Showbiz Scandal: The Official Announcement of My Ex and Myself-Chapter 221: He Ci Discovers Clues

To Yu Xia, whether or not Xie Qingci would immediately call to explain didn’t really matter — the rumor was false anyway.

The previous sentence is false.

If Xie Qingci doesn’t dare call today, he’ll be in big trouble.

Just as she thought this, the next second, Xie Qingci called.

His breathing was quick, and after answering, he exhaled heavily and began explaining first:

"The gossip is false. I don’t know that person; we just happened to end up going the same way for a few minutes."

Since she was still in the car, Yu Xia couldn’t say anything too private, so she said: "I know."

Xie Qingci was silent for two seconds, then asked her: "Are you upset?"

"Not at all."

"But you sound so indifferent," he lowered his voice, sounding quite aggrieved, "Maybe I shouldn’t have gone the same way as that person?"

"..." What nonsense is he talking? She thought that after making up, he’s gotten even better at playing the victim.

She really did have a bit of a soft spot for this.

She tried to smooth over her tone: "Really, I’m not upset. Have you had lunch yet? Is work busy?"

Xie Qingci: "Busy, haven’t eaten yet, but the assistant should have brought it over."

"Then hurry up and eat!"

Xie Qingci sighed: "I’m afraid you’ll be upset, can’t eat."

Yu Xia was speechless, faked a laugh, and said deliberately: "I’m really not upset, go eat now."

"Actually, I’m feeling a bit unwell, the wind here is so strong, makes it difficult for me to eat."

...For god’s sake, what’s he pretending to be now, a delicate blossom?

Yu Xia closed her eyes for a moment, asked gently: "Then what do you want?"

"I want to keep hearing your voice while I eat."

"Wishful thinking!" She rejected him coldly.

Really thinks being gentle means he can get whatever he wants, this shameless little brother. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

There was silence on the other end, she could hear the assistant urging him to eat, along with other people talking loudly, he was just breathing lightly.

After a while, he spoke softly: "Okay, no then. I miss you so much, the photos you post on Weibo are always only half a face, can’t you..."

"You better know your limit, Xie Qingci." She got embarrassed talking about this.

Clearly refused his request, knowing sending him photos like that was embarrassing, yet she turned around and kept posting selfies on Weibo, what’s the difference from agreeing with him?

She simply despised her own lack of principle.

He Ci asked her recently why she’s posting on Weibo every day, she almost couldn’t answer.

After a soft warning, Xie Qingci was silent again.

The sound of his breathing wasn’t as rushed as before, she imagined him with lowered eyes, holding his breath, not daring to refute — looking pitiful.

According to his own descriptions, when he was sick on the set, supposedly it was so pitiable people couldn’t help but feel sorry, probably the same now.

Then she propped her elbow on her knee, covered her eyes with her hand, and squeezed out a word: "Alright."

Xie Qingci: "You’re so good, sis. I’ve put on headphones, now you need to find a topic and keep talking to me."

"..." He was just waiting for her to fall into this!

A phone call from home still hadn’t ended, and He Ci’s face looked like it belonged to a floor that hadn’t been swept in twenty years — so stained.

"Talking about national affairs for half an hour, by year-end the phone operators should thank you all for your contributions!"

Yu Xia felt a bit embarrassed, quickened her pace to avoid them, then said to the other side: "Are you finished eating? I need to hang up."

Xie Qingci didn’t say anything, she heard Wei Yaoyao’s voice, seemed to be adding some dishes for him, and asked him why he wasn’t done eating yet.

She also said: "Did you hardly eat just now? You can’t just rely on dieting for weight loss and shaping, with a busy schedule and tiring activities, you definitely need to eat some staple food..."

Nattering on, those old sayings were advice her brother and sister-in-law had given her, now she was using it to lecture Xie Qingci — she really sounded like a good sister.

Accompanied him from a distance while he finished eating, hours went by, and Yu Xia’s mouth was dry from speaking.

Just as she was about to drink some water, a cup was handed over to her.

He Ci faked a laugh: "Here, have some water. Have you talked out half the body’s eighty-nine percent hydration? Even ancient Egyptians making mummies weren’t as dehydrated as you."

"..." Such a good comeback, she couldn’t find words.

She took two sips of water, then laughed awkwardly: "Just started dating, right? In the honeymoon phase, feelings are naturally stronger, and today a rumor came out, he was worried I’d misunderstand so he was just eager to explain and express his ardor."

"Is that so? But how come I only heard you comforting him? Was he so afraid of you being upset over a rumor with another person that he was knocked flat? So you captured his obedience with your hands, just like someone who battles the world with their hands?"

"I... forget it, I can’t counter such sarcastic words. He, you better get used to it, he really is a bit clingy."

He Ci: "..."

Mei wanted to laugh but held back, just continued tidying up.

After tidying up, she grabbed two extra keys from the hallway cabinet, suddenly noticing a red tiger plush she hadn’t seen before.

"Sis, is this stuffed toy you bought? It’s so cute."

Yu Xia glanced over: "No, Xie Qingci brought it."

"Oh." She didn’t think much of it, just about to put it down when He Ci suddenly shouted.

"Wait a minute!"

Startled, Mei flinched, the plush fell, bounced onto the couch.

He Ci snatched it up, squinted and examined it closely.

Yu Xia was startled by his discovery-like expression: "What’s, what’s wrong?"

"This toy is from the Spring Festival Gala, right? I have a relative whose son kept talking about how nice this thing looked."

Then the topic shifted: "On the second day of the Lunar New Year when I came to pick you up to the set, I saw it sitting right here, didn’t pay attention back then."

This was a gift from Xie Qingci, placed here on the second day of Lunar New Year, yet she and Xie Qingci only got together recently.

So tell me, how did this stuffed toy find its way into her home when their relationship was just so-so?

Yu Xia wasn’t someone who accepted gifts from men indiscriminately and displayed them at home.

A hole appeared, making many clues traceable.

He Ci squinted again, raised another point: "Previously on the set, twice when I called you at night, it showed you were on call, who were you talking to for so long in the middle of the night? It almost resembled your conversation just with Xie Qingci."

"Also, it’s like post-Spring Festival when you seemed to cold-shoulder Xie Qingci. Previously you had a decent relationship, but then acted as if you couldn’t see him; I even wondered why he seemed like someone mourning unfulfilled secret love, thought he was overly immersed in the role."

Yu Xia and Mei were both shocked, amazed that he could connect past events and discover the truth just from a stuffed toy.

Mei felt a bit flustered, while Yu Xia drank water tearfully, then put down the cup and sighed deeply.

"Didn’t expect this secret to be uncovered by the astute and handsome He."

He Ci: "..."

Mei: "..."

Even now, she doesn’t forget to flatter him, such spirit is truly worth learning from.