Transmigrated as the Top-Tier Alpha's Secretly Married Ex-Wife - Chapter 19

Chapter 19

“Tuantuan, this flower is so pretty! And that one is lovely too!”

Jiang Zhizhi was a truly curious person. She looked at everything, interested in every kind of flower. Su Tuantuan followed her, taking pictures along the way. When she felt she had enough, she pressed the pause button and saved the video.

“Here you go.”

Su Tuantuan handed the camera to Jiang Zhizhi. Jiang Zhizhi was surprised. “Do you want me to help take pictures? I don’t know how to use it to take pictures…”

“This is your study assignment.”

Su Tuantuan’s face was expressionless, making her fox eyes appear slightly cold. “All the videos I just took are of your relaxed expressions. When you go back, look in the mirror and practice according to the expressions in this video. Come back to me when it becomes muscle memory.”

Jiang Zhizhi’s biggest problem was that she had formed a set pattern of acting in her mind, but the terrible part was that she didn’t have a corresponding template to reference.

It would be great if she had a matching template to imitate, but when she performed, she would habitually solidify her acting.

A fixed smile, a fixed cry, a fixed blank stare, a fixed sorrow.

This was fine if she were just a background piece, but it was far from enough to deliver lines and convey emotion.

Jiang Zhizhi exclaimed, “Ah,” frowning deeply. “I’m studying myself? But I already…”

Her acting… oh no, she didn’t have any acting skill.

“If you don’t even know what emotions you can express, how can you play someone else?”

Su Tuantuan crossed her arms, showing little patience. “I teamed up with you only because you look a little smarter than the others and might improve faster. If you’re unwilling, I have no problem teaming up with someone else.”

Anyway, whoever she paired with would be a burden.

Jiang Zhizhi immediately cowered, clutching the camera, afraid Su Tuantuan would leave her to team up with someone else. “I’ll study, I’ll study! Tuantuan, I will! I’m going to practice right now!”

Anyone else would be desperate for such a learning opportunity.

Jiang Zhizhi ran off with the camera. Su Tuantuan had nothing else to do. She leisurely sat on a rocking chair in the park, squinting at the gradually orange-purple twilight in the distance.

The comments section was discussing what Su Tuantuan and Jiang Zhizhi were doing.

The way they looked, it wasn’t like they were rehearsing. It looked more like…

Flirting?

Although they couldn’t hear what the two were saying.

Su Tuantuan didn’t sleep well last night, dreaming all night. She almost fell asleep in the rocking chair but was woken up by a staff member. “Miss Su, you have a delivery!”

Su Tuantuan lifted her eyelids at the news, annoyed at whoever disturbed her peace.

The camera couldn’t capture the area of the living quarters, and Su Tuantuan disappeared from the corner.

: “She’s not practicing, nor is she actively asking the instructors for guidance. Is Su Tuantuan planning to coast along?”

: “How confident is she? Even if her last performance was good, she shouldn’t be like this, right?”

: “I feel like she’s disrespecting the other hard-working contestants.”

All kinds of comments appeared, and Su Tuantuan also saw the delivery package.

It contained some snacks, fruits, and things like first-aid kits and medicine.

Su Tuantuan remembered that the original owner’s grandmother had passed away before she graduated, and she had no other family members. So, who sent these things?

Then she saw a familiar food container at the bottom.

Inside the container were a few snow maidens, a type of mochi. This was the container she had used to pack chicken drumsticks for Mo Xian.

She treated Mo Xian to a meal last time, so Mo Xian was reciprocating with these snacks.

Quid pro quo?

It seems she really dislikes me.

A hint of sarcasm appeared in Su Tuantuan’s eyes. She threw the container back into the box and carried it to the communal tea area.

At this point, she reappeared in front of the camera.

The resting actors looked at her carrying a pile of things, all curious about what it was. Su Tuantuan generously waved her hand. “It’s a big snack package I won in a lottery. There are fruits and desserts, and first-aid items. Take whatever you want.”

After saying that, she went to make herself a cup of coffee without looking at the box again.

Hearing that there were good things to share, they immediately gathered around and divided the items.

They were initially a little embarrassed, afraid Su Tuantuan would get angry if they took everything. Su Tuantuan returned after making coffee, smiling faintly. “It’s fine. Just think of it as doing a good deed. I’m currently on a diet.”

Everyone cheered, saying how nice she was. Su Tuantuan asked them to save two packs for Jiang Zhizhi, then returned to her rest room.

The comments section was stunned.

: “Is Su Tuantuan that rich? There are so many imported snacks!”

: “She said she won it in a lottery, but these things must cost a lot of money!”

: “How does Su Tuantuan resist the temptation of delicious food!!!”

All kinds of comments were flying. Mo Xian watched the live screen, her fingertips digging into her palm.

So, Su Tuantuan didn’t want any of the snacks she sent over.

Is it because she doesn’t like them…?

But those were all things she remembered Su Tuantuan eating or mentioning before. Why didn’t Su Tuantuan want them?

Did she realize they were sent by me, so she didn’t want them? Or did she not know who sent them, so she didn’t want them?

Just then, her phone rang.

It was A-Huai calling. A-Huai sounded breathless on the other end. “I investigated. The hotel surveillance footage from half a year ago is gone. It’s impossible to check. I looked at the duty records from that time and questioned the servers and cleaners who were on that floor that night.”

“They all said they did see you at the dinner party that night, and you were drunk, but you were helped away by a woman. As for who that woman was, they have no memory.”

Mo Xian was silent for a few seconds. “Did you find out anything about Su Tuantuan’s family?”

When they were secretly married, Mo Xian didn’t even want to look at her, much less investigate her family.

A-Huai, however, already knew.

“She was raised by her grandmother since childhood. Her parents reportedly died in an accident. Her grandmother used to run a small food stall. Later, in high school, when her grandmother’s health declined, her neighbor hired her to work part-time at a convenience store. She’s genuinely a poor girl.”

A-Huai was confused. “Mo Xian, I also checked her social circles at the time. She suddenly decided to apply to an art academy for some unknown reason. In school, she only got along well with one friend named Bai Xue. This Bai Xue, though—”

A-Huai’s tone hesitated. “She’s also a gold digger. She signed a contract by letting her manager take advantage of her, and she’s been tepid ever since—”

“Bai Xue?”

Mo Xian’s expression suddenly became serious.

There seemed to be an actress named Bai Xue in that competition, right?

But there didn’t seem to be much interaction between her and Su Tuantuan.

“You said her only friend in college was Bai Xue.”

Mo Xian searched for Bai Xue’s information on her computer and sent the photo to A-Huai. “Is it this Bai Xue?”

A-Huai sounded excited on the phone. “Yes, yes, this is Bai Xue! A-Xian, you can’t get involved with people who hang out with this kind of person—”

“No.”

Mo Xian stood up, feeling that something was wrong, everything was wrong.

“This Bai Xue has issues.”

She said with almost certainty. “Or, something definitely happened between her and Su Tuantuan. Keep investigating.”

A-Huai groaned in frustration. “Fine, my dear ancestor, I guess you won’t focus on work until all this is cleared up!”

After hanging up, Mo Xian sat back on the sofa, took out paper and pen, and wrote down the differences between the former and current Su Tuantuan.

The way she dressed, her manner of speaking and doing things, even her handwriting—

Mo Xian bit the end of her pen, thought for a moment, and called Zhou Yang at Star River International.

Su Tuantuan had a good night’s sleep. When she woke up the next day, she found another delivery had arrived.

This time, it arrived before 8 a.m. The early-rising actors saw the large bag of snacks in front of Su Tuantuan and felt that Su Tuantuan was practically begging for the label “gullible idiot” on her forehead.

Su Tuantuan looked at the snacks, which were completely different flavors from yesterday’s, and felt a surge of anger.

Didn’t she see me give away the snacks yesterday?

Why is she shamelessly sending more?

She searched for a long time and found a spot with a signal to call Mo Xian.

She called Mo Xian’s work number. Usually, Mo Xian’s assistant or manager handled this number. Su Tuantuan was filled with rage, and as soon as the call connected, she didn’t mince words. “I need to speak to Mo Xian!”

The other end was silent for two seconds, then Mo Xian’s soft voice came through. “This is me.”

Su Tuantuan: “…”

It felt like a punch landed on cotton.

She didn’t know why Mo Xian’s voice had become so gentle.

She spoke testily. “The snacks from yesterday and today, you sent them, right?”

“Yes.”

Mo Xian didn’t deny it.

Su Tuantuan sneered, trying to contain her anger. “I don’t need those things. Please stop sending them in the future.”

She could afford them herself.

When the original owner was good to Mo Xian, Mo Xian didn’t cherish her. Now that she had come and replaced the original owner to get a divorce, this person immediately started sending snacks and care?

Although Su Tuantuan had no dating experience, it didn’t mean she was stupid.

If yesterday she thought Mo Xian was sending snacks to draw a clear boundary, sending them again today was very suspicious.

This was really odd!

What kind of ex-wife constantly sent big snack packages?

Mo Xian heard the anger in Su Tuantuan’s voice and realized she might have crossed a line. “I’m sorry. I just saw that the meals there weren’t very good, and you might not be used to them, so I sent some food…”

“But I don’t need it.”

Su Tuantuan stated firmly. “Besides, even if I needed it, I wouldn’t ask you for it. What is our relationship? We’re not even friends, are we?”

Mo Xian didn’t speak, and the atmosphere instantly became tense.

Su Tuantuan said coldly, “Let’s not get tangled up anymore. I just want to live my own life from now on.”

She took a deep breath. “Do you understand?”

Mo Xian understood.

But she also didn’t.

She didn’t know why things had come to this point.

She just wanted to express her goodwill, without excessive pursuit.

She simply wanted to be closer to her.

Why was she being so rejected?

She didn’t understand.

“So, you despise me now.”

Mo Xian’s voice was a little lost, sounding soft, like an easily bullied lamb.

Su Tuantuan glanced back at the camera that was about to start the live broadcast, hardening her heart. “Yes. Stop bothering me.”

She hung up the phone.

Since then, Su Tuantuan never received any more packages.

Her world was finally quiet.

And she and Jiang Zhizhi began their formal rehearsal.

Jiang Zhizhi was an actress who was easily distracted and easily suppressed when acting opposite Su Tuantuan. Su Tuantuan spent these days correcting Jiang Zhizhi’s flaws.

The instructors came to watch twice, and afterward, they looked mysteriously at the camera, saying they were very much looking forward to Su Tuantuan and her group’s performance.

Soon, the second public competition of The Road to Acting arrived.

The script Su Tuantuan had drawn was incredibly absurd.

Su Tuantuan nearly spat up blood when she saw it.

The script told the story of a couple about to break up.

The reason for the breakup was not anything else but that one of them had a terminal illness and didn’t want the other to be sad, so they fabricated a lie, telling their lover they no longer loved them.

The two were heartbroken, arguing furiously. Finally, the lover left, and the one with the terminal illness died alone.

This was utterly ridiculous.

Su Tuantuan hadn’t watched a drama this absurd since the third grade of elementary school.

So, she adapted the script.

The performance required specific stage settings. Su Tuantuan had previously submitted her required props to the production team.

Other performers also followed suit, but the production team reused props. Therefore, the groups performing first certainly had an advantage with props, as they would appear fresh to the audience.

Su Tuantuan and Jiang Zhizhi’s performance was scheduled for Sunday.

They were originally scheduled to perform on Saturday, but the netizens’ expectations for Su Tuantuan were too high, and the production team worried that if they performed on Saturday, people wouldn’t tune in on Sunday.

So, they were scheduled right at the Sunday cutoff point, performing last.

Netizens were somewhat resentful about this.

The production team had live audience tickets, usually inviting well-known industry figures.

The ranking was determined by combining their votes, the judges’ scores, and the online popularity.

Relatively speaking, this was considered fair.

Sun Qiushuang was invited to watch the competition. Knowing Su Tuantuan wouldn’t be performing on Saturday, she took advantage of the time before the show started to go find her.

Seeing Jiang Zhizhi rehearsing with Su Tuantuan, Sun Qiushuang was a little jealous. She took the opportunity while Su Tuantuan was in the bathroom to approach and grab Jiang Zhizhi.

“You’re not allowed to drag our Tuantuan down, got it!”

Sun Qiushuang stood with her hands on her hips, warning Jiang Zhizhi in what she thought was a fierce manner.

Jiang Zhizhi was startled, backed away, and tried not to cry. “…Okay.”

“What ‘okay’? You have to use your brain when acting. If you make any mistakes during the competition that cause Tuantuan to be eliminated, I’ll—”

Sun Qiushuang thought for a moment. “I’ll curse you to gain twenty pounds!”

Jiang Zhizhi looked horrified.

Su Tuantuan, returning after washing her hands: “…”

What is this, elementary school drama?