Transmigrating As The Scummy Ex-Wife Of The Cold And Aloof Tycoon - Chapter 25

During dinner, Ye Yichi received a call from Director Li. As the TV series grew more popular, several directors had reached out to him, hoping to collaborate with Ye Yichi while the hype was still high.

“There are leading roles, as well as supporting characters with great setups. They’re all scheduled to start filming soon. Are you interested?”

She wasn’t particularly interested. She had already earned enough money to lie low for the rest of the year. Ye Yichi licked her canine tooth and politely declined Director Li’s kindness: “I’m sorry, my schedule might not work out lately.”

“Well, I’ll give them your contact information anyway. You guys can chat; it’s good to build some connections.”

After chatting until the two newly updated episodes were finished, Ye Yichi finally hung up the last call.

“Sis, so many people want you to act, and you’re not taking a single one?” Su Fanxing held a bowl of cherry tomatoes, popping them into her mouth one by one like a little hamster. “You’re a total vacuum pump [a play on words for ‘doing nothing’].”

“Straighten your tongue before you speak,” Ye Yichi teased.

Su Fanxing swallowed a tomato. “Sometimes I really don’t understand you.”

Coincidentally, Lin Weilan had said something similar that afternoon. What day was it? Why was everyone suddenly studying her? Ye Yichi glanced at Su Fanxing. “What about me?”

“It’s like you don’t care about anything.”

“Forget the distant past, let’s just talk about your background. You’re Ye Shijin’s niece, the sole heir to the Ye family. By all accounts, you’re a high-level ‘second generation’ with tons of cars and houses. But look at you, your only place to stay is Huawan. Oh, and you originally wanted to sell Huawan too; you only kept it because you took pity on me and Grandma.”

“That was to raise money,” Ye Yichi said. Honestly, looking back now, it didn’t feel real. The whole “transmigrating into a book” thing was just too surreal.

“Where’s the money?” Su Fanxing asked.

The money? Naturally, it had been invested into the Xin Corporation. Ye Yichi smiled. It had been traded for several major projects and the collapse of a rival company; that deal wasn’t a loss by any means.

“The money’s gone too, right?” Su Fanxing said. “Look, all that money vanished without you even blinking. You didn’t react when Ye Shijin died or when the Ye family was swallowed up. Now that the show is a hit, you don’t even try to harvest the traffic to develop your career. Sis, I really can’t figure out what you want.”

What did she want?

If asked three years ago, Ye Yichi might have looked toward the ice-sculpted Xin Ning.

The protagonist of the book so beautiful one couldn’t look away. A fleeting glimpse had stirred her heart, and the marriage alliance was settled. It was only natural to be good to one’s wife, right? Three years of living together, a little bit of greed, wanting more, wanting those cold eyes to reflect her own image…

But to desire and not obtain leads to resentment.

Her distorted self no longer felt like herself even love and admiration had lost their original form.

“Now, I just want to have food, drink, and sun to bask in,” Ye Yichi said.

“You’re not a cat,” Su Fanxing huffed.

A few days later, the coat was cleaned. The dry cleaner owner called cautiously, asking if he could waive the cleaning fee in exchange for Ye Yichi’s signature.

“My signature can be traded for money now?” Ye Yichi put down the phone, feeling a small surge of surprise and a bit of secret joy.

“More than that! Your posters are going crazy at our school. I’ve made quite a bit of money selling ‘private’ small cards of you.” Su Fanxing smilingly pulled out several hundred yuan bills. “Here, this is your ‘royalty’ cut.”

“What is this?”

“Just photos I secretly took of you sunbathing, printed out.”

“You secretly took photos of me sunbathing and sold them to your classmates?” Ye Yichi didn’t know whether to be angry or amused. This “Hate Sea Love Sky” novel was truly something; both protagonists had their own brand of creativity, and even the supporting characters were so resourceful.

Not bad, though. Having a business mind at such a young age meant she would never go hungry.

“Forget the commission. Use it to pay the dry cleaning fee.” Ye Yichi found the dry cleaning receipt and placed it on top of the bills. “When you get the clothes, just drop them off at the Xin Corporation’s front desk.”

Thinking for a moment, Ye Yichi took out a piece of paper and signed it. “By the way, bring this to the dry cleaner owner. Remember, give it to him, don’t sell it.”

The night the clothes were delivered to the Xin Corporation, Ye Yichi received a video call from Xin Ning.

The background was dark and hard to see, but her jawline looked increasingly sharp.

“I’ve waited for you for so many days, and you haven’t come to see me once. You haven’t even made a single call.” Her cold voice held a hint of driftiness, as if carried by the wind, or perhaps stained by the slight intoxication of fermented grape juice.

“Have you been drinking?” Ye Yichi asked.

“You were so decisive when we divorced. I delayed time and again; I took you to the company, to the orphanage, to the bar, I even… and you? Now you won’t even deliver a coat in person. Ye Yichi, what did you say back then?” The drifting voice continued, her dark eyes carrying a faint shimmer.

Was she truly drunk?

Xin Ning had been drunk before. Usually cold and reserved, she would only speak words like blades, but when drunk, she was like a clingy cat, secretly clutching Ye Yichi’s sleeve.

“Have you given up?” Xin Ning asked with a trembling voice. “Isn’t your Ye family the most ambitious? To get the Xin Corporation, Ye Shijin could pretend to pursue my mother for so many years. Why did you only last three years? Even if it’s just acting, couldn’t you just act a few more days to lie to me?”

There was nothing to say to a drunk person. Ye Yichi hung up the video call.

When she came out from her shower, there were several missed video calls on her phone. At the very end was a voice message. Ye Yichi stared at the small red notification dot for a few seconds, long-pressed it, and deleted it.

She had finally escaped that muddy abyss, she wouldn’t let herself be dragged back.

Ha.

The next day was Sunday, and Ye Yichi actually woke up early.

In the yard, Grandma Su was feeding the chickens. The chubby birds clucked away as the wind blew, and withered leaves fell sharply from the branches.

During breakfast, the phone rang again. It was a message from Xin Ning.

– Sorry about yesterday. I drank too much. I didn’t say anything weird, did I?

Chewing on a fragrant hand shredded pancake, Ye Yichi finished reading and deleted it. Old Man Ye used to say that life is like a dandelion even if you have few leaves, you must strive to bloom a yellow flower. As for after the flower withers? That’s not important, and it can’t be forced. One just flies wherever the wind blows, good or bad, it’s all fate.

For her first budding romance, she had given her all for three years. Now the flower had withered, and the direction of the wind was set.

After breakfast, Ye Yichi planned to head back to her room for a nap.

Su Fanxing pulled her back, hesitating for a long time. “Sis, yesterday… I saw your ex-wife.”

“What’s so strange about seeing the CEO of Xin Corporation at her own company?”

“No, it wasn’t just a normal ‘seeing’.” Su Fanxing pursed her lips, her phoenix eyes blinking. “It was like… oh, I’ll just say it. The receptionist called her when she heard I was delivering clothes, and she rushed down. When she saw it was me, the light in her eyes just went out instantly.”

“What? Did she scare you?”

“Not really. It’s just, I suddenly feel like maybe you two aren’t irreparable? Just like that drama you’re in. At least, I think… at least in her heart, she was hoping to see you.”

Hoping to see her, only to show a cold face and speak words of ice.

Ye Yichi hadn’t been without hope once. Before the divorce, she had asked Xin Ning if she was reluctant to let go, if she had fallen for her. What did Xin Ning say?

Don’t have delusions. How could I be reluctant? I won’t fall in love with you.

“You’re still young. Marriage is a very complicated thing.” Ye Yichi tapped the tip of Su Fanxing’s nose. “It’s early, go do your homework. Don’t you have tutoring this afternoon?”

“Sis, you’re crossing a line. You’re a salted fish yourself, yet you’re pushing me, a little salted fish, to study.” Su Fanxing grumbled and ran off.

In the afternoon, the little salted fish slouched out with her backpack.

A few minutes later, she came bouncing back excitedly: “Sis, sis! Explosive news! That B&B next door that was doing so well? It was suddenly sold!”

“Oh? Are we getting a new neighbor?” Grandma Su hurriedly packed a small basket of eggs and pulled Su Fanxing back out the door with a smile.

After a while, Grandma Su came back alone with an empty basket. “I waited half a day, and I finally saw the person! Yueyue, guess who the new neighbor next door is?”

With a look like that? A bad premonition rose in Ye Yichi’s heart.

“It’s ‘Three Inches of Snow’ [Xin Ning]! Haha, unexpected, right?” Grandma Su clapped her hands and laughed. “She protected Yueyue last time; she’s a good person. If you ask me, she’s definitely here to chase Yueyue. Oh my, our Yueyue is so beautiful, she deserves to be chased by someone beautiful.”

“Grandma, last time you said I could pick anyone but her,” Ye Yichi sighed.

She understood Xin Ning less and less.

Three years of marriage, a single divorce agreement it should have been a complete full stop. Why did she keep coming back?

“And another thing, ‘Three Inches of Snow’ asked me to give you this.” Grandma Su pulled a car key from the bottom of the empty basket. “She said you don’t even have a car and it’s too pitiful for you to have to take the bus, so she specifically bought a car for you.”

Ye Yichi lowered her eyes, staring at the car key in silence for several seconds.

She grabbed the key and headed next door.

The warm sunlight spilled into the neighboring yard and onto the ancient pine wood porch. Under the porch, Xin Ning was directing workers to arrange furniture.

A fluffy cushion had been placed on a woven bamboo chair. Atop an old chest of drawers was a row of cats of various sizes all with grey bodies, snow white bellies, and sparkling sapphire inlaid eyes.

Why did Xin Ning move the decorations from the villa here?

Ye Yichi’s gaze lingered on that row of cats. Thinking back, she was the one who bought those cats. Xin Ning had clearly looked disgusted at the time, yet now she hadn’t forgotten to bring them along during a move.

Xin Ning turned her head and noticed Ye Yichi in the yard.

Her cold eyes flickered with a faint light, her tone rising at the end, unlike the wind-swept, tipsy voice of the night before: “You’re here?”

“Giving your car keys back.” Ye Yichi tossed the keys; her aim was very true this time, landing steadily on the tabletop.

Bullseye. Ye Yichi silently scored her own exquisite skill.

“It’s a gift for you. You’re famous now, taking the bus isn’t convenient.” Xin Ning glanced at the keys, picked them up, and walked quickly to Ye Yichi. “I specifically chose one that suits you. Want to go to the parking lot and take a look?”

“Keep it for yourself.” Ye Yichi turned to leave.

Xin Ning grabbed Ye Yichi’s wrist. “Have you really given up?”

Given up? Given up what? In the previous three years, why hadn’t she noticed such a massive communication gap between them? The protagonist had said “give up” at least three times, and she hadn’t understood it even once.

But it didn’t matter.

“We are divorced, Xin Ning.” Ye Yichi pulled away. “Once divorced, we should be like fallen leaves in the autumn wind. We aren’t lotus roots why bother with all these lingering threads?”

“You…” Xin Ning stared at her hand that had been shaken off, her chest rising and falling rapidly, her voice deepening.

After a moment, she slowed her breathing and softened her voice: “It’s true that I proposed the divorce, but do you know… I was as afraid that you wouldn’t agree to the divorce as I was afraid that you would?”