Chapter 35

When Zhu Xinyue mentioned “stable,” she was referring to her career stability.
She knew very well that if she didn’t achieve something in her own career, it wouldn’t be good for anyone.
For “Zhu Xinyue,” the Zhu family could control her precisely because they knew she relied on them financially. That’s why they constantly pressured her to leave the entertainment industry, return to Qingyang, and get married.
As for Ji Linyu, the gap in their capabilities and social status was too vast. If they went public, others would see her as nothing more than a decorative vase by his side. In business collaborations, partners are also factored into risk assessments. She could choose to slack off and be a decorative vase, but she couldn’t let others get caught in a public opinion storm because of her.
So, Zhu Xinyue was working hard on her career.
Leveraging information gaps, she invested in variety shows and TV dramas that would become hits in the future, while also acting herself to accumulate capital. Additionally, she identified many industries poised for rapid growth early on, establishing companies to enter these fields ahead of others and hiring professionals to manage them for her.
All of this required substantial initial capital, and she poured all her money into investments, leaving little for clothing and personal grooming.
After Zhu Xinyue gained fame, fans often recognized her on the street. Her attire was very simple, so much so that her overly plain appearance sometimes made fans doubt whether they had mistaken her for someone else.
At the same time, her down-to-earth fashion sense inspired many to imitate her style, as she was said to exude a unique sense of ease and relaxation.
Brother Hu even secured her an endorsement deal with a fashion brand.
Although Zhu Xinyue hadn’t publicly confirmed her relationship with Ji Linyu, she never hid her non-single status. She even updated her social media profile to "in a relationship" while fans were enthusiastically shipping her with other people.
Whether fans grew to like her through the variety show A Moment, A Scene or through other dramas she starred in, everyone knew she was already in a relationship even before her official debut.
Fans and the general public tend to be more forgiving toward low-key, talented actors who avoid stirring up drama.
The first of Zhu Xinyue’s dramas to air was not Peach Blossom Spring, but a low-budget supernatural mystery web series called The Wall. The story follows a protagonist whose best friend suddenly goes missing. Tracing the clues left behind, the protagonist gradually uncovers the truth behind the disappearance, eventually finding the ashes of her deceased friend. In accordance with her friend’s final wish, she mixes the ashes into the walls of the murderer’s home. The killer ends up driven insane, living a tormented existence in prison.
In the series, Zhu Xinyue played the role of the protagonist’s best friend, a character who appears sunny and warm on the surface but is actually deeply twisted and dark.
In the early episodes, she appears in the protagonist’s memories as an idealized "white moonlight" figure. With warm lighting, clean and refreshing styling, and an overall enchanting atmosphere, viewers couldn’t help but fall in love with this best friend character.
Midway through, the tone shifts as the mystery unfolds. When the best friend reappears, the visuals turn cold and gloomy. As clues are pieced together, her tragic backstory is revealed, and in the protagonist’s imagination, she becomes a pitiable figure, evoking deep sympathy from the audience.
In the later episodes, when the protagonist discovers the real suicide note left by her friend, viewers witness the calm yet unhinged side of the character. The stark contrasts and layers of complexity make her an incredibly captivating role.
Fans compiled all of Zhu Xinyue’s scenes from the series. Despite her total screen time being less than an hour across twenty episodes, she left an unforgettable impression, all thanks to her acting skills.
A film and TV content creator released a video recommending this web series and analyzing Zhu Xinyue’s performance in it.
Her face was practically tailor-made for this role, the quintessential white moonlight character. I initially thought she’d just be a charming prop in the early stages, occasionally appearing in the protagonist’s memories, but I never expected her to deliver such a pleasant surprise later on.
Even in her pain, she smiled. A tearful smile hurts more than outright wailing. Especially in this scene, where the protagonist excitedly shares that they can attend university in the same city, unaware that her best friend already knows the scumbag is planning to ruin them.
Look at that smile. When the protagonist glances at her, her eyes are still curved in a smile, but the moment the protagonist turns away, her gaze drops. When she lifts her head again, the smile is gone from her eyes, though the curve of her lips remains unchanged. Zhu Xinyue’s micro-expressions were executed perfectly, it’s clear she had already decided to take down the scumbag, even if it meant mutual destruction, to protect the protagonist.
This content creator has millions of followers and rarely praises up-and-coming actors’ performances, often criticizing wooden acting in the domestic entertainment industry instead.
Some trolls accused her of being paid to promote Zhu Xinyue, but they were quickly shut down by casual viewers and fans.
[We have eyes. We can see for ourselves whether a show is good or an actor’s performance is convincing.]
[Actors who take their craft seriously and don’t shortchange the audience are rare these days. I hope she keeps this momentum and continues to grow.]
[Xinyue, sis, don’t limit yourself by gender norms! That final glance totally slayed me, so fierce! I love it!]
[Wahh! Who stole my darling wife?!]
In her free time, Zhu Xinyue would search for mentions of herself. She’d give likes to positive comments, feeling deeply grateful for the audience’s affection. When she came across trolls or negative remarks, she’d assess whether the criticism was valid, taking it to heart if it was, and disregarding it if not.
However, she often saw her fans fiercely battling those trolls online. Seeing such dedicated supporters made her wish she could send them money, her fans were truly incredible!
This year’s Spring Festival arrived later than usual.
Peach Blossom Spring missed the Spring Festival release window and was slated for a May Day Golden Week premiere instead.
Having promised to spend the New Year with Ji Linyu, Zhu Xinyue didn’t return to Qingyang.
Ji Qingyuan was busy preparing for his Spring Festival Gala singing performance and hadn’t returned to Tianze City at all, completely unaware that the two were now together.
[Ji Qingyuan: Where are you spending New Year’s? I might not be able to join you, I’ve got the Spring Festival Gala. Grinning emoji.jpg]
He was totally showing off! Bragging! Hmph! So what if he made it to the Gala? She’d get there someday too!
Clenching her fists, Zhu Xinyue typed out a reply through gritted teeth.
[Zhu Xinyue: No need. I have a boyfriend.]
[Ji Qingyuan: Seriously? For real? Does my brother know you have a boyfriend?]
Ji Qingyuan had assumed she changed her relationship status to distance herself from the CP fans shipping her with Liang Yuyu. Jiang Rui had even asked him several times, mistakenly thinking he and Zhu Xinyue were dating.
[Zhu Xinyue: Of course he knows! Hands on hips.jpg]
Ji Qingyuan vaguely had a guess, so he tentatively sent a form of address over.
[Ji Qingyuan: …Sister-in-law?]
[Zhu Xinyue: Good boy]
It really wasn’t surprising at all. Ji Qingyuan had a feeling of "as expected," but aside from that, a subtle, bittersweet ache welled up in his heart.
It felt like catching a fan switching allegiances, and it was a bit irritating, especially since she was his number one fan.
Ji Qingyuan stared at the playful tilde she sent, imagining how delighted she must have been on the other end because of that one form of address.
He recalled what Zhu Xinyue had once said to him, "If you can bear to let someone who likes you suffer, then can you bear to let someone you like suffer too?"
For Ji Qingyuan, his fans came first, followed closely by his older brother, Ji Linyu.
Others might suspect that he returned to the Ji family because he coveted their wealth, but deep down, he knew very well that he and his brother were family, siblings, he would never turn against his own brother for the sake of gain.
Even Zhu Xinyue didn’t know that the biggest obstacle to Ji Qingyuan entering the entertainment industry wasn’t anyone else, but his own mother.
His mother was terrified of losing him. Whenever she couldn’t find him, she would panic intensely, as if he might be snatched away or accidentally die.
Back when he wanted to take the arts exam to study acting at a university in another city, his mother used every means, both soft and hard, to keep him in Nancheng. She even threatened suicide to force him to stay, preventing him from contacting his arts exam tutor and refusing to pay for his arts training fees.
Ji Qingyuan was used to putting on a cheerful, outgoing front in front of his classmates, so no one realized how much he was suffering during that time. All his negative emotions were only vented on his alternate Weibo account.
He was a born actor, a natural star idol. Everyone who liked him would become his fan and follow him, and he would only show his positive side to his fans. He was willing to perform this way, and he was accustomed to it.
Not long after he created this alternate Weibo account, he gained a follower with a garbled username. Ji Qingyuan had always assumed it was an inactive bot, since their profile had no activity and the avatar was the default initial one.
That was until he posted a Weibo message, essentially saying he was giving up on his dream and staying in Nancheng forever to accompany his mother.
Ji Qingyuan received a private message from the garbled account.
[What happened?]
All the thoughts he couldn’t share with those close to him, he poured out to this stranger. After all, they were his first and only follower on that account.
Perhaps because he was naturally inclined to please his fans, he told the garbled account everything, the difficulties he’d faced recently, his confusion over his mother’s actions, and the conflict between his dreams and his family’s lack of support.
[Do you really want to become an actor?]
Ji Qingyuan looked at the question sent by the other person and thought about it all night, finally giving a sincere reply the next day.
"Rather than saying I want to become an actor, it's more accurate to say I'm suited to be one. I want to gain the affection of fans, but I also want the support of my family. I come from a single-parent household, and my mom only has me. If even I weren't by her side, she would be very sad. So, if I have to choose between my dream and my family, I choose to give up my dream."
The other person, whether they had just woken up or hadn't slept at all, replied quickly.
The anonymous account sent a contact number.
"This is the phone number of Teacher Chen from the art exam training class. The address is in the XX district of South City. Go attend the classes, and leave the rest to me."
Ji Qingyuan looked up the address and found it was indeed a legitimate training institution that had produced many actors in the entertainment industry.
With a try-it-out attitude, he contacted Teacher Chen, who informed him that someone had already paid his tuition fees. He had originally planned to keep the training a secret from his mother, but the next day, she calmly told him she would no longer stop him.
When Ji Qingyuan tried to contact the anonymous account again, he discovered it had been deleted.
It was as if a celestial being had descended to help this struggling child, solving the problem without saying a word before returning to the heavens.
Ji Qingyuan was no fool.
He suspected the anonymous account was almost certainly someone who knew him or his mother, as otherwise, his mother's attitude wouldn't have changed so abruptly.
It wasn't until after he was found by the Ji family that he began to piece things together. At the time, he wasn't very close to Ji Linyu, who had come to South City to bring him back to Tianze City. During the trip, Ji Linyu took a work-related call.
Ji Linyu said, "You go ahead and do it, leave the rest to me."
The phrasing sounded incredibly familiar.
Of course, it could have been Ji Qingyuan overthinking things, but when he was about to sign with a company and debut, he accidentally discovered that Jin Huan Group had ventured into the film and television industry during his first year of high school. Not long after he first mentioned on his anonymous Weibo account that he wanted to enter the entertainment industry as an actor, Jin Huan Group established a subsidiary, and signed its first artist.
Could it be that even back then, his brother was already paving the way for him?
Ji Qingyuan couldn't help but dwell on it, so he began subtly questioning his mother about why she had suddenly changed her mind back then and stopped opposing his acting career.
His mother said it was because she had confirmed his safety.
At the time, Ji Qingyuan didn't fully understand, but after returning to the Ji family and learning about his brother's background, it started to make sense.
His mother had always worried that Grandpa Ji or Ji Linyu's maternal family might see him as a threat to Ji Linyu's position and harm him.
Ji Qingyuan stopped trying to uncover the true identity behind the anonymous account. Since the person had deleted the account after helping, they likely didn't want to be discovered. So, Ji Qingyuan kept his gratitude buried deep in his heart.
His brother really is a very good person.
Once you’re included in his circle of trusted people, all that remains is a sense of security.
Ji Qingyuan now knew that Ji Linyu and Zhu Xinyue were together, and for a moment, he wasn’t sure whose side he was jealous of.
His incredibly kind older brother and the childhood friend who had always supported him were now a couple…
Scenes of Zhu Xinyue and Ji Linyu together flashed through Ji Qingyuan’s mind.
Especially that day at the hospital when he visited the blind Zhu Xinyue. Although he had tried his best to cheer her up, he knew very well that if Ji Linyu hadn’t been there, Zhu Xinyue wouldn’t have been so relaxed.
There was a strangely perfect chemistry between the two of them.
It was complete trust.
Zhu Xinyue believed that Ji Linyu would never hurt her, just as Ji Linyu trusted her completely, able to say to him with absolute certainty, "She’s not the kind of person you say she is."
If they were together…they really would make a perfect match.
Ji Qingyuan’s feelings were complicated, but that didn’t stop him from wishing them happiness.
Since the incident on the film set, Ji Qingyuan had confirmed that no matter what happened, Zhu Xinyue would always stand by his side. The bond between them wasn’t romantic; it felt more like family or a deep friendship. He was certain such a connection could last even longer than the average person’s love.
What Ji Qingyuan should be worrying about now was, if his brother and Zhu Xinyue ever argued, who would he side with… No, who would he support?

As the Spring Festival approached, Ji Linyu arranged his work schedule and specifically set aside a few days off.
Zhu Xinyue also gave her team a vacation, letting them go home early for the New Year to avoid the Spring Festival travel rush and traffic jams.
On New Year’s Eve, Zhu Xinyue woke up early, planning to make breakfast for Ji Linyu, only to find that he had gotten up even earlier.
The servants at Lishan had also been given a few days off, so aside from her and Ji Linyu, there was no one else in the villa.
Ji Linyu was in the kitchen frying eggs. Hearing her footsteps, he glanced back at her. "Morning."
Zhu Xinyue saw him wearing grayish-white loungewear, an apron tied around his waist, sleeves rolled up halfway, skillfully flipping the eggs and bacon in the frying pan.
The aroma of food fully woke her up.
"Boss Ji, what’s the plan for today?" Zhu Xinyue was already prepared to go shopping and had even decided what to wear.
However, Boss Ji gave an unexpected answer: "Hiking."
Zhu Xinyue fell silent for a moment.
Who in their right mind goes hiking during the New Year! Don’t the scenic spots take a break?!
As it turned out, they really didn’t.
Zhu Xinyue’s stamina was fairly good, thanks to the intense training she had undergone for the "Peach Blossom Spring" film crew. After that, to maintain her figure, she would go to the gym whenever possible. Since the Lishan villa had its own gym, it was even more convenient for her to exercise indoors.
So, at first, Zhu Xinyue was able to walk and chat with Ji Linyu.
"Why did you think of going hiking?" Zhu Xinyue asked, a little curious.
Today she was dressed in a white tracksuit. To block the wind, she had zipped her jacket all the way up from the bottom to the top, covering the lower half of her face. The chilly wind whistled past her ears, turning them red from the cold, so she pulled on her hood, covering herself completely, leaving only her eyes exposed.
Ji Linyu was wearing the same style, but in all black. He didn’t seem to mind the cold; the bangs on his forehead were blown back by the wind, revealing his full forehead and deep-set eyes as he gazed into the woods.
On both sides, tall trees towered around them. Most of the hikers were older folks, with a few younger people scattered among them, but the crowd was sparse, and the path was wide open.
Sunlight filtered through the gaps between the trees, falling on him. He tilted his head slightly toward the sunlight and smiled.
Their pace was about the same. Walking side by side with him, she could see the patches of light dancing across his face, appearing and disappearing as they moved, like stars winking.
“My grandfather used to take me hiking. Maybe he was afraid I’d miss my family during the New Year, so we usually don’t spend New Year’s Eve at Pear Mountain.”
Zhu Xinyue thought of Ji Linyu’s family and reached out to hold his hand.
“What about you? What do you usually do on New Year’s Eve?” Ji Linyu intertwined his fingers with hers and, noticing her hands were cold, tucked them into his pocket.
Zhu Xinyue felt the warmth from his palm, comforting and reassuring.
“I put on new clothes, wait for the New Year’s Eve dinner, the adults give me red envelopes, we all pretend to be polite before I accept them. This is the moment I look forward to most all year, doing nothing and just waiting for money to land in my pocket. It’s great!”
Ji Linyu chuckled softly; the answer was exactly what he expected.
“Such a kid.”
Zhu Xinyue knew he was teasing her for acting like a child, so she reached out with her other hand and pressed it against his neck, the cold making him shiver.
Just as Ji Linyu was about to grab her hand, Zhu Xinyue quickly pulled away and dashed forward, afraid he might retaliate.
The figure in white hurried ahead, weaving past the hikers in front, and only when she was quite far did she turn back to look.
Zhu Xinyue didn’t see Ji Linyu and wondered if he was really that slow and hadn’t caught up yet. Just as she was about to turn back to find him, she heard an unfamiliar voice beside her.
“Hello, are you Zhu Xinyue?” Even with only her eyes visible, her die-hard fan had recognized her.
Zhu Xinyue turned toward the voice and saw a mother and daughter. The daughter looked to be in middle school, tugging shyly at her mother’s jacket. Her mother smiled kindly and stepped forward to ask if she was indeed Zhu Xinyue.
“Happy New Year,” Zhu Xinyue greeted them with a smile.
The mother was very enthusiastic. “My daughter and I love your variety show A Scene in Time. Do you know Xie Zhuguang? Is he as handsome in person as he is on TV?”
The daughter tugged at her mother’s sleeve and gave Zhu Xinyue an apologetic look, worried that her mother’s questions might offend her.
“Mm! Teacher Xie is super handsome! Are you here hiking too? The weather’s really nice today.” Zhu Xinyue wasn’t actually very good at chatting with strangers, so she could only resort to awkward small talk.
The daughter couldn’t help but giggle, seemingly sensing Zhu Xinyue’s discomfort, and asked, “Are you hiking alone?”
Zhu Xinyue turned to look behind her, searching for Ji Linyu’s figure. She saw him with his hands in his pockets, ambling slowly toward her. He stopped a few steps away, as if waiting for her to finish her conversation.
He wasn’t looking in their direction but stood sideways by the path, not obstructing other hikers, quietly minimizing his presence.
People came and went, but only he stood there, doing nothing, seeming a bit bored and a bit lonely, as if the entire world had nothing to do with him.
“I came with my boyfriend,” Zhu Xinyue said, turning back to them with a smile. “He’s walking slowly and is still behind.”
The daughter was Zhu Xinyue’s die-hard fan and had long known she wasn’t single, but she never expected to stumble upon some gossip while hiking today.
Still, as curious as she was, she didn’t press further, maintaining just the right distance between a fan and a celebrity.
Stay close to the work, keep a distance from the private life. She was a career fan of Zhu Xinyue.
“In the new year, I hope you get even more popular!” the daughter said, offering her blessing to Zhu Xinyue before blushing and pulling her mother away.
After they left, Zhu Xinyue walked back to Ji Linyu’s side.
“Sorry,” Zhu Xinyue said, feeling a bit guilty. Even though they had come together and he was her boyfriend, he couldn’t be openly acknowledged.
Ji Linyu took Zhu Xinyue’s hand.
“It’s okay, I’ll wait for you.”
Wait for the day she would go public… Ji Linyu’s thumb brushed over her ring finger.
Their wedding date could be set then.