The Movie Queen's Beloved Crybaby Alpha - Chapter 57

Ye Qinglan and Ning Yunshu turned around to see Du Wenjun and Xu Chaoyang striding in energetically, dressed in down jackets and snow boots.

Seeing them, Ye Qinglan couldn’t help but smile.

“Professor Du, Sister Xu, long time no see.”

Du Wenjun stepped forward and gave Ye Qinglan a light, courteous hug.

“It’s been too long, I’ve missed you all so much,” Du Wenjun said with a laugh.

Upstairs, Wei Youning and the others had already woken up. Hearing the commotion, they came downstairs and grinned at the group. “I was wondering who had arrived. So it’s our Professor Du! Professor, don’t tell me you only missed Qinglan and not me?”

“Of course I missed you too, all of you!” Du Wenjun laughed and gave Wei Youning a hug as well.

Only then did Wei Youning look satisfied.

Noticing how travel-worn they appeared, she added, “We’ve kept two bedrooms upstairs for you. Professor, why don’t you pick one and settle your luggage first?”

Xu Chaoyang nodded and glanced at Du Wenjun. “Let’s go put our things away.”

“Wait for me, I brought a lot of gifts for everyone,” Du Wenjun said before following Xu Chaoyang upstairs.

As the two busied themselves, Ye Qinglan turned to Wei Youning. “Did you rest well, Sister Wei?”

“I’ve recovered. Did you two go out?” Wei Youning asked.

Ye Qinglan nodded. “We took a short walk and picked up some souvenirs. Since Professor Xu and the others are here now, I’ll give yours first. I’ll pass the rest to Professor Jiang when she arrives.”

With that, she glanced at Ning Yunshu.

Ning Yunshu obediently went inside and brought out the gifts for everyone. Wei Youning was delighted with hers, while Xu Youyou was downright ecstatic.

“This is amazing! I have to take a photo and post it! This is the second gift Teacher Ye has given me, I’m going to make everyone jealous!” she exclaimed, immediately pulling out her phone to snap pictures.

“Hey, don’t rush,” Wei Youning reminded her. “Professor Du has gifts too. Post them together, no favoritism.”

“Oh, right! I almost forgot!” Xu Youyou smacked her forehead.

The group burst into laughter.

Soon, Du Wenjun came back downstairs and began handing out the numerous bags she carried.

“I went to Paris a couple of days ago and thought of you all, so I picked up a few things. Hope you like them,” she said with a smile.

Ye Qinglan examined her gift, one of Chanel’s latest handbags. Though the price wasn’t extravagant for them, it was certainly no small gesture, and she was pleasantly surprised.

“Thank you, Professor Du. Oh no, your gift is so lavish, I feel like mine pales in comparison,” Ye Qinglan teased.

“What gift? Even if Qinglan gave just a single coin, it would still be priceless,” Du Wenjun countered with a grin.

Ye Qinglan smiled faintly and handed Du Wenjun and Xu Chaoyang their presents.

“Just some local souvenirs. I hope you won’t mind them, Professor Du.”

“Of course not!” Du Wenjun protested immediately.

“It’s the thought that counts!”

Amid the cheerful chatter, the snow outside began to fall more heavily.

A trace of concern crossed Ye Qinglan’s face.

“The snow’s getting worse. I hope it won’t affect Professor Jiang’s travel plans.”

Ning Yunshu stepped closer and patted her shoulder reassuringly.

“Don’t worry, Sister. I’m sure the production team has everything under control.”

“Mm,” Ye Qinglan responded, then added, “By the way, check if there are any vegetables in the fridge. Otherwise, with such heavy snow, we’d be in trouble if we ran out.”

Wei Youning, being closest to the kitchen, went in first to check and sighed in relief. “Good, the fridge is fully stocked.”

“That’s a relief. Let’s start preparing dinner then. Who knows when Professor Jiang and the others will arrive? It’d be nice if they made it in time for dinner,” Ning Yunshu said.

Ye Qinglan nodded. “I think that sounds good.”

The others naturally had no objections either.

Those who could cook headed into the kitchen, while the rest gathered around the fireplace to chat.

Before dinner was ready, Ye Qinglan received a call from the production team. After listening to their update, she acknowledged it and hung up.

“What’s the matter?” Wei Youning couldn’t help but ask.

Ye Qinglan looked slightly resigned. “Professor Jiang and the others probably won’t make it tonight. The snow’s too heavy, so their flight was rerouted. They’ll land at another airport first and transfer here tomorrow.”

Wei Youning exhaled in relief. “That’s for the best safety first.”

Ye Qinglan nodded, then stood up. “I’ll go let Xiaoshu and the others know.”

“Alright.”

Ye Qinglan entered the kitchen and called out to the busy Ning Yunshu and Du Wenjun, “Xiaoshu, Professor Du, Professor Jiang and the others won’t make it tonight. The snow’s too heavy, so they’ve landed at a nearby airport instead.”

“Oh, that’s fine. Safety comes first,” Du Wenjun replied.

“Mm,” Ye Qinglan agreed, then grinned. “So, you can make less for dinner now.”

“Got it, sis. You can wait outside for now,” Ning Yunshu said with a laugh.

“What? You’re kicking me out the moment I arrive?” Ye Qinglan protested indignantly.

Ning Yunshu chuckled. “Of course not! The kitchen’s full of fumes, I don’t want you inhaling them.”

Only then did Ye Qinglan lift her chin, satisfied.

“That’s more like it. Fine, I’ll wait outside then.”

“Go on, go on,” Ning Yunshu quickly agreed.

Watching Ye Qinglan leave, Ning Yunshu let out a quiet sigh of relief.

Du Wenjun stifled a laugh beside her. “You two get along really well, huh?”

Ning Yunshu smiled sheepishly.

“Keep it up, Young CEO Ning,” Du Wenjun teased with a wink.

Ning Yunshu rubbed the tip of her nose. “I will, I will.”

After preparing and finishing dinner, the group listened to the howling wind outside, growing slightly worried. With nothing else to do, they simply continued chatting by the fireplace.

“This blizzard is intense. Will filming even proceed as scheduled tomorrow?” Wei Youning asked with concern.

“I checked the weather here is like this. Sudden wind and snow are common, but they don’t last long. It should clear up by tomorrow,” Xu Chaoyang reassured.

“No wonder the staff wouldn’t let us go into the mountains. If a storm hit while we were up there, things could’ve gotten really dangerous,” Ye Qinglan remarked, glancing uneasily at the dark night outside.

“Look on the bright side tomorrow we can have a snowball fight,” Du Wenjun said optimistically.

“True,” the others chuckled.

The warmth of the fire soon lulled them into drowsiness. After extinguishing the flames and ensuring no hazards remained, everyone retired to their rooms.

The storm outside acted like natural white noise, lulling them swiftly into sleep.

When they woke up, the world outside the window was shrouded in mist. Ye Qinglan and Ning Yunshu got up, washed up, and then headed to the living room.

The staff hadn’t arrived yet, and the others were still asleep, but the snowstorm outside had stopped.

The two of them stepped into the courtyard for some fresh air.

The snow had piled up thick, about ten centimeters deep. A faint mist lingered in the air, gradually dissipating as the morning light grew stronger, revealing a clear blue sky.

“Ah, this is so refreshing,” Ye Qinglan stretched lazily.

Her scarf had loosened around her neck, and noticing this, Ning Yunshu reached over to adjust it properly.

“It’s barely autumn back home, but here, the snowstorm feels like the dead of winter,” Ye Qinglan mused.

Ning Yunshu smiled faintly. “Well, this is a place where you can even see the northern lights.”

“Too bad the storm was too heavy last night. I would’ve loved to see them,” Ye Qinglan clicked her tongue in regret.

“Don’t worry. If we miss it this time, we can always come back later when we have the chance,” Ning Yunshu reassured her with a chuckle.

“Sounds good,” Ye Qinglan agreed immediately.

As they chatted, the villa door opened, and Du Wenjun and Xu Chaoyang stepped out.

“I heard voices in the yard and knew it had to be you two,” Du Wenjun said with a smile.

Ye Qinglan grinned. “Morning, Teacher Du, Sister Xu! Came out for some fresh air too?”

“Yeah. When we landed yesterday, it was all wind and snow thought it was going to be awful. But now that I see it in daylight, the scenery here is actually quite nice,” Du Wenjun remarked.

“Right?” Ye Qinglan nodded. “The nearby town is pretty charming too, and the locals are really warm. Let’s see what the production team has planned for today maybe we can all go together.”

“Sounds great!” Du Wenjun agreed eagerly.

Xu Chaoyang looked slightly exasperated, but her gaze at Du Wenjun was full of affection.

As it was about time, Ning Yunshu headed back inside to prepare breakfast, with Du Wenjun following along. That left Ye Qinglan and Xu Chaoyang in the yard, shoveling snow.

“By the way, Teacher Xu,” Ye Qinglan asked curiously as she worked, “how did you and Teacher Du end up together back then?”

Xu Chaoyang chuckled. “Didn’t expect you to be this nosy, Qinglan.”

“Just curious! No pressure if you don’t want to share,” Ye Qinglan quickly waved her hands.

Xu Chaoyang shook her head. “It’s nothing, really. My first acting role was opposite Wenjun. Though back then, I was just a minor supporting character with barely any screen time. Since I was a newcomer, she took extra care of me.”

“Over time, we got closer. We lived nearby too, and she’s the type who can’t stand being alone, she’d always drop by my place. Eventually, we just got used to each other.”

As she spoke, a faint smile touched Xu Chaoyang’s lips.

Then her expression dimmed, her voice tinged with sorrow.

“Unfortunately, she got injured later. She was devastated even lost all hope for a while.” Xu Chaoyang met Ye Qinglan’s gaze.

“You understand, Qinglan, how it feels for someone who loves acting to be told they might never perform again.”

Ye Qinglan’s heart twisted. Just imagining it made her ache, wondering how Du Wenjun had endured that dark period.

“At that time, she didn’t even want to see me. If she hadn’t left me a spare key back then and never changed the locks afterward, I might not have been able to see her at all. Fortunately, everything is in the past now. She’s recovered well and can even perform high-difficulty action scenes again.”

Xu Chaoyang chuckled as he spoke.

Then, he turned to Ye Qinglan and said:

“Qinglan, as someone who’s been through it, I can only tell you one thing.”

“Cherish the present.”

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