The Supporting Female Lead Chooses to Mark the Villain [Rebirth] - Chapter 46

Throughout the summer break, Shen Nian and Shen Zui were each occupied with their own affairs, seeing each other even less than usual. The only thing that comforted Shen Nian was that Shen Zui’s health had indeed taken a massive turn for the better. Occasionally, when she spoke with the doctor, the joy and pride in his voice were almost impossible to hide.

“The situation is even better than we imagined. Now, the Miss can adapt well in public even without a mask!”

“Is that so?” Despite her happiness, Shen Nian felt an inexplicable pang of bitterness. “I thought a complete marking was necessary to cure her condition.”

The doctor chuckled. “You’re not wrong. But as things stand, it no longer hinders her daily activities.”

“I see,” Shen Nian replied flatly.

“You’ve been filming for a long time,” the doctor asked. “When are you coming back?”

“Soon.” Shen Nian glanced at the crew packing up nearby. “The studio scenes are nearly finished. It should be in the next couple of days.”

Two days later, the filming officially wrapped.

Director Cai Kang, who had been penny-pinching throughout the month-long shoot, finally showed some generosity and treated the entire crew to dinner at a mid-sized restaurant. During the meal, everyone had quite a bit to drink. By the time the party broke up, the air was filled with noisy, drunken chatter.

Shen Nian, however, remained exceptionally calm. As the lead actress, she had been pressured into drinking quite a lot. Her usually pale face was flushed with a rosy hue, and her watery eyes were clearer than ever.

Tan Zhu was crying uncontrollably, blathering words of gratitude. She stumbled over, trying to grab Shen Nian’s hand. Shen Nian gently pushed her aside. “…You’re drunk.”

“Waaaah—Shen Nian… tomorrow, tomorrow you’re leaving… waaaah…” Tan Zhu sobbed, looking at her. “I’m going to miss you so much. I’m going to miss everyone…”

Shen Nian’s brain was functioning a bit slowly. She thought about it seriously and realized she didn’t feel much lingering attachment. On the contrary, she realized she had been waiting for the day the work ended. She wanted to… she wanted to…

What was it I wanted to do again?

With that doubt in mind, she braced herself against the table and stood up. With a relatively steady gait, she left the private room. Most of the people were already dazed; the few who wanted to stop her couldn’t even untwist their tongues, so she managed to leave alone without any hindrance.

Shen Nian settled the bill at the front desk and even requested the staff to look after the drunkards inside. Then, she hailed a taxi and gave the address of the apartment.

During the three-hour ride home, she spent most of the time dozing off in the car. When she was finally woken by the driver, it was already past one in the morning.

Shen Nian paid and stepped onto the ground, her steps feeling a bit soft. She looked up and saw that the apartment she shared with Shen Zui was dark. No lights, no sign of life. A surge of indescribable frustration hit her as she walked slowly forward against the night wind.

She returned to the apartment quietly. Aside from the occasional “beep” of mechanical equipment, she couldn’t even hear her own footsteps. But the moment she pushed open the master bedroom door, she suddenly caught the sound of shallow breathing from the bed.

Someone was there.

Shen Nian froze and looked toward the bed. The moonlight was dim, and she could only see a blurry silhouette. Perhaps the alcohol had gone to her head, for she forgot she could turn on the light and hurriedly approached the bedside.

In the darkness, her hand felt through the sheets, following a familiar curve upward until she touched the delicate, warm skin of the sleeping beauty…

Amidst the faint scent of plum blossoms, Shen Nian’s eyes widened. Shen Zui was sleeping soundly. A blurry thought flashed through her mind—she should go to the bathroom, take a shower, and then come back to hold her while they slept.

But despite the thought, her body made no move to leave. Instead, she sat on the edge of the bed and leaned down in the darkness, drawing closer and closer to Shen Zui.

The familiar scent, the familiar temperature, and… the person she had missed for so long.

Shen Nian couldn’t restrain herself. An instant before her lips touched Shen Zui’s forehead, she was still finding excuses for herself: “I’m sorry…” she whispered softly. “I’m drunk, so… so… I don’t have enough self-control…”

With the “explanation” finished, she felt justified and let her kisses fall. When she kissed Shen Zui’s eyelids, she could clearly feel the eyelashes trembling beneath her lips.

Shen Nian took a deep breath, flipped over, and pinned Shen Zui beneath her. “Shen Zui…” she called out, squinting her eyes to focus for a while before her lips finally brushed the corner of Shen Zui’s mouth.

In the next moment, she couldn’t wait any longer and searched for the richness in her memory with her tongue. Under such relentless pestering, the sleeping Shen Zui let out soft moans of protest.

When Shen Zui’s consciousness returned, she was initially dazed and even a bit panicked. She reached out and touched another person’s body. Before her memories could clear, the smell of alcohol on Shen Nian made her instinctively resist. “Mmph—”

But her attempt to protest only made it easier for Shen Nian to go deeper. Shen Zui found that the moment she opened her lips, a flexible tongue slipped inside.

“Shen… mmm, Shen Nian!”

She only managed to squeeze out a few broken syllables before her mouth was completely taken captive. This kiss was very different from usual, mingled with the tartness of alcohol. For a few moments, Shen Zui felt like she was still in a dream. But soon, she was forcefully dragged into desire by Shen Nian, and her sluggish body began to wake up.

By the time Shen Nian pulled back, slightly satisfied, Shen Zui had a few stray tears at the corners of her eyes. She panted heavily, her hands clinging tightly to Shen Nian’s shoulders.

“Shen Zui…” Shen Nian pinched her chin. It was dark, so she couldn’t see Shen Zui’s expression clearly, but she was certain Shen Zui wasn’t looking at her. This realization made her dissatisfied. My heart and eyes are full of you, so why won’t you even grant me your gaze?

Shen Zui was truly a bit frightened. She didn’t want to experience the suffocating feeling of being kissed to the point of oxygen deprivation by a little drunkard again, so she used her last bit of strength to cup Shen Nian’s face.

“Shen Nian!”

“Mm,” Shen Nian smiled. “Shen Zui…” She finally settled down, lying on top of Shen Zui and burying her head in the crook of her neck.

Shen Zui’s temples throbbed. She sighed and asked, “…Why are you back?” According to the schedule, Shen Nian was supposed to stay in a hotel tonight and return tomorrow.

Shen Nian didn’t seem to hear. After a long while, she spoke: “…Everyone was drunk.”

“Shen Zui,” Shen Nian suddenly propped herself up. She fumbled to stroke Shen Zui’s features, muttering aggrievedly, “I can’t even see you clearly.”

Shen Zui laughed out of sheer exasperation. “You rushed back just to torment me?”

It was clearly a sarcastic remark, but she saw Shen Nian nod heavily several times. “Mm!”

“…” Shen Zui was speechless. She reached out and pinched the soft flesh of Shen Nian’s cheek, gritting her teeth as if she wanted to scold her but couldn’t bring herself to do it.

“Miss you so much,” Shen Nian said muffledly, letting her pinch her.

Shen Zui’s fingers immediately lost most of their strength. Shen Nian covered the back of her hand, rubbing her cheek affectionately against her palm. She asked, “Shen Zui, do you miss me?”

If she were sober, Shen Nian probably wouldn’t have been so blunt. But she was “drunk.” She thought hazily that drunk people had this privilege—they could kiss directly and speak their minds.

Shen Zui looked at her for a long time before giving a low “Mm.”

“What?” Shen Nian was dissatisfied.

Shen Zui: “…”

Shen Nian grabbed her hand, brought it to her lips, and threateningly bit her fingertip. “Can’t hear you. Say it again!”

“How much did you drink?” Shen Zui asked.

“I’m the one asking you!” Shen Nian tried to straighten her tongue. “Your turn is next. Answer me first, then I’ll tell you.”

Shen Zui smiled. This night was strange; her emotions were fluctuating wildly—one moment she was angry, the next she couldn’t help but be amused by the person in front of her.

“Say it,” Shen Nian softened her voice.

“Is it that important?” Shen Zui pursed her lips.

“You’re doing it again…” Shen Nian looked downcast, glaring at her pitifully. “I told you it’s not your turn to ask questions…”

Shen Zui froze, then lowered her eyes. “Mm,” she nodded. “Of course I missed you.”

She wasn’t heartless. Having cared for this girl for over ten years, she missed her even when they were apart for a moment.

Shen Nian stared at her blankly. She drew closer to Shen Zui. “I like your answer… but…”

“But what?”

“I don’t like the tone you use, like you’re coaxing a child.”

Shen Zui pressed against her shoulders to stop her from getting closer. She lowered her head. “…I wasn’t coaxing you.”

“Really?” Shen Nian insisted on confirmation.

Shen Zui took a deep breath and looked up. “According to your rules, is it my turn to ask a question now?”

“Oh.” Shen Nian’s face turned solemn, and she sat up straight.

Shen Zui reached out to tuck a stray hair behind her ear. “Go, go wash up.”

Shen Nian lingered on the bed, refusing to move. “…Aren’t you going to ask a question?”

Shen Zui thought of the medicine cabinet; there should be something for hangovers. Thinking about the dosage, she asked instinctively, “Exactly how much did you drink?”

“I didn’t drink much,” Shen Nian said.

Shen Zui snorted, clearly not believing her. She pushed Shen Nian aside, turned on the light, and knelt by the cabinet to look for the first-aid kit.

Shen Nian shifted to her side. “Really not much… I only had one bottle of an alcoholic beverage. After that, I was just drinking sparkling water.”

Shen Zui’s movements froze. She slowly processed the information, then narrowed her eyes at the girl. “So…”

The room became so quiet that one could hear Shen Nian’s breathing suddenly become heavy.

“You weren’t drunk at all?”

Shen Nian jumped off the bed and landed with a zip. “Um, I—I’m going to take a shower!”

With that, she bolted into the bathroom like she was escaping for her life, leaving a deep-eyed Shen Zui standing alone in her wake.