Foreseeing the Future: The Scheming Film Queen and I Got Married - Chapter 35

Gu Shiqiu glanced around, as if suddenly remembering something. “My phone seems to have been taken by Xiaowen.”

Dong Yao said, “Then use my phone to order.”

Gu Shiqiu said, “But we agreed that I’d buy you food.”

Dong Yao laughed. “What does that matter? Just use mine to order. You can treat me next time.”

As she spoke, Dong Yao took out her phone, opened the delivery app, first added what she wanted to eat into the cart, then looked up and asked, “What do you want to eat?”

“I’ll look myself,” Gu Shiqiu said.

Dong Yao handed the phone over.

Gu Shiqiu looked at the phone screen, her finger occasionally tapping it.

Gu Shiqiu took quite a while and still had not finished choosing. Dong Yao did not think much of it, simply assuming Gu Shiqiu had suddenly developed choice paralysis in the face of good food. She sometimes did the same.

Dong Yao waited patiently and did not rush her.

But as Gu Shiqiu kept choosing, why did she start typing?

Dong Yao asked, “What are you doing?”

Gu Shiqiu glanced at Dong Yao, smiled, and said nothing. She continued typing. Typing with one hand was a little inconvenient and slow.

Dong Yao leaned over, wanting to see what Gu Shiqiu was doing with her phone.

Just as her head moved closer, she heard a ding.

It was a phone notification, but it did not come from Dong Yao’s phone.

Just as she was wondering, Gu Shiqiu took out a phone from the other side of the bed.

Dong Yao froze. “Didn’t you say your phone was taken by Sister Xiaowen?”

Gu Shiqiu was very calm. “I lied to you.”

Dong Yao tugged at the corner of her mouth and accused, “Since when did you become this petty? I asked you to buy me food, and you just pretended you didn’t have your phone!”

Gu Shiqiu ignored Dong Yao, looked at her own phone, then continued operating Dong Yao’s phone.

Dong Yao was confused. Before she could ask, she heard Gu Shiqiu say, “All done.”

“What?” Dong Yao took back the phone Gu Shiqiu returned to her. “You finished ordering?”

Gu Shiqiu gave an “mm.” “It’s ordered.”

Dong Yao glanced at the phone screen. It had indeed been ordered. Gu Shiqiu had ordered a serving of chicken soup and plain congee.

“You’re only eating this?” Compared with Dong Yao’s large portion of rice, two meat dishes, plus a grilled sausage, Gu Shiqiu’s little bird stomach was absurd.

Gu Shiqiu said, “I like this.”

“All right.” Dong Yao nodded.

She still felt as if something was off.

After quite a while, Dong Yao reacted. She took out her phone and looked. The order had succeeded, but why had there been no payment notification?

Dong Yao opened the payment screen and saw that the payment had indeed gone through. Looking more carefully, the bank card used for payment was not her own bank card.

This was a newly linked card, and it had even been set as the default password-free priority payment method.

Dong Yao said, “Just now… you linked a card to my phone?”

Gu Shiqiu nodded and gave an “mm.”

“Why did you link this?” Dong Yao asked.

Gu Shiqiu said, “Didn’t you ask me to buy you food? This way, whatever you want to eat, you can buy it directly.”

Dong Yao said, “I just said that casually. Why did you even link a card?”

“But I didn’t casually agree,” Gu Shiqiu replied.

Dong Yao’s brain lagged for a moment. She looked at the linked card, then at Gu Shiqiu. “So, does this card have a limit?”

Gu Shiqiu said, “No.”

Dong Yao said, “Aren’t you afraid I’ll take out a hundred and seventy or eighty thousand and run away with the money?”

Gu Shiqiu smiled. “Add a few more zeros. Take a bit more. It’s fine. I have quite a lot of money, so I’m not afraid.”

Dong Yao choked. “So just now, when you lied and said your phone had been taken by Sister Xiaowen, it was so you could link this for me?”

Gu Shiqiu gave an “mm.”

“I’ve discovered that you’re especially good at spouting nonsense with a completely serious face. You were like this when you added me on WeChat before too.” Dong Yao shot her a look.

Gu Shiqiu raised her brows, seeming to quite agree with Dong Yao’s statement.

Dong Yao lowered her head and looked at the phone, preparing to unlink the card. Just as she was about to press the confirmation button, she heard Gu Shiqiu say, “If you unlink it, I’ll get angry.”

Dong Yao’s finger paused, and she raised her head. “You can get angry?”

Gu Shiqiu said very seriously, “I can. I promised to treat you to food, so I must treat you. You saved my life, and you don’t want me to give you a silk banner, so of course I have to thank you another way. From now on, whenever you order food, use this card.”

Dong Yao said, “Why did you take it seriously? I was joking. Besides, who treats someone to meals by linking a card?”

“There are people who do. Didn’t I just demonstrate it for you?” Gu Shiqiu said.

Dong Yao: “…”

“Gu Shiqiu, even if you’re foolish and have too much money, this isn’t how you should be. Acting like this, I seriously suspect all your family assets will be scammed away someday,” Dong Yao said, amused.

Gu Shiqiu murmured, “Other people can’t scam me. I just want to spend it on you.”

Her voice was too quiet, and Dong Yao did not hear clearly. “Huh? What did you just say?”

Just then, there was a knock at the door.

Dong Yao looked toward the sound.

Gu Shiqiu said, “Come in.”

Xiaowen pushed the door open. “Sister Shiqiu, is this the delivery you ordered?”

Gu Shiqiu nodded and asked, “Xiaowen, have you eaten?”

“I already ate,” Xiaowen said.

Xiaowen placed the delivery bags on the table. “Do you need me to open them?”

“No, no. I’ll do it.” Dong Yao walked over and began untying the delivery bags. “Sister Xiaowen, do you want to eat a little more? I ordered quite a lot.”

Xiaowen shook her head. “Thank you. I’m already very full. You two eat. I’ll head out first. Call me anytime if anything comes up.”

After saying that, Xiaowen left.

As Dong Yao opened the delivery bags, she said, “Why does Sister Xiaowen keep going outside? She only comes in for a little while, then leaves. Why doesn’t she stay here with us? Strange…”

After saying a few lines, she realized the person behind her did not respond. Dong Yao turned back to look.

Gu Shiqiu said, “Because she’s more sensible.”

Dong Yao: “?”

Gu Shiqiu did not explain. She only said, “You keep calling her sister. Call me sister too and let me hear it.”

Dong Yao said, “Why should I call you sister?”

Gu Shiqiu said, “Then why do you call her sister?”

“Because we’re not familiar, so I’m being polite,” Dong Yao said honestly.

“Do you not need to be polite with me?” Gu Shiqiu asked.

Dong Yao paused. “No.”

Gu Shiqiu’s brows lifted slightly, and her lips curved.

Gu Shiqiu was very satisfied with this reason.

Dong Yao continued opening the delivery. After opening everything, she set up a small table over the hospital bed and placed the congee and chicken soup on it. “Here, spoon.”

Gu Shiqiu took it.

Dong Yao sat on the sofa and ate the food she had ordered. Dong Yao had always preferred strong flavors, so naturally, what she ordered was also heavily flavored.

She was not eating at the same table as Gu Shiqiu. First, because the table on the hospital bed was too small and inconvenient for two people. Second, because if they were too close, she was afraid Gu Shiqiu would get greedy and want to eat Dong Yao’s greasy and spicy food.

Dong Yao had ordered twice-cooked pork, braised pork belly, and a serving of greens.

She had ordered quite a lot mainly because, from yesterday’s incident until now, Dong Yao had not eaten a single proper meal. Now, she was so hungry that, without exaggeration, she could swallow a whole cow.

Perhaps because she was hungry, this restaurant’s delivery tasted especially fragrant.

As Dong Yao ate, she nodded. Before she had even swallowed what was in her mouth, she eagerly picked up another chopstickful and stuffed it into her mouth.

Her cheeks puffed out from eating.

Gu Shiqiu was the complete opposite of Dong Yao, leisurely drinking her chicken soup.

One side ate elegantly. The other wolfed food down.

While drinking soup, Gu Shiqiu’s gaze always fell on Dong Yao. She really liked watching Dong Yao eat. Watching her eat gave Gu Shiqiu an especially good appetite.

That bland, tasteless chicken soup became something she drank a few more mouthfuls of simply because she watched Dong Yao eat.

After eating her fill, Dong Yao patted her stomach.

“Finished eating?” Gu Shiqiu asked.

Dong Yao nodded, looked at the dishes on the table that were almost completely empty, then seemed to finally remember to care a little about her image. “I was hungry. Usually, I don’t eat this much.”

Gu Shiqiu smiled.

Dong Yao said, “I really don’t eat this much. My stomach is very small.”

The person claiming her stomach was small had just eaten two servings of white rice plus three dishes.

Gu Shiqiu went along with her. “I know. You have a small appetite.”

Dong Yao coughed lightly and guiltily cleaned up the lunch boxes on the table.

Eating a lot was eating a lot. Lin Yunyi knew it, Zhong Ximei knew it, and many acquaintances in town knew it too.

Dong Yao had never thought about hiding the fact that she ate a lot in front of them. But just now, why had she awkwardly explained that to Gu Shiqiu?

Strange.

After cleaning up the lunch boxes, Dong Yao went out to throw away the trash. When she came back, she saw Gu Shiqiu sitting on the hospital bed, wearing gold-rimmed glasses, focused intently on a book.

The light in the room shone above her head, softening her entire figure. Perhaps because she was reading, she inexplicably gained a bit of scholarly air.

This was the first time Dong Yao had seen Gu Shiqiu wearing glasses, and she could not help looking a few more times.

Gu Shiqiu raised her head. “You’re back.”

Dong Yao walked over and glanced at the book on the table. “Reading?”

Gu Shiqiu nodded.

Dong Yao discovered that Gu Shiqiu really did not like playing with her phone. After such a long time, Dong Yao had not seen her touch it. When she had free time, her hobby was actually reading.

Dong Yao thought that the books Gu Shiqiu liked must be especially profound. World classics? Life philosophy?

Dong Yao suddenly wanted to understand what Gu Shiqiu liked and was interested in, so she asked, “What’s the title of the book you’re reading?”

“Back to the Villain’s Childhood,” Gu Shiqiu said without changing expression.

Time seemed to freeze for a second.

And Dong Yao nearly choked because of that book title.

Gu Shiqiu said, “It’s a bit of a coincidence. You said before that your first love was Chu Qingling. The male lead of this novel is also called that.”

Dong Yao: “…”

Was Gu Shiqiu doing this on purpose? She was absolutely doing this on purpose!

Dong Yao laughed awkwardly, stubbornly refusing to admit defeat. “That really is quite a coincidence. It’s not a very common name either. Looks like I have to remind my first love to properly read this novel, or who knows, maybe one day he’ll transmigrate into a book.”

Gu Shiqiu looked at her with a smile that was not quite a smile.

Dong Yao could no longer keep pretending and simply gave up. “A paper character can also be called a first love. There’s nothing wrong with what I said.”

Gu Shiqiu said, “So you like this type.”

Dong Yao hummed twice. “You read it too. Don’t you think this male lead is very charming?”

Gu Shiqiu recalled the plot of the book. Dong Yao’s first-love paper character was someone who would shut the female lead away at the drop of a hat, go crazy at the drop of a hat, and whose possessiveness would erode his reason at the drop of a hat.

“I super like this character setup. So scheming, and a bit yandere. It’s so good,” Dong Yao said, sounding a little excited.

Gu Shiqiu said, “You like scheming yanderes?”

Dong Yao said, “Yeah. In novels, of course I like them. But if I met one in real life, then I’d run immediately. Too scary.”

Gu Shiqiu looked at her and said nothing.

Dong Yao said, “What’s wrong? Do you think this male lead has no charm? Or do you think my taste is strange? This kind of character setup appears in a lot of novels. My taste isn’t strange. You just haven’t read enough novels. If you read more, you’ll know this is very common.”

Gu Shiqiu said, “If I had some similarities with Chu Qingling, would you run?”

Dong Yao froze, then laughed. “Gu Shiqiu, do you know that you have absolutely nothing to do with the words ‘scheming yandere,’ okay?”

Gu Shiqiu lowered her lashes slightly.

Dong Yao said, “If we have to talk about character types, I think you’re the kind of male second lead that often appears in TV dramas.”

Gu Shiqiu became interested. “Why the male second lead?”

“Well, male leads are usually the more distinctive type. Domineering, possessive, and they’ll suddenly force a kiss or something,” Dong Yao analyzed. “You basically don’t have those traits. You have quite a lot of male second lead traits instead.”

Gu Shiqiu asked, “What traits does the male second lead have?”

Dong Yao said, “Generally, the male second lead is gentle, considerate, and kind. His only flaw might be that he’s prone to loving someone he can’t have. But the male lead belongs to the female lead, and the male second lead belongs to the audience, so that’s pretty good too.”

Gu Shiqiu looked at her thoughtfully.

Dong Yao thought this topic had passed and they would not talk about it anymore. Unexpectedly, after a while, Gu Shiqiu asked again, “Then if I have the personality of a male second lead, will I also love someone I can’t have?”

Dong Yao did not react immediately.

“Will I?” Gu Shiqiu seemed to really want to hear the answer.

“In real life, gentleness seems to be more popular,” Dong Yao said, looking at her a little baffled. Why was Gu Shiqiu so caught up in such a meaningless topic?

“I see.” Gu Shiqiu nodded thoughtfully.

Dong Yao walked to the table and poured a cup of water. She had just taken one sip when she heard the person behind her ask, “In real life, gentle people are more popular. So, do you like gentle people?”

Dong Yao held the cup and turned back to look at her.

Gu Shiqiu asked, “Do you like them?”

Dong Yao choked on a mouthful of water, coughing until her face turned bright red.

No matter how she listened to Gu Shiqiu’s “Do you like them?” it sounded like “Do you like me?”

Only one word was different, but the meaning was worlds apart.

“Are you all right?” Gu Shiqiu looked worriedly at the person coughing until her face was red.

Dong Yao waved her hand and calmed down. “I’m fine.”

Dong Yao let out a long breath and put down the cup. After thinking and hesitating for quite a while, she said, “I like gentle people.”

Author’s Note:

Dong Yao: I like gentle people.

Gu Shiqiu: Are you confessing to me?