Chapter 15

After sitting down, Sheng Qingli began her day’s umpteenth moment of regret.

She should have eaten a low-fat meal in her room. Why did she come to the restaurant for something delicious? As an actress, did she really deserve this?

After her moment of regret, Sheng Qingli expressionlessly opened the menu and started ordering.

When she was on her fifth dish, Tong Tong reminded her, “Sister Li Li, we can’t eat that much.”

Sheng Qingli looked at her with a mournful gaze, “I feel like I need to eat more to replenish my brain.”

“…Then should I buy you some walnuts?” Tong Tong asked.

Sheng Qingli choked slightly, closing the menu. “Forget it.”

She pushed it toward Tong Tong. “See if there’s anything else you want to add.”

“I don’t want to add anything,” Tong Tong said. “I want to remove a dish. You’ll only take a couple of bites of each, and I can’t finish the leftovers by myself.”

Sheng Qingli replied, “Do as you wish.”

While waiting for the food to arrive, Sheng Qingli casually glanced up and saw someone sitting across from her.

Pei Qingci seemed completely unaware of her presence, whether she was talking to Xu Xingyue or passing by him, he didn’t spare her a glance.

Now was no different.

Pei Qingci was alone, head down, eating.

His posture while eating was very elegant. When Sheng Qingli first met him, he was quite poor. At that time, she had wondered how someone so poor could exude such a noble and refined aura, the elegance in his every gesture was hard to ignore.

Later, Sheng Qingli figured it out.

He wasn’t really poor; he was just a young master who had come down to experience hardships.

This realization had annoyed her for quite a while.

As if sensing her gaze, Pei Qingci slowly lifted his eyes to look at her.

Their eyes locked unexpectedly.

After a moment, Sheng Qingli scoffed softly and looked away.

From a distance, Pei Qingci could sense her aloofness and temper. He gave a silent smirk and slowly returned his gaze.

Soon after, their orders arrived.

Just as Sheng Qingli and Tong Tong had predicted, they each took only a few bites of every dish before putting down their chopsticks.

Her indulgence was always restrained.

Once Tong Tong finished eating, the two of them stood up to leave.

What Sheng Qingli didn’t expect was to run into Pei Qingci in the elevator.

The hotel restaurant was on the third floor, and the elevator came up from the first floor. When the doors opened, they saw someone standing relaxed inside.

“…”

After exchanging a glance, Sheng Qingli stepped in.

Tong Tong hesitated, pulling out her elevator card. “Sister Li Li, I’ll go back to my room to make a call first. I’ll come up later to make your bed?”

She called her grandmother every night; if she was late, the old lady would have already gone to bed.

Sheng Qingli thought for a moment, “No need, I’ll call room service.”

She reminded Tong Tong, “You’re still recovering, so after your call, get some rest. You don’t need to come back up.”

Their rooms weren’t on the same floor.

Tong Tong asked, “Really, do I not need to go over?”

“There’s room service,” Sheng Qingli said.

Tong Tong nodded, “Okay, just message me if you need anything.”

“Got it.”

Once Tong Tong exited the elevator, only Sheng Qingli and Pei Qingci remained inside.

They stood one in front of the other, and Sheng Qingli subtly raised her eyes, catching a glimpse of Pei Qingci’s movements in the elevator’s reflection.

What surprised Sheng Qingli was that Pei Qingci was already looking at her.

Their gazes unexpectedly locked.

His look held warmth and strength, making Sheng Qingli feel a bit breathless.

Suddenly, she thought of what had happened at the mall.

Sheng Qingli belatedly realized she owed him a thank you.

Thinking this, she opened her mouth, “About the mall, thank you.”

Pei Qingci withdrew his gaze from her. “You’ve already said that.”

Sheng Qingli was taken aback. “Have I?”

She couldn’t recall it at all.

Pei Qingci didn’t wish to elaborate.

Just then, the elevator doors opened.

They stepped out onto the thick, soft carpet of the hallway.

The hotel’s carpet was laid so thick that even when someone walked on it, their footsteps were barely audible.

Walking slowly to her room, Sheng Qingli pulled out her room card to unlock the door when she suddenly heard, “Sheng Qingli.”

Hearing that familiar, cool voice, Sheng Qingli paused and turned to him. “Is there something else, Mr. Pei?”

Pei Qingci lowered his gaze. “What time are you going to the training grounds tomorrow?”

Sheng Qingli blinked, considering using Xu Xingyue’s answer to evade him.

Just as she was about to speak, Pei Qingci casually added, “I haven’t been there before.”

Sheng Qingli understood his implication; it was his first time at the training ground, and he needed someone to guide him.

A moment of silence passed before Sheng Qingli said, “Should I call you when I’m heading out?”

Pei Qingci lightly nodded.

They each pushed open their room doors and closed them simultaneously.

Once the door was closed, Sheng Qingli couldn’t help but exhale deeply.

What was she so nervous about when talking to Pei Qingci?!

After questioning herself a couple of times, Sheng Qingli collapsed onto the sofa to rest.

That night, in her familiar and beloved bedding, Sheng Qingli should have had a good night’s sleep, but because of the “acquaintance” staying across from her, she ended up having a chaotic night filled with strange dreams.

---

The next morning, Sheng Qingli woke up around eight. After a quick wash-up, she assigned Tong Tong a task—knocking on the door of the room across.

Hearing Sheng Qingli’s request, Tong Tong was surprised and asked, “Sister Li Li, are you back together with Mr. Pei?”

Sheng Qingli shot her a sideways glance. “No.”

If they were back together, would they still be staying in separate rooms?

Tong Tong was puzzled. “Then why are you calling him?”

“He said he needs someone to guide him on his first visit to the training ground, otherwise he won’t be able to find it,” Sheng Qingli explained.

Tong Tong was shocked and said without much thought, “Isn’t there navigation?”

Sheng Qingli: “…”

She smiled at Tong Tong without directly answering her question, “So do you want to call him?”

Tong Tong felt a bit awkward and immediately turned around, “I’ll go right now.”

A minute later, Tong Tong returned to report, “Sister Li, Mr. Pei said he can leave anytime.”

Sheng Qingli hadn’t changed her clothes yet. She responded with an “Oh” and said, “I’ll go change.”

Tong Tong nodded.

Half a minute later, she saw the clothes Sheng Qingli had picked out and hesitated a bit, “Sister Li, are you wearing this today?”

Sheng Qingli replied, “Why? Is it not good-looking?”

Before Tong Tong could respond, Sheng Qingli said, “It’s for training. Comfort and convenience come first, can’t worry about looking pretty.”

Tong Tong opened her mouth to say that the outfit looked very similar to what her ex-boyfriend was wearing today, but after a few seconds of thought, she held back.

She was afraid Sister Li would think she was overthinking.

She was “pure” with Pei Qingci.

After changing, the two of them headed out.

Pei Qingci’s door was not closed, and he came out when he heard some movement.

Sheng Qingli instinctively looked up, and upon seeing Pei Qingci in his white shirt and black pants, she glanced down at her own matching outfit.

Just two very common, versatile colors.

If it were anyone else wearing them, she wouldn’t think twice. But with Pei Qingci, she couldn’t help but wonder—would others think too much about it? Would he?

Noticing Sheng Qingli’s unusual reaction, Pei Qingci slightly raised his eyes, “Did you forget something?”

“… No.” Realizing his urgency, Sheng Qingli dismissed the idea of going back to change.

Besides, what she was wearing today—a fitted white T-shirt and black wide-leg pants—was indeed fresh and suitable for training.

Not lingering on it, the three of them entered the elevator.

When the elevator reached the tenth floor, someone came in.

Wearing a mask and a hat, Sheng Qingli casually glanced over and saw the newcomer carrying a cat carrier with a curled-up white kitten inside.

Instinctively, she turned her head to glance at the person standing a step behind him. He stood there quietly, his brows slightly furrowed, and the white shirt and black pants softened his usually stern demeanor, making him seem a bit gentler than usual.

Suddenly, Sheng Qingli thought of something.

Pei Qingci often went on shoots for months at a time. Who took care of the trophy during his absence?

Previously, when she didn’t know he had been taking care of it, she hadn’t considered the question much.

She always thought the trophy was with his grandmother. Pei Qingci had told her that his grandmother was somewhat strict but very indulgent toward her grandchildren. He had also mentioned that he would take her to meet her one day.

Noticing her hesitation, Pei Qingci spoke up after the person exited the elevator on the first floor, “Do you have something to say to me?”

“… Is the trophy being taken care of by your manager while you’re in Ancheng?” Sheng Qingli couldn’t help but ask.

Upon hearing her question, Pei Qingci paused slightly, looking at her as he replied, “I thought you had already forgotten about it.”

This remark seemed to imply more than just the trophy.

Sheng Qingli pretended not to notice, biting her lip and saying, “My memory isn’t that bad.”

Pei Qingci smirked slightly, averting his gaze from her, and replied casually, “He couldn’t take care of it.”

Sheng Qingli: “Huh?”

Pei Qingci: “I sent it home.”

“Oh.” Sheng Qingli nodded, assuming it was sent to his grandmother for care.

The elevator doors opened on the basement floor.

Their conversation ended there, and as they exited, Sheng Qingli and Pei Qingci separated to get into their respective cars for training at the set.

Once in the car, Sheng Qingli was preparing to rest a bit when she suddenly met Tong Tong’s gaze.

“…”

After a few silent seconds, Sheng Qingli said, “Don’t report this to Sister Lin. We just exchanged a few polite words.”

Tong Tong blinked, “Did you just say the trophy is the cat that Mr. Pei recently posted about on Weibo?”

Tong Tong wasn’t Sheng Qingli’s assistant from the beginning of her career. Before her breakup with Pei Qingci, her assistant was someone else who had since become another person’s assistant.

Therefore, she didn’t know that the proud and beautiful little cat named Trophy was one that Sheng Qingli had found on the street and given to Pei Qingci.

Sheng Qingli vaguely replied, “… I guess.”

Tong Tong raised her eyebrows, staring intently at her, “I guess?”

“It’s it.” Sheng Qingli shot her a sidelong glance, “The name isn’t to be disclosed.”

Tong Tong blinked and hesitated, “Did you name it?”

Hearing her disdain, Sheng Qingli lightly huffed, “What? Not nice?”

Tong Tong sincerely replied, “… It’s quite straightforward.”

Sheng Qingli was momentarily speechless.

Actually, when she named the little cat, she was aiming for straightforwardness.

At that time, her movie with Pei Qingci had just been released, and it was doing quite well in terms of box office and reviews, also receiving nominations at domestic film awards. Though a nomination was already an acknowledgment, Sheng Qingli still greedily hoped they would win an award.

As a female star, she couldn’t be overly superstitious, so when she found the trophy and named it, she chose such a mundane yet practical name, putting high hopes for it and for the film festival.

In fact, it turned out that naming it Trophy was quite effective.

Because both she and Pei Qingci won trophies for their film Love Vow.

“I’m just a straightforward person,” Sheng Qingli retorted to Tong Tong.

Tong Tong chuckled, “Okay, okay, the name sounds nice.”

Sheng Qingli raised an eyebrow, her expression showing a bit of pride, “Of course.”

The names she chose were always good.

---

When Sheng Qingli and Pei Qingci arrived at the training base for the film crew, Xu Xingyue was already there.

Seeing the two arrive together, a fleeting look of surprise crossed his face but quickly vanished.

“Teacher Sheng, Mr. Pei.” He took the initiative to greet them.

Sheng Qingli asked, “Have you been here long?”

Xu Xingyue replied, “Just half an hour earlier than you.”

Sheng Qingli felt a bit embarrassed, “I’m late.”

After a moment’s thought, she added, “Don’t call me teacher; just use my name.”

It felt a bit awkward to keep addressing each other as teachers. They would be filming together for a long time, and she really didn’t want to hear “Teacher Sheng” ringing in her ears all the time.

“Sure,” Xu Xingyue said casually, “Then I’ll call you Qingli?”

Sheng Qingli had no objections and nodded. People she was more familiar with usually called her that.

“You can call me by my full name or Xu Ge. I think I’m a few months older than you,” Xu Xingyue said.

Sheng Qingli hadn’t paid attention to Xu Xingyue’s birthday and laughed at his comment, “Is that so?”

Xu Xingyue replied, “Yes, isn’t your birthday—”

The two of them were chatting as if no one else was around, not paying much attention to the man supervising them nearby.

Unable to bear it any longer, Pei Qingci interrupted, “Sheng Qingli.”

“…”

Both Sheng Qingli and Xu Xingyue paused, turning their heads toward him.

Sheng Qingli met Pei Qingci’s gaze, momentarily stunned. “Mr. Pei, what’s wrong?”

Pei Qingci didn’t address the naming issue for now; he calmly asked, “Where is the restroom?”

Sheng Qingli: “…”

She was at a loss for three seconds before politely asking, “It’s over there. Do you need me to take you?”

Pei Qingci replied, “That would be troublesome.”

“…?”

Wait.

Sheng Qingli was a bit dazed. How could he say “That would be troublesome” with such a straight face?

After a few seconds of silence.

Determined not to dwell on it, Sheng Qingli told Xu Xingyue a quick phrase before leading Pei Qingci toward the restroom.

As they were about to reach the restroom door, she heard Pei Qingci ask behind her, “Are you two close?”

“Whether we’re close or not has nothing to do with Mr. Pei,” Sheng Qingli snapped back, losing her temper. “Mr. Pei is just a supervisor; he shouldn’t interfere in the private lives of the crew members, right?”

Pei Qingci replied blandly, “That’s true.”

Sheng Qingli was about to retort, “Then why ask?” when Pei Qingci, with a serious expression, brought up Director Zhong, “However, Director Zhong doesn’t like the actors from the same crew dating during filming, as it might cause scandals.”

Sheng Qingli stopped in her tracks, “Mr. Pei.”

Pei Qingci lowered his eyelashes.

Looking at him, Sheng Qingli hinted, “Compared to Xu Ge, we should maintain a certain distance, shouldn’t we?”