Transmigrated as the Top-Tier Alpha's Secretly Married Ex-Wife - Chapter 53

Chapter 53

Su Tuantuan couldn’t offer any advice or comfort in this area. She simply said, “Just be yourself. Whether others like you or not isn’t that important. Don’t anticipate too many bad outcomes before anything happens.”

She patted Qiao Yanran’s shoulder. “Trust Lawyer Shen.”

Qiao Yanran sighed in relief.

After being anxious for days, Su Tuantuan’s words finally settled her. She leaned against Su Tuantuan, acting spoiled. “Sister, what would I do without you…!”

Su Tuantuan, who couldn’t figure out her own relationship troubles, was now playing mentor, which made her want to laugh.

The intense filming schedule didn’t ease up because of Qiao Yanran’s arrival. Qiao Yanran left after two days. Su Tuantuan frequently clashed with the other two leads on this project, and the atmosphere on set wasn’t great.

Coupled with Sun Qiushuang’s extremely rigorous work ethic, the high-pressure environment offered no respite.

When filming finally wrapped up in April, Su Tuantuan only felt relief.

But she didn’t allow herself a break. Soon, she joined the cast of her next project, Beyond the Light Source. This was a period drama about a scientist’s great sacrifice.

She played the scientist’s wife, following their story from meeting to falling in love and growing old together, covering a large age span. The actors in this state-backed drama were all highly reputable. Su Tuantuan was recommended by Meng Han, who also had a role in the show.

The estimated filming time was nearly three months, and for half a month, Su Tuantuan would be filming in the desert.

Filming in the desert was not easy. Food was often gritty with sand, and bathing was a constant issue. Everyone filming here seemed to form deep bonds. Su Tuantuan became good friends with several people, despite the age gap.

In June, Su Tuantuan’s first starring role, Riding the Dragon, aired.

The show premiered in a prime-time slot and broke rating records on its opening night.

The trailer for the drama, which had been released a few days prior, showed Su Tuantuan as a delicate young woman who uses her wits and courage during exile. She eventually settles down in the borderlands, establishing her own career and finding love.

On the first day of broadcast, related online search terms exploded.

Su Tuantuan was still in the desert, where the signal was poor. Even the promotional posts on her Weibo were handled by Sister Zhou.

Bai Xue and others called to congratulate her, but Su Tuantuan’s video calls were constantly choppy.

Then Su Tuantuan heard Bai Xue ask her, “Mo Xian’s album is out, and she’s having a concert at the end of next month. Are you coming back?”

Su Tuantuan’s eyes deepened. Before she could figure out how to answer, the call dropped.

The internet connection was too poor.

That evening, Su Tuantuan was shaking the sand off her clothes in her tent when Meng Han shouted from outside, “Tuanzi, come out and look at the stars.”

The temperature dropped at night here. Su Tuantuan emerged, bundled in her parka, her hair flying everywhere. Meng Han gestured. “The Big Dipper, connected. See it?”

Su Tuantuan tilted her head, looking for a long time. “Where is the Big Dipper?”

There were countless stars in the sky; she really couldn’t tell which was which.

Meng Han pointed at a specific cluster. “There, the seven brightest stars. They connect to form a dipper. See it?”

Su Tuantuan gasped, “Wow! Teacher, you’re quite impressive. Do you know astronomy?”

Meng Han said proudly, “Of course. Seeing you with nothing but filming all day, I brought you out to look at the stars. You haven’t seemed particularly close to anyone here. Is something on your mind?”

Su Tuantuan looked at her in surprise. “How did you know?”

Su Tuantuan tsked. “It’s more than just something on my mind; I have a deep-seated demon. Teacher, if you don’t help me get rid of this demon, I won’t have a peaceful life. ”

Meng Han was intrigued. “Tell me about it?”

Su Tuantuan hugged her arms, brushing the hair from her face. “My demon is that I’m too poor. I want to make money. Teacher, why am I so poor, I—”

Meng Han: “…”

She backed away a few steps. “Get lost.”

Meng Han ignored her. Su Tuantuan laughed heartily all the way. A gust of wind rose, and she almost got a mouthful of sand. After watching the stars for a while, she heard someone in the crew was roasting lamb over red willow branches. Su Tuantuan went to scavenge two skewers. Back in her tent, she burrowed under the covers and scrolled through her phone gallery.

She had just taken pictures of the Big Dipper and the desert night scene.

She posted an update on her social media.

Su Tuantuan: “The stars in the sky do not speak.”

As soon as the post went up, she received many likes and comments.

Jiang Zhizhi: “The doll on the ground misses Mommy?”

Bai Xue: “Thinking of Mommy’s words every night?”

Qiao Yanran: “The shining tears of the Lupine flower…”

Su Tuantuan chuckled heartily under her blanket. She checked Mo Xian’s social media and found she hadn’t updated much recently, only posting a thank you message to the staff who helped create her album last month.

Su Tuantuan’s smile slowly faded.

She scrolled through her chat history with Mo Xian, thinking of all their moments…

Forget it.

The more she thought, the deeper she got drawn in.

Just then, the internet connection cut out. Su Tuantuan couldn’t even open Weibo. She put down her phone and told herself, “Sleep. Tomorrow is another fulfilling day.”

In early July, Su Tuantuan left the desert to prepare for intensive training for the drama Jiang Nan.

This was an epic story about a female hero. The protagonist she played, Mu Jiangnan, was a commendable national hero, similar to Hua Mulan in the real world.

Because the role required a lot of fighting, she had to undergo intensive training to build muscle and physical capability.

Otherwise, wearing a full set of armor, she would look weak and unconvincing.

Communication was allowed during training, but in their small group chat of three, everyone was busy with their own lives.

Bai Xue complained in the chat: “Tuanzi, how do you tolerate that idiot He Xiyao? I just went to rehearse a scene with her, and she said us being alone would raise suspicion. What? Aren’t we the leads? What would us rehearsing raise suspicion about?”

Qiao Yanran: “Hahahaha”

Bai Xue: “What are you laughing at, Der?”

Qiao Yanran: “I think He Xiyao is pretty good. She’s just a little stiff. Don’t be so aggressive; be nicer.”

Bai Xue: “Can’t do it. She annoys me just by looking at her.”

After Bai Xue’s long complaint, Sun Qiushuang poked Su Tuantuan. “Are you going to Goddess Mo’s concert?”

Su Tuantuan remembered how the last time Sun Qiushuang took her, Mo Xian found out. Her refusal was final. “No.”

Sun Qiushuang sent several crying emojis.

Qiao Yanran messaged Su Tuantuan privately.

Qiao Yanran: “Sister, Goddess Mo is having a concert at the end of the month. Tickets are sold out, but I have an extra ticket. I’ll transfer it to you. Go see her concert!”

Su Tuantuan was surprised. Qiao Yanran continued, “Consider it me repaying you for taking me to a concert last time!”

Su Tuantuan thought Qiao Yanran was truly thoughtful and insightful.

She didn’t ask anything or say anything.

Su Tuantuan thought about it. It had been over four months since she last saw Mo Xian after the New Year.

The training would end at the end of the month.

She would go secretly then.

Su Tuantuan replied: “Okay.”

The training was demanding. Su Tuantuan trained her muscles and strength every morning and practiced using the spear and sword fighting in the afternoon.

The sword was heavy. It took Su Tuantuan more than ten days of heavy lifting before the sword felt light. However, she strained her wrists a few times and was covered in bruises.

If the studio hadn’t demanded the show be released by the New Year, they wouldn’t have rushed the training and filming this much.

She woke up at five in the morning and finished at eight in the evening. Su Tuantuan added extra practice for her bearing. Since the filming included riding scenes, she went to the stables for a few rounds in the evening.

She could already ride, but the feeling of riding a horse while wielding a sword and fighting in a crowd was different.

After the training, Su Tuantuan’s riding skills improved significantly, and she could handle the spear skillfully.

Her martial arts coach posted a video of her practicing the spear in the training room on a short video platform, which sparked a heated discussion.

: “Is that Su Tuantuan?! Oh my god, she’s so cool! Is she filming a new drama?”

: “Su Tuantuan is so handsome! Ahhhh! Her muscle definition is beautiful! Wait, are those bruises on her body?”

Netizens noticed the bruises on Su Tuantuan’s body, and fans were worried.

If she was getting this many injuries during training, wouldn’t she get even more when filming started?

Xiao Yu calmed everyone down in the fan group.

Xiao Yu: “Sister Tuantuan said this is an actor’s duty. The injuries she sustains are nothing compared to those of martial arts actors. She knows everyone cares about her, and she will protect herself. She hopes everyone won’t pay too much attention to her life off-screen. Let’s meet through her work!”

Her last drama, Riding the Dragon, was a massive hit. Fans generally didn’t pay too much attention to the artist’s personal life. Seeing Xiao Yu’s message, they all left comments telling Su Tuantuan to take care of herself. Some fans even shared tips on how to quickly reduce bruises.

Su Tuantuan collected all the tips.

She wasn’t being overly sensitive. This was her job, so there was nothing to complain about.

Only Qiao Yanran and Bai Xue kept asking how her training was going. She always told them it was easy. They never knew the truth.

Su Tuantuan was the classic example of sharing good news but hiding bad news. During the filming of Redemption, she almost broke her foot jumping from a building, but the actor and director said it wasn’t perfect, so she had to do it several more times.

That oppressive atmosphere made her never want to film that kind of movie again.

For Su Tuantuan, what was terrifying about Redemption wasn’t just the script, but the working atmosphere it created.

She was strong internally, but she respected others’ opinions during collaborations and wouldn’t force them to follow her own ideas.

However, she could only conclude that the Alpha’s voice was likely stronger in this world.

Furthermore, she didn’t have any significant awards. As a junior, causing pressure on her seniors naturally resulted in even stronger pressure being reflected back onto her.

Su Tuantuan also received gifts from fans.

There were items for reducing swelling and inflammation, massage devices, fascia guns, and various calcium supplements.

She asked them to stop sending gifts, but the fans didn’t listen.

One ID, MO-, sent the most gifts.

Su Tuantuan wondered who this wealthy person was. She clicked on their profile and saw they shared daily life updates, reposted content about Mo Xian and her, and followed only four people.

One was Assistant Xiao Yu, one was Mo Xian, one was Su Tuantuan, and the other was Little Line Ball.

Su Tuantuan quickly exited the page and asked Sister Zhou to arrange some giveaways for the fans.

After the training, she had gained some weight and muscle, but her physique had become a better fit for “Mu Jiangnan.”

When they took the promotional photos, the director excitedly “Wowed” at her.

Dressed in her armor and red robe, with a long sword in her hand, her eyes held an unreadable coldness and stoicism.