Falling in Love with a Stand-in [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 2

Chapter 2: The Movie Queen’s Little Butterfly (02)

In the film and television base, stars big and small are a common sight. Walking down the street, no one would give Shen Yu a second glance except for his fans.

But she was Lin Qinglu.

Behind the shop windows, many people poked their heads out, stealing glances both openly and covertly.

A light breeze blew, making the wind chimes of the shop tinkle.

Jian Yixin took a step back and said, “You must be joking; we are just friends.”

The gap between the two widened. Lin Qinglu stood up straight; she nodded indifferently at such a standard answer and lifted her leg to leave.

Lin Qinglu’s long trench coat brushed open in the wind, grazing the side of Jian Yixin’s leg. In the moment they passed each other, Jian Yixin changed her mind.

“To be precise, we were friends before, but now I don’t want to be friends with him anymore,” Jian Yixin said, tilting her head slightly. Her voice was neither loud nor soft, successfully making Lin Qinglu stop in her tracks.

The onlookers were separated from them by a window and could not hear their voices.

Lin Qinglu looked back.

Jian Yixin’s mind was very calm.

Since Lin Qinglu had learned of her close relationship with Shen Yu, if she didn’t break it down to build it anew, there would always be a label of “associated with Shen Yu” on her in Lin Qinglu’s mind.

Casual communication would be fine, but if she wanted to become close friends and make her supportive actions toward Lin Qinglu seem less abrupt, this label had to be torn off.

Perhaps today Lin Qinglu’s favorability toward her hadn’t increased, and she might even think Jian Yixin was too naive to have been a fan of Shen Yu in the first place.

However, “naive” is never a derogatory term.

Jian Yixin avoided Lin Qinglu’s eyes, putting on an appropriate expression with a slightly dejected tone:

“I used to be his fan, but after interacting with him, he isn’t quite what I imagined.”

“As expected, between an idol and a fan… there still needs to be distance.”

Jian Yixin (as Song Pianqian) furrowed her brows slightly. Because she had practiced dance since childhood, her temperament was elegant and graceful, like a flawless white swan.

Showing sorrow made her look like an elf lost in the middle of a misty lake—beautiful and fragile.

Lin Qinglu was dazed for a moment but quickly snapped out of it.

Tsk, a scene where the pure-hearted female fan’s filter shatters?

She said indifferently, “You don’t need to tell me specifically.”

“As long as you do your job well, it doesn’t matter who you are friends with.”

Shen Yu was currently walking toward them. Lin Qinglu didn’t want to run into him. Without waiting for a reply from Song Pianqian, she left straight away.

The sound of high heels clicked further and further away.

09 was confused again. In an instant, the promised recording wasn’t handed over, and instead, the host admitted to being a Shen Yu fan?

Before it could voice its doubts, 09 hurriedly reminded: “Shen Yu is almost here, what are you going to say to him?”

Jian Yixin didn’t look back at all and picked a random direction to walk away.

“He won’t come over.”

09 was skeptical, but as it turned out, after Lin Qinglu left, Shen Yu indeed did not chase after her.

Jian Yixin said nonchalantly, “A man who’s afraid to even enter or exit a restaurant at the same time as a woman—what is there to fear?”

After both women left, the employees behind the shop window withdrew their gazes and started chattering:

“Lin Qinglu is so beautiful, I love her to death!”

“Who was that other girl? A newly debuted actress?”

“Who knows, but beauty is everything.” As the employee spoke, she uploaded the photo to Weibo:

“After seeing so many actors, I finally saw my goddess. A leak with a girl from the same crew [Attached Photo]”

The employee put away her phone with satisfaction. Because she didn’t add hashtags or the actors’ names, the post quickly sank to the bottom of the internet ocean.

When Lin Qinglu returned carrying the butterfly crackers (Palmiers), her assistant, Liu Lele, was waiting for her in the room.

“…The third bag this month.” Liu Lele looked at the crackers and held up three fingers, then added two more, “Today is only the 5th.”

Lin Qinglu pretended not to hear: “If there is business, petition the throne; if not, the court is dismissed.”

Liu Lele sighed and handed over a list: “The interview list V-Video requested earlier has been compiled.”

V-Video was a popular short-video program. Each episode lasted less than half an hour, primarily interviewing the behind-the-scenes teams of celebrities and trending film crews to talk about interesting anecdotes. This time, they sought out Lin Qinglu.

Lin Qinglu took the list. Liu Lele said, “V-Video is very interested in your daily styling, so there are two slots for stylists. For the crew representative, the planners originally had their eyes on the dance double, Song Pianqian.”

“But Song Pianqian…” Liu Lele frowned, clearly not having a good impression of Song Pianqian. “I swapped her for the cameraman. Sister, take a look and see if that’s okay.”

Although she asked if it was okay, Liu Lele knew her artist didn’t care about these things at all and usually didn’t interfere. She was just asking out of habit.

“Why swap for a cameraman?” Lin Qinglu tossed the list aside and lowered her head to focus on unpacking the butterfly crackers.

“…Eh?”

What did that mean? Liu Lele was stunned. She scratched her head—she didn’t want the cameraman?

“Just keep Song Pianqian.” Lin Qinglu raised an eyebrow. Her cool fragrance was diluted by the scent of butter as a sweet, melting aroma filled the air.

“But she’s so close to Shen Yu, her body is in our camp but her heart is with the enemy!” Liu Lele was a bit unwilling.

Lin Qinglu was amused by her: “What kind of nonsense is that?”

“She’s just a little girl; what could she possibly know?”

However, she seemed a bit more sensible now.

“Give her what she’s due.”

Lin Qinglu said no more, picking up a butterfly cracker and bringing it to her lips.

As her lips moved, fine crumbs of the pastry clung to her red lips, sweet and soft.

Jian Yixin found a place for afternoon tea and took the opportunity to explain to 09 why she had acted that way.

09 had a sudden realization and went silent to contemplate.

Jian Yixin used this time to go through the key points of Song Pianqian’s memory. Aside from liking the idol Shen Yu, Song Pianqian was gentle, beautiful, talented, and pampered by her family. Her life was like a beautiful fairy tale.

—Even if she had suppressed Lin Qinglu for Shen Yu’s sake, no one would have been able to touch her. The anger of Lin Qinglu’s fans would have been useless; the little princess was protected by her family, unharmed.

As Jian Yixin was thinking, her phone vibrated. The caller ID showed Song Zhe, Song Pianqian’s brother.

She picked up: “Brother.”

“Little sister.” Song Zhe was in his office. Hearing his sister’s voice, the corners of his mouth curled up. The usual sternness he used for reprimanding subordinates vanished, and his voice became extremely gentle. “How are things today? When are you coming back from the film crew?”

Jian Yixin imitated Song Pianqian’s tone and acted spoiled: “I’ve only been out for a few days, Brother.”

“It’s been almost a week.” Song Zhe sighed. “You won’t let anyone follow you; it’s so inconvenient for you to be out there alone. You even have to share living quarters. I wanted to invest in the crew, but you blocked me…”

No matter how overbearing a CEO is, they are all the same when it comes to nagging their younger sisters.

Song Zhe was much older than the original host and had always raised his sister like a daughter. Although Jian Yixin didn’t need this kind of care, she gave full patience to the worries of family and explained everything one by one.

“As for investing…” Jian Yixin didn’t mind using “money power” to achieve her goals simply and crudely, so she thought for two seconds.

Song Zhe saw a glimmer of hope in successfully sending his sister money and asked expectantly: “Well?”

“There’s no need. I’m not an actor in the crew; I’ll go back after I’m done with the dance doubling,” Jian Yixin said after consideration.

“Alright, I respect your opinion.”

Jian Yixin smiled. She liked this kind of family—caring for each other but maintaining mutual respect. Therefore, she said sincerely, “Thanks, Brother.”

His sister’s voice was soft and ethereal, and Song Zhe’s heart melted. He wished he could give her all the good things in the world, but unfortunately, his sister wanted nothing.

Song Zhe didn’t give up: “Is there really nothing you need me to do for you?”

Jian Yixin found it hard to refuse such hospitality. She rubbed her temples and remembered: “Then… Brother, can you find me a pastry chef?”

Song Zhe: “Ah?”

Jian Yixin looked out the window. Across the road was a chain bakery with mediocre flavors. Looking at the packaging, that was where Lin Qinglu had bought her crackers.

Lin Qinglu’s love for butterfly crackers was famous.

“One who makes small desserts,” Jian Yixin smiled slightly. “Specifically butterfly crackers. I’ve really wanted to eat them lately.”

Song Zhe proved his love for his sister through efficiency. On the afternoon following the call, the Song family butler delivered a pastry chef.

Naturally, the person couldn’t be brought into the film set. The butler handled everything, purchasing a shop in the film and television base and undergoing rapid renovations.

This pastry chef was Chinese, with a resume full of awards from various international culinary competitions. Because Song Pianqian had specifically mentioned butterfly crackers, the chef brought a finished batch along.

The butterfly crackers, fresh out of the oven that morning, were filled with a sweet aroma. The rich buttery scent wafted out from the gaps in the pastry box; they smelled delicious.

As for the taste, she would take them back to try first. If they passed her standards, she would use them to build favorability with Lin Qinglu.

Jian Yixin’s plan was solid—provided she didn’t run into Lin Qinglu in the hotel reception lobby.

Lin Qinglu walked past with her assistant. Initially, she only spared Jian Yixin a glance.

After two or three seconds, her nose twitched slightly. Her pace slowed until she came to a complete stop, looking at the pastry box in Jian Yixin’s hand.

Her sunglasses covered most of her face, making it impossible to see her expression. Her lips parted slightly, and her voice carried a bit of laziness:

“Song Pianqian?”

Jian Yixin: “…”