8: Chapter 8 I am an addiction you can't quit

The penthouse apartment at Tomson Riviera.

Xu Qingya wore black silk pajamas, her bare feet pressing against the cold wooden floor.

The neon lights of the Huangpu River shone through the floor-to-ceiling windows, reflecting onto her face, which showed no sign of sleepiness.

She held a glass of red wine in her hand, her brows furrowed tightly.

Over the past two days, she had felt a long-lost surge of energy.

Her skin condition was so good that even her makeup artist exclaimed in disbelief, and she felt no fatigue while handling her scheduled appointments.

The severe insomnia that had plagued her for three years had once made her think she had miraculously recovered.

But tonight.

When she finished showering and lay down on that million-dollar custom-made mattress.

That feeling of desperate wakefulness struck her again.

Closing her eyes, there was no drowsiness, only endless agitation.

Now, she had finished her third glass of red wine, yet still felt no sleepiness.

Xu Qingya walked over to the sofa, sat down, and set the wine glass heavily onto the coffee table.

She reached up to rub her temples.

"Why?"

In that dilapidated security office, on that single bed reeking of sweat, she had clearly slept so soundly.

Images of that night flashed uncontrollably through Xu Qingya's mind.

That security guard, some quality about him.

Must have had an absolute suppressive effect on her insomnia.

This realization made Xu Qingya feel a trace of panic, but even more so, an irresistible craving.

It had been three years; every single day, she had relied on medication to maintain her glamorous facade.

Her body was already riddled with holes.

Everyone only saw the National Diva Xu Qingya standing on stage, radiant and brilliant.

No one saw the torture of her lying awake all night until dawn.

She picked up her phone and dialed her assistant, Yang Lele.

The phone rang for a long time before it was picked up, and Yang Lele's groggy voice came through from the other end.

"Sister Qingya? What's wrong? There are no appointments tomorrow morning..."

"Lele, go handle a task for me right now."

Xu Qingya's voice sounded exceptionally cold in the quiet living room.

"Right now? It's two in the morning?"

"Yes, right now. Go check on that young security guard from Tianyu Media."

"He was fired a few days ago. I want his contact information and to know where he went after leaving the company."

The person on the other end instantly sobered up: "A little security guard? Sister Qingya, why are you looking for him? Did he steal something from you?"

"Don't ask so many questions. Tomorrow, I want to see his complete file."

Xu Qingya hung up the phone and tossed it onto the sofa.

She walked over to the full-length mirror in the entryway.

The woman in the mirror, her collarbone stood out sharply against the black silk pajamas.

The rosy, healthy glow from a few days ago had mostly faded.

Dark, grayish shadows had reappeared under her eyes, and her lips were a bit dry.

Although her skin was still better than it had been before that night, the luster was visibly fading.

She stared intensely at her increasingly haggard face in the mirror.

It had been ten years.

From her debut at twenty until now, she had used every means possible to stand at the very top.

Rivals, capital, public opinion—there was nothing she couldn't handle.

But she couldn't handle insomnia.

Three years of continuous insomnia were already destroying her from the roots.

Her memory was declining, and her reactions were slowing down during variety show recordings.

If this continued, it wouldn't be two years before she was trampled by newcomers.

She needed him.

No.

She was just going to clear up the situation.

If that man truly possessed some kind of special constitution, she could solve it with money.

Name a price, have him cooperate—it was that simple.

Finally, she pulled open a drawer and took out a brown bottle.

The pill was bitter when swallowed, so she washed it down with half a glass of water.

Returning to bed, she stared at the ceiling, waiting for the medication to take effect.

Various images flashed chaotically through her mind.

The Arrangement for her new song, the script for her variety show, her manager urging her to get cosmetic procedures...

The final image that settled in her mind was still that security office.

She turned over and buried her face in the pillow.

"Damn that little security guard..."

Yang Lele stared at the call-ended screen on her phone, her mind racing.

Sister Qingya called at two in the morning, asking her to investigate a fired security guard.

Not asking the security department to check, but asking her, her personal assistant, to check.

This meant that no third person could know about this matter.

Yang Lele jumped out of bed and started making calls.

...

In the afternoon, in the top-floor lounge of Tianyu Media.

Xu Qingya sat in front of the vanity mirror.

Last night's sleeping pills only allowed her to sleep for less than three hours.

The makeup artist was using concealer to cover the dark circles under her eyes.

The foundation was a layer thicker than it had been two days ago.

Looking at Xu Qingya's cold expression, the makeup artist didn't dare to ask anything.

The door was pushed open, and Yang Lele walked in with a difficult expression.

Xu Qingya raised her hand, signaling for the makeup artist to leave.

"Did you find him?" Xu Qingya leaned back in her chair, her voice tinged with a hint of urgency.

"Sister Qingya..." Yang Lele stammered, "Sister Qingya... I didn't find him."

Xu Qingya's eyes snapped open: "A living person, and you can't find him?"

"I asked Manager Zhao from the property department. He said this kid was hired temporarily half a year ago. At the time, they were short-staffed, so they skipped the formal process."

Yang Lele wiped the sweat from her forehead, "As for his address, he registered the company dormitory, but he moved his luggage out the day he was fired."

Yang Lele's voice grew quieter as she spoke.

"What about his phone number?"

"It says it's an invalid number. He must have changed it."

Xu Qingya's fingers tightened on the vanity table.

With a "snap."

An expensive eyebrow pencil was snapped in half.

Anxiety and a sense of loss surged in her heart.

"Keep looking."

Xu Qingya's voice was icy.

"Check the surveillance footage, trace his route after leaving the company, and spend money to hire a private investigator."

"I don't believe he can just vanish into thin air."

"Yes..." Yang Lele replied, lowering her head.

Just then.

The door to the makeup room was suddenly pushed open.

Manager Chen walked in quickly.

She was in her early forties, dressed in a sharp professional suit. She was usually calm and composed, but at this moment, her face bore an irrepressible excitement.

"Qingya! Look at this! A video of a resident singer is going viral in the industry!"

"Sister Lan, I'm very tired. I'm not in the mood to listen to any bar singers."

"You must watch it!" Manager Chen handed the tablet to her, "This song is going to blow up! The whole internet is looking for this mysterious singer right now! We must grab him before anyone else does!"

Manager Chen tapped the play button directly.

The tablet screen lit up, and the volume was turned to the max.

The image was dim and full of noise.

The camera was shaking violently.

One could only barely make out the profile of the singer and a pair of hands strumming the strings.

"One glass to the morning sun, one glass to the moonlight..."

A deep voice came from the speaker.

Xu Qingya's gaze swept across the screen casually.

The next second.

Her pupils contracted sharply.

Her breathing stopped instantly.

Although the image was blurry.

But that familiar silhouette, that nonchalant posture.

And those long, powerful hands.

It was that little security guard whom she had tossed eighteen thousand yuan at, warning him that if he dared to say a single word, she would make him disappear.

Xu Qingya stared fixedly at the screen.

Her heart contracted violently.

"Qingya, what do you think? This voice, these lyrics! God has gifted him with a talent for this!"

Xu Qingya looked at Jiang Fan's hands on the screen.

Those hands.

That night, they had wandered wantonly across her waist.

Pushing her toward the edge of losing control.

She suppressed her churning emotions.

Her voice trembled slightly.

"Find him."

"What?" Manager Chen didn't hear her clearly.

Xu Qingya stood up abruptly.

The chair slid backward with a harsh screech.

She stared at Manager Chen, enunciating each word clearly.

"I said, dig three feet into the ground."

"Find this person for me!"