked familiar: her rival, Shi Xiaoxiao.

Her brain stalled for several seconds. Zhu Minxi instinctively thought of a scene she had filmed not long ago.

Why did you fall for another woman? Where is she better than me?

This was a classic line for a cheated-on female lead in the melodramatic dramas she acted in, as if she were supposed to tearfully accuse the male lead of being unfaithful the next second.

However, at this moment, only four words remained in Zhu Minxi’s head. Her full red lips parted slightly, uttering the version of the line she had always wanted to use:

“Screw your grandfather.”

The assistant in the front wondered if her hearing was failing. Such vulgar swearing shouldn’t be coming from Zhu Minxi’s mouth.

Clutching her phone, Zhu Minxi told the driver expressionlessly,

“Turn around. Go to the Jinhe Hotel.”

At the hotel entrance, a black Land Rover was parked. The flash blinked twice, and a woman wearing a light blue suit stepped out of the car. Her brown hair was soft and slightly curled, draped elegantly over her shoulders. Her skin was so white it seemed to glow, shining brightly in the dark night. Her exquisite features were cold and unreadable. Her shadow, stretched by the streetlights, was slender and long, appearing a head taller than the car’s height.

“President Yue.”

Zhu Minxi recognized her Land Rover. Although they were in the same company, they were at different levels and, to avoid gossip, rarely met. Who would have thought they would bump into each other here?

Yue Linxue nodded faintly at her, exuding an aura that kept people a thousand miles away. Zhu Minxi shivered, instinctively put on her mask and hat, and silently followed her into the VIP section on the second floor.

Jinhe had high privacy standards, employing many experienced security guards to prevent paparazzi. The VIP booths on the second floor were specifically designed for movie stars; if you weren’t a regular, you couldn’t get in. That was likely why Qiao Yan dared to be so bold with Shi Xiaoxiao.

But as luck would have it, the hotel belonged to Yu Sheng’s family enterprise. This was a private matter, so Yu Sheng found it inconvenient to show up personally and had given her a pass instead.

The second floor was empty, save for two women leaning on each other under the hazy bead curtains. Yue Linxue wasn’t well-acquainted with Qiao Yan, so she must have come for Shi Xiaoxiao. Zhu Minxi was slightly surprised.

“Is that your girlfriend?”

They spoke in unison, then fell into a long and eerie silence.

No wonder Shi Xiaoxiao was so arrogant in the company; it turned out her backing was Yue Linxue.

Under her mask, the corner of Zhu Minxi’s mouth twitched.

At this moment, Qiao Yan’s hand was wandering all over Shi Xiaoxiao, and Shi Xiaoxiao wasn’t backing down either. Her red high heels were dangling loosely from her toes as she occasionally rubbed against Qiao Yan’s trouser leg. As the skin of their ankles touched, sparks flew.

The ambiguous atmosphere of pheromones hit them full force—a live version of “heavenly thunder igniting a ground fire,” even more captivating than the melodramatic dramas Zhu Minxi acted in.

She almost wanted to go up and push their heads together herself. Since they were so good at flirting and being provocative, why didn’t they go to Mt. Akina to compete for the title of “God of Racing”?

But she only thought it. she glanced at Yue Linxue; the other woman’s expression was still bland, but she noticed Yue Linxue’s hand gripping her bag very tightly.

Well, at least she wasn’t the only one with a glowing green light over her head. The person whose head had been planted with an entire green prairie was Yue Linxue.

Qiao Yan usually liked wearing casual T-shirts, but now she was wearing an incongruous black formal suit for women. Shi Xiaoxiao’s finger slid along the collar of the suit, looking as if she liked the clothes more than the person wearing them.

In a moment of sudden realization, Zhu Minxi looked down at Yue Linxue’s straight suit trousers, which didn’t have a single wrinkle. She suddenly wondered if Shi Xiaoxiao was usually like this—

“No.”

A cold voice interrupted her lewd fantasies. Yue Linxue had clearly seen what kind of “yellow” trash she was thinking about. Zhu Minxi rubbed her nose and gave an “oh,” feeling a bit embarrassed.

Yue Linxue intended to be direct and go forward to clarify things with Shi Xiaoxiao. Zhu Minxi grabbed her sleeve, but after being looked at, she shivered and cautiously let go.

“Wait a minute.”

She pulled out her phone. The other woman clearly didn’t have as much “experience” in catching a cheater as she did. If they rushed up like that, those two might cook up some excuse about being “best friends” to fool them. Right in front of Yue Linxue, she dialed Qiao Yan’s number—the one she hadn’t called yet—and turned on the speakerphone and recording.

“What is it?”

Qiao Yan’s voice was extremely cold, completely inconsistent with what she was currently doing. Despite this, Zhu Minxi’s heart felt as if it had been stung by a bee—especially when she noticed the strange look Yue Linxue cast her way. It was clearly Qiao Yan who was cheating, yet it felt like she was the one who had done something wrong.

“Nothing, where are you?”

Zhu Minxi didn’t show any abnormality, swallowing the pain alone. If it hadn’t been for Yu Sheng’s call today, she didn’t know how long she would have been sad alone in the apartment while the other party was out frolicking with some other dog.

It was just… freaking ridiculous.

“At the company. I’m not coming back tonight.”

Then the call was hung up by Qiao Yan.

Before Zhu Minxi could feel embarrassed, she saw Yue Linxue frown.

As fate would have it, Shi Xiaoxiao’s bell-like laughter drifted over from the distance. Qiao Yan had always been humorous and knew how to make girls happy. Zhu Minxi was used to it; she had experienced it herself, just not under these circumstances.

Thinking of this, Zhu Minxi suddenly realized that Yue Linxue was probably feeling very displeased too. Her former fiancée had run off with Qiao Yan, and now her girlfriend was messing around with Qiao Yan.

It was a bit awkward. She brushed her long hair and rolled her eyes at the “dog couple” who were flirting intensely over there. Glancing at the upright and honest figure next to her, she suddenly had an impulse.

“President Yue, how about we just get married?”

Yue Linxue looked down at this childhood friend—the ex-fiancée who had dumped her—with a puzzled expression.

“Look, feelings are just that fragile. What’s the point of talking about love? It’s better to have the reliability of a marriage contract. Our families have been friends for generations. I know your character, and you know my background. We can get married without feelings, but neither of us is allowed to betray the other. What do you say?”

Hurt by both the drama and reality, Zhu Minxi was nearly developing PTSD regarding relationships. Now, physically and mentally exhausted, she only wanted a loyal partner who would never violate an agreement. And of all the people she knew, Yue Linxue might not be the best candidate for romance, but she was the person least likely to break a contract.

“Okay.”

Only after understanding her meaning did Yue Linxue nod in agreement. This was a matter of each getting what they needed. She didn’t want to fall in love; a suitable marriage partner was exactly what she required. Although the other party had a “criminal record” of breaking an engagement, as Zhu Minxi said, she understood her. Being willful was one thing, but something that violated principles—like cheating—was something the other woman truly wouldn’t do.

As for “feelings,” what kind of green, glowing thing was that?

To ensure they caught them red-handed with evidence, they sat in a corner and waited for the two to finish their meal, then followed them to a room upstairs. The room number was witty—a golden, shimmering “419” (For One Night).

Zhu Minxi and Yue Linxue were both well-educated citizens with a strong sense of legality; they didn’t barge in.

“President Yue, what was the hotline for reporting vice again?”

“Let’s just knock.”

Both Zhu Minxi and Shi Xiaoxiao were celebrities. If the paparazzi caught this messy scene, the impact would be terrible. As a CEO, Yue Linxue had to prioritize the company’s interests, even though she also really wanted to dial 110.

Zhu Minxi took a deep breath. She wasn’t sure if Yue Linxue still cared about the person inside. Thinking about what was about to happen, she had to remind her again:

“Tomorrow morning at eight.”

“Meet at the Civil Affairs Bureau.”

Yue Linxue understood her meaning and answered quickly.