After Appearing On A Marriage Reality Show, The Top Star Cried and Says She Doesn't Want a Divorce - Chapter 37

The doctor crouched down, took Yan Mengyi’s hand, and examined it carefully.

Yan Mengyi stared into the eyes visible above the doctor’s mask, memories cascading through her mind like a waterfall, freezing her in place.

“You’re hurt.”

Before the doctor could treat Yan Mengyi’s wound, Li Tang rushed over and pulled her away. The gesture wasn’t rough, but it carried a defensive and slightly aggressive undertone.

“Tangtang,” Jiang Banxia called softly. Though she didn’t know why Li Tang was angry, she could sense the woman was teetering on the edge of losing control.

Someone like Li Tang rarely showed such a reaction.

“Xiao Yi, you burned yourself. Is it serious? Let me see,” Zhou Qiutong said, removing her apron and approaching.

“She’s fine. She doesn’t need it.”

Even Pei Nalian noticed something was off. Li Tang was like a cat with its tail stepped on, its fur bristling with tension.

“Sorry, it was my fault. I’m so clumsy. I burned myself just trying to pick up a chopstick,” Yan Mengyi said, struggling to put on a brave face.

But her finger quickly turned red and swollen, the searing pain surging in waves like a tide.

Yan Mengyi’s complexion looked pale, her lips tinged with a slight blue.

“We need to go to the hospital and get this treated,” Li Tang insisted, once again displaying her unyielding stubbornness.

The group, each lost in their own thoughts, waved goodbye to the camera.

“That’s it for the first episode of Pillowside Lovers! We’ll see you next time!”

The camera shut off. Jin Youshu and Pei Nalian bid farewell first.

“We have to rush to our next engagement, so we have to leave now. We’ve really enjoyed spending the last couple of days with you all! If anything comes up, feel free to message us on WeChat anytime! Love you all! See you next week!”

Jiang Banxia watched Pei Nalian and Jin Youshu hurry away, and couldn’t help but sigh. “Even though Nalian can be sharp-tongued and loves to be the center of attention, she’s actually quite endearing.”

As soon as she said that, Jiang Banxia realized she’d said too much and instinctively reached for the microphone pinned to her collar.

Her hand met empty air. Only then did she remember the show had already finished filming, and the microphone had long been removed. She didn’t need to worry about anyone hearing those words.

“This show’s filming dragged on so long, everyone’s starting to get a little… twitchy,” Jiang Banxia said, stretching lazily and leaning against Zhou Qiutong. “We don’t have any work coming up, so we’re planning to stay on the island for a couple more days before heading back to Beijing. What about you guys?”

Li Tang looked at Yan Mengyi and draped an arm around her shoulders. “We’re heading straight to the hospital, then back to Beijing. We’ve booked a late-night flight.”

The group parted ways.

Zhou Qiutong watched Li Tang’s figure disappear into the distance before voicing her lingering doubts to Jiang Banxia.

“What do you think Tangtang’s reaction was all about earlier?”

“How should I know? The world of geniuses is always a little hard to understand.”

******

By the time they returned to Beijing, it was already past midnight.

Yan Mengyi sat by the bed, drying her hair and waiting for Li Tang to finish bathing so they could sleep together.

But when Li Tang emerged from the bathroom wrapped in a bathrobe, Yan Mengyi was already gone from the master bedroom, leaving only faint creases in the sheets to prove she had been sitting there.

“Xiao Yi?” Li Tang pushed open the bedroom door. The room was dark, but a faint glow remained.

It was the dim light from a cell phone screen, which quickly went dark.

Yan Mengyi tried to pretend she was asleep, but failed.

Li Tang turned on the light in the guest room.

The sudden brightness was blinding. Yan Mengyi raised her hand to block the light, mumbling groggily, “Hm?”

“Why are you sleeping here?”

“You had work to do. I didn’t want to bother you.” Yan Mengyi tightened her grip on the blanket, remaining turned away from Li Tang.

But she felt the bed dip at the foot as Li Tang sat down, lifted the blanket, and tried to pull her feet into her lap.

As usual, her feet were ice-cold.

But Yan Mengyi pulled her feet back, tightened the blanket around herself, and shifted to lie in another direction.

Li Tang could tell she was angry and didn’t press further. Instead, she simply yanked the blanket off, exposing Yan Mengyi.

“Xiao Yi, we need to talk.”

“I’m exhausted.”

“I don’t know why you’re angry. After spending just a few days with you, they understand you better than I do. You always have something on your mind, but you never tell me.”

Yan Mengyi tucked her loose hair behind her ears, lowering her gaze. “Someone sent you a message. I thought it must be work-related.”

“I told you, you can just look at my phone. You know the password.”

“I don’t want to snoop through your messages.”

Li Tang brought her phone into the master bedroom and held it out to Yan Mengyi. “Tell me, who sent me a message?”

Yan Mengyi didn’t look at the phone, but answered, “It’s from a Korean singer.”

Clearly, she had already seen it.

That was also why she was suddenly so upset.

“If you want to know about my relationship with Hua Jingyan, you could have just asked me,” Li Tang said. “I never expected you to misunderstand our relationship.”

“Real relationships aren’t just about what people say.” Yan Mengyi ran her fingers through her hair, visibly agitated.

“Oh, so they’re about what people do instead?”

As she spoke, Li Tang turned off the light and gently laid Yan Mengyi down.

Yan Mengyi tried to push her away, but couldn’t budge her. Her hand traced the faintly defined muscles on Li Tang’s forearm.

The cold, distant superstar, who presented such an aloof image to the world, was silently trapping her partner beneath her.

“What are you doing?” Yan Mengyi shrank back, her voice trembling.

“You know exactly what I’m doing,” Li Tang replied, her words as fiery and resolute as her determination.

“I’m having a serious conversation with you.”

“And I’m giving you a serious answer.”

Though they were clearly alone in the room, they unconsciously lowered their voices, speaking in hushed tones.

Their breaths, warm and suggestive, seemed to pierce through their skin and seep deep into their bones.

Li Tang bit her ear, and Yan Mengyi instinctively curled up, exposing her pale, slender neck, only to have it captured in Li Tang’s grasp.

There was no escape now.

“Everything I’ve done with you, I’ve never done with her.”

Yan Mengyi continued to kick her legs, trying to sit up and reason with her.

The outcome was clear.

Her arguments lacked conviction, no match for Li Tang’s unyielding logic.

So gentle, yet so unshakable.

“I’ve never held her hand.”

Warm breath puffed against Yan Mengyi’s arm.

Their fingers intertwined. Li Tang cradled the back of her hand and kissed it.

“And I’ve never kissed her lips.”

Soft lips brushed against hers.

At first, just a fleeting touch, like a dragonfly skimming water. Then, they forced open her teeth, plundering every tremor of her body.

Yan Mengyi’s mind went blank.

Li Tang’s fingers brushed past Yan Mengyi’s lips and teeth, then trailed downward.

“I’ve never done this with her,” Li Tang murmured, the words spilling from between Yan Mengyi’s tightly clenched teeth.

Her hips instinctively arched upward, each intimate touch still requiring some effort.

“Relax,” Li Tang said, watching Yan Mengyi’s reactions beneath her hand with evident amusement.

Yan Mengyi felt a surge of anger. Li Tang had clearly provoked her first, yet showed no sign of remorse.

She tried to regain control of her will, tried not to enjoy it so much.

Yan Mengyi had always been shy.

Their intimacy had always followed familiar, conservative patterns.

But when Li Tang noticed her attempts at pretense, she stopped, wrapped her arms around Yan Mengyi’s waist, lifted her up, and instructed her to brace her hands against the dressing table.

“I’ve never done this with her.”

Yet Li Tang’s breath was too shallow to finish the sentence.

Warm breaths caressed Yan Mengyi’s neck as their bodies moved in sync.

Sweat-slicked bodies, minds emptied of all thought.

Yan Mengyi grumbled at Li Tang for making her take another shower.

Beneath Li Tang’s satisfied expression lay an indescribable loneliness. Yan Mengyi rarely saw such a look on her face. Most of the time, Li Tang was a reliable leader at work and at home. But now, she sat on the edge of the bed, looking vulnerable.

Yan Mengyi walked over and gently stroked Li Tang’s cheek. Li Tang wrapped her legs around Yan Mengyi, clinging to her like a child craving affection. She leaned against Yan Mengyi’s abdomen, letting her caress her face with such tender gentleness.

The countdown to the end of their divorce cooling-off period hung over them like the sword of Damocles. Though they were so close, both tacitly avoided mentioning the fact that they were in the cooling-off period.

“So, why does Yu Zhen hate you?” Yan Mengyi asked.

She had figured out the mysterious doctor’s true identity after returning.

“That question is meaningless,” Li Tang replied.

“Why is that?”

Li Tang lifted her head. “If the person who had been by your side all along had been her instead of me, would you have married her?”

******

The filming crew wrapped up for the day.

Yu Zhen invited Mo Zhenyi to her rented villa for a brief gathering.

Mo Zhenyi didn’t refuse. After all, Yu Zhen was a young billionaire, and Mo Zhenyi had previously tried to snub her, hoping to ignore her presence, only to be exposed and feel guilty.

Besides, this was someone a senior had asked her to look after.

On the villa’s balcony, Yu Zhen opened a bottle of wine, and the two sipped it against the breeze.

“Producer Wu mentioned you to me before,” Mo Zhenyi said, taking a small sip. “I was planning to host a banquet to welcome you properly, but once filming started, I was swamped with work. I had to oversee every detail.”

“You like my aunt?”

Mo Zhenyi nearly choked, coughing and waving her hands frantically.

To Mo Zhenyi, Wu Shiwen was an untouchable goddess, her benefactor, and a cold, revered master she would never dare harbor any improper feelings toward.

“You’ve misunderstood,” Mo Zhenyi said, recovering. “My feelings for Producer Wu are purely admiration. I’m deeply grateful for all the support and guidance she’s given me throughout my career.”

“Why are you reacting so strongly?” Yu Zhen chuckled softly, swirling her drink. “I was just joking.”

The teasing tone in Yu Zhen’s voice irritated Mo Zhenyi. The other woman’s flippant nonchalance, seemingly a joke yet dangerously close to Mo Zhenyi’s boundaries, annoyed her.

Mo Zhenyi hated being read like an open book, being scrutinized and analyzed. Yet just now, she’d been so easily manipulated.

She should be grateful Yu Zhen had no interest in her. Otherwise, this master manipulator would stop at nothing to get what she wanted.

“Are you afraid of me?” Yu Zhen didn’t mean to sound so provocative, but her laughter and the way her eyes sparkled gave her an air of captivating nobility.

“Miss Yu, with your esteemed status, I’m just worried the production team might not be accommodating enough.”

“Why beat around the bush?” Yu Zhen pressed her glass to her cheek, peering through the liquid at the distorted world beyond. “Don’t you want to know about my story with them?”

“Whose story?”

“Mine and Xiao Yi’s.”

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