The Person I Love Who Has Been Missing For Three Years - Chapter 9

Chapter 9: The Butterfly of a Bright Summer

The next day was the launch ceremony.

Despite the blocked main road and difficult transportation, many media outlets still traversed the mountains to attend because the drama featured a renowned director, a popular young star, and a rising young actor.

Song Xiangwan was called to get up at six in the morning, which put her in a bad mood. Her annoyance intensified when she waited an hour in the makeup room and the makeup artist still hadn’t arrived.

She checked the time, yawned, stood up, and left: “Cheng Cheng, let’s go back to sleep.”

“Sister Wan, the ceremony starts at nine…” Cheng Cheng quickly followed after this grand-mistress.

“Exactly. I have two hours, just enough time for a beauty sleep,” Song Xiangwan said as a matter of course.

“Aren’t you going to put on makeup? There will be a lot of media today,” Cheng Cheng cautiously reminded her.

“No,” Song Xiangwan said carelessly.

Passing by Su Chenxing’s makeup room, she clearly heard lively chatter inside, again with a large entourage surrounding her.

Of course, Song Xiangwan wasn’t completely giving up. She slept until 8:30, got up, put on a face mask, and was very satisfied with the flawless state of her skin in the mirror. No amount of makeup would make her more refined than Su Chenxing, so it was better to be like a lotus emerging from clear water, naturally unadorned.

It was a bright sunny day. The launch ceremony was held outdoors, and the media seating was completely full. The assistant director was warmly chatting with a group of people.

Lu Yuhang saw Song Xiangwan and walked over with a smile: “Teacher Song, did you sleep well last night?”

“It was okay.” Song Xiangwan shielded her forehead from the sun with her hand, squinting against the glaring daylight.

“Teacher Song, here’s some water.” A lively young girl’s voice offered a bottle of mineral water.

“Thank you.” Song Xiangwan subconsciously took it, twisted off the cap, and took a sip, only then realizing that the bottle had a large picture of Lu Yuhang’s head on it. It was fan club support…

Lu Yuhang’s support color was blue, and Su Chenxing’s was pink. Groups of young girls were distributing supplies, creating patches of blue and pink.

Su Chenxing walked through the crowd, smiling and greeting her fans: “Thank you for your hard work! Do you want a photo together?”

“Yes, yes, yes! Star-Star, you look so beautiful today!”

“Star-Star, we are your loyal fans!”

Song Xiangwan listened to the constant shrieking, feeling her ears hurt. She found a chair, sat down, and fanned herself, waiting for the ceremony to begin.

Lu Yuhang followed her and started a conversation: “It’s a bit hot today, and there are quite a few mosquitoes here. I have an electric mosquito repellent. I’ll have my assistant send some over to you later.”

“Mhm.” Song Xiangwan nodded listlessly, not wanting to talk to him much.

Her phone vibrated with a message from Cao Xin: [My dear, check the trending topics.]

Trending topics? Song Xiangwan clicked it open. The launch ceremony was trending, and there was a live broadcast.

Following the launch ceremony trend was #SongXiangwanColdFace#.

At the $Qīng Chéng launch, Su Chenxing was actively promoting, interacting friendly with fans, and Lu Yuhang was full of smiles. Only Song Xiangwan seemed unhappy, maintaining a cold expression throughout. Lu Yuhang, the warm guy, noticed Song Xiangwan’s mood and chatted with her, but she remained aloof.

Both Lu Yuhang’s and Su Chenxing’s fan clubs were present to show support, but Song Xiangwan’s fans were nowhere to be seen. Could this be why Song Xiangwan was in a bad mood, feeling embarrassed?

Furthermore, the editor noted that Song Xiangwan appeared without makeup, showing a lack of respect for the occasion.

Not long ago, a passerby even photographed Song Xiangwan secretly crying in an elevator after the $Qīng Chéng crew dinner. A former A-list actress has fallen to this, only able to support a young star. We wonder if this is another reason for her bad mood.

Song Xiangwan: “…” She was speechless. These marketing accounts knew her inner thoughts better than she did.

Cao Xin: [I’m already contacting the media to suppress the trend. Can you please smile a little?]

Song Xiangwan: [Don’t want to smile. Too tired.]

Smile just because they tell me to? Who do they think they are?

Song Xiangwan sat in the chair playing on her phone. Her rebellious streak flared up, making her even less willing to talk to Lu Yuhang.

These kinds of trending topics usually had multiple forces behind them. The crew’s publicity needed the hype, and Su Chenxing and Lu Yuhang definitely boosted the trends praising them. They wouldn’t be suppressed anytime soon.

Song Xiangwan had gotten used to being criticized over the past two years; she was experienced in it. She would probably remain trending until the ceremony ended.

However… this time was very strange…

She only scrolled a couple of times, and the trending topic disappeared.

Song Xiangwan: [Sister Cao, your tactics have improved!]

Cao Xin: [Huh? I just contacted them. I haven’t had time to suppress it yet…]

Then, a new trending topic surged up out of nowhere, rising to an even higher position than the previous negative one.

#SongXiangwanBarefacedGoddess#

Clicking into it, there was a flood of marketing accounts praising her. She was wearing the crew’s uniform T-shirt and black jeans today.

Song Xiangwan: “…” These marketing accounts might not understand her inner world, but they were quite objective when describing her appearance.

Cao Xin: [Whose powerful connections did you latch onto?]

Song Xiangwan: [None! If I had connections, would I have been like this for the past two years?]

Cao Xin: [I don’t believe you.]

Cao Xin: [With a temper this bad and still managing to get by, I’ve long suspected you have a sugar daddy.]

Cao Xin: [Just admit it! Am I about to strike it rich?]

Song Xiangwan: [You can find anything in a dream. Go to sleep.]

Song Xiangwan had a suspicion, but she didn’t dare to entertain it. After all, that person referred to her as Miss Song, acting like they didn’t know her.

LessIceLightSugar: Fan club support will be delivered in one hour.

Song Xiangwan: Got it, thanks. Was the trending topic you, too?

LessIceLightSugar: Focus on filming. Don’t think too much.

LessIceLightSugar: Signing off.

Having identified the financial backer, Song Xiangwan sighed softly. For some reason, she felt a slight sense of disappointment.

It was a rich older sister, not Ming Jin… The last flicker of hope in her heart was extinguished.

When Song Xiangwan’s support materials were delivered, her eyelids twitched violently. This rich older sister was lavish!

Gift boxes were distributed to everyone on the crew, including the media present today. Each box contained a full set of luxury skincare products and a gold lucky charm bracelet.

Lunch boxes were also provided, sourced from the nearest five-star hotel, featuring lobster, steak, imported fruits, and desserts. She even donated mobile air conditioners and generators to the crew, along with a batch of portable monitors and high-end reflectors.

Were these resources that could be mobilized in just one hour? Song Xiangwan was completely convinced that this was absolutely not an underage person.

The negative trend about Song Xiangwan’s cold face fell apart on its own. The entire internet was flooded with posts from the crew and media showcasing Song Xiangwan’s extravagant support.

Song Xiangwan ate her lunch and sent a message to the rich older sister: Thank you. Received it. You shouldn’t have.

The message remained unread. Song Xiangwan occasionally checked, and the unread marker stayed there. It wasn’t until three days later that she received a reply from LessIceLightSugar: You’re welcome. Focus on filming and pursuing your dream.

A career fan? Was this rich older sister playing some kind of development game?

Due to the landslide, much of the filming equipment hadn’t been transported yet, causing some delay. The first few days were spent filming dialogue scenes. Three days later, the road was cleared, and the wirework equipment was delivered.

Song Xiangwan spent an entire day hanging from wires and was sore all over when she came down. Just as she was about to unhook the harness, she heard Director Wu shout: “Hold on! Chenxing hasn’t arrived yet. Teacher Song, let’s move the next scene up and film it now.”

The next scene was also wirework.

Song Xiangwan looked at the blazing sun and frowned. It was the middle of the day. What did it mean that the person still hadn’t arrived?

Song Xiangwan was not one to take slights. She unhooked her harness and walked over. Seeing her approach, Director Wu immediately greeted her with a smile: “I’m sorry. Thank you for your hard work, Teacher Song.”

“I’ve sent people to rush her. There’s nothing I can do.”

“We can’t just halt the production. We still need to catch up on the schedule.”

You don’t hit a smiling face. Song Xiangwan swallowed her words. Forget it, I won’t fuss.

Harnesses reattached, Song Xiangwan was hoisted up again. The sun was scorching overhead, making it hard to keep her eyes open.

This was an action scene. Song Xiangwan needed to twirl the sword in her hand, thrust it toward the green screen opposite, then perform a 360-degree mid-air spin, and finally land steadily.

Her costume was a red dress. The red skirt flared in the wind like a blazing fire, every fold carrying a fierce energy. As she spun, the silver chain around her waist scattered faint light. The red silk attached to her wrist intertwined with the long sword. Her hair flew, and the tassels of her phoenix hairpin swayed, reflecting a pair of sharp, phoenix-like eyes. Her features were beautiful, like an enticing red rose.

She was trained in dance, and her fight scene was as beautiful as a dance. The red gown, caught by the strong wind, outlined her clean shoulder and back lines. Her movements were light and graceful, like a fluttering red butterfly, or a red maple leaf set ablaze.

Mid-air, Song Xiangwan focused on her movements.

On the ground, in the dense bamboo forest, someone watched her fluttering figure through the gaps in the leaves.

So beautiful, just like the first time they met.

She was also wearing a red dress, slightly tipsy, filming a short promotional video under the streetlights. Her toes lightly pointed, her waist as supple as willow, and her red skirt spread out like flowing clouds. Her face was slightly flushed, adorned with a bright smile.

The streetlight shone on her, as if the world was reduced to just that one beam of light. The surroundings were pitch black, but every strand of her hair was clearly visible.

It was summer. She spun and danced, crashing into Ming Jin’s heart.

The corner of Ming Jin’s lips couldn’t help but curve into a faint smile. Yes, Song Xiangwan was the butterfly of a bright summer. She should be dancing gracefully under the scorching sun, displaying her most beautiful dance moves, showcasing her exquisite wings.

But… with a loud thud, the smile on Ming Jin’s lips froze. Her hands, resting on the wheelchair, clenched instantly.

The spinning butterfly in mid-air suddenly dropped, and the entire wirework equipment creaked loudly.

“Sis…” Xu Zhiyan quickly looked down to check her condition.

“Don’t worry about me. Find someone to check. How is she?” Ming Jin’s voice was heavy with gasping. She stared intently ahead. The distance and the sudden rush of people meant she couldn’t see anything.

If not for these legs, she would definitely run over now and hold Song Xiangwan in her arms. But now…

Ming Jin’s gaze fell upon her own legs, filled with intense self-loathing. The knuckles of her fingers gripping the armrests were white from the force.

Xu Zhiyan’s first concern was naturally her sister. She quickly knelt down to check Ming Jin’s complexion: “Okay, okay, I’ll find someone to ask immediately. How are you now? Are you alright?”

Xu Zhiyan couldn’t help but be afraid. Given Ming Jin’s current health, she shouldn’t be in this damp mountain area at all. Just yesterday, she had been released from the hospital. She had been in the intensive care unit, half-awake and half-comatose for three full days.

Yet, the first thing she did upon waking up was suggest coming here for a vacation. What kind of vacation? This awful place was remote, cold, damp, inconveniently located, and desolate.

For whose sake, Xu Zhiyan could easily guess.