After Being Scummed – Chapter 69
by Little PandaSo Sour!
Ex-girlfriend? Xiao Nian?
Wait… What does Zuo Jingyou mean by this? Is she really going to have a scene with Xiao Nian?
Zuo Jingyou and Xiao Nian?
Her current girlfriend and her former canary1? And an intimate scene?
Yin Bai’s mind was a complete mess. It took her a long time to digest this news.
Seeing Yin Bai remain silent, the smile in Zuo Jingyou’s eyes faded slightly. She reached out, poked Yin Bai’s shoulder, and said in a charming voice, “What, do you mind?”
Does she mind the intimate scene with Xiao Nian, or does she mind Xiao Nian and her?
Even though she and Yin Bai were dating now, Zuo Jingyou couldn’t deny that Xiao Nian had still left a shadow in Yin Bai’s heart. It had nothing to do with romantic love; simply the six or seven years of companionship was enough for Yin Bai to always remember Xiao Nian.
Zuo Jingyou knew she didn’t need to be petty, but when truly faced with this kind of situation, she still couldn’t help but mind.
Perhaps she had never realized before that she was such a jealous person.
Yin Bai lowered her gaze, looking at Zuo Jingyou lying in her arms. It took a great deal of effort to swallow the sourness in her throat.
She blinked and looked at Zuo Jingyou, saying a little uncomfortably, “I mind, of course I mind. My girlfriend is going to film an intimate scene with someone else, how could I not get jealous and envious!”
If the person acting opposite Zuo Jingyou wasn’t Xiao Nian, but someone else, Yin Bai would have long been like a little puppy, woofing and barking at Zuo Jingyou and starting to act up dramatically!
But since the person was Xiao Nian, Yin Bai didn’t dare to make such a fuss. Compared to her own emotions, she was more worried about Zuo Jingyou’s feelings.
After all, seeing Xiao Nian would make Zuo Jingyou think of her, think about the past she had with Xiao Nian, and thus get angry.
Sigh, she had never seen Zuo Jingyou truly jealous and angry before, and she wasn’t very good at coaxing people. What if she couldn’t coax her properly? Would she lose her girlfriend?
Although Zuo Jingyou was a very mature person, when in love, no one can be completely rational.
She definitely didn’t want Zuo Jingyou to be sad, so this time, she had to express herself well.
Yin Bai hugged Zuo Jingyou in her arms, leaned down to gently kiss the corner of her lips, and whispered, “But this is your job. I’ve said it before, although I’ll be very jealous, I can also understand your work.”
The knots in Zuo Jingyou’s heart were smoothed out one by one. She raised her hand to pat Yin Bai’s face and said with great satisfaction, “You’re so well-behaved. It’s just work.”
Yin Bai blinked, tightened her arms around Zuo Jingyou’s waist, rested her chin on her shoulder, and said very intimately, “But this isn’t a simple job. As an actor, you become another person in the story, experiencing a microcosm of her life. Adventures and legends, love and hate, grudges and passions…”
Speaking to this point, Yin Bai started to feel a little uneasy and hugged Zuo Jingyou tightly. “If you encounter a wonderful story that gives you an unparalleled experience… for example, a deeply moving story like Romeo and Juliet… it would be hard for you not to project those feelings onto your co-star.”
“Life is like a play, and a play is like life… I’ve seen many such stories in this circle…”
Because Xiao Nian is that kind of person. She’s sensitive, has abundant emotions, and gets immersed in the story…
She… has a hard time getting out of character…
Several times, when encountering roles with very intense emotional colors, Xiao Nian would be unable to extricate herself, getting trapped in the illusion. Then she would have to spend a long time to get out of it…
Even if Yin Bai wanted to say that those were just things that happened in the story and weren’t real, were the emotions that erupted in that instant fake?
Does an absurd beginning, a false experience, not deserve to brew deep emotions?
If these emotions aren’t real, then what is?
So every time, almost every single time, Yin Bai would be driven mad with jealousy. She had to do something to force Xiao Nian to recognize that it was just an illusion.
Only this moment, being held in her arms, was real.
But was this reality what Xiao Nian needed?
Remembering the past, Yin Bai couldn’t help but tighten her hold on Zuo Jingyou, pressing against her shoulder and saying in a low voice, “Teacher Zuo, I need you to promise me. No matter what kind of life you experience in the movie, no matter what the world in the story is like, as soon as you move away from the camera, I will always be standing by your side…”
She wanted to be the sole protagonist in the life named Zuo Jingyou—now, and in the future.
Zuo Jingyou raised a hand to pat Yin Bai’s arm, looking up at her with a smile and saying softly, “I know, I know what you’re worried about…”
“Although I might get immersed in a temporary story, I know what kind of love I want. My real life, my story, the person I cherish—these are the driving forces that support my ability to integrate into the story…”
“So, Yin Bai, you don’t need to worry so much. That kind of thing won’t happen.”
Zuo Jingyou’s lips curved as she looked at Yin Bai with a gentle gaze. “Or are you more worried that I’ll fall in love with Xiao Nian in the movie? Please, that’s my lover’s ex-girlfriend. I’m more worried I’ll be too jealous to get into character, let alone fall in love with her in the story.”
Yin Bai’s ears turned red, and she said, still disbelieving, “Really? You won’t?”
Zuo Jingyou was speechless. She flicked Yin Bai’s forehead with her finger and said with a laugh, “Won’t what…”
“I already said she’s my former love rival. How much do you not believe that I love you? What is your little brain thinking about all day?”
Yin Bai started laughing, covering her forehead and muttering, “Because you two are a good match. There are so many shipping videos2 of you. You’re a very famous Red and White Roses3 pair.”
Yin Bai paused, then said somewhat reluctantly, “Besides, Xiao Nian is a very good person. She’s sharp and smart, more considerate than me, and very passionate… If you were attracted to her, I really wouldn’t stand a chance.”
Hey, hey, hey, how come when you talk about your ex, that confident aura of yours just disappears!
Zuo Jingyou glanced up at her, her expression complex. She reached out and pinched Yin Bai’s ear. “What nonsense are you thinking? I’ve never even spent time with Xiao Nian, how could I…”
Yin Bai yelped “ow, ow” in pain, so Zuo Jingyou let go. But as soon as Zuo Jingyou’s hand left, Yin Bai put her hands on her hips and said righteously, “You’re the one who said before that you really admire Teacher Xiao Nian and have always wanted to act with her!”
“Plus, with your character relationship, Xiao Nian is someone who is especially good at sparking emotions in her co-stars during a scene. She’s such a good person, maybe you’ll hit it off and sparks will fly!”
“Then you’ll want that beautiful-as-a-flower Xiao Nian, and not this little cripple and distiller’s grains and rice bran4 from your home!”
What is all this nonsense!
Zuo Jingyou reached out and pinched Yin Bai’s face, looking at her with a dangerous glint in her eyes. “Hmm? Xiao Nian is very good? Beautiful as a flower? You think you can’t compare to her?”
So you still feel inferior in front of Xiao Nian?
Zuo Jingyou moved closer to Yin Bai, her breath like an orchid on her lips. “Then what about me? Yin Bai, compared to your Xiao Nian, how am I? Are you that worried that I’ll fall for your Xiao Nian?”
Looking at Zuo Jingyou’s gaze that looked like it could eat her alive, Yin Bai shivered. Suddenly, the tightness in her chest disappeared, and she could breathe smoothly again.
She was like a frightened puppy, no longer daring to act up and bark wildly.
Yin Bai swallowed hard and said with great difficulty, “Of course Teacher Zuo is the best, and also, she’s not my Xiao Nian!”
“She belongs to Lu Qing! Xiao Nian already dumped me and ran off with Lu Qing, and they even got married!”
I’m the pitiful one, I’m the one who got dumped!
“Oh…” Zuo Jingyou said coolly, looking at Yin Bai with a calm gaze. “So you still remember being dumped, and you’re still so unwilling to accept it?”
Yin Bai shook her head frantically. “No, no, there’s nothing like that!”
Zuo Jingyou lifted her chin and narrowed her eyes slightly. “Nothing like that? Then why did you just keep saying how good Xiao Nian is, why did you say you can’t compare to her.”
“Isn’t it because you missed out on such a good person and feel unreconciled?”
Zuo Jingyou pinched her chin forcefully and said with great dissatisfaction, “Am I… not good?”
“The you who is loved by me, is that not good?”
In that instant, the red alert sirens in Yin Bai’s heart went off at full blast. It’s over, Zuo Jingyou is about to get angry!
She hurriedly embraced Zuo Jingyou, nibbled on her lips with a little “awoo,” and said hastily, “Good, good, good, Teacher Zuo is the best in the world, and being loved by Teacher Zuo makes me the luckiest favorite in the whole world.”
“I love, love, love… love Teacher Zuo the most!”
“Xiao Nian is already a star that is very, very far away from me, but Teacher Zuo is the most dazzling sun and moon on my planet!”
“Now, and for a long, long time in the future, when sunlight fills my garden, when the bright moon shines on my windowsill, it will be Teacher Zuo warmly embracing me.”
“I love you, I will always love you the most…”
Yin Bai hugged Zuo Jingyou tightly, confessing eagerly in her ear, saying many things that were embarrassing but exceptionally sweet to hear.
Zuo Jingyou raised her arms to hug her back, pressing tightly against her heart. The sound of a fierce heartbeat passed through their touching skin, just like Yin Bai’s body temperature, so scorching it could burn.
In this intense emotion, Zuo Jingyou clearly and distinctly felt Yin Bai’s love.
Love is something that’s better expressed fervently. Yin Bai, when she says sweet nothings, is just too cute.
Zuo Jingyou held back her laughter, patted her on the shoulder, and soothed her, “Alright, alright, I know you love me the most. Stop your woofing.”
She pushed Yin Bai away, looked up directly into her gray-blue eyes, and said very seriously, “But from now on, you’re not allowed to praise Xiao Nian in front of me. I’ll really get jealous.”
She wasn’t some kind of saint; she had her own little emotions too. Knowing that her lover had once so genuinely liked someone else, she would also feel jealous.
Yin Bai obediently answered with a “Mm.” She looked at Zuo Jingyou cautiously and asked very nervously, “Then Teacher Zuo… Teacher Zuo, are you still angry?”
Zuo Jingyou huffed and said, “Of course I’m still a little angry.”
Hearing this, Yin Bai immediately pounced into her arms like a little kitten, meowing and cooing softly, “Aiya, Teacher Zuo, please forgive me. Don’t be angry, it’s not worth it, it can affect your health~”
Zuo Jingyou reached up to rub her ear, looking down at her gently. “You know it’s like this, so don’t say such upsetting things in the future.”
“Yin Bai, in my heart, you are an incomparable treasure, so I don’t want you to talk about yourself like that.”
“You are my little prince, my little rose, so I love you the most.”
Zuo Jingyou patted Yin Bai’s face and said very seriously, “It might be a bit early to say this, but I am also dating you with the serious intention of continuing on with you.”
“You are not a whim of mine; you are my careful consideration.”
“The moment you agreed to be with me, I had already made a decision in my heart: every day, I will love you more than the day before.”
After hearing this, Yin Bai’s entire face turned bright red. She buried herself in Zuo Jingyou’s arms and said, very embarrassed, “Teacher Zuo, your sugar-coated bullets have become even more powerful. I think I’m about to be sunk…”
She was going to drown in this sea of love named Zuo Jingyou!
Zuo Jingyou let out a light laugh, playing with her ear as she said, “Then just sink. My embrace will always accept you.”
Yin Bai let out a little “awoo” and hugged Zuo Jingyou tightly.
Zuo Jingyou stroked her shoulder, looking down at her very gently. “Although I just said not to praise Xiao Nian anymore, I still want to seriously ask for your opinion. Do you want me to go film this movie with Xiao Nian?”
Yin Bai hugged Zuo Jingyou’s waist, burying her face in her chest and mumbling, “Whether it’s Xiao Nian or not, what does it matter? As long as Teacher Zuo likes this movie, if you want to film it, then film it.”
“So you agree?”
Yin Bai nodded, looking up at Zuo Jingyou. “But can I make a condition, Teacher Zuo?”
Zuo Jingyou: “Go ahead.”
Yin Bai mustered her courage and said very seriously and earnestly, “In the future, when you film intimate scenes with other people, can I come and watch?”
At the very least, she had to stand on the side, so that when Zuo Jingyou saw her, she would think of her, leaving no room for any story to happen with someone else.
Ah, she really was a jealous woman!
Zuo Jingyou froze for a moment, then pinched the nape of Yin Bai’s neck, blinking as she asked, “Are you sure?”
If Yin Bai went and saw it, are you sure she wouldn’t explode on the spot?
Just thinking about it… why was she feeling a little expectant? After all, she also really liked it when Yin Bai was jealous for her.
Although she felt a little bad about it, a jealous Yin Bai was just too cute, making it hard not to tease her.
LP: Yin Bai is increasingly becoming a dog each chapter U・ᴥ・U
Re-translated on July 28, 2025
Footnotes
- 金丝雀 | jīnsīquè | Literally “golden silk sparrow” or “canary.” In modern Chinese slang, it refers to a “kept woman” or “mistress,” someone who is financially supported by a wealthy patron in exchange for companionship, living a luxurious but dependent life, much like a beautiful bird in a gilded cage.
- 拉娘视频 | lā niáng shìpín | “Lā niáng” is internet slang for shipping a female-female couple (yuri/femslash). “Shìpín” means video. These are fan-made videos that pair two female characters, often from different shows or movies, creating a romantic narrative for them.
- 红白玫瑰 | hóng bái méiguī | An allusion to the 1944 novella “Red Rose, White Rose” (红玫瑰与白玫瑰) by the famous author Eileen Chang (张爱玲). The story describes how a man has two women in his life: the “white rose” (a virtuous, pure wife) and the “red rose” (a passionate, alluring lover). The term has become a cultural shorthand for a classic romantic trope involving two contrasting female love interests, and is often used as a popular ship name for such pairings.
- 糟糠 | zāokāng | Literally “distiller’s grains and rice bran,” the coarse food of the poor. It’s part of the idiom “糟糠之妻” (zāokāng zhī qī), which refers to a wife who has been with her husband through poverty and hardship. Here, Yin Bai uses it self-deprecatingly to mean she is the plain, long-suffering partner being abandoned.
looking forward to jealous Yin Bai hehe
looking forward to jealous Yin Bai hehe