The Green Tea Actress Has Too Much After-Show Drama - Chapter 11

After the script reading session concluded, Ran Long had intended to ask Yuan Chengyin some questions in person. However, she found him embroiled in a heated argument with the screenwriter over script details, with no end in sight. Reluctantly, she decided to postpone the conversation.

As the filming date approached, Ran Long visited Ms. Hu at home.

Despite Ran Long’s repeated assurances that she was playing the lead role in a top-tier production and would soon be earning vast sums of money, Ms. Hu remained stubbornly attached to her faded, misshapen old pajamas.

While there, Ran Long also discovered a stockpile of milk, pastries, and even high-end health supplements like bird’s nest, fish maw, and krill oil. Unfortunately, many had expired and had to be discarded.

Ran Long found it puzzling that Ms. Hu, who refused to replace her worn-out pajamas, had the spare money to buy such expensive items.

She dared not ask, though. It was ultimately a good thing that Ms. Hu was willing to spend on her. She worried that if she questioned it, Ms. Hu might stop buying even these things.

The day to leave for the film set arrived quickly. Ran Long packed two large suitcases.

In addition to essential living supplies, she brought her live-streaming equipment, unwilling to abandon her old profession. If the film faced censorship issues midway through production, she needed a backup plan.

Given the secrecy surrounding the production, the two leads were supposed to arrive at the filming location at different times. However, Ke Ran and Sister Hou were surprised to find Qiu An and Xi Xi already seated in first class when they boarded the plane.

Even more peculiar was the seating arrangement: the row of four seats was divided into pairs, with Qiu An and Xi Xi sitting on opposite sides, each with an empty seat beside them.

At first, Ke Ran assumed Qiu An was such a big star that she required two first-class seats for herself and her assistant. But when she checked her boarding pass, she discovered her assigned seat was the one next to Qiu An.

Utterly baffling.

Qiu An, wearing a mask and covered with a blanket, leaned back in her seat, feigning sleep. Her long, straight black hair cascaded over her shoulder, and her eyes were bare of makeup. Her eyebrows were naturally light but beautifully shaped, framing her face perfectly. Even with her eyes closed, her long, curled lashes were strikingly prominent.

As Ke Ran stared, those long lashes began to resemble a row of mosquito legs. Ew.

Ke Ran had initially considered swapping seats with Xi Xi, but seeing Sister Hou’s childlike excitement at her first-class experience—gawking around like a monkey and touching everything in sight—she quickly reconsidered. She wasn’t exactly eager to sit next to that.

Ran Long stepped over Qiu An and settled into the window seat. After playing with her phone for a while, she noticed Qiu An was still asleep and motionless, and a mischievous thought quickly took root.

She wanted to further investigate the true nature of Qiu An’s relationship with Yuan Chengyin. Even though she had probed during the script reading, the evidence she had gathered seemed insufficient to prove much.

She remembered that after her first audition, Qiu An, despite having no work obligations, hadn’t waited for Yuan Chengyin. Instead, she had unusually offered Ran Long a ride home. During the script reading, Qiu An and Yuan Chengyin had arrived separately, and after the session, Qiu An had stormed off without waiting for him.

After being together for so long, were they not living together? Or were they avoiding suspicion? There must be plenty of paparazzi staking out Qiu An.

Ran Long reached into the overhead compartment and gently lifted Qiu An’s C-brand handbag.

The ugly duckling had truly transformed into a swan, now able to afford C-brand handbags. No, wait—she was actually a brand ambassador. Even more infuriating.

The scent of perfume wafted from the handbag, the same herbal fragrance she had noticed on Qiu An before.

Qiu An had a sensitive nose and seemed to dislike perfume, yet she always managed to smell pleasantly fragrant.

Back when they lived together, Ran Long had discovered Qiu An secretly using her body lotion.

The perfume scent on the handbag wasn’t strong, but Ran Long found it strangely familiar.

Leaning closer, she detected a blend of woody notes with citrusy hints of orange and lemon—remarkably similar to the fragrance of the body lotion she used to use.

Heh, Ran Long thought, smirking inwardly. Finally, I’ve found concrete evidence, you little white-eyed wolf!

Qiu An had always loved that scent back then. Too broke to buy her own, she’d sneakily use Ran Long’s body lotion every day!

Gently unzipping the handbag, Ran Long reached inside and pulled out two smartphones.

One phone had no case. When she lit up the screen, the default wallpaper confirmed it was likely a backup device. For someone as busy as Qiu An, having multiple phones was hardly surprising.

Without a second thought, Ran Long tossed the backup phone back into the bag.

The other phone, Qiu An’s daily driver, was protected by a plain transparent case. When the screen lit up, the lock screen wallpaper displayed a photo taken at the beach.

In the photo, Qiu An wore a sky-blue dress, her long hair flowing in the breeze as she smiled warmly and radiantly against the backdrop of the azure sea and sky. The photo looked familiar; her youthful expression clearly indicated it had been taken during her university days.

During their college years, the three of them often drove to the neighboring coastal city to visit the beach. This photo was likely taken by Yuan Chengyin during one of those trips—perhaps even during one of the times he’d ditched her for a private date with Qiu An.

Evidence +1, Ran Long thought with a sense of accomplishment. She felt like she was playing a detective game, searching for clues and gathering evidence.

Swiping to the password screen, she was about to try entering Yuan Chengyin’s birthday when a soft cough came from beside her.

Ran Long glanced over. Seeing Qiu An still sleeping peacefully, she paid no attention and continued her actions.

“Xiao Ran, had enough playing?” Qiu An asked, her voice tinged with helplessness after her subtle hint failed to deter Ran Long.

Startled, Ran Long dropped the phone, which slid back into her bag. She scratched her head, zipped up the handbag, returned it to the storage compartment, and forced herself to say, “I’m done. Here’s your phone back.”

“What do you want my phone for?” Qiu An asked.

Ran Long’s eyes darted around, considering whether to demand the answer directly from Qiu An.

But she knew this might be her only chance. If she asked, Qiu An would immediately alert Yuan Chengyin. Qiu An was an actress, skilled at deception and performance. Ran Long had planned to save the direct confrontation for Yuan Chengyin. Unfortunately, Yuan Chengyin had already left for Crossing City to scout locations, otherwise she wouldn’t have needed to go through the trouble of stealing Qiu An’s phone.

“To play with it, what else?” Ran Long said shamelessly.

Qiu An’s gaze lingered on her face for a moment before she bent down, picked up her handbag, unzipped it, and retrieved her phone.

Ha, what’s she going to do? Check if any money’s missing from her account? The innocent have nothing to fear. She can’t pin this on me, right?

Qiu An unlocked the phone using facial recognition and handed it to Ran Long.

“Here.”

Ran Long stared blankly at the phone Qiu An offered. After a long pause, she snapped out of her daze and hissed angrily, “Are you crazy?! I said I’m done playing with it! Done! What are you giving it to me for? Take it back!”

“Then next time you want to play, just ask. I’ll unlock it for you.”

It was like punching cotton. Ran Long was so furious she nearly rolled her eyes back into her head.

Qiu An was always like this—never losing her temper with Ran Long, always doing exactly as she was told. Yet behind her back, she was constantly plotting against her.

Sometimes Ran Long felt disoriented, unable to comprehend how someone could maintain such a flawless act. Occasionally, she even found herself thinking that this “little white lotus” was actually quite nice to her.

Scheming. It’s all scheming. Don’t fall for her tricks.

The production launch ceremony was scheduled for that day. They had taken an early morning flight, and Ran Long was feeling drowsy. She raised the privacy divider between their seats, put on her eye mask, and leaned her head to the side, closing her eyes to avoid watching Qiu An’s performance tutorial.

Xi Xi breathed a sigh of relief when Ran Long finally stopped acting up. Qiu An had been working late the previous night, and neither of them had gotten much sleep.

Just as Xi Xi closed her eyes for a brief rest, Sister Hou’s wandering hand accidentally groped her calf beneath the blanket.

Xi Xi: ……

Sister Hou seemed oblivious to what she had touched, even giving it a firm squeeze.

“…Sister Hou, what are you looking for?”

“Ah! I’m so sorry!” Sister Hou looked up at the sound of Xi Xi’s voice, her face darkening with displeasure, and realized she had been squeezing someone’s leg. She quickly explained, “I, I was looking for my slippers.”

“The slippers are under your bag,” Xi Xi said, pointing to the storage compartment.

Sister Hou retrieved her bag and pulled out the disposable slippers that had been crushed beneath it. She slipped off her high heels, noticing her toes were red and cramped from the narrow shoe tips. The shoes were newly purchased, and she knew it would take her a long time to break them in.

“If you want to buy high heels, get the ones with thick heels and wide toes. They won’t pinch your feet and are much easier to walk in. Before buying, try them on at a physical store. And don’t get heels this high—be kinder to yourself.”

Xi Xi had been observing Sister Hou for a while. Her awkward gait, the way she hunched and bowed as she followed Ran Long, looked both pathetic and heartbreaking.

“But if I wear flats, Ran Long will be unhappy,” Sister Hou said, glancing nervously toward Ran Long. She couldn’t see her through the partition, which immediately put her at ease.

“Someone like her is always so self-absorbed. Why would she care about a few centimeters of height?” Xi Xi lowered her voice as well. She wasn’t afraid of Ran Long, but of Qiu An.

“You don’t understand. She may seem carefree and easygoing, but she’s actually very petty. Oh, and Xi Xi, you can’t call me ‘Xiao Hou’ anymore. You have to call me ‘Sister Hou.'”

Xi Xi was puzzled. “Why? You look like you just graduated. I’m probably older than you, right? If you call me ‘Sister Xi Xi’ and I call you ‘Sister Hou,’ doesn’t that sound strange?”

“It does sound a bit odd,” Sister Hou admitted, “but Ran Long said ‘Xiao Hou’ sounds too much like ‘little monkey.’ Being called that all the time would undermine my authority in public.”

Xi Xi chuckled softly. “Authority comes from within. Changing your name won’t magically grant you that. Right now, you remind me of those kids online who try too hard to act like adults.”

“Well, if I have nothing inside, I can only dress the part on the outside.”

“Nothing inside?”

As Xi Xi spoke, her gaze slowly drifted down Sister Hou’s face. Feeling unnerved by the scrutiny, Sister Hou unconsciously tugged at her collar.

“Did you go to university in Beiji?” Xi Xi asked abruptly.

Caught off guard, Sister Hou replied, “Yes.”

“Beiji Media?”

“How did you know?”

“If you’re in this industry and studied in Beiji, that’s the most reputable university for media studies.”

“Oh, actually, my major wasn’t directly related to this field.”

Xi Xi didn’t acknowledge the comment, and Sister Hou, unwilling to pry into her past, fell silent.

After a moment, Xi Xi suddenly asked, “Have we met before?”