Chapter 870 - 869: I Want to Kiss You

Eight o’clock.

The summer night falls late, and it’s just on the verge of darkness now.

The rush to complete the play finally came to an end, as photographers gradually backed out. The three live-streaming rooms merged into one, needing some time for reorganization, so they gave the guests a break and took the cameras to film the ancient town and the slow exit of the extras.

This time, there were a lot of extras, and they needed to be briefly introduced with some camera time.

Just as the photographers and staff left, Mu Qiu let out a breath she was holding, instantly transforming from a dignified Empress to an ordinary tourist in ancient costume visiting a scenic spot.

She dramatically walked back into the room and sat down, quickly unbuttoning her costume’s collar and removing the outer garment. By the time Cheng Zhirang came in and closed the door, she’d stripped down to just her underlayer, with the outer garment loosely draped over her shoulders.

"Brother Cheng, wipe your sweat, it’s so hot, my goodness!"

In the height of summer, wearing such thick costumes and getting into character — dedicated actors truly have it rough.

The tissues on the table made a rustling sound as she grabbed them, wiping her face, arms, back, and chest, then gesturing to Cheng Zhirang, who was also unbuttoning his clothes to cool off.

"Wipe yourself, do you still have that fan? Could you fan me?"

Cheng Zhirang opened his outer garment, leaving only the white inner layer, which was already soaked through. Yet he appeared composed, wiped himself with tissues, then picked up the fan and started fanning her.

Wiping sweat and then feeling the fan breeze, it was refreshing.

A hand gently covered her forehead.

"It’s a bit hot, your hair is wet."

"This time I truly experienced the hardships of being an actor. Don’t worry, when you go for shoots, I’ll definitely visit you to give moral support."

She turned around, her white corset unexpectedly coming into his view.

"Oh, even the corset is wet, do you have a spare?" He only glanced and quickly looked away, maintaining the demeanor of an unflappable gentleman.

Mu Qiu shook her head, resting her head on the nearby table, her clothes hanging off her shoulders, teetering as if she just awoke from a midday nap with an air of languid allure.

"Come closer."

She pulled him by the waist belt towards her, then grabbed some tissues, parted the inner lapels of his robe, and reached in to wipe his sweat.

The tissues quickly absorbed the sweat as soon as they touched his abs, getting soaked after a couple of swipes.

After two or three changes of tissue, she finally wiped him clean, then grabbed the fan from him to fan him.

"Feeling cooler now? These clothes could be wrung dry."

Really, the semi-transparency is quite attractive.

Cheng Zhirang nodded, running his fingers through her hair as she tended to him.

Her half-unclothed, propped up at the window, teasing with a fan gently — he’d never seen her like this before, it was quite captivating.

But —

"Qiuqiu, you can fan without taking clothes off."

Mu Qiu suddenly opened his robe, revealing his fine physique, and said seriously, "But fanning like this is more efficient, you’ll cool down faster."

As she spoke, she reached in again with tissues to wipe the sweat off his waist.

The tightly wrapped roundness of her corset was practically in his face.

Sitting and standing, their height difference was evident, and in this position, unless he pretended to look at the scenery, he really couldn’t avoid it.

Mu Qiu was busy wiping his sweat when Cheng Zhirang suddenly hugged her tightly.

She let out a gasp, her position on the chair shifted, her face planted into his abs, and her softness against a slightly firm spot.

Mu Qiu & Cheng Zhirang both froze: "......"

Two seconds later, Mu Qiu spoke with difficulty, "Brother Cheng, isn’t this a bit inappropriate right now?"

"..." Cheng Zhirang felt a headache coming on, quickly righted her by the shoulders, distancing them a bit.

"Sorry, I didn’t expect..."

"If you thought about it and still did it, then evolution must have taken place. I didn’t mind, heat-induced biological changes are normal."

She coughed, quickly retracting her hands, turned away, and stopped fanning him, using the fan vigorously on herself instead.

Her cheeks turned pink, yet she claimed she didn’t mind.

Cheng Zhirang lowered his gaze with a smile, then suddenly bent down and picked her up, sitting down himself, letting her sit on his lap.

Mu Qiu: "What are you doing?"

His beautiful eyes, like they’re soaked in clear springs, looked at her closely, tender and bewitching. In this situation, she couldn’t bear to refute anything he said.

"I want to kiss you, is that okay?"

She didn’t answer verbally but wrapped her arms around him, licking his lips.

Kissing was an eruption of the burgeoning ambiguity, transitioning pure flirtation into a heated passion.

Cheng Zhirang had excellent self-control. Though his actions seemed as if he wanted to swallow her whole, when it was kissing, it was only kissing, nothing more.

Before long, having just cooled down a bit, another layer of sweat appeared. Released, Mu Qiu clung to him breathlessly, asking him to fan her.

Petals heavy with dew, the thin fabric revealing the sweat beneath.

Cheng Zhirang toyed with this verse in his mind, gently parting her damp hair, fanning her.

Mu Qiu still remembered the time, boldly stuffing tissues into her corset to wipe her sweat, then asked, "Isn’t it time to go out?"

"Yes, we can go out. Wear your clothes, I’ll open the doors and windows."

Clothes were not easy to put on, as she fastened the inner clasps, she suddenly thought —

The way they opened windows for ventilation and dressed seemed like a scene after a daytime tryst.

The strange feeling rose and fell, as they dressed and went out, Qingyin Pavilion’s extras had already withdrawn. Turning out onto the main road by the waterway, they finally encountered familiar faces.

In the time they delayed, the sky that was previously on the verge of darkness had now fully darkened, and lights illuminated the ancient town.

Every building had a string of little lights, outlining their shapes. There were also similar colorful lights along both sides of the waterway, like a long path, accompanied by brighter streetlamps.

The entire ancient town was brightly lit, with lights reflected on the water’s surface, breathtakingly beautiful.

The staff waited for them, leading them towards the end of the waterway. The closer they got over there, the clearer the lights, along with voices of conversation and laughter.

The extras were nowhere in sight, and in the absence of the afternoon’s market stalls, the street felt a bit empty. The day’s hustle had turned into a serene tranquility, making it a perfect place for a post-dinner stroll.

"There’s actually such a big tree here?!"

Obscured by all the extras and stalls in the afternoon, she hadn’t noticed it. Behind a long stone bench by the waterway, there stood a tree so thick it would take three people holding hands to encircle it. While the trunk wasn’t particularly distinct, under the night lights, the lush canopy was unmistakable, adorned with many fluttering red ribbons and wooden plaques. As the wind blew, they clinked together melodiously.

She ran over to sit under the tree, motioning for Cheng Zhirang to join her, then asked the photographer to take a picture for them.

"Taking a photo in ancient costume under a big tree at a tourist spot—this is probably a once-in-a-lifetime experience, taking a picture to preserve it."