Chapter 12

Pei Qingci’s words immediately brought the two of them back to a memory from a few years ago, one that wasn’t particularly pleasant but was pure.

It was during the filming of their first movie, Love Vows. She was 20, and Pei Qingci was 23.

Neither of them had formal training in acting, and this was their first time working together. It was also Sheng Qingli’s debut in the entertainment industry.

Pei Qingci was slightly more experienced, but before this, he had only played a few insignificant supporting roles.

Because they were both newcomers, the director was quite patient with them.

At first glance, he felt they were perfect for the roles in the script.

At the beginning, the director noticed the unfamiliarity between them and decided to give them more time to develop their chemistry.

Thus, he scheduled other actors’ scenes first, leaving theirs for later. But to his surprise, even after more than half a month, Sheng Qingli and Pei Qingci still hadn’t grown closer.

Realizing they lacked trust and reliance on each other, the director came up with an effective plan.

Just like in the script, he wanted Pei Qingci to take Sheng Qingli on a night drive, to camp at the mountaintop and watch the sunrise, go deep-sea diving, chase sunsets along the coast, and more.

To immerse them further, he didn’t arrange for any camera crew to follow them, nor did he place any cameras in the car. He wanted them to experience the emotions of the lead characters, free from any distractions, allowing them to genuinely become the people in the story.

The director even arranged for them to go bungee jumping together, facing each other while leaping from dozens of meters high.

Sheng Qingli had a fear of heights, so bungee jumping was an enormous challenge for her.

If she hadn’t developed an interest in acting by then, or if the termination fee wasn’t too high, she would have quit the moment she heard about the bungee jumping plan.

That night was the first time Sheng Qingli found herself alone in a confined space with a peer of the opposite sex.

Pei Qingci sat in the driver’s seat, and she was in the passenger seat.

When they left the set, it wasn’t too late yet.

There were still quite a few cars on the road, and although Pei Qingci hadn’t driven for some time, his driving was steady and reassuring.

The only issue was that they sat quietly in the car, not speaking a word after a brief exchange when they first got in.

Sheng Qingli turned her head to look at the unfamiliar city streets outside. Several times, she wanted to say something to break the silence, but she didn’t know what to say.

Just as she was hesitating, Pei Qingci spoke first, “Do you get car sick?”

“…No,” Sheng Qingli answered instinctively, turning to look at him.

The light outside flickered by. From Sheng Qingli’s angle, Pei Qingci’s profile was smooth and sharp, with a narrow, high nose bridge, deep-set, full brows, and long eyelashes that cast a faint shadow on his eyelids as he gazed ahead.

His eyes were almond-shaped, deep and clear, almost mesmerizing.

At first glance, Sheng Qingli thought he was exceptionally handsome, even more so than some famous male stars.

At that moment, she thought if Pei Qingci were given a chance, he would definitely become a big star.

Sensing her gaze, Pei Qingci turned to look at her when they stopped at the next red light.

Their eyes met in the quiet car.

His eyes were as deep as a pool, sharp yet restrained.

“Why… are you staring at me like that?” Sheng Qingli suddenly felt nervous.

Hearing this, Pei Qingci raised his eyebrows slightly, his slender fingers tapping lightly on the steering wheel as he replied coolly, “That’s something I should be asking you.”

Sheng Qingli was slightly embarrassed, opening her mouth but unable to say anything in response.

Fortunately, Pei Qingci didn’t press the matter.

When the distant traffic light turned green, he withdrew his gaze from her and pressed the gas pedal to continue driving.

As they were about to leave the city, Pei Qingci asked her, “Do you want to buy anything?”

Sheng Qingli was caught off guard, not feeling connected to the idea of camping on a mountaintop to watch the sunrise at all. “Buy what?”

Pei Qingci didn’t respond. He simply pulled over near a convenience store. “Go take a look.”

Sheng Qingli: “…”

The 24-hour convenience store wasn’t large, but it was well-stocked.

As soon as she reached the entrance, Sheng Qingli smelled the aroma of food coming from inside: oden, hotdogs, and more.

Her character was a girl with a terminal illness, running away to the big city to chase the light. Because of her illness, she had to appear frail, meaning she had to stay thin.

For someone who had been on a semi-fasting diet under the supervision of both the director and her agent for nearly two months, the strong smell of food was hard to resist.

Of course, Sheng Qingli had a bit of professionalism.

She knew she couldn’t eat, so she didn’t ask for anything. But as she followed Pei Qingci around the store, her eyes couldn’t help but linger on the oden and hotdogs by the cash register.

Unintentionally, she bumped into Pei Qingci’s firm back.

Before Pei Qingci could say anything, Sheng Qingli let out a small sound of pain.

Pei Qingci turned to look at her, about to tell her to watch where she was going, but Sheng Qingli had already raised her eyes, looking at him with a pitiful, almost tearful gaze.

Her skin was pale and delicate, and just a light touch had left her red.

The store was brightly lit, the fluorescent lights overhead almost too harsh.

At that moment, Pei Qingci changed the words at his lips from “watch your step” to “does it hurt?”

Sheng Qingli hesitated and nodded slightly, “A little bit. Your back is really hard.”

Without thinking much, she asked, “Do you work out regularly?”

Hearing her question, Pei Qingci paused for a second, then softly replied, “Yes, I do. Sorry.”

Sheng Qingli was taken aback and couldn’t help but laugh, “Why are you apologizing to me?”

After all, it was she who wasn’t paying attention while walking.

Pei Qingci didn’t know why he apologized either. Perhaps, in that moment, he felt that letting her bump into him, causing her nose to turn red, was his fault.

If he’d walked a bit faster, she wouldn’t have run into him.

After the collision, Pei Qingci no longer felt comfortable letting Sheng Qingli walk behind him. He had her walk in front, where he could keep an eye on her.

The two of them walked around the convenience store and bought a case of water.

When they were checking out, Pei Qingci confirmed with her again, “Are you sure there’s nothing else you want to buy?”

Sheng Qingli restrained herself from looking at the oden area, “No, I’ll wait for you outside.”

She was worried she wouldn’t be able to control herself.

Pei Qingci reminded her, “Don’t go too far.”

Sheng Qingli assured him she wouldn’t.

However, what Sheng Qingli didn’t expect was that when Pei Qingci came out of the convenience store after checking out, he wasn’t only carrying the case of bottled water they had chosen—he was also holding a steaming bowl of oden in his other hand.

When she saw it, Sheng Qingli was speechless, “Why did you… also buy that?”

Pei Qingci lowered his gaze, his tone calm, “I was a bit hungry. Do you want some?”

Sheng Qingli: “…”

She stared at him blankly for a moment and then distanced herself, “I don’t want any.”

The car was parked not far away, and they got in and placed the water in the trunk before returning to their seats.

Even outside, the smell of oden was already quite strong.

Once they were inside the enclosed space of the car, the rich aroma was even harder to ignore.

Sheng Qingli forced herself not to look at the person beside her, pretending to be busy. She pulled out her phone from her bag and started messaging her friends to distract herself.

While she was in the middle of chatting, the person next to her suddenly called out, “Sheng Qingli.”

Sheng Qingli looked up sharply, “What?”

She noticed him holding the small bowl in his hands, and her long eyelashes trembled. “Are you done eating?”

Pei Qingci responded, “Yes, I’m done.”

Sheng Qingli nodded and was about to say something else when Pei Qingci added, troubled, “There’s still one skewer of beef balls, one skewer of seaweed, and some white radish left. I can’t finish them. Are you sure you don’t want any?”

Sheng Qingli furrowed her brow, incredulous, “You have such a small appetite?”

Pei Qingci replied seriously, “I ate a lot for dinner.”

Sheng Qingli was momentarily speechless. She really wanted to ask why he bought so much if he wasn’t that hungry—wasn’t that a waste?!

But they weren’t that close, and she couldn’t criticize him too harshly.

After a short silence, Sheng Qingli quietly asked, “If I don’t eat it, are you planning to throw it away?”

Pei Qingci said, “Yes.”

He added, feigning difficulty, “I really can’t finish it. Throwing it away would be wasteful. Can you help me?”

“But I—” Sheng Qingli wanted to say that her director and manager wouldn’t let her eat, and she was also worried about gaining weight.

Before she could finish, Pei Qingci interrupted, “I’ll keep it a secret.”

He knew she was controlling her diet.

Sheng Qingli still hesitated, “It’s not about keeping it secret. I’m afraid it’ll affect my image in the film.”

“It’s just a little. It won’t.” Pei Qingci reassured her calmly, “If you’re worried, I can accompany you to the gym for a run tomorrow.”

“…No thanks.” Sheng Qingli responded immediately, “I hate running.”

Pei Qingci was momentarily speechless but was amused by her childish words. A barely noticeable smile tugged at the corners of his lips, “Then what kind of exercise do you like?”

Sheng Qingli responded honestly, “I don’t have a favorite exercise.”

Pei Qingci: “…”

After a few seconds of silence, Pei Qingci said, “Then how about I accompany you to fly a kite?”

Sheng Qingli froze, surprised, “How did you know—”

“I overheard you talking with another actor.” Pei Qingci admitted honestly.

It had been raining near the set for days, and today was the first clear day.

Before leaving the set, Sheng Qingli had been talking with another actress about going to fly kites if the weather stayed clear tomorrow.

There was a wide, lush green area near the set, perfect for kite-flying.

Upon hearing this, Sheng Qingli felt a bit embarrassed and pursed her lips, “Don’t you think it’s childish?”

Pei Qingci asked, “What do you mean?”

He seemed not to understand what she was getting at.

Sheng Qingli explained, “Kites are for kids.”

“Hmm?” Pei Qingci raised an eyebrow, placing the bowl of oden in her hands. His brows relaxed, and he smiled faintly, his voice cool, “Aren’t you a kid?”

“…”

—

That night, Sheng Qingli ended up eating the oden.

Much later, she found out that Pei Qingci doesn’t eat oden at all. The portion of oden he bought that day was specifically for her. She had been so intent on avoiding it that she never noticed there had been no chewing sounds in the car before he handed it to her.

When she learned the truth, Sheng Qingli asked him, laughing and crying, how he had known she wanted it.

Pei Qingci glanced at her and smiled helplessly, “You practically had your eyes glued to it.”

Even if he didn’t want to notice, it was hard not to.

After eating the oden, the two of them continued to their destination at the mountain top.

But unfortunately, the good weather only lasted until 3 a.m.

When they got up around 4 a.m. to watch the sunrise, a light rain suddenly began to fall from the night sky. They sat quietly in the car for a long time, listening to the rain.

With the rain, flying kites was naturally no longer an option.

When Sheng Qingli was descending the mountain, she was still troubled by the previous issue. However, soon enough, she had something even more worrisome to deal with.

The city had yet to fully awaken, and there were only a few cars on the roads.

Pei Qingci was driving Sheng Qingli back to the hotel where the filming crew was staying when they encountered a drunk driver. The driver, clearly not in his right mind, crashed into them from behind while they were waiting at a red light.

They were rear-ended.

Fortunately, neither of them was seriously injured.

Sheng Qingli was almost unharmed, with only her knee hitting the car and getting slightly scraped. Pei Qingci, on the other hand, was worse off—his arm had a severe abrasion.

Because of this incident, the director no longer dared to let the two of them go out alone to “cultivate chemistry.”

Yet, due to this incident, despite no longer going out to cultivate chemistry, the two of them inexplicably became closer.

While filming, the director vaguely sensed a subtle and special ambiguous atmosphere between them.

The director tried to get some information out of both Pei Qingci and Sheng Qingli, but got nothing.

Sheng Qingli never told the director or Pei Qingci’s manager why his arm was so badly scraped—when the car was rear-ended, Pei Qingci threw himself toward her, shielding her in his embrace.

And at that moment, Sheng Qingli instinctively pressed down on Pei Qingci’s face.

Later, Pei Qingci asked Sheng Qingli why she had thought to protect his face.

Sheng Qingli, being very direct and sincere, told him, “My initial interest in you was because of your face.”

If Pei Qingci’s face had been injured, they might not have had the story that followed. After all, Sheng Qingli was truly a face-enthusiast.

…

–

A sudden honk of a horn snapped both of them out of their thoughts.

Their gazes unintentionally collided, and Sheng Qingli’s lips, hidden under her mask, pressed together unconsciously. She spoke softly, “…That wasn’t something you could control.”

Pei Qingci understood what she meant, and he replied, “Let’s get in the car first.”

They both got into the car.

Just as Pei Qingci was about to search for the location of Taolin County, Sheng Qingli suddenly said, “…I still need to go somewhere.”

Pei Qingci turned his head slightly, “Where?”

Sheng Qingli: “To a nearby mall. There are still some things I need to buy.”

Pei Qingci handed her his phone, allowing her to input the location.

When she took the phone again, Sheng Qingli’s fingers paused slightly before typing in the address.

Actually, the trip to Taolin County wasn’t rushed, but for some reason, when she was packing with her assistant before leaving, there had been some mix-up. She thought Tong Tong had packed the bedding, while Tong Tong thought she had packed it.

It wasn’t until last night, when she went to bed, that Sheng Qingli realized the most essential item—the bedding set—had been left behind.

She was very particular about her bedding. If it wasn’t the brand she usually used, she simply couldn’t sleep through the night in a hotel bed.

Besides the bedding, Sheng Qingli also wanted to buy some other household items.

She had high standards for her household items, and none of the stores in Taolin County carried the brands she used. Originally, she had planned to wait until she ran out and then come to the city to buy more, but since she was already here, she figured she might as well get everything in one go.

She and Pei Qingci went to a nearby mall.

After parking the car, Sheng Qingli glanced at Pei Qingci, who was about to undo his seatbelt to get out, and quickly said, “…I can go by myself.”

The two of them appearing together would attract too much attention.

Hearing this, Pei Qingci’s expression turned serious, “Are you sure?”

“Mm,” Sheng Qingli avoided his gaze, lowering her eyes as she said, “I’ll be quick.”

With the conversation at this point, Pei Qingci naturally didn’t insist.

He nodded lightly, his voice calm, “Alright.”

Watching Sheng Qingli walk toward the elevator hall in the distance, Pei Qingci silently tugged at the corner of his lips.

The mall Sheng Qingli had chosen was the largest in Ancheng, and there was an imported goods supermarket on the basement level where she could buy the household items she needed.

Not entirely familiar with the layout, Sheng Qingli found a shopping cart and walked in low-key, wearing a mask and a hat. She stood in front of a shelf, selecting a shampoo fragrance, when someone beside her tapped her arm, “Excuse me, miss.”

Sheng Qingli froze, turned her head slightly, and lowered her gaze, “Hello.”

“I don’t recognize this word very well. Can you help me take a look?” The person next to her asked, “It seems like this shampoo changed its packaging. I can’t tell if it’s the same one my idol uses—”

Before the person could finish saying “uses,” they locked eyes with Sheng Qingli.

The moment the other person’s eyes widened, as if realizing who she was, Sheng Qingli quickly glanced at the shampoo in her hand. “It’s… the iris-scented one.”

After saying that, she turned and left.

A few steps later, someone behind her exclaimed, “Oh my God! It’s Sheng Qingli!!”

“What? Sheng Qingli?”

Suddenly, all the people nearby fixed their gaze on Sheng Qingli.

Her mind went blank, and without thinking, she took off running. The group who had just noticed her existence inexplicably started running after her.

“…”

Gradually, more and more people began following behind Sheng Qingli.

Sheng Qingli was contemplating whether she should just stop running. Why was she even running? She wasn’t caught with her boyfriend or anything. If she was spotted alone, so be it. At most, they would just ask for autographs or photos. But at that moment, Pei Qingci’s face flashed in her mind.

What if he hadn’t seen her return and came up to check on her, only to be discovered?

Just as Sheng Qingli was caught in indecision, someone appeared in front of her and pushed her against a nearby wall.

Instinctively, Sheng Qingli wanted to push the person away, but a familiar, clean scent filled her nose first. Her raised hand was caught in the warm palm of the person, and Pei Qingci firmly enclosed her in his embrace. His voice came from above, slipping into her ear, “Don’t move.”