Extreme Pampering-Chapter 24 - Just be yourself

Chapter 24: Chapter 24: Just be yourself.

Chapter 24: Chapter 24: Just be yourself.

Despite the distance of a few meters, Shen Zhiyi’s words fell, and the light casting on her path flickered in response. Pei Yu raised his phone a bit higher, murmuring a low “Hmm.”

Xiaodong, the assistant, now realized that he was not the driver. Recalling the cautions drilled into her by the agent, she cleverly refrained from asking further and quietly slipped away.

Wrapped tight in a blanket, Shen Zhiyi’s damp hair clung to her cheeks. When she looked up, a faint puzzlement played in her eyes, “Mr. Pei, why have you come over?”

As he spoke, he had already come closer. Pei Yu saw her complexion, pale from the drenching, and his brow furrowed slightly. Without answering her question, he bent over to the driver’s seat to switch on the interior light, “Get in and change your clothes first.”

Shen Zhiyi, too, felt uncomfortable with the dampness on her body, and being seen in such a disheveled state by him was somewhat embarrassing. She climbed into the car and changed into a new set of stage clothes, the rustling of the garments indistinct as they rubbed against each other.

The car door was not shut tight. Although the scene inside was not clear, a bit of imagination-provoking sound was audible. Pei Yu slightly turned his face away, gazing into the boundless night with a vacant look in his eyes, his posture of looking afar conveying a sense of distance and indifference.

“Mr. Pei?”

At Shen Zhiyi’s voice, his standoffish demeanor changed. Pei Yu didn’t get into the car; he just opened the car door wider, his tall and slender figure blocking the light inside.

“Aren’t you getting in?”

Shen Zhiyi, worried he had been waiting too long, had rushed through changing her clothes. The traditional costume had several layers, and the outermost skirt’s belt was not tied, revealing a moon-white undergarment with light golden grass patterns at the neckline, setting off her snow-white neck.

Having just emerged from the water, her complexion was so white it was nearly translucent, her eyes moist as if veiled with a layer of tears, making one wonder if she was about to cry when she looked up.

The look in her eyes, as if brimming with tears, made Pei Yu falter. A dull ache throbbed in his chest, recalling the crying scenes from the drama—filled with sorrow or despair—and remembering the night she wept for another man.

In the midnight dreams that startled him awake because he dreamt of her crying, there was always a him, restless and drenched in sweat.

Shen Zhiyi was unaware that her current expression brought back certain memories for Pei Yu. All she felt was that the way he looked at her was too intense, heavy with things she could not understand.

Confused, she moved closer to him, but Pei Yu’s sudden move made her stop—his hand, cooled by the mountain wind, covered her eyes. The palm pressed against her damp lashes, his voice low and husky, “Don’t look at me like that.”

She didn’t know what was special about the way she looked at him, but obediently closed her eyes in his palm, “Okay, I won’t look.”

Suddenly, she heard a husky chuckle. His voice, with the timbre of metal and heavy with coldness, sounded as though it came from deep within his chest, possessing a unique rhythmic sense.

As he gently stroked her cheek, Pei Yu moved the hand that covered her eyes, saying with amusement, “I didn’t mean that.”

What did he mean then? Shen Zhiyi didn’t understand, but Pei Yu had no intention of elaborating further. He took a dry towel from nearby to dry her hair, his tone returning to its usual laziness. He answered her initial question, “I went to pick up a few bottles of wine from the vineyard on the way.”

Indeed, there was a famous vineyard nearby, and Shen Zhiyi didn’t doubt his excuse, “Then you should head back quickly, this place is far from Huating.”

“Hmm.”

He agreed but continued to dry her hair without haste, showing the unfamiliarity of someone tending to another for the first time.

Shen Zhiyi whispered, “I can do it myself.”

She wouldn’t dare to trouble him.

“Do you think I’m not tending to you well?”

He deliberately misinterpreted her, his face highlighted by the dome light looking nonchalant. His long, narrow eyes slightly narrowed, the fan-shaped eyelids at just the right curve that anyone could envy their perfection, his appearance so striking it could make women jealous.

“No,” Shen Zhiyi didn’t know if he was deliberately teasing her, but she seriously replied, “You did very well.”

She didn’t look up, unaware that Pei Yu’s lips curled up at her words, feeling only the weight on her head as he rested his chin on top and drawled, “Then is there a reward?”

A reward for this? Shen Zhiyi’s eyes widened in surprise; he hadn’t said it was paid labor.

She frowned, wanting to reject his aggressive marketing tactics, but Pei Yu seemed to anticipate her refusal. His fingers slid from her hair, catching her face as she tried to dodge, and gently bit her on the side of her neck.

It wasn’t painful, but the ticklish feeling was unbearable, and Shen Zhiyi froze instantly.

Somehow, they ended up entwined neck to neck. His faint agarwood scent, assertive like himself, enveloped Shen Zhiyi tightly. She suddenly remembered the mosquito repellent on her body and shrank back with embarrassment, “The smell on me… isn’t pleasant.”

“Hmm?” Pei Yu’s lips lifted slightly from her neck as if he’d just noticed, and he casually narrowed his eyes, “Then you should imbue yourself with more of my scent.”

Shooting night scenes on the mountain inevitably led to mosquito bites. Pei Yu tilted his head to kiss her earlobe and found a mosquito bite swelling behind her ear. His gaze darkened, and unhappily, he covered it with his own kiss marks.

“Is this movie about to finish filming?”

Shen Zhiyi, kissed into a daze with her mind turning to mush, responded slowly, “Yes, soon.”

Although the script had been changed, she wasn’t the female lead after all, and her part wasn’t that extensive. After this shoot ended, she couldn’t delay joining Director Meng’s next project.

She was more compliant at this moment, and Pei Yu pinched the back of her neck as if he were picking up a cat, “After it ends, accompany me to a dinner.”

Shen Zhiyi looked up, pondering for a moment before agreeing.

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Seemingly knowing what she was worried about, Pei Yu bent down again to kiss the corner of her lips and explained in a low voice, “It’s an elder’s birthday banquet, there won’t be any rumors spread.”

“Okay,” Shen Zhiyi thought for a bit, then told him, “That’s not what I’m worried about.”

She just wasn’t sure if she was suitable to stand by his side on such an occasion.

“Then what are you worried about?” Pei Yu took his time pinching her fingertips, “Afraid you’ll be tired?”

His focus always seemed to be on her, and Shen Zhiyi suddenly felt much more relaxed, giving him a small pursed-lip smile, “I’m not worried about anything now.”

Her smile made Pei Yu’s heart flutter, making him want to kiss her, to have her keep smiling at him like that.

He gently combed her long hair, slowly saying, “You just need to be yourself.”

Meeting Shen Zhiyi’s gaze, his lips slightly curved, his words were certain, “Even by my side, Pei Yu’s side, you are still Shen Zhiyi.”

The name Pei Yu willingly followed hers.

Shen Zhiyi stared at him, not sure if she had understood his words correctly and whether they were sincere or empty, but she clearly heard the rapid beating of her heart.

She was just Shen Zhiyi, only needing to be Shen Zhiyi.

Coming from Pei Yu’s mouth, it was as if he had become her backbone.