Jiang Wanting had been photographed by a paparazzo, yet she remained completely unaware.
She was about to swipe her card to enter when the door to the room across from hers suddenly opened. Hearing the sound, Jiang Wanting turned to look.
It was a male celebrity.
Jiang Wanting found him somewhat familiar, yet she could not recall who he was.
Upon seeing Jiang Wanting’s face, the man froze for a moment. Who was she? How did she have Shen Zui’s room card?
Jiang Wanting did not have the habit of speaking to strangers. She entered the room and shut the door directly.
The girl’s appearance was not inferior to that of any female celebrity. Her almond-shaped eyes shone like stars, her nose was small, delicate, and refined, her lips were a soft pink, and her fair, flawless skin carried a faint rosy hue.
A trace of surprise flashed across the man’s eyes. It seemed he had uncovered some kind of secret—could this be the fiancée Shen Zui had officially announced?
…
After Shen Zui finished filming, his manager Wang Shan habitually opened the trending topics and scrolled through them. To her utter surprise, her own artist was trending.
#Suspected Shen Zui’s fiancée appears at Hengdian Studios hotel#
#Shen Zui’s fiancée delivers food to Shen Zui late at night#
“Ah Zui, your fiancée seems to be trending.”
Shen Zui frowned and took his manager’s phone. It was a video. In the video, the girl was carrying a bag, wearing a TOD’S coat, and a crossbody LV bag, her figure slender and tall.
The video was only a little over ten seconds long. Seeing that her face had been blurred, Shen Zui inexplicably let out a breath of relief.
He returned the phone to his manager and took out his own.
Seeing his movement, Wang Shan exclaimed: ”My little ancestor, what are you trying to do?”
Shen Zui ignored her, quickly typed a message, checked it, and then pressed send.
【Shen Zuiv: I do not want my private life to be magnified on the internet. I do not want this to happen again!】
After posting on Weibo, Shen Zui exited the app and leaned back in his seat, closing his eyes to rest.
Wang Shan carefully reviewed his newly posted Weibo. After confirming there was nothing inappropriate, she sighed softly. In truth, he had no need to post that statement at all.
He was not the only one staying at that hotel, and the topic even used the word “suspected.” The person who posted it was clearly just chasing traffic.
#Shen Zui responds# rose to the trending list within minutes.
Under the topic, many onlookers were posting on Weibo.
【AnranWhispersV: A real man @Shen Zui】
【XiaoyeFromZuizui’sFamilyV: What should I do? Sister-in-law looks so pretty! I really want to know what my brother is like when he’s in love.】
【YuzuTeaPouchV: This statement is too sweet! Sister-in-law dresses so well! She even has a limited-edition LV bag. I’m so jealous. [crying]】
【XiuxiuLovesDrinkingV: I’m crying so hard—it really feels like true love. He didn’t even have to post this on Weibo. [pitiful]】
【DrunkOrMaybeNotV: Focus more on the artist’s work. Pay less attention to his private life. As fans, it’s enough that he’s happy.】
Meanwhile, the person involved, Jiang Wanting, remained completely unaware that she was trending.
At that moment, Jiang Wanting was soaking in the bath. After a full day of classes, she was quite tired.
H City, nearing December, had already entered deep winter. It was dry and cold—it felt as though snow would fall before long.
Thinking about how Shen Zui still had to film summer scenes in such cold weather, Jiang Wanting could not help but feel a pang of sympathy for him.
When Shen Zui returned to the hotel, more than a dozen paparazzi were crouched at the entrance with full equipment. Expressionless, he put on a cap and mask, got out of the car, and strode into the hotel with long steps.
He swiped his card and entered the elevator. Just as the doors were about to close, the sharp sound of high heels approached rapidly.
Hearing the footsteps, Shen Zui casually pressed the elevator button.
Zhao Xizi stepped inside. Seeing that it was Shen Zui, she paused for a moment. “Thank you!”
Recognizing her, Shen Zui gave a polite nod.
“Shen Zui, my assistant bought some food. Would you like some?” Zhao Xizi smiled at him, her every movement graceful. “If you want, I can have my assistant deliver it to your room.”
“No need, thank you.”
With a “ding.” the elevator stopped. Shen Zui glanced at Zhao Xizi. “We’ve arrived. See you.”
Zhao Xizi nodded and said goodbye as well. She lowered her head, staring absentmindedly at her high heels.
In truth, she had not known Shen Zui before. They had only met because of their collaboration on a film—her first movie since rising to fame. She had acted before, but audiences often said her face was not suited for the big screen.
After interacting with Shen Zui, she found that he was not like what people said online. His temperament leaned more toward aloof and cool, like a flower blooming on a distant peak.
When Shen Zui returned to his hotel room, he did not see Jiang Wanting. Looking at the coat and bag on the sofa, and the food box on the coffee table, he realized that she had not been joking back then—she had truly come to Hengdian Studios.
Jiang Wanting had soaked in the bath for nearly half an hour. She walked out of the bathroom while drying her hair.
Seeing the person in the room, her eyes lit up, and her voice carried a hint of excitement she herself did not notice. “You’re back!”
The girl looked at him with starry black eyes. Shen Zui felt somewhat uncomfortable under her gaze and nodded.
She was wearing a white bathrobe, with disposable slippers on her feet. The robe fell just below her knees, revealing her slender, fair calves. Her hair was slightly damp.
Jiang Wanting quickly wrapped her hair in a towel and went to sit on the sofa. “I learned from Rong Ma how to make some sushi. Try it and see if it tastes good.”
“Alright.”
“Well? Is it good?” Jiang Wanting tilted her head, looking at him expectantly.
Shen Zui swallowed the sushi in his mouth and said calmly: ”It’s alright.”
Hearing this, a trace of disappointment flashed across Jiang Wanting’s eyes. She picked up a piece herself. It was indeed just alright—not particularly delicious, but not bad either.
“What happened to your face?” Jiang Wanting carefully noticed a thin, long wound on Shen Zui’s left cheek. The injury looked fresh, as if it had not yet been treated.
Shen Zui paused slightly, holding the sushi, and replied indifferently: ”It’s nothing. I accidentally got hurt while filming a fight scene.”
Hearing that, Jiang Wanting muttered softly: ”How could you be so careless? Such a good-looking face—you can’t let it get ruined.”
Shen Zui: “…”
Jiang Wanting was quite close to him. Even though her voice was low, he still heard it.
“Let me disinfect it for you. It’ll heal faster that way.” After saying this, Jiang Wanting went straight to look for a medical kit.
A five-star hotel should have one.
He had intended to say it was unnecessary, but before he could speak, the girl had already gone to find it. Whether he treated it or not did not matter much anyway—tomorrow’s scene required Gu Yao’s cheek to be injured.
Jiang Wanting returned with the medical kit, took out cotton swabs and disinfectant. “It might hurt a little, bear with it.”
The girl suddenly leaned in closer. Shen Zui’s breathing paused inexplicably as a faint fragrance drifted into his nose—the scent of gardenias.
“It’ll be done soon.”
Across two lifetimes, this was the first time Jiang Wanting had been in such close contact with a man. The fingers holding the cotton swab trembled slightly.
“Done.” After disinfecting the wound, Jiang Wanting gently blew on it, threw the cotton swab into the trash, and turned to walk into the bathroom.