After the Flash Marriage, My Ex Who is a Movie Queen Keeps Flirting with Me - Chapter 13

The person half-sitting on the ground seemed confused by Jiang Wanyu’s sudden stop. Tilting her head, she gazed up with bright, watery eyes and asked, “Xiao Yu?”

Jiang Wanyu snapped out of her daze and finally moved forward slowly. “Where did you fall?”

Her hand brushed Ming Jiyue’s shoulder, the warmth of her skin making Ming Jiyue flinch involuntarily.

“My arm and shin are bruised. Help me up first—the ground is cold.”

Jiang Wanyu panicked, her vision blurring into a sea of white. Beneath her hands, the skin felt smooth and delicate as mutton fat jade, as if the slightest pressure would leave a red mark.

Her eyes darted around, unsure where to look. She lowered her gaze and extended a hand.

Pressing her lips tightly together, Jiang Wanyu dared not speak. She half-embraced Ming Jiyue, helping her to her feet. As she lowered her head, the snow-white curves were partially concealed, but the slender, pale legs lay fully exposed. Her already flushed face turned crimson.

Jiang Wanyu’s tongue twisted into knots. “You… you’re not wearing…”

Ming Jiyue looked utterly aggrieved. “I can’t stand up, so I can’t put anything on.”

Ming Jiyue had no such reservations. Seeing Jiang Wanyu look like a virtuous young wife being teased, she chuckled softly and casually draped her slender arms around Jiang Wanyu’s neck.

The shirt, which had been loosely draped over her shoulders, slipped off with the movement, landing lightly on the floor with a soft thud.

Jiang Wanyu was nearly overwhelmed, her words stuttering: “Y-your… your clothes fell.”

Ming Jiyue pressed her cheek against Jiang Wanyu’s neck, nuzzling affectionately. “Don’t worry about it.”

Jiang Wanyu averted her gaze. “How are you feeling? Can you stand steady?”

Ming Jiyue tested her balance and nodded. “Yes, I can. I’ll change.”

Jiang Wanyu exhaled deeply. “Then I’ll…”

“Why are you in such a hurry to leave? Am I some kind of monster?” Ming Jiyue glanced at her. “What if I fall again?”

Jiang Wanyu’s face flushed crimson, even redder than Ming Jiyue’s skin after the hot bath. “Alright, I’ll stay and watch.”

Jiang Wanyu stared intently at the floor, but her eyes kept darting back to Ming Jiyue. Unable to leave, she stood beside her like a prisoner enduring torture.

After finally getting Jiang Wanyu through her bath and dressed, Ming Jiyue helped her lie down on the bed. After checking and confirming that the redness wasn’t serious, Jiang Wanyu breathed a sigh of relief. “If there’s nothing else…”

Before she could finish, Ming Jiyue cut her off. “It’s fine, Xiao Yu. I can manage on my own. You should go home and get some rest.”

“Sure, I might want to get out of bed but can’t move, or need to use the bathroom but can’t go. And if I accidentally bump my wound while sleeping, no big deal. These are all minor inconveniences. Your sleep is much more important, right?”

Jiang Wanyu: …Why did she suddenly feel so guilty?

Ming Jiyue continued her persuasion. “I was the one who slipped and fell, not you. Just let me, the injured person stuck in bed, deal with it alone. It’s getting late. You should go home and rest.”

Having successfully blocked Jiang Wanyu’s escape route, ignoring her now would be utterly heartless.

Jiang Wanyu: “I’ll stay and take care of you.”

Ming Jiyue turned her head, blinking her eyes. “Really?”

“Mm-hmm.”

“You chose to stay. I didn’t force you,” Ming Jiyue emphasized.

“Yes, it was my choice,” Jiang Wanyu said, pressing a hand to her forehead.

Ming Jiyue brightened, patting the empty half of the bed beside her. “Come on, hurry up.”

As they lay down, Jiang Wanyu reached to turn off the light, but remembering Ming Jiyue’s habit of sleeping with it on, she withdrew her hand.

To her surprise, Ming Jiyue said, “Turn it off.”

After a moment’s hesitation, Jiang Wanyu obeyed. “Aren’t you used to sleeping with the light on?”

Ming Jiyue’s eyes curved into a smile, her beautiful eyes shining darkly in the dim room. She suddenly leaned close and pressed a kiss to Jiang Wanyu’s forehead. “With you here, I don’t need the light.”

Caught off guard, Jiang Wanyu froze, only belatedly touching her forehead. “Why the sudden…”

Ming Jiyue pulled her closer, a hint of smugness in her voice. “Of course I had to ambush you when you weren’t paying attention. How else would I succeed?”

Such a brazen and self-assured “ambush” was truly rare.

Jiang Wanyu smiled silently. “Let’s sleep. Be careful of your wound.”

The next day, Ming Jiyue planned to continue playing the “injured” card, hoping to milk Jiang Wanyu’s sympathy and care. However, her act was inadvertently exposed during breakfast, forcing her to “reluctantly” recover.

Meanwhile, the manager contacted Jiang Wanyu again to discuss the variety show.

Unlike the manager’s rambling, where Jiang Wanyu only heard “blah blah blah, Jiang Wanyu, blah blah blah” from a certain Ming-named female star, Jiang Wanyu listened attentively to the manager’s explanation of the pros and cons, carefully considered the situation, and finally nodded in agreement.

The reasons for her initial refusal and subsequent acceptance were simple: no rational person could turn down a multi-million yuan paycheck.

Having successfully completed Mother Ming’s assigned task, the manager straightened her back and returned to report.

Jiang Wanyu mentioned the variety show to Ming Jiyue: “Did you agree to do it?”

Ming Jiyue: “If you’re going, of course I’ll follow. It’s called ‘wife sings, wife follows.'”

Jiang Wanyu: “Sister Chen told me about it today. I think…”

Ming Jiyue interrupted: “Wait, she only told you today?”

Jiang Wanyu looked puzzled. “She mentioned it once before, but I refused. She brought it up again today, and I agreed. Why?”

“Damn it, she tricked me!” Ming Jiyue frowned. “She approached me yesterday, saying you were going, so I agreed.”

Jiang Wanyu seized on the key point. “You only went because I was going?”

“What else? I’ve been in the industry for seven years and never participated in a variety show before. If it weren’t for spending our honeymoon… for being with you, I wouldn’t have gone.”

Jiang Wanyu’s heart warmed, but then Ming Jiyue countered, “You definitely agreed the moment you heard I was going, right?”

Jiang Wanyu paused, then smiled and nodded. “Yes.”

Ming Jiyue caught her momentary hesitation. “Why the pause? Don’t tell me you only went for the millions in variety show fees?”

Ming Jiyue’s face fell. “If that’s the case, I’ll be heartbroken.”

Jiang Wanyu sighed helplessly. “That was just part of the reason.”

“What percentage?”

As she hesitated, Ming Jiyue warned, “Anything over 1% is unacceptable.”

“…0.9%.”

“That’s more like it,” Ming Jiyue said, satisfied.

“By the way, are you free next weekend? You’re not working, right?”

“I’m not working.”

“The drama I just finished filming needs me back for reshoots. If you’re free, could you visit me on set?”

“Visit you on set?”

“Yeah, they need me for two weeks of reshoots,” Ming Jiyue said, looking at her with puppy-dog eyes. “Two weeks without seeing your beloved wife? Don’t you miss me?”

“Besides, your beloved wife will definitely miss you so much she’ll be going crazy.”

Jiang Wanyu paused, then lowered her head. “I’ll see if I have any other commitments at the time.”

Since both parties had already agreed to the variety show, the manager had them sign the contracts the next day to prevent any last-minute changes.

The contracts had been drafted in advance. After signing them together, Jiang Wanyu reviewed the entire document again, finally feeling relieved.

The manager reminded them, “Your relationship is still confidential. You can’t expose it. During filming, you must maintain a distance and pretend you’re not close.”

Ming Jiyue’s face fell instantly. “We have to pretend we’re not close?”

“What else?” the manager asked. “Show off your affection in front of the cameras and let everyone know you’re together?”

Ming Jiyue muttered under her breath, “I forgot about that.”

She turned to the manager. “Can I back out now? What if I pay for a public-funded trip for Xiao Yu and me?”

The manager showed her the contract. “Just signed it, Teacher Ming. The ink’s still wet.”

Ming Jiyue fell silent, already plotting her next move.

Though millions beckoned in the future, Jiang Wanyu, the working stiff, still had to clock in.

As she went to the break room for water, Duan Jin was there, scrolling through her phone and grumbling.

“This Liu Fan is so annoying! I saw a few gossip posts about him the other day, and now he’s all over my feed. How much marketing did he buy?”

Hearing that familiar name, Jiang Wanyu’s heart tightened. “Xiao Jin, did you just say Liu Fan?”

“Yeah, the guy who had a cameo in Teacher Ming’s movie.”

Jiang Wanyu pressed her lips together. After moving abroad, she’d heard snippets about him—that he’d entered the entertainment industry and collaborated with Ming Jiyue on this film—but little else.

“What’s he done now?”

“Just riding Teacher Ming’s coattails! In the behind-the-scenes footage, she barely acknowledges him. He’s such a clout-chaser! And he even bought a trending search, making it look like they’re close. Who even likes him?”

“What trending search?” Jiang Wanyu felt a growing sense of unease.

“You haven’t seen it?” Duan Jin looked mildly surprised. “Oh right, you never pay attention to that stuff anyway.”

“Just a couple of days ago, a marketing account published an article claiming that Teacher Ming’s girlfriend in the industry is Liu Fan. They didn’t explicitly say it, but the implication was clear. It was obviously a PR stunt orchestrated by her team, and they even bought a trending search to promote it.”

“At least she had the sense to take it down quickly. Otherwise, her fans would have torn her apart. No one dares to ride on Teacher Ming’s coattails.”

Jiang Wanyu’s heart sank. Ming Jiyue hadn’t mentioned anything about this to her.

She recalled the woman she’d seen entangled with Ming Jiyue that day.

Could that have been Liu Fan too?

Jiang Wanyu’s mind raced. Logic told her Ming Jiyue would never do such a thing. Even if she had something going on outside, it couldn’t possibly be with Liu Fan.

“Wanyu, what’s wrong? You look terrible,” Duan Jin said with concern.

Snapping back to reality, Jiang Wanyu forced a smile. “I’m fine. Go back to work.”

That evening, when Jiang Wanyu returned home from work, Ming Jiyue had already set the table, as usual, and dinner was ready.

“You’re back? Was it a busy day?”

“So-so,” Jiang Wanyu replied flatly.

At first, Ming Jiyue didn’t notice anything amiss. Jiang Wanyu was usually reserved, but she was even quieter than usual. Ming Jiyue assumed she was tired from work and tried to lighten the mood with jokes.

As they spoke, Ming Jiyue noticed the necklace Jiang Wanyu always wore. She couldn’t resist asking, “You’ve been wearing this necklace all the time, but I’ve never seen it before. Who gave it to you? Was it your ex-girlfriend?”

This wasn’t the first time Ming Jiyue had asked this question. Jiang Wanyu always gave vague answers, and no one but herself seemed to know the necklace’s origins.

Feeling a surge of irritation, Jiang Wanyu entertained a mischievous thought. Since Ming Jiyue is so convinced, why not just confirm her suspicions? She wanted to say, Yes, you’re right. It was my ex-girlfriend. She gave it to me, and I love it so much that I wear it every day.

Her mouth opened, but at the last second, she stopped herself.

In the end, she gave the same evasive answer: “Someone.”

She couldn’t bring herself to do it.

Ming Jiyue deflated. “Oh.”

Someone, someone, someone… Who exactly is this “someone”? Step forward!

Around ten o’clock, Jiang Wanyu finished watching the news and was about to take a shower when Ming Jiyue knocked and entered.

These late-night visits had become increasingly frequent, and Jiang Wanyu had grown accustomed to them. But tonight, they left her feeling unsettled.

Ming Jiyue knocked and entered the room, smiling at Jiang Wanyu as she carried a warm glass of milk. “You must be exhausted today. You’ve looked pale all day. Drink this and get some rest. You’ve been working so hard.”

Jiang Wanyu lowered her head, saying nothing.

Ming Jiyue didn’t wait for a response. She closed the door behind her, placed the milk on the bedside table, and moved naturally to the other side of the bed, taking off her shoes and climbing in.

Jiang Wanyu’s eyelid twitched. She reached out to stop her. “What are you doing?”

Ming Jiyue blinked innocently. “Sleeping, of course. We always sleep together, don’t we?”

Her words sounded so natural that if Jiang Wanyu didn’t have such a good memory, she might have doubted whether their “three rules” agreement had ever existed.

Jiang Wanyu’s voice remained calm. “One room each. No disturbing each other.”

What had been mere suspicion now solidified into certainty. Ming Jiyue’s expression turned serious. “Xiao Yu, what’s wrong? Are you angry? Who made you angry? I’ll have someone beat them up for you.”

Jiang Wanyu glanced at her. “I’m not angry. I just want to sleep alone from now on.”

Ming Jiyue’s signature one-second tearful performance activated once more. With a blink, her eyes glistened with tears. “Xiao Yu, do you not want me anymore? What about the intimacy we’ve shared these past nights…?”

Jiang Wanyu remained silent, her fists clenching tightly.

You probably share that kind of intimacy with more than just me.

Tonight, Jiang Wanyu seemed to have eaten not rice, but lead weights, her resolve as unyielding as iron.

Ming Jiyue found this odd. Jiang Wanyu had always refused at first, but she usually softened and relented in the end. Ming Jiyue had always interpreted this as playing hard to get, but she had never seen Jiang Wanyu act so stubbornly.

Raising her voice deliberately, Ming Jiyue said, “You really won’t let me stay? If you won’t, I’ll just find someone else.”

As she spoke, she began to rise from the bed.

Jiang Wanyu’s fists tightened. Hearing the words “find someone else,” the emotions she had suppressed since starting work finally erupted. “Find who? Go back to your girlfriends in the industry?”