Chapter 491 - 273: A First Kiss of Several Minutes

Jiang Shuying officially announced she was terminating her contract with her former agency, Mengyang Culture.

Her move to Universal Entertainment drew quite a bit of attention.

Immediately after, Universal Entertainment made an official announcement.

They were investing 180 million to adapt the famous author Yi Shu’s novel, *Flowing Golden Years*.

The screenwriter was Qin Wen, and the director was Shen Yan.

Their previous collaboration, *My First Half of Life*, had been a massive ratings hit.

The two had previously joined Universal Entertainment on the down-low, taking on the roles of directors for the screenwriting and directing departments, respectively.

It had caused quite a stir among industry insiders.

No one expected them to be back in the game so soon.

The two were partnering up again, and on top of that, they were backed by a powerhouse like Universal Entertainment, whose rise has been ferocious.

Naturally, this drew close attention from many people.

Smelling blood in the water, numerous entertainment companies started pulling strings, trying to see if they could get a piece of the pie.

The three major platforms were also interested in investing to lock down the exclusive broadcasting rights for the show in advance.

Universal Entertainment soon announced the two female leads: Gu Pan and Jiang Shuying.

As for the other roles, they were all filled by actors with considerable fame.

The addition of Chen Daoming, in particular, added another layer of anticipation for the show.

This veteran of the film and television industry had starred in his fair share of hit dramas.

He even had a role in *Joyful Years*, which was currently airing.

However, some of Jiang Shuying’s fans were leaving dissatisfied comments under Universal Entertainment’s official blog.

"We can accept dual female leads, but on what grounds is Gu Pan the top-billed star?"

"Exactly! Universal Entertainment is being disgusting. Our Jiangjiang is clearly more famous. If you don’t change the billing, we’re boycotting the show!"

"This girl’s resources are insane. She debuted in a leading role, and from the official announcement for *Thirty Years Old*, they’re basically treating her as a female lead on the same level as Jiang Shuying."

"Veggies, calm down. Don’t stir up hate for Jiangjiang. We can’t afford to mess with this girl. She’s the new talent Universal Entertainment is pushing hard. She’s going to be their top actress!"

"..."

Seeing her more rational fans helping to quell the controversy, Jiang Shuying secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

’Others might not know, but how could she not know how doted on Gu Pan was?’

Originally, Zhang Xiaobo had wanted to take his time with the editing, but he couldn’t stand up to Qi Sheng’s eagerness to spoil his girlfriend.

He had been practically forced into the editing room and worked until his face was haggard.

There was nothing to be done. Who would dare disobey the big boss’s orders?

In the entire company, only Gu Pan received this kind of treatment.

As for Zong Lin?

’That girl is still in school; she needs to make a good impression on her teachers.’

On weekends, Zong Lin would always wander over to Sister Qu Man’s house.

Or she would run off to Nine Rooms Hall to hang out with Jiang Wanqiu.

As the youngest "sister," Zong Lin was quite doted on among Qi Sheng’s girlfriends.

Her little schemes were not lost on them.

If she didn’t have designs on Qi Sheng, why would she be so friendly with them?

Watching Qi Sheng and Jiang Wanqiu whispering to each other, occasionally engaging in some PDA with hugs and kisses, Zong Lin glumly tossed a handful of fish food into the pond, causing a school of koi to fight over it.

"Honey, how long are you planning on ’raising’ Linlin?"

Even Jiang Wanqiu couldn’t help but play the role of a persuader.

They had long gotten used to a certain someone’s promiscuous nature.

Adding Zong Lin to the mix wouldn’t make much of a difference.

"You go keep Ruirui company. I’m going to have a little chat with this girl."

Qi Sheng patted Jiang Wanqiu, and she obediently went to find Zong Rui.

"Come over, let’s talk."

Qi Sheng smiled and beckoned to Zong Lin, pouring her a cup of hot tea.

Although December in Shanghai was damp and cold,

a top-tier villa like Nine Rooms Hall had full-house floor heating as a basic feature.

In the very Japanese-style tea room, thanks to the air conditioning and floor heating,

there wasn’t the slightest chill. In fact, it was rather toasty.

"Brother-in-law, is something wrong?"

Zong Lin deliberately kept a straight face, putting extra emphasis on the term "brother-in-law."

After all, Qi Sheng had flirted with her when he gave her the watch, only to completely go silent afterward.

It left her a little confused.

Was Qi Sheng treating her as a younger sister, or did he have *those* kinds of feelings for her?

"I was thinking of giving you a female lead role, but seeing as you’re not very interested, I guess we can wait a few more years."

Qi Sheng chuckled and sipped his tea. ’Handling this girl is a piece of cake.’

"Really?"

Zong Lin’s eyes instantly lit up, and she couldn’t help but move closer to Qi Sheng.

She completely forgot the vow she had just made to herself to ignore a certain someone.

"It was a lie."

Qi Sheng looked down at his phone as if he hadn’t said anything at all.

"Brother-in-law~"

Zong Lin suddenly hugged Qi Sheng’s arm, her little face blushing shyly as she acted cute.

"I was wrong just now. Please forgive me."

"This isn’t very sincere!"

Qi Sheng enjoyed the pressure from his little sister-in-law, feeling that it was just a tiny bit inferior to her sister’s.

"Then what do you want?"

Zong Lin shot him a look, a mix of shyness and annoyance.

"If someone were to give me a little kiss, I might just remember the specifics of that project."

’With Zong Lin’s current Affection Level, getting a kiss on the cheek shouldn’t be difficult.’

[Zong Lin Affection Level: 87]

He was getting very close to the point where she would "drop gold coins."

’Not that Qi Sheng was short on money, but who would complain about having too much?’

Besides, Zong Lin was a peerless beauty with S-Level looks and an S-Level figure.

’If I don’t take care of her, wouldn’t some other son of a bitch get lucky later on?’

"Then close your eyes!"

Zong Lin’s face was red, and she didn’t dare to look at Qi Sheng.

"We need to close our eyes for a kiss on the cheek?"

Qi Sheng figured the little girl was just shy, so he obediently closed his eyes.

"Phew..."

Seeing Qi Sheng close his eyes, Zong Lin’s nervousness eased slightly.

It wasn’t the first or second time she had been in contact with Qi Sheng.

But this was the first time Zong Lin had ever studied him from such a close distance.

His brows were strong and sword-like, his lips red, his teeth white.

A high-bridged nose, with features as sharp and defined as a sculpture.

He was a hundred times more handsome than any of those male celebrities.

A head of refreshing, short, choppy hair paired with a chiseled, handsome face.

Masculine yet beautiful, he was the kind of peerless pretty boy who could make a woman’s heart flutter with a single glance.

Zong Lin’s heartbeat, which had just started to calm down, couldn’t help but start racing again.

Especially when she saw Qi Sheng’s lips.

Plump and tender red, with a perfect shape.

Just looking at them inspired a powerful desire to kiss them.

Zong Lin grit her teeth and decided to just follow her instincts.

Qi Sheng was just starting to wonder.

’Does a kiss on the cheek really require this much mental preparation?’

Just as he was about to open his eyes, he felt a sneak attack on his lips.

Qi Sheng was a bit stunned. ’This girl seems to have a screw loose.’

’I told her to kiss my cheek, and she uses her ultimate?’

Seeing Zong Lin kissing him clumsily, completely unsure of what the next step was,

as an experienced old master,

Qi Sheng naturally had an obligation to guide Zong Lin and let her experience the wonder of a first kiss.

It wasn’t too much to say that Qi Sheng was a virgin when it came to kisses that lasted several minutes, right?

Zong Lin was breathing rapidly, her chest heaving up and down.

The waves were magnificent, a truly spectacular sight.

When they say "gifted," they’re talking about her.

Qi Sheng subconsciously climbed the mountain peak.

The Zong Lin in his arms instantly deflated like a punctured ball, going completely limp.

"Ahem..."

Zong Rui had wanted to happily share her joy with Qi Sheng about becoming prettier.

Only to walk in on the two of them in the tea room, kissing passionately.

"Mmph... Sister’s here!"

Zong Lin, with a sudden burst of strength from who knows where, pushed Qi Sheng away.

She shyly lowered her head, not daring to meet her sister’s eyes.

"Alright, alright. It’s not like I was planning on blaming you."

Zong Rui shot Qi Sheng a glare.

She took her little sister’s hand and whispered into her ear.

Qi Sheng glanced at Zong Lin’s Affection Level.

As expected, it had reached 89.

To break 90, the most important step was, of course, indispensable.

Coincidentally, tomorrow was Zong Lin’s birthday.

Qi Sheng planned to prepare thoroughly, aiming to conquer Zong Lin in one fell swoop.

"Honey, are you really planning to let Linlin play the female lead?"

Zong Rui was a little worried. "Linlin has only been taking acting classes for less than half a year. Isn’t it a bit too soon?"

"It’s just a low-budget web drama. The losses won’t be that big."

Qi Sheng waved his hand dismissively. "Besides, our Linlin has a real talent for acting. Being the female lead of a low-budget web drama will be a piece of cake for her."

"That’s good. No matter how low-budget, it’ll still cost tens of millions. I don’t want you to lose money because of this girl."

Only then did Zong Rui feel relieved.

She had no idea that the money Qi Sheng had spent on her was enough for Zong Lin to star as the female lead in four or five major productions.

But Qi Sheng definitely wouldn’t be taking a loss.

As Zong Rui also joined the ranks of his peerless girlfriends,

the system’s reward had increased to 1.165 billion per month, with a daily income of nearly 40 million.

"Sis, don’t look down on me, okay!"

"My acting is really good. I’m just a little bit worse than Sister Panpan."

Zong Lin lifted her chin in a tsundere-like huff. She was often praised by her teachers at school.

Luckily, having someone at home like Gu Pan, who was a better actress, kept her from getting a big head.

"Alright, alright, you’re the best."

Zong Rui placated her with a couple of perfunctory words before turning her full attention to Qi Sheng.

"Hey, where did this great beauty come from?"

How could Qi Sheng not understand what Zong Rui meant? He played along, feigning surprise.

"I’ll give you that, you’ve got good taste."

Zong Rui shot Qi Sheng a satisfied look.

"Wow, Sis, you really have gotten prettier!"

Zong Lin also came over in surprise. Looking at her sister’s stunningly beautiful face, which had undergone what could be called a qualitative change, she couldn’t help but start gossiping.

"Sis, how did you change so much? Do you have some secret beauty regimen?"

"A secret regimen?"

Zong Rui shot Qi Sheng a glare. "You’ll find out in the future."

Although Zong Lin was very close with them, no one had told her about this kind of private matter.

Mainly because it was too embarrassing to talk about, and no one felt comfortable explaining the specifics.

Zong Lin muttered in dissatisfaction, "So stingy! I’m your actual sister!"

"It’s because you’re my actual sister that I don’t want you to jump into this pit of fire."

Zong Rui sighed silently to herself.

’The thought that the Qingqing and Chuchu sisters were also with Qi Sheng made her feel a little better.’

’Plus, there was the answer Qi Sheng had given them.’

’Marriage certificates and weddings—none of it would be missing.’

’There was a big age gap between her and her sister. When the time came, they could just say Qi Sheng was fickle.’

’He’d kick her, the older sister, to the curb, and then turn around and marry her younger sister.’

’Anyway, Qi Sheng was thick-skinned; he wasn’t afraid of having mud slung at him.’

’As for their parents, they would probably—for the sake of the children—’

’—hold their noses and accept their complicated relationship.’

’But the thought of being with her sister still made Zong Rui feel a pang of shame.’

’She didn’t really mind being with Qu Man or the other sisters.’

’As long as Qi Sheng was happy, she could accept it.’

’But Zong Lin was different. As her older sister, she was practically half a mother to her.’

’Knowing Qi Sheng as she did, after her sister’s birthday tomorrow...’

’...there would be one less ’girl’ in the world.’