AVSFCBH 17

Chapter 17

The assistant hurried over, took out a medicine box, and said with concern, “Sister Jingshu, I brought the medicine you wanted. But the doctor said taking medicine alone won’t be enough—you really need to get some proper rest.”

Looking at the medicine box, Jian Shen and Yuan Duan couldn’t help recalling how energetic Qiao Jingshu had been only two days ago, shouting and making a scene in front of the cat. For a moment, they were completely speechless.

The situation had become awkward.

Entering the trailer didn’t seem appropriate.

Not entering didn’t seem appropriate either.

Everything was at a complete standstill.

Watching the cat’s heart rate displayed on the integrated tracker, Shen Yunmiao tightened her grip on her phone until her fingernails nearly cracked. A familiar wave of pain welled up inside her.

She strode forward and inclined her head apologetically toward Qiao Jingshu.

“Senior, I’m sorry. Please forgive my offense.”

The trailer doorway was narrow, and Qiao Jingshu occupied most of it. Shen Yunmiao forced herself to squeeze past her. There was still a tiny gap between them, yet Qiao Jingshu staggered as though she had been shoved, smiling magnanimously.

“It’s alright, it’s alright. I understand.”

The trailer was spotless.

There was nothing in sight.

Qiao Jingshu followed closely behind and said helplessly,

“Yunmiao, have you found the cat?”

“Why don’t we check under the bed or somewhere? Cats love running around, don’t they?”

Walking closer, she patted Shen Yunmiao’s shoulder generously.

“Don’t worry. Search all you want. If any of my belongings are in the way, just move them aside.”

Shen Yunmiao quietly stepped aside, causing Qiao Jingshu’s hand to miss.

Her gaze swept across the trailer, completely ignoring Qiao Jingshu’s words.

From outside, Jian Shen called,

“Yunmiao, why don’t we head back first and search the woods?”

“Maybe the tracker malfunctioned, or maybe the cat accidentally knocked it off, right?”

Qiao Jingshu answered before Shen Yunmiao could.

“Director Jian, it’s alright. If the cat really is hiding somewhere in here, it’ll only be more troublesome if we don’t find it now.”

The moment Jian Shen heard that, he knew the award-winning actress was definitely plotting something.

He hated all these petty schemes in the entertainment industry.

They were only making a movie.

Why did everything have to become so troublesome?

He even began feeling a little impatient with Shen Yunmiao.

Such a good girl.

Why was she so stubborn?

What he didn’t know was that only a cabinet door separated them.

The little white cat was curled tightly into one corner of the carrier.

The cabinet was completely sealed.

The air grew thinner and thinner.

Although cats possessed excellent night vision, all Cheng Jianian could see was endless darkness, as if night itself had swallowed everything.

Was she really going to die here?

How tragic.

When she had been human, her life had held no value.

She died without anyone knowing why.

Now that she was a cat, someone finally cared for her and loved her.

And yet she was still going to die just as meaninglessly.

Unwilling to give up, she continued crying out.

Even though her earlier cries had nearly exhausted all her strength and accomplished nothing, she still refused to abandon the last sliver of hope.

The cabinet muffled almost every sound.

Yet she still clung to one tiny fantasy.

What if…

What if Shen Yunmiao really came?

“Meow!”

Her desperate cries passed through the heavy wooden door until almost nothing remained.

But Shen Yunmiao caught the familiar sound immediately.

Behind her, everyone continued talking endlessly, drowning out the faint meowing.

She turned around and raised a finger to her lips.

“Shh.”

Qiao Jingshu gritted her teeth.

Without showing it on her face, she was about to speak when Shen Yunmiao interrupted her coldly.

“Senior. Quiet.”

Her voice finally reached the little cat inside the cabinet.

Xiao Cheng Zong nearly burst into tears with joy.

She immediately answered with frantic meows.

The two voices crossed the barriers of space and obstruction.

Even the endless darkness no longer felt frightening.

Shen Yunmiao hurried forward and pulled the wooden storage box out from beneath the bed.

Qiao Jingshu watched her movements coldly, grinding her porcelain veneers so hard they nearly shattered.

The young woman’s voice was gentle but left no room for refusal.

“Senior, may I open this box and take a look?”

Chapter 17

My Wife Shows Off Her Power and Puts the Villain in Her Place!

Qiao Jingshu’s lips trembled.

Before she could speak, her assistant at the doorway cried out dramatically,

“Sister Jingshu, isn’t that where…”

Qiao Jingshu smiled weakly.

“That’s enough. It’s alright. If Yunmiao wants to look, let her. It’s nothing.”

Too lazy to entertain their clumsy acting, Shen Yunmiao reached out and pulled open the box.

She lifted the carrier out.

Fresh air rushed inside, carrying with it the crisp scent of melting snow.

The instant Cheng Jianian’s vision returned, sunlight and Shen Yunmiao arrived together, both reflected in the little white cat’s mismatched eyes.

Looking at the person before her, Xiao Cheng Zong nearly cried.

The trailer window was slightly open.

Warm sunlight poured in.

The breeze lifted Shen Yunmiao’s loose strands of hair.

She still wore her costume.

Her plain white robe brushed the floor.

She truly looked like an immortal descending from heaven.

Whimpering, the little cat buried herself in Shen Yunmiao’s arms.

“Meow…”

Shen Yunmiao…

Shen Yunmiao…

Why did you come so late?

I was so scared…

Holding back her own tears, Shen Yunmiao hugged her little cat tightly.

“Don’t be afraid, Sweetheart. I’m here now. Everything’s alright.”

Qiao Jingshu’s expression instantly darkened.

She could barely maintain the smile on her face.

But Shen Yunmiao simply picked up the carrier with the cat inside and turned to leave without even attempting to speak to her.

It was obvious.

Shen Yunmiao had no intention of giving her any face.

Qiao Jingshu’s anger flared.

A complete newcomer without a single finished work to her name actually dared challenge her?

Who did she think she was?

Outside the trailer, Jian Shen and Yuan Duan both breathed sighs of relief when they saw Shen Yunmiao carrying the cat.

Now that they had already entered, if they had found nothing, things would have been truly disastrous.

Jian Shen laughed awkwardly.

“Well, this little cat really does love running around. Alright, now that we’ve found…”

“Oh, yes,” the assistant interrupted while carefully watching Qiao Jingshu’s expression.

“This kitten is far too mischievous.”

“That cabinet is where Sister Jingshu keeps her medicine.”

Jian Shen was left speechless.

The corner of his mouth twitched.

Wasn’t she supposed to be smoothing things over?

How had the side in the wrong managed to argue back instead?

Yuan Duan handled it more calmly.

Smiling, she said,

“Then I suppose the little cat really is at fault.”

“How about this, Jingshu? Check whether the kitten damaged anything, and I’ll compensate you.”

Qiao Jingshu gave a self-deprecating smile.

“It’s nothing. There’s no need for compensation.”

“Wait.”

Shen Yunmiao spoke.

Her voice was cold enough to freeze the air.

“No matter how much my cat likes running around, she shouldn’t be able to drag an entire carrier with her.”

“If my cat has been injured…”

“I think it’s you who should be compensating us, Senior.”

She turned around.

Her gaze was as cold as winter snow.

Qiao Jingshu was visibly shaken by that look.

Just as she was about to speak, Shen Yunmiao continued first.

“No…”

“How could you possibly compensate someone for a family member they treasure more than anything?”

The moment those words fell, not only Qiao Jingshu but even Jian Shen and the others were stunned.

Shen Yunmiao had always been gentle.

Whenever she looked at people, she almost always wore a smile.

She never argued over trivial matters.

She always knew when to stop.

That was why so many people saw her as a cup of warm water.

Comfortable.

Gentle.

Always just right.

But now…

That cup of warm water had frozen into ice.

The sudden chill left everyone stunned.

Shen Yunmiao let out a soft laugh.

“My Sweetheart’s tracker also contains a miniature camera.”

“It’s much more reliable than the production’s surveillance cameras.”

“Senior…”

“Do you really want me to check the footage?”

“To find out just how amazingly good my Sweetheart is at running around that she somehow wandered all the way here?”

“Once I’ve figured it out, I’ll know exactly how much I should compensate you.”

Xiao Cheng Zong had finally recovered from her fear.

Resting in Shen Yunmiao’s arms, she heard every merciless word Shen Yunmiao spoke.

At that moment, the gratitude she felt far outweighed her surprise.

She didn’t think this was some shocking moment of an angel falling from grace.

After her initial astonishment, what remained was an indescribable happiness.

The blurred memories awakened by the ordeal were undoubtedly painful.

The darkness still lingered in her senses, threatening to swallow the soul inside her feline body.

But she had never expected Shen Yunmiao to go this far for her.

A treasured family member…

It was such a strange and wonderful feeling.

Still…

It wasn’t enough.

To Xiao Cheng Zong, this didn’t even qualify as paying someone back in kind.

Qiao Jingshu truly had no shame.

She had merely been confronted with a few plain truths.

Who was she trying to fool by making her eyes red?

Did she think she looked pitiful?

Had it been any ordinary cat today, it would probably have panicked long ago.

Scratching her would have been inevitable.

And after that?

The outcome was obvious.

She would have cried miserably, played the victim, and stirred up another wave of online harassment.

Now that her scheme had failed, she was pretending to be the victim instead.

Back when Xiao Cheng Zong had been the one in power, she had already despised such clumsy tricks.

Now they disgusted her even more.

She instinctively stopped looking at Qiao Jingshu’s performance.

Instead, she sniffed the crisp scent of fresh snow and burrowed deeper into Shen Yunmiao’s embrace.

Never before had that cool, refreshing fragrance felt so comforting.

Shen Yunmiao…

Such a beautiful name.

It circled through her heart countless times.

Three syllables slowly softened into two.

Then into an intimate little nickname.

Yunmiao…

My Miaomiao…

Xiao Cheng Zong felt as though the name had melted her entire heart.

At last, she was willing to admit that in front of this person, none of the pride she once possessed as President Cheng, Best Actress Cheng, or Miss Cheng remained.

Whenever she looked into those dark, watery eyes, all she wanted was to move closer.

Closer still.

She lowered her usually proud head and pressed one ear into Shen Yunmiao’s hand.

Clutching the wide sleeve of Shen Yunmiao’s costume, she let out a soft,

“Mew…”

Let’s go, Miaomiao.

A gentleman’s revenge is never too late.

Once I become human again…

I’ll definitely seek justice for both of us.

But for now…

For the first time in her life, Xiao Cheng Zong truly understood what it meant to feel powerless.

When people are forced to live under someone else’s roof…

And cats are held in someone else’s arms…

Provoking Qiao Jingshu right now clearly wouldn’t lead to anything good.

The thought that this woman was actually one of the artists signed under her own company, and that she was behaving so arrogantly by borrowing Cheng Jianian’s influence, made Cheng Jianian want to scratch even her own human self.

Poor management had allowed subordinates to commit such foolish and despicable acts.

Now the consequences had come back to herself.

Wasn’t that simply a case of every debt finding its rightful owner?

But Miaomiao…

Miaomiao was the one who truly suffered.

She couldn’t allow the retaliation to fall upon Miaomiao.

Shen Yunmiao lowered her head and looked at the little white cat desperately clutching the edge of her sleeve.

A wave of aching tenderness flowed through her heart.