Chapter 97

When she thought she didn’t like Zhong Ning, words like “like” and “love” came easily to her lips. But once she realized it was real, those words became unbearably heavy, too difficult to say aloud.

Xie Shiqing had come to Yuancheng, and she could barely count it as work. Yuancheng housed the country’s largest film production base, where all kinds of dramas were filmed year-round. Naturally, the Xie Corporation had invested in several projects being shot there, so she could easily say she was visiting the set.

To make it look more convincing, she actually went.

Everyone in the crew perked up. Even those without any filming tasks showed up. The director introduced all kinds of details, spoke about the actors’ situations, and although Xie Shiqing appeared attentive, she was incredibly impatient inside.

She didn’t have the time for this.

She had already told the butler that the bugging device had arrived. It was installed in Zhong Ning’s clothes—no bigger than a button, completely unnoticeable to the latter.

After staying on set for a short while, Xie Shiqing couldn’t bear it any longer. She had already shown up; task complete. She had her assistant invite everyone to a meal to wrap things up.

Then Xie Shiqing returned to her hotel to lie in bed and listen to the sounds from across the street.

She put the phone on speaker, turned the volume up high—so high she could even hear Zhong Ning’s rapid breathing.

What is she thinking about? Is she thinking of me? Xie Shiqing held her phone, her fingertips hovering over the keyboard, but she couldn’t bring herself to press anything.

She heard Zhong Ning brushing her teeth, going out to class, chatting with her roommates. She heard her say she had broken up and heard the unmistakable sadness in her voice.

Xie Shiqing turned over.

She didn’t want to separate from Zhong Ning. But she also didn’t want to go along with the other’s wishes and confess everything just like that.

If she laid bare all her thoughts, wouldn’t that make her look like a prisoner enslaved by love?

Besides... her intentions were far from pure. When it came to dealing with the Zhong family and the Le family, she had countless malicious schemes in mind. If those ever came to light, would Zhong Ning accept them?

Would she accept that she was such a cruel and ruthless person?

Not to mention... the matter of the tranquilizer...

She had completely used Zhong Ning.

And just concealing something as small as the video source had been enough for Zhong Ning to want to break up—if she confessed everything, they would definitely fall apart.

No. She couldn’t say it.

Xie Shiqing chose to keep her mouth shut.

She wouldn’t say a single thing. She had to hide everything from Zhong Ning. The Zhong family and the Le family—she would get her hands on both. And Zhong Ning, she would keep by her side too.

Someone like her deserved the best of everything in this world.

While she kept tossing and turning, bargaining with herself over and over, time quietly slipped away. Soon, the deadline Zhong Ning had set would be up.

Xie Shiqing listened to the time announcement, but she didn’t send any message.

Going back just like that and saying a few apologetic words wasn’t what she wanted. Words alone carried too little weight and could never express enough. She had to tip the scale with something heavier and pull Zhong Ning’s love back to her again.

She quickly came up with an idea and headed out with her bodyguards.

The film base in Fengcheng was famous nationwide. It was also a tourist attraction, with daily foot traffic comparable to the imperial palace during peak season. Many of the visitors were fans—if a celebrity announced when they were joining a shoot, fans would wait outside just for a glimpse, to hand over flowers, or ask for a few autographs.

And such waiting happened at all hours.

When Xie Shiqing arrived at the film base, she was dressed in full disguise: hat, mask, and sunglasses all covering her face. Surrounded by bodyguards, anyone who didn’t know her would immediately assume she was a celebrity.

No one questioned why someone in disguise would walk through the main entrance rather than the back.

Excited fans surged forward, eager to see who it was.

Even four bodyguards couldn’t block off the enthusiastic crowd. Caught off guard, Xie Shiqing stumbled when her foot got caught in the greenery lining the sidewalk and fell from the pavement into the street. Her lower leg slammed hard against the stone bricks.

A sharp, piercing pain shot through her. Her sunglasses fell to the ground, revealing a pale and stunning face—yet completely unfamiliar to the crowd.

Those standing close could see and immediately shouted for everyone to stop pushing.

Even though no one recognized her, she had bodyguards, so she had to be someone important. Panic quickly spread—everyone felt a growing unease, as if they had just caused serious trouble.

Xie Shiqing instructed three of the bodyguards to check the fans’ phones and delete anything that shouldn’t have been taken, while the remaining one helped her to the hospital.

Among those squatting nearby were not just fans, but also reporters and paparazzi. Seeing this unfold, they immediately sensed a big scoop. They hadn’t clearly seen her face, but that didn’t matter—the point was that this group of fanatics had injured a bystander. That was scandalous material.

Xie Shiqing had her assistant monitor the situation. If anyone leaked her photo, they’d go have a talk with them. But she wasn’t particularly concerned.

After all, the fans waiting here didn’t belong to any of the Xie Corporation’s contracted celebrities.

Under the Xie Corporation, regulating fan behavior was a top priority and a required discipline.

The fall had been quite serious. She was wearing high heels and twisted her ankle. By the time they reached the hospital, her ankle was already badly swollen—alarming to look at. Her calf was bruised in blotches of green and purple, and her arm had been scraped by the rough pavement, with the skin torn open and raw, bloody flesh exposed underneath.

For a blind person, falling was terrifying—because without sight, there was no way to adjust posture mid-air. Once they started to fall, they would crash down hard, with no idea what they’d hit—everything was left to fate.

This was exactly the effect Xie Shiqing wanted. She needed a bitter trick, a self-inflicted injury to win sympathy.

Naturally, her phone was also broken. The screen was shattered into pieces, and even when it was turned on, it was just a mess—nothing was visible.

Xie Shiqing broke out in a cold sweat from the pain. Her body was alarmingly frail—more brittle than a biscuit.

There was a world of difference between an ordinary person falling and an elderly person falling. The consequences of her fall were even more severe than the latter.

Xie Shiqing passed out from the pain.

When she woke again, it was already noon the next day. Carried by the lingering effect of the anesthesia, she had slept through the entire night. As soon as she opened her eyes, she felt that her right leg had been suspended in the air, clamped in place—stiff and unyielding—with sharp pain still radiating from it.

She took a moment to assess her condition, then asked aloud, “Is anyone there?”

“I’m here, boss,” came her assistant’s voice from the left.

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