After a Contractual Romance with the Scumbag Movie Queen - Chapter 57

Qi Puzhi was dazed for a long moment.

The young woman seemed to have boundless energy, still murmuring her name while kissing her.

That spot was too sensitive, making Qi Puzhi tremble uncontrollably. She tilted her head back, letting out soft moans between ragged breaths.

She felt Jiang Tian pause for a moment.

Then, the hand that hadn’t yet withdrawn seemed to resume its mischievous movements.

“Don’t.” Qi Puzhi’s voice was slightly hoarse as she gently pushed her away, “I really can’t take it anymore.”

She looked utterly pitiful.

“Mm.” Jiang Tian slowly released the moist, crimson skin from her lips and looked up at her.

Her gaze was as deep as the night, “But you said the same thing an hour ago, and then you wouldn’t let me leave.”

“…” Qi Puzhi bit her lip, not wanting to respond.

In the end, she couldn’t help but whisper emphatically, “This time it’s really true.”

Jiang Tian stared at her, then suddenly let out a soft laugh, her eyes filled with scattered traces of tender affection.

She withdrew her hand, feeling Qi Puzhi tremble lightly again in response.

Jiang Tian knew she had many desires for Qi Puzhi, but it was only today that she realized,

a person could be this greedy.

For instance, that slight tremor nearly made her want to not let her go again.

Just by looking at the change in Jiang Tian’s expression, Qi Puzhi knew exactly what it meant, and she immediately felt even more sore in her waist and weak in her legs.

Faced with the impending crisis, she decided to play the victim.

With her eyes already misty and her face flushed, Teacher Qi found it all too easy to act pitiful.

She effortlessly adopted a tone as if weeping and pleading, paired with a fragile and innocent expression: “I’m so tired. It’s almost dawn, and there’s hardly any time left to sleep.”

Earlier, no matter how many times she had claimed she couldn’t take it, Jiang Tian had remained relentless.

She didn’t know if saying she was tired would work.

Then she saw Jiang Tian blink gently, her expression obedient as if she had never defied her before. She moved closer, reached out to hold her, and pressed her soft cheek against hers:

“Alright, I’ll listen to you, sister.”

A truly obedient younger partner who followed every word and strict command.

“…” Qi Puzhi was speechless, holding back her frustration again and again.

Yet the soreness in her waist and the persistent throbbing in a certain place reminded her of this person’s earlier misdeeds.

In the end, she couldn’t resist pressing against her with a hint of gritted teeth: “You’re so good at pretending to be well-behaved!”

Jiang Tian couldn’t hold back her laughter.

The woman had clearly enjoyed herself just moments ago, only to accuse her afterward of being relentless.

Truly burning the bridge after crossing the river.

She didn’t voice this teasing thought aloud. Instead, she yielded and nuzzled against her, holding her even tighter: “At least my liking for you isn’t pretend.”

She played the emotional card directly.

It worked remarkably well, leaving Qi Puzhi unable to voice the accusations she had prepared.

She had been perfectly manipulated, knowing she would soften.

Qi Puzhi let out a light hum, too lazy to argue with her any further.

The earlier intensity had left her completely exhausted now that it had stopped, the fatigue washing over her belatedly.

As she drowsily half-closed her eyes, Qi Puzhi heard the young woman resting on her shoulder whisper softly, “Even now, it feels like a dream. that I can have you like this.”

What does it feel like to hold the moon you’ve admired since childhood in your arms?

Even the most confident and composed person might feel uneasy, fearing that upon waking from a dream, they would find it was nothing but a shattered illusion.

Hearing this murmur, Qi Puzhi couldn’t help but open her eyes, turning her head to look down at Jiang Tian.

The young woman’s dark, long, wavy hair was slightly damp, cascading over her skin.

Through the slightly tousled strands of hair, one could see Jiang Tian with her eyes closed, her thick lashes as lovely as feather fans, and further down, her straight and elegant nose bridge.

When she wasn’t smiling, her demeanor was always cool and aloof, noble yet distant.

Yet if she smiled at you, her clear and beautiful eyes would reflect only you, as if shimmering with starlight.

It was an intoxicating focus.

Qi Puzhi reached out and gently touched her left cheek. Yes, if she smiled, a sweet and delightful dimple would appear there.

This face, Qi Puzhi had first seen it when she was seventeen.

At that time, Jiang Tian’s youthful, charming face and the tender yellow flower she had handed over were both etched into Qi Puzhi’s heart.

And so, five years later, Qi Puzhi brought her home.

Back then, Qi Puzhi had just graduated from university.

Because she had interned at her family’s company during her undergraduate years and achieved remarkable results, her grandmother, who had always groomed her as the successor, had even higher expectations for her.

Unexpectedly, after graduation, Qi Puzhi stubbornly decided to venture into the entertainment industry.

Her grandmother was furious but did not directly stop her, hoping she would hit a wall and willingly turn back.

Qi Puzhi didn’t take a single cent from her family. Instead, she used the money she earned from part-time jobs to rent a small apartment and embarked on a path she had no intention of turning back from.

With her exceptional looks and natural talent for acting, she was noticed and signed by a reputable company.

But the Qi family secretly manipulated things to suppress her. First, the hard-won audition opportunities were abruptly canceled, and later, roles she had finally secured were snatched away by others who brought investments with them.

One such person was Qi Hui, who bluntly told her that the Qi family had funded it.

The company began to see her as unlucky, and the agent who had once held high hopes for her gradually lost interest.

With no resources and no exposure, she was effectively shelved.

Even her first photoshoot after debut came to nothing, leaving only a few images online that were later deleted.

Her dwindling savings were running out, and even three meals a day became a heavy burden. She could only seek out grueling work as an extra.

Even this was often obstructed by the Qi family.

It was in such dire straits that Qi Puzhi encountered Jiang Tian.

Sixteen-year-old Jiang Tian had grown to the height of her chin. If not for her strikingly beautiful features, Qi Puzhi might not have recognized her.

Because the girl’s face was bruised and swollen.

Sitting on the street in the cold, deep night, she looked utterly pitiful.

The neighborhood where Qi Puzhi lived was tucked behind an upscale residential area a shabby, impoverished place hidden behind wealth and luxury.

She didn’t know why Jiang Tian was there at that moment. But she could feel it the moment she walked down that path, the young girl seemed to sense her presence, lifting her head to gaze at her without blinking, never looking away again.

Qi Puzhi was completely trapped in her own struggles, with no energy to spare for others.

But she stopped in front of Jiang Tian.

“Kid, what happened to you?”

She didn’t yet know her name, only that she was likely the child of a wealthy family from the villa district.

Jiang Tian blinked her swollen eyes and replied in a low, pitiful voice, “I ran away from home.”

Qi Puzhi wanted to ask more, but out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a man carrying a liquor bottle approaching from a distance.

This area had poor public security, with frequent fights and even worse incidents.

Without a second thought, she reached out to Jiang Tian. “It’s dangerous here. Do you want to come home with me?”

Feeling it was too hasty, she was about to say a few more words to prove she had no ill intentions when she saw Jiang Tian reach out without hesitation to take her hand and follow her home.

On the way home, the streetlights were dim and flickering due to years of disrepair.

Every time Qi Puzhi walked this path, she felt anxious and vigilant, constantly on guard.

But that day, holding the girl’s warm, soft hand, she seemed to forget her fear.

Perhaps it was the exhaustion from a long day as an extra, but it wasn’t until Qi Puzhi turned on the light after entering her home and saw her cramped, shabby living space that she realized a certain problem.

Only then did she feel a belated sense of embarrassment.

She turned to look at Jiang Tian. Though the girl’s face was bruised and swollen, her clothes were elegant and refined, suggesting she had likely never experienced poverty.

In the dilapidated hallway, her delicate appearance seemed starkly out of place.

Jiang Tian met her gaze and, noticing her hesitation, asked softly, “Sis, is it inconvenient?”

For some reason, in the girl’s clear eyes, Qi Puzhi felt her earlier unease wash away a little.

She pursed her lips. “My place is very small. Be prepared.”

Jiang Tian was momentarily taken aback, then suddenly smiled, her cheeks dimpling sweetly.

Even with her injuries, her smile was refreshingly sweet and adorable.

Qi Puzhi watched as she stepped inside, glanced around the room, and offered a sincere and earnest evaluation: “It’s warm, clean, and smells nice.”

Then, turning to Qi Puzhi with undisguised admiration in her eyes, she added, “Sis, you really know how to live.”

Qi Puzhi could tell she wasn’t just being polite and felt a wave of relief.

She couldn’t help but chuckle at the girl’s last remark. “You’re quite the smooth talker.”

Living alone, she only had one pair of slippers at home, so she had to grab the flip-flops she used for showering in the bathroom and wear them herself.

Fortunately, the heating was on, so it wasn’t cold.

Casually, Qi Puzhi asked, “Are you hungry?”

Jiang Tian didn’t want to trouble her and immediately shook her head.

But her stomach betrayed her with a soft growl, honestly answering Qi Puzhi’s question.

“Pfft.” Qi Puzhi couldn’t hold back a laugh as she saw the embarrassment on Jiang Tian’s face. “I don’t have much here, but how about I make you a bowl of instant noodles?”

She had no natural talent for cooking. When she first moved out, she tried cooking for herself but ended up losing weight day by day.

So she gave up. Most of the time, she ate boxed meals on set or at her part-time jobs. If that wasn’t an option, she’d come home and eat instant noodles.

Jiang Tian wasn’t picky at all and happily agreed.

As she looked at the steaming bowl of noodles, clearly starving, she didn’t immediately pick up her chopsticks.

“Sis, do you have another bowl at home?”

“Hmm?” Qi Puzhi, who was tidying up the kitchen, turned to look at her.

“Why don’t you have half too?” Jiang Tian paused, then added, “I can’t finish it.”

Qi Puzhi didn’t believe that for a second. At that age, kids were growing and needed nourishment, how could such a small portion be too much?

She understood why Jiang Tian said it and felt a warmth in her heart.

“No, I’m not used to eating at night.”

After finishing up, she rummaged through the closet for clothes and asked, “Why did you run away from home? It’s dangerous to be out alone.”

The girl seemed so well-behaved and sensible, it was hard to imagine her doing something so rebellious.

Could it be that her family treated her poorly too?

But Jiang Tian didn’t answer right away.

Instead, she asked, “Sis, you just picked me up off the street like that, weren’t you afraid of trouble or danger?”

Clearly, taking in an unfamiliar child while already in a difficult situation was not a wise decision, whether in terms of energy or finances.

Qi Puzhi paused for a moment and fell silent.

She turned to look at Jiang Tian. At twenty-two, her features were slightly more youthful than they would be later, yet they still carried a breathtaking, stunning beauty.

Gone was the deliberately flirtatious facade she used as a defense, replaced instead by a gentle and delicate elegance.

With a helpless curve of her lips, she said softly, “What else could I do? It’s so dark outside. If I ignored you, I’d never be able to live with myself for the rest of my life.”

Suspecting that Jiang Tian had changed the subject to avoid answering her earlier question, Qi Puzhi decided not to press the matter further, silently acknowledging that the conversation had ended.

She continued gathering clothes but then heard the person behind her murmur softly, “I ran away from home because.” The words trailed off, unfinished.

“It’s alright, you don’t have to say.” Thinking Jiang Tian felt forced to answer out of politeness, Qi Puzhi spoke up to comfort her.

By then, she had already picked out the clothes and closed the wardrobe. As she turned around, her eyes unexpectedly met Jiang Tian’s.

In that instant, she forgot what she had been about to say.

The girl’s eyes were as gentle and clear as water.

Though her gaze remained pure and innocent, it seemed to hold countless unspoken words, things she wanted to say but didn’t dare.

And because Qi Puzhi saw her own reflection in those eyes, for a fleeting moment, she mistakenly thought,

That hesitant, unspoken answer was about her.