A Star Reborn: The Queen's Return

Chapter 12

Chapter 12: Arriving at the Set Location

The lens was split, the camera zoomed in.

The ray of light perfectly outlined Pei Ziheng’s handsome side profile, capturing his expressionless expression and thin lips pressed into a straight line. Xia Ling knew every detail of his facial features all too well; this was the look he put on every time he tried to conceal his emotions.

Outside of the shot, the commentary was complimenting Chairman Pei to no end, mentioning how heavy-hearted he must be feeling in that moment. Xia Ling squinted, and at the corner of her eyes, she saw a prompter gesturing aggressively, asking for Pei Ziheng to continue speaking to the media.

But still, he did not say another word.

It’s hard to say whether who between she or the director was more disappointed. When the focus of the shot turned away from Pei Ziheng, Xia Ling felt as if all her energy had evaporated, leaving her weak. This short moment helped her understand one thing — Pei Ziheng came all the way here only as the Boss of Imperial Entertainment to fulfill his duty. It had nothing to do with reminiscence, much less anything to do with Xia Ling.

He had been a cold and cruel businessman all along, never one who did anything uncalled for.

In fact, over the decade that Xia Ling had been by his side, she had heard countless rumors and hearsay about the ruthless things he had done. Yet the person he was with her had always been nice, even indulgent, to her, so much so that she naively thought that maybe she was the exception.

Now, it’s time she snapped out of that dream.

The mourning wasn’t over yet, but Xia Ling wasn’t interested in the rest of the event. She was just numbly waiting for the show to be truly over and for the crowd to disperse.

Lu Tao ordered his two underlings to get some discs as he accompanied Xia Ling on her stroll along the road. He said, “Ye Xingling, don’t be too sad. The dead cannot come back to life. Xia Ling won’t be able to rest in peace if she knew that her fans were this upset by her passing.”

“Huh?” Xia Ling looked at him, confused.

He knitted his brows. “Aren’t you a fan of Xia Ling?”

“I’m not.”

“Don’t lie to me, I saw how devastated you looked during the mourning just now. How could you not be her fan?” Lu Tao scoffed. “Just admit it. Xia Ling was a Diva, there’s nothing embarrassing about admiring her.”

“I’m really not her fan.”

“As if.”

“…”

Lu Tao couldn’t stop talking throughout the journey. The sky was gradually illuminated by the stars, setting a tone of dazzling tranquility. At that moment, Xia Ling was glad that he was by her side as his high-spirited voice chased away her sorrow and dejection.

Back at the training camp, at the foot of the hotel building, Lu Tao wished her good night.

“Ye Xingling, there’s a saying that goes ‘the deceased have to rest in peace while the living —’ something like that… basically,” he said as he scratched his head. “Don’t be too hung up over the deceased. Go to sleep soon, and don’t forget you have an MV to shoot tomorrow morning.”

She was stunned for a moment, before softly mumbling “okay”.

It’s true, the deceased have to rest in peace, and the living will have to move on with their lives.

That night, there was not a cloud in the clear night sky.

Following Tan Ying’s lead, the trainees headed for the location set.