"Could it be that Yueyue's name was used inside? And is it still that kind of 'big-chested but brainless' villainess side character trope?"
If that were really the case, then she wouldn't be a close friend.
She'd be a downright enemy-friend!
"Not quite." Zhaozhao shook her head. She had only skimmed a few chapters. The title and reviews all said it was a sweet romance, but...
She hesitated for a moment, her expression turning subtle. "Mom, she used your name."
Yueyue added, "And Grandpa's name too!"
The female lead, Jiang Si, a wealthy socialite from Shanghai.
The male lead, Huo Tingzhou, the crown prince of the Beijing elite circles.
Although the author had sworn up and down that there was absolutely no slanderous content about Grandma and Grandpa in the novel. On the contrary, she had written the relationship between the male and female leads exceptionally well.
The plot was sweet and incredibly wholesome.
The reasons for using those two names were, first, she thought they sounded very nice, and second, she felt they perfectly matched the personas of the leads in her story.
But after hearing this, Yueyue still felt an indescribable sense of unease.
The mother and daughter were so engrossed in their conversation that neither noticed Jiang Si's face had drastically changed color upon hearing this.
That afternoon at the beach, Jiang Si forced herself to keep up appearances, hurriedly finished the wedding photoshoot, and returned to her room.
Not long after, Huo Tingzhou followed her in.
During the photoshoot, he had already noticed his wife seemed a bit off.
But as soon as he entered the room, he found her holding her phone, staring at the screen with a dazed look in her eyes.
"Sweetheart, what's wrong?"
Jiang Si didn't speak, but the fear in her eyes was unmistakable.
How could she explain what she had just discovered?
Just moments ago, she had roughly skimmed that novel.
Bizarrely, the novel was written about her life before she transmigrated into the book. Every tiny detail matched perfectly.
This sudden discovery completely overturned all of Jiang Si's previous understanding.
She could no longer distinguish what was real and what was false in the world she inhabited.
Could it be that everything from her previous life was also just a fictional setting in some novel?
Then who was she, really?
A paper character?
Or perhaps each book was a parallel world.
Tormented by these questions, Jiang Si drifted in and out of sleep that night, startling awake from dreams several times.
Each time she woke, she would instinctively reach out to touch the man lying beside her.
Only upon confirming his real, tangible presence next to her could she feel slightly at ease.
Huo Tingzhou gently patted her back, continuously soothing and comforting her with warm words.
Although he didn't know exactly what had happened, he could sense the immense turmoil within her.
Not until dawn, when Jiang Si finally fell into a deep sleep from sheer exhaustion, did Huo Tingzhou download that app on his own phone...
Jiang Si's sleep was profoundly heavy, as if she had fallen into a bottomless abyss.
She struggled desperately but couldn't wake up no matter how hard she tried.
After what felt like an eternity, she finally broke free from the restraints and slowly opened her eyes.
"Ouch—" A sudden headache made Jiang Si instinctively press her temples.
Just then, a familiar voice reached her ears.
"Sisi, how are you? Are you feeling better?"
"Sisi?"
"Is your headache still very bad?"
The woman asked several questions in a row. Noticing her daughter remained motionless in the same position, she quickly reached out to feel her forehead.
"Good, good, no fever..."
Before she could finish, Jiang Si pulled her into a tight embrace.
Suddenly, Jiang's mother felt a patch of warmth and wetness on her cheek.
"Mom... is it really you? Is it truly you?" Jiang Si's body trembled uncontrollably as she spoke.
She even went so far as to bite her own lip hard.
A sharp pain shot through her. It hurt, it really hurt!
This was proof enough she wasn't dreaming.
But... she had clearly lived for decades in the world of the book.
She had her own family, career, lover, children... How could it be that upon opening her eyes again, it all seemed like just an elaborate dream?
Could it be that everything she experienced in the book was merely a fantasy conjured by her unconscious mind based on the novel's content while she was in a coma?
Jiang Si felt instantly disoriented.
Jiang's mother lovingly stroked her hair. "My silly Sisi, are you still muddled from sleep? If I'm not your mom, then who could I be?"
Just as she spoke, a ringtone interrupted their thoughts.
The screen displayed "Her Majesty Mother."
Jiang's mother answered the phone. "Yes, Mom. Sisi is fine, she just seems a bit dazed still. What? They've arrived in Shanghai? Okay, okay, I understand. Let me ask her first and I'll call you back."
After hanging up, Jiang's mother looked over at her daughter.
She was wrestling with how to broach the subject.
Unexpectedly, Jiang Si took the initiative. "Mom, who did Grandma say arrived in Shanghai?"
Jiang's mother chose her words carefully, trying to be as tactful as possible. "Sisi, I'll be honest with you. This person is your grandmother's childhood friend. She came with someone else this time. Your grandmother's idea is for you two to meet, to see if... well, if..."
"What's his name..." Even though she already had an answer in her heart, Jiang Si still didn't dare believe it.
Until Jiang's mother said, "His surname is Huo. His name is Huo Tingzhou."
Seeing her daughter fall into a long silence after hearing this, Jiang's mother quickly added, "If you don't want to go, just say no. I'll call your grandmother right now and tell her you're not fully recovered yet."
Jiang Si lowered her gaze. When she looked up again, her eyes were clear.
Whether it was him or not, she had to go and see for herself.
Although the meeting was scheduled for two hours later, Jiang Si arrived half an hour early.
However, someone had arrived even earlier.
The moment their eyes met, both their heartbeats quickened.
The cafe was quite crowded at this hour.
A waiter carrying a fully laden tray was carefully navigating between the tables.
Suddenly, her foot seemed to catch on something. The coffee cups on the tray wobbled violently.
The scalding coffee was on the verge of spilling, heading straight for Jiang Si who was passing by.
Almost simultaneously, the tall, straight figure who had been sitting by the window rose with remarkable speed.
In a swift stride forward, he agilely pulled Jiang Si to his side.
"Careful—"
As soon as the words left his mouth, both of them froze.
Jiang Si looked up sharply at the man now so close.
He was also looking down at her, his eyes holding a complexity she couldn't decipher.
A moment later, the man loosened his grip on her arm.
He took half a step back, restoring a proper social distance, but his gaze remained tightly fixed on her, as if afraid she might vanish the next second.
"I'm so sorry, so sorry." The manager hurried over to apologize.
Jiang Si replied calmly, "It's alright."
As the surrounding noise seemed to fade into the background,
the man extended his hand. "Hello, I'm Huo Tingzhou."
Looking at the hand he offered, Jiang Si felt as if her heart had been struck hard by something, aching and swelling.
She slowly raised her hand and gently placed it in his palm.
Feeling that familiar, reassuring warmth, she was almost moved to tears.
She took a deep breath. "Hello, I'm Jiang Si."
Pausing, she looked into his eyes.
Jiang Si asked, "Were you... waiting for me?"
Huo Tingzhou didn't hesitate for a second. He tightened his grip on her hand, his gaze firm and tender.
"Yes, I've been waiting for you!"
— The End —
