Blame the Villain – Chapter 8

The Villainous Film Empress (8)

A little rich girl bent on saving the world X A paranoid, dark, and vengeful Film Empress

In the end, Song Xuyi dazedly accepted the New Year’s money¹.

            

She had another dream that night.

It seemed to be one of her own memories, yet it also felt like nothing more than a hazy dreamscape. She was in the darkness, tightly gripping a pair of hands, drawing strength from them while also trying to pass on her own courage. “We both have to keep fighting. Everything will get better…”

The next day, Song Xuyi woke to the System’s praise. “Xuyi, Happy New Year! On this first day of the new year, congratulations on making another leap forward in your mission progress…”

            

Song Xuyi was a little confused by the System’s sudden congratulations, until she belatedly recalled what had happened after she’d been drinking the night before.

She had shown Zhao Qingyu the fireworks. Zhao Qingyu had smiled, a smile more beautiful than any she had ever seen before, and Song Xuyi had completely lost it, utterly drowning in her beauty…

Recalling how she must have looked, Song Xuyi wished she could crawl into a hole in the ground. She was almost certain that if Zhao Qingyu had told her to jump off a building right then, she probably would have scampered right over and done it…

            

But Zhao Qingyu had only coaxed her into accepting the ‘New Year’s money’ she’d sent, expressed her gratitude for Song Xuyi’s persistent ‘clocking in²,’ and finally, declared happily that their relationship had changed from one of fan and idol to that of friends.

A clear-headed Song Xuyi would have definitely sensed something was off. But the Song Xuyi of that moment had been so thoroughly bewitched by Zhao Qingyu’s smile that she had agreed without a second thought. When Zhao Qingyu had asked with a half-smile, “Xuyi won’t regret this tomorrow, will she?” her head had grown hot, and she’d sent Zhao Qingyu a solemn, vow-like text—

【I, Song Xuyi, am exceptionally willing to be Qingyu-jie’s friend. From now on, I will remember to care for Qingyu-jie every day, share my daily life with Qingyu-jie, and be Qingyu-jie’s fan for a lifetime…】

            

Looking at the promise she had sent at the very start of the new year, Song Xuyi’s guts were turning green with regret. For a fleeting moment, she even wanted to move to a different world.

It was just too humiliating!

She refused to believe Zhao Qingyu hadn’t realized she was drunk last night, yet Zhao Qingyu had still cunningly coaxed such a promise out of her.

            

What on earth was she trying to do?

Song Xuyi truly couldn’t guess Zhao Qingyu’s intentions.

But now that the words were sent, she could only follow through on her promise.

            

This was the first day she was required to ‘clock in’ as Zhao Qingyu’s friend. What should she send her?

Song Xuyi was too embarrassed to use Zhao Qingyu as a tree hole³ anymore. She thought for a long time before finally arranging for someone to donate all the red envelopes she’d received the day before in Zhao Qingyu’s name.

Song Xuyi took a photo of the donation certificate and sent it to Zhao Qingyu, then searched online for a bit of chicken soup for the soul.

            

【Qingyu-jie, a gift for you for the new year.】

【Giving brings happiness. Kindness and sincerity are the most precious qualities. May Qingyu-jie always be kind and sincere. [Happy]】

After sending the message, Song Xuyi ground her back molars. I hope this treacherous villain can experience the joy of doing good deeds and decide to drop her butcher’s knife and turn from evil to good!

            

---

After sending the message, Song Xuyi was taken by her parents to make New Year’s visits⁴. The Song family had numerous relatives and a complex web of relationships, so they split into two groups: her two older brothers took one route, while Song Xuyi went with her parents.

Song Xuyi didn’t understand the business-related tug-of-war between the elders, so she stood to the side and obediently acted as a pretty little facade. Other than greeting people and smiling, she rarely spoke.

Yet this version of Song Xuyi, so different from previous years, was a huge hit with the older generation. More than one family elder hinted at wanting to introduce her to a high-quality potential partner.

            

Whenever the topic came up, Song Xuyi would smile and decline. “There’s no need. I’m still young.”

“Right now, all I can think about is my studies…”

Beside her, Father and Mother Song’s expressions were complicated. They didn’t chime in to help her.

            

On the way back, her parents’ spirits were clearly lower. They kept looking at Song Xuyi, wanting to say something but holding back.

“Dad, Mom, I really have no intention of dating right now.” Song Xuyi had to take the initiative. She felt a little pained, but her face was a mask of innocent cheerfulness. “If I can’t get married in the future, you can’t despise me for being an old maid…”

“What are you talking about—”

            

Father Song remained silent, but Mother Song’s gaze fell on the red birthmark on Song Xuyi’s wrist. Her words were a gentle scolding, but she could barely hold back the tears welling in her eyes.

Song Xuyi sighed internally and simply had the driver take them to a movie theater.

It was difficult to book out an entire theater on the first day of the Lunar New Year⁵, but Father and Mother Song weren’t people who stood on ceremony. They bought tickets and went inside with Song Xuyi.

            

After the lights dimmed, Song Xuyi could clearly hear soft sobs from beside her. Father Song patted Mother Song’s shoulder in silent comfort. Song Xuyi glanced over before looking away, pretending she hadn’t seen a thing as she began to watch the movie with ‘rapt attention.’

On the screen, Zhao Qingyu was both familiar and a stranger.

The female lead she played was originally the doted-upon xiao shimei of a declining sect. But overnight, the sect was massacred by masked assailants. Her shixiong, who was her childhood sweetheart⁶, died tragically while protecting her. The female lead grew up in a single night, vowing to uncover the truth of the massacre and avenge her loved ones.

            

As the xiao shimei, Zhao Qingyu’s smile was innocent and joyful, reminding Song Xuyi of the photo on Zhao Qingyu’s WeChat profile. She wondered what Zhao Qingyu’s own childhood was like, and whether she had been just as happy.

It wasn’t that Song Xuyi hadn’t considered investigating Zhao Qingyu’s background. After all, a person’s character was inextricably linked to their family, environment, and society. In the original plot, Zhao Qingyu had schemed for years to frame the male lead, Song Jun, which was very likely related to her family.

However, Father and Mother Song kept a very close watch on her. If she tried to have someone investigate Zhao Qingyu, it would probably attract their attention. Besides, Zhao Qingyu was extremely vigilant; any investigation would be easily detected by her.

            

So, Song Xuyi had extinguished the thought.

The movie continued.

From discovering her parents’ true identities to realizing that the one who had killed her loved ones was the reigning Emperor⁷, the female lead endured a series of betrayals and setbacks, surviving by the skin of her teeth. The one who stared into the abyss finally became the abyss herself. With great power in her hands, she killed the Emperor and took his supreme position. But many years later, she faced the same choice as the Emperor before her: her loyal ministers and generals held a secret that could overturn the entire nation. To kill or not to kill?

            

The film ended abruptly at that point.

In the final shot, the heavy palace doors closed. The female lead’s gaze was profound as she walked into the pitch-black palace, imperial edict in hand. Masked shadow guards emerged with a rustle from the darkness and prostrated themselves beside her. Her eyes were fixed on the throne that symbolized the pinnacle of power—a place that was both a mire that corrupted people and a harbor that could grant them peaceful sleep…

No one had expected such an open-ended conclusion.

            

After the movie finished, the entire theater was silent. It was a long while before people started to discuss it.

“When I voted for her back then, I thought Zhao Qingyu was just a pretty face. Was I blind?”

“When she cried, my heart nearly shattered!”

            

“When she looked at me later, I thought she was going to kill me. My legs went weak from fear…”

…

These discussions were enough to prove Zhao Qingyu’s skill. Even the dispirited Father and Mother Song had been drawn into the plot. In the end, Father Song let out a long breath and patted Song Xuyi’s shoulder. “You have excellent taste. Your idol’s acting is superb. Her future is limitless…”

            

Song Xuyi lowered her head and smiled without looking up at her father, continuing to text Zhao Qingyu. “I finished the movie. It was super, super good. Qingyu, your acting is amazing. You’re definitely going to be a huge star…”

“But,” Song Xuyi couldn’t help but dip a tentative toe in⁸, “there’s one thing I don’t understand: when the female lead finally stood at the pinnacle of power and got her wish, was she happy?”

---

At that very moment, Zhao Qingyu was also in the hospital room, watching the movie with her mother—a screening with an audience of two.

            

Her gaunt mother’s eyes lit up as she watched the screen, and she began to act along with the lines, gesturing animatedly.

As she performed, her whole face seemed to glow. For a fleeting moment, she regained the beautiful elegance of her youth.

Her mother had once been the most beautiful and talented student at the film academy. She was supposed to have had a future just as brilliant…

            

If she hadn’t met that man…

Zhao Qingyu turned off her phone and sat in the shadows, watching her mother, who was now laughing, now crying, like a madwoman. She let the dark emotions breeding in her heart gradually submerge her…

She knew that, barring any accidents, this movie of hers would be a hit. Countless messages were probably flooding her phone right now. She was walking, step by step, down the path she had planned…

            

No one would have ever imagined that she, who should never have been born, would make it this far.

But she had. And she would go further and further, step by step, seizing the reputation and money that the heartless man’s family cared about most, dragging them down into the mud to experience everything her mother had once suffered…

And she, bearing their curses and her mother’s wishes, would fly higher and higher with each passing day.

            

What a pity!

It was probably retribution: the heartless man had died a few years ago, and the old hag was already senile.

But the old hag’s precious grandson and daughter-in-law were still alive and well…

            

Only when the movie ended did Zhao Qingyu turn her phone back on.

As expected, the moment it powered on, it was flooded with countless missed calls and messages from friends.

This industry was just that pragmatic. Once you became a hit, it was all like cooking with raging fire and flowers blooming on brocade⁹. Overnight, you gained innumerable ‘friends’ and could obtain wealth an ordinary person couldn’t earn in a lifetime.

            

But Zhao Qingyu didn’t lack money.

She stared coldly at her phone, replying to the messages one by one, until she saw an unread message in Song Xuyi’s chat window.

Right. It was that fake fan she had coaxed last night into promising to share her daily life.

            

Zhao Qingyu didn’t even notice that the moment she saw Song Xuyi’s message, the hostile aura around her unconsciously receded. Her crazed mother ran over barefoot and crouched carefully beside her, stroking her thin back. “Nannan¹⁰ is happy, so Mama is happy too…”

“I’m not happy.”

Zhao Qingyu retorted with a stern face.

            

She looked at the photo of the donation certificate Song Xuyi had sent. Her brow twitched when she saw the large sum on it. Then she saw the chicken-soup-for-the-soul message and couldn’t help but scoff. Telling me to be good? You might as well tell a wolf to go vegetarian…

Had this fake fan sensed something?

But the question that followed got to her.

            

When she reached the pinnacle of power, was the female lead happy?

While acting, Zhao Qingyu had felt the female lead was unhappy. Having lost all her loved ones to sit alone on that high throne, how could she possibly be happy?

But for some reason, she didn’t want to type out those words. It felt like a prophecy, foretelling her own life after her revenge was complete.

            

Zhao Qingyu pressed her lips together and slowly began to type. The sound of her fingers tapping the screen was loud, as if to prove the resolve in her heart—

【Whether she’s happy or not, only the one whose wish has been granted will ever know!】

---