Chapter 39: The Choice (Part 3)

She climbed along the rope on the swaying rescue ladder amid the raging wind, her limbs long since numb, driven only by the instinct to survive.

When she was pulled up, Ruan Suhuai couldn’t help but look down.

The girl who had been encouraging her moments ago had her jet-black hair tangled and mixed with the heavy, oppressive dark green, her frail body curled up motionless, as if she had lost all signs of life.

Someone behind her pulled her into the warm interior and wrapped her tightly in a blanket.

“How is it you? Where’s Lu Zhiyu?”

A familiar handsome man pushed her aside anxiously with his words, gripping the handrail in the helicopter as the chaotic wind made his shirt rustle.

Ruan Suhuai’s eyes didn’t leave the open helicopter door. A few seconds later, she suddenly grew anxious, flung off the warm blanket, grabbed the nearest person around her, her mind feverish and muddled, and mumbled incoherently, “Save her. She’s still down there. Save her.”

The ringing in her ears created a vacuum, blocking out the voices around her. She grew agitated until a pretty woman with a doll-like face appeared before her.

She recognized Bai Xirou and joyfully grabbed the hem of her clothes. Before she could say a few words, her vision went black, and she fainted to the ground.

.

An Lin adjusted the light on her vanity mirror, wearing a camisole nightgown that exposed her beautiful collarbones. Her fingers, coated with expensive honey-orange eye cream, gently applied it around her eye sockets. She massaged her temples lightly, fantasizing about a bright future.

The thought that after tonight, she could finally escape that bald, pot-bellied man she had been forcing smiles for made the disgusted expression in the mirror curl into a smug angle.

An Lin glanced at the clock on the table. Every passing minute and second filled her with delight. She wondered if Ruan Suhuai had received the “gift” she sent her.

She unscrewed a jar of face cream, dabbed some on her cheeks, and rubbed it in. A vicious glint flashed in her eyes. Ruan Suhuai had opposed her everywhere, snatching her ad and magazine resources, her variety show spots—this stumbling block needed to be smashed to pieces and trampled underfoot.

An Lin glanced at the Super Star Era Weibo notification popping up on her phone and thought smugly that if something happened to Ruan Suhuai, the mentor position she had stolen would surely fall to her.

The bedroom door was suddenly pushed open. She turned her head, her feigned seductive smile freezing when she saw who was at the door.

Qin Yue was nestled in Du Yueze’s arms, while the man at the pinnacle of the business world stood there with a low-pressure aura, his sharp eyes filled with gloom.

“Qin Yue, the person you recommended got into trouble. Shouldn’t you handle it?”

Du Yueze looked at the alluring woman in the chair with the disgust one reserves for flies, his voice as cold as ice. “Because of her, Lu Zhiyu is still fighting for her life in the ICU. You know what to do. I want to see this artist fully blacklisted by tomorrow.”

An Lin immediately sensed the off atmosphere, her body stiffening with cold sweat.

Du Yueze gave her only a single cold glance before leaving, leaving behind Qin Yue and the several thugs dressed like delinquents behind her.

Amid An Lin’s terrified screams, those helpers forcibly dragged her onto the bed, where five or six hands grabbed and pinned her limbs, rendering her immobile.

She screamed, “This is illegal! I have the right to personal freedom! This is unlawful detention!”

The young thugs seemed to laugh, slapping An Lin’s well-maintained cheek. “The law protects the citizens it should protect, not livestock like you who aren’t even human. You’ve been with Qian Dajin for so long, involved in all those bad deeds. Do you remember us brothers?”

An Lin froze, finally recognizing them. They were the construction workers fired after a sulfuric acid leak accident.

“Miss An, the expensive cosmetics you wear, the high-quality life you enjoy—all that comes from the compensation money Qian Dajin exploited from us. We took the blame and didn’t even get the cash in the end, but you spent it without a care. Don’t you feel any guilt?”

Most of the workers bore burn scars on their faces and bodies, resembling demons under the light.

An Lin screamed and retreated with her feet, nearly going mad as she shouted, “It has nothing to do with me! I knew nothing! It was all Qian Dajin! All his fault! You should go after him, not me!”

“Is it recorded?”

Qin Yue looked at the ghostly workers and said, “Once it’s recorded, take the evidence and go. Qian Dajin owes you a lot in wages—get it all back. Mr. Du will send lawyers to help you sue.”

One of the shifty-eyed workers couldn’t resist touching An Lin’s smooth skin. Seeing her trembling and crying like a pear blossom in the rain on the bed, lust stirred as he said, “This is a big star. Can’t we have a taste? After tonight, we won’t see her on screen anymore.”

Qin Yue kicked the worker, feeling extreme disgust, and spat in his face. “Isn’t the compensation enough? It was Qian Dajin’s fault to begin with—what does his mistress have to do with it? Want a rape charge and years in prison? Put away that disgusting look and all of you get out!”

The group of workers, fearing Qin Yue’s anger would cost them their compensation and wages, slunk away gray-faced through the door.

Qin Yue rolled her eyes at the departing group and cursed, “Trash without any class.”

The door slammed shut. The room’s dim lighting and romantic decor felt out of place, with a retro European high-footed wooden table holding a laptop efficiently monitoring.

Qin Yue grabbed An Lin’s wrist and injected liquid from a syringe, the thin needle piercing into her subcutaneous vein. The icy liquid surged into her living blood.

Watching An Lin’s pupils dilate in terror, Qin Yue whispered softly in her ear, “I wanted to help you, but you just had to mess with Lu Zhiyu. If it were just Ruan Suhuai, we could cover it up, but with Lu Zhiyu involved, I’m powerless. I can only sacrifice you as this pawn.”

The door opened, and several bodyguards stood outside. Seeing Qin Yue emerge, they rushed in, hauling the hallucinating, frenzied An Lin out and stuffing her into a taxi.

“Take her to Aurora City KTV.”

Qin Yue tapped on the driver’s partition window.

The driver nodded, then saw the pretty girl stuffing a stack of hundred-yuan bills through the slot. He waved it off awkwardly. “Can’t take it, can’t take it. This car has surveillance cameras.”

Qin Yue scanned the in-car QR code with her phone and said, “Then please take her to Room 215, driver.”

.

“Head trauma causing intracranial bleeding, wrist fracture, right leg contusion fracture—she survived in the mountain’s minus-twenty-degree chill. It’s a miracle.”

Lu Zhiyu vaguely sensed many shadows moving before her eyes. The speaker wore a white coat—a medical staff member.

“How soon until she wakes? I feel her hand moving. Is she about to?”

A familiar male voice came from beside the bed, very close.

“Rest assured, President Du. Miss Lu will definitely wake up today. You should go rest first. Miss Bai is also helping care for her.”

Footsteps came and went sporadically.

She seemed to float up and down in a dream, unable to find an exit to wakefulness, until the familiar system sound pulled her back to reality.

[The Ferryman has completed self-healing of injuries. Resentment consumed 100%. Your first free Immortal Body Buff has expired. Acquisition method for Immortal Body Buff: Automatically obtained after collecting each soul fragment. Or complete one thousand acts of charity.]

Lu Zhiyu sat up cross-legged, fully awake. Needle marks lingered on the back of her hand, but the equipment around her had vanished. She was now in a sterile ward.

She forcefully removed the tape and casts from her wrist and leg. On the small wooden table by the bed sat a half-eaten bowl of congee still steaming. Her caretaker hadn’t gone far.

Through the round glass window in the ward door, she saw promotional media playing the latest news: A KTV called Aurora City in some city had been busted for group drug use, with police arresting them and seizing five hundred grams of a new-type drug. Those involved were being held accountable and would face trial.

“Mainland actress An Lin caught using drugs; on-site arrest photos exposed. Gu Ye Global Film’s person in charge states they have terminated the contract with the artist. Due to An Lin’s scandal, Gu Ye Global Film’s stock has fallen, down over five percent so far. An Lin expected to pay massive compensation to the party A company.”

“General’s Tomb director Chen Wen states he has found a replacement actress for An Lin; her scenes will be reshot.”

“Rumors swirl of Star Emperor Films and Gu Ye Global Film joining forces. Du Yueze and Gu Yinsu reportedly met secretly late at night, staying three hours at a high-end private club before driving off separately at dawn.”

Lu Zhiyu watched the news while taking a banana from the fruit basket nearby and peeling it. As she opened her mouth to eat, a card slipped from between her fingers.

“Wish you a speedy recovery.” Beside the five words was a cheeky smiley face, signed with Ruan Suhuai’s dashing handwriting at the bottom—the kind she often used in endorsements.

She remembered this card’s signature could fetch at least three thousand secondhand, especially from rabid fans, even more.

Lu Zhiyu held the card, a mischievous thought crossing her mind. On the surface, she was backed by big investor Du Yueze and living large, but in reality, she was drowning in debt. This movie pay barely covered her trainee days earnings.

Tonight, she’d negotiate the contract termination while her body was recovered and Du Yueze was soft-hearted toward her.

She set the half-eaten banana aside.

She picked up the apple-peeling knife from the table and carefully cut out Ruan Suhuai’s signature from the card into a neat rectangle, tucking the remaining well-wishes into her phone case lining.

Lu Zhiyu sat on the bed, edited a post with a photo of the signature card, and uploaded it to a secondhand trading platform. Soon, a sale notification pinged.

She stared at the shipping prompt in a daze. She’d priced it at 4999 to deter instant buys and encourage haggling, but this fan was too generous—snapped it right up.

Cough cough, she thought, should have added another nine, made it 99999.

Lu Zhiyu couldn’t help envying inwardly. Ruan Suhuai was way too popular—a signature sold that fast. In her original world, she’d be top-tier traffic.

“You’re up? Lie down quick. I’ll call the nurse.”

Bai Xirou had just finished a call and returned to the room. Seeing Lu Zhiyu sitting up normally in her hospital gown, she jumped in fright, pressed the emergency button on the wall, and went to the hallway to call the nurse.