After Secretly Marrying the Top Celebrity, I Fell in Love - Chapter 29

In the clear morning, the pale golden dawn streamed through the French window into the bedroom, and a gentle breeze lifted a corner of the curtain.

In the quiet bedroom, Bai Yiyan lay flat on the large bed with her eyes closed, her straight black hair scattered on the pillow.

The fever had finally broken.

But Bo Yiyan’s complexion was still very poor, the paleness of her face clearly showing signs of illness, with not a trace of color in her cheeks.

The next second, the woman’s long, well-defined eyelashes fluttered, and she slowly opened her eyes. Several visible blood vessels were spread across the bottom of her eyes, a shocking, alarming red.

“Cough, cough! Cough, cough!” A sudden itch in her throat made Bo Yiyan unconsciously clutch her chest and start coughing.

The heart-wrenching sound of coughing instantly echoed in the bedroom. The bedroom was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop, making the coughs especially clear.

“…!” Outside the door, Ye Manqing, who had just reached the bedroom door, suddenly stopped.

Ye Manqing subconsciously frowned, and the five fingers holding the glass tightened. She extended her other hand to lightly grip the doorknob and immediately pushed the door open.

The sight before her instantly made Ye Manqing’s heart thump hard, tightening painfully in her chest.

Hearing the door open, Bo Yiyan on the bed looked up at the doorway, a pair of moist eyes filled with tiny tears gazing at the person who entered.

Their gazes met in mid-air.

“Cough, cough… cough, cough…” Bo Yiyan tried hard to suppress the constant itch rising in her throat but still couldn’t hold it back, coughing again while clutching her chest.

Bo Yiyan’s shoulders uncontrollably trembled from the coughing, and the sound of her coughs, tearing at the heart and lungs, rose one after another.

Ye Manqing frowned deeply and quickly walked to the bed, gently patting Bo Yiyan’s hunched back with her hand.

After a bout of intense coughing, it finally stopped. Bo Yiyan felt like her lungs were about to be coughed out, and physiological tears filled her pair of bloodshot eyes.

“Here, Yanyan, drink some water.” Ye Manqing sat on the edge of the bed and offered the glass of warm water she held.

“Thank you.” Bo Yiyan took the glass with both hands and buried her head, sipping slowly.

Her throat was gradually moistened by the warm water, and the burning, tearing sensation in her throat slowly subsided. Bo Yiyan immediately felt much more comfortable.

“Are you hungry?” Ye Manqing reached out and took the empty glass from Bo Yiyan’s hand, looking at her with concern.

“A little.” Bo Yiyan’s voice was a bit hoarse when she spoke. “But I don’t have much appetite.”

“It’s okay, then just eat a little.” Ye Manqing said considerately. “I made some plain white congee, would you like some?”

“Mhm.” Bo Yiyan replied softly.

Ye Manqing had gotten up early to cook the white congee, simmering it in a clay pot for over an hour. Thinking that plain congee would be bland, Ye Manqing also prepared a small dish of cold-dressed smashed cucumbers, seasoned only with light soy sauce, chicken bouillon, and a few drops of sesame oil.

Bo Yiyan had just recovered from a high fever; not only did she lack an appetite, but her mouth also tasted somewhat bitter. The white congee was bland, but fortunately, the dish of smashed cucumbers was very crisp and refreshing.

Despite this, Bo Yiyan still had no appetite.

“Don’t eat if you can’t finish it.” Across the table, Ye Manqing put down her spoon and said gently to Bo Yiyan, “Small meals, eaten frequently.”

Bo Yiyan softly said, “Mhm,” and obediently put down her chopsticks.

“Be a good girl and recuperate at home these few days, okay?” Ye Manqing looked at Bo Yiyan with her light brown pupils, asking.

“…Okay.” Bo Yiyan nodded in agreement.

Although the high fever had receded, Bo Yiyan’s body was still very weak, with no energy and constant cold sweats.

Just during the time it took to eat breakfast, Bo Yiyan had sweated quite a bit on her neck and chest, and even the stray hairs on the back of her neck were dampened by sweat, the strands sticking to her snow-white neck.

“I’ll stay home and keep you company.” After a few seconds of silence, Ye Manqing’s voice came again from across the table.

“Don’t you have to go out for announcements?” Bo Yiyan’s expression slightly froze, and she countered.

“No.” Ye Manqing answered calmly.

Actually, it wasn’t that she didn’t have to; rather, Ye Manqing had pushed back all her announcements. She wasn’t at ease leaving Bo Yiyan alone at home.

When she saw Bo Yiyan speaking deliriously while having a high fever, Ye Manqing immediately decided to cancel all her recent announcements so she could stay by Bo Yiyan’s side and take care of her.

Through their time together, Ye Manqing had noticed that Bo Yiyan was not only steady in character but also liked to keep everything bottled up. Of course, it might also be that she hadn’t yet gained Bo Yiyan’s trust.

With a lifetime ahead, Ye Manqing was confident that she could get Bo Yiyan to open up to her, until she trusted her completely.

…

Not bringing her phone to the dining table during meals has always been a habit of Ye Manqing’s. Unexpectedly, Bo Yiyan also had this habit when eating—she always focused on eating and never played with her phone simultaneously.

Therefore, it was only when Bo Yiyan finished breakfast and returned to the second-floor bedroom that she saw that Zhang Mingxiu had sent her WeChat messages ten minutes ago, several in a row.

Zhang Mingxiu: [Xiao Bai, are you feeling better from your cold?]

Zhang Mingxiu: [I have good news for you. Your payment doesn’t have to wait until after filming wraps to be settled. I applied for an early entry fee for you, and the finance department has already approved it (smiling face emoji)]

Zhang Mingxiu: [Your one million yuan salary will be settled in a “three-three-four” breakdown. The entry fee will be the first three installments, which is 300,000 yuan.]

Zhang Mingxiu: [When you have a moment, send me your bank card number so I can pass it to finance.]

Bo Yiyan focused, reading the string of WeChat messages from Director Zhang again, confirming that she hadn’t misread them, and hadn’t ruined her brain with the fever.

Bo Yiyan found it very strange. She hadn’t mentioned anything about an “entry fee” to the director, so why would he suddenly think of it?

If she hadn’t brought it up, then who mentioned it to the director?

Bo Yiyan pondered for a moment, and the only person she could think of was—Ye Manqing.

The film and television industry had been struggling in recent years, and for a lesser-known actress like Bo Yiyan, even if she landed the role of the second female lead, her salary would only be settled after the entire series was filmed.

The temporary inability to receive her salary was why Bo Yiyan was working so desperately to earn money before joining the cast.

Now that she had this money, she wouldn’t have to desperately earn money every day during the period leading up to joining the crew.

The numerous difficulties caused by a lack of money suddenly dissolved. Money truly can solve ninety percent of the world’s problems.

Bo Yiyan snapped back to reality, quickly opened Alipay, found the linked bank card, copied the card number, and then sent the number to the director.

She also said “Thank you.”

Putting away her phone, Bo Yiyan decided to take another shower because she had sweated a lot while eating breakfast.

The pajamas she was wearing were prepared by Ye Manqing. She had prepared several sets of innerwear and pajamas, enough for changing and washing.

Although Ye Manqing did not go out, she was not idle at all.

In addition to being a famous actress, Ye Manqing had another identity: the owner of two chains of five-star hotels and ten restaurants. Furthermore, she had her own studio with several artists signed under it.

While the hotels and restaurants were usually managed by managers, there were times when they had to report to her, the boss.

To facilitate communication, when she wasn’t filming or had no announcements, Ye Manqing would hold a video conference every Monday morning. The twelve managers from the hotels and restaurants would log in on time to the online meeting room.

Today happened to be Monday.

Before this, Ye Manqing had already asked her secretary to send a notice in the work group, stating that next week’s weekly meeting would be held on time.

Because Bo Yiyan had been having a fluctuating fever for a whole day and night yesterday, and the high fever only completely subsided this morning, Ye Manqing had been by the patient’s bedside without leaving, completely forgetting about the weekly meeting.

Until Secretary Chen called Ye Manqing.

Secretary Chen tentatively asked over the phone, “President Ye, are we still holding this week’s weekly meeting? Should we reschedule it?”

Ye Manqing suddenly frowned and immediately realized, “No, I’m free now.”

She glanced down at the lady’s wristwatch on her left wrist; it was already a quarter past nine.

Thus, this week’s weekly meeting started fifteen minutes late. It was a quick meeting, ending an hour later.

After the meeting, Ye Manqing took several consecutive phone calls. The laptop on the desk remained on, turning off the screen repeatedly, only to be turned back on by Ye Manqing each time.

Finally, she wasn’t busy anymore. Ye Manqing glanced at the time; it was almost eleven o’clock.

This workload was not heavy for Ye Manqing, but for these two hours of work, she had not been fully focused. She was constantly worried about whether Bo Yiyan would suddenly get a fever again, if she had taken her cold medicine, and if she was resting well.

So, as soon as she finished the work at hand, Ye Manqing rushed out of the study without even closing her laptop, moving quickly towards the direction of the master bedroom.

The bedroom door was slightly ajar. Ye Manqing gently pushed the door open, stepped quietly into the bedroom, and walked straight towards the bed.

Once close, Ye Manqing sat down by the edge of the bed, looking tenderly at the sleeping Bo Yiyan.

Reaching out, Ye Manqing used the back of her hand to check Bo Yiyan’s forehead. Thankfully, she didn’t have a fever.

One panel of the French window was opened, and a gentle breeze occasionally wafted into the bedroom. The doctor had said to open the window for ventilation, so Ye Manqing complied.

On the large bed, Bo Yiyan slept peacefully. The silk duvet was placed at the position of her chest, with both arms resting outside the quilt. Her curled, raven-black lashes were lightly lowered, casting two small shadows on her lower eyelids under the light.

Bo Yiyan’s face was pale and lacking color, clearly showing signs of illness. She looked utterly fragile, beautiful yet vulnerable, a sight that made one’s heart ache.

Ye Manqing slowly leaned down and gently kissed Bo Yiyan’s tightly closed lips.

The four lips met, without a hint of desire.

A few seconds later, just as Ye Manqing withdrew her lips, Bo Yiyan suddenly woke up, half-opening a pair of brown pupils covered with a thin layer of mist.

Their noses were touching, their breaths intermingled, and their eyes were locked.

Ye Manqing’s heart immediately raced, trying desperately to maintain a calm exterior.

The next second, Bo Yiyan slightly tilted her head and actively kissed Ye Manqing’s lips, gently closing her eyes which were filled with fine moisture.

“…!” Ye Manqing’s heart pounded like a drum, and she swallowed hard. A beautiful blush gradually appeared on her cheeks, extraordinarily radiant.

Bo Yiyan’s spontaneous kiss ignited a wave of heat throughout Ye Manqing’s body.

As the kissing continued, Ye Manqing instinctively pressed down on Bo Yiyan’s body.

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