Chapter 6: Secret Lover

Wen Qingye didn't know if it was because she'd exhausted all her energy, but she slept until past 10 AM the next day. Memories of last night flooded back in waves.

She looked down and found her pajama top buttoned all the way to the top button. That wasn't her habit—Jiang Li must have dressed her in the pajamas too.

Wen Qingye got up quickly, not even bothering with slippers, and strode into the walk-in closet. She stopped in front of the full-length mirror, undid the top three buttons of her pajamas, and exposed a large patch of skin below her collarbones.

Just as she'd expected—red kiss marks of varying sizes were scattered around her collarbones. Even her neck had one.

Everything was reminding her that this was no dream. She and Jiang Li had spent another wild night together after four years apart.

Absolutely insane!

Wen Qingye thought she could face Jiang Li without any ripples. Turns out she still couldn't keep her composure.

She admitted that last night's surrender was only amplified by the alcohol—a catalyst that magnified her emotions and her desire.

Wen Qingye suddenly didn't know how to face her anymore. But then she thought: four years ago, Jiang Li was the one who threw her into misery. Why should she be the one suffering now?

With that thought, Wen Qingye left her pajama buttons undone, slipped on her slippers, and walked out.

She was actually quite looking forward to Jiang Li's reaction when she saw the kiss marks.

The front door opened just then—Jiang Li was coming back with breakfast. The two of them suddenly locked eyes, both freezing for a beat.

Jiang Li closed the door, set the bags on the dining table, and took everything out one by one, arranging it neatly.

A classic Chinese breakfast: soy milk, fried dough sticks, soup dumplings, wraps, and congee.

All things Wen Qingye used to love. But now she only glanced at it before walking away coldly.

Jiang Li felt she should say something. She stepped a little closer—not too far, not too near. "I bought breakfast. Want to eat together?"

Wen Qingye swept a glance over the food on the table. "Eat by yourself. I don't eat carbs."

The reminder that "not eating carbs to lose weight is too extreme" got stuck in Jiang Li's throat, and she swallowed it back down.

She'd carried Wen Qingye to bed last night—she was so light it was alarming. Did entertainers really have to starve themselves into paper dolls? Jiang Li didn't understand.

Jiang Li watched her drift away. Wen Qingye turned toward her. "Anything else?"

"That…" Jiang Li scratched her head. "Last night, I…"

Wen Qingye cut her off with an unbothered smile. "Miss Bodyguard performed excellently last night. Don't worry—I'll transfer the money to your account shortly."

Jiang Li's brow knotted at those words.

Her thumbnail dug into her index finger again. "That's not what I meant!"

"But that's what I mean." Wen Qingye smiled frivolously. "Jiang Li, don't tell me you're hoping to rekindle our old flame. Sorry, but I have zero interest in any emotional entanglement with you."

She stepped closer, her fingertips brushing along Jiang Li's cheek. "I only want physical entanglement with you."

Jiang Li's gaze dropped and landed on the kiss marks scattered across her collarbones—red and glaring, all her own handiwork. But she couldn't feel happy about it at all.

What she thought was passion born of deep feeling was, to the other person, nothing more than a physical need.

Wen Qingye moved fast. After a flurry of taps on her phone, it took barely two minutes—Jiang Li received a bank notification. Her account had just grown by a million yuan.

Wen Qingye flashed her phone's transfer screen at her with a slight smile. "Congratulations to Miss Bodyguard on her upgrade to my secret lover."

"…Secret lover? Heh…"

Jiang Li felt like she couldn't breathe. The person in front of her looked exactly the same as before—so why did she feel like a complete stranger?

Yes, she needed money. But not this kind of money. To her, this was humiliation.

The doorbell rang, giving Jiang Li a momentary escape from the suffocating emotions.

Before Jiang Li could get to the door, the person outside punched in the passcode and let herself in. It was Ning Si.

"Morning~" Ning Si greeted them both, her eyes landing on the breakfast on the table.

Ning Si let out a "Wow!" "I'm starving!"

Without any ceremony, she grabbed half a fried dough stick and stuffed it in her mouth, chewing as she walked toward Wen Qingye. "Xiaoye, at 2 PM we need to—"

Ning Si didn't even finish before her gaze was snagged by the kiss marks on Wen Qingye's collarbones. Her eyes went wide, darting back and forth between the two of them.

Jiang Li's face went red. She dropped a quick "I'll go change" and bolted for her room.

Once Jiang Li's door closed, Ning Si grabbed Wen Qingye and examined the kiss marks closely. "Oh my god! You two…"

She lowered her voice. "You actually slept together?!"

Wen Qingye didn't hide it. She nodded. "Mm. We did."

"Wen Qingye, you absolute siren!" Ning Si took an angry bite of her fried dough stick. "Less than a day, and you already bagged our cool Miss Bodyguard!"

Wen Qingye didn't respond to that. She changed the subject. "What time do we leave this afternoon?"

Ning Si had Wen Qingye's schedule memorized cold. She answered without hesitation: "2 PM for hair and makeup, then we need to shoot promo content. The livestream starts at 7 PM, runs for an hour, and should wrap up by 8-something at the latest."

Ning Si's eyes swept over her again. She clicked her tongue twice. "I originally picked out a dress for you, but that's out now. I'll contact the stylist to switch to a high-collar top."

Ning Si shook her head in mock reproach. "Next time, show some restraint. Avoid the neck and collarbone area."

Wen Qingye closed her eyes briefly. "Got it."

If she was going to blame anyone, it was herself for not hitting the brakes last night. It had been so long since they'd been intimate that she'd lost all sense of proportion. The memory of last night suddenly ambushed her, and to her own surprise, her face flushed.

Wen Qingye quickly boiled two eggs, peeled an apple, and made herself a cup of black coffee. That was her brunch.

She'd long grown accustomed to hunger over the years. The camera adds ten pounds—she had no choice but to maintain her figure according to public standards.

Jiang Li frowned again at the sight of her meal. How was this supposed to sustain anyone through a full day? She wanted to say something, but she knew she had no right to.

Ning Si drove Wen Qingye and Jiang Li to the hotel room booked by the brand. The makeup artist was already waiting inside.

Tonight was a livestream for a new lipstick launch—the first domestic cosmetics brand endorsement Wen Qingye had landed since returning to China.

She was merely a former K-pop idol with a small but loyal fanbase in the domestic market. Antis were plentiful, mainly because of her contract termination a few months ago—group fans had nailed her to a pillar of shame.

Since she'd officially announced her departure, the harassment from antis and stalker fans had been relentless, wave after wave, never giving her a single moment to breathe.

So many people online called her a traitor. Yet few knew what she'd endured during those three years in Korea—the humiliation, the smear campaigns, the rumors. Faced with the endless negativity, Wen Qingye tried to adjust herself. If she wanted to survive in this industry, she needed a steel-strong psyche.

After all, she still had to keep living, didn't she?