[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-plagued-by-bad-reviews-but-the-top-actress":3,"chapter-plagued-by-bad-reviews-but-the-top-actress-plagued-by-bad-reviews-but-the-top-actress-chapter-605":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","Plagued by bad reviews, but the top actress!",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1734416,2218,"Chapter 605: 605: He Doesn't Mind Being a Substitute","plagued-by-bad-reviews-but-the-top-actress-chapter-605",605,"\u003Cp>Chapter 605: Chapter 605: He Doesn’t Mind Being a Substitute\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her thoughts scratched at his sleep.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then he was awakened, and would…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xia Weibao reeled in her thoughts; she couldn’t think about it anymore, couldn’t always be lost in the past.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Hualiang had opened his eyes at some point, capturing the desolation on her face in his gaze.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That expression again, who was she longing for?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She was looking through him, at who?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Caught in the act, Xia Weibao felt somewhat panicked and tried to get up from the bed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Lu Hualiang stretched out his hand, pulling her back, holding her in his arms.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He suddenly grabbed her hand, placing it on his nose.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Just now, did you want to do this?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xia Weibao nodded, then shook her head.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Did I disturb you?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Hualiang did not answer her, instead intently staring into her eyes, “Are you treating me as a substitute for someone else?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Such candid words laid bare the thoughts in Xia Weibao’s heart, making her instinctively want to flee.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She knew telling the truth would hurt, but she didn’t want to lie to him either.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’m sorry…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I don’t mind,” Lu Hualiang spoke calmly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xia Weibao was stunned, “What?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What did he mean he didn’t mind, didn’t mind what?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Didn’t mind her treating him as a substitute?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Hualiang took her hand and gently kissed it on the lips.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I don’t mind you treating me as a substitute.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lately, she had been capricious, obviously developing feelings for him, yet wanting to flee, often staring at him absentmindedly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He hadn’t understood before, but after watching her sleeping face last night, he thought it over.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This contradiction and struggle, the only explanation was, she was treating him as a stand-in for the one in her heart, wanting to be close, yet feeling guilty.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On one hand, she coveted his warmth; on the other, she was overwhelmed by guilt.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That’s why she was torn.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So, how could he make things difficult for her?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Being used as a substitute was the same as throwing his dignity to the ground and trampling on it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But in front of her, his dignity had long since dissipated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What did it matter if he was a substitute for now, this was only temporary.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As long as she stayed by his side, as long as she was willing to give him a chance, one day, he would outshine the one in her heart and become the real thing!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And since she was conflicted in her heart, it meant that she liked him too.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From this perspective, it wouldn’t take long to become the real thing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Director Lu, please don’t be like this.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xia Weibao felt very confused.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The more uncomplaining and unconditional he was, the guiltier she felt.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This is my own decision, you don’t need to feel any psychological burden.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How could she not feel burdened!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was too unfair to him!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xia Weibao wanted to cry.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What exactly did they want from her!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She felt almost driven crazy!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Emotional infidelity was still infidelity, and moreover, she had all sorts of ambiguous interactions with Lu Hualiang, which meant she had already betrayed Emperor Xia Liang.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She couldn’t do this, but she found it increasingly difficult to control herself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Closing her eyes, tears slid down from the corners.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Hualiang raised his hand, gently wiping away the tears from the corners of her eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If you feel sorry for me, give me a chance, try to like me.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xia Weibao suppressed the sourness in her heart.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Actually, she had already fallen for him…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Otherwise, she wouldn’t be in such pain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sometimes she wondered if she could let go of the past and start over.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Emperor Xia Liang was a matter from a thousand years ago, the man had been dead for a thousand years; what was she holding on to?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In modern society, people break up every few days, divorce every few months.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Why couldn’t she let go of the past and enter into a new romance?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But she couldn’t do it!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She couldn’t forget.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It wasn’t because of the deep-seated feudal thinking of ancient times, but because she loved Emperor Xia Liang.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Loved him deeply.\u003C\u002Fp>",702,"2026-06-06T16:22:09.235Z",1,"novelbin.me","4298a42bf63811ab1005a96f24ec1ca3bb4fbba627ca1c00056bba8cde708b67","plagued-by-bad-reviews-but-the-top-actress-chapter-606","plagued-by-bad-reviews-but-the-top-actress-chapter-604",1766,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fplagued-by-bad-reviews-but-the-top-actress-cover.jpg"]