Chapter 52: A Scene People Longed For
Rhythmic tapping sounds came from the driver’s seat. After hearing the description of Hailin’s personality, Gao Ming became certain that he was a very cunning man, and even he felt unsure for a moment.
Back when Cheng Fei disappeared, the successful search was not only because of hard work. Luck had also played a big part.
“I’ll give it a try.”
Gao Ming glanced at Cheng Fei in the front passenger seat.
On the surface, Cheng Fei looked calm, but inside she was already like an underwater volcano about to erupt, bubbling nonstop.
Damn it!
At this moment, she practically felt like using herself as a living example of what not to do. Cheng Fei clenched her teeth tightly and slowly ground them together. The people in the back seat could barely hear it, but Gao Ming heard it clearly.
Thinking back to that time, Gao Ming even felt a little strangely proud. It was the first time he had ever felt a sense of satisfaction from bullying a woman.
Cheng Fei noticed him getting smug again. She glared at him fiercely, then quickly pulled back her murderous gaze before anyone noticed.
People in higher social circles had many connections. Zheng Qi knew that Hailin was clever and slippery, so after these past few days, she no longer held much hope.
If the man disappeared, then so be it. If the money could be recovered, great. If not, she would just treat all these years as wasted effort.
“There are just too many people in China. Finding one person is really not easy. Maybe we should use the power of the media.”
This situation was different from last time. Cheng Fei’s escape had to stay secret. Besides, using public attention and involving the police openly was better than Gao Ming secretly handling everything alone.
But the moment Gao Ming finished speaking, someone immediately objected.
“No!”
Zheng Qi cried out loudly and rejected the idea at once.
Bai Xi placed a hand on the back of Zheng Qi’s hand, helping her calm down. Realizing her reaction had been too strong, Zheng Qi took a deep breath and slowly steadied her emotions.
“I’ve been in this industry for years, but my income still isn’t as high as some newcomers. I’m different from them. I have my limits, and there are certain ‘jobs’ I refuse to do no matter what. I’ve heard people secretly call me stupid before, saying I don’t know how to use my good looks properly... Fine, maybe I really am stupid. But if people find out about this, they’ll probably laugh at me for being an idiot. There’s a huge difference between the two. I may not be very smart, but I still want to keep at least a little dignity.”
Her eyes shimmered with tears.
The pain caused by betrayal from someone she loved was probably impossible to fully describe, but others could at least understand part of it.
Her eyes turned red and filled with tears, but not a single tear fell.
She held them back and endured it.
Just as she had said before, this time she accepted the loss. Even if her teeth broke from anger, she would swallow the pain herself. Everything happened because she misjudged the wrong person. She blamed nobody else, not even that so-called scumbag.
Bai Xi gently patted her. Some feelings did not need words.
Behind Zheng Qi’s playful and smiling personality was incredible toughness.
Leaving her hometown and struggling at the bottom of a huge city like Yunzhou was like climbing a mountain.
That mountain was filled with all kinds of climbers. Some people had climbing hammers and safety ropes, following paths already opened by others and moving upward with little effort. Some people were even luckier, they arrived and simply took a helicopter straight to the top.
But women like them, with no family background and no powerful support, were like free climbers using only their bare hands.
Courage, methods, vision, strength, skill. They had to improve everything about themselves just to avoid being pushed aside and falling back down to the poor hometown they came from.
This time, Zheng Qi had slipped and fallen from halfway up the mountain.
Luckily, she had not fallen all the way to the bottom yet.
She could still treat this as a failed lesson and continue chasing the beautiful view waiting at the top.
At this moment, where were they going? What were they supposed to do? And with what mood were they supposed to attend this event?
Zheng Qi suddenly realized she had been so busy pouring out all the pain in her heart that she had ruined the happy atmosphere. Why couldn’t she just hold it in a little longer?
The more she questioned herself, the worse she felt. The atmosphere inside the car also became unbearably awkward, making it hard to even breathe comfortably.
“Feifei, I’m sorry. I really didn’t mean to ruin the mood. Today... I just really...”
Cheng Fei turned around and smiled softly. She lowered her seat slightly and wiped away the tears on Zheng Qi’s face.
“Actually, things aren’t that terrible. At least your timing is pretty good. The day after tomorrow, I’ll share all my wedding happiness with you. Maybe the moment you walk outside, you’ll run into a super handsome guy.”
“When the old one leaves, the new one comes. Something better is waiting ahead! At least you saw his true face before taking the final step, so your losses stopped in time. Of course, if you don’t want another relationship, I can take care of you instead.”
“You...!” Bai Xi originally wanted to say that Cheng Fei already had a husband, so why was she still joining in this nonsense? But since she was not close enough to Gao Ming, she could not bring herself to say the joke out loud.
Both women glanced at Gao Ming.
Cheng Fei had almost forgotten he was even there.
But even if he was, so what?
“Hah, what’s there to be scared of? At worst, we just add one more person. I don’t mind three people sleeping in one bed!”
Cheng Fei and Bai Xi continued trying their best to comfort Zheng Qi. They had already spent a long time cheering her up at the shop, and now they were still coaxing her.
But Cheng Fei’s words were honestly a bit too shocking...
The other two women were speechless, while Gao Ming felt his head splitting into two from the stress.
Without moving his head, he rolled his eyes sideways so hard that only the whites were almost visible, secretly thinking to himself that if he still did not react at all after hearing something this outrageous, people might really believe he actually enjoyed this kind of shocking arrangement.
“Cough! Feifei has been a little... well... the wedding is getting close, so mentally she’s already getting into the role... you know what I mean!”
“Uh...”
The two women in the back seat could only laugh awkwardly.
Cheng Fei chuckled proudly and crossed her legs again.
That posture...
She was at it again.
Gao Ming saw it but could not point it out directly in front of everyone. While changing gears, he quietly pinched the knee that had almost stretched onto the gear stick.
Cheng Fei shot him an unhappy look, then noticed the warning in his eyes directed at her.
Helpless, she pulled back her legs and sat upright properly again.
With Gao Ming there, the atmosphere was already somewhat stiff. Now that nobody knew what to say anymore, plus the painful matter from earlier, Zheng Qi naturally fell back into sadness.
Cheng Fei really could not bear to see her continue suffering like this. She wanted to say something, but her thoughts were all mixed up and she could not think of anything. Without thinking, she looked at her phone.
A few days ago, she had downloaded an office app to help edit Gao Ming’s story. She had forgotten to delete it afterward. This morning, while bored after opening the shop, she casually looked through it again and even typed a little.
Right!
This could distract Zheng Qi for a while!
Cheng Fei immediately turned around and looked directly at the girl in the back seat, a faint smile hanging on her face.
After what happened earlier, Zheng Qi was honestly afraid Cheng Fei might suddenly come up with another terrible idea.
Zheng Qi already knew Cheng Fei had changed, but she never imagined she had changed this much.
China had thousands of years of traditions passed down through history. Why did Cheng Fei have to inherit the weirdest parts?
“Feifei!”
Cheng Fei raised her hand with her palm facing Zheng Qi.
“Dear customer, do you still want to act?”
“Huh?!”
Cheng Fei gave another mysterious smile and turned to Gao Ming.
“Do you still need actors?”
It was easy to guess what Cheng Fei was thinking.
It was only a short web movie, not some huge blockbuster for movie theaters. Hiring professional actors could easily become very expensive.
Cheng Fei had once heard Zheng Qi mention that before becoming a model, she had studied at an acting school for a while and had even acted in some short films. Her acting skills were decent.
And now, after going through such a huge emotional shock, her performance would probably become even more real.
“We do. Of course we do!” Gao Ming laughed softly. “Teacher Bai, are you interested too?”
“There’s a role for me too?” Bai Xi sighed.
It was not that she did not want to help. She simply did not have the time. It was not about refusing to give face to her best friend’s husband. School was about to start soon, and she really could not spare the time.
Meanwhile, in the car behind them, the invitation continued.
But Ye Dong’s words nearly made Zhou Lin explode.
Shoot a game background story video and drag him into it too?!
Ye Dong grinned shamelessly.
“What’s the problem? I heard your grades were great when you were younger. You even went on TV several times for interviews.”
There was no need to think too hard about it. Zhou Lin could swear this information definitely leaked from Cheng Fei.
What exactly was this guy trying to do?
“I... I did go on TV a few times, but I... I get nervous in front of cameras! The moment I see those dark camera lenses, I can’t even speak properly. How could I possibly remember lines?”
“Relax, it’s not like an interview. The camera will just be filming from the side.”
“But...”
“This isn’t really my decision. It was Boss Gao’s idea.”
Those shocking words made Zhou Lin even more confused.
“Boss Gao...?”
The wedding venue was already almost fully prepared.
As the group walked from the entrance into the main hall, all of them felt emotional.
Especially Bai Xi and Zheng Qi.
For most girls, wearing that white wedding dress symbolizing happiness was the dream of a lifetime.
When they were children, attending weddings was only about eating good food and having fun. But once they reached a certain age and stood inside a place like this, their hearts naturally became moved.
They imagined a perfect man standing beside them. A man who matched them perfectly and was more handsome than everyone else. Holding his arm, beginning a happy life together that others would envy.
What could be more romantic than that?
The wedding planners were truly skilled. The two girls were completely enchanted by the scene. Even the three men stared blankly for a moment.
Only Cheng Fei stood there with half-lowered eyelids.
Wedding venue.
According to Gao Ming’s request, how should a woman who was deeply in love and happiness behave?
In three days, she would probably have to give another full performance.
Sigh...
But what else could she do?
Her eyes accidentally drifted to the side, toward the person beside Ye Dong who was looking around curiously.
Cheng Fei’s feelings became complicated.
Honestly speaking, Gao Ming’s personality was not annoying. If she judged fairly, he was actually the kind of person she would want to be friends with.
But forcing her into this ridiculous act was really driving her crazy.
The more she thought about it, the more her teeth itched. She unconsciously ground them together, almost wishing she could open her mouth right now and bite through his neck with her sharp canine teeth.
“Hey!”
Lost in thought, Cheng Fei suddenly heard a voice.
After looking around the venue, Bai Xi narrowed her eyes into thin lines like a sly fox. She slowly walked over and lightly patted Cheng Fei’s shoulder.
Startled, Cheng Fei’s shoulders instantly stiffened. She turned around and saw two smiling faces.
“Already getting impatient, huh? Since things are already like this... isn’t it just going through the motions anyway?”
Now that everything had already started, there was no way to stop halfway.
Besides, when someone trusted you with a task, you should finish it properly. Honesty came first.
Still, just thinking about dealing with all this over the next few days already made her exhausted. If the thoughts hidden deep inside her heart were exposed and made the others suspicious, it would become even worse.
So Cheng Fei could only turn her head away and look elsewhere.
But in the eyes of Bai Xi and Zheng Qi, she simply looked shy and too embarrassed to meet their eyes.
Ever since that incident before, Cheng Fei had changed so much that she almost seemed like a different person.
Yet at this moment, her behavior strangely made Bai Xi and Zheng Qi feel as if they had found the old Cheng Fei again.