Silence lingered for a mont longer—then the little lon, ever incapable of restraint, broke it with a gleeful chirp. "But of course, this lon isn’t complete without a touch of romance!"
"We know that Song Qingwan was in love with An Yanming," An Ning said. "But was An Yanming ever in love with her? I don’t think so."
"But they did get married in the original tiline," the little lon added eagerly.
"Sun Qiaolian and An Yanming...." An Ning fell silent, lost in thought for a mont.
"Sun Qiaolian was An Yanming’s first love back in high school," the little lon said. "But it was one-sided—on his side. They never ended up together."
"I see," An Ning said with quiet disdain. "So that’s how it is. An Yanming took over A Group, and then An Group beca the backing for Sun Qiaolian?"
"Well, An Group didn’t venture into entertainnt business though—"
"They didn’t have to. They just had to sponsor the dramas or invest in whatever Sun Qiaolian was doing—that’s good enough. In the end, it was all for the sake of Sun Qiaolian." An Ning rolled her eyes, her tone laced with scorn.
"But she ended up with Shen Xiyu. She had everything then," the little lon said. As a newly activated system, he still couldn’t quite fathom how humans thought.
"You need to know that Shen Xiyu would give Sun Qiaolian a second glance if she had no value," An Ning scoffed. "True love does exist—but not for people like him."
"But there needs to be so sort of feelings, right?" The little lon insisted.
"I didn’t say there wasn’t," An Ning replied. "But that’s only a very small part of it. This novel is about how an ordinary girl rises in showbiz and wins the love of her life."
The little lon gave a nod, as though An Ning was giving a lecture.
"But you forget—’ordinary’ has no place in the entertainnt industry. Ordinary doesn’t attract soone like Shen Xiyu. We see the ending of Sun Qiaolian’s story, but do we ever she what she had to go through to get there?"
"Like?" the little lon prompted, blinking expectantly.
"Like how every disagreent between them always ended the sa way," An Ning said. "Sun Qiaolian was the one who gave in—every ti."
Her tone was light, stripped of warmth. "When Shen Xiyu was unhappy, she coaxed him. Even when he was clearly in the wrong, she learned to make it sound like it was her fault. That’s how she kept his love—by making herself smaller each ti."
The little lon’s eyes widened slightly. "That doesn’t sound like love."
"No," An Ning said quietly. "It sounds like devotion—but only one-sided."
"Shen Xiyu wasn’t the CEO of the Shen Group at the beginning," An Ning continued. "He was just one of the candidates for succession—competent, but not remarkable."
Her voice was steady, her words deliberate. "Sun Qiaolian’s story also changed that. She used herself to open doors for him. Every investor she chard, every director she befriended, every scandal she endured quietly—it all fed into his reputation. She turned her own influence into his leverage."
[Ding! Major lon Consud = 25 Luck Value]
[Total Luck Value = 80 Luck Value]
The little lon blinked, startled. "So she helped him beco CEO?"
An Ning gave a humourless laugh. "Helped? She built his foundation. While the other heirs fought for control within the company, Shen Xiyu was already winning the public. And when the board saw how stable his image was—how profitable—the choice was obvious."
The little lon frowned. "Then why didn’t he treat her better after that?"
An Ning’s lips curved faintly, more mockery than mirth. "Better? He gave her the title of Mrs. Shen, didn’t he? To the world, that was already the best she could ask for."
"She had the na, the status, the house, and the caras capturing every ’loving’ glance," An Ning continued, her voice cool and asured. "He played the devoted husband so well that even she began to believe it. But behind the scenes, everything was transactional. Appearances for appearances, benefits for benefits."
The little lon blinked, trying to navigate through this ssy human’s world. "So...he never really loved her?"
An Ning tilted her head slightly. "Love?" A quiet pause followed. "Maybe he did, once. But it wasn’t her he loved—it was the image she created for him. The perfect wife to complete his perfect life."
The little lon’s tone turned cautious. "They lived happily ever after—in the original tiline, at least."
An Ning gave a soft hum, her gaze steady. "Happily ever after," she repeated, the words edged with irony.
"To the public, yes," the little lon said, gaining confidence as he continued. "They were the model couple—he the devoted husband, she the graceful wife. A perfect picture frad by the flash of caras."
He hesitated before adding, "And as for Song Qingwan—she was the sa. When An Group ran into trouble after An Yancheng’s fall, she pleaded with her family to help An Yanming. Her family invested heavily, together with An Yanming’s profit from his own company, it helped him stabilise the company, and that’s how she finally got to marry him."
An Ning arched a brow slightly. "And then?"
The little lon spoke after a mont’s silence. "But things didn’t end there. After the marriage, Song Qingwan found out who the woman in his heart really was—Sun Qiaolian."
An Ning’s gaze sharpened slightly. "Of course."
"She went to confront her," the little lon said softly. "Tried to expose her for getting close to An Yanming again. But instead of being angry, An Yanming felt guilty toward Sun Qiaolian. He thought Song Qingwan was being petty, jealous."
He went on, his tone dimming. "So he treated Sun Qiaolian even better after that. Song Qingwan beca the villainess—the unreasonable wife who couldn’t let go of the past."
An Ning’s expression didn’t change, but her voice carried a quiet edge. "And that’s how the story wanted it to be. The heroine wins sympathy; the villainess earns the bla. People love simple morals—they’re easier to digest."
The little lon looked thoughtful. "So even in happy endings, soone has to play the villain?"
An Ning’s lips curved faintly. "Soone always does."
And sotis, it isn’t the person written for the role.
Reviews
All reviews (0)