Chapter 92: Wen Jin Retreats

A drizzling rain had begun at some unknown point beyond the window, as if knots of sorrow had been tied there for a thousand years, weaving melancholy and heaviness into the air until it was almost hard to breathe.

The room was quiet. Wen Jin sat alone on the sofa, curled up with a pillow in her arms, lost in thought. She was waiting for Gu Yao. She had blurted out, in a moment of impulse, that it was over between them; once he found out, he would surely be furious.

She truly felt powerless. She had no way to face the public condemnation from the entire internet. It was as if she had made some monstrous mistake and offended everyone in the world.

Before the scandal broke, she had not understood. Now, at last, she grasped what the word "perfectly matched" really meant. She even wondered whether, if it had not been her but He Wen who was exposed as dating Gu Yao, the fans and netizens would not have resisted so bitterly, and instead offered blessings and support.

In the end, it was simply because she was too ordinary. Not only was she standing still while others moved ahead, but Gu Yao had also been dragged down by her. If this went on, she really would destroy his future, just as the fans said. He was such a dazzling presence; he should not be shrouded in haze because of her. He had stood high above others for so long, outstanding and powerful—what right had he to marry a girl as plain as she was? Even she felt it was not worth it for him...

Gu Yao rushed to Wen Jin's apartment in a storm of haste, striding angrily into the room in search of her. The moment he stepped inside, he found Wen Jin sitting there dazed and uncertain, at a complete loss.

She was so small, wrapped in the soft glow of the lamp, her hair loosely tied back, a few messy strands falling over her forehead. She looked gentle, quiet, and still.

Gu Yao was full of anger, his face dark as he approached, ready to question her. But when he came close and saw her red eyes, swollen from obvious crying, every trace of his fury vanished at once.

This was his treasure. The person he loved, the one he cherished to the very marrow of his bones, had been hurt like this by his own fans, and he still had not protected her well enough.

Gu Yao sat down on the sofa, which dipped beneath his weight.

He fixed his gaze on Wen Jin and said slowly, in a low voice, "Xiao Jin, I'm sorry. Before, I thought too simply. I was afraid the criticism would affect you, and I thought as long as we lived our own lives well, that would be enough. I never expected the internet to hurt you like this. It was my fault. From the very beginning, I should have told the whole world that you were mine, that you were the one and only treasure of Gu Yao's, and no one was allowed to hurt you."

Listening to him, feeling the hot, love-soaked intensity in his eyes, Wen Jin's own eyes slowly filled with moisture, and she turned her face slightly away.

Life had too many helplessnesses, too many sorrows, too many regrets. Perhaps to possess was not as good as to let go. She could not drag him down with her. Wen Jin shut her eyes hard; her little face was frighteningly pale as she clutched the hem of her clothes and said with finality, "Gu Yao, let's break up."

A violent tremor seized Gu Yao's heart. The light in his eyes vanished at once, his expression freezing. In disbelief, he asked, "Baby, do you even know what you're saying?"

"I know." Wen Jin forced out a smile. She clenched her teeth to finish speaking, and regret had already begun to quietly spread from the depths of her heart.

A sudden pain shot through Gu Yao's eyes. He could no longer restrain himself; reaching out, he turned her toward him and asked in a raised voice, "Why? Why are you breaking up with me just because of what the fans said? Why don't you believe me? Are we really going to drift apart this easily?"

The sight of him made Wen Jin's heart sink all at once. She gently removed his large hand and lowered her eyes.

Her manner was polite and distant, stripped of all personal feeling, and that only made Gu Yao feel colder. She said, "Gu Yao, maybe we're not only this way, but it seems... this is all we can be. In the end, we're not people from the same world. You really are so dazzling. You'll never know how every time I see you shining like that, I feel so ashamed of myself that I want to cry. My life has no light, no salvation, no joy. I once had nothing, and I truly am not worthy of you. You still have a brighter and more glorious future ahead of you. I don't want to hold you back..."

Her words were like knives, slicing into his heart one by one. He had never known that his little girl had been bearing so much pressure all this time—pressure from the outside world, pressure from him...

Wen Jin did not dare raise her eyes to look at him. She gave a bleak smile, full of desolation and sadness. Her eyes tightened as she held back the urge to cry and went on, "Actually, I'm already very content. To have been able to walk this far with you is truly an honor. I at least got to hear you sing just for me, to speak with you up close, to see your eyes. I'm very lucky, even if I'm sad. Before we got together, I had already thought through every possible ending. Even if we can't make it to the end, there won't really be any regret. In this lifetime, to have loved you, to have had you, to have held you, to have kissed you, to have smelled the scent on you—that is already very good. I don't dare ask for anything more..."

When she finished, she seemed to want to make herself let go, to force a smile at him one more time. But she looked so heartbroken and reluctant.

Gu Yao listened patiently to every word of the foolish little thing before him. Suddenly his heart softened completely. He moved to sit beside her and opened his arms, letting out a long sigh. "Come here. Let me hold you."

He was angry that she would give up so easily, angry that she did not believe in him, but even more than that, he pitied her unbearably.

Hearing only those words from him, the heart Wen Jin had been fiercely suppressing trembled hard. The support within her instantly shattered like porcelain.

Her eyes filled with tears. When he reached out and gathered her into his arms, the tears finally broke free. Her soft, broken sobs reached Gu Yao's ears, and he panicked all at once. He moved gently, stroking her back, and coaxed her in a soft voice, "It's all right, all right. Baby, don't cry."

For some reason, hearing him soothe her so gently only made her feel more miserable. If he had not comforted her, she might have held back; but with that one attempt to coax her, all the grievance in her heart surged up like a tide, and she cried even harder, the tears spilling out like long-dammed water suddenly released, impossible to stop.

Gu Yao lifted her little face and saw it soaked with tears, her small nose bright red, her body hiccupping against his chest. He was so anxious his heart rose into his throat. It felt as though his heart were being filed back and forth by a sharp rasp, the pain keen, deep, and heavy.

This was the girl he loved. Strong on the outside, endlessly tender within. Even after being hurt, she was still thinking of him, afraid of burdening him. He did not care about any of that. He only wanted her to remain carefree forever, to live as she pleased, full of joy. He would protect those beauties of hers with all he had.

"Baby." His voice was low and slightly hoarse, soft yet firm. "We are not breaking up, and I will not let you go to bed carrying this kind of emotion. Every time you try to handle things on your own, you are only drifting farther away from me. That won't do. Whatever it is, we talk it through. As for breaking up, don't even think about it."

Wen Jin struggled to calm herself. Suddenly her chest felt warm from his words, so sincere and beautiful that she almost wavered. But she was terribly clear-headed. Life had taught them too much. She knew too well the importance of cutting cleanly when it was time. She did not want him to regret today's choice later.

After a long, silent pause, Wen Jin lowered her head and spoke with difficulty, "Then let's both calm down first. Think carefully about how to handle public relations, how to speak to the fans. We shouldn't see each other for a while..."

Gu Yao was stunned by her words, then nodded and agreed. He knew this was Xiao Jin giving ground.

Perhaps they really did need to calm down. The whole thing had happened too suddenly, and they had both been too agitated. But one thing he knew for certain was that breaking up was impossible. He would never agree to it.

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By early morning, the relationship between Gu Yao and Wen Jin had nearly exploded across the entire internet. Everyone was talking about it, yet there was one place utterly oblivious, as if cut off from the world.

That place was the set of North Star. The crew had been busy from before dawn with their work, with no time to look at their phones. The final two scenes, the separation scene and the reunion scene, were already pressing on them, and everyone was occupied with their own tasks.

Yan Mei had arrived on set early in the morning to oversee everything. It was the last day before wrap. She looked around the set: Lin Xi and Lu Yuxiu were rehearsing lines off to the side; Shu Yunyi had been caught by the makeup artist for touch-ups; and Fan Haoxuan, as usual, was teasing and clowning around with the crew he knew best. It was truly a little hard to part with it all; twenty-odd days had passed in the blink of an eye.

"Come on, everyone!" Yan Mei stood and clapped her hands, saying loudly, "Everyone, after twenty-three days of hard work, we're finally about to wrap. Today we have the last two scenes. Let's all lift our spirits and strive to finish with a perfect ending!"

"All right!" the people on set replied excitedly.

"Actors to position! Ready to shoot!" Yan Mei immediately swept a hand through the air and issued her orders.

"Understood!" "Coming!" "Get ready!"

Lin Xi hurried into the scene, while Lu Yuxiu waited just outside the frame.

All the cameras were trained on Lin Xi. In this scene, Mu Beibei discovers that Qin Zexing has suddenly disappeared without a word. She goes to the club and finds his room empty; even the club members have no idea where he has gone. So Mu Beibei begins a frantic search through airport after airport for Qin Zexing.

There was not a single line of dialogue in the entire scene. It tested the actor's ability to carry a long take with expression alone.

Mu Beibei's heart seemed about to leap out of her chest. Her face was pale with anxiety, and a few stray strands of hair hung messily by her ears. She kept looking around, pacing back and forth in restless uncertainty, searching the airport aimlessly. Their sweet moments together flashed one by one through her mind like scenes in a film, until in the end he had left her only an empty room, without a single word, without any explanation.

Lu Yuxiu entered the scene.

Near a massive stone pillar, Qin Zexing, wrapped tightly against the cold, dragged a suitcase behind him. His steps no longer had the old radiance. He kept his head down and passed by Mu Beibei, and from that moment on, the two of them were like parallel lines that would never meet again.

As if sensing something, Mu Beibei turned her head, but saw nothing. Her illusion was shattered by the harshness of real life, like cracking an eggshell.

The airport was noisy and chaotic. Mu Beibei gave in to despair completely. She curled up alone in a corner of the airport, her mind blank, tears trembling in her eyes. After a long while, she finally managed to stand and make her way toward the exit.

She understood now. Qin Zexing had given up. He had run away, leaving everything behind, and leaving her behind as well.

The sky was covered in dark clouds, as if a heavy rain were about to fall. She lifted her face to the heavens, the corners of her mouth curling upward in a mocking arc, the smile so faint and forced. Her face was deathly pale, her eyes carrying a bleak, wintry light, as though all hope had been extinguished.