A Scummy Alpha and An Award-Winning Omega Actress Fell in Love After an Arranged Marriage - Chapter 34

The shoot wrapped up smoothly, with the crew bursting into exclamations of admiration when the director called “Cut.”

As for the two leads, they wasted no time snapping out of character, seamlessly switching from intense chemistry to “We’re not close” in an instant leaving everyone thoroughly awkward.

Lu Xueyin immediately pulled away from Sheng Lan’s embrace, and her assistant handed her a towel to dry her hair.

A staff member led her to the dressing room to shower and change.

She responded curtly the entire time, never once glancing back even though the sofa was just a step away.

Wrapping up early meant they could leave ahead of schedule.

The director said they could keep their makeup on for now. Once the final footage was reviewed and confirmed to be satisfactory, they could call it a day.

Sheng Lan had a snake tattoo drawn on her arm, which would take a while to remove.

Holding her phone in one hand, she browsed Weibo as usual, catching up on industry buzz and checking in on the other two pairs from Trial Love.

Xiao Tao mentioned she had no other work scheduled for the day and asked if she wanted to return to the company.

“You haven’t practiced dancing in a while.”

Their break period was usually three to five days, but due to Lu Xueyin’s health, they had taken the full five days off.

The lipstick commercial shoot had been scheduled early, giving Lu Xueyin a day to rest and recover.

To ensure today’s shoot went smoothly, Sheng Lan had piled all her other work onto the remaining four days.

If they finished early, she could treat it as extra rest.

If they ran late, there was still room to adjust.

Now, they had finished early but the sudden free time just made her feel foolish.

Especially since she had texted the designer last night, listing all sorts of demands for a custom wedding ring.

How utterly ridiculous.

She always kept her word, so even if the ring ended up being an annoyance, she would still fulfill her promise and give it to Lu Xueyin.

At worst, she could just throw the discomfort back at her, let Lu Xueyin go find her destined Alpha.

Just as she was thinking this, someone took the seat beside her.

She didn’t even need to look up, the faint scent of roses told her it was Lu Xueyin.

With the commercial done, Lu Xueyin had finally stopped flipping through that shoddy script and was now scrolling through her phone.

The message Sheng Lan had sent her last night finally received a reply.

[Lu Xueyin]: I’ll ask them when they’re free and introduce you.

After giving her the cold shoulder all morning, Lu Xueyin hadn’t left immediately after the shoot. Instead, she came to the dressing room, sat down next to Sheng Lan less than a meter apart and, without so much as a glance, resumed a conversation about an outdated topic via text.

It wasn’t that Sheng Lan was deliberately using negative terms to describe Lu Xueyin.

It was that Lu Xueyin’s behavior was practically slapping labels on herself.

No kindness comes without a motive.

Sheng Lan could guess Lu Xueyin’s goal.

Most likely, she wanted Sheng Lan to accompany her to the sanatorium to see Wei Wan.

Sheng Lan thought: Why should I? I’m not some simp.

[Shan Feng]: What good does pissing me off do you?

[Shan Feng]: You ignored my explanation.

[Shan Feng]: Should I send it again?

Lu Xueyin: “…”

She remembered Sheng Lan had mentioned being angry.

Lu Xueyin typed slowly, one word at a time: But I did promise to introduce you.

Sheng Lan let out a low, mocking laugh.

[Shan Feng]: Tell me you were jealous, and I’ll forgive your attitude today.

Lu Xueyin didn’t think her attitude was a problem.

Sheng Lan was the one who kept wanting a divorce and had no interest in her.

She was just maintaining boundaries, keeping work emotions off-set, and avoiding being a nuisance.

Fingers tapped and deleted on the phone screen repeatedly.

She realized the imbalance in their relationship Sheng Lan wanted nothing from her and couldn’t be bought with money.

But she needed Sheng Lan’s cooperation to feign affection in front of her mother.

So her final reply was just three words: “Getting jealous?”

Sheng Lan was provoked into irritation.

【Mountain Wind】: Who’s jealous?

Lu Xueyin practically sent the message with her eyes closed: I’m jealous.

Sheng Lan didn’t care about Lu Xueyin’s real feelings. She screenshotted and cropped the message, saving it as a reaction meme.

Next time Lu Xueyin gave her an inexplicable cold shoulder, she’d send this image.

Nothing couldn’t be explained by jealousy.

If there was, it was just jealousy upgraded possessiveness.

Though she knew Lu Xueyin was probably cursing her in her heart right now.

So what?

Stay mad.

After removing her makeup and changing clothes, Sheng Lan watched as Xiao Tao led the other staff out.

Lu Xueyin also dismissed her assistant Xiao Yu. “I need to talk to Sheng Lan about something.”

Despite having known each other for only a short time, she’d already learned enough about Sheng Lan’s temper.

If there was a chance to speak face-to-face but she avoided it, Sheng Lan would refuse even if she had time.

Luckily, the dressing room was empty now. Pure waiting wasn’t so unbearable, and she no longer needed her phone as a pretense. Tucking it into her bag, she stood and took a few steps, stretching her legs.

As if struck by a thought, she circled back to the vanity mirror.

When Sheng Lan emerged from the changing room, she saw Lu Xueyin applying lipstick in the mirror.

She wore the same black slip dress from earlier slim yet perfectly curved in all the right places.

Like a good girl from a K-drama grown up, shedding her timidity and innocence to become mature, sensual, and striking.

Her lipstick no longer strayed beyond the lines, and she knew how to wield her allure.

Spotting Sheng Lan in the mirror, she didn’t turn around. Instead, she met her gaze through the reflection and blinked slowly.

A master of micro-expressions, it was a flirtatious glance that could also pass as an accidental look her way.

Pity that Sheng Lan had seen Lu Xueyin’s script and wasn’t playing along.

“Teacher Lu, I think it’s necessary to clarify something. Here’s how I am: if we get along well and you’re in trouble, even if you don’t ask, I’d go through fire for you.”

The opposite scenario didn’t need spelling out.

If the relationship was bad and you pissed her off, she’d stomp on you even if you begged.

She’d tell you to cry louder she liked the sound.

Lu Xueyin stiffened slightly, murmuring, “I just thought this might make you happy.Because their most harmonious moments had been during Trial Romance filming, with their off-the-charts ambiguous interactions.

Sheng Lan walked toward her, unsurprised by the explanation.

Lu Xueyin didn’t retreat, turning back to the mirror to finish her lips. Just as she was about to put the lipstick away, Sheng Lan wrapped an arm around her waist from behind, easily plucking it from her grasp.

As Lu Xueyin’s body temperature rose, Sheng Lan used her lipstick to paint her own lips.

That crimson hue, reflected in the mirror, seemed to stain Lu Xueyin’s skin too.

A blush of temptation.

Sheng Lan tilted her head, inhaling the warm rose scent from Lu Xueyin’s nape.

She realized Lu Xueyin seemed unaware of pheromone basics, that cold and warm scents betrayed true emotions.

Nor did she understand why Lu Xueyin trusted her so much.

Not afraid that she would take the opportunity to mark her, nor afraid of being taken advantage of in this sealed, isolated space.

Sheng Lan’s breath brushed against the skin behind Lu Xueyin’s ear, then moved to the side of her ear.

“But you’re the exception. Whatever you want me to do, you don’t need to flatter me.”

Because she would take it herself.

What she wanted, she would claim.

Perhaps it was due to her initial lack of vigilance, but Lu Xueyin had no chance to resist before Sheng Lan lifted her onto the dressing table to sit.

Facing Sheng Lan directly, her legs dangling in the air, she felt utterly insecure.

She tried to shift forward, wanting to jump off the table, only to collide fully with Sheng Lan, who was closing in.

Lu Xueyin wanted to remind Sheng Lan that this wasn’t appropriate between them.

But Sheng Lan always seized the gaps in her words to invade, skipping the step of prying open her lips and plunging straight in, giving her no time to react. Lu Xueyin retreated again and again until her back pressed tightly against the mirror, sending a chill through her.

Her tongue retreated helplessly, with nowhere left to hide, tangling with Sheng Lan’s.

Her pheromones were stirred into restless agitation.

Sheng Lan’s palm pressed against the tingling, itching spot, the slight roughness of her hand providing no comfort only intensifying the sensitivity.

Lu Xueyin’s skirt was slightly tight, restricting her movements, and she instinctively kicked at Sheng Lan with her legs.

Sheng Lan showed no mercy, sliding the hand gripping her waist downward to her thigh, sending a shiver through her.

“Mmm…”

Sheng Lan withdrew from her mouth but lingered reluctantly on her lips.

“Teacher Lu, did I catch your act?”

Lu Xueyin was the one who had been forced into this script, completely under Sheng Lan’s control in her domain.

She raised her hands to push Sheng Lan away.

Thinking this should be the end.

If this was what Sheng Lan wanted, then it was time for her to make her request.

But she had overlooked the fact that Sheng Lan was angry today.

Her feeble push was ignored, and the delicate strap on her shoulder was playfully tugged down.

Under Lu Xueyin’s wide-eyed gaze, Sheng Lan leaned in, leaving a clear lip mark where her dress still covered yet on a spot she couldn’t ignore, a place of heightened sensitivity.

When they left the dressing room, Lu Xueyin was wearing a mask and a sun-protective jacket.

She left with Sheng Lan, dismissing their assistants.

Those who assumed they were privately unfamiliar or on bad terms were left utterly confused.

Some gossips went to their assistants for answers.

Both assistants could only offer awkward smiles.

Ask them? How would they know?

Parking lot.

Sheng Lan drove while Lu Xueyin habitually opened the backseat door.

Sheng Lan remarked sarcastically, “Treating me like a chauffeur, huh?”

Lu Xueyin closed the door and moved to the passenger seat.

Her expression wasn’t as cold as it had been in the morning, but it was far from happy.

She didn’t want Sheng Lan to visit her mother while still in a bad mood. After some thought on the way, she couldn’t figure out how to placate her mainly because she believed Sheng Lan’s behavior in the dressing room was already enough to trade for the afternoon visit.

So before getting out at the sanatorium, she said to Sheng Lan, “How about this, you go in for a bit, say you have something to do in the afternoon, and leave early?”

Sheng Lan unbuckled her seatbelt, her sharp gaze making Lu Xueyin’s heart skip.

Lu Xueyin instinctively leaned back, but Sheng Lan didn’t move closer from the driver’s seat.

“Big sister, if my overbearing actions only earn me such a trivial request from you, I’ll push further and demand even more.”

So, she knew she was being excessive.

But Lu Xueyin understood.

She averted her gaze and said, “Oh, then your entire afternoon is mine today. Even after leaving the sanatorium, you’ll have to follow my arrangements.”

Support