Married in a Daze - Chapter 99
Chapter 99
Breakfast was made by Lu Ruyun after she got up. The two lingered in bed for a while before she got dressed. Qin Zhenzhen picked up her phone to check the time—a little past eight, with an hour left before the promotional event.
Just as Qin Zhenzhen was about to put her phone down, she saw the message from Ji Lu.
—Zhenzhen, Zhenzhen! Last night's ratings climbed to second place!
Seeing the exaggerated laughing emoji Ji Lu added, Qin Zhenzhen couldn't hold back and burst out laughing. Lu Ruyun, having put on her pajamas, turned to look. Sunlight danced on Qin Zhenzhen's smiling features.
It had been a long time since she laughed like this.
Lu Ruyun lowered her eyelids, tidied the clothes on the floor, found an outfit for Qin Zhenzhen, and placed it in the study. She told her to rest a bit longer and that she would come get her once breakfast was ready.
Qin Zhenzhen basked in her considerate tenderness, hugging her phone as she laughed. "Teacher Lu, last night's ratings made it into the top two. Do you think there's a chance for first place?"
Lu Ruyun smiled slightly, a fresh scent wafting from her after washing up. She replied to Qin Zhenzhen, "Of course there's a possibility."
By now, she had a pretty good guess about the production team's tactics. It just depended on whether they would pan out today.
Qin Zhenzhen chuckled and started scrolling through the ratings data.
Shows airing in the same timeslot besides her Cold Palace included an idol drama, a cop drama, and a family ethics drama. Ratings across the board weren't very high, actually in a slump. The top show barely broke 1%, with the ones behind hovering around 0.9%, 0.8%. Qin Zhenzhen had been fluctuating within this range too. Last night, with the general's death, the ratings had increased a bit, breaking 0.9% and ranking second.
This wasn't Qin Zhenzhen's first TV drama. Her best result was a single drama breaking 2%. That idol drama had swept the nation at the time; promotions were everywhere. Every time a new episode aired, Weibo would be abuzz for half a day.
But for Cold Palace, up until now, apart from her promotional post that day, its presence on Weibo was almost invisible.
Half an hour later, Lu Ruyun invited Qin Zhenzhen out for breakfast. She had cooked millet porridge, prepared two eggs, and several side dishes. Looking at the table laden with food, Qin Zhenzhen laughed, "Teacher Lu, what are you doing?"
Lu Ruyun took her hand and sat her down, a smile in her eyes. "No candlelit dinner, so let's make do with breakfast."
Qin Zhenzhen remembered her mentioning a candlelit dinner the night before last, but they ended up going to Zhang Yiyao's apartment, and that dinner ended unpleasantly. She thought for a moment, then sat down and looked up at Lu Ruyun. "You think you can get away with just a simple breakfast like this? Teacher Lu, that's not very generous of you."
Lu Ruyun sat beside her, peeled the eggs, and handed them over with a gentle, natural expression. "Not just one meal."
"It'll be one meal every day from now on."
"Breakfast, lunch, dinner."
"I'll cook them all for you."
Listening to this sudden sweet talk, Qin Zhenzhen clicked her tongue. "Out with it, have you done something you feel guilty about?"
Lu Ruyun paused for a few seconds upon hearing this, then nodded honestly. "I haven't taken good care of you. I'm sorry."
Qin Zhenzhen had meant it as a joke and didn't expect Lu Ruyun to be so serious. She swallowed the egg yolk without even chewing properly, immediately choking and making her eyes water. Lu Ruyun quickly handed her a glass of water. Qin Zhenzhen drank it down, forcing the egg down, her eyes rimmed red.
Lu Ruyun patted her back. "What's wrong?"
Qin Zhenzhen pretended to be angry. "I choked!"
Seeing her using this excuse to vent the grievances that had been building up, Lu Ruyun simply nodded. "Eat slowly."
Qin Zhenzhen pursed her lips, lowered her head, and scooped up some millet porridge with a spoon. The porridge, which shouldn't have had any particular flavor, tasted sweet as it went down, melting away the resentment that had been growing in her heart.
After breakfast, Lu Ruyun cleaned up the dishes. Qin Zhenzhen went back to her room to change. When she came out, Ji Lu had also arrived and knocked on the door. Qin Zhenzhen searched the kitchen but didn't see Lu Ruyun. Hearing footsteps behind her, she turned and saw that she had also changed clothes.
"You're going out?" Qin Zhenzhen didn't notice the slight change in her own tone. Lu Ruyun replied naturally, "Mm, I'm going with you."
Qin Zhenzhen stood still for a few seconds, then lowered her gaze. "Okay."
The two left together. When Ji Lu opened the door and saw Qin Zhenzhen, she was about to greet her warmly, but then spotted Lu Ruyun behind her and swallowed her words, opening the car door for them instead.
The promotional event was arranged by the production team. Qin Zhenzhen had already seen the messages everyone posted in the group chat. Sun Qin and Song He had already arrived. They had posted several photos in the group, tagging her and asking when she would get there.
Qin Zhenzhen replied on WeChat and put her phone down.
Half an hour later, they arrived. Qin Zhenzhen and Lu Ruyun walked in, chatting as they went. The dressing room was noisy, everyone talking over each other. They hadn't seen each other for a long time, and upon meeting again, they seemed to have endless things to say.
Sun Qin was the first to spot Qin Zhenzhen. She was already dressed and made up. Seeing Qin Zhenzhen arrive, she laughed, "Well, look who's brought the whole family along."
Qin Zhenzhen smiled at Sun Qin, whom she hadn't seen in ages. "Teacher Sun."
Sun Qin looked her over carefully. "Zhenzhen, I think you've lost weight."
Song He walked over from behind her. "What do you mean 'think'? She definitely has. Teacher Sun, don't you know about Director Yu? That famously devilish director."
As he mentioned Director Yu, he gave an exaggerated shiver, as if scared. Sun Qin thought for a few seconds. "I see."
Everyone laughed. Qin Zhenzhen joined in the laughter. The stylist soon came over to change her clothes and do her makeup, so Lu Ruyun had to stay put with Sun Qin. Not long after, Hu Jing also walked over.
After finishing Cold Palace, he had joined a variety show. Different from the sports-oriented Star Showdown, the one he joined later was more entertainment-focused, so he gained many young fans. Although he hadn't been acting, his popularity had remained steady.
Sure enough, as soon as he arrived, Sun Qin started teasing him. "Look, today's star has arrived!"
Hu Jing had shed his initial shyness. These past six months had matured him considerably. Faced with Sun Qin's joke, he simply presented a gift. "Teacher Sun, this is for you."
He also gave one to Song He. "I went to the countryside a while ago and heard this is a local specialty there. I tried it; it's really delicious. It just so happened that I could bring some for you today."
Sun Qin accepted it and nudged Song He beside her with her elbow. "Since when did Xiao Hu become so thoughtful?"
Song He pretended to scold him. "You being so thoughtful just makes me look inconsiderate, doesn't it?"
Hu Jing smiled slightly, looking rather adorable.
After a round of teasing, Sun Qin and the others opened the gift and started eating, sharing a piece with Lu Ruyun too. It was shaped like rice cake, but chewed very smoothly, with a light milky flavor—truly delicious. Sun Qin ate three pieces in one go before reluctantly closing the gift box.
After changing, Hu Jing came out of the dressing room and saw Qin Zhenzhen getting her makeup done. He hadn't seen her in several months. Although her posters plastered the streets and alleys, and her MV played on loop in every supermarket, none of that compared to the sense of reality from seeing her in person.
Qin Zhenzhen noticed Hu Jing staring at her as he came out. She lowered her gaze, then turned and smiled. "One must be fair. Where's my specialty?"
Seeing her still taking the initiative to break the awkward atmosphere, he turned and took a box from his assistant. Different from the ones he gave Sun Qin and the others, the box he gave Qin Zhenzhen was very small. Qin Zhenzhen looked at him, then at Lu Ruyun, hesitating to accept it for a moment.
Seeing her being so cautious, Hu Jing's handsome face broke into a smile. "Zhenzhen, I learned how to make this from the master who makes the specialty in the countryside. I'm giving it to you to try."
Hearing it was still just a local specialty, Qin Zhenzhen accepted it with some relief, though she didn't open it. Sun Qin, observing from the side and fearing Lu Ruyun might feel unhappy, pretended to be displeased. "Hu Jing, playing favorites! You can't do that, kid!"
Hu Jing scratched his head and sat down, explaining to Sun Qin, "Because Zhenzhen helped me several times during the show recordings before. I've always wanted to thank her, but I didn't know what she liked, so..."
His explanation was perfectly reasonable. Qin Zhenzhen smiled faintly after hearing it and handed the gift box to Lu Ruyun, whispering, "Sorry to trouble you, Teacher Lu. Please hold onto this for me."
Lu Ruyun nodded with a slight smile. "Okay."
She put the gift box in her bag.
Soon, they went to the stage for the promotion. Lu Ruyun sat alone in the lounge. A large screen faced her, showing Qin Zhenzhen smiling like a flower inside.
"Qin Zhenzhen, who do you think Concubine Yuan Yu in the drama loved most—the General or the Emperor?"
The audience erupted in laughter. As everyone knew, in this novel's world, the General and the Emperor had always been the white moonlight and the cinnabar mole. Although many of the Emperor's actions were despicable, he also did plenty of heart-fluttering things, so the fanbases for the two characters were quite evenly matched.
Qin Zhenzhen thought for a few seconds. "It should be the General. If she loved the Emperor, she wouldn't have killed him with her own hands later."
After saying that, she made a gesture with a smile. "But personally, I quite like the Emperor."
Song He's previously heartbroken expression instantly changed. He exchanged a look with Hu Jing beside him, the two seemingly ready for a showdown. Seeing this, the audience burst into laughter again.
These scripted questions were mostly predetermined, but the host would occasionally add some impromptu questions or challenges. Qin Zhenzhen cooperated with the host, answering questions and occasionally standing up to perform the character's state of mind at the time. Fans in the audience held up signs reading "Devoted to Zhenzhen" and cheered non-stop.
The host waved her hands. "Alright, alright, let's get back on topic. I remember the biggest regret in the drama so far is that the General didn't get to see Concubine Yuan Yu one last time before he died. If you were given a chance to have that final meeting, what would you say?"
This was an impromptu question. Qin Zhenzhen and Hu Jing exchanged a look and made a gesture. The host looked at them. "No colluding!"
The fans below roared with laughter. Many reporters also raised their cameras, focusing on the two of them. The host held up a sign. "The final words are..."
The male host handed the microphone to Hu Jing, and the female host handed hers to Qin Zhenzhen. They counted down from three, and the venue fell silent, only the sounds of a clear, slightly higher voice and a slightly lower one echoing.
"General, pay back the money!"
"No money."
The crowd howled with laughter. Even the reporters couldn't help but chuckle. The fans were doubled over. The host wiped her forehead. "This generation... they're a bit cheeky, huh."
Watching this scene, Lu Ruyun lowered her gaze. She took the wrapped box from her bag. The box was decorated with fine, glittering rhinestones. She knew Qin Zhenzhen particularly liked these little trinkets.
She opened it. Inside the box were only two specialty treats, packaged differently from the ones she had eaten earlier. These two were shaped like hearts. Inside was also a card.
—Wishing Zhenzhen and Teacher Lu a lifetime of happiness together, sweetness every day.
Lu Ruyun closed the lid. She could tell Hu Jing felt somewhat differently about Qin Zhenzhen. He remembered Zhenzhen's preferences, her gestures, her little habits. If not for that, he wouldn't have known what to say based on just one gesture from Zhenzhen.
The commotion on stage continued. Lu Ruyun placed the gift box back in her bag, raised her eyes, and looked at the screen again.
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