Reborn! Caught Up by the Critically Obsessed Actress - Chapter 73

The private dining room in the restaurant was exquisitely elegant, with soft piano music playing in the background. Temporarily detached from the hustle of the film set, Song Qingxing felt a sense of unreality, almost like a dream.

A server brought the dishes to the table.

They were all low-salt and low-sugar options, yet they looked exceptionally appealing. The pumpkin was steamed until soft, arranged beautifully, and garnished with a few sprigs of fresh green herbs.

“Are we supposed to take photos here in the private room?” Song Qingxing asked tentatively. Her appetite wasn’t particularly strong; she had long learned to restrain any vigorous craving, knowing that if she couldn’t control her mouth, she was truly unfit to be a celebrity.

“Yes,” Xie Jingcheng replied. “We don’t need any intimate photos, just some suggestive text for the post. That way, everyone will know you belong to me.”

Song Qingxing was speechless.

What was with this dominant, CEO-like possessive dialogue?

She found it ridiculous but understood Xie Jingcheng’s little scheme. So, she played with the hair scattered over her shoulder, checking her makeup through the reflection on the other’s phone screen. Good! Perfect. Although she was wearing a mask, Song Qingxing had applied light makeup.

Because the makeup was subtle, Xie Jingcheng deliberately chose an angle. Even celebrities don’t look good from every angle when photographed; very few people are perfect from all perspectives.

Xie Jingcheng’s photography skills were not terrible; she had studied photography in college. Although there was a significant difference between a professional camera and a phone camera, she knew how to find the light and the right position.

This one skill alone would be enough to make countless girls fall for her.

Seriously, who would understand?

Not only was her girlfriend a huge star, a great beauty, and incredibly wealthy, but the photos she took were also incredibly striking, comparable to those of a renowned photographer.

Song Qingxing admitted that, in this moment, she had completely fallen for her.

Without much hesitation, Xie Jingcheng took over a dozen photos. She selected a few good ones and only needed minor retouching. The main task was blurring the background, because if people could figure out which restaurant they were dining at, she was confident that the hallway outside the private room would be instantly flooded with fans and paparazzi.

The final pictures indeed turned out well. Xie Jingcheng handed the phone over.

“I’ll post first.”

“You just reply to me.”

Being so proactive was completely out of character for her.

“Mhm.”

Xie Jingcheng logged into her main account. She rarely posted on Weibo herself; most of the content was handled by her studio. Despite this, her fan base continuously grew because of her beauty and good resources. However, her infrequent engagement meant she hadn’t quite surpassed the top-tier “traffic flower” celebrities.

Soon, Song Qingxing saw the Weibo post from Xie Jingcheng.

I like her.

The sentence was simple, and paired with the photo Xie Jingcheng had posted, it appeared incredibly sincere.

They were leaning into each other, their hair almost intertwined, indistinguishable from one another—both long, black strands, as if they were meant to fuse into the same bone and blood.

Xie Jingcheng’s gaze was fixed on her.

Deep, tender, an unmistakable look of love.

Song Qingxing hadn’t noticed it when she first saw the photo, but now, upon closer inspection, she felt a wave of fear.

If she genuinely caused Xie Jingcheng to fall irrevocably in love, would she be faced with things she couldn’t handle? She had heard that daughters-in-law in wealthy families often had miserable lives. Although Xie Jingcheng’s parents didn’t oppose the dating, they might not approve of them being together for a lifetime.

Dating was one thing; a lifelong commitment was another.

But… why was her heart pounding so fast?

Song Qingxing… admit it, you also like the feeling of Xie Jingcheng publicly announcing you as her girlfriend. This kind of security was rare among the male celebrities in the industry. After all, most male celebrities were only playing around and didn’t truly plan to marry or have children with their lovers. Even if they did marry or have children, they would choose to hide it, never admitting it to their fans, as it would cause significant damage to their careers.

However, Xie Jingcheng was different.

In her eyes, Song Qingxing was perhaps more important than her fans and her traffic. As for her career? She was a seasoned professional, entirely distinct from a “traffic star” like Song Qingxing. Even if she dated, her career wouldn’t suffer any major impact. On the contrary, this relationship, no matter how one looked at it, felt like a high-stakes climb for Song Qingxing. The other person was her senior, her beauty was not inferior, and she had won more awards.

Song Qingxing was deep in thought, but her hands didn’t stop moving. She immediately hit the reply button, tagged Xie Jingcheng, and initially typed a simple “Mhm.” She then felt the “Mhm” was too cold. After a moment’s thought, she added a kissing emoji.

The little yellow face looked endearingly silly.

When Xie Jingcheng saw it, she couldn’t help but smile knowingly. Finally, she wasn’t the only one being proactive; Song Qingxing was starting to respond.

The feeling of sand slipping through her fingers began to subside.

It seemed that courting someone should indeed be done slowly, as the elders often said, like grinding an iron rod into a needle.

Setting down her phone, Xie Jingcheng was about to start eating when Song Qingxing’s phone began ringing non-stop. Clearly, announcing the relationship without notifying the company and bypassing her manager was a huge risk. This would bring immense pressure to the company’s public relations department. Plus, there were many ongoing collaboration discussions. Xie Jingcheng knew she had made Song Qingxing take a crazy leap of faith with her.

But she didn’t want Song Qingxing to have her love life controlled by the company, too. There was no such rule in the world, was there? Song Qingxing had long passed the idol phase where dating was forbidden.

“Excuse me, I need to take a call.”

Song Qingxing didn’t want to drag Xie Jingcheng into her company’s messy affairs. She stood up, ready to move to the window to call her manager and ask them not to interrupt. She was, after all, still having dinner with her benefactor. A call from him would completely ruin the mood.

“No need.”

Just as she stood up, her wrist was grasped. The heat of Xie Jingcheng’s palm against her skin was hard to resist.

“Give me your phone. I’ll speak with your manager.”

Since she was the one who created this predicament, she should be the one to resolve it.

“That might not be a good idea…” Song Qingxing hesitated, but then realized the person in front of her suddenly looked unhappy. Just as she was about to try to argue, she was pulled completely into Xie Jingcheng’s embrace. Her cheek pressed against something soft, and a blush started to rise. Song Qingxing was incredibly embarrassed.

Yet, her nose was filled with the scent of cool fragrance.

Xie Jingcheng didn’t often wear the same perfume, but no matter which one it was, it naturally harmonized with her temperament.

Was this the charm of an A-list actress?

“The public announcement was my idea. If there are problems, I should be the one to solve them.” Xie Jingcheng only said this before answering the call.

“Qingxing, I don’t know whether to call you stupid or foolish. You’re just being her mistress; don’t overestimate your importance. Xie Jingcheng is just toying with your emotions. What will you do when she gets tired of you and kicks you aside?”

“Are you being fair to the fans who have supported you all this way by dating like this?”

“Are you being fair to the company’s PR department?”

Before Xie Jingcheng even had a chance to speak, Old Chen launched into a furious, head-on scolding.