CSGM - Chapter 33
Chapter 33: Chu Xi's Thoughts
We've only been sleeping in separate tents for a day, and Ren Zhi is already inviting a new roommate over at night?
Tsk.
Chu Xi found it quite interesting.
"Next time you want to see me, it won't be so easy…" That deliberately seductive voice was still drifting faintly from the room.
Chu Xi curled her fingers and knocked on the door.
She decided to remind the famous actress Ren Zhi that this was a public place and she shouldn't be carrying on a romance late at night.
It wouldn't be good if someone overheard and exposed her relationship. Tsk, tsk.
The moment the door opened from the inside, Chu Xi instinctively looked past the person in front of her and into the room.
Her eyes scanned the room like a patrolling guard, inspecting the very air for something.
Ren Zhi watched her show up late at night. "What is it? It's eleven. Aren't you going to sleep?"
Chu Xi retorted, then muttered, "Aren't you sleeping? You're one to talk…"
"Who were you talking to? I could hear it from outside."
She walked straight into Ren Zhi's room, glanced behind the door, bent down to check the foot of the bed, then pulled back the curtains to peer into the corner.
From behind, Ren Zhi watched her "thief-catching" antics. "…"
Chu Xi even seemed to tap into some canine instinct, twitching her nose and sniffing the air for the scent of a second person.
Ren Zhi almost burst out laughing.
"Stop looking, there's no one in here." Ren Zhi closed the door.
"Then what does that make you?" Chu Xi retorted.
Ren Zhi scoffed.
"It's not what you think. I was rehearsing my lines."
Chu Xi looked at her questioningly.
Ren Zhi walked back from the entryway and knocked on the wall behind the TV.
"The soundproofing in this room isn't great, is it? I was just speaking towards the wall."
Understanding dawned on Chu Xi. She sat down on the edge of the bed. "Oh."
Just rehearsing a script. Nothing to worry about, then.
"You're not in a rush to get to sleep, are you? Why don't you stay for a bit and help me? I just can't seem to find the right feeling."
Ren Zhi looked conflicted and pensive.
She was struggling to capture the tension of her character for a new role.
It felt like reciting her lines to a wall just wasn't working.
Chu Xi, this living, breathing scene partner, had arrived at the perfect time.
"Alright," Chu Xi said, glancing at the time on her phone. "I can give you half an hour."
Ren Zhi drew her lips inward, pressing them together lightly-a sign she was beginning to get into character.
She said to Chu Xi, "Stand up."
Chu Xi did as she was told and stood up.
Ren Zhi suddenly grabbed her by the collar, her five fingers tightening, and shoved her against the wall.
The sudden lurch made Chu Xi feel an explosive force, a sharp intensity. She realized the mood in the air had shifted.
She said nothing, made no sound, becoming a perfect practice partner for Ren Zhi, like a silent scarecrow.
The only light in the room came from a warm, yellow LED strip, casting a soft glow like moonlight at the bottom of a well.
Only Chu Xi's bright eyes moved.
She observed. Ren Zhi's acting was quite good. She was probably playing a high-status character; the ferocity and disdain in her expression were perfectly executed.
If she was wrong, she'd just pretend she never had the thought.
Pressed against the wall with Ren Zhi's hand on her, the soft, moon-like light outlined their two slender figures, like a simple line drawing sketched in the shadows.
Ren Zhi's long, wavy hair cascaded down her back. She looked down at her "prisoner," overpowering her with sheer presence. The curve of her swan-like neck was held ramrod straight, like a pristine, unapproachable coastline.
In the backlit shadows, her soft lips were dazzling. Her nose was straight and delicate, and her eyes held a sharp, cold beauty, like the edge of a blade.
She was asserting her absolute dominance in the scene.
Her presence had to not only match her opponent's but completely overwhelm it.
This was the atmosphere, the prerequisite.
Chu Xi remained motionless, passively accepting her role.
After all, she was just the scene partner.
Beneath long, curled lashes, Ren Zhi blinked. Her expression suddenly shifted, subtly transforming into a soft, seductive allure-a cold sort of charm. It was the kind that drew you in with its beauty but warned you never to sink into its deadly, gentle embrace.
This dangerous seduction manifested as Ren Zhi's hand slowly creeping up to Chu Xi's shoulder.
Fingers as soft as feathers traced a path across Chu Xi's shoulder, their tips dancing from her collarbone to her neck. As the cool touch moved from fabric to bare skin, Chu Xi suddenly felt Ren Zhi's temperature-it was a flame encased in ice, burning hotly somewhere unseen.
Her breathing grew shallow, but because they were so close, she could clearly smell the floral fragrance woven into Ren Zhi's hair.
Her gaze darkened-perhaps involuntarily, perhaps influenced by the carefully crafted atmosphere, or perhaps she was simply being led by the scene's dominant force.
She had to admit, Ren Zhi possessed a… peerless beauty, one perfectly suited for the camera.
A light laugh escaped Ren Zhi's lips, as clear as a river shimmering in the spring sun. But it was followed by the biting wind of early March. She wasn't spring's warmth, but its chill.
Her index finger traced up the line of Chu Xi's neck, slid past her jaw, and abruptly hooked her chin, forcing her head up. Ren Zhi leaned in close, her breath a warm, fragrant whisper against her neck.
"What should I do? I haven't even left… and I'm already starting to miss you."
The puff of warm breath, combined with the smiling warning, had a magic that made the heart race.
Gazing at the ruthless, sharp coldness beneath Ren Zhi's seductive facade, Chu Xi realized this line wasn't a term of endearment, but a warning.
She observed. Ren Zhi's lips were beautifully shaped. The breath she exhaled while speaking was gentle and rhythmic, and her voice sounded as if it had been kissed by a goddess of love.
A blush spread across her neck.
A reaction to the contrast of warmth and cold.
"The medicine is in my hands. Once I leave… let me think… how will you get through the night…?"
After hearing the line, Chu Xi understood. Her character was being controlled by Ren Zhi's.
Ren Zhi was probably imagining her character suffering from the drug's effects.
Or perhaps begging for mercy in agony.
But it was definitely not about "her" as a person.
Just as she'd thought, Ren Zhi's character was the one in power.
Ren Zhi suddenly exhaled, took a step back, and pinched the bridge of her nose, looking frustrated.
Chu Xi asked her, "What's wrong?"
"You're too tall. It throws off the scene," Ren Zhi said with a sigh.
"So being tall is a crime now?" Chu Xi laughed.
"You'd better come sit on the edge of the bed," Ren Zhi said, deciding it would be better if Chu Xi were seated.
"Fine." Chu Xi sat down and asked, "So what's my character?"
"The prisoner. You don't have any lines, so you don't need to talk."
"Oh… and you?"
"Your interrogator."
"An interrogator who uses torture?" Chu Xi asked, looking at her with amusement.
Ren Zhi laughed too. "So what if I am? It's not like I'm playing a good person."
Chu Xi nodded. "You play the part well. I'm starting to think it's not an act."
Ren Zhi: "Hah. Sit."
"Yes, ma'am."
Chu Xi sat back down on the edge of the bed, placing her hands flat on her thighs.
Now, Ren Zhi could look down on her, and that sense of condescension immediately returned.
She extended a finger and playfully hooked it under Chu Xi's chin, trying a different way to provoke her.
She pondered and asked, "Do you think this is better, or this?"
One way was to hook her chin with a straight index finger and lift. The other was to prop her chin up with a bent knuckle and lift.
Chu Xi thought for a moment. "For a prisoner, the first one. If your character is in love with mine, the second one could work."
Ren Zhi sneered, "Let's stick with the first one."
Ren Zhi got into character.
Once again, Ren Zhi hooked her chin, forcing her to look up.
Her finger was surprisingly strong… Chu Xi suddenly felt the coercion.
She was forced to meet Ren Zhi's eyes.
A trace of fear showed in her eyes.
This, presumably, was what made her better than a wall-she could improvise.
And in the depths of Ren Zhi's eyes was venom.
The venom of a snake coiling gently around your wrist, ready to strike when you least expect it.
Her eyes were beautiful, clear, and captivating, like exquisite pieces of amber in a museum display. Illuminated by the brightest lights, their dazzling brilliance reflected through the glass.
Chu Xi watched, feeling herself being pulled into an invisible, swirling vortex.
She saw her own reflection in Ren Zhi's eyes, fragmented and wavering with the shimmering, amber-like light.
Her reflection seemed to distort, to become fleeting. It was as if she could no longer see herself clearly, lost in the deepest part of the ocean.
Her usually clear mind grew hazy.
Ren Zhi's lips curled into a smile. The warm, fragrant breath from her lips washed over Chu Xi's face.
It was like a gentle blade, each word a soft warning.
"Next time you want to see me, it won't be so easy. Once I walk out that door, I'm not coming back. You'd better think carefully."
Chu Xi thought: I confess.
How could anyone not confess? Just tell her everything.
Chu Xi's gaze was transfixed, lost in the depths of Ren Zhi's eyes.
Ren Zhi suddenly pulled back her hand, and Chu Xi's head dropped.
A voice mingling pity and mockery drifted down from above her, still seductive and pleasant to the ear.
"I'd love to pity you. It's a shame you're so disappointing."
Even words like these carried a seductive tone.
It seemed Ren Zhi really wasn't playing a good person.
After a moment of silence from above, Chu Xi heard Ren Zhi let out a soft sigh.
She raised her head. "Is it over? Want to go again?"
"No, that's fine." Ren Zhi seemed to have found her rhythm.
She asked, "Was I ruthless just now?"
Chu Xi replied without hesitation, "Ruthless."
She asked again, "And beautiful?"
Chu Xi replied just as quickly, "Beautiful."
"Seductive?"
"Very seductive."
"If even you think so, then I can relax." Ren Zhi nodded slowly and checked the time. "It's late. You should go get some rest. Thanks."
Chu Xi chuckled. As she left the room, she said, "Next time you're rehearsing, don't talk to the wall. Just call me."
As she stepped out, a miniature camera in the bushes outside Ren Zhi's window quietly vanished. A paparazzo in camouflage rustled away through the grass.
Back in her own room, Chu Xi touched her ear. Her skin felt hot all over.
There was a hazy quality to the night, like a subtle fog hanging in the air, catching one unawares.
It left her feeling somewhat adrift.
As she was getting into bed, Chu Xi did a Baidu search for photos of Ren Zhi, picked out a few she liked, and saved them to her phone.
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