Always Chasing My White Moonlight Omega - Chapter 68.1

As Ruan Yang opened the car door, she still held the camellia she had plucked in her hand.

The chilly wind rushed into the car, and just as Xu Zhiyi turned her head, still dazed, something was tucked behind her ear.

She glanced in the rearview mirror and realized it was the very camellia she had idly played with while sitting in the car earlier.

The vibrant camellia now rested beside her ear, carrying a hint of the cold, allowing her to breathe in the scent of late autumn.

She looked at Ruan Yang and couldn’t help but reach up to touch the camellia petals.

In that moment, through the open car door, she caught sight of Qu Shanshan staring at them from behind a glass window not far away.

Xu Zhiyi averted her gaze after just one glance and playfully chided Ruan Yang, “Why did you go picking flowers randomly?”

Ruan Yang got into the car and closed the door. The warm air inside enveloped her face, wrapping her heart in comfort.

As she fastened her seatbelt, she said, “I just thought this flower would suit you perfectly. I won’t do it again.”

Not long ago, while sitting in the café, this was exactly what she had been thinking that if this flower were tucked into Xu Zhiyi’s hair, it would become the most beautiful flower in the world.

Hearing this, Xu Zhiyi curved her lips into a smile and didn’t say anything more, only asking, “So, where are you planning to go now?”

Ruan Yang had already taken a day off for both Xu Zhiyi and herself, so they didn’t need to go to the film set today.

After a moment’s thought, she replied, “Let’s go back to the hotel. It’s snowing outside.”

The hotel the crew had booked was the tallest and largest in the entire film studio complex. From there, they could see almost the entire landscape of the studio. Once the snow grew heavier, the view would surely be breathtaking.

She wanted to watch the snow with Xu Zhiyi.

The weather was indeed perfect for snow-watching, and Xu Zhiyi quickly agreed. “Alright, let’s head back now.”

She started the car and drove toward the hotel in the film studio complex. About half an hour later, they arrived. Xu Zhiyi parked the car, and the two took the elevator up to her room, which had a better view.

As soon as they entered the room, Xu Zhiyi turned on the heater, brewed a pot of hot floral tea, and brought out two thin blankets.

After preparing everything, she and Ruan Yang wrapped themselves in the blankets and sat on the bay window of the hotel room, sipping tea while admiring the scenery outside.

The snow had grown heavier than when they were driving back, and the roofs of many buildings in the distant film studio were already coated in a layer of white.

The snowflakes falling from the sky grew larger and larger, casting a dreamy, soft glow over the entire world.

In this tranquil and serene atmosphere, Ruan Yang stared out the window and suddenly said, “There was no one else in the bar last night, was there?”

Xu Zhiyi’s gaze, fixed on the snowy scene, flickered. Ruan Yang turned to look at her and continued, “The location details and room number you sent them to me using Jiang Jiang’s phone.”

Xu Zhiyi remained silent for a long time, as if avoiding the question. But Ruan Yang kept her gaze fixed on her, seemingly demanding an answer.

The two of them stood in a silent stalemate. It was impossible to tell how much time had passed before Xu Zhiyi finally moved, pouring herself a cup of floral tea and taking a small sip. Then she asked, “How did you figure it out?”

Having gotten the answer, Ruan Yang curled the corners of her lips, a hint of slyness flickering in the corners of her eyes.

She said, “I guessed.”

“You guessed?” The floral tea in her hand suddenly felt scalding. Xu Zhiyi shot Ruan Yang a weak glare, seemingly amused yet exasperated, and gave her a light shove. “You! You tricked me!”

The hand pushing against her leg carried no real force. Ruan Yang smiled along, then reached out and took Xu Zhiyi’s hand in hers.

Together, they tucked their hands under the blanket, warm and cozy.

In truth, the moment she stepped into that room last night, Ruan Yang had noticed that aside from the strong scent of alcohol, there was only a faint aroma of roses in the air, no other smells. That had sparked her suspicion that Xu Zhiyi had been alone in the room all along.

And if Xu Zhiyi had been alone, then Jiang Jiang’s claim about an old flame visiting her was likely false.

Xu Zhiyi had done all this just to make Ruan Yang rush to the bar as quickly as possible.

As for why she had done it, Ruan Yang hadn’t been entirely sure last night, but now she had a rough idea.

“And what about you?” Xu Zhiyi didn’t pull her hand away from Ruan Yang’s grasp. Holding her teacup with her other hand, she asked softly, “What was that mystery you were hinting at earlier?”

At the mention of this, Ruan Yang glanced at the clock in the room. It was already half past two. She took the teacup from Xu Zhiyi’s hand and said, “Check the Weibo hot search.”

With her hands now free, Xu Zhiyi took out her phone, opened Weibo, and immediately saw the top trending topic: a prestigious industry award had just announced this year’s list of nominated works.

She looked up at Ruan Yang, who nodded in confirmation, so Xu Zhiyi clicked into the topic and found the official long image, carefully scanning through each item.

After scrolling for what felt like ages, nearly reaching the bottom of the image, she finally spotted a category related to short dramas.

Right there, in the “Best Short Drama” section, she saw the short drama Qu Shanshan had released two months ago.

Staring at Qu Shanshan’s profile picture for a moment, she continued scrolling and found that Qu Shanshan was also nominated for Best Actress in a Short Drama. Puzzled, she looked up and asked, “This award category was just established this year, right? I don’t remember it existing before.”

Ruan Yang nodded. “Yes, it was just established this year.”

In recent years, short dramas had developed rapidly, and it wasn’t surprising for awards to introduce relevant categories to keep up with the trend.

Xu Zhiyi didn’t dwell on it too much. She asked Ruan Yang, “Was that what Qu Shanshan came to tell you the other day?”

“Mm,” Ruan Yang nodded.

“But what does that have to do with you?” Xu Zhiyi said. “Why would she come tell you about her nomination?”

Hearing her question, Ruan Yang seemed to let out a soft sigh. She gazed at Xu Zhiyi for a moment, a trace of helplessness seeping into her tone as she replied, “Because I directed it.”

“…” Xu Zhiyi’s eyes widened in shock, leaving her frozen in place.

What had she just heard?

Ruan Yang directed that drama?

Since when did this happen? Why did she know nothing about it?

“Otherwise, do you think Uncle Xu would so readily entrust such a large production team to me?” Ruan Yang looked at Xu Zhiyi’s stunned expression, her tone softening considerably. “It’s because I’ve directed before and studied under Director Wu.”

Although it was a short drama, at least she had experience. That was why Xu Rongjiang, that old fox, had allowed her to direct this series, while also assigning so many assistant directors to keep an eye on her, fearing she might make mistakes.

It took Xu Zhiyi a long moment to regain her composure. She vaguely remembered having seen the director of that drama. Her brows relaxed as she asked, “Wasn’t the director of that drama named Yan Xia?”

“Yes,” Ruan Yang replied, perhaps because Xu Zhiyi’s puzzled expression was a rare sight, finding her utterly adorable at that moment. She couldn’t resist raising her hand to gently touch Xu Zhiyi’s cheek. “I am Yan Xia.”

Xu Zhiyi still had the camellia tucked behind her ear. Whether during the drive or after entering the room, she had never taken it off.

A sudden fullness swelled in Ruan Yang’s heart. The softness of the skin beneath her palm made her gently pinch Xu Zhiyi’s cheek twice.

“Yan Xia,” Xu Zhiyi murmured, seemingly lost in her thoughts and unaware of Ruan Yang’s actions.

She lowered her head and repeated the name twice more, “Yan Xia, Yan Xia.”

The implied meaning.

At this realization, Xu Zhiyi abruptly looked up, causing Ruan Yang to release her cheek.

Her eyes sparkled, reflecting the snowflakes drifting outside the window.

Ruan Yang nodded and said, “Yes, it’s exactly what you’re thinking.”

The moment those words fell, the feelings she had buried deep in her heart for so many years finally saw the light of day.

She had entered this industry for Xu Zhiyi in the first place. Now that Xu Zhiyi knew the truth, Ruan Yang felt a sense of relief.

She took a deep breath and asked Xu Zhiyi, “Now that I’ve met Qu Shanshan.”

Could she finally receive the answer she had been waiting for?

The humid warmth had flushed Xu Zhiyi’s cheeks. She suddenly pursed her lips, then withdrew her hand from beneath the blanket.

Caught off guard, Ruan Yang felt her palm go empty and turned to look at Xu Zhiyi.

“This first snow is truly worth commemorating.”

What?

Just as Ruan Yang was about to ask what she meant, a pair of warm hands cupped her cheeks.

In the next second, Xu Zhiyi’s face drew closer, until their soft lips met without a trace of space between them, silencing the words Ruan Yang had intended to say.

It was a very gentle kiss. Xu Zhiyi lightly licked her lips, and the fragrance of floral tea lingered in their shared breath.

They remained pressed together without further movement for a while before Xu Zhiyi slowly pulled away, though her hands did not release their hold.

Their breaths mingled, and the air grew thick, as if stretching into silken threads.

After what felt like an eternity of gazing into each other’s eyes, Xu Zhiyi curved her lips into a smile and said, “It’s time. The moment has come.”

Her expression turned serious. “I like you, Ruan Yang.”

Though the words were the same four characters, Ruan Yang felt that hearing them from Xu Zhiyi’s lips made her heart race faster than if they had come from anyone else.

Her hand, holding the teacup, trembled slightly, spilling a few drops of the floral tea.

Xu Zhiyi noticed the expression and took the teacup from her hand, setting it aside. She chuckled softly and said, “I’m sorry for all the malice I showed you in the past.”

Now, there were many moments when Xu Zhiyi would look at Ruan Yang and inexplicably feel a sense of bewilderment.

She had truly fallen for this sister she once despised to the core, the one she used to curse and resent and now she found herself helplessly in love with her.

It all felt like a dream.

But Ruan Yang shook her head. “It’s okay.”

Throughout all the years she had spent in the Xu family, she had never taken Xu Zhiyi’s malicious words to heart. She understood how Xu Zhiyi felt.

Though Xu Zhiyi was sharp-tongued, she had never truly acted against Ruan Yang or her mother all this time.

“Are you really okay with it?” Xu Zhiyi asked hesitantly, afraid that Ruan Yang might still be holding onto resentment but was unwilling to say so out of consideration for her feelings.

“Really,” Ruan Yang nodded with a soft smile. “I know that deep down, you’re a very, very good person.”

So good that even after all these years of admiration, Ruan Yang still found her heart fluttering over the smallest things.

Seeing the sincerity in Ruan Yang’s eyes and sensing no deceit, Xu Zhiyi finally relaxed.

She let out a sigh of relief, gazed into Ruan Yang’s eyes for a moment, and suddenly grew curious. “What about you? When did you start liking me?”

She had never really thought about this before. It was only from the pendant of the sunny doll last time that she realized Ruan Yang had harbored feelings for her for a long time.

But as for exactly when, Xu Zhiyi wasn’t quite sure.

Upon hearing the question, Ruan Yang fell silent for a long while.

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