Married in a Daze - Chapter 86
Chapter 86
Lu Ruyun did not answer Qin Zhenzhen's question. She merely cast a faint glance at her before walking into the bathroom. Qin Zhenzhen only heard a series of thumping sounds. Peeking through the doorway, she saw Lu Ruyun fiddling with those things inside. Her face flushed slightly. "Teacher Lu, give me some time to get used to it. Let's not use it today."
Lu Ruyun tilted her head to look at her, thought for a few seconds, put the rope back in its place, and walked directly out. With a calm expression, she locked the door and put the key in her pocket. Qin Zhenzhen watched her actions, unsure how to interpret them.
Fortunately, Lu Ruyun didn't seem intent on discussing it either. With her usual expression, she entered her room and called out when she saw Qin Zhenzhen hadn't moved, "Aren't you coming in?"
Qin Zhenzhen stood dumbfounded at the doorway for a moment, her face flushed crimson. "Come in for what?"
Lu Ruyun reached out to pick up the script from the tatami. "Run lines."
Qin Zhenzhen: ...
The following days saw Qin Zhenzhen becoming increasingly busy. Over at Meng Xin's side, the final decision was to accept the endorsement for that affordable luxury brand. The program recording schedule was also finalized. She spent her days busy filming the movie and her nights rushing to record the show. Add to that the imminent broadcast of Cold Palace, she wished she could split herself into three people. Thankfully, the TV series Lu Ruyun had decided on for her next project would start filming after the New Year. During this period, Lu Ruyun had nothing else to do, so she often visited the film set and accompanied her throughout the evening recordings, which provided Qin Zhenzhen with some psychological comfort.
But she was still exhausted.
Getting in the car around five in the morning every day, only returning around midnight, sometimes not even making it back and having to catch a short nap in the car. With New Year's Day approaching, various galas and events started popping up. Major platforms all had activities. In previous years, Qin Zhenzhen would only record New Year's greetings for two platforms. But this time, she received five scripts, all from companies with collaborations that Meng Xin couldn't refuse. She had no choice but to shift her schedule around.
On top of that, the Cold Palace TV drama was about to air, which meant promotional tours around the country were imminent.
After a year of rest, Qin Zhenzhen was finally thrown into the deep end of busyness at the year's end. On major forums, message boards, Weibo—wherever there was traffic—topics about her started flooding in.
The female lead in Jian Mu's new song, the upcoming Yuan Yu, the endorser for the affordable luxury brand—every trending topic was related to her. Qin Zhenzhen made a powerful impression at the end of the year.
Even the posters on streets and alleys were replaced with her image. In supermarkets, on the big screens in the city center—it was either her advertisement or Jian Mu's new song.
Even elderly people and children who rarely went online became familiar with this face.
Her popularity reached a fever pitch, with her topic volume skyrocketing straight into the top three for the year.
At the end of January, Cold Palace premiered. As one of the lead actors, Qin Zhenzhen naturally had to post on Weibo urging fans not to forget their eight o'clock date. Fans, unable to wait any longer, swarmed beneath her Weibo post.
—I took a photo with my goddess today! [Photo].
—Hah, what kind of photo is that with an ad board? Look at mine! [Photo] [Photo] [Photo].
—Ladies upstairs, are you wholesaling goddesses?
—Awooooo! See you at eight, no backing out! Zhenzhen, I love you!!
—Zhenzhen, let me tell you, today I went shopping with my mom. When we passed by the supermarket, my mom pointed at the supermarket TV and said she likes you!
Qin Zhenzhen glanced at the long string of confessions, put away her phone. Ji Lu looked at her faint dark circles with heartache. "Zhenzhen, go back and get some proper rest. Sister Meng said she's giving you a day off!"
"Okay," Qin Zhenzhen replied weakly, leaning against the car window, her eyelids drooping.
She slept in the car and arrived at the apartment just after five-thirty. The sky was already pitch black. Lu Ruyun was waiting for her at the entrance. Upon seeing her, Qin Zhenzhen couldn't wait to jog over. Ji Lu followed behind, carrying her bag.
"Are you cold? Hurry inside." Lu Ruyun touched her wind-chilled cheek, took the bag from Ji Lu's hand, exchanged greetings with Ji Lu, and then wrapped her arm around Qin Zhenzhen to return to the apartment.
Qin Zhenzhen wrapped her arms around Lu Ruyun's waist and asked, "Teacher Lu, you seem to have lost weight?"
Lu Ruyun looked down. "Maybe."
Over the past month, the time they spent together most was on the film set, and that was only because she went to visit. Qin Zhenzhen had to record the show at night and film the movie during the day. Getting home normally meant one or two in the morning, and she had to be up by five. Lu Ruyun sometimes fell asleep while waiting in her room, waking up to find Qin Zhenzhen already gone.
If not for the changed clothes in the room, she would have thought Qin Zhenzhen never returned.
As for not seeing each other the past couple of days, it was because Qin Zhenzhen went out of town to film an advertisement and had just returned.
Seeing Lu Ruyun had lost weight made Qin Zhenzhen a bit unhappy. She frowned. Lu Ruyun wrapped an arm around her waist and sat on the sofa. "What did Director Yu say?"
Director Yu disliked actors who ran around everywhere while filming a movie. Qin Zhenzhen had already been lectured by him when she first entered the crew. With this new matter now, Lu Ruyun was worried Yu Changlin would have a bad impression of her.
Sitting on the sofa, Qin Zhenzhen relaxed both physically and mentally. Playing with Lu Ruyun's fingers, she said, "It's all been discussed. It's fine over there."
The latter half of the movie had pivotal scenes with Chen Feng and Zhang Qian. Yu Changlin used the time Qin Zhenzhen was away from the set to film those parts first. They would film the subsequent scenes once she returned to the set. Lu Ruyun nodded. "It's almost finished, right?"
Qin Zhenzhen hummed in agreement. "About another week or so."
Coincidentally, the filming of Mountain Girl would finish just in time for the Cold Palace promotion. The timing was perfect. Meng Xin, worried she was overloading herself during this period, specially applied for this day off from the company. Qin Zhenzhen found it amusing thinking about the director's expression, probably calculating how much money the company would lose with her taking one day off.
After hearing her out, Lu Ruyun nodded gently. "A day off is good. You've been too tired lately."
Qin Zhenzhen happily cupped her face and planted a kiss. "You're more tired than I am."
Lu Ruyun's lips remained warm for a few seconds. Looking at Qin Zhenzhen's beaming, joyful expression, she couldn't resist leaning in to cover them. Their lips were soft, a fragrant scent wafting over. Qin Zhenzhen was momentarily stunned. During this time, she and Lu Ruyun always seemed to miss each other. Sometimes on set, she felt too shy to ask for a kiss. Even though they had confirmed their relationship for a while now, the most intimate they had been was still the day she returned from City M. Thinking about so many days having passed, she had long been craving Lu Ruyun's warmth. She couldn't help but deepen the kiss.
The temperature in the living room suddenly rose. Qin Zhenzhen, kissed until she couldn't hold her ground, leaned back against the sofa backrest, her hands roaming along Lu Ruyun's waist.
Lu Ruyun usually wore sleepwear or casual clothes at home. At this moment, she was in cotton pajamas. Qin Zhenzhen's hands rubbed along the edge of the pajamas, occasionally slipping inside. Lu Ruyun's skin was warm. Qin Zhenzhen's fingertips were cold like ice cubes. When she slipped them in, she heard a sound escape from Lu Ruyun's throat, and she quickly withdrew her hand.
Soon, her hand was grasped. Lu Ruyun threaded her fingers through the gaps between Qin Zhenzhen's, raised both hands above her head, her tongue continuously tracing Qin Zhenzhen's lips. A fire ignited within Qin Zhenzhen's body. She gently squirmed, looking at Lu Ruyun with some discomfort.
Her cheeks flushed crimson, her seductive eyes like silk, long eyelashes fluttering slightly. Her long hair was casually splayed behind her like splashed ink, setting off her neck's fair, pinkish skin. Lu Ruyun's palms grew sweaty. She lowered her head and bit Qin Zhenzhen's neck. Qin Zhenzhen let out a soft gasp, her waist bumping against Lu Ruyun's body.
Lu Ruyun looked up, meeting Qin Zhenzhen's eyes. She saw a mix of anticipation and a trace of fear in them. Lu Ruyun's heart instantly softened. She hugged Qin Zhenzhen, kissed her a couple more times, then got up.
The warmth on Qin Zhenzhen's body vanished abruptly, a chill rushing in. She tugged at Lu Ruyun's retreating figure. "Where are you going?"
Lu Ruyun glanced toward the kitchen. "I'm going to cook."
A moment later, Qin Zhenzhen sat on the sofa hugging her phone. Her gaze kept darting toward Lu Ruyun. She still couldn't understand: they were already like dry wood meeting a blazing fire just now, so why did she suddenly stop just like that?
A few more times like this and she'd develop a complex!
Baffled, she hugged her phone and searched on Baidu. The various answers that popped up dazzled her eyes.
—Oh, does this even need explaining? Definitely because she's not attractive enough.
—Don't talk nonsense. Maybe the other person is conservative?
—I think maybe the feelings aren't deep enough yet.
—Is it the first time? Could also be shyness.
When Qin Zhenzhen saw this answer, she secretly glanced up at Lu Ruyun. She was busy in the kitchen, wearing an apron, sleeves rolled up to reveal fair wrists. She wasn't plump to begin with, and after losing a bit of weight recently, her waist looked even more slender. Qin Zhenzhen stared for a while before withdrawing her gaze, clicking on this seemingly reliable answer.
—First time? Could also be shyness.
—Yes, yes, it's our first time too. So what should we do?
—That's easy to handle. Try seducing her a bit and see.
Qin Zhenzhen's eyes fixated on the words "seduce." She swallowed. When Lu Ruyun called her for dinner, she decisively put down her phone.
Dinner consisted of three dishes and a soup, all Qin Zhenzhen's favorites: pork rib soup. She could smell the enticing aroma even before reaching the dining table. After sitting down, Lu Ruyun served her a small bowl of rice and sat beside her.
Qin Zhenzhen deliberately observed Lu Ruyun and noticed that although her expression was normal, there was still a faint blush behind her ears, and she would look away when their eyes met.
An idea formed in her mind. She lowered her head to eat.
Qin Zhenzhen washed the dishes after dinner. Lu Ruyun sat on the sofa watching TV. They chatted intermittently. After tidying up the kitchen, Qin Zhenzhen gathered her sleepwear and headed into the bathroom.
Listening to the rushing sound of water, Lu Ruyun's hand holding the remote became unsteady. She straightened her posture. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught sight of the edge of the sofa, remembering how Qin Zhenzhen had leaned there just now, long hair cascading over her shoulders, seductive eyes like silk, yielding for her to pick. Lu Ruyun gave a light cough.
The sound of water seemed to grow louder in response. She shifted her sitting position back and forth. After what felt like a long time, the water sound finally stopped. Lu Ruyun instinctively turned to look.
Qin Zhenzhen was wearing silk sleepwear. It was very short, just skimming the top of her thighs, sleeveless, revealing fair arms. Although the apartment had underfloor heating, she still shivered upon stepping out, a thought flashing through her mind: Damn, it's too freaking cold.
Lu Ruyun saw her quickly retreat again, finding a bathrobe to put on. Seeing her actions, Lu Ruyun couldn't help but let out a light laugh, her expression pleased.
"What are you laughing at?"
Seeing her expression, Qin Zhenzhen walked over, a bit miffed. Her long, wet hair was loose behind her, her pretty face rosy and glowing, clear bright eyes sparkling. She released the lip she had been biting, her lips bright red, delicate and luscious.
Seeing Lu Ruyun's gaze still fixed on her, she lowered herself to sit directly on Lu Ruyun's lap, cupped Lu Ruyun's face, and kissed her. A muffled voice escaped from between their lips and tongues. "You!"
Lu Ruyun: ...
Comments
Post a Comment