The Movie Queen And Her Rival Just Went Public! - Chapter 59

Chapter 59

The moment the question was asked, Su Cancan fell into silence.

It wasn’t that she couldn’t name Shen Luoyan’s strengths; rather, since they had started getting along peacefully, she had discovered too many. Picking just one felt incredibly difficult.

The carriage was quiet, their breathing shallow. Only the occasional honk or the faint hum of the city streets drifted in from outside.

On camera, Shen Luoyan remained focused on the road ahead. Perhaps because the wait for Su Cancan’s answer was so long—long enough that Su Cancan could feel the moisture leaving her body as her temperature rose from nervousness.

She pursed her lips and licked them twice before saying in a low voice, “I’ll go first.”

“The quality I find most attractive in Teacher Su is her kindness.” Shen Luoyan’s voice was like a clear spring trickling through the mountains—calm, steady, and comfortingly breaking the silence.

Su Cancan had never considered kindness to be her greatest highlight. In this era of fast-paced consumption, most people’s attention toward her began with her appearance, yet Shen Luoyan claimed to admire her kindness.

Why kindness?

At their first meeting, she had been bristling with hostility and bluster. Her undisguised loathing and manic energy should have been her first impression. So, where did “kindness” come from? The scenes of their acquaintance played back in her mind; she dragged the progress bar of her memory and finally found a clue.

It was that day—the day Shen Luoyan was first targeted by a stalker and splashed with blood. In that moment of extreme vulnerability, Su Cancan had accompanied her, whether out of politeness or obligation.

Su Cancan assumed it was that day, but perhaps it wasn’t.

“It’s undeniable that Teacher Su is very beautiful, and that is one point that attracts me. But what attracts me most is her kindness.” As the car passed through the ETC lane and onto the highway ramp, Shen Luoyan increased her speed while continuing, “There have always been various negative evaluations of Teacher Su online. Before our collaboration, everyone had their own opinions. But after spending so much time together, I haven’t experienced any of those negative traits. If I had to use one word to describe Teacher Su, I would choose ‘kind.’ When I am frustrated, she encourages and comforts me; when I am in trouble, she is willing to give me a hand. These are my personal experiences, and they move me.”

As Shen Luoyan delivered this matter-of-fact monologue, Su Cancan’s cheeks flushed crimson at being publicly praised. She turned her head to look; Shen Luoyan’s eyes were dark, even more so when she was concentrated. Feeling the gaze, Shen Luoyan caught her eye for a fleeting second, nearly stealing Su Cancan’s breath away.

Su Cancan turned back to look at the road signs, organizing her thoughts to return the compliment.

“Um, thank you, Teacher Shen, for such a high evaluation,” she began slowly. “Then let me talk about the point that attracts me most about Teacher Shen.”

Su Cancan gripped the card, unaware that Shen Luoyan’s hand, which had been resting casually on the steering wheel, had tightened. Purple veins bulged slightly as her knuckles turned white from the force.

She poked her palm with the sharp corner of the card. “Teacher Shen’s beauty is publicly recognized, but to be honest, she isn’t exactly my ‘ideal type’ in terms of looks.”

Upon hearing this, Shen Luoyan’s breath hitched, as if she had just been handed a negative label.

“Haha, the ‘ideal type’ thing is just talk. Before you meet the right person, it’s just a beautiful fantasy. I’m only saying this to show everyone that I didn’t just fall for Teacher Shen’s looks, and I’m not viewing her through a filtered lens,” Su Cancan said playfully, wrinkling her nose.

The tight grip on Shen Luoyan’s heart loosened, allowing her to catch her breath and inhale a few gulps of fresh air.

At least she hasn’t categorized me as someone it’s impossible to develop a relationship with.

“Before this collaboration, we had very little overlap. Our first real contact was discussing our views on the show.”

Su Cancan stuck her tongue out mentally. She had basically kidnapped the woman like a bandit, kicked her car because she was annoyed, and made a bunch of brainless demands regardless of their difference in status. It could barely be called a “friendly discussion,” but at least there was no physical fight.

She felt a bit ashamed of that part and glossed over it. “Anyway, after communicating, I found that Teacher Shen is a very magnanimous and tolerant person. She is willing to accommodate and tolerate my childish behavior and some of the small tempers that others would find hard to bear…”

There were many questions on the cards. They answered over a dozen of them one by one. While they didn’t know what this segment was like for other pairs, for them, it felt like a “Truth or Dare” marathon. Through their answers, they came to understand each other more deeply.

As the car sped along, Su Cancan finished the last question, packed the items away, and leaned back against the neck pillow to watch the scenery.

“If you’re tired, close your eyes and sleep for a bit. We won’t arrive for another two hours,” Shen Luoyan reminded her, glancing at the navigation.

“No need.” Su Cancan blinked. She had slept well the night before and wasn’t feeling drowsy. As she spoke, she connected her phone via Bluetooth and picked a suitable playlist.

The sound of a plectrum sweeping across guitar strings filled the car. After a few chords, a singer’s low voice drifted out, and she leaned back again.

After a long time—probably four or five songs later—she spoke: “Are you thirsty? It’s been so dry lately.” The atmosphere in the car wasn’t very active, so she was clearly just looking for something to say. As she spoke, she reached for the glove compartment in front of the passenger seat.

Seeing her movement, Shen Luoyan steadied the car and hurriedly called out, “Wait a minute!”

Unfortunately, she was a step too late. The compartment was already wide open.

In Su Cancan’s mind, this spot was usually for miscellaneous items or mineral water. Since this was a sponsored vehicle provided by the production team, she didn’t expect to find any unbroadcastable private items, so she reached in without thinking.

Shen Luoyan’s strong reaction caught her by surprise. Before she could withdraw her inquisitive gaze, a blue gift box tied with a silver bow appeared before her eyes.

“You saw it?” Shen Luoyan glanced quickly at the passenger seat. A flash of blue entered her vision. She adjusted the steering wheel slightly to stay in her lane.

Su Cancan pointed at the box. “Do you mean this box with the bow, or the two bottles of water next to it?”

“Uh, the box with the bow,” Shen Luoyan said, using one hand to rub the bridge of her nose.

“This is…?” Su Cancan asked softly.

Judging by Shen Luoyan’s tone, she had prepared this. Opening it without permission might have ruined her plans.

Of course, there was another possibility: the gift was for someone else, and Su Cancan had accidentally stumbled upon it, making things awkward.

Su Cancan didn’t know which it was, and neither felt like a good outcome. She asked tentatively, redirecting her hand to pick up a bottle of water and taking a few sips.

“It’s a Children’s Day gift for you. I planned to take it out once we arrived, but since you’ve seen it, I’ll give it to you early.”

Oh, so it was for her.

The corners of Su Cancan’s mouth curled up. She screwed the cap back on and leaned down to lift the box.

“Can I open it now?” The box felt light in her palm. Su Cancan toyed with the bow, guessing what was inside while waiting for permission.

Shen Luoyan’s throat felt dry and itchy. She suppressed a couple of coughs before saying, “You can.” Just after those two words, the “feather” in her throat tickled even more wildly, leading to a long coughing fit.

No matter how curious she was about the gift, Su Cancan couldn’t let her keep coughing. She quickly set the box down, took a fresh bottle of water from the compartment, opened it, and held it near Shen Luoyan’s hand.

Shen Luoyan took it with a slight tremble. “Thank you.”

The cool water slid down her throat. Once the sensation was gone, she moved to put the plastic bottle into the cup holder between them. This stretch of road was getting crowded, so she couldn’t distract herself too much. She tried to place it by feel, but her aim was off. The bottom of the bottle hit the rim, splashing a small puddle of water that soaked into the gaps between her fingers.

The next second, she felt her palm go empty. Her hand remained in its original position, crystals of water hanging precariously from her fingertips.

Just as Shen Luoyan was about to pull her hand back to get a tissue, Su Cancan—as if reading her mind—pressed a tissue into her hand.

“Miss Driver, our lives are in your hands right now, so if you need anything, just ask.” She tightened the cap on the water bottle and placed it firmly in the holder. “After all, opportunities to boss me around are rare. Use them while you can; I advise you to cherish them.”

A smile spread across Shen Luoyan’s face. She held the tissue to her mouth and let out a light laugh. “Then if I’m always the driver, can I always boss you around?”

“Of course not!”

Su Cancan’s rebuttal came out before she fully processed the word “always.”

Su Cancan, I will always like you!

Cancan, Mommy and Daddy are very busy right now. We need to make money to give you a better life. We’ll go to the amusement park later, okay?

Cancan, we will be best friends… forever!

Always. Later. Forever.

These ethereal words were like promises. She had experienced too many broken expectations, so she rarely said them herself and disliked hearing them from others.

But coming from Shen Luoyan, she felt an inexplicable belief that she would keep her word.

“Better be,” she muttered, lowering her head. Her thumb rubbed against the ribbon; the coarse texture seemed to grate against her nerves.

As the folk singer softly crooned about love, Su Cancan’s murmur was lost in the music. Shen Luoyan asked, “What did you say?”

Su Cancan pulled the ribbon loose. “Nothing. Miss Driver, just drive the car!”

Without the silver ribbon, it was just a plain blue box. It looked like it held jewelry. Su Cancan pushed the lid open, revealing the contents to the daylight.

A snowflake-style brooch lay quietly on the velvet lining. The main diamond in the center refracted the seven colors of sunlight without reservation, while the dozens of surrounding diamond chips sparkled with all their might.

Taking the brooch out of the box, Su Cancan—a somewhat subpar brand ambassador—finally recognized its origin.

If she remembered correctly, this was the only piece of its kind in the “Winter Series.” She had only worn it briefly during a promotional shoot.

“Actually, I’ve had it prepared for a while.”

Su Cancan recalled that during the shoot last year, she had fallen in love with this piece and intended to use her status as an ambassador to buy it. But the company told her it had already been sold. She had been forced to let it go, never expecting it would find its way back to her like this.

“That’s not important,” Shen Luoyan said with a sudden smile.

“Happy Children’s Day.”

Cancan, Happy Children’s Day.

I will eventually wait for the day when I can call you that—and be close to you.