The Scheming Ex-Husband's Courtship-Chapter 481 - 428: Who is He Targeting?

Chapter 481: Chapter 428: Who is He Targeting?
Zhuo Yuqing just exited from the pantry and ran into two female colleagues. They usually had a decent relationship with her, neither particularly close nor distant, always greeting each other warmly when they met.
Just as Zhuo Yuqing was about to exchange pleasantries, the two women merely nodded politely at her and walked away, their demeanor very much giving off the impression that they wanted to distance themselves from her.
Zhuo Yuqing felt uncomfortable about this. These people believed some rumor without even verifying it with her, and she had no idea how they might embellish the story behind her back, acting as if they knew the truth.
Not long after, Zhuo Yuqing saw Tong Bi surrounded by three or four people, heads together whispering about something. Someone seemed to have noticed Zhuo Yuqing and immediately made a shushing gesture. Though their eyes were not directly on her, Zhuo Yuqing knew they must be talking about her.
Zhuo Yuqing was trembling with anger. Though nobody knew that she and Bai Chengxi were married, to slander someone like this was truly despicable. She feared that from now on, people at the magazine would look at her through a colored lens, thinking she attained her accomplishments by sleeping with someone.
At that moment, Tong Bi lifted her head from the crowd and, seeing Zhuo Yuqing looking her way, provocatively raised her eyebrows as if to say, even if you know I spread the rumor, what can you do about it?
Zhuo Yuqing stared at her, conceding that when it came to having a thick face, she was indeed outmatched.
"Yuqing, Su Yingluo is here, get ready to enter the interview room." The editor-in-chief came in as cheerful as if it were the new year, completely oblivious to the tension, "Remember, dig deep into the romantic history, expose explosive material."
"Got it, chief editor."
Zhuo Yuqing did a simple makeup and then entered the interview room to wait, with the camera and lights already in place. She was rehearsing the script she had prepared beforehand in her mind.
When the scheduled time arrived, Su Yingluo was still nowhere to be seen. The cameraman looked at his watch, "Is this the right time?"
"Yes, just wait a bit longer, she’s probably been held up by something," Zhuo Yuqing wasn’t bothered and continued reviewing her script.
After about half an hour more, the camera and lighting crew were beginning to get impatient.
"This Su Yingluo really acts like a big star, making us wait here for half an hour."
Zhuo Yuqing stood up and said, "I’ll go ask the chief editor what’s going on?"
"Forget it, little Zhuo, don’t ask. It’s common for celebrities to act like divas, asking will only mean more waiting," the cameraman stopped her, "Let’s just continue waiting."
That wait turned into three hours, and just when everyone’s patience was running thin, Su Yingluo finally arrived, late, with her assistant and her manager.
Su Yingluo was in a wheelchair, which, in Zhuo Yuqing’s eyes, was ironic since she looked perfectly fine. Zhuo Yuqing wondered what act she was pulling now.
Su Yingluo was helped onto the leather sofa by her assistant. Zhuo Yuqing went to help, but Xiao Lan quickly blocked her: "No need."
The response was cold and harsh, kicking Zhuo Yuqing’s good intentions aside, but she didn’t mind and went back to her seat.
With lighting and camera ready, Zhuo Yuqing asked, "Miss Su, shall we start?"
Su Yingluo gave her a brief glance, "Wait a bit, I need to touch up my makeup."
The camera and lighting crew showed impatient expressions, but Zhuo Yuqing, as the host, still maintained a gracious and appropriate smile, "Please go ahead, Miss Su."
Su Yingluo spent another hour doing her makeup.
During that time, she kept glancing at Zhuo Yuqing, who sat there flipping through her script, head down, focused and serious, showing no signs of impatience.
This composed demeanor inexplicably infuriated Su Yingluo; she had intentionally made her wait so long, shouldn’t she have been furious by now? Why was she still acting as if nothing was wrong? It seemed, Su Yingluo had greatly underestimated her character. The fact that Bai Chengxi, who hadn’t been involved with women for many years, was so devoted to her must mean she had some tricks up her sleeve.
Thinking of Bai Chengxi, she recalled his warning from last night. She believed that Bai Chengxi always meant what he said and did what he promised. Despite this, she decided to give it her all, not giving up until all was lost. She couldn’t believe their decade-long relationship would lose out to this seemingly innocent journalist.
"Miss Su, can we start now?" Zhuo Yuqing, seeing that Su Yingluo had finished her makeup, asked politely.
"Let’s start," Su Yingluo went back to sitting on the sofa, dressed in an elegant and fitting long dress that highlighted her radiant beauty. Zhuo Yuqing had watched her movies and TV dramas many years ago and had to admit, her acting was top-notch, truly deserving of the title of movie queen.
But, like the rumors went, she was cold and hard to engage with.
Zhuo Yuqing tried to relax and asked a few questions based on the script she had prepared in advance.
Su Yingluo was not very cooperative, her answers were almost always irrelevant, making Zhuo Yuqing’s questioning increasingly difficult and she could never get the answers she really wanted.
"Miss Su, I heard that you have been single all this time, is that right?" Zhuo Yuqing had no choice but to start again from the aspect of personal relationships, a topic her editor-in-chief had emphasized heavily.
Zhuo Yuqing thought Su Yingluo would continue to evade the issue, but unexpectedly, she asked calmly, "Who said I’m single?"
This was the first time Su Yingluo discussed her romantic relationship in a public interview, even if it was just a few words, it was enough to excite Zhuo Yuqing, who continued to inquire: "Is Miss Su’s partner someone from the industry?"
"Sort of."
"Then, could you reveal how long you’ve been together?"
Looking at Zhuo Yuqing, Su Yingluo’s heart scoffed, but her tone was very gentle: "We’ve known each other since we were thirteen, and have been acquainted for twenty years. Although he is not by my side now, our hearts are always together. It’s inevitable for misunderstandings and conflicts to occur in any relationship, but they are nothing compared to a love that is more enduring than gold."
"That’s unexpected, Miss Su has been in a long-term relationship, do you have plans to get married?"
"Getting married is certain, but we will wait for the right opportunity." Su Yingluo said with a smile, "What about you, Miss Zhuo, do you have plans to get married?"
Although Su Yingluo was smiling, Zhuo Yuqing always felt that she was full of hostility towards her, "No one would probably be interested in my issues, let’s keep talking about Miss Su."
Su Yingluo was unyielding, "Miss Zhuo, you’re still young, you can totally find a decent man to marry, there’s no need to waste your youth and experiences on someone who doesn’t belong to you, and in the end, you are bound to gain nothing."
Zhuo Yuqing was stunned for a moment, not understanding why Su Yingluo would say such things. She opened her mouth, but didn’t know how to respond, and the recorders and cameramen beside her were also a bit confused by Su Yingluo’s mysterious and elusive words.
Zhuo Yuqing quickly brushed it off with a laugh, not allowing herself to be entangled by those words: "Miss Su, when do you plan on disclosing your significant other to the public?"
"Do you want to know who he is, Miss Zhuo?" Su Yingluo, with her arms crossed, smiled profoundly, "I’ll show you his photo later, but just to you alone, because I respect his privacy, I don’t want to expose him this early."
Zhuo Yuqing was usually very interested in gossip, but Su Yingluo’s mysterious yet seemingly inevitable demeanor made her subtly uneasy. For some inexplicable reason, she suddenly didn’t want to know about that other half.
"Since it cannot be disclosed, perhaps it’s better to keep it secret, Miss Su." Zhuo Yuqing politely declined.
"Are you sure you don’t want to know?" Su Yingluo sighed lightly, "That’s a pity, I thought you would be the most necessary person to know this."
After the interview, Zhuo Yuqing was arranging the interview manuscript with a colleague when Xiaolan came in and said, "Miss Zhuo, Miss Luo is looking for you."
Su Yingluo had not left yet, sitting in the lounge drinking coffee, upon seeing Zhuo Yuqing, she scrutinized her carefully. During the interview, she had already observed her for a long time. Truly young and beautiful, with flawless skin and a pleasant voice, she seemed utterly perfect on the surface.
It seems reasonable that such a young girl could attract Bai Chengxi, and even as a woman, she couldn’t help but take a few more glances.
"Miss Su, you called for me?" Zhuo Yuqing was in a hurry to go back and draft her article, and therefore did not sit down after entering, but asked straightforwardly. To be honest, she felt an inexplicable aversion towards Su Yingluo, although she didn’t know much about her, she just couldn’t warm up to her, and even wanted to keep her distance.
With a sip of her coffee, tasting slightly salty, Su Yingluo said, "I promised to show you the photo."
"Since Miss Su wants to keep her other half confidential, I’d rather not know."
"As an entertainment journalist, aren’t you a bit curious? Don’t you wonder who this man is, who has known me for twenty years, and been in a relationship with me for seven? Maybe..." Su Yingluo paused deliberately, "he might be someone Miss Zhuo knows too."
The last sentence caused Zhuo Yuqing to shudder involuntarily, a chill creeping up from her feet, urging her to flee.
"Miss Zhuo, the photo is right here, would you like to see it?" Su Yingluo directly handed her phone over, keeping a distance, but Zhuo Yuqing didn’t reach out to take it.
Seeing her hesitancy, Xiaolan stepped forward to pass it to Zhuo Yuqing, but just as she took a step, the door of the lounge was pushed open. The drop in air pressure and an oppressive aura caused Xiaolan’s reaching hand to involuntarily retract. She turned her head and got startled by the person standing at the door.
Su Yingluo was also surprised, never expecting him to appear at this time and place.
Feeling nervous yet faintly hopeful, had he come to find her? Did he know she was doing an interview here and came looking for her? Or was it for Zhuo Yuqing?**