Transmigrated as the CEO's Top-Tier Stand-in - Chapter 40

Chapter 40

A day remained before the second public performance.

Ji Yu never received any news from Si Tian. Slowly, she stopped outwardly expressing her concern about it, letting it sink into the bottom of her heart, only to resurface in the dead of night or when she was exhausted from practice.

The closer the performance date, the more nervous everyone became.

The first stage eliminated the nine poorest performers, but the end of this second public performance would reveal everyone’s popularity rankings, eliminating the bottom nineteen contestants.

This cruel system meant that from tonight on, more people would suffer from insomnia.

9:00 PM.

Ji Yu had just run through the dance with Rong Bai and the others. While taking a rest, she heard Rong Bai ask the cameraman nearby: “What’s the reward for the group that gets first place in the second performance? Can I contact my friend?”

Ji Yu and the other girls chuckled. Everyone in the production team now knew that Rong Bai had a childhood friend she was close to. They had heard that the friend had many fans in Country H and was helping Rong Bai with cross-border voting, showing the depth of their relationship.

Chu Nanxing in the neighboring group overheard this and jokingly joined the conversation: “What if the production team arranges for you to jointly participate in a top variety show, or film your own exclusive MV? Would you be disappointed?”

Rong Bai thought about it. Suppressing her longing for her friend, she curved her lips and said: “Then I guess I can endure it a little longer—it’s not a big problem.”

The two groups in the classroom burst into cheerful laughter.

Until a staff member suddenly knocked on the door, drawing everyone’s attention. A young woman wearing a staff badge stood outside and asked them: “The second public performance is the day after tomorrow. Are you nervous?”

Chu Nanxing sat in front of the mirror, resting her chin in one hand, and smiled at the staff member: “Yes, we are. So, is the production team planning to comfort us?”

Hearing the word ‘comfort,’ Rong Bai gave up questioning the camera and instead looked expectantly at the doorway. The girl who had been leaning over to secretly feel her arm muscles during the rest period instinctively tensed up upon seeing the production team, afraid they were about to add more stress to the already tense schedule. Her grip was unintentionally firm, making Rong Bai gasp.

The girl immediately let go anxiously and apologized to her.

At this moment, the staff member standing at the doorway, out of frame, said to them: “That’s right. The director, Brother Feng (Qi Feng), and a few mentors discussed it and decided to give you a little treat to help you relax tonight. You can prepare well tomorrow and strive for good results the day after tomorrow—”

The same words rang out at the doors of the other practice rooms.

Everyone played along with a loud “Wow!” pretending to be surprised, and asked: “What kind of treat?”

The staff member smiled and asked them: “Does treating you to hotpot count?”

The girls, who had been wary of the “treat,” let out an exceptionally genuine “Wow!” upon hearing the word “hotpot.”

“Hotpot?!”

“Tears of emotion are streaming down from the corner of my mouth…”

“Wuwuwu, what kind of fairy production team is this?”

Some were moved and wiped the corner of their mouths, while others saw through the production team’s intention: “They are too cunning. The performance is the day after tomorrow. The fat accumulated from eating hotpot tonight will be completely burned off tomorrow due to excessive nervousness. And it will make us feel guilty for slacking off for an evening, so we’ll work twice as hard tomorrow and the day after—”

A girl next to her nudged her: “Are you falling for it?”

The speaker immediately replied: “Of course! It’s hotpot! The soul of food!”

The tense atmosphere in the classroom quickly dissipated. The girls were all chatting excitedly about their favorite soup bases, dishes, and preferred dipping sauces. They hadn’t even left the hotel, yet it seemed as if they were already sitting at the dining table.

When everyone gathered to wait for the scenic bus, Ling Lan came over from the adjacent group, happily draped her arm over Ji Yu’s shoulder, and asked her what soup base she liked.

Ji Yu answered without thinking: “Mushroom, Three Delicacies, Tomato.”

Ling Lan: “…All non-spicy broths?”

Ji Yu nodded. Her stomach wasn’t feeling well lately, so she naturally wouldn’t crave overly stimulating flavors, or she would be the one to suffer.

Ling Lan rubbed her nose, then suddenly sighed dramatically, saying affectionately to Ji Yu: “The greatest love a spicy-food eater has for a beautiful Jiejie—is a鸳鸯 Yuanyang (split) pot.”

Ji Yu immediately burst into laughter.

As they were talking, the first tour bus arrived. As Ji Yu boarded, she heard someone from the opposite group ask: “Huh? Has anyone seen Nanxing?”

Ji Yu had already found a random seat. Ling Lan squeezed in beside her. Ji Yu remembered the question and watched as people filed onto the bus. Finally, Chu Nanxing rushed in, explaining to her companions that she had gone to the restroom.

At this moment, the system spoke to Ji Yu:

“The world line has fluctuated again.”

Perhaps because it was now primarily monitoring Chu Nanxing, it was much more sensitive to detecting anomalies around her. Ji Yu raised an eyebrow upon hearing this and asked the system:

“What is she trying to do this time?”

The system carefully ran several checks for Ji Yu and finally concluded: “I don’t know, but it doesn’t seem to be targeting you.”

Ji Yu pondered for a moment but couldn’t figure out who Chu Nanxing was targeting. She didn’t want to keep focusing her attention on this person either; after all, one couldn’t guard against a thief for a thousand days. So, she just asked the system to keep monitoring and started chatting with Ling Lan beside her.

The production team was very generous, taking them to a Haidilao restaurant in the city center.

After all, it was past nine o’clock when they arrived. Few hotpot places were open 24 hours with attentive service. Haidilao’s wide variety of soup bases and sauces could basically satisfy everyone’s taste, making it the best choice.

Qi Feng and Night’s mentors also came, sitting at a table with Wang Luoshui and other production team members. Trainees occasionally approached them, toasting them with juice to build rapport—

Ji Yu was looking at the beef tripe in her Three Delicacies pot.

Suddenly, she heard the system say: “Huh?”

Her chopsticks trembled. The beef tripe, which had been boiling for fifteen seconds, immediately disappeared into the hot soup. As she hurried to fish it out, she asked the system: “What’s wrong?”

The system replied: “Meng Rendong is here too.”

Ji Yu said “Oh,” her voice immediately dropping a few keys, as if the name had made her sluggish. Then the system added: “The main point is… I found that she seems to have a strange energy fluctuation. The world line that Chu Nanxing changed before should have been directed at her.”

Ji Yu finally found the piece of beef tripe. The originally fresh, tender, and bouncy tripe was now a thin, curled piece, clearly overcooked. She didn’t mind. After dipping it in the sauce, she chewed vigorously, responding as the food went down:

“Normal.”

“Isn’t the script for this world about the two of them eventually ending up together?”

“Chu Nanxing probably got anxious because Meng Rendong keeps obsessing over the one she can’t have—me.”

She spoke with remarkable composure.

But the system noticed that every piece of beef tripe Ji Yu subsequently cooked was also overdone, having to float in the pot for a while before being found. Consequently, it had to start timing for Ji Yu, reminding her of the optimal cooking time for each food item.

Ling Lan next to her fished out a piece of basa fish from the tomato pot and piled it into Ji Yu’s bowl, saying: “Quick! There are only a few slices left. This fish is so tender, and it tastes perfect when cooked in the tomato pot—”

Ji Yu smiled and thanked her, quickly shifting her focus.

It wasn’t until someone ordered hand-pulled noodles. When the noodle master came over, performing a great juggling trick with a single strand of noodle, Ji Yu noticed that everyone’s eyes were on the noodles. She suddenly looked back at Wang Luoshui’s table.

But she didn’t see the familiar figure.

She nonchalantly turned her gaze back, then heard people at the adjacent table creating a ruckus, heading toward the mentors to collectively toast them. Ji Yu put her attention back on the commotion, like a spectator, until…

She saw Chu Nanxing leaving the scene.

Ji Yu squeezed her cup, distractedly picking it up to take a sip of warm water. But she found the liquid entering her mouth was sweet soy milk. She paused, then heard Ling Lan’s hurried voice next to her:

“Oops! I poured too many drinks and accidentally put soy milk by you. Are you okay?”

Ji Yu wasn’t bothered by a sip of sweet soy milk. She smiled and shook her head, then ate a few more bites of茼蒿 (tonghao, garland chrysanthemum) fished out of the pot, and looked around.

Chu Nanxing hadn’t returned.

Neither had Meng Rendong.

She joked to the system: “Is this story about to reach its happy ending?”

The system didn’t answer.

Ji Yu: “?”

She thought the system hadn’t received her message and continued slowly eating the vegetables in her bowl. After a while, she heard the system stuttering: “Yuyu…”

Ji Yu’s heart suddenly dropped.

She seemed to know what the system was about to say.

After a moment of silence, she took the initiative: “Is it… is it Si Tian again…?” Near here?

The system’s answer was cautious this time: “She’s currently on the pedestrian street outside this mall, seemingly stopped in front of a popular milk tea shop.”

It handed the choice to Ji Yu.

Go or not go?

How long would it take to get a cup of milk tea?

Could Ji Yu catch up?

But Ji Yu barely thought. She abruptly stood up from her seat, nearly knocking over the soy milk. Amidst Ling Lan’s concerned voice, she resolutely declared, “Stomachache,” and sprinted toward the door.

Ling Lan was left looking at her retreating figure, guiltily saying aloud: “She really can’t have anything sweet…”

Ji Yu told the production team she was going to the restroom.

They nodded, asking her to keep her communication device on, clearly remembering her running out of the venue during rehearsals before. But since the current atmosphere was one of joyful hotpot, they weren’t going to ditch their food to follow her to the bathroom.

Ji Yu ran off again without a hitch.

She initially planned to use Haidilao’s own elevator but found staff members waiting there for shifts. She immediately turned around toward the mall’s direction. Finding that the mall’s internal elevators had closed early, she asked the system for a map of the surrounding area.

Then, she chose to use the fire escape stairs. Running down there, the door would open right next to the milk tea shop where Si Tian was buying drinks.

Ji Yu ran faster this time than before. If she hadn’t been afraid of falling while descending the stairs too quickly, she would have jumped straight from one step to the next floor—

Until the corner on the second floor.

As she turned, she saw someone sitting by the fire door.

Ji Yu’s pupils contracted. Her first reaction was shock. The fire escape was dimly lit at night, and anyone suddenly encountering a sitting person while taking the stairs would instinctively jump.

But as her feet continued to move, her level of shock increased even more as she got closer.

The person sitting there was…

Meng Rendong.

She had hardly ever seen Meng Rendong in such a desolate state. Her black hair was somewhat messy. Her expensive formal dress was directly in contact with the dusty floor, and even the sleeve of her shirt was streaked with long gray marks.

It was obvious that the fire escape stairs weren’t regularly cleaned.

But.

Why was Meng Rendong here?

Ji Yu’s downward stride suddenly halted. She hesitated, then approached, half-squatting, and gently called out: “President Meng?”

Meng Rendong’s head was pounding. For a moment, she didn’t know where she was. Amidst her exhaustion, she suddenly realized she was having a hallucination; she thought she heard Ji Yu’s voice.

Without much thought, she reached out to grab the source of the sound.

Then, she found that she was actually holding a warm, soft arm.

Ji Yu subconsciously wanted to pull away, but seeing Meng Rendong’s state, she paused the movement. She asked: “President Meng, what’s wrong?”

Meng Rendong gently exhaled, wanting to speak, but the headache made it impossible. She could only shake her head lightly, using all her remaining strength to hold onto Ji Yu.

As if she wouldn’t even let go of a hallucination.

Ji Yu asked: “Are you feeling unwell?”

Meng Rendong nodded very slowly. She tilted slightly toward Ji Yu’s direction. Even though her eyes were still closed, her beautiful appearance remained unchanged, only her eyebrows were slightly furrowed, betraying some pain.

Ji Yu licked her dry lower lip, which was dry from the rapid run. She looked at the red dot’s location, noticing it had started moving, and quickened her voice:

“President Meng, I’m going to call the production team over to help you now. I’m very sorry, but I have something urgent—”

She didn’t pause in her speech.

Meng Rendong’s grip on her wrist tightened, her nails digging in. She seemed unable to hear what Ji Yu was saying, only not wanting her to leave.

Ji Yu looked at the red dot shared by the system in her mind, anxiously whispering: “I’m sorry, President Meng, I’m truly sorry. I… I really have something urgent. The production team is just on the sixth floor. I have a communication device, and they’ll be here very quickly…”

She was flustered, even reaching out with her other hand, trying to pry Meng Rendong’s fingers open.

But this time, Meng Rendong heard clearly. The strength in her fingertips lessened, her long, pale fingers loosening one by one. Her headache seemed to have subsided a little. Ji Yu heard her say softly:

“…Are you going to look for her again?”

Ji Yu froze for a moment.

Meng Rendong tried to raise the corners of her lips, as if trying to show her generosity, and said to her: “Go.”

“Don’t be late this time.”

This place was secluded.

But not necessarily empty of people.

No matter how dominant Meng Rendong was, she was completely vulnerable at the moment. If the production team arrived late, or if the plot Chu Nanxing arranged for her was too awful…

Ji Yu’s feet seemed rooted to the spot.

She watched helplessly as the red dot in her mind slowly moved farther away, seemingly unaware of her urgency. In front of her, Meng Rendong closed her eyes again, sitting in the corner, her hand dropping down, as if resigned to her fate.

Finally, Ji Yu stayed where she was and used her communication device to tell the production team about the situation.

After hanging up the call, she said to Meng Rendong: “President Meng, don’t fall asleep. Someone is coming right away. I’ve also called an ambulance…”

As she spoke, Ji Yu’s voice became smaller and smaller, as if her throat was choked.

She knew she had missed another chance.

Why did she keep missing Si Tian again and again?

Meng Rendong had already given up struggling against the headache. Hearing Ji Yu’s seemingly tearful voice, she opened her eyes again, staring intensely at her with her dark eyes. Then, she laboriously raised her hand to touch the corner of Ji Yu’s eye.

“Don’t cry.”

Meng Rendong said: “Didn’t I tell you to go?”

Ji Yu shook her head. Tears fell from the corner of her eye. She didn’t know where the sense of grievance came from.

But she didn’t want to tell Meng Rendong. So she just squatted there, burying her head in the crook of her arm, not letting Meng Rendong see her overly distraught state.

In a trance, she heard the other person sigh softly, calling her name in a very light voice: “Ji Yu.”

Ji Yu tried hard to wipe away her tears and answered her, afraid that she was feeling uncomfortable somewhere. Instead, she heard Meng Rendong, who was obviously in great pain, struggling to speak, her voice even slightly hoarse as she asked:

“…Let me help you find her, okay?”

Support Transmigrated as the CEO’s Top-Tier Stand-in