Li Chu didn’t finish the cake. Her appetite wasn’t what it used to be, and she wasn’t a big fan of sweets, especially at night. Half a slice was enough to fill her up. She nibbled on the straw, slowly sipping her fruit tea.
Her hair was almost dry now, thanks to the warm air from the car’s heater. It was still slightly damp, but not enough to be bothersome.
“Finished?” Ning Manqing asked, handing her a tissue.
“Yeah, I’m full. I’ll save the rest for tomorrow.” Li Chu wasn’t usually so frugal as to save half a slice of cake, but this was from Ning Manqing, a gesture she didn’t want to waste.
“It might upset your stomach if you leave it overnight. Give it to me.” Ning Manqing extended her hand, and Li Chu obediently placed the half-eaten cake in her palm.
Li Chu assumed Ning Manqing would throw it away, but instead, she scooped up a bite with the same spoon Li Chu had used and ate it.
Eh?
EH?!
They had kissed, done even more intimate things, yet Li Chu still blushed at this simple gesture. Ning Manqing’s red tongue swept the white cream from the spoon. Li Chu swallowed, taking a quick gulp of fruit tea to hide her fluster.
Ning Manqing paused mid-bite, her gaze lingering on Li Chu’s face, an eyebrow raised slightly. She caught the faintest whiff of Li Chu’s pheromones.
Watching Xiao Chu’s eyes dart around, avoiding hers, Ning Manqing knew the pheromones weren’t released intentionally. Xiao Chu didn’t have the guts to tease her so openly while sober.
A little coward with lustful thoughts but no courage.
Ning Manqing had known for a while that she and Li Chu were highly compatible, even without a pheromone matching test. Especially in enclosed spaces, when they were close, she could easily smell Li Chu’s sweet scent.
Like now, the peachy pheromones drifted around her, clinging to her like a needy child. Pheromones were much more honest than their owners.
Ning Manqing placed the cake on the small table in the car, took another bite, and then lightly touched Li Chu’s neck.
Li Chu flinched, turning back with a confused look to meet Ning Manqing’s eyes.
Her lips were suddenly soft, filled with the sweet taste of strawberry cream. The rich cream melted between their lips, mingling with the saliva Li Chu couldn’t swallow fast enough, some of it clinging to the corner of her mouth.
Li Chu heard Ning Manqing chuckle softly as she gently wiped her lips clean. Then came a gentler, yet more urgent closeness, making Li Chu feel the warm air from the vents was almost too hot, making her sweat.
The backseat of the car was spacious, easily enough for an omega to lie down.
Ning Manqing lowered the temperature slightly. Outside, the cold wind howled, but inside, they were oblivious.
With the cooler air, Li Chu snuggled closer. Her slightly damp hair brushed against Ning Manqing’s collarbone, and the cold zipper of her down jacket sent a shiver through her.
“Still cold?” Ning Manqing’s fingers traced Li Chu’s cheek, smoothing away the blush at the corners of her eyes.
“N-no… not anymore,” Li Chu stammered, biting her lip. She thought she must be cold, otherwise why was she trembling so much? But she was also hot, burning like melting snow in the rising temperature.
Ning Manqing had only intended to steal a kiss, to cuddle her sweet Peach, just as she desired. But Li Chu’s nature made it so easy to want more.
Her eyes, filled with a watery mist, gazed up at Ning Manqing without a word, as if encouraging and indulging her, as if she would readily accept and embrace anything.
Like the pale pink peach blossoms of early spring, shy yet openly displaying their beauty.
The winter wind whipped across the road, rustling the dry, stiff branches like the tired breaths of a resting traveler. But this chill couldn’t reach the warm spring inside the car. The low sounds were well-contained. From the outside, it looked like just another silent machine in the winter night.
“Teacher Ning…”
“I don’t like it when you call me that,” Ning Manqing said, toying with the flower in her hand. Under the dim light, the white arc looked like a fragile crescent moon. Her features were soft, but her dark eyes held a certain intensity. A gentle beauty, yet also an unyielding blade forged in the spring breeze.
“Ning… Ning Manqing… Manqing…” Li Chu changed her address, one by one, until she saw the woman holding her soften, her movements slowing. Like grasping at a lifeline, she continued, her voice soft and sweet, “Manqing…”
Such a beautiful name, Li Chu thought hazily, just like her.
“Good girl, Tao Tao,” Ning Manqing murmured, stroking her hair. The smooth, waist-length strands felt like the finest silk.
“Why do you call me Tao Tao?” Li Chu asked, nestled against Ning Manqing’s chest, inhaling her scent.
“I know, is it because of my pheromones?” Her mind, sluggish, finally caught up with Ning Manqing’s actions, and she voiced her guess.
“Peach juice is juicy and sweet.”
The next day, Li Chu avoided Ning Manqing.
“Sis, what’s wrong? Is it because of last night?” Qian Duoduo asked, watching Li Chu hide in the break room.
Li Chu nodded vaguely. “Yeah.”
Qian Duoduo nodded understandingly. “It’s bound to be awkward. You and Teacher Ning are usually so close, and then… that happened. It’s good that nothing else happened last night.” She was relieved that during Ning Manqing’s susceptible period, things had been limited to hand-holding and cuddling. Nothing too serious.
Li Chu listened to Qian Duoduo’s attempts to smooth things over, pretending to read her script to hide her distraction. The truth was, every time she saw Ning Manqing, she remembered the words “juicy and sweet” whispered against her fingertips in the car last night.
It was… too much.
So much so that Li Chu’s heart raced whenever she saw Ning Manqing, making it impossible to focus on acting. She needed to hide, to recover, before she could work again.
“Sis, Brother Nan will be here soon. Did you tell Director Ji you’re leaving at four?”
“Yes. What time is Brother Nan arriving?” Despite the events of last night, Li Chu hadn’t forgotten about her agent’s visit and the magazine interview later that afternoon.
“He’s already here, almost at the set. Should I get Lina to do your makeup?”
“No, I’ll do it myself.”
Li Chu quickly changed into her regular clothes, removed her makeup, and reapplied it with a different style.
“Wow, sis, your skills are professional-level!” Qian Duoduo watched, wide-eyed. She knew Li Chu could apply makeup, but not to this extent. When not filming or on variety shows, Li Chu usually went bare-faced, maybe filling in her eyebrows at most.
Watching the steady hand applying eyeliner, Qian Duoduo thought that even if Li Chu lost her acting job, she could become a beauty blogger and definitely become popular.
No, no, no! My sis will never lose her job! Qian Duoduo mentally corrected herself.
Li Chu continued applying her makeup quickly, not saying a word. After all, she was a professional.
She wore a khaki sweater under a camel coat, paired with slim-fitting black pants. Warm and stylish. Her makeup emphasized a cute look, fitting her public image. Looking at herself in the mirror, Li Chu snapped her fingers. Perfect.
Thankfully, Ning Manqing, remembering the filming schedule, hadn’t left any visible marks. As for the less visible ones, like inside her bra… well, let’s just say it was a blossoming of plum flowers.
It was winter, after all. The fragrance of plum blossoms comes from the bitter cold. Perfectly normal.
As Li Chu walked out, she mentally apologized to the famous saying, thinking its counterpart, “A sword’s edge comes from sharpening,” was also quite fitting.
She didn’t run into Ning Manqing on her way out. Since Li Chu had the afternoon off, Ji Yun was filming Ning Manqing and Zhao Zhichun’s scenes first. There weren’t many people on this side of the set; everyone had gone to the other side.
When Li Chu saw her agent, she noticed he didn’t look well.
“Dear, why do you look even thinner?” Tang Congnan’s face lit up when he saw Li Chu, and he took her hand, his voice full of concern.
“You’re mistaken. I’ve actually gained a little,” Li Chu interrupted this touching mother-daughter reunion, adding ruthlessly, “You seem to have… rounded out a bit.”
Qin Mu’s character was supposed to look healthier later in the drama, so gaining a pound wasn’t a problem. She wanted to say Tang Congnan looked thinner, but looking at his increasingly round chin, she couldn’t bring herself to lie.
“You little brat! This is all for you! Non-stop dinners and drinks. I don’t even have time to work out,” Tang Congnan retorted, poking her forehead.
“Brother Nan, you’ve worked hard. Have some hot water. You don’t look well. Are you tired?” Li Chu massaged his arm and handed him his thermos.
Tang Congnan scoffed. “I’m furious! That Zhong Yue is relentless. She’s like… Aristotle’s second aunt.”
“Huh?”
“Just… so damn much.”
The pun fell flat.
“What did she do this time?” It took Li Chu a moment to remember who he was talking about. That omega who snatched the female lead role in “Cheese-Flavored Love.” They’d had a public spat online, and their fans were probably still fighting.
Between filming and Ning Manqing, Li Chu had completely forgotten about her.
“I was negotiating a lipstick endorsement for you, almost finalized, and she swooped in and took it, offering a lower price! Tell me, isn’t she crazy? Isn’t she out of her mind?” Tang Congnan wasn’t that bothered about losing the endorsement itself, but being deliberately undercut by Zhong Yue infuriated him.
“Indeed,” Li Chu agreed. Although she was in Director Ji’s drama, it was still filming, and there was no guarantee it would be a hit when it aired. Her current resources couldn’t compare to Zhong Yue’s. The fact that Zhong Yue was willing to lower her price to steal an endorsement showed how much she was targeting Li Chu.
“Dear, when will you finish filming this drama? I can’t wait to rip that bitch’s mouth apart.”
“Before the end of the year, December at the latest. But at this rate, it shouldn’t take that long.” Li Chu estimated the filming schedule.
Time flew by. It had been almost half a year since she arrived in this world.
She had known Teacher Ning for that long already.
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