After Becoming an Alpha, I Marked My Nemesis - Chapter 23

Dreaming of Earning 10 Billion Annually:? Are you out of your mind? What law did people break by shipping a CP? If you’re going to hate, at least do it with some class.

Lu Zhiyao’s Little Darling Wife: Just a casual passerby here. I don’t see anything wrong with shipping a CP.

Can Big and Small Zhou Just Die Already: Your username still has Lu Zhiyao’s name in it. How dare you claim to be a “casual passerby”?

Lu Zhiyao’s Little Darling Wife @Can Big and Small Zhou Just Die Already: I am indeed a fan of Lu Zhiyao, but on this matter, I’m just a casual observer. I ship CPs myself sometimes. Is shipping CPs against the law? You’re the ones barking and biting first. Did your master forget to leash you properly before letting you loose to harass people?

In an instant, professional anti-fans launched a coordinated attack against Zhou Qian and Song Luoxue’s CP fans. Even some neutral observers, disgusted by the vitriol, joined the fray.

Meanwhile, Song Luoxue appeared on TV1’s entertainment news program: “Though this may seem sudden, I believe it’s best to announce my decision promptly. Effective today, I am officially retiring from the entertainment industry. I want to express my deepest gratitude to all my fans who have supported me throughout my career. Every achievement I’ve attained is thanks to your unwavering support! From the bottom of my heart, I thank my fans and everyone who has ever shown me love!”

After finishing her statement, she bowed deeply.

As soon as Song Luoxue concluded her announcement, the reporters swarmed forward, clamoring to ask her questions. This might be her last public appearance.

Song Luoxue wore a somber black dress with a black veil draped over her head. As she retreated, her bodyguards struggled to restrain the crowd of reporters trying to approach her.

“Miss Song, can you tell us why you suddenly decided to retire? Is there a specific reason?”

“Does your sudden retirement have anything to do with announcing your relationship? Please answer!”

Hearing these questions, Song Luoxue smiled at the cameras. “No, my retirement isn’t due to personal matters. It’s a matter of my own limitations.”

“What limitations are you referring to?”

“Madam Song, please answer directly!”

What limitations? Of course, it was because she couldn’t act at all! The original owner of this body had won every major acting award in the country. Before transmigrating into this novel, Song Luoxue had only filmed short videos and commercials, never seriously studying acting. If her shallow acting skills were exposed to the public, wouldn’t her carefully constructed persona collapse?

Song Luoxue smiled again at the questions. “Since it’s a personal matter, it’s also a private one. I don’t believe I need to answer you, do I?”

With that, she walked off the stage. As expected, this would be her final public appearance as an actress.

Within five minutes of Song Luoxue’s announcement, trending hashtags like #SongLuoxueAnnouncesRetirement, #ThreeGoldenCrownsBestActressRetiresDuringPeak, and various other variations related to her departure flooded Weibo like a whirlwind. The top hashtags were even marked with fiery “爆” (Exploding) tags.

Song Luoxue is the world’s only treasure: “No way! Did I mishear or misread? Why are you suddenly retiring? Why didn’t you consult your fans first? It’s the same as when you announced your relationship recently.”

Riding a Kun to School: “Wait! Is she the young Best Actress who won so many awards? Shouldn’t she be at the peak of her career right now? Why announce her retirement at this time? Is there something she’s not telling us?”

Song Luoxue, I’d give you my life: No… I’m Song Luoxue’s biggest fan, and I’ve never heard anything about this before. There were absolutely no signs that she was planning to retire. This is just too sudden. As a versatile star in both film and television, Song Luoxue has delivered many outstanding performances. Her acting skills are beyond question, but I truly don’t know why she’s suddenly retiring…

World’s Best Song Luoxue No. 1: No way?! Sudden is an understatement—this is way too sudden! I didn’t even have time to prepare myself emotionally.

Xuexue, kiss me already: Why did my idol suddenly announce her retirement?! Crying emojis Crying emojis

Qianxue for life: Song Luoxue said her retirement isn’t due to personal relationships but rather her own issues. The only explanation I can think of is that she might have a serious illness preventing her from continuing to act.

Baby, go to sleep early: No way, Song Luoxue has a serious illness? But right now, that seems like the most plausible explanation.

8 AM Kurushi: Could Song Luoxue have a terminal illness? Such a talented actress, still so young… Fate truly is unfair!

9-to-5 Nishine: ??? Song Luoxue has a terminal illness?!

Immediately following the hashtag #SongLuoxueAnnouncesRetirement#, another trending topic emerged: #SongLuoxueRetiringDueToTerminal Illness#.

Since Song Luoxue had kept her retirement plans secret, her fans were deeply worried. They flocked to her most recent Weibo post—a promotional message for the TV drama “Phoenix Perches on the Wutong Tree” from three months prior—to express their concern.

Song Luoxue, How Can We Live Without You?: Xuexue, are you okay? Is it true you have a terminal illness? If you’re alright, please reply to us. We’re so worried!

Xuexue Is My Spiritual Sustenance: Waaah, Sister, are you really sick? If something’s wrong, please tell us. We’re all so worried about you. Please give us a response!

As the hashtag #SongLuoxueHasTerminalIllness# continued to trend, it eventually climbed to the top spot on the trending list. Just half an hour after the hashtag appeared, Song Luoxue posted an official statement on Weibo:

Song Luoxue Snow: Thank you all for your concern. I never imagined a simple retirement announcement would cause such a commotion. To clarify my reasons for retiring, I’d like to explain the following points:

Chapter 97: My retirement from the entertainment industry is solely due to personal reasons and unrelated to anything else.

Chapter 98: I am not terminally ill. Thank you all for your concern.

Chapter 99: It’s already 9:30 PM. Time for my darlings to get ready for bed.

After Song Luoxue released this statement, the trending topic’s heat cooled considerably, and her fans felt much more relieved. After all, retiring was far better than being terminally ill.

Countless people lamented the young Best Actress’s decision to retire at the peak of her career.

Tomorrow I’m quitting my boss: Song Luoxue is only 26! How many stars in the entertainment industry achieve a clean sweep of all the major domestic awards by that age? Her retirement is truly a great loss!

Call Me Heavenly Purple Star: Exactly! She’s a naturally gifted actress. Her sudden retirement is shocking, but it’s not too regrettable. After all, she’s already won every award she could. She’s proven herself with her talent, so I think her decision to retire now is perfectly justifiable.

This Emperor Shall Ascend the Throne! Give Me 100 Million: Agreed. She’s just a good actress, not some idol or celebrity. We shouldn’t pry into her personal affairs.

After posting her statement, Song Luoxue sprawled across the bed, kicking her feet as she gazed at Zhou Qian. “Why so quiet? Didn’t you go to that fashion event today? Tell me everything that happened!”

Zhou Qian paused, slightly taken aback. Shouldn’t your situation be the bigger news here…?

Seeing Zhou Qian’s thoughtful expression, Song Luoxue chuckled. “You always get lost in thought like this. Are you trying to make me guess what’s on your mind?”

Zhou Qian snapped out of her reverie. “Ah, no… it’s nothing.”

In truth, there wasn’t much to tell about the commercial fashion event. She had simply walked the red carpet. As a minor celebrity with looks but no real fame, Zhou Qian naturally received little attention at such events. She had only attended at the invitation of a brand sponsor and left immediately after her red carpet appearance. To her surprise, the first thing she saw when she checked her phone upon returning was the trending topic: #SongLuoxueHasTerminalIllness.

These netizens really know how to joke around, she thought. She had to admit, she’d been genuinely startled when she first saw the trending topic.

Zhou Qian continued, “Luo Xue, your sudden announcement about retiring from the industry is truly shocking. You should have at least discussed it with everyone first.”

Song Luoxue responded with a teasing tone, “Then who do you think I should have consulted?”

Sensing the sharpness in her voice, Zhou Qian stammered, “Ah, well, I think you should have talked to your biggest fans.”

Song Luoxue chuckled again and beckoned Zhou Qian closer with a flick of her finger. “Come here.”

Zhou Qian froze for a moment at the gesture before slowly approaching. What’s going on? Why does that gesture feel like she’s calling her pet?

Staring at Zhou Qian’s cheek, Song Luoxue said, “Once I’ve made up my mind, I don’t need to consult anyone. Right now, the internet is buzzing about me, but in ten days or two weeks, they’ll forget all about me. Besides, my biggest fan doesn’t send me expensive bouquets every time like yours does.”

Zhou Qian frowned slightly. They had just been discussing her retirement from the entertainment industry. Why was Song Luoxue suddenly bringing this up again?

“They’re just a few dyed roses. How can they be considered precious?”

Song Luoxue chuckled, covering her mouth. “Dyed? Well, you haven’t seen many, have you? The beautiful roses your little fan sent you were carefully cultivated varieties, much more expensive than ordinary roses. You say just a few? What about the nine hundred and ninety-nine roses you received before? I heard your little fan even wrote a confession of secret admiration on the card.”

Zhou Qian’s mouth dropped open in surprise.

When did Song Luoxue find out? She remembered throwing the card into the trash the same day she received the roses, precisely to avoid any misunderstandings.