A Star Reborn: The Queen’s Return

The black and white photo was incredibly eye-catching.

On a wall where every photo was brilliant and glamorous, it was still the first one to be spotted. In the photo was the Diva Xia Ling with her clear and soulful eyes that made her a splendid beauty. Even as she looked at her past self today, she could barely believe that one’s eyes could ever have such a deep and moving expression.

“She’s very beautiful.” Chu Chen stood before the wall right beside her and looked at the same photo.

It was an out-of-body experience to look at her past self this way. Xia Ling had no words.

There was some longing in Chu Chen’s voice. “You know, she was practically God’s favorite. Not only was she an amazing singer, but she was also beautiful as well. And look at those eyes… You really have to see it to believe it, to realize that somebody really could have eyes that were so clear and bright. She lived a wonderful life, almost as if it were a fantasy, where she never knew of hurt or pain.”

“No, she was not God’s favorite.” Xia Ling quietly said.

Those eyes were too clear, how could they be natural? She had lived for more than 20 years, how could it be that she never knew hurt? It was only in Pei Ziheng’s pristine crystal cage could a canary — no, a puppet, or rather, a butterfly — be protected from all of man’s pain.

But the crystal cage had shattered.

The butterfly wanted freedom.

She stroked the black and white photo gently as she let herself be moved by the brightness of those eyes. What a pity it was that all of it remained only in the past. “In future, there will never be such eyes anymore.”

Bit by bit, she covered the photo completely.

“In this world, there will never be another Diva Xia Ling.”

Chu Chen did not speak. This “Ye Xingling” standing before him had some semblance of Xia Ling, but in some aspects, not quite — she was not carefree like the Diva Xia Ling. On the contrary, she always looked alert and guarded. She seemed almost like a hurt animal, small in size and defenseless against assaults, yet refusing to give in.

Comparing the two of them, the Diva Xia Ling led a better and happier life.

They stood before the photo wall for a while, immersed in their thoughts.

Out of nowhere, she heard an excited voice. “Xiao Ling, Xiao Ling!” Turning to the source of the sound, she saw a short-haired figure throwing herself at her.

“Xiao Ling, is it really you?” Luo Luo’s face was full of delight. “What are you doing here? What exactly happened to you? I heard that you faced some sort of trouble. I was so worried! Are you alright?”

Her questions came like bullets from a machine gun.

Only now did Xia Ling realize that she had not met Luo Luo since the paragliding incident. Hence, she explained. “I was injured while filming, and Pei Ziheng rescued me. Since then, I’ve been recuperating over at his place. But I’m fine now.”

“Recuperating at Boss Pei’s place?” Luo Luo widened her eyes. “Oh my, so the rumors were true… Some people were saying that they saw a mysterious girl getting off Boss’ Rolls-Royce with Mr. Chu today, are you saying you’re that mysterious girl?! Oh my, oh my, you’ve been living at his place the whole time?”

Her widened eyes darted between Xia Ling and Chu Chen.

She was too loud, and a few other customers in the cafeteria were turning their heads. Xia Ling hurriedly put a hand to her mouth and pulled her to a corner. “Not so loud!” Xia Ling was anxious now. “Don’t go around telling people that I got off that car!” She knew that Pei Ziheng had some agenda for making her ride in that car, and true enough, the rumors had begun to spread.

“Oh my, so that mysterious girl really is—” Luo Luo looked around and lowered her voice instantly. “Xiao Ling, what exactly is going on? I’m so lost! You’ve been unreachable this whole time, and when I went to look for you at Lin Yunan’s, he told me that you’ve already terminated your contract with Dong Yue. If it weren’t for the news reporting your hospitalization and the few notes you left me when you moved away, I’d really have thought that you vanished!”

“I’ve signed a contract with Imperial Entertainment.” Xia Ling said succinctly.

Luo Luo was shocked again. “Wh-What?! You actually signed a contract here with us? When was that?”

“Just a few days back.” Xia Ling sighed, knowing that she had to satisfy her curiosity before she probed further. “I was saved by Pei Ziheng during the paragliding incident, and he had been very nice and caring towards me while I was recuperating. Eventually, I got moved by his actions and accepted his invitation to join Imperial.”

There was no loophole in this reason.

And hence, Luo Luo completely believed it and nodded her head. “Oh right, he used to come all the way up to our unit to invite you.” She broke into a wide grin. “That’s good, Xiao Ling, now we’re both part of Imperial Entertainment. We can be together!”

Wait a minute, what was it about being together?

Xia Ling was confused, this child simply had no reservations when she spoke. Even so, Xia Ling’s spirits were lifted as she looked at Luo Luo’s joyful demeanor.

“Oh right, this really is such a coincidence, I didn’t expect you’d come here.” Since Xia Ling was not in a rush to leave, she decided to stay and have a conversation with Luo Luo.

Luo Luo skipped on the spot for a bit. With her hair bouncing, she looked just like an active child. “I’m waiting for my turn to enter the recording studio. I’d made a reservation to record a new song, but Sister Yingchen said she needed to record one urgently, so she took some of my time. They were supposed to be done by 10, but maybe there were some hiccups since they’re not out yet.”

Sister Yingchen? Li Yingchen?

Xia Ling knew her — the No.1 female singer of Imperial Entertainment. She had the potential to be a Diva, and her popularity did not pale much in comparison to hers back in the days. If she needed to use the studio, Luo Luo had no choice but to give in.

Xia Ling looked at the clock on the wall — it was already 11.

She thought of getting Chu Chen to hurry them a little but decided against it. Instead, she asked, “Luo Luo, are you hungry? I’ll take you to lunch and then get a recording studio for you in the afternoon.”

“Now that you mention it, I actually am a little hungry.” Luo Luo tilted her head. “But it’s alright. Xiao Ling, thank you for your kind offer, but I guess I’ll stay here and wait. Sister Yingchen could be done anytime now. Xiao Ling, you may not know this since you’ve just joined Imperial, but the recording studios here are of really high demand. It’s practically impossible to get one at the last minute.”

Was it really? She was slightly surprised and turned to look at Chu Chen.

“It’s true, it’s not easy to get a slot.” Chu Chen said slowly but then added, “But, it depends on who it is for. If you wish to use one, I can just make arrangements for you.”