This was an outdoor variety show focused on competitive travel and rural guesthouses. Judging by the costumes, it looked like they were filming in an ethnic minority region in the south.
In the opening sequence, Pei Yu emerged from a wooden cabin in a new outfit, her body and head adorned with intricate silver jewelry. She looked stunning.
However, in Shen Luoxi’s personal opinion, Pei Yu’s features were too cool and urban; she seemed better suited for a refined town in the lower Yangtze region than this specific tribal look. Of course, that was just Shen Luoxi’s thought; the fans in the comments were showering her with nothing but praise.
As the show officially began, Shen Luoxi realized she didn’t recognize any of the other celebrities besides Pei Yu. After all, these were fictional characters in a novel, not the stars she had grown up seeing in real life. To better understand this world and identify Pei Yu’s circle of friends, Shen Luoxi watched the show while looking up names on her phone.
About half an hour later, her phone rang. It was the delivery driver.
She exited her search history, slid her feet into her slippers, and headed for the door. “Hello? Yes, I’ll come down to get it now. One moment.”
Shen Luoxi stepped out and the door chimed as she left. She didn’t fully close it. While she was waiting for the elevator, Pei Yu was pressed against her bedroom door, listening to the sounds in the living room. Once she was certain it was quiet, she unlocked her door and peeked out. The living room was empty; only the TV was still on.
Shen Luoxi was gone; she had gone down to get the food.
Before she could return, Pei Yu sprinted into the kitchen and opened the double-door refrigerator. She grabbed an apple and a bottle of milk—she didn’t really have an appetite for anything else.
Items in hand, she rushed back toward her room. But as she passed the sofa, a paused image on the TV caught her eye. It was her.
Pei Yu’s footsteps slowed. She turned toward the screen in disbelief. She was actually watching my variety show?
This show had been filmed about a year ago. Pei Yu had participated alongside her male co-star to promote a new drama, and the ratings had been quite high. Compared to films or dramas, variety shows were easy to film and took very little time—an entire episode could be finished in a single day—and they were usually fun to do. Pei Yu had done a few more after that as a way to relax between projects.
The ratings for this episode were good, and some clips had even gone viral, but she couldn’t fathom why Shen Luoxi would go out of her way to watch it now. What was her game?
Ding. The elevator arrived at their floor. Shen Luoxi was running back with the takeout, sounding quite hurried. Realizing she was coming back, Pei Yu retreated into her room just a second before the front door opened.
This time, however, Pei Yu didn’t lock the door.
Shen Luoxi placed the takeout on the coffee table, kicked off her slippers, and unpaused the TV. She sat cross-legged on the rug and busied herself unpacking the white plastic bag, which contained a fragrant bowl of rice noodles.
With Pei Yu’s show playing in the background, Shen Luoxi ate and watched, finally feeling fully relaxed. The show was genuinely entertaining, and she watched with great interest.
Inside her room, Pei Yu leaned against the door, listening. The TV volume wasn’t low; she could hear the laughter of the guests and the sound of her own voice. Driven by curiosity, she cracked the door open just a sliver. She saw Shen Luoxi sitting on the rug, her long hair tied back with a rubber band, head down, happily slurping her noodles. She looked like she was truly enjoying herself.
Pei Yu was filled with questions. According to the old Shen Luoxi’s personality, she would have ordered a five-star meal from a restaurant to be delivered; she would never eat this kind of street food, let alone go down to fetch it herself. She was so different.
Still, this change was a blessing. At least she didn’t have to live in fear of being beaten.
Pei Yu stared at the back of Shen Luoxi’s head and whispered to herself, “Shen Luoxi, if you’ve really changed, stay this way forever. Don’t let the old Shen Luoxi ever come back.”
With that, she slowly closed the door and turned the lock.
Outside, the show continued. Shen Luoxi finished the bowl of noodles in no time.
The Lan Residence.
Ever since returning from the anniversary, Lan Yue had been brooding in silence, radiating an aura that warned everyone to stay away.
Shi Xiaoman stood in the foyer, watching Lan Yue huddled on the floor. She let out a nearly imperceptible sigh. She lowered herself onto one knee and placed a gentle hand on Lan Yue’s shoulder. “Get up. The floor is cold. I made some porridge for you.”
The incident at the auditorium had been sudden. No one expected Shen Luoxi to scold Lan Yue so publicly. It was unprecedented, which was likely why Lan Yue had taken it so hard.
Seeing that Lan Yue remained unresponsive, Shi Xiaoman tried again. “The food is on the table. Get up and eat it in a bit. I have classes at the school tomorrow, so I have to leave now.”
Shi Xiaoman had originally planned to stay at the school to prepare for her classes after the anniversary, but after the scene with Lan Yue, she had no choice but to follow her here.
Having said her piece, she stood up, grabbed her bag from the shoe cabinet, and reached for the door handle. But the moment her hand touched it, Lan Yue suddenly stood up and slammed Shi Xiaoman against the door from behind. She was exuding a heavy, oppressive orchid pheromone.
“Lan Yue!”
Shi Xiaoman’s wrists were pinned to the door. The orchid scent filled the air, and the glands at the back of her neck began to throb in response.
Lan Yue showed no mercy, gripping Shi Xiaoman’s wrists with painful force. “Are you still thinking about Pei Yu?” she hissed. “Shen Luoxi has had her in her bed for a year now; haven’t you given up on her yet?”
“Lan Yue…” Shi Xiaoman struggled, trying to break free from the iron grip, but her strength was no match for the Alpha. She eventually gave up. “Pei Yu and I are just teacher and student,” she said. “Nothing more. I care about her, and she cares about me—it’s that simple. Am I supposed to have something going on with every woman I walk with? Lan Yue, please, just be rational.”
“Rational?” Lan Yue’s eyes were fierce. “How can I be rational? Shen Luoxi… she actually dared to snap at me! And for Pei Yu? We grew up together; Shen Luoxi has never said a cross word to me in her life!”
This was indeed strange. Shi Xiaoman had heard about Shen Luoxi’s treatment of Pei Yu—it was similar to how Lan Yue treated her. So why would Shen Luoxi suddenly defend her?
Shi Xiaoman couldn’t explain it either. “If you have questions, go ask Shen Luoxi yourself,” she said. “I don’t know why she did it.”
“I will!” Lan Yue shouted, her orchid scent flaring with her rage.
Shi Xiaoman’s vision began to blur as her iris pheromones began to mingle with the orchid scent. It was like a spark landing on dry wood, ready to ignite the surrounding air.
“Lan Yue,” Shi Xiaoman whispered, struggling against the pheromones. “I have classes tomorrow. Can you… can you just let us rest tonight? I’ll come back to you after my classes tomorrow.”
She was pleading for just one night of peace. Otherwise, she wouldn’t be able to teach the next day.
Lan Yue let out a cold laugh. She pinned Shi Xiaoman’s hands behind her back and used the long chain from Shi Xiaoman’s own handbag to slowly bind her wrists.
“Backstage at the anniversary, you said that as long as we went back, I could do whatever I wanted with you. Now you’re saying wait until tomorrow? Teacher Shi, you make too many promises. I’m afraid you won’t be able to pay them back. Let’s start with tonight’s installment.”
Lan Yue finished binding her wrists and reached around to slowly unbutton Shi Xiaoman’s white shirt, revealing her collarbones. She leaned down and kissed them. “Teacher Shi’s body is as sweet as ever. Tonight… I’m going to enjoy myself. Very, very thoroughly.”
“Nnh…”
Lan Yue bit down on her collarbone, forcing a soft moan from Shi Xiaoman’s lips. Overwhelmed by shame at her own reaction, Shi Xiaoman gritted her teeth and fell silent, tears welling in her eyes.
Why do I have to endure this? Lan Yue, please… just let me go.
Lan Yue couldn’t hear her internal plea. She only wanted to possess her, to vent her internal rage. As her clothes fell away one by one, Shi Xiaoman closed her eyes in resignation, forced to endure everything Lan Yue forced upon her.
The night was long.
The next morning around 9:00 AM, Shen Luoxi got up and washed her face. She tied her hair back, put on an apron, and went into the kitchen to prepare breakfast for Pei Yu.
Today, Pei Yu was meeting the director and screenwriter for As Such, and Zhou Jing was picking her up at 10:00 AM. Shen Luoxi had set an early alarm to prepare a healthy, low-fat meal: broccoli, chicken breast, whole-grain bread, cucumber with eggs, and steamed pumpkin. It was a variety of foods but in small, controlled portions.
In her previous life, despite her limited mobility, Shen Luoxi loved to cook. She had even designed a specialized kitchen for herself. She moved efficiently now, prepping the chicken while the pumpkin steamed.
Pei Yu had gone to bed early, so she was up early too. She picked out an outfit from her walk-in closet and opened her bedroom door. Usually, she would peek through a crack first, but today, she stepped out directly.
Even Pei Yu herself was surprised. Do I really trust Shen Luoxi this much now?