Stolen by the First Love - Chapter 79

The recording for the wilderness survival show began at 2 PM and was originally scheduled to end at 9 PM.

The participating guests were all rising stars, young actors and idols some of whom were even wealthy heirs looking to solidify their public personas. None of them had ever endured much hardship, and during the shoot, two of the young actors threw tantrums and made faces.

The cameramen, following the show’s requirements, continued filming despite the disruptions.

One of the male actors suddenly lost his temper. “Stop filming! What’s the point of this? Has your production team even tried doing this themselves?”

Wei Fei curled her lips as she glanced at the notes detailing the actor’s supposed persona.

Introverted, humble, and polite.

So fake.

She silently scoffed in her heart.

The staff members were at a loss, exchanging uneasy glances before all turning their attention to Lin Youran.

Behind the monitors, Lin Youran straightened up. Perhaps because her face looked too harmless, her authoritative presence lacked intimidation. Even though it was already dark, she was still wearing sunglasses.

Lin Youran pushed her sunglasses up the bridge of her nose with her index finger, then turned to her assistant and asked, “Didn’t we send the pre-approved version of the script to the guests?”

The assistant quickly responded, “We did.”

“Oh~ So it’s just that none of you took our pre-approved experience seriously and didn’t bother reading it,” Lin Youran drawled. “If we can handle it, how come a grown man like you, standing at six feet tall, can’t?”

Her words dripped with sarcasm, especially the jab at his height. The actor’s face darkened instantly.

Lin Youran sat firmly on the folding stool, her expression stern, though her voice carried a hint of amusement. “Well, you’re rich anyway. You can afford the penalty if you want out. If you can’t handle it, just quit.”

When she wasn’t smiling, paired with her commanding voice, she came off as pretty cool.

Wei Fei let out a mental “tsk,” recalling how Lin Youran had smiled at her that morning, revealing her adorable dimples. Her heart rippled slightly, as if a drop of wine had fallen into a still lake.

The contrast was striking.

A female idol tried to mediate. “Let’s not make a scene. The sooner we finish, the sooner we can rest.”

The male actor stood frozen for a full two minutes before the recording resumed.

Because of the incident, filming was delayed by an hour, finally wrapping up at 10 PM. By the time everyone had washed up at the campsite and returned to their tents, it was already past midnight.

The autumn night was quite chilly. Inside the tent, a yellow camping lamp cast a warm glow.

When Wei Fei entered the tent, Lin Youran was reviewing the paper shooting schedule under the light. Wei Fei glanced at her, then pulled the tent flap shut, slipped off her shoes, and climbed onto the air mattress.

The tent had originally been assigned to Lin Youran alone, with a larger inflatable mattress laid out.

With both of them wrapped in sleeping bags, there was just enough space, no room to spare.

This was Wei Fei’s first time sharing a bed with someone outside her family, and she felt a little awkward. She prepared to burrow into her sleeping bag and become a dormant caterpillar.

Lin Youran glanced at her and asked, “Going to sleep already?”

Wei Fei, halfway into her sleeping bag, paused and replied, “Mhm.” She looked at Lin Youran, her gaze lingering on the schedule in her hands. “I won’t be able to fall asleep right away. You can finish reading first.”

Lin Youran closed the folder without hesitation and slipped into her own sleeping bag, turning off the lamp in one smooth motion. The tent was instantly plunged into darkness.

The rustling of the wind outside seeped in, making the silence inside even more pronounced. Wei Fei adjusted the collar of her sleeping bag and lay stiffly on her back. After a moment, she instinctively turned her head.

It was unclear whether Lin Youran had some sort of radar, but she immediately turned her head, meeting Wei Fei’s gaze in the darkness. “What?”

“Nothing,” Wei Fei replied, guiltily averting her eyes and grasping for conversation. “Did you go through the process beforehand to experience it in advance?”

“Mmm~” Lin Youran shook her head. “No script, no process. I spent 14 days wilderness surviving with a few enthusiasts, and the current itinerary was based on our experiences during those seven days.”

“That’s impressive,” Wei Fei sighed. “You must have suffered a lot.”

Normally, production teams would draft plans first and then assess feasibility. Yet Lin Youran had personally tested it out far more challenging than what the guests were currently filming.

Lin Youran seemed pleased by her praise and concern, her dimples faintly appearing. “It was alright just slightly worse than your current state. Get some rest early, Scissorhands.”

Wei Fei glanced at her, clearing her throat. “You should rest early too, PD Lin.”

A soft hum, almost like laughter, sounded beside her ear.

Lin Youran replied, “Goodnight.”

Her voice was gentle, lingering by Wei Fei’s ear like an intimate whisper between lovers. Wei Fei slid further down, the sleeping bag covering half her face. Exhausted from the day, she soon drifted off.

But by midnight, for some reason, Lin Youran had somehow crowded her to the edge, even throwing a leg over her.

Wei Fei could only free an arm from the sleeping bag to drag Lin Youran back to her side. Yet within minutes, Lin Youran had shifted close again.

How could someone wrapped in a sleeping bag still manage to sprawl so wildly? Wei Fei exhaled sharply, too tired to keep adjusting, and turned sideways to take up less space.

The moment she turned, her breath nearly stopped.

They were so close that Lin Youran’s breath brushed against her, her soft lips almost touching Wei Fei’s. Wei Fei’s throat bobbed as she froze for several seconds before inching back.

But as if Lin Youran was cold, she immediately wriggled closer.

Wei Fei’s eyebrows shot up, now she truly understood Lin Youran’s “carefree” sleeping habits.

This night’s sleep was more exhausting than the day’s filming. By dawn, Wei Fei could barely pry her eyes open, sitting dazedly for a long while until Lin Youran sat up and, upon seeing her, burst into laughter.

Those dimples blurred Wei Fei’s tired vision. She frowned. “What’s so funny?”

“Your eyes.” Lin Youran could barely speak through her laughter, pulling out her phone to show Wei Fei the front camera.

Her eyes were swollen like walnuts. Wei Fei rubbed her eyelids lightly, shooting Lin Youran an annoyed glare. “Still laughing? All thanks to you, sleeping like a wild bull.”

Lin Youran shrugged. “I warned you, I sleep carefreely.”

Wei Fei recalled the near-kiss moment and fell silent, quietly dressing until Lin Youran slowly added, “You said not to hold me responsible, so don’t blame me.”

The contrast of her domineering voice delivering such a pitiful line was oddly amusing, and Wei Fei nearly laughed.

Before leaving the tent, Wei Fei couldn’t resist asking, “Out of curiosity, what exactly did you mean by ‘taking responsibility’ yesterday?”

Lin Youran, now fully dressed, happened to be right behind her. Hearing this, she replied, “Turn around.”

Wei Fei was curious about how she intended to take responsibility. She lowered her hand from the tent flap and turned to face Lin Youran, only to see her remove her sunglasses with one hand.

The sunglasses spun halfway between her slender fingers before Lin Youran gripped the frames with both hands and placed them on Wei Fei’s nose. Then, leaning in extremely close, she straightened the stray hairs at Wei Fei’s temples.

Finally, pressing close to her ear while unzipping the tent flap, she murmured:

“Unless something unexpected happens, we’ll still be sharing a bed. If you need it, I can take responsibility for my casual behavior every day.”

Wei Fei: “…”

In the following days, Wei Fei came to fully understand the deeper meaning behind Lin Youran’s words.

At night, they still washed up at the campsite and slept in the tent. The temperature dropped drastically after dark, and by the third morning, Wei Fei sneezed twice in a row. While bickering with Lin Youran, she casually shifted the blame onto her.

“This is because I had to adjust your sleeping bag.”

That same day, Lin Youran draped her leather jacket over Wei Fei’s shoulders, taking the opportunity to criticize her outfit: “Why don’t you blame your sweater for being full of holes and letting in the wind?”

The jacket carried Lin Youran’s signature cool fragrance and lingering warmth.

Wei Fei felt as if she had been plucked from the cold wind and placed under sunlight, her entire body shuddering.

On the third night, Lin Youran entered the tent carrying a bread-shaped pillow and tossed it into Wei Fei’s arms. Unzipping it revealed a thin blanket: “Wrap yourself up. Don’t catch a cold and delay our schedule.”

Wei Fei pressed her lips together. “Thanks.”

In the middle of the night, when Lin Youran moved closer, Wei Fei spread the blanket to cover her as well.

By the fourth day, Wei Fei was sleep-deprived and drowsy during the day. She accidentally dozed off against Lin Youran’s shoulder while staring at the display screen. When she woke up, Lin Youran’s assistant remarked in awe, “I’ve never seen anyone dare to use Director Lin as a pillow. Are you two, you know…? If it were anyone else, Director Lin would’ve pushed them away immediately!”

Wei Fei yawned, unfazed. “What ‘you know’? Didn’t you just say you’ve never seen anyone else do it? Doesn’t that mean I’m the exception? It proves she wouldn’t push anyone away. Your Director Lin is just cold on the outside but warm inside.”

Then, staring straight at Lin Youran’s face, she added with exaggerated seriousness, “Look at how harmless she looks. That cold, ruthless act is just a disguise.”

By the seventh night, Wei Fei, who had been kicked awake in the middle of the night by Lin Youran (who had somehow flipped over in her sleep) declared that this woman was absolutely ruthless!

The ruthless Lin Youran suggested, “We can unzip the sleeping bags and use them as blankets. How about we share three blankets, and you hold me in place?”

On the ninth night, after much deliberation, Wei Fei agreed. She ended up sleeping with her arms around Lin Youran.

The result? Lin Youran got too close, her breath brushing against Wei Fei’s neck.

Even worse, in the haze of half-sleep, Wei Fei felt something damp press against the back of her neck.

Lin Youran’s lips.

In that instant, Wei Fei’s heart inexplicably raced.

She was wide awake for the rest of the night.

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