Chapter 93: 93. The Actress Whose Reputation Lies in Ruins (8) Part 1

Shen Yunchu knew this all too well.

That afternoon, if Chi Hua hadn’t barged in unexpectedly to stop it, He Nianyou would have definitely crawled into bed with her. It would have been a foregone conclusion.

Since she’d failed to “crawl into bed” this time, Shen Yunchu was certain that the woman would come bothering them again tomorrow.

She wanted to lash out, but something held her back.

It was like someone on the verge of a yawn—mouth agape for ages, building it up forever, only for nothing to come out in the end.

—That sensation was utterly maddening.

Worse, she had a gut feeling that even if she did blow up and tear into the woman, given how shamelessly thick-skinned she was, she’d just come knocking again the next day without a hint of embarrassment.

She couldn’t ignore the door, not with a cat sleeping inside.

But answering it grated on her nerves—who could stand watching their own cat get petted by some stranger day after day?

Lost in these thoughts, Shen Yunchu’s chopsticks slowed. She shot a glance to her left and spotted the dog sitting one empty seat away, beaming like an idiot at the woman across from her.

In the same moment, she caught Bai Kitty casually flicking a shrimp into Chi Hua’s bowl.

The woman’s face, already devoid of expression, soured even further.

【Why does Teacher Shen’s face look like she wants to off someone?】

【Wouldn’t you want to? Your pre-claimed cat is not only eating food made by other women, but sitting with them, feeding them, chatting them up—and the kicker? These women aren’t even the same person!】

【《My Little Cat Cheating Right in Front of Me.avi》—uncensored, HD, in-your-face NTR lit. How is this not a scene everyone wants to watch?】

【Hahahahahaha, what’s wrong with you sisters? Shipping them nonstop every day, but the main character in the car is so innocent she won’t even accept a kiss. I hate it!!!】

【But seriously, here in the country, if the cat owners live with their cat and take turns cooking to serve her, is that a crime or what?】

【Hahahahahahaha, how is every single line in this simple scene packed with gold? Hahahaha.】

【I’ve been dying to point this out since lunch—can’t they just share a meal? One table, four completely different eating styles. Never seen anything like it in my life.】

【Imagining them all taking turns at the sink later, and everyone except Best Actress Yu only needing to wash a single dish… I just can’t stop laughing.】

【If they can share ownership of the cat, why not cooperate on something as basic as eating? What weird principles are they clinging to?】

【Who said they’re sharing the cat? Upstairs, did you forget how Teacher Shen and He Xiaogou nearly came to blows in front of thousands of viewers over the seat next to Bai Kitty?】

【And get this—who could’ve guessed that while they were arguing, Chi Chichi had already quietly slid into the spot beside Bai Kitty? Hahahahaha. Thinking back to Teacher Shen and He Xiaogou’s faces now has my stomach hurting again, haha.】

【Teacher Shen is such a wife-staring maniac. Her expression was super sour a second ago, but after watching the cat for a bit, she’s clearly mellowed out. Is Kitty some kind of miracle mood cure turned cat spirit or what?】

【Real talk: I’m sitting here staring at my wifey while eating plain white rice by myself right now. Gotta say, it’s the sweetest bowl I’ve ever had.】

【Wife Taotao is so doting on Kitty. From the start of the meal, her hands haven’t stopped—peeling shrimp nonstop for Kitty, hasn’t eaten a single one herself. Wuuu, I want wifey-peeled shrimp too.】

【Best Actress Yu: You think you’re the only one? You think so, huh?! I washed the shrimp, deveined them, cooked the food, and it’s my wifey—and what do I get? Nothing. I get jealous and wifey scolds me. So Kitty’s the only cat here, and I’m just the biggest sap alive?】

【Hahahahahahahahahahaha】

By the time the meal wrapped up, Shen Yunchu’s mood had fully recovered.

She’d already devised a plan to keep He Nianyou from wrecking their two-person world again. Ignoring the dishes, she pulled Chi Hua out of the room first.

Bai Qian was still at the table then and showed no particular reaction.

The others, though, looked more stunned than the last.

The most outrageous was He Xiaogou. Her suspicious gaze darted back and forth between the two women before something seemed to strike her. She lifted her chin with supreme confidence. “Shen Yunchu, don’t think that just because your acting sucks, you can rope someone into helping you practice. Let me tell you, Chi Hua’s skills are way better than yours, but even she could never hold a candle to Bai Qian! So I advise you to drop that idea right now. Even if you’re regretting it, it’s way too late!”

Chi Hua, who had been startled by Shen Yunchu’s unprompted invitation moments earlier, nearly rolled her eyes at the girl.

She swallowed her last bite of salad, too lazy to waste words on someone with such appallingly bad taste, and trailed after Shen Yunchu as they left the restaurant.

He Xiaogou kept right on trash-talking from inside. “Bai Qian, let me tell you, Shen Yunchu is totally just putting on a show of being hardworking…”

Shen Yunchu led Chi Hua to the shoreline where the waves met the island’s edge.

A gentle night breeze whispered across her cheeks, tousling the fine strands of hair at her ears. Moonlight bathed her in its glow, softening the cool lines of her face with an unexpected tenderness.

“Chi Hua, I’d like to ask a favor of you.”

Her habitual pursing of the lips lent her expression an air of unusual gravity.

Chi Hua felt a flicker of nerves. “Hm?”

“For the next month, I’d like you to do what you did at lunch—every day, find some plausible excuse to keep He Nianyou away from Room 203. Don’t let her get anywhere near it.”

Chi Hua: ???

【Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha】

【I got nervous for a second there. I know Teacher Shen only has eyes for Bai Kitty, but pulling Chi Chichi aside so suddenly? It was hard not to worry a little. But now… hahahaha, that’s Teacher Shen for you.】

【Teacher Shen’s jealousy is next-level. Best Actress Yu doesn’t even rate as a little vinegar jar anymore—more like a full vinegar bowl.】

Shen Yunchu had grown weary of scrambling for excuses every day just to block that girl. Now that she’d found a simple solution, she had all the patience in the world for Chi Hua.

Seeing the young woman lost in thought, she added, “Of course, I’m not expecting you to do it for free. If there’s ever anything you need down the line, and it’s within my power, I’ll make it happen.”

—For Shen Yunchu to volunteer owing someone a favor like this underscored just how urgent and vital the task was to her.

【Question: If you were Chi Chichi, what would you ask Teacher Shen to do for you?】

【I’d have Teacher Shen transfer every penny in her accounts to me (doge)】

【Upstairs sis is thinking big.】

At these words, Chi Hua finally stirred.

But rather than reply right away, she scanned their surroundings thoughtfully. Her eyes lingered on a distant thicket of trees that didn’t look like it would hide any cameras.

“Teacher Shen, you’re really promising anything?”

Shen Yunchu nodded. “Of course.”

“Then come with me.”

She started toward the trees without another word.

Shen Yunchu followed without hesitation.

In the moonlight, Chi Hua’s face took on a shadowed, inscrutable depth that the woman behind her didn’t notice—but the viewers beyond the cameras saw it plain as day.

【Whoa! Out here in the pitch dark—what’s Chi Hua planning?】

【Chi Hua, if you lay a finger on Teacher Shen, I’ll go wreck your Super Topic Square tonight!】

【They’re still walking? The camera’s losing them—what the hell is she up to?】

【It might not be anything sinister. Why are all the comments assuming the worst?】

【If it was nothing shady, why not just talk in the open? Teacher Shen brought her out here to dodge He Xiaogou and picked a spot in plain view of the cameras. That’s proof it’s legit!】

【This is straight out of some dumb movie trope—the heroine following the obvious villain.】

【So Teacher Shen’s head over heels in love and totally clueless?】

【Camera’s completely lost them now. I’m about to lose it!】

【Don’t panic, everyone! Cut to Camera 57—it’s got them dead to rights!!!】

Shen Yunchu wasn’t naive. She knew this industry was far grimier than outsiders ever imagined.

Two-faced types were a dime a dozen, like carp swarming across a river.

She’d had no prior dealings with the girl ahead of her. Need or no need, she wasn’t dropping her defenses.

What made her follow was a brief glint she’d spotted from the corner of her eye.

—There was a camera here, plain and simple.

Chi Hua, however, seemed oblivious. She led them a little deeper into the thicket before glancing around with the guilty caution of a thief on the prowl.

Shen Yunchu kept a safe distance from her, calmly reminding, “No one can see us here. Whatever it is, you can tell me now.”

The young woman was a little shorter than her, forced to tilt her head up slightly to meet her gaze.

Moonlight filtered through the branches overhead, casting dappled shadows that turned the girl’s amber-tinted eyes into deep, murky black.

Her deliberately lowered voice carried an eerie edge.

“Teacher Shen, everything we say next stays between you and me—no one else will ever know, right?”

Shen Yunchu replied evenly, “Mm. So what do you need from me?”

“I just want one thing from you, Teacher Shen. Don’t worry—it won’t hurt you at all.”

As the young woman spoke, she took a step closer.

The barrage, already flooded with vitriol, exploded at this string of blatantly suspicious moves.

Chi Hua’s fans tried to steer the comments, but the haters from other camps piled on, with even random onlookers joining the fray. Just as her fans looked ready to buckle, the girl herself finally spoke up—

“Teacher Shen, could you sign something for me yourself?”

【？？？？】

【Huh？？？？？】

【I’m about to grab my keyboard and perform some grade-A Chinese opera—what the hell？？？】

Chi Hua’s lines were always roasted by viewers for her mumbled delivery and random pauses, but now, facing her idol, she rattled off a machine-gun burst of words brimming with raw emotion that left no room for nitpicks.

“I love the Xu Qingzhi you played the most, Teacher Shen. I rewatch it every single year. Everyone thinks Xu Qingzhi and Zhao Ming are this epic fairy-tale romance, but I never got the hype. What I’ve always shipped is Xu Qingzhi and Song Zhiliang. So, when you sign for me later, could you do me a solid and write a confession to ‘Song Zhiliang’ on the cover—in Xu Qingzhi’s voice?”

【Xu Qingzhi and Song Zhiliang？？？ Aren’t they like aunt-in-law and niece-in-law？？？】

【I thought I was the only one brave enough to ship it—and then？！！】

【Talk about a plot twist. I’m still reeling, but TBH, your Xu Qingzhi slays, Teacher Shen.】

Even Shen Yunchu was thrown by the turn of events.

She asked on reflex, “The cover?”