Chapter 5

The person who spoke was Shen Yunqing.

Li Fu hadn’t expected her to come to her rescue, and she turned to look at her in a daze.

Shen Yunqing had her back to her. Even beneath an ordinary, fitted T-shirt, the graceful lines of her slender back were clearly visible.

How could someone make such an ordinary T-shirt look so good?

Li Fu couldn’t help wondering.

Shen Yunqing’s beauty was entirely different from Shen Zhaoni’s, but there was no denying that, despite their contrasting styles, both women were exceptionally gorgeous.

People often said that true beauty lay in one’s bone structure rather than surface appearance, but these two were the rare kind of beauties whose bone structure and features were both utterly flawless.

However, compared to Shen Zhaoni’s sharp, striking beauty, which was as fierce as a sword drawn from its sheath, Shen Yunqing seemed to possess a little less of that aggressive edge and a little more of an otherworldly, aloof elegance.

Someone like her ought to give the impression of being utterly detached from worldly desires.

If Li Fu hadn’t happened to occupy the position of her wife, she would have found it difficult to imagine what kind of person could stand beside Shen Yunqing without being overshadowed.

As she pondered this, her gaze involuntarily drifted toward Jin Shuyue, who stood a little ahead of her on the left.

They didn’t match.

No matter how she looked at them, they just didn’t seem suited to each other.

Were these two really the story’s destined couple?

For some inexplicable reason, a trace of doubt began to grow in Li Fu’s mind.

It wasn’t that Jin Shuyue was unattractive.

She certainly couldn’t be called ugly. At most, she simply wasn’t particularly outstanding among all these beauties. And Li Fu wasn’t someone who judged people by their looks, either.

But for some reason, whenever she imagined the two women standing together, she got the strange impression of plain water being mixed with more plain water.

Could it be the jealousy lurking within this body’s original instincts?

Forget it, forget it. No point overthinking things.

Li Fu shook her head, tossing all the messy thoughts out of her mind, and focused her attention on the person who had stepped in to save her.

With just one simple sentence, Shen Yunqing had drawn everyone’s attention toward the two of them.

Every guest present was now looking back and forth between them.

Li Fu kept her expression carefully composed, determined not to let anyone read anything from her face.

In reality, though, she was practically dying of curiosity herself.

Had Shen Yunqing anticipated the original owner’s outrageous behavior and prepared an extra set of gifts in advance?

She soon got her answer.

She’d guessed correctly.

Shen Yunqing gestured for Mi Ya to hand her the items from the bag.

The others craned their necks curiously to see what she was taking out.

Neither of the two gifts Shen Yunqing produced was particularly expensive, but both were exactly the sort of things the guests would appreciate.

“Isn’t that the peel-apart instant film that’s been so popular lately?”

Jiang Yu was the youngest person present and spent far more time keeping up with online trends than anyone else, so she was the first to recognize it.

Her words immediately drew almost everyone’s attention.

They’d all heard about the peel-apart instant photography craze sweeping the internet lately. Some had even had photos taken using the film themselves.

But if someone offered them a few extra sheets, nobody would turn them down.

Whether it was simply a scarcity marketing tactic or genuinely true, the rumor circulating everywhere was that this particular type of peel-apart instant film had already been discontinued.

Every photograph taken meant one fewer sheet left in existence.

As a result, not only had market prices been climbing steadily, but the quantity available for purchase was also extremely limited.

Jiang Yu had learned that lesson the hard way.

Because she was quick to catch on to online trends, she’d managed to reserve several sheets when the craze first started.

She’d initially used them to take solo photographs as a special treat for her fans.

Later, she’d wanted to take a few couple photos with her girlfriend, partly as a gift to their CP fans and partly as keepsakes for themselves.

Unfortunately, when she tried to purchase more, she was told the film had sold out.

A photographer she knew had confidently patted his chest and promised [Read on BaiLianTales]to search everywhere for a few more sheets.

In the end, he’d returned empty-handed.

Although her girlfriend had later assured her that she didn’t mind, Jiang Yu still felt a little disappointed.

So when she saw Shen Yunqing take out the film, her eyes immediately lit up.

She turned toward her girlfriend, and the two exchanged a glance, each seeing the same delighted surprise reflected in the other’s eyes.

“These are the gifts Li Fu prepared for everyone.”

Shen Yunqing handed the film to each guest in turn. Only after she’d finished distributing it did she smile and continue.

“And this is my gift.”

What she gave everyone was a small bottle containing something that resembled a skincare serum—gland-repair essence.

Although gland-repair essence wasn’t an especially expensive gift for people like them, it was ​Read on BaiLianTales​something they all needed.

“Thank you, Ms. Shen. That’s very thoughtful of you.”

Liang Peiyu was the first to express her gratitude, smiling warmly.

Participating in this variety show really had been the right decision.

She’d learned quite a lot already.

[Liang Peiyu is seriously good at reading the room, and I do NOT mean that as a compliment. Honestly, she’s way too calculating. What on earth does Shen Zhaoni see in her? (I don’t understand.jpg)]

[Isn’t that a little unfair? Why assume the worst of her… Maybe she genuinely thinks Best Actress Shen’s gift is thoughtful and wants to learn from her? After all, compared to this, the pajamas she gave everyone really do seem pretty useless…]

[??? What’s with the passive-aggressive comments up there? What’s wrong with pajamas? They’re still better than those weird exercise machines, aren’t they? Those things are bulky and useless.]

[? Our Jiang Yu didn’t even do anything… Besides, Xiaoyu genuinely wanted to recommend those machines, okay? It’s not like she just picked some random gift without putting any thought into it.]

[All right, can everyone stop arguing? There’s someone else whose gift was actually thoughtless. Am I seriously the only person who thinks a T-shirt covered in several people’s faces is weird? It’s cheap and useless.]

[+1. That thing serves absolutely no purpose other than forcing a sense of team spirit.]

[? Can we please have some normal people in here? Jin Shuyue was considerate enough to think about the entire group, and somehow that’s wrong now? Are you people insane? If you want to criticize someone, go criticize Li Fu! She didn’t even prepare any gifts! (eye-roll.jpg)]

[Seriously, does anyone actually believe Li Fu prepared that instant film? It’s obvious Best Actress Shen anticipated she’d cause trouble again and prepared two sets of gifts in advance…]

[Can Li Fu please learn to stand on her own two feet? Can Li Fu please learn to stand on her own two feet? Can Li Fu please learn to stand on her own two feet?]

[STOP LEECHING OFF SHEN YUNQING!!!]

It was only the first day of the broadcast, yet fans of the various guests were already beginning to sense that the show might turn into an opportunity to compare their favorites and tear down the competition.

Consequently, some of the more sensitive fans had already entered full defensive mode.

Fortunately, no matter how wildly the discussion veered off course, the moment someone brought Li Fu into it, everyone would immediately unite in condemning her.

Meanwhile, the person at the center of all this controversy had absolutely no idea how the comments were twisting and turning to find new ways to insult her.

She was still staring somewhat blankly at the gift in her hands.

“Wait, I get one of these too?”

Li Fu raised a finger and repeatedly sought confirmation from the woman in front of her, as though she could hardly believe it.

She hadn’t found it strange to receive gifts from any of the other guests today.

The only gift that genuinely surprised her was Shen Yunqing’s.

After all, she and Shen Yunqing were together!

None of the other couples had exchanged gifts with their own partners, either.

The woman she’d questioned maintained her usual cool, composed expression, but her tone was entirely matter-of-fact.

“Of course. There will always be a gift for you among mine.”

Li Fu felt her heart suddenly skip a beat.

Flustered, she hastily looked away and began muttering to herself.

Seriously, what was with this woman?

Why did she have to say always?

Was always really the kind of word you could casually say to someone who didn’t mean anything to you?