After Failing To Win Over the Yandere Best Actress, I Got Marked - Chapter 17

Ye Qinglan watched Su Jin as she kept her head down, picking at her rice, her fingertips tightening slightly under the table.

She knew her earlier questioning had been too obvious; that almost paranoid sense of possessiveness had nearly broken through the cage of her reason. She took a deep breath, forcing herself to remain calm.

“Tomorrow’s scenes…” Ye Qinglan transitioned the topic as if casually, “are our rival scenes in the hot spring. Do you want to look over the script in advance?”

As if receiving a great pardon, Su Jin lifted her head, her eyes sparkling. “Sure!”

The two moved to the living room, and Ye Qinglan took out the script and handed it to her.

Su Jin flipped to the page marked for tomorrow’s shoot, and her expression instantly became a kaleidoscope of emotions. This scene featured Zhou Yu taking the opportunity of a hot spring soak to seduce Lin Xia. The level of intimacy was so high that Su Jin’s ears instantly began to burn.

“What’s wrong?” Ye Qinglan asked knowingly, leaning close to her ear. “Why is your face so red?”

Warm breath brushed against her earlobe. Su Jin recoiled as if she had been electrocuted. “N-nothing! It’s just… this scene is a bit…”

“A bit what?” A flash of amusement danced in Ye Qinglan’s eyes as her slender finger tapped a line of suggestive dialogue. “Do you want to run the lines in advance?”

“No need!” Su Jin slammed the script shut, nearly jumping up. “I think… I think an improvised performance will feel more natural!”

Ye Qinglan looked thoughtfully at the tips of Su Jin’s bright red ears and suddenly sighed. “I, on the other hand, am a bit worried about my state tomorrow.”

“Huh?” Su Jin looked up in surprise.

In her impression, Ye Qinglan was an Oscar-winning actress who was always composed and effortless. How could she have issues with her “state”?

“Too many things have happened lately; it’s hard to get into character,” Ye Qinglan rubbed her temples, her brow slightly furrowed. “Why don’t we… go to the site to rehearse? I’ve booked a private hot spring.”

“P-private hot spring?” Su Jin’s voice shot up. In her mind, the System suddenly screamed with excitement:

“Host! A god given opportunity! The hot spring play mission can be completed ahead of schedule!”

Su Jin rolled her eyes internally. “Shut up!”

Pretending not to notice the abnormality, Ye Qinglan continued, “It’s at a hot spring villa on the outskirts of the city. The environment is quiet; no one will disturb us.” She paused, adding pointedly, “Consider it preparation to get familiar with tomorrow’s filming.”

The reason was too legitimate so legitimate that Su Jin couldn’t find an excuse to refuse.

She bit her lower lip and whispered, “Then… then let’s rehearse a bit?”

“Good.” Ye Qinglan forced herself to remain steady and immediately pulled out her phone to make arrangements. “I’ll have the driver prepare the car now.”

An hour later, Su Jin stood by the edge of the hot spring pool wrapped in a bath towel. In the rising steam, she could barely see Ye Qinglan on the other side. She gripped the edge of the towel so hard her knuckles turned white, unable to summon the courage to let go.

“Host! Take it off! Now!” the System urged impatiently. “What a great opportunity!”

“You shut up!” Su Jin roared in her mind.

“Susu?” Ye Qinglan’s voice drifted through the mist, accompanied by the rippling sound of water. “Aren’t you coming in?”

Only then did Su Jin realize Ye Qinglan was already in the water. Through the dense steam, she could vaguely see the porcelain white lines of the other woman’s shoulders and neck. The water level barely covered anything below the collarbone. Su Jin’s throat suddenly felt painfully dry.

“I-I’m coming…” Su Jin gritted her teeth and closed her eyes, releasing the towel. However, because she moved too quickly, the towel fell away with a gust of cool air that sent a shiver through her body.

The warm spring water instantly enveloped her. Su Jin let out a faint sigh. She curled herself into a ball, exposing only her head above the water like a startled quail.

“Is the temperature okay?” Ye Qinglan’s voice was suddenly inches away.

Su Jin snapped her eyes open to find the other woman had swum in front of her at some point.

“It’s… it’s fine…” Su Jin’s voice was as soft as a mosquito’s buzz. She instinctively backed away, but her back hit the wall of the pool.

Ye Qinglan didn’t press closer; she simply leaned against the edge, a hint of a smile on her lips. “Shall we start from the third scene? The part where Zhou Yu pretends to slip and falls into Lin Xia’s arms.”

Su Jin nodded, forcing herself to enter character.

She took a deep breath and suddenly let out an “Ah!” of surprise, falling toward Ye Qinglan.

According to the script, Ye Qinglan was supposed to catch her steadily, and then they would lock eyes in an ambiguous atmosphere.

However, in reality, Su Jin was too nervous. Her movement was too exaggerated, and she slammed directly into Ye Qinglan. Their bodies pressed together in the water without a gap.

“Ugh!” In the chaos, Su Jin choked on a mouthful of water, her limbs flailing.

Ye Qinglan’s arms tightened instantly. As she lifted Su Jin out of the water, their noses almost touched.

Su Jin could clearly see the water droplets clinging to the other woman’s eyelashes and the suppressed darkness in the depths of her eyes.

“Cough, cough…” Su Jin leaned on Ye Qinglan’s shoulder, coughing violently. She realized belatedly that she was rubbing against the other woman’s legs; even through the thin fabric, she could feel Ye Qinglan’s tension.

“Are you okay?” Ye Qinglan patted her back, her voice several pitches lower than usual.

Su Jin’s ears turned blood-red with shame. “S-sorry! I’ll do it over..”

“No need.” Ye Qinglan’s hand firmly supported her waist, her thumb unconsciously stroking the small of her back. “Just continue like this.”

According to the script, the next part was Zhou Yu intentionally blowing air into Lin Xia’s ear.

Su Jin hardened her heart and leaned in, but because she was too tense, her breath came out in broken stutters. “Your… your eyes are so beautiful…” She was supposed to use a seductive tone, but it came out as a shaky whisper.

“In the script, this line should be said toward the ear.” Ye Qinglan tilted her head slightly, exposing her sensitive earlobe to Su Jin’s lips, her voice husky: “Like this.”

This movement caused Su Jin’s lips to almost touch her ear. She could clearly smell the faint scent of cedarwood from Ye Qinglan’s hair. Her mind went completely blank, and she forgot every single line of dialogue.

“Host! Kiss her!” the System suddenly shouted. “The mission will be complete!”

The voice was like a bucket of cold water waking Su Jin up.

She jerked backward, lost her balance, and nearly slid back into the water, only to be caught by Ye Qinglan again.

“Careful.” Ye Qinglan’s voice was somewhat raspy, her arm muscles tensed. “Shall we… try again?”

The rest of the “rehearsal” was a form of torture.

Su Jin kept flubbing her lines, her movements as stiff as a robot’s. Ye Qinglan, however, was exceptionally patient, correcting her mistakes over and over while maintaining a perfectly measured distance.

It wasn’t until the fifth take that Su Jin finally finished the entire scene.

By the time she finished her last line, she was exhausted, leaning against the pool edge and panting slightly.

“Very good.” Ye Qinglan nodded in approval, handing her a glass of iced lemonade. “Take a rest.”

As Su Jin sipped the cold drink, a system notification suddenly rang in her head: “Congratulations, Host! Hot spring play mission complete! The 20 million reward has been deposited!”

Su Jin didn’t know whether to be happy or annoyed.

She stole a glance at Ye Qinglan, who was resting with her eyes closed. Her elegant profile, partially hidden in the mist, looked like a delicate ink wash painting.

On the drive back, Su Jin curled up in the passenger seat, wishing she could melt into the car door.

The neon lights outside flashed across her flushed cheeks like an overturned palette of colors.

“Is the air conditioning temperature okay?” Ye Qinglan’s voice broke the silence.

“It’s… fine…” Su Jin’s voice was tiny; she didn’t dare turn her head.

Her mind kept replaying those ambiguous touches in the hot spring: how Ye Qinglan’s arm had circled her waist, how the warm water made their clothes transparent, and the way the other woman’s eyes had suddenly darkened…

“Host, your heart rate is excessive,” the System reminded her coldly. “Do you need me to call an ambulance?”

“Shut up!” Su Jin roared internally. “This is all your fault!”

The System sounded aggrieved. “Clearly, it’s the Host’s own heart fluttering…”

Su Jin bit her lip in anger, only to hear Ye Qinglan let out a soft chuckle. “What are you thinking about? Your face is so red.”

“N-nothing!” She denied reflexively. Because her movement was too jerky, the seatbelt strained against her chest. “Hiss”

Ye Qinglan immediately reached over, her fingertips lightly brushing the spot where the belt had pulled. “Be careful.”

The touch was like a spark, instantly igniting every nerve in Su Jin’s body.

She held her breath, turning as stiff as a statue.

Ye Qinglan seemed to sense her tension. As she withdrew her hand, her fingertips grazed Su Jin’s collarbone as if by accident, sending a fine tremor through her.

The rest of the journey passed in silence.

Su Jin stared out the window the whole way, breathing carefully for fear of leaking her inner turmoil. It wasn’t until the car pulled into the villa’s garage that she breathed a sigh of relief.

“I’m going to shower first!” As soon as the car stopped, Su Jin unbuckled her seatbelt and ran away as if fleeing for her life.

Ye Qinglan watched her back, the corners of her lips curling into a meaningful arc.

Su Jin rushed into the guest room, slammed the door, and buried her face in the pillow to let out a silent scream. She felt scorching hot, as if she had a high fever. Every detail from the hot spring was magnified infinitely in her mind.

“Host, you look like a cooked shrimp right now,” the System evaluated coolly.

Su Jin flipped over and stared blankly at the ceiling. “What does she actually mean… one moment I’m a substitute, the next moment she’s…”

“Who cares what she means? Strike while the iron is hot and finish the mission!” the System urged excitedly.

Su Jin grabbed a pillow and threw it at the wall. “Can you have some integrity?!”

She got out of bed and paced back and forth in the room.

Moonlight spilled through the gap in the curtains. As if possessed, Su Jin walked to the window and pulled the curtain back slightly, only to see Ye Qinglan’s silhouette standing in the garden making a phone call.

The moonlight silvered Ye Qinglan’s edges. Her profile was exceptionally clear in the night.

Su Jin involuntarily held her breath, staring at the person outside with strange focus. Ye Qinglan seemed to sense something, she suddenly turned and looked up, locking onto the window where Su Jin was.

Terrified, Su Jin immediately pulled the curtain shut, her heart pounding wildly.

Meanwhile, in the garden, Ye Qinglan ended her call.

Her expression was shadowed in the moonlight. She spoke softly to the air, “System, can you detect the system fluctuations on Su Jin’s side?”

A faint electrical hum responded as a mechanical voice answered, “I can, but it requires a massive amount of energy. Current energy reserves are at 12%, insufficient for a full scan.”

Ye Qinglan said in a low voice, “Is there a way to temporarily block that system of hers? Even for just a few minutes…”

“There is,” the system replied. “If we can devour the energy source from Fang Qi, we can create a temporary shielding field. But the risk is high, forcibly interfering with the operation of another system violates the rules. If we are discovered”

Ye Qinglan let out a cold laugh. “Rules?” Her voice held a suppressed fury. “When they turned Sister into a mission puppet, why didn’t they mention rules?”

The system fell silent, seemingly acquiescing to her choice.

Ye Qinglan looked up at Su Jin’s window again, a look of almost paranoid tenderness appearing in her eyes.

“Sister…” she whispered soundlessly. “This time, it’s my turn to protect you.”

Late at night, Ye Qinglan gently pushed open the door to Su Jin’s room.

Moonlight flowed like water across the bed, outlining Su Jin’s curled-up silhouette. She was sleeping fitfully, her brow slightly furrowed and her eyelashes fluttering occasionally as if she were in the middle of a bad dream.

Ye Qinglan stepped lightly to the bedside and carefully crouched down.

She reached out, her fingertips lightly brushing Su Jin’s hair. Her movements were as gentle as if she were handling a fragile treasure.

After a long time, she leaned down and placed a restrained kiss, light as a feather, on Su Jin’s forehead.

“Goodnight, Sister,” she said soundlessly. “Sweet dreams.”

As she rose to leave, Ye Qinglan didn’t notice Su Jin’s eyelashes trembling slightly.

Only after the door had been closed for a long time did Su Jin dare to open her eyes. The warmth of that kiss still lingered on her forehead, and her heart was beating so fast it felt like it might burst out of her chest.

“System…” she called out softly in her mind. “Ye Qinglan… she just kissed me.”

The System immediately perked up: “Host! Isn’t this a great chance? Tomorrow you should”

“She called me ‘Sister’.” Su Jin interrupted it, her voice muffled. “How much must she love that person…”

The System took the opportunity to incite her: “Host, since she’s so devoted, why not play along? Pretend you ARE that person, and then dump her heartlessly. I guarantee the blackening value will explode! The mission will be finished instantly!”

“Do you have any humanity left!” Su Jin punched her pillow in anger. “Exploiting someone’s feelings like that… it’s too wicked!”

The System was indifferent: “Anyway, the one she loves isn’t the real you, you’re just a substitute. Besides, you can go home once the mission is done. Why care so much?”

Su Jin fell silent.

She remembered the look in Ye Qinglan’s eyes that mixture of scorching passion and restrained deep affection. That kiss, as light as a butterfly’s wing… Unfortunately, all of it was intended for someone else.

“I can’t do it,” she finally whispered. “Even if I have to complete the mission, I can’t do it this way.”

The System let out a cold snort: “Host, you haven’t actually fallen in love with Ye Qinglan, have you?”

Su Jin didn’t answer. She simply buried her face back into the pillow.