The poppy remained tucked behind Shen Wang’s ear the whole way back. Gu Shengsheng had completely forgotten about it while pushing the wheelchair. The wheels rolled over the ground, crushing the bodyguards’ dropped jaws along the way.
A new batch of bodyguards stood at the door—all tall and burly like iron towers, but surprisingly mild-mannered. They usually helped Sister Li carry rice and do chores. One of the slower-witted ones couldn’t hold back. Before Shen Wang and Gu Shengsheng had gone far, he whispered, “Sir, there’s something in your hair…”
The others immediately kicked his words back down with a glare.
That night, Gu Shengsheng pushed Shen Wang to the bathroom. One sitting, one standing, they washed up side by side in front of the mirror.
Shen Wang wiped his face with a hot towel. The steam brought a faint flush to his jade-pale skin. Gu Shengsheng kept stealing glances at him, giggling to herself the more she looked.
Shen Wang pretended not to notice. After washing up, when Gu Shengsheng helped him back to bed, he suddenly flipped her underneath him.
Gu Shengsheng let out a startled yelp. “W-what are you doing…”
Shen Wang loomed over her. The light fell from behind him, casting his sharp features in shadow—dark, unfathomable, and faintly menacing. With his other hand, he brushed his temple. Between his long, jade-like fingers appeared a single blood-red flower.
“…” Gu Shengsheng surrendered immediately. “I was wrong.”
Shen Wang’s lips curved. His teeth gleamed white, carrying a cold edge. “You were wrong? Hm?”
Gu Shengsheng didn’t understand how a sick person could have so much strength. Shen Wang’s hand was like an iron clamp—or a wolf’s paw pinning its prey—biting down on her throat with overwhelming dominance.
“I just thought it looked really pretty… The poppy is red…” Gu Shengsheng tried to explain, but seeing his expression, she slowly closed her mouth.
Shen Wang placed the poppy against her lips. His thumb slowly crushed the petal. The flower had been off the stem for a while; the edges had curled slightly. It felt soft, like velvet.
Very soft—but nothing compared to the lips beneath it.
Gu Shengsheng pressed her lips tightly together. Her almond eyes grew wider and wider. Only when she tasted a faint bitterness did she finally react and struggle. “Mmph…”
Feeling her tiny, restless movements, Shen Wang deliberately increased the pressure. The soft poppy petal was crushed into vivid red juice, releasing the flower’s characteristic scent—green, slightly sweet, and raw.
Mist gathered in Gu Shengsheng’s eyes. An indescribable feeling raced up her spine, making the delicate skin on her neck tremble faintly.
But the next second, Shen Wang let go.
“If there’s a next time…” His magnetic voice drew out slowly—calm, elegant as always—leaving plenty of room for her imagination.
Gu Shengsheng sat up after a long moment. She wiped her mouth. A faint red smear appeared on the back of her snow-white hand.
Shen Wang lay face-down on the bed, arms folded under his cheek. Gu Shengsheng knelt beside him and worked hard to massage his shoulders and back.
She had seen this in videos: people who stayed in bed for long periods often developed bedsores, and poor blood circulation caused many problems over time.
Shen Wang had been bedridden for so long that the muscles in his shoulders and neck were extremely stiff and blocked. Gu Shengsheng kneaded and pressed with all her skill, determined to turn his rock-hard muscles into soft dough.
In a deliberately silly voice imitating lowbrow videos, she said, “Boss, is this your first time at our shop? Are you satisfied with my service? Would you like to get a membership card?”
Shen Wang kept his eyes closed, expression neutral. “If your tongue isn’t needed, you can donate it to someone who does.”
Gu Shengsheng snapped back to normal, pouting pitifully. “My hands are so sore…”
Shen Wang gave a cold snort. “Keep going.”
“Wuwu…” Gu Shengsheng drooped her head. “I was wrong. I won’t dare again. Worst case, tomorrow you can stick flowers in my hair too.”
Shen Wang raised an eyebrow.
Gu Shengsheng immediately changed tack. “I’ll make you soup instead. I picked lots of flame tree blossoms—they’re great for clearing dampness when boiled with pork bones and job’s tears. Don’t like that? Osmanthus cake? Crabapple crisps? Rose steamed buns?”
Shen Wang now hated hearing the word “flower” more than anything. He immediately grabbed Gu Shengsheng by the back of the neck and pressed her into the quilt, kneading and rubbing her thoroughly. Gu Shengsheng laughed and gasped for breath, clutching his wrist and kicking her legs wildly.
The soft mattress rippled like water.
This familiar rhythm gave Shen Wang a sudden, absurd feeling. He had lived more than twenty years and never imagined that one day he would roll around in bed with a woman… and yet nothing at all would actually happen.
Gu Shengsheng’s intelligence level made it truly impossible for him to develop any other kind of desire. It felt exactly like dealing with a beautiful, hyper little milk kitten: when it annoyed him too much, all he wanted to do was mess up its pretty fur, pinch its tender pink ear tips, and tease it until it waved its paws and meowed in protest.
That faint stirring of desire Shen Wang calmly judged to be nothing more than a natural bodily reaction.
Shen Wang had always been a light sleeper. In the past, he relied on sleeping pills year-round just to rest. Now, with an extra person in the bed, he actually slept soundly for several nights in a row. He cherished this rare drowsiness. When Gu Shengsheng quietly slipped out of his arms, Shen Wang only tilted his head slightly and continued sleeping peacefully.
Gu Shengsheng covered the phone receiver, gently tucked the blanket around Shen Wang, then tiptoed into the bathroom to take the call.
“Gu Shengsheng! You finally picked up!” A loud, booming female voice rang out.
Gu Shengsheng had just woken up, her mind still foggy. Being scolded right off the bat put her in a bad mood. “Who are you?”
The other side clearly choked for a second. “…It’s me! You’ve only been married into a wealthy family for a few days and you already don’t recognize your own manager? What is this—one moment you’re a dragon in the sky, the next you’re mud under ordinary people’s feet?”
“Oh, Sister Long.” Gu Shengsheng finally remembered.
Ever since Gu Shengsheng arrived in this world, Sister Long had never once appeared—so much so that she had completely forgotten she still had an artist contract.
Sister Long spoke in a businesslike tone: “Come next Monday for the Chaoge audition. I’m giving you a heads-up in advance—don’t even think about the female lead. I had to beg and bargain just to get you the female third role. If you cause trouble like last time, just pay the breach-of-contract penalty and get lost!”
She paused, then softened slightly. “Sister Long still has high hopes for you. Don’t let me down.”
“…Thank you, Sister Long.” Gu Shengsheng was stunned. After hanging up, she stared blankly into the mirror.
In the original book, Sister Long had sent Gu Shengsheng a lawyer’s letter three months later, demanding 30 million in breach-of-contract damages—and never gave her any audition opportunity at all.
Where exactly had things gone wrong? She couldn’t act at all… but she also couldn’t afford 30 million in compensation.
Gu Shengsheng worriedly kneaded the dough. She added red-heart dragon fruit juice to the snow-white flour, turning it a soft rose pink after mixing. She rolled the dough into small round portions, flattened them into thin discs, then stacked and rolled them up one by one.
Her slender fingers moved nimbly. In the palm of her hand appeared a lifelike rose.
Gu Shengsheng looked very pleased with herself and glanced toward Shen Wang sitting by the window. He was slowly feeding himself a piece of dragon fruit with a silver fruit fork. A touch of bright red stained his lips. He showed no reaction at all to her gaze.
Gu Shengsheng knew he was aware she was looking—he just didn’t want to acknowledge it. She had seen this exact attitude far too many times from that black cat.
Hmph. Gu Shengsheng turned her head away. Fortunately, even though Shen Wang wouldn’t praise her, the barrage was as supportive as ever.
【Peanut Candy hst: God-tier looks! Do these beautiful buns really exist in real life?】
【Kumquat Lemon No Ice: The fairy’s cooking is on another level!】
【Yun Xian Zhi: Wuwuwuwu my plain dry bread suddenly doesn’t smell good anymore】
【Sand Sculpture Laughs Loudly: I feel like I’ve learned it again!】
【Don’t Startle the Birds: No, upstairs—you need to wake up!】
Gu Shengsheng placed the rose-shaped steamed buns into the steamer. Then she took a large bowl of dried rose petals, sprinkled them with white sugar, and used a rolling pin to crush the petals and sugar together.
“You have to do it gently—don’t mash the rose petals too much. The flavor won’t be affected, but it’ll look ugly. Yes, our little fairies all love things to be pretty.”
This task required a lot of patience. Gu Shengsheng ground slowly. The fragrance of rose petals drifted out, and the white sugar gradually took on a rosy tint. Looking at the bowl of soft, vivid red petals, Gu Shengsheng suddenly remembered something. A blush crept belatedly across her cheeks.
Even brighter than the rose petals.
Unfortunately, Shen Wang couldn’t see this breathtaking beauty. He only tapped lightly on the table with his finger. Gu Shengsheng immediately snapped out of it and hurried over.
The live stream was still running. Afraid the viewers would hear, Gu Shengsheng leaned close to Shen Wang’s ear and spoke in a tiny, soft voice, her gentle tone and warm breath brushing against him: “What’s wrong?”
Shen Wang’s lips curved slightly, half-smiling, half-not. “Little fairy?”
Gu Shengsheng puffed up proudly. “That’s me!”
Shen Wang nodded, showing no trace of sarcasm. “The tea’s gone cold, little fairy.”
Gu Shengsheng was called “little fairy” by her viewers every day and had grown used to accepting the nickname. But hearing it from Shen Wang’s mouth made her feel strangely embarrassed.
She poured out the cooled rose tea and brewed a fresh hot cup for Shen Wang. “It’ll be a little hot—wait before drinking so you don’t burn your tongue, okay?”
It took Gu Shengsheng quite a while to reappear on camera.
【Tamago Roll: Was Shengsheng refilling water for the kitty? So gentle!】
【Wandering State: For a moment I don’t know whether to envy the little fairy or the cat】
【Rice Box: Let’s bet on what breed the host’s cat is! Ragdoll = 1, Siamese = 2, British Shorthair = 3…】
The fans were completely convinced Gu Shengsheng had a cat. Every day they tirelessly mentioned Wangzai in the barrage, making Gu Shengsheng feel like she really did own a picky, high-maintenance, aristocratic cat.
The rose petal paste was finally ground evenly. Gu Shengsheng rolled out the prepared oil pastry dough, wrapped a portion of rose filling inside, sealed it, and flattened it. She made twenty rose flower pastries in total and sent them into the oven.
At the same time, a steaming pot of rose steamed buns came out. The buns were perfectly fluffy and risen; the rose color was gentler and brighter than anything red yeast rice could produce. Paired with rose petal jam and rose tea, every bite left the mouth filled with delicate fragrance.
Shen Wang didn’t have much of a sweet tooth, so he only dipped his bun lightly in a bit of rose petal jam. Gu Shengsheng, on the other hand, tore off a piece of the piping-hot steamed bun, rolled it generously in the jam, and popped it into her mouth. The rich, fragrant sweetness instantly filled her entire palate.
She wrapped herself in a soft wool cardigan, curled up in the chair with her knees drawn in, and chatted with Xi Xue’er while eating.
“I’m on set right now and I’m freezing like a grasshopper this morning. I’m dying of cold. Why are you up so early too?”
“I’m making breakfast.”
“My God, did I hear that right? Shengsheng, even though that scumbag Shen Tingchen is messing around with that scheming woman, you mustn’t drive yourself crazy! I heard Mingzhu just launched the Thermage 6—I want you to get one. It’ll improve your image and your mood!”
Gu Shengsheng wasn’t great at typing, and Xi Xue’er was too cold to type either, so they switched to voice messages. Gu Shengsheng even put it on speaker, and Shen Wang heard every word. He looked at her with an expression that clearly said “what an idiot,” leaving Gu Shengsheng both frustrated and speechless.
Xi Xue’er kept nagging: “Shengsheng, your nose looked so good after you got it done last time. I still regret it now, you…”
Gu Shengsheng quickly cut off the voice message and said irritably, “Didn’t I warn you not to mess around with that anymore? I made some rose petal cakes to nourish your skin—I’ll send you some later.”
“Alright, alright. I didn’t expect that after everything, Shengsheng would turn to honing her culinary skills and… Oh my god! Are you a ghost? Who are you trying to scare to death by standing there like that?!” Xi Xue’er suddenly yelled.
Gu Shengsheng asked curiously, “What’s wrong?”
After a long commotion on the other end, Xi Xue’er’s voice finally came back: “It’s that Gu Yunyan again! Dressed all in white like a female ghost, she stood silently behind me, eavesdropping on my phone call. She’s insane! Before I could even react, she started whining. What’s wrong with her?! I got so angry I gave her a good scolding—it was basically revenge for you!”
I clearly told Xi Xue’er not to provoke Gu Yunyan…
“Hey, you…” Gu Shengsheng glanced at Shen Wang sitting across from her, then hesitated to continue.
Shen Wang ate his breakfast gracefully, not giving her a single glance or expression.
Gu Shengsheng swallowed her words, deciding it was better to talk in person later. She said instead, “Are you and An He free after filming today? I’ll bring you some rose petal cakes.”
Xi Xue’er agreed readily. “Sure! I can finish my scenes this morning. An He hasn’t been working lately—she’s at the hospital with her dad. Should we buy some things and go see her together?”
“Perfect.”
After hanging up, Gu Shengsheng rubbed her hands together and looked longingly at Shen Wang across the table. “Shen Wang, Shen Wang, I… I want to…”
Shen Wang frowned. “What are you thinking? Speak properly.”
“I want to go out and meet Xue’er and An He.” Gu Shengsheng’s tone was filled with obvious anticipation. Apart from that one trip to the plastic surgery clinic, she hadn’t left the house once since arriving.
Shen Wang paused for a moment. Finally, under Gu Shengsheng’s expectant gaze, he nodded.
Gu Shengsheng cheered and ran upstairs to change her clothes.
Are you really that happy just to go outside? Shen Wang tossed the half-eaten steamed bun aside, suddenly feeling a little bored.