Chapter 56: Lunar New Year

Chapter 56: Lunar New Year

"Does Qi Ming know? He's the male lead in my new movie," An Wen said.

After she spoke, the group chat fell silent. Ye Xiaoxing timidly asked, "Is he next to you right now?"

"Yeah."

Another wave of silence.

Our image… has completely collapsed…

Even Qi Ming didn’t dare to speak.

"Little An, maybe you should go to the other side." We’re definitely going to kill you today!

"I’ve started the game," An Wen said.

It was too late for Qi Ming to back out now, and the person on the other side who wanted to change their name looked utterly speechless.

And so, Qi Ming saw Xia Jin’s character: Cai Wenji, with the username "Super Dad!" Ye Xiaoxing’s name was "Fierce and Flirty!" Cheng Hanwen was called "Sword Saint!" Even An Wen’s name was bizarre—"Shooter Queen!"

What kind of ridiculous team was this?!

By the end of the match, Qi Ming was questioning his life. An Wen took on five opponents single-handedly without breaking a sweat, her skills rivaling those of a professional player, carrying the entire team. The others never stopped trash-talking while fighting!

The aloof images Xia Jin and the others once had in his mind were completely shattered. If he had to describe them now, the only words that came to mind were "absolute clowns."

After that, Qi Ming became a permanent member of their team, and Xia Jin successfully dragged yet another person further down the path of absurdity.

The leads getting along well was nothing but beneficial for filming, and the production progressed faster.

The wrap-up scene was the part where Chen Lin confronted Xiao Ying for his wife. Both of them were dressed in mature attire.

Xiao Ying, knowing it was Chen Lin at the door, happily opened it.

Chen Lin’s expression was cold and stern, but Xiao Ying smiled and stepped aside, saying, "Come in."

Suppressing his anger, Chen Lin entered, and Xiao Ying closed the door behind him, moving to pour him some water.

"Don’t bother. I’m just here to say a few things," Chen Lin said, his voice icy.

"Chen Lin, what’s wrong?" Xiao Ying noticed his unusual mood and asked.

"I should be asking you that. Have you forgotten what you said to Nana today?" His eyes burned with fury.

This version of Chen Lin was too unfamiliar. Xiao Ying felt as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over her—he was someone else’s husband now! His heart belonged to Nana!

"Chen Lin…" she called out, but she didn’t know what else to say.

"From now on, we’re strangers. I don’t know you, and you don’t know me," Chen Lin said coldly.

"Chen Lin, I—" Xiao Ying tried to speak but was cut off as Chen Lin suppressed his rage.

"Since we’ve known each other since childhood, I don’t want to say anything too harsh. Just stay away from me and Nana from now on."

With that, Chen Lin turned to leave. Xiao Ying reached out to grab him, but he forcefully shook her off.

Chen Lin opened the door and walked out without looking back. Xiao Ying stared at the still-open door, tears streaming down her face, her voice trembling with sobs.

"But… I didn’t say anything. It was all just my own wishful thinking…"

"I only told Nana I was sorry…"

She collapsed onto the couch, crying uncontrollably, the memories of her past life making the pain unbearable.

Everything had been lost because of her own actions. All of it…

Curled up by the sofa, her shoulders shaking with quiet sobs, she eventually cried herself to sleep.

"Cut!" Wu Yan shouted.

One take!

The onlookers were all in tears, even the cameraman’s eyes were red.

Curled up on the ground, An Wen tried to push herself up with her hands, while Jiang Shiyu, her eyes brimming with tears, hurried over to help her. An Wen's eyes were red from crying, but she smiled and raised her hand, declaring, "It's a wrap!"

The entire crew erupted into cheers and applause!

Wu Yan called everyone together for the wrap-up photo, and Qi Ming stood beside her, whispering, "It was a pleasure working with you."

"Likewise!" An Wen smiled at the camera and replied.

After the film wrapped up, there was still some time before the shooting of Hua Luo Chang An began. Following her final exams, An Wen decided to take a break, spending her days at home playing games, reading, and sleeping.

As the Lunar New Year approached, she gave Jiang Shiyu a half-month holiday.

Chu Qichen spent more and more time at the villa, returning every day to persuade her to go back to her parents for the holiday.

An Wen had the memories of the Original Owner—those parents and brother had treated her like a fragile porcelain doll. The Original Owner had only managed to return to the country after going on a hunger strike. An Wen knew that if she met them now, she might never be allowed to leave again.

Her family hadn’t dared to contact her all this time, afraid they wouldn’t be able to resist forcibly bringing their daughter home and breaking her heart.

And precisely because of this, if they found out An Wen had entered the Entertainment Industry, it would spell disaster.

"An Wen, your parents miss you terribly. You can’t be this unreasonable," Chu Qichen said sternly, his expression unyielding.

"I don’t want to! No matter what you say, it won’t change my mind!" An Wen pouted, propping her delicate hand under her chin as she read.

After the incident in the study last time, she had grown less and less afraid of him.

"I won’t have anyone staying here during the Lunar New Year. If you refuse to go back, you can’t stay here either," Chu Qichen said coldly.

"Then I’ll go to a hotel," An Wen retorted.

There was no way Chu Qichen could rest easy letting her stay at a hotel. This little girl—he couldn’t scold her, couldn’t hit her, and yet he still worried something might happen to her.

He didn’t even have a girlfriend, yet he was already experiencing the frustrations of being a father.

In the end, An Wen successfully stayed at the Chu residence for the Lunar New Year. On New Year’s Eve, she made a video call to An Father and An Mother.

The moment An Mother saw her face, she burst into tears, while An Father’s eyes reddened. "Xiao Wen, you’ve lost weight..."

"I haven’t! I’ve been eating so much at Grandfather Chu’s place that I’ve actually gained weight," An Wen said, handing the phone to Chu Qichen so she could spin around and show them. Beaming, she asked, "See? I haven’t lost weight, right?"

An Father and An Mother had never seen An Wen so lively and animated before and were momentarily stunned.

Taking the phone back, An Wen continued cheerfully, "I used to rely on you guys too much—Mom even picked out all my clothes for me. That’s why I wanted to leave for a while. Dad, Mom, I’m really happy now. I’ve made new friends, and I aced my finals again!"

At this point, her expression dimmed slightly as she added guiltily, "Dad, Mom... I’m sorry..."

An Mother couldn’t bear to see her daughter upset and quickly reassured her, "How could we ever blame you? Our daughter has grown up—we’re overjoyed!"

Hearing this, An Wen immediately brightened again. She chatted with her parents for a while longer, even introducing them to the Chu family.

"This is Grandfather Chu—he’s been so kind to me. Tonight, he gave me this gorgeous necklace," An Wen said sweetly, bringing Grandfather Chu into the frame.

An Father and An Mother expressed their gratitude, and Grandfather Chu smiled warmly, assuring them it was nothing. After introducing everyone and chatting for a good while, An Ge finally appeared in the last five minutes, instructing his good friend Chu Qichen to take good care of An Wen.

After hanging up the phone, An Wen realized she had missed Xia Jin's performance and hurried to catch up by watching the video.

The group chat was already flooded with messages from Xia Jin.

["Tell me, did my handsomeness knock you all out?"]

["Come worship me"]

...

To prevent Xia Jin from ruining everyone's New Year's Eve mood, the group started showering him with exaggerated praise.

["Ye Xiaoxing: So handsome, I’ve already fainted!"]

["Cheng Hanwen: Crying over Xia Jin’s divine beauty"]

["An Wen: Is this a god descending to earth?"]

["Xia Jin: Appointing An Wen as the class representative"]

...