She Said: A Passionate Kiss [Entertainment Industry] - Chapter 49
“Mom, are you joking?”
Hearing this, Mother Gu said, “I already know about you two.”
“When did you find out?” Gu Pingwan was confused. She had clearly hidden it well.
Qiang Huai explained, “Auntie asked me before, and I accidentally let it slip.”
Gu Pingwan had once imagined what her mother’s reaction would be if she ended up with Qiang Huai—would she grab a stool and hit her? Would she cut ties with her?
“Wanwan, I’ve thought it through. Just living a healthy and happy life is already not easy. At first, when I sensed something, I didn’t quite understand. But as long as you’re happy, then I’m at ease too,” said Mother Gu. There seemed to be tears in her eyes.
Gu Pingwan was about to speak when her phone rang.
It was her colleague, Qin Feng.
“Engineer Gu, are you asleep?” Qin Feng sounded a bit anxious.
“No, what’s going on?” Gu Pingwan frowned.
Mother Gu and Qiang Huai stayed quiet, giving her a peaceful space to take the call.
“Tomorrow morning, the China Aerospace Technology Institute is working with our institute on the final upgrade to the ‘Tianhe Core Module.’” What Qin Feng meant was that Gu Pingwan needed to return to the institute the next day.
“Alright, I understand.” After hanging up, Gu Pingwan explained the situation to her mom and Qiang Huai.
The Tianhe Core Module, along with the Wentian and Mengtian modules, forms the Chinese space station. Previously, Gu Pingwan and her team had been conducting ecological system simulations for the core module. This would be China’s first space laboratory, and if successful, it would mark a significant leap in space technology—making China the first country after the US and Russia to build a space station.
“Work again?” Qiang Huai asked.
“Mm. Mom, I’ll go pack.” Gu Pingwan slipped into her room, and after Qiang Huai finished the food, she washed the dishes.
After washing up, she checked her phone for flights. “Only a 7 a.m. flight left.”
“Yeah, I already booked that one.” Gu Pingwan finished packing her clothes and luggage.
There were still five or six hours left—they could still get a bit of sleep.
“I’ll take you to the airport first. We can book a hotel nearby and rest there,” said Qiang Huai. This was something she often did when traveling for work—it saved time.
Gu Pingwan hesitated, but Mother Gu chimed in, “Go to the airport first. That way, you can get a little sleep.”
Qiang Huai nodded in agreement. Gu Pingwan hadn’t fully adjusted to her new role as Qiang Huai’s girlfriend and was still thinking it might be too much trouble for her.
“Let’s go.” Qiang Huai pulled her suitcase as Mother Gu looked at their backs with satisfaction.
“Mom, we’re heading out.” Gu Pingwan put on her shoes at the door.
“Goodbye, Auntie,” Qiang Huai waved.
…
At the airport, Qiang Huai had already booked a quiet and comfortable room at a five-star hotel.
“Thanks for the trouble, Ah Huai,” Gu Pingwan said as she placed her luggage at the door.
Qiang Huai shut the door and, with a gentle push, pinned Gu Pingwan against the wall, her gaze intense. “It’s no trouble. As your girlfriend, this is what I should do.”
Gu Pingwan’s face flushed. “Go take a shower.”
“Okay.”
After a long day, Gu Pingwan went into the bathroom. Seeing her flushed face in the mirror, she splashed cold water on it.
Then she pushed open the bathroom door, “Ah Huai, do you want to shower together? It’s getting late, we should sleep after…”
Before she could finish, Qiang Huai was already at the door.
“You said it yourself,” Qiang Huai slipped into the bathroom and closed the door behind her.
The hot water was already running. The steam blurred their vision. Two intimately entwined fish swam in the mist, completely honest from head to toe.
After the shower, the two lay on the bed but weren’t sleepy yet.
“Ah Huai, I might be gone for a long time this time,” Gu Pingwan said. From what Qin Feng said, the project was moving fast. The core module had already passed preliminary tests, and now they were working on the upgrade to ensure comfort for astronauts during long-term missions.
Qiang Huai smiled softly, “I’ll wait for you to come back.”
She would also be busy soon. The film Rabbit Kill Code was about to start shooting. She’d be flying between countries a lot, and probably wouldn’t have time to see Gu Pingwan either.
Gu Pingwan turned on her side, half-buried in the blanket, voice choked, “Or… I can give myself to you?”
Earlier in the shower, it had just been a steamy body scrub—nothing else happened.
Qiang Huai was a little confused. “What?”
“You can sleep with me,” Gu Pingwan said it as naturally as if she were saying, “Did you eat?”
“Aren’t we already sleeping together?” Qiang Huai played dumb. Of course she knew what Gu Pingwan meant.
Gu Pingwan buried her head entirely under the blanket and muttered, “This is so embarrassing.”
“Hahaha, Student Gu,” Qiang Huai pulled her into her arms, “When you come back, I’ll really ravish you.”
Gu Pingwan wanted to bury herself in a hole. How could she say something like that?
She just didn’t want Qiang Huai to feel like she was being neglected during the long time they’d be apart.
Qiang Huai guessed what she meant. “What I want is for our relationship to happen naturally when the time feels right. You don’t have to feel guilty. You’ll be busy, and so will I.”
“Be good. Sleep well. You’ve got work tomorrow.” Qiang Huai gently patted her back like coaxing a child.
As she heard the door close, Qiang Huai felt a cool kiss on her forehead—she even smelled the faint scent of mint toothpaste.
Just as she walked out the door, Gu Pingwan turned around and gave her another kiss before leaving. The hotel’s shuttle service made the trip easy.
After landing, Gu Pingwan went straight to the research institute and arrived just in time.
She messaged Qiang Huai, and Qin Feng walked over yawning.
“Did you eat yet?” Gu Pingwan held two bags of breakfast.
Qin Feng shook his head, and she handed him a bag of buns. “Thanks, Engineer Gu.”
“The Aerospace Institute people are already here. There’s an error in the microgravity system of the core module,” Qin Feng said with his mouth full, “Originally, our fields were different. Now they’re making us do this—aren’t they pushing it?”
Gu Pingwan ate her bun quickly. “Aerospace research is always interconnected. It’s not about burden.”
“You’re so chill. We spent all that time on the ‘HET-450 single-channel Hall-effect thruster,’ and our names didn’t even get credited,” Qin Feng grumbled.
The “Hall thruster” he mentioned was used to adjust orbital paths outside the core module. When a research gap appeared, they had helped out.
“Don’t worry. Once the launch succeeds, your name will go down in history,” Gu Pingwan said sincerely.
Qin Feng wasn’t really upset. He just felt underappreciated.
Before the seminar started, Ji Zheping brought over other professors and introduced them to her.
“This is my student, Gu Pingwan.” Ji Zheping, a standout woman among a group of male professors, introduced her.
“Hello, professors,” Gu Pingwan greeted them politely.
“Hey, isn’t this the student you said was quitting?” a professor asked.
Ji Zheping smiled warmly. “I gave her a break. You must’ve heard wrong. If she quits, who’s going to finish building the space station?”
Everyone laughed at that.
“She’s got that same spirit you had when you were young,” one old professor said, glancing between Ji Zheping and Gu Pingwan. You could practically see the scientific passion radiating from her.
“She’s much better than I was,” Ji Zheping said seriously, though others might think she was just praising her student.
Gu Pingwan quickly replied, “I still have much to learn from all of you.”
Right before the seminar began, Gu Pingwan received a message from Qiang Huai:
“Did you kiss me before you left? 😄”
She smiled when she saw it.
“Mhm. I’m in a meeting now.”
Qiang Huai quickly replied: “Kisses, baby 😘”
Gu Pingwan: “Hug 🤗”
Qin Feng noticed her smiling weirdly and nudged her. “Are you in love?”
“Huh?”
“You’ve got that ‘loved and pampered’ look. What else could it be?” Qin Feng teased.
Gu Pingwan quickly put her phone away and composed herself. “I love my work.”
Qin Feng: … I’ll just quietly watch your performance.
Meanwhile, Qiang Huai woke up and reached for Gu Pingwan’s pillow, feeling like it was all a dream. She rolled over and started snuggling into the spot Gu Pingwan had slept in.
She was still asleep on that side of the bed when her agent Qin Jie called around noon.
“Liantang and Zheng Yu’s situation is settled. The families have been compensated,” Qin Jie said.
Qiang Huai was brushing her teeth. “Got it.”
“What have you been up to lately?” Qin Jie pulled out her itinerary—she was about to enter filming next week.
“Oh right, I forgot to tell you. I’m in a relationship.” The moment Qiang Huai said that, Qin Jie nearly passed out.
“Ahhh! A guy or a girl? Who? What’s the name? Is it Gu Pingwan?” Qin Jie immediately notified the PR department that the emergency contingency plan could be used.
Qiang Huai’s ears were nearly ringing. “Of course it’s my Wanwan. Who else would I like?”
“Alright, I’ll start prepping fans slowly—don’t reveal it too fast, or they won’t be able to handle it.” Qin Jie advised carefully.
Qiang Huai nodded along, then took a selfie in the mirror.
She posted on Weibo:
[Here’s a minty kiss for you 💋]
In the photo, she wore a bathrobe, brushing her teeth, her messy hair full of vibes.
Her fans flooded the post:
“My husband—Qiang Huai!”
“Ahhh! Gorgeous girl!”
“Can’t wait for Rabbit Kill Code! Hope filming goes well~”
“Why do I feel like Huaihuai’s in love?”
Qin Jie saw the Weibo post and could practically smell the “in love” vibe radiating off the screen.
She used it as a chance to get some media outlets to post a few “rumored relationship” stories to give the fans a soft heads-up.