Chapter 6

As the star of the evening, Chao Yushan would never have come out to greet anyone personally, except that the arrival was Song Yingqiu, the very person she’d been longing to see.

But when duty called her back inside, the person she kept glancing back at over her shoulder was not Song Yingqiu at all, but the Doctor Shao at her side.

Her agent hissed desperately beside her: “Sister! Sister! Rein it in, or the cameras will catch you!”

Only then did Chao Yushan restrain herself, sighing under her breath, “If only Doctor Shao were my girlfriend.”

The agent: “You said the exact same thing about President Song three months ago.”

Chao Yushan disagreed. “Be realistic. With all the beauties orbiting President Song, would she ever date me?”

It wasn’t that Chao Yushan had suddenly achieved clarity about the world. She had once lost her head over Song Yingqiu too, suffered over the flowers fluttering around her, only to discover in the end… that Song Yingqiu simply didn’t care what anyone thought, had never even noticed that she minded.

She looked the most seductive and flirtatious of anyone, yet in truth she was cold at the core.

Like a wisp of cold smoke, sweeping through and never settling on anyone.

But Doctor Shao was different. With beauty to rival Song Yingqiu’s own, such a cool, composed air, such clear, steady eyes, so obviously not the type to string people along. That upright integrity made a person’s heart itch like grass growing wild.

The more Chao Yushan thought about it, the more her soul swayed, and only the act of putting in her earpiece let her suppress the flutter and focus on going onstage.

The premiere began. Up on stage, the crew prepared for interviews, while Song Yingqiu and Shao Yu made their way to their seats.

Compared to the premiere of a small indie production, tonight’s scale was far grander, with guests from every industry invited.

Song Yingqiu entered low-key, yet plenty of acquaintances still picked her out and waved to her from across the hall.

In the back rows, a male celebrity scanned the crowd, then lightly tapped the girl beside him. “Youting, look up front. Isn’t that your older cousin?”

The girl had been playing on her phone with no intention of responding, but at the words “older cousin,” her head snapped up and she stared ahead.

Song Yingqiu glowed like a light source. Even in a packed house, Song Youting could spot her at a glance.

There was a woman at her side too. Song Youting caught only half a profile, clean-lined and composed, an elegance so restrained that amid all the clamor of fame and fortune, the woman seemed like a piece of jade too pure for the setting.

In an instant, Song Youting thought of the rumored “little sister” who had appeared at Song Yingqiu’s side.

Shao Yu.

The male celebrity said, “Should we go over and say hi to your cousin and her friend?”

Song Youting gave him a look; his eyes glittered with eager, restless mischief.

Already in a foul mood, she said with disgust, “Shut your mouth, or get lost right now.”

Further forward, Chao Yushan had put real thought into the seating; beside Song Yingqiu sat an old friend.

The friend murmured, “Oh, Song Youting’s here too.”

Song Yingqiu: “What’s she doing here?”

Friend: “Here with her boyfriend, I’d guess. He’s the one who got famous in that Republican-era drama, what’s his name… doesn’t matter. Do all you Song Family girls love celebrities or what?”

Song Yingqiu scoffed lightly. “Don’t lump me in with her.”

Her friend mimed zipping her lips shut.

It had been a slip of the tongue. Everyone knew Song Yingqiu had never gotten along with her uncle’s family, and she had even less feeling for her tacky cousin Song Youting, if not outright distaste.

After a few more words with her friend, Song Yingqiu turned to Shao Yu.

Meeting her gaze, Shao Yu said, “Hm?”

Song Yingqiu lowered her voice. “Song Youting’s here tonight.”

A few days ago, word had reached her that Song Youting had gone asking Ning Wanmei about Shao Yu, and Song Yingqiu had been displeased ever since.

It wasn’t that she feared Song Youting would do anything. She simply had never held any fondness for her uncle’s household.

For Song Youting to dare go prying into Shao Yu’s affairs, she must have assumed Shao Yu was her “new flame,” and that casual dismissiveness toward Shao Yu had crossed Song Yingqiu’s bottom line.

After all, compared to a cousin like Song Youting, Shao Yu was the true family in her heart.

Now that the real person was here, Song Yingqiu wasn’t angry, merely giving Shao Yu a heads-up.

Let them cross paths if they crossed paths. As long as Song Youting kept her eyes open and her mouth shut, fine. But if she dared to speculate and carry tales home…

A sharp glint flashed through Song Yingqiu’s eyes.

Her face unchanged, she instructed, “If she talks to you, you don’t have to answer. If you’re in a good mood, a nod will do.”

At the memory of something long past, Shao Yu’s lashes trembled faintly. She lifted her eyes to Song Yingqiu. “I know.”

Satisfied, Song Yingqiu turned her attention back to the stage.

Apparently focused, her mind was in fact running through her business ledger.

By the time she’d untangled her thoughts, the film had ended, and she finally allowed herself a moment’s ease, taking in the crowd returning to the stage for the closing speeches.

She looked at the easy-on-the-eyes Chao Yushan.

Coincidentally, Chao Yushan was smiling in her direction, a smile lovelier than her usual.

But… why did Song Yingqiu feel that the smile wasn’t meant for her, but for the seat beside her?

Suddenly she remembered the scene she’d forgotten amid all the distractions, right before they’d entered the hall.

Song Yingqiu followed Chao Yushan’s line of sight.

Shao Yu faced forward, and seated in the center of the row, she sat directly across from Chao Yushan.

Their eyes could hardly have avoided meeting.

…?

So the two of them were making eyes at each other right under my nose?

After the audience and media filed out, there was a party.

Chao Yushan and the director came over personally to invite Song Yingqiu to stay.

Song Yingqiu lavished praise on the film she hadn’t managed to follow, her peripheral attention pinned on Chao Yushan and Shao Yu.

Chao Yushan smiled. “Yingqiu, how was the film? And be honest now.”

Her manner was gracious and easy, laced with a touch of playful charm, and her gaze never once drifted toward Shao Yu.

Song Yingqiu thought perhaps it had been her imagination after all. Apparently Chao Yushan had no designs on Shao Yu.

Relaxing, she said in her usual manner, “With you and Director Guo in it, how could it possibly be bad?”

Everyone laughed.

Just as Song Yingqiu was thinking they should go see to their guests and leave her and Shao Yu to their own devices, she saw Chao Yushan’s feet shift slightly, angling her body toward Shao Yu.

The smile at her lips faltered as she lifted her eyes.

There before her, Chao Yushan was the picture of shy sweetness, saying in her sweetest voice:

“Doctor Shao, my acting isn’t the greatest. If it doesn’t meet your standards, please don’t hold it against me.”

Song Yingqiu: ?

Since when did Chao Yushan have two faces?

The celebrity-on-duty mode just now, fine, that was nothing. She didn’t care whether Chao Yushan’s warmth was sincere.

But turning into a bashful, cooing little woman in front of the person she fancied, what was that about?

Song Yingqiu looked at Shao Yu.

Shao Yu nodded. “Not at all. You started out as a singer; with acting this good, you must have trained terribly hard in private.”

Chao Yushan’s eyes lit up. “Doctor Shao, you knew I started out as a singer?”

Shao Yu: “Mm.”

Chao Yushan: “Then have you heard my songs? Is there one you like? I’ll sing it for you!”

Before Shao Yu could answer, Song Yingqiu cut Chao Yushan off in a perfectly level tone.

“Yushan, your agent is waving at you.”

Chao Yushan turned. Sure enough, her agent was beckoning.

She gave Shao Yu a reluctant, lingering look. “Shall we exchange WeCha—”

“Shouldn’t you be going?”

Song Yingqiu interrupted her, smiling.

Chao Yushan stopped mid-word and met Song Yingqiu’s gaze.

Song Yingqiu was still smiling, but the smile told Chao Yushan that if she pushed her luck one notch further, the ending would not be pretty.

How had she forgotten? In front of this Buddha, one had best mind one’s manners.

To flirt so brazenly right under her nose… if it displeased her…

Chao Yushan shuddered, her beauty-addled brain snapping into crystal clarity. Not daring to ask for the beauty’s contact info after all, she hurried off.

Song Yingqiu watched her go.

Only after making sure the “pest” had been thoroughly driven off did she turn to Shao Yu, at a complete loss for what to say.

Having watched that unfold with her own eyes, it was hard for Song Yingqiu not to feel the strange, absurd sensation of being cheated on by her own little sister.

Chao Yushan had been smitten at first sight and wanted to charm Shao Yu; that was hardly Shao Yu’s fault.

Song Yingqiu’s feelings were a little tangled, but no matter what, she had no intention of blaming Shao Yu.

As she searched for the right words, Shao Yu spoke first, her tone light. “Reluctant to see her go?”

Song Yingqiu echoed the question without thinking. “Reluctant about what?”

If she weren’t reluctant, would she have stood there gazing after the woman long after she’d walked away?

And then it dawned on her: Shao Yu had been looking at her, while Song Yingqiu’s own gaze had stayed glued to Chao Yushan’s retreating back. Shao Yu gave no answer, and a faint, self-mocking curve pulled at her lips.

What right do I have to mind?

“I’d like to go home,” Shao Yu said quietly.

Song Yingqiu had lost interest in the party too, and nodded. “All right. Let’s go home.”

They left together, never seeing Song Youting approaching from their right rear.

Song Youting failed to call out to them in time, watching helplessly as the two left arm in arm, her brows knitting tight.

On the way home, Shao Yu was much quieter.

She had always been a woman of few words, but not talking and not wanting to talk were very different things, and Song Yingqiu could tell the difference.

Thinking she was tired, Song Yingqiu asked solicitously about how Shao Yu’s day had gone.

Shao Yu seemed unenthusiastic, but she answered everything.

Once home, Song Yingqiu brought back two glasses of water and handed one to Shao Yu.

Sitting cross-legged on the sofa, she patted the spot beside her for Shao Yu to sit.

Even on the soft cushions, Shao Yu’s back stayed straight and slender, elegant to the last vertebra.

Song Yingqiu stole a couple of extra glances, sipped her water, and asked, as if in passing, “Did you enjoy the premiere?”

Without turning her head, Shao Yu said, “It was fine.”

“Fine?”

“Lively.”

Song Yingqiu’s tone turned deliberately pointed. “Easy on the eyes too, was it?”

Shao Yu: “Hm?”

Song Yingqiu laughed, at Shao Yu’s evasive non-answer, and even more at herself for circling around the point with her own little sister.

Lounging lazily against the sofa back, she came straight out with it. “Hey, how did you know Chao Yushan used to be a singer?”

Shao Yu turned her glass slowly in her hands. “What do you think?”

Song Yingqiu: “Do you like her music? There isn’t a single one of her songs in your playlists.”

Shao Yu’s playlists were something Song Yingqiu knew intimately from years of listening.

“I’ve never actually listened to her,” Shao Yu said.

It was only after hearing Chao Yushan’s name from Song Yingqiu’s own lips that she hadn’t been able to help looking the woman up.

Staring at the sparse few lines on her profile page, watching her music videos, one single thought had filled her head: what did Song Yingqiu like about her?

Song Yingqiu was of course never serious about Chao Yushan, hadn’t given her a second thought, and Shao Yu knew that perfectly well. Still, she couldn’t stop her mind from circling the question.

Even if it was never a matter that reason and logic could settle.

Swallowing the sourness, Shao Yu said slowly, “I just happened to come across it.”

Song Yingqiu’s voice drifted over from behind her. “I knew it. That makes much more sense. Your memory’s as good as ever. But…”

Shao Yu took a sip of water. “But what?”

Song Yingqiu said, “If she approaches you privately, you tell me. No meeting her behind my back, understood?”

She said it with genuine earnestness.

Whatever tangled feelings she’d had had already dissolved on the ride home, leaving behind only a guardian’s worry for the cabbage in her own patch.

God only knew what kind of dye vat Chao Yushan ran. Let her nowhere near her innocent little sister. Shao Yu was so well-behaved, straight as an arrow, she didn’t know the first thing about smooth-talking older sisters of any stripe. What if Chao Yushan led her astray?

Worrying herself into knots like a fretful parent, Song Yingqiu heard Shao Yu turn around. Beneath thick lashes, her eyes were stark black and white, beautiful enough to strike straight at the heart.

Her tone was light, offhand to the point of carelessness.

“Sister, are you jealous?”