Love Contract with the Queen Actress - Chapter 32

“So, Yuchen, would you like to exchange gifts with me?”

The question was posed.

It was already a blatantly obvious hint. Even the dullest person present could grasp the underlying meaning in those words.

Who would have thought that such a shy and reserved amateur could deliver such a direct strike with such force?

Even though Su Yuchen tried to lighten the mood with a casual remark, it didn’t do much to ease the tension.

“You want my pumpkin?”

That question did manage to make Xiao Zhi and Liu Ruomeng laugh, but it didn’t slow Fu Monan’s advance in the slightest.

In the next moment, Fu Monan’s slightly parted smile steadied as she continued to gaze into Su Yuchen’s eyes, her next words landing like a direct hit to the face.

“So, Yuchen, who will you send your ‘heartbeat message’ to?”

She was still twirling the fountain pen in her hand.

“Could you send it to me?”

The director behind the monitors was utterly stunned.

It took him a few seconds to snap out of it before the control room erupted into whistles and cheers.

“Oh my god, is she really going this hard right from the start?”

“I always thought this girl was shy, but she’s going straight for the kill!”

“Seriously, who would’ve guessed? We all thought her target was either the award-winning actress or the CEO. Never expected it to be someone so low-key!”

“But the recording lasts three days, and the ‘heartbeat messages’ are only sent on the final day. Isn’t it a bit too early to bring this up now?”

“No worries, no worries! This is exactly the kind of drama we want. The more intense, the better!”

The brief celebration among the production team, of course, went completely unheard by the people involved.

Inside the tent, Shen Wu’s hand, gripping a wooden strip, froze. Her entire back stiffened, but she didn’t turn around.

Only Kuang Gong beside her glanced over briefly but didn’t react further.

Meanwhile, Su Yuchen, who had just been publicly confessed to, was completely caught off guard.

She quickly waved her hands. “Ah! Sorry, I… I…”

She stammered for a while before finally answering kindly, not wanting to hurt the other person’s feelings: “I can’t answer that question.”

Can’t answer = I won’t agree.

But the other party clearly didn’t get the hint.

“Ah,” Fu Monan lightly covered her mouth. “Was my question too sudden?”

Everyone present, including the production team behind the monitors, thought: You think?

Naturally, no one answered her question.

The atmosphere instantly turned awkward.

But Fu Monan wasn’t deterred in the slightest and continued her full-force assault: “But I really do like you, Yuchen. So, I want to do everything I can to increase my chances.”

“…”

This time, there was really no way to dodge it.

Su Yuchen pressed her lips together and met Fu Monan’s gaze squarely. “I’m sorry. Earlier, when I said I couldn’t answer, what I really meant was unclear.”

“What I actually meant to say is, I can’t agree to it. I’m sorry.”

The rejection was clean and straightforward, without any excuses. Just a simple no.

Inside the tent, though everyone seemed busy with their own tasks and the atmosphere appeared silent, they were all secretly paying attention to the exchange.

Fu Monan took a deep breath, her eyes lowering. “So… I’ve been rejected?”

It was an unmistakably clear question, but Su Yuchen hesitated to confirm it outright.

Over the years, she wasn’t unaccustomed to rejecting others, too many people had approached her because of her looks. But today, having to turn someone down in front of everyone and the cameras felt particularly delicate.

What made it worse was that this person happened to be Fu Mozheng’s cousin.

Clearly, her question wasn’t going to get a response.

Fu Monan let out a soft sigh, then quickly replaced it with her usual warm, gentle smile. “It’s fine, I understand. But I just want you to know, I haven’t given up. I still hope that, in the end, I’ll really get the chance to fulfill this dream.”

“Ah, of course,” she added after a pause, scratching her head lightly, “if it doesn’t work out in the end, that’s okay too. I really, really like Yuchen. Just being friends with her would still be something wonderful.”

Su Yuchen exhaled in relief, her almond-shaped eyes softening with a smile as she looked at Fu Monan. “Mm, okay.”

Just when she thought the matter was settled, Fu Monan delivered one last direct hit: “But just so you know, I’m really not giving up.”

“……”

She really knew how to be straightforward.

Shen Wu’s grip on the firewood tightened imperceptibly.

The moment she heard those words, I haven’t given up, the piece of wood in her hands snapped clean in two with a sharp crack.

Kuang Gong shot her a helpless glance before reaching over and taking the broken pieces from her hands.

Completely unfazed by the expensive watch on her wrist, she fiddled with it for a moment before seeming to find it a nuisance. She took it off and handed it to the person beside her.

That person happened to be Shen Wu. Shen Wu accepted the watch, turning it over in her hands. Whether it was because of the earlier conversation or not, her tone carried a faint edge of mockery. “Oh? Wearing this watch here? President Kuang has quite the taste.”

Kuang Gong didn’t react, bending the Swiss Army knife and its handle at a ninety-degree angle before pressing the blade against the wood.

“Thanks, though I’m not particularly inclined to thank you for that.”

Shen Wu didn’t mind, her gaze flickering repeatedly toward the side and back, waiting for someone who never came. She was barely restraining the urge to march over, grab the person by the collar, and drag them away.

She wanted Su Yuchen to come to her.

While she was lost in this internal battle, Shen Wu absentmindedly picked up another piece of firewood.

One hand held the wood, the other the luxury watch, completely unaware of what she was holding.

She was on the verge of pressing the watch face against the rough wood when Kuang Gong’s voice snapped her back to reality. She pulled the innocent firewood from Shen Wu’s grip, leaving the watch untouched.

“Stop breaking them. Any shorter and they won’t be usable.”

After a pause, she added with an amused chuckle, “After all these years, this is the first time you’ve complimented my taste.”

With one hand now empty, Shen Wu twisted the watchband between her slender fingers, then suddenly arched a brow. “Of course. It must be good taste because I have the same one.”

Kuang Gong didn’t look up, continuing her work.

“Mm-hmm. It’s a limited edition, only two in the world. By the time I bought mine, the other had already been reserved.”

The knife came down firmly on the thick wood before she picked up another log and struck the back of the blade.

Shen Wu let out a soft laugh and stuffed the watch back into Kuang Gong’s pocket.

Her gaze drifted, lingering for a moment toward the inflatable sofa. The faint amusement in her eyes was already captivating enough, let alone the enigmatic smile that followed.

Her red lips curved into a teasing arc, the high bridge of her nose casting a tantalizing shadow over them under the overhead light.

“Put it back in your pocket for you. Holding it is just too much of a bother.”

The fabric of those casual suit pants was soft and form-fitting, so reaching out like this would inevitably brush against Kuang Gong’s skin.

Yet, the two of them seemed so familiar with each other that such an intimate gesture didn’t elicit any discomfort from either.

Kuang Gong’er remained absorbed in her own tasks.

Only letting out an almost imperceptible sigh, as if slightly exasperated.

Whispers reached her ears, and Xiao Zhi’s voice sounded not far away: “Huh, are President Kuang and Shen Wu that close?”

Fu Monan pushed up imaginary glasses, her fingers dropping awkwardly when they met air: “If Shen Wu and President Kuang actually took a liking to each other, no one else would stand a chance, right?”

She had merely meant it as an offhand remark, but it inadvertently struck a nerve in several people.

Xiao Zhi’s eyes were still red.

On Su Yuchen’s fair neck, the thin skin tensed as her muscles tightened.

Liu Ruomeng frowned for the first time and glanced over.

She lightly ground her teeth and said to Xiao Zhi, “Want to have a candlelit dinner tomorrow night? How about we vote for each other?”

Xiao Zhi’s mind flashed to the sharpness of that Swiss army knife, imagining its blade suddenly piercing wood, it felt as though her own stomach had been ruthlessly impaled.

She shook her head repeatedly. “There are restrictions on voting, you can’t just do whatever. The production team isn’t stupid. If two or more pairs vote for each other, the votes cancel out, and no one gets to go. Let’s talk about it later, okay?”

Rejected, Liu Ruomeng wasn’t discouraged in the slightest.

She immediately turned to Fu Monan. “How about you and I vote for each other? Since you got rejected too, let’s forget about feelings and just go for the fancy meal, alright?”

Fu Monan: “…”

This time, Liu Ruomeng was met with silent refusal.

Honestly, if Liu Ruomeng hadn’t brought up food, the others might not have noticed their hunger.

The empty tent was filled only with the sound of chopping wood until someone’s stomach growled loudly.

“Grrrr.”

The sound was too loud to ignore.

Fu Monan’s ears turned slightly red. “Um, maybe we should… cook something later? I saw instant noodles in the cooler.”

Liu Ruomeng, who never liked manual labor but loved standing by and making sarcastic remarks, lived up to expectations by sneering, “And cook with what? Wishful thinking?”

She simply disliked the Fu family, hated participating in activities with them, and most of all, despised the fact that the person she loathed the most was now ignoring her and cozying up to someone else.

Fu Monan, having been snapped at, looked pitifully at Su Yuchen for help.

“Yuchen…”

“…”

Su Yuchen paused, then helplessly pointed to the side. “The crew guy told me before he left that it’s a camping stove. Maybe I should try setting it up first.”

With that, she began fiddling with the metal stove left behind by the crew.

But she had never used camping gear before and couldn’t quite figure it out, struggling clumsily.

Unlike Shen Wu and Kuang Gong, who moved with practiced ease, Su Yuchen seemed awkward and out of her depth.

“Let me help you.”

Fu Monan, who had been nearby or perhaps watching Su Yuchen’s every move, squeezed in beside her and started assembling the stove.

“Ah, what’s this thin metal plate for? It’s so flimsy…”

“Yuchen, be careful. The edge of this tin is very sharp and could easily cut your hand.”

“Let me help you put on your gloves, okay?”

The person beside her kept talking, but Su Yuchen’s thoughts were no longer on the stove.

She had already glanced repeatedly, almost furtively at Shen Wu and Kuang Gong, allowing Fu Monan to gently slide the gloves onto her hands before snapping back to reality.

“You gave me your gloves, what about you?”

The camping gloves were likely from the same sponsor as the pair Shen Wu was wearing, though these were slightly thinner.

“It’s fine,” Fu Monan said with a smile, waving her hand dismissively. A cut on her pale fingers had already begun to bleed.

“Oh, your hand is hurt.” Su Yuchen caught Fu Monan’s hand.

“There are band-aids in the toolbox. Wait a moment, I’ll treat the wound for you.”

“It’s nothing, really,” Fu Monan replied shyly, her face flushing red. “Just a small scratch, it’s no big deal.”

“We should still take care of it. You wouldn’t want to risk tetanus.”

Careful not to touch Fu Monan’s skin directly with her gloved hands, Su Yuchen dabbed the wound with an iodine swab before applying the band-aid.

Fu Monan’s entire face turned crimson as she repeatedly thanked Su Yuchen for her kindness.

Xiao Zhi and Liu Ruomeng sat on the sofa fiddling with some scattered camping gear. The two of them seemed more inclined to slack off than work, but their enthusiasm for gossip was undeniable.

Xiao Zhi tossed her long, straight black hair. “Oh my, how sweet. Yuchen, why don’t you just give your mutual-vote opportunity to Fu Monan? We won’t compete with you two, let’s show some spirit and yield gracefully, like Kong Rong giving up the pear.”

“Giving up a pear? More like forcing a mismatched pair!” Liu Ruomeng immediately protested.

“If you ask me, we should just be generous and let me go. I don’t care who I’m paired with.”

“They can live on love alone, but all I want is a hot spring, a pool, and a bikini.”

Liu Ruomeng gestured to herself. “I brought a super-sexy swimsuit. Want to see? Then vote for me! I’m done roughing it out here.”

“…”

It was as if she wasn’t here for a dating show at all or even to find a partner. She was just a corporate drone looking for an easy gig, indifferent to who she ended up with.

This time, it was Kuang Gong who gritted her teeth softly. She didn’t react outwardly, but her hands stilled for a few seconds before she resumed twisting the wooden tip in the fire pit filled with wood shavings.

With a sharp rip, sparks ignited in the pit.

Soon, flames began to rise.

Kuang Gong had some outdoor experience and worked out regularly, but she wasn’t entirely familiar with wilderness survival. The fire flared up higher than expected.

With a whoosh, crimson flames surged upward, licking at Kuang Gong’s wrist.

Luckily, Shen Wu pulled her back in time, but she didn’t let go immediately.

Holding onto that cool, pale wrist, she inspected it carefully, confirming there were no injuries, just a patch of redness before finally releasing her grip.

“Be careful. What were you thinking about just now?”

Kuang Gong seemed to snap out of her daze just then, shaking her wrist as she came to. “I’m fine.”

Whether she was fine or not was pretty obvious.

Shen Wu raised an eyebrow. “Fine? If I’d pulled you a second later, you’d have contributed a plate of barbecue, wouldn’t you?”

Beside them, Su Yuchen pursed her lips.

So, Shen Wu could actually care about others…

Just as the thought crossed her mind, Shen Wu paused, her gaze sweeping over Su Yuchen. Their eyes met briefly, almond-shaped against mesmerizing before Shen Wu turned her attention back to Kuang Gong.

“Good thing I put your watch in my pocket first. Otherwise, mine would be the only one left in the world.”

Xiao Zhi rested her chin on her hand, casting an envious glance their way.

“Honestly, their family backgrounds are such a perfect match. And they’re both so gorgeous, using globally limited-edition watches as couple’s accessories? Who can compete with that?”

“…”

Couple’s watches.

Su Yuchen: “…”

Su Yuchen lowered her head, silently fiddling with the grill. Though Fu Monan’s soft, concerned words reached her ears, none of them registered.

She mentally calculated her savings, she couldn’t even afford a decent gift for Shen Wu, let alone a globally limited-edition luxury watch.

Come to think of it, she still owed Shen Wu money for the TV, the air purifier, none of which had been repaid yet.

She had long wanted to give Shen Wu a gift, but nothing she could afford would be impressive enough.

Still, once she received the final payment for The Chronicles of the Dynasty and her earnings from the dating show, she should be able to cover the cost of the appliances under their contract, with some leftover. If she took on more roles, even extras or minor parts or worked as a set hand, she might just scrape together enough for a respectable gift.

One thing at a time. Just because Shen Wu never brought it up didn’t mean the debt could be ignored. She had to repay it. No one had taught her this as a child, but she’d always felt that accepting gifts without thought, taking things from others, wasn’t right.

Shen Wu had been so good to her, she had to save up and give her the best gift she could afford.

Give her the very best.

As Su Yuchen was lost in her calculations, Fu Monan’s voice drifted over: “Looks like CEO Kuang and Sister Wu grew up together as childhood friends. That kind of bond is something no one else can compare to.”

The admiration and envy in that voice were so thick that Su Yuchen opened her mouth but found no words.

Unbidden, her mind flashed back to the conversation she’d had with Shen Wu in the car before the New Year, just before the variety show recording.

Shen Wu and Kuang Gong’s families were old friends. They’d grown up together, even bought neighboring estates abroad, true childhood sweethearts.

With all that history, Kuang Gong must understand Shen Wu far better than she ever could.

And what did she and Shen Wu have? Just two contracts.

One for cat-sitting, one for the dating show cohabitation. Shen Wu had mentioned a third contract, but…

A sour ache welled up in her chest, the first time in her life she’d ever felt the urge to take initiative.

If she were to speak up, how would Shen Wu react?

Her gaze drifted back to Shen Wu and Kuang Gong, who were now tidying up the fire pit with seamless coordination.

Their voices reached her intermittently: “Hand me that chimney. And that grill over there.”

“Cut a slit next to the tent to extend the chimney out, yes, right there. Make sure the ventilation is good, or else all of us will be done for tonight.”

The sight of those two working together in seamless harmony reflected in Su Yuchen’s clear, bright eyes. For some reason, perhaps the weather, her lively almond-shaped eyes seemed to dim slightly.

The lively atmosphere over there continued.

Shen Wu glanced sideways in Su Yuchen’s direction, her gaze landing on the pile of equipment that hadn’t been assembled yet.

“Ah! You need these, right?” Sensing the look, Su Yuchen felt a flicker of joy in her heart.

Like a student called on by the teacher, she scrambled to her feet in a fluster, sending the metal canisters piled on her knees clattering to the ground.

“Ah…”

The mess sprawled before Su Yuchen’s eyes, leaving her momentarily dazed.

Fu Monan was the first to stand up, steadying the arm of the person beside her. “It’s okay, Yuchen. I’ll help you pick them up. These are pretty heavy.”

The concern in her voice was unmistakable, no one present could have missed it.

Su Yuchen stared at the scattered parts, feeling like she’d messed up. She quickly bent down to gather them, muttering, “Sorry, sorry. ah, no, I mean, it’s fine, it’s fine. I can do it myself. Really, no need to help.”

The parts were scattered everywhere, some had rolled to the edge of the tent, others under the beds.

It was hard to say if they could all be found.

“There are so many. You can’t possibly pick them all up by yourself.”

Despite Fu Monan’s usually shy demeanor, she was unexpectedly enthusiastic. She crouched beside Su Yuchen, helping to gather the pieces.

“Don’t be embarrassed, Yuchen. I can handle it, really. Let me take care of this. You don’t have to do it, go rest over there.”

“Really, it’s fine.”

A knot of frustration tightened in Su Yuchen’s chest as she kept her head down, searching the ground.

Fu Monan didn’t leave, still insisting on helping.

As they went back and forth, the fingers wrapped in floral-patterned band-aids brushed against Su Yuchen’s hand, intentionally or not.

The band-aids were small and flowery, wrapped around the side of Fu Monan’s index finger.

Since Su Yuchen had helped dress the wound, she knew the cut wasn’t actually that small.

So, she spoke softly, “Never mind. Your hand’s hurt, you shouldn’t touch these.”

What was meant as a kind reminder instead made Fu Monan pause. She let out a small “Mmm,” then covered her mouth with both hands.

Her eyes shimmered with touched emotion. “Yuchen, you’re so concerned about me. Thank you.”

“……”

Speechless.

Absolutely speechless.

Su Yuchen stayed silent for two seconds before lowering her head again to keep searching for the parts.

A voice in her head seemed to say: Is this a dating show? Is this some kind of bizarre battlefield?

Not only was Su Yuchen stiffly picking up pieces, but everyone else was also watching in varying degrees of bewilderment.

They were puzzled, was this really something to get so emotional about?

Under everyone’s gaze, Fu Monan lowered her hands and went straight for the kill: “Yuchen, do you have a girlfriend?”

“……”

This person seemed harmless, but every move was a ruthless straight shot.

After the question came Su Yuchen’s prolonged silence.

She crouched there, fingers clutching a tiny screw, her entire body frozen in place like a statue, small and rigid.

Fu Monan had asked if she had a girlfriend.

A girlfriend… does that count?

Su Yuchen’s gaze inadvertently drifted towards Shen Wu’s direction, taking in the sight of Shen Wu and Kuang Gong pressed close together.

Their bodies were nearly touching, shoulders brushing against each other, as if they saw no need to maintain distance, perhaps because they were already familiar enough.

Su Yuchen let out an almost imperceptible sigh. “No.”

Fu Monan also seemed to relax slightly, then lightly tapped his own forehead. “Look at me, why would someone with a girlfriend come to a dating show? What a stupid question to ask.”

As Su Yuchen’s “No” fell, Shen Wu on the other side immediately took action.

Her jade-like fingers lifted, brushing past the edges of the short, ear-length hair before finally settling on Kuang Gong’s collar.

With natural ease, Shen Wu tugged at the tucked-in collar for Kuang Gong, then patted the spot she had just adjusted.

“There, all done. How could you be so careless? We’re filming a show, it wouldn’t look good if this aired later.”

After the reminder, Shen Wu turned her gaze forward again, peach-blossom eyes brimming with amusement. “Oh, I forgot to mention earlier, please thank your friend for me. I managed to get the watch thanks to her.”

Kuang Gong let out a puzzled “Hmm?” and glanced up at Shen Wu.

She couldn’t quite suppress the slight furrow of her brows, but the question never left her lips, What friend?

Then, reading something in Shen Wu’s eyes, she seemed to understand and nodded before crouching back down to focus on her task.

She responded with a casual “Mhm,” but the sound was quickly swallowed by the rhythmic clang-clang-clang of wood being chopped, drowning out whatever followed.

As a result, the others nearby couldn’t make out what was said afterward.

Liu Ruomeng shot a sidelong glance at the two, her lips curling slightly, just as Xiao Zhi happened to whisper in her ear, “Wow, they’re really something, so sweet.”

Liu Ruomeng couldn’t help but roll her eyes. “How sweet?”

Her tone was sharp, prompting Xiao Zhi to toss her sleek black hair and shoot her a sideways look. “Isn’t it obvious? Or are you suffering from sweetness-blindness?”

Of course, Liu Ruomeng knew about Shen Wu and Su Yuchen’s relationship. The visual impact of those two stunning women kissing right in front of her had been anything but ordinary so much so that the memory replayed vividly in her mind whenever it was mentioned.

Not gonna lie, it was pretty satisfying.

But Kuang Gong? That freak couldn’t possibly be into Shen Wu too, right?

The thought crossed her mind, sending a shudder down her spine. She quickly shook it off, banishing the idea from her head.

Immediately transforming into a protective shipper defending the one true pairing, she declared loudly, with even more fervor than online anti-shippers, “Sweet? I don’t see it. Fixing a collar, big deal. Anyone can do that. Don’t just ship anything you see. Indiscriminate shipping will only hurt you.”

The moment the words left her mouth, everyone’s expressions shifted subtly.

Each in their own way.

“Are you allergic to romance or something?”

Xiao Zhi crossed her arms, abandoning the half-hearted task in her hands without pretense, slacking off unapologetically.

“She fixed her collar, are you and I close enough to do that for each other?”

With that, she didn’t hesitate to toss Liu Ruomeng an eye-roll.

Liu Ruomeng, never one to back down, rolled her eyes even harder, delivering an even more exaggerated eye-roll paired with a disdainful “Hmph.”

“Want your collar fixed? Easy. come here, I’ll do it for free. Too bad I’m not interested in you. You’re way too plain.”

The two of them bickered as if no one else was around, despite the subjects of their discussion standing right beside them.

And they did so with full, fiery intensity.

Xiao Zhi’s expression twisted at the jab. “Hah? I’m plain?”

The sting must have hit deep, her drawn-out inflection and rising pitch at the end made it sound almost like she was speaking Thai.

She pointed at Liu Ruomeng: “You speak with quite some confidence. I was officially crowned the Art Goddess by my Weibo fans, you know.”

“Pfft.” Liu Ruomeng scoffed. “The paw prints my cat leaves are pretty artistic too. With a little packaging, you could have a whole litter of fluffy goddesses.”

Xiao Zhi was so irritated that she could barely maintain her goddess-like composure. She wanted to appear magnanimous, but her frustration was impossible to hide.

After a long pause, she smiled.

“Actually, you know what? You’ve got personality. It wouldn’t be impossible for us to send each other heart-fluttering texts.”

The moment the words left her mouth,

Clang!

Kuang Gong’s Swiss army knife was slammed down with force.

The sharp blade instantly sank into the cross-section of the wood, quickly carving out a deep groove.

Kuang Gong narrowed her eyes, tossed aside the piece of firewood, and wiped her slender, pale fingers on her thigh before reaching up to tuck a stray lock of hair behind Shen Wu’s ear.

Under Shen Wu’s utterly bewildered gaze, she smiled sweetly.

“Silly, what are you spacing out for? Your hair’s getting in your mouth.”

“……”