Married in a Daze - Chapter 55
Chapter 55
Qin Zhenzhen lingered in the study for quite a while. The study was quite spacious, with two large bookshelves. A tatami was placed between the bookshelves, and aside from that, there was only a desk. Lu Ruyun must really like reading books. Even though Lu Ruyun hadn't entered the study since she moved in, the books on the desk were old and worn, with creases—they must be frequently thumbed through.
Qin Zhenzhen had spent last night on the sofa outside. Only now did she have a proper look at her new room.
Monotonous. It was too monotonous. Aside from books, there were only cabinets and the desk. Not even a clothes-drying rack, let alone a mirror. She wanted to put on some makeup, but she lacked the hardware.
After pondering in the study for a long time, she finally gathered her clothes and makeup and slipped into the bathroom.
After changing her clothes and going downstairs, Lu Ruyun saw Qin Zhenzhen sitting on the sofa, wearing a beige wool coat over a black pencil skirt. She lowered her gaze and walked down slowly. Hearing the sound behind her, Qin Zhenzhen turned her head. Lu Ruyun was wearing a knit sweater, wide-leg trousers, and a long trench coat.
She was already tall, and with the trench coat, her figure appeared even more slender. The brown trench coat made her skin look fair. It was just an ordinary piece of clothing, but worn by her, it seemed full of grace and charm.
"Finished changing?" Qin Zhenzhen stood up to face her. Only then did Lu Ruyun notice that under the coat, she was wearing a small white blouse. The hem of the blouse was neatly tucked into the pencil skirt. There was a black ribbon at the waist of the skirt, left untied.
Lu Ruyun walked down the last steps, her expression slightly unnatural. "Yes."
"Great. Then could Teacher Lu help me tie this?" Qin Zhenzhen flicked one end of the ribbon, looking at Lu Ruyun seriously and with reason. "There's not even a mirror in your study. I can't see the back."
Lu Ruyun thought about it—there really was no mirror in the study, just a bed and bookshelves. She pressed her lips together and walked behind Qin Zhenzhen, taking the offered ribbon.
The black ribbon needed to be wrapped around the waist twice. Lu Ruyun held her breath as she reached her arms around Qin Zhenzhen's slender waist. Her other hand took the ribbon, briefly touching Qin Zhenzhen's wrist in the process. She didn't pause, maintaining a normal expression as she tied a small bow at the back, hidden beneath the coat.
Qin Zhenzhen straightened her hem, then looked up at Lu Ruyun. "How is it? Does it look good?"
Lu Ruyun gave a slight nod. "Let's go."
She picked up her bag from the sofa, changed her shoes, and headed out. Qin Zhenzhen grabbed her phone and wallet, following behind. As they walked out of the apartment, Qin Zhenzhen sighed. "Teacher Lu, can we make a deal? Can I make some changes to the study? Or give me one of the guest rooms. I see there are several rooms downstairs. You can't expect me to sleep on the tatami forever, right?"
Lu Ruyun thought about the rooms downstairs and lowered her gaze. "You can change the study."
"Alright, I'll just add a few things, not mess with it too much. That way, when I move out, it'll be easy for Teacher Lu to just throw them away." Lu Ruyun frowned slightly at Qin Zhenzhen's words but didn't say anything. The two of them walked along the path outside the apartment.
It was seven or eight in the evening. The glitzy nightlife was just beginning. Neon lights flashed in the distance, and a huge screen high above played advertisements. Qin Zhenzhen and Lu Ruyun walked onto the stone path. The surrounding quietness seemed to draw a line between them and the clamorous city.
This area was a high-end residential district. Very few people went for walks. Qin Zhenzhen and Lu Ruyun chatted as they walked, enjoying the rare quiet atmosphere.
Lu Ruyun couldn't remember the last time she had gone for a walk like this. She looked ahead at the dim yellow street lamps. The light filtered through the gaps in the leaves, creating mottled shadows on the ground.
Her expression grew restless and uneasy.
Suddenly, there was weight on her arm. Lu Ruyun turned her head in surprise, glancing at their intertwined arms. Seeing her look over, Qin Zhenzhen gazed into the distance. "Paparazzi."
Lu Ruyun looked at her profile. A faint fragrance lingered under her nose. She moved her arm slightly. Qin Zhenzhen was pressed so close against her arm that the movement brushed against the rise and fall of Qin Zhenzhen's chest. She could even feel the delicate curves shifting beneath the thin white blouse.
Her mind went blank. She completely forgot what she had just been thinking about.
Qin Zhenzhen walked arm-in-arm with her out of the apartment complex. Only after passing through the main gate did Qin Zhenzhen let go. Lu Ruyun glanced at Qin Zhenzhen from the corner of her eye, suddenly feeling a chill on her newly freed arm.
"It's right ahead," Qin Zhenzhen turned her head. "Has Teacher Lu been here before?"
Lu Ruyun looked at the signboard Qin Zhenzhen pointed to not far away and shook her head.
Qin Zhenzhen chuckled lightly and handed her a face mask and a cap. Seeing Lu Ruyun's look of incomprehension, she stood on tiptoe to put them on for her. Lu Ruyun took a step back but was pulled closer by Qin Zhenzhen, who grabbed her arm. With a serious expression, Qin Zhenzhen helped her put on the mask and cap.
"I..."
Qin Zhenzhen gave a light laugh. "Don't worry, the mask is brand new."
Lu Ruyun's lips, hidden behind the mask, pressed together tightly. She restrained herself and didn't speak.
She had thought Qin Zhenzhen wanted to go for a fancy meal. She never expected it to be a hotpot restaurant. Although, eating hotpot in this weather wasn't really a problem.
Qin Zhenzhen led Lu Ruyun into the hotpot restaurant and asked for a private room. Only after entering the room did they take off their masks and caps. The waitress, seeing the two familiar faces revealed, immediately exclaimed, "Qin Zhenzhen!"
She then quickly covered her mouth, her eyes full of apology.
Running into celebrities in this area was actually quite common. Just next door, a director was hosting a crew dinner. But she never expected to run into Qin Zhenzhen and Lu Ruyun, who were currently causing a stir on Weibo!
The waitress lowered her head, repeatedly saying, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry."
Qin Zhenzhen smiled. "It's alright."
Her manner was elegant and poised. The young waitress felt the person before her was even more exquisite than on TV. Her heart pounded nervously, her hand holding the pen trembling slightly.
"What would you like?"
She tried to suppress her excitement, her eyes frequently darting to Qin Zhenzhen and Lu Ruyun. Compared to Qin Zhenzhen's radiant presence, Lu Ruyun was much more reserved and introverted, creating a feeling of one being strong and the other soft, complementing each other perfectly—they were just so damn compatible!
She wasn't a fan of either of them, but she had seen the recent trending topics online. Compared to Director Zheng Shaoyuan's shameless behavior, Qin Zhenzhen's decisive and unhesitating walkout from the elevator had earned her much more favor from netizens.
She was no exception. Previously, she only felt some goodwill towards Qin Zhenzhen. Now, seeing her in person, she just wanted to scream!
Qin Zhenzhen, noticing her increasingly fervent gaze, lowered her eyes with a smile. "We'll call you when we've ordered."
Each private room had a call bell for service. The waitress suppressed her excitement, reluctant to leave. "Alright."
Qin Zhenzhen smiled at her. "Thank you."
That smile made the waitress feel as if flowers had bloomed before her eyes. Her heart seemed to burst, her face flushed completely red, and her steps were almost floating as she walked out.
Hearing the door close, Qin Zhenzhen handed the menu to Lu Ruyun. "You order."
Lu Ruyun's expression was inscrutable. Her gaze moved from Qin Zhenzhen's face to the menu being offered. She pressed her lips together. "You order. I'm fine with anything."
Seeing her push the menu back, Qin Zhenzhen shrugged and, with her head down, quickly checked off several items. Lu Ruyun didn't know what she had ordered, but when the dishes started arriving and the table could barely hold them, she finally opened her mouth to ask, "How much did you order?"
Qin Zhenzhen pushed mushrooms into the hotpot, her expression normal. "Not much."
After a pause, she added, "I didn't know what you like, so I ordered a bit of everything."
Lu Ruyun: ...
Saying she ordered everything wasn't quite accurate—the portions for each dish were small. Each plate was large, but the amount of food on it was tiny. Qin Zhenzhen hadn't eaten hotpot in a long time and ate with great enthusiasm. Lu Ruyun wasn't particular about food, but eating steaming hot food on a day like this indeed evoked an indescribable feeling.
It felt very comfortable.
A warmth that reached deep into her heart, a cozy comfort.
She had always eaten alone. She had never thought that having another person with her could feel like this, a warm current bubbling up from the depths of her heart. For a moment, she couldn't tell if it was because of the hotpot or because of the person sharing it with her.
Not knowing Lu Ruyun's taste preferences, Qin Zhenzhen had ordered a split-pot hotpot. The broth was quite spicy. After eating for a while, she looked up to speak to Lu Ruyun, her lips slightly swollen. Unconcerned, she wiped them with a tissue and took a couple of sips of ice water.
Lu Ruyun stared at her dewy eyes and reddened, swollen lips, cleared her throat softly, lowered her head, and gave perfunctory answers to her questions.
Hearing the perfunctory answer, Qin Zhenzhen twitched the corner of her mouth and sighed inwardly about the long road ahead. In the private room, the only sounds were the bubbling from the pot. As she lowered her head to wipe her mouth, she caught sight of her phone screen lighting up.
It was a call from Meng Xin.
Qin Zhenzhen picked up, slightly puzzled. "Sister Meng."
Meng Xin was standing outside. The howling wind came through the phone's receiver. Qin Zhenzhen said disdainfully, "An apology? I don't need an apology. Sister Meng, let's take the legal route."
"Zhenzhen, regarding the Marriage of Convenience matter, we still haven't found concrete evidence that Zheng Shaoyuan was behind it."
"Also, regarding the online situation, he never explicitly named you. Even if we sue, if he wants to shift blame, it would be easy. So I think pursuing legal action would not only be time-consuming but also have a low chance of success."
"Instead, it might be more advantageous for us if he issues a public apology statement."
After listening to Meng Xin's words, Qin Zhenzhen paused for a moment, then nodded. "Sister Meng, you handle it."
Meng Xin spoke into the phone, "Zhenzhen, don't be upset."
Qin Zhenzhen smiled. "Sister Meng, I'm not upset. Thank you."
If it weren't for Meng Xin this time, she would probably still be caught in the whirlpool of public opinion. The Marriage of Convenience issue was relatively easy to handle, but underhanded tricks like Zheng Shaoyuan's were truly hard to guard against.
After experiencing so much—from the previous assault incident to this series of events—it made Qin Zhenzhen understand one thing: in this circle, she didn't stand firm enough.
Her foundation wasn't solid, her footing wasn't steady. She could be replaced at any time. The slightest stir online, even an unsubstantiated leak from a director, could undo all her previous efforts.
And yet, she had no way to deal with this director.
Ultimately, at this moment, she was still a dispensable existence, teetering on the edge of being replaced. To stand firm, she must first improve her own capabilities.
As for being happy or not...
She simply didn't have the right to even think about it.
After hanging up the phone, Qin Zhenzhen's eyes grew somewhat somber. Even eating hotpot lost its appeal. Lu Ruyun watched the change in her expression and asked softly, "What's wrong?"
"About Zheng Shaoyuan's matter. Sister Meng is willing to accept a settlement."
Lu Ruyun lowered her eyelashes, looking at Qin Zhenzhen's profile, faintly visible through the rising steam. Her heart ached slightly, and she frowned. "You're not happy about it?"
Qin Zhenzhen held her cold drink, taking a small sip. The chill poured from her throat into her stomach, making her whole body shiver.
"It's not that I'm unhappy. I just feel like I'm a bit of a failure."
She gave a self-deprecating smile. "Even now, I don't know what my 'positioning' is."
Positioning referred to the impression outsiders had of an entertainer. For example, Lu Ruyun—netizens would think of "Cloud Fairy" when they saw her. Some might not even know her name, but they definitely knew that role. Another example was Film Empress Tang Ya; when netizens mentioned her, they would instinctively call her "Empress Tang Ya." That was the label attached to her.
Even Wei An, who had been constantly tied to her for publicity hype, had a label.
But she didn't.
Qin Zhenzhen lowered her head dejectedly. Well, it wasn't that she didn't have any—she actually had quite a few labels now: naive and innocent, pretty face, lacking acting skills, no spirit. Seeing her like this, Lu Ruyun tightened her grip on her cup and said softly, "Do you need help?"
"Huh?" Qin Zhenzhen looked up in surprise, meeting Lu Ruyun's eyes. Those bright, dark eyes were like unfathomable deep pools, capturing all her attention.
"Help?"
"Is Teacher Lu offering to teach me acting?"
Lu Ruyun looked at her and shook her head. "To help you with your positioning."
The faint smile on Qin Zhenzhen's face gradually faded. Her bright eyes cleared, and her throat tightened. A dry voice rolled out from her throat. "Help me with my positioning?"
Lu Ruyun's clear, soft voice cut through the heavy air, reaching her ears, striking heavily against her heart. Thump, thump, thump—the vibrations made her eardrums ache.
"I'll help you establish your positioning and attach a new label."
Qin Zhenzhen was stunned for a few seconds. "What's the new label?"
Lu Ruyun's expression was calm and unperturbed, her gaze steady, her enunciation clear. "Qin Zhenzhen."
Meeting those bright eyes as deep as a cold pool, Qin Zhenzhen felt a boom in her head, as if something had just exploded.
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