Stinky kid
While thinking this, she still didn’t dare to get close to He Ying; after all, it wasn’t easy to transform into a human form. What if this jade had no use and she turned back into her original form?
Although everything at He Ying’s place was delicious and there was tasty milk to drink, she was also getting a bit fed up with having her mouth pried open for brushing at least twice a day! If she had some sweets, twice a day would be considered too little!
Every time her mouth was pried open for brushing, Jing Dan felt somewhat wronged. She’s a spirit, with high self-cleaning abilities! Brushing her teeth in her original form was practically unnecessary!
Now that she could take on human form, she definitely had to deal with the backlog of work from the past month. Even a week after the filming of the program had ended, Jing Dan didn’t dare to go home.
She of course knew how popular the show was, which meant that her appearance on the show might be recognized by more people. At the moment, she didn’t know how to go back and face her aunt’s ‘so intense it could melt metal’ gaze.
However, one thing Jing Dan was not used to was that within this week, He Ying hadn’t looked for her even once…
During the filming of the show, He Ying would occasionally send messages and chat with her. Even though their conversations seemed to go in circles, there was still contact!
Now that the program was over and both of them presumably had some free time, the communication had stopped…
Jing Dan sat in the office with furrowed brows, wondering what on earth He Ying was up to. She had clearly said she’d make food for her…
After having tasted the meals prepared by He Ying, Jing Dan felt that the food made by others now just didn’t seem as delicious.
At this moment, He Ying had no idea what Jing Dan was thinking on the other end. She was holding a glass of water, knocking on a door.
With the sound of the knock, footsteps approached from inside, and then the door opened. As the door slowly swung open, the appearance of the person inside became clearer.
The face, bearing a six out of ten resemblance to He Ying, was now filled with a cold expression. Skin pale as if the sun hadn’t touched it in years, the whole person seemed somewhat sickly. Even facing her daughter, who was her closest blood relative, there was no warmth in her demeanor.
Meeting her, He Ying’s voice lost its usual softness and was tinged with a cold edge, “Mom, have some water. You’ve been inside all day today.”
He Yuan took the glass of water with a faint acknowledgment, closing the door as she looked up into He Ying’s eyes, “You’ve been here for a while too. It’s time for you to go back.”
He Ying was taken aback, locking eyes with her, she couldn’t see any sign of reluctance in those eyes.
She looked down and let out a small, self-mocking laugh tinged with bitterness, “Alright, I understand. I’ll leave tomorrow.”
Was her presence here unwelcome, after all?
She had been back for a week, and even though they lived under the same roof, their encounters were few and far between.
He Yuan just nodded indifferently, “Then I won’t see you out.” With that, she closed the door.
Staring at the closed door, He Ying tugged at the corner of her mouth, her face expressionless as she turned to pack her things.
The next day, true to her word, her mother did not come to see her off. By now, He Ying felt no turmoil in her heart; indeed, with no expectations, there was no sadness or sense of loss.
Returning to her home in Huaqing City, she stood frozen in the entryway, looking at the house exuding a cool atmosphere.
Now, at a glance, it seemed she could spot traces of that little rascal in every corner of the house. Yet in reality, that little rascal was no longer here, and He Ying suddenly felt somewhat out of place.
But this slight discomfort made her laugh at herself. She had been alone for over a hundred years and never felt this way. However, after just a month of the little rascal’s company, she had grown accustomed to her presence, and now felt a sense of loss in her absence.
Casually tossing the bag in her hand onto the sofa, the sight made He Ying think of that little rascal lying there sucking on a baby bottle.
He Ying bit her lip slightly in frustration. That heartless creature, to just up and leave without saying a few words of reluctance!
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Then again, she wasn’t even able to speak yet.
Shaking her head, He Ying thought that from now on, their interactions would likely be minimal.
After a bath, she lazily sprawled on the bedroom’s bay window and casually picked up her phone, only to find that at some point, Jing Dan had unexpectedly sent her a message.
Isn’t this strange, this guy actually takes the initiative for once?
Clicking to read the message, He Ying: “…”
【Jing Dan】: Out of food?
She shouldn’t expect to hear anything else from this guy’s mouth.
Eat, eat, eat, that’s all she knows! How come you never get fat!
He Ying was infuriated to the point of bursting. One little brat just left, and now here comes a bigger brat? Were these two brats just trying to mooch off her alone?!
【He Ying】: No, go eat air!
【Jing Dan】: …
On the other end, Jing Dan was looking at He Ying’s clearly irate message, confused. Did someone anger her?
But while she hadn’t figured things out yet, another trouble was already on its way.
Sister Xu knocked on the door and came in, holding a tablet with a somewhat displeased look on her face.
“President Jing, take a look at this.” She handed the tablet over to Jing Dan.
Jing Dan looked down and saw that after the explosion of their love-themed variety show, many other companies had followed the trend and brought up similar shows. Among them, the quickest to debut was the one from Zhihuan Entertainment. With their show airing just before or after theirs, comparisons were inevitable.
Now the internet was flooded with trolls against their show, criticizing their casting choices, saying the men weren’t handsome and the women not pretty, unlike the other show which was full of attractive men and women!
Jing Dan: “…”
Are these people blind? What’s actually the difference between who they chose and who we chose? Isn’t it still just people with two eyes and a nose? I don’t see their picks being particularly good-looking either!
Jing Dan flipped through the comments below and her expression relaxed a little. Thankfully, most people weren’t blind. Seeing comments where some criticized the large faces on their show, she felt that her sacrifices for the past month on the program weren’t in vain.
“Aren’t these comments pretty good?” Jing Dan looked up, somewhat puzzled by the unpleasant expression on Sister Xu’s face.
Sister Xu looked at her, hesitating, with words on the tip of her tongue but not knowing how to express them.
“Spit it out,” said Jing Dan as she handed the tablet back. Sister Xu’s face wore an expression as if the company was going to collapse tomorrow, and yet she hadn’t found a new position elsewhere.
Sister Xu silently took the tablet and said, “Now, your photos are all over the internet.”
Ever since the show became popular, photos of Jing Dan had been dug up and posted online one after another, and looking at quite a few of them, they were shots that insiders couldn’t have taken.
Jing Dan: “…”
Of course, she knew her photos were all over the internet, and they had even been turned into various GIFs and memes, making their way into countless homes. But soon, she realized that what she and Sister Xu were talking about was probably not the same thing.
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What Sister Xu was referring to was something regarding personal privacy…
Sister Xu, noticing the stiffness of Jing Dan’s expression, cautiously asked, “Do you need someone to take down all the photos?”
Jing Dan looked at her with a deep gaze, “Can they be completely erased?”
Sister Xu shook her head. How could they ever be completely erased? If it were possible, the saying that ‘the internet never forgets’ wouldn’t exist.
Jing Dan: “…” Then what’s the point in talking about it? If you can’t erase them completely and it’s going to cost a fortune, money doesn’t grow on trees.
“It’s just, you might need to be more careful when you go out now, paparazzi may take photos,” Sister Xu said with a look that conveyed mixed feelings; indeed, the more famous you are, the more troubles you have.
Jing Dan: “…”
After Sister Xu left, Jing Dan pulled out her phone and logged onto the internet, only to see a swarm of people calling her ‘wife’ and crudely suggesting that she should sleep with them, in a variety of ways.
Jing Dan’s face became stiff. Were such words really something people could say so casually?
Then there were endless comments like, “She’s your wife? She’s clearly my wife! If you keep this up, I’ll get angry, and then she’ll have to come home and coax me.”
Jing Dan couldn’t stand to look at her phone any longer; people nowadays are just too open!
However, she wasn’t too bothered by what Sister Xu had said. As long as it didn’t affect her normal life, having a few photos taken wasn’t a big deal.
Now, aside from becoming famous herself, He Ying had also gained more recognition because of her, which could smooth things out for her in the entertainment industry if she decided to stay. After all, Hu Tu had said that with He Ying’s current status, the cost of inviting her to shows had risen, and it wasn’t comparable to before.
That was fine by her; it meant she could have more money to support her dance troupe.
At lunchtime, she ate the boxed lunch her assistant had brought her with a lack of appetite. The rice was too hard, the vegetables too tough, and the seasoning was too strong. It was as if with each bite, her frown tightened more.
So disgusting, how could this meal be so awful!
When He Ying arrived, what she saw was Jing Dan looking utterly miserable, eating like it was torture. Where was the little satisfied look from before when she had something delicious?
“What’s with that face you’re making?” He Ying asked quietly, and at the same time, she thought she really had too much free time. After teasing Jing Dan, she actually went out to buy groceries and cook…
Hearing her voice, Jing Dan’s eyes immediately lit up, she put down her chopsticks and looked up at her.
It seemed like He Ying had trimmed her hair, enhancing the wavy curls and making her look even more radiant and imposing.
“Why are you here?” Although Jing Dan was actually very happy about her arrival, she still maintained a reserved expression on her face.
He Ying let out a sigh, placing the bag she was carrying on the table, her tone filled with helpless resignation: “I’ve come to feed you!”
The office was once again filled with the appetizing aroma of food, and as Jing Dan looked at the dishes laid out on the table, she knew to give He Ying some food with the first chopstick.
He Ying was surprised by her action; did this guy actually become so considerate? Wasn’t it always the case that she only knew to eat her own food before?
He Ying nodded, feeling the satisfaction of seeing a child grow up.
After Jing Dan served her some food, she immediately started eating from her own bowl, not even taking the time to lift her head.
He Ying: “…”
However, seeing how deliciously she was enjoying her meal, He Ying couldn’t help but reveal a hint of a smile on her lips, looking at her with a soft gaze.
“How’s the company doing recently?” He Ying asked.
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Jing Dan didn’t stop picking up food as she answered: “Pretty good, we’re in the process of planning the next variety show, and for the TV drama, we’re starting to scout for talent. Once we’ve found the right people, we’ll officially assemble the crew and start filming.”
“That’s good.” He Ying smiled, adding a chopstick-full of stir-fried bamboo shoots to Jing Dan’s bowl. Things are pretty good now; when she talks to her, she finally seems willing to say a bit more.
“Hmm.”
Jing Dan was eating the food He Ying had given her, glancing at her briefly before reciprocating the gesture and taking some food with her chopsticks for He Ying.
The smile on He Ying’s face deepened.
After finishing the meal, He Ying tidied everything up and, holding it in her hand, told Jing Dan, “There won’t be any food for the next two days; I’ve got an interview and need to go to Baiyan City for recording.”
Upon hearing this, Jing Dan’s expression grew more indifferent, and after merely uttering an “Oh,” she didn’t say anything else.
Seeing her like this, He Ying raised an eyebrow teasingly, “Are you going to miss me?”
Her tone was gentle but as if with a little hook, causing Jing Dan’s heart to flutter for a moment, to which she quickly retorted, “Of course not!”
Her miss He Ying? How could that be possible!
