Chapter 61

Chapter 61

Pei Chuzhi seemed to foresee a scene of Song Shiqing losing his temper playing out in the near future.

Seeing Xing Ye turn to serve the cooked steak onto a Western plate, she walked over under the pretense of looking for salad dressing, secretly observing his expression.

He wore a very thin black sweater with matching pants, his face expressionless, exuding extreme coolness. If fans saw him, they would definitely scream and shout, “He’s a capital-A brother!” But after spending time together, Pei Chuzhi could still notice the subtle differences.

“You don’t want me to act intimate with someone else?”

Xing Ye leaned on the countertop with both hands, silent for half a minute while waiting for the steak to rest, then slowly looked at her: “Congratulations on discovering that.”

The word “congratulations” sounded calm and composed, without a hint of celebratory tone.

Clearly, he was jealous.

Pei Chuzhi looked into his dark eyes and couldn’t help laughing aloud.

No other reason—she just found this side of Xing Ye a little cute.

“Then here’s the plan: Wang Xiaoying should come to see you after a while. You look at the script first, and if you think it’s okay, take it.”

She found the bottle of salad dressing, kissed him briefly on the cheek, then returned to the island to toss the salad while saying, “Now that I think about it, I really am generous—not caring at all about what roles you take with others.”

Xing Ye snorted coldly, noncommittal.

After lunch, Song Shiqing called.

Xing Ye shoved the plates into the dishwasher and stood in the kitchen to discuss upcoming work schedules with his manager.

They were talking about serious matters, so Pei Chuzhi didn’t interrupt.

She wandered around the living room alone, noticed a few magazines on a low cabinet in the corner, and picked one up to read on the sofa.

The cover featured Xing Ye himself, wearing a trench coat in the snow. The photographer captured his unique aura perfectly; the expression seemed casual, yet his eyes held a sharp intensity.

Pei Chuzhi admired the cover, then paused when she flipped to the inner pages.

The inner shots were set at a bus stop in the snow.

Xing Ye leaned against the ad board at the stop, trench coat open. This time he wasn’t looking at the camera, but down slightly, gazing faintly at a foreign female model beside him. The model’s pose was bold—one hand on his shoulder, the other on his chest, lips parted near his neck as if she were about to bite.

The pose itself was not inappropriate, but the lighting and setting made it look charged with unspoken allure.

Pei Chuzhi suddenly realized she had spoken too confidently earlier—she wasn’t actually that generous.

Xing Ye, in the kitchen, had no idea what his girlfriend was looking at. He was still discussing Wang Xiaoying’s script with Song Shiqing.

This time, Song Shiqing didn’t object.

He was already helping Xing Ye find lighter scripts. Now one was conveniently delivered, and using the boyfriend-girlfriend angle could attract attention—a perfect situation for the manager.

As for how many radical fans would angrily post on Weibo once the news came out, that wasn’t his concern. Xing Ye wasn’t chasing traffic or views. Compared to a few furious girlfriend fans, Song Shiqing preferred catering to the general public who wanted to see attractive actors dating.

“But we still need to check the script quality and production team,” Song Shiqing said. “I’ll handle that; you just focus on acting well.”

“Mm, I know.”

After hanging up, Xing Ye turned and noticed Pei Chuzhi approaching with a magazine in hand.

He vaguely recognized his own look in the magazine—it should be last year’s New Year issue, probably sent to the company and brought back to the living room by Xiao Zhou.

But he was right here; why was his girlfriend so focused on the photos?

Xing Ye took the magazine from her: “Can’t you just look at me?”

Pei Chuzhi leaned against the wall, lifting her head, her gaze lingering warmly at his neck.

Xing Ye was momentarily stunned, finally noticing which photo she had opened to.

When it was shot, it was bitterly cold, so he hadn’t thought much of it. Looking closely now, it seemed unsuitable for a girlfriend to see.

“Who said they were especially generous just now?” he murmured with a smile.

Pei Chuzhi blinked and smiled, tilting her lips: “Can I change my mind?”

“Changing your mind won’t help. When I filmed this issue, I hadn’t met you again yet, and anyway, she didn’t actually bite,” Xing Ye teased her. “Unlike some people who, the moment they agree to be my girlfriend, turn around and film a kissing scene in front of me.”

Pei Chuzhi: “???”

Filming a kissing scene in front of him—that was ages ago, and he had remembered it all this time.

“I don’t care.”

Pei Chuzhi decided to act wilfully. She wrapped her hands around Xing Ye’s neck. “I’m going to bite back.”

Before Xing Ye could respond, she felt her soft lips press against him, then her teeth lightly tracing the skin on his side neck. It didn’t hurt at all—she wasn’t using any force—but the warmth sent a shiver of tingling delight through him.

Like tiny currents spreading from his neck to his whole body.

Xing Ye’s breathing grew heavier. He gripped Pei Chuzhi’s waist, caught her hand that was playfully wandering along his collar, pressed her against the wall, and lowered his head to kiss her. As their shadows overlapped on the floor, the initiative subtly returned to Xing Ye.

After a long, lingering deep kiss, their clothes were somewhat disheveled.

A faint blush rose in Pei Chuzhi’s eyes, her gaze shimmering. She nuzzled him restlessly in his arms, voice soft and low: “Can I make a request?”

“You say it.” Xing Ye’s voice had grown hoarse from her teasing.

Her lips, red and full, opened and closed as she murmured: “I want to see your bedroom.”

Xing Ye smiled knowingly: “Okay.”

Winter sunlight poured in through the floor-to-ceiling windows, climbing slowly up the stairs toward the bedroom. Just as it was about to reveal the alluring view, a few hurried, soft breaths made it shyly retreat to the corner, no longer daring to intrude.

…

Pei Chuzhi floated drowsily in the bathtub, too tired even to lift her fingers.

She now had full reason to believe that on their first night together, the signed contract had somewhat restrained Xing Ye’s performance.

Now that their status had changed from contract couple to real couple, what had been released wasn’t just the paper contract, but also the lock restraining the beast.

She lay in Xing Ye’s arms and jabbed his hard chest to vent.

Xing Ye lowered his gaze, giving her a faint look: “Feeling proactive again?”

He brushed his wet hair back, seeming to ponder, “So this is how you show jealousy… maybe I should have someone send all the magazines I’ve done over another day…”

Alarm bells rang in Pei Chuzhi’s mind.

He lowered his head, kissing the water drops on her shoulder, speaking deliberately: “We’ll go through them one by one.”

“…”

·

Pei Chuzhi stayed at Xing Ye’s home for two days before leaving.

She signed the contract with the Swaying Elegance crew just before the Spring Festival, then flew back to Xishi to visit her parents.

Perhaps because her debts were nearly cleared, the family atmosphere this year was livelier than in previous years.

At home, Pei Chuzhi didn’t have to maintain a celebrity facade and happily relaxed for a few days, until her parents’ holiday ended and they returned to work. Reluctantly, she flew back to Yancheng.

After the Spring Festival, the days gradually warmed, and the roadside trees sprouted fresh green branches, donning their spring attire.

Pei Chuzhi and Xing Ye saw each other very rarely.

Of course, Xing Ye was busy with work. She, too, had become unusually busy.

Filming a few commercials, attending several business events, doing interviews—it all sounded trivial, but accumulated, it took up quite a bit of time.

Fortunately, May finally arrived, bringing anticipation with it.

The Swaying Elegance production team had been low-key for months, finally announcing the names of the lead actors on the first day of filming.

A single stone stirred a thousand waves.

【Did I see that right?! Xing Ye and Pei Chuzhi as leads???】

【Am I the only one feeling awkward? Not only dating privately, now openly acting as a couple in front of everyone? Audiences go to the cinema to watch movies, not to watch you flaunt your love.】

【Did someone put a spell on Brother Ye? Taking this role too—there must be limits to riding trends.】

【Screenwriter Wang Xiaoying, director Feng Chunming, is there a problem with this lineup? All are experienced in urban romance films. I advise fans to open their eyes and see the world, not get stuck in narrow-minded thinking.】

This time, Wang Xiaoying’s collaborating director was Feng Chunming, who had directed her debut film. They already had a successful commercial project together, so their second collaboration was highly anticipated.

Compared to fans complaining, “I don’t want to see Brother Ye riding his girlfriend’s popularity,” professional critics were more curious about what new sparks might ignite between Feng Chunming and Wang Xiaoying. As for the casting of the new film, most rational people asked questions under the director’s and screenwriter’s Weibo posts out of curiosity, wanting to know their reasoning.

Feng Chunming’s Weibo rarely posted, but Wang Xiaoying appeared frequently.

Sure enough, soon after attending the opening ceremony, Wang Xiaoying posted several photos from the start of filming with a line of text: 【Don’t overthink it, it just fits. As for how fitting, wait until the movie is released and you’ll see.】

The public watching expressed speechlessness. The film had just started filming; who knew when it would be released? They couldn’t wait until next year to hear about this scoop.

However, to their disappointment, no matter how much they asked later, no one from the crew responded.

Nighttime, interior set.

The first scene of the entire film was the two leads appearing as a fake couple at the female lead’s grandmother’s birthday banquet for the first time.

Pei Chuzhi sat beside Xing Ye, smiling gently.

Dressed in a suit, Xing Ye introduced himself to her “parents.” His voice was clear and pleasant, his manners refined. No matter how you looked at him, he was easily the type of “ideal son-in-law” that elders would love.

After delivering his last line, Xing Ye turned to Pei Chuzhi and looked at her with deep affection.

“Cut—” Feng Chunming called out.

Pei Chuzhi froze and turned to see Feng Chunming scratching his head in frustration, seemingly dissatisfied with their performance.

Feng Chunming: “Come over here and take a look.”

Pei Chuzhi and Xing Ye walked to the monitor. After watching the clip they had just filmed, both were puzzled.

The performance had no flaws.

So the only remaining possibility…

Their understanding of the characters differed from the director’s.

“You both acted very well.”

Feng Chunming tapped his knee with his fingers, then after a moment showed an understanding expression. “But we need to delve deeper into the characters’ inner emotions.”

Pei Chuzhi and Xing Ye exchanged a glance, then asked in unison: “Inner emotions?”

Feng Chunming nodded confidently: “Yes. In my view, you don’t yet fully understand the mindset of a contract couple.”

Xing Ye: “……”

Pei Chuzhi: “……”

Author’s note: Thank you to the little angels who cast “tyrant votes” or watered me with nutrients between 2020-01-12 22:24:14 and 2020-01-13 21:31:52~

Thanks to the little angel who sent a rocket: Ji Ruo 1;

Thanks to the little angel who sent a landmine: Ctrl+V 1;

Thanks to the little angels who watered me: Kiko 9 bottles; Just call me Ear, 38874623 2 bottles; Qing Xiao 1 bottle;

Thank you all very much for your support, I will continue to work hard!