Chapter 16: Shen Qingrou

Su Nianmei leaned back, arching her body as she moved her head away from the fan’s handle. With a slight lift of her right hand, she deftly snatched the fan away, narrowing her eyes and leaning forward.

She positioned the fan to cradle the other person’s chin, a smile playing on her lips. “Fair lady, who might you be?”

The other person looked up at her and quickly glanced down to the right corner before raising their hand to their face, appearing exceedingly shy. “Fair lady, isn’t the name you hold in your hand mine?”

As she spoke, she gracefully stepped back, lifting her hand to reveal the fan’s surface, where the character “柔” (meaning “gentle”) was written.

“Shen Qingrou.”

“Shen Qingrou!”

The two voices rang out simultaneously, but the latter’s voice was clearly more astonished.

No wonder Su Nianmei felt the girl looked somewhat familiar. The current Shen Qingrou appeared even more youthful and innocent.

In the future, Shen Qingrou will become a household name, known across the entertainment industry for her film, television, and music work. Even a three-year-old child just beginning to speak could utter her name.

With her role in “Fang Zhou Qu,” she had skyrocketed to international stardom, but after that, it seemed she had stepped back from the limelight, and no news about her had surfaced since.

However, rumours painted Shen Qingrou as aloof and high-maintenance, making it hard to connect the woman before her with those tales.

Noticing that Su Nianmei was observing her intently, Shen Qingrou decided to play along. “Fair lady, are you so captivated by the beauty that you’ve fallen for me?”

Su Nianmei regarded Shen Qingrou, then took back the fan and replied earnestly, “So, do you… have any interest in becoming a star?”

Shen Qingrou seemed not to have heard clearly and asked again what she said.

Su Nianmei returned the fan to her and smiled at Shen Qingrou. “It’s nothing.”

Everyone has their own fate, and since it was her first time meeting Shen Qingrou, she could not casually alter someone else’s destiny.

Su Nianmei shifted her gaze to Shen Qingrou’s right leg. “Did you hurt your leg?”

Su Nianmei was not one to meddle in others’ affairs, but the person before her was Shen Qingrou, the actress who had brought Fang Qingzhao to life. Fang Qingzhao was the female lead in “Fang Zhou Qu,” and there was a time when Su Nianmei even considered Fang Qingzhao her idol.

However, Su Nianmei was a casual fan; even though she liked Shen Qingrou, she didn’t delve deeply into her life. She admired the character more; outside of that role, she only had a mild affection for Shen Qingrou.

Shen Qingrou paused momentarily before walking over to Su Nianmei, wrapping her arm around her shoulder and leaning against her. Her head rested on Su Nianmei’s shoulder, and her breath was warm against Su Nianmei’s earlobe. “Fair lady, I still don’t know your name. You care so much about me; I’m truly flattered.”

Su Nianmei gently peeled Shen Qingrou’s arm away from her neck, urging her to sit on the ground. She reached down to pull up Shen Qingrou’s pant leg.

Shen Qingrou raised her hand to stop Su Nianmei. “Fair lady, are you so impatient?”

Su Nianmei looked at Shen Qingrou and introduced herself. “My surname is Su, Su Nianmei.”

Shen Qingrou regarded the girl squatting beside her, her tone soft and amiable, as she rolled up her pant leg. She reached up and tucked Su Nianmei’s stray hair behind her ear. “Yes, aren’t you a beauty? If you want to see, I can let you.”

Her exposed ankle was bruised. Su Nianmei reached up to press on it lightly, causing Shen Qingrou to inhale sharply. Su Nianmei softened her touch but continued to knead, her movements skilled and practiced.

The pain in Shen Qingrou’s ankle eased significantly, and she smiled, “Fair lady, have you studied massage?”

Su Nianmei replied, “I learned a bit from a barefoot doctor in the countryside. But what about you? How did you twist your ankle?”

Shen Qingrou’s eyes darted momentarily, a flash of malice crossing her gaze before she quickly masked it. “I accidentally fell down the stairs.”

Su Nianmei decided not to pursue that topic further. They chatted for a while longer, and Su Nianmei shared her ideas about the Mid-Autumn Festival performance with Shen Qingrou, and the conversation flowed pleasantly.

After checking her watch and realizing it was almost ten o’clock, Su Nianmei mentioned her plans for tomorrow before heading to the hospital.

—o—o—o—

As Su Nianmei approached Gu Xiaobao’s hospital room, she noticed a figure in white sitting in a wheelchair, poking Gu Xiaobao’s face with their index finger.

Little Xiaobao’s face still bore traces of tears, his expression stiff as he allowed Zhong Yi to poke at him.

Su Nianmei walked over and tapped Zhong Yi’s wheelchair. The poking stopped at last.

“Hey, I say, you parents—”

She had only gotten halfway through her sentence when she turned her head to see Su Nianmei and her words faltered.

“What are you doing here?”

Seeing Zhong Yi took Su Nianmei by surprise as well.

The little bun, lost in thought on the bed, suddenly came to his senses when he saw Su Nianmei return. His eyes sparkled, and with a soft, bright voice, he called out, “Mom!”

The expression on Gu Xiaobao’s face transformed from its earlier gloom.

He had thought—he had truly thought that Mom would never come back.

Su Nianmei walked around the hospital bed and stood next to Gu Xiaobao, gently wiping the tears from his cheeks.

Zhong Yi, however, was taken aback by the overwhelming revelation.

He collected his thoughts and slowly regained his composure.

The person he had finally taken an interest in was already married.

When she mentioned children yesterday, he thought she meant her younger brother, not realizing her child was already this big.

For some reason, a vague discomfort settled in his heart. He shook his head—after all, he had a fiancée.

After calming himself a few seconds, Zhong Yi looked at Su Nianmei and said, “Your child has been crying for a long time. I happened to walk by and heard the crying, and I spent quite a while trying to comfort him, but it didn’t work.”

He quickly followed up, “What a little troublemaker!”

Having just received comfort from Mom, Gu Xiaobao’s face drooped again.

Noticing this, Su Nianmei squeezed Gu Xiaobao’s little hand. “Is it because you didn’t see Mom when you woke up, so you cried?”

Upon hearing this, Gu Xiaobao’s already drooping face fell even further.

Tears spun in his eyes as he bit down on his lower lip, his mouth pouting slightly.

Su Nianmei held Gu Xiaobao’s small hand in her own, feeling its coolness. She softly said, “It’s Mom’s fault for not telling you I was going out. I promise I will never leave you behind.”

Gu Xiaobao blinked back his tears, sitting on the bed looking delicate and adorable.

Seeing that Gu Xiaobao was no longer distressed, Zhong Yi suddenly remembered something and rushed out, leaving Su Nianmei without saying goodbye as he hurriedly turned his wheelchair toward the exit.

Just as he reached the door, he was blocked from leaving.

History often has a way of repeating itself.

Ji Yuan grabbed the back of the wheelchair, effectively stopping Zhong Yi in his tracks, casting a languid glance at him.

Zhong Yi felt a chill run down his spine under Ji Yuan’s gaze.

Su Nianmei looked up at the newcomer and called out, “Brother Ji.”

Ji Yuan raised his hand to greet her with a smile in his eyes, his military uniform sharply pressed.

Su Nianmei glanced outside, where a pair of familiar hands adjusted the brim of a hat.

The well-defined hands were particularly handsome, but her breath inexplicably caught in her throat.

Gu Xichao, who had been walking forward, halted his steps.