The Stand-in is Exceptionally Clingy [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 6

Chapter 6: The CEO and Her Canary

◎”Let’s Go Back.”◎

As Jian Ke settled into the luxury van, she noticed the fatigue on the woman’s face, which even her exquisite makeup couldn’t fully conceal. A veil of sorrow clouded her eyes, as clear as shattered jade. The lip gloss on her plump and alluring cupid’s bow, just to the right, had smudged slightly. That was Lou Bianxia’s unconscious habit of biting her lip when she was anxious. It was also a sign of her restrained begging during intense passion in bed.

When Jian Ke’s nimble fingers caressed her heated skin, every cell in Lou Bianxia’s body would tremble and succumb. Lou Bianxia would hold her tightly, her brows furrowed, a tear in the corner of her eye, her lips bitten hard.

Mischievously, Jian Ke would slide her finger between her lips. “Don’t bite them until they bleed.”

Lou Bianxia would plead, “Please…”

Jian Ke would look at her bruised, slightly swollen lips, her eyes darkening. She would lean in close, with no intention of letting her go. “Sister, your stamina is so poor. You should exercise more…”

The empty streets were nearly devoid of people or other cars. Two rows of streetlights lit up, casting the shadows of the trees onto half of the road. Jian Ke was shrouded in the darkness, the light in her eyes flickering.

The red light at the intersection came on, and the car slowly stopped. Lou Bianxia felt Jian Ke’s closeness. She turned her head slightly, and her lips touched a similar warmth. She was stunned as the tip of the other woman’s tongue licked her lips. The motion was gentle and cautious, like a kitten licking a piece of candy. It was also an intentional teasing, the soft tongue as if coated in honey, fragrant and sweet.

Soon, the heat on her lips disappeared. Lou Bianxia’s pink lips were now coated with a faint sheen of water, glistening as if she had just applied lipstick. Lou Bianxia’s cheeks turned bright red, and her ears felt soft. The kiss was so sudden. She never expected to be ambushed by her little one.

The instigator licked her lips, smiling like a fox who had stolen a bite of meat. She turned her gaze to the front and said seriously, “Sister, the light is green.”

Lou Bianxia gave her a rare, childish glare and stepped on the gas, driving through the intersection.

The heaviness in her chest dissipated a lot. Lou Bianxia looked at Jian Ke, who was stifling a laugh beside her, and said grumpily, “You’re in such a good mood. Did the filming go smoothly today? Or did you meet your idol and get carried away?”

Jian Ke quickly clarified, “Qiao Jingjing isn’t my idol. She’s just my goal. You can’t just say things like that, Sister.” She wrinkled her nose, her tone sounding quite dissatisfied. As expected, she heard the intimacy score in her head increase by a few points.

The car left the remote film studio. From the suburbs to the city, the streets became more crowded with people and vehicles. The bustling nightlife unfolded like a painting, with markets and taverns filled with laughter.

Lou Bianxia didn’t drive Jian Ke back to Jingxiu Manor. Instead, she drove to the riverside. The dark Jinluo River flowed slowly, the surface reflecting the colorful neon lights. The two of them strolled along the embankment, gazing at the panoramic night view of Licheng. The city was illuminated by colorful lights, a sleepless world of fire trees and silver flowers.

A night cruise on the river was certainly a very romantic thing to do. That is, if Jian Ke wasn’t shivering from the biting river wind. She hugged her arms, following behind Lou Bianxia, feeling the cold wind pouring into her neck from all directions. The thin shirt was exceptionally breathable. She felt like she was wearing a tattered sack full of holes. The wind would blow in through the loose openings and then out through the holes, making her cold to the bone.

Jian Ke’s eyes darted toward the elegant Lou Bianxia walking ahead of her. A camel-colored scarf was wrapped around her neck, and a thin cashmere trench coat of the same color was draped over her shirt, making her look exceptionally warm.

Lou Bianxia’s hands were in the pockets of her trench coat, completely oblivious to Jian Ke’s predicament. Her eyes were fixed on the distance, lost in thought. “Accounting for the ten-hour time difference, it should be the early morning over there,” Lou Bianxia murmured. The breeze carried her quiet words to Jian Ke’s ears. Jian Ke’s steps faltered. She suddenly understood. ‘Over where?’ Of course, it was Country T, where the white moonlight, Shu Yu, had gone.

She had been wondering why a busy CEO would suddenly decide to pick her up. It turned out she was thinking of the white moonlight and felt so depressed that she had to drag her stand-in out for a night scene and a date. ‘Better than nothing,’ she thought. It seemed pretty pathetic. ‘Maybe I should just stay with her. This is my job, after all.’

The words “I’m cold” that were about to come out of her mouth were swallowed back. Jian Ke, upholding her professionalism as a stand-in lover, stayed silent, just following obediently and being a listener.

“It’s her birthday today. In the past, her birthday parties were always very lively. Classmates, friends, family, teachers—she would invite everyone she could to her party,” Lou Bianxia said, her words increasing whenever she mentioned the white moonlight. “This year… it should be lively too.”

Her cool face blurred into the night. Her eyes, filled with sadness and loneliness, were lost in thought. Her lowered eyelashes trembled slightly, as if with a hint of tears, but they disappeared in an instant. Jian Ke thought she must have been mistaken. The always calm, composed, and aloof Lou Bianxia shouldn’t cry so easily, especially for a reason like not being able to attend a birthday party.

But her back looked so heavy and sad. If Jian Ke didn’t say something, this awful atmosphere seemed like it would last all night. Jian Ke lowered her head, looking at her shadow, and couldn’t help but let out a puff of white air. She stomped her feet a few times, trying to dispel the cold in her body, but it was futile.

“If you want to go so badly, why don’t you go? You two… are still good friends, aren’t you?” Even if they hadn’t seen each other in years, it wouldn’t be too much to attend a birthday party as a friend.

Lou Bianxia turned her head, her expression a mix of a smile and a cry. “She’s getting engaged. I don’t think I can pretend to be just a good friend and appear in front of her.” Her eyebrows, like distant mountains, were shrouded in layers of mist, so cold it looked like it was about to rain.

The overflowing sadness on the woman’s face made Jian Ke’s chest feel tight. She pursed her lips, knowing she should say something to comfort Lou Bianxia, but she, who was usually so eloquent, suddenly got stuck. Her mind was a mess, and she couldn’t think of a single comforting word.

Jian Ke: “CEO Lou, I think… Achoo!”

A rogue wind blew, and as soon as Jian Ke opened her mouth, she let out a loud sneeze right in front of Lou Bianxia.

Lou Bianxia: “…Are you cold?”

Jian Ke covered her nose, shaking her head vigorously. “I’m not cold, I’m not cold at all. Please continue, Achoo!—Achoo!”

Lou Bianxia: …

Jian Ke sneezed several times uncontrollably. Her head was buzzing with pain, and her body felt hot and cold in turns. In the cold wind, she huddled up, trembling imperceptibly, looking pitiful.

Lou Bianxia looked at her thin shirt. Her previous sadness was replaced by intense guilt. The autumn night air was much colder than it was during the day. Jian Ke was dressed so thinly, yet she hadn’t noticed. She had thoughtlessly pulled her to the riverside to be blasted by the cold wind. Lou Bianxia frowned, feeling for the first time that she was being too selfish and domineering. Since she had signed the contract and chosen Jian Ke, she should have taken proper care of her. But now, she had been so caught up in her own emotions that she had neglected Jian Ke.

Despite the cold and the shivering, Jian Ke had listened quietly from beginning to end, thoughtful and obedient. Her beautiful, bright eyes held no shadows, only concern and comfort. She was being taken care of by her own little one.

Jian Ke saw Lou Bianxia frown and thought she was angry. She pouted and said, “I’m just a little bit… a little bit cold. There’s a scarf vendor on the street over there. I’ll go buy one and be right back.”

“CEO Lou, you just wait for me…”

Jian Ke then saw the woman in front of her suddenly take off her own scarf. She carefully wrapped it around Jian Ke’s neck, looping it a few times and tying it.

Lou Bianxia said, “Let’s go back.”

Jian Ke said, “CEO Lou, it’s really okay.”

“It’s late, and the temperature is low at night. If you stay in the wind any longer, you’ll catch a cold,” Lou Bianxia repeated. “Let’s go back.”

The two of them began to walk back side by side. Lou Bianxia held Jian Ke’s cold hand and tucked it into her own coat pocket.

“A big theater used to stand here. I used to come often, but it was torn down a few years ago. There’s no point in coming back anymore.”

“So I probably won’t come here again.”

Jian Ke was led forward by Lou Bianxia. In her pocket, their hands were intertwined, sharing their warmth.

Feeling the warmth of the car’s heater, Jian Ke’s frozen body slowly recovered. She rested her head on the seat, her mind heavy, and fell asleep. When Lou Bianxia woke her up, she was a little slow to realize they were back at Jingxiu Manor.

Massaging her throbbing head, she met Lou Bianxia’s worried gaze and explained, “I’m just a little dizzy from the wind. I’ll be fine after a night’s sleep.”

But the facts proved that some things shouldn’t be said with such certainty, or they would become a definite jinx. She didn’t even make it to the next morning before she developed a high fever in the middle of the night. Her body felt as heavy as if she had been cast in cement on the bed. She felt a constant cold draft running up her back and shoulders, making her shiver uncontrollably. Her cheeks were unnaturally flushed, and her thin lips gasped for air. Her hot breath was palpable, and cold sweat on her forehead had soaked her hair.

In her hazy consciousness, she felt a familiar voice calling her, but it was as if the voice were coming from a great distance, muffled by a thick veil. Her left hand moved slightly. She unconsciously grabbed the person in front of her and mumbled in a muffled voice, “…It hurts, it hurts so much…”

Lou Bianxia’s wrist was held tightly in Jian Ke’s grasp, but she didn’t even frown. She asked with concern, “Where does it hurt? Let me take you to the hospital.”

Jian Ke mumbled, “No, not the hospital… it hurts… Sister, it hurts so much… don’t leave…”

“Sister, don’t leave.”

Physiological tears slipped from the corners of her eyes, only to be gently wiped away by a warm hand.

Seeing Jian Ke in such distress, Lou Bianxia’s chest filled with a sharp ache. She lowered her head and heard Jian Ke continuously repeating, “Cold, so cold.” She thought for a moment, then lifted the blanket and lay down next to Jian Ke.

Almost as soon as her arm embraced Jian Ke, Jian Ke burrowed into her arms. The body in her arms was burning hot, like a blazing furnace.

Lou Bianxia sighed softly, holding the girl tighter. “Sister will be right here with you, get better soon.”

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