Exchange of Movie Queens - Chapter 3

When Xi Mo woke up, the hospital room was still dark.

The deep blue curtains blocked out the daylight, casting an air of quiet desolation.

She slowly sat up in bed and looked around.

Accustomed to being the center of attention, she was momentarily stunned by the cold emptiness of the room. The door was tightly shut, making it feel like a coffin abandoned by the world.

Where was Lu Qingming?

Even if he had urgent matters to attend to, he was always meticulous and thoughtful—why hadn’t he sent an assistant or arranged for a nurse?

Had she fallen so low that she couldn’t even afford a nurse now?

The thought made Xi Mo slightly irritated, though her face remained as expressionless as ever, cold and detached. She got out of bed, slipped on her shoes, and walked somewhat dizzily toward the bathroom.

Something felt off about her body.

She couldn’t pinpoint exactly what, but she could clearly sense that it felt lighter.

What had happened with that fire?

And what was that thing outside the door?

Who had come in afterward? Everything was a chaotic blur, most of it lost to memory. The worst part was running into that woman in the bathroom, witnessing her at her most humiliating moment.

Her head buzzing, Xi Mo staggered to the sink, squinted, and turned on the faucet to splash water on her face, hoping to clear her mind.

The water flowed steadily.

Bending over, she closed her eyes and pressed her hands to her face, massaging gently. After a few wipes, she suddenly froze.

Slowly lowering her hands, she revealed her eyes and stared into the mirror above the sink.

The reflection showed slightly wavy long hair cascading over her shoulders, a pair of alluring upturned eyes, and long, delicate lashes dotted with water droplets. The faint smirk on those lips seemed to mock her.

To Xi Mo, those eyes might as well have belonged to a ghost. A shiver ran through her, and she quickly turned away, letting her still-dripping hands fall to her sides.

…An illusion.

It had to be an illusion.

That woman, Ruan Yesheng, was like a lingering ghost—was she destined to haunt her in bathrooms for the rest of her life?

Xi Mo’s face remained rigid, but inside, she was seething.

After a moment of silence, she looked down at her hands.

Her fingers seemed shorter. She used to pride herself on their agility when playing the piano, effortlessly spanning octaves. Now, these delicate, slender hands looked like they could effortlessly twist into a dainty, coquettish orchid pose at any moment.

…Disgusting.

Taking a deep breath to steady herself, she turned back to face the mirror again.

This time, she didn’t hide her face. Expressionless, she stared directly at the reflection.

Xi Mo: “…”

A true warrior dares to face the bleakness of life and the brutality of bloodshed.

But Xi Mo found she couldn’t bear to look.

This wasn’t bloodshed—it was sheer absurdity.

The woman in the mirror had a face that could lure bees and butterflies, a body too voluptuous and seductive, and it drove her to the brink of madness. She wanted to scream but couldn’t, her face as cold as a thousand layers of ice while her mind raced with a stampede of expletives.

Xi Mo pushed open the bathroom door and sprinted out like she was running the 100-meter dash.

Just then, Feng Tangtang pushed the door open and entered. Seeing Xi Mo running toward her, she froze for a moment before quickly grabbing her arm with a delighted smile. “Ruan Ruan, it’s so great to see you so energetic! You can even run around!”

Xi Mo: “…”

Her face stiffened as she internally screamed, Let go of me.

Feng Tangtang didn’t let go.

Xi Mo: “…”

Holding onto her arm, Feng Tangtang said warmly, “I was so worried about you! I kept fearing something might be wrong with your health. But it’s good that you’re fine, really good. If you want to run, don’t do it in the hospital room. I’ll ask the doctor later—if they say it’s okay, I’ll take you outside.”

Xi Mo, stuck to Feng Tangtang like glue, stopped in her tracks and glared coldly at her: “…”

Which eye of yours saw me running?!

My body DID have a problem—I somehow turned into Ruan Yesheng! How come you didn’t notice that?!

And how dare you grab my arm?! Who gave you permission to grab my arm?!

Feng Tangtang was unnerved by Xi Mo’s silent, icy stare, which could freeze a person to death. For a split second, she was reminded of her notoriously demanding boss, Sister Xi Mo.

Hallucination.

Must be a hallucination.

“Ruan Ruan, what’s wrong? Why aren’t you saying anything?” Shaking off the strange feeling, Feng Tangtang beamed and tugged Xi Mo toward the hospital bed. Xi Mo stiffened but allowed herself to be dragged over and sat down.

As she set down the things she was carrying, Feng Tangtang chirped, “I brought you some food and your favorite nourishing soup. I had someone stew it for a long time, but I couldn’t pick it up earlier because I was tied up with Sister Xi. But now I finally have some time. Oh, it’s still piping hot!”

She cheerfully opened the thermal soup container.

Xi Mo stared at her.

So you were so reluctant to be my assistant, but now you’re fawning over Ruan Yesheng, huh? And bringing her nourishing soup? How about some nourishing fried squid instead?

“Ruan Ruan?” Feng Tangtang turned to look at Xi Mo.

“Oh, it’s nothing. I’m just a little tired.” Xi Mo knew things were already chaotic enough—she couldn’t afford to raise suspicions. She had to play along for now. So she curved her lips into a faint smile, mimicking Ruan Yesheng’s usual speaking style.

After all, she was a bona fide award-winning actress, even nominated for Best Actress in her latest film. Acting was second nature to her—imitating Ruan Yesheng was child’s play.

Her skills were flawless, but inside, she was seething.

Maintaining her composure, Xi Mo sat down gracefully and gazed at Feng Tangtang with gentle warmth. “Thank you, Tangtang. Even though you’re Xi Mo’s assistant, you still remembered to take care of me here.”

Tangtang, Tangtang, Tangtang.

What a disgustingly sweet nickname.

Xi Mo really wanted to scoff in Ruan Yesheng’s face.

Feng Tangtang blushed sheepishly. “We’re friends—no need for thanks! Besides, if I hadn’t forgotten to give you those things you needed, you wouldn’t have gone to the hotel yourself and gotten caught in that fire.”

Xi Mo patted Feng Tangtang’s shoulder with a smile. “I always knew you were the best to me. And look, I’m fine—what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. By the way, is everything alright on Xi Mo’s side? No inconveniences?”

Feng Tangtang, completely unaware she was being probed, shook her head. “Sister Xi is fine too. Mr. Lu arranged for people to take care of her, and he’s looking after her personally. Everything’s good.”

“Her face wasn’t injured anywhere, was it?” Xi Mo smiled lightly: “Isn’t she an award-winning actress? If she accidentally got hurt somewhere, that would be quite unfortunate.”

“Miss Xi’s face is perfectly fine,” Feng Tangtang said as she ladled out a bowl of nutritious soup. “Still flawlessly beautiful as ever.”

Xi Mo took the soup bowl, narrowing her eyes slightly.

You can temporarily avoid getting fired.

“Though, Miss Xi also asked me to check if your face was disfigured and then call to inform her.” Feng Tangtang, being an upright socialist youth, accidentally repeated Ruan Yesheng’s exact words verbatim.

Xi Mo: “…”

Her hand trembled, spilling some soup before she quickly steadied the bowl.

“It’s fine, it’s fine, I’ll clean it up.” Feng Tangtang stopped her. “Ruan Ruan, are you okay? You don’t look too well.”

“Nothing’s wrong, I’m perfectly fine.” Xi Mo’s gaze remained indifferent, but she wore a warm smile as she said, “I just woke up feeling like my body’s prone to acting up—couldn’t even hold a soup bowl properly. Could it be Parkinson’s? If this hand really has issues, I wonder if the doctors would need to amputate it.”

Feng Tangtang was terrified again: “…”

After a pause, Feng Tangtang comforted her, “Miss Xi just wanted to make sure your face wasn’t hurt—she cares about you. It’s my phrasing that was off, Ruan Ruan, don’t take it to heart.”

“I don’t mind.” Xi Mo took a sip from the bowl. “What kind of soup is this? It smells a bit odd.”

“Durian chicken soup!” Feng Tangtang beamed. “Isn’t durian your favorite? I added some to the chicken broth—very nourishing.”

Xi Mo: “…”

The durian-infused soup seemed to lodge in her throat, neither going up nor down.

The fruit she detested most in this world was durian.