After expelling the sedative components from her body, consuming blood replenishment pills, primal energy pills, and rejuvenation pills, and then disposing of all the blood in the bathroom into her soul space, Ding Yun, weak and clad in a bathrobe, slumped onto the bedroom bed.
She began to sort through the original body's memories. The original body was born into a family of ordinary cultural workers. Her father worked in a dance troupe, and her mother was a stage actress. Both held stable positions. She had an older brother, and the family lived comfortably, exposed to ample artistic influences. She was undoubtedly a creative backbone in school.
In her third year of junior high, when the original body was sixteen, her parents leveraged their connections to secure her an audition for the role of the young version of the female lead in Director Yun's new film. She succeeded and officially debuted through that movie, becoming an actress. Even in that era, film was considered superior to television, which was superior to variety shows, a widely accepted notion. Thus, the original body's debut had a high caliber. The film later won awards, and the original body also received several Best Newcomer awards. Her debut was exceptionally successful.
Over the next few years, the original body did not neglect her studies but continued to prioritize them. She only participated in one or two films during winter and summer breaks. As for invitations to television dramas and variety shows, she did not touch any, or rather, her parents forbade her from doing so. Her parents believed dance, drama, and film were art, while television and variety shows were merely for entertaining the masses, vulgar and amusing, devoid of artistic depth. Since their daughter had already stepped through the gates of art, they naturally could not allow her to wallow in the mire of television and variety shows and lose her prestige.
Although her parents were rather strict, they had a good eye for selecting films. Even if the box office performance was often average, not even ranking in the top ten of the year's charts, the artistic merit was undeniable, and almost every film won awards. This granted the original body more possibilities and opportunities to win accolades. Before even attending university, she had won virtually every female role award except for Best Actress. She even won for supporting roles, and her standing in the artistic community steadily rose.
Upon entering university, the original body began to take on lead roles. In her third year, she successfully became a film empress. In the subsequent years, she consecutively won Best Actress awards at various art film festivals for several years, enjoying considerable acclaim. Most importantly, as her parents consistently pursued art over income, they were unwilling to let their daughter's artistry be tarnished by money. Therefore, even after achieving fame, the original body never accepted any endorsements or fashion show invitations. This also contributed to her good reputation. Ordinary people admired her dedication to acting, her avoidance of ostentatious pursuits, and considered her awards well-deserved. Those in the entertainment and artistic circles also found her aloofness beneficial; with limited endorsement deals available, her participation would only create a stronger competitor for everyone else.
Conversely, the original body was quite poor. Among film empresses of the same caliber, although the youngest, she was undoubtedly the poorest, wearing the most ordinary dresses to award ceremonies. She was truly a spokesperson for simplicity and frugality.
During the years when the original body was a film empress, she had many suitors, both from within and outside the industry. The one who persisted the longest and was most generous with his money was Hong Xingwen, the eldest son of the Hong family, a prominent real estate group. He spent money like dirt, showering her with diamonds today, houses tomorrow, and cars the next. However, the original body's aloofness wasn't her own; it was her parents' persistence. Later, she was elevated onto a pedestal of purity, positioned as someone who never participated in television, variety shows, or endorsements. She found it even harder to break character. Consequently, she lasted only three years before succumbing to Hong Xingwen's sweet nothings and gifts, retiring from acting to marry him.
Her parents were actually not entirely pleased with Hong Xingwen as a son-in-law. It wasn't that they wanted the original body to remain unmarried and devoted to art forever, but rather they felt the two families were mismatched, leading to limited common ground in the future, which would undoubtedly hinder marital harmony. Moreover, the Hong family was wealthy and large, with a comparatively complex family dynamic. They worried their daughter would struggle to cope after marriage and might be bullied, with them unable to offer much help or support.
However, due to the original body's insistence, her parents eventually compromised. The original body did not want the wedding to be overly public, so she quietly announced her retirement, and the wedding ceremony did not invite many industry insiders, only close acquaintances. Reporters and others were strictly forbidden. Consequently, only rumors circulated online, with no actual photos emerging. People either offered blessings, lamented her early marriage, or commented on another goddess marrying into wealth. Overall, there were no negative public opinions. Most expressed regret at losing an excellent film empress.
After marriage, the couple enjoyed a period of affection until the in-laws began to urge them to have children. At the time, the original body saw no issue with this; having children after marriage was a natural progression. Thus, she and Hong Xingwen soon began preparing for pregnancy.
Their conflicts began around this time. The original body firmly believed that prenatal preparation was a shared responsibility between husband and wife. She felt that as the mother, she needed to diligently regulate her body, so why shouldn't the father? She strictly forbade Hong Xingwen from smoking or drinking, insisted on regular bedtimes, and even recommended traditional Chinese medicine to regulate his body. Only when both were in optimal physical condition would they relax their precautions and attempt to conceive.
Hong Xingwen, while not a playboy, was certainly not a health enthusiast. Such a healthy and disciplined lifestyle was unbearable for him. He broke his regimen at nearly every meal, making arguments inevitable. When they quarreled, his parents tended to side with their son. Later, Hong Xingwen secretly circumvented the protective measures, causing the original body to become pregnant without preparation and without her body being in what she considered its most perfect state. The rift between them undeniably widened.
Her ten-month pregnancy was arduous. After giving birth to a daughter, she was not favored by her father-in-law and mother-in-law. Her father-in-law directly told Hong Xingwen that if they couldn't have a son, the inheritance would not go to him, as family assets could not be passed to a granddaughter. These factors, coupled with Hong Xingwen's subsequent swift actions to get her pregnant with a second child, including using questionable methods to conceive a son, gradually eroded the original body's psychological well-being.
She first experienced prenatal depression, and after giving birth, she suffered from postpartum depression. Furthermore, after the birth of their son, her husband and in-laws were entirely focused on him, neglecting her as the mother who had just given birth. This exacerbated her depression. Despite the presence of several nannies, their care offered little help for her condition. Neither her husband nor she herself fully recognized the severity of the situation, nor did they seek medical attention, allowing it to worsen. Occasional uncontrolled outbursts led to Hong Xingwen's anger and dissatisfaction. He eventually refused to see her and even took the children away.
Taking both children away was the final straw that broke the original body. A few days later, Ding Yun arrived.
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