The Movie Queen And Her Rival Just Went Public! - Chapter 44

Chapter 44

“The smell is a bit strong, but you’ll feel much better after having it.”

Shen Luoyan’s hand remained extended, offering the peppermint and the mask to Su Cancan. Su Cancan couldn’t figure out what Shen Luoyan was plotting and instinctively took a defensive stance.

The two remained in a silent tug-of-war.

Su Cancan’s eyes and expression were completely undisguised, scrutinizing Shen Luoyan with suspicion and resistance. Under her calm exterior, Shen Luoyan’s heart was wavering; her fingertips trembled slightly. Every extra second of this “lingering execution” was a minute of agony. For the first time, she felt like retreating, wanting to pull back her hand—and her dignity—along with it.

She admitted it: she had lost.

The bus was still traveling along a rural road. The road had been repaired in recent years, but due to limited funding and high daily traffic, the cement surface was cracked with wide gaps. Every time the tires rolled over them, the bus would be lifted and then dropped back down.

In the midst of their silent confrontation, a few jolts caused Su Cancan’s stomach to churn violently again. The discomfort spread through her entire body. She gave Shen Luoyan one last look, trying to guess her motive, but the other woman was too stoic—everything she presented was nearly perfect.

Finding no flaws and seeking self-preservation, Su Cancan reluctantly pinched the peppermint with her fingertips. She slowly peeled off the transparent wrapper, popped the candy into her mouth, and used her tongue to push it against her right cheek.

The protrusion on her fair cheek replaced the candy; the “Cat Princess” had transformed into a little hamster. The tension dissipated, leaving only a charming and cute young girl.

Shen Luoyan felt that the psychology she had studied in university was completely useless when it came to Su Cancan. Perhaps when emotions are involved, even judgment becomes biased.

For instance, Su Cancan would raise her sharp thorns.

And Shen Luoyan’s first instinct wasn’t to shrink back, but to soothe those thorns with her own softness. Even if a thought of retreating crossed her mind, she would never actually act on it.

As the peppermint dissolved, a faint sweetness mixed with a cool sensation flowed down her throat and into her heart. The irritating dizziness truly faded quite a bit. Facing the dazed Shen Luoyan, Su Cancan couldn’t bring herself to say words of gratitude, but her expression softened as she took the mask and put it on.

“I’m going to sleep for a bit,” she said, her voice muffled by the hard candy in her cheek.

Hearing Su Cancan’s voice, Shen Luoyan snapped back to reality, her vacant eyes regaining their light.

“Okay…”

Su Cancan leaned against the window and closed her eyes immediately after speaking. Shen Luoyan was afraid she would bump her head and wanted her to lean against her instead, but she knew Su Cancan wouldn’t do it—and might even ridicule her for suggesting it—so she decided to keep her mouth shut.

The drive was supposed to take two and a half hours, but the driver was in a hurry. While ensuring everyone’s safety, he managed to make it in just over two hours.

Su Cancan had a strange “personal skill”: if she rested in a car, she would always wake up at the last toll booth or the final intersection before the destination.

As the bus slowed down to pass through the ETC lane, she leisurely opened her sleepy eyes.

Having just woken up, everything looked distorted in the haze. She was just about to lament to Liu Yimin how busy and exhausted she must be to fall asleep against a window in such harsh conditions, when her wandering gaze landed on the glass pane—which was a short distance away from her.

What was she leaning on right now?

Stunned, Su Cancan’s senses suddenly became acute. She felt that the object her cheek was pressed against was firm but radiating heat…

If she hadn’t guessed wrong, it was a person.

And who else could it be but Shen Luoyan?

Realizing she had been leaning on Shen Luoyan for so long, Su Cancan bolted upright, moving as far away from her as possible in the shortest time. As they separated, the shared heat dissipated into the air, and the temperature around her dropped.

Shen Luoyan felt the weight on her shoulder vanish. Thinking Su Cancan had simply shifted in her sleep, she reached out groggily to catch her. Her hand groped to the left, touching nothing. She squinted her eyes to look.

When her unfocused gaze collided with Su Cancan’s wide, exposed eyes, her own pupils doubled in size.

She awkwardly withdrew her hand, her mind a complete blank.

Su Cancan hadn’t expected to “lean” on Shen Luoyan like that. She turned her head, using her eyes to condemn Shen Luoyan for “indecent behavior.”

“I’m sorry,” Shen Luoyan said, looking down because she felt she couldn’t face her. “You kept hitting your head against the glass. I was worried you’d get hurt, so…”

“Couldn’t you have just woken me up?” Su Cancan didn’t want to hear the description of the action and interrupted her immediately.

Shen Luoyan looked up weakly and then lowered her head again.

She whispered: “I tried. You punched me and told me to leave you alone.”

“Exactly! I told you to leave me alone, so why did you—”

Su Cancan’s words cut off. Hitting people in her sleep was definitely something she was capable of. Although she felt her actions were “justified” in spirit, hurting Shen Luoyan made her feel too guilty to continue her aggressive interrogation.

She turned to look out the window. “Fine. Let’s just pretend it never happened.”

“Teachers, we are about to arrive at the Lake-Island Forest Park. Please wake up and prepare to get off.”

Shen Luoyan didn’t get a chance to reply. The road sign indicated they were only 800 meters away. The staff in the front row had started their “wake-up call” duties, drowning out her tiny “Okay.”

“You don’t agree? You got to touch me, and I gave you a punch. We’re even. Unless you want to tell everyone I’m a violent person and get me trending as a ‘hooligan’?”

Getting no answer, Su Cancan leaned in close to Shen Luoyan’s face.

Sensing Su Cancan’s proximity, Shen Luoyan couldn’t stop her body from stiffening. In the dim light, Su Cancan’s eyes sparkled. Her cunning and threatening words were delivered through hot breath, making Shen Luoyan’s cheeks turn a deep red.

“I just said ‘okay’.”

Shen Luoyan’s voice was slightly raspy and damp. She was being toyed with completely.

No, Su Cancan didn’t even have the intention of toying with her.

Receiving Shen Luoyan’s promise, Su Cancan felt strangely at ease. She didn’t doubt that Shen Luoyan would “backstab” her later, because there was no proof of this incident. It would be like a paparazzi hyping up a massive scandal only to say they caught it in a dream; netizens would laugh her off the stage.

However, she didn’t realize her own strength. One punch from her was like 999 attack power; Shen Luoyan’s arm remained red and swollen for days.

“I’m so hungry. Will they take us to eat something delicious~?”

The “vixen” in the back row spoke up. Su Cancan stopped worrying about her reputation battle with Shen Luoyan. She secretly gave a middle finger inside her coat pocket and took off her mask so her beauty could “bloom.”

“Yes, we have prepared a sumptuous lunch for everyone. After getting off, there will be signs directing you to the restaurant,” the staff member stood up to answer Viky.

Xia Yue was nestled in Cheng Lewei’s arms. Having just woken up, her hair was a mess. Cheng Lewei helped tidy it while Xia Yue closed her eyes and obediently enjoyed the service. After the staff finished, she pouted and murmured.

“Ah, we should have left earlier. My stomach is already flat from hunger.”

The four couples were sitting close to each other. Su Cancan heard this and was just marveling at Xia Yue’s bravery for speaking her mind when the “little vixen” suddenly shrieked: “Sister, what do you mean by that? We were only a little bit late, is there a need to keep repeating it?”

It was her usual tactic: belittling others to elevate herself. Su Cancan didn’t have eyes in her back, but she didn’t need them to know what kind of expression Viky was wearing.

Aggrieved, coquettish, and probably clutching her chest with reddened eyes.

Xia Yue didn’t know how to respond to the retort. Viky’s anger made her afraid to face it, and she actually trembled slightly in Cheng Lewei’s arms.

Cheng Lewei’s eyes narrowed behind her silver-rimmed glasses. Her deep, night-sky-like pupils flashed with a sharp light. She held Xia Yue, her palm gently and rhythmically soothing her, while her words were rational and devoid of emotion.

“Miss Viky, you might be a bit sensitive. The objective fact that leaving early means arriving early is something even a three-year-old understands. Complaining about being hungry is only human. I don’t understand; those two sentences didn’t mention your name at all. Why would you have such a violent reaction? Perhaps you need some treatment to ease your nerves. Furthermore, we have already accepted your apology, so naturally, we won’t blame you. You should be grateful.”

Su Cancan felt a surge of secret satisfaction. If it weren’t for the cameras, she would have clapped her hands raw.

Cheng Lewei didn’t even look at Viky while speaking. After her emotionless speech, she didn’t stop her movements and continued to comfort Xia Yue in a low voice.

Viky was furious but couldn’t win the argument. She squeezed out the words “Green Tea” through her teeth and sent a text to her boss, her chest heaving.

The atmosphere in the bus dropped to freezing point. Luckily, the bus came to a stop in the parking space. Both front and back doors opened. Su Cancan suppressed her urge to laugh and stood up, taking on the role of a little host to help the troubled staff move the process along.

“Alright, everyone is hungry. Let’s go eat! We’ve been in Hangzhou for so long and haven’t had authentic local cuisine yet. Let’s go taste it together, sisters.” She turned around and saw Viky’s fierce expression now that the cameras were off. She acted surprised. “Viky, your face is so red! Is it too stuffy in the bus? Or is it internal heat? Hurry up and get off to get some fresh air. Drink a few more cups of Longjing tea during lunch to cool down.”

Her tone was full of concern. Even though Viky knew Su Cancan was targeting her, she couldn’t argue back. Exposed to the cameras again, she quickly turned off her phone screen and gave a stiff smile: “Thank you for your concern, Sister Cancan. I’m fine.”

Su Cancan had mild nearsightedness. She usually wore contacts for convenience, and with that casual glance, she accidentally caught a glimpse of the content on Viky’s screen before it locked.

Baby, can’t you think of a way? They’re all bullying me. Didn’t you say only you could treat me like that in b.ed~ Help me get rid of them, I feel so wronged. You don’t want to see me crying…

It wasn’t that Su Cancan was snooping; it was that Viky’s font size was set so large that those two sentences occupied the entire screen.

Miky was staring at her with lustful eyes, but Su Cancan ignored him. A flash of realization hit her. Although she hadn’t seen the nickname of the person Viky was asking for help, she had seen the profile picture.

It wasn’t Shen Luoyan. And since Miky was right beside her, there was no need to send a text to him.

So…

This little brat didn’t just have two faces.

And…

Did Shen Luoyan know?