The Stand-in is Exceptionally Clingy [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 24.2

Chapter 24.2: The CEO and Her Canary

Mottled marks layered one on top of the other; red bruises had not yet faded before new ones appeared, especially on her collarbone and the two full points on her chest.

Jian Ke brushed Lou Bianxia’s scattered hair forward, pressing her hot lips against her fair back.

The touch against her smooth skin sent a series of tingles and warmth through her. Lou Bianxia’s voice was hoarse, and she lay languidly in her arms, their breaths intertwining, listening to the sound of each other and the distant roar of the waves.

Jian Ke stopped and held her tight, gazing at the dark blue night outside the window. She pressed the control button by the bed, and the automatic curtains drew shut. Tomorrow they would be returning home. All these lingering, intimate memories would sink into the background under the gaze of the stars and the sea.

…

Perhaps due to some prior arrangements, and for fear of things changing if they waited too long, Sea of Fog was scheduled for broadcast without even a month’s wait. As a pilot series, it wasn’t heavily promoted on the streaming platform’s homepage, but fans, whose curiosity had been piqued by the leaked photos, were already eagerly waiting to watch. With a cinematic quality and Director Chen’s unique, delicate style, Sea of Fog went viral after just two episodes, with the number of online viewers reaching 800,000.

“Hurry up, hurry up! Only two episodes, that’s not enough at all.”

“The eye contact between Li Qiu and Ning Xuan is so full of chemistry, so intimate, I love it.”

“The preview said Ning Xuan always walks on Li Qiu’s right side. Wuwuwu, it’s because she can’t hear out of one ear.”

“Give Ning Xuan a hug, Li Qiu. Look at her hopeful eyes, how can you bear it?”

“Both new actresses are so great. They have a good friendship outside of the show, too. Want to ship Jian-Zhi CP? The fan service is guaranteed.”

“The pair that went viral before… one’s acting all annoyed while the other is laughing. Damn, I’m dying from this ship.”

“Does anyone else feel this way? I’ve searched the whole internet, and there are no substitutes. Jian Ke is just so beautiful, she’s completely my type.”

“Beautiful women should act with more beautiful women. I love it when beautiful women are close to each other.”

“I watched the behind-the-scenes clips. Jian Ke’s acting is really good. When her eyes turn cold, she can instantly bring out that mature and powerful woman aura. But in private, she’s so cute. She can be cool and sweet.”

“Exactly. The new girl and Li Qiu have completely different auras, but Jian Ke handled both roles perfectly without breaking character. It really feels like two different people are playing the parts.”

“Just a simple hairstyle and the most basic makeup. Can’t the makeup artist put more effort into it? Only a beautiful actress like her could pull it off.”

“That’s just Director Chen’s style. It’s not the first time you’ve seen it. Simple and plain styling like this actually highlights the plot and story more.”

As the buzz around Sea of Fog grew, various talented fan editors appeared, and a flood of fan-made videos about Jian Ke emerged. Watching her fan count surge, Jian Ke finally understood what it meant to become a sudden sensation.

520 System: “Phase two of the mission is complete. Mission progress has reached 100%. Please continue the good work, Host.”

With the traffic from Sea of Fog, the accumulated favorability from the female lead, and the fame from her previous scandal, Jian Ke’s mission progress bar was once again maxed out. Just as Jian Ke had said before, a temporary top star is still a top star. Phase two of the mission was finally completed in a successful (if perfunctory) manner.

Jian Ke and Shen Zhi were interviewed together for several entertainment shows back-to-back. The questions were all pretty much the same, focusing on promoting Sea of Fog and giving fans some “fan service.”

Host: What were your first impressions of each other, and what are your current impressions?

Jian Ke: “My first impression was that she was a shy and reserved girl. My current impression is that she’s super cute.” —Empty-headed.

Shen Zhi: “A big beauty. She’s so pretty, and she seemed a bit distant. My current impression is… well, a good friend.” —A perfect dish that I can only look at and not touch.

Host: Did anything memorable happen on set?

Both of them thought about it and, in silent agreement, interpreted the question as: Did the other person have any embarrassing moments on set?

Jian Ke gave her signature smile: “During the scene where I rode a bike with her to the city, there was a shot where we had to go downhill fast. We filmed that part eight times, and I had to ride the bike over twenty times.”

Shen Zhi felt a bad premonition and raised her hand to cover Jian Ke’s mouth, but Jian Ke ducked away with a slight bow.

“The reason for the repeated takes was that when we went downhill too fast, she would get a runny nose, and it didn’t look good on camera.” Jian Ke said with a straight face, pretending not to see Shen Zhi squatting out of frame with her toes curled in embarrassment. The crew member holding the question cards in front of them also laughed until they couldn’t stand up straight.

When it was Shen Zhi’s turn, she glared at Jian Ke. “All the embarrassing moments on set are mine. Ms. Jian doesn’t have many, except for one time when she came to work with a red face.”

“She was swaying and staggering, reacting exactly like she was drunk. But when I got close, there was no smell of alcohol, just the smell of milk.”

Jian Ke was stunned. She had no memory of this incident.

Shen Zhi: “I thought it was strange, so I asked her assistant and found out that Ms. Jian gets ‘drunk on milk’.”

“She was in a daze for about ten minutes. She even held the script upside down when she was reading it. When I stood in front of her, she called out her assistant’s name and didn’t even recognize me.”

Jian Ke scratched her face, seemingly surprised that this secret had been discovered. “It’s a natural physical condition. Whenever I drink milk, especially high-purity milk, my face gets red and I feel dizzy.”

“The symptoms look exactly like I’ve had some bad alcohol, but it also passes quickly, so it doesn’t affect my life much.” Jian Ke gave an embarrassed smile to the camera, looking a bit shy and innocent.

The live chat was filled with comments like, “So cute~”

Lou Bianxia watched the girl on the screen, her knuckles unconsciously tapping on the desk, her eyebrows tightly furrowed. Drunk on milk? But she had given Jian Ke milk before, and she had drunk it without any resistance.

Today’s interview schedule came to an end. Jian Ke bought groceries and returned to Jingxiu Garden early, planning to cook a nice meal. Before, it was always Lou Bianxia who cooked while Jian Ke helped out. Lou Bianxia was a great cook, likely having received professional training; her movements were exceptionally practiced and skilled. But after watching her so many times, Jian Ke had a general idea of how to do it.

However, theory was one thing, and reality was another. Even though she followed the same steps as Lou Bianxia, and her dishes looked “delicious,” the taste was always a little off. Just as she was struggling, Lou Bianxia, a rare sight, came home early from work. She took off her white houndstooth jacket and hung it on a rack. Jian Ke wanted her to come and taste her cooking, but she saw a look of displeasure on Lou Bianxia’s lips.

Jian Ke: “Did work not go well today?”

Lou Bianxia stared at her, silent. Jian Ke was confused by her gaze. “What’s wrong?”

Lou Bianxia crossed her arms, and the words she had been holding in all day finally came out. “Is what you said in the interview about getting ‘drunk on milk’ true?”

Jian Ke’s expression froze. So Lou Bianxia had watched her joint interview with Shen Zhi? Jian Ke awkwardly rubbed her nose. “Yes.”

Lou Bianxia’s brows were tightly furrowed. “So all those times I made you drink milk… you were actually very uncomfortable?”

Jian Ke swallowed hard and nodded.

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

Jian Ke: “Well… because Sister seemed happy.” It was helping to increase her favorability.

Lou Bianxia: “But you can’t ignore your own health. The reason I made you drink milk in the first place was because…” She suddenly stopped, unable to continue her sentence. It was then that she remembered the initial reason for making Jian Ke drink milk: it was because Shu Yu loved to drink it. Later, it gradually became a daily routine and a check-in task, and she had forgotten the original reason.

Lou Bianxia knew she was in the wrong and said sullenly, “If you can’t drink it, then don’t drink it anymore.”

Perhaps because Lou Bianxia’s pressure was so low at that moment, Jian Ke quickly nodded and changed the subject. “Do you want to taste…”

A unique ringtone sounded, interrupting Jian Ke’s words. It was different from Lou Bianxia’s usual work-related ringtone. It was a soothing, elegant classical symphony that Jian Ke had never heard before. When the ringtone sounded, Lou Bianxia took out her phone, and her expression instantly froze. Her face was a complex mix of emotions, like a spilled seasoning rack: surprise, hesitation, confusion. Jian Ke clicked her tongue in wonder; this was the first time she had ever seen Lou Bianxia make such a rich and varied expression.

So the person on the other end of the phone was… Before she could figure out the answer, the system’s new mission notification had already told her.

“Ding—Detecting that the female lead’s white moonlight has returned to the country, phase three of the mission has been triggered!”

“The rich will end up together. Please, Host, actively help the female lead and her white moonlight get together.”

“In view of the fact that the Host’s completion rate for the first two phases exceeded 100%, upon the successful completion of this phase, this world’s timeline will be considered corrected, and you can leave.”

Jian Ke blinked and asked 520, “So that means, as long as I get Lou Bianxia and Shu Yu together, I can leave?”

520 cheered: “Yes, Host! You have done so well that you’ve been approved to skip ahead.”

Jian Ke thought to herself that this last mission was much simpler than becoming a top star. She would probably be able to leave this world soon. However, she finally understood why Lou Bianxia had been looking at her so frequently lately. Those looks seemed to be filled with deep conflict and confusion. So, the white moonlight was coming back. Was she too embarrassed to bring up the subject of dismissing her? Thinking about it, their contract as lovers hadn’t even lasted a year, and the white moonlight had returned much earlier than the original timeline. It was probably some kind of butterfly effect, but it was a good thing. The sooner Shu Yu returned, the sooner her mission could begin.

Both of them were silent. The ringtone played several times in the quiet room before Lou Bianxia finally answered the phone. Shu Yu’s happy, cheerful voice came through. “Senior, I’ve landed. I’m at the airport right now!”

“Come and pick me up!”

Lou Bianxia’s throat felt dry. She looked at Jian Ke, who was now watching her with a scrutinizing gaze, and she felt a sudden sweat on her back, a vague sense of embarrassment and guilt. “You… you came back so soon? Why didn’t you tell me in advance?”

Shu Yu’s voice was filled with a hint of complaint. “The tickets were hard to buy if I waited. Besides, I wanted to see you as soon as possible, Senior~”

Lou Bianxia forced a smile, her mind a battlefield of internal conflict. “…Ah, but I have some work to take care of tonight… I probably can’t come and pick you up.”

Shu Yu’s tone was more aggrieved. “Is work that important? We haven’t seen each other in years.”

Lou Bianxia: “I really can’t get away.”

Shu Yu sounded disappointed: “Well, okay then.”

After hanging up, Lou Bianxia’s palm was damp. She heard Jian Ke ask, “Was that Shu Yu? She’s back in the country?”

Lou Bianxia: “It was her. I didn’t expect it to be so sudden. She doesn’t have many friends in the country, which is why she called me to pick her up.” She explained the situation almost subconsciously.

But to her surprise, Jian Ke tilted her head in confusion. “Then why didn’t you go pick her up? Do you really have such important work?”

Lou Bianxia: “…?” This reaction—

Lou Bianxia gave a light cough. “I might have to go back to the company later to get some documents. The hotel she booked isn’t far from the airport. She can just take a taxi.”

Jian Ke: Staying in a hotel? That won’t do!

Jian Ke: “How about I go pick her up?”

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