Chapter 20: Top Princess

Rong Si wore a sheer nightgown, reclining as she held an opium pipe, her movements languid. Cheng Jinzhi lifted the phonograph needle, and the phonograph began to sing out its creaky melody, making the smoke-filled room feel especially intimate. The lighting here was very dim.

Rong Si exhaled a plume of smoke, looking at Cheng Jinzhi with lazy eyes. Cheng Jinzhi, in a white nightgown, began biting and sucking her fingers beside the phonograph, caressing her collarbone and breasts, tracing her own curves. Rong Si’s brow twitched. Cheng Jinzhi didn’t take off her gown. Her hand slipped under the hem, slowly lowering her underwear to her knees, then to her heels. By then Rong Si had leisurely sat up, taking a deep drag of opium. Cheng Jinzhi’s slender fingers hooked her underwear, and with a curl of her lips, a flick of her fingers, it drifted to the floor.

Cheng Jinzhi had barely reached the bed when Rong Si pulled her onto it. Rong Si had already discarded the pipe, her fingers probing toward Cheng Jinzhi’s hem. Cheng Jinzhi sat on Rong Si’s lap, picked up the pipe, and took a few puffs herself. The camera turned to her face.

Confusion and pleasure. Wildness and loss.

Miss Jia’s fingers entered. Weicheng, a mouthful of opium in her mouth, rocked atop Miss Jia. Ecstasy to the point of annihilation. Sin to the point of annihilation.

“Cut.” This scene passed in one take.

Yi Yi looked relaxed. After Rong Si and Cheng Jinzhi had changed, he went out of his way to toast them with tea. “You two are increasingly in sync.”

“Sync” sounded rather ambiguous in the context of this film. Cheng Jinzhi thanked Yi Yi and sipped the tea.

“Allow me to wish you two a dazzling career and boundless prospects.” Yi Yi clinked his cup.

In another half month, Rong Si and Cheng Jinzhi’s scenes would be wrapped. These two weeks were also busy, coinciding with New Year. From the October start to now, the film had been in production for three months.

“Thank you, Director Yi.”

After a few more exchanges, Yi Yi left. Cheng Jinzhi took a sip of tea and felt the back of her neck hurt. She touched it—a bite mark Rong Si had left during that last scene. She hadn’t felt it while acting, but after wrapping, it stung a little.

“Don’t touch.” Rong Si, apparently seeing it too, took a Band-Aid from her pocket and had someone bring antiseptic. She bent over, her long fingers neatly tearing open the wrapper, pulling out two white cotton swabs and soaking them in the antiseptic. She raised her hand, gently daubing the bite mark on Cheng Jinzhi’s neck. After sanitizing, Rong Si applied the Band-Aid. Her long fingers brushed over the Band-Aid on Cheng Jinzhi’s neck. “Does it hurt?”

Rong Si’s fingers were cool. Cheng Jinzhi swallowed. Rong Si was very close; she could smell the faint perfume on her. Rong Si’s perfume was always subtle. Sometimes Cheng Jinzhi would spritz her own perfume and also put a bit on Rong Si—a clearly full-bodied rose scent that, on Rong Si, somehow turned fresh and subtle.

Rong Si’s fingers were truly cold, completely different from just now. A moment ago, she’d been able to feel the warmth of Rong Si’s fingers. Amazing—entering character could actually raise one’s body temperature.

“It hurts… it’s all your fault.”

Rong Si brushed her fingers over it twice more, as if soothing her. “Be careful when you bathe today.”

Cheng Jinzhi’s skin was delicate, and her neck was covered in Rong Si’s scattered bite marks.

As she touched, Rong Si’s fingers felt Cheng Jinzhi swallow. Their eyes met. Cheng Jinzhi’s breathing grew tight, and Rong Si withdrew her fingers.

After wrapping her scenes in 《Girls’ Fortress》, Cheng Jinzhi and Rong Si went to work on the theatrical production of 《The Female Imperial Son-in-Law》. Most of the actors in the play were minor celebrities practicing their craft. Minor they might be, but all their schedules combined still ate up rehearsal time. With no way to gather continuously, they had to rehearse in groups. The few full-cast rehearsals were in the dead of night. They had to work during the day, so nights had to sacrifice personal life.

“Miss Rong, you and Miss Cheng are practically inseparable.” The minor celebrities were quite gossipy, winking and nudging each other when they saw Rong Si.

Even in the entertainment circle, crowded with beauties, Rong Si’s looks and temperament stood out. Now that Cheng Jinzhi was backing her, rising was only a matter of time. And around Cheng Jinzhi, the minor celebrities were even more plentiful. Rich and slightly foolish female celebrities were rare. In such a big circle, to get ahead you needed a couple of sugar mommies standing behind you. For the minor celebrities, Cheng Jinzhi wasn’t Cheng Jinzhi—she was a glittering god of wealth.

“Time’s tight. Catch up on chit-chat later.” President Gong, in a navy Tang suit, tapped the microphone. “Team leaders, come report on rehearsal progress.”

President Gong raised his wristwatch. “It’s one in the morning now. Rehearsal starts at one-thirty. Touch up makeup where needed. Everyone put on your costumes to cultivate the feel of the roles.”

《The Female Imperial Son-in-Law》 was also one of Daqian Drama Society’s major opening plays of the year—a signature tradition. It would run for one week. On January first, the pillars of the troupe performed 《The First Pass Under Heaven》; 《The Female Imperial Son-in-Law》 would air on January second. Tickets sold out the moment they were released. After all, few truly watched theater; many wanted to see celebrities. 《The First Pass Under Heaven》 had only just sold out in the past two days.

It was the first time things were this formal. With makeup on and costumes worn, Cheng Jinzhi caught herself staring at Rong Si. Rong Si seemed to be warming up. She held a bone fan, the fans depicting peonies vying in beauty. Her wrist turned from inside out, drawing half a circle, the folding fan lightly flicked open, hiding her face. A flick of her eye, and there it was—the image of an indulged little princess.

When it came to the “Wedding Night” scene, plenty of celebrities who’d finished their parts slipped behind the curtains to watch. The lines were the same lines, yet the feeling was vastly different. Someone had recorded Cheng Jinzhi’s Princess and Rong Si’s Prince Consort, and now comparing them: Cheng Jinzhi’s Princess was mostly naive and charming, while Rong Si’s Princess carried a certain… darkness beneath the surface? Especially when Rong Si curled her lips and asked: “Prince Consort, can we… have a child like this?”

This was a knowing, scheming little princess teasing a dumb, lovable Prince Consort!

As for Cheng Jinzhi’s “Prince Consort,” her presence was a little weak opposite the Princess’s scene-stealing, but when facing major matters, she was utterly proper. This kind of ebb-and-flow performance made the character wonderfully human—no longer trying to preach with stiff resilience and blunt righteousness.

When the entire play ended, President Gong said nothing, his expression relaxed, laugh lines at the corners of his eyes. Clearly, he was fairly satisfied with the leads.

“Old He, this is your first time here, right?”

Old He was He Xi, one of the stars of a recently hot reality show. He Xi had participated in the celebrity dating reality show 《Hi, Lover》. It aired last Qixi and made several “celebrity couples” popular. Paired with He Xi was Gu Ah of a popular girl group. He Xi and Gu Ah had formed the “Watermelon Couple” because when He Xi called “Gu Ah,” it always came out slurred as “Gu-a.” The show was so popular that even Cheng Jinzhi had heard of it. He Xi played Cheng Jinzhi’s page boy in 《The Female Imperial Son-in-Law》, and two days ago he and Cheng Jinzhi had followed each other on Weibo.

Old He came straight over, not chatting with the people around him, and went directly to Cheng Jinzhi to talk about the special guest spots on 《Hi, Lover》. Cheng Jinzhi hadn’t paid much attention. When DC had asked her earlier, she’d been playing a mobile game, thought the show looked decent, and had agreed.

“Will Miss Rong come too?”

Cheng Jinzhi looked at Rong Si. Rong Si preferred quiet; she probably wouldn’t like such a rowdy variety show. Sure enough, Rong Si spoke up. “Mm, we’ll see then.”

Soon, 《The Female Imperial Son-in-Law》 opened at Daqian Theater, packed full of young people—all that was missing was glow signs and shouting their idols’ names. A play, but it had the atmosphere of a concert.

When Cheng Jinzhi and Rong Si performed their scenes, murmuring began in the theater.

“Oh my god, am I seeing things? Isn’t that Cheng Jinzhi?”

“When I saw Cheng Jinzhi in the cast list, I wanted to throw away my ticket. I stayed because of Xixi.”

“Don’t you guys think… she’s acting really well?” A girl leaned in to ask.

The group turned in unison. “Exactly, she’s acting well. Cheng Jinzhi can actually act! It’s too unfamiliar!”

“Great, an hour has passed. Cheng Jinzhi has already used up her lifetime supply of acting.”

“An hour and a half, and she’s still acting well. I just posted on Weibo about eating a table… let me quietly delete it, pretend nothing happened…”

“You guys be quiet, don’t disturb my enjoyment… oh my god, I’m actually becoming a Cheng Jinzhi fan!?”

“Say no more. I’m recommending 《The Female Imperial Son-in-Law》 to my friends. My friend asked if my account was hacked by astroturfers.”

Someone recorded the live performance and posted it on Weibo. Two hours later, it was being reposted wildly.

“Cheng Jinzhi plays dumb so well, and the Princess is gorgeous gorgeous gorgeous!”

“This potato-quality video—I was going to refuse… but now I have to say… I’m rooting for the Top Princess…”

“《The Female Imperial Son-in-Law》, also known as 《The Princess Is the Top》《My Naughty Naughty Little Prince Consort》…”

“I might need eye drops. This is the first time Cheng Jinzhi has looked good to me…”

Soon, the video was removed from Weibo for copyright infringement via pirated filming. This caused 《The Female Imperial Son-in-Law》 to ferment even further, with the “《The Female Imperial Son-in-Law》 resource” trending search climbing sharply.

“Good thing I watched it before deletion… this trending search feels weird… the last ‘resource’ trending was for Teacher Aoi’s new film.”

“I just took an afternoon nap and I feel like I’ve missed the whole world.”

“What!? Cheng Jinzhi is filming an ancient porn film??”

“I knew she’d go down that road!”