After Rebirth, the Cold and Aloof Film Queen Always Wants to Cuddle with Me - Chapter 10

Chapter 10 

Lin Ruijiao immediately sat up straight. In an instant, Ye Ruihuan’s makeup-free face appeared on the screen. Even without makeup, she was still beautiful—though less aggressive-looking, she now appeared much more approachable.

“Save my number, Jiao Jiao,” Ye Ruihuan said emotionlessly.

“Okay, okay,” Lin Ruijiao nodded repeatedly, unconsciously licking her lips.

“How have you been lately?”

Ye Ruihuan was actually making small talk? Lin Ruijiao found it strange. “Same as always—studying on set during the day, and reading the script when I get back,” she answered thoughtfully, with a gentle smile on her face.

“Mm.” Ye Ruihuan responded, then fell silent, just staring at Lin Ruijiao through the screen. That face… it was just okay. In the industry, it was nothing special. Why did she keep dreaming about her? She didn’t even feel anything when she looked at her. Ruihuan was puzzled.

“Ruihuan?” The screen wasn’t moving at all, and Lin Ruijiao was beginning to wonder if the internet had frozen.

“Mm.” Ye Ruihuan smoothed her long hair. After a moment, she continued, “When will you finish shooting your scenes?”

Lin Ruijiao still had no idea what the other woman was getting at, but she answered truthfully, “Director Chen said filming will start next week. Not sure when we’ll finish.”

“Okay, so soon then. Once you’re done, come back,” Ye Ruihuan said thoughtfully.

“Is something going on?” Lin Ruijiao couldn’t help asking, lowering her eyes to conceal her expression. She didn’t want to go back. That would mean seeing more of Ye Ruihuan again.

“Work arrangements,” Ye Ruihuan replied without hesitation.

“Alright.” Lin Ruijiao’s round eyes curved into a crescent-moon shape, pretending to be cheerful. In truth, she wasn’t interested at all. She could very well strike out on her own; her contract with Huarui Entertainment was more of a shackle than a support.

“I’m hanging up,” Ye Ruihuan said after staring at her for a bit longer. That expression really did resemble Yulan… After a moment, she ended the call.

“Okay, Ruihuan.” Lin Ruijiao beamed as if delighted, her fluttering strands of hair almost seemed to dance—finally, the call was over.

The rain outside continued falling—not heavy, not light. The gray skies and drizzle made the air feel damp and cold. There was still no word from Director Wenxian about the new script. With a sigh, Ye Ruihuan felt a bit overwhelmed.

At the marble dining table, Ye Zhi had overheard their entire conversation. “What work arrangement? There aren’t even any scripts available right now!” she immediately called out the truth.

“No rush. We’ll talk about it later,” Ye Ruihuan replied softly, unconcerned.

“‘Talk about it later’? Don’t come crying to me then! You know exactly how tight things are at the company!” Ye Zhi shouted.

Ye Ruihuan ignored her and picked up her tablet to deal with work. The rain kept falling—drip, drip, drip—making the already quiet space feel even more desolate.

Night had fallen. Ye Zhi had left at some point. The house was brightly lit, quiet, and peaceful, but Ruihuan still felt inexplicably gloomy. So, she washed up early and went to bed. Tonight, she probably wouldn’t dream again—at least, that’s what her gut told her.

And indeed, she had a dreamless night. For the first time in days, Ye Ruihuan slept well. Seems like seeing that little bunny more often is the key. Though, she still had too many questions about it.

Lin Ruijiao’s routine remained the same: finishing her character backstory, then repeatedly practicing scenes. The only annoying thing was Ye Ruihuan—who now video-called her every night. There was no fixed time, and they didn’t even talk about anything specific before the call ended. So strange.

Finally, filming for Lin Ruijiao’s role was about to begin. This was her first performance in this lifetime—and her most important one. She had to give it her all, for this role could be the stepping stone to her career in showbiz. If she nailed this, she could keep rising from here.

She lifted her chin with a confident smile. Her eyes sparkled with excitement and determination. Ambition shone in her gaze. She was no longer the innocent Lin Ruijiao, but a professional actress nominated for the Sanhua Award. Fearless and full of confidence, ready to claim what was hers.

On set, the crew took their positions. Lin Ruijiao wore a soft, perfectly calibrated smile—innocent and pure—blended seamlessly with her elegant styling. She fully embodied the character: the female supporting role who secretly loved the second male lead.

Shyly, she followed behind the male lead, hesitant and unsure, struggling to speak, until finally she lowered her head, partially covering her face, and whispered: “Qi… Brother Qi…”

The second male lead turned and froze upon seeing her like that.

“Cut!” the director called out, stopping the scene. “What was that? You should’ve just kept acting!”

Only then did the crew snap out of it—Lin Ruijiao’s performance had been so real, so perfectly in line with the character, they had become fully immersed.

Who would’ve thought that the woman Ye always brought around wasn’t some typical industry plant, but a genuine talent with real acting chops? If she had caught Ye’s attention, she must be something special. No doubt she’d become a rising star soon!

Even Manager Wang and Zhou Yanyan were stunned. They hadn’t expected her acting to be this good. Manager Wang beamed with joy. Zhou Yanyan was happy for her too, though she silently reminded herself to work harder—she couldn’t let this newbie outshine her.

Following the director’s guidance, they repeated the scene several times. Lin Ruijiao’s acting was impeccable. The male lead’s was passable, but the director still had to pause and correct many small issues.

After days of filming, Lin Ruijiao started to feel discouraged. Scenes were getting NG’d over and over. Something always seemed off. She had looked forward to this shoot, but now she doubted herself. How had she gotten a Sanhua Award nomination in her past life? Had she even won in the end? She really had no clue. Could her acting have been this bad?

Ye Ruihuan had gone to bed early. Having not dreamt for several days, she felt a little uneasy. She originally planned not to video-call Lin Ruijiao today, to try and see more of the mysterious dream. But just as she picked up her phone, her fingers instinctively opened their chat and dialed.

“Jiao Jiao,” Ye Ruihuan said softly.

“Mm, Ruihuan.” Lin Ruijiao looked drained, barely able to muster the energy to respond.

“What’s wrong?” Ruihuan asked upon seeing her so downcast.

“My acting’s been off. One scene took so many tries and still didn’t pass,” she admitted, then sighed deeply.

Ye Ruihuan’s lips curled slightly—so that was the issue. “I asked Director Chen to be stricter with you,” she said nonchalantly, a trace of smugness in her smile.

“What?” Lin Ruijiao’s eyes widened in disbelief. Was this woman insane?

“Didn’t you say you wanted to improve your acting? This is a great opportunity. No need to thank me,” Ye Ruihuan said, clearly amused, her eyes gleaming with mischief.

“…Thank you, Ruihuan.” Lin Ruijiao took a deep breath and forced a smile through clenched teeth.

“You’re welcome.” Ye Ruihuan stared intently at her pretty almond eyes and that fake smile—so similar to Yulan’s. She couldn’t help but feel more and more satisfied.

“When will you finish filming?”

“Next Tuesday,” Lin Ruijiao answered according to the shooting schedule.

“Good. Once you’re done, come back. There’s a performance class I want you to take,” Ye Ruihuan said thoughtfully.

“Are you getting me a performance coach?” Lin Ruijiao’s eyes lit up, sparkling with excitement—so dazzling.

“Mm.”

“That’s amazing. Thank you, Ruihuan!” She was visibly delighted. Since it was a coach hired by Ruihuan, it was bound to be a good one. She already started wondering who it might be.

With this news, all her gloom vanished. Anything that helped her career was worth it. It fired her up with new motivation—maybe one day she could even outshine Ye Ruihuan!

She threw herself into studying her character and rehearsing again. Turns out, her acting hadn’t regressed after all.

There weren’t many scenes for the third female lead, and filming wrapped up within a week. Everything went smoothly according to the plan. Finally, her part was complete.

Knowing Ye Ruihuan had made follow-up arrangements for Ruijiao, Manager Wang started packing a day early. Assistant Li prepared the car, and they returned to the Yuyuan Villa the same day.

Meanwhile, at home, Ye Ruihuan was flipping through emails on her tablet. None of the acting offers appealed to her. She was starting to miss performing—thanks to Lin Ruijiao’s enthusiasm, her acting itch had been triggered again.

Just as she was asking Auntie Zhang for an extra dish, Ye Zhi suddenly chimed in, “Lin Ruijiao’s back. Aren’t you going to see her?”

“What’s your rush?” Ye Ruihuan replied irritably.

“I’m not rushing, but someone clearly is,” Ye Zhi said sarcastically.

…She was not rushing, okay? Ye Ruihuan pouted. “What’s going on with Director Wenxian’s script? Wasn’t there talk about a new project? Why no updates?”

“What’s your rush?” Ye Zhi echoed her tone on purpose. “Oh~~ it’s because of Dong Yulan, right?” she teased.

“Ye Zhi!” Ye Ruihuan yelled, eyes wide with anger.

“What? Why so touchy? If there’s no news, then there’s no news. You really believe gossip in this industry?” Ye Zhi shrugged. “Besides, if you’re that desperate, just reach out to Dong Yulan. Huarui Entertainment and Haochen Entertainment are business partners anyway.”

Ye Ruihuan pressed her lips together, eyes conflicted. After a moment, she sighed. “How’s the rest of the company doing?”

“Everything’s great. Lots of new commercial deals lately,” Ye Zhi replied seriously—though in her mind she muttered: Everything’s great except for you! But hey, she pays my salary. I surrender.

“That’s good.” With that, Ye Ruihuan took her tablet and went back to her room.

She began browsing through old photos—ones with Dong Yulan. For some reason, she didn’t want to contact Lin Ruijiao tonight. Maybe it was curiosity, maybe she wanted to explore that dream more clearly. She was a little excited… and a little uneasy.

With no interruption from Ye Ruihuan, the starry night felt unusually quiet. Lin Ruijiao wasn’t quite used to it. Oh well. Ruihuan’s mind wasn’t something normal people could understand. With the soft chirping of insects outside, Lin Ruijiao peacefully fell asleep.

But for Ye Ruihuan, sleep didn’t come so easily. She actually had trouble falling asleep—how strange. The gentle smile of Dong Yulan, the fake one from Lin Ruijiao, flashed alternately in her mind, keeping her tossing and turning. Eventually, she drifted off in a daze.

In the dead of night, with silence all around, Ye Ruihuan suddenly woke up. She raised her arm to cover her eyes. That dream again—it just wouldn’t let her go. And yet, she could never quite see it clearly. Lin Ruijiao, again and again… With a deep sigh, she murmured, “Forget it. It is what it is.”

Might as well go see Lin Ruijiao. With another sigh, she got out of bed. During breakfast, she had Assistant Xiao Li come over.

“Xiao Li, check my schedule. Clear some time,” she said.

“Yes, Miss Ye. How about three days a week, two hours each day?” Xiao Li asked carefully, knowing full well that Ruihuan’s schedule was mostly empty anyway.

“Fine.” Ruihuan nodded. “Still no good scripts lately?”

“No, Miss Ye. It’s still the same production teams. Everything else is stable.”

“Unbelievable… No one’s offering me a decent role?” Ruihuan sighed.

Xiao Li: There are tons of offers. You’re just too picky!

“Actually… lots of producers and directors are reaching out,” Xiao Li said hesitantly.

But Ruihuan didn’t even lift her head, eyes still fixed on her tablet as if she hadn’t heard.

“Get ready—we’re going to Yuyuan Villa later,” she said finally. “Come help me with my makeup.”

“Yes, Miss Ye,” Xiao Li followed her to the dressing room.

Once her makeup and styling were done, they packed up and headed for the villa.

Naturally, having received Ruihuan’s itinerary ahead of time, Lin Ruijiao and Manager Wang were already waiting in the living room, with Aunt Liu having everything perfectly prepared. Ruijiao, for once, had even dressed up—light makeup, a fitted pale yellow dress, elegant and airy. She looked pure and ethereal.

As soon as Ye Ruihuan walked in and saw her fresh, delicate appearance, her eyes lit up. She looked so good—so much like Yulan.

“Good afternoon, President Ye.” Manager Wang smiled brightly upon seeing her.

“Ruihuan,” Lin Ruijiao gave her a gentle smile, brightening the whole room.

“Mm.” A small smile appeared on Ye Ruihuan’s lips. She seemed in a good mood, her gaze never once leaving Lin Ruijiao.

By comparison, Ruihuan’s own look today was elegant and natural, with a subtle allure. She still exuded a noble aura—like a princess out for a casual stroll.

Lin Ruijiao looked down at her own dress and wondered—why did they match today? What a coincidence.

She shook off the thought and looked toward the door, only to find Ruihuan had come alone.

“Ruihuan,” she called again, her smile tinged with a hint of flattery.

Why is this little bunny being so sweet today? Ye Ruihuan licked her lips slightly—yep, she was definitely cuter this way.