Chapter 37

This was a kiss that was anticipated yet still surprising.

When Sheng Qingli agreed to come over, she expected some uncontrollable things to happen, but when Pei Qingci’s kiss actually landed, she was still caught off guard.

At first, Pei Qingci merely brushed his lips against hers.

Noticing that Sheng Qingli didn’t resist, he pressed his lips more firmly against her, teasing her soft lips with his tongue and lightly biting her.

Sheng Qingli winced in pain, furrowing her brows. “Pei—”

Pei Qingci lowered his gaze, shifting his lips slightly back, deeply staring at her, and quietly asked, “Do you feel anything now?”

“…”

Sheng Qingli was stunned for three seconds before responding, “You…”

Her cheeks flushed, a mix of embarrassment and irritation in her voice: “No.”

No sooner had she spoken than Pei Qingci, even more audaciously, let his tongue slip into her mouth, entwining it with her moist tongue.

Initially, Sheng Qingli resisted.

But Pei Qingci knew her sensitive spots better than she did. He kissed her with a mix of light and deep touches, teasingly forcing Sheng Qingli to accept his advances and invade her space.

Sheng Qingli was powerless to resist, allowing Pei Qingci to take the lead.

Lost in the moment, she seemed to respond to him unconsciously. The deeper he kissed, the more his breath filled her mouth and nostrils, both familiar and strange.

In the suite, the only sounds were the mews of a kitten locked in the room and the subtle sounds of their kissing.

A tingling sensation surged through her spine, and Sheng Qingli struggled to breathe, feeling weak in the knees from his kisses.

As her body began to slide down, and Pei Qingci’s hand moved to her waist, wanting to lift her up, Sheng Qingli suddenly snapped back to reality.

She raised her hands to push against his shoulders, and when that didn’t work, she bit down on his tongue.

This time, it was Pei Qingci who felt the pain.

Realizing her resistance, he hesitated for a few seconds before pulling away from her lips, his gaze darkening as he watched her moist, rosy lips. He raised a hand to gently brush away the silver strands clinging to her lips and said, “Now…”

Before he could finish, Sheng Qingli, flustered and angry, interrupted, “I feel it, okay? That’s enough.”

Pei Qingci: “…”

Sheng Qingli steadied her breath and her racing heart, warning him, “Don’t go too far.”

Upon hearing this, Pei Qingci paused. He lowered his eyelashes and affectionately nudged her nose, his voice hoarse. “I’m sorry.”

He realized he had overstepped.

Sheng Qingli ignored him.

Their foreheads touched, and the room fell silent.

Their breaths rose and fell, both trying to steady their panting to avoid the situation spiraling out of control.

—

After a moment, Sheng Qingli raised her gaze. “You… go let the cat out.”

Pei Qingci: “…”

He slightly raised his eyes, opening his mouth to refuse, but Sheng Qingli coldly threatened him, “If you don’t, I’ll just go back to my room.”

With no choice, Pei Qingci let the cat, which had been scratching at the door, out of the room.

As the door opened, the cat dashed to Sheng Qingli’s feet, hiding behind her and meowing aggressively at him.

Seeing this, Pei Qingci’s brow twitched.

Did he really raise a cat with such an attitude?

Sheng Qingli didn’t notice the change in his expression. She bent down to pick up the cat and sat back down on the sofa. “Let’s talk.”

Actually, Pei Qingci had called Sheng Qingli over to talk as well.

What to discuss, he hadn’t thought through yet. He only knew that they couldn’t continue like this.

Pei Qingci replied, “What do you want to talk about?”

“You mentioned last time that you guessed how I fell out with Yin Miaojing. How much did you guess?” Sheng Qingli pressed.

Pei Qingci paused, looking at her. “Part of it is my fault; the other part, I’m not sure.”

“When did you realize it was because of you?” Sheng Qingli asked curiously.

Pei Qingci: “Before she expressed her feelings to me.”

Pei Qingci wasn’t slow to react.

At first, he didn’t know Yin Miaojing well; he only knew her because of Sheng Qingli.

At that time, shortly after Sheng Qingli entered the industry and finished filming “Love Vow” with Pei Qingci, she hadn’t gained much fame yet. Consequently, she was arranged to join other productions as a supporting character.

It was common in the industry for some to be elevated while others were suppressed. With no background, Sheng Qingli naturally faced bullying and exclusion.

Getting to know Yin Miaojing and forming a closer bond stemmed from a sense of shared hardship.

They interacted quite a bit back then.

Sheng Qingli wasn’t someone who liked to post on Weibo or interact with others there. But Yin Miaojing loved it, occasionally tagging her to share moments like meet-ups and dinners.

Their fanbase was small, but they enjoyed the friendship between the two.

Yin Miaojing knew Pei Qingci was her boyfriend by coincidence.

At that time, they weren’t particularly close. It was the secret of Sheng Qingli dating Pei Qingci that brought them closer.

Little secrets build deeper friendships.

After learning that Yin Miaojing would be filming with Pei Qingci, Sheng Qingli genuinely felt happy for her friend.

During that period, Pei Qingci’s movie had been released, and he quickly gained a certain level of fame. It was a time when they both were rising stars.

In the early stages of them working in the same crew, Yin Miaojing often shared interesting stories from the set and mentioned Pei Qingci.

At first, Sheng Qingli didn’t notice anything off until one day, when she reviewed their chat logs, she realized that Yin Miaojing mentioned Pei Qingci more frequently than she did as his official girlfriend.

In that instant, she felt a bit uncomfortable.

At that time, Sheng Qingli thought she might be overreacting and feeling overly possessive of Pei Qingci, leading to those feelings.

She despised herself for thinking like that.

Once she became aware, she grew more sensitive.

Consequently, when she chatted with Yin Miaojing again, she couldn’t help but pay attention to how often she mentioned Pei Qingci and the tone she used when talking about him.

Tone best reflects a person’s emotions.

When Yin Miaojing spoke about Pei Qingci’s performance on set, she was excited, animated, and showed a hint of admiration.

This confused Sheng Qingli.

She knew Pei Qingci was excellent and that many admired him both inside and outside the industry. She had even overheard gossip at a dinner about a rich woman wanting to support Pei Qingci and being rejected by him.

She never confirmed it with Pei Qingci but understood he was likable.

Yet, she never expected that one day, her friend would also develop feelings for him. She didn’t foresee such melodrama happening to her.

Not long after getting to know Yin Miaojing, when the topic of romance came up, she had told her that she had no interest in dating at all; she just wanted to make a name for herself, earn more money, and prove herself to those who looked down on her.

Sheng Qingli couldn’t understand it, nor could she make sense of it.

She recognized that emotions were uncontrollable and that falling for someone could happen in an instant. However, if the person already had a girlfriend, she wouldn’t show any feelings, no matter how much she liked him.

After struggling for a long time, she finally discussed this with Li Yuwei.

After listening, Li Yuwei analyzed it seriously with her and suggested that if she really couldn’t figure it out, she should just ask Yin Miaojing directly.

Naturally, she had to ask.

Once they finished filming, Sheng Qingli impulsively approached Yin Miaojing and casually brought up Pei Qingci.

Yin Miaojing was quite perceptive and immediately understood the purpose of their meal together.

She bluntly told Sheng Qingli that she couldn’t control her feelings for Pei Qingci; she had hopelessly fallen for him while acting in the film.

Not only that, she also countered Sheng Qingli, saying that her relationship with Pei Qingci was precisely because they got into character while filming. If they hadn’t, would they even be together?

Sheng Qingli was stunned and indignant. She clearly told Yin Miaojing that she could distinguish between feelings in a role and feelings outside of it.

Yin Miaojing sneered, “Are you sure you really can tell the difference?”

Sheng Qingli confidently replied, “Of course.”

Yin Miaojing asked, “Do you have the same confidence in Pei Qingci? Do you think he can tell the difference?”

She was well aware of Sheng Qingli and Pei Qingci’s situation during that time; they were a young couple who saw each other rarely. Both were impulsive and inexperienced in love, and their thoughts on relationships were immature.

They had arguments and conflicts.

Yin Miaojing knew all this.

Thus, when she pressed Sheng Qingli, her words were sharp and pointed: “Sheng Qingli, how far do you think you and Pei Qingci can go? There are so many temptations in this circle. Pei Qingci hasn’t taken on any heavy romantic films in the past year, but can you be 100% sure he won’t in the future?”

She continued, “Have you thought about the day when he takes on a love story about separation and loss? He might once again pour all his affection into another actress to get into character.”

Sheng Qingli was speechless for a moment before saying, “He wouldn’t.”

“Really wouldn’t?” Yin Miaojing mocked, looking at her. “If he really wouldn’t, then why did you take so long to answer me?”

She stared intently at her. “You actually lack confidence, don’t you?”

“…”

After that argument, Sheng Qingli and Yin Miaojing no longer contacted each other.

Of course, she didn’t think to block or delete her, let alone unfollow her on Weibo. What she didn’t expect was that Yin Miaojing unfollowed her first.

She only found out when a fan messaged her about it.

Yin Miaojing often commented on her Weibo, tagging her, so they had quite a few fans shipping their friendship.

The fans discovered that Yin Miaojing had unfollowed Sheng Qingli. After searching carefully, they confirmed it was a one-sided action.

At that time, everyone assumed Sheng Qingli had done something to anger Yin Miaojing. Many asked her about it, and fans were analyzing it in the forums, implicitly believing it was Sheng Qingli’s fault.

Their interactions had mostly been initiated by Yin Miaojing. If it wasn’t her fault, how could Yin Miaojing unilaterally unfollow her?

She must have been really upset with Sheng Qingli.

It was also the first time Sheng Qingli realized that one could retaliate in such a way, preemptively playing the victim.

That was when she understood what it meant to hurt fans.

Most of the fans favored Yin Miaojing, and those familiar fans who used to message her vanished.

Sheng Qingli felt a sense of loss but knew that she and Yin Miaojing had different values. She didn’t need to mourn such a friendship.

The two no longer interacted.

After Sheng Qingli unfollowed Yin Miaojing on Weibo, she found that not only on Weibo, but also on WeChat, Yin Miaojing had preemptively blocked and deleted her.

At that moment, Sheng Qingli was truly infuriated to the point of laughing.

Unfortunately, at that time, she was busy filming and couldn’t do anything about it.

After realizing she had missed the opportunity to confront Yin Miaojing, Sheng Qingli decided not to make herself look too miserable over it. She could only convince herself that losing was a blessing.

During that time, new gossip emerged online.

News about Yin Miaojing and Pei Qingci’s interactions on set being revealed, showcasing their chemistry and strong shipping vibes, circulated.

Of course, Sheng Qingli wasn’t going to have a fight with Pei Qingci over some random internet noise.

She couldn’t be sure if it was Yin Miaojing who leaked the information, but she was clear-headed enough not to be fooled.

Her breakup with Pei Qingci did resemble what Yin Miaojing had predicted; they spent too little time together, and due to their professions, they couldn’t avoid unnecessary scandals and hype.

There were many secrets between them.

Pei Qingci got sick, and Sheng Qingli didn’t know.

Sheng Qingli got injured on set, and Pei Qingci also didn’t know.

Their intentions were aligned, yet they ended up complicating things, learning crucial news about each other from unrelated sources.

The conflicts escalated.

Arguments were exhausting, and a breakup became inevitable.

However, neither Sheng Qingli nor Pei Qingci wanted to let go.

They fought and had cold wars, but neither easily uttered the words “break up.”

The final straw that forced Sheng Qingli to propose breaking up over WeChat was a photo sent to her in another way by Yin Miaojing, along with a phone call from Pei Qingci’s manager.

Pei Qingci had turned down many jobs because of her and their agreement; he seemed to be contemplating leaving the industry.

Sheng Qingli knew he loved acting.

His manager told her that if he really wanted to leave the industry and terminate his contract, the penalty fees would be a huge amount.

Afterwards, reflecting on that phone call, Sheng Qingli realized she had acted foolishly and impulsively.

But she also understood that even without that phone call, she and Pei Qingci wouldn’t have gotten very far. Her stubbornness clashed with his pride.

They both were too strong-willed. Apologizing was easy, but pulling out all the thorns rooted deep in their hearts in a short time was completely impossible.

Moreover, as newcomers in the entertainment industry, they had no right to refuse many things.

Better to suffer a short pain than a long one.

Holding onto that thought, Sheng Qingli cut her losses and unilaterally told Pei Qingci it was over.

---

“Photo?” Upon hearing her mention a photo, Pei Qingci furrowed his brows. “What photo?”

Sheng Qingli replied, “…You and her.”

Pei Qingci asked, “What kind?”

He couldn’t recall it at all.

Sheng Qingli said, “A more intimate one.”

She looked up at him. “Later I found out it was actually a candid shot of you two rehearsing on set.”

Pei Qingci was silent for a moment. He rubbed his brow, somewhat helplessly. “So you’re worried because of this photo—”

“Of course it’s not entirely because of that,” Sheng Qingli looked at him, biting her lip. “Do you think that if we continued being together at that time, we would get very far?”

This question made Pei Qingci pause.

After a moment, he asked, “What about later?”

“At that time, I didn’t want you to terminate your contract with your agency because of me.” Sheng Qingli knew Pei Qingci was pursuing a termination lawsuit because of her.

She didn’t want him to do that.

While they were together, she didn’t want him to be held back because of her; even after they broke up, she felt the same.

She had told Li Yuwei once—

She didn’t want to be trapped by a relationship or for him to influence her work. She also didn’t want Pei Qingci to be affected in his career because of her.

“He called you again, didn’t he?” Pei Qingci asked.

Sheng Qingli replied, “…Yes, about your insistence on terminating the contract.”

Hearing this, Pei Qingci scoffed coldly, full of sarcasm. “He sure knows how to make decisions for me.”

Sheng Qingli was at a loss for words, then said, “Even if he hadn’t called me, I would still refuse you.”

Pei Qingci was taken aback and turned to look at her. “You really don’t want to be with me?”

Sheng Qingli responded, “I feel like if we were together then, we would likely repeat the same mistakes.”

“Why do you think that?”

“At that moment, both you and I were quite anxious about our work,” Sheng Qingli replied honestly.

When people are struggling, feeling troubled and anxious, their emotions can be affected.

They weren’t strong enough yet to control their emotions well; those emotions would definitely be influenced by the outside world.

Of course, Sheng Qingli wasn’t saying they were strong enough now, but she did feel that she was more mature and calm in her thinking and actions than she had been a few years ago.

People grow.

The choices people make at different times can vary to some extent.

“…”

As the topic reached this point, both fell silent at the same time.

After a moment, Pei Qingci lowered his eyes to look at her, his lips slightly parting. “So—”

“Don’t say it yet.” Sheng Qingli guessed what he was about to say. She paused, looking at him. “I haven’t fully thought it through.”

She wanted to take this step but also worried about falling into the same dilemma as before.

“Pei Qingci,” she murmured, “let me think about it.”

Pei Qingci hesitated for a moment, then leaned closer to her, demanding, “How long do you need to think?”

His breath brushed against her cheek.

Sheng Qingli hesitated, “Until we finish filming this movie.”

When focused on filming, she truly couldn’t spare thoughts for other matters.

Hearing her response, Pei Qingci seemed to have some resentment as he playfully bit her finger that was raised to push him away, leaving a mark. His voice was low: “Okay.”

He agreed.

Sheng Qingli bit her lip. “Then I’ll head back now.”

Pei Qingci stood up. “I’ll walk you to the door.”

Sheng Qingli nodded and didn’t refuse.

As she set down the trophy and walked toward the door, she remembered something and looked back at Pei Qingci. “I need to think, and I think you should consider it carefully too.”

Pei Qingci asked, “Hmm?”

“About switching careers,” she licked her lips, lowering her eyelashes, “and about us.”

After saying this, Sheng Qingli opened the door and returned to her room.

They didn’t notice that as Sheng Qingli left Pei Qingci’s room, someone else also exited from a nearby room.

---

The next day on set, Sheng Qingli vaguely felt that her relationship with Pei Qingci was still the same as before, but something seemed to have changed.

This continued for the next few days.

Even Tong Tong sensed something was up.

That day, on their way back to the hotel, she leaned in and whispered to Sheng Qingli, “Sister Li, have you reconciled with Mr. Pei?”

Sheng Qingli frowned. “Why do you ask that?”

Tong Tong replied, “He’s been reaching out to you quite often lately.”

“Has he?” Sheng Qingli recalled. “We seem to be the same as before.”

Tong Tong insisted, “No, you’re not.”

She reminded Sheng Qingli, “You accepted the coffee he handed you today so naturally.”

Sheng Qingli explained, “…The coffee was just something he wanted me to try.”

Tong Tong stared at her.

Sheng Qingli suddenly realized and touched her nose. “He’s too scheming.”

The coffee was something Pei Qingci strongly recommended, claiming it was good.

But Sheng Qingli was someone who didn’t really like trying new things and was quite resistant. Yet, no matter how resistant she was, it couldn’t compete with Pei Qingci’s effort to persuade her.

Not wanting to disappoint Pei Qingci, she took the cup from him and took a sip.

After that, she realized she didn’t like it and naturally returned it to Pei Qingci.

Pei Qingci… drank it all in one go from the straw she had bitten.

Habits really are scary.

Sheng Qingli’s actions were completely unconscious; she returned something she didn’t like after just one sip because she knew Pei Qingci would handle it.

Tong Tong blinked, “What do you mean by being scheming?”

Sheng Qingli raised her hand to push her head away, “Making you think we got back together—doesn’t that count as scheming?”

Tong Tong thought for a moment, “Scheming.”

The two didn’t discuss this topic further.

WeChat buzzed, and Sheng Qingli opened a message from Lin Lin containing several scripts.

According to Sheng Qingli’s habit, after finishing a film, she would take one to two months off before joining another crew.

Therefore, they needed to scout scripts in advance.

Recently, Lin Lin had sent her quite a few, but none appealed to Sheng Qingli. Seeing the new ones, she thought for a moment and said, “Sister Lin, if there’s nothing I particularly like this time, I’d like to take a break.”

Lin Lin: “???”

Lin Lin: “Why do you suddenly want to take a break? Tired?”

Sheng Qingli replied honestly, “I’ve been working nonstop these past few years, so I’m a bit tired. But mainly, the scripts are all the same, lacking originality.”

Lin Lin suggested, “How about we focus on scripts with heavier romance elements?”

Sheng Qingli hesitated, “Do you have any good romance scripts?”

Lin Lin: “No, you told me before that you didn’t want to take on anything too romantic, so our studio didn’t look into it.”

They had been focusing more on films with heavier plots.

Sheng Qingli: “Let’s wait until you find something.”

Lin Lin: “Once I find it, I won’t reason with you anymore.”

Sheng Qingli: “…I don’t think you’ll find one.”

Lin Lin: “Who are you looking down on?”

Sheng Qingli laughed softly while holding her phone, “It’s not that I’m looking down on you; it’s just that there are indeed very few good romance scripts out there right now.”

Lin Lin: “Just you wait.”

Lin Lin: “Enough of this. Be careful while filming, and I’ll continue searching for scripts.”

The chat quieted down, and Sheng Qingli felt a bit at a loss, suddenly regretting provoking Lin Lin’s competitive spirit.

After holding her phone for a while, she suddenly remembered something: “What’s the situation with Yin Miao Qing now?”

Lin Lin: “She’s lost a few endorsements, and the role that was originally set for her has been given to someone else. But you know her methods; she’s willing to go all out to get famous.”

Sheng Qingli understood that clearly. She thought for a moment, “Then keep an eye on who she’s interested in this time.”

Lin Lin: “What do you plan to do?”

Sheng Qingli: “I plan to help her a bit.”

Lin Lin: “Ok, ok.”

After ending the conversation, Sheng Qingli turned to look out the window.

Suddenly, her phone vibrated again. This time, it was Pei Qingci messaging: “Have you returned to the hotel?”

Sheng Qingli blinked lightly: “?”

Pei Qingci: “I need to find you for something.”

Fearing Sheng Qingli might refuse, Pei Qingci added: “It’s for work.”

Sheng Qingli: “For a scene?”

They didn’t have any scenes together anymore, did they?

Pei Qingci: “No.”

Pei Qingci: “To be precise, it’s Ms. Wu who wants to talk to you.”

Sheng Qingli: “Huh?”

Pei Qingci: “She has a script and wants to discuss it with you.”

When Sheng Qingli returned to the hotel and walked out of the elevator, she immediately spotted someone waiting for her in the corridor.

Their eyes met.

Sheng Qingli was taken aback, “Why are you standing here?”

Pei Qingci replied straightforwardly, “Waiting for you.”

Sheng Qingli: “…”

She instinctively looked around, “What’s there to wait for?”

Pei Qingci looked up, not offering an explanation.

Once Sheng Qingli returned to her room to put her things away, they went upstairs together to Director Zhong’s room.

Wu Nuanshu had initially come to visit, but after staying in Taolin County for a few days, she found the air fresh and the place very quiet, especially suitable for writing.

Naturally, she decided to stay.

On one hand, to write, and on the other, to supervise Zhong Hongmao and keep an eye on his daily diet and routine.

While at the filming site, Zhong Hongmao would slightly reduce his smoking.

“Ms. Wu’s script,” Sheng Qingli said in surprise, “What genre is it?”

Pei Qingci glanced sideways, “You’ll find out soon.”

“?”

Sheng Qingli was confused, “If you say it like that, you’ve already seen it?”

Pei Qingci nodded.

Sheng Qingli paused for a moment and then realized, “Are you planning to take it?”

Pei Qingci nodded, “I’m considering it.”

“Then you…” Sheng Qingli pondered for a few seconds and asked, “Did you recommend me to Ms. Wu?”

Hearing this, Pei Qingci laughed a bit, “Do you really lack that much confidence in yourself?”

Sheng Qingli fell silent.

Pei Qingci’s gaze softened as he looked at her. He raised his hand to gently pinch her soft earlobe, speaking in a low voice: “It’s not me.”

The script had already been shown to Pei Qingci; Wu Nuanshu wanted him to play the male lead, but she hadn’t found a suitable actress for the female lead.

Of course, previously, Wu Nuanshu had considered Sheng Qingli but hadn’t made a final choice. She only regarded Sheng Qingli as one of the actresses to invite for auditions.

It wasn’t until a few days ago when she saw Sheng Qingli and Pei Qingci secretly kiss goodbye in a scene and observed Sheng Qingli’s performance in other scenes that she made her decision.

However, whether Sheng Qingli would accept it was still uncertain.

She just wanted to talk to Sheng Qingli first.

After Pei Qingci’s succinct explanation, they arrived at Director Zhong’s room.

“Qingli’s here,” Wu Nuanshu had already opened the door. Seeing the two standing at the door, her smile deepened, “Come in.”

“Ms. Wu,” Sheng Qingli called her, “Why didn’t you go to the set today?”

Wu Nuanshu gestured for the two to sit on the sofa and got them some water. “I had a bit of inspiration today and revised the script in my room.”

Sheng Qingli was taken aback.

Wu Nuanshu sat down beside them and looked at Sheng Qingli. “Qingci has already told you, right?”

Sheng Qingli glanced at the person next to her and replied softly, “He just said you wanted to talk to me about a script.”

Wu Nuanshu asked, “He didn’t tell you what kind of script it is?”

Sheng Qingli shook her head.

Wu Nuanshu smiled gently, “It’s a romance script.”

Just as she was about to get the latest version of the script summary to give to Sheng Qingli, Zhong Hongmao’s call came through, asking if she wanted to go out for dinner.

After considering it, Wu Nuanshu decided to hand the script to Sheng Qingli instead. “You can take your time to read it in your room. If you’re interested after reading, we can continue our discussion.”

Sheng Qingli stood up to take it. “Thank you, Ms. Wu.”

She exchanged a glance with Pei Qingci. “Then we won’t interrupt your date with Director Zhong.”

Wu Nuanshu blushed and smiled. “Alright, let Qingci share my WeChat with you. We can chat there if we need to discuss anything.”

Sheng Qingli agreed.

After leaving Ms. Wu’s room, the two intended to wait for the elevator to go downstairs.

However, the elevator was still on the first floor. Sheng Qingli glanced at it and then looked at Pei Qingci. “Shall we just walk down?”

It was only one floor down.

Pei Qingci had no objections.

He pushed open the door to the stairwell and gestured for Sheng Qingli to go in.

They walked down one after the other. When they reached the lower floor, Sheng Qingli reached to pull the door open, but the person behind her stopped her.

“…”

Sheng Qingli looked confused, raising her face to the person holding her wrist. “What are you doing?”

Pei Qingci lowered his gaze and asked her with a hint of melancholy, “Are you in such a hurry to go back to your room?”

Sheng Qingli was at a loss for words. “You called me for something important—”

Before she could finish, Pei Qingci had already leaned down and brushed his lips against hers, saying, “Ms. Sheng.”

His voice was deep as he called her name.

Sheng Qingli’s breath hitched, her long eyelashes fluttered. Feeling a bit nervous, she asked, “What do you want to say?”

“I’m not saying anything.” Pei Qingci’s hand rested on her waist, gently pinching the soft flesh at her side. “I just want to ask Ms. Sheng for a little favor.”

Sheng Qingli was speechless, about to refuse, but Pei Qingci insistently leaned in, biting her earlobe.