My Queen, My Rules - Chapter 69

Chapter 69

In truth, regarding the book publication, Li Wenyin had been planning it simultaneously with the film production. It was indeed true, as she had claimed on Weibo, that she had put a lot of effort into the book’s launch. However, book publishing offered limited profits, so she hadn't put in the same all-out effort to build up hype as she had for the film.

The last time she had met Cen Sen and Ji Mingshu was at the "Zero Degree" appreciation salon. After that event, Ji Mingshu’s circle of friends had spared no effort in splashing mud on her reputation everywhere, claiming she was trying to wedge herself into someone else’s marriage and was shameless enough to film a movie just to irritate them. To them, she was the ultimate, top-tier "green tea" ex-girlfriend—the kind of person who brought misfortune to anyone who crossed her path.

These remarks had, to a greater or lesser extent, caused her some negative repercussions. However, she wasn't in the same social circle as Ji Mingshu to begin with, so the impact remained limited. Besides, rolling around in the vanity fair of these times, who among them was truly clean and beyond reproach?

She didn't care much about those remarks; what she cared about was that Cen Sen had taken action for Ji Mingshu, and she cared that Ji Mingshu had managed to get everything she wanted in life and in love without having to do a single thing.

Most of the time, she lived her life with a clear head. She knew that everything she possessed today had not been easy to come by, and that she should weigh things carefully before acting. There were even people around her who warned her of this... but whenever it came to matters involving Ji Mingshu and Cen Sen, she just couldn't seem to help herself.

Returning home in the evening, the house was ablaze with light. Li Wenyin’s mother, Feng Shuxiu, was on the balcony trimming flower branches.

Over the years, Feng Shuxiu had lived in luxury. With time on her hands, she had learned to tend to flowers and plants just like the noblewomen in the city; her refinement and temperament were no longer comparable to the widow of a driver and a maid for the Ji family that she had once been.

"Mom, I'm home."

Li Wenyin greeted her absentmindedly while changing her shoes and looking at her phone.

For the sake of the book and the film, she hadn't even had a moment of rest during the New Year. On the way back, she had still been discussing gift issues for different sales channels during the pre-order period with her editor.

Feng Shuxiu didn't turn around or respond, but as if she had eyes in the back of her head, she suddenly called out the moment Li Wenyin was about to head to her own room: "Stop."

Li Wenyin paused slightly, looked up at the balcony, and then turned back to walk toward the living room.

The two sat opposite each other in the living room. Li Wenyin asked, "Mom, what's wrong?"

"You tell me." Feng Shuxiu’s expression was very faint, her voice calm.

Li Wenyin fell silent.

Seeing that she understood but refused to speak, Feng Shuxiu asked again, "I told you not to film the movie, and you didn't listen. Now, you’ve gone and tossed out this book without a word. Do you have to offend the Ji and Cen families completely before you’re satisfied?"

Li Wenyin lowered her eyes casually, her explanation equally indifferent. "Mom, you’re taking this too seriously. Ji Mingshu and I will never get along in this lifetime. Whether I offend her or not, she’s never going to give me a pleasant look."

"Besides, I’m publishing this book and filming the movie just to make money, to expand my fame, and to move into a higher position. It’s neither illegal nor a crime; what can they do to me? This is a society ruled by law, and I’m not made of dough—I won't let them knead and flatten me however they please."

"Still talking back! You think this money is easy to earn?" Feng Shuxiu stared at her for a few seconds before giving a stern warning: "I’ve told you so many times—only take on what you have the capacity to handle. Do not covet things that do not belong to you!"

Hearing this, Li Wenyin curled her lips. Her previously downcast eyes lifted, locking onto Feng Shuxiu’s suddenly sharp gaze without blinking.

"Mom, didn't you turn down your pension, insist on clinging to the Ji family as a maid, and harbor delusions of climbing the social ladder just so you could marry into the Zou family? I’m just learning from you." Li Wenyin was dripping with sarcasm.

"Learning from me? How much have you actually learned?" Feng Shuxiu was not provoked to anger by her mockery. She first countered with a question, then took a deep breath and laid out the facts and examples for her, her voice even calmer than it had been when she was scolding her earlier. "The Zou family was the best choice within my capabilities, just as your best choice is the Yuan family. You cannot climb the Cen family; do not think about it, and do not act against the Ji family."

Li Wenyin stared at Feng Shuxiu and sneered, as if she had heard a particularly funny joke, the laughter continuing for several bursts.

Come to think of it, Li Wenyin truly found it laughable. For years, people outside had gossiped, saying how cunning and capable her mother was—a driver’s widow dragging a "burden" (herself) along, who had managed to fly from being a maid in the Ji family to marrying into the Zou family and becoming a lady of the house.

In the social circles of the Imperial Capital, the Zou family projected an image of "noble poverty"—it sounded nice to call them "nobly poor," but in reality, they were just poor and pretentious.

Especially the head of the household, that un-dying old hag, Old Madam Zou, who was the most pretentious of them all. She despised Feng Shuxiu—the maid with the "burden" in tow—to the ten-thousandth degree. If it hadn't been for Li Wenyin’s stepfather threatening death in a dramatic outburst, the marriage would never have happened.

Although they eventually married, for all these years, Feng Shuxiu and Li Wenyin had lived like ancient concubines in this small villa on the Fourth Ring Road, never allowed back to the main residence for the New Year’s Eve dinner because that whole family found them an eyesore.

Yet despite such treatment, Feng Shuxiu was neither angry nor resentful. Toward her husband, she was gentle and compliant, always appearing content, her face written with: "Marrying you has been the greatest stroke of luck in my life."

What Li Wenyin couldn't stand most was this attitude of her mother’s, and she hated even more that her short-sighted mother kept trying to stop her from climbing higher—and higher still.

Other than her background, in what way was she, Li Wenyin, inferior to Ji Mingshu? Why, from the very first day they moved into the Ji residence, did Feng Shuxiu have to brainwash her into believing their statuses were different, and that she would never possess everything Ji Mingshu had?

She was sick of it.

She was truly sick of it!

Li Wenyin suddenly grabbed her bag and stood up, walking toward the door without a word.

Feng Shuxiu called out from behind her once more, "Stop!"

Li Wenyin kept the posture of opening the door and didn't move; she didn't look back either.

"Xiaoyin, this is my last time advising you. Speaking objectively, over these years, Mom has managed to secure quite a lot for you within my power: a good reputation, a good education, a house in a good location, and a good partner like the one from the Yuan family. But if you do not cherish these things yourself and insist on holding onto that bit of pride to go against Ji Mingshu, then when you fall, I will absolutely not reach out to help you again."

Li Wenyin curled her lip in sarcasm.

This was her mother: when she had no money, she was a crude egoist; when she had money, she was a refined egoist.

She was so afraid that her offending the Cen and Ji families would affect her quality of life as Mrs. Zou that she was rushing to distance herself from her only biological daughter.

Having heard enough, Li Wenyin chose to leave without looking back, slamming the door with a thunderous bang.

Feng Shuxiu leaned back on the sofa and closed her eyes. She truly could not understand how she, who had lived her life clearly, soberly, and cautiously, could have raised a daughter as sensitive, competitive, and arrogant as Li Wenyin.

In truth, having high aspirations wasn't a bad thing, but when one’s ability couldn't match their aspirations, disaster would strike sooner or later.

Feng Shuxiu’s prophecy of Li Wenyin’s heavy fall was soon realized.

There was no other reason; Ji Mingshu was determined to implement her policy of "As long as this book is wobbling in front of me, you won't get a pleasant look for even a day," practicing a "three-noes" cold violence toward Cen Sen: no speaking, no eye contact, and no sharing a bed.

Since she was ignoring Cen Sen, Ji Mingshu had no choice but to tend to her "plastic" and "non-plastic" sister-friends.

Gu Kaiyang: [???]

Gu Kaiyang: [Isn't your husband pretty innocent in this, too? Don't overdo the act.]

When Ji Mingshu brought this up in the group chat, Gu Kaiyang didn't really agree with her.

But Jiang Chun unexpectedly stood on the same side as Ji Mingshu for once.

Jiang Chun: [???]

Jiang Chun: [No, no, no!]

Jiang Chun: [Editor Gu, it’s time for you to actually date someone seriously—no, wait, have you ever dated before...? Think about it yourself. You’re always incredibly "sensible," doing laundry, cooking, and mopping the floor the moment you get home, and when you see lipstick marks on your boyfriend’s clothes, you unify with the outside world and think it’s just some little bitch framing him. Look at how many days that lasts? Men don't love women who aren't "naughty," and women don't love men who aren't "naughty"—kick them all to death!!!]

Ji Mingshu: [I hereby declare the above statement to be the crowning moment of "goose talk"!]

Gu Kaiyang: [……?]

Gu Kaiyang: [I don't believe your nonsense :)]

But the strange thing was, Cen Sen seemed to be the type of man described by that "goose talk"—the kind who didn't love women who weren't "naughty."

The moment Ji Mingshu got angry, he started working to resolve the issue of that book Li Wenyin had published without a word.

This was simple to resolve. With the New Year holiday, Li Wenyin’s book was still in the pre-order stage and hadn't been truly released. If it had already hit the shelves, recalling it because of some minor issue would indeed be troublesome.

On the fifth day of the New Year, Li Wenyin’s book, which had been on pre-order for less than a week, was suddenly pulled from all platforms.

The reason given by the editors was: authorities had performed a random audit of the manuscript and found that the book contained quite a bit of content strictly prohibited for publication, such as puppy love among high school students.

Speaking of which, this content existed precisely because the publisher she had found had deep connections. To boost sales, they had turned a blind eye to some of the edge-case, prohibited content, which was why she had successfully obtained a book registration number and CIP.

If someone really wanted to audit her book, it wouldn't stand up to scrutiny at all.

The news was so sudden that when Li Wenyin received a massive influx of questions from fans, her subconscious reaction was to shift the blame to the publisher.

The publisher indeed had selfish motives regarding content censorship and had an undeniable responsibility, but they had treated Li Wenyin’s book as the most important of priorities.

First, they had set the initial print run very high, and coupled with good pre-order results, they had paid extra to have printing plants in two different cities start working simultaneously. By this point, nearly fifty thousand copies had already been printed.

They had chosen high-priced, high-quality paper for her book, included many color illustrations, used special techniques for the cover, and now, suddenly, they were notified it had to be pulled from shelves and required rectification. The publisher was bleeding money!

At such a disastrous moment, Li Wenyin hadn't even attempted to negotiate or communicate; she had directly pushed all the blame onto them to let her fans swarm and attack them. They were naturally not going to take that lying down!

The publisher’s official Weibo account began tearing into her directly—you were the one who wrote the content, you personally reviewed the final draft, and you were the one who insisted that the sensitive content be kept; and now, you’re playing the innocent lotus flower? After they finished tearing her down, they directly dumped their chat logs onto the internet.

But Li Wenyin wasn't an idiot. You pushed the blame back, so I have to take it?

She calmed down and posted another high-level "white lotus" Weibo—nominally an apology, but actually clearing her name. She said it was all her own fault for having no publishing experience, mistakenly believing that if the manuscript passed the publisher’s check, it must be fine. In passing, she posted the original publishing contract, highlighting the section regarding the attribution of responsibility.

In the publishing contract, since the book number had already been issued and the issue was that it couldn't be released, the liability definitely fell on the publisher.

Li Wenyin had many fans, and the publisher’s official Weibo was overwhelmed yet again.

In this short time, Li Wenyin had already cooled off. It didn't matter if the book couldn't be published; her losses were minimal—at most, she wouldn't get her royalties. She could still use this incident of the pre-order being pulled without cause to build hype for her movie.

Once the publisher sensed this intent, they became even more unwilling to let it go!

This woman was absolutely incredible—after dumping the blame, she wanted to step on them to hype her movie? Whoever lets her use them as a stepping stone is a fool! They didn't have as many fans as Li Wenyin, but that didn't matter—they could buy marketing accounts, hold reposting giveaways!

Although it was already a done deal that it couldn't be published, and neither side’s hands were clean, the publisher couldn't swallow this insult; they had to compete to see who was dirtier.

The two sides were battling it out fiercely, and with Li Wenyin’s eponymous film already in production and the lead actors having plenty of buzz, quite a few people were paying attention to the matter.

Li Wenyin felt that although she had been splashed with a lot of mud, she was quite satisfied with and welcoming toward this traffic that had come knocking on her door.

But on the fifteenth day of the New Year, when the celebrations were coming to an end, another piece of explosive news erupted in the entertainment industry, instantly topping the trending charts: Su Ke had been arrested for drug trafficking.

Drug abuse was common in the entertainment industry, but drug trafficking was not. Who exactly Su Ke was, what representative works he had, and whether he was popular or not—none of that mattered.

What mattered was that he was the male lead of the film Li Wenyin had already started shooting.