Chapter 52: A Heart-Piercing Confession Part 1

Yan Muyu’s act of blocking Qiu Chao had briefly trended on the hot search, earning her merciless mockery from Shen Tianqing and Lin Chi.

A number of Qiu Chao’s fans had even flooded Yan Muyu’s Weibo with all sorts of threats—nothing more than “How could you treat our Sister Qiu like that?”

The most famous line was:

“She’s at least your ex-sister-in-law!”

Shen Tianqing wielded that phrase with expert precision. Whenever Yan Muyu appeared in the group chat, Shen Tianqing would fire it off like an autoresponder.

Yan Muyu had no choice but to block every group chat with Shen Tianqing in it and drag her straight into the blacklist.

Unfortunately, the line lingered in Yan Muyu’s mind, and the other guests had caught wind of the hot search meme too. While they were working at the Fish Lamp Workshop, it would pop up now and then.

For instance, as Yan Muyu coordinated with Liu Song to maneuver the fish head, she felt the bamboo strips still had some rough edges that cut into her hands. Spotting Qiu Chao passing by, she called out, “Could you grab me a tool?”

Xi Xi happened to be working on the fish tail nearby. She was a master at throwing shade and seamlessly chimed in, “Don’t you have hands? Can’t you get it yourself? Qiu Chao’s at least your ex-sister-in-law!”

Yan Muyu: …

Liu Song couldn’t hold back and burst out laughing.

Qiu Chao took it in stride. She looked perfectly composed as she replied, “Yes, I’m her ex-sister-in-law. Now, I’m her artist.”

In her mind, she added: And someday, I’ll be her real wife.

Qiu Chao’s deadpan delivery made Yan Muyu’s gritted teeth all the more amusing. Xuan Zhelu had made herself a little fish lamp and was taking photos of it on the side, planning to raffle it off to fans. She piled on without missing a beat.

“Even an ex-sister-in-law is still a sister-in-law, so I advise the live stream viewers not to ship nonsense. If you’re gonna ship something, ship real-life stuff.”

Xuan Zhelu didn’t even bother lifting her eyelids as she finished writing a letter to her fans on one sheet of paper and pulled out a fresh one beneath it.

Her handwriting resembled a dog’s scrawl, utterly at odds with her face—which explained why so many fans thought her appearance on this variety show had been a huge loss.

Not only had she failed to win anyone over, but her long-built image as a cool goddess had shattered, replaced by a full-blown sand sculpture character.

【How are there still people telling viewers to ship themselves with their ex-girlfriend?!?】

【I’ve watched them make fish lamps for two days, and I still can’t make one!】

【One’s an ex-sister-in-law and one’s an ex-girlfriend—they’re two sides of the same coin. What’s with the shady digs?】

【Xi Xi is unbelievable, always stirring the pot wherever she goes… Liking a news post about her ex-husband getting hit by a car at midnight…】

Qiu Chao shot back, “You think yours is real-life?”

Her sharp tone came out soft and gentle, laced with just a hint of green tea vibe. It was fine once in a while, but Yan Muyu couldn’t take it every day.

Not to mention Shen Tianqing, who was still getting blocked yet hopping around on Weibo nonstop.

She’d repost netizens’ edited meme videos of Yan Muyu using her godawful emo-style text.

Something about the joys of having both an ex-sister-in-law and an ex-girlfriend.

What the hell!

What was wrong with netizens these days? Did they have to go so heavy?

She’d clarified eight hundred times that she didn’t do orgies—for the thrill or her own health, at least.

Yet they kept spreading rumors online.

Last night, Yan Muyu really couldn’t stand Shen Tianqing’s nonstop @s. She clicked in, watched a few seconds, and immediately bailed.

It was some audio edit, all of Qiu Chao’s moans.

Thought that simulated sex?

Qiu Chao didn’t even moan like that for real.

Too bad Yan Muyu couldn’t call her out on it. She could only seethe and close the app.

What she hadn’t expected was the app’s bubble notification: “Bloggers you follow have also viewed this video.” It totally sold her out.

That video shot to number one on the charts that day, and this morning, on the way to the workshop, everyone kept asking Yan Muyu for her review.

Xuan Zhelu gave her a pitiful look right in front of her, pushing a video of herself and Yan Muyu while asking why she hadn’t watched it.

Yan Muyu: …

She took a deep breath, bought some roadside sticky rice cakes, and said mournfully, “It’s… whatever.”

Now Qiu Chao was subtly sparring with Xuan Zhelu again. Yan Muyu couldn’t take it anymore and asked Xuan Zhelu, “What’s your next schedule like?”

Xuan Zhelu nearly splattered her own face with ink from her brush in surprise. “You’re concerned about me?”

【So pathetic, save her.】

【This girl’s such a goofball. I used to think she was super aloof—now I’m a fan.】

【I really want to call it scripted, but even Qiu Siyuan’s go-to editor couldn’t write something this brain-dead.】

【Qiu Chao definitely likes Yan Muyu.】

【Someone’s already saying Qiu Chao fell from grace… But she doesn’t seem fazed. Even at her lowest, it’s still someone else’s peak.】

【Sister Qiu’s got the chops to back it up.】

Yan Muyu: “Didn’t your promo schedule only last four days? Hurry up and leave.”

Xuan Zhelu let out an “oh.” “I can extend it. No pay needed.”

Yan Muyu: “Can’t you have some ambition? Weren’t you saying you wanted to spend the whole year on set?”

Xuan Zhelu bared her teeth at Yan Muyu. “Mind your own business.”

Yan Muyu: “I’m caring about you, just like you wanted.”

She laughed again, that dazzling smile that swept people up and infected them easily.

【Yan Muyu really has some witchcraft vibes. She’s just teasing Xuan Zhelu, right?】

【She’s great at lightening the mood—a little heavier and she’d own the room. That’s a social butterfly for you.】

These past few days, Xuan Zhelu kept stealing glances at Yan Muyu. But now that Yan Muyu was actually looking at her, she felt a bit shy.

“Is this concern?”

Xuan Zhelu huffed twice. “I think you just want me gone.”

Yan Muyu: “Yeah.”

The fish lamps needed to patrol the mountains on the night of the Fish Lantern Festival, when lanterns would light up the hills. Every household’s fish lamps would come out.

It was like fish from the mountains and seas illuminated by bonfires—a local custom passed down for a thousand years.

The fish head alone was heavy. Once Liu Song attached the fish eyes, Yan Muyu lifted the lamp. Her hand was still injured, so it trembled a bit.

She didn’t glance at Xuan Zhelu anymore, but Liu Song clapped. “Young Boss Yan, you’re so strong!”

Qiu Chao eyed the lines of Yan Muyu’s arm, watched her smiling as she shook the fish lamp.

Yan Muyu adapted too well. Despite her privileged background, she had the joyful resilience of a weed to Qiu Chao—finding fun wherever she went.

From the suburban middle school in S City, to foreign lands, suddenly taking on Yan Kai’s request, or now this mountain village.

She and Xi Xi were different blooms from the same soil.

It let Qiu Chao glimpse the vibrant colors of her soul, as captivating as her current smile, drawing Qiu Chao in without escape.

Yan Muyu: “My hand’s hurt, but I could still lift you up.”

Liu Song: “For real?”

Xuan Zhelu jumped in eagerly. “I know—she’s carried me on her back!”

【Xuan Zhelu, you’re too much…】

【She’s such a kid, haha.】

【You can tell dating Yan Muyu would be fun. I was shallow before, thinking it was just physical.】

【This show’s proof Yan Muyu’s a total player. How does someone come to town for work and get mesmerized watching others play mahjong?】

【With her looks, her vibe fits right into the streets. So fun.】

Qiu Chao: “How’d she carry you?”

She’d honed her skills from the past few days at the Embroidery Workshop—even the local masters praised her handiwork.

Qiu Chao was still embroidering, tossing the question out casually amid her busywork.

Only she knew why she cared so much.

Xuan Zhelu: “Just…”

Yan Muyu: “Didn’t I carry you too? What’s there to ask?”

She handed the fish body to Pei Wan to attach—now they just needed the tail.

The production team planned for them to join this year’s Fish Lantern Festival, and Yan Muyu looked thrilled. She’d totally forgotten it was live, fully immersed.

Now Xuan Zhelu asked, “When? How’d she do it?”

Qiu Chao set down her needle and thread. She smiled at Xuan Zhelu. “Earlier than you.”

She rather enjoyed dropping that line: “I’m at least Little Yan’s ex-sister-in-law!”

【Didn’t expect Qiu Chao to be so humorous.】

【Qiu Chao’s embroidery is insane. Did she learn it filming Flying Flowers? Heard the director say her eyes nearly went blind from the strain.】

【Why’d she say that?!? She just denied it!】

【Qiu, hers was a girlfriend’s piggyback. Yours was a sister-in-law’s. Totally different.】

Xuan Zhelu: “You two were so close back then. Why’d you lose touch later?”

The workshop’s background noise was chaotic, making it easy for live stream viewers to immerse themselves.

With the production team’s color grading, filters, and clever camera angles, any screenshot looked like a movie still.

But that question went a bit too far.

Even Xuan Zhelu’s fans grew uneasy.

【Is that okay to ask??】

【Look closely—everyone here’s basically a rich girl…】

【Liu Song and those cousin sisters aren’t, but Qiu Chao’s status is untouchable now.】

【I love this kind of drama!!】

After asking, Xuan Zhelu caught her manager off-screen clutching their mouth in agony. She let out an “oh.” “Sorry, I shouldn’t have asked.”

She went back to fiddling with her little fish lamp. The next second, someone snatched it away. Xuan Zhelu yelped in protest as Yan Muyu plopped down beside her.

She had merely swung the fish lantern’s head a few times, and sweat was already beading on her brow.

Grabbing a tissue at random to wipe it away, she held Xuan Zhelu’s fish lantern in one hand. “The fish’s mouth is painted a bit crooked.”

Xuan Zhelu snorted. “What, are you insinuating that I talk nonsense?”

【Don’t make me laugh to death.】

【Is this something you can even say??】

Yan Muyu was caught between laughter and tears. “Do I even need to insinuate?”

She glanced at Qiu Chao. “Qiu Chao is at least my ex-sister-in-law. Ponder that—ex-sister-in-law. How does that connect?”

Xuan Zhelu had never heard much about Yan Muyu’s past when they were dating. Being with Yan Muyu made it all too easy to be led along by the nose. No matter where they went or how they played, as long as it was fun, that was enough.

Looking back, it felt almost like she’d been bewitched, yet the aftertaste lingered endlessly, leaving her craving another round.

Xuan Zhelu said, “But from what I’ve heard, the two of you were really, really close back then.”

Yan Muyu instinctively glanced at Qiu Chao, but the other woman just kept working. Qiu Chao’s fingers were slender, appearing fair and smooth at first glance, but her fingertips were actually rough—hardly the hands of someone pampered and idle.

She had once cut her finger while cooking in the kitchen and pricked it while arranging flowers.

She had also mentioned how she used to help her mother set up a stall, rising early to portion out rice noodles.

But Qiu Chao never spoke of those days.

Nor of how she had gotten by after dropping out of school to work.

Yan Muyu never pried. She didn’t want to offend her.

Even now, she still didn’t ask—because Qiu Chao harbored a secret.

Yan Muyu suspected that her first love had emerged during that time.

Whenever Qiu Chao mentioned it, her lashes would tremble, more captivating than in the throes of passion.

It was the purest longing a person could feel, untainted by desire—like a hand reaching out over a cliff’s edge.

It was something Yan Muyu would never have in her lifetime: a first love.

Because Yan Muyu had no first love.

Her affections were never that deep. They were just experiments.

So she didn’t know what it meant to throw caution to the wind or give her all.