After a Contractual Romance with the Scumbag Movie Queen - Chapter 19

On the evening before the third performance, the entertainment segment of Stellar Journey aired.

Though this episode lacked the intense competition of previous ones, featuring instead a sports meet, a roundtable discussion, and a barbecue party, the appearance of Qi Puzhi sent its popularity soaring higher than ever. Qi Puzhi’s name dominated the trending charts.

[This is what a true top-tier celebrity in the entertainment industry looks like. The moment Qi Puzhi steps in, all those so-called idol stars have to take a back seat.]

[Her face alone secures her reign.]

Rarely appearing on variety shows, Qi Puzhi’s long-dormant fans eagerly flocked to watch. Meanwhile, the long-standing rumors of a romantic entanglement between Jiang Tian and Qi Puzhi made this episode their first on-screen appearance together, prompting shippers to grab their magnifying glasses and scour for sweet moments.

The two factions clashed fiercely in the barrage of comments.

During the sports meet, Qi Puzhi’s gaze lingered on Jiang Tian as she competed in the high jump.

Shippers: [No way? Sugar right off the bat? I didn’t even come in with high expectations, hehe.]

Solo fans: [You all look so pitiful, acting like you’ve never seen anything before. Jiang Tian was literally right in front of Puzhi, of course she’d see her. What’s the big deal?]

Shippers: [I know you’re mad, but stay mad.]

At the roundtable discussion, Qi Puzhi chatted amiably with the contestants except Jiang Tian. Not a single word was exchanged between them, nor even a glance.

Solo fans: [Forget about any chemistry these two seem like total strangers. Who was just bragging about how sweet they were?]

Though puzzled, the shippers refused to back down: [Do you even know what avoiding suspicion means?]

By the barbecue party, the shippers gradually fell silent.

After all, Qi Puzhi was surrounded by contestants chatting animatedly, while Jiang Tian stood far away, not even attempting to approach her.

These two… didn’t just seem unfamiliar, they appeared utterly indifferent to each other.

Had they been shipping the wrong pair all along?

The fan bracelet Qi Puzhi once wore, the accidental likes she had given, Jiang Tian’s exclusive follow on Weibo, all of it now seemed like illusions.

Could it all have just been a series of coincidences? Shipping two strangers was one thing, but this was stretching even the most delusional fantasies.

And yet.

“Jiang Tian, you don’t seem very excited about my cooking.”

In the first real on-screen interaction of the episode, Qi Puzhi’s eyes glimmered as she looked at Jiang Tian. Her smile appeared natural, yet upon closer inspection, it seemed to carry a hidden meaning.

“Teacher Qi, I’ve actually been craving it for a long time.”

Jiang Tian replied with her usual cool and detached demeanor, her words polite and unremarkable.

But.

After scrutinizing the scene, the shippers finally emerged from their shells, fingers flying across their keyboards:

[Am I the only one who noticed? Both Teacher Qi and Jiang Tian’s lips look slightly swollen! Could it be that while pretending to be strangers, they were secretly making out backstage?]

[Damn, I was just about to say that!]

[Yeah, it’s subtle, but compared to the close-ups from the roundtable, something’s definitely off.]

[And the way they looked at each other while talking, it felt like they were communicating something we don’t understand.]

[What’s the secret you’re keeping from us VIP members? Stop speaking in riddles!]

[With Jiang Tian’s personality, she’d usually just say “No” but instead, she said “I’ve been craving it for a long time.” If you think there’s nothing going on between them, I don’t know what to tell you.]

[OMG, Jiang Tian bumped into Qi Puzhi, that basically counts as doing it!]

In a program that lasted over an hour, there was only one minute of close-up footage featuring them together.

But fans of this CP had been scraping for crumbs for so long that even this tiny bit of substantial content was enough to propel their fan community into the top three trending topics.

One was a currently popular idol, the other an award-winning actress who had dominated the industry for years, both stunningly attractive and perfectly matched, ensuring no shortage of buzz.

However, CP fans soon noticed that the hashtag #SweetJuiceCP, which had just topped the trending list for ten minutes, mysteriously vanished.

Even many promotional posts by marketing accounts were swiftly taken down.

“Will this really work?” Mother Jiang frowned slightly as she looked at Father Jiang.

“Of course it will,” Father Jiang replied, his expression equally grim. “A little gossip from the show is one thing, but her reputation absolutely cannot be tainted by association with Qi Puzhi.”

With the topics and hashtags thoroughly scrubbed, the CP fans grew restless in their fan community.

A seasoned shipper stepped in to reassure everyone: “This just proves they’re real. In all these years of Puzhi’s scandals, she’s never intervened like this before. So how special Jiang Tian is to her, need I say more?”

“Got it true love!” A fan immediately caught on and declared loudly.

Qi Puzhi, buried in filming and unaware of the swiftly removed CP hashtag, had no idea that after that episode, her and Jiang Tian’s CP fanbase was growing by the day.

Zhang Hua happened to be handling business near the set and dropped by for a visit.

The moment she stepped into Qi Puzhi’s trailer, her gaze landed on the sapphire pendant around Qi Puzhi’s neck.

“So beautiful,” Zhang Hua leaned in for a closer look. “The one you said you liked before? Did you send someone to the auction?”

“No,” Qi Puzhi paused, then said softly, “She gave it to me.”

It took Zhang Hua two seconds to realize who “she” was.

“Tsk tsk.”

Seeing Qi Puzhi’s attempt at nonchalance, which was actually tinged with slight embarrassment, Zhang Hua was caught off guard by the sudden wave of affection. “Qi Puzhi, since when did you turn into a blushing maiden just from dating someone?”

Qi Puzhi scoffed. “Who said I’m blushing?”

As a friend of over twenty years, Zhang Hua knew her too well.

She raised an eyebrow and sat down beside Qi Puzhi. “That kid sure doesn’t hold back, this sapphire must’ve cost a million or so, right?”

Qi Puzhi had always loved collecting exquisite gemstone jewelry. She had initially planned to bid on this sapphire at auction but was too busy at the time and missed it.

The last time she let Jiang Tian stay over, Jiang Tian had already left by the time she woke up.

The dreams had been so intense and fiery that it took her a while to calm down after waking, her ears still flushed as she got out of bed.

Even though it was just a dream, her body reacted as if it had been real, still tingling with lingering desire.

They say women hit their peak at thirty, she was only twenty-eight, yet she already felt embarrassingly desperate.

Qi Puzhi’s emotions were a tangled mess. It wasn’t until she stepped into the bathroom and saw the sapphire necklace in the mirror that she noticed it.

The auction had taken place shortly after they signed their relationship agreement, half a month before Qi Puzhi gave Jiang Tian the watch.

It wasn’t a return gift, it was something Jiang Tian had intended to give her all along.

Noticing Qi Puzhi lost in thought, Zhang Hua remarked, “With you two being this sweet, don’t your scandals affect things? Young people tend to be pretty possessive.”

Of course they did.

Otherwise, the agreement wouldn’t have been treated as mere decoration again, allowing Jiang Tian to take such liberties with her.

“If she gets involved in a scandal, you’d definitely be jealous,” Zhang Hua reminded her. “Put yourself in her shoes, you should care more about these rumors.”

Qi Puzhi rubbed her temples. “You know it’s not that I don’t want to deal with it. The evidence we’ve gathered so far isn’t strong enough.”

Zhang Hua said, “At the very least, you could explain the situation to her. Otherwise, she might think you’re just playing around and end up heartbroken.”

Qi Puzhi pressed her lips together and remained silent for a moment.

Zhang Hua softened a little. “Actually, there’s no rush. You can wait until your relationship is more stable before bringing it up.”

Besides, love was such a fleeting and elusive thing. Young people’s feelings were fickle, what if it was just a passing infatuation? When they were head over heels, they might be endlessly forgiving, but once the novelty wore off, laying everything bare now could become a vulnerability.

As she spoke, she noticed Qi Puzhi hesitating, as if wanting to say something but holding back. Finally, Qi Puzhi mumbled, “Well… I don’t think it’s just a passing thing.”

Zhang Hua was taken aback. “Huh?”

Qi Puzhi blinked and said, “Seems like she’s liked me for a few years now.”

“A few years?”

Qi Puzhi thought for a moment. “About six years?”

Zhang Hua was stunned. “She’s only 22 now, and she’s liked you for six years? Don’t tell me you had your eye on her before signing that agreement too?”

Seeing Qi Puzhi’s innocent expression and prolonged silence, Zhang Hua knew she was probably right.

“Your circle really knows how to play,” Zhang Hua said dryly. “Mutual pining but instead of dating properly, you had to go and sign some flirty agreement. I take back my earlier advice, you two lovebirds can do whatever you want. Just invite me to the wedding.”

Qi Puzhi: “…”

As Zhang Hua was about to get out of the car, she suddenly remembered something and turned back. “Since that’s the case, Pu Xing is planning Cross-Datedo you two want to join?”

“Huh?” Qi Puzhi was momentarily surprised, having never considered the idea. “Why?”

As an award-winning actress and a boss, she certainly didn’t need the exposure from a variety show.

“You two are perfect for it one an idol, the other an actress. Isn’t that what ‘crossing boundaries’ is all about? You’d attract a lot of shippers, and if your relationship ever goes public, you’d already have a fanbase. Might even help clear your ‘playgirl’ reputation.”

Zhang Hua made a compelling case. Seeing Qi Puzhi deep in thought rather than outright refusing, she added, “Think it over. The pros far outweigh the cons in my opinion.”

“Besides, what’s the point of showing off in front of me?” Zhang Hua winked.
“Wouldn’t it be way more thrilling to subtly flaunt it in front of millions of viewers?”