Chapter 3: Here She Comes Again, the White Lotus Returns

You say my fans are spreading rumors and slandering you? Fine! Then let’s take this slander to the very end today.

"Whimper..." Bai Lu sobbed softly, deliberately drawing all attention back to herself. Once she noticed everyone looking at her, she opened her big eyes timidly and quickly covered her mouth, as if she were terrified and uneasy.

Shen Xinluo hurried over. "Xiao Lu, what’s wrong..."

"Ah!" Bai Lu screamed, pulling the blanket over her head.

The medical staff crowded around, speaking gently, trying to comfort her.

Bai Lu said nothing, only huddling under the covers, shaking.

Her fan was simply outrageous, yanking her straight out of the bedding. "Bai Xiaolu, you’re not allowed to be scared! Everyone here is on your side. Speak!"

Her soul might have spent five years as a freeloader in a psychiatric hospital, but her body had just fallen from over seven meters high and remained unconscious for more than half a month. She was truly frail.

A wave of dizziness made Bai Lu’s vision go black—she saw stars in broad daylight.

"Doctor Ye, let her go already! We know you’re a fan and worried about her, afraid she’s being bullied and you want the truth, but you’re about to shake her to pieces! Ah, Xiao Lu’s eyes are rolling back! Oxygen! Get her some oxygen!"

The medical staff scrambled to rescue her, laying her back down on the bed.

Bai Lu: "..."

What kind of fan is this? More like an anti-fan.

Stealing the spotlight was one thing, but almost killing her? They’d nearly done what Shen Xinluo always wanted to but never managed.

The white-haired doctor finished his examination. "Nothing serious. She’s just been unconscious for over two weeks, living only on IV fluids. Her body is extremely weak, and she’s a bit malnourished. She’ll be fine after a period of good care. Let’s all step out and let Xiao Lu rest. Whatever it is, wait until she recovers before discussing... hmm?"

A delicate, pale little arm reached from under the covers, timidly grabbing the white-haired doctor’s sleeve.

"Xiao Lu?" The doctor bent down immediately. "Is there something you want to tell Grandpa Doctor?"

Tears gushed from Bai Lu’s eyes. "My sister tried to strangle me!"

Everyone: "!!!!"

"Xiao Lu, what nonsense are you talking about! How could I possibly try to strangle you!" Shen Xinluo was frantic, wanting to rush over and explain, but the medical staff blocked her.

Wu Liping grabbed her own daughter’s arm and declared firmly, "Xiao Lu, you’re remembering wrong. Your sister accidentally pushed you off the ski slope, but she’s never tried to strangle you."

Bai Lu shook her head vehemently, clutching the white-haired doctor’s hand. "Last night, my sister grabbed my throat and said that if I died, she’d finally get her chance to shine."

Wu Liping snapped, "What do you mean last night? You’ve been unconscious for more than half a month! Doctor, I think Xiao Lu hit her head in the fall—you’d better check her thoroughly!"

"Maybe when Xiao Lu says last night, she means the day before she fell unconscious?" one of the medical staff whispered.

"Right, didn’t Xiao Lu get pushed by Shen Xinluo the very next day? A seven-meter-high ski slope! Lucky the snow was thick or she’d be dead for sure. If it were flat ground, she wouldn’t have survived."

Fan-doctor: "Not just dead—by now, grass would be three feet tall on her grave."

Bai Lu: "???"

You really are an anti-fan.

Wu Liping immediately questioned, "The day Bai Lu was brought to the hospital, did any of you see marks on her neck? You can eat whatever you want, but you can’t say whatever you like."

Of course, Bai Lu had made it all up—there was no way there’d be any marks.

Seizing the chance, Shen Xinluo burst out crying, tears streaming down her face, looking so pitiful it tugged at people’s hearts. "Xiao Lu, you’ve been unconscious for more than two weeks. I stayed by your side every day, couldn’t eat, couldn’t sleep, praying for you to wake up. Why would you slander me?"

Here it comes.

The delicate, innocent act is back.

Is this a competition of tears now?

Meeting Shen Xinluo’s aggrieved gaze, Bai Lu opened her mouth and wailed even louder, gasping for breath, her pale little face flushed from crying.

"Really, truly, I’m not lying. Grandpa Doctor, believe me. Last night my sister sat by my bed, put her hand on my neck just like this. I was terrified, didn’t dare open my eyes. She didn’t squeeze hard, just held that pose and muttered to herself for a while, then let go. I thought she was just venting, so I didn’t tell anyone. The next day, my sister..."

"What exactly did Shen Xinluo say to herself?" the white-haired doctor interrupted.

"My sister said... she said..." Bai Lu sobbed a few times, timidly, "She said that two-thirds of the TV series had already been filmed, there was no way to replace the lead actress at that point, but if I died, her role could be changed to the female lead. That way, she’d finally get her chance and wouldn’t be overshadowed by me. That’s what she said."

The white-haired doctor barked, "What are you waiting for? Call the police immediately!"

The fan-doctor had already dashed outside, phone in hand, calling 110 with great excitement.

Shen Xinluo, unable to defend herself, was filled with grief and indignation. "Bai Lu, why would you slander me like this? I never..."

"Ah—" Bai Lu pulled the same trick, hiding under the blanket again, unwilling to engage with Shen Xinluo any further.

She was blatantly slandering her—so what? Let her taste what it’s like to be unable to explain herself.

"Everyone out! Don’t disturb the patient’s rest!"

The medical staff promptly ushered the Shen family out of the room and paid them no more attention, returning to Bai Lu’s bedside to comfort her.

With their full names and identities, there was no need to fear the Shen family escaping. Run to the ends of the earth, and the police would still bring you back.

Bai Lu hid under her blanket, little ears perked up.

"Mom, you don’t believe me either?!" Shen Xinluo’s anguished cry echoed in from the hallway.

Wu Liping knew her own daughter too well.

Police investigations were nothing—she was certain that orphan Bai Lu had been pushed on purpose by Xinluo. Resources, opportunities, even her husband, she’d always given to her daughter first. But her daughter just couldn’t compete with that orphan. It made both mother and daughter furious, but what could she do?

No matter how unwilling, she had to admit it: that orphan was born to be in the spotlight, a star from the start.

If her husband hadn’t been a deputy director at the TV station, her daughter wouldn’t have even qualified to be a child actor.

"Stop crying!" Father Shen, who’d kept silent until now, finally spoke. "We all know what kind of person Xiao Lu is. Why would she slander you for no reason? Shen Xinluo, tell me the truth—did you push Xiao Lu on purpose?"

Under the covers, Bai Lu froze in surprise.

She hadn’t expected that the story she’d made up offhand would leave even Wu Liping and Shen Yanghong doubting Shen Xinluo.

Ha! Tell too many lies, and even your own parents stop believing you.

The Boy Who Cried Wolf—Shen Xinluo’s version.