Best Actress A and Her White Moonlight - Chapter 10

Gu Chenxing’s hand tightened slightly around the glass, her heart turning into a puddle of softness. “Lin Wanchun, thank you.”

If it weren’t for Lin Wanchun, she would likely still be drowning in the sorrow of discovering her parents’ true colors. She probably wouldn’t even be able to think clearly about her own future, let alone meet a legendary figure like Wu Huasheng.

Lin Wanchun froze. Strands of hair fell loosely across her forehead, a few longer ones brushing against her eyelashes and forcing her to blink softly. This dazed expression shattered her usual image of steady composure, revealing a glimpse of the flustered, lost girl underneath.

It was a fresh sight; this was the first time Gu Chenxing had seen such a transparent expression on Lin Wanchun’s face.

The sound of crisp footsteps echoed behind them. Lin Wanchun turned around with a hint of escapism, seeing Wu Huasheng approaching while hanging up her phone.

“Teacher Wu, would you like to get something to eat?” Lin Wanchun checked her phone. It was just past 2:00 PM; if Wu Huasheng had come straight here by train, she likely hadn’t eaten.

“No need.” Wu Huasheng waved her hand, her eyes betraying a sense of exhaustion and resignation. “Since the music store is right across the street, why don’t we go take a look?”

She didn’t wait for the two of them, heading straight for the exit. After a couple of steps, she stopped. “Xiao Lin, you don’t need to tag along for this, right?”

Lin Wanchun’s movement to stand up paused briefly. Under Wu Huasheng’s slightly cold, scrutinizing gaze, she slowly sat back down. Her expression remained unchanged, completely unaffected by Wu Huasheng’s mood. “Of course, Teacher Wu.”

“Eh—?” Gu Chenxing watched Wu Huasheng walk out of the hotel with wide eyes, then hurriedly looked back at Lin Wanchun. But Lin Wanchun clearly had no intention of following; she even smiled and gave her a small wave.

Left with no choice, Gu Chenxing could only follow Wu Huasheng out, looking back over her shoulder every few steps like a fledgling bird reluctant to leave the nest.

Lin Wanchun let out a soft chuckle. She recalled the look Wu Huasheng had given her as she left—it was filled with coldness and suspicion.

She wondered what Wu Huasheng’s partner had said on the phone. They had likely investigated her identity, hadn’t they?

A mysterious person with no past who knew many closely guarded secrets—anyone would find that dangerous.

Lin Wanchun rubbed her temples. Notifications were blowing up her phone, but she couldn’t be bothered to look, instead slowly sipping the water that had already gone cold.

She had always been a patient person. Sitting alone in the quiet hotel lobby didn’t feel uncomfortable; she simply waited for Gu Chenxing to bring back good news.

But sitting there with nothing to do, her thoughts inevitably strayed.

After two days together, Gu Chenxing had almost entirely stopped doubting her. However, getting Gu Chenxing to naturally accept living with a fully-grown, top-tier Alpha would likely still be a difficult hurdle.

Lin Wanchun lowered her eyes, her fingertip lightly tapping the glass. The calm surface of the water rippled into tiny circles, gathering from the edges toward the center.

She became acutely aware of her own danger as an Alpha, and a faint sense of annoyance rose in her heart.

The aftereffects of her pheromone eruption hadn’t completely subsided. Having used suppressants for ten consecutive years, her body had long since developed a resistance to standard ones, and the high-potency suppressants were damaging to her gland…

She recalled the doctor’s warning, and the color of her eyes deepened. She couldn’t—and wouldn’t—bring danger to Gu Chenxing.

The side lobby of the hotel offered an excellent view; the polished glass windows happened to provide a clear sight of the music store’s entrance.

The two had entered with a wide gap between them, looking like strangers on the street, but when they came out, the distance had closed significantly.

Gu Chenxing’s cheeks were slightly flushed, and she was chirping away at Wu Huasheng’s side, her eyes and face filled with irrepressible excitement.

Lin Wanchun couldn’t quite describe the feeling. She had spent days trying to close the distance and lower Gu Chenxing’s guard, yet Wu Huasheng had managed to make Gu Chenxing “surrender” in just an hour?

It really was…

“Lin Wanchun!” Gu Chenxing waved toward the hotel from a distance, showing no trace of her previous awkwardness.

This time, Gu Chenxing was getting into music earlier. With Wu Huasheng guiding her, she should be able to avoid many detours, right?

Lin Wanchun suppressed the subtle displeasure in her heart and stood up to meet them.

After a few brief pleasantries, Wu Huasheng waved her hand, saying she was tired and going back to rest. Hearing this, Gu Chenxing hurriedly waved goodbye: “Okay, Teacher! See you tomorrow!”

The word “Teacher” came out so naturally that even Lin Wanchun blinked in surprise. Wu Huasheng took it in stride, smiling as she replied, “See you tomorrow, Gu Xingxing.”

Once Wu Huasheng was out of sight, Gu Chenxing turned her attention to Lin Wanchun. Rare as it was, she saw a look of confusion on Lin Wanchun’s face. She asked curiously, “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.” Lin Wanchun averted her gaze and turned toward the hotel parking lot. Light footsteps followed behind her; Gu Chenxing kept pace, and with just a slight tilt of the head, Lin Wanchun could see her.

Having found her voice, Gu Chenxing wasn’t satisfied with such a perfunctory answer. She caught up to walk side-by-side with Lin Wanchun. “What is it? You look a bit unhappy.”

Even though Lin Wanchun’s expression hadn’t changed much, Gu Chenxing was sharp enough to sense her mood.

“Weren’t you terrified of Wu Huasheng before?” How long has it been, and now you’re acting like a starstruck little fan?

Lin Wanchun swallowed the second half of that overly sour sentence. She lowered her eyelids, staring at the hem of Gu Chenxing’s coat as it swayed with her steps.

“It wasn’t fear!” Gu Chenxing scratched the back of her head, giving a shy smile. “Who wouldn’t be nervous meeting a master you’ve only ever heard of?”

“But I found out Teacher Wu is actually a great person. She even knows how to play the drums! So cool!”

Lin Wanchun pressed the unlock button. The car parked in the corner beeped twice. The lighting in the underground garage was dim; when the headlights flashed, it made them instinctively squint.

“She’s a great person?” Lin Wanchun repeated with an unreadable tone, but then affirmed it before Gu Chenxing could speak. “She is.”

In the future, when Gu Chenxing was drowning in a swamp of public backlash and everyone else avoided her like the plague, only Wu Huasheng—who had only collaborated with her twice—posted a blog saying that before the evidence was clear, no public condemnation should be allowed.

Though those brief words were ultimately futile given the situation back then, Lin Wanchun was still grateful. Wu Huasheng would speak up for a mere acquaintance like Gu Chenxing back then; now that Gu Chenxing was her actual student…

If things like that happened again in the future, Gu Chenxing wouldn’t be left in such an isolated, helpless position.

The drive back was quiet. Gu Chenxing yawned, huddled in the passenger seat, drifting in and out of sleep. In her groggy state, she tilted her head to stare at Lin Wanchun’s profile.

The sharp, defined jawline should have looked aggressive, but perhaps because Lin Wanchun exuded a sense of lazy relaxation, her entire aura had softened.

Drowsiness emboldened her, allowing her to stare at Lin Wanchun blatantly and unblinkingly. She even discovered with a start that there was a tiny red mole on Lin Wanchun’s jawline.

The cinnabar speck was tucked right at the edge of her jaw. Usually, it was hidden away, bashfully avoiding being seen, but now it was exposed to the air, making one’s heart itch.

Gu Chenxing frowned slightly, an indescribable urge rising in her heart—she wanted to touch that mole.

The windows were tightly shut, and the warm air from the AC puffed against her face. The stuffy air made her already sleepy brain even duller. Her scattered consciousness blurred the sense of distance, quietly erasing the rules of social etiquette.

The index finger that usually danced across black and white keys lightly tapped that spot of cinnabar. The slight protrusion sent a sensation through her fingertip to her brain; her craving was satisfied, and her furrowed brow smoothed out without her realizing it.

The car came to a steady stop behind a crosswalk. Lin Wanchun looked at the red light—it had nearly a minute left—and turned her head.

Gu Chenxing’s muddled brain didn’t react immediately. Her index finger lifted slightly and pressed down on the tiny red mole once more. Her pink lips slowly spread into a grin; she laughed without any restraint, like a child who didn’t know how to hide her emotions.

“What are you…” Lin Wanchun let go of the steering wheel, a hint of confusion flashing in her eyes. She hesitated for a moment before asking slowly, “Doing?”

Gu Chenxing’s eyes were unfocused. Her dazed, almost drunken appearance made Lin Wanchun suspicious: Wu Huasheng wouldn’t have given a minor alcohol, would she? And there shouldn’t be alcohol for sale in a music store.

“Right here.” The upturned corners of her mouth slowly dropped. Gu Chenxing stopped smiling, her expression becoming more serious than ever before.

Lin Wanchun was baffled, her gaze burning as she waited for Gu Chenxing to continue.

“There’s a mole.” Gu Chenxing let go, a brilliant, silly grin appearing on her face again. “So special.”

“?”

Before Lin Wanchun could say anything, the light turned green. She slowly stepped on the gas while simultaneously pressing a button on the door.

The passenger-side window slid down. As the car sped up, a blast of cold air rushed in, howling and sending Gu Chenxing’s already messy hair flying wildly.

“Ah!”

Gu Chenxing shrank her neck back from the cold, covering her ears and ducking below the window line. “What? What are you doing?!”

“Awake now?” Lin Wanchun glanced at the bird’s-nest hair on Gu Chenxing’s head. The upward curve of her lips betrayed her good mood, though she quickly hid it before Gu Chenxing could glare at her.

The window slid shut quickly. Once the cold wind stopped, Gu Chenxing sat up with a slight delay, mumbling under her breath, “What was that for? It’s freezing.”

She tidied her hair, which had been blown into a mess. Her tone was complainy, hidden in a low mumble—subtle, but Lin Wanchun caught it.

Facing forward, in Gu Chenxing’s blind spot, the corners of Lin Wanchun’s lips curled into a shallow arc. Mimicking Gu Chenxing’s tone, she complained half-seriously, “Exactly—what were you doing?”

Gu Chenxing’s brain finally started working. She blinked, remembering what she had done in her groggy state.

Heat climbed all the way up from her neck. She swallowed, staring at Lin Wanchun’s profile for a long time, unable to say a word.

What… what did I just do?!