The Movie Queen And Her Rival Just Went Public! - Chapter 43

Chapter 43

Su Cancan’s soft body pressed against Shen Luoyan’s side, causing Shen Luoyan to stiffen instantly.

“What does the card say?”

Shen Luoyan cleared her throat and began to read the contents of the card. Her voice was clear and formal: “Dear Su Cancan and Shen Luoyan, you have been in the Love Cottage for over a week. Have you experienced even a single second of heart-fluttering attraction? Have you felt the sweetness of romance while spending time with your partner? There is no need to rush an answer, for your journey has only just begun.”

“This week, we have prepared a two-day, one-night romantic excursion for our four couples. The destination is the Lake-Island Forest Park northwest of Hangzhou. Please prepare in advance and go find your own happiness!” Su Cancan, finding Shen Luoyan’s tone a bit too dry—like a narrator reading a script—took over as soon as she paused.

“Two days and one night! We’re staying out for a night. Will it be camping?” As Su Cancan spoke, her eyes curved into crescents, shimmering with genuine excitement and anticipation.

Shen Luoyan knew that much of this joy and excitement was an act for the cameras, yet her heart still couldn’t help but throb—thump, thump—steady and powerful.

She nodded seriously. “It might be camping, so we should bring some warm clothes.”

Su Cancan literally hopped in place. “That’s great! I’ve never been camping before. I’m so looking forward to it. I wonder if we’ll see fireflies in the mountains…”

Listening to Su Cancan’s chatter, the corners of Shen Luoyan’s mouth twitched into a tiny, unintentional arc. Hearing her mention fireflies, she pursed her lips in thought, as if remembering something.

The excitement for the trip was real. It felt like being told in the middle of a long, high-pressure semester that there would be a midweek school trip—no need to plan the itinerary, and you get paid to play. Su Cancan was already calculating that once they stopped filming, she would ask the recording studio for one more day of leave.

Once the segment for reading the task card was finished, the two went into the room together to pack for the next day.

When she had moved out of the cottage a few days ago, Su Cancan had taken her suitcases with her. Since this return was sudden and there was no time to contact the crew or her team to bring them back, she had to share Shen Luoyan’s suitcase.

Standing in the walk-in closet, Su Cancan looked at the few pieces of clothing she had left there and asked, “What’s the temperature tomorrow?”

“Sunny tomorrow. High of $22^circtext{C}$, low of $13^circtext{C}$. The temperature difference is quite large,” Shen Luoyan happened to be checking the weather and answered casually.

“That’s not bad. It shouldn’t be too cold if the sun is out.”

Standing behind Su Cancan, Shen Luoyan watched her fingertips brush over various thin summer outfits, occasionally pulling one out to hold against herself. She wanted to warn her that the mountains would be cold, but fearing she would find it annoying, she silently dragged out her own suitcase and unlocked it on the floor.

“How about this one?”

Shen Luoyan, who was squatting, looked up. A black sequined camisole dress was held up in front of Su Cancan. Looking up, it had a low-cut tube-top design; looking down, it was a mini-style that barely reached the thighs.

Shen Luoyan was conflicted. How could she politely tell her that they were going to a mountain forest full of insects and ants, not a music show stage?

“Hmm…” Su Cancan was also scrutinizing the dress. She held it a bit further away and muttered to herself, “Feels more suitable for the beach.”

Shen Luoyan breathed a sigh of relief. She nodded in agreement and then took a package from a nearby drawer, placing it in the suitcase first.

She packed her own clothes according to the weather. Since the production team hadn’t specified other conditions, she carefully prepared a set of toiletries and disposable undergarments.

Su Cancan was mainly responsible for “looking beautiful,” picking out her clothes, folding them, and placing them in the box.

“I brought the toiletry bag,” Shen Luoyan said, feeling a bit nervous. She wasn’t sure if Su Cancan would mind using the same products as her. The thought that they might end up smelling the same made her blush slightly.

Su Cancan couldn’t easily refuse in front of the cameras, but she didn’t really care: “Okay. You’re in charge of the toiletries, I’m in charge of the makeup bag. A clear division of labor!”

After stuffing everything they could think of into the suitcase, Shen Luoyan checked it one last time before closing it and pushing it to the door before bed.

Once the cameras were off, the unavoidable issues of showering and sleeping arose. Shen Luoyan planned to wash up and make do on the sofa for the night, but Su Cancan called out to her just as she was opening the bedroom door.

Knowing the other woman was injured and not in great health, Su Cancan’s conscience couldn’t let her send her to the sofa. She called Shen Luoyan’s name and moved to one side of the bed, stuffing a few bolsters and pillows between their respective spots.

“Let’s just sleep like this. You didn’t rest well today, and the living conditions in the mountains tomorrow will be worse. Your body won’t be able to take it.”

The look in Shen Luoyan’s eyes was one of pure disbelief. Fearing she would change her mind, Shen Luoyan quickly closed the door, pulled back the covers, and lay down.

“Thank you,” she said, wrapping herself in the quilt. “I promise I won’t do anything. I’ll stay in this position until tomorrow morning. I won’t cross the line.”

Shen Luoyan’s series of movements was so fluid and fast that Su Cancan almost saw an afterimage. Su Cancan was stunned—was she implying that her sleeping posture was bad?

She had never seen this side of Shen Luoyan before; the “cold and aloof” filter seemed to have shattered completely. She really wanted to send a clip of this to Shen Luoyan’s fans so they could see how terrifyingly fake a celebrity’s persona could be.

“Oh,” she said, speechless. She reached out to turn off the wall lamp and lay down in her own quilt.

Without an alarm to disturb her, Su Cancan slept deeply and dreamlessly until she woke up naturally. Compared to the last time when she was sprawled horizontally across the bed, today she was just squeezed against the pillows. Her sleeping posture was acceptable.

Shen Luoyan’s side was empty. After washing up and heading to the living room, breakfast happened to be served.

Soy milk, egg pancakes, and steamed buns.

Su Cancan looked at the buns and then at Shen Luoyan. She was terrified of hearing that Shen Luoyan had woken up early to make them; that would be a huge emotional burden, and netizens would be even harsher on her.

“We have a bus ride, so we should eat something light. There isn’t much; the buns are just instant food prepared by the crew earlier. We’ll just make do, is that okay?”

Luckily, it was just instant food. Su Cancan’s guilt vanished, and she sat down to eat with a light heart.

After breakfast, while Shen Luoyan cleared the dishes, Su Cancan went back to the bedroom to apply light makeup. Considering the bus ride, she didn’t style her hair, letting her smooth, black locks drape over her shoulders.

At 9:10 AM, Shen Luoyan knocked on the door to call her.

Ready to go, the two briskly headed toward the bus stop designated by the crew with their suitcase—which Shen Luoyan, of course, took charge of.

It was only a few minutes’ walk. When they arrived, the other two couples—Youyou & Zhouzhou and Cheng Lewei & Xia Yue—were already gathered near the bus. In front of them stood several rows of cameramen, just like the first time the guests had met. After a few days together, everyone seemed much more familiar, chatting calmly in front of dozens of cameras. When they saw Shen Luoyan and Su Cancan arrive, they greeted them together.

Youyou had previously confessed to being Su Cancan’s fan, and meeting again, she no longer hid her delight.

Quite a while passed, and the scheduled gathering time had already come and gone, yet Viky and Miky were nowhere to be seen. The bus driver leaned out of the front door to ask if they were leaving.

The production staff had never seen an 18th-tier celebrity act with such “diva” behavior. Suppressing their anger, they contacted the two while inviting the other three couples to board the bus and wait.

Su Cancan suffered from motion sickness on buses, so she found a seat near the middle-front. Shen Luoyan sat beside her, while the other two couples sat in front of them and across the aisle.

“Is Sister Cancan’s work going smoothly?” Youyou asked from the front row, leaning over the back of her seat.

The smell of the leather interior attacked Su Cancan’s senses. A long-lost dizziness and chest tightness surged. She suppressed the nausea rising in her stomach to answer Youyou: “Yes, very smoothly.”

“Ah, Sister Cancan, are you feeling unwell?” Youyou, being attentive, noticed Su Cancan’s strained expression and spoke out.

Everyone’s attention was instantly captured by her words, and they all looked at Su Cancan leaning against the window. Just as she was about to explain, Youyou handed over a blister pack of pills from the front row: “I just remembered! Sister Cancan, you get sick on buses, and I get motion sickness too. This is motion sickness medicine. You should take it in advance. Quickly take two before we start driving.”

“Thank you.”

Su Cancan gave a sincere and grateful smile as she took the medicine from Youyou. Once the others realized she wasn’t seriously ill, their hearts settled. No one noticed Shen Luoyan’s hand reaching into her pocket and then suddenly letting go. She silently took a bottle of mineral water from the crew, unscrewed it, and placed it in Su Cancan’s hand.

The wait for the two habitual latecomers wasn’t agonizing, but it was long. After taking the medicine, Su Cancan felt drowsy and leaned her head against the glass to rest. The others lowered their voices so as not to disturb her.

“Sisters, we are so sorry! Something went wrong with our alarm and it didn’t go off this morning. We kept you waiting.”

A rustling sound came from the front door of the bus, followed immediately by Viky’s high-pitched, coy apology.

It was truly a thunderclap on a clear day; the “vixen” had taken the stage.

Su Cancan had just started to feel a bit better, but after the irritation, the veins in her temples began to throb. Her eyes remained closed, but her brows furrowed deeply.

The invisible tentacles of a strong perfume reached out to touch her, wrap around her, and invade her. Su Cancan opened her eyes; that person was only a step away from her.

The white, plump flesh exposed to the air made her dizzy. Su Cancan didn’t understand why “artificial craftsmanship” needed to be displayed over and over again—did doing so make the money feel less wasted? In short, she completely failed to understand Viky’s train of thought.

“Sister Cancan, please don’t be angry. I know it’s our fault, but I didn’t do it on purpose. Please forgive us~”

Su Cancan’s brows remained knotted. The nonsensical apology made her want to sneer. Since the cameras were on, she tried her best to remain silent. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Shen Luoyan looking annoyed. Her desire to play with Viky suddenly vanished, and she wiped all expression from her face.

“I’m not angry. I’m just feeling a bit unwell. If you feel sorry, please apologize to the driver, the staff present, and the other two couples. They arrived earlier and waited longer.”

The camera pushed in front of Su Cancan. On the square screen, her lips were pale, her expression was serious, and she stated her position slowly and methodically. The cameramen behind the screens felt a surge of gratitude and screamed silently in their hearts: This is a female star with manners and a broad perspective! She deserves to be a huge hit!

Viky turned red with shame. She turned to bow to everyone in the front rows and hurried into the seat behind Su Cancan.

At 10:00 AM, everyone was present, and the driver started the engine.

Exhausted, Su Cancan leaned against the window again. Suddenly, a gauze-wrapped hand appeared in her field of vision. In the hand lay a face mask and a small, packaged peppermint.

Su Cancan pressed her tongue against her cheek and raised an eyebrow at Shen Luoyan.

Is she bipolar?

Just a moment ago, she seemed annoyed that she had made Viky look bad, and now she was making a gesture of goodwill?