The atmosphere froze due to Ning Manqing’s words. Mu Xiao’s secretary was momentarily stunned, but quickly plastered on a professional smile and greeted Ning Manqing.
“Hello, Miss Ning. I’m President Mu’s secretary from Tiange Group.”
Mu Xiao’s secretary naturally recognized Ning Manqing. Hearing her words, he introduced himself.
“Mu Xiao?” Ning Manqing’s eyebrows arched slightly, her expression not softening but becoming colder. “She already refused. You can tell your boss that.”
“The set doesn’t welcome irrelevant people. You can leave.”
Ning Manqing gave the order to leave. Mu Xiao’s secretary looked at Li Chu, and seeing she had no intention of intervening, he offered an apologetic look.
“Sorry to disturb you. Goodbye.”
“Goodbye.”
Li Chu waved her hand, thinking, Please leave quickly, I still need to appease my girlfriend.
Teacher Ning was clearly not in a good mood. Li Chu wondered how she should explain this matter to Ning Manqing. There wasn’t really anything to explain, but in this kind of atmosphere, there was a sense of guilt, like she was hiding something from her girlfriend.
After Mu Xiao’s secretary left, the atmosphere eased somewhat, and Ning Manqing’s expression returned to its usual state. However, looking at her deep eyes, Li Chu still felt a sense of danger.
“Wait at the door. If anyone comes, tell them we’re rehearsing.”
Ning Manqing said to Yuanzi as she walked inside. Yuanzi nodded and closed the door behind Ning Manqing.
As the door closed, the invisible pressure in the air seemed to intensify.
Ning Manqing was wearing a light jacket. She took it off and placed it on the back of a chair, rolling up her sleeves to reveal a section of slender, strong wrist.
After doing all this slowly and methodically, she looked up at Li Chu.
Li Chu immediately blurted out why Mu Xiao’s secretary had come, afraid that Ning Manqing would get jealous and explode.
“Mu Xiao invited me to be his date at a gala three days from now, because the secretary who usually accompanies him to these events is away on business. I already refused, but I didn’t expect him to come directly to the set, saying he wanted a sincere face-to-face discussion. Even if you hadn’t come, I would have refused. I’m not close to him, really not close at all!”
Li Chu emphasized the last sentence twice, inwardly groaning, Get lost, male lead.
“I know, don’t be so nervous. I won’t misunderstand you.”
Ning Manqing sat down in front of Li Chu, pulled her to sit beside her, and found her hasty explanation and disassociation amusing. She pinched Li Chu’s nose.
Although she said this, her expression deepened, the displeasure not directed at Li Chu, but at Mu Xiao.
Of course, she knew which gala it was three days later. It was the gala of Tiange Entertainment, a subsidiary of Tiange Group. All the attendees would be people from the industry. In this situation, Mu Xiao wanting to bring Li Chu to the public was equivalent to stamping Li Chu with his mark. Even if there was nothing between them, others would definitely think Mu Xiao was Li Chu’s backer.
This was enough to anger Ning Manqing, not only because her omega might be marked by someone else, but also because Li Chu’s outstanding performance so far was all earned by herself. What would others think of Li Chu after Mu Xiao’s move?
“Why would he approach you?”
This was what Ning Manqing didn’t understand. Logically, Li Chu shouldn’t have any interaction with Mu Xiao. Li Chu wasn’t someone who chased fame and fortune, so how did she know Mu Xiao?
“During last year’s New Year’s Eve, Brother Nan took me to Tiange’s gala. I accidentally ran into him and helped him.”
Li Chu recounted how she got lost looking for the restroom last year and ended up accidentally being helpful, emphasizing that she was just lost and left quickly afterward.
“I didn’t know he was Mu Xiao at the time, because he was inside the room, and I didn’t see his face. I only found out the next day when his secretary delivered a thank-you gift.”
Here, Li Chu concealed part of the truth. She had recognized Mu Xiao by his pheromones, but there was no need to mention that.
“I accepted the gift because I didn’t want to have anything to do with him. I just want to act well and don’t want any gossip. Of course, gossip with Teacher Ning is fine.”
Li Chu looked up at Ning Manqing with pleading eyes, choosing honesty and adding some sweet words.
“He probably thinks I’m different from others who want to cling to him and wants to use me. I refused very firmly.”
“Mm, well done. He’s the one with the problem.”
Ning Manqing couldn’t help but kiss her sweet peach, playing with Li Chu’s fingers, her downcast eyes cold.
Although Mu Xiao didn’t seem to have ulterior motives towards Li Chu, Ning Manqing was still displeased. Mu Xiao clearly wanted to find a suitable shield from a businessman’s perspective, to avoid people crowding around him, and not worry about that person clinging to him, someone he could discard at any time. But he shouldn’t have set his sights on Li Chu.
From Li Chu’s words, Ning Manqing could tell that Mu Xiao knew Li Chu’s personality, knew she would refuse, but still tried to sway her with benefits. This intention made Ning Manqing very unhappy.
How could she let someone scheme against her precious treasure? Ning Manqing thought, rubbing Li Chu’s round, pink fingertips.
“I’ll handle this. Stay away from him in the future.”
“Okay! I’ll sprint a hundred meters away the next time I see him!”
Li Chu nodded. She didn’t want to have anything to do with the male lead. She just wanted to have a relationship with the female lead and focus on her career. Please, nothing else!
After Li Chu finished speaking, she noticed Ning Manqing’s gaze deepening, and the atmosphere seemed to be turning strange again.
Li Chu cautiously asked, “What’s wrong? Is something not right?”
“No, it’s very right,” Ning Manqing looked into Li Chu’s eyes and couldn’t help but sigh softly, “Why are you always so obedient? It makes people want to push their luck.”
The omega’s docile affection was like a boundless, soft object, tempting the mischievous factor in the alpha’s blood.
A possessive emotion seemed to be carried by Ning Manqing’s gaze into Li Chu’s eyes.
Li Chu tightened her grip on Ning Manqing’s hand, feeling the sweetness of being cherished.
Teacher Ning’s eyes are beautiful, and they can speak.
“Then push your luck. As long as it’s Teacher Ning, I’m okay with anything.”
Li Chu replied with a smile, her eyes gentle and obedient, every word filled with sincerity.
For some reason, at this moment, Li Chu thought of Fu Yuan.
Perhaps Fu Yuan felt the same way when she agreed to Lin Lang.
It was complete trust, a willingness to surrender body and soul, without regrets, regardless of the future.
Who could resist the temptation of an omega surrendering control?
Li Chu didn’t know if Lin Lang in the story was moved by this, but she knew that Ning Manqing in front of her was.
Affection seemed to overflow from those beautiful eyes. At this moment, neither of them needed to say anything; silence intensified the love.
Li Chu’s glands warmed slightly. Without the alpha’s gentle pressure, the sweet peach fragrance filled the dressing room.
“Is it okay?”
Li Chu looked at the thin door with some unease, worried that the pheromones would leak out and be smelled.
“It’s okay, and at this point… there’s no stopping it.”
Ning Manqing paused for a moment, tucking Li Chu’s black hair behind her ear.
In fact, in the “Model Couple” crew, except for the two leads, everyone else, from the director down to the staff, were betas.
Ning Manqing had checked beforehand, so she wasn’t worried about any alphas or omegas smelling their pheromones.
Not counting the kiss in the scene, they hadn’t had any intimate contact for several days, so once their pheromones intertwined, it was like liquor meeting fire.
Even the most aloof and indifferent lover would reveal a different kind of passion at this time.
Li Chu suddenly felt that the dressing room had become very spacious. She was just a small fish in it, held firmly in someone’s hand.
She couldn’t control which direction she swam in. The early summer heat made the water temperature change from cold to hot, from clear to sticky. She pressed on Ning Manqing’s shoulders, her eyes tinged with red, like tear stains.
But she wasn’t crying. Their increasingly compatible souls carried a scent that intoxicated their minds. Her soul floated, like a slightly tipsy drinker.
The curtains in the dressing room were made of an opaque material that could block the outside view but not the daylight.
White light, like ocean waves, lapped against the porcelain-white floor. The splashing water was like dripping juice, covering them with a transparent veil.
“You can bite me if it’s uncomfortable. But if you make a sound, we’ll be discovered.”
Ning Manqing pinched Li Chu’s chin, stopping her from biting her lip.
An omega’s body bruised easily, even their lips.
Li Chu couldn’t care less and bit Ning Manqing’s wrist, initially mindful not to hurt her, but later she couldn’t hold back anymore.
Although the dressing room was a closed, private space, it was still a public area. While she knew no one would barge in, there were people coming and going outside. It was like dancing on a knife’s edge, her soul and body separated yet intimately intertwined.
“Teacher Ning, are you in there?”
Qian Duoduo’s voice came from outside, clearly reaching Li Chu’s ears through the door, making her tremble involuntarily.
She moved her lips and heard Ning Manqing chuckle softly in her ear.
“Yes, they’re rehearsing.”
Yuanzi replied, and Qian Duoduo didn’t suspect a thing, believing her completely.
Li Chu suddenly felt shy and buried her face in Ning Manqing’s arms, as if to escape.
Ning Manqing teased, “We’re rehearsing, what are you nervous about?”
The two assistants outside continued chatting about makeup and other things.
Their voices gradually blurred in Li Chu’s ears, as did the sunlight streaming in.
Only Ning Manqing’s eyes were clear, so deep, filled with laughter and love, like a fleeting glimpse when seeing flowers in the fog. Everything around was hazy, only she was real.
Only what she gave was real.
Huge thanks to Phoenix for the support!
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