The Movie Queen And Her Rival Just Went Public! - Chapter 28

Chapter 28

“What’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell?”

Shen Luoyan, emerging from her own memory, looked at Su Cancan. The half-face she could see briefly shifted through several expressions in a few short seconds.

Su Cancan flinched, her voice suddenly rising an octave: “No.”

As her mouth closed, she snapped out of it, realizing her loss of composure. She relaxed her body and said softly, “I’m not unwell. Let’s set them up. Find a high place where they won’t easily be touched. We absolutely mustn’t disappoint the little sisters’ thoughtfulness.”

Shen Luoyan suggested: “Let’s put them all on the shelf above the TV. It’s high enough that they won’t be easily touched, and you’ll see them as soon as you enter the room.”

“Sounds good.” Su Cancan agreed, gently placing the three items back into the box and handing the box, along with the paper bag, to Shen Luoyan.

While Shen Luoyan was busy in front of her, Su Cancan instinctively took out her phone and entered her and Shen Luoyan’s super-topic.

It had changed significantly after not checking it for several days. Managed by dedicated personnel, a new announcement was pinned at the top, likely outlining rules for CP fans’ conduct and explaining the format for posting and managing comments. Scrolling down the fan posts, her immediate impression was that the number of solo fans and anti-fans had decreased.

Hands Faster Than Brain: Torrid Love – First Love 10,000-word campus story, completed. Some content is not suitable for minors. Private message/Image after liking.

A unique post suddenly appeared among the many double photos. The attached image, with black text on a white background, seemed unrelated to the two at first glance. Su Cancan quickly scanned it and immediately banished the post from her sight, suppressing her curiosity.

Friends who only follow solo artists might not understand this culture, but anyone who has shipped a double CP knows that the main artists can’t always provide “sweetness” and won’t display their lives, including their sex life, 24/7. Many plot points require fans to imagine them, which leads to a batch of CP fanfiction writers. Their imagination is as rich as the species they write about. Su Cancan had read fanfiction and knew the feeling of immersion; letting her read one about herself, especially an R-rated one, was equivalent to killing her with a single blow.

I Love the Great Beauty: Although the variety show hasn’t aired yet, the CP chemistry between the two beauties is already exploding! Isn’t the behind-the-scenes clip from the 《FOR U》 trailer shoving sweetness right into our mouths! So family, don’t be afraid. Ship our sweetness and let the solo fans go crazy!

Guardian of the Sweetest SS in the World: As a newbie shipping CP, I don’t understand. Is it normal to be chased and cursed at, or even privately messaged with insults, by solo fans after posting? How should I handle it?

The Local Famous Elementary Student: You two solo fans, stop constantly staring at our CP super-topic. Those two sisters are your main artists, not ours. The two sisters have a collaborative variety show waiting to air, and both the production team and the artists themselves have officially announced it. As long as 《FOR U》 is in its promotional period, we CP fans are the biggest. Even the King of Heaven can’t stop us from shipping CP. Save your energy to stream your own data. And you CP fans, stand up and ship! You’re not committing murder or arson, so what are you afraid of? Next time they come to commit malice, fire back!

“Take a look. Is it crooked? Does it need adjusting?”

Su Cancan was just lamenting that the discord between solo fans and CP fans was an unsolvable global mystery when Shen Luoyan suddenly spoke. She quickly turned off her phone and clenched it in her hand, feeling guilty as if caught in the act.

Shen Luoyan repeatedly checked the placement before turning back to look at Su Cancan, only to see her eyes unfocused and a look of panic, as if she had just done something bad behind Shen Luoyan’s back.

Su Cancan pretended to be nonchalant and walked over to inspect: “It looks good.”

Shen Luoyan didn’t press the matter, nodding: “Then I’ll read the script here for a while. Call me if you need anything.”

“The script?” Su Cancan blurted out.

“Mhm.”

She asked again: “The script for your next drama? A serious historical drama?”

Shen Luoyan hesitated. Before she could speak, Su Cancan suddenly realized her question was too private. Although the two were colleagues with different career paths, they were ultimately in competition. Being overly concerned made it seem like she had an ulterior motive.

She changed her tone, speaking calmly: “You don’t have to answer. I shouldn’t have asked. You read. The lighting in the living room is good. I’ll do some yoga by the window. If I’m bothering you, I’ll move somewhere else.”

Shen Luoyan furrowed her brow, her tone sounding like both a plea to stay and an explanation: “You’re not bothering me. It’s a palace drama. I’m still in the selection phase.”

Su Cancan muttered: “Palace drama? Recently, time-travel and palace dramas have had very high ratings. If it’s scheduled for a prime-time slot, the traffic will be incredible. You have a fan base, so you don’t need to worry about that, but your first period drama is a huge selling point. If the script is good, the team is decent, and the price is right, it’s a good choice…”

The speaker had no intention, but the listener took it to heart. The balance in Shen Luoyan’s mind imperceptibly tilted.

The phone clenched in Su Cancan’s palm suddenly rang. Disregarding the plan she was concocting for Shen Luoyan’s career, she shook the flashing screen and walked into the bedroom, took off her microphone, and answered the call.

She held the phone to her ear: “Hello?”

Liu Yimin asked with concern: “How’s living with Shen Luoyan? Is her cooking to your liking? You haven’t had an argument with her, have you? If you’ve been wronged, don’t keep it inside; remember to tell me.”

Su Cancan interrupted her teasingly: “What? If I’m wronged, will you ask Qian Weiyi to fix it for me, or will you fix it? Or are you saying you’ll declare war on Shen Luoyan for my sake?”

Liu Yimin was speechless. After a few seconds of pause: “I didn’t say that. Don’t even think about Qian Weiyi. As for me…”

“As for you what?” Su Cancan, with the phone wedged between her ear and shoulder, located the yoga mat at the bottom of the closet in the walk-in closet.

“I’m definitely different from him. You’re the treasure I hold in my hand. If Shen Luoyan wrongs you, I’ll be the first to object. However, in a lawful society, I can’t physically assault her. At most, I’ll condemn her morally.”

The phone was about to slip. Su Cancan grabbed it with one hand and picked up the yoga mat with the other: “Stop giving me empty promises. Which project has a problem that you’re calling me during the show?”

Liu Yimin on the other end rubbed her nose. Artists who were too smart couldn’t be fooled: 《Nian Qing》 is trying to secure a New Year’s Day broadcast slot and is haggling with the platform. We originally planned to use this drama for your career transition, so we specifically requested not to use dubbing during the contract signing. Now that you’re on 《FOR U》, Director Chen is worried and asking for your availability to see if you can finish dubbing as soon as possible, so it can be submitted for review early.”

Su Cancan raised an eyebrow. As she had just said, prime-time traffic is the icing on the cake for someone like Shen Luoyan but is crucial for dramas of their popularity tier—it’s like a timely help in snowy weather. Her recent reputation had suffered, causing her to lose hundreds of thousands of followers. Combined with the current marketing impact, a complete collapse was possible. No matter how good the post-production was, they couldn’t risk it. Securing the New Year’s Day slot and riding into the winter break would be the best outcome.

Su Cancan said: “The 《FOR U》 contract stated a minimum of ten days of joint filming. I haven’t finalized the schedule with Shen Luoyan yet. Please ask Director Liu to wait a few minutes. I’ll give him an answer after I ask her.”

“No problem.”

Coming out of the bedroom, Su Cancan’s gaze swept the living room area and landed on the sofa. Shen Luoyan was sitting upright, operating a tablet. Su Cancan dragged the yoga mat and approached. When she was only two or three steps away, she noticed two cups of tea and two plates of fruit on the coffee table. Shen Luoyan looked up at the right moment, meeting her eyes.

“It’s not tea. I asked your manager and know you don’t like the taste of tea. This is adzuki bean and job’s tear water.”

She put down the tablet: “These berries are good for you, but they just came out of the fridge and are a bit cold. You’ll need to wait a while to eat them.”

Su Cancan awkwardly walked closer and pointed to the microphone location. Shen Luoyan understood and took off her microphone.

The staff member in the monitoring room had just returned from a break. Putting on the headset and hearing no sound, they quietly clenched their fists, vowing never to sneak off during work hours again and disrupt the CP shipping.

No, work.

“The contract terms state a guaranteed joint filming time of over ten days during the shoot, right?” Su Cancan cautiously probed.

Shen Luoyan’s hand, gripping the microphone, suddenly tightened. The foreign object pressed deep marks into her fingertips.

She said, “Yes.”

Su Cancan blinked: “It wasn’t negotiated properly during the signing. At the time, I thought the condition was very loose and didn’t anticipate any difficulties. My last project just wrapped up and is planned to air on New Year’s Day. Post-production is in a hurry, and I need to rush to do the voice recording. So, I need to finalize these ten days with you now to report back to that side.”

Su Cancan kept stealing glances at Shen Luoyan while she spoke, trying to gauge her mood changes from her micro-expressions. However, the woman was as impassive as ever, her cold, expressionless face unmoving.

Little did Su Cancan know that the blood flow suddenly surged into Shen Luoyan’s hands resting on her knees, instantly giving her strength. Her violently beating heart stabilized; she was the one truly relieved under the mask.

Shen Luoyan tapped the tablet: “Up to you.”

Su Cancan looked at her, her lively expression full of confusion. She recalled her conversation with Liu Yimin before the contract signing.

Payment? Up to you.

Time? Up to you.

Location? Up to you.

Did one need to be this smooth and accommodating to make a living in the entertainment industry, or did one need to be this polished and meticulous to reach her position?

Su Cancan felt she was overdoing the act. Before Su Cancan could react, Shen Luoyan provided a timely explanation.

“I don’t have any filming scheduled for the next two months. There might be some temporary activities, so I can’t guarantee you that time. As for the rest, as long as you say you have time to film, I can be present.”

Su Cancan froze. Comparing Shen Luoyan’s words and her readiness to her own series of activities, she realized she had been truly awful. Her poor initial impression had always influenced her attitude and speculation about Shen Luoyan’s character. Now, it seemed she might have worn her colored glasses for too long. To truly understand Shen Luoyan, she needed to interact with her more and observe the details.

“That’s wonderful,” she said, feeling somewhat unsettled, and brought the water cup from the coffee table to her lips.

The scalding sensation crushed her lips and hit her tongue. Her mind momentarily exploded, and she became completely alert. She slammed the glass down, causing the slightly red liquid to slosh and spill onto the pure white coffee table, staining it with pink “flowers.”

“Hot!”

With her hands empty, she quickly joined her fingers and fanned her mouth, trying to send in some coolness to relieve the pain.

This time, the staff watching through the monitor clearly saw Su Cancan’s reaction and understood what had happened. They instinctively left their seats, worrying for her.

Shen Luoyan at the scene panicked. Her face was finally no longer mechanical. She stood up, tossing the tablet onto the sofa, and grabbed the tissue box, rushing to Su Cancan’s side.

The scalding liquid had turned Su Cancan’s tongue beet-red. Under the stimulation of pain, tears uncontrollably poured out. Shen Luoyan’s heart ached, afraid to touch her. She pulled out a tissue, completely flustered, not knowing whether to wipe or just hold it.

Finally, she bravely knelt beside Su Cancan, one hand supporting her face, the other gently wiping the tiny “pearls” from the Cat Princess’s cheeks with the tissue.

The princess, for once, didn’t resist, but her voice was slurred.

“Was that just-boiled water? Why is it so hot!”