Chapter 4 Do You Want More?_2

Zhu Cuixi knew she hadn't fallen asleep, "Sister, do you want something to drink?"

"No."

"Oh."

"Zhu Cuixi, give me your phone."

An Chuyu, unable to sleep, simply sat up. As Zhu Cuixi rummaged through her bag for the phone, she prattled on, "Dear Sister Yuyu, when you're out, don't call me by my full name, it doesn't sound nice. Can you call me by my English name, Tracy?"

An Chuyu smiled, held out her palm, and Zhu Cuixi placed the phone in her hand.

There were quite a few unread WeChat messages. An Chuyu quickly scanned them and didn't reply to the unimportant ones. Then she noticed in the "New Friends" section a stranger had sent a friend request.

It was rare for someone to add her personal WeChat; for work-related matters, people would usually contact Shen Qiang.

An Chuyu opened it and immediately understood who it was based on the straightforward text.

[I'm your forgettable, bargain husband. Your bracelet fell off. Do you still want it?]

The first sentence amused An Chuyu, and Zhu Cuixi, sneakily observing her, didn't know what she had seen to make her laugh so heartily; it seemed to be the WeChat interface on the phone screen.

Zhu Cuixi felt a pang of anxiety—was it possible that after a one-night stand, Sister Yuyu was still in touch with that man?

An Chuyu touched her wrist where her bracelet should have been and, sure enough, it was gone. If it weren't for Xi Zheng's reminder, she wouldn't have noticed.

However, she had no intention of entangling herself with Xi Zheng any more than necessary. They had agreed on terms: their work and personal lives would not interfere with each other; last night was just an accident.

She needed the marriage to rid herself of An Zhihe's interference, and why Xi Zheng agreed to the arranged marriage wasn't within the scope of her concern.

Amidst the airport announcements reminding passengers to board, An Chuyu ignored Xi Zheng's friend request, turned off the phone, and handed it back to Zhu Cuixi.

----

As the plane entered the stratosphere, the cabin gradually quieted down, and An Chuyu tried to catch up on some sleep but couldn't find any peace; her mind was a mess.

She should never have yielded to Xi Zheng's request on a whim.

What was his collaboration to her?

Indeed, they had discussed before getting their marriage certificate that if one party needed help, the other would consider accommodating, but it was never stated that they had to. In the end, it was her own excessive conscientiousness.

An Chuyu's thoughts were in turmoil, and she felt even less inclined to sleep.

During the ten-hour flight, An Chuyu managed less than four hours of sleep, and when they arrived at Capital International Airport, it was ten in the morning, Beijing time.

This trip abroad was publicised, and there was a crowd of fans at the airport to greet her. An Chuyu mustered the energy to greet them and was surrounded as she got into the nanny van.

"Yuyu, cheer up! Don't let irrelevant people affect your mood! We will always be here to support you!" a fan shouted from the crowd.

An Chuyu didn't understand and rolled down the car window to thank them.

As the nanny van drove on, An Chuyu asked Zhu Cuixi in confusion, "What did the fans mean? Who influenced my mood?"

With a tablet in her hand, Zhu Cuixi indignantly said, "You're still not aware? The video from the Paris fashion show was uploaded online, and fans are attacking Qiao Lufei! They're saying she's scheming, deliberately stepping on your dress to sabotage you. Qiao Lufei's fans aren't having it, claiming it was just a minor accident and being persistent about it is in poor taste. The fans from both sides have started quarreling, and it has already trended on social media."

Shen Qiang: "Let me have a look."

Zhu Cuixi passed the tablet to her.

Shen Qiang scrolled through the trending topics, and sure enough, the fans from both sides were in a ferocious argument.

"Qiao Lufei has lost to An Chuyu in every aspect, left behind by miles. I heard her runway walk was just mooching, can't handle losing so she decided to play dirty, huh?"

"How wide is the runway that she could step on a dress hem, I suggest Qiao Lufei just donates her legs if she doesn't need them."

"I really don't understand why they keep comparing Qiao Lufei with An Chuyu. One has acted in who knows how many terrible movies, while the other delves into acting, with each movie praised and box-office hits, what's there to compare?"

"Yeah, yeah, your Sister An's movies have great reviews and box office numbers, so why not bring home a Best Actress trophy? Became famous at a young age, and still hasn't touched a trophy, isn't that just fame blown out of proportion?"

"Sigh, I heard An Chuyu is so dedicated to filming movies, she even injured her leg on set earlier this year, such dedication yet no recognition with an industry award, the film world is so unfair. Maybe An Chuyu should stop mingling in the film circle, take a stroll in the TV industry, and she might get a share of the pork."

Qiao Lufei's fans and the lady herself sure know how to make snide remarks. Shen Qiang couldn't stand reading for even three minutes before she angrily threw the tablet aside.

Zhu Cuixi asked, "Does the studio need to intervene? The behavior of the fans is blowing up and it's not a good look, our side is the one that started it."

"No need, what the fans said are facts, Qiao Lufei is not innocent by any means."

An Chuyu was too tired to sleep, she propped her face with one hand and seeing Shen Qiang fuming, she found it somewhat amusing, "Are they saying very nasty things? Why are you so angry?"

She had grown accustomed to those comments online.

Every time a fight broke out, the other side's fans would spill all sorts of filthy language and some seemingly true but false exposés, as if she and they had irreconcilable differences.

Anyway, she was usually very busy and didn't scroll through Weibo much, so it didn't affect her.

Her personal Weibo was managed by the studio staff, rarely posting daily updates, mostly just for endorsements and advertising promotions, as well as working with movie publicity.

Shen Qiang looked at her, her expression serious, "There are three days left until the Golden Rooster Awards ceremony, I remember you're nominated for Best Actress, do you think you can bring home a trophy?"

"My confidence doesn't matter, it's up to the organizing committee." An Chuyu shrugged her shoulders, eyes gazing at the car ceiling, "Well, my acting isn't bad, but my luck just isn't great. I've been a runner-up several times, if I don't win the award this time, forget the fans, I'll start to doubt whether I'm really fit for this career."

Shen Qiang heard the joke in her words and shook her head with a chuckle, "Remember to be more pious when offering incense at the opening ceremony of the movies."

An Chuyi showed a look of agreement.

Zhu Cuixi pulled out An Chuyu's phone from her bag, turned it on, and the ringtone sounded the next second. She quickly handed it over to An Chuyu, "It's Director Jiang's call."

An Chuyu took the phone and greeted the person on the other end, after listening to what was said, her face suddenly looked a bit unpleasant.