Xu Yizhi stared at the busy signal on his phone, momentarily stunned. His face was cold as frost, looking grim to the extreme.
Soon, he made a call to his assistant.
"Song, cancel Fang Tong’s black card."
"Understood." Song Hezhe never questioned his boss, though he did offer a reminder: "President Xu, the Madam hasn’t used that black card in over a year."
She hadn’t used it, so even if he canceled it, she wouldn’t notice.
Xu Yizhi hadn’t realized this himself, and upon hearing the news, he felt an unexpected sense of relief. Still, he replied stiffly, "Yes, cancel it."
Fang Tong set her phone to silent and tossed it aside. She lay on the bed, wanting to rest, but her anger lingered. She had truly had enough of Sun Qing’s schemes.
The first time she had truly realized it was when Xu Yizhi told her he wanted to introduce her to the most important person in his life. She had waited until ten at night, but he never showed up. When she finally got through to him on the phone, the voice on the other end was a drunk Sun Qing’s, saying that Xu Yizhi was cooking porridge.
That night, Xu Yizhi didn’t come home. When she tearfully asked to leave the next day, Xu Yizhi blamed her for being dramatic, saying that if he and Sun Qing had anything going on, it would have happened long ago—it wouldn’t have been her turn.
Later, when Fang Huahua dragged her out shopping, they happened to run into Sun Qing. Sun Qing and her friends mocked Fang Tong endlessly. She was used to that; at home, it wasn’t just Sun Qing, Li Jintang was the same. It seemed that her marrying Xu Yizhi was some kind of affront to heaven and earth.
Fang Huahua, feeling indignant on her behalf, walked up and slapped Sun Qing. That had poked a hornet’s nest. Xu Yizhi warned her and even warned Fang Huahua, claiming Sun Qing was his sister and he would not allow anyone to hurt her. Of course, Fang Huahua hadn't stood up for her out of loyalty; once she realized how much Xu Yizhi valued Sun Qing, Fang Huahua changed her tune faster than anyone.
"Shameless!" Fang Tong sat up abruptly, unable to suppress the fire in her heart. She let out a shout, "Sun Qing deserves a slap, but Xu Yizhi deserves two! One is a scheming bitch, the other is blind and heartless—how could I have ever fallen for such a man!"
With no one home, Fang Tong cursed and cried like a madwoman until she eventually drifted off to sleep.
When she woke the next morning, Fang Xu and the others had returned. Auntie Chen had made breakfast, but no one called Fang Tong, nor was there a portion set aside for her.
Auntie Chen feigned surprise. "Oh, Xiao Tong is back? I didn't know. You went out yesterday, so I assumed you’d gone back to the Xu family. That's why I didn't make your breakfast."
Fang Tong gave a cold laugh, walked to the table, and sat down. "Then go make some."
Auntie Chen’s face twitched as she looked toward Qiao Shu.
Qiao Shu rolled her eyes in annoyance. "Why make such a fuss? Can't you just go eat out?"
Fang Tong picked up a fruit knife from the table and slammed it down. "Mom, you look down on me so much that you roll your eyes every time you see me. Do you want me to dig them out for you?"
Qiao Shu was furious, but remembering her son’s wretched state the day before, she felt that Fang Tong might truly have lost her mind. If she provoked this lunatic, who knew what terrible things she might do?
After a moment of thought, Qiao Shu held back her temper and told Auntie Chen, "Go make another portion."
Auntie Chen couldn't understand why the atmosphere in the house had changed so much overnight. She had been with the Fang family for over a decade and knew Fang Tong, the daughter who had joined the family later, quite well. In the beginning, she had been somewhat polite, but she soon realized there was no need to be polite with Fang Tong at all. She would even dodge chores by claiming she was too busy, ordering Fang Tong to do them instead, and Fang Tong would obediently comply. It was only after Fang Tong married and visited less often that Auntie Chen had been unable to slack off.
"Xiao Tong didn't say anything beforehand, I didn't prepare enough..." Auntie Chen muttered discontentedly.
Fang Tong couldn't be bothered with these people. She had accepted reality: no matter what she did, her parents wouldn't give her an ounce of love. She wouldn't waste her effort on thankless tasks ever again. She simply headed out to shop.
Since her marriage, Fang Tong rarely went shopping. The few times she did, it was because Fang Huahua insisted on dragging her along. It wasn't really shopping; it was just Fang Huahua talking incessantly about her husband, acting as if she were showing off her happy marriage and needed an audience.
Wearing a baseball cap, Fang Tong wandered through the mall without anything specific in mind. She pondered that if she wanted to leave the Fang family, she had to find a job to support herself.
Lost in thought, she didn't notice two young girls laughing and playing in front of her. One of them bumped straight into her. Fang Tong reached out to steady her, narrowly preventing a fall.
"I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry."
The girl realized she had bumped into someone and apologized, but when she looked up, she was surprised. "Wait... are you Fang Tong?"
"I'm a fan of yours!"
Fang Tong hadn't expected to be recognized after three years out of the limelight, let alone by a fan. The young girl pulled a beautiful notebook from her bag and held it out. "Can you give me an autograph?"
Fang Tong felt a twinge of guilt. Was someone like her still worthy of fans?
The girl smiled brightly. "I've followed you since you debuted. I don't believe those rumors online. You must have loved your husband so much to give up your career for him, right?"
Fang Tong smiled. Regardless of the truth, she was happy that at least one fan was willing to believe in her character. She took the pen and signed.
The girl asked again, "But, are you really not coming back to act in movies? I think your acting is amazing. If you kept at it, you would definitely be incredible."
A comeback? Could she?
Just then, another girl called out, "Hurry up, the event is starting."
The girl explained to Fang Tong, "Sister Fang Tong, I really like you. If you make a comeback, I’ll definitely support you! I have to go now, there’s a promotional event for L Skincare today, and Xiao Yinwan is appearing. My friend is a fan of hers, and we're almost out of time. Goodbye, Sister Fang Tong!"
The two girls quickly disappeared into the crowd.
Fang Tong found a milk tea shop and sat down, dazed. From seventeen to nineteen, she had been full of ambition, the beloved protege of the famous director Song Yi'an, signed to the company of the renowned screenwriter Lu Feier. But at the peak of her popularity, she had abandoned the two mentors who had discovered her to marry into wealth, leaving them and her fans utterly disappointed.
Now, three years later, she wanted to turn back.
Was it still possible?
Thinking of the young girl's encouragement, Fang Tong lifted her head sharply. What did she have left to lose? So she was being slandered by the entire internet—she had already been through it once, what was there left to fear?
Fang Tong took out her phone and sent a message to Xiao Yinwan. Xiao Yinwan was the only friend Fang Tong still had in the entertainment industry; they would occasionally exchange well-wishes and had even met for dinner twice.