Chapter 3

Chapter 3

I stayed in Switzerland for a week. On the day I left, I sent Zhou Jinghe the divorce papers.

Zhou Jinghe was in a meeting and, as usual, didn’t reply immediately.

I wasn’t surprised. Zhou Jinghe’s response time to my messages had always been slower than his response time to his secretary.

The Zhou Family business had started in traditional auto manufacturing. Four years ago, Zhou Jinghe struck out on his own and founded Yuancheng New Energy.

He had come to Switzerland to negotiate a major multinational partnership. It just so happened that the representative for the partner’s side was Shen Shuwen.

She was Zhou Jinghe’s childhood friend-a close companion of over ten years.

And so, that “accidental” skiing incident occurred.

During the week I spent recovering from my injuries, I didn’t see Zhou Jinghe once. The only person with me was a caregiver he had hired.

Zhou Jinghe was busy with work. His silence was a unique brand of “Zhou Family” cold violence.

Every time before this, I would be the one who couldn’t bear it and bowed my head first.

While waiting for my flight in Zurich, I ran into a fan-a young woman.

She screamed in surprise when she saw me, which actually made me feel a bit embarrassed and uneasy.

I had been out of the industry for a year, and the entertainment world moves fast. New faces replace the old in the blink of an eye.

I didn’t expect anyone to still remember me, let alone to meet a fan in the Northern Hemisphere. I felt as though I didn’t deserve such affection.

The girl took a photo with me and asked for an autograph. As I was about to board, she hesitated for a moment and asked softly, “Sister, are you doing okay?”

Tears fell without warning. I blinked hard, unable to force out the words “I’m fine.”

The girl hurriedly wiped my tears away. “Sister, will you come back?”

“I will.” I was crying and laughing at the same time as I choked out, “I’m making a comeback.”

A year ago, the actress Bai Zheng had retired at the height of her fame for the sake of love, causing her reputation to both soar and crash.

Now that the love was gone, it was only natural to return to work.

It was early the next morning by the time I arrived in the capital.

When I turned on my phone, there were dozens of missed calls and unread messages, all from Zhou Jinghe.

I ignored them all. The long-haul flight had drained most of my energy, so I took a taxi to the apartment where I had lived alone before getting married.

Once there, I hesitated for a long time. After taking several deep breaths, I finally dialed my former agent’s number.

The call was picked up just as it was about to go to voicemail. Lu Yizhi gave a cold chuckle. “What’s this? Mrs. Zhou finally has time to call me?”

The man’s voice was clear and gentle, but his words carried a sharp, icy sarcasm. I felt a bit dazed hearing it after so long.

“Brother Lu.” I was silent for a few seconds before getting straight to the point. “I want to come back.”

“You think you can just come back whenever you want?” Lu Yizhi’s voice was unreadable. “Bai Zheng, what did I tell you a year ago when you quit right as your career was taking off? I told you that being a ‘love-brain’ never ends well.”

“What, have you had enough of being a wealthy socialite? Realized that love isn’t reliable and now you want to come back?”

“The industry is never short of newcomers. There’s no such thing as a free lunch in this world.”

I didn’t say anything, letting Lu Yizhi vent his frustrations. In the silence that followed, I said softly, “Brother Lu, please help me.”

Lu Yizhi took a deep breath. “Bai Zheng, did I owe you a debt in a past life?”

I smiled silently.

“Eight o’clock the day after tomorrow. Haohai Media.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Lu Yizhi hung up quickly, as if afraid he might regret it.

The apartment had been vacant for a long time and was covered in a layer of dust. While the cleaning service worked, I stood on the terrace and smoked a cigarette.

My phone buzzed. It was the twenty-first call from Zhou Jinghe.

I didn’t move. I blew out a ring of smoke, and as the screen went dark, I suddenly found it quite funny.

This was the first time I had ever ignored a call from Zhou Jinghe.