After Exchanging Shadows

Xi Mo’s lips barely curved into an unnoticeable smirk. She began to type up a message after receiving the reply. “Terrified? Looks like you’ll be in for a lot more terror in the time to come.”

The Feng Tangtang that was even sweeter than candy[1] was already clinched by Queen Xi Mo’s words and remained unaware that she was. Ruan Yesheng had nothing else to say at this moment, so she naturally admitted defeat obediently. “Your servant is even more terrified.”

Besides acting obedient, there was even a j.a.panese terrified emoticon tagging along the end of the text message.

That j.a.panese emoticon gave her short text a rather lively flavor.

But when Xi Mo interacted with others, she never used emoticons like those, just like her face that was always cold. Unfortunately, the type of emoticon Ruan Yesheng used just had to be the very cute kind while Xi Mo knows that Ruan Yesheng was not such a mushy and cute person. She was pure on the outside while hiding her evil intentions behind a facade of obedience. She was totally black inside with a sharp tongue. This kind of intense contrast really gave Xi Mo an ill feeling, so she became somewhat irritated again.

“Don’t send me that,” warned Xi Mo.

The reply was almost instant. “Isn’t it cute?”

“Disgusting.”

After Xi Mo sent the text, she suddenly found herself in a pit of texting back and forth without end with Ruan Yesheng. And the context of their text wasn’t even a proper matter.

Her finger paused above the screen for a moment, then she quickly deleted all those text messages.

Feng Tangtang took the chance to glance at Xi Mo when her car stopped. Seeing how she was always staring at her phone and making a faint face at it, she couldn’t help but ask in a concerned friend manner, “Ruan Ruan, who are you chatting with? You don’t look too happy.”

“Oh.” Xi Mo put down her phone and lazily looked up, showing plenty of her acting prowess, “Your Sister Xi.”

Ruan Yesheng sent back another text which she did not look at. She didn’t even need to look at it to know that it was nonsense. As long as Feng Tangtang remained in the dark about the truth, she would have plenty of time to deal with Ruan Yesheng later.

Her eyes lit up. “Sister Xi actually contacted you?”

“Yeah.”

“What did she talk to you about?” mindfully asked Feng Tangtang while she took a turn.

It was rare to see Sister

Xi willing to reply back so much. In the past, she would always see her settle any conversation in a single text. If it wasn’t some kind of important matter, then there was even less chance of getting a reply back. But Ruan Ruan was getting special treatment in that regards right now, could it be something very important?

“A bit about upcoming movies,” Xi Mo replied casually.

Feng Tangtang became so excited at this that her steering was a bit ruthless around the corners.   

Xi Mo:”……”

“Is it that new movie that Sister Xi is prepared to act in? Perhaps… perhaps it’s about that female side character they haven’t chosen yet?” Feng Tangtang swerved her car her, “Ruan Ruan, can you finally take roles again?”

Her eyes were full of hope like this was the opportunity that Ruan Yesheng waited for many years. She was sincerely happy for it.

Xi Mo looked at her happy without a trace of doubt face and did not speak.

Feng Tangtang turned the radio on and started to chatter nonstop. “I just knew you were very suitable for that role. Although it is just a side character, it is a very important side character. Ruan Ruan, your acting ability is so great, you can definitely act it greatly. I am just a small a.s.sistant, following behind and working is all I do and I have no right to talk. But I always wanted to mention you to Sister Xi, since you two were cla.s.smates at the same university, but I’m afraid she would scold me and fire me.”

Xi Mo gazed at her. “Oh? Sister Xi is such a mean person. She even scolded you.”

Feng Tangtang shook her head seriously. “Well, not really. She’ve never scolded me before, it’s just that she seems so cold and unapproachable that I’m worried about doing something that will annoy her. I thought to myself that I should be very careful around her, or else she’ll definitely give me a scolding if I slip up, or maybe not just a scolding but directly firing me. That would be the end for me.”  

Xi Mo: “…..”

What’s with your stupid imagination!

What, scold you? If I scolded you, I would have had to waste my time to flap these lips!

Feng Tangtang did not have some kind of special ability either. When she was recruited, it was because she was obedient and her appearance suited the prestige of the company while not being good enough to grab away the limelight from actual performers. As her

her a.s.sistant, she cannot be too sly and astute, but she also cannot be too clumsy. If she was too sly and astute, it was easy for her to blab everything on the web, even signing a confidential agreement would not shut their mouths. Who knows just how many scandals within the circle would happen because the person following them leaked it out.

Xi Mo recalled how she was the model of a social worker in front of her and how she dealt with matters was done very well. So she endured Feng Tangtang’s over-imaginative brain for the time being and replied back with a smile, “That new movie is still in the works, nothing has been confirmed yet. After all, finding who to act in it still depends on the producer and director at the end. If the producer wants to push someone in and try to involve themselves in all sorts of ways, the director also isn’t in a good position to just refuse.”

Calling the entertainment circle small wasn’t right, but calling it large also wasn’t right. It was like a farm filled with all sorts of vegetables and fruits. The cast and crew were like radishes, there’s only one hole in the ground and whoever had the strength to take that hole should take it. Yet there were still radishes from outside trying to squeeze in.

A radish that is rich, powerful and has a backer, even if they aren’t a radish and was perhaps a sweet potato, they would still be able to find a nice hole to lie in.

As for radishes that were utterly lacking and unliked, they could only endure.

Feng Tangtang encouraged her, “Isn’t there still hope? Sister Xi’s position is very high in the cast and crew, she is definitely number one and guaranteed in it. I heard that this drama took three to four times of asking her before she agreed. In the past, she mostly did movies and was not really willing to shoot a soap opera. Sister Xi’s words have weight, if she really recommends you, I think it’s possible.”

Xi Mo dipped her head down. She felt that the words spoken by this one-track minded sweet candy about her ‘position is very high’ and ‘definitely number one’, and ‘her words have weight’ were a bit pleasing to hear.

“Ruan Ruan.” Feng Tangtang called out.

Xi Mo turned her head to look at Feng Tangtang.

Feng Tangtang asked somewhat nervously, “So, just what did Sister Xi say to you?”

Xi Mo smiled, “Actually it’s hard

it’s hard to say. Tangtang, nothing has been determined yet, so don’t leak it out.”

Feng Tantang nodded. “Relax, I’ve got this. I won’t tell a soul until it’s certain. It’s also listed in the company’s rules.”

Xi Mo dragged it out, “You really hope so much for me to act in it?”

Feng Tangtang was astonished, “Didn’t you always wanted to act in a drama? You told me before that even if you only acted in a single scene under the lights, you would be satisfied.

Xi Mo leaned against the chair, looking out at the trees that flitted by through the windows. Bright light also shone from within her eyes.

Feng Tangtang did not know if she had heard her or not.

Feng Tangtang drove her car into the underground parking lot and turned the car off. Then she quietly asked, “There’s something I wanted to ask you for a long time. Ruan Ruan, don’t think I’m just meddling into your business. But you played the leading female role before, why then, could you never get another drama to act in after that?”

Xi Mo got out of the car and stood still.

“Who knows.” Xi Mo smiled, “Perhaps I am not lucky. I am not that lucky radish.”

She could only answer ambiguously like this.

After all, she wasn’t really Ruan Yesheng.

Feng Tangtang believed that she had touched a sensitive matter for Ruan Yesheng, so she also tactfully stayed silent. But she still blamed herself in the bottom of her heart for her inability to hold back her curiosity.

She took the elevator with Xi Mo to the apartment. Xi Mo did not know which floor Ruan Yesheng lived in, so how could she know which room she lived int? As such, she stayed by Feng Tangtang silently the whole way, not too in front but also not too behind. A normal distance between friends.

Feng Tangtang was currently filled with extreme excitement at the possibility of Ruan Yesheng being able to act in the drama. How would she know that her good friend Ruan Yesheng was only a sh.e.l.l while the inside of it was the authentic Queen Xi who was hard to serve?

She was like a large and fluffy white cotton candy sprinkled with powdered sugar as she joyfully walked the entire way. She pressed the floor for the elevator to take them and finally stopped bustling when they arrived at the door.

Xi Mo knew that this was Ruan Yesheng’s room and did not go anywhere. She very naturally took out the keys and opened theand opened the door.

When she opened the door, she even specifically revealed her ident.i.ty as the ‘owner’ of this room.

Ruan Yesheng’s eyes were pretty and alluring, seductive like watching flowers in water. Xi Mo was nevertheless a very sharp person, she quickly swept her gaze through the entrance and figured out the cabinet that contained the owner’s shoes. Then she bent down to open a cabinet and take out a pair of guest slippers for Feng Tangtang to switch into.

The guest cabinet did not have many pairs of slippers, meaning that Ruan Yesheng had very few visitors that dropped by.

Feng Tangtang changed into the slippers and went in. Xi Mo opened Ruan Yesheng’s cabinet and looked in, seeing that pair of Doraemon slippers.

Xi Mo: “……”

No matter how cute her preference is, using a maiden’s heart as a coverup cannot hide the fact that the woman has a problem!

Xi Mo had a taunt face as she hesitated for moment before finally stepping on Doraemon’s giant face and walked in. Looking at Feng Tangtang ahead of her, she once again transformed herself into a hostess to ask, “Tang Tang, do you want to drink something? Let me get some for you.”

“Water’s fine. I’ll pour it myself.”

Xi Mo was very satisfied with Feng Tangtang. This saved her from firing anyone.  

Since she didn’t want to serve drinks to other people.

Xi Mo found the necessary items based on what Ruan Yesheng had told her. On the table was a doc.u.ment, it was a magazine advertis.e.m.e.nt contract Ruan Yesheng had recently signed, and she had likely looked over it before she left. Xi Mo took a look at it, it was near the scheduled time, there weren’t many days until next Monday.

Just such an unpopular makeup magazine for her to take Ruan Yesheng’s place to take it, it was simply overkill.

Xi Mo found a box and place the doc.u.ment in indifferently. Then she started to organize some of the stuff.

Feng Tangtang spoke after seeing her act like this, “Cleaning already when you just got back? You just left the hospital, rest some more. I still need to go to Sister Xi later so I don’t have time right now. I will come by in the evening to help you clean.”

“I’m not cleaning, I’m moving houses,” replied Xi Mo without looking up.

“Moving houses?” Feng Tangtang was quite surprised by this sudden decision. “Why? Isn’t this place fine?”

Xi Mo gave her a subtle glance. “Because this apartment is haunted. I’m scared.”

Feng Tangtang: “……”