Li Junyao stormed home in a rage. That woman. How dare that woman reject him, and humiliate him like that.
A flood of vicious ideas surged up in his mind, but every one of them ran into a mountain standing across the path, and that mountain was Gu Qianran. As long as that woman existed, everything he did would be pointless. Why should all the benefits go to some woman. Should a woman not stay at home and serve a man.
Seething, Li Junyao's eyes suddenly lit. As if he had thought of something, he dialed a number. It was a friend he had met at a party, a man cut from the same cloth, who always had strange things on hand.
That woman must be a hypocritical slut. As long as he possessed her, she would definitely obey him in everything. Women were all like that.
The call connected quickly. "Hello. Brother Yao."
Li Junyao gave a sly and greasy smile and asked, "Xiao Ji, do you have any…"
Bai Ziyuan felt a little awkward and sneezed, and in the next instant there was an extra jacket on her shoulders. Gu Qianran frowned at her. "The mall is cold. Remember to wear more."
Bai Zilu imitated her with a sneeze and then looked at Ji Tang. All right, Ji Tang was not wearing a jacket either. Ji Tang, the straight arrow, handed Bai Zilu the hot water bottle in her hand. "Do you have a cold. Drink more hot water."
Hugging the hot water bottle, Bai Zilu wore a face full of woe.
The four of them arrived at the movie theater. The two of the Bai family picked a horror film in perfect sync, the one with the best word of mouth, called The Pen Fairy and Sadako, A Thing or Two. The poster showed two ghosts grabbing each other by the throat, the scene very bloody.
Yes, that title was absurd. Seeing the name of Li Junze among the investors, Gu Qianran fell into thought. Could this guy do something serious for once. Could such a literary title really belong to a ghost movie. She suddenly felt deep doubt about the content.
The opening scene showed a group of students in an abandoned school, playing a game to summon Sadako and the Pen Fairy and intending to see which one was stronger.
Watching the six person squad spin a pen while chanting, Gu Qianran was completely confused. So they really were going to summon both Sadako and the Pen Fairy at the same time.
All right then. Truly hardcore scheduling.
With a flash of blood red light, two spirits wrapped in black miasma were summoned. The six students were very excited and began to make a wish. "Pen Fairy, Pen Fairy, please defeat Sadako."
The Pen Fairy revealed a delicate face within the black mist and asked, puzzled, "Why."
A boy pointed at the array. "Because we have a contract array. You must fulfill one wish of the holder of the array."
Suddenly another mass of black mist flipped the contract array over with one kick. In an ethereal voice she said, "All right. Now there is no contract." Then she revealed an innocent, fair face.
Gu Qianran: …
Bai Ziyuan: …
Bai Zilu: …
Was this contract array a joke. How could a horror movie be shot so comically. How was she supposed to lean into Ji Tang's arms like this. Was she supposed to be scared by a delicate beauty, or startled by a soft and cute girl.
The six students panicked and scattered. Sadako and the Pen Fairy began a rampage, which actually made Bai Zilu a bit satisfied.
Although only one of the six died, it finally had a horror film flavor, did it not?
Just when she was ready to be scared, she saw Sadako collapse into the Pen Fairy's arms and the Pen Fairy hold her in flustered confusion.
A line of blood words appeared on the overturned contract array kicked by Sadako. This is the price for destroying the contract. Unless all the contractors die, the contract breaker will be annihilated within seven days.
Though it was a horror scene, the lighting was strangely straight male. Perhaps the film was told from a lesbian perspective, yet in that moment the two ghosts looked like a couple.
Seeing the same confusion in Bai Ziyuan's eyes, Gu Qianran confirmed it was not just her. It seemed this film really was peculiar. Had they tossed in Western elements again.
Were these not two Eastern ghosts.
The Pen Fairy swore solemnly to help Sadako kill those five students. Sadako leaned weakly against the Pen Fairy like a pitiful little thing.
The plot that followed was comparatively scary. The camera followed the students. Strange occurrences, companions dying in eerie ways, and a sudden surge of background music pushed the theater's mood to a peak of fear.
Bai Ziyuan had long since buried herself in Gu Qianran's arms and did not dare look. Gu Qianran suspected two different people had shot the two halves. One was a straight faced comedian, one was a master of horror.
Having seen many ghost films in her previous life, Gu Qianran was not rattled and even had the mood to soothe Bai Ziyuan. Ji Tang beside her was even more relaxed, entirely at odds with the tension, the only sounds in the theater besides the effects being her regular popcorn crunches. Perhaps, for her, the things at home had been far scarier than ghosts.
If you cut out the opening, this film was not bad at all. So thought Gu Qianran, until she realized the plot was drifting. The look in Sadako's eyes when she gazed at the Pen Fairy was about to sprout pink bubbles, and the Pen Fairy kept delaying the last kill. The atmosphere between them grew very odd.
Gu Qianran: I slowly type out a question mark.
She wanted to shake Sadako's little head to see what on earth that creature was thinking. "Sister, you are a vengeful spirit. Not a lovestruck fool. And the Pen Fairy being so protective, is that for real. So this is what you are like, Pen Fairy."
In the end, Sadako successfully lifted the contract and lived a blissful, shameless life with the Pen Fairy.
Gu Qianran's expression at the end was wonderfully complex. She wondered how powerful the backing of the Li family must be to get this film past review. Although in recent years a same sex marriage act had been in preparation, this romance in ghost film clothing was awfully blatant.
She suddenly began to doubt Li Junze's orientation and taste, and also how exactly the box office had gotten so high.
Wrapped in Gu Qianran's coat, Bai Ziyuan peeked at her anxiously. She also had not known the film would turn into two ghosts in sweet love at the end. What if Ran Ran misunderstood something.
Gu Qianran showed no abnormality, still wearing that half smile that was not quite a smile. Noticing that Bai Ziyuan was sneaking looks at her, and guessing she was shy because of the film, Gu Qianran mischievously leaned in close.
"What are you thinking, little cutie. Staring at me like that." Her voice carried a teasing lilt.
Bai Ziyuan jumped and answered guiltily, "N nothing." She thought Gu Qianran had discovered something, but that expression said she was teasing again.
A little sulky, she gulped her milk tea. The cup was soon empty. Another cup was handed over at once. Without thinking she took it and drank, only to notice that Gu Qianran was staring at her in surprise.
"Uh. That is my milk tea. I thought you would change to a new straw." Seeing Bai Ziyuan drink with gusto, her milk tea gone by reflex, Gu Qianran had handed over the cup she had only sipped twice.
The tips of Bai Ziyuan's ears went red again. Panic stricken, she looked at Gu Qianran, mind blank. "Was this not an indirect kiss. After that kind of movie, now this. This was bad. She would definitely be misunderstood." "Ran Ran. This was an accident." She became unexpectedly tongue tied.
Gu Qianran narrowed her eyes and, in her mind, checked the final box. Willing to share the same straw with her.
In an instant the thoughts in her heart clicked into place. She did not like Bai Ziyuan being around that scumbag. She liked to cover her. She did not mind anything she did. So she had long since, without realizing it, fallen for this little cutie.
Was this just craving her body. This was liking. She smiled with pleasure, patted Bai Ziyuan's head, and answered in a good mood, "Of course I know, little cutie."
The deliberately soft tail of her words sent a shiver of sweetness through Bai Ziyuan.
Witnessing it all, Bai Zilu wore the smile of a mother and looked at the sleep heavy Ji Tang with bitter disappointment.
"Straight as steel. Woman, you are the straightest of the straight."
At the Li house, Li Junze looked with satisfaction at the rising box office. He had said so. Who would not want to watch pretty big sisters fall in love.
As a lily fan, he smiled like someone skipping out on taxes.