When I Woke Up, I Had Three Romantic Partners - Chapter 61

Duan Xu’s room was very simple. Because it was rented in a hurry, it had almost nothing, just a few items the previous landlord had bought.

“The house is very simple, please excuse the mess.”

Duan Xu poured a glass of water for herself and then tilted her head to ask Su Yunhui: “Is plain boiled water okay? There are no soft drinks or anything else at home.”

Su Yunhui: “Mm.”

Su Yunhui watched Duan Xu’s figure quietly, her gaze fixed, revealing a hint of urgency and an indescribable thought.

Duan Xu could sense this, but she didn’t stop her. She simply pushed the water toward Su Yunhui: “Drink it.”

Su Yunhui picked up a glass and chugged it down. Her gaze remained on Duan Xu, and the burning intensity in her eyes made Duan Xu lightly laugh.

She tugged at her collar, revealing her clear collarbone underneath, and raised an eyebrow: “Do you have ideas about me?”

Su Yunhui didn’t refute, stating in a low voice: “Always have.”

“From the first day we met, I’ve had special thoughts about you, and I still do.”

“Duan Xu, is what you said about starting over true?”

She slightly rose and leaned over the coffee table, resting one hand on the sofa behind Duan Xu, trapping the person in her embrace. Her eyes were locked onto Duan Xu’s, not allowing her any escape: “All these years, have you thought about me?”

Duan Xu used one hand to brace against Su Yunhui’s shoulder, not letting her get too close. Hearing the question, her smile overflowed her eyes: “Are you questioning me? Or, are you not confident enough in yourself?”

“Su Yunhui, when did you become so unconfident?”

Su Yunhui gave a wry smile: “When facing you, I’ve never been confident.”

“Duan Xu, I’m genuinely afraid that all of this is a dream, and when the dream ends, you’ll disappear.”

Duan Xu reached behind Su Yunhui’s head, pressing her head down, while she leaned forward, kissing Su Yunhui’s lips. After a passionate kiss that sparked like fire, Duan Xu leaned against Su Yunhui’s hot lips and said softly: “How is it? Do you feel it’s real now?”

“I’m alive, not in a dream.”

“Su Yunhui, do you want me?”

Su Yunhui’s eyes instantly turned red. Like a hungry wolf, she pounced, fiercely tearing at Duan Xu.

Meanwhile, Chi Jinqing finished filming the MV with great effort, and then accepted a new drama, Jiang Xing The General’s Journey. Although the focus was not on the princess, her role in it was still very significant.

By the time the MV finished filming, it was already late October. The filming for Jiang Xing was set to begin in early December, and they had to go for training first. This was a rigorous film and television production, so every aspect was very particular.

Things like body doubles and green-screen compositing were out of the question. Every movement had to be practiced repeatedly. Many of the fight scenes required them to perform them personally, so both Si Jiamo and Chi Jinqing had to enter the production crew early to train with the martial arts instructor.

Chi Jinqing worked hard, following the instructor, practicing her sword swings. Although the sword was fake, it still had some weight. Despite her best efforts, her swings were not graceful enough.

“You need to use your wrist, don’t be stiff.”

The instructor frowned, seeing the lack of power in Chi Jinqing’s wrist: “You must learn to use your wrist to generate power, not just your arm. This will save you a lot of energy and make you more agile.”

Chi Jinqing: “Okay.”

But Chi Jinqing tried several times without grasping the technique, feeling a little discouraged.

Si Jiamo walked over to look at Chi Jinqing’s frustrated posture while holding the sword. She raised her hand, grasped Chi Jinqing’s hand, and said softly: “Follow my movement.”

“Raise your arm.”

Chi Jinqing pursed her lips and followed, raising her arm.

“Swing hard.”

The next moment, Chi Jinqing’s sword swung out fiercely, and at the wrong angle, Si Jiamo subtly guided it with skill.

“Turn.”

In this movement and turn, the two cooperated seamlessly, as if they were one person.

When it was over, Si Jiamo praised: “That was good. Just remember the feeling you had just now.”

“You have fewer fight scenes, and since you haven’t filmed this kind of scene much before, and haven’t studied opera, it’s inevitable that you’ll be a bit awkward.”

“But it doesn’t matter, just practice more in the future.”

Chi Jinqing held the sword without feeling awkward: “Mm, thank you.”

Si Jiamo: “You’re welcome.”

“Don’t worry, the more nervous you are, the stiffer your movements will be.”

Chi Jinqing took a deep breath: “I know, but this is my first time filming such close-combat fight scenes, so I’m inevitably a little nervous.”

Si Jiamo understood: “I know, I was the same way back then.”

Chi Jinqing paused: “You used to get nervous too?”

Si Jiamo admitted frankly: “Of course.”

“Because I wanted to do everything well, and I wanted to strive for first place in everything, so I also got nervous, and I also felt scared.”

She looked at Chi Jinqing and chuckled: “Do you feel less nervous now?”

“A little.”

Chi Jinqing awkwardly averted her eyes.

After a month of special training, the filming finally began.

Si Jiamo and Chi Jinqing held up their work badges at the commencement ceremony. They stood together and took a group photo with everyone. The next day, filming began.

The first scene was a great escape. The princess, accidentally hijacked by traitors, was saved on the run by a small soldier disguised as a man. They fell in love at first sight, but because she was a woman, the small soldier—Xing Zhi, played by Si Jiamo —escorted Fu Ling, the princess played by Chi Jinqing, back to the military camp without even leaving a name.

Perhaps the encounter was the beginning of fate. The two met again the day before Fu Ling was scheduled to return to the palace. Xing Zhi was still a kitchen soldier. Their eyes met, and they instantly recognized each other.

Fu Ling noticed Xing Zhi’s panic when she lowered her gaze and knew the other person didn’t want to acknowledge her. She had her own ideas, probably thinking she wasn’t suitable to be with him.

Fu Ling thought Xing Zhi was a man, so she only glanced at him twice before leaving.

Once Fu Ling left, Xing Zhi’s heart was also in turmoil. She yearned for merit and establishment, but on the other hand, she also wanted to find someone to spend her life with. However, that person couldn’t be Fu Ling.

Fu Ling was a princess, and she was just a kitchen soldier. She was having crazy fantasies.

The filming proceeded intensely. Soon, the New Year’s Eve arrived. The production crew didn’t take a holiday and continued filming.

On New Year’s Eve, the day Chi Jinqing finished work, she thought about her sister’s surgery and made a phone call.

The call was answered after a long delay. The sound of fireworks was deafening on the other end, drowning out even Chi Jinqing’s voice. The person on the other end shouted loudly several times before Chi Jinqing could hear their voice.

“Jinqing, is something wrong?”

It was her father who answered the phone. On this day, his first sentence wasn’t ‘Happy New Year,’ nor was it asking what was wrong or if she was coming home; it was asking if something was wrong.

Chi Jinqing took a deep breath, trying to speak lightly: “Nothing, I just finished filming and wanted to ask how Jin Yue’s surgery went.”

Chi Father: “It went very well, the surgery was successful. Also, I’ll transfer the surgery fees to you later.”

“I saw you were busy before and forgot to tell you. Your sister and your aunt both said thank you. You worked hard this time.”

Chi Jinqing was silent for a moment, then said softly: “Mm, it’s nothing.”

“Mm.”

Chi Father fell silent, and the conversation between them became stiff. Listening to the increasingly loud fireworks outside, Chi Father asked again: “Anything else?”

“No.”

Chi Jinqing didn’t hear what she wanted to hear, nor did she press the matter, saying blandly: “Nothing else.”

Chi Father: “Mm, then I’ll hang up. The food is about to burn.”

“Okay.”

Listening to the sound of the phone hanging up, Chi Jinqing whispered with a sense of loss: “Happy New Year, Father.”

She put away her phone, lightly caressing the glass and looking at the bright scene outside the window, murmuring: “Mom, another year has passed. Are you doing well over there?”

“Dad has someone to keep him company. After all these years, their family of three is doing very well.”

“Knock, knock, knock.”

Chi Jinqing’s door was knocked on. Chi Jinqing snapped back to reality, walked over, and opened the door. Si Jiamo stood outside, holding beer and barbecue. Seeing Chi Jinqing come out, she smiled faintly and raised the items in her hand: “Since neither of us can go home this year, why don’t we celebrate together?”

Although they couldn’t go home, Chi Jinqing had let her assistant, Xiao He, go back. She could manage alone, as it was only for a week anyway.

He Ming, however, didn’t go back. The main reason was that with Ye Jin gone, Si Jiamo needed to reassign a lot of things, and there was a temporary shortage of staff.

However, Si Jiamo offered quadruple pay, so He Ming had nothing to complain about.

A flicker of something crossed Chi Jinqing’s eyes: “We’re filming, we can’t get fat.”

Si Jiamo: “Just this once, it’s fine.”

“Come in.”

Chi Jinqing stepped aside, and Si Jiamo carried the items into the room.

“We have to continue filming tomorrow, no drinking, it might affect waking up tomorrow.”

Chi Jinqing sat on the chair and opened the box. Inside were all her favorite foods, including a good amount of chicken gizzards, chicken wings, and pig lungs. She propped her chin on her hand, her eyes scanning Si Jiamo, who was opening a soft drink.

“What made you think of coming to eat with me? I remember you don’t eat late-night snacks.”

Si Jiamo pushed the juice toward Chi Jinqing and said softly: “I thought you might need company.”

“You haven’t been home for New Year’s in many years.”

As Chi Jinqing’s intimate partner for so many years, she had rarely heard Chi Jinqing talk about going home. Even during the New Year, she would stay in the villa, rarely even leaving the door.

She had investigated the Chi family and knew that because of family dynamics, her father and stepmother had their own child, and she was already an adult working. Her place in that home had been replaced.

“It seems there really is no place for me in that home.”

Chi Jinqing ate a piece of chicken gizzard and said calmly: “I just called, and he asked if anything was wrong, and said he would repay the money.”

Si Jiamo understood who ‘he’ was. She listened silently without speaking.

“At that moment, I realized that ever since my mother died, I hadn’t felt like I belonged in that home. I tried hard to pay off his debts, hoping he would look at me more, and love me once more, like in the past.”

“Later, I realized it was all just wishful thinking.”

Chi Jinqing took another sip of juice, her eyes welling up with mist, and her voice choked with a hint of a sob: “After changing so much, I look back and realize I still have nowhere to go.”

So…

What is the meaning of the New Year?