A Scummy Alpha and An Award-Winning Omega Actress Fell in Love After an Arranged Marriage - Chapter 53.2

Sheng Lan pressed the spray bottle a couple of times into the air, priming it for a direct blast to the face.

She gave them one last chance. “If you don’t obey me now, you’re fired on the spot.”

The one on the left instantly dropped to his knees. “You’re the boss.”

The one on the right stubbornly resisted. “I’m a European ghost. Black Dog Blood doesn’t scare me.”

Sheng Lan gave him a thumbs-up. “Impressive.”

Then she pulled out a rainbow-colored toy knife labeled “Silver Knife” from her bag and made a mock slashing motion across his neck.

The armored ghost on the right wanted to say he wasn’t a vampire, but Sheng Lan had already made her verdict. “You’re fired. You’ll just have to stand here like a prop until your shift ends.”

She casually confiscated the guy’s earpiece.

The NPCs’ earpieces allowed internal communication, revealing the guests’ locations and enabling shortcuts like using emergency exits or elevators to intercept them.

The armored ghost on the left wisely handed over his earpiece immediately. Sheng Lan gave one to Lu Xueyin. “Let’s go. Next target.”

Before leaving, Lu Xueyin took out a piece of Talisman Paper from her pocket and stuck it on the forehead of the armored ghost on the right.

After walking several steps, Sheng Lan kept glancing at her, so Lu Xueyin explained, “He spoke Mandarin.”

Just because he wore a costume didn’t make him a foreign ghost.

Sheng Lan couldn’t stop laughing when she heard that.

Lu Xueyin didn’t see what was so funny and urged her to hurry up and find more people.

Aside from a few practical items like high-powered flashlights and regular flashlights, the props in Sheng Lan’s bag were all bizarre in their own ways.

Her method of persuading NPCs to surrender was the same as with the two armored ghosts overwhelming them with props, adopting the tyrannical stance of “those who submit prosper, those who resist perish.”

The third floor was a speedrun, with the armored ghosts serving as a demonstration. The other ghosts were dealt with en masse.

She even went as far as slapping a “Resurrection Talisman” on them, whatever was written on the Talisman Paper dictated its effect. It was downright shameless.

Her aggressive tactics were wildly effective, and Lu Xueyin followed her lead, delivering plenty of “finishing blows.” Her fear of the haunted house and NPCs diminished significantly.

She told Sheng Lan she was like a haunted house tyrant. Sheng Lan’s grin was hidden behind her mask, but the gleam in her eyes and her unrestrained boldness were unmistakable. “This tyrant is getting married today. Don’t forget to come for the wedding banquet, sis.”

Lu Xueyin played along smoothly. “What kind of banquet?”

Sheng Lan: “The kind where we drink the ceremonial wine.”

The mask emboldened her. Lu Xueyin leaned in. “Sure.”

After clearing the third-floor “newbie zone,” it was time to enter the main storyline.

The two of them began playing “mute,” fully embodying their roles as Matchmaker Ghosts.

As they descended the stairs to the second floor, they could hear other guests searching for people.

Sheng Lan asked her, “There’s still time to back out.”

They could skip the “depth,” the part that directly alluded to uncertain outcomes, and simply replicate their third-floor strategy to prepare for the party.

Lu Xueyin didn’t retreat. “I realized it’s not as difficult as I thought.”

Stepping out, she found it wasn’t so terrifying after all.

Now was the time to test the results to see if it would be like learning to ride a bicycle as a child.

When someone was holding her steady, everything went smoothly.

But the moment the adult let go, she would wobble and shriek uncontrollably.

No matter what, she had to walk this path alone eventually.

From the moment she turned around, tonight’s performance truly began.

Patrolling the second floor also required attention to the cameras in every corner.

Sheng Lan had already discussed it with her NPCs weren’t her responsibility. Yet when she encountered one, her gaze paused briefly before she took another step forward.

This NPC talked back, “You’re a ghost too. You can’t use talisman paper.”

Lu Xueyin remembered Sheng Lan’s words, they were high-level NPCs; there was nothing they couldn’t do.

To stay in character and keep herself on edge, Lu Xueyin’s breathing was shallow and light, sometimes even holding it altogether, truly like a specter that didn’t need breath to exist.

Her pale mask had been marked by Sheng Lan with red crosses over the lips, crudely stitching the mouth shut.

When the NPC finished speaking, Lu Xueyin ignored him, focusing on her task, her demeanor effortlessly natural, her gaze icy and detached.

The usually ghost-fearing Lu Xueyin achieved the same result as Sheng Lan, she scared the NPC to tears.

Sheng Lan leaned against the corner, hearing the commotion, and couldn’t help but laugh.

She guessed her little rose must have been startled too.

But after the initial shock, overwhelming joy would follow.

This was the ultimate goal of collecting NPCs along the way.

If she dared to step forward, she would gain something encouragement.

Her courage would grow amidst the unease, allowing her to face her fears head-on.

Whether she could truly break free, Sheng Lan wasn’t sure.

But at least Lu Xueyin could see that the cage she had built for herself held no real power.

She could come and go as she pleased.

What once attacked her would ultimately help her grow, becoming part of her acting repertoire.

Lu Xueyin had good luck soon after, she ran into Tang Yingyue.

Tang Yingyue understood the moment she saw her, there must be a task card. She accepted it generously.

Unaware that she had encountered someone “breaking up the CP,” and acting on instinct, she assumed the production team wouldn’t let her reunite with Yan Bing too soon. So after memorizing the route to detour, she quickly circled back.

Then she met Sheng Lan, who was tailing Lu Xueyin, and under the Matchmaker Ghost’s hand, drew a second card.

Sheng Lan’s task was “matchmaking.” Tang Yingyue, following her earlier logic, assumed she was up to no good.

So when she reached the fork in the road Sheng Lan pointed to, she chose the opposite direction, moving further away from Yan Bing.

Meanwhile, Lu Xueyin and Sheng Lan, after distributing the task cards, had laid the groundwork for their characters and could now showcase their relationship.

Sheng Lan, who had been following from a distance, gradually intensified her infatuation.

She would trace Lu Xueyin’s path, linger where she had stopped to greedily inhale her presence, and steadily close the distance between them, getting closer and closer until finally crossing into forbidden territory, provoking Lu Xueyin’s anger.

This gave the audience their first hint about their relationship: these Matchmaker Ghosts did not get along.

There were slow, circling stares, a push-and-pull of hands through the air.

One side’s body language and gaze conveyed closeness and affection.

The other was the complete opposite, deep wariness and disgust.

When Lu Xueyin headed for the first floor, Sheng Lan followed. Lu Xueyin turned to glare, smashing a bottle at the stairway, symbolizing shattered emotions.

Sheng Lan stopped there, not daring to pursue further.

She waited where she was and soon Meng Qing arrived, following the sound.

Meng Qing took one look at her outfit and exclaimed how cool it was.

Taking advantage of their close friendship, Sheng Lan didn’t hold back. “Help me with something, and I’ll tell you where Ji Xinlan is.”

Meng Qing and Ji Xinlan played hide-and-seek unconventionally, it was more like a game of cat and mouse.

Normally, the goal was to find each other quickly and team up to speed through the challenge.

But for them, the objective was to avoid being found at all costs.

If Meng Qing knew Ji Xinlan’s location, she could dodge her precisely.

Enjoying the thrill of having an “inside informant,” Meng Qing asked, “What do you need help with?”

Sheng Lan: “I remember you have a suona?”

The suona was right in her bag.

Sheng Lan invited her to the wedding. “You can provide the accompaniment. Thanks.”

Meng Qing: ???

“You guys are going all out?”

“The ultimate stage of a trial relationship is like me and my sister take the card.”

The small card was a coordinate system.

Divided into three pockets, each corresponding to a room number.

The one Sheng Lan gave her was Ji Xinlan’s room, 109 on the first floor.

Without a second thought, Meng Qing continued climbing the stairs. “Let someone else go if they want.”

Having secured an accompanist, Sheng Lan still needed to find an officiant.

She thought Yan Bing would be perfect with her icy demeanor, she was ideal for a ghost marriage.

Finding Yan Bing was secondary. With Meng Qing as a distraction, she could go straight to Lu Xueyin and kick off the second phase of the script.

Following Sheng Lan’s demonstration, Lu Xueyin made full use of the protective talismans covering her. She took a brush and wrote whatever she wanted, even flipping the talisman paper to repurpose it.

After gaining some experience on the second floor, she was already handling things with ease by the time she reached the first floor.

But when she saw Sheng Lan, her annoyance only grew.

The second phase began where the first left off, their strained relationship needed reconciliation, and they had to find a reason to stick together.

This stage mirrored their real-life dynamic.

Initially, misunderstandings had driven them apart, but due to family pressure and the show’s filming, they had to fake affection. Over time, familiarity bred genuine feelings.

For the two mute ghosts, the reason for sticking together was simple and crude:

Their bound companion relationship meant separation would cause pain and weakness.

This was Lu Xueyin’s refinement aside from gestures and meaningful glances, there needed to be necessary, ambiguous touches.

It was a spur-of-the-moment idea, inspired by pheromone marking but toned down. They faced each other, mimicking the way demons in dramas absorbed life essence.

With some dance-like movements, they created an eerie, seductive effect.

After a brief touch, Lu Xueyin felt a twinge of guilt like she owed Sheng Lan and softened her expression slightly. Now, they could patrol the venue together, searching for the other guests.

While designing the scene, it hadn’t seemed strange, but once they started acting, Lu Xueyin was reminded again of how she and Sheng Lan had been.

Before their relationship improved, there had been a temporary mark that left her indebted.

Her cheeks burned.

Even in this setting, where she had overcome her fear of the haunted house and NPCs, the psychological impact lingered. She couldn’t focus solely on Sheng Lan or the romance.

But because the transition between fiction and reality was seamless, their interactions felt natural and familiar.

Within their current roles, it meant that despite their disagreements and dislike, there was an underlying understanding from years of coexistence.

This fragile foundation of trust allowed them to gradually uncover the truth in their subsequent actions.

Lu Xueyin would soon realize that the couple she was trying to break apart simply wouldn’t stay separated.

She believed it was Sheng Lan playing tricks, and there would be many emotional clashes in the second phase.

Amidst the escalating conflicts, the “Crystal Sugar” couple finally managed to meet.

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