The Green Tea Actress Has Too Much After-Show Drama - Chapter 24

The second time.

Qiu An’s fingers lingered a little longer on Ran Long’s lips.

Just as she was about to pull away, she felt a very gentle push against her fingertip.

Ran Long’s lips parted slightly, giving Qiu An’s finger an incredibly tender kiss.

Her rationality teetering on the edge, Qiu An hastily withdrew her hand, stumbling backward several steps until her back pressed against the wardrobe. Only then did she regain her composure, looking at herself with a wry smile.

She loved Ran Long so deeply.

So deeply that it took immense effort to restrain herself.

But Ran Long didn’t know. Ran Long hated her.

Ran Long was exceptionally intelligent, far more perceptive than most. She had seen through Qiu An’s facade, recognizing her as a treacherous and cunning schemer. Despite Qiu An’s claims of never exploiting Ran Long, she had selfishly used the most despicable methods to steal her kiss, her first kiss.

This should have been enough. Qiu An didn’t deserve someone as wonderful as Ran Long.

Yet when she imagined Ran Long with someone else, she shook her head, unable to accept it.

Along her journey, she had met countless people.

The more she interacted with others, the more she cherished Ran Long.

Ran Long could either live freely or belong solely to her.

Calming her racing heart, Qiu An knew she couldn’t stay in the same room as Ran Long any longer. She feared she might lose control and do something she would regret.

Qiu An turned off the bedside lamp, went to the balcony to smoke a cigarette, and washed up again.

Returning to her own room, she took out the “Wind Over Snow Pines” fragrance and sprayed it twice on her duvet before finally slipping under the covers, drifting off to sleep peacefully amidst Ran Long’s lingering scent.

The next morning, Ran Long noticed Qiu An was gone from the bed. Without giving it much thought, she assumed Qiu An had woken up early and left.

When she felt her bra hanging loosely on her shoulder, she didn’t think much of it either, assuming it had simply slipped off during the night.

Ran Long received a notification from the production coordinator about a schedule change. Just as Qiu An had said, the original scene had been replaced with the kiss scene at Yu Youxuan’s studio.

Despite Qiu An’s repeated assurances that today’s shoot would go smoothly, Ran Long remained skeptical.

After all, they still hadn’t gotten into character for the kiss the previous day, and their night together had been uneventful… or at least, she hoped so. Forget it, don’t overthink it. The more I think, the more scared I get.

Fully made up and dressed, she arrived on set to find Qiu An already waiting.

Seeing Ran Long approach, Qiu An strode over with effortless grace and asked, “When we film the kiss later, can I use my tongue?”

Ran Long startled at the question, shrinking back and glancing around like a thief. Only when she confirmed no one had overheard Qiu An’s words did she relax.

She hesitated, remembering how she had initiated a tongue kiss the previous day. Now, refusing felt awkward.

“Fine, whatever. Just get it over with,” Ran Long agreed.

She mentally steeled herself: Just think of it as being “poked” by a cabbage for the sake of the shoot’s progress.

She never said she was a pig. Cabbages planted too close together will naturally jostle each other.

She never said she wanted to “jostle” Qiu An. It was just one cabbage unilaterally nudging another.

Practice makes perfect. Ran Long sat on the sofa and expertly unbuttoned her shirt, revealing the black bra beneath.

With the equipment in place, Qiu An steadied Ran Long’s shoulders, lifted her long leg, and straddled her.

The frequent close encounters over the past few days seemed to have worked. As Ran Long watched Qiu An’s face draw near and inhaled her pleasant scent, her heart no longer pounded so wildly.

Ran Long was satisfied.

After all, she just wanted to film this scene properly, keep the movie progressing, and collect the other half of her payment.

According to the script, Qiu An’s hand would sweep across Ran Long’s waist and abdomen, undoing the three bra clasps beneath her shirt.

This time, Qiu An had warmed her hands with hot water beforehand, making them less icy. Yet the faint, almost imperceptible touch on Ran Long’s waist still made the fine hairs on her skin stand on end.

Why am I still feeling this? she wondered. It must be because it’s itchy. Definitely. I’ve always had sensitive skin.

The next moment, Qiu An’s kiss arrived as expected.

But it was far wetter, softer, and more passionate than Ran Long had imagined.

Yu Youxuan’s tongue darted out from her crimson lips, lightly tracing Shen Zixin’s lower lip.

In that instant, Ran Long felt her cerebrum, cerebellum, and brainstem simultaneously collapse into a singularity.

She dared not utter a sound, letting the tingling sensation crawl across her scalp. In less than a frame, Ran Long’s pale ears flushed crimson, the tips throbbing as if bl00d were about to burst through the skin.

Her lips glistened, the spot where Yu Youxuan’s tongue had touched shimmering for a frame before vanishing from the camera’s view.

Yu Youxuan’s tongue pried open Shen Zixin’s lips and teeth, invading and plundering his mouth with reckless abandon. Though seemingly chaotic, each thrust struck directly at Ran Long’s heart.

Wave after wave of warmth surged from her abdomen, the intense physiological reaction crashing over her like a typhoon, sweeping in with a tempest of sand, leaves, and desperate cries.

Overwhelmed by shame, Ran Long tried to resist, but Qiu An, pressing down on her, refused to yield. She pinned Ran Long’s body, denying her even a breath to cry out for a halt.

Ran Long had always believed breathing was a human instinct, dismissing claims that a kiss could make one forget to breathe as pretentious nonsense.

Now she understood: it was possible for a kiss to induce such a suffocating sensation.

It felt as if, without a director’s call for “Cut,” Qiu An could literally act her to death.

The camera should have stopped rolling by now, but Yuan Chengyin’s voice remained silent.

Ran Long didn’t want to act anymore.

She desperately needed a glass of ice water to wash over her mouth, still tingling from Qiu An’s kiss, to slide down her saliva-slicked throat, and ideally, to reach her abdomen. She urgently wanted to extinguish the burning desire raging within her.

After all, the person on top of her…

Was Qiu An.

How could she feel sexual arousal towards Qiu An?

Ran Long tried pushing Qiu An’s shoulder, but her hands lacked strength. The feeble shove felt more like flirting than resistance.

She resorted to tapping instead.

Ran Long had initially thought a simple kissing scene wouldn’t require a… safety word.

Yu Youxuan finally noticed her movements, slowing down until she stopped. Ran Long seized the opportunity to push her away.

Their lips parted, and Yu Youxuan lost her balance, swaying precariously against Shen Zixin.

Shen Zixin, looking concerned, gently pulled her back, steadying her.

Gasping for breath, Shen Zixin took a long moment to recover before muttering hoarsely, “Hurry up and finish the painting. I’ll leave as soon as it’s done.”

Hearing this line that didn’t belong to the scene, Yuan Chengyin snapped back to reality and hurriedly yelled, “Cut!”

Qiu An silently dismounted from Ran Long.

For a moment, the studio was eerily silent.

If anyone had broken the tension with a loud fart, the embarrassment would have lingered until their dying day.

After what felt like an eternity, the photographer stammered, “Ah, I… I’m so sorry, I forgot to pause the recording.”

The moment his words landed, the crew members seemed to be released from a spell, collectively exhaling in relief.

Having just regained control of their bodies, they all seemed slightly disoriented.

Clatter. A sharp sound rang out as the script supervisor, her face flushed crimson, bent down to retrieve the clapperboard she had dropped.

Thud. Another muffled sound followed as the sound engineer, equally embarrassed, silently retracted the boom microphone that had been poking into the ceiling.

Ahem. Yuan Chengyin, remembering his role as director, finally took charge. “You… come take a look at the playback.”

Yuan Chengyin’s “you” usually referred to Ran Long and Qiu An, but at his command, the entire crew swarmed forward, making Ran Long feel somewhat awkward.

Teasing, entanglement, lingering intimacy.

One using aggression to unleash desire, the other dodging yet yielding—every subtle expression had been captured by the camera, each perfectly embodying their characters.

“Hmm… very good~ Hmm… excellent~ This take is perfect!”

The crew members were about to burst into applause and cheers when they noticed Ran Long’s brow furrowing deeply. The cheers died in their throats, the words biting at their lips, afraid to escape.

Ran Long demanded, her voice sharp with displeasure, “So you do know how to do this? What was all that nonsense the past two days? Were you faking it? Acting? Trying to mess with me?”

“No,” Qiu An replied, her expression unwavering, her pulse steady. “It’s all thanks to you, my excellent teacher, that I was able to imitate you so perfectly.”

The onlookers had no idea what had transpired between the two women over the past two days, but this exchange offered a tantalizing glimpse into their dynamic. Combined with the rumors circulating throughout the crew—that the pair were not only sharing a room but had also shared a trailer yesterday—their imaginations ran wild.

Ran Long’s anger flared at Qiu An’s words. Ignoring the eavesdropping ears around them, she blurted out, “So all those seductive expressions you’ve been wearing every day were just to make me—”

Ran Long, oblivious to her surroundings, randomly grabbed a phrase from her mind and spat it out: “To awaken my animal instincts so you could imitate them better?”

What seduction…? What animal instincts…?

The staff members, overhearing these crude words, flushed crimson with embarrassment.

Is this what we get to hear if we don’t hand over our wages…?

Even Yuan Chengyin couldn’t believe what she was hearing. She was pleased with their diligent practice, but never imagined it would reach this level. She turned to offer some explanation to the staff members caught in the gossip crossfire, but realized there was nothing she could possibly say.

Qiu An’s eyes widened at Ran Long’s words, her expression equally astonished. “No, that’s not it at all!”

“Enough, enough!” Ran Long snapped impatiently. “That’s all you ever say. Since we got the scene right, I won’t press the matter further, but don’t let this happen again.”

Qiu An nodded meekly.

Yuan Chengyin and the staff members nodded in agreement as well.

As filming wrapped up in the room and the crew prepared to leave, a sudden commotion erupted in the distance: a mix of thuds, scrapes, and pained cries of “Ouch! Don’t push me!” faded away.

Ran Long pushed open the door to find a crowd of crew members facing the wall, their numbers nearly matching those who had gathered on the first day, eager to witness her embarrassment.

It didn’t take a genius to guess what they were secretly watching.

Sister Hou, ever the carefree one, charged forward first. Her eyes brimming with tears, she gripped Ran Long’s hand, nearly sobbing, “Did we pass the scene? We don’t have to go home, right?”

“What’s with the drama? You’re acting like we’re about to get eliminated from a talent show,” Ran Long said, patting Sister Hou’s hand to reassure her.

“Waaah! I overheard them saying that if we didn’t nail this scene, the whole production would be shut down! Thank goodness we passed! Thank goodness!”

Yuan Chengyin’s face darkened instantly at this news. She turned to Sister Hou and demanded, “Who told you that?”

Sister Hou glanced at the members still facing the wall. They quietly and unanimously shifted their gazes toward the three crew members who hadn’t been cleared from the set: the cameraman, sound engineer, and script supervisor.

Now it was the trio’s turn to face the wall.

Fortunately, the leak was minor. Having just tackled a tough scene, Yuan Chengyin didn’t want to punish them and spoil the mood. He sighed helplessly, “Well done spreading the word. Just don’t do it again.”

The three nodded vigorously.

Ran Long nudged Qiu An with her elbow and whispered, “Hey, your line, your line.”

“My line? What line of mine?”

“You should have gone up to Yuan Chengyin,” Ran Long mimicked Qiu An, adopting a serious, puzzled, and naive expression. “‘Was it really spread well?'”

“I’m not that bored.”

“……”

What’s with this woman? Just finished a kissing scene and already acting like she doesn’t know me?