Chapter 139
Chapter 139
“Stay close to me. Don’t let Xie Lanchen see you.”
Ning Xi shushed the cameraman following her, then crept sneakily toward the rooftop.
The corners of her lips curved up, her expression filled with eager anticipation.
[Looks like Xiao Xi is about to do something bad.]
[Hahahaha, Ning Xi always makes that face before she teases someone.]
On the rooftop.
Xie Lanchen stood in the wind for quite a while before his heartbeat slowly returned to normal, and the turbulent emotions inside him seemed to gradually settle as well.
He had thought that after spending all this time together, he could now face being around Ning Xi calmly.
Who would have thought that just because Ning Xi had accidentally used his cup, he would lose his composure to such an extent?
Xie Lanchen felt a little frustrated with himself.
He was afraid Ning Xi would notice his panic.
And afraid she wouldn’t notice his feelings.
For a moment, his thoughts were a complete mess.
“Xiao Xie!!!!”
Just then, the voice of the person who had disturbed the surface of his heart rang out behind him without warning.
Xie Lanchen’s mind buzzed, and he turned around on instinct.
In the next second, that person lunged toward his arms, her sweet, fresh scent landing on his heart even faster than the wind.
Xie Lanchen stiffened all over.
But Ning Xi stopped when she was still a dozen centimeters away from him, then reached toward his back.
Her face was full of anxious urgency.
“Oh no, oh no, I think there’s a bug on your back! Hurry and turn around so I can catch it for you.”
Ning Xi felt she had brought out a full one hundred percent of her acting skills.
Sure enough.
After Xiao Xie heard her, he only paused for a moment before obediently turning around.
Ning Xi made a show of touching Xie Lanchen’s back.
“Look.”
When Xie Lanchen’s gaze fell on her tightly clenched fist, Ning Xi opened her palm.
Looking at the empty air in her hand, she said,
“Look. A bug.”
After saying that, she lifted her head to look at Xie Lanchen, wanting to see his expression after being pranked.
Unexpectedly, the corners of Xie Lanchen’s lips were pressed tight, and no emotion could be read from his face.
He looked very serious.
Huh?
Ning Xi opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but the words had only just reached her throat.
In the next second, a tiny curve appeared at the corner of Xie Lanchen’s lips.
Then it bloomed completely, faint ripples of light shimmering in his eyes.
Only then did Ning Xi realize she had almost been tricked by Xie Lanchen just now.
“You…”
She had only gotten one word out when she remembered that she had tricked Xie Lanchen first. Ning Xi immediately made a sharp turn, switching from defense to offense as she began to interrogate him.
“Didn’t you say you were going to take out the trash? You were gone for so long, I thought someone had stuffed you into a sack and carried you off.”
Xie Lanchen’s heart, which had been in chaos, somehow calmed strangely the moment he saw Ning Xi.
His lashes lowered slightly, a faint smile melting into his bright black eyes. “Where would they find a sack that big?”
Eh?
How big would a sack have to be to fit an adult?
Wait, why were they discussing sacks now?!
Ning Xi’s brain spun at high speed, but her mouth was faster than her mind.
“Then I’ll go find a sack right now and carry you off myself!”
She put on a fierce, threatening look, baring her claws and waving her hands.
But in someone’s eyes, all he saw was this: the sunlight was beautiful, and she looked beautiful when she smiled.
The wind roared noisily, brushing past Ning Xi’s cheeks and trembling as it echoed through Xie Lanchen’s chest.
The corners of Xie Lanchen’s lips lifted slightly, his voice soft.
“No need for a sack. I’m willing to go with Teacher Ning.”
His tone even seemed rather expectant.
Ning Xi, who was currently trying to organize her words so she could continue threatening Xie Lanchen: “Eh?”
She had no moves left. She really had no moves left.
This Xiao Xie didn’t play by the rules at all.
For once, Ning Xi was at a loss for words. Pretending to sigh in exasperation, she said,
“Oh, I really… I mean, honestly… oh, I… you… honestly, you’re just…”
Drama queen mode: activated.
The rippling laughter in Xie Lanchen’s eyes could no longer be held back.
The atmosphere was relaxed, yet somehow threaded with a faint sweetness.
Ning Xi was in an excellent mood.
For some reason, she felt most at ease whenever she was with Xiao Xie.
And…
Even before seeing Xiao Xie, just the thought that they would meet soon would stir a secret little anticipation and happiness in her heart.
She couldn’t control that feeling.
Nor did she want to.
Ning Xi glanced at Xie Lanchen, then looked away again. Her pretty almond eyes curved into crescents, her pupils bright and sparkling like brilliant diamonds.
“Did you come up to this rooftop to admire the view?”
Ning Xi looked out at the scenery ahead.
Without any buildings blocking the way, her field of vision was much wider. From a distance, the vivid blue sky and lush green trees wove together into an breathtakingly beautiful painting.
It really was gorgeous!
Xie Lanchen did not answer right away.
He turned his head to look at Ning Xi beside him.
From this close, he could even see her lashes fluttering with each blink, dark as raven feathers, like butterflies in flight.
The corners of his lips lifted unconsciously.
After a brief pause, he said softly, “It wasn’t for the view…”
At the same moment, Ning Xi’s voice rang out.
“Ahhh, I found the perfect spot! The view from here has to be even better!!! Come on!!!”
Before she had even finished speaking, Ning Xi had already set off cheerfully toward what she considered the “perfect viewing spot.”
The pale purple ribbon tied at the ends of her hair fluttered in the wind.
As Ning Xi turned, it spun through the air.
Like a dragonfly skimming the surface of water, it brushed past the corner of Xie Lanchen’s eye.
It lingered for less than a second.
Yet Xie Lanchen felt as though a feather had stroked across the tip of his heart.
His throat itched faintly.
[Ahhhhhhh, oh my god!!! That ribbon brushing past the corner of his eye was a stroke of genius!!!!!]
[God-tier shot! Not even an idol drama could film a scene this beautiful!!!!]
[I’m dead! I’m dead!]
[I’ve spent ten years killing fish at the market. I thought my heart was already dead, but when I saw that moment with the ribbon just now, my heart came back to life! And now I’m shipping them!]
[What a considerate ribbon. It didn’t brush his chest, didn’t brush his throat, didn’t brush his lips-it just had to brush his eyes!!! Who understands the sheer value of a ribbon brushing past someone’s eyes!!!!]
[Blindfold play. (I hope the next time I understand something instantly, it’s not here.)]
[So steamy, so steamy, so steamy, so steamy.]
[This is exactly why Xi-Lan Flower hits so hard!!!!]
[For my sake, Ning Xi and Xie Lanchen, please get together.]
The moment Ning Xi’s hair ribbon brushed past the corner of Xie Lanchen’s eye quickly shot onto the trending searches, soaring straight to number one.
The popularity of the Xi-Lan Flower CP had completely pulled far ahead of every other CP in domestic entertainment.
And the most astonishing thing was that there was surprisingly little overlap between the CP fans and Ning Xi’s solo stans.
From this alone, it was clear just how terrifying Ning Xi’s ability to gain fans on the variety show You Are My Blessing had become.
Some talent agencies had already learned through various channels that Ning Xi’s contract with her original agency, Shengshi, was about to expire and that she had not renewed it.
Originally, they had still been watching to see what her relationship with Shengshi was like. After all, the two sides had been deeply tied together in the past, and Ning Xi had seemed to have genuine affection for her old company.
Now, however, they were already getting restless.
If Shengshi was going to leave such an explosively popular money tree sitting there without renewing her contract as soon as possible, then surely they couldn’t be blamed for trying to poach her, right?
They were confident they could offer artist contract terms far more generous than Shengshi’s!
…
As for online public opinion and what everyone else was thinking, Ning Xi, who was still recording the variety show at that moment, naturally had no idea.
In fact, she did not even know about the little entanglement between her hair ribbon and Xie Lanchen.
“Oh, right, Xiao Xie. Did you say something just now?”
Ning Xi vaguely remembered that when she had started talking earlier, Xie Lanchen seemed to have spoken too.