Chapter 32: Reserved
Source: https://www.jjwxc.net/onebook.php?novelid=7288969
Tao Sheng is a member of the Jun Youyue project team.
The project got stopped, and she became a half-idle person. Every day, she goes to the research institute, to fish in muddy waters*, all while leaning on a pair of keen ears to catch some new gossip.
*"浑水摸鱼" (húnshuǐ mōyú) - to take advantage of a chaotic or confused situation for personal gain or benefit.
Fortunately, she maintained the habit of getting up early and, upon promptly receiving Jun Youyue's message, grabbed a box of new throat lozenges and rushed to the hotel.
"I had Tao Sheng deliver the throat lozenges," Jun Youyue said after a prolonged silence, nodding at Lu Xici's face and speaking up.
"Then I'll message the front desk to have her come up," Lu Xici also temporarily broke away from her thoughts.
"How do you feel about what I just mentioned?" She was referring to the deliberate attempt to sow discord between them.
"Normal," Jun Youyue had no strong feelings, just analyzing the situation logically and finding it reasonable.
"That's your job, you know." Seeing her so calm, Lu Xici seemed a bit anxious.
"How about I post a Weibo later of the two of us holding hands? Your hand can just casually appear in the frame."
Jun Youyue was touched.
The two have never acted together in public, and online evaluations of her, as a wife, mostly consist of terms like "ghost," “hyping," or "probably acting."
Before, she didn't mind; such matters are known only to oneself, and there's no need to advertise them.
It's only last month, after Jun Youyue started cramming up knowledge about love, that she realized Lu Xici is a public figure. After being married for several years without appearing together publicly, it naturally gives people the impression that they are not in love, thereby affecting Lu Xici.
There are too many such cases. To the point that now, when Jun Youyue thinks about keeping a romantic relationship private, her immediate reaction is that the person must be hiding something, possibly having a secret affair or hidden agenda.
Considering Lu Xici's reactions in several interviews on related topics, it's clear she cannot be indifferent to this matter.
Jun Youyue also recently realized why there's a vast difference between the version of her in Lu Xici's words and her real self.
She never showed any signs that she liked Lu Xici before, so Lu Xici didn't know, leading to these hurtful misunderstandings.
Now she wants to tell Lu Xici in every aspect that Jun Youyue likes Lu Xici.
Posting couple photos on Weibo is naturally one of them.
Jun Youyue didn't consider the benefits this would bring to her career, she just wanted to give Lu Xici a sense of security.
In terms of her career, she prefers to rely on herself. She's dealt with a favor from the Lu family before, and this time she believes in her ability to handle it.
"I have plans," Jun Youyue still declined this proposal.
She wants to take this opportunity to fish out the person behind it. Despite interacting for more than four years, she doesn't even know the other person's full name, only a guess. It's too passive; it would be strange not to get hit.
"Are you not going to leave me?" Jun Youyue turned to look at Lu Xici, hugging her again. The posture revealed caution, resembling a stray dog that had been re-adopted, afraid of being abandoned again.
Listening to her muffled sniffles, Lu Xici felt a bit distressed. "I won't. Before, I thought you didn't like me. Now that I know you... like me, I like... you too."
She still feels shy about confessing, to the point that even when Jun Youyue kisses her ear, she wonders if their relationship is progressing too quickly.
Today could be considered the first official day of their relationship. Shouldn't she be a bit reserved?
But the moment she thinks that, in Jun Youyue's eyes, they are already an old married couple, being reserved seems a bit pretentious and it might hurt Jun Youyue's feelings.
Lu Xici can't bear to do that.
When she had a "one-sided love," she wished she could tie up Jun Youyue, who stayed up all night and bring her home to rest, ensuring she ate and slept well. However, she struggled because she didn't have a clear position and hesitated to advise too much.
After a series of misunderstandings that hurt Jun Youyue's feelings, Lu Xici directly treated Jun Youyue as a delicate porcelain doll, carefully handling her actions to make amends for her previous behavior.
Even if Jun Youyue doesn't want her to pursue, she doesn't want to see her being treated unfairly.
Upon hearing the words "I like you too," Jun Youyue suddenly perked up.
She squirmed in Lu Xici's embrace and rubbed her face against Lu Xici's.
Lu Xici's body stiffened again due to this ambiguous gesture.
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In her mind, she was simultaneously exclaiming how adorable Jun Youyue was and how much she wanted to touch her head while being nervous about this physical contact.
Jun Youyue sensed Lu Xici's tension and deliberately stroked her back to help her relax a bit.
As a result, Lu Xici became even more flustered, straightening her back as if avoiding Jun Youyue's touch, yet not fully escaping it.
At that moment, there was a knock on the door.
Jun Youyue temporarily set aside her questions and followed Lu Xici to open the door.
The visitor was Tao Sheng. She wrapped herself up more securely than a celebrity. Before entering the room, she even looked around, as if checking for anyone watching or following in the shadows.
The exaggerated actions set off Lu Xici's professional radar, making her feel like this person might be acting.
It wasn't until Tao Sheng saw that Lu Xici was the one opening the door, with Jun Youyue behind her, that she stopped in her tracks.
She immediately took off her sunglasses, removed the scarf from her neck, and looked at Lu Xici with wide eyes.
"Sis, sis, sis, Sister-in-law, hello!"
The stuttering caused a momentary twitch at the corner of Lu Xici's mouth.
Thanks to Jun Youyue, she now associated Tao Sheng with the tan muscular man, making it hard for her to suppress a smile.
Tao Sheng solemnly handed a soothing throat lozenge to Lu Xici. Then, she turned to Jun Youyue and started wailing.
"You two finally made up. Wuwu, Mom's dream has come true. Baby, you must take care of each other."
Indeed, Tao Sheng was not only a fan of Lu Xici but also one of the few CP fans on the entire internet.
This was also the reason she hastily contacted Jun Youyue that day.
No one can dismantle her CP, not even Lu Xici herself!
Hearing this nickname, Lu Xici couldn't help but slap her forehead.
She knew that there were a handful of people who liked to call her Baby and call themselves Mom, but this was the first time she had seen such a creature in real life.
From the term "mom" to the association with Lu Tingyi and the thoughts triggered by seeing Tao Sheng, Lu Xici was struggling to keep a straight face.
"Don't call her that." Jun Youyue said, her tone returning to its previous cold tone.
She took the throat lozenge from Lu Xici's hand and turned to head to the kitchen.
"Does she talk to you like this too?" Tao Sheng was accustomed to being treated this way by Jun Youyue. In fact, she was quite surprised that Jun Youyue spoke to her at all, and with many words, no less.
Lu Xici was suddenly struck by a flashback, as if a radio was playing in her ears, and Jun Youyue's words "I like you, A’Ci" played over and over again.
A woman's voice, quite magnetic, especially when calling Lu Xici with a hundred percent affection, making it even more alluring.
Lu Xici blushed once again. She coughed to mask her embarrassment and shyness. "No."
"That's good… Baby, what's wrong with your voice?" Tao Sheng heard Lu Xici's hoarse voice and successfully misunderstood it.
"Jun Youyue! No wonder you asked me to bring throat lozenges. Can't you control yourself a bit? Your wife still needs to act! With her voice like this, how can she shoot?"
Jun and Lu both turned to look at Tao Sheng.
Jun Youyue was the first to react, and then she couldn't bear it anymore and threw a box of tissues at Tao Sheng. "Don't talk nonsense!"
Lu Xici was still in the dark.
She was hoarse from crying, what does it have to do with whether Jun Youyue can control herself or not?
By the time she realized it, Tao Sheng had already been chased away by Jun Youyue. She had only come to deliver some medicine, and couldn't stay for more than a few minutes.
Lu Xici bit her lip, hugging the pillow on the sofa, feeling both embarrassed and annoyed.
"Why does that person...have such a personality?"
A bit too bold.
To put it nicely, it's being overly familiar; to put it bluntly, it's a lack of boundaries.
But on second thought, those who are willing to be friends with Jun Youyue aren't the type who would be overly talkative and overly familiar. They can't stand being treated with a constant "Hmm," "No," "Okay" every day.
"I don't know," Jun Youyue stirred the mixed throat lozenge water and handed it to Lu Xici.
However, Tao Sheng did play a role in reconciling with Lu Xici.
"Shang Shixu is Tao Sheng's friend." Thinking of this, Jun Youyue took the opportunity to explain to Lu Xici.
"Oh..." Lu Xici finished the lozenge water. She had seen Shang Shixu's name in Jun Youyue's memoir-style love letter, and now, hearing Jun Youyue say this, she completely clarified the logical connections.
In essence, Shang Shixu herself discussed the blind date matter with Tao Sheng. Tao Sheng, upon learning that she had fallen out with Jun Youyue, encouraged Jun Youyue to use Shang Shixu as a vest to seduce her.
"I didn't mean to lie to you. I'm sorry." Jun Youyue sat next to Lu Xici and apologized very sincerely.
"No need to apologize..." Lu Xici touched the warm porcelain cup, feeling the change in tone. Suddenly, she realized that she had wasted quite a few good things from Jun Youyue.
"Thank you for persistently coming to find me despite being treated like that." She leaned into Jun Youyue's embrace willingly.
Now, only two minutes after drinking the lozenge water, Lu Xici's voice had mostly recovered, with hardly a trace of hoarseness.
"Mm. I like you." Jun Youyue embraced Lu Xici, still straightforward as ever.
"You, you don't have to emphasize it all the time." Lu Xici enjoyed hearing it in her heart, but it made her shy, so she began to refuse verbally again.
"Don't need to?" Jun Youyue was a bit confused.
Isn't it better to frequently express affection verbally for the other person to feel more secure?
Lu Xici remained silent, burrowing into Jun Youyue's embrace, feeling shy.
Jun Youyue understood. Lu Xici was saying one thing but meaning another. She enjoyed hearing it this way.
"A’Ci, be good." Jun Youyue patted Lu Xici's head.
Lu Xici successfully blushed, looking at Jun Youyue who seemed to want to say something but hesitated. In the instant their eyes met, she bit her lip, turning her face away awkwardly, a living embodiment of awkwardness.
She couldn't utter a single word until she had to go and prepare for makeup.
Jun Youyue wanted to follow Lu Xici.
Since she was also on hiatus and had nothing to do at the research institute, she decided to make a show of it, giving those who were watching her a spectacle.
Lu Xici thought for a moment, then got her a black mask and put it on.
"You can pretend to be my assistant." It worked out well since she hadn't hired a personal assistant before, and it seemed reasonable to have one now.
If anyone asked, she could say it was Lin Ni's suggestion.
It was Jun Youyue's idea not to let the public know about their reconciliation for the time being.
If necessary, they could even go to the civil affairs bureau together to file for divorce. However, Lu Xici firmly rejected this proposal.
Being an assistant is a great position, and we can be together. Jun Youyue was quite satisfied.
But she pointed at the mask, a bit puzzled.
"The film crew must have a mole," Lu Xici earnestly concocted a reason. She casually removed the hair tie from Jun Youyue's ponytail and handed over her own oversized coat to Jun Youyue.
In reality, Lu Xici didn't want too many people to see Jun Youyue's overly stunning appearance.
She was afraid that Jun Youyue might attract more rotten peach blossoms and this time, it could even come from the same gender.
Jun Youyue found this answer quite reasonable, didn't inquire further, and followed Lu Xici, helping her with bags and clothes, dutifully playing the role of an assistant.
Author's Note:
They are both so cute, hehehe...