The Film Queen Is Cold and Ruthless, Only Sends Money - Chapter 43.1

[??? What is Actress Jiang saying to Su Yun? Why did their livestream suddenly go silent!]

[I remember they were just talking about washing vegetables? Could they be sharing secrets now?]

[You two are such teases! Is there really something we, your esteemed audience, aren’t worthy of hearing?!]

[Even so, as a devoted shipper of you two, I’m loving this! The way Jiang turned off Su Yun’s earpiece just now was so swoon-worthy!]

They were still live-streaming, and though they could mute their earpieces in case of unexpected situations, the fixed camera in the kitchen remained on. Thus, Jiang Zhi’s action had been captured clearly.

Outside, the other guests were still discussing how many elaborate dishes they should prepare for lunch. If they could make the production team drool with envy, that would count as a major success!

The faint clamor from outside drifted into the otherwise silent kitchen, as if Jiang Zhi’s words were still echoing in Su Yun’s ears.

Her gaze lifted slightly, tracing from Jiang Zhi’s slender, pale fingertips up to her light, calm eyes.

Ever since Jiang Zhi mentioned the fitting room, Su Yun’s heartbeat had quickened.

The words she had meant to say vanished instantly, her mind going blank. After a brief pause, she finally managed to ask, “Why do you ask?”

Su Yun, who was usually sharp and perceptive when it came to emotions and questions, had a strong intuition.

Her gut told her that beneath Jiang Zhi’s question lay another, hidden inquiry, one that the other woman truly cared about and wanted answered.

That was the key.

Unfortunately, Su Yun couldn’t guess what it was yet. The only thing she could discern was that Jiang Zhi wasn’t angry.

But that made things easier. As long as she answered earnestly, the generous goddess of fortune surely wouldn’t give her a hard time!

Jiang Zhi’s eyes lifted slightly, taking in Su Yun’s earnest, questioning expression adorably clueless.

It reminded her of a cat at home that had knocked over a cup of water, standing there dazed, sensing something was wrong but completely unaware of what it had done.

The mental image made Jiang Zhi want to ruffle Su Yun’s head.

She had deliberated for a long time before asking this question.

From the morning onward, Su Yun had been deliberately keeping her distance. And just moments ago, the way her fingers had brushed against Jiang Zhi’s before quickly withdrawing confirmed it beyond doubt.

In the process of moving from suspicion to certainty, Jiang Zhi had also been searching for the reason.

On the surface, their relationship appeared no different from before. If one ignored these subtle details, nothing would change between them.

Their tasks would still be completed smoothly, and they would remain the most harmonious pair in the eyes of both the other guests and the audience.

Su Yun would still joke around with her, chatting and laughing as naturally as friends. Even in the haunted house, they had stuck together just with fewer physical touches…

Physical contact. It was only after leaving the haunted house that Jiang Zhi had thought of this.

Once she realized this, the rest of her analysis fell into place.

In the past, even when declaring her fondness for Jiang Zhi on camera, Su Yun had done so boldly, without a trace of shyness.

When wanting to whisper to her and avoid the other guests, she would pull Jiang Zhi’s arm, leaning her entire body, along with her warm breath toward her without the slightest hesitation.

If there was one major difference today, it was that Su Yun was extremely careful not to touch her. Even at their closest, there was always a layer of sleeve between them.

Thus, after exiting the haunted house, Jiang Zhi noted this observation and began slowly testing her hypothesis during the next two activities.

During breaks, she would sit in the spot closest to Su Yun, occasionally extending her hand to let Su Yun rest her wrist on it. Even when Su Yun handed her a dish earlier, Jiang Zhi deliberately brushed her fingertips against hers.

And every time Su Yun avoided contact, it only confirmed the accuracy of her conjecture.

Once she had confirmed this, Jiang Zhi revisited the events of the previous day.

The only moment Su Yun had acted out of the ordinary was after emerging from the fitting room her flushed cheeks had lingered far longer than usual. It was then that Jiang Zhi connected that incident with Su Yun’s behavior today.

Hearing Su Yun’s words, Jiang Zhi chuckled softly and said, “You still haven’t answered my question.”

The atmosphere between them lightened considerably with her soft laughter.

After speaking, Jiang Zhi placed the dish she had just taken into the washing area and turned on the faucet.

The rushing water flowed through the vibrant green leaves, leaving behind droplets that threatened to slip away proof of the freshness of the ingredients provided by the show’s crew.

Su Yun’s attempt to change the subject had failed. Watching Jiang Zhi wash the vegetables, she pondered the question posed earlier.

Just the mention of the fitting room made her feel the heat rising in her cheeks again. The images in her mind had been hazy in her dreams, but now, recalled in reality, they were unbearably vivid.

She had been deliberately avoiding thoughts of it all day never expecting the other party to bring it up herself!

Su Yun wasn’t idle either. Picking up another batch of vegetables, she held them under the faucet, letting the cool water temper the warmth in her body.

As she washed, she carefully composed her words: “I wasn’t actually thinking about it earlier… but I don’t know why I spaced out either…”

This time, she was telling the truth. After all, she had been trying so hard to erase the memory from her mind that blaming her distraction on it felt entirely wrong.

Yet perhaps her efforts had backfired, making it the sole focus of her attention so much so that even the slightest brush of Jiang Zhi’s fingertips had nearly made her drop the dish.

So whether or not that was the real reason, she couldn’t say for certain.

Her words came out hesitant, but the moment they left her lips, she didn’t hesitate to glance at Jiang Zhi, scrutinizing her reaction as if afraid she wouldn’t believe her.

Jiang Zhi set the washed vegetables aside and replied in a light but unwavering tone, “I believe you. We’ll talk about the rest later.”

After speaking, she took a small step closer to Su Yun and raised her hand slightly.

Su Yun’s gaze followed her fingertips, lingering on the droplets of water still clinging to them, until they came to rest just above her collarbone.

Instinctively, she wanted to pull away, but Jiang Zhi’s voice held her in place.

Jiang Zhi: “Don’t move.”

She reached over and turned Su Yun’s earpiece back on.

The tiny drop of water on her fingertip, cool to the touch, landed precisely in the hollow of Su Yun’s collarbone.

Su Yun blinked, wanting to ask if there was anything else left to do.

But the microphone had just been turned on, so she could only tuck her question away for now, silently thinking to herself: That fanfiction I glimpsed in the CP supertopic before it wasn’t entirely fictional after all!

It wasn’t that her self-control was weak. Anyone standing this close to Jiang Zhi, hearing her voice as if it were resonating from their very bones, uttering words like “Don’t move” so heart-fluttering would find it impossible to refuse her!

She had to admit, in this moment, she was truly hooked by Jiang Zhi.

–

Lin Yan happened to walk in just then and asked, “How’s the vegetable washing going?”

“All done,” Jiang Zhi and Su Yun replied, placing the washed vegetables to the side. “Is there anything else that needs handling? We can help.”

“We’ve got all our ingredients prepped too!” Lin Yan called the others into the kitchen. “Perfect timing, let’s discuss what dishes we’re making?”

Liu Yangran’s group had already decided on their menu before coming in.

Without hesitation, Ye Ying said, “Our group wants to make scrambled eggs with tomatoes and stir-fried greens, two simple home-style dishes.”

Lin Yan chuckled. “I thought you’d go for something more elaborate. Didn’t expect it to be so down-to-earth.”

“Hehe, well, practice should start with the basics, right?” Liu Yangran grinned as she picked up the tomatoes, eggs, and other ingredients, her movements looking impressively practiced.

Xu Zhi, who usually enjoyed experimenting with cooking, nodded in agreement. “They’re right. If you start with something too complicated or finicky with the heat, mistakes are more likely.”

Dishes like scrambled eggs with tomatoes and stir-fried greens were straightforward, just follow the basic steps, and the result would be decent. It seemed Liu Yangran and Ye Ying had really put in the effort to learn.

“Well, now I’m looking forward to it!” Su Xue was never one to turn down good food.

With the lively atmosphere restored, Su Yun set aside her earlier bewilderment and turned to Jiang Zhi. “So, should we make sweet and sour ribs and seaweed soup?”

She had made both dishes at home before, and Jiang Zhi loved them, no room for mishaps here.

Jiang Zhi nodded. “I’ll assist you.”

As they cooked, the two of them moved in seamless harmony. Su Yun didn’t even need to speak before Jiang Zhi handed her the salt and sugar.

[Are you two like this every day at home, cooking together like this?! I want a taste too!]

[Woo-hoo! Finally, the mics are back on, what were you whispering about earlier, huh? Keeping secrets even from us!]

[The 30-yuan budget last time really shackled their culinary skills! Now they’re cooking up a storm everyone looks like a pro chef!]

[HAHAHAHA! Spoke too soon look at Zhao Zhao and Xue Xue chasing that runaway fish right now. I can’t stop laughing!]

Su Xue and Zhao Zhao had planned to make braised fish, preparing the sauce separately from the fish itself. But they hit a snag right from the start.

Su Xue scanned the ingredient table, frowning. “Did the crew forget to provide fish? That can’t be right.”

“Check the fridge?” Lin Yan suggested, focused on chopping vegetables to avoid slowing Xu Zhi down.

She now wished she had a measuring scale to ensure every carrot cube was exactly the same size!

Jing Zhaozhao opened the fridge. “There’s no fish in here. If we can’t find any, we’ll just switch to another dish. The braised sauce is pretty versatile anyway.”

“No need to switch,” Su Yun said, even as she multitasked with the dish she was cooking, sparing them some attention. “The fish you want is right here, there are several of them.”

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