Reward
Am I well-behaved?
Lu Yan actually didn’t return to the room for the whole night. The next day, Lu Zhenqiu got up, saw the empty bed, and was puzzled. When she went out the door, she bumped into Xiao Yu. Xiao Yu smiled and waved, “Over here!”
She looked over and Xiao Yuan was also there. Thinking about yesterday’s matter, Lu Zhenqiu walked over and said to Xiao Yuan, “Thank you.”
“Don’t be polite,” Xiao Yuan said. “I just can’t stand seeing others spread rumors. Spreading rumors is one mouth, refuting rumors is running until your legs break1. If you hadn’t clarified so directly in front of so many people yesterday, I’m afraid people would still be looking at you with colored glasses2 now.”
This was true. Yesterday, there were many people who looked at her with strange gazes, discussing it spiritedly in private. Lu Zhenqiu nodded. Xiao Yu said, “You didn’t tell me. If you had told me, I would have gone and had a shouting match with her directly!”
Lu Zhenqiu said, “There’s no need.”
Xiao Yuan looked at her, “Be careful next time.”
Lu Zhenqiu nodded, then thought of Lu Yan not returning all night. She asked, “Then where did Lu Yan go last night?”
Originally, as her roommate, she should have been the clearest, but unfortunately, she wasn’t in any of those messaging groups at all, so information didn’t circulate to her. Xiao Yuan said, “Don’t you know? She was invited to Manager Mo’s room last night. Later, Manager Mo opened a separate room for her.”
Lu Zhenqiu really didn’t know. Xiao Yu also said, “I heard her program for this year was canceled. Serves her right!”
It could also be considered killing the chicken to warn the monkey3. Although they didn’t know who exactly started the rumor about Lu Zhenqiu and Mo Bai’s relationship, with this matter of Lu Yan coming out, the crowd no longer dared to speculate blindly.
Everyone is not a fool. If they had heard this matter from someone else, perhaps they could still chat about it as gossip, but it came from Lu Yan, and she and Lu Zhenqiu have always had a competitive relationship. Moreover, she also lied, so after last night, this matter was already considered clarified.
In the morning, Lu Zhenqiu also received friend requests from several streamers.
【I felt long ago that Qiuqiu, you weren’t this kind of person.】
【I just knew Lu Yan was lying. She has framed other streamers like this before.】
【Hai, Qiuqiu, don’t take it to heart. Everyone thinks you have real ability.】
After all, her ability wasn’t just based on talk. The song she sang in a duet with Zhang Xin is still circulating now, and her fame shot up in an instant. For Sanshui to make her a host is for the name to be correct and the speech to be in order4!
Lu Zhenqiu replied to those messages one by one. Now, hearing what Xiao Yu said, she was slightly surprised, “Canceled?”
“Yes, canceled,” Xiao Yu said. “Spreading rumors also has a cost. I still think it was too light and fluttering.”
Lu Zhenqiu pressed her lips together. Xiao Yuan finished eating and got up. She called out, “Xiao Yuan, that message in the group you mentioned before, can you send me a copy?”
“Which one?” Xiao Yuan reacted, “Sure.”
Anyway, after last night, the people in the group no longer believed Lu Yan’s words. Those screenshots were also being spread everywhere as evidence for ridicule. Sending a copy to Lu Zhenqiu was completely not a problem.
Lu Zhenqiu nodded, “Thank you.”
Xiao Yuan smiled, “It’s nothing. Should I wait for you to go together?”
She was going to the company. Lu Zhenqiu hurriedly finished her congee, “Let’s go together.”
Besides the two of them, there were also streamers from other sections. They called a taxi together. Not long after arriving at the company, Lu Zhenqiu received a call from Jin Shuilan. The person on the other end had just woken up, her voice was on the low side, slightly deep. Jin Shuilan’s end was quiet, completely different from Lu Zhenqiu’s end.
“You’re awake?” Lu Zhenqiu asked with a smile. “Remember to eat breakfast.”
Hearing her voice, Jin Shuilan was in a very good mood. Lying in bed with her hand on her forehead, Maomao sat at the door, wagging its tail. Jin Shuilan said, “Got it. Have you started working?”
“Mhm,” Lu Zhenqiu said. “Memorizing lines.”
Her voice was light and soft, making Jin Shuilan think of that goodnight kiss from last night. It was very sweet. Jin Shuilan’s finger touched the corner of her lips as she asked, “What time do you finish?”
“Probably not until the evening,” Lu Zhenqiu said. “I’ll eat here at noon, and I’ll go back to eat with you in the evening.”
Quite good at arranging things. Jin Shuilan let out a laugh, “Okay.”
Lu Zhenqiu couldn’t bear the way she dragged out the final sound of her words, doting and tolerant, as if she could completely accept all of her own making trouble without reason5. The side of Lu Zhenqiu’s face turned red. She gripped her phone and heard someone call her from not far away. Lu Zhenqiu bit her lip, “I’m not talking to you anymore, I’m going to a meeting.”
Jin Shuilan gave a light “mhm” and put down the phone. Maomao squeezed over, nuzzling against her face. Jin Shuilan tilted her head and rubbed the dog’s head, then got out of bed to prepare food for Maomao.
At eight or nine in the morning, after she had washed up, she sat by the floor-to-ceiling window with a cup of coffee, looking down. The vehicles were like water and the horses like a dragon6, and the crowd of people was dense. She followed the road with her gaze toward the buildings in the slight distance—tall buildings and great mansions, arranged like fish scales and comb teeth7.
Lu Zhenqiu was busy in one of those tall buildings.
She was halfway through memorizing her lines when her partner called her over to help. After finally being busy until noon, she ate a hurried lunch and didn’t even have time to call Jin Shuilan, only sending a message. Jin Shuilan didn’t disturb her either. She revised the first-issue script for Dongqing that Bai Mao had sent. Bai Mao asked her: 【When are you coming back?】
Jin Shuilan: 【We’ll talk about it later, probably around the New Year.】
Bai Mao: 【Then we’ll start preparing first.】
Jin Shuilan replied with a period. When Lu Zhenqiu went to the bathroom and was messaging Jin Shuilan, she saw that many people had entered the small group chat for Dongqing. Ji Zibo sent out a few red envelopes. Lu Zhenqiu watched the people in the group greet each other, obviously very familiar. She didn’t bubble up8. Suddenly, she saw a familiar profile picture, her heart thumped once, and she clicked open the profile. As expected, it was Zhen Yuan.
Of course, Lu Zhenqiu had no opinion of Zhen Yuan, but that unpleasant collaboration from before still made her a little afraid to face Zhen Yuan, especially since she had broken her promise first. Although she had sought out Zhen Yuan to apologize afterward, the things that happened later all indicated that Zhen Yuan had not forgiven her.
Encountering her again now was truly a bit awkward.
Lu Zhenqiu held her phone and sat dryly on the toilet. Outside, people came and went in several waves. The message she wanted to send was still not sent. She peeked at the screen9 for a long time before seeing Ji Zibo mention her.
【The main characters this time are Zhenqiu and Bai Nuannuan, whom everyone is familiar with.】
【No need to speak of the drama sense10, I personally listened to the audition. It was extincted11.】
Below was a row of ‘looking forward to it’ and ‘hope for a pleasant collaboration’. Lu Zhenqiu kept looking at Zhen Yuan’s name. Several times she typed, then silently deleted ‘hello everyone’. As she was turning off the screen, her sharp eyes caught Zhen Yuan sending: 【Very much looking forward to this collaboration.】
Regardless of whether it was true or false, upon seeing this sentence, Lu Zhenqiu inexplicably breathed a sigh of relief. The heart that had been hanging was put back.
She put down her phone and patted her chest. After leaving the restroom, she calmed down for a long while before starting to memorize her lines again.
When things finished in the evening, Xiao Yuan called her to go to dinner together, saying that Manager Mo had booked a private room at a restaurant nearby. Lu Zhenqiu thought of Jin Shuilan still waiting for her and politely declined. Xiao Yuan nodded, “Lele also said she’s not going. Why don’t you two go back together?”
Lu Zhenqiu said, “Okay.”
She and Lele got into a taxi, and after waving to the crowd, they returned to the hotel. Xiao Yu had ordered barbecue takeout and was eating it with her roommate while playing a game. Hearing that Lu Zhenqiu had returned early, she called for Lu Zhenqiu to come over and hang out for a bit. After going upstairs, Lu Zhenqiu passed by her floor, drank a cup of milk tea, and then returned to her room. She quickly took a shower and changed outfits several times, looking left and right in the mirror. She had clearly gone to see Jin Shuilan in her pajamas last night, but now she was being affected12. In the end, she changed into a light blue knit sweater and slim-fit jeans, and walked to Jin Shuilan’s door in flat shoes.
As soon as the door was knocked open, Maomao ran over. Lu Zhenqiu hugged it and asked Jin Shuilan, “You stayed here all day today?”
Jin Shuilan nodded, “Mhm, it happened to be a day off. I took Maomao for a walk in the afternoon.”
“But I’m not familiar with this area, so I just walked around near the hotel.” Lu Zhenqiu smiled, “So well-behaved.”
Jin Shuilan poked her head out, “Are you talking about me?”
She was wearing white pajamas, a silk model, which had a very fine texture. Her long hair was casually coiled at the back of her head with a single pen, with a few strands hanging down by her temples, resting against her cheeks. Black hair, fair skin, a clear contrast of black and white. The face that suddenly poked over wore a smile, and those eyes rippled with pleasure. Lu Zhenqiu felt a stuffiness in her chest and opened her mouth, “I was talking about Maomao.”
“Oh,” Jin Shuilan said, “Then am I not well-behaved?”
Help!
Lu Zhenqiu’s breath hitched slightly when she heard this. This was completely unlike a question Jin Shuilan would ask, but a contrast like this from her was truly enough to make one’s heart move crazily!
How can there be such a cute person.
Lu Zhenqiu suppressed a laugh, suddenly turned her head, and kissed the side of Jin Shuilan’s face. Just as she was about to speak, Jin Shuilan met her turning posture, wrapped an arm around her waist, and bit the corner of her lips. Soft, fragrant, and sweet. Jin Shuilan stopped after a shallow taste13, pulling back a slight distance to press her forehead against Lu Zhenqiu’s, and asked, “Am I well-behaved?”
At this moment, her heartbeat was a little out of control. Those eyes carried a bewitching charm. Lu Zhenqiu was immersed in them with just a single glance. She was deeply attracted. Four eyes faced each other. Lu Zhenqiu nodded, the side of her face burning hot. She said, “Well-behaved.”
Jin Shuilan gained an inch and advanced a foot, “Then is there a reward?”
Lu Zhenqiu was stunned, “A reward?”
Jin Shuilan was one volume of a proper classic14, “Is there not?”
Lu Zhenqiu came back to her senses, bit her lip, and asked, “Is a kiss okay?”
Jin Shuilan said, “Let’s try it first.”
Lu Zhenqiu looked at her clear brows and eyes. Those eyes, their gaze was scorching. Her heart sped up, thump-thump-thump, and her palms began to sweat. She quickly closed her eyes and gave Jin Shuilan a kiss, like a dragonfly touching the water15. Before they had even separated, Jin Shuilan held her and took two steps forward. The back of Lu Zhenqiu’s legs touched the edge of the sofa. Jin Shuilan embraced her and kissed her thin lips. This time it was not stopping after a shallow taste, but a frantic plunder.
A kiss carrying aggressiveness, like an invisible fuse·wire, instantly ignited the temperature of Lu Zhenqiu’s body. Jin Shuilan held her very tightly, one leg wedged into the gap between Lu Zhenqiu’s legs, pressing. The two of them were stuck together, like a strict silk joining a seam16. Lu Zhenqiu was kissed by her to the point that even trying to catch her breath was difficult. Her every breath was filled with Jin Shuilan’s scent, a warmth that carried a heat that could burn everything. Lu Zhenqiu’s restrained upper body pushed forward. While trying to catch her breath, her heels became unsteady, and her whole body fell backward. Frightened, she clung to Jin Shuilan, bringing Jin Shuilan’s body down onto the sofa with her.
The soft sofa was very elastic. After the two fell, they were still holding each other. Jin Shuilan, afraid she would be hurt from the fall, even used her hand to cushion the area under Lu Zhenqiu’s head. Lu Zhenqiu turned her head and saw Jin Shuilan’s hand; it was a posture to protect her.
She turned her head back and looked at Jin Shuilan. The two lay on their backs on the sofa, four eyes facing each other. Lu Zhenqiu suddenly smiled. Jin Shuilan asked, “What are you laughing at?”
Lu Zhenqiu didn’t speak, only gave her a deep look, propped herself up on her side with an elbow, and kissed the side of Jin Shuilan’s face.
The author has something to say:
Thirty red envelopes, memeda.
Jin Shuilan: Qiuqiu, am I well-behaved?
Lu Zhenqiu: Not well-behaved at all.
Jin Shuilan: ……
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