Going from "Fanservice" to Reality with My Goddess - Chapter 15

As if in a hurry to attend to urgent matters, the soldier displayed his finest skills, bringing Yu Nianzhi to a light landing in a matter of moments. He was likely Shen Yan’s trusted confidant, for he brought Yu Nianzhi directly into the courtyard of the Crown Prince’s Manor.

Once Yu Nianzhi found her footing, she did not look back at the man, saying only, “You have worked hard, brother. You must be exhausted from the battlefield; go back and rest early.”

However, the man did not leave. Instead, he let out a chuckle. “I’ve only just returned, and you’re already driving me away? My lady has such a cruel heart.”

That voice was far too familiar.

Yu Nianzhi spun around. This was no soldier—that face clearly belonged to Shen Yan! She had even been bold enough to forego her usual disguise, revealing her natural feminine features. Yu Nianzhi’s mind had been in such turmoil earlier that she truly hadn’t noticed the person’s appearance.

She was in a daze, subconsciously asking, “Weren’t you just…”

Shen Yan explained with a smile, “That was a body double. Let him deal with my Imperial Father. I was eager to return; I naturally had to see my lady first.”

Only then did Yu Nianzhi understand. She turned around and walked step by step until she was right in front of Shen Yan. The two stared at each other in silence.

Shen Yan whispered, “I’m back. I’m sorry for making you worry.”

Yu Nianzhi did not respond; she simply looked directly into her eyes. Months of military life had added a touch of weariness to Shen Yan’s face, but her eyes remained as bright and radiant as they were the day they first met.

Seeing that Yu Nianzhi remained silent, a sudden wave of panic washed over Shen Yan. She was about to say something more when Yu Nianzhi suddenly stood on her tiptoes and kissed her lips fiercely.

Shen Yan’s eyes widened for an instant, then she wrapped her arms around the other woman’s waist and responded to the kiss with equal passion. Yu Nianzhi’s lips were soft and dry; Shen Yan gently sucked on them, slowly guiding her, prying open her teeth to deepen the kiss.

They embraced tightly, kissing so intensely that the air on the set seemed to heat up. The surrounding staff felt their faces flush, feeling a bit embarrassed yet unable to look away from the two beauties at the center of the scene. It had to be said that the visual was exceptionally pleasing.

Lin Xin and Song Xin hid in a corner, chanting “see no evil” in their minds while watching intently. Both were thinking: I’m going to die from stanning this ship one day.

The two actresses in the center were oblivious to their surroundings. Yu Nianzhi knew her strength could not match Shen Yan’s, but she refused to be easily suppressed and bit down hard on Shen Yan’s lip.

Shen Yan felt a sharp pain, yet she refused to let go, allowing a faint metallic taste of blood to spread between their teeth. With a slight surge of strength, she pinned Yu Nianzhi against the wall, one hand braced against the stone and the other supporting Yu Nianzhi’s waist, deepening the kiss further.

After an unknown amount of time, Duan Yi finally spoke: “Cut! Wrap it up, wrap it up.”

Shen Yan and Yu Nianzhi finally separated, both still breathing slightly heavily. As they caught each other’s eyes, their faces were flushed deep pink, like peach blossoms in early spring.

Shen Yan composed herself and looked at the director. “Is that enough footage?”

Duan Yi cleared his throat. “Plenty, plenty.” He then muttered under his breath, “I actually wanted you to strike while the iron is hot and film the next scene too.”

Of course, he only dared to say that to himself. Moving straight to the next scene would have been far too inappropriate.

“That’s all for today. Everyone has worked hard,” Duan Yi announced. “We have a major scene tomorrow, so our two leads should be well-prepared.”

At the mention of tomorrow’s scene, Yu Nianzhi turned red from her heels to the tips of her hair; she was practically cooked. When she was in character, she could immerse herself completely, but now that filming was over, facing Shen Yan again made her face burn. She felt a bit shy about facing her, yet she couldn’t help a small surge of secret joy.

Her only regret was that she couldn’t ask Shen Yan to rehearse tonight. After all, what they had to perform tomorrow…

She took a long breath. She had to stay steady for tomorrow’s scene.

After the lights were out, Yu Nianzhi tossed and turned, unable to sleep. She was wracked with nerves over tomorrow’s script. Having never been in a relationship, let alone anything more intimate, she was incredibly tense and didn’t know how to handle it. Especially knowing her scene partner was Shen Yan, sleep became an impossible task.

OMG! I have to film that tomorrow! I need to sleep!

Yu Nianzhi pulled the quilt over her head and used her final resort: counting sheep. By the time she reached the 31,475th sheep, she finally felt drowsy and drifted into a hazy sleep.

The next morning, Lin Xin knocked on the door as usual. A voice answered from inside, and a moment later, Yu Nianzhi appeared with two dark circles under her eyes.

Lin Xin was startled. “Sister Yu, what… what were you doing last night?”

Yu Nianzhi yawned. “Is it that obvious? I thought I looked okay.”

“Definitely. Didn’t you see it in the mirror?” Lin Xin said. “Want me to help you touch up your makeup?”

“It’s fine. I won’t run into many people on the way anyway,” Yu Nianzhi said indifferently.

As they spoke, the door next door opened, and Shen Yan stepped out. She turned toward them and greeted them: “Morning.”

“Good morning, Teacher Shen,” they replied.

Yu Nianzhi smiled. “Would you like to go to breakfast together, Teacher Shen?”

“Let’s go,” Shen Yan agreed.

As Yu Nianzhi stepped closer, she noticed a faint shadow of fatigue under Shen Yan’s eyes as well. It was in better condition than hers, but still visible.

Did the Goddess also… last night?

Yu Nianzhi couldn’t help but ask, “Teacher Shen, did you… last night?”

An awkward expression flickered across Shen Yan’s usually calm face, but she quickly masked it. “Oh, there was some sudden business with the studio last night, so I stayed up a bit late.”

“I see,” Yu Nianzhi replied, while secretly chiding herself. How could I have such thoughts? Teacher Shen is a veteran; she wouldn’t be like me!

Noticing Yu Nianzhi’s dark circles, Shen Yan asked casually, “And what happened to you?”

Yu Nianzhi froze. She couldn’t very well say she stayed up overthinking today’s scene. In her haste, she made up the most cliché yet reasonable excuse: “I was mulling over today’s scene last night, so I didn’t sleep…”

Halfway through the sentence, she realized how inappropriate that “normal” excuse sounded in this context. She saw Shen Yan’s eyebrow arch and immediately shut her mouth.

No, wait! Let me explain!

Shen Yan smiled. “Mulling over the plot… that’s very good. I was wondering why you didn’t come to rehearse with me last night. It turns out you were doing your own research.” There was even a hint of regret in her tone at the end.

Yu Nianzhi: “…” This conversation is getting weirder by the second. Also, Teacher Shen, are you really disappointed that we didn’t rehearse today’s scene together…?

When they arrived at the set, they found that Duan Yi had arrived early for once and was directing the staff to clear the area for filming. Seeing their matching dark circles, he laughed. “Are you two wearing ‘couple’s makeup’ out in the open now?”

Yu Nianzhi: “…” Director Duan, you really have a way with words.

While Yu Nianzhi remained silent, Shen Yan couldn’t resist sniping back. “Indeed. Why? Is the eternal bachelor jealous?”

Duan Yi: “…I’m absolutely dying of envy.”

Shen Yan rolled her eyes. “Then keep envying. I wish you luck in finding a partner in your next life.”

Duan Yi: “…”

The director, knowing he was no match for Shen Yan’s tongue, scurried away.

Today’s scene was one of the most pivotal moments in Love and Longing. Feng Ji had returned safely from the brink of death, and Wen Yan had experienced the extremes of grief and joy. The emotional conflict between them reached a climax, leading to an intimate scene. Fortunately, Director Duan considered this a period film; while there was intimacy, it followed a subtle, aesthetic style, which relieved Yu Nianzhi slightly.

Though, inexplicably, she felt a tiny bit of regret.

The two went to makeup. Yu Nianzhi asked her makeup artist to wait a moment while she used the restroom. When she returned and sat down, she heard Shen Yan’s artist laughing. “Teacher Shen, you came with makeup on this time? Your skin is so good, you don’t really need it.”

Yu Nianzhi’s ears perked up.

Shen Yan cleared her throat. “I slept a bit late, so I put on a little something to cover the dark circles.”

The artist didn’t think much of it. “Alright, go ahead and remove it first, and I’ll redo it for you.”

“Thanks, sorry for the trouble,” Shen Yan said as she stood up.

Once Shen Yan sat back down, Yu Nianzhi tilted her head slightly toward her. With her sharp vision, she saw the “panda eyes” that matched her own. Teacher Shen still cares about her idol image, after all. Yu Nianzhi wanted to laugh.

Once they were in costume, they walked out to find the set cleared.

The previous take ended with them kissing as they entered the room. Shen Yan pinned Yu Nianzhi against the wall, deepening the kiss until Yu Nianzhi struggled for breath. Only then did Shen Yan slowly release her. They rested their foreheads together, their warm breaths mingling.

Yu Nianzhi found her voice, asking raspy and trembling, “Why did you spread the fake news?”

Shen Yan went silent for a moment. “I’m sorry. I… it was my fault. I discovered Wen Jian had a spy in the camp. I intended to play along to trick him into revealing himself so I could move against the Wen clan directly. I didn’t expect him to be so patient, remaining still even now. I had to postpone the plan and bring the army back to the capital.”

Yu Nianzhi bit her lower lip, trying to restrain her emotions. But in front of her beloved, her defenses crumbled. Her voice broke, and tears fell like a string of broken pearls. It was as if she were crying for all the days of accumulated pain—first small sobs, then a full-blown wail.

She buried her head in Shen Yan’s shoulder, her tears quickly soaking through the fabric. Shen Yan was flustered, patting her back soothingly. “It’s okay, it’s okay. In the future, I’ll tell you everything beforehand, alright?”

As she stroked Yu Nianzhi’s back, she could feel how thin and fragile the girl’s spine was. She seemed so delicate, as if any force might break her.

After crying for a long time, Yu Nianzhi finally quieted down but refused to lift her head from Shen Yan’s shoulder.

Shen Yan coaxed her in a low voice, “Don’t be angry anymore, okay?”

Yu Nianzhi gave a soft huff and ignored her.

Shen Yan laughed helplessly. “Considering my clothes are soaked through, will my lady be magnanimous and forgive me? I won’t dare do it again.”

Only then did Yu Nianzhi react, looking up and whispering, “Where is it soaked through…?”

Seeing that she was finally responding, Shen Yan smoothed her long hair and rested her head in the crook of Yu Nianzhi’s neck. She murmured, “My lady, I missed you so. As the ancients said, ‘one day apart feels like three autumns.’ Being away from you for so long, I truly feel as if a lifetime has passed.”

The corners of Yu Nianzhi’s mouth curved up, but she still said, “You only say these sweet things to coax me.”

Shen Yan feigned grievance. “Every word I say comes from the heart. How can you call it coaxing?”

Yu Nianzhi fell silent. They leaned against each other in the quiet room. At first, it was just a simple embrace, but the intensity of their recent separation and the roller coaster of emotions caused the atmosphere to shift.

Shen Yan suddenly called out, “My lady…”

Her voice was husky, suppressed completely different from her usual tone. Yu Nianzhi gave a soft “Mhm” and looked up. The usual calm in Shen Yan’s eyes was gone, replaced by a burning fire. And in the center of that flame was the reflection of her own figure.

“My lady…” Shen Yan whispered into her ear. “I want to… may I?”