Breakfast was laid out when she came downstairs.
Congee, steamed buns, sliced fruit. The maid bowed politely.
"Madam, please eat while it's hot."
Yunyin sat down, her eyes glancing briefly at the spread.
"I'll eat later.." she said. Her tone was soft but firm.
The maid hesitated, then bowed again.
Yunyin opened her phone, skimming through headlines. Her face was on every screen.
New upcoming model, Su Wan. Set to take on Superstar Yun path after her retirement.
Yunyin's expression darkened, why did they make it sound like they knew each other?
She placed her phone down and took a bite from the fruit.
Duu!
Duu!
She looked at the cover screen, it was a message from Shen Rui.
[Hey Yunyun. You've got a meeting with the company at 11, it seems they wanna place you into commercial modelling. Having you model for brands like Rogue or Montra. And in turn promote Su Wan more.. for high fashion..]
Yunyin sighed, they've been promoting a lot of models this recent year. She guessed having only her wasn't enough for them.
[Got it. We'll meet at Areum]
Areum was Yunyin's brand, she had started 3 years ago and today, it's the country's top 10.
Outside, Zhou Ming stood waiting. The morning sun caught on his sharp jaw, but his eyes stayed steady, always scanning for any abnormality.
He opened the car door at once. "Madam."
Yunyin slipped in, her bag on her lap. Zhou Ming shut the door, circled to the front, and got into the driver's seat.
The engine started, smooth, moving out of the mansion.
She leaned against the seat, sliding on her sunglasses.
Her phone buzzed again.
Another message from Shen Rui.
[Don't go in with your claws out. The board is restless. They want Su Wan to grow, but they still need you to hold the spotlight. Be smart.]
Her lips curved. Playing smart was easy.
[Smart is my middle name.]
She tucked the phone away after sending the message.
Zhou Ming glanced at her through the mirror. "Meeting?"
"Mm."
His voice was low, steady. "Do you want me inside?"
Yunyin's gaze stayed on the glass, the city rushing past. "Wait by the car. But stay close. You know how they are."
Zhou Ming nodded once. "Understood."
Silence settled. Only the hum of the road filled the air.
Yunyin's hand moved to her stomach. A fleeting touch. Then she pulled it back.
Shen Rui was already waiting when the black car pulled up before Areum.
The morning sun spilled across the glass building, its silver letters gleaming with quiet pride—her pride.
Zhou Ming stepped forward first, opening the car door.
Yunyin stepped out, her heels clicking against the pavement.
Shen Rui straightened at once, his tablet pressed to his chest.
"Yunyun."
She adjusted her sunglasses, her voice calm. "Let's go."
Inside the car, silence lingered until Shen Rui finally spoke.
"I want you to accept their arrangements for now." His words were careful, measured. "They're pushing Su Wan forward. So let them do that, let them see the magnanimous side of the great superstar Yun.."
-_-
Yunyin sent him a smiled, before he told her to give up on fighting for her place as a top model then he definitely had a better goal for her in mind.
"There's no way Su Wan will be able to catch up to you in the next three years or become Asia's legendary model in that time frame. After all it took you 8 years to steal that rank from your mentor.." he smiled and turned to his tablet. "While she's focusing on becoming a top model, you'll focus on becoming a top actress. You've achieved everything you need as a model, global and local recognition, your own brand, you've made your mark so now it's time to touch a different part of the industry.."
He passed the tablet to her, pointing to the screen.
"This is director Jiang's new movie, I managed to get the script from a friend. It seems he had you in mind when designing the female lead. Even her physical appearance, it's all you down to the bone.."
Yunyin read the details down to the last bit, Shen Rui was right, the director certainly had her in mind. The sketches for the female lead down to hair color it was all her.
She passed the tablet back to him, not saying a word for a second before sighing.
"The storyline seems to be angsty, two lovers destined not to ever be together, no matter how hard they tried, the universe just doesn't want to let them have that happiness. Their love is so nice it hurts when they're in trouble, she lost everything she had and couldn't even crawl back up, finally she ends up dead in some cold alley. Isn't that too much?"
Shen Rui nodded, he guessed director Jiang's goal, if acted well was to make the audience resonate with the female lead, he wanted to them to cry and feel that heartache.
"Some times people just need to watch a movie and cry. Not everything has to be comedy, some people have doomed love, they know they'll never be with that person no matter how hard they try. This is director Jiang's way of sending a message...I think. Either that or he just wants people to cry.."
Yunyin's mind flickered back to the scene that caught her eyes in the script.
She didn't know how director Jiang had thought of it. But it made her heartache.
"I wanted to stay. God knows I did.
But every step closer to you, I lost another piece of myself.
Now there's nothing left. Not a dream, not a future, not even the strength to hold your hand."
"We tried. We clawed at the edges of fate like fools, thinking if we just loved harder, the world would bend.
It didn't. It broke us instead."
"Can't you see?
The more you love me, the faster you fall.
You're burning out right in front of me. And if I stay, you'll burn to ash.
So I'm leaving… not because I don't love you.
But because loving you is killing us both."