The Movie Queen And Her Rival Just Went Public! - Chapter 34

Chapter 34

In the surprised gaze of everyone, Su Cancan put down the glass. The clear glass hit the soft grass without making a sound.

Su Cancan swallowed a mouthful of saliva, unable to suppress the pungent, bitter aftertaste in her mouth, but she still maintained her composure. On camera, she was as arrogant, elegant, and dominating as a queen, her aura so strong that some guilt-ridden people couldn’t reach her.

“I’ll drink this glass for Ms. Shen.”

The mixed alcohol, combined with how quickly and fiercely she drank it, made her previously clear head momentarily dizzy. She steadied herself and spoke.

Shen Luoyan was extremely worried about her. She hadn’t expected Su Cancan to shield her from the drink, especially since Su Cancan was clearly resistant to her and kept her distance.

Viky silently curled her lip. She hated the trope of “a hero saving the beauty.” She couldn’t help but snipe: “Oh, Sister Cancan is so good to Sister Luoyan. But our previous rule was to drink three cups as a substitute.”

What rule?

Shen Luoyan frowned. Although the ice had melted, a chill still radiated from her. She looked at Viky with disgust; her deep pupils were no longer calm. In Shen Luoyan’s eyes, Viky was nothing more than a vulgar object, ready to be torn apart and discarded at any moment.

The others also hadn’t heard of any such penalty rule and were whispering among themselves.

Xia Yue looked worriedly at Cheng Lewei: “Is that true? Did you have to drink that much when you went to social events before?”

“No.” Cheng Lewei zipped up Xia Yue’s jacket. “No need. No one has ever been able to force me to drink.”

She tapped Xia Yue’s nose: “With me here, no one will ever force you.”

Xia Yue snuggled into Cheng Lewei’s embrace. On the other side, Youyou lowered her voice: “This Viky is deliberately causing trouble. The xuejie has already drunk it, what else does she want? Tsk, we can’t beat them, so we’d better avoid them in the future.”

Zhou Zhou followed his indignant girlfriend’s gaze and shook his head: “She is indeed a little inferior to xuejie.”

“A little? She’s way too inferior!” Youyou puffed out her cheeks, making her small face round. Zhou Zhou quickly leaned in to comfort her and align himself with her stance.

Su Cancan always preferred to resolve conflicts face-to-face. Since Viky was repeatedly provoking her in front of so many people and cameras, she naturally wouldn’t be a pushover, allowing herself to be manipulated.

She tugged at the corner of her mouth, speaking scornfully: “It seems you didn’t do your homework before recording. Didn’t you know that Ms. Su can’t drink alcohol? So, I didn’t drink this on behalf of Ms. Shen. If she had drunk it and something happened, would you take responsibility? Or would you drink it for her? And in what capacity would you substitute?”

For the first time, Su Cancan ruthlessly exposed Viky’s ugly private motives in public. With the conflict laid bare like this, there was no need for cheering or choosing sides. Any discerning person could tell who had malicious intentions.

A vein throbbed on Shen Luoyan’s forehead. When Su Cancan turned to look at her, she met Shen Luoyan’s unconcealed angry gaze, and her heart trembled. She had never seen her so angry. It seemed the previous provocations and boundary crossings were only tolerated because Shen Luoyan allowed it, and not because she didn’t mind.

Shen Luoyan noticed Su Cancan looking at her out of the corner of her eye. She pursed her lips, lowered her gaze, and asked softly, “Are you alright? Do you feel like throwing up? Should I go get you some warm water?”

Su Cancan shook her head. Now that she had calmed down, the dizziness had vanished, but a burning sensation in her stomach gradually drew her attention.

“I think we’ve drunk enough. Let’s film the ending and wrap up,” Shen Luoyan announced. Not even the production team could object. As she spoke, she moved closer to Su Cancan’s position, allowing Su Cancan to lean on her for support.

Su Cancan didn’t hesitate, supporting her upper body with her arm and shifting some of her weight onto Shen Luoyan.

“Then, let’s celebrate the successful conclusion of today’s session.”

“To a successful future every day!”

“May the xuejies find the right person soon!”

Everyone used the final moments to make wishes and look forward to the future. Su Cancan didn’t speak. All she wanted was to live peacefully every day, earn the money she was supposed to, and play the roles she loved. When she vaguely heard Youyou’s words and listened closer, a warm feeling flowed through her, greatly easing the pain.

Accompanied by her junior’s beautiful wish, she was willing to drink a little more, but as the liquid slid past her lips and into her mouth, she realized it wasn’t alcohol. It was sparkling soda.

Su Cancan turned to look at Shen Luoyan. The bubbles rose and burst in her oral cavity and trachea, like fireworks crackling in her ears.

The director’s “Cut” sounded in the headset. Shen Luoyan instantly pulled off her own mic and turned it off, simultaneously reaching around Su Cancan’s waist to switch off hers.

Su Cancan: “?”

Shen Luoyan rose from a sitting position to a crouch. They were already very close, and now their eyes met, focusing only on each other.

Shen Luoyan asked her: “Why are you still wearing the mic after we’ve finished? Can you get up by yourself?”

Su Cancan saw that Shen Luoyan’s eyes were glistening. Her own reflection in Shen Luoyan’s eyes was also shimmering. Her barely sober mind started to feel dizzy again. Shen Luoyan’s image began to twist unconsciously. When she shook her head and looked again, it became even more distorted.

Seeing this, Shen Luoyan understood. She turned her back to Su Cancan.

“Get on.”

Shen Luoyan held the position, waiting for Su Cancan to climb onto her back. After a long moment, besides the occasional cool breeze, there was no contact. She frowned and turned to face Su Cancan.

“Is xuejie asleep?” Youyou, following the main group back to the Love Cabin, noticed Shen Luoyan and Su Cancan still in their original spots. Feeling anxious, she returned to ask.

Su Cancan’s eyes were lightly closed, her breathing steady. She seemed to be asleep. Shen Luoyan looked up, moving her gaze from Su Cancan’s face to Youyou’s face. She raised her hand, pressed her index finger to her lips, signaling her to be quiet.

Youyou nodded repeatedly, then asked in a breathy voice: “Do you need our help?”

Shen Luoyan scanned the area. The film crew’s equipment had already been packed up, and the rest of the staff were clearing the site. The only remaining guests were them and Youyou and Zhou Zhou.

She carefully handed Su Cancan to Youyou, quickly loosened her joints, and when she felt ready, she supported Su Cancan’s shoulders and lifted her into a cradle hold.

The sudden upward movement made Su Cancan feel a loss of balance. Her curled eyelashes fluttered, and she instinctively wrapped her arms around Shen Luoyan’s neck. Fearing she might wriggle and fall, Shen Luoyan exerted force, lifting her higher and holding her tighter.

“Be careful.”

Shen Luoyan was over $1.7$ meters tall but weighed less than a hundred kilograms. She looked frail, and carrying Su Cancan made people worry. Shen Luoyan softly said she was fine and carried her towards the Love Cabin, about a hundred meters away.

Su Cancan was like an obedient cat in her arms. When she wasn’t talking, she was quiet, her small claws retracted, her raised fur smoothed down. Her warm breath puffed against Shen Luoyan’s neck, making her steps steadier with each stride.

After accompanying Su Cancan and Shen Luoyan to their door and opening it for them, Youyou and Zhou Zhou felt relieved enough to return to their own cabin. Once inside the door, Shen Luoyan kicked off her shoes by the heel, ignoring the need to change into slippers, and carried Su Cancan directly into the bedroom and onto the bed.

Truthfully, her mysophobia was quite severe. She couldn’t tolerate anyone lying on her bed while wearing outdoor clothes. But the person in her arms was Su Cancan. Even though she had just been sitting on the grass and might have dust on her, Shen Luoyan didn’t mind at all.

After gently placing Su Cancan on the bed, Shen Luoyan half-knelt by the bedside to take off her shoes. While undoing the laces, she thought: For being drunk, Cancan is much more well-behaved this time than last time.

Su Cancan wasn’t crying or being noisy. Shen Luoyan left the shoes and went out of the bedroom to the kitchen to boil water for a hangover soup. While waiting, she covered all the cameras in the house one by one. Finally, everything was ready. She brought the honey water, hangover soup, and her cat slippers into the bedroom.

The tray containing the honey water and hangover soup was placed on the bedside table. She covered the bedroom camera, helped Su Cancan sit up, and coaxed her to drink.

“You’re uncomfortable, right? Drink some of this, and you’ll feel better.” Shen Luoyan helped Su Cancan sit up.

Su Cancan wouldn’t easily respond to her. Hearing the voice, she only frowned and continued to sleep soundly.

Shen Luoyan reluctantly pinched her chin to open her mouth slightly. The brownish-red soup poured into her mouth. Seeing her swallow it sip by sip, Shen Luoyan felt a wave of relief.

“What is this? How can you do such a thing? If you’re going to drink, you should be open about it. How can you sneakily replace it with something else?” Su Cancan still kept her eyes tightly closed. Perhaps having tasted it, she shut her mouth tightly after speaking.

“Be good, drink a little more.”

Shen Luoyan increased the pressure on the cup. Su Cancan’s reaction was even stronger. She felt the coercion and first clamped her lips shut, then pretended to surrender, relaxing some of her muscle tension. When the hangover soup flowed into her mouth, she suddenly exerted force and spat it out.

Most of the soup sprayed out of her mouth and onto Shen Luoyan’s face. A little bit trickled down her chin onto the jacket Shen Luoyan had draped over her.

The seemingly ordinary casual suit jacket was actually a new seasonal item from a major brand, valued in the six figures. Her face was dirty, and her clothes were wet, but Shen Luoyan wasn’t angry at all. The first thing she dealt with wasn’t her own face. She put down the hangover soup, pulled out a few napkins, and carefully wiped the filth from Su Cancan’s chin.

Since being tough didn’t work, she tried being gentle. Since force was ineffective, she coaxed her nicely. Since the hangover soup was unpleasant, she switched to honey water.

“No more alcohol. We’re done. Can you drink this sugar water?”

The sweet strategy worked. Su Cancan slowly opened her eyes. Her dark, bright eyes were clear and moist. Although she was looking at Shen Luoyan, she still seemed disoriented.

Su Cancan smacked her lips: “It’s so bitter. What is this? Much more bitter than alcohol.”

“It’s hangover soup. It’s too bitter, so we won’t drink it. How about honey water?” Shen Luoyan offered the cup to her.

Su Cancan looked down at the cup in Shen Luoyan’s hand. She showed no inclination to take it. She stared blankly at the slightly yellow liquid in the cup and continued to shake her head: “No, I don’t like beer.”

Shen Luoyan was amused. She was about to explain that what was in the cup wasn’t beer but stopped herself. She knew trying to explain things to a little drunkard was futile. She patiently asked, “Then what do you want to drink? Besides alcohol.”

Su Cancan’s eyes darted around: “Milk tea! I want milk tea!”

In this rural area, there were hardly any proper small restaurants, let alone a milk tea shop. Su Cancan’s request posed a challenge for Shen Luoyan, but since Su Cancan had asked, she didn’t want to disappoint her. She frantically recalled if there were any ingredients in the kitchen that could substitute, and reluctantly agreed to Su Cancan’s demand.

“Can you wait for me here alone for a moment?”

Su Cancan brought her hand to her brow bone, her expression serious: “Reporting, Officer! Mission guaranteed to be completed.”

Shen Luoyan was amused by her unexpected gesture. She smiled, returned the salute, and replied with extreme cooperation: “Received.”

Shen Luoyan padded out to the living room in her slippers. She turned on the kitchen light and began searching the cabinets for tea leaves, tapioca starch, and brown sugar lumps—the ingredients listed by the blogger when she searched.

Following the blogger’s video tutorial, she rolled small tapioca pearls, pan-fried the tea leaves, and simmered them with pure milk. Finally, she strained the mixture and poured it into a cup. Her first homemade milk tea sat on the counter. At a glance, it looked almost identical to the ones sold outside.

Just as she was about to take the milk tea to the room, the sounds of activity from the cabin next door started up again.

Shen Luoyan heard no qing yu in the sounds, only annoyance. She put down the milk tea and, for the first time so late, went to find the production crew.