Chapter 47: Before the Movie Starts

Qi Moyang and Qiang Wei had not officially gotten together yet, and Lin Shuangshuang had played a significant role in this. No matter what the two of them did, she always had to follow along.

When she had read the novel The Blooming Rose, she felt exhausted just seeing the three of them appear together in a scene.

In the original 500,000-word novel, if it weren’t for Lin Shuangshuang, the two of them would have already ended up together in 250,000 words.

Lin Shuangshuang, through her own efforts, had significantly extended the length of the novel.

Most of the nearby seats had already been taken, and there were only three empty spots left at Jiang Mingyue’s table. Lin Shuangshuang didn’t hesitate to grab Qi Moyang’s arm and walk over.

Qiang Wei glanced at Lin Shuangshuang holding Qi Moyang’s hand and followed them.

Lin Shuangshuang: “You don’t mind if we sit here, right?”

Jiang Mingyue replied: “I don’t mind, but only two people can sit here.”

She picked up her small bag and placed it on the seat next to her.

“This seat is taken.”

Lin Shuangshuang had already sat down. Upon hearing this, she hesitated for a moment before softly negotiating with her.

“Can we sit and rest for a bit? We’ve been walking around all morning and are a little tired. When your friend arrives, we’ll get up. Is that okay?”

“Sorry, no.” Jiang Mingyue decisively refused.

It would be awkward to make someone get up after they had already sat down, so it was better to reject them outright.

However, Jiang Mingyue quickly pointed to the table across from them and suggested,

“But there’s an empty seat over there. One of you can sit there, or you could move a chair over.”

Lin Shuangshuang slightly furrowed her brows, glanced at Qi Moyang, and spoke softly: “We don’t even know if that spot is taken. Isn’t it inappropriate to move there?”

Qi Moyang’s expression grew colder. His brows furrowed as he looked over at Jiang Mingyue, just about to speak when Qiang Wei spoke first.

“Then I’ll go over and ask. If it’s empty, we’ll move.”

Qi Moyang’s expression softened as he looked at Qiang Wei and said: “No need. You two sit here. I’ll go sit over there.”

Over there sat three girls. Ever since Qi Moyang came in, he had sneaked several glances in that direction.

Qi Moyang was the Male Lead in the original book, so naturally, he was handsome.

Tall, strikingly good-looking.

Even though he always had a cold expression, it instead gave him a kind of cool sharpness.

Lin Shuangshuang glanced at the three girls, her gaze turning slightly cold. Then she smiled gently and said,

“How about we just move the chair over here? It’s not really appropriate for a guy to just go and sit over there with three girls. Besides, we’re friends with Mingyue too, and it’s been a while since we sat down and chatted.”

Qi Moyang thought the first half of her sentence made sense and stopped walking. But when he heard the second half, he gave a cold snort.

But right now, the best solution was indeed to bring the chair over. Otherwise, with nearly half an hour before the movie started, was he supposed to just stand the whole time?

Qi Moyang turned around and went to move a chair.

Lin Shuangshuang and Qiang Wei sat down across from Jiang Mingyue.

Lin Shuangshuang wore a white dress, her long hair reaching her waist. She tucked the strands that had fallen over her cheek behind her ear, her posture graceful and gentle.

Her apricot-shaped eyes held a faint smile, as she casually but intently glanced over Jiang Mingyue.

Ever since Jiang Mingyue had stopped clinging to Qi Moyang, the two of them had had no further contact.

Whether in appearance or personality, Jiang Mingyue had changed a lot recently.

The old Jiang Mingyue used to love wearing makeup — heavy makeup — and her personality had been arrogant and foolish, aggressive from the inside out.

But now, it was as if she had become a different person.

Her makeup and attire were now just right, her temperament had become much more gentle and quiet, and she was no longer that foolish.

Jiang Mingyue seemed to sense someone’s gaze. She looked up from her phone with a puzzled glance toward Lin Shuangshuang.

Lin Shuangshuang lowered her eyes and asked: “Who are you here to see the movie with? Is it… Qi Ze?”

“Yeah.” Jiang Mingyue nodded.

“You two seem to be getting along quite well. Don’t tell me you’re together now?”

Lin Shuangshuang asked with a faint smile, though the smile never reached her eyes.

Just then, Qi Moyang had finished moving the chair over. When he heard her words, he frowned and glanced at her.

Jiang Mingyue didn’t notice.

She was messaging Qi Ze while replying casually: “Yeah, it’s going well.”

Jiang Mingyue didn’t answer the second part of her question, and Lin Shuangshuang didn’t press further.

Suddenly, she caught sight of the movie ticket Jiang Mingyue had placed on the table. She asked offhandedly: “What movie are you two watching? Is it The Global Dreamer?”

As she spoke, she casually picked up the ticket on the table and exclaimed in surprise: “It really is. We’re watching the same movie, even in the same auditorium. What a coincidence.”

She then took out her own ticket to confirm: “Same row too — the seats are pretty close.”

Qi Ze replied to say he was almost there.

“Yeah, this movie’s been pretty popular these past couple of days.” Jiang Mingyue said to her, then glanced toward the entrance.

Qi Ze walked in, carrying bubble tea.

“Over here.” Jiang Mingyue waved at him.

Qi Moyang and Qiang Wei also looked over at Qi Ze.

Qi Ze wasn’t surprised to see them — Jiang Mingyue had already messaged him about it.

Qi Ze exchanged a dark, unreadable glance with Qi Moyang. Then the two of them looked away, each pretending not to care.

Though they were brothers living under the same roof, they always acted like strangers in public.

Qi Ze walked straight over and sat down next to Jiang Mingyue.

“Huh? Why are there three cups?” Jiang Mingyue looked at the drinks he set on the table. “Are you drinking two?”

“No, I bought them for you.” Qi Ze placed two cups in front of her. “That shop launched a new flavor. I saw a lot of people talking about it, so I thought I’d get you one to try.”

“Wuwuwu, why are you so sweet?”

Jiang Mingyue eagerly unwrapped both drinks and inserted straws, trying the new flavor first. Her eyes widened in surprise as she exclaimed: “It’s really good! You try it!”

Qi Ze picked up his own straw, about to insert it into the second drink, but suddenly paused.

He looked at the cup Jiang Mingyue held out to him — the one she had already sipped from, straw and all.

Lowering his head, Qi Ze took a drink directly from the bubble tea in Jiang Mingyue’s hand.

Then he looked up at her, his eyes sparkling. “Yeah, not bad.”

“Right? Let’s share it, then. I won’t be able to finish two anyway.”

As Jiang Mingyue spoke, she turned her head — and suddenly noticed the three people across from them were all watching.

She instantly felt a little awkward.

But seeing how stiffly the three of them were staring, she suddenly realized something — was Qi Moyang a bit of a straight man?

Going to the movies with girls and not even buying drinks or anything?

Especially considering he was still in the phase of pursuing Qiang Wei.

No wonder they still weren’t together after all this time — it clearly wasn’t just because of Lin Shuangshuang.

Look at Qi Ze — so thoughtful, almost unbelievably so!

Jiang Mingyue felt a little proud. She happily sipped from the other bubble tea and sighed contentedly: “So good. It’s really, really good.”

“Watching a movie just goes perfectly with bubble tea or snacks. Eating while watching — it’s the best! Qi Ze, don’t you think so?”

Jiang Mingyue turned to Qi Ze as she spoke.

Qi Ze nodded with a smile, very much playing along. “Yeah.”

Qi Moyang let out a derisive snort and leaned back in his chair, his eyes sweeping disdainfully over the two cups of bubble tea. “When did you start liking that kind of stuff?”

He didn’t mention anyone by name, but it was obvious he was talking to Qi Ze.

Qi Ze took a leisurely sip of his bubble tea, cast him a faint glance, and replied with a hint of cool indifference in his tone,

“What’s wrong with this kind of stuff? If it tastes good, of course I like it.”

Qi Moyang gave Jiang Mingyue a cold glance and said nothing more.

Jiang Mingyue rolled her eyes — so he really was just a block of wood.