The next day, Li woke up itching all over. The princess had developed an allergy to the hotel bed. The intense itching tormented her.  As soon as she opened her phone, the automatically pushed gossip news ignited her anger.

Screw Qiao Yunshang.

Married to the original owner for four years without ever going public, maintaining a secret marriage, with not a single mention of the original owner in any online information, and never acknowledging her kindness to the Li family.  Now, she was publicly announcing her relationship with Gu Sangsang on Weibo.

After Li opened the post, her eyes turned bloodshot with rage.

Qiao Yunshang (clouds): Sangsang, before I met you, I never knew that someone could brighten my life so much. You’re the key that perfectly fits my heart.  Gu Sangsang

The accompanying picture was a photo of Gu Sangsang and her in a room.

Qiao Yunshang’s love confession was actually the original owner’s WeChat signature, and the place where the two were photographed was the room Li had tried to enter earlier but couldn’t.

Her blood rushed to her head.

Li just wanted to grab Qiao Yunshang by the collar and shout, “Are you unable to speak Chinese, or does your family not have any other houses? Why are you doing this to me?”

That wasn’t enough.

Li opened the comments and found Gu Sangsang’s reply: It’s my honor too.  And thanks to my baby girlfriend for the love nest [heart].  Attached was a picture of a property deed with Gu Sangsang’s name on it.

Netizens went crazy, shouting about how much she was loved.

Li also went crazy, shouting “idiot.”

A feeling of nausea, like someone had stolen something, spread from her feet to her head.

Before, Li disliked the original owner’s lifestyle, and because of her preconceived notions from the novel, she felt that the original owner’s plight was self-inflicted. A person without a sense of self would eventually lose even themselves. But now, she felt utterly sorry for the original owner.

Four years of marriage, over twenty years of companionship, were silently buried in darkness, becoming a weapon for Qiao Yunshang to appease someone else. Qiao Yunshang stepped on her love, using it as a stepping stone, wagging her tail at someone else.

Li found this unacceptable.

She considered herself to have low morals and high tolerance. But she hated people who trampled on others’ affections. Qiao Yunshang perfectly stepped on that line.

Li turned off her phone, pulling the curtains tight, blocking out all light. The room was pitch black.  In this darkness, Li’s eyes were like ice, filled with malice.

Heh.

Who wants to be a vicious female supporting character again?

Oh, it’s me.

To make public everything about the original owner’s relationship and marriage with Qiao Yunshang, and then find evidence of Gu Sangsang being the mistress and post it online, so that this couple would be publicly condemned.

—Clearly, this is the path of a vicious female supporting character.

Unfortunately, Li was a madman, willing to bet everything on even the smallest gamble.  Exposing them? Too simple a form of revenge, and right now she was nameless, powerless, and penniless.  Under the control of capital, any public opinion she directed at Qiao Yunshang and Gu Sangsang wouldn’t have a significant impact on their careers. 

Even if the truth came out, Qiao Yunshang could hire a PR team to write a million-word statement, appealing to emotions and reason, shifting all the blame to Li.  Plus, their massive fan base; a single spit from each fan could drown Li.

A gnat challenging an elephant, without moving its base.

Li lay in bed, toying with the only piece of jewelry she possessed: a ring, but not a wedding ring.  Qiao Yunshang, worried that wearing a wedding ring would reveal her relationship status to her fans and affect her career, never got matching wedding rings with the original owner.

It’s laughable that after twenty years of childhood sweethearts and four years of marriage, the original owner didn’t even get a wedding. Let alone a ring?

The sharp edges of the diamond dug into Li’s tender fingertips, causing pain, but this sting made her eyes clearer.

The original owner’s memories and emotions resurfaced, Qiao Yunshang’s words echoing in her ears.

“Don’t cling to me. I’m not like you. I have my work; the screen needs me.”

“Sangsang is a good actress, don’t overthink it.”

“Why can’t you understand me? I’m an actress, I have my career, many things are impossible to balance. What about you? You should find a job, don’t stay at home all day overthinking things.”

“We’re different, you’ll never understand me. You were born with everything, and now you only need to rely on me. Li, you never know how lucky you are. So, when you’re already lucky enough, don’t be greedy and want more.”

The diamond scratched a red mark on Li’s fingertip, no blood, but a murderous desire surged in her chest.

She fully understood how superior Qiao Yunshang was to the original owner, suppressing this unconditionally devoted woman with everything she was proud of.

—Li could say this: In this world, the person Qiao Yunshang loved most was herself.  Herself as an “actress.”  And she probably always hated Li, considering her an unavoidable burden.

Thinking about it now, Qiao Yunshang choosing to publicly announce her relationship with Gu Sangsang might also be a way to boost her career. In this world, same-sex marriage is legal, so even same-sex couples can openly exchange traffic.

Humph.

Top actress?

Rising star?

Li picked up her phone, saw the couples’ fan-made video “The Truth Is True,” and raised an eyebrow.

Gu Sangsang’s acting was really inferior to her crying scene during the divorce.  Her crying in the drama was stiff and mechanical, her eyes wide, as if twelve chili peppers and garlic were simultaneously stinging her, before she managed to shed two pitiful tears.  Off-screen, she was natural, her wrinkled little face and red nose making her look lovable.

Qiao Yunshang is a bad person, but her acting skills are somewhat better, at least compared to Gu Sangsang.