Lady By The Pillow - Chapter 62

62 A Kitten’s Thoughts (2)

“Because you’re worth it.”

“So, about this Steven role, can I do it?”

When Wei Jiuyi arrived, Fang Fei explained her intentions again. After she finished, her heart was in her throat, and she anxiously watched Wei Jiuyi’s reaction.

Shi Qing was always gentle with people. As long as a request wasn’t too excessive, she would agree to it.

But Wei Jiuyi was different. Although she was always well-behaved, obedient, and sensible in front of Shi Qing for the sake of their “business couple,” she was still Wei Shu’s daughter. The domineering nature she inherited from her mother and the authority that came with being an award-winning actress gave her a sense of intimidation even when she wasn’t expressing any emotions.

Not to mention, behind her was the entertainment company known in the industry as the most difficult to deal with, Royal Entertainment.

Wei Jiuyi swallowed the beef in her mouth. “That should be fine. Have your manager talk to my manager. As long as all parties are informed, there shouldn’t be a problem.”

Fang Fei felt as if she had been granted a pardon. She let out a solid sigh of relief.

“That’s great, that’s great! Don’t you worry. My manager will be more than happy to do it. When I post on Weibo to ‘ship’ you two, I’ll send you the content in advance for your approval before I post it.”

Wei Jiuyi nodded. “Mhm, okay.”

Shi Qing also said, “Okay.”

Fang Fei was overjoyed. With a top-tier coupledom to latch onto, she wouldn’t have to worry about not getting attention.

The food was no longer as tasty, and the yellow peaches were no longer as sweet. She picked up her phone and found the post about the behind-the-scenes video. She typed a line of text.

[I was wondering why Teacher Wei went to the set two hours early. Turns out she went to deliver coffee.]

She didn’t press “send.” She placed the phone between Shi Qing and Wei Jiuyi.

“Teacher Shi, Teacher Wei, do you think this is okay to post?”

Wei Jiuyi’s lips curved upward. “Mhm, it’s fine.”

Sometimes, Fang Fei could be a bit too loud and overly enthusiastic, always trying to become famous overnight. But what was so bad about revealing that she went to the set early to deliver coffee?

Shi Qing quickly glanced at the line of text. Her thin eyelids fluttered with embarrassment. She smiled.

“I think it’s fine too.”

“Hehe, then I’ll post it!”

Fang Fei was beaming. Her eyebrows even twitched with joy.

But amidst her laughter, Shi Qing glanced at Wei Jiuyi, quickly looking away. The yam in her mouth was mashed and ground into a fine powder, which she swallowed down her esophagus.

It was bland.

After dinner, the crew filmed for another two hours before they were done for the day.

The new filming location was far from the hotel, so they had to take a shuttle bus back and forth. Only Wei Jiuyi had an RV on the set. Three other actors from the same company had a rented car. The rest had to wait at the designated shuttle bus stop.

“Teacher Shi, do you want to go back together? I also wanted to talk to you about tomorrow’s script.”

After changing her costume and taking off her makeup, Wei Jiuyi naturally invited Shi Qing.

Shi Qing was about to refuse, but she glanced at the makeup artist, who was secretly smiling. She sighed and gave in.

“Okay. Thank you for your trouble.”

“What’s the trouble? We’re going the same way anyway.”

Wei Jiuyi was nonchalant, as if she were already used to being so close to Shi Qing.

Shi Qing felt more and more like a victim of a political marriage from an old era. They were pretending to be a loving couple without any love between them, gaining the trust of their families and mentors, but there was never any physical intimacy with her partner.

Wait.

The past doesn’t count.

The filming location was remote, on the outskirts of the film and television city. The first half of the journey back had no streetlights, and there were few cars on the road. For safety, Zhang Yulan was driving very slowly.

Shi Qing opened the car window. The vast night sky was boundless. A gentle breeze brushed her long hair behind her ears. A strand wrapped around her neck. The ripples in her hair finally landed in those beautiful eyes, turning into layers of shimmering light at the bottom of her pupils.

Wei Jiuyi didn’t speak. She just quietly looked at her.

Shi Qing was very fair. Her skin looked even fairer in the moonlight. You could even see the winding, smoke-green veins on her neck. It was beautiful.

When they arrived at the section with streetlights, the light illuminated the box that had been dark for a long time. Shi Qing leaned her head on the window frame. Her eyes were still on the window, but she was talking to Wei Jiuyi in the car.

“How long does it take to make coffee?”

She asked.

Wei Jiuyi was stunned for a moment. She said,

“It’s very fast. Two minutes.”

Shi Qing propped her chin on her elbow. The wind added a touch of allure to her voice.

“But you went to the set two hours early today, just to bring me coffee.”

Wei Jiuyi was silent. Under the alternating light of the car and the moon, she gazed at the profile in front of her. She finally found a line of reasoning and said with a disappointed laugh,

“That was just nonsense from Fang Fei to get the coupledom fans excited. You actually believed it?”

This was unexpected for Shi Qing. She thought Wei Jiuyi would explain, as she had in the past, that she just wanted her to have the coffee she made by hand earlier, or make up some clumsy, unconvincing reason.

But wasn’t that the truth?

Wei Jiuyi took a sip of her drink. Her composure showed a kind of generosity.

“I went early to watch you and Teacher Cheng’s scene. Teacher Cheng is a veteran actor, and you had a long dramatic scene today that really tested your skills. Of course, I had to go and learn. You were the one who taught me to go to the set more when there are veterans in the crew so I can get free acting lessons. Did you forget?”

Only then did Shi Qing realize she had misunderstood. It was a huge misunderstanding.

“Then, I’m sorry. I misunderstood.”

Wei Jiuyi felt a rush of sweetness in her heart. She asked,

“So, you were so worried earlier because you thought I got up early just to make you coffee?”

Shi Qing lowered her eyes, a silent confirmation.

Wei Jiuyi explained, “Don’t worry. I’m not that kind of person. Even if I don’t know you very well, I at least know that you’re not used to people doing too much for you because you feel pressured. Even with a girlfriend, you hope she has her own life, not to mention that I’m not even your girlfriend.”

Just as she told Fei Ying, her actions toward Shi Qing didn’t require Shi Qing to give her an equal return. So even though she got up at 5 a.m. to study the coffee machine, and even though she found a flawless reason to go to the set early, she still wouldn’t tell Shi Qing “how much I’ve done for you.” All that would do is put pressure on Shi Qing and make her want to retreat.

What she wanted was for Shi Qing to feel comfortable, natural, and relaxed when she was with her.

“I’m sorry. I was being presumptuous again.” Shi Qing apologized to her.

“What’s there to apologize for? If anyone should apologize, it’s Fang Fei. She brought it up first. And I think it’s just a joke. You don’t have to take it to heart.” Faced with Shi Qing’s nervousness, Wei Jiuyi was becoming more and more skilled at handling it.

“You’re right. Then I won’t be shy anymore. Can I mooch off your coffee every day from now on?” A smile finally returned to Shi Qing’s face.

“Of course. It would be my honor.” Wei Jiuyi pretended to take off her hat.

Shi Qing was amused by her. She complained gently,

“There you go again.”

Her eyes crinkled, showing the softness in her heart.

Wei Jiuyi marveled at the wonders of the world. In the morning, she was in a tense confrontation with Fei Ying, and in the evening, she was sitting in a car with Shi Qing, talking and laughing.

Shi Qing noticed that Wei Jiuyi’s gaze was profound and asked,

“What’s wrong? Why are you looking at me like that?”

Wei Jiuyi looked away and shrugged.

“It’s nothing. I was just thinking about something.”

“What?”

“Well…”

Wei Jiuyi hesitated for a moment but finally said it.

“I don’t know if you’re comfortable with the way we’re running this ‘business couple’ now.”

Shi Qing didn’t answer immediately. “What do you mean?”

Wei Jiuyi said,

“It’s just that sometimes it’s hard to tell what’s real and what’s fake. For example, I made coffee for you because I sincerely wanted you to try my handiwork, but when the marketing team posts it, it looks like I made the coffee for you just to get some hype. I don’t know if that makes you feel uncomfortable.”

Shi Qing thought for a while and admitted, “Sometimes, it’s a little hard for me to tell. It’s like how you always help me. I would think that maybe Royal Entertainment gave you some ‘business couple’ training, and that’s why you’re doing it. But last night, I thought about it by myself. As long as you’re showing me kindness, and I feel your kindness, I shouldn’t guess your motives. Whether it’s for attention or simply for me, I’m the one who benefits.”

Wei Jiuyi suddenly became serious.

“What if I told you that everything I do for you is not for attention?”

Shi Qing hesitated. “Huh?”

Wei Jiuyi raised her hand and closed the car window. The curtains were also pulled up. The sound of the wind came to a halt, isolating them from the noise of the bustling streets. Their ears suddenly became quiet. They could even hear each other’s breathing.

“A-Qing, have you ever thought about why you always think I’m doing things for hype and attention?”

Her voice, in the quiet space, had a unique penetrating quality. Shi Qing put down her hand from the window. The smile on her face was still gentle.

“It’s okay if it’s not. I told you, I can feel your kindness.”

She avoided Wei Jiuyi’s question. Wei Jiuyi had to reveal the answer herself.

“Because you have a serious case of not feeling worthy.”

It was the first time Shi Qing had heard anyone use that word on her. A trace of disgust appeared in her heart.

“What did you say?”

Wei Jiuyi repeated it, this time with more certainty.

“Because you have a very serious case of not feeling worthy. So you always misinterpret my kindness toward you as me having ulterior motives. You think you’re not worthy of my kindness, and you think I’m doing it for the coupledom, for attention. But you’ve forgotten that you yourself are a very excellent person. It’s completely normal for others to be kind to you. My kindness toward you has only one reason: you’re worth it.”

If you were to ask what the most important thing Wei Jiuyi learned from her family of origin was, it would definitely be her sense of worthiness.

In the past, Shi Qing took care of her, bought her all kinds of clothes, taught her all her acting techniques, and never got angry with her during their time together. Wei Jiuyi never felt that Shi Qing had any other motives. Because in her heart, she felt that since she was so excellent, it was normal for Shi Qing to like her and be kind to her.

But Shi Qing didn’t have that sense of worthiness.

This was why even Fei Ying’s “pursuit,” which was of low quality, almost drew her into a vortex of emotional manipulation.

“A-Qing, you are excellent. Extremely excellent. You came back to work today, and you knew that long monologue by heart. Director Fan, who has very high standards, always praises you. And you yourself are worthy of other people’s kindness. In the past, when you were kind to me, I never felt that I wasn’t worthy. Now that I’m being kind to you, please don’t belittle yourself like that, okay?”

The small space echoed her voice, which entered Shi Qing’s ears and hit her chest, making every cell resonate.

In the front, in the driver’s seat.

Dong Ya pointed to the corner on the right.

“Turn one more time. The neighborhood is so big.”

Zhang Yulan was a little worried.

“I’ve already turned three times. If I turn again, they’ll know something’s up.”

Dong Ya scolded her for being useless.

“What are you so anxious about? They’re having a private moment. They won’t even be paying attention to the road. Don’t be scared. If anything happens, just say you got lost.”