Chapter 18: Your Lack of Ambition Astonishes Me

When Qin Hongfei found Qin Fei, Qin Fei's condition was even worse than she had imagined. Her hair was a tangled mess, one side of her face was swollen and red, her eyes were puffy, and she was clearly on the verge of a breakdown.

"Feifei..."

"It's me," Qin Hongfei replied, reaching out to touch her forehead. As expected, "You have a fever."

Whether it was Qin Hongfei’s warm hand or the concern in her eyes that stirred something within her, Qin Fei’s emotions instantly collapsed. She clung to her and burst into loud, uncontrollable sobs. The crying lasted for over half an hour. Only when she finally calmed down did she remember the situation at home and hurriedly asked, "Is Mother very worried?"

Qin Hongfei said, "Grandma heard that Wanwan almost got beaten up because of our family's debt. Auntie is furious, Mom had a big argument with them and is very worried about you... What exactly happened? Was it really loan sharks who beat you?" Something didn’t add up.

Loan sharks weren’t fools. Their goal was money.

Beating Qin Fei wouldn’t get them any cash; it would only make it harder for her to earn.

Qin Fei touched her face, her voice tinged with frustration. "It was my own stupidity. I was competing for a bit part with someone I knew from Wanwan’s circle. The role had good exposure and prospects. I got it, she didn’t..."

"Then I got excited and went to show off."

Qin Hongfei understood. "And she set you up?"

Qin Fei nodded, both annoyed and resentful. "It was just bad luck. The loan sharks happened to come by, and one of them was dating that wretch. So they brought people to beat me up. I tried to hide, but then they went after Wanwan. I was afraid she’d get dragged into it, so I had to step in."

Qin Hongfei said, "Grandma’s version is quite different."

Qin Fei looked up in confusion.

Qin Hongfei continued, "Auntie says our family deliberately caused trouble, and the loan sharks came after Wanwan because of us. She almost got beaten up because of it."

Qin Fei was so anxious she nearly jumped up. "Nonsense! I may be bad at school, but I’m not a bad person. This debt is our family’s. Why would I purposely get Wanwan into trouble with those thugs?... Forget it, there’s no point arguing. My future’s ruined now. After all this, I’ve lost the role, and I doubt I’ll get another one anytime soon."

Seeing how disappointed she was, Qin Hongfei couldn’t help but ask, "So Wanwan lied? What kind of role was it, anyway?" If it caused so much drama, it must have been a good one.

Qin Fei brightened a little. "A maid beside the female lead, with quite a few important scenes! If you act well, it’s easy for the audience to remember you."

Qin Hongfei asked curiously, "Does it require a lot of acting skills?"

If there aren’t many scenes but you want to leave an impression, it must really test your abilities.

Qin Fei stared at her blankly. "I’m not professionally trained—what acting skills do I have! It’s all about looks."

"The maid is supposed to seduce the male lead, and there are scenes in bed with him."

"That kind of role that makes people hate you is the easiest way for the audience to remember your face, especially since mine is pretty. Too bad I lost it. What’s with that look?"

"Nothing," Qin Hongfei replied, taking a deep breath and keeping her face expressionless. "I’m just shocked by how low your aspirations are."

She thought, at the very least, it would be a maid who dies protecting her mistress.

Or someone who sacrifices herself for the country!

But it turned out to be nothing more than a maid flirting with the male lead.