As soon as Lin Ruijiao returned to her room, she received a message from Sister Wang. Without hesitation, she dialed the woman's number.
"Hello, Sister Wang? What's wrong?" Lin Ruijiao asked, her brows slightly furrowed.
"Ruijiao, I just heard from some colleagues that the Qie Chu production is still in early development. There's no official news about auditions yet. I'm afraid tonight's so-called audition might have just been a cover. Did you go?" Sister Wang's voice was rushed and filled with anxiety.
"I did. And... yes, something was off." Lin Ruijiao replied calmly as she slipped off her coat and exchanged a glance with Jing Jing beside her.
"What? Are you okay? Nothing happened, right?" Sister Wang's voice shot up several octaves in alarm.
"I'm fine, really. Everything's taken care of—don't worry," she quickly reassured.
"This is my fault. I should've done more background checks beforehand. From now on, I'll be more careful with business opportunities..." Sister Wang blamed herself entirely.
"Don't say that. It's my fault. I was too impatient and desperate for results—that's why I got tricked. This has nothing to do with you," Lin Ruijiao said, brows drawn tightly. Despite having been reborn, there were still areas where she remained too naive. With Sister Wang protecting her in the front and Ye Ruihuan watching her back, her journey through life had been relatively smooth.
That realization brought a wave of gratitude to her heart. "Sister Wang, really—don't blame yourself. I owe you so much already. Thank you... for everything." Her voice was earnest, face solemn with sincerity.
"...It's nothing. Just take care of yourself, especially when you're attending events alone," Sister Wang said gently.
"I will. Thank you again."
After this incident, Lin Ruijiao finally let things go. There weren't any promising scripts lately anyway—why force herself to hunt for opportunities that didn't exist? At worst, she could always reach out to Sister Ye Zhi again when the time came.
She also became much more selective with incoming job offers, no longer pushing herself to the brink like before. As a result, her schedule lightened up significantly. With the weather growing colder, she took the chance to stay home and recover, revising her original schedule to focus more on personal growth and improvement.
Naturally, this meant she saw more of Ye Ruihuan, who had always been somewhat of a homebody. Their relationship was much better than before, though their conversations remained sparse.
Lin Ruijiao stuck to her usual routine, behaving as if Ye Ruihuan didn't even exist. On the other hand, Ye Ruihuan genuinely wanted to grow closer—but didn't know how.
It was another quiet, dark night. The wind outside howled louder by the minute. Ye Ruihuan leaned against the headboard, long black hair cascading over her shoulders. Her eyes were wide open, brimming with thoughts, fingers absentmindedly rubbing the smooth surface of the jade peace talisman.
Her recent dreams had all been simple yet sweet slices of daily life shared with Lin Ruijiao—uneventful, but brimming with warmth. She loved them. Things she couldn't have in real life manifested freely in her dreams, and she savored every second of those imagined moments.
But then, a sudden shift in tone. Shadows surged in without warning. Her brow creased as all the gentle joy drained from her face. In the dream, everything around her was bright—except for her. She wore dark, lifeless colors. Gray. Black. Heavy with desolation and gloom...
She never imagined she could look like this.
"Ye Ruihuan! Are you planning to die with Lin Ruijiao!?"The silence in the room was suffocating, broken only by the sharp, angry voice of Ye Zhi.
Lin Ruijiao is dead?Dead...
Ye Ruihuan stood frozen, her head bowed, saying nothing. No reaction. Nothing at all.
The scene flickered violently.
Same setting. Same characters. But now, a different conversation.
"Ye Ruihuan, are you insane? Have you lost your mind?" Ye Zhi screamed, eyes wet with tears. "I supported your charity work—but selling off the company? You want to sell Huarui Entertainment? Are you out of your mind?!"
"...Yes." Ye Ruihuan glanced at her lightly, her tone calm and detached. Her entire being was devoid of emotion—only dry, stagnant peace and depression lingered.
"Huarui isn't yours alone! You can't just sell it like that!" Ye Zhi's tears finally spilled over.
"Fine. I'll keep your twenty percent. I'll sell the rest," Ye Ruihuan responded flatly, as if merely deciding what to eat for lunch.
"Are you crazy?! That company was built with my blood and sweat—you can't just throw it away!" Ye Zhi shrieked.
Still, Ye Ruihuan said nothing. Her silence was as hollow as death.
"You've gone mad from all that Buddhist chanting," Ye Zhi whispered bitterly, still crying. After a long pause, she finally said, "Then I'll buy it back. With my own money."
With those parting words, Ye Zhi stormed out, slamming the door behind her.
Ye Ruihuan remained unmoved, a deathly stillness rooted deep in her bones.
The dream shifted again.
Now she stood in plain robes, inside a quiet temple. The elderly monk she had once met at the charity gala sat beside her, deep in conversation.
A visitor was coming.
Time passed.
Ye Ruihuan, now with long black hair flowing down her back, stepped across the temple threshold. When she looked up, she was greeted by two familiar faces. Her expression, however, stayed tranquil.
"Ye Ruihuan, this is my husband, Ye Junhua. I'm pregnant," said Ye Zhi with a glowing smile.
Ye Ruihuan offered a soft smile. "Congratulations."
"You always said you were fated with Buddha, destined to become a nun at a temple. I guess you were right after all." Ye Zhi glanced at the monk in the distance and nodded in greeting.
"Do I really look like a nun?" Ye Ruihuan's smile deepened.
"...No, not at all." Ye Zhi examined her carefully. Clad in clean robes with a serene presence, she didn't seem of this world. Not a mortal—but a celestial being, untouched by dust. She seemed like someone completely new.
"Huarui Entertainment is doing well under my care, and your charity work is thriving too." Ye Zhi reported dutifully.
Ye Ruihuan nodded. "That's good."
She looked up at the sky. It was pale, endless, and void. Her eyes mirrored that emptiness—lost, unfocused.
"Thank you. You've worked hard," she said gently. "It's getting cold. Looks like it might rain soon. You should go."
With that, she turned and left.
"...Alright. I'll go." Ye Junhua carefully supported his wife as they departed.
The dream ended in a mist of clouds—and the cold touch of the jade talisman in her palm.
For the first time, Ye Ruihuan awoke from a dream with a calm, composed heart. Despite the rapid scene changes and overwhelming emotion, she remembered every detail clearly.
Lin Ruijiao died?She gave up everything?Became a nun?
Ye Ruihuan couldn't believe such things could happen. She was stunned. But deep down, she knew—if it came to that, she would do something like this.
In the dark silence of night, Ye Ruihuan sat against her bed for a long time, lost in thought. She felt a strange, serene transformation—like an old soul who had weathered life's storms and finally let go of worldly constraints.
She could accept everything from that dream.
Everything but one thing—Lin Ruijiao's death.
If Lin Ruijiao were truly gone, then what good would her fragile pride be?