I Got Together with the Scum Gong’s White Moonlight - Chapter 8

Cheng Ming returned one step after her. When he took his seat next to Gu Ming, he deliberately cast a glance at her.

Perhaps he had no other underlying meaning, but she discerned ostentation in it.

During the subsequent word-solitaire game, she played absentmindedly and lost nearly every round. Unable to force any more water down her throat, she could only opt for Truth or Dare, choosing Dare.

In view of the fact that everyone had just met on this first day, they did not make things difficult for her; they merely asked her to go into the woods to pick up a stone or gather a leaf.

As the night grew deeper, the firewood was nearly consumed. Although it was still somewhat early—just past nine o’clock—everyone had no choice but to cease their activities, extinguish the fire, and enter their tents to rest.

The interior of the tent was rudimentary, containing nothing more than a sleeping bag.

Gu Ming slid inside one step ahead of her. Seeing her sitting on the side hesitantly, Gu Ming simply sat back up and shifted over next to her.

“What is wrong? Are you feeling unwell somewhere?” Gu Ming said as she reached out her hand to test her temperature.

She ought to have dodged, yet she could not bear to pull away.

“You do not have a fever. Then what is the matter? Are you unhappy because you lost, or is it something else?”

She gazed at Gu Ming and shook her head, pursing her lips, still unable to speak.

Gu Ming let out a soft sigh: “Is there something you cannot tell me? I thought that even if we were not sisters, we were at least friends.”

She bit her lip, laughing bitterly in her heart. Sisters? Friends? If you knew that Yan Ling and I were cut from the same cloth, would you still treat me as a friend? Would you still dare to sleep peacefully by my side?

[After all, before you, several little Gu Mings have already made their debuts.]

Unconsciously, she began to pinch the pad of her finger.

On an impulse, she spoke up: “Are you this good to every single newcomer who looks like you?”

Seeing Gu Ming freeze in a daze, she instantly regretted her words and hurriedly tried to smooth things over with an apology: “I am sorry, I did not mean anything else, it is just—”

She was utterly vexed with herself.

Why must she be so narrow-minded? Why must she be jealous? What right or standing did she have to be jealous?

Gu Ming could not help but let out a low chuckle, her expression turning somewhat peculiar: “Is Yan eating vinegar? Are you jealous?”

“I do not mean that.” Stubbornly, she refused to admit it, her eyes darting away to avoid contact.

Gu Ming smiled silently for a moment: “Alright, so it is not jealousy. I am a little disappointed then.”

She pinched the pad of her finger once more, detesting herself for letting her emotions surge just because of a teasing remark from Gu Ming.

“I said, I did not mean it that way. I am merely curious. After all, before me, there must have been several others who bore a resemblance to you, right? Would you… take care of them like this as well?”

“Do not overthink it. I am not deliberately prying into anything. I have already plucked my thumbnail; I am just, just curious.”

“There is no need to explain so much. If you wish to know, I will simply tell you. Spare your fingers.” Gu Ming smiled helplessly and liberated her hand from its own grip.

Her heart rate accelerated abruptly, yet she could not bear to draw her hand back. She could only play dumb and pretend to be oblivious, permitting Gu Ming to hold her hand in a seemingly casual manner.

“Hmm… how should I put it? To borrow a phrase that was once popular on the internet: precisely because I have walked through the rain, I want to hold an umbrella for you. Toward newcomers with potential, I naturally wish to give them a helping hand, but—”

As if recalling something, Gu Ming’s expression gradually grew solemn and frigid, and a trace of disgust even leaked out from between her brows. For no reason, she became flustered and suddenly did not want to listen further.

“They were not.”

“They were meticulously packaged by someone just to disgust me. How could I possibly show them a pleasant countenance?”

Her heart plunged into the depths instantly. Her hands and feet turned ice-cold, and her entire body went rigid.

Gu Ming actually knew…

Then, did she know that she, too, was—

Restraining her trepidation, she moved her somewhat numb tongue: “Who was it?”

“Yan Ling, the Chief Executive Officer of Tianding Entertainment. You ought to have heard of her.”

[Sign this contract. Although Qianceng is an obscure company that enjoys no reputation, it is sufficiently safe.]

[Remember, if you want to mix in this circle, guard your mouth well. I presume you know the consequences of being exposed as a kept woman.]

No wonder Yan Ling had gone through such twists and turns to have her debut from Qianceng; it turned out there were failed precedents beforehand.

Therefore, Gu Ming had absolutely no idea that there was a connection between her and Yan Ling…

In that split second, she felt a wave of pervasive, terrifying chill. That was an infinite abyss that Yan Ling had designed long ago.

She did not dare to imagine how unsightly her countenance must look right now; she did not even dare to cast another glance at Gu Ming.

She had originally thought that she was already in a wretched and miserable state before Gu Ming, but it turned out she had been far too naive.

Yan Ling, you are utterly disgusting!

“Oh, um, I am tired. I am going to sleep first.” Terrified and uneasy, she only wished to escape and avoid the situation.

Gu Ming was somewhat taken aback: “What is wrong?”

She merely shook her head and said it was nothing, then bypassed Gu Ming to burrow into her sleeping bag. Even pulling the bag over her head could not block out the chill radiating from the depths of her body; she could not stop shivering violently.

Gu Ming looked at Gu Yan’s silhouette with concern and bewilderment. Huddled up, she appeared even smaller and thinner. Gu Ming could not help but embrace her from behind, softly humming an unfamiliar melody.

This embrace was so warm and the voice was so gentle; she clearly craved it so intensely, yet her heart turned cold wave after wave.

It was not until the sound behind her gradually faded and Gu Ming had presumably fallen asleep that she gathered her courage to turn her body around. Greedily yet with restraint, she hovered her gaze at Gu Ming’s jawline, then buried her head into her embrace.

Let her be a despicable person then. At least before she was exposed, let her feel her warmth a little longer.

The weather on the second day was not very good; the sky was overcast, and the wind was rather strong. Song Ai had filled in for the co-broadcast weather channel a few times in the past, so he could read the signs to some extent. He hurriedly notified everyone that it was highly probable there would be rain later or during the night, and they needed to take proper rainproofing precautions.

Everyone looked at one another, completely at a loss as to what they ought to do to protect against the rain.

The tents were waterproof, and items like pots, bowls, and ladles should not get drenched if placed inside. After that, what else needed to be done?

“If it rains, the temperature will definitely drop. If it only rains for a single day, it will be fine, but if it rains for several days consecutively, we must select a new site,” Gu Ming said.

“But how can we know whether it will rain for one day or for several days?” He Xin said as she looked toward Song Ai.

Song Ai expressed a slight apology: “I am not a professional in this field, so I cannot make a definitive judgment. However, according to the conventions of previous seasons, we had better prepare for the worst-case scenario.”

Cheng Ming took up the conversation and said: “The timing of the previous seasons was different from ours, so it is inconvenient to use them as a complete reference. Nonetheless, judging by the climate and season of this island, I lean more toward the probability of continuous, lingering rain.”

“Therefore, we still have to select a new site?” Xu Wen said.

“This kind of low-lying, flat terrain is unsuitable for rainy days; it gets flooded easily.” Gu Ming indicated the topography where they were currently camped.

“This is only the second day…” Zeng Jiu wiped his face wearily.

He had not slept well last night, as he was not quite accustomed to sleeping bags and tents. Although the weather had already warmed up now that it was June, the ground vapor surged upward at night, still bringing a bit of chill.

Yin Shi also slept until his waist was sour and his back ached. He was a northerner and could not quite endure such dense, heavy moisture; he felt as though his entire body had become several catties heavier.

The spiritual energy and vitality of the others were not very sufficient either; all of them had failed to sleep well due to the discomfort.

Only Gu Yan and Gu Ming appeared to be in a fairly good state. Gu Ming possessed excellent adaptability coupled with long-standing habit; what did sleeping in a tent amount to? There was one time she had to go deep into the mountains to shoot a drama, and during the hardest times, she could even sleep while leaning against a boulder.

Although Gu Yan had been weighed down by heavy anxieties for the entire night, Gu Ming’s embrace was too warm and soft; had she not been called up by Song Ai, she would have wanted to continue lingering there.

After some deliberation, everyone ultimately decided to move away from this place while it was not yet raining.

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